JP6247045B2 - Valve controlled dispensing closure - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a dispensing closure for dispensing a liquid such as perfume from a container having an opening.

  The document U.S. Pat. No. 7,681,750 describes a stopper for a container holding a free flowing fluid. The container includes a fixed lower portion that can be fixed to the neck portion to close the neck portion of the container surrounding the opening of the container, and a convex connection portion that forms a flow path of a fluid that freely flows. A base comprising at least a soft elastic material, a cover comprising a cover, a replaceable upper part that can be provided on the lower part between the outer stationary position and the inner working position coaxially to the direction of the container Breaker with the upper end closing the back side of the upper part, i.e. a plate-type diaphragm valve, a perforation in the base of the diaphragm valve closed in the test position of the upper part, and a base larger than the inner cross part of the connection With a diameter of. The outer end of the connection always supports the base of the diaphragm valve so that the diaphragm valve deflects outward when axial pressure is applied to the upper part in the container direction, the latter carrying the initial load to its upper part in its rest position. By always giving direction, the perforations in the base are opened.

  However, if too much pressure is applied to the container in order to remove the liquid from the dispenser, the pressure inside the liquid flow path is different from the pressure outside the liquid flow path, i.e., atmospheric pressure. There is a possibility that liquid will easily leak out.

  In order to prevent such leakage, a cap may be provided as disclosed in the above document.

  The document US 2007/0284397 also discloses a dispensing closure having a plurality of nozzles in a plate disposed above the valve. A mist or the like can be sprayed by the plurality of nozzles. Again, a cap is provided to prevent leakage.

  Many other valve configurations are known. For example, document European Patent Publication No. 1953432 shows an umbrella valve as a pressure reducing valve. In general, an umbrella valve is a diaphragm-shaped sealing disk, that is, an elastic valve component having an umbrella shape. These elastic parts are generally used as a sealing member in a backflow prevention device, a one-way valve, or the like. When attached to the valve seat, the convex diaphragm is stretched flat against the valve seat, absorbing some unevenness of the valve seat and creating a certain sealing force. Umbrella-type valves allow the upper pressure to generate enough force to allow forward flow when the convex diaphragm is lifted from the valve seat, allowing it to flow in one direction at a given pressure and immediately in the opposite direction Backflow can be prevented.

  Such umbrella valves have the disadvantage of being large. For example, at a pressure of 5 millibar (0.5 kPa), the bulb diameter is usually at least 8 cm.

  The present invention seeks to solve the problems in the prior art and provide a compact dispensing closure as defined in the appended claims. According to the dispensing closure of the present invention, liquid tightness can be ensured even without a cap, and the diameter of the neck of the bottle is made sufficiently small to be used in a perfume bottle or the like. be able to.

  Other contents and various variants of the invention are defined in the dependent claims.

  The invention will be better understood with the help of the following detailed description and drawings showing embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a liquid container fitted with a dispensing closure according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the container with the dispensing closure of FIG. FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the main components of the dispensing closure according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is a top view and a cross-sectional view of a dispensing closure according to the present invention. FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of air and liquid flow within a dispensing closure.

  Here, a preferred embodiment of the dispensing closure according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  1 and 2 show a liquid container 3 fitted with a dispensing closure 2 according to the present invention. The combination of the container and the mounted closure is indicated by reference numeral 1.

  The container 3 can hold a freely flowing fluid such as a lotion, cream, perfume, and is usually provided with a neck portion having an outlet opening. The container may be made of a solid material such as glass or ceramic. Moreover, since it can also be comprised with a plastic, the side surface of a plastic container may be hard or soft. The neck of the container 3 may be provided with a thread that can be fitted with a spray top in a manner well known to those skilled in the art.

  The dispensing closure 2 basically corresponds to a plug that fits into the neck of the container 3 and closes the liquid so that it does not leak.

  FIG. 3 shows the dispensing closure (also referred to as a plug) 2 in more detail. The plug 2 is composed of three parts: a plug cap 21, a double valve type diaphragm 22, and a plug body 23. ing. A tube or rod 24 may be fitted into the plug body so that the liquid can be moved from inside the container 3 to the plug to get out of the plug. The plug body 23 includes an upper end portion to which the double valve type diaphragm 22 is attached, and the plug cap 21 is fitted on the upper end of the double valve type diaphragm 22 to seal the plug.

  FIG. 4 is a top view of the plug cap 21 and a cross-sectional view of the plug.

  As shown in the figure, the plug cap 21 has a disk shape and is provided with a central opening 21d provided with one or more air vent slots 21c in the periphery. As will be described in detail later, an inner ring seal 21a is provided between the air vent slot 21c and the central opening 21d in order to prevent liquid leakage when a tube, that is, a cannula, is inserted into the valve located below the plug cap. Provided.

  The double valve diaphragm 22 is made of a soft elastic material such as silicone, rubber, or plastic such as polyethylene or similar elastomer material. The double valve diaphragm 22 includes a central valve portion 22b having a central slit-type hole 22a surrounded by a valve seal 22c. Further, a peripheral portion constituting the umbrella valve 22d is provided so as to surround the valve seal 22c. Such a slit-type hole is known, for example, from the above-mentioned document US Pat. No. 7,681,750 as follows. As shown in the figure, a plurality of slits are crossed or star-shaped and extend through the center of the central valve portion 22d at equal circumferential angular distances in the diameter direction. The end of the slit is located at an appropriate distance in the radial direction from the valve seal 22c.

  The plug main body 23 includes an elongated circular main body 23d that fits into a neck portion of a container that holds liquid, and a general disk-shaped upper end portion 23e that is disposed at the upper end of the neck portion so as to close the neck portion. It has a plug shape. The outer diameter of the upper end portion 23e is substantially the same as the neck of the container in which the plug 2 is fitted. As an example, this diameter may be 15 mm, which is a standard FEA15 size for perfume bottles.

  The main body 23 d has an outer elongated cylindrical portion that fits snugly with the neck of the container 3. In order to prevent leakage between the container and the plug, a ring seal 23a may be provided on the outer peripheral surface of the main body 23d. Furthermore, the main body 23d has an inner elongated cylindrical portion having a hollow dip tube mounting base 23c to which the dip tube 24 is attached and spaced apart from the outer elongated cylindrical portion. In order to prevent inflow of air from the inside of the container to the dip tube, one or more rings, for example, three rings may be provided.

  Further, as shown in the drawing, the upper end portion 23e is provided with a weld ring 23f fitted in a slot appropriately disposed on the lower surface of the plug cap 21 on the upper surface. This ensures a tightly sealed assembly between these components, for example by laser welding. See also section C of FIG. In addition, the upper end 23e is provided with a central recess 23h delimited by a side wall 23g that coincides with a further slot suitably arranged on the lower surface of the plug cap 21, ensuring an airtight assembly between these components. To. The recess 23h is configured to be attached with a double valve diaphragm 22, and is provided with an air vent slot that appropriately matches the air vent slot 21c of the diaphragm 22 in the axial direction. The inner elongated cylindrical portion of the main body 23d has a hollow upper portion 23b that goes into the recess and serves as a diaphragm deflection chamber. This is a space used when inserting the dip tube 24 so that the diaphragm and the tube do not collide. The side wall of the hollow portion 23b serves as a shoulder to which the valve seal 22c of the diaphragm 22 is attached.

  The diaphragm 22 is fitted into the recess 23h so that the plug is closed when the plug cap 21 is attached, and the valve seal 22c is compressed between the side wall and the plug cap. In this way, the liquid tightness of the deflection chamber 23b is ensured. As shown in FIG. 4, these shoulders have a diaphragm with a circumferential valve portion, that is, an inner valve portion constituting a normally closed valve having a slit-type hole 22a, and an outer valve portion constituting an umbrella-shaped valve 22b. The diaphragm 22 is fixed by dividing into two. However, the slit-shaped hole 22a is closed when the inner valve portion is in a stationary position. The umbrella-type valve 22b is also a normally closed valve having a valve seat on the plug cap 21, and closes the air vent slot of the plug cap 21 when in the stationary position. As can be seen from the above, the umbrella-type valve 22 b closes the air vent slot 21 c of the plug cap 21.

  Here, the operation of the double valve diaphragm according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  The double valve type diaphragm 22 has a concentric double valve including a normally closed hole having a self-closing slit type valve 22a and a normally closed umbrella type valve. When the liquid is quantitatively discharged from the container, suction is performed by the pressure applied to the container or by a pump through the slit-type hole 22a. The slit type hole 22a is opened so that the liquid can flow out of the container and the plug in the direction of the arrow “flow path B” shown in FIG. For this reason, decompression occurs inside the container, and the liquid comes out from the dip tube 24 and the plug through the opened hole. For example, when spraying perfume, the amount of reduced pressure is about 5 to 10 mbar. This pressure reduction opens the umbrella valve so that air can flow into the container 3 through the air vent slot 21 c and the corresponding slot of the plug cap 23 in the direction of the arrow “flow path A” shown in FIG. 5. As described above, when a certain amount of liquid is discharged, the pressure inside the container is reduced. The injected volume is replaced by air so that the air flowing in from the umbrella-shaped valve opened by the reduced pressure is balanced between the inside and the outside of the container.

  Thus, when the valve is closed, the liquid remains in the container by the holding force A and the holding force B as shown in FIG. This prevents the liquid from being ejected when the bottle is not connected to the cannula system or when the bottle has no lid.

  Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that other embodiments may be used as long as the concept is included. Accordingly, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed herein, but only by the scope of the appended claims.

Claims (12)

Dispensing closure for a liquid holding container that can be tightly fitted to the neck of the container to ensure the liquid tightness of the container,
A plug body inserted into the neck of the container and having a central liquid flow path and a peripheral air flow path;
A double valve type diaphragm made of a soft elastic material and arranged in a recess provided in an upper portion of the plug body to cover the liquid flow path and the air flow path;
(I) one or more air vent slots arranged in an annular shape that are axially aligned along the air flow path of the plug body; and (ii) the liquid flow path of the plug body. And (iii) a ring seal provided between the air vent slot and the central opening, wherein a tube is inserted into a valve located below the plug cap. A ring seal that prevents liquid leakage when it is provided, and a plug cap for sealing the double valve diaphragm in the plug body,
The double valve diaphragm includes a first valve portion and a second valve portion that are concentrically positioned ;
Wherein the first valve unit, closes the front Symbol fluid body flow passage of the plug body when in the rest position, a normally closed valve having a central hole of the slit type,
The dispensing valve is a normally closed valve umbrella valve that closes one or more air vent slots of the plug cap when the second valve portion is in a stationary position. The dispensing closure according to claim 1, wherein the double valve diaphragm further includes a valve seal disposed between the first valve portion and the second valve portion. The dispensing closure according to claim 1, wherein the double valve diaphragm further includes a valve seal disposed concentrically between the first valve portion and the second valve portion. The dispensing closure according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the double-valve diaphragm further includes the first valve portion for liquid dispensing and the second valve portion for venting air. Wherein the first valve part, the dispensing closure of claim 1 which opens when a positive pressure in front Symbol liquid body passage of the plug body has occurred in the double-valve diaphragm. Wherein the first valve part, the dispensing closure of claim 1 which opens when the vacuum in the previous SL liquid body passage of the plug cap is generated in the double-valve diaphragm. The second valve part, the dispensing closure according to any one of claims 1 to 6 opens when the vacuum in the previous SL liquid body passage of the plug body has occurred in the double-valve diaphragm. The plug body is in alignment prior Symbol liquid body passage and axially dispensing closure according to any one of claims 1 to 7 having an inner elongated cylindrical portion for attaching the dip tube. The plug body has an elongated circular body that fits into the neck portion of the container when attached, and a disk-shaped upper end portion that is formed at the upper end of the neck portion to close the neck portion. The dispensing closure according to any one of claims 1 to 8. The dispensing closure according to claim 9, wherein the upper end portion has a weld ring on an upper surface, and the plug cap has a slot disposed on the lower surface for attaching the weld ring.   A combination of the dispensing closure according to any one of claims 1 to 10 and a liquid holding container. The combination according to claim 11, wherein the liquid holding container holds perfume.

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