US20110204076A1

US20110204076A1 - Container

Info

Publication number: US20110204076A1
Application number: US12/998,491
Authority: US
Inventors: Shogo Kobayashi; Hideto Shima
Original assignee: Kokuyo Co Ltd
Current assignee: Kokuyo Co Ltd
Priority date: 2008-11-12
Filing date: 2009-11-12
Publication date: 2011-08-25
Also published as: CN102216174A; EP2347973A1; WO2010055892A1; JPWO2010055892A1; CA2743465A1

Abstract

An adhesive container for containing an instantaneous adhesive and used to apply the instantaneous adhesive to an object to be attached. The adhesive container is provided with small containers (2) in each of which the instantaneous adhesive is sealed, and also with a holding mechanism (1) which integrally holds the small containers (2) and is configured in such a manner that one of the small containers is provided in a use region (F) in which the small container can apply the instantaneous adhesive to an object to be attached and that the remaining small containers are provided in a retreat region (R) connecting to the use region (F).

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a container used for containing a content in a liquid form, a paste form, a jelly form and the like and discharging the content to use.

BACKGROUND ART

The container of this kind is used for containing an adhesive and the like. Various types of adhesives are widely distributed in a market. Among others, a moisture-curable adhesive of which principal components is cyanoacrylate is known as a so-called instantaneous adhesive (refer to the following nonpatent literature, for example). The cyanoacrylate is monomer at first, however, when this reacts with moisture in air or on a surface of an object to be adhered, this rapidly starts to polymerize to be polymer and is solidified to adhere.
The instantaneous adhesive may obtain firm adhesion force in extremely short time and is convenient. On the other hand, this has disadvantage that deterioration during preservation is quick. Each time the instantaneous adhesive is used, external air enters the container and it is not rare that the adhesive remaining in the container is exposed to the external air to be solidified. In this case, the remaining adhesive goes to waste.
Deterioration of the content remaining in the container during the preservation is not limited to the adhesive. Flavor of seasoning and condiments also is deteriorated with time after opening. Although it is ideal to use up them in good time, they are not often consumed a lot in single occasion due to nature thereof.

DOCUMENT

Nonpatent Literature

Nonpatent Literature 1: “Adhesive, Paper Bond”, KOKUYO General Catalog 2008, Stationary, KOKUYO Co, Ltd., December 2007, p.530

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

Problem to Be Solved By the Invention

The present invention is achieved by focusing on the above-described problem for the first time, and a principal object thereof is to eliminate waste due to difficulty in usage and impossibility in usage of the remaining content, which is not used in single usage and deteriorated.

Means for Solving Problem

In the present invention, the container provided with a plurality of small containers in each of which the content is enclosed and a holding mechanism for integrally holding the plurality of small containers and arranging one of them in a use region in which the content may be discharged to be used and arranging remaining ones in a retreat region continuous from the use region.
Since the content is divided into a plurality of small containers to be enclosed, the small container may be opened one by one at the time of usage and it is easy to use up the content of an amount of one small container with nothing left. The small container, which is not necessary at that time, is not required to be opened and the content in the unopened small container may be preserved for a long time. If the content remaining in the opened small container is deteriorated (solidified in a case of the adhesive) , a maximum loss is limited to one small container. According to this, waste due to the difficulty in usage and the impossibility in usage of the unused remaining content decreases.
In order to make operation to discharge the content to use easy, it is desirable that the holding mechanism is provided on a holder including the use region and the retreat region and a lever for squeezing the small container arranged in the use region is provided on the holder.
When the lever is provided with a squeezing body brought into contact with the small container when squeezing the small container arranged on the use region and when an inner peripheral surface of the squeezing body has a concave surface shape corresponding to an outer peripheral surface of a site with which the squeezing body is brought into contact of the small container, the small container may be squeezed not at a point but at a surface, so that the content may be efficiently squeezed.
When the lever is provided with a plurality of springs engaging with a peripheral wall of the holder for accumulating reaction force by being elastically deformed when squeezing the small container arranged on the use region, the plurality of springs separately stand side by side and the small container arranged on the use region is accommodated between the springs, it becomes possible to inhibit the small container from relatively slipping in the holder when squeezing the small container by the springs of the lever.
When the holder is provided with a pushing mechanism for pushing out the small container arranged in the retreat region toward the use region, the small container arranged in the use region is pushed out to be removed by a next small container right behind the same and the next small container is newly arranged in the use region by operation of the pushing mechanism, discharge of the used up small container and loading of the new small container may be simultaneously performed and convenience is further improved.
When a rotation inhibiting mechanism for inhibiting the small container arranged in the use region from rotating around an axial line is provided between the holder and the small container, it is prevented that the small container rotates in the holder to prevent opening operation when opening the small container.
When the holding mechanism is configured to hold the plurality of small containers in a state being arranged in a straight line, it becomes possible to hold a large number of small containers while making an entire container smaller. Also, since the container has a pen-like shape, this may be used in a posture to hold a pen.
When the pushing mechanism is composed of a slider capable of moving back and forth in an axial direction (direction of movement when the small container moves from the retreat region to the use region) relative to the holder main body, and the slider is provided with a alternative portion selectively engaging with any of a plurality of engaging sites intermittently arranged in the axial direction of the holder main body and are concave in a direction intersecting with the axial direction, an elastic portion for accumulating the reaction force by being elastically deformed with escape of the alternative portion from the engaging site, and a restrained portion capable of displacing between a restrained position in which the alternative portion engaging with the engaging site is inhibited from escaping from the engaging site and a release position in which the alternative portion is allowed to escape from the engaging site with deformation of the elastic portion, it is possible to mount both of a alternative mechanism for applying click feeling (alternative feeling) at a plurality of sites on a pathway of slide movement of the slider and a switching mechanism for inhibiting/allowing the slide movement of the slider on a single slider member, and this contributes to small sizing of the mechanism, small sizing of the holder, and eventually, small sizing of the product.
When an opening tool for opening the small container arranged in the use region is further provided, time and effort to prepare a tool such as scissors and an eyeleteer when opening the small container may be eliminated.
When the small container is obtained by integrally forming a discharge opening of the content with a lid body to seal the same, an engaging portion for engaging with the discharge opening to block the discharge opening is provided on the lid body, the small container is opened by detaching the lid body from the discharge opening of the small container, and the discharge opening is blocked by allowing the engaging portion of the lid body to engage with the discharge opening thereafter, the lid body once cut off from the small container becomes again the lid of the small container of which content remains and this is convenient to temporarily preserve the unused remaining content. In addition, disadvantage that the content leaks from the small container when disposing the small container may be avoided.
When the small container is obtained by integrally forming the discharge opening of the content with the lid body for sealing the same, the holding mechanism is provided on the holder including the use region and the retreat region, the cap capable of being mounted on the holder main body engages with the lid body of the small container and the lid body is detached from the discharge opening of the small container by operation of the cap, the small container may be easily opened by using the cap as the opening tool.
When the cap is provided with the cutting unit mounted on the holder main body and having an engaging body engaging with the lid body of the small container and an accumulating unit including an accumulation'space communicated with the cutting unit for accumulating the lid body cut by the cutting unit, the lid body, which is a waste generated with the opening of the small container may be suitably accumulated and convenience is further improved.
When a falling inhibiting structure for inhibiting or preventing the lid body cut by the cutting unit from falling without reaching the accumulation space is formed on the cutting unit, the lid body cut out from the small container may be allowed to surely flow on a side of the accumulation space. Possibility that the lid body unexpectedly fallen from the cap falls on a desk and a floor to make environment dirty decreases.
The container of the present invention is extremely suitable as the container of the adhesive, especially the moisture-curable adhesive or the instantaneous adhesive.

EFFECT OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention, it is possible to decrease the waste due to the difficulty in using and the impossibility in using of the deteriorated content, which remains unused by single usage.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a sectional side view illustrating a container of one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of the container;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B of the container;

FIG. 4 is a sectional side view illustrating a small container in this embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a front view of the small container;

FIG. 6 is a sectional side view illustrating a situation to operate a pushing mechanism to push out the small container;

FIG. 7 is a sectional side view illustrating a situation in which the pushing mechanism is operated to push out the small container and load a next small container;

FIG. 8 is a sectional side view illustrating a situation to open the small container by using an opening tool;

FIG. 9 is a sectional side view of a substantial part illustrating a situation in which a lid body detached from a discharge opening of the small container is used as a lid again;

FIG. 10 is a sectional side view of a substantial part illustrating a situation to press a lever to squeeze the small container;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view illustrating a modified example of the present invention;

FIG. 12 is a sectional side view illustrating a modified example of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view illustrating the container of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view of the container;

FIG. 15 is a sectional side view of the container;

FIG. 16 is a partially broken side view of a front end portion of the container as seen from a direction opposite to that in FIG. 15;

FIG. 17 is a front view of an inner guide in this embodiment;

FIG. 18 is a front view of a stopper in this embodiment;

FIG. 19 is a sectional side view of a substantial part illustrating a situation to operate the pushing mechanism to push out the small container;

FIG. 20 is a sectional side view illustrating a situation to operate the pushing mechanism to push out the small container and load the next small container;

FIG. 21 is a horizontal sectional view of a slider member in this embodiment;

FIG. 22 is a perspective view of the slider member as seen from a direction opposite to that in FIG. 14;

FIG. 23 is a front sectional view illustrating alternative mechanism in this embodiment;

FIG. 24 is a front sectional view illustrating the alternative mechanism;

FIG. 25 is a front sectional view illustrating a situation in which a restrained portion is displaced from a restrained position to a release position in the alternative mechanism;

FIG. 26 is a front sectional view illustrating a situation in which a alternative portion escapes from an engaging site in the alternative mechanism;

FIG. 27 is a rear view of a cap in this embodiment;

FIG. 28 is a horizontal sectional view of a substantial part illustrating a situation to open the small container by using the cap, which is the opening tool;

FIG. 29 is a rear sectional view illustrating the lever in this embodiment;

FIG. 30 is a sectional side view of a substantial part illustrating a situation to press the lever to squeeze the small container; and

FIG. 31 is a horizontal sectional view of a substantial part illustrating a modified example of the present invention.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

First Embodiment

One embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to the drawings. As illustrated in FIG. 1, a container of this embodiment is an adhesive container for containing an adhesive provided with a plurality of small containers (refills) 2 in each of which the adhesive is enclosed and a holder 1 for integrally holding the small containers 2. The adhesive, which is a content, is a moisture-curable adhesive of which principal component is cyanoacrylate or an instantaneous adhesive, for example.
As illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, the small container 2 is obtained by combining a discharging unit 22 having a cylindrical discharge opening 221 of which diameter is smaller than that of a container main body with a bottomed cylindrical base 21. The base 21 is fabricated by blow molding and the like of plastic and the discharging unit 22 is fabricated by injection molding and the like of the plastic. A peripheral wall on a rear end side of the discharging unit 22 has a shape, which expands like a funnel (in other words, tapered) and thereafter parallelly extends in an axial direction toward the base 21 to cover a front end side of the base 21. A screw seal is adopted as a joining structure of the front end side of the base 21 and the rear end side of the discharging unit 22.
A lid body 222 for sealing the discharge opening 221 is integrally formed with a front end site of the discharge opening 221 of the discharging unit 22. The lid body 222 has a substantially polygonal (square, in an illustrated example) outer periphery and has a bottomed concave hole 223, which opens forward. An inner peripheral shape of the concave hole 223 is substantially identical to an outer peripheral shape of the discharge opening 221. A boundary portion between the discharge opening 221 and the lid body 222 is surrounded by a concave groove 224 and the peripheral wall is made thin by the concave groove 224. The concave groove 224 is a groove having a substantially V-shape in cross section.
A protrusion 225, which protrudes outward, is formed on a part of an outer peripheral surface of the small container 2. The protrusion 225 parallelly extends in the axial direction. Although the protrusion 225 is provided on the rear end side of the discharging unit 22 in this embodiment, this may also be provided on the base 21.
As illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3, a substantial part of the holder 1 is a holder main body 11 having an elliptic cylindrical shape elongated in the axial direction. The holder main body 11 is a plastic member for accommodating a plurality of small containers 2 in an inner space thereof in a state being arranged in a straight line, and a most anterior region in the inner space becomes a use region F and a continuous region behind the use region F becomes a retreat region R. The small container 2 arranged in the use region F has the discharge opening 221 exposed to outside and is capable of discharging the adhesive accumulated therein and applying the same to an object to be adhered.
A peripheral wall, which surrounds the use region F, expands in a width direction intersecting with the axial direction and an inner diameter thereof in the width direction is larger than an outer diameter of the base 21 of the small container 2. Therefore, there is a gap between an inner surface on one side (upper side in the drawing) of the peripheral wall opposed in the width direction and the base 21 of the small container 2 arranged in the use region F. A stopper 12 for sandwiching the small container 2 in the use region F is provided in the gap.
The stopper 12 has a substantially partially cylindrical shape, which parallelly extends in the axial direction, and a rear end side thereof is fixed to the peripheral wall of the holder main body 11. A front end side of the stopper 12 serves as a resin spring and may be bent to be deformed outward (upward in the drawing) through elastic deformation. A front end of the stopper 12 and a front end on the other side (lower side in the drawing) of the peripheral wall opposed in the width direction are bent inward so as to approach each other and an inner surface of the bent portion is brought into contact with the funnel-shaped portion of the discharging unit 22 of the small container 2, thereby preventing the small container 2 from escaping forward.
Although the peripheral wall, which surrounds the retreat region R, also expands in the width direction intersecting with the axial direction, a rib 111 protrudes inward (downward in the drawing) from the inner surface on one side of the peripheral wall opposed in the width direction. An inner diameter between an inner end face of the rib 111 and the inner surface on the other side of the peripheral wall opposed in the width direction is substantially identical to the outer diameter of the base 21 of the small container 2.
Continuous concave threads 112 and 113 extending in the axial direction are formed on the inner surface on the other side of the peripheral wall opposed in the width direction throughout the use region F and the retreat region R. The concave threads are a bottomed groove 112, which does not penetrate the peripheral wall, on a site facing to the use region F and is a slot hole 113, which penetrates the peripheral wall, on a site facing to the retreat region R. The protrusion 225 provided on the small container 2 is inserted into the concave threads 112 and 113 to guide the small container 2 in the axial direction and inhibit the small container 2 from rotating around an axial line relative to the holder 1. That is to say, the concave threads 112 and 113 and the protrusion 225 compose a rotation inhibiting mechanism for inhibiting the small container 2 arranged in the use region F from rotating around the axial line.
A slider 13 is attached to the holder main body 11. The slider 13 serves to retain the small containers 2 arranged in the use region F and the retreat region R and serves to push out the small container 2 in the retreat region R toward the use region F. The slider 13 is a block body capable of moving back and forth in the axial direction relative to the holder main body 11. A part of the slider 13 is inserted into the inner space of the holder main body 11 through the slot hole 113 facing to the retreat region R and an abutment surface 131, which is struck against a rear end face of the base 21 of the small container 2, is provided on this part.
A supported piece 132 protrudes in a tangential direction of the peripheral wall, that is to say, in a circumferential direction from an intermediate portion in the width direction of the slider 13, a site facing to an outer surface of the peripheral wall. On the other hand, a slider supporting unit 114 for holding the supported piece 132 is formed on the outer surface of the peripheral wall. The slider supporting unit 114 has two collateral walls, which extend outward from two positions opposed to each other across the slot hole 113 and are bent thereafter so as to approach each other, as an outline, and this accommodates the supported piece 132 in a space enclosed by the collateral walls and the peripheral wall of the holder main body 11, thereby guiding the slider 13 in the axial direction and preventing the slider 13 from escaping outward. A site outside of the supported piece 132 of the slider 13 protrudes from the slider supporting unit 114 and is exposed to be a knob operated by a user. In a situation that the user does not apply operation force to the slider 13, a relative position of the slider 13 relative to the holder main body 11 is maintained by friction between the supported piece 132 and the slider supporting unit 114. However, it is also possible to provide a alternative mechanism and the like between the supported piece 132 and the slider supporting unit 114 to fix the supported piece 132 and eventually, the slider 13 at a plurality of positions in the axial direction.
The inner space of the holder main body 11 and the space of the slider supporting unit 114 open rearward. They are closed by an end cap 14. The end cap 14 may be detachably mounted on a rear end site of the holder main body 11. Also, a depression 141 opening rearward is formed on a rear end face of the end cap 14. An inner peripheral shape of the depression 141 is substantially polygonal and substantially identical to the outer peripheral shape of the lid body 222 of the small container 2.
By removing the end cap 14 and the slider 13 from the holder main body 11, inserting a plurality of small containers 2 into the inner space of the holder main body 11 from behind to arrange them in series, thereafter attaching the slider 13 again and striking the abutment surface 131 thereof against a rear end face of a last small container 2, a first small container 2 is retained in the use region F and a subsequent small container 2 is retained in the retreat region R, respectively.
In order to remove the small container 2 already used arranged in the use region F and newly load a next small container 2 in the use region F, the operation force is applied to the slider 13 to perform operation to move the slider 13 forward. According to this, the small container 2 in the use region F is pushed by the next small container 2 right behind the same, and the front end of the stopper 12 and the front end of the peripheral wall opposed to the same are cleaved with the elastic deformation of the stopper 12 to be expanded such that the base 21 of the small container 2 may pass therebetween, as illustrated in FIG. 6. By further moving the slider 13, the used small container 2 in the use region F is completely pushed out of the holder 1 to escape and the stopper 12, which is elastically deformed, restores its original shape. Then, the funnel-shaped portion of the discharging unit 22 of the new small container 2, which reaches the use region F, is latched by the bent portion on the front ends of the stopper 12 and the peripheral wall. As a result, the small container 2 in the use region F is sandwiched by the stopper 12 and the peripheral wall to be retained together with remaining small containers 2 in the retreat region R by the abutment surface 131 of the slider 13, as illustrated in FIG. 7. As a whole, the holder main body 11, the stopper 12 and the slider 13 compose a holding mechanism for holding a plurality of small containers 2 and the slider 13 composes a pushing mechanism for pushing out the small container 2 toward the use region F.
In order to actually apply the adhesive to the object to be adhered, it is necessary to open the small container 2 in the use region F. In order to open an unused small container 2 and open the discharge opening 221, the lid body 222 integrally formed with the discharge opening 221 is: detached from the discharge opening 221. At that time, the end cap 14 maybe used as an opening tool. That is to say, as illustrated in FIG. 8, by inserting the lid body 222 into the depression 141 of the end cap 14 detached from the holder main body 11 and rotating the end cap 14 around the axial line, the lid body 222 may be easily wrung off at a concave groove 224 portion. Of course, it is possible to grasp the lid body 222 by hand and finger to wring off the same.
When the adhesive remains in the small container 2 after applying the adhesive to the object to be adhered, as illustrated in FIG. 9, by turning the lid body 222 detached from the discharge opening 221 and inserting the discharge opening 221 into the concave hole 223 to block the discharge opening 221, the remaining adhesive may be temporarily preserved. In this manner, the concave hole 223 of the lid body 222 becomes an engaging portion, which engages with the discharge opening 221.
In addition, a lever 15 for squeezing the small container 2 arranged in the use region F is attached to the holder main body 11. The lever 15 is such that a front end side thereof is fixed in the vicinity of a front end of the peripheral wall of the holder main body 11 and a rear end side thereof is swingable, and a squeezing body 151 protrudes inward from an intermediate site thereof. The squeezing body 151 enters the use region F in the inner space, especially a position facing to the base 21 of the small container 2 through through- holes 115 and 121 provided on the peripheral wall of the holder main body 11 and the stopper 12, respectively.
At the time of application operation of the adhesive, the user holds a front end site of the holder 1 in a posture to hold a pen, for example, and presses the rear end side of the lever 15 by the hand and finger. In this manner, as illustrated in FIG. 10, the rear end side of the lever 15 becomes a point of effort, the front end side thereof becomes a point of support and the squeezing body 151 becomes a point of effect, and the small container 2 may be squeezed by a principle of leverage and the adhesive in the small container 2 may be discharged from the discharge opening 221.
According to this embodiment, the adhesive container provided with a plurality of small containers 2 in each of which the adhesive is enclosed and the holding mechanism for integrally holding the plurality of small containers 2 and arranging one of them in the use region F in which the adhesive may be applied to the object to be adhered and remaining ones in the retreat region R continuous from the use region F is composed, so that it is possible to divide the adhesive to a plurality of small containers 2 and open the small container 2 one by one at the time of usage to use the adhesive. Therefore, it is easy to use up the adhesive of an amount of one small container 2 with nothing left, the small container 2 unnecessary at that time is not required to be opened and the adhesive in the unopened small container 2 may be preserved for a long time. If the adhesive remaining in the opened small container 2 is solidified, a maximum amount of loss is limited to one small container 2. According to this, waste due to difficulty in usage and impossibility in usage of the solidified remaining adhesive decreases.
Since the holding mechanism is provided on the holder 1 including the use region F and the retreat region R and the lever 15 for squeezing the small container 2 arranged in the use region F is provided on the holder 1, operation to discharge the adhesive from the small container 2 and apply the same to the object to be adhered becomes easy.
The pushing mechanism for pushing out the small container 2 arranged in the retreat region R toward the use region F is provided on the holder 1, the small container 2 arranged in the use region F is pushed out by the next small container 2 right behind the same to be removed and the next small container 2 is newly arranged in the use region F by operation of the pushing mechanism, so that discharge of the used up small container 2 and loading of the new small container 2 may be simultaneously performed, and convenience is further improved.
Since the rotation inhibiting mechanism for inhibiting the small container 2 arranged in the use region F from rotating around the axial line is provided between the holder 1 and the small container 2, it is prevented that the small container 2 rotates in the holder 1 to prevent opening operation when opening the small container 2.
Since the holding mechanism is configured to hold the plurality of small containers 2 in a state being arranged in a straight line, it becomes possible to hold a large number of small containers 2 while making an entire container smaller. Also, the container has a pen-like shape, so that this may be used in the posture to hold the pen.
The opening tool 14 for opening the small container 2 arranged in the use region F is further provided, so that time and effort to prepare the tool such as scissors and an eyeleteer when opening the small container 2 may be eliminated.
The small container 2 is obtained by integrally forming the discharge opening 221 of the adhesive with the lid body 222 for sealing the same, an engaging portion 223, which engages with the discharge opening 221 to block the discharge opening 221, is provided on the lid body 222, the small container 2 is opened by detaching the lid body 222 from the discharge opening 221 of the small container 2, and the discharge opening 221 is blocked by allowing the engaging portion 223 of the lid body 222 to engage with the discharge opening 221 thereafter, so that the lid body 222 once detached from the small container 2 becomes again the lid of the small container 2 in which the adhesive remains, and this is useful for temporarily preserving the unused remaining adhesive. In addition, disadvantage that the content leaks from the small container when disposing the small container may be avoided.
The adhesive container of this embodiment is extremely suitable as the container of the moisture-curable adhesive or the instantaneous adhesive.
Meanwhile, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above in detail. Although the holding mechanism retains each of the small container arranged in the use region and the small container arranged in the retreat region relative to the holder in the above-described embodiment, the small container in the retreat region is not necessarily required to be retained relative to the holder.
Although the small container is composed of two parts, which are the base and the discharging unit, in the above-described embodiment, the small container may also be composed of one part. For example, the small container may be fabricated of one part by filling a member obtained by the blow molding and the like with the content and sealing an opening thereof by thermal fusion bonding and the like.
Although the engaging portion of the lid body is the concave hole, which covers an outer periphery of the discharge opening of the small container 2 in the above-described embodiment, on the other hand, a needle-shaped body or a bar-shaped body inserted into the discharge opening to block the same may be provided on the Lid body as the engaging portion.
The holding mechanism is not limited to that, which holds a plurality of small containers in a state being arranged in a straight line. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the holder 1 having a revolver-type retaining mechanism for arranging a plurality of small containers 2 around a predetermined center axis may be composed. In this example, a plurality of accommodating holes 161 are provided intermittently in a circumferential direction on a revolver 16 supported by the holder main body 11 so as to be rotatable around the center axis, and the small container 2 may be accommodated in each of the accommodating holes 161. The revolver 16 becomes the retreat region R of the small container 2. Then, the slider 13 serves as the pushing mechanism for striking the small container 2 from the accommodating hole located in a certain direction as seen from the center axis to push the same in the use region F located on a front end site of the holder main body 11. Meanwhile, in this example, a needle 171 protruding and extending rearward is mounted in a front cap 17, which may be mounted on the front end site of the holder main body 11. The needle 171 pierces the discharge opening 221 of the small container 2 arranged in the use region F when mounting the front cap 17 on the holder main body 11. The front cap 17 serves as the opening tool for opening the unopened small container 2 and also serves as the lid to block the discharge opening 221 of the opened small container 2.
The holding mechanism is not necessarily provided on the holder 1 separate from the small container. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 12, it is also possible to provide a connecting portion 23 for connecting another small container 2 on the small container 2 itself, connect a plurality of small containers 2 in a state being arranged in a straight line and integrally hold them by using the connecting portion 23 as the holding mechanism. In this example, the first small container 2 is the small container 2 located in the use region F and the subsequent small container 2 is the small container 2 located in the retreat region R.

Second Embodiment

Another embodiment of the present invention is hereinafter described with reference to the drawings. As illustrated in FIGS. 13 to 15, the container of this embodiment also is the adhesive container for containing the adhesive provided with a plurality of small containers 4 in each of which the adhesive is enclosed and a holder 3 for integrally holding the small containers 4. The adhesive, which is the content, is the moisture-curable adhesive of which principal component is the cyanoacrylate or the instantaneous adhesive, for example.
As illustrated in FIGS. 14, 15, 28 and the like, the small container 4 is obtained by combining a hollow base 41 having a teardrop-shape of which outer periphery is cylindrical and of which rear end side smoothly curves to be narrow with a discharging unit 42 having a discharge opening 421 having a cone-cylinder shape of which diameter is smaller than that of the base 41. The base 41 is not a bottomed cylinder in order to crush the base 41 by smaller force and to prevent the adhesive from remaining in the base 41 without being squeezed. From a viewpoint to maintain air tightness and maintain a quality of the instantaneous adhesive, a peripheral wall of the base 41 is required to be thick as far as possible. However, when a bottomed cylindrical base 41 is made thick, this becomes hard and it is difficult to squeeze the same. Therefore, by forming the base 41 to have the teardrop-shape, securement of the thickness of the peripheral wall and ease of squeeze are compatible.
A lid body 422 for sealing the discharge opening 421 is integrally formed with a front end site of the discharge opening 421 on the discharging unit 42. The lid body 422 has an outer periphery having pinion-shaped concavity and convexity and has a bottomed concave hole 423, which opens forward. An inner periphery of the concave hole 423 substantially corresponds to an outer periphery of the front end site of the discharge opening 421. A boundary portion between the discharge opening 421 and the lid body 422 is surrounded by a concave groove 424 and a peripheral wall is made thin by the concave groove 424. The concave groove 424 is a groove having the V-shape in cross section.
A polygonal guide block 43, which parallelly extends in the axial direction, is provided on a rear end side of the discharging unit 42. In an illustrated example, the guide block 43 has a substantially hexagonal columnar outer shape and dimension between opposed surfaces of the outer periphery is larger than an outer diameter of the base 41. A corner between an outer peripheral surface and a front end face of the guide block 43 is chamfered.
In addition, a dripping receiver is mounted on the small container 4. The dripping receiver serves to prevent the adhesive, which drips from the discharge opening 421, from falling down an outer peripheral surface of the discharging unit 42 to adhere to the outer peripheral surfaces of the guide block 43 and the base 41, and to the holder 3. The dripping receiver has a partition wall 441, which expands outward from the outer peripheral surface of the discharging unit 42, and an outline wall 442, which extends from an outer peripheral edge of the partition wall 441 toward the front end side to surround the discharging unit 42, as components. The partition wall 441 is brought into contact with or adjacent to the front end face of the guide block 43. An outer diameter of the outline wall 442 is not larger than the dimension between the opposed surfaces of the outer periphery of the guide block 43.
As illustrated in FIGS. 14 to 16 and the like, a substantial part of the holder 3 is a rectangular holder main body 31 elongated in the axial direction. The holder main body 31 is configured to accommodate a plurality of small containers 4 in an inner space thereof in a state being arranged in a straight line in which a most anterior region in the inner space becomes the use region F and a continuous region behind the use region F becomes the retreat region R. The small container 4 arranged in the use region F has the discharge opening 421 exposed to outside and is capable of discharging the accumulated adhesive to apply the same to the object to be adhered.
In this embodiment, the holder main body 31 is composed of a plurality of members such as a base body 32, an inner guide 33 and a sleeve 34. The base body 32 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped-shape as an outer shape of a major part except a front end site and has a cylindrical shape, which is substantially hexagonal in cross section extending in the axial direction as an inner periphery thereof. That is to say, this has a shape such that the guide block 43 of the small container 4 may move forward while sliding in the axial direction, and this guides the small container 4 in the axial direction and inhibits the small container 4 from rotating around the axial line relative to the holder 3. Continuous slot hole 321, which extends in the axial direction, is formed on one side (upper side in the drawing) of peripheral walls from the rear end to the front end site. The front end site of the base body 32 has a substantially square-like shape in which the wall on one side (upper side in the drawing) is completely cut out to open and the walls on two sides opposed to each other across the opening are deflected outward from the continuous wall surfaces behind the same. Then, the inner guide 33 is accommodated in the front end site of the base body 32 to be fixed.
As illustrated in FIGS. 14, 17 and the like, the inner guide 33 is a member having an outer shape in a short substantially rectangular parallelepiped, and an inner periphery thereof is also formed into a shape such that the guide block 43 of the small container 4 may move forward while sliding in the axial direction. An upper jaw 331, which extends forward of front ends of the peripheral walls on other three sides is provided on a front end of a wall on one side (upper side in the drawing) of the inner guide 33. An inner peripheral surface of the upper jaw 331 has a shape obtained by cutting to remain only a part of edge side including two apices of a hexagon as seen from the axial direction. Then, protrusions 332 protruding inward are formed in the vicinity of a front end of the inner peripheral surface of the upper jaw 331. The protrusions 332 cover the two apices of the hexagon as seen from the axial direction. A rear end side of the protrusion 332 is an inclined surface inclining in the axial direction.
A stopper 35 for sandwiching the small container 4 in the use region F together with the inner guide 33 is combined with the inner guide 33. As illustrated in FIGS. 14, 15, 18 and the like, the stopper 35 has a shape obtained by connecting end edges on one side (lower side in the drawing) of a pair of opposed walls 354 by a lower jaw 351 having a short gutter-like shape obtained by dividing a hexagonal cylinder into half as seen from the axial direction. As in the upper jaw 331, protrusions 352 protruding inward are formed in the vicinity of a front end of the inner peripheral surface of the lower jaw 351. The protrusions 352 cover two apices of the hexagon as seen from the axial direction. A rear end side of the protrusion 352 is an inclined surface inclining in the axial direction.
A concavo-convex engaging structure is built between the stopper 35 and the inner guide 33, and the stopper 35 is engaged with the inner guide 33 through the concavo-convex engaging structure. Specifically, convex portions 353 are formed on inner surfaces of opposed walls 354 of the stopper 35 and concave portions 333 for receiving the convex portions 353 are formed on end faces on both sides of the inner guide 33 facing to the opposed walls 354. However, it is also possible to form the convex portions on a side of the inner guide 33 and form the concave portions on a side of the stopper 35. The lower jaw 351 and the upper jaw 331 are opposed to each other such that inner peripheries thereof face to each other in a state in which the convex portions 353 are inserted into the concave portions 333 and the stopper 35 is combined with the inner guide 33.
The outer peripheral surface of the guide block 43 of the small container 4 arranged in the use region F engages with the inner peripheral surfaces of the lower jaw 351 and the upper jaw 331. The guide block 43, the lower jaw 351 and the upper jaw 331 compose the rotation inhibiting mechanism for inhibiting the small container 4 arranged in the use region F from rotating around the axial line. Simultaneously, the protrusions 352 and 332 in the vicinity of the front ends of the lower jaw 351 and the upper jaw 331 engage with the corner between the outer peripheral surface and the front end face of the guide block 43 of the small container 4 to prevent the small container 4 from escaping forward. As seen from the axial direction, the protrusions 352 and 332 are arranged to block right in front of a total of four apices included in a hexagonal outline of the outer periphery of the guide block 43.
Meanwhile, outer dimension in a direction in which the lower jaw 351 and the upper jaw 331 are opposed to each other (vertical direction in the drawing) of the convex portion 353 is slightly smaller than inner dimension in the same direction of the concave portion 333. Therefore, the stopper 35 may be displaced in the same direction relative to the inner guide 33. Springs 355, which extend in a direction away from the upper jaw 331 of the inner guide 33 (downward in the drawing), are integrally provided with outer surfaces of the opposed walls 354 of the stopper 35. As illustrated in FIG. 16, the spring 355 is such that a tip end thereof is brought into contact with an inner surface of a peripheral wall of a front end site of the holder main body 31 to push up the lower jaw 351 of the stopper 35 toward the upper jaw 331 of the inner guide 33. By presence of the spring 355, in a state in which the lower jaw 351 is not subjected to an action of strong outer force, a distance in the same direction between the lower jaw 351 and the upper jaw 331 is kept to a certain distance suitable for sandwiching the guide block 43 of the small container 4.
As illustrated in FIGS. 14 to 16 and the like, the sleeve 34 is a member to be mounted on the front end of the base body 32 to stand in front of the inner guide 33 and the stopper 35 on which an outlet hole 341 through which the small container 4 may pass is formed on a front wall thereof. Although the outlet hole 341 has a substantially round hole shape as seen from the axial direction, an edge thereof is not completely closed and one side (lower side in the drawing) is cut out together with the front wall to open. The edge of the outlet hole 341 extends forward to be a partially cylindrical upper fitting portion 342. Also, a partially cylindrical lower fitting portion 356 extends from the front end of the lower jaw 351 of the stopper 35, and the upper fitting portion 342 and the lower fitting portion 356 are combined with each other to form a substantially cylindrical boss. The upper fitting portion 342 and the lower fitting portion 356 serve as a site to which a front cap 38 to be described later is fitted.
A slider 36 is attached to the holder main body 31. The slider 36 serves to retain the small containers 4 arranged in the use region F and the retreat region R and serve to push out the small container 4 in the retreat region R toward the use region F. The slider 36 is a resin integrally molded object capable of moving back and forth in the axial direction relative to the holder main body 31. As illustrated in FIG. 15 and the like, a part of the slider 36 is inserted into the inner space of the holder main body 31 through the slot hole 321 facing to the retreat region Rand an abutment surface 361, which is struck against a rear end of the base 41 of the small container 4, is provided on this part. The abutment surface 361 is a mortar-shaped concave surface corresponding to a shape of the rear end of the base 41 in the teardrop-shape.
As illustrated in FIGS. 21 to 26 and the like, a supported frame 362 protrudes from a site facing to an outer surface of the peripheral wall of the holder main body 31 of the slider 36 in a tangential direction of the peripheral wall. On the other hand, a slider supporting unit 322 for holding the supported frame 362 is formed on the outer surface of the peripheral wall of the holder main body 31. The slider supporting unit 322 has two collateral walls, which extend outward from two positions opposed to each other across the slot hole 321 and thereafter bent in a direction to approach each other, as an outline, and accommodates the supported frame 362 in a space enclosed by the collateral walls and the peripheral wall of the holder main body 31, thereby guiding the slider 36 in the axial direction and preventing the slider 36 from escaping outward. As illustrated in FIGS. 14, 15 and the like, a slit 323 formed between tip end edges of the two collateral walls extends in the axial direction, and the tip end edges of the both collateral walls are cut out at a plurality of sites in the middle to provide concave cutouts 324. The concave cutout 324 is concave in the direction intersecting with the axial direction and an opening width of the slit 323 locally enlarges by the concave cutout 324. A distance between the concave cutouts 324 intermittently arranged in the axial direction is substantially identical to front-back dimension of the small container 4. A site outer than the supported frame 362 of the slider 36 protrudes from the slider supporting unit 322 and is exposed to be an operation end 363 operated by the user by the hand and finger.
Both of the alternative mechanism for applying click feeling at a plurality of sites on a pathway of slide movement in the axial direction and a switching mechanism for inhibiting/allowing the slide movement of the slider 36 are mounted on the slider 36. When additionally describing about a structure, of the slider 36, as illustrated in FIGS. 22 to 26, the supported frame 362 and the operation end 363 are separated from each other with a predetermined distance therebetween and a alternative portion 364 and an elastic portion 365 are provided in a region between the supported frame 362 and the operation end 363. The alternative portion 364 is a site selectively engaging with any of a plurality of concave cutouts 324 cut out on the slit 323. As illustrated in FIG. 21, front and back ends of the alternative portion 364 are inclined surfaces inclined in the axial direction. The elastic portion 365 is an elastically deformable thin plate-shaped resin spring extending forward from the alternative portion 364 and a front end thereof is connected to the slider member 36 to be a fixed end. There are a pair of alternative portions 364 and the elastic portions 365 in the tangential direction of the peripheral wall of the holder main body 31, in other words, in a width direction of the slit 323 of the slider supporting unit 322.
The alternative portions 364 and the elastic portions 365 of the slider 36 attached to the holder main body 31 are accommodated in the slit 323 of the slider supporting unit 322. In a process of the slide movement of the slider 36 in the axial direction, a state in which the alternative portions 364 enter the concave cutout 324 of the slit 323 to engage therewith and a state in which they escape from the concave cutout 324 to slide while being in contact with the tip end edges of the collateral walls, that is to say, edges of the slit 323 are alternatively taken. In the former state illustrated in FIG. 24, a pair of alternative portions 364 develop in directions away from each other, so that the elastic portions 365 are not elastically deformed, or even when they are elastically deformed, a degree thereof is relatively small. In the latter state illustrated in FIG. 26, both of the alternative portions 364 are pressed to be compressed in a direction to approach each other by the slit 323 edges and at the same time the elastic portions 365 are elastically deformed relatively largely to accumulate reaction force.
In addition, restrained portions 366 are arranged between a pair of alternative portions 364. The restrained portion 366 may be displaced in a direction intersecting with the axial direction and a direction intersecting with an opposing direction of both of the alternative portions 364, in other words, the width direction of the slit 323 of the slider supporting unit 322 (vertical direction in the drawing). Then, the restrained portions 366 may selectively take a restrained position in which they are brought into contact with or adjacent to surfaces of the alternative portions 364 on a side opposite to the concave cutout 324, that is to say, opposed surfaces on an inner side of both of the alternative portions 364 to inhibit the compression of both of the alternative portions 364 in the direction to approach each other, and a release position in which they are separated from the opposed surfaces on the inner side of both of the alternative portions 364 to allow the compression of both of the alternative portions 364. The restrained portion 366 is elastically energized outward (upward in the drawing) toward the restrained position by a spring 367.
A pressing button 368 extends outward (upward in the drawing) from the restrained portions 366. The restrained portions 366 protrude from both side surfaces of the pressing button 368. A tip end of the pressing button 368 protrudes outside of an outer surface of the operation end 363 through a through-hole 3631 provided on the operation end 363.
As illustrated in FIG. 24, in a situation in which the alternative portions 364 engage with the concave cutouts 324 to be accommodated in the concave cutouts 324 and the user does not press the pressing button 368, the restrained portions 366 are on the restrained position to restrain the alternative portions 364. That is to say, the compression of the alternative portions 364 with the deformation of the elastic portions 365 is inhibited. Therefore, even when it is tried to slidingly move the slider 36 in the axial direction along the slit 323, the alternative portions 364 cannot escape from the concave cutouts 324, so that the slide movement is inhibited. In this situation, as illustrated in FIG. 25, when the user presses down the pressing button 368, the restrained portions 366 displace inward (downward in the drawing) while resisting against elastic energization force of the spring 367 to reach the release position and is separated from the alternative portions 364. Then, the restrained portions 366 do not restrain the alternative portions 364 and the compression of the alternative portions 364 with the deformation of the elastic portions 365 and escape of the alternative portions 364 from the concave cutouts 324 as illustrated in FIG. 26 are allowed. Therefore the slide movement of the slider 36 is allowed.
While the user presses down the pressing button 368, the alternative portions 364, the elastic portions 365 and the concave cutouts 324 of the slit 323 compose the alternative mechanism. When the user releases the hand and finger from the pressing button 368 in a state in which the alternative portions 364 are accommodated in any of the concave cutouts 324, the restrained portions 366 return to the restrained position illustrated in FIG. 24 to restrain the alternative portions 364 again and the relative position of the slider 36 relative to the holder main body 31 is fixed. That is to say, the alternative portions 364, the elastic portions 365, the restrained portions 366 and the concave cutouts 324 of the slit 323 compose the switching mechanism for inhibiting/allowing the slide movement of the slider 36. In this manner, a part of the components of the alternative mechanism and the components of the switching mechanism is common.
Meanwhile, as illustrated in FIG. 22, in a stage of forming the slider member 36, the restrained portions 366, the pressing button 368 and the spring 367 are continued from a rear end of the supported frame 362 and are exposed. The spring 367 is divided into two branches to extend rearward and the restrained portions 366 and the pressing button 368 are present between the springs 367. Front ends of the restrained portions 366 and the pressing button 368 are integrally joined to a front end of the spring 367. The restrained portions 366, the pressing button 368 and the spring 367 are bent forward at a connecting site to the supported frame 362 to be inserted into an inner space of the supported frame 362 and nails formed in advance on rear ends of the springs 367 are latched by nail receivers 369 formed in advance on front ends on inner surfaces of the side walls of the supported frame 362, and according to this, a structure of the above-described slider 36 is completed.
The inner space of the holder main body 31 opens rearward. This is closed by an end cap 37. The end cap 37 may be detachably mounted on a rear end site of the base body 32 of the holder main body 31.
By detaching the end cap 37 and the slider 36 from the holder main body 31, inserting a plurality of small containers 4 into the inner space of the holder main body 31 from behind to arrange in series, and thereafter attaching the slider 36 again to strike the abutment surface 361 thereof against a rear end face of the last small container 4, the first small container 4 is retained in the use region F and the subsequent small container 4 is retained in the retreat region R, respectively. As illustrated in FIG. 15 or 20, when the alternative portions 364 of the slider 36 engage with any of the concave cutouts 324 cut out on the slit 323 of the holder main body 31, the guide block 43 of the first small container 4 is sandwiched by the lower jaw 351 of the stopper 35 and the upper jaw 331 of the inner guide 33, and the rear end of the base 41 of each of the small containers 4 except the last small container 4 engages with the concave hole 423 of the lid body 422 of the small container 4 right behind the same and the rear end of the base 41 of the last small container 4 engages with the abutment surface 361 of the slider 36, so that the small container 4 of an integral number are stably accommodated without being shaken front-back.
When removing the used small container 4 arranged in the use region F and newly loading the next small container 4 in the use region F, the operation force is applied to the slider 36 to perform operation to move the slider 36 forward. At the time of the slide operation of the slider 36, as already described, the pressing button 368 is pressed down to allow the slider movement of the slider 36 and the slider 36 is allowed to move forward. Then, the small container 4 in the use region F is pushed by the next small container 4 right behind the same and the guide block 43 of the small container 4 pushes the protrusions 352 and 332 of the lower jaw 351 and the upper jaw 331, respectively. According to the same, as illustrated in FIG. 19, the lower jaw 351 is separated from the upper jaw 331 opposed to the same with relative movement of the stopper 35 against the elastic energization force of the spring 355, and the both are cleaved to expand a space between the protrusions 352 and 332 such that the guide block 43 may pass therebetween. By further moving the slider 36, the used small container 4 in the use region F is completely pushed out from the holder 3 to escape, the elastically deformed spring 355 restore its original shape and the stopper 35 and the lower jaw 351 thereof return to its original positions. Then, the guide block 43 of the new small container 4, which reaches the use region F, is latched by the protrusions 352 and 332 of the lower jaw 351 and the upper jaw 331, respectively. As a result, as illustrated in FIG. 20, the small container 4 in the use region F is sandwiched by the lower jaw 351 and the upper jaw 331 to be retained by the abutment surface 3.61 of the slider 36 together with the remaining small container 4 in the retreat region R. Then, after moving the slider 36 forward until the alternative portions 364 engage with the concave cutouts 324 arranged anterior to a current position (until the click feeling is obtained) the hand and finger are released from the pressing button 368 to prevent the slide movement of the slider 36. As a whole, the holder main body 31, the stopper 35 and the slider 36 compose the holding mechanism for holding a plurality of small containers 4 and the slider 36 composes the pushing mechanism for pushing out the small container 4 toward the use region F.
In order to actually apply the adhesive to the object to be adhered, it is necessary to open the small container 4 in the use region F. In order to open an unused small container 4 and open the discharge opening 421, the lid body 422 integrally formed with the discharge opening 421 is detached from the discharge opening 421. At that time, the front cap 38 may be used as the opening tool.
The front cap 38 is a member for shielding the small container 4 in the use region F and may be detachably mounted on the front end site of the holder main body 31. Specifically, a substantially cylindrical rear end site is fitted to the upper fitting portion 342 of the sleeve 34 and the lower fitting portion 356 of the stopper 35 so as to cover them from the outside. The front cap 38 is provided with a cutting unit 381 having an engaging body 383 engaging with the lid body 422 of the small container 4 in the use region F and an accumulating unit 386 including an accumulation space communicated with the cutting unit 381 for accumulating the lid body 422 cut by the cutting unit 381.
As illustrated in FIGS. 27, 28 and the like, the cutting unit 381 has a substantial cylindrical shape as an outer shape of a major part except a front end site. The front end site of the cutting unit 381 has a diameter slightly smaller than that of a site behind the same and has a convex screw 382 on an outer periphery thereof. The engaging body 383 having a substantially internal gear-shape opening backward and forward is provided in an inner space of the cutting unit 381, in the vicinity of a boundary between the front end site and the site behind the same of the cutting unit 381. A concavo-convex shape of an inner periphery of the engaging body 383 may be meshed with a. concavo-convex shape of the outer periphery of the lid body 422 of the small container 4. The engaging body 383 is not completely continuous in a circumferential direction and one side (upper side in the drawing) is cut off to form a gap. A latching body is provided so as to be accommodated in the gap as seen from the axial direction. The latching body is such that a rear end thereof is located posterior to a rear end of the engaging body 383 and a protrusion 384 protrudes inward therefrom. The protrusion 384 is such that front and rear end faces in cross section are inclined in the axial direction to form a triangle shape and a tip end thereof is located inward of the inner periphery of the engaging body 383. A thin plate-shaped arm 385, which extends forward from the protrusion 384, of the latching body is an elastically deformable resin spring of which front end is connected to an inner peripheral surface of the front end site of the cutting unit 381 to be a fixed end.
The accumulating unit 386 is attachable and detachable to and from the cutting unit 381. Specifically, this is a member having a bottomed cylindrical shape of which front surface is blocked, capable of being screwed to the screw 382 of the outer periphery of the front end site of the cutting unit 381 to be attached to the front end site of the cutting unit 381 so as to cover the same as a cap of a plastic bottle and the like. An outer diameter of the accumulating unit 386 is substantially identical to an outer diameter (of a portion except the front end site) of the cutting unit 381.
When mounting the front cap 38 obtained by screwing the accumulating unit 386 to the cutting unit 381 to be integral with each other on the holder main body 31, the lid body 422 of the small container 4 in the use region F is inserted into the engaging body 383 and the outer periphery of the lid body 422 and the inner periphery of the engaging body 383 are meshed with each other. At the same time, the protrusion 384 engages with a rear end side of the lid body 422, the concave groove 424 for separating the discharge opening 421 and the lid body 422 of the small container 4 to bite into the same. In this situation, when the user allows the front cap 38 to rotate around the axial line relative to the holder main body 31, the engaging body 383 rotates the lid body 422 around the axial line relative to the discharge opening 421 and may wring off the lid body 422 at a portion of the concave groove 424 to detach the same. At that time, the protrusion 384 engaging with the concave groove 424 faces to the rear end of the cut lid body 422 and serves as a falling inhibiting structure for inhibiting or preventing the cut lid body 422 from falling from an opening behind the cutting unit 381.
When it is desired to detach the front cap 38 from the holder main body 31 without wringing off the lid of the small container 4 in the use region F, the front cap 38 is not rotated around the axial line and this is parallelly moved forward in the axial direction to be pulled out. Even in a state in which the lid body 422 of the unopened small container 4 is fitted to the engaging body 383 of the front cap 38 and the protrusion 384 engages with the rear end side of the lid body 422, by displacing the small container 4 backward relative to the front cap 38, it is possible to allow the protrusion 384 to run on the outer periphery of the lid body 422 together with the elastic deformation of the arm 385 to pull out the lid body 422 from the engaging body 383. That is to say, it is not required to unnecessarily open the small container 4.
The cut lid body 422 falls forward from the engaging body 383 to reach an inner space of the accumulating unit 386. The inner space of the accumulating unit 386 is the accumulation space for accumulating the lid body 422. By detaching the accumulating unit 386 from the cutting unit 381 to open the accumulation space to outside, the accumulated lid body 422 may be taken out of the same.
When the adhesive remains in the small container 4 after applying the adhesive to the object to be adhered, as in the first embodiment, by turning the lid body 422 detached from the discharge opening 421, and inserting the discharge opening 421 into the concave hole 423 to block the discharge opening 421, the remaining adhesive may be temporarily preserved. In this manner, the concave hole 423 of the lid body 422 becomes an engaging portion, which engages with the discharge opening 421.
In addition, a lever 39 for squeezing the small container 4 arranged in the use region F is attached to the holder main body 31. As illustrated in FIGS. 14, 16, 29, 30 and the like, the lever 39 has a shape obtained by connecting end edges on one side (upper side in the drawing) of a pair of side walls 391 each having a substantially fan-shape in cross section by an upper wall 392. The lever 39 is supported by the stopper 35 such that a rear end side is swingable around a front end side thereof, which is a pivot of the fan-shape in cross section. Specifically, bearing holes 394 are formed on front ends of the both side walls 391 of the lever 39 and pivots 357 inserted into the bearing holes 394 are formed on the outer surfaces of the opposed walls 354 of the stopper 35, which face to the side walls 391. However, it is also possible to form the pivots on a side of the lever 39 and form the bearing holes on a side of the stopper 35. Springs 395, which extend in a direction in which the lever 39 is pressed to be operated (downward in the drawing) are integrally provided on end edges on the other side (lower side in the drawing) of the both side walls 391. The spring 395 is such that a tip end thereof is brought into contact with the inner surface of the peripheral wall of the front end site of the holder main body 31 to press up the lever 39 so as to protrude outward (upward in the drawing).
A squeezing body 393 protrudes inward from an intermediate site of the upper wall 392 of the lever 39. An inner peripheral surface of the squeezing body 393 is brought into contact with the base 41 of the small container 4 in the use region F. The inner peripheral surface of the squeezing body 393 expands forward and backward and in a circumferential direction so as to form a concave surface shape corresponding to the outer peripheral surface of the base 41.
The side walls 391 of the lever 39 are inserted into gaps, between the base body 32 and the inner guide 33 on the front end site of the holder main body 31. The squeezing body 393 enters the use region F in the inner space of the holder main body 31, especially, a position facing to the base 41 of the small container 4 through a window 334 provided on the inner guide 33.
At the time of application operation of the adhesive, the user holds a front end site of the holder 3 in the posture to hold a pen, for example, and presses the rear end side of the lever 39 by the hand and finger. Then, as illustrated in FIG. 30, the lever 39 rotates inward to be buried against the elastic energization force of the spring 395, the rear end side thereof becomes the point of effort, the front end side thereof becomes the point of support and the squeezing body 393, which is brought into surface contact with the base body 32, becomes the, point of action, and it becomes possible to squeeze the small container 4 by the principle of leverage to allow the adhesive in the small container 4 to be discharged from the discharge opening 421. At that time, by reaction of squeeze of the small container 4 by the lever 39, the lower jaw 351 of the stopper 35 is lifted up in a direction to approach the upper jaw 331 of the inner guide 33 through the bearing holes 394 and the pivots 357, so that the guide block 43 of the small container 4 may be sandwiched more firmly by the lower jaw 351 and the upper jaw 331 and the small container 4 does not escape. Also, as illustrated in FIG. 29, a plurality of springs 395, which extend from the both side walls 391 of the lever 39 separately stand side by side and the small container 4 in the use region F is accommodated between the both springs 395, so that slip of the small container 4 in the holder 3 may be inhibited also by the springs 395.
In addition, a lock body 30 for locking the lever 39 when not being used is mounted on the container of this embodiment. As illustrated in FIGS. 14 and 16, the lock body 30 is obtained by allowing a pin 302 to protrude from an outer surface of a thin plate-shaped base plate 301, which engages with the lever 39 to prevent pressing operation of the lever 39, in other words, the rotation thereof inward. The base plate 301 is inserted into the gap between the base body 32 and the inner guide 33 on the front end site of the holder main body 31. The pin 302 is inserted into a glass hole 325 provided on a peripheral wall of the base body 32 facing to a side surface of the inner guide 33. The glass hole 325 has a shape obtained by continuously providing a plurality of round holes seen in cross section in the axial direction.
The user may put the hand and finger on the pin 302 to perform operation to displace the lock body 30 in the axial direction. As illustrated in FIG. 16, in a state in which the pin 302 engages with a peripheral edge on a front end side of the glass hole 325, the base plate 301 of the lock body 30 engages with the end edge on the other side (lower side in the drawing) of the side wall 391 of the lever 39 to prevent the lever 39 from rotating to be buried. On the other hand, in a state in which the pin 302 engages with the peripheral edge on a rear end side of the glass hole 325, the lock body 30 retreats from a trajectory of the rotation of the side wall 391 of the lever 39 to allow the lever 39 to rotate to be buried. By a function of the lock body 30, disadvantage that the lever 39 is unexpectedly pressed while the container is put in a bag and the like to be carried and the content leaks from the small container 4 may be effectively avoided.
According to this embodiment, the adhesive container provided with a plurality of small containers 4 in each of which the adhesive is enclosed and the holding mechanism for integrally holding the plurality of small containers 4 and arranging one of them in the use region F in which the adhesive may be applied to the object to be adhered and remaining ones in the retreat region R continued from the use region F, so that it is possible to divide the adhesive into a plurality of small containers 4 and open the small container 4 one by one at the time of usage to use the adhesive. Therefore, it is easy to use up the adhesive of an amount of one small container 4 with nothing left and the small container 4 unnecessary at that time is not required to be opened and the adhesive in the unopened small container 4 may be preserved for a long time. If the adhesive remaining in the opened small container 4 is solidified, the maximum amount of loss is limited to one small container 4. According to this, waste due to the difficulty in usage and the impossibility in usage of the solidified remaining adhesive, which is not used, decreases.
Since the holding mechanism is provided on the holder 3 including the use region F and the retreat region R and the lever 39 for squeezing the small container 4 arranged in the use region F is provided on the holder 3, operation to discharge the adhesive from the small container 4 to apply the same to the object to be adhered becomes easy.
The lever 39 is provided with the squeezing body 393, which is brought into contact with the small container 4 when squeezing the small container 4 arranged in the use region, and the inner peripheral surface of the squeezing body 393 has the concave surface shape corresponding to the outer peripheral surface of the site with which the squeezing body 393 is brought into contact of the small container 4, so that the small container 4 may be squeezed not at a point but at a surface and the content may be efficiently squeezed.
The lever 39 is provided with a plurality of springs 395 engaged with the peripheral wall of the holder 3 for accumulating the reaction force by elastically deforming when squeezing the small container 4 arranged in the use region, the plurality of springs 395 separately stand side by side, and the small container 4 arranged in the use region is accommodated between the springs 395, so that it becomes possible to inhibit the small container 4 from relatively slipping in the holder 3 when squeezing the small container 4 by the spring 395 of the lever 39.
The pushing mechanism for pushing the small container 4 arranged in the retreat region R toward the use region F is provided on the holder 3, the small container 4 arranged in the use region F is pushed out by the next small container 4 right behind the same to be removed and the next small container 4 is newly arranged in the use region F by the operation of the pushing mechanism, so that the discharge of the used up small container 4 and the loading of the new small container 4 may be simultaneously performed, and convenience is further improved.
Since the rotation inhibiting mechanism for inhibiting the small container 4 arranged in the use region F from rotating around the axial line is provided between the holder 3 and the small container 4, it is prevented that the small container 4 rotates in the holder 3 when opening the small container 4 to prevent the opening operation.
Since the holding mechanism is configured to hold the plurality of small containers 4 in a state being arranged in a straight line, it becomes possible to hold a large number of small containers 4 while making the entire container smaller. Also, the container has the pen-like shape, so that this may be used in the posture to hold the pen.
The pushing mechanism is composed of the slider 36 capable of moving back and forth in the axial direction relative to the holder main body 31, and the slider 36 is provided with the alternative portions 364, which selectively engage with any of a plurality of engaging sites 324 arranged intermittently in the axial direction of the holder main body 31 and are concave in the direction intersecting with the axial direction, the elastic portions 365 elastically deformed to accumulate the reaction force in association with the escape of the alternative portions 364 from the engaging site 324 and the restrained portions 366 capable of displacing between the restrained position to inhibit the alternative portions 364, which engage with the engaging site 324, from escaping from the engaging site 324 and the release position to allow the alternative portions 364 to escape from the engaging site 324 with the deformation of the elastic portions 365, so that both of the alternative mechanism for applying the click feeling at a plurality of sites on the pathway of the slide movement of the slider 36 and the switching mechanism for inhibiting/allowing the slide movement of the slider 36 may be mounted on a single slider member 36, thereby contributing to small sizing of the mechanism, small sizing of the holder 3, and eventually, small sizing of a product.
The opening tool 38 for opening the small container 4 arranged in the use region F is further provided, so that the time and effort to prepare the tool such as the scissors and the eyeleteer when opening the small container 4 may be eliminated.
The small container 4 is obtained by integrally forming the discharge opening 421 of the adhesive with the lid body 422 for sealing the same, the engaging portion, which engages with the discharge opening 421 to block the discharge opening 421, is provided on the lid body 422, the small container 4 is opened by detaching the lid body 422 from the discharge opening 421 of the small container 4 and the discharge opening 421 is blocked by engaging the engaging portion of the lid body 422 with the discharge opening 421 thereafter, so that the lid body 422 once detached from the small container 4 becomes the lid of the small container 4 in which the adhesive remains again, and this is useful for temporarily preserving the remaining unused adhesive. In addition, the disadvantage that the content leaks from the small container 4 when disposing the small container 4 may be avoided.
The small container 4 is obtained by integrally forming the discharge opening 421 of the content with the lid body 422 for sealing the same and is provided with the holding mechanism in the holder 3 including the use region and the retreat region, in which the cap 38 mountable on the holder main body 31 engages with the lid body 422 of the small container 4 and the lid body 422 is detached from the discharge opening 421 of the small container 4 by the operation of the cap 38, so that the small container 4 may be easily opened by using the cap 38 as the opening tool.
The cap 38 is provided with the cutting unit 381 having the engaging body 383 mounted on the holder main body 31 and engaging with the lid body 422 of the small container 4 and the accumulating unit 386 including the accumulation space communicated with the cutting unit 381 for accumulating the lid body 422 cut by the cutting unit 381, so that the lid body 422, which is the waste generated with the opening of the small container 4, may be preferably accumulated and convenience is further improved.
Since the falling inhibiting structure 384 for inhibiting or preventing the lid body 422 cut by the cutting unit 381 from falling without reaching the accumulation space is formed on the cutting unit 381, the lid body 422 cut from the small container 4 may be surely allowed to flow on a side of the accumulation space. Possibility that the lid body 422 unexpectedly fallen from the cap 38 falls on a desk or a floor to make environment dirty is also decreased.
The adhesive container of this embodiment is extremely suitable as the container of the moisture-curable adhesive or the instantaneous adhesive.
Meanwhile, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above in detail. For example, the engaging body of the cutting unit of the cap (front cap) in the above-described embodiment has the internal gear-shape meshing with the lid body of the small container, which has the pinion-shaped outer periphery, however, it is also possible to allow the engaging body and the lid body to engage with each other by another concavo-convex engaging structure, a frictional engaging structure and the like.
Although the cap (front cap) in the above-described embodiment is configured to rotate around the axial line to wring off the lid body of the small container, a mode in which the lid body is cut out from the discharging unit by a blade extending in the width direction intersecting with the axial direction is also possible. As illustrated in FIG. 31, a blade 387, which extends in the width direction and is movable back and forth in the width direction, is provided on the cutting unit 381 of the cap 38, and a blade edge thereof is arranged so as to be able to be brought into contact with a boundary portion between the discharge opening 421 and the lid body 422 of the small container 4. The user presses down a button 388 integrally provided with the blade 387 inward in the width direction. Then, the blade 387 moves inward to intersect with the discharging unit 42 of the small container 4, thereby cutting the boundary portion between the discharge opening 421 and the lid body 422. The blade 387 at that time is inserted right behind the lid body 422, so that the cut lid 422 is inhibited or prevented from falling without reaching the side of the accumulating unit 386. That is to say, the blade 387 serves as the fall inhibiting structure. Alternatively, there also is a method of using by breaking a portion in the vicinity of the concave groove 424 of the discharging unit 42 on the boundary portion between the discharge opening 421 and the lid body 422 to bend to cut the lid body 422 by inclining the cap 38 from the axial direction in a state in which the lid body 422 is held by the engaging body 383 and/or the blade 387 (without wringing off the lid body 422 meshed with the engaging body 383 or cutting the boundary between the discharge opening 421 and the lid body 422 by the blade 387).
Although the holder in the above-described embodiment is provided with the lever for squeezing the small container, the lever is not a necessary component. When the small container incorporates a needle valve as a known container of correcting fluid, it is possible to open the small container and apply the content by pressing a valve body of the needle valve to an applied object. In such a mode, it is not necessarily required to provide the lever on the holder.
The mode and the number of the concave portion, the alternative portion, the elastic portion and the restrained portion, which are the components of the alternative mechanism and the switching mechanism are not limited to those of the above-described embodiment. The alternative portion, the elastic portion and the restrained portion may be members separate from a second member. For example, the alternative portion and the slider member may be separate from each other and the elastic portion and the slider member may be separate from each other.
It goes without saying that a part of the configuration of the first embodiment may be applied to the second embodiment and a part of the configuration of the second embodiment may be applied to the first embodiment.
Also, the content contained in the container of the present invention is not limited to the moisture-curable adhesive and the instantaneous adhesive. This may be the adhesive other than them. Further, the content is not limited to the adhesive. The present invention may be effectively used as the container of a content in a liquid form, a paste form, a jelly form and the like of which deterioration is wanted to be prevented or of which freshness is wanted to be kept such as paint, cream, soy sauce, row wasabi, mustard and drugs such as eye lotion.
A specific configuration of each unit may be variously modified without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The present invention may be used as the container for containing the content in the liquid form, the paste form, the jelly form and the like and discharging the content.

EXPLANATIONS OF LETTERS OR NUMERALS

1, 3 . . . holder
2, 4 . . . small container
F . . . use region
R . . . retreat region

Claims

1. A container used for containing a content and discharging the content to use, comprising:

a plurality of small containers in each of which the content is enclosed; and

a holding mechanism for integrally holding the plurality of small containers and arranging one of the small containers in a use region in which the content may be discharged and remaining small containers in a retreat region continuous from the use region.

2. The container according to claim 1, wherein the holding mechanism is provided on a holder including the use region and the retreat region, and a lever for squeezing the small container arranged in the use region is provided on the holder.

3. The container according to claim 2, wherein the lever is provided with a squeezing body brought into contact with the small container when squeezing the small container arranged in the use region, and

an inner peripheral surface of the squeezing body has a concave surface shape corresponding to an outer peripheral surface of a site with which the squeezing body is brought into contact of the small container.

4. The container according to claim 2, wherein the lever is provided with a plurality of springs engaging with a peripheral wall of the holder for accumulating reaction force by being elastically deformed when squeezing the small container arranged on the use region, and

the plurality of springs separately stand side by side and the small container arranged on the use region is accommodated between the springs.

5. The container according to claim 2, wherein a pushing mechanism for pushing out the small container arranged in the retreat region toward the use region is provided on the holder, the small container arranged in the use region is pushed out by a next small container right behind the small container and the next small container is newly arranged in the use region by operation of the pushing mechanism.

6. The container according to claim 1, wherein the holding mechanism is provided on the holder including the use region and the retreat region, and

a rotation inhibiting mechanism for inhibiting the small container arranged in the use region from rotating around an axial line is provided between the holder and the small container.

7. The container according to claim 1, wherein the holding mechanism holds the plurality of small containers in a state being arranged in a straight line.

8. The container according to claim 7, wherein the holding mechanism and the pushing mechanism for pushing out the small container arranged in the retreat region toward the use region are provided on the holder including the use region and the retreat region, and the small container arranged in the use region is pushed out to be removed by the next small container right behind the small container and the next small container is newly arranged in the use region by the operation of the pushing mechanism,

wherein the pushing mechanism comprises a slider capable of moving back and forth in an axial direction relative to a holder main body, and

the slider includes

an alternative portion selectively engaging with any of a plurality of engaging sites intermittently arranged in the axial direction of the holder main body and are concave in a direction intersecting with the axial direction,

an elastic portion for accumulating the reaction force by being elastically deformed with escape of the alternative portion from the engaging site, and

a restrained portion capable of displacing between a restrained position for inhibiting the escape of the alternative portion engaging with the engaging site from the engaging site and a release position for allowing the alternative portion to escape from the engaging site with deformation of the elastic portion.

9. The container according to claim 1, further comprising: an opening tool for opening the small container arranged in the use region.

10. The container according to claim 1, wherein the small container is obtained by integrally forming a discharge opening of the content with a lid body for sealing the discharge opening,

an engaging portion engaging with the discharge opening to block the discharge opening is provided on the lid body,

the small container is opened by allowing the lid body to be detached from the discharge opening of the small container, and the discharge opening is blocked by allowing the engaging portion of the lid body to engage with the discharge opening thereafter.

11. The container according to claim 1, wherein the small container is obtained by integrally forming the discharge opening of the content with the lid body for sealing the discharge opening,

the holding mechanism is provided on the holder including the use region and the retreat region,

a cap capable of being mounted on the holder main body engages with the lid body of the small container, and the lid body is detached from the discharge opening of the small container by operation of the cap.

12. The container according to claim 11, wherein the cap is provided with a cutting unit mounted on the holder main body and having an engaging body engaging with the lid body of the small container and an accumulating unit including an accumulation space communicated with the cutting unit for accumulating the lid body cut by the cutting unit.

13. The container according to claim 12, wherein a falling inhibiting structure for inhibiting or preventing the lid body cut by the cutting unit from falling without reaching the accumulation space is formed on the cutting unit.

14. The container according to claim 1, wherein the content comprises an adhesive.

15. The container according to claim 14, wherein the adhesive comprises a moisture-curable adhesive.

16. A small container used for composing the container according to claim 1, wherein a content is enclosed and the small container is arranged in the use region or the retreat region.

17. A holder used for composing the container according to claim 1, including the use region and the retreat region, and provided with the holding mechanism and the lever for squeezing the small container arranged in the use region.

18. The container according to claim 3, wherein the lever is provided with a plurality of springs engaging with a peripheral wall of the holder for accumulating reaction force by being elastically deformed when squeezing the small container arranged on the use position, and

the plurality of springs separately stand side by side and the small container arranged on the use position is accommodated between the springs.

19. The container according to claim 3, wherein a pushing mechanism for pushing out the small container arranged in the retreat region toward the use region is provided on the holder, the small container arranged in the use region is pushed out by a next small container right behind the small container and the next small container is newly arranged in the use region by operation of the pushing mechanism.

20. The container according to claim 2, wherein the holding mechanism is provided on the holder including the use region and the retreat region, and