US3102653A

US3102653A - One-piece manually removable bottle cap

Info

Publication number: US3102653A
Application number: US210394A
Authority: US
Inventors: Jacques Francis J St
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1962-07-17
Filing date: 1962-07-17
Publication date: 1963-09-03
Anticipated expiration: 1980-09-03

Description

Sept. 3, 1963 F. J. s-r. JACQUES 3,102,653

ONE-PIECE MANUALLY REMOVABLE BOTTLE CAP Filed July 17, 1962 1 INVENTOR FRANCIS J. ST. JACQUES so 44 F|G.6

ATTORNEY ONE-PIECE This invention relates to a bottle cap of the type including a metal cup-like member having a crimped flange for crimping onto the pouring rim or lip of a bottle and usually including a cork or other gasket therein. This type of closure is usually referred to as a crown seal.

The principal object of the present invention resides in the provision of an improvement in this type of cap which allows the cap to be quickly and easily manually removed without the use of any bottle opener or other tool; and the provision of a manually removable cap of the class described which is made in but a single piece, but includes a main sealing member which is diametrically slit although the two parts thereof are permanently attached adjacent an edge of the cap, and including a tab member which can be stamped out extending radially from the main sealing member and including a division resulting in two arms each of which is connected to one of the two parts of the main sealing member at each side of the above described slit, at least one of said arms being scored in such a way as to be quickly and easily breakable therefrom; and the provision of a device as described in which the tab is provided with means normally overlying the top of the main sealing member and having interengaging means for engaging both parts thereof, maintaining the same together in sealing arrangement with respect to the bottle to which it is applied but being easily manually removed therefrom and bent outwardly to its substantially depending position wherein it is quickly and easily flexed, even by merely shaking the bottle, in order to disrupt at least one of said arms to allow the two parts of the main sealing member to be released from each other to allow the entire cap to be quickly and easily manually removed from the bottle top.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear hereinafter.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a plan view of the new bottle cap;

FIG. 2 is a view in side elevation thereof, looking in the direction of arrow 2 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a view looking in the direction of arrow 3 in FIG. 62 but showing the tab bent down;

FIG. 4 is a plan view illustrating the cap in its final disrupted and removed condition;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a modification, and

FIG. 6 is an elevational View, looking in the direction of arrow 6 in FIG. 5.

In carrying out the present invention, the same is illustrated as a crown seal applicable to soda water bottles and the like. This construction embodies a main sealing member generally indicated at 10 which almost but not quite is divided into two

separate parts

12 and 14 by reason of the member 10 being substantially divided diametrically across, even including one portion of the depending flange 16 which is crirnped as usual in order to be applied to the pouring lip of a bottle. This slit is indicated at 18, and extends all the way through one portion of the skirt 16 but does not extend through the diametrically opposite portion thereof as represented by the reference numeral 20 in FIG. 4, so that the two

parts

12 and 14 are secured together but are easily separable to the position shown in FIG. 4, and in fact tend to separate if not held together.

3,102,653 Patented Sept. 3, 1963 At the top portion of each

member

12 and 14, the same is provided with upstanding projection 22, there being one of these projections at each side of the slit 1-8.

There is a tab which is stamped out integrally with the skirt portion 16. This tab is generally indicated by the reference numeral 24 and it has a head 26 with two apertures therein at 28, these apertures corresponding to the projections 22. At its opposite end which is integrally connected to the flange 16, the tab 24 is divided into two

arms

30 and 32, each of these arms being integrally connected with respect to the flange .16 at opposite sides of the slit 18 as shown in FIG. 3.

The cap is originally provided with the tab 24 bent over the top surface of the member) and the projections 22 just conform to the size of the openings 28 so that the tab can be snapped down with the projections engaging the openings 28 so as to aid in holding the two

parts

12 and 14 together in addition to the provision. of the

arms

30 and 32 which also serve this purpose. In this condition the cap is passed through the usual automatic machinery and applied to the bottles to close the same.

When the bottle is to be opened, theuser merely inserts a thumbnail under the free end of the tab at the point 34 indicated in FIG. 2. This may have a slightly raised lip if desired but this is not necessary. Upon moving upwardly in the direction of the arrow 36 in FIG. 2, the projections 22 are released as shown in FIG. 3 and then a simple flexure or two of the tab either manually, or even simply by shaking the bottle, will be enough to disrupt the arm 32 from the edge of the flange 16, there having been originally provided a score line 38 as shown by the interrupted line at this point in FIG. 3, so that this becomes disrupted as shown in FIG. 4 and the two

parts

12 and 14 are then quickly and easily moved apart to release the cap from the bottle lip. As a matter of fact, due to the inherent resiliency of the metal, this action is almost automatic and little or no force is needed to spread these members apart, it being only necessary to push slightly upwardly on the edge of the flange '16 with the finger in order to completely dislodge the cap from the bottle.

A slightly different cap is shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, wherein the cap 40 is slit just as before, as at 42, and the tab 44 is integral with the cap with the two

legs

46, 48, at least one of which is scored for the same reason, but in this case the tab extends all the way across the cap, diametrically and has a downturned end 51} embracing the crimping skirt. Also the projection on the cap 40 at 52, 52 may be rectangular and do not appear in FIG. 6 as they do not extend up above the top surface of the tab. However, the operation is the same as before except that the fingernail is inserted at the point 56 which again is the terminus of the tab.

Having thus described my invention and the advantages thereof, I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, otherwise than as set forth in the claims, but what I claim is:

l. A closure cap comprising a sealing member adapted to be applied to the mouth of a container, said sealing member including a cover portion, an annular depending crimping skirt on the cover portion, said skirt having a slit therein, said slit extending substantially across the cover portion and substantially dividing the sealing member into a plurality of relatively movable cooperative partial sealing members, a bendable tab integrally connected with respect to the skirt, said tab originally extending over the top portion of the sealing member at each side of the slit in the cover portion, interengaging means at each side of the slit on the cover portion cooperating with means on the tab holding the partial sealing members together in closing the slit to maintain a sealing relation With respect to the container to which itis to be secured, said tab being manually removable to free the interengaging means to allow the plurality of partial sealing members to tend to separate from each other to provide for removal of the cap from the container. 1

2. The closure cap of claim 1 wherein said tab includes a pair of arms connected to separate portions of the skirt, one arm at each side of the slit, at least one of said arms being easily disruptable from said skirt to free the partial sealing members.

3L-The closure cap of claim 1 wherein the interenga ing means includes closely fitting projections and apertures.

4. The closure cap of claim 1 wherein the interengag- 1 l 5. The closure cap of claim 1 wherein the tab extends only part Way across the cap.

6. The closure cap of claim 1 wherein the tab extends completely across the cap.

7. The closure cap of claim 1 wherein the tab extends v completely across the cap and conceals the slit.

8. The closure of cap of claim 1 wherein the tab extends completely across the cap and a downturned terminal end on the tab. 7 I i References tilted in the file of this patent V UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,524,458

'France May 6,

Claims

1. A CLOSURE CAP COMPRISING A SEALING MEMBER ADAPTED TO BE APPLIED TO THE MOUTH OF A CONTAINER, SAID SEALING MEMBER INCLUDING A COVER PORTION, AN ANNULAR DEPENDING CRIMPING SKIRT ON THE COVER PORTION, SAID SKIRT HAVING A SLIT THEREIN, SAID SLIT EXTENDING SUBSTANTIALLY ACROSS THE COVER PORTION AND SUBSTANTIALLY DIVIDING THE SEALING MEMBER INTO A PLURALITY OF RELATIVELY MOVABLE COOPERATIVE PARTIAL SEALING MEMBERS, A BENDABLE TAB INTEGRALLY CONNECTED WITH RESPECT TO THE SKIRT, SAID TAB ORIGINALLY EXTENDING OVER THE TOP PORTION OF THE SEALING MEMBER AT EACH SIDE OF THE SLIT IN THE COVER PORTION, INTERENGAGING MEANS AT EACH SIDE OF THE SLIT ON THE COVER PORTION COOPERATING WITH MEANS ON THE TAB HOLDING THE PARTIAL SEALING MEMBERS TOGETHER IN CLOSING THE SLIT TO MAINTAIN A SEALING RELATION WITH RESPECT TO THE CONTAINER TO WHICH IT IS TO BE SECURED, SAID TAB BEING MANUALLY REMOVABLE TO FREE THE INTERENGAGING MEANS TO ALLOW THE PLURALITY OF PARTIAL SEALING MEMBERS TO TEND TO SEPARATE FROM EACH OTHER TO PROVIDE FOR REMOVAL OF THE CAP FROM THE CONTAINER.