GB2397294A - Tamper evident closure with image - Google Patents

Abstract

A tamper evident closure comprising a pair of members which are movable relative to each other and carry respective sections of an image such that in a first relative position only a first set of the sections is visible and in the second relative position all sections are visible. The image may be printed using any known standard techniques such as Optically Variable Device, Holograms, or maybe printed using standard coloured inks and so forth. In another embodiment a filter or lens to decode an image may be used (fig 2.) In a further embodiment the image may be provided through the side of the closure device (fig 5).

Description

1 2397294

TAMPER EVIDENT CLOSURE

The current invention relates to closures such as those used on bottles and the like. In particular the invention relates to providing evidence that a closure device has been utilised previously or has been tampered with in some way.

Many brand owners face serious issues due to counterfeiting of goods. In some cases such as the food and pharmaceutical industry these problems extend beyond loss of revenue and into health and safety issues. Fake goods are generally not of the same quality or subject to the same stringent health and safety guidelines that are imposed on the brand owners. Consequently the consumer needs to be confident that the goods they are buying are genuine and safe to consume or use. Therefore there is increasing pressure on the brand owners to provide quick and easy means of indicating that goods are both genuine and have not been tampered with prior to sale.

Tampering of goods can take on a number of forms. Within the drinks industry one common form of tampering is the refilling of genuine containers with cheaper brands or counterfeits. The consumer assumes they are buying the real goods because the packaging is real but later find the goods to be substandard. The brand owners are therefore keen to firstly try and prevent the act of refilling and secondly to make it obvious whether a bottle or container has been refilled.

It is known to provide bottle caps and other closures with tamper evident devices. It is known to provide bottles with shrink sleeves, which must be removed in order to access the contents on the container. For additional security it is known to provide shrink sleeves with holographic elements. Also in many countries around the world alcoholic drinks and tobacco products are provided with tax stamps to indicate duty has been paid.

In the majority of cases these tax stamps are applied to the packing in such away that opening the pack irrevocably damages the tax stamp.

More complex constructions are also known to form part of a closure it self. For example bottle tops may be provided with valves or other devices to try and prevent refilling of a product. In many cases a cap is connected to a collar by means of frangible links. When the cap is removed the links are broken and the collar remains attached to the packaging.

The current invention seeks to provide a closure with overt visible evidence that a container has been previously opened or tampered with in some way. The inventors have recognized that the ability to overt display that a closure has been tampered with is of key importance.

It is known to provide closures with devices that reveal information as a result of opening or due to a user applying pressure or force to the closure. On such example is described in US4747497. Here a closure device has an internally-threaded inner cap adapted to thread on the neck of a bottle, jar or other container and provided with a flexible diaphragm and spaced wall grooves located in the outer circumference. An outer cap fitted with a transport window and internal, spaced retainer thread segments for threadibly engaging the wall grooves in the inner cap, is also provided. When the inner cap is threadibly attached to the neck of the container and a vacuum is created in the container, the diaphragm is depressed inwardly and the outer cap is threadibly secured to the inner cap by means of the retainer thread segments and cooperating wall grooves, such that the outer cap is sealed on the inner cap. Twisting the outer cap first loosens the outer cap on the inner cap and then loosens the inner cap and breaks the seal between the inner cap and the threaded neck of the container, causing the diaphragm to assume a neutral position.

Alternatively, a positive external pressure can be applied to the container, either before or after the inner cap is threadibly attached to the container neck, in order to deflect the diaphragm inwardly and the outer cap is sealed on the inner cap by operation of the retainer thread segments and wall grooves. When the outer cap is loosened with respect to the inner cap, the seal between the top of the outer cap and the diaphragm is broken and the diaphragm assumes a neutral position adjacent the top of the inner cap, to indicate tampering.

A further enhancement of this case is described in US5035341. This case describes a mechanically actuated closure cap which is provided with a tamper indicating feature. The closure device includes an end panel having a centrally located button that is normally in a button down position, but when the closure cap is applied to a container, it is mechanically actuated to a button up position. A translucent panel is fixedly applied to the closure cap in overlying relation to the end panel and there is positioned between the button and the translucent panel several possibilities of devices for indicating that the closure cap has been applied to a container and either is in its original position relative to the container or has been removed therefrom. In each instance indicia is involved with the indicia either indicating that the container has not been opened with this indicia disappearing when the container is opened, or the indicia indicating that the container has been opened and the indicia not appearing until the closure cap has been applied to the container and then removed therefrom. In each instance, either the removal of the indicia or the appearance of the indicia is not reversible.

The current invention seeks to improve on the devices described in the prior art and will now be described with reference to the following figures.

Figures 1A and 1B show a first embodiment of the invention both prior to and after opening.

Figures 2A and 2B show a first embodiment of the invention both prior to and after opening.

Figure 3 shows how the current invention may be implemented so it can be viewed from above.

Figure 4 shows how the current invention may be implemented so it can be viewed from the side.

Figure 5 shows a second embodiment of the invention.

Figure 6 shows an enhancement to the second embodiment of the invention.

Figure 7 illustrates one example of how an image may be destroyed as a consequence of a twisting action. ! ,

Figure 8 illustrates one potential locking mechanism that could be used with the current invention.

Figure 9 Illustrates a second potential locking mechanism that could be used with the current invention.

In a first embodiment a bottle closure is provided with an integral picture or image viewable through a window that is subdivided in to at least two sections. The first sections are viewable in a first viewing condition and both the first and second sections are viewable in a second viewing condition. In this first example the second viewing condition is achieved by twisting the closure device. The two sections of the image should relate to each other in some way and preferably combine to form a single image. Key to the invention is aligning the two sections so that they align in the correct manner after twisting. This alignment could be permanent and independent of whether the device has been used. It is preferable that the two sections move into alignment permanently after the closure device has been used giving the viewer an indication that the container has been opened. Conversely it is just a suitable to have the sections in alignment on the unopened container but out of alignment following opening.

The design may be printed using any of the known standard techniques or take the form of an OVD (Optically Variable Device) e.g. Holograms, Kinegrams and Pixelgrams. The design may be printed using standard coloured inks, colourshift inks such as iridescent or OVI, liquid crystal inks, thermochromic inks, luminescent inks, or magnetic inks. Where luminescent inks are used a W or other invisible radiation source may be required to detect their presence. This can provide an additional level of security in addition to the tamper evident nature of the product. Figures 1A and 1B illustrates this first embodiment, where figure 1A illustrates the device prior to opening and figure 1B illustrates the device after opening.

Figures 2A and 2B illustrate a second embodiment of the current inventions and this time makes use of a suitable decoding device such as a filter or lens to enable viewing of the information. It is known to use filters, lenses and other decoding devices in combination with print and embossed features as security devices on documents. Examples of such features include metamerics, Scrambled Indicia, and Fusion Screen_ though there are many others. With all these devices images can be made to appear by aligning a decoding screen or lens correctly with an image underneath. The second embodiment of the current invention makes use of this need to align the decoder and the image. With the decoder only coming into alignment with the image in the correct manner and allowing the image to appear once the closure device has been twisted. Alternatively the twisting action may move the decoder out of alignment with the image thus making the image disappear. Figure 2A shows the decoder and the image out of alignment and figure 2B shows the image and decoder in alignment.

In the examples shown so far the image is viewable from above, as illustrated in figure 3. An alternative is to allow the image to be viewable through the side of the closure as shown in figure 4.

Figure 5 shows how the second embodiment of the invention could be implemented if you wished to view the image through the side of the closure device. Here an image is formed on an inner cap and the decoder or lens is formed on an outer cap. The outer cap is transparent to allow viewing of the image. As the closure device is twisted the image and the lens are brought into alignment and the decoded image can be viewed by the user.

A further enhancement to this is shown in figure 6 where two images are present. The first image will be viewable prior to the cap being twisted and the second viewable after the cap has been twisted.

In any of the above examples it is preferable to either destroy the first image or lock the closure device into position after opening. The image may destroyed by a number of means such as scratching, tearing or delaminating. An example of how delamination may be achieved is shown in figure 7. The upper layer of the image is attached to the outer cap and the lower layer to the inner cap. As the device is twisted the inner and outer caps move against each other and delaminate the image. As an alternative if a blade or scraping device was attached to the outer cap and the image printed using a scratch off ink opening the cap would permanently remove the ink and destroy the image. A further alternative makes use of fugitive inks that run when exposed to solvents. The image would be printed using fugitive inks onto an area on the inner cap and the outer cap provided with microcapsules containing a suitable solvent. The microcapsules are positioned in such a manner that the opening of the closure devices causes them to rub and rupture on the image. The solvent is thus released and the image destroyed.

Rather than destroying the image it may be preferable to use a locking mechanism. Once such mechanism is shown in figure 8. A tab is provided on the inner cap and is located in a shaped track on the outer cap. Twisting the

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closure device causes the tab to move from the first region of the shaped track into a second region. Once in the second region the tab is prohibited from returning to its original position due to its shape.

An alternative locking mechanism is shown in figure 9.

Here a lock feature is combined with an additional element that breaks as the device is opened.

Claims (1)

1. A tamper evident closure comprising a pair of members which are movable relative to each other and carry respective sections of an image such that in a first relative position only a first set of the sections is visible and in the second relative position all sections are visible.