WO1999067141A1

WO1999067141A1 - Flasks, in particular collapsible feeding bottles

Info

Publication number: WO1999067141A1
Application number: PCT/FR1999/001496
Authority: WO
Inventors: Suzanne De Begon De Larouziere
Original assignee: Suzanne De Begon De Larouziere
Priority date: 1998-06-22
Filing date: 1999-06-22
Publication date: 1999-12-29
Also published as: US20010006164A1; EP1089911A1; AU4270899A; FR2782497A1; CA2336166A1; JP2002518148A

Abstract

The invention concerns a flask, in particular a feeding bottle, having a collapsible substantially cylindrical plastic body, characterised in that the body consists of a succession of rigid conical sections (3 to 10) so as to obtain at least two stable extension positions, and a plurality of stable intermediate positions having axial symmetry, and angle α is greater than angle β, α representing the angle formed between the upper flank and a transverse plane; β representing the angle formed between the lower flank and a transverse plane; and the hollow radius of curvature is less than 0.2 millimetres.

Description

BOTTLES, ESPECIALLY RETRACTABLE BOTTLES.

The present invention relates to bottles, in particular baby bottles.

The object of the invention is to provide retractable bottles, the height of which can be reduced outside the periods of use.

In the prior art, various embodiments of bottles or retractable bottles have been proposed. French patent FR2467146 discloses in particular a semi-rigid packaging consisting of a corrugated sleeve whose waves, of section of essentially triangular shape, allow stable clipping by tilting at least part of them beyond a equilibrium position so that each of said waves has a stable position in the compressed state or in the deployed state. The sleeve delimits an interior volume can vary in a significant ratio between the extreme states where all the waves are compressed or deployed. Another document of the prior art, American patent US Pat. No. 5,348,173 discloses details of the production of such a retractable packaging.

We also know the American patent US2,780,678, the American patent US3,143,429, the English patent GB2181062 or the European patent EP300786 concerning compressible containers also having a general shape of bellows. Indeed, the products of the prior art retains the memory of folding: when the bottle is unfolded after a long period of holding in the folded position, it does not regain its nominal capacity.

These packaging, however, have flaws. They do not guarantee the capacity in the deployed position. Indeed, significant variations can intervene when the packaging of the prior art is subject to multiple manipulations of extensions and retraction.

On the other hand, the devices of the prior art do not guarantee a harmonious and regular folding or deployment of the bellows, and often do not guarantee the stability of the extreme and intermediate positions.

These drawbacks make the device of the prior art unsuitable for certain applications, in particular for producing a bottle.

Indeed, for such applications, certain characteristics are required.

It is desirable that the capacity of the bottle in the deployed position is constant and reproducible, to allow precise dosing of the content using lateral graduation marks.

The devices of the prior art do not make it possible to guarantee such constancy of the capacity, and the lateral marks which could be affixed to the wall would not make it possible to deduce the volume of liquid introduced into the packaging. Moreover, it will be seen that no document of the prior art suggests the use of such graduation marks.

Secondly, a bottle must be sufficiently stable, in the deployed position, to prevent untimely axial pressure from causing unwanted folding. Such a folding would have very detrimental effects, by creating an overpressure of the contents, an overflow of the liquid, and a risk of suffocation of the infant by excess liquid delivered by the bottle. Finally, it may be desirable that the capacity of the bottle can be periodically adjusted to expel air, in order to reduce the risk of air absorption by the infant. The absorption of excess air causes risks of aerophagia resulting, for the infant, in abdominal pain. To do this, it must allow folding into stable intermediate positions.

Furthermore, the shape of the bellows in the retracted or partially folded position must allow a flow of the liquid without the formation of stagnation zones of the liquid contained in the container.

The object of the invention is to improve the bellows packaging of the prior art to remedy these drawbacks.

To this end, the invention relates to a bottle, in particular a bottle, having a retractable body of substantially cylindrical plastic material, characterized in that the body is constituted by a succession of conical sections (3 to 10), alternating, rigid / flexible enabling at least two stable extension positions to be obtained, and a plurality of stable intermediate positions having axial symmetry, and in that the angle α is greater than the angle β, - α denoting the angle formed between the upper flank and a transverse plane;

- β denoting the angle formed between the lower flank and a transverse plane.

Preferably, α-β greater than or equal to 4 °. For this purpose, the upper flank is thicker, and therefore more rigid, than the lower flank, which is therefore more flexible than the upper flank. Advantageously, the radius of curvature of the connection zone (11) between the upper conical wall and the lower conical wall is greater than or equal to twice the thickness of the wall. The angle β formed between the transverse plane and the lower conical wall is between 35 ° and 40 °

According to a particular variant, the ratio I / R between the length I of the lower flank and the radius R at the level of the hollow is between 0.35 and 0.50. According to another variant, the bottom has a ring for exerting traction on the body of the bottle.

Advantageously, the ratio between the generators S and I of two consecutive conical sectors is approximately 1.25. According to an advantageous embodiment, the bottle according to the invention has on its wall graduation marks for determining the volume of liquid contained in the bottle in the deployed position.

The invention will be better understood on reading the description of an exemplary embodiment which follows, referring to the appended drawings in which:

- Figures 1 and 2 show sectional views of an embodiment detail of a bottle, in the respectively unfolded and folded position; - Figures 3 and 4 show sectional views of the bottle;

- Figures 5 and 6 show detail views of the body of the bottle.

The body of the bottle according to the invention, shown in the appended figures, is constituted by a succession of conical sections (1 to 2) connected, when the bottle is in the deployed position, in the form of lenses to form a corrugated hollow body. These conical sections upper (1) and lower (2) are connected at their vertices (100) and their recesses (200).

When the bottle is folded, the lower conical section (1) is folded under the upper conical section (2). The lower conical section (2) rocks relative to the transverse median plane (300). The lower section (2) is above the transverse plane

(300) passing through the hollow (200) of a lenticular segment

(400) when the bottle is deployed. It is below the transverse plane (300) when the bottle is folded.

The bottle will be described in the following by way of nonlimiting example, for a maximum capacity.

(corresponding to the deployed position) of the container of 305 milliliters, for a height of 147.4 mm and a maximum section of 64 mm.

The body comprises a plurality of lenticular elements (3 to 10) formed by the addition of two conical sections (1, 2).

The connection (11) between two lenticular elements, at the level of the hollow, has a radius of curvature close to 0, in any case less than or equal to 0.2 millimeters. The thickness is an element which can disturb the operation of the part, the folding and unfolding as well as the maintenance of the turn in the folded position, it can even prevent the folding if it is important.

1-Influence of the optimal thickness distribution on the geometry.

2- Influence of the rigidity of the material: Young's modulus on the folding and unfolding forces. The condition of folding and nesting of a turn at the level of thickness without speaking of folding energy but only of feasibility results in a radius of the hollow close to 0 to 0.2 millimeters. The hollow is a crossroads of the thickness of the lower flank and the upper flank

In this place, unlike the top, the material expands less due to its proximity to the center.

To create the interlocking, it is necessary to break the accumulation of materials at this point so that the coil bends and remains folded.

The mechanisms involved when folding the bottle are as follows:

Two types of buckling modes can appear.

1. The first mode is a mode accompanied by large displacements which leads to a sudden increase in the rigidity of the part (Figure 5)

2. The second is a more local mode accompanied by much smaller displacements located on the sides of the turns. The appearance of this 2nd mode does not induce a significant increase in rigidity (figure

6).

Uneven distribution of thicknesses

(thicknesses at the tops, hollows and sides of different turns depending on the turns) promotes the appearance of the 1st mode of buckling. A homogenization of the thicknesses therefore has the direct consequence of reducing the energy required for folding.

The reduction in thickness at the level of the recesses of the turns as well as at the level of the vertices allows a substantial gain in bending energies. But in both cases, the thickness reductions do not allow better control the appearance and type of buckling mode shown in Figures 5 and 6.

The introduction of a greater thickness on the upper flanks than on the lower flanks of the turns allows on the one hand to better control and prevent the appearance of the 1st types of mode by increasing the rigidity of the upper flanks, on the other hand to create privileged zones of flexion on the lower flanks. This concept therefore allows a substantial gain in energy required for folding the bottle.

Unfolding does not lead to the appearance of buckling mode, but the preceding conclusions remain true: a more homogeneous distribution of the thicknesses makes it possible to reduce the energy of the unfolding, the hinge effect of vertices is greater than that of the hollows, the creation of thicker and therefore more rigid zones on the upper flanks and correlatively that of preferred bending zones on the lower flanks makes it possible to reduce the energy required for unfolding. The reduction in the YOUNG modulus of the material does not bring significant gains compared to those resulting from an optimized distribution of thicknesses. The reduction in the module if it leads to lower bending energies also leads to more flexible parts whose stability, in particular lateral, in operation can be greatly reduced.

A better distribution of thicknesses and possibly a YOUNG module material lower than 950 Mpa, (800 and 650 Mpa) make it possible to reduce (almost 100%) the energy necessary for unfolding and folding the bottle. It should be noted that for an identical effort, the unfolding energy is globally equivalent to the folding energy but that the observations made higher allow to unfold the bottle with efforts of low intensity which do not allow folding. We can therefore generally unfold the bottle with a lower effort than that required for folding. The lower lenticular element (3) comprises a lower element whose external section is 64 mm and the height of 5.4 mm, as well as an upper conical element whose generator is 13.0 mm, and forms with the vertical an angle of 28.5 °. The total height of this first lenticular element (3) is 17.7 mm.

The next lenticular element (4) has a height of 16.9 mm. The lower conical sector has a length of 8.9 mm and forms an angle of 39 ° with the vertical. The upper conical sector has a length of 10.5 mm and forms an angle of 44 ° with the vertical.

The next five lenticular elements (5 to 9) are formed by a lower conical sector whose generator has a length of 10.2 mm and forms with the vertical an angle β of 40 °, and an upper conical sector whose generator has a length of 12 mm and forms an angle α of 47 ° with the vertical.

To avoid the effects of hysteresis, it is necessary to respect a certain geometry of the sides between them. Dimensions and angles are designated with reference to Figure 3.

Dimension of the Lower flank = I

Dimension of upper flank = S

R = Radius which goes from the hollow towards the center, on the transverse plane. α is the angle formed between the upper side and the transverse plane β is the angle formed between the lower side and the transverse plane. For the bottle according to the invention, the following formulas must be checked: α> β. being the angle of the upper side, β that of the lower side which flames.

I / R must be between 35% and 50%

In the example described,

I = 8.9 mm

R = 25 mm The ratio is 35.6%. α must be greater than β by at least 4 °. This value includes the possible thickness of the Lower Flank.

Ideally β should be between 35 ° and 40 °. Beyond 40 °, it becomes difficult to bend it. must be at least 4 ° larger than β because after kinematics, the lower flank β will be placed at β '. If β 'abuts against the upper flank than β'- α. The lower flank does not bend but deforms and can rebound. If the dimensions are respected elsewhere, alpha must be larger but not exceed 20%. According to an exemplary embodiment, α = 44 ° β = 39% (β = 88% of α)

The closer the angle β is to the line from the vertices, the easier the folding. The concept of retractable bottles whose height can be reduced outside periods of use is applied here for disposable bottles characterized by a geometry with turns.

The bottle is sold sterile and folded, so it must be unfolded for use.

After use, the bottle is folded up for disposal. In all cases, the user must be able to unfold and fold the bottle easily. In however, it must be able to be used without there being any risk of folding during use. For such bottles, the folding and unfolding phases must be able to be carried out with minimal efforts, however, guaranteeing stability during use.

The "stress" "Passage point": To ensure buckling of the lower flank before the buckling of the upper flank, and to avoid hysteresis phenomena, the stress of the flanks must be optimized. When folding:

Lower: The projection of the lower flank towards a virtual point located on the horizontal starting from the vertices, represents with the radius of this same flank on the horizontal, the value of the stress. The constraint of β must not exceed 22% + -

1% of the dimension of the lower flank.

The stress of β must be between 21 and 23% of I (dimension of the lower flank)

The x-stress of α must be greater than that of β If the opposite occurs, it is the upper flank which will tend to deform first. In order for the lower flank alone to bend, it is necessary to ensure that the stress of the upper flank is greater than that of the lower flank. However, the difference between the two constraints must be compressed. For that, it would be necessary that the stress β is greater than or equal to 60% of the stress of α. Below 60%, there is a problem of high energy to deploy. A stress of β = 47% of the stress of α results, for example, in excessively hard handling.

Ex: Upper constraint 2.9 mm Lower constraint 2.0 mm Furthermore, when the stress of β is greater than 70% of the stress of α, the bellows has a shape memory producing the hysteresis effect. Projection of the sidewall on the same horizontal whose distance must be measured relative to the value of its radius

The more the angle β approaches the straight line which starts from the vertices, the easier the folding is due to the fact that the stress of the lower flank approaches its projection and therefore the stress approaches 0. This condition is obtained with an angle 25 ° and below. But with this value, we observe a retention of the liquid in the turns. We then lose the reliability and reproducibility of the capacity.

In order to improve the compaction or the miniaturization of the bottle, the lower flank must represent in dimension at least 80% of the dimension of the upper flank. The lower flank can therefore range from 80% to

100%. If this value is exceeded, the bottle becomes, after folding, an inverted conical part. This value is preferably between 80% and 95%.

The bottle is made up of turns each representing a useful volume of 30 ml.

The upper lenticular element (10) is extended by a threaded cylindrical part (11).

The total height of the corrugated part is 127.6 mm in the deployed position. It has graduation marks (12) graduated in volume.

The retraction is preferably carried out by pressures along alternating oblique axes, and not in an axial direction. A pressure movement is exerted with a lateral asymmetry to force the tilting of one side of a lenticular element, then a second pressure is exerted with an opposite lateral component to complete the folding of this first lenticular element.

This reciprocating movement is then continued until the desired number of lenticular elements are folded. The bottle then remains in a stable intermediate position. The material chosen here is polypropylene with a module of 950 Mpa for its greater resistance to heat, necessary for reheating the bottle as well as for its transparency making it possible to visualize the formation of lumps from powdered milk, and finally for its rigidity necessary for the good holding and stability of the bottle.

Claims

1 - Bottle, in particular a bottle, having a retractable body of substantially cylindrical plastic material, characterized in that the body is constituted by a succession of conical sections, (3 to 10), alternating, rigid / flexible allowing obtaining at least two stable extension positions, and a plurality of stable intermediate positions having axial symmetry, and in that the angle α is greater than the angle β, denoting the angle formed between the upper flank and a transverse plane ; β designating the angle formed between the lower flank and a transverse plane and in that the radius of curvature of the hollow is less than 0.2 millimeters. .

2 - Bottle, in particular bottle, according to claim 1 characterized in that α— β greater than or equal to 4 °.

3 - Bottle, in particular a bottle, according to claim 1 characterized in that the radius of curvature of the connection zone (11) between the upper conical wall and the lower conical wall is greater than or equal to 2 times the thickness of the wall.

4 - Bottle, in particular a bottle, according to claim 1 characterized in that the angle β formed between the transverse plane and the lower conical wall is between 35 ° and 40 ° 5 - Bottle, in particular a bottle, according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the ratio I / R between the length I of the lower flank and the radius R at the level of the hollow is between 0.35 and 0, 50.

6 - Bottle, in particular bottle, according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it has on its wall graduation marks (12) for determining the volume of liquid contained in the bottle in the deployed position.

7 - Bottle, in particular bottle, according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the length of the lower flank is greater than 80%.

8 - Bottle, in particular bottle, according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the stress β is greater than or equal to 60% of the stress of α.

9 - Bottle, in particular a bottle, according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the stress β is less than or equal to 80% of the stress of α.

10 - Bottle, in particular a bottle, according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the upper flanks are thicker than the lower flanks.