JPH09156624A - Container - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make bubbles easily escape to a head part, make contents near an inner wall easily discharge, and make the contents hardly remain on inner faces of protrusions by providing protrusions and recesses at a plurality of spiral loci on a drum. SOLUTION: A container made of synthetic resin comprises a drum part 11, a bottom 12, and a head part 13. Protrusions 11a and recesses 11b are formed on the drum part 11. The protrusions 11a and the recesses 11b are formed along three spiral loci A, B, and C. Because of the three spiral shapes, the number of protrusions 11a and the recesses 11b arranged in the axial direction on the peripheral face are large, so that they easily contract. Further, due to the three spirals, a slant angle a of the spiral to a face orthogonal to the center axis is large. Accordingly, bubbles and contents in the protrusions 11a easily move to the head part 13.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

The present invention relates to a soft or semi-rigid or hard container suitable for being filled with a viscous seasoning such as mayonnaise, ketchup, or cooked sauce such as tartar sauce, In particular, the present invention relates to a container capable of being compressed and deformed when the contents are discharged or when the discharge is completed.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Containers filled with various seasonings or beverages are made of various synthetic resin materials, but can be compressed and deformed so as not to be bulky when discarding or collecting empty containers. There is.

FIG. 7 is a side view showing a conventional container capable of being compressed and deformed. This container has a cylindrical body 1, a bottom 2 and
It is composed of the tip portion 3, and a discharge port 3a is opened at the tip of the tip portion 3. A cap can be attached to the protruding port 3a. Protrusions 1 a and recesses 1 b are alternately formed on the peripheral surface of the body 1 in the axial direction of the body 1. Convex part 1
Both a and the concave portion 1b are continuously formed in multiple lines in a concentric circle locus. In this container, the body 1 can be axially compressed and deformed by deforming the convex portion 1a and the concave portion 1b so as to be folded in an empty state in which the contents are discharged.

[0004]

However, in the container shown in FIG. 7, the top portion (a) of the convex portion 1a formed on the body portion 1 has a shape with corners. Therefore, there is a drawback that when the contents are filled in the container, bubbles tend to remain at the corners of the top portion (a) on the inner surface of the container. In particular, when the contents are slightly viscous (viscous) such as cooked sauces such as ketchup, mayonnaise or tartar sauce, the above-mentioned bubbles are more likely than when the contents are liquids such as beverages. Tend to remain. The remaining air bubbles cause a problem that the seasoning or the like is easily discolored or oxidized.

In the case of a commercial container filled with the above seasoning or cooked sauce, the container is loaded into an extruding tool called a dispenser, and the rear end surface 2 of the bottom part 2 is loaded.
The container is gradually pushed from a. As a result, the required amount of contents can be discharged from the discharge port 3a, and at the same time as this protrusion, the body portion 1 can be compressed. However, in the container shown in FIG. 7, since the convex portion 1a is formed concentrically with respect to the central axis of the body portion 1, the contents are likely to remain inside the corner of the top portion (a).
Therefore, there is a problem that the contents cannot be completely discharged from the discharge port 3a to the end.

Further, since the convex portions 1a and the concave portions 1b are circular shapes independent of each other, the rear end surface 2a of the container is
When the is gradually pushed, the convex portions 1a and the concave portions 1b are folded in some places, and are not folded in some places. For example, the bending deformation of the convex portions 1a and the concave portions 1b tends to be irregular. Therefore, when the rear end surface 2a is pushed by the dispenser to contract the body portion 1, the adjacent convex portions 1a and concave portions 1b are not always completely folded in order, and the rear end surface 2a is fixed by a certain size. When pushed, the amount of contents discharged from the discharge port 3a may not be constant. For example, at some time, either one
Only the convex portions 1a and the concave portions 1b at some locations may be completely folded and the convex portions 1a and the concave portions 1b at the other portions may not be deformed at all. It may transform each time. Even if the body portion 1 contracts in the axial direction by the same size as described above, the change in the internal volume at this time is not always the same, so that the quantitative content of the discharged content is lacking.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems. When filling a viscous content, bubbles remaining on the inner surface of the convex portion are easily discharged toward the discharge port, and are compressed and deformed. An object of the present invention is to provide a container in which the contents are less likely to remain inside the convex portion when the contents are discharged.

Further, according to the present invention, when the body is compressed,
Folding deformation (compression deformation) of convex and concave parts on the peripheral surface of the body
It is an object of the present invention to provide a container in which the container can be easily advanced along the axial direction of the body and the contents can be easily discharged quantitatively.

[0009]

According to the present invention, in a container having a cylindrical body and a discharge port opened at the front, concave portions and convex portions are alternately formed on the peripheral surface of the body portion. The concave portion and the convex portion are formed along a plurality of spiral loci around the central axis of the cylindrical trunk portion, and the circumferential surface of the trunk portion is formed by the deformation of the concave portion and the convex portion in the central axis direction. It is characterized in that it is compressible.

Further, in the above description, it is preferable that the inner surface of the apex of the convex portion communicates with the inner surface of the front portion of the body at substantially the same plane at the end on the front side of the spiral locus.

In the container of the present invention, the body portion is provided with the concave portion and the convex portion along a plurality of spiral loci. Therefore, when filling the contents, the bubbles remaining on the inner surface of the convex portion easily move to the front side along the spiral trajectory,
Therefore, it becomes easy to degas from the discharge port. Further, when the body portion is gradually compressed in the axial direction to discharge the content from the discharge port, the content inside the convex portion is gradually discharged in the discharge port direction along the spiral locus. Therefore, when the convex portion and the concave portion are folded, the contents are less likely to remain inside the convex portion.

Further, when the body portion is compressed, if the convex portion and the concave portion are compressed at a certain position (for example, the rearmost end), the folding is continued to the convex portion and the concave portion along the spiral locus. Progressing in a regular manner. Therefore, the compression of the body portion can easily proceed along the axial direction of the body portion,
The content discharged from the discharge port can be quantified when the body is compressed by a certain size. Therefore, it is suitable for discharging the contents quantitatively with a commercial dispenser. Further, the one having a concave portion and a convex portion along a plurality of spiral loci is excellent in terms of independence.

In addition, a plurality of protrusions and recesses (for example, 3
Since it is formed along the spiral locus of the stripe), as shown in FIG. 1, even though a large number of concave portions and convex portions are formed along the axial direction of the body portion, it is possible to form a plane perpendicular to the central axis. The inclination angle α of the convex portion and the concave portion can be increased. By increasing this angle α, it becomes easy to move the bubbles or the contents inside the convex portion to the ejection port side along the spiral.

Further, when the convex portion and the concave portion are formed by a plurality of spiral loci, even if the angle α is increased as described above,
It is possible to increase the number of concave portions and convex portions that are lined up in the axial direction at all positions on the peripheral surface of the body portion. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 2, when the concave portions and the convex portions are folded, they are compressed into a cylindrical shape. It is easy and can shorten the total length when compressed.

Further, in the case of using a plurality of spiral trajectories,
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, it is possible to form a plurality of communication points between the top of the convex portion at the end of the spiral locus on the tip side and the inner surface of the tip of the container. For example, in the case of a three-thread spiral locus, the number of tops of the convex portions communicating with the inner surface of the tip of the container is three around the central axis O at 120 degree intervals. When the body is compressed as described above, the contents near the inner wall of the body move in the direction of the discharge port along the inner surface of the convex portion of the spiral, and exit from the top to the inner surface of the tip. However, when the spiral has a plurality of threads, the number of outlets shown by this increases, and it becomes easy to uniformly discharge the contents near the inner wall to the inner surface portion of the tip.

If the inner surface of the top of the convex portion at the end of the front end of the spiral locus and the inner surface of the front portion of the container are made to be substantially flush with each other, the inner surface of the convex portion advances along the spiral locus. It is easy for the contents to travel to the inner surface at the boundary between the body and the tip, and the contents are easily discharged.

[0017]

1 is a side view showing an embodiment of a container of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a side view showing a state in which the body of the container is completely compressed, and FIG. It is a side view which shows the state which has pushed out the thing quantitatively. Further, FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged side view showing a convex portion and a concave portion at the front end of the spiral locus, and FIG. 5 is a partial perspective view of FIG.

The container shown in FIG. 1 is filled with cooked sauce such as mayonnaise, ketchup or tartar sauce, or a seasoning having a viscosity (viscosity) such as soup or a processed food. In the case of a soft container, LDP from the outer layer to the inner layer is used as a synthetic resin material forming the container.
E (Low Density Polyethylene) / Adhesive Layer / EVOH (Ethylene / Vinyl Alcohol Copolymer) as Gas Bayer Layer
An example is a multilayer structure in which / adhesive layer / regrind layer / adhesive layer / LDPE is laminated. The adhesive layer is, for example, acid anhydride-modified PE or the like. The regrind layer is included as necessary.

In the case of a semi-rigid container, for example, PP (polypropylene) is used in place of the LDPE of the outer layer and the inner layer in the above example, or VLDPE (linear ultra-low density polyethylene) is contained in PP. Those that have been used are used as the resin material. The adhesive layer in this case is an acid anhydride-modified PP or the like. Alternatively, it may be formed of a single layer of resin.

The thickness of the resin is 50 to 500 μm, preferably 100 to 300 μm in the body portion 11 shown in FIG.
It is. EVOH if a gas barrier layer is required
The layer thickness is appropriately set according to the required barrier level. The present invention is suitable for such a soft or semi-rigid container, but can also be carried out for a hard container such as a PET single-layer bottle.

The container shown in FIG. 1 has a cylindrical body portion 11,
It has a bottom portion 12 and a tip portion 13, and a tip end head portion 13b of the tip portion 13 has a discharge port 13a. After the contents are filled, a sealing material is attached to the discharge port 13a, and a male screw is provided on the tip end head 13b.
The cap is screwed onto b. The convex portion 1 is formed on the peripheral surface of the body portion 11.
1a and the recessed part 11b are formed in succession alternately in the direction of the central axis O. As shown in the enlarged view of FIG.
Has a substantially triangular cross section with a corner at the top, and the recess 11b also has a triangular shape with a corner at the bottom.
1b has a uniform wall thickness. Therefore, the inner peripheral surface (inner wall surface) of the body portion 11 is also such that the concave portion and the convex portion having a triangular cross section are adjacent to each other, similarly to the outer shape shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 4, the angle formed between the lower sloped surface (c) of the recess 11b and the plane orthogonal to the central axis O is, for example, 59 degrees, and the upper sloped surface (d) is orthogonal to the upper sloped surface (d). The angle with the surface to be formed is, for example, 45 degrees, and the dimension a = 3 m
m and b = 5 mm. Therefore, the area of the slope (c) is larger than the area of the slope (d). Therefore, when the body portion 11 is compressed in the axial direction, as shown in FIG.
The convex portion 11a and the concave portion 11b are folded so that the slope (d) below the convex portion 11a enters the inner surface side of the slope (c) above the convex portion 11a.

In this container, as shown in FIG.
1a and a concave portion 11b are formed along three spiral loci around the central axis O of the body portion 11. That is, the convex portion of the locus of A, the convex portion of the locus of B, and the convex portion of the locus of C shown in FIG. 1 are parallel to each other and form a spiral that advances in the axial direction around the central axis O at a constant pitch. Has become. A1, B1, C1
The three-spiral locus shown by is A when it goes around the central axis.
2, B2, C2 position. In FIG. 1, the convex portion 11a and the concave portion 11b have a structure in which the convex portion 11a and the concave portion 11b are wound six times along three spiral loci A, B, and C. Therefore, at a certain position on the peripheral surface of the body, the number of the convex portions 11a and the concave portions 11b arranged in the axial direction is 3 × 6 = 18.

As described above, since the number of the concave portions 11b and the convex portions 11a arranged in the axial direction is large at a certain position on the peripheral surface, when all the concave portions 11b and the convex portions 11a are folded, the container is closed as shown in FIG. , Contracts so that its total length becomes shorter,
Further, the cylindrical shape can be maintained even in the contracted state.

However, in each spiral locus A, B, or C, since there are 6 turns with respect to the entire axial length of the body 11, the inclination angle α of the spiral with respect to the plane orthogonal to the central axis O becomes considerably large. In the example of FIG. 1, α is about 5 to 8 degrees. Since the inclination angle α is large, the contents located on the inner surface of the convex portion 11a easily move toward the tip portion 13 when the body portion 11 is compressed. Further, when the contents are filled, the bubbles inside the convex portion 11a are likely to escape toward the tip portion 13 side along the spiral locus. In order to improve the movement of the contents and the escape of bubbles, the above α is preferably 5 degrees or more.

FIG. 6 shows a comparative example with the present invention. In this comparative example, the pitches, the numbers, and the dimensions of the convex portions 11c and the concave portions 11d arranged in the axial direction at certain positions on the circumferential surface of the body portion are exactly the same as those in FIG. 1, but the convex portions 11c and the concave portions 11d are described. Are formed along a single spiral locus.
In FIG. 6, the number of the convex portions 11c and the concave portions 11d arranged side by side is the same as that in FIG.
However, since there is one spiral locus, the inclination angle β of the spiral locus with respect to the plane orthogonal to the central axis O is extremely smaller than the above α. Therefore, in FIG. 6, when the body is compressed, the contents in the protrusions 11c are less likely to advance to the tip, and the bubbles remaining inside the protrusions 11c when the contents are filled escape in the direction of the tips. It gets harder. Further, if the spiral locus of the concave portion and the convex portion is a single spiral and the angle of this spiral is the same as the large angle α shown in FIG. 1, the entire container tends to buckle when the body portion contracts, and to some extent. When it contracts, it loses its independence.

4 and 5 show the boundary between the body 11 and the tip 13 of the container. The corners at the top of the convex portion 11a along the spiral loci A, B, and C are indicated by (a), and the corners at the bottom of the concave portion 11b are indicated by (b). Further, the corner (a) of the top portion at the end on the front side of the spiral locus is indicated by, and the inner surface of the tip portion 13 of the container is indicated by. In this example, the ends of the corners of the top of the protrusion 11a communicate with the inner surface of the tip 13 in substantially the same plane. Therefore, the contents and air bubbles inside the convex portion 11a move along the spiral and then move to the tip 1
It becomes possible to smoothly escape to the inner surface of 3, and bubbles and contents are less likely to remain at the boundary between the body portion 11 and the tip portion 13.

Since the spiral locus has three lines, A, B,
The ends of the corners of the top of the convex portion 11a formed along the loci of C communicate with the inner surface at three locations at intervals of 120 degrees around the central axis O. Therefore, when the body portion is compressed, the content will escape from the three portions to the tip portion 13. The same applies to bubbles. Ejecting the contents and bubbles is easy because it escapes from three locations.

As shown in FIG. 3, the dispenser 20, which is a tool for quantitatively pushing out the contents of the container, has a holder 21, a pressurizing section 22, and a pressurizing shaft 23, and is not shown. However, a delivery mechanism for delivering the pressure shaft by a predetermined distance is provided. The container filled with the contents is loaded into the holder 21, and the pressurizing shaft 23 is sent out by a predetermined distance. At this time, the pressurizing unit 22 presses the container from the rear end surface 12a. Due to this pressing force, the discharge port 13a
The contents are discharged from the container, and at the same time, the body 11 is compressed and deformed.

Since the inclination angle α is large in the convex portion 11a along the three spirals, the contents near the inner wall of the container are smoothly moved to the tip portion 13 side and discharged. Moreover, the convex portion 1
When the 1a and the concave portion 11b are deformed so as to be bent, this deformation proceeds along a spiral locus, so that the body portion is deformed and compressed relatively regularly. Therefore, the pressure unit 22
The amount of the content discharged from the discharge port 13a can be made substantially constant when is advanced by a certain distance. Although the spiral locus has three lines in the example of the drawing, it may have two lines or four lines or more.

[0031]

As described above, according to the present invention, since the convex portion and the concave portion are provided on the body portion in a plurality of spiral loci, it is easy for bubbles to escape to the tip portion and to easily discharge the contents near the inner wall. , The contents are less likely to remain on the inner surface of the convex portion.

Further, since the body portion is easily deformed and the deformation is regular, it is possible to quantify the content discharged when the body portion contracts by a predetermined dimension.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing an embodiment of a container of the present invention,

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a state in which the container shown in FIG. 1 is contracted,

FIG. 3 is a side view showing a usage method of compressing the container,

FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged side view showing a boundary portion between a body portion and a tip portion,

5 is a perspective view taken along the arrow V in FIG. 4,

FIG. 6 is a side view showing a part of a container as a comparative example with the present invention,

FIG. 7 is a side view of a conventional compression type container,

[Explanation of symbols]

 11 Body part 11a Convex part 11b Concave part 12 Bottom part 13 Tip part 13a Discharge port (a) Top part of convex part (b) Bottom part of concave part Top part of convex part at end of spiral tip

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A container having a cylindrical body and a discharge port opened at the tip, wherein concave portions and convex portions are alternately formed on the peripheral surface of the body portion, and the concave portion and the convex portion are It is formed along a plurality of spiral loci around the central axis of the cylindrical body, and the peripheral surface of the body is made compressible in the central axis direction by the deformation of the recesses and protrusions. A container characterized by. 2. The container according to claim 1, wherein the inner surface of the top of the convex portion communicates with the inner surface of the front portion of the body at substantially the same plane at the end on the front side of the spiral locus.