JP3239437U - Diluent storage container - Google Patents

Abstract

Kind Code: A1 A diluent storage container having a double-cap structure is provided in which necessary parts of the cap can be easily opened and closed with one touch without erroneous operation and contamination is not caused at that time. A container body (20) capable of containing a predetermined amount of diluent, a substantially cylindrical base cap (30) attached to an open end (24) of the container body, and an inner lid connected to the base cap by a hinge (41) so as to be openable and closable. 40 and a top lid 50 connected to the middle lid by a hinge 51 so as to be able to be opened and closed. Since the brim portion 47 for opening the inner lid and the brim portion 55 for opening the upper lid are provided at points facing each other with an interval of approximately 180 degrees, the operation when opening the inner lid for injecting the specimen sample into the container main body is performed. 2) The operation of opening the upper lid to dispense the diluted sample from the container main body into a Petri dish or the like can be performed reliably without erroneous operation. [Selection drawing] Fig. 4

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a diluent storage container that is suitably used for microbiological tests, swab tests, and the like for ensuring food safety.

As part of food safety testing, product inspections, raw material inspections, hand inspections of production staff, process inspections, and the cleanliness and hygienicness of equipment and equipment used in restaurants, kitchen facilities, etc. are generally It is evaluated by testing for viable counts and coliform bacteria, and in some cases, tests for Staphylococcus aureus, mold, yeast, etc. are also performed.

Instruments, instruments, containers and packages to be inspected have various shapes, and the wash-off method is usually adopted to inspect the contamination state inside stoppered containers such as bottles and cans. In the case of instruments with flat surfaces such as chopping boards and plates, and instruments with irregular shapes such as kitchen knives, sample solutions are prepared according to the wiping test method.

The applicant has developed a wiping test kit that allows a simple and reliable wiping test even in a facility without a laboratory (Patent Documents 1 and 2). According to this swab test kit, when the sample contained in the container body together with the diluent is dispensed into a culture medium such as a petri dish for a quantitative test, the sample is discharged by opening only the upper lid while the cap is attached. Therefore, there is an advantage that dispensing work can be easily performed, and its usefulness is highly evaluated in the market.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-344232 JP 2013-108803 A JP 2016-070820 A

However, in the wiping test kits according to Patent Documents 1 and 2, a structure is adopted in which the cap is screwed into the opening end of the container body containing the diluent. After wiping the area to be inspected with a cotton ball attached to the tip of a cotton swab protruding from the back side of the cap, put it back into the container body and turn the cap in the direction to close it. A series of work is required to attach it to the main body and seal it. When removing and closing the cap, it is necessary to hold the container body with one hand and turn the cap with the other hand. In addition, there is a concern that fingers may come into contact with the opening edge of the container body and cause contamination.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a diluent storage container with a double cap structure that can easily open and close the required portion of the cap with one touch without erroneous operation and that does not cause contamination. and

In order to solve this problem, the present invention according to claim 1 includes a container body capable of accommodating a predetermined amount of diluent, a substantially cylindrical base cap attached to the opening end of the container body, and a base cap. When the inner lid is connected to the container by a hinge so that it can be opened and closed, and the upper lid is connected to the middle lid by a second hinge so that it can be opened and closed, and the base cap is attached to the container body and the inner lid is closed to the base cap A communication port that communicates with the inside of the container body is provided through the top surface of the inner lid, and a projection that seals the communication port of the inner lid when the top lid is closed with respect to the inner lid is formed downward from the top surface of the top lid. It is a diluent storage container characterized in that it is provided so as to protrude from.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the diluent storage container according to claim 1, a male screw is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the upper end of the container body, and a female screw is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the base cap to engage with the male screw. and the base cap can be attached to and detached from the container body through screwing of the male screw and the female screw.

According to claim 3, in the diluent storage container according to claim 1 or 2, the base cap, the inner lid, and the upper lid are continuously and integrally formed via the first hinge and the second hinge. Characterized by

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the diluent storage container according to any one of the first to third aspects, a protective wall is formed on the top surface of the inner lid so as to surround the communication port and protrude upward. Characterized by

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the diluent storage container according to any one of claims 1 to 4, the first hinge and the second hinge are provided at substantially opposing points on the outer periphery of the inner lid, and the inner lid A brim for opening the inner lid is formed at a point on the outer circumference substantially facing the first hinge, and a brim for opening the top lid is formed at a point on the outer circumference of the top lid substantially facing the second hinge. and

According to the first aspect of the present invention, when a sample to be tested is put into the container main body, the container main body is opened wide by opening the inner lid with respect to the base cap while the upper lid remains closed. work in good condition. In addition, when dispensing the content liquid (diluted solution + sample) in the container body into a culture medium such as a petri dish for quantitative testing, or when injecting an enrichment medium for qualitative testing, the base cap should be With the inner lid still closed, remove the upper lid from the inner lid, turn the container upside down, and drain the contents through the communication port.

The operation of opening the inner lid to put the specimen into the container body, and the operation of opening the upper lid for quantitative and qualitative tests, are both performed by holding the container with one hand and holding the inner lid with the thumb. Alternatively, the upper lid can be pulled up, which can be easily done with only one hand.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the base cap can be removed from the container body together with the inner lid and the upper lid. can be easily done.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, even when the inner lid and/or the upper lid are opened, they are kept connected to the base cap, so that they can be prevented from being lost.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, when the upper cover is opened with a thumb for quantitative or qualitative inspection, it is possible to prevent the finger from accidentally contacting the communication port and causing contamination. .

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, when an attempt is made to open the inner lid by putting a finger on the flange for opening the inner lid, a finger may be caught on the flange for opening the upper lid. In addition, when you try to open the upper lid by putting your finger on the upper lid opening operation flange, the inner lid opening operation flange It is possible to prevent an erroneous operation such as opening the inner lid by mistake or opening the inner lid together with the upper lid by a finger being caught on the part.

1A is an overall front view showing a sealed state of a diluent storage container according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1B is an overall front view showing a state in which an inner lid and an upper lid are opened from this sealed state. FIG. Since FIG. 1 schematically shows the overall configuration of this diluent storage container, details are omitted or simplified. FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the cap portion of the diluent storage container showing a state in which the inner lid is opened while the upper lid is closed from the sealed state of FIG. 1(a). FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the cap portion of the diluent storage container showing a state in which only the upper lid is opened while the inner lid is closed from the sealed state of FIG. 1(a). Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the cap portion of the diluent storage container, showing a state in which the inner lid is slightly opened and the upper lid is greatly opened from the hermetically sealed state of Fig. 1(a); It is an explanatory view showing an example of use of this diluent storage container.

1 to 4, a diluent storage container 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a container body 20 integrally formed of a compressively deformable soft material such as low-density polyethylene (LDPE), and a container body 20. 20, an inner lid 40 connected to the base cap 30 via a hinge 41 so as to be openable and closable, and an inner lid 40 connected to the inner lid 40 via a hinge 51 so as to be openable and closable. and a top lid 50 that is The middle lid 40 is connected to the base cap 30 via the hinge 41, and the top lid 50 is connected to the middle lid 40 via the hinge 51, so that the base cap 30, the middle lid 40, and the top lid 50 are continuously integrated. formed. As an example, they are integrally molded of polypropylene.

A predetermined amount of diluent 21 is stored in advance in the container body 20 . In this embodiment, the container body 20 contains 9 ml of diluent 21 . As the diluent 21, for example, 0.1% peptone-added physiological saline, buffered peptone water, phosphate-buffered physiological saline, or the like is used.

The container main body 20 has a generally cylindrical shape, but is narrowed from the middle to the upper part and has a reduced diameter. The reduced diameter portion 22 in this embodiment is shown as having a pair of opposing parallel sides.

A scale 23 is displayed on the side surface of the reduced diameter portion 22 . As will be described later, the scale 23 is provided so that when the container 10 is turned upside down and the contents are dispensed into a predetermined test container such as a petri dish containing a culture medium, the dispensed amount can be visually confirmed. Because there is, it is displayed so that it will be in the normal direction when it is turned upside down. Since the container main body 20 contains 9 ml of the diluent 21 in advance, when 1 ml of the specimen sample is put into the container main body 20, 10 ml of the diluted sample is contained in the container main body 20, and when the container main body 20 is turned upside down, 10 ml of the diluted sample is contained. The liquid level of the diluted sample approximately corresponds to the "10" scale. As the liquid is dripped from this state, the liquid surface level will be lowered.

The container main body 20 has a hollow cylindrical upper end portion 25 that reaches the opening end 24 and has a slightly reduced diameter, and a male thread (not shown) is formed on the outer peripheral surface thereof.

A substantially cylindrical base cap 30 has a side wall 31 with a non-slip finish 32 . A female thread (not shown) is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the side wall 31 to be screwed into a male thread (not shown) formed on the outer peripheral surface of the upper end portion 25 of the container body 20 . is detachable. Providing the base cap 30 detachably with respect to the container body 20 means that when the diluent storage container 10 is manufactured, the base cap 30 is removed from the container body 20 together with the inner lid 40 and the upper lid 50, and the opening end of the container body 20 is removed. This is advantageous in that the work of injecting the diluent 21 from 24 can be easily performed, and the conventional container body 20 as described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 can be used as it is. Conveniently, as will be described later, if the inner lid 40 is removed from the base cap 30 and tilted toward the hinge 41, the open end 24 of the container body 20 can be opened wide, so that the work of injecting the diluent 21 is reduced. There are almost no obstacles to Therefore, the base cap 30 may be fixed to the container body 20 or may be integrally formed as a part of the container body 20 . Moreover, when making the base cap 20 detachable from the container body 20, it is not limited to the screw connection as in the illustrated embodiment, and any other means may be adopted.

The inner lid 40 has a top surface 42 and side walls 43 and is formed in a substantially dish shape with an open lower end. An inner cylinder 44 is formed on the back surface of the top surface 42 so as to be closely fitted inside the upper end portion 25 of the container body 20 when the inner lid 40 is closed to the base cap 30 . The inner cylinder 44 has a downward projection length set so that the tip thereof is substantially in close contact with the opening edge 26 of the container body 20 when the inner lid 40 is closed with respect to the base cap 30 .

The outer surface of the side wall 43 of the inner lid 40 is provided with anti-slip processing 48 . Also, on the side wall 43, a collar portion 47 for opening the inner lid is formed downwardly from a point opposed to the point where the hinge 41 is provided at an interval of approximately 180 degrees. Correspondingly, the side wall 31 of the base cap 30 is formed with a concave portion 33 that accommodates the flange portion 47 when the inner lid 40 is closed.

The top surface 42 of the inner lid 40 has a communication port 45 communicating with the inner cylinder 44 in the center, and an annular protection wall 46 is formed to protrude upward so as to surround the periphery thereof. The upward protrusion length of the protective wall 46 is set to be larger than the upward protrusion length of the communication port 45 from the top surface 42 and substantially equal to or slightly smaller than the depth of the top cover 50 . The protective wall 46 is provided to prevent the finger from contacting the communication port 45 and contaminating the sample test solution when the inner lid 40 is opened by putting a finger on the collar portion 47. It is not necessarily necessary to form an annular shape over the entire circumference of 360 degrees. Alternatively, it may be composed of a plurality of intermittently formed portions with intervals to the extent that a finger does not enter.

The upper lid 50 has a top surface 52 and side walls 53 and is formed in a substantially dish shape with an open lower end. At the center of the back surface of the top surface 52, a columnar projection 54 is formed so as to protrude downward to fit and seal the communication port 45 of the inner lid 40 when the upper lid 50 is closed with respect to the inner lid 40. .

On the side wall 53 of the upper lid 50, a collar portion 55 for opening the upper lid is formed projecting outward from a point opposed to the point where the hinge 51 is provided at an interval of approximately 180 degrees. Therefore, in the closed state shown in FIG. 1(a), the flange portion 47 for opening the inner lid and the flange portion 55 for opening the upper lid face each other at an interval of approximately 180 degrees. As a result, when an attempt is made to open the inner lid 40 by placing a finger on the flange portion 47, a finger is accidentally caught on the flange portion 55 to open the upper lid 50 or the inner lid 40 together with the upper lid 50. Or, conversely, when you try to open the upper lid 50 by putting your finger on the flange 55, your finger may accidentally hang on the flange 47 and open the inner lid 40 or the upper lid 50 together with the inner lid 40. erroneous operation can be prevented.

In addition, when opening the inner lid 40 from the base cap 30, a finger is placed on the flange portion 47, and when opening the upper lid 50 from the inner lid 40, a finger is placed on the flange portion 55 to operate. To prevent dust from entering inside the inner lid 40 and the upper lid 50 and causing contamination.

An example of use of the diluent storage container 10 will be described below with reference to FIG. As described above, the container main body 20 contains a predetermined amount (9 ml in this embodiment) of the diluent 21 in advance. In order to inject the sample into the container main body 20, the inner lid 40 is removed from the base cap 30 by putting a finger on the brim 47 for opening the inner lid and pulling it up from the closed state shown in FIG. 1(a). 2, and a predetermined amount (1 ml in this embodiment) of the sample collected with a pipette 60 or the like is injected (FIG. 5(a)). In FIG. 2, the inner lid 40 is shown opened at about 45 degrees, but since the inner lid 40 can be opened wide (180 degrees or more) via the hinge 41, the sample is injected from the open end 24. It should not interfere with your work. During this sample injection operation, the upper lid 50 is kept attached to the inner lid 40 .

After injecting the sample into the container body 20 in this manner, the inner lid 40 is closed and the diluent storage container 10 is inverted and mixed about 4 to 5 times (FIG. 5(b)). As a result, the container main body 20 contains 10 ml of the sample diluted to 1/10.

Next, the upper lid 50 is removed from the inner lid 40 by pulling up the flange 55 for opening the upper lid with a finger, and the upper lid is opened as shown in FIG. Then, while referring to the scale 23, a predetermined amount of the diluted sample is dispensed into the petri dish 70 or various dry culture media (Fig. 5(c)). In the case of a highly contaminated specimen sample, 1 ml of the 1/10 diluted sample obtained above is injected into the container main body 20 containing 9 ml of diluent in another diluent storage container 10 using the above dispensing function. By repeating the dispensing in the same manner, diluted samples such as 1/100 and 1/1000 can be obtained.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be variously modified within the scope of the invention described in each claim of the utility model registration.

10 diluent storage container 20 container main body 21 diluent 22 reduced diameter portion 23 scale 24 opening end 25 upper end portion 26 opening edge 30 base cap 31 side wall 32 non-slip processing 33 recess 40 inner lid 41 hinge (first hinge)
42 Top surface 43 Side wall 44 Inner cylinder 45 Communication port 46 Protective wall 47 Collar portion 48 for inner lid opening operation Non-slip processing 50 Upper lid 51 Hinge (second hinge)
52 Top surface 53 Side wall 54 Projection 55 Flange 60 for opening the upper lid Pipette 70 Petri dish

Claims (5)

A container body capable of accommodating a predetermined amount of diluent, a substantially cylindrical base cap attached to the opening end of the container body, an inner lid connected to the base cap by a first hinge so as to be able to open and close, and a second and an upper lid that is openable and closable with two hinges, and the top surface of the inner lid has a communication port that communicates with the inside of the container body when the base cap is attached to the container body and the inner lid is closed with respect to the base cap. A diluent storage container characterized in that a protrusion is provided penetrating through the inner lid and protruding downward from the top surface of the upper lid for sealing the communication port of the inner lid when the upper lid is closed with respect to the inner lid. A male thread is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the upper end of the container body, and a female thread is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the base cap to engage with the male thread. 2. The diluent storage container according to claim 1, wherein the diluent storage container is detachable. 3. The diluent storage container according to claim 1, wherein the base cap, the inner lid, and the upper lid are formed continuously and integrally via the first hinge and the second hinge. 4. The diluent storage container according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a protective wall is formed on the top surface of the inner lid so as to surround the communication port and protrude upward. A first hinge and a second hinge are provided at points substantially facing each other on the outer periphery of the inner lid, and a flange portion for opening the inner lid is formed at a point substantially facing the first hinge on the outer periphery of the inner lid. 5. The diluent storage container according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a flange for opening the upper lid is formed at a point on the outer periphery substantially facing the second hinge.

Images