FR2813280A1 - Bottle neck has external thread on to which internally threaded stopper can be fitted, projections on thread braking stopper as it is screwed from intermediate position to fully screwed up position - Google Patents

Abstract

The bottle neck (4) has an external thread on to which an internally threaded stopper can be fitted. Projections (10a, 10b) on the thread brake the stopper as it is screwed from an intermediate position to a fully screwed up position. Independent claims are included for: (a) the combination of the bottle and stopper and (b) the stopper.

Description

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The invention relates to a container neck, a cap, of the type comprising a respectively external, internal thread, a container (empty or at least partially filled with a certain content) comprising such a neck, as well as an assembly comprising a container. and a cap.

The invention applies especially to the case where the end of the screwing of the stopper on the neck of the container requires a greater tightening torque than at the start of the screwing.

This occurrence may occur in particular when, at the end of the screwing, a protective cover for the contents of the container is opened.

Container necks are already known on the outer face of which there is a thread for mounting by screwing a plug, which is provided with a skirt on the inner face of which there is a thread complementary to that of the neck.

Caps are also known comprising - a support part intended to be associated with the neck of the container, comprising the skirt and the internal thread, and - a closing / opening part intended to be associated with the support part and capable of being moved - in particular pivoting - between a closed position and an open position.

Finally, containers are known which are closed by a cover intended to protect the contents of the container.

This cover is for example in the form of a thin sheet of material such as for example aluminum or equivalent, or an aluminum-based complex or equivalent, and secured to the rim of the neck, in particular by welding, such only by induction.

One of the ways of clearing the opening of the neck of the container thus sealed is by perforating the seal.

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 This perforation can be obtained for example by the action on said cover of one or more pointed and / or cutting prominences located on the internal face of the support part of the stopper and facing the cover.

In such an embodiment, before the first use (and the perforation of the cover), the stopper is placed on the sealed neck of the container in an intermediate screwing position - of the support part - in which the prominence is not in contact with the seal.

For the first use, the plug is screwed from this intermediate screwing position to a fully screwed position, so that the support part of the plug - in this case its transverse wall - is brought closer to the cover, thus allowing the sharp and / or sharp prominence of perforating the said seal.

It is understood that with such a system, the container filled with the contents and sealed is closed and manufactured with the stopper in the intermediate screwing position. It is in this situation that the filled, sealed and capped container is transported, stored, offered for sale, purchased by the user and then stored by the latter until first use.

The systems which have just been described pose certain problems.

If screwing the plug between the intermediate screwing position and the fully screwed position is possible with a small torque, this can lead to an accidental complete screwing of the plug, causing the perforation of the cover to be improperly perforated before the first real use.

In this case, once the plug is screwed into the fully screwed position, unscrewing does not require significant torque either, so that the plug can be unscrewed inadvertently.

If, on the contrary, the torque necessary for screwing the cap is high, the positioning of the cap on the container neck is made more difficult.

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 The invention therefore aims to remedy these problems.

To this end, and according to a first aspect, the invention provides a container neck of the type comprising on the external face of its wall a thread intended for screwing a plug having a skirt provided with an internal thread, the neck comprising , integrated into the thread, at least one brake projection on the plug.

The purpose of this projection is to slow down the screwing, the unscrewing of the plug over a certain stroke having on the one hand the fully screwed end on the one hand and an intermediate screwing position on the other hand, so that the mounting of the plug on the neck to the intermediate screwing position can be produced with a relatively low torque, while the screwing of the plug from the intermediate position to the fully screwed position and, conversely, unscrewing the plug from the fully screwed position to 'at the intermediate position requires a higher screwing / unscrewing torque.

According to other characteristics, the projection protrudes from the wall of the neck between two successive steps of a thread of the thread; it extends in the radial direction over a distance less than that of the thread, the said projection not projecting beyond the thread but being housed in the bottom of the thread.

In one embodiment, the projection is located substantially at mid-depth, radially, of the thread. It is located circumferentially, for example on the order of a few degrees of angle.

The neck may have several projections spaced from each other circumferentially.

In one embodiment, a first projection is located along the thread so as to be in engagement with the plug after approximately at least half a turn. In one embodiment, the thread comprises a thread forming substantially two turns, a first projection being located substantially half a turn after the start

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 of the net and a second projection being located substantially a quarter turn after the first projection.

The braking projection (s) just mentioned came from manufacturing during the production of the neck of the container or of the container, the mold having an appropriate shape.

According to a second aspect, the invention provides a container comprising a collar with a braking projection as just described. This container is intended to be at least partially filled with a certain content. It may for example be a food or cosmetic or maintenance or pharmaceutical or other product, in liquid or pasty form.

Furthermore, this container can be closed with a perforable seal during the first use.

According to a third aspect, the invention provides a stopper provided with a skirt on the internal face of which there is a thread intended for screwing on the neck of a container comprising on its external face a thread complementary to that of the stopper, the plug comprising, integrated into the thread, at least one braking projection of the plug.

The purpose of this projection is to slow down the screwing, the unscrewing of the plug over a certain stroke having on the one hand the fully screwed end on the one hand and an intermediate screwing position on the other hand, so that the mounting of the plug on the neck to the intermediate screwing position can be produced with a relatively low torque, while the screwing of the plug from the intermediate position to the fully screwed position and, conversely, unscrewing the plug from the fully screwed position to 'at the intermediate position requires a higher screwing / unscrewing torque.

The characteristics of the projection described in relation to the neck of the first aspect of the invention can be transposed to the stopper.

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 According to another characteristic, this plug comprises - a support part intended to be associated with the neck of the container, comprising the skirt and the internal thread, and - a closing / opening part intended to be associated with the support part and capable of being moved - in particular pivoting - between a closed position and an open position.

In addition, according to another characteristic, the stopper comprises one or more pointed and / or cutting prominences on the internal face of the support part, intended for the perforation of a seal secured to the rim of the container neck, during the first opening.

Finally, according to a fourth aspect, the invention provides an assembly comprising a container neck or a container with a neck and external thread, and a skirted cap provided with an internal thread mounted on the neck of the container or on the neck container. .

This assembly is such that (i) before first use, the cap is screwed onto the neck to an intermediate screwing position; (ii) for its first use, it is screwed onto the neck from this intermediate screwing position to the fully screwed position. Once fully screwed in, the cap cannot be unintentionally unscrewed.

In one embodiment, the assembly further comprises a cover secured to the rim of the neck, intended to be perforated during the first use.

In one embodiment, the container neck and / or the stopper is provided with one - or more - braking projections as described above.

In addition, in one embodiment, the plug is, as described above, of the type having a support part with skirt and internal thread and protrusion (s) of perforation of the cover, and a closing / opening part.

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 The other characteristics of the invention result from the following description of an embodiment with reference to the appended figures in which - FIG. 1 is a view in elevation, and in partial radial section along the line BB in FIG. 2, the neck of a container showing two projections housed between two successive steps of a net; - Figure 2 is a top view in partial cross section of the neck along line AA of Figure 1, showing the position of the projections relative to the start of the neck thread; - Figure 3 is a perspective view of the container neck of Figure 1; - Figure 4 is a radial sectional view of a container neck assembly, lid, cap according to the invention, the cap being closed, provided with its tamper-evident band and the lid not having been perforated.

Reference is made to FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 which represent a neck 1 of a container 2 of axis 3, the external face 4 of which has a helical thread 5, for mounting by screwing a plug such as the plug 6 in Figure 4.

The plug 6, or more generally the plugging system, is provided with a peripheral annular skirt 7, and this itself is provided on its internal face 8 with a thread 9 The neck 1 comprises two protruding projections 10a, 10b of the external face 4, and integrated into the thread 5, in this case between two successive steps 11a, 11b of a thread 12 of the thread 5.

A projection - generally referenced below 10 - extends in a radial direction over a distance less than that of the thread 12, as illustrated in FIG. 2, so that the projection 10 does not project beyond the thread 12 but is housed in the bottom 13 of the thread 5.

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 According to one embodiment, the projection 10 extends in the radial direction to mid-depth, substantially, of the thread 12.

 Also, the projection 10 extends circumferentially on the external face 4 of the neck 1, on the order of a few degrees of angle.

The function of the projection 10 is to brake the screwing, respectively the unscrewing of the plug 6 over a certain stroke having the ends on the one hand the fully screwed position, and, on the other hand, an intermediate screwing position where the thread 9 of the plug 6 is not in contact with the projection 10, the latter therefore ensuring in this case no braking effect.

When the thread of the plug 6 engages the thread 5 of the neck 1 for screwing and mounting the plug 6 on the neck 1, to the intermediate screwing position mentioned above, the screwing of the plug 6 is easy and does not requires only a small torque.

When, from this intermediate screwing position, the thread 9 of the plug 6 meets the projection 10, the latter partially obstructing the bottom 13 of the thread 5 between the two successive steps 11a, 11b of the thread 12, the continued screwing from plug 6 to the fully screwed position becomes more difficult and requires greater torque.

Similarly, unscrewing the plug 6 from the fully screwed position to the intermediate position also requires greater torque than unscrewing the plug 6 from the intermediate position to the fully unscrewed position.

It is understood that the dimensions of the projection 10, and in particular the dimension in the radial direction, must be large enough to allow said projection 10 to slow down the screwing / unscrewing of the plug 6, while being limited to allow screw, respectively unscrew the plug 6 on the neck 1 beyond (screwing), respectively until (unscrewing), the intermediate position.

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 The neck 1 may have only one projection 10 or at least two projections circumferentially spaced from each other.

In the embodiment shown in Figures 1 to 3, the neck 1 has two projections 10a, 10b, substantially identical, while the thread 5 comprises a single thread 12 forming substantially two turns.

The first projection 10a is located substantially a half turn after the start 14 of the thread 12, and the second projection 10b is located substantially a quarter turn after the first projection 10a, in the direction of screwing.

The invention also relates to an assembly comprising such a neck 1 of container 2, or a container 2 having such a neck 1, and a cap 6, the container 2 in question being empty or at least partially filled and the cap 6 being screwed onto the thread 12 of the neck 1.

We will now describe, with reference to FIG. 4, a plug 6 which can be associated with the neck 1 as just described.

The plug 6 comprises a support part 15 and a closing / opening part 16, these two parts 15, 16 being associated with each other by a hinge 17, situated at the periphery of the plug 6.

This plug 6 is for example made of plastic.

The support part 15 comprises first of all the peripheral annular skirt 7, the latter being provided on its inner face 8 with the thread 9, complementary to the thread 5 of the neck 1 of the container 2.

The support part 15 then comprises a transverse wall 18 having an orifice 19, surrounded by a substantially cylindrical wall 20, of axis 21 substantially parallel to the axis 3 of the neck 1, the wall 20 extending from said wall transverse 18, and substantially perpendicular thereto, towards

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 the outside of the support part 15. The orifice 19 is intended to allow the passage and the exit of the contents of the container 2.

The support part 15 comprises, finally, a substantially cylindrical side wall 22, of axis substantially coincident with the axis 3, and of diameter greater than the diameter of the skirt 7. This side wall 22 is linked, towards an end part 23 , at an end portion 24 of the skirt 7, by an annular transverse connecting wall 25.

From its end part 23, the side wall 22 has an extension 26 which widens out, and this substantially up to a plane situated slightly behind the transverse wall 18 of the support part 15.

The extension 26 comprises, at its periphery and opposite the hinge 17, a flat 27 intended to make the opening of the plug 6 easier for a user.

Towards its end part 28, located towards the seat 29 of the neck 1, the side wall 22 is linked, by one or more frangible bridges or a line of least resistance 30, to a tamper-evident band 31.

The tamper-evident band 31 is intended to guarantee that, after the manufacture of the container 2, its filling, the possible fitting of a seal on the neck 1 of the said container 2 and the screwing of the cap 6 to the position of intermediate screwing, the contents of the container 2 have not been in contact with the external environment and, consequently, have been kept in good conditions.

In fact, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, no contact between the contents of the container 2 and the outside of the container 2 - cap 6 assembly can take place as long as the tamper-evident band 31 is linked to the side wall 22. This therefore reassures the user about the quality of the content of the container 2.

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 During the first use, a user must first remove the tamper-evident band 31, this preventing further screwing from the intermediate screwing position. For this purpose, this is for example in the form of a band 31 wound around the neck 1 of the container 2, the ends of the band 31 being adjacent and linked by one or more frangible bridges, or by a line of less resistance.

The band 31 is provided at one of its ends with an extension forming a gripping part which the user can grasp with the fingers, in order to exert a tensile force on the said tamper-evident band 31. If the sufficient tensile force, the frangible bridge or bridges, or the line of least resistance 30 - connecting the tamper-evident band 31 to the side wall 22 - breaks, so that the tamper-evident band is separated from the rest of the cap 6, thus making possible the complete screwing of the plug 6 and allowing the passage of the contents towards the outside of the container 2.

The closing / opening part 16 comprises a transverse wall 32 and an annular wall 33.

The annular wall 33 has, at its periphery and opposite the hinge 17, a flat 34, extending the flat 27 of the extension 26 of the support part 15. The junction between the two flat 27, 34 is by snap-fastening reciprocal, which allows a secure closure of the cap 6, and, thus, in particular, a better conservation of the contents of the container 2.

The transverse wall 32 comprises, on its internal face 35, a cylindrical part 36 directed towards the inside of the plug. This cylindrical part 36 has a diameter slightly greater than that of the cylindrical wall 20, and the axis of the cylindrical part 36 is substantially coincident with the axis 21 of said cylindrical wall 20, when the closing / opening part 16 is in the closed position, so that, when the closing / opening part 16 is in the closed position, the cylindrical part 36 surrounds, on the outside with adjustment, the cylindrical wall 20. In this configuration, the transverse wall 32 covers the extreme part of the cylindrical wall 20, contributing

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 thus, in particular, to the fact that the contents of container 2 cannot accidentally leave said container 2.

On the rim 37 of the neck 1 of the container 2 is secured a cover 38, intended in particular for protecting the contents of the container 2 before first use. Before first use, the cover 38 covers the opening of the neck 1 of the container 2 by closing it. During the first use, the user releases the opening of the neck 1, for example by perforating the cover 38.

To this end, the transverse wall 18 of the support part 15 comprises, on its internal face, one or more protrusions 39, pointed and / or cutting, intended to be brought into contact - by screwing the plug 6 on the neck 1 with the cover 38 in order to perforate it.

With an assembly as just described, the plug 6 is mounted on the neck 1 of the container 2 during manufacture, thanks to a screwing machine.

This mounting is carried out until, or at least before the respective threads 5, 9 of the neck 1 and the plug 6 are in reciprocal engagement with the interposition of a projection 10 - which corresponds to the intermediate screwing position.

The tightening torque required for this purpose is limited, which makes it easy.

In this situation, the cover 38 is intact, the protuberance (s) 39 having not perforated it.

FIG. 4 illustrates this configuration, in which the cap 6 is closed, provided with its tamper-evident band 31, the cover 38 having not been perforated. In this configuration, the free end 40 of the protrusion 39 is located outside the container 2, facing the cover 38, but is not in contact with the cover 38.

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 During the first use, after the removal of the tamper-evident band 31, the screwing of the plug 6 is continued beyond the intermediate screwing position. In this way, the transverse wall 18 of the support part 15 is brought closer to the rim 37 of the neck 1 of the container 2, and the free end of the protrusion 39 is brought closer to the cover 38.

It is understood that the dimensions of the protrusion 39 must be such that, when the plug 6 is in the fully screwed position, the free end 40 of the protrusion 39 has perforated the cover 38, and is located inside from neck 1 of container 2.

It should be noted that the continuation of the screwing from the intermediate screwing position is prevented by the presence of the tamper-evident band 31, which must be removed for the first use.

But, even in the absence of a tamper-evident band 31 such as that described, the continuation of the screwing from the intermediate screwing position is hampered because the screwing torque is much greater than that which was previously necessary .

This screwing torque, beyond the intermediate screwing position, remains however limited so that a user can, manually, screw the plug 6 during the first use, and thus perforate the cover 38.

Therefore, it is understood that when the cap 6 is screwed onto the neck 1, there are two situations - a situation in which the cover 38 is intact, unperforated, the cap 6 being screwed onto the neck 1, before or to the intermediate screwing position. In this situation, the container 2 with the neck 1 and the cap 6 can be transported, stored, before first use, put on sale and purchased by the user who stores the container 2 assembly with neck 1 - cap 6 up to first use ;

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 - A situation in which the screwing of the plug 6 is continued beyond the intermediate screwing position. The cover 38 is then perforated. This operation requires the prior removal of the tamper-evident band 31 when it is provided and the screwing of the plug 6 with a higher screwing torque.

At the end of the screwing, the plug 6 is prevented from being untimely unscrewed given the importance of the unscrewing torque which would be necessary for this purpose.

Although the invention has been described in detail in the application to a stopper intended for the perforation of a cover, it is clear that it applies to other similar applications where a first pair of rather weak tightening followed by a rather high tightening torque.

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Claims (23)

CLAIMS 1. Container neck of the type comprising on the external face (4) of its wall a thread (5) intended for the screwing of a plug (6) having a skirt (7) provided with an internal thread (9), characterized in that it comprises at least one projection (10) for braking the plug (6) integrated into the thread (5) having the function of slowing down the screwing, the unscrewing of the plug (6) over a certain stroke having the ends d on the one hand the fully screwed position, and on the other hand, an intermediate screwing position, so that the mounting of the plug (6) on the neck (1) up to the intermediate screwing position can be carried out with a torque relatively weak, while screwing the plug (6) from the intermediate position to the fully screwed position and, conversely, unscrewing the plug (6) from the fully screwed position to the intermediate position requires a tightening torque / more important unscrewing. 2. Neck according to claim 1, characterized in that the projection (10) protrudes from the wall of the neck (1) between two successive steps (11a, 11b) of a thread (12) of the thread (5). 3. Neck according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the projection (10) extends in the radial direction over a distance less than that of the thread (12), said projection (10) not projecting beyond the thread (12) but being housed in the bottom (13) of the thread (5). 4. Neck according to claim 3, characterized in that the projection (10) is located substantially at mid-depth, radially, of the thread (12). 5. Neck according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the projection (10) is located circumferentially, in particular on the order of a few degrees of angle. <Desc / Clms Page number 15>  6. Neck according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that it comprises several projections (10a, 10b) spaced from one another circumferentially. 7. A neck according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that a first projection (10a) is located along the thread (5) so as to be engaged with the plug (6) after at least about a half turn. 8. Neck according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the thread (5) comprises a thread (12) forming substantially two turns, a first projection (10a) being located substantially half a turn after the start ( 14) of the thread (12) and a second projection (10b) being located substantially a quarter turn after the first projection (10a). 9. Container comprising a neck (1) with protruding braking (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 8, said container (2) being empty or at least partially filled. 10. Assembly comprising a neck (1) of container (2) according to any one of claims 1 to 8 or a container (2) according to claim 9, and a stopper (6) having a skirt (7) provided with an internal thread (9) mounted on the neck (1) of the container (2), the said container (2) being empty or at least partially filled. 11. Cap of the type comprising a skirt (7) having on its internal face (8) a thread (9) and intended for screwing on the neck (1) of a container (2) or on a container (2) having a neck (1) of the type comprising on its external face (4) a thread (5) complementary to the thread (9) of the plug (6), characterized in that it comprises at least one projection (10) for braking the plug ( 6) integrated into the thread (9) having the function of braking the screwing, the unscrewing of the plug (6) on a certain stroke having for ends on the one hand the fully screwed position, and on the other hand, an intermediate screwing position , so that the mounting of the plug (6) on the neck (1) or on the container (2) with neck (1) up to the intermediate screwing position <Desc / Clms Page number 16>  can be performed with a relatively low torque, while screwing the plug (6) from the intermediate position to the fully screwed position and, conversely, unscrewing the plug (6) from the fully screwed position to the position intermediate requires greater screwing / unscrewing torque. 12. Plug according to claim 11, characterized in that the projection (10) protrudes from the internal face (8) of the skirt (7) of the plug (6) between two successive steps of a thread of the thread (9). 13. Plug according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that the projection (10) extends in the radial direction over a distance less than that of the thread, said projection (10) not projecting beyond the thread but being housed in the bottom of the thread (9). 14. Plug according to claim 13, characterized in that the projection (10) is located substantially at mid-depth, radially, of the thread. 15. Plug according to any one of claims 11 to 14, characterized in that the projection (10) is located circumferentially, in particular on the order of a few degrees of angle. 16. Plug according to any one of claims 11 to 15, characterized in that it comprises several projections (10) spaced apart from each other circumferentially. 17. Plug according to any one of claims 11 to 16, characterized in that a first projection (10) is located along the thread (9) so as to be in engagement with the neck (1) of the container (2 ) or the container (2) with neck (1) after about at least half a turn. 18. Plug according to any one of claims 11 to 17, characterized in that the thread (9) comprises a thread forming two turns, a first projection (10) being located substantially half a turn after the start of the thread and <Desc / Clms Page number 17>  a second projection (10) being located substantially a quarter turn after the first projection (10). 19. Stopper according to any one of claims 11 to 18, characterized in that it comprises at least two parts, on the one hand a support (15) intended to be associated with the neck (1) of the container (2), or to the container (2) with neck (1), said support part (15) comprising the skirt (7) and the internal thread (9), and on the other hand closing / opening (16) intended to be associated with the support part (15) which can be moved - in particular by pivoting - between a closed position and an open position. 20. Stopper according to any one of claims 11 to 19, characterized in that it comprises one or more pointed and / or cutting protrusions (39) on the internal face of the support part (15), intended for perforation a cover (38) secured to the rim (37) of the neck (1) of the container (2), during the first opening. 21. An assembly comprising a stopper (6) according to any one of claims 12 to 22 and a container neck (1) (2) or a container (2) with neck (1), the container neck (1) ( 2) or the container (2) with neck (1) having on the external face (4) of its wall a thread (5) intended for the screwing of the plug (6), the said container (2) being empty or at least partially filled. 22. An assembly comprising a neck (1) of a container (2) or a container (2) with a neck (1) and a stopper (6), according to claim 10 or 21, characterized in that the stopper (6) is type intended (i) before first use to be screwed on the neck (1) to an intermediate screwing position; (ii) at the time of the first use to be screwed onto the neck (1) from the intermediate screwing position to the fully screwed position; and (iii) in particular not to be unintentionally unscrewed. 23. An assembly comprising a neck (1) of a container (2) or a container (2) with a neck (1) and a stopper (6), according to claim 10, 21, or 22, characterized in that <Desc / Clms Page number 18>  that it further comprises a cover (38) which is intended to be perforated during the first use.