GB2330132A - Dispensing container with a hinged closure - Google Patents

Abstract

A container 2 comprises a main body part 4 with a base and a peripheral wall which between them define a product receiving chamber, and a lid 6 to close the chamber. The body part also includes a dispensing opening 12, preferably formed in the base, which can be opened or closed by a hinged closure member 26, which may be integrally moulded with the main body part and attached to the base by means of a strap 20. The closure member can be divided into two sections 24, 26 by an intermediate hinge 28, and the base may have a recess (32, Fig.4) to receive the section 24 of the member nearer the hinge 18, with a fulcrum (38, Fig.4) adjacent the front of the recess around which the other section of the member can pivot. The body part and the closure member can also be formed with interengaging formations (40,42, Fig.6) around which the closure member pivots when a section near the hinge 18 is depressed.

Description

Dispensing Container The present invention relates to dispensing containers and particularly, but not exclusively, to containers for dispensing discrete items such as tablets, items of confectionery and so on.

Dispensing containers are known which have a main body, which holds the container contents, and a lid which closes the main body. The lid is provided with a dispensing opening and a hinged closure for the opening.

In order to mount the lid to the body and to give sufficient strength to the lid, the lid is usually provided with a peripheral wall which fits inside an open mouth of the main body after the main body has been filled.

The present invention seeks to provide an alternative container construction, which is particularly suitable for relatively shallow containers.

From a first aspect, the invention provides a container comprising a moulded plastics main body part, said main body part comprising a base, a peripheral wall upstanding from the base to define substantially a product receiving chamber, a dispensing opening and a hinged closure member for selectively opening or closing said opening, and further comprising a lid mounted to close said product receiving chamber.

Thus in accordance with the invention, the container part comprising the opening is also being used to receive the container's contents. The peripheral wall acts not only to strengthen the part to allow for satisfactory provision of a hinged closure but also defines a product receiving chamber. The product receiving chamber can then simply be closed by a lid applied after the chamber is filled with its contents.

From another broad aspect, therefore, the invention provides a dispensing container comprising a moulded plastics main body part which defines a chamber for receiving a product to be dispensed, said main body part having a dispensing opening and a hinged closure member for selectively opening or closing said opening, said container further comprising a lid mounted to close said product receiving chamber after it has been filled with the product.

The container lid may be provided with a suitable decoration, for example a label or a moulded or embossed pattern for display purposes. Furthermore it may be generally planar, as it need not perform any function other than closing the main body, making the container more economical to manufacture.

The above construction is particularly suitable for shallow containers, as the upstanding wall can be relatively low, yet still provide sufficient rigidity to the body part.

The dispensing opening (or openings), may be formed in the peripheral wall of the body part, but preferably it is formed at least partially in the base.

Preferably the opening is formed at or towards one side of the main body, and the closure member, in the form of a flap, hinged to the opposite side of the main body and folded over the external surface of the base to close the dispensing opening. The hinge is preferably integrally moulded with the main body.

In the preferred embodiment, the closure member is formed with an intermediate hinge, which divides the closure member into two sections, a rear section adjacent the hinge, and a front section for closing the dispensing opening(s). The base of the main body is provided with a recess for receiving the rear section of the closure flap. A fulcrum is formed adjacent the front of the recess around which the forward section of the closure flap may pivot to open the dispensing opening as the rear section of the closure flap is depressed into the recess.

The fulcrum may incorporate friction reducing means to facilitate opening of the closure. For example the fulcrum may comprise one or more rounded strips arranged at the top of the step defining the front of the recess.

Preferably the recess in the base slopes away from the periphery of the base wall.

The integrally moulded hinge which attaches the closure flap to the main body part is relatively thin and may not, therefore, accurately locate the closure flap relative to the main body. This may mean that the closure flap may not properly close the opening.

Further, if catch means are provided between the closure flap and the opening or body part to maintain the flap in a closed position, the catch means may not engage accurately, meaning that the flap may be too easy, or too difficult, to open. Furthermore, after repeated operation, the hinge may fatigue and ultimately break.

In order to overcome these problems, in a preferred embodiment, the main body and the closure member are provided with interengaging formations disposed inwardly from the hinge which act to locate the closure member with respect to the body, and around which the rear section of the closure member pivots when depressed.

This feature means that the closure and body are accurately located to one another, allowing for more reliable closure of the opening. Furthermore, the hinge attaching the closure flap to the body now acts merely as a means of attachment for the flap and does not significantly flex during operation, so relieving stresses in that region.

This construction is applicable not only to the arrangement described above where the closure is formed on the main body part of the container, but to hinged closures generally, so from a second aspect, the invention provides a moulded plastics dispensing closure comprising a body part having one or more dispensing openings, a closure member integrally moulded with and connected to a side of the body part by a hinge, said closure member being folded over said body part in use, said body part and said closure member comprising respective formations inwardly of the hinge, which formations interengage when said closure member is folded over said body part, and around which said closure member pivots when a section thereof adjacent said hinge is depressed.

Preferably, the formations have complementary shapes and most preferably are formed as circular arcs.

Preferably a groove is formed in the base (or body part) and a raised ridge formed on the closure member.

The shape of the container may be chosen to suit any particular application. In one embodiment, it is annular, with inner and outer peripheral walls upstanding from the base, and an annular lid.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be disclosed by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a container in accordance with the invention in a closed condition; Figure 2 shows the container of Figure 1 in an open condition; Figure 3 shows an exploded view of the container of Figure 1; Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along the centre-line of the embodiment of Figure 1; Figure 5 is a sectional view corresponding to Figure 4, but with the container open; Figure 6 is a sectional view of one component of the container; and Figure 7 is a plan view of the component of Figure 6.

With reference to the Figures, an annular dispensing container 2 comprises a main body part 4 and a lid 6, both moulded from polypropylene.

As can be seen most clearly from Figures 3 to 7, the main body part 4 comprises a base wall 8, having an upstanding peripheral wall 10. This forms an annular product receiving chamber 14. The base wall 8 has a dispensing opening 12 formed therein adjacent the peripheral wall 10.

The main body part 4 is also formed with a closure flap 16 for closing the dispensing opening 12. The flap 16 is hinged to the bottom edge of the peripheral wall 10, in a position diametrically opposite the dispensing opening 12, by an integrally moulded hinge 18 formed at one end of a strap 20 which extends through a slot 22 formed in the periphery of the base wall 8. The flap 16 is divided into rear and front sections 24,26 by means of an intermediate hinge 28. It is the front section 26 which closes the opening 12, its edge engaging under a lip 30 provided on the inner edge of the opening 12 (see Figure 4).

The external surface of the base wall 10 defines a recess 32 for receiving the rear section 24 of the flap 16. The floor 34 of the recess slopes downwardly from the hinge end towards the centre of the dispenser 2, as shown, for example in Figure 6. The front wall 36 of the recess is provided with rounded friction reducing bars 38 with which the front flap section 26 will engage, as will be described later.

As will be seen from Figures 7 and 8, the main body part 4 is moulded with the flap 16 positioned to one side. The flap 16 is then pivoted in the direction of arrow A (Figure 6) to the position shown in Figure 4 where the rear flap section 24 is fully received in the recess 32 and the front flap section 26 closes the opening 12. Clips (not shown) may be provided on the rear flap section 24 to retain it in the recess 32. In order accurately to locate the front flap section 26, the base wall 10 is formed with a groove 40, and the connecting strap 20 formed with a projecting ridge 42 which engages in the groove 40 when the flap 16 is folded over. The groove 40 and ridge 42 are arcuate which means that in use, the rear flap part 24 rotates around the groove 40 rather than the hinge 18 thereby accurately locating the flap 16 on the base member 4.

Once the flap 16 has been folded over, the main body part 4 can be filled from the top, (in the sense of Figure 3) and the lid 6 then applied by suitable means.

The lid 6 may be retained by clips (not shown). The lid may be provided with suitable decoration, and it is anticipated that in use it is this surface which would be displayed to purchasers. This makes printing and so on of the lid considerably easier.

Once the container is filled, its contents may be dispensed by pressing the regions 48 of the flap rear section 24 in the direction P. This will push the rear section 24 into the recess 32, the rear section 24 pivoting around the groove 40 in the base wall 8. As this occurs, the front flap section 26 will try to pivot around the fulcrum bars 38, generating a moment M to break the retaining force of the lip 30, to allow the front flap section 26 eventually to pivot and expose the opening 12.

The degree of opening of the front flap section 26 will be determined by the depth of the recess 32 and the offset of the intermediate hinge 28 from the fulcrum bars 38, and these parameters may be chosen as appropriate for any particular dispenser.

The dispensing container described above is advantageous in several respects. It provides a shallow container which is easily filled and assembled. The closure mechanism also allows a consistent, relatively low force opening to be achieved without the need for high manufacturing tolerances, due to the groove and ridge arrangement described.

Of course, various modifications may be made to the container within the scope of the invention. For example it need not be annular, but could be any desired shape, for example circular. Furthermore, the dispensing opening need not be as shown. The opening shown is suitable for dispensing discrete articles such as tablets or discrete items of confectionary, but it could be replaced by one or more much smaller openings, if the container were for a granular or pulverulent material.

It will also be appreciated that the main body part described may be adapted to fit within the top of a much deeper container, thus acting as a dispensing lid for that container.

Claims (1)

1. Claims 1. A container comprising a moulded plastics main body part, said main body part comprising a base, a peripheral wall upstanding from the base to define substantially a product receiving chamber, a dispensing opening and a hinged closure member for selectively opening or closing said opening, and further comprising a lid mounted to close said product receiving chamber.

   2. A container as claimed in claim 1 wherein the lid is generally planar.

   3. A container as claimed in claim 1 or 2 wherein the dispensing opening is formed at least partially in the base.

   4. A container as claimed in claim 3 wherein the dispensing opening is formed at or towards one side of the main body part, and the closure member comprises a flap hinged to the opposite side of the main body part and folded over the external surface of the base to close the dispensing opening.

   5. A container as claimed in claim 4 wherein the flap is integrally moulded with the main body part.

   6. A container as claimed in claim 5 wherein the closure flap is formed with an intermediate hinge, which divides the closure flap into two sections, a rear section adjacent the hinge, and a front section for closing the dispensing opening, the base of the main body part having a recess for receiving the rear section of the closure flap, and a fulcrum arranged adjacent the front of the recess around which the forward section of the closure flap may pivot to open the dispensing opening as the rear section of the closure flap is depressed into the recess.

   7. A container as claimed in claim 6 wherein said fulcrum comprises one or more a rounded strips provided at the top of the step defining the front end of the recess.

   8. A container as claimed in claim 6 or 7 wherein the bottom of the recess slopes away from the periphery of the base wall.

   9. A container as claimed in any of claims 4 to 8 wherein the main body part and the closure flap are provided with interengaging formations disposed inwardly from the hinge attaching the closure flap to the main body part which act to locate the closure flap with respect to the body, and as a pivot around which the rear section of the closure flap pivots when depressed.

   10. A container as claimed in claim 9 wherein the formations have complementary arcuate shapes.

   11. A container as claimed in claim 9 or 10 wherein a groove is formed in the main body part of the container and a raised ridge formed on the closure member for engagement in the groove.

   13. A container as claimed in any preceding claim comprising inner and outer peripheral walls upstanding from the base of the main body part to define an annular product receiving chamber.

   14. A moulded plastics dispensing closure comprising a body part having one or more dispensing openings, a closure member integrally moulded with and connected to a side of the body part by a hinge, said closure member being folded over said body part in use, said body part and said closure member comprising respective formations inwardly of the hinge, which formations interengage when said closure member is folded over said body part, and around which said closure member pivots when a section thereof adjacent said hinge is depressed.

   15. A dispensing container comprising a moulded plastics main body part which defines a chamber for receiving a product to be dispensed, said main body part having a dispensing opening and a hinged closure member for selectively opening or closing said opening, said container further comprising a lid mounted to close said product receiving chamber after it has been filled with the product.