Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D41/00—Caps, e.g. crown caps or crown seals, i.e. members having parts arranged for engagement with the external periphery of a neck or wall defining a pouring opening or discharge aperture; Protective cap-like covers for closure members, e.g. decorative covers of metal foil or paper
  • B65D41/02—Caps or cap-like covers without lines of weakness, tearing strips, tags, or like opening or removal devices
  • B65D41/04—Threaded or like caps or cap-like covers secured by rotation
  • B65D41/0407—Threaded or like caps or cap-like covers secured by rotation with integral sealing means
  • B65D41/0414—Threaded or like caps or cap-like covers secured by rotation with integral sealing means formed by a plug, collar, flange, rib or the like contacting the internal surface of a container neck
  • B65D41/0421—Threaded or like caps or cap-like covers secured by rotation with integral sealing means formed by a plug, collar, flange, rib or the like contacting the internal surface of a container neck and combined with integral sealing means contacting other surfaces of a container neck
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D41/00—Caps, e.g. crown caps or crown seals, i.e. members having parts arranged for engagement with the external periphery of a neck or wall defining a pouring opening or discharge aperture; Protective cap-like covers for closure members, e.g. decorative covers of metal foil or paper
  • B65D41/32—Caps or cap-like covers with lines of weakness, tearing-strips, tags, or like opening or removal devices, e.g. to facilitate formation of pouring openings
  • B65D41/34—Threaded or like caps or cap-like covers provided with tamper elements formed in, or attached to, the closure skirt
  • B65D41/3423—Threaded or like caps or cap-like covers provided with tamper elements formed in, or attached to, the closure skirt with flexible tabs, or elements rotated from a non-engaging to an engaging position, formed on the tamper element or in the closure skirt

Definitions

• the present invention concerns a closure cap made of plastics material with the features of the characterising clause of the independent claims.
• closure caps made of plastics material for closing containers, for example bottles.
• a frequent field of application is beverage bottles, and in particular bottles containing carbonated beverages.
• the demands on tightness of the closure cap are great, especially with bottles, in which the contents are under an increased pressure.
• the closure cap must guarantee that no leakages occur, even in the event of increased internal pressure.
• the closure cap On opening the bottle for the first time, the closure cap has to be prevented from flying off the bottle (missiling) , as soon as the thread on the closure disengages with the thread on the bottle.
• sealing inserts can be inserted into the closure cap, or deformable sealing lips can be provided.
• the sealing means In order to avoid the premature flying off (missiling) of the closure cap, it is likewise already known to design the sealing means so that during the unscrewing process the sealing effect is first of all cancelled and only then do the threads of the closure disengage with the threads of the container mouth. This allows the closure to vent any excess internal pressure before the closure threads fully disengage from the container threads.
• trumpet seals are a typical form of sealing lips.
• a cylindrical sealing section more or less in the form of a truncated cone, extends from a substantially cylindrical root section.
• trumpet seals do indeed produce satisfactory results with regard to the sealing effect.
• one problem with such well-known trumpet seals consists in the fact that the application force, required when putting the closure cap on to the container mouth, is relatively large. Considerable forces are necessary to fold over the sealing section.
• a further disadvantage with known trumpet seals consists in the fact that the instant at which the sealing effect is cancelled during unscrewing, often cannot be precisely predicted. Depending on the tolerances of the container mouth, the contact force between the sealing section and the container mouth is greater or smaller, so that the sealing effect of the sealing section can vary as a function of the container to be closed.
• a further problem consists in the fact that the buckling area between the root section and the sealing section often cannot be precisely predetermined.
• the sealing section is folded over around different buckling lines.
• the result of this is that the sealing section does not always seal at the same place on the container mouth.
• This can have a considerable influence on the sealing properties (sealing areas on container mouths are often defined precisely) and gas blow-off behaviour (the time at which the sealing effect is cancelled) depending on where the sealing section seals on the container mouth) .
• so-called olive seals are known. Olive seals have a sealing lip with a convex sealing section, which is designed to seal on the more or less cylindrical inner surface of a container mouth.
• one aim of the present invention is to avoid the disadvantages of the known closure caps, and in particular to produce a closure cap, which requires reduced application forces when putting the closure cap on the container mouth.
• a precisely defined gas blow-off pressure should be able to be obtained with the closure cap according to the invention.
• the closure cap is adapted to allow sealing against a precise, predefined sealing face on the container mouth.
• a further aim of the invention consists in producing a closure cap with a sealing lip, in which the problem of damage to the sealing zone during the capping process, due to contact with a damaged container mouth, is avoided.
• a closure cap for closing a container mouth is made of a plastics material and has a top plate and a skirt extending from the edge of the top plate.
• the closure cap is provided with at least one sealing lip.
• the sealing lip has a root section and a sealing section.
• the root section is connected to the closure cap and the sealing section is adapted to be pressed against a sealing surface of the container mouth.
• the sealing lip is provided with a material weakening between the root section and the sealing section.
• the sealing section is movable in relation to the root section, i.e. it can be easily tilted.
• the material weakening has various advantages: The force required to tilt the sealing section is reduced.
• the application forces required during the capping process are smaller.
• the place at which the sealing lip is buckled during the capping process can be precisely predetermined.
• the trumpet seal according to the invention always buckles in the region of the material weakening. The position of the sealing section when the closure is put on the container can therefore be predetermined. This results in a smaller scatter width of the gas blow-off angle.
• the gas blow-off angle is understood to be the angle of rotation of the closure cap at the instant when the seal disengages with the container mouth during unscrewing, allowing excess pressure to escape from the container. On account of the more precisely defined application force and the predeterminable surface, against which the sealing lip is pressed against the container, this angle of rotation is precisely defined.
• the root section is substantially cylindrical and extends from the cap top plate.
• the sealing section is designed more or less in the form of a truncated cone and extends from the distal end of the root section.
• the seal takes the form of a classic trumpet seal.
• alternative sealing lip arrangements are also conceivable.
• the sealing lip, and in particular the root section thereof, may extend radially inwards from the cap skirt instead of axially downwards from the cap top plate.
• the material weakening is continuous. This means that the material weakening extends over an angular range of 360°. This results in a particularly uniform sealing behaviour over the whole circumference of the closure.
• the material weakenings may only be provided in segments. Such segmented material weakenings have the advantage that a precise buckling line is defined, but in addition, looked at in the circumferential direction, zones with a smaller contact force are produced. The sealing effect is cancelled first in these zones, in response to increased internal pressure. This results in a controlled gas blow- off behaviour in the region of the material weakenings.
• the present invention can be realized particularly easily if the material weakening is formed as a groove on one of the surfaces of the sealing lip.
• a formation such as a groove is particularly beneficial from a production point of view.
• such a groove is arranged on the surface of the sealing lip turned away from the cap top plate. This arrangement is particularly advantageous with regard to the deformability of the closure cap during ejection from an injection mould.
• the sealing lip can be formed as an inner seal.
• the sealing section extends radially outwards from the root section.
• the material weakening is preferably arranged radially outside the cylindrical face running through the middle of the root section. The material weakening thus arranged acts as a link between root section and sealing section.
• the sealing lip can be formed as an outer seal.
• the sealing section extends radially inwards from the root section and the material weakening is arranged radially inside the cylindrical face running through the middle of the root section.
• the material weakening is arranged on or immediately adjacent to the inner or outer face of the root section, as appropriate. In this way, a precisely defined joint is formed.
• the root section is usually made relatively stable and acts as a relatively undeformable buttress. If the material weakening directly adjoins the root section acting as buttress, a joint-like connection of the sealing section to the essentially immovable root section results.
• the degree of material weakening is deliberately adjusted so that, on the one hand the ability of the sealing section to tilt in relation to the root section is increased, but on the other hand, a sufficiently high contact force is obtained between the sealing section and a sealing face of the container mouth.
• the thickness of the sealing lip in the region of the material weakening is about 30 - 90 %, advantageously about 2/3 of the thickness of the sealing section.
• a closure cap made of plasitcs material in which the sealing lip has a root section and a sealing section, wherein the root section is joined to the closure cap and the sealing section is adapted to be pressed against a sealing face of the container mouth, when the closure is applied to the container.
• the sealing section is tiltable between an initial position and a sealing position.
• the sealing section is tiltably joined to the root section.
• the sealing section has a sealing part and an actuating part different from the sealing part.
• the actuating part of the sealing section is brought into engagement with the upper edge of the container mouth, which may be damaged.
• the sealing part of the sealing section is pressed against the container mouth, to form a seal.
• the problem of the damage to the sealing face during the capping process is avoided.
• the sealing section is in the initial position and it is actuating part which engages with the container mouth, not the sealing part. Therefore, damage to the container mouth can result in damage to the actuating part, but not in damage to the sealing part, which is different from the actuating part.
• the sealing section In the course of the capping process the sealing section is tilted from its initial position towards its sealing position. When the closure cap has been put on completely, the sealing section is in the sealing position. Only at this point in time does the sealing part of the sealing section come into engagement with the container mouth, ensuring that a seal is formed between the undamaged sealing part of the sealing section and the container mouth.
• the sealing part of the sealing section has a convex sealing face.
• the sealing lip according to this embodiment seals in a similar way to a conventional olive seal.
• damaged parts of the sealing section are not in contact with the container mouth, owing to the tilting of the sealing section.
• the actuating section is used to trigger the tilting movement.
• the actuating section has an essentially straight or concave lead part.
• the lead part then merges, preferably continuously (i.e. without steps), into the sealing face of the sealing section.
• the sealing section In the initial position the sealing section preferably extends more or less radially outwards from the root section.
• the root section may be provided with a supporting shoulder, which supports the sealing section more or less in its initial position, until the sealing section comes into engagement with the container mouth during the capping process and at the same time is tilted.
• Figure 1 - shows a cross section through a closure cap according to a first embodiment of the invention.
• Figure 2 - shows an enlarged representation of the sealing lip shown in Figure 1, in cross section.
• Figure 3 - shows a cross section through the closure cap shown in Figure 1, after it has been applied to a container mouth (represented by a dashed line) .
• Figures 4 to 6 - show representations of sealing lips according to alternative embodiments of the invention, in cross section.
• Figures 7 to 9 - show schematic, cross section representations of an alternative embodiment of a closure cap according to the invention, at various stages during the capping process.
• Figures 10a to 10c - show enlarged representations of the sealing lip shown in Figures 7 to 9.
• Figure 11 - shows a schematic representation of the effect of a supporting shoulder on the sealing lip shown in Figures 7 to 10.
• the closure cap 1 consists of a top plate 2 and a skirt 4.
• the skirt 4 extends from the edge 3 of the top plate 2.
• the skirt 4 is provided with an internal thread 13, by means of which the closure cap 1 can be attached to a container mouth 30 (see Figure 3) .
• the closure cap 1 is provided with a sealing lip 5.
• the sealing lip 5 consists essentially of a root section 6 and a sealing section 7.
• the root section 6 is substantially cylindrical and extends from the inside of the top plate 2.
• the sealing section 7 takes the form of a truncated cone.
• the sealing section 7 extends from the end 10 of the root section 6 furthest away from the top plate 2.
• the sealing lip 5 is provided with a continuous groove 8.
• the groove 8 is arranged between the root section 6 and the sealing section 7.
• the groove 8 provides a material weakening in the sealing lip 5 and increases the tiltability of the sealing section 7 in relation to the root section 6.
• the groove 8 defines a joint between root section 6 and sealing section 7.
• the groove 8 is continuous and is located on the surface of the sealing lip 5, in particular in the face of the sealing section 7, turned away from the top plate 2.
• the closure cap 1 is provided with additional elements well-known to the man skilled in the art.
• the closure cap 1 may have a guarantee band 14, with retaining elements 15, which can be brought into engagement with complimentary retaining elements on a container.
• additional sealing lips 12 may be provided. The sealing lips 12 provide sealing effects on additional surface sections of a container mouth, enhancing the sealing performance of the closure cap.
• Figure 2 shows an enlarged representation of the sealing lip 5.
• the continuous groove 8 is defined on the surface of the sealing section 7 facing away from the top plate 2.
• the groove 8 lies in or radially outside a cylindrical plane Z, which is formed by the outer face 11 of the more or less cylindrical root section 6. Consequently the sealing section 7 can tilt relatively easily with respect to the comparatively inflexible root section 6.
• the thickness of the sealing section 7 is reduced in the area of the groove 8. In the area of the groove 8 the thickness d is about 0.4 mm whereas the thickness D of the remainder of the sealing section 7 is about 0.6 mm.
• the root section 6 has a length L of about 3.5 mm.
• the sealing section 7 is formed somewhat shorter, with a length 1 of 2.8 mm. The result of this is that the sealing section 7 preferably adjoins a cylindrical inner face of the container mouth 30 (see Figure 3) .
• FIG 3 the closure cap is shown applied on a container mouth 30.
• the sealing section 7 comes into engagement with the upper edge of the container mouth 30 .
• the sealing section 7 swings upwards around the joint formed by the groove 8 (as shown in Figure 3) .
• the buckling line of the sealing lip 7 can be precisely predefined. Consequently the surface area 32, in which the sealing section 7 adjoins the inner face 31 of the container mouth, can be precisely predetermined.
• the instant at which the sealing section 7 breaks the sealing engagement with the inner face 31 of the container mouth during unscrewing can be predetermined.
• the tiltability of the sealing section 7 gives the closure cap a certain elasticity.
• the closure cap is made of plastics material, typically polyethylene or polypropylene.
• the frusto-conical sealing section 7 extends at an angle ⁇ to the screwing axis of the closure cap (see Figure 2) .
• the angle ⁇ is about 30° in the embodiment shown.
• Figure 4 shows a sealing lip 5 constructed similarly to that shown in Figures 1 to 3 (inner seal) , but arranged as an outer seal.
• the sealing section 7 extends radially inwards from the end 10 of the root section 6 furthest away from the top plate 2.
• a groove 8 is arranged radially within the cylindrical face Z formed through the middle 11 of the root section 6.
• the material weakening is provided by a groove 9, which is arranged on the surface of the sealing section 7 turned towards the top plate 2.
• the groove 9 is arranged outside the cylindrical face Z v formed through the middle 11 x of the root section 6 in the region of the line of intersection between the outer face 11 of the root section 6 and the adjacent surface of the sealing section 7.
• Figure 6 shows a similar embodiment to those shown in Figures 2 and 5.
• the material weakening is provided by individual recesses, which are arranged in segments.
• the segmentlike recesses 18 are arranged outside the cylindrical face Z through the middle of the root section 6 and define a precise buckling line.
• the contact force of the sealing section 7 against the inner face 31 of the container mouth 30 is reduced in the region of the recesses 18, in comparison with the contact force between the recesses 18. Therefore, gas blow-off (venting) occurs first in the region of the recesses 18. This allows a precisely defined venting behaviour to be obtained.
• the root section 6 is generally designed to be relatively stable. For this purpose, a thickness T of 1.0 mm for example is chosen.
• the invention can be applied to other sealing lip arrangements not shown in detail. It is essential that a material weakening leads to an uncoupling between a tiltable sealing section and a relatively stable root section.
• FIG. 7 An alternative embodiment of the invention is shown schematically in Figures 7 to 11.
• the closure cap 1 according to this alternative embodiment, has a top plate 2 and a skirt 4, which extends from the edge 3 of the top plate 2.
• the closure cap has a continuous sealing lip 35.
• the sealing lip 35 consists of a root section 36 and a sealing section 37.
• the sealing section 37 is tiltably connected to the root section 36 via a joint 43 (in the same manner as previously described in relation to Figures 1 to 6.
• Figure 7 shows the sealing section 37 in its initial position I, at the start of the capping process .
• the sealing section 37 has a sealing part 38 and an actuating part 39.
• the actuating part 39 is provided with a lead face 40.
• the sealing part 38 is provided with a convex sealing face 41.
• the sealing lip 35 is provided with a supporting shoulder 42.
• the supporting shoulder 42 prevents the sealing section 37 dropping down when the sealing section 37 is not yet in engagement with the container mouth 30.
• the supporting shoulder 42 thus ensures that during screwing on of the closure cap, the actuating part 39 comes into engagement with the container mouth.
• closure cap 1 may be provided with an outer seal 44.
• FIGs 7 to 9 are shown in enlarged representations in Figures 10a to 10c.
• Damage B" on the upper edge of the container mouth 30 can lead to damage B in the region of the lead face 40.
• the sealing section 37 is tilted. Any further damage arises between the sealing face 41 and the lower end 45 of the sealing section 37, but the sealing face 41 remains undamaged.
• Figure 10c shows the sealing section 37 in its sealing position S, with the intact sealing face 41 making contact with the inside surface of the container mouth 30 to provide a good seal.
• Figure 11 illustrates the effect of the supporting shoulder 42. Before the sealing section 37 comes into engagement with the container mouth 30, the supporting shoulder 42 prevents the sealing section 37 dropping down in the direction of the arrow.
• convex and concave as used in this description relate to the outer shape of the sealing lip seen in a cutting plane through the central axis of the sealing cap.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Closures For Containers (AREA)
• Diaphragms And Bellows (AREA)
• Insulators (AREA)
• Finger-Pressure Massage (AREA)

Priority Applications (6)

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=26073750

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (9)

Cited By (1)

Families Citing this family (3)

Citations (3)

• 2000
  • 2000-01-11 EP EP00810025A patent/EP1092638A1/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2000-10-11 AU AU76753/00A patent/AU7675300A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2000-10-11 MX MXPA02003700A patent/MXPA02003700A/es active IP Right Grant
  • 2000-10-11 BR BR0014752-4A patent/BR0014752A/pt not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 2000-10-11 CN CNB008170568A patent/CN1188323C/zh not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 2000-10-11 EP EP00966310A patent/EP1220792B1/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2000-10-11 ES ES00966310T patent/ES2220543T3/es not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2000-10-11 DE DE60010734T patent/DE60010734T2/de not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 2000-10-11 AT AT00966310T patent/ATE266580T1/de not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 2000-10-11 WO PCT/GB2000/003886 patent/WO2001026989A1/en active IP Right Grant

Patent Citations (3)

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