JP2019529266A - Cap for food packaging container - Google Patents

Abstract

The solution is a cap (30) configured to interact with the neck (20), the cap (30) being an inner wall provided with at least one cutting element (50) projecting radially inwardly. Part (33). The cutting element (50) has a hinge portion (52) connected to the inner wall portion (33) and a cutting portion (53) extending radially inward from the hinge portion (52), the hinge portion (52) The axial thickness (K2) is 35-80% of the axial thickness (K1) of the cut portion (53). Further, the present solution is also an assembly that includes a cap (30) and a spout (100), the spout (100) having a membrane (150) that closes the tubular member (110) of the spout (100). Have. [Selection] Figure 2d

Description

  The solution relates to a cap for food packaging containers. In particular, the solution relates to a cap capable of separating the membrane that seals the end of the corresponding spout.

  The food packaging container is usually provided with an opening device to facilitate the discharge of the enclosed food. The opening device is either irreversible opening, i.e. it cannot be closed again once the packaging container is opened or it can be closed again. The latter is often desirable to extend the shelf life and quality maintenance of food. A common way to provide an opening device that can be closed again is to place a threaded neck with a spout in the upper part of the packaging container. The threaded neck is designed to accept a cap that includes an internal thread so that the cap can be twisted off the neck. The cap covers the open spout of the neck so that the enclosed food is protected from the external environment and thus the product quality can be maintained for some time.

  The above solution improves irreversible opening that remains open at all times, but still allows contaminated media to enter the interior of the packaging container through the neck / cap boundary, e.g., thread. It is. Therefore, further improvements have been proposed for sealing the open spout of the neck when storing the packaging container.

  WO 20111144569 discloses a solution in which a thin film is provided at the spout. The membrane that is first bonded to the spout and keeps the spout fully closed is cut from the spout during the opening operation, ie when the cap is twisted off the neck.

  In order to improve the cutting operation, WO20140251818 describes a cap having a cutting element protruding radially inward. Each cutting element has a free end portion, which is provided with a blunt tip and a relatively sharp cutting edge on the side of the free end portion.

  The above solution is well proven and allows for reliable opening and resealing of packaging containers, but especially with regard to the cutting operation, i.e. when the membrane is first detached from the spout. Is desirable. Resealing is adversely affected if the film is not cut properly.

  Therefore, there is a need for a cap with a cutting element that improves the cutting action of the thin film, which cap not only extends the shelf life of the food, but also maintains the quality of the food enclosed in the food packaging container. , Allowing for improved reseal.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve or alleviate the above problems.

  According to a first aspect, the solution is a cap configured to interact with the neck, the cap including an inner wall portion provided with at least one cutting element projecting radially inward. The cutting element has a hinge portion connected to the inner wall portion and a cutting portion extending radially inward from the hinge portion, the axial thickness of the hinge portion being 35-80% of the axial thickness of the cutting portion. It is.

At this time, the relationship between the axial thickness K2 of the hinge portion and the axial thickness K1 of the cut portion can be as follows.

  When expressed in absolute numbers, the axial thickness of the hinge portion may be 0.3 to 0.5 mm.

  Moreover, the number of cutting elements can be 1-7. The function of the cutting element is to separate the membrane from the spout of the packaging container. This cutting operation can be easily performed with only one cutting element, but at least three are required to hold the film after it has been detached from the spout.

  According to another aspect, the solution is an assembly comprising a cap as described at the beginning of this section and having a spout with a membrane that closes the tubular member of the spout.

  In an embodiment of the present solution, the tubular member can include a body and an end portion releasably attached to the membrane, wherein the axial thickness (K1) of the cutting portion of the cutting element is the end It is 200 to 400% of the axial length (L1) of the portion.

  In another embodiment of the present solution, the membrane includes a membrane flange having an outer portion that extends radially outward of the end portion of the tubular member.

  In this case, it should be mentioned that in one variant, the axial length (L1) of the end portion is 15 to 65% of the axial thickness (D1) of the outer portion of the membrane flange. I must. In another variant, the axial length of the end portion may be 20-50% of the axial thickness (D1) of the outer portion of the thin film flange.

  In yet another embodiment of the assembly according to the present solution, the thin film flange further comprises an inner part, the end part of the tubular member being attached to the boundary between the inner part and the outer part of the thin film flange, The axial thickness (D2) of the portion is less than or equal to the axial thickness (D1) of the outer portion.

  In yet another embodiment of the assembly according to the present solution, the inner surface of the inner part of the membrane flange is arranged at an axial distance (H1) away from the inner surface of the outer part of the membrane flange.

  In another embodiment of the present solution, it is proposed that the inner surface of the inner part of the thin film flange and the inner surface of the outer part of the thin film flange be parallel to each other.

  In yet another embodiment of the present solution, it is proposed that the outer surface of the inner part of the thin film flange and the outer surface of the outer part of the thin film flange coincide with each other.

  Finally, in yet another embodiment of the present solution, it is proposed that the membrane includes a sealing lip that projects into the tubular member, the sealing lip being at the end of the tubular member (110). It extends from an axial position located a distance (H1) away from the axial end position of the part. In this case, the outer radius of the cutting part of the at least one cutting element can coincide with the outer radius of the sealing lip.

  The above, as well as further objects, features, and advantages of the present solution will be better understood through the following exemplary, non-limiting detailed description of preferred embodiments of the present invention, with reference to the accompanying drawings. Will.

It is the schematic of the packaging container which has a spout by embodiment. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a cap for use with a spout according to various embodiments. It is sectional drawing of the neck containing the spout by embodiment. FIG. 6 is a plan view of a cutting element for separating a thin film from a neck according to an embodiment. FIG. 6 is a side view of a cutting element according to various embodiments. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of an assembly including a neck and a cap with the spout closed. It is sectional drawing of the pouring spout by embodiment. It is an enlarged view of each part of the spout shown in FIG. 7a.

  Referring to FIG. 1, an example of a food packaging container 10 is schematically shown. The food packaging container 10 preferably has a bottle shape formed by a body part 11 that can be made of a cardboard-based laminate and preferably an upper part 12 that can be made of plastic. The upper portion 12 is provided with a neck 20 that forms the upper side of the plastic upper portion 12. Since the neck 20 can be formed integrally with the upper portion 12, the entire upper portion 12 including the neck 20 can be manufactured as a single piece.

  A cap 30 is disposed on the neck to seal the spout 100 (see, eg, FIG. 2b) and forms the upper end of the neck 20. As is known in the art, the cap 30 can optionally be provided with a tamper ring 40.

  The packaging container 10 can be manufactured by first forming a sleeve made of a cardboard-based laminate, ie, a tubular body extending between two open ends. In a second step, which takes place before, after or in parallel with the sleeve formation, the plastic upper part 12 is produced by molding. The plastic top portion 12 may include a shoulder portion 13 disposed below the neck 20 to which the tubular body is later attached, as shown in FIG. Thus, the shoulder portion 13 is arranged to connect the sleeve that forms the basis of the body portion 11 to the neck 20. The neck 20 is preferably provided with a screw that engages a corresponding screw of the cap 30 including the tamper ring 40. As already explained, the neck 20 and the shoulder portion 13 can be formed as one piece or as two separate pieces molded together.

  After the cap 30 is screwed into the upper portion 12, the sleeve is filled with food content. Preferably, this is done by turning the sleeve and upper portion 12 assembly up and down so that the remaining open end of the sleeve faces up. As shown in FIG. 1, after filling, the open end of the sleeve can be sealed and folded to form a flat bottom.

  Alternatively, the cap 30 is screwed into the upper portion 12 after the packaging container 10 is filled. This is the case, for example, when the neck 20 is provided with a thin film 150 (see FIG. 2b et seq.) That seals the spout 100 of the neck 20 described in more detail below.

  Details of the neck 20 and cap 30 will now be further described with reference to FIGS. 2a and 2b. A cap 30 including a tamper ring 40 is shown in FIG. The cap 30 has a lower portion 31 provided with a female screw 32. The screw 32 is configured to engage the corresponding screw 22 of the neck 20 (see, eg, FIG. 2b). The lower part 31 extends to an upper part 33 that forms the closed upper end of the cap 30. Inside the upper part 33, a means for separating the thin film 150 from the spout 100 and further holding the separated thin film 150 is provided.

  For this purpose, a cutting element 50 is arranged following the screw 32. The purpose of the cutting element or knife 50 is to penetrate the portion of the spout 100 immediately below the membrane 150 to separate the membrane 150 from the remainder of the spout 100. After that step, the cutting element 50 is intended to secure the membrane 150 in an axial position between the cutting element 50 and the interior of the upper portion of the upper portion 33 (ie, along the A-axis of FIG. 2A). Fulfill. While this reduces the amount of debris generated, technically, the membrane 150 serves an important purpose when resealing the closure. There are a plurality of cutting elements 50 distributed around the upper portion 33. In this embodiment, there are five. Although the quantity of cutting elements 50 depends on several factors, one important factor is the rise of the thread 32. The cutting action occurs when the cap 30 is unscrewed, and the cutting element 50 follows the rotational movement of the cap 30 relative to the neck 20 and the axial movement of the cap 30. This suggests that the cutting action, or more generally the “removing action”, must be completed within a certain rotation angle, because otherwise it is cut by axial movement. This is because the element 50 moves out of the area to be cut. Therefore, the more steep the slope of the thread, the more cutting elements 50 are required. On the other hand, each cutting element 50 creates a torque resistance when the cap 30 is unscrewed for the first time, and the cap 30 has too many cutting elements 50 to reduce the opening torque to an acceptable level. Should not have. Thus, for this embodiment, five cutting elements are used, but it is up to the skilled person to derive the appropriate quantity. In general, only one cutting element 50 is sufficient to perform the separating operation to separate the membrane 150 from the spout 100. However, at least three cutting elements 50 are required to perform the cutting operation and the holding operation of the thin film 150 after the thin film 150 is separated from the spout 100.

  A stop element 60 is arranged at approximately the same axial position as the cutting element 50. In this embodiment, the stop element 60 is embodied by a stop projection, i.e. a flange extending downwardly from the upper part of the upper part 33 to a specific axial position and extending radially inward by a small distance. In the present specification, the expressions “axial” or “radial” are all interpreted as indicated by the dashed arrows in FIG. 2a. The axial direction is indicated by the letter “A”, while the radial direction is indicated by the letter “R”.

  In this embodiment, there are a total of five stop projections 60 that are sized to allow the thin film 150 to fit between the stop projections 60. The purpose of the stop element 60 is to prevent the cap 30 from being screwed down extremely on the neck 20 (i.e. in the closing direction) and thus the closure body during installation of the cap 30, i.e. after the first opening. This is to prevent damage to the thin film 150 when resealing. The stop element 60 of the cap 30 cooperates with the counter element 24 of the neck 20 (see FIG. 2b). In this embodiment, the opposing element 24 is shown as a shoulder extending radially outward.

  There are other means to prevent the cap 30 from rotating further once the cap 30 reaches a particular position on the neck 20. Examples include various stop devices within the screw 32 that prevent further rotation of the physical block at the end of the screw 22 of the neck 20 or the cap 30 that cannot be exceeded by the screw 32. It can be a change part of the inclination of the thread 22 of the neck 20. Many more options are available. The solution used in this embodiment is simple, straightforward, does not include the cap 30 or any other moving part of the neck 20, and is predictable, straightforward, clear Provide a safe stop.

  An example of a cutting element 50 is shown in more detail in FIG. In this figure, the cutting element 50 is shown from above. As clearly shown, the cutting element 50 is attached to the inner periphery of the cap 30 in the axial position shown in FIG. 2a. The cutting element 50 can be rotated using a hinged connection with the inner periphery of the cap 30, as will be further described with reference to FIGS. As will be described, the hinged connection is embodied in this embodiment by reducing the thickness of the region 52 directly adjacent to the inner periphery of the cap 30.

  Region 54 is the cutting region of cutting element 50, in which the thickness of cutting element 50 is reduced to form cutting edge 54. The cutting edge 54 can be linear as shown in this embodiment.

  The free end 56 remote from the hinged attachment can preferably be blunted and preferably can be less sharp than the cutting region 54. As a result, the benefit is obtained that when not envisaged, the free end 56 is less likely to damage the connection area between the membrane 150 of the spout 100 and the rest. This can be important, for example, when the cap 30 is initially placed in the spout 100.

  2d-2f show various embodiments of the cutting element 50 taken along line I-I of FIG. 2c. Here, a cutting element 50 is provided on the inner wall of the cap 30 indicated by the reference numeral 33. The cutting element 50 has a hinge portion 52 connected to the inner wall 33 and a cutting portion 53 extending radially inward from the hinge portion 52, ie, extending toward the center of the cap 30. The axial thickness K2 of the hinge portion 52 is preferably 35 to 80% of the axial thickness K1 of the cut portion 53. More preferably, the axial thickness of K2 of the hinge portion 52 is 3/7 to 5/7 of the axial thickness K1 of the cut portion 53. In one particular example, the axial thickness K2 of the hinge portion 52 is 0.4 mm, while the axial thickness K1 of the cut portion 53 is 0.68 mm.

  Surprisingly, the inventors selected the axial thickness K2 of the hinge portion 52 as a ratio to the axial thickness K1 of the cutting portion 53 so that the cutting element 50 i) unintentional folding of the hinge. And ii) it has been found that the risk to the weakening of the rotational movement of the cutting element 50 is greatly reduced.

  Here, the engagement between the cap 30 and the neck 20 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  Beginning with FIG. 3, the cap 30 is screwed into the neck 20 initially, ie when the membrane 150 is attached to the neck 20. As can be seen from FIG. 3, the cutting element 50 bends downward when the cap 30 is twisted off the neck 20, thereby biasing the cutting element 50 inward and thus separating the membrane 150 from the neck 20. .

  Preferably, the cutting element 50 takes an idle position that projects over the radially outer portion of the membrane 150, more specifically, the free end of the cutting element 50 extends beyond the periphery of the membrane 150. . Thus, the cutting element 50 retains the membrane 150 in the cap 30 after the cap 30 is twisted and completely disengaged from the neck 20.

  4-6, a series of closing operations of the cap and neck assembly are shown. Prior to such a series of operations, the cap 30 is assumed to have been twisted off the neck 20 once so that the membrane 150 is separated from the neck 20.

  Starting from FIG. 4, the cap 30 is screwed into the neck 20. The cutting element 50 initially holds the membrane 150, but when the membrane 150 reaches the open spout 100 of the neck 20, the cutting element 50 is released from the membrane 150. Thus, as shown in FIG. 4, the thin film 150 rests on the spout 100, while the cap 30 moves down the neck because it is provided with a screw that converts the rotational motion into vertical motion. .

  In FIG. 4, the thin film 150 is in contact with the closed end of the cap 30 on its upper side while it rests on the open spout 100 of the neck 20 on its lower side.

  As shown in FIG. 5, when the cap 400 is screwed further down, the closed end of the cap 30 interacts with the membrane 150. Thus, the membrane 150 bends so that its diameter increases, thereby causing the sealing lip 160 of the membrane 150 to move toward the inside of the spout 100.

  This procedure continues as long as the cap 30 rotates further down the neck 20. In FIG. 6, the cap 30 is tightly screwed into the neck 20 and the thin film 150 is greatly bent. Accordingly, the sealing lip 160 is urged radially outward until it contacts the inner wall of the spout 100 of the neck 20. At the same time, the upper end of the spout 100 engages the membrane flange 170 so that the membrane 150 locks in the desired sealing position. In this way, the membrane 150 causes the spout 100 of the neck 20 to not affect the food enclosed in the packaging container equipped with the neck spout 100 containing the membrane 150 and the cap 30. Seal.

  Here, the details of the spout 100 will be described with reference to FIG. As mentioned above, the spout 100 is defined as the upper part of the neck 20 through which the contents of the packaging container are discharged. For this reason, the spout 100 includes the thin film 150 before opening the packaging container, but the thin film 150 is separated from the spout 100 when opened. In FIG. 7, the spout 100 before opening the packaging container is shown, that is, the thin film 150 forms a part of the spout 100. As shown by the broken line box in FIG. 7, the spout 100 forms an upper portion of the neck 20 extending upward from around the shoulder portion 24.

  The spout 100 is formed by a tubular member 110 that extends upwardly from the shoulder 24 of the neck. The tubular member 110 has a main body 112 and an upper end portion 114 that forms a connection to the thin film 150. During opening, the cutting element 50 of the cap 30 cuts the upper end portion 114 of the spout 100 such that the membrane 150 is separated from the body 112 of the tubular member 110.

  The membrane 150 that forms the circular closure of the spout 100 includes a central circular disc member 152 and an outer annular disc member 154. The outer annular disk member is disposed between the central circular disk member 152 and the thin film flange 170 in the radial direction.

  As shown in FIG. 7a, the outer annular disk member 154 is connected to the central circular disk member 152 at an angle α, and the thin film flange 170 is connected to the outer annular disk member 154 at an angle β. These angles facilitate bending of the thin film 150 during reseal, and the overall diameter of the thin film 150 increases as the angles α and β increase due to the downward pressing action at the center of the thin film 150. Can be enlarged. When the diameter of the membrane 150 is so enlarged, the sealing lip 160 is biased toward the inner side wall of the body 112 of the tubular member 110. In the idle position where no downward force is applied to the membrane 150, the sealing lip 160 protrudes downward.

  In FIG. 7b, the connection between the tubular member 110 and the membrane 150 is shown in more detail. The thin film flange 170 is formed by two adjacent portions, an outer portion 172 and an inner portion 174 that extend radially outward of the end portion 114 of the tubular member 110. End portion 114 of tubular member 110 is attached to the boundary between the inner and outer portions 172, 174 of membrane flange 170.

  The end portion 114 of the tubular member 110 has a specific axial length L1. The axial length L1 is defined as a distance at which the uppermost portion of the tubular member 110 exhibits a substantially constant thickness, for example. Accordingly, the main body 112 is tapered toward the end portion 114, but the axial length L1 does not include such a tapered portion. On the other hand, the axial length L1 is such that the uppermost portion of the tubular member 110 is thinner than the thickness of the main tubular member 110 at the position where the outlet of the neck 20 is formed when the membrane 150 is separated from the tubular member 110. It can also be defined as a distance indicating the distance. Further, the axial length L1 is a position that forms the outlet of the neck 20 when the membrane 150 is separated from the tubular member 110, where the uppermost portion of the tubular member 110 is, for example, 20 times the thickness of the main tubular member 110. It can also be defined as a distance indicating a thickness within a certain percentage, such as ˜60%. When showing some general value suitable for the liquid food packaging container, the axial length L1 of the end portion 114 can be, for example, in the range of 0.1 to 0.4 mm.

  In some embodiments, the axial thickness K1 of the cutting portion 53 of the cutting element 50 is 200-400% of the axial length L1 of the end portion 114.

  The axial thickness of the membrane flange 170 varies along the radial extension length. As shown in FIG. 7 b, the outer portion 172 has a specific axial thickness D 1 that is greater than or equal to the thickness D 2 of the inner portion 174. Specifically, the axial length L1 of the end portion 114 is in the range of 15 to 65%, preferably in the range of 20 to 50% of the axial thickness D1 of the outer portion 172 of the thin film flange 170. Should. Surprisingly, this ratio between the axial length L1 and the axial thickness D1 allows for better resealing when plastic protrusions are formed in reduced quantities. Such plastic protrusions may otherwise be more difficult to reseal, especially when placed at right angles.

  As described above, the axial thickness D2 of the inner portion 174 of the thin film flange 170 is equal to or less than the axial thickness D1 of the outer portion 172 of the thin film flange 170. As shown in FIG. 7 b, the outer surface 175 a of the inner portion 174 of the thin film flange 170 coincides with the outer surface 173 a of the outer portion 172 of the thin film flange 170. This means that the inner surface 175b of the inner portion 174 of the thin film flange 170 is disposed axially away from the inner surface 173b of the outer portion 172 of the thin film flange 170. These inner surfaces 173b, 175b can be parallel and the free height H1, defined as the axial distance between the inner surfaces 173b, 175b, is always a positive value or zero. This means that the inner surface 175b of the inner portion 174 is always at the same height as or above the inner surface 173b of the inner portion 172. Surprisingly, this setting of the free height H1 makes it easier to penetrate the cutting element 50 and further reduces the risk of bending or deforming the cutting element 50 during penetration.

  The sealing lip 160 projects downward into the tubular member 110. The sealing lip 160 extends from the inner surface 175 of the inner portion 174, i.e., from an axial position located away from the axial end position of the end portion 114 of the tubular member 110. The outer radius R1 of the sealing lip 160 is preferably selected to coincide with the outer radius R2 (shown in FIG. 6) of the cutting element 50 of the cap 30. In this case, the outer radii R1, R2 were measured in the radial direction R from the line A passing through the center of the cap 30 and the spout 20 toward the outermost surface of the sealing lip and the cutting element 50. This is particularly beneficial because the cutting element 50 not only allows it to function as a wedge during the separation of the membrane 150, but also allows a more complete separation.

  While the above description has been made in connection with food packaging containers, it is readily apparent that the general principle of neck and cap can be applied to all types of packaging containers with an opening device.

  Moreover, the present invention has been described primarily with respect to several embodiments. However, as will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art, other embodiments than those disclosed above may likewise be within the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.

  The expressions “upper”, “lower”, “upward”, “downward”, etc. are all for upright packaging containers.

Claims (15)

  A cap (30) configured to interact with the neck (20), comprising an inner wall portion (33) provided with at least one cutting element (50) projecting radially inwardly, said cutting element (50) has a hinge part (52) connected to the inner wall part (33) and a cutting part (53) extending radially inward from the hinge part (52), the hinge part (52) The axial thickness (K2) of the cap (30) is 35-80% of the axial thickness (K1) of the cut portion (53). The cap (30) according to claim 1, wherein:

  The cap (30) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the axial thickness (K2) of the hinge portion (52) is between 0.3 and 0.5 mm.   The cap (30) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the total number of cutting elements (50) is 1-7.   The cap (30) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the cutting element (50) is configured to separate the membrane (150) from a corresponding spout (100).   An assembly comprising a cap (30) according to any one of claims 1 to 5 and a spout (100), the spout (100) being a tubular member (110) of the spout (100). Assembly having a membrane (150) that closes.   The tubular member (100) includes a body (112) and an end portion (114) releasably attached to the membrane (150), wherein the cutting portion (53) of the cutting element (50). The assembly according to claim 6, wherein the axial thickness (K1) is 200-400% of the axial length (L1) of the end portion (114).   The assembly of claim 7, wherein the membrane (150) comprises a membrane flange (170) having an outer portion (172) extending radially outward of the end portion (114) of the tubular member (110).   The axial length (L1) of the end portion (114) is 15-65% of the axial thickness (D1) of the outer portion (172) of the thin film flange (170). The assembly described in.   The axial length (L1) of the end portion (114) is 20-50% of the axial thickness (D1) of the outer portion (172) of the thin film flange (170). The assembly according to claim 9.   The thin film flange (170) further includes an inner portion (174), and the end portion (114) of the tubular member (110) includes the inner and outer portions (172, 172, 170) of the thin film flange (170). 174) and the axial thickness (D2) of the inner part (174) is less than or equal to the axial thickness (D1) of the outer part (172). The assembly described in.   The inner surface (175b) of the inner portion (174) of the thin film flange (170) is spaced apart from the inner surface (173b) of the outer portion (172) of the thin film flange (170) by an axial distance (H1). The assembly according to claim 11.   The inner surface (175b) of the inner portion (174) of the thin film flange (170) and the inner surface (173b) of the outer portion (172) of the thin film flange (170) are parallel to each other. 13. The assembly according to 12.   14. The outer surface (175a) of the inner portion (174) of the thin film flange (170) and the outer surface (173a) of the outer portion (172) of the thin film flange (170) coincide with each other. An assembly according to claim 1.   The membrane (150) includes a sealing lip (160) projecting into the tubular member (110), the sealing lip (160) being the end portion (114) of the tubular member (110). Extending from an axial position arranged at a distance (H1) from the axial end position of the cutting section (53) of the at least one cutting element (50), the outer radius of the sealing lip (160) 15. The assembly according to any one of claims 6 to 14, which corresponds to an outer radius of

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