MXPA00002903A - Container with a sealed insert, and pump for opening said sealing - Google Patents

Abstract

The bottle neck (5) has a sealing insert (3) with a bottom (5) which is closed in the initial state and which, prior to activating a pumping system engaging by its terminal portion into said insert (3), opens as a result of a pump casing part being screwed forward in the axial direction of the container (1). A receiving chamber is provided between the insert bottom and the pumping system for receiving an active blending which, once the bottom is open (5), is mixed with a liquid located in the container. It is thus possible to deliver with a vacuum pump, after a long conservation period, a liquid drug containing an active agent that cannot remain stable during a long time.

Description

RECIPIENT COMPRISING A PUMP DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a container comprising a pumping means for discharging a liquid container content, such as a liquid drug. The container is preferably shaped in the form of a small bottle comprising a bottle neck having on it a spray pump or a vacuum pump which, when the upper part of the pump is depressed in the direction of the neck of the pump. the bottle sucks a predetermined quantity of the contents of the liquid from the container into a pump chamber and then, with the next lift of the pump, expels the quantity out of the fine channels of the upper part of the pump, whereby the Liquid is finely atomized in an outlet nozzle. The liquid, however, can also be discharged into drops. Such pumps are for example widely used to spray a liquid drug into the nose. Preferably, the invention relates to containers that have been produced in a coextrusion-type blow molding process, and consists of a rigid outer container and a soft inner bag, the materials of which do not form a welded joint with one another . In preferred containers, the seam or bottom joint of the inner bag that has been closed by torsion of the tubular parison in the blow mold, is embraced in a lower network projecting outwardly from the outer container, the net also being exterior closed by means of a weld that has been formed, since the weld of the inner bag has been retracted from the point of separation by virtue of an accumulation effect in the molding section forming the lower seal or custodian of the outer container . The wall of the outer container contains pressure compensation openings which can, for example, be formed by non-welded shoulder seams or seams of the outer container, or by the measurement that a piece of the outer container is cut at a flat angle on a convex section, with the inner bag that is not damaged after the impact of the blade on the bag, but is pressed inward. While the liquid content of the container is gradually discharged, the inner bag is more and more contracted, with the ambient air entering for pressure compensation purposes through the pressure compensation openings within the space formed between the outer container and the inner bag. The invention, however, is not limited to the use of such a container, but the container may for example be a standard small glass or plastic bottle, which is provided with a filter for the air flowing towards it, for of pressure compensation. The container does not necessarily need to have the shape of a bottle with a bottle neck. In addition, the container of the invention is designed to receive a liquid drug and will be described below with reference to such an example, although it should be noted that it is also suitable for receiving and discharging another liquid if it consists of two substances , namely a first solvent contained in the container and an active substance that is first stored separately in a second chamber of the container, and is preferably present in a solid state. Some pharmaceutically active substances, such as hormones, do not have a prolonged stability over time, when they dissolve in a liquid, which is above all the case when conservative agents can not be added. To remedy such a drawback, it is known that such active substances are stored in a lyophilized state, and before use, are discharged to a solvent with which the active substance in the dissolved state forms a liquid drug which, for example, can be administered by means of a pipette or syringe. European Patent EP 0679443 Al describes a container, the neck of which has a tubular insert accommodated therein, the bottom of which is closed by two elastomeric flanges which are diverted to rest one on the other. The bottom of the insert is opened when the front suction section of a pump is pushed into the container. When the container is stored, the container opening can be sealed by a film that is removed directly before use of the pump. An object of the present invention is to provide a container with a pumping means that is suitable for receiving and discharging a liquid with an active substance that does not have long-term stability. According to the invention said objective is achieved by the features of patent claim 1. Advantageous developments of the invention are characterized in the subclaims. According to the invention, the opening of the container, preferably the neck of the container if such a member exists, has accommodated therein a substantially tubular insert resting hermetically on the edge of the opening and comprising a bottom which is closed in a first condition of the arrangement, and which before a first discharge of the liquid content of the container is opened by the action of a force. In addition, the front end section of the pumping means, which is preferably provided as a pump without air, is intended to be coupled within the insert, with the circumferential wall of the front end section or the suction section resting hermetically on the wall of the insert, and the circumferential wall that is movable in the axial direction of the container relative to the insert on the action of a corresponding force. In addition, it is intended that the bottom of the insert and the end of the pump means have provided between them a receiving chamber that can receive a substance which, in the closed state of the bottom, is separated from a second substance contained in the internal chamber remnant of the container. However, when the bottom of the insert is opened or torn by pulling the pumping means forward, the substance inside the insert leaves the insert and can be mixed with the substance in the container. In the insert preferably a lyophilized active substance of a drug is first isolated from a solvent contained in the container, for example sterile water, and mixed with the liquid after the bottom has been opened. However, as already stated above, the invention is not limited to the last mentioned feature. Conveniently, the substantially tubular insert has a cylindrical shape with the proviso that the neck of the container bottle and the front receiving section of the pumping means have a corresponding cylindrical shape, albeit with a larger or smaller diameter.

The bottom of the insert, preferably the inner part thereof, has formed thereon a slit or channel which extends either in a manner - which completely surrounds, or in a manner that almost completely surrounds, the entire circumference, and whose section The cross section may have approximately the shape of a V and forms a weakened joint or seam on which the bottom is torn after the action of a force. It is particularly preferred here that the pumping means comprises a tubular projection projecting beyond the front end portion with the ball valve and which is in alignment with the groove that surrounds the bottom and is obliquely cut at its free end. Firstly, while the pumping means is pushed forward in the container, the projection only enters with its tip into the slit, whereby the seam is torn at a high pressure force, with a circumferential portion each time greater that additionally breaks the weakened seam while the advancing movement is continued so that finally the bottom is folded down in the position of use and the contents of the insert is completely released. The projection is preferably formed since the circumferential wall of the front suction portion of the pumping means is extended beyond the valve portion. The insert rests adequately with an annular shoulder on the upper side of the container or the upper edge of the neck of the container if such a neck exists. Furthermore, it is of great advantage when the outer side of the container has accommodated thereon an additional circumferential wall which is gripped or held in part by a housing part of the pumping means which is axially displaceable. The additional circumferential wall suitably forms part of an outer cap that is clamped at least about the lower portion of the container. The outer lid can here also extend to the upper edge of the container. In addition, the outer cap is provided on its upper edge with a thickened portion having an annular shoulder projecting outwardly while the housing portion of the pumping means is provided on its lower edge with a thickened portion having an annular shoulder. ring shoulder that projects in an inward direction. In this way, the thickened portion of the outer cover faces the inner wall of the housing part while the thickened portion of the housing part faces the outer wall of the outer cover. In the joined state of the two annular shoulders, the pumping means is in the initial retracted position in which the bottom of the insert is closed and the substance received therein is separated from the remaining interior of the container. To make it possible for part of the housing, with its annular shoulder to be held on the outer cover or the thickened portion thereof, it is further suggested that the two annular shoulders should be provided on the outer side with slopes or inclined portions which, when the The housing portion is advanced in the direction of the outer cover, will collide with each other, whereby the area of the thickened portion of the housing portion of the pump is radially expanded while the housing portion with its thickened portion it is sliding over the thickened portion of the outer lid. As a result, these two parts can be put together easily.

Furthermore, it is suggested that the thickened portion of the outer cap or the thickened portion of the housing portion have a small radial oversize of a configuration such that the thickened portion rests under a preload on the associated wall of the other part respectively. A surrounding notch within which the portion thickened with the radial overdimension is secured in place, is formed in the other wall at an axial distance from the thickened portion. Said notch defines the position of the pumping means in which the bottom of the insert is torn and unfolded, and in which arrangement is in a state in which the contents of the container can be discharged by the pumping means. Hence, two axial positions of the pumping means relative to the container are defined by the coupling of the outer cover with the housing part of the pumping means, namely the initial position retracted by the contact of the annular shoulders one with he. another and the ready-for-use position extended within the container, in which the thickened portion is secured in place in the associated notch.

In a particularly preferred embodiment, the container is sealed in a lateral outer cover, which can extend to the upper edge of the neck of the container. On its upper edge portion the outer cover is provided with a thread which is preferably provided on the outer side of the outer cover. An internal thread of a housing part of the pumping means is in engagement with the thread. The pumping medium is pushed with its. Suction section into the container by the rotation of the housing part until an annular shoulder of another housing part of the pumping means strikes the container, whereby the operative position of the pump means is defined. In that state the. The front end section of the pumping means has broken and unfolded the bottom of the insert, so that the active substance can enter inside the container. The pumping means can be pushed forward with its suction section continuously and smoothly into the container due to the screwing operation, whereby the suction section is reliably prevented from becoming jammed in the insert. The force required to tear the bottom can also be applied without any problem by a person who is not so expert, thanks to the action of screwing. It is of great advantage that a thread of type of saw tooth is used as the thread. The threaded sections are preferably so short that, in the advanced end position, the thread of the housing part is screwed beyond the thread of the outer cover, so that the housing part of the pump means can no longer be screwed backward. It is reliably prevented, by the self-locking action of the thread, which can also be achieved by other means, that the pumping means be moved out of its operative position. The additional details of the invention will become apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments of the invention and the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a vertical section through a first embodiment of a container with a pumping means in the initial state; Figure 2 is a vertical section through the arrangement according to Figure 1 in a state in which the contents of the container can be discharged; Figure 3 is a vertical section through a second embodiment of a container with a pumping means in the initial state; Y Figure 4 is a vertical section through the arrangement according to Figure 3, in a state in which the contents of the container have come out of the insert.

The figures show a container 1 in the form of a bottle comprising a neck 2 which has accommodated therein an insert 3 resting with an annular shoulder 4 oriented outwardly on the upper edge of the bottle neck 2. The insert 3 has a circular cylindrical shape and hermetically resting on the inner wall of the neck of the container 2. The insert 3 has a bottom 5 which is closed in the initial state of the arrangement as shown in figure 1. A V-shaped notch 30, surrounding that constitutes a predetermined breaking joint is formed in the inner wall of the bottom 5. The insert 3 is coupled by the front end or suction section 31 of a pumping means, designated by the reference number 6 in its entirety . The pumping means is provided in the conventional manner in the area of the suction opening 7 with a ball valve 8 which after the application of an overpressure closes the suction opening 7 and after the application of a negative pressure , is lifted from the valve seat, so that the front suction chamber 9 can be filled with liquid sucked from the chamber 11 of the container, by lifting the upper part of the pump, due to the force of the coil spring 10. After a renewed lift of the pump, the liquid is discharged from the fine channels 12 of the upper part of the pumping medium and from an atomizing nozzle 13. Of course, the lid 14 shown in the figures has been previously removed. A detailed description of the known components of the pumping means can be omitted here.

The lower suction end of the pumping means 6 and the bottom 5 of the insert 3 have located between them a second receiving chamber 15 in which, for example, an active substance that no longer has long-term stability when it dissolves and forms Part of a drug that is liquid in the discharge state, can be stored in a lyophilized state as long as the drug is not going to be administered. the small bottle 1 is received in its lower portion in an outer cap 16 in the form of a cup which rests hermetically on the outer wall of the small bottle. The outer lid 16 is provided at its upper end with a thickened portion 17, surrounding facing outwards, with an annular shoulder 18 and on the upper side with a slope 10. An annular shoulder 20 oriented outwardly of a portion 21 of the pump is supported above by an annular flange 22 oriented in an inward direction of a housing part 23 of the pump means 6, the housing part 23 extends with a cylindrical outer wall 24 partially beyond the cylindrical outer wall of the pump. the outer cover 16. The receiving part 24 is also provided at its lower end with a thickened portion 25, surrounding, having an annular shoulder 25a placed on top and a slope 26 placed below it. In the initial position of the arrangement as shown in Figure 1, the annular shoulder 25 of the housing part 23 rests on the annular shoulder 18 of the outer cover. The initial position of the pumping means 6 which is retracted from the small bottle 1 is defined by it. The annular thickened position of the housing part 23 is slightly oversized radially inwardly so that the thickened portion rests under a certain preload on the outer wall of the outer lid 16. A surrounding annular slot 27a within which the thickened portion housing 23 snaps after insertion of the pumping means into the small bottle 1 in the liquid discharge position as shown in figure 2, is provided in the outer wall of the outer lid 16 at a predetermined distance of the thickened portion 17 of the outer lid. The discharge position of the pumping medium is fixed by it.

The pumping means 6 is hermetically seated in the insert 3 with the circumferential wall 27 surrounding the suction chamber 9. The circumferential wall 27 is continued (in the figures in the downward direction) in a tubular projection 28 which is obliquely cut at its end, and projects over the suction opening 7 of the pumping means 6. After the insertion of the pumping means into the small nozzle 1 and into the extreme position shown in figure 2 , the tubular projection 28 strikes first with its tip 29 axially front (left in the figure) on the bottom 5, strictly speaking, in the V-shaped channel 30, whereby the predetermined breaking joint or seam is torn until the bottom 5 is folded down in the manner as can be seen in figure 2. In this state, the active substance contained in the chamber 15 is released so that it can be mixed with a solvent contained in the chamber 11 of the small bottle 1. In the second embodiment of the invention, which is shown in Figures 3 and 4, the outer lid 31, in which the container 1 is accommodated, extends to the upper edge of the neck of the container. The container 1 is seated with a radial play in the outer cover 31 and is connected to it for rotation therewith since a net 32 projecting from the bottom of the outer cover 31 engages in a corresponding lower groove or notch. shaped portion of the container 1. At its upper end portion, the outer cover 31 comprises a threaded section 33 axially short, which is engageable by a threaded section 34, also of an axially short length, on the side of the housing part 35 of the pumping means 6. A saw-type thread is here preferred. The bottom 5 of the insert is broken since the housing part 35 is screwed forward in a clockwise manner, whereby the pump means slides on an annular coupling (39) of another housing part (40). until a front edge (36) of a housing part 37 strikes the shoulder section 38 of the container 1. In this final position, the bottom 5 of the insert 3 is broken, as described in figure 4. In said position , the threaded section 34 of the housing part 35 is no longer in engagement with the threaded section 33 of the outer cover 31, so that it is not possible for a user to screw the housing part 35 back towards the initial state.

Claims (9)

1. A container, the opening of which has a pumping means accommodated therein for discharging a liquid content of the container, with a substantially tubular insert resting tightly on the inner wall of the container opening, and comprising a bottom that is closed in the container. an initial state and is opened before the activation of the pumping means when advancing a front suction section of the pumping means, which engages in the insert and rests tightly on the inner wall of the insert with its circumferential wall, characterized in that a receiving chamber for an active substance that is separated from the contents of the liquid container before the opening of the bottom and enters it after opening, is located inside the insert above the bottom thereof.

2. The container comprising the pumping means according to claim 1, characterized in that the bottom of the insert comprises a notch or surrounding channel.

3. The container comprising a pumping means according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the circumferential wall of the end section of the pumping means comprises a tubular projection that is in alignment with the notch of the bottom and is obliquely cut.

4. The container comprising a pump means according to any of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the container is provided on its outer side with an additional circumferential wall forming part of an outer cover that encloses at least the lower portion of the container , and in that a housing part of the pumping means is in axially displaceable engagement with the circumferential wall.

5. The container comprising a pump means according to claim 4, characterized in that the outer cover is provided on its upper edge with an annular shoulder projecting outwardly, and the housing part is provided on its lower edge with an annular shoulder that projects in an inward direction.

6. The container comprising a pump means according to claim 5, characterized in that the annular shoulder of the outer cover or the annular shoulder of the housing part is slightly oversized radially, so that it rests under a preload on the wall of the housing. the housing part or the outer layer, the latter being provided at an axial distance from its annular shoulder with a surrounding notch to secure the other annular nail in place.

7. The container comprising a pump means according to any of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the container is accommodated in an outer cover that is provided with a thread, and with which a housing part of the pump means is in threaded coupling.

8. The container comprising a pump means according to claim 7, characterized in that the thread of the outer cover and the housing is self-locking in the end position screwed forward.

9. The container comprising a pumping means according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that the container is seated in the outer cover for rotation therewith.