JP2010001054A - Opening/closing mechanism for container - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve usability by enabling an opening/closing operation with one hand. <P>SOLUTION: A cover member 20 and an opening/closing member 30 are attached to the upper part of the container 10. The opening/closing member 30 can be reversibly operated with one hand through an operating portion 33 between a closing position in which a nozzle 32 is accommodated within the cover member 20 and an opening position in which the nozzle 32 is erected to project upward. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a container opening / closing mechanism that can be suitably applied to, for example, an eye drop container.

  The eye drop container generally uses a screw-type cap, but a hinge-type cap that can be opened and closed with one hand has also been proposed (for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2).

The latter eye drop container includes a base member attached to the container main body and a cap hinged to the base member, and a nozzle for dropping a liquid medicine is formed on the base member. The cap is connected to one side of the base member through a hinge so as to be openable and closable. The cap is opened to 180 ° or more with respect to the base member to completely expose the nozzle of the base member, and then lightly locked as it is to apply the chemical solution. be able to.
JP 2002-362603 A JP 2005-22673 A

  In such a conventional technique, the cap is hinged to one side of the base member and opens to 180 ° or more on one side of the base member when instilled. Therefore, the overall shape at the time of instillation is large, unpleasant, and not always easy to use. There was a problem that it was not good.

  Therefore, in view of the problems of the prior art, the object of the present invention is to open and close with one hand by combining a cover member and an open / close member having a tilting nozzle, and the overall shape of the open state is small, An object of the present invention is to provide a container opening and closing mechanism that is easy to use.

  In order to achieve this object, the structure of the present invention includes a cover member and an opening / closing member to be mounted on the upper part of the container, and the cover member has a pouring hole communicating with the mouth of the container and an upper part of the pouring hole. The opening and closing member is integrally formed with a nozzle that rises and falls while being in contact with the upper end surface of the dispensing hole, and an operation portion that is flexibly connected to one end of the nozzle portion that forms the nozzle. The opening is closed by the opening and the nozzle is housed in the cover member, and the operation portion is retracted from the opening to raise the nozzle so as to communicate with the dispensing hole, and to open the opening upward. Its gist is that it can be reversibly operated with one hand.

  The open / close member has left and right engaging pins projecting from the base of the nozzle, and the cover member has a receiving portion for fitting the engaging pin in a rotatable manner on the left and right of the upper end surface of the dispensing hole. be able to.

  Further, the cover member may be formed with a contact plate that closes the tip of the nozzle in the closed state of the opening / closing member, or may be formed with a push plate that presses the rear end of the nozzle opposite the contact plate.

  Further, the cover member can be formed with left and right guide portions, and the operation portion can be formed with left and right engagement protrusions that engage with the guide portions. Each guide portion has a closed state of the opening / closing member. The engagement rib can be formed in accordance with the position of the engagement protrusion in the open state.

  According to such a configuration of the invention, the opening / closing member attached to the upper portion of the container via the cover member can be reversibly operated with one hand in the closed state or the open state, and in the closed state, the opening of the cover member is performed by the operation unit The nozzle is closed horizontally and stored in the cover member, and in the open state, the operating portion is retracted from the opening, so that the nozzle stands up and communicates with the outlet hole of the cover member. The liquid in the container can be dropped. The open / close member can be bent to connect the nozzle portion and the operation portion so that the operation portion can be retracted obliquely downward to one side of the cover member even when the nozzle is raised in the open state. There is no possibility that the entire shape at the time of use becomes excessive or unclean. However, in the container, in addition to chemicals such as eye drops and athlete's foot drugs, various liquids such as various reagents, cosmetics, seasonings and the like can be stored and used by dropping an appropriate amount from a nozzle.

  The open / close member is turned upside down by rotating the nozzle forward and backward around the engagement pin by fitting the left and right engagement pins of the base portion of the nozzle to the receiving portion of the cover member. Can be operated.

  The contact plate formed on the cover member can close the tip of the nozzle which is horizontally moved with the open / close member closed, and can seal the liquid remaining in the nozzle. Note that the pressing plate facing the contact plate pushes the rear end of the nozzle toward the contact plate, and improves the sealing effect of the contact plate.

  The guide portion formed on the cover member, together with the engaging protrusion formed on the operation portion of the opening / closing member, defines a movement path of the operation portion when the opening / closing member is in the closed state and the open state. The operation unit is moved along a guide surface that is curved so as to descend to one side at the upper end of the cover member, and the guide unit is formed on the lower surface of the guide surface. In addition, the engagement rib formed on each guide portion can make the fingertip during the opening / closing operation feel a light click feeling by engaging the engagement protrusion on the operation portion side in the closed state and the open state. .

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  The container opening / closing mechanism includes a cover member 20 attached to the upper part of the container 10 and an opening / closing member 30 assembled to the cover member 20 (FIGS. 1 and 2). However, FIGS. 2A and 2B are main part assembly enlarged longitudinal sectional views of the opening / closing member 30 in the open state and the closed state, respectively. In addition, the illustrated container 10 illustrates an eye drop container.

  The container 10 is configured by forming an upward mouth portion 12 on an upper portion of a bottomed rectangular tube-shaped body portion 11 having a rectangular cross section. A ring-shaped engagement rib 12 a is formed on the outer periphery of the mouth portion 12, and the mouth portion 12 protrudes from the shoulder portion 11 a at the upper end of the body portion 11 through the base portion 12 b. Further, another engaging rib 11c is formed over the entire circumference between the trunk portion 11 and the shoulder portion 11a via a step portion 11b.

  The cover member 20 as a whole is formed in a rectangular tube shape having the same bottom as that of the body portion 11 of the container 10 and having an open lower end. The cover member 20 is attached to the upper part of the container 10 by elastically engaging the engagement ribs 21, 21... On the inner periphery of the lower end part with the engagement ribs 11 c of the container 10. The engagement ribs 21, 21... Are formed on the inner surfaces of the lower end portions of the respective surfaces of the cover member 20 (FIGS. 3B and 3D). However, FIGS. 3A to 3D are respectively a top view of the cover member 20, a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 3A, a bottom view, and a line B-B in FIG. FIG.

  Inside the cover member 20, a pouring tube 22 is formed in the vertical direction via an intermediate horizontal wall 22a (FIG. 3). The dispensing cylinder 22 penetrates the horizontal wall 22a up and down, and the lower side of the horizontal wall 22a is formed in a cylindrical shape with an open lower end that fits the mouth 12 of the container 10, and the outer shape of the upper side of the horizontal wall 22a. Is formed in a prismatic shape that closes the upper end. Note that a small-diameter pouring hole 22b is formed at the upper end of the pouring cylinder 22, and left and right receiving plates 23, 23 forming an upward receiving portion 23a are projected upward (FIGS. 1 and 3). ). Further, an upward pressing plate 24a is provided between the receiving plates 23 and 23 so as to protrude toward one side, and a contact plate 24b is vertically provided on the cover member 20 so as to face the pressing plate 24a. Has been. On the other hand, arc-shaped engagement pieces 25, 25 concentric with the dispensing tube 22 are suspended from the lower surface of the horizontal wall 22 a, and diagonally upward engagement is provided at the lower end of each engagement piece 25. A joint rib 25a is formed.

  The upper end of the cover member 20 is formed on a narrow guide surface 26, 26 that descends while smoothly curving downward on the side opposite to the side where the contact plate 24b is suspended, and between the guide surfaces 26, 26 The opening W is formed so as to open the upper part of the extraction tube 22 and the extraction hole 22b. The lower surfaces of the guide surfaces 26, 26 are left and right guide portions 26a, 26a. Engagement ribs 26b, 26b crossing the guide portions 26a are formed on each guide portion 26a. When the cover member 20 is attached to the upper part of the container 10, the lower part of the dispensing tube 22 is press-fitted into the mouth part 12 of the container 10 (FIG. 2A), and the engaging ribs 25a, 25a of the engaging pieces 25, 25 are inserted. Is elastically engaged with the engagement rib 12a on the mouth portion 12 side and is prevented from coming off.

  The opening / closing member 30 is configured by integrally forming an operation portion 33 at one end of a nozzle portion 32a forming the nozzle 32 via a thin hinge portion 31 (FIGS. 1 and 2A).

  The nozzle 32 is formed so as to penetrate up and down the nozzle portion 32a. The nozzle hole 32 b of the nozzle 32 is formed in a tapered shape that expands from the bottom to the top on the axis of the nozzle 32. The outer shape of the nozzle 32 is formed in a dome shape in which the nozzle hole 32b is opened at the top portion on the upper surface side of the nozzle portion 32a, and a horizontal columnar portion 32c is formed on the lower end portion of the square column shape on the lower surface side of the nozzle portion 32a. The left and right engaging pins 32d and 32d are projected from both end faces of the cylindrical portion 32c.

  On the other hand, the distal end portion of the operation portion 33 is bent downward and the lower edge portions 33 c and 33 c of the left and right side surfaces are curved in an arc shape that fits the guide surfaces 26 and 26 of the cover member 20. Further, left and right legs 33a, 33a are suspended from the lower surface of the operation section 33, and a short horizontal engaging projection 33b is formed outwardly on each leg 33a. In addition, the lower end part outer surface of each leg 33a and the front end part lower side of each engagement protrusion 33b are each notched diagonally. A plurality of convex slip stoppers 33d, 33d,... Are arranged in an attractive manner on the top end portion and the bottom end surface of the operation portion 33, respectively.

  The opening / closing member 30 elastically fits the left and right engagement pins 32d, 32d of the base portion of the nozzle 32 to the receiving portions 23a, 23a of the cover member 20, and the left and right engagements of the lower surface of the operation portion 33. The mating protrusions 33b and 33b are assembled into the cover member 20 by being pushed into the opening W between the guide surfaces 26 and 26 and engaged with the left and right guide portions 26a and 26a from below. The opening / closing member 30 holds the container 10 and the cover member 20 upward with four fingers other than the thumb, and drives the operation unit 33 up and down with the thumb, thereby lowering the lower edges 33c and 33c on the operation unit 33 side. The cover member 20 is relatively moved along the guide surfaces 26 and 26, and can be reversibly operated with one hand between the open state of FIG. 4A and the closed state of FIG. In order to open the open / close member 30 in the closed state, a thumb is put on the top end portion of the operation portion 33 and a force is applied in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 2B to close the open / close member 30 in the closed state. To achieve this, an upward force in the direction of the arrow in FIG.

  In the open state of the opening / closing member 30 (FIGS. 2A and 4A), the operation unit 33 is retracted obliquely downward from the opening W of the cover member 20, and the nozzle 32 is poured out of the cover member 20. The nozzle hole 32b is erected while being in contact with the upper end surface of the hole 22b so as to communicate with the extraction hole 22b and protrudes upward into the opening W. Further, in the closed state of the opening / closing member 30 (FIGS. 2B and 4B), the operation unit 33 closes the opening W and tilts the nozzle 32 horizontally via the hinge unit 31 to cover the member. 20, and the tip of the nozzle hole 32b is closed elastically through the contact plate 24b. At this time, the rear end of the nozzle 32 is pushed toward the contact plate 24b via the push plate 24a.

  That is, by operating the opening / closing member 30 to a closed state or an open state, the nozzle 32 rotates forward and backward while being in contact with the upper end surface of the dispensing hole 22b. In addition, slidable contact surfaces 22b1 and 24a1 are formed on the upper end surface of the dispensing hole 22b and the surface of the push plate 24a on the nozzle 32 side, respectively, with which the surface of the cylindrical portion 32c of the base portion of the nozzle 32 is slidably contacted (FIG. 2). (A), FIG. 3 (B)). Further, a low bulging portion 24b1 is formed on the surface of the abutting plate 24b on the side of the pressing plate 24a in order to close the nozzle hole 32b of the nozzle 32 that has fallen horizontally.

  On the other hand, the operating portion 33 has a moving path between a closed state and an open state defined by engaging the left and right engaging protrusions 33b and 33b with the guide portions 26a and 26a of the cover member 20 (FIG. 2 (A), (B)). Furthermore, the operating portion 33 can obtain a light click feeling when each engaging protrusion 33b gets over one of the engaging ribs 26b, 26b of the corresponding guide portion 26a in the closed state and the open state, respectively. it can. That is, the engagement ribs 26b and 26b of each guide portion 26a are formed in accordance with the position of each engagement protrusion 33b in the closed state and the open state of the opening / closing member 30.

  5A and 5B are cross-sectional views corresponding to arrows XX and YY in FIGS. 2A and 2B, respectively. In addition, the container 10 as an eye drop container is integrally formed of an appropriate elastic material having chemical resistance such as polyethylene terephthalate so as to be elastically deformed by pressing both side surfaces with fingers and discharging the internal chemical solution. The cover member 20 and the opening / closing member 30 are integrally formed of thermoplastic polyethylene, polypropylene, or the like, respectively.

  In such an eye drop container, when the opening / closing member 30 is closed (FIG. 2B), the nozzle 32 is accommodated in the cover member 20 and the dispensing hole 22b and the nozzle hole 32b are closed. There is no possibility that the inside chemical solution leaks and the nozzle 32 is inadvertently soiled. Further, when the opening / closing member 30 is opened ((A) in the figure), the nozzle 32 rises and protrudes upward to the outside, and the nozzle hole 32b passes through the extraction hole 22b, the extraction cylinder 22, and the mouth part 12. Since it communicates with the inside of the container 10, by applying a pressing force to the body 11 of the container 10 while holding the whole upside down, it is possible to drop the chemical solution from the nozzle hole 32 b and apply it.

  In addition, this invention is applicable suitably also to the container 10 which accommodates arbitrary liquids other than an eye drop container. Moreover, the container 10, the cover member 20, and the opening / closing member 30 can be integrally formed of any plastic material.

Partially broken whole exploded perspective view Explanatory drawing of an enlarged vertical section of the main part assembly Configuration explanatory diagram of the cover member Usage perspective view 2 is a cross-sectional explanatory diagram of the main part of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

W ... opening 10 ... container 12 ... mouth 20 ... cover member 22b ... pouring hole 23a ... receiving part 24a ... pressing plate 24b ... contact plate 26a ... guide part 26b ... engagement rib 30 ... opening / closing member 32 ... nozzle 32a ... Nozzle part 32d ... engagement pin 33 ... operation part 33b ... engagement protrusion

Patent applicant Shingo Chemical Co., Ltd.
Attorney Tadaaki Matsuda, Attorney

Claims (6)

  A cover member and an opening / closing member to be mounted on the upper part of the container, the cover member having a pouring hole communicating with the mouth portion of the container and an opening above the pouring hole, and the opening / closing member The nozzle that rises and falls while being in contact with the upper end surface of the dispensing hole and the operation portion that is flexibly connected to one end of the nozzle portion that forms the nozzle are integrally formed, and the opening is closed by the operation portion. The closed state in which the nozzle is housed in the cover member, and the operating portion is retracted from the opening, thereby raising the nozzle to communicate with the pouring hole and projecting upward into the opening. A container opening and closing mechanism characterized in that it can be operated reversibly with one hand in an open state.   The open / close member has left and right engaging pins projecting from the base of the nozzle, and the cover member has a receiving portion for fitting the engaging pin in a freely rotatable manner to the left and right of the upper end surface of the dispensing hole. The container opening and closing mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the container opening and closing mechanism is formed as follows.   The container opening / closing mechanism according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the cover member is formed with a contact plate for closing a tip of the nozzle in a closed state of the opening / closing member.   4. The container opening and closing mechanism according to claim 3, wherein the cover member is formed with a push plate that faces the contact plate and pushes a rear end of the nozzle.   5. The left and right guide portions are formed on the cover member, and the left and right engaging protrusions that are engaged with the guide portions are formed on the operation portion. Or a container opening and closing mechanism.   6. The container opening / closing mechanism according to claim 5, wherein an engagement rib is formed in each guide portion in accordance with the position of the engagement protrusion in the closed state and the open state of the opening / closing member.

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