SCREW-CAP CLOSURE FOR A CONTAINER'S MOUTH AND MANUFACTURE METHOD
Background and summary of the invention
The invention concerns the screw top of bottles, mainly plastic top for PET ones and the method of its manufacturing.
The screw tops of bottles have been known so far solve the problems of both perfect packing of the content of the bottle and the sealing of the top so that it is not possible to open and manipulate with the content of the bottle before the bottle gets to the end consumer.
While sealing is solved by means of retainer strip on the lower rim of the screw top that is torn when opening the bottle, packing of the tops is solved by several methods. One-part tops, known for example from the Czech patent number 280 925, have a projection in the shape of a ring on the inner side of the top that fits closely when the top is screwed tightly on the upper edge of the bottle and so the seal is ensured. In another version, the edge of the neck of the bottle can fit on the groove in the V shape between the projection and the side of the top. The disadvantage of this solution is that it is not a flat but only a spot sealing because the junction of the edge of the bottle neck and the top exists only on the circumference on the top or side of the projection and on the side of the top.
Two-part tops, containing a sealing circular insert, are known for instance from international published patent applications WO 94/12399 and WO 01/15988. In both cases the sides of the tops are provided with a circumferential projection in the upper parts for placing a sealing circular insert. In the case of WO 94/12399 the soft sealing circular insert placed on the outer side of the projection in the direction to the neck of the bottle, after tightening of the top it is constantly deformed by the edge of the bottle neck and so between the neck and the projection the flat sealing is reached. The central part of the sealing circular insert is pressed on the bottom of the top, which is provided with the mean that prevents turning of the sealing circular insert towards the bottom of the top. This mean can be created by for example a ratchet toothing which enables turning in one direction only.
In the case of WO 01 15988 the edges of the sealing circular insert pressed behind the projection in the way that it fits tightly on the whole surface of the bottom of the top and the mutual turning is prevented by great adhesive forces.
The disadvantage of these known solutions is that they are not constructed in the way that besides sealing they could be also able to eliminate pressure differences originated in bottles as a consequence of sudden liberation of CO2 by which most of the beverages are saturated in bottles. Sudden liberation of CO2 takes place during impacts or tremors for instance when the beverages are transported and manipulated. The unpleasant consequence of the pressure accumulation is releasing of the gas, frothing and spurting of the beverage during opening of the bottle.
Another construction disadvantage of the solutions that have been mentioned above lies in rectangular shape of connecting segments that connect the tearable retaining ring with the top. This arrangement causes excessively great resistance when tearing retaining ring, which causes problems while opening the bottle to for example children, ill or other physically weakened consumers.
The faults mentioned above are to some extent removed by the screw top of the container, mainly a bottle, by the invention, which is by the known method equipped with the tearable retaining ring and provided with a projection on the inner side of the top that creates a groove with which the circumferential part of the sealing circular insert meshes together and which is protected against turning with the mean created with the advantage of ratchtet toothing. The essence of the invention lies in the fact that the sealing is in the central part is at least in its part bulging in the direction towards the neck of the bottle and the bulging part forms with the bottom of the bottle the boundary a cavity filled with air. The cavity works as an absorber which absorbs sudden increase of the pressure in the bottle caused by CO2 that is liberated from the sanitated beverages during their transport or manipulation. In the advantageous versionis the ratchet toothing on the adjoining sides of the bottom and the sealing circular insert arranged to the shape of the circular ring or its segments and is occurs between the circumferential part and the bulging part of the sealing circular insert and on the
corresponding opposite part of the bottom of the top.This arrangement is advantageous from the view of the production and prevents turning of the sealing circular insert towards the bottom during tightening or loosening the top.
For easier opening of the top it is expedient when the connecting segments that connect the body of the top with the tearable retaining ring are made in the shape of the rhomboid, whose lateral side is tilt towards the vertical axis of the top and forms the acute angle α whose size lies in the range from 30° to 60°. The force that is necassary to tear such shaped connecting segments is considerably lower than in the existing solutions, which enables easier opening mainly to children and physically less disposed people.
The subject of the invention is also the method of the manufacturing of the top which is based on the fact that the sealing circular insert , which is made of thermally malleable plastic and which has when it is cold the diameter of the circumferential part basically coresondent to the inner diameter of the projection of the top, is placed into the body of the top, behind the projection. Then it is pressed to the bottom of the top with the ratchet toothing by using the cylindrical thrust instrument that is in front shaped in the form of the circular ring and provided with the mean for heating with which it affects the circumferential part of the sealing circular insert in the top. Consequently, the circumferential part fits into the groove and the ratchet toothing in the bottom and the sealing circular insert joins with the body of the top undismantledly.
The advantages of the screw top of the hole of the container, mainly the bottle lies, according to the invention, in the fact that besides sealing and packing functions as an absorber that eliminates the pressure impulses that are created by liberation of the gas during the impacts and tremors for example while transporting and manipulating with the beverages, which prevents excessive frothing of the beverage and its and spurting of the beverage during loosening of the top. The top according to the invention is structually simple and productively undemanding.
Brief description of the drawings
The invention will be explained in greater detail by means of the plans where picture 1 represents vertical section, picture 2 represents the detail of the groove with the circumferential part of the sealing circular insert, picture 3 depicts the ground plan of the top with the partial section and picture 4 detailed profile of the ratchet toothing , picture 5 detailed profile depicting the circumferential part of the sealing circular insert before pressing down and heating , picture 6 the same detailed profile after pressing down and heating.
Detailed description of the preferred embodiments
The plastic screw top I with the thread 15 for PET-bottles contains the inserted sealing circular insert 2, made of thermally malleable plastic which fits closely on the neck 14 of the bottle that is not represented. The sealing circular insert 2 fits with its circumferential part 7 behind the projection 10 into the cavity 13 by the bottom 4 of the top \ and in its central part it is bulging in the direction towards the neck 14 of the bottle so that the bulging part 3 together with the bottom 4 marks off the cavity 5 filled with air, which functions as an absorber. On the adjoining sides of the bottom 4 and the sealing circular insert 2 there is a ratchet toothing 6, arranged into the shape of circular ring, which is placed between the circumferential part 7 and the bulging part 3 of the sealing circular insert 2 and on the corresponding opposite part of the bottom 4 of the top L
The tearable retaining ring 9 is connected with the body of the top I by means of preperforated connecting segments 8 in the shape of the rhomboid whose lateral side forms with the vertical axis the angle α = 45°.
The sealing circular insert 2 has the diameter of the circumferential part 7 that negligibly overlaps the diameter of the projection 10 of the top _when it is cold. The circumferential part 7 of the sealing circular insert 2_is on the both sides smooth and slightly thickened. The sealing circular insert 2_ is placed into the top I and is pressed down towards the bottom 4 by
means of the cylindrical thrust instrument JJ.. It is created by a concave roller made from thermoinsulating material 16 in which the means for heating is placed 12, created by the electrically heated body. The cylindrical thrust instrument JJ. causes that the circumferential part 7 becomes plastic and fits into the groove J_3 and into the teeth of the ratchet toothing 6 in the bottom 4. This results in creating meshing teeth of the ratchet toothing 6 on the sealing circular insert 2.
The Industrial Utility
The screw top can be according to the invention used mainly for the plastic tops PET bottles with soft beverages saturated with CO2 The utilization can be also found in other areas, where there is the need to eliminate the pressure impulses emerging inside the container during its closing.