SK13462002A3 - Pouring spout attachment with automatic opening feature - Google Patents

Abstract

An automatically opening pour spout fitment (10) to be applied to a container over location where the container wall has a weakened area. The automatically opening fitment (10) is comprised of a cap (20) which is threadably attached to the fitment (40) and which has a depending cam (24) extending downward from the top wall (22). The fitment (40) is comprised of a annular sidewall (46) which defines a pouring zone and which provides a boundary for a hinged flap (42). The flap (42) has an upwardly extending cam follower (44) which is engaged by the cam (24) of the cap (20) such that when the cap (20) is removed from the fitment (40), the cam (24) initially applies a horizontal force on the cam follower (44) to open the package to which the fitment (40) is attached to. <IMAGE>

Description

Technical field

The invention relates to container pouring devices, and more particularly to liquid discharge containers, which can be automatically opened using a spiral running cam hanging from a closure and acting directly on the fitting.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Spouts with spouts are used for boxes and especially for containers that contain liquid. These extensions are typically mounted on the outside of the housing surfaces or have flanges that are attached to the inner surface of the housing and extend outwardly through an opening in the side wall of the container. Several prior art patents disclose the use of tear strips to open this container outlet. There are also injection strips for the weakened area zones in the outlets for opening the container. Such discharges are described in U.S. Pat. 5,101,999 and 4,934,590.

Other patents are known in which the indentation aspect of the spout for opening the container has a latching character such that the indentation flap for the spout remains in the open position. Such a description is found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,833,112. A disadvantage of these prior art outlets is that they require user intervention to actually open the container separately and separately from the outlet opening itself, traditionally either by means of a standard threaded closure or snap-on cover.

Prior art devices of the prior art are found which automatically pierce or open the container after removal of the closure. However, these constructions have the disadvantage that they require serrated or sharp edges to puncture the wall of the container, whereby fragments or fragments may appear in the contents of the container. Such a description is found in U.S. Patent 5,960,992.

Other prior art discharge fittings include a third insert or blade that is actuated by an extension of the closure. The inclusion of separate elements that are not integral with the armature and which require some assembly within the structure adds to the overall cost of manufacturing and assembly. Further, a mismatch of tolerances between the non-integral pieces may prevent the fitting from functioning properly when opening the container.

In the prior art references, there is no economical and easy-to-use, automatically opening pouring spout that attaches to the container so that when the user unscrews the closure causes the container to open without tearing the side wall of the container or tearing.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The general object of the present invention is to provide an armature of an automatically opening pouring spout in which the user, when unscrewing the cap, causes the armature to puncture the container and allow the contents to be spilled easily therefrom.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a pouring spout fitting wherein the user does not need to pierce the side wall of the container.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an auto-opening fitting, wherein the auto-opening feature exerts a downward force in a direction parallel to the outlet opening in the fitting.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an armature of an automatically opening pouring spout, wherein the puncturing device does not tear the side wall of the box or create foreign material in the container.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an easy opening fitting, requiring uniform rotational pressure to open the container using the automatic opening feature of the fitting.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a pouring spout fitting wherein the rotary movement of the cap on the pouring spout is converted to a vertical pressure on the container to open the container and fitting appropriately. It is desirable for the pouring spout to remain in the open position once the user has opened it.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a pouring spout fitting wherein the pouring spout closure is threadedly attached to the spout outlet and the closure has a strip to indicate an attempted opening or other detachably attached indicator to indicate a previous opening of the spout. Further, when the closure is opened by the user, the opening attempt indicator strip breaks away from the closure and the armature pierces the container and opens it to remove the contents.

These and other objects mentioned hitherto are achieved by the fitting of the self-opening pouring spout according to the invention. The pouring spout fitting according to the invention comprises a spiral cam hanging from the top wall of the closure, which engages a cam pulley on a hinged flap of the fitting. When the cap is rotated, the cam causes a uniform pressure to be applied to the cam follower, exerting a vertical downward pressure on the flap and piercing the container to open it.

All of the above objects are met by the self-opening pouring spout of the present invention described below.

These and other objects and advantages will become more apparent by reference to the following figures and the accompanying descriptions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Fig. 1 is a side sectional view of a pouring spout fitting with an auto-opening feature according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the pouring spout of FIG. 1 without the closure attached.

Fig. 3 is a bottom perspective view of the closure shown in FIG. First

Fig. 4 is a bottom view of the closure shown in FIG. First

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the fitting of FIG. 1 with the valve partially open.

Fig. 6 is a side cross-sectional view of the fitting shown in FIG. 1, with a detail of the hinge region.

Fig. 7 is a top view of an alternative embodiment of a pouring spout fitting according to the present invention.

-4Obr. 8 is a side sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the pouring spout fitting of FIG. 7th

Fig. 9 is a side cross-sectional view of the pouring spout fitting shown in FIG. 7th

Fig. 10 is a side cross-sectional view of the partially open pouring spout of FIG. 7th

Fig. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the pouring spout fitting of FIG. 7 in the fully open position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As shown in FIG. 1, a self-opening pouring spout 10 according to the present invention is shown. The pouring spout fitting 10 of the present invention is comprised of a threaded closure 20 that engages the fitting 40 in a threaded manner. Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the fitting 40 is secured to the side wall of a container or other box. extends outwards from it. Typically, below the hinged flap 42 of the armature 40, there is a weakened portion of the side wall of the container, the container not shown in the figures. This weakened portion allows the flap to rupture the wall and open the box when pressure is applied downwards.

The armature 40 comprises a base portion 49, a flap 42, and an upwardly extending side wall 46. From the hinged flap 42, the cam follower 44 extends upwardly, which is more clearly shown in FIG. 2. The construction of the automatically opening pouring spout W, shown in FIG. 1, the cam 24 extending downward from the top wall of the cap 20 contacts the cam follower 44 to rotate about the hinge and open the container when the cap 20 is rotatably moved to remove the cap from the side wall 46 of the fitting.

With the construction of the cam follower 44 and the cam 24 of the present invention, opening the closure 20 first causes a downward pressure to cause the container to break, and then a rotational pressure so that the flap rotates around the hinge. The cam 24 first acts on the rear

The surface 45c to exert a downwardly acting cutting or tearing force. Continued rotation of the closure 20 causes the helical cam 24 to extend upwardly along the rear surface 45c and in the last 90 degrees of rotation, in the third quarter of rotation, the cam 24 acts vertically downwardly on the cam follower 44 on the apex portion 45b.

For example, in the first rotation part of the closure 20, i. j. the first 180 degrees, the cam follower 24 comes into contact with the vertical edge or rear surface 45c of the cam follower 44. When the apex portion 45b of the cam follower 44 reaches the center of the shutter 20 (ie, begins to move from right to left as shown in FIG. rotating around the hinge 39), the helical cam 24 extends over the top portion 45c and acts directly downward on the top during the final portion of the opening rotation. Therefore, a horizontal action is exerted on the vertical or rear surface 45c to exert a tearing force downward on the container and then exert a vertical action on the cam follower portion 45c to allow the flap 42 to pass through the ruptured portion and fully open the container.

Turning directly to the construction of the armature 40, the armature consists of a base 49 that provides a fitting point to the vessel for the armature. The base portion 49 may overlap the outer surface of the container, may be integrated into the side wall of the container, or may be placed on the inner side of the side wall of the container, the annular side wall 46 of the armature 40 extending outwardly through the annular opening. In any design, the weakened section of the container wall is located directly below the flap 42 of the armature 40. This weakened section is such that sufficient downward force on the flap 42 causes the weakened section to break or break and open the armature emptying fitting through the side wall 46.

As can be seen in FIG. 2, the armature 40 may have a rectangular shape and provide sufficient surface to attach the armature to the container. The annular side wall 46 extends upwardly from the base portion 49 and forms a pouring zone therethrough to empty the contents of the container to which the armature is attached. In addition, the armature comprises a plurality of notch devices 41 formed along an adjacent section of the annular side wall 46 and base 49. The notches 41 shown in FIG. 2 as separated from each other by 90 ° along the base of the side wall 46, they are positioned to contact similar notches formed on the strip 30 to indicate an attempt to open that hangs from the closure 20. The notches 41

They will interact with these notches on the closure 20 so that the opening attempt indicator strip 30 breaks away from the bottom edge of the sidewall of the closure and separates from it.

Returning to FIG. 2, the armature 40 further comprises at least one screw thread 47 for screw engagement with the closure 20. When viewed in FIG. 2, it is evident that the armature 40 has formed within the pouring zone boundaries defined by the side wall 46 and the flap 42. The flap 42 is hingedly connected to the base 49 through the hinge 39. The hinge 39 is defined as a weakened area of the base portion along one flap segment, it can rotate around the hinge line to fit into the container and pierce the weakened portion below it. The flap further comprises a cam pulley 44 which, as seen in the figures, has a slightly triangular shape and extends upwardly from the flap 42. The cam pulley 44 in this embodiment is shown perpendicular to the hinge line 39.

The flap 42 of the armature 40 may generally have a diameter of about 20 mm and is separated from the annular side wall 46 by a small gap 43 shown in FIG. This gap provides sufficient clearance to rotate the annular flap around the hinge line 39 and move up and down through the pouring zone defined by the annular side wall 46.

The cam follower 44 described above is shown perpendicular to the hinge line 39 in this example. The cam follower 44 may be located just above the center line of the flap to provide a positive angle of attack and engagement across surfaces 45b and 45c. as described above, with the cam 24 and its hanging contact driving edge 23 shown in FIG. Thus, with this particular design, the cam follower allows the cam 24 to exert an initial downward force on the flap 42 when the shutter 20 is rotated counterclockwise. The hinge line 39 allows the flap to move downward as the closure 20 is rotated, exerting sufficient force downwards to break through the weakened side wall of the vessel below the flap 42 and then rotational force to allow the flap to fully open the pouring zone of the fitting .

Returning to FIG. 3, the closure 20 of the present invention, which acts in conjunction with the armature 40, is clearly shown with a cam 24 extending in a direction away from the top wall 22. The closure 20 generally consists of an upper wall

-722, a side wall 21 extending downward therefrom, and an opening attempt indicator strip 30 that is detachably attached to the bottom edge of the side wall 21. In this construction, a spiral cam 24 that exerts a downward force on the flap 42 is particularly important. The cam 24 has a center post 28 which, as can be seen in FIG. 4, extends approximately from the center of the top wall 22. The cam 24 extends spirally in a clockwise direction from the center post and sinks down to the bottom 29. The cam extends spirally from the center post 28 to the bottom 29 and has a contact driving edge 23 which is The driving edge 23 of the cam 24 engages with the cam follower 44 located on the flap 42. As mentioned previously, the cam follower 44 is located slightly off the center line of the flap 42 so that it positively engages the driving edge 23 of the cam 24.

The helical design of the cam 24 allows the cam to exert a downward pressure on the cam follower 44 along a horizontal plane. As can be seen in the figures, the helical cam 24 and the cam follower 44 provide means for exerting a downward force on the force concentrator, which is initially parallel to the direction of the outlet opening. In other words, the downward force develops in the direction that passes through the pouring zone of the armature. Such downward force allows the spiral cam structure of the present invention more specifically to distribute the cam pressure downward as well as to produce a greater lever transmission of the closure 20 relative to the cam follower. Thus, the helical cam 24 with the hanging driving edge 23 acts to drive the cam follower 44 along the rear vertical surface 45c and the apex portion 45b. By providing a spiral hanging surface or drive edge 23 in conjunction with the cam follower surfaces 45b and 45c, horizontal and rotational pressure is exerted on the flap 42, thereby ensuring that the side wall of the vessel located below it is punctured by the flap.

As can be seen in FIG. 3, the closure 20 further comprises a strip 30 to indicate an attempted opening that is separated from the side wall 21 upon first removal of the closure. The opening attempt indicator strip is provided with a plurality of notches 32 that are aligned directly with the notch members 41 formed on the base 49 of the armature 40. The notch members 41 engage the notch slots 32 and prevent the notch attempting to rotate when the user develops

-8Rotation force on the cap. Thus, a positive indication is provided that the closure has been previously removed.

Returning to FIG. 5, it can be seen that the flap 42 is pressed down after the closure 20 has been rotated and removed from the annular side wall 46 of the armature. It is shown that the cam 24, after the end of its travel, passes over the top portion 45b of the cam follower 44 and pushes the flap to its final lower position. The flap 42 was rotated around the hinge 39, which is more clearly shown in FIG. 6. The hinge 39 is formed along the flap segment 42 and is a weakened line that, due to its reduced thickness, allows the flap to rotate about it. The hinge 39 as shown in FIG. 6, it may be sufficiently attenuated that it will be less than half the thickness of the rest of the flap 42, but alternate shapes of the respective hinge are within the skill of the art.

Returning to FIG. 5, after the shutter 20 has completely rotated counterclockwise, the cam 24 contacts the cam follower 44 and presses the flap to the lower position. The contents of the container can now be withdrawn through the pouring zone which is defined by the side wall 46 of the armature 40.

Turning to FIG. 7, an alternative fitting 100 is shown. In this alternative construction, the fitting 100 provided with the feature remains open, so that when the flap 42 is depressed to the lower position, as previously shown in FIG. 5, it retains the open position, allowing the contents to be poured out of the container in a conventional manner. The feature remains open to the valve W0 shown in FIG. 7, consists of an arm 50 that extends through the flap 42 near the hinge 39. The arm 50 is, as may be more clearly shown in FIG. 8, extends upwardly from the flap and rotates forward and downward about the hinge line 39 when a rotary force is exerted on the cam follower 44. The downward movement of the arm 50 contacts it with stop members 52 and 53 extending inwardly from the annular side wall 46 into the pouring zone. Stopping members 52 and 53, as seen in FIG. 7, therefore engage the arm 50 when rotated downwardly, and as soon as the arm 50 is pushed against the stop members 52 and 53, it causes the flap to retain its open position. Therefore, during cam rotation 24 a sufficient downward force is exerted on the cam follower 44 such that when cam 24 reaches its lower portion 29, rotation of the cam 20 counterclockwise and opening may cause the cam to depress the cam follower

Thus, even in this lower position of the cam 24 and the cam follower 44, sufficient force is applied downward so that the arm 50 engages behind the stop members 52 and 53 so that it retains the open position.

Although the first and second stop members 52 and 53 are formed, it will be appreciated that single-member stop members or arm members may be provided that sufficiently retain the flap 42 in the open position. Further, the alternative features remain open to hold the flap 42 in the open position after the flap 42 has been rotated to the lower position around the hinge 39 is within the ability of one skilled in the art to design and implement them in the fitting 100 of the present invention.

In FIG. 7 also depicts a force centering member 54 that extends downwardly from the bottom surface of the flap 42. In armature 100 in this embodiment, the force centering member 54 is designed such that a slightly focused portion can extend downwardly from the flap and provide maximum force concentration to tearing of the weakened portion directly below the flap 42 along the vessel wall began. The force centering member 54 as shown in FIG. 8, is slightly trapezoidal, but alternatively may be triangular or other possible shapes. The force centering member 54 extends downward from the flap a, as shown in FIG. 9, during transport, does not pass through the side wall of the container under the flap 42. As shown in FIG. 9, the flap 42 is in a slightly raised position, allowing the force-centering member to remain at a slight distance from the weakened portion of the side wall of the container. The hinge 39 of the armature 100 allows the flap 42 to rotate about the hinge in an up and down direction. As shown in FIG. 9, the force-centering member 54 is formed such that when the cap is rotated, not shown in these figures, the cam contacts the cam follower 44 along the vertical surface 45c, exerting a horizontal force acting thereon that forces the force-centering member 54 down toward a weakened portion of the container. Thus, the force-centering member 54 is designed to allow less downward force that allows the flap to fully open the container and break the weakened portion of the container underneath.

As can be seen in FIG. 9, 10 and 11, different positions of the flap during opening are shown. Initially, as shown in FIG. 9, the force-centering member may be slightly above the weakened portion of the sidewall of the container. In FIG. 10, when the cap is rotated counterclockwise, causes the cam

- acting on the upper part 45b of the cam follower, the flap rotates downwards and causes the force-centering member 54 to pass through the weakened portion of the side wall of the container. Further, when the flap is pressed down, the arm 50 may come into contact with the stop members 52 and 53 and pass therebetween. When the cam rotates further and pushes the cam follower 44 down further, the arm 50 engages behind the projections 52 and 53 due to this rotational downward movement. As shown in FIG. 11, the flap 42 is now held in the open position, allowing the contents of the container to pass through the opening and through the pouring zone defined by the annular side wall 46 of the fitting.

Although one embodiment of the cam follower 44 shown in the drawings is intended to operate in conjunction with a cam 24 hanging from the top wall of the closure to engage said cam follower, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the opening spout can incorporate changes in the use of the spiral cam and the cam follower. The cam 24 of the present invention, which hangs from the top wall 22, may be altered to engage the cam follower and generate sufficient downward force so that the flap penetrates the side wall of the container. Although the embodiments shown herein operate sufficiently to exert such a downward force, other modifications thereof are possible and are within the scope of the following claims.

Claims (28)

1. An auto-opening fitting comprising: a base and an upright wall defining a pouring zone therein; a flap hingedly retained in the pouring zone; a cam follower extending upward from the flap; a closure retained on the armature, the closure having an upper wall and a hanging side wall, the upper wall having a cam hanging therefrom and capable of engaging the cam follower. Fitting according to claim 1, characterized in that the closure cam is a spiral cam. The fitting of claim 2, wherein the spiral cam further comprises a central post extending downward from the top wall. Fitting according to claim 3, characterized in that the spiral cam extends in a clockwise direction around the central column and extends outwardly towards the side wall. The armature of claim 4, wherein the helical cam has a drive surface along said cam, the drive surface extending downwardly from the center post to its bottom adjacent to the side wall. The fitting of claim 1, wherein the flap has a hinge extending along a segment thereof, and wherein said flap is bounded by a gap between the flap and an upright wall, the gap allowing the flap to rotate about the hinge. -127. Fitting according to claim 2, characterized in that the cam pulley on the flap has a triangular shape. Fitting according to claim 7, characterized in that the cam follower has a vertical surface and an upper part, wherein both the vertical surface and the upper part engage the helical cam. The fitting of claim 2, further comprising a stripe for indicating an attempt to open, detachably connected to the lower edge of the sidewall on the closure. The fitting of claim 9, wherein the opening attempt indicator strip further comprises at least one indent formed therein and capable of engaging at least one indent formed on the base of the armature. The fitting of claim 9, wherein the opening attempting strip further comprises four slits per opening attempting strip, said notches engaging four notches formed at the base of the fitting. Fitting according to claim 2, characterized in that the closure has at least one thread formed on the inside of the side wall, wherein the at least one thread can engage at least the thread formed on the upright wall of the armature. The fitting of claim 2, further comprising: an arm formed on the flap; ‘At least one stop member formed on the side wall of the fitting that can engage the arm when the arm pivots downward. The armature of claim 13, wherein the side wall of the armature has a first stop member and a second stop member opposite each other on the side wall, each of the first and second stop members being able to engage the arm to hold the flap in a lower position. . 15. The armature of claim 2, further comprising a force-centering member extending downwardly from the flap. 16. A pouring fitting comprising: a base portion and an upright side wall, the upright side wall defining a pouring zone therein; a flap that has a hinge and can rotate in the pouring zone; a cam follower extending upward from the flap; a closure retained and rotatable on the side wall, the closure having an upper wall and a hanging side wall and having a helical cam extending downward from the top wall, the helical cam being able to engage a cam pulley on the flap. The fitting of claim 16, wherein the helical cam has a center post and further wherein the helical cam twists outward in a clockwise direction from the center post to the side wall of the closure to form an engagement surface on the cam. The fitting of claim 17, wherein the height of the spiral cam decreases from the center post to the side wall of the closure. I 19. The fitting of claim 17, wherein the cam follower extends upward from the flap in a triangular shape. 20. The armature of claim 19, wherein the cam follower has a substantially vertical portion and an upper portion, wherein the vertical portion and the upper portion engage the cam. -1421. Fitting according to claim 19, characterized in that the cam roller is formed on the flap perpendicular to the hinge. The armature of claim 19, wherein the engagement surface is in contact with the cam on the substantially vertical portion when the closure is rotated counterclockwise. 23. The armature of claim 16, further comprising an opening attempt indicator strip detachably connected to the closure at least one engagement post formed on the base portion, wherein the at least one engagement post is flush with at least one notch formed on the strip to indicate an attempt to open. 24. The armature of claim 16, further comprising a projection on the flap, wherein the projection may engage at least one stop member formed in the pouring zone. 25. The armature of claim 24, wherein the arm extends upwardly from said flap adjacent the hinge, and further wherein at least one stop member is comprised of first and second stop members extending inwardly from an upright side wall. 26. The armature of claim 16, further comprising a force-centering member formed on and extending downwardly therefrom. 27. A pouring spout fitting comprising: a base portion having an upright side wall defining a space therein; a flap having a hinge, wherein the flap can rotate about the hinge in a space formed by an upright wall; - a cam follower formed on and extending upwardly from the flap, the cam follower having a vertical contact surface and an upper portion; a closure retained and rotatable on a side wall; a helical cam hanging from the side wall, the helical cam being able to engage the vertical contact surface and the upper part of the cam follower when the closure is rotated. Pouring outlet fitting according to claim 27, characterized in that the cam follower has a triangular shape. The pouring spout fitting according to claim 27, further comprising: a first stop member extending inwardly from said upright side wall; an arm formed on the flap, the arm being able to engage the first stop member as the flap rotates around the hinge. The pour spout fitting of claim 29, wherein the arm is rectangular in shape and extends upwardly from the flap along said hinge. 31. The pouring spout fitting of claim 30, further comprising: a second stop member extending inwardly from the side wall, wherein the first stop member is in contact with the arm at one end and the second stop member is in contact with the arm at the opposite distal end.