WO2021084028A1

WO2021084028A1 - A bottle or preform for a bottle, and a cap for a bottle

Info

Publication number: WO2021084028A1
Application number: PCT/EP2020/080444
Authority: WO
Inventors: José Luis Gómez Cao
Original assignee: Gomez Cao Innovations & Inventions, S.L.
Priority date: 2019-10-29
Filing date: 2020-10-29
Publication date: 2021-05-06
Also published as: DE102019007519A1

Abstract

A bottle or a preform for a bottle, comprising a neck, the neck comprises a collar, and a cap, the cap comprises a coupling to a retention ring held below or on the collar of the neck, the retention ring is coupled to the cap, one of said cap and said neck comprises a protrusion, and the other one comprises a recess, there are a plurality of recesses and protrusions, the number of recesses and protrusions are equal, each recess comprises a section in a rotational direction which is angled away in an axial direction, each recess comprises a section in a rotational direction which is angled away in an axial direction, two or more recesses begin at the same first axial level and end at the same second axial level, there is a gap between each recess of a sufficient size for a protrusion to be insertable in said gap.

Description

A bottle or preform for a bottle, and a cap for a bottle

Description TECHNICAL FIELD

The solution disclosed herein generally relates to a bottle or preform for a bottle, and a cap for a bottle. Relevant aspects are explained in the specification. BACKGROUND

Methods for securing a plastic cap to a preform or a bottle are already known. An internatio^¬ nal standard such as PCO 1881 is commonly used for carbonated beverages where said stan^¬ dard uses a single interrupted helical thread to secure the cap to the preform or bottle which requires only a rotational force to open.

The helical thread also has some problems namely the inability to load share and the amount of rotation needed to release the cap from the bottle or preform it is coupled to. As PCO 1881 has only one thread, the force pushing in an axial direction towards the cap created by carbonated beverages is focused on that one thread and in high pressure situa^¬ tions, this may lead to breaking of the thread.

The amount of rotation may be a problem to those with little fine motor control with some caps needing up to 270 degrees of rotation to release the pressure from inside the bottle or preform and then a further 270 degrees of rotation to disengage the cap from the mouth of the bottle.

The large amount of rotation needed increases the length of the helical thread on the bottle or preform so that the amount of rotation may increase the amount of friction wear with the corresponding thread on the inside of the cap, which may lead to shorter lifespans.

A cap according to PCO 1881 when attached to a bottle uses two collars to hold the security ring in place, one collar with a smaller diameter above the security ring and a collar with a larger diameter below the ring which leaves a sizeable amount of plastic not being used when it could be. A well-known example which uses two forces to open a bottle or container is a child-proof medicine container.

One example of the child-proof container requires an axial force followed by a concurrent ro- tational force and axial force, wherein said container comprises a neck, an inner cap and an outer cap, wherein the inner surface of the outer cap comprises a plurality of rubber or pla stic teeth and the outer surface of the inner cap comprises a corresponding set of rubber or plastic teeth which engage with each other when the outer cap is depressed and leads to the opening of the container when the outer cap is continued to be depressed and a rotational force is applied to the outer cap with respect to the container, such as in US 5,216,161 A.

This method of opening the container does have disadvantages, namely it can be difficult for adults to open such types of assembly, particularly the infirm. This method also contains a lot of moving parts and elements which can lead to a lower lifespan of the opening assembly and the use of more elements results in more resources which are being used in the manufacturing of such assemblies.

A problem with US 5,216,161 A is that if too many fingers get broken or sheared off, the container the closure is mounted to may be permanently closed so the product contained within the container may be unobtainable unless the container itself is broken.

There is therefore a need for improvements of bottles or preforms for bottles and bottle caps.

SUMMARY

The solution is set out in the independent claims. Preferred embodiments of the solution are outlined in the dependent claims.

A bottle or a preform for a bottle, comprises a neck, wherein the neck comprises a collar, and a cap, wherein the cap comprises a coupling to a retention ring held below or on the collar of the neck, the retention ring is coupled to the cap via a hinge and/ or via a breakable seal, one of said cap and said neck comprises a protrusion, and the other one of said cap and said neck comprises a recess, there are a plurality of recesses and a plurality of protrusions, the number of recesses and protrusions are equal, each recess comprises a section in a rotational direction which is angled away from the collar of the neck, or away from the underside of the cap, in an axial direction, two or more recesses begin at substantially the same first axial level, two or more recesses end at substantially the same second axial level, between two adjacent recesses there is a gap of a sufficient size for a protrusion to be insertable in said gap, the rotational length of each recess is approximately equal, the begin^¬ ning of each recess is substantially equidistant from the beginning of the adjacent recess or recesses located on the cap or neck.

Another solution is a bottle or a preform for a bottle comprising a neck, wherein the neck comprises a collar, and a cap, the cap comprises a coupling to a retention ring held below or on the collar of the neck, the retention ring is coupled to the cap via a hinge and/or via a breakable seal, and one of said cap and said neck comprises a plurality of protrusions, and the other one of said cap and said neck comprises a plurality of recesses, each recess or pro^¬ trusion comprises a section in a rotational direction which is angled away from the collar of the neck, or away from an underside of the cap, in an axial direction, two or more recesses or protrusions begin at substantially a same first axial level, two or more recesses or protru sions end at substantially a same second axial level, between adjacent recesses or protru^¬ sions there is a gap of a sufficient size for a protrusion or recess to be insertable in said gap, a rotational length of each recess or protrusion is approximately equal, a beginning of each recess or protrusion is equidistant from the beginning of the other recess/es or protrusion/s located on the cap or neck.

Throughout the present disclosure, the cap being disengaged from said neck may be defined as the point where the cap may move freely in relation to the neck of the preform or the bottle without being constrained by any elements located on the preform or the bottle as it would be when dispensing the contents of the bottle or preform.

The cap being engaged with the neck may be defined throughout the present disclosure as when the protrusion and the recess are in contact with one another and sealing the mouth of the preform or bottle, as it would be during transportation or storage.

The axial direction may be defined throughout the present disclosure as a straight line extending from the center point of the mouth of the neck and perpendicular to the collar of said neck.

Alternatively, the axial direction may be defined throughout the present disclosure as a straight line extending from the center point of the top of the cap and perpendicular to said top of the cap while engaged with the neck of the bottle or preform. The rotational direction may be defined throughout the present disclosure as the circular movement around the axial direction.

The disengagement process may be defined throughout the present disclosure as the process of the cap and the neck moving from an engaged position to a disengaged position.

The entrance of the recess may be defined throughout the present disclosure as where the opening of the recess is for the protrusion to enter to begin the engagement process.

The leading edge and trailing edge of the protrusion may be defined throughout the present disclosure is the first point to enter the recess to start the engagement process and the last point to enter the recess to begin the engagement process respectively.

The engagement process may be defined throughout the present disclosure as the process of the cap and the neck moving from a disengaged position to an engaged position.

The beginning of each recess may be defined throughout the present disclosure and where the protrusion first enters the recess to begin the engagement process.

The end of each recess may be defined throughout the present disclosure as the surface of the recess furthest away from the beginning.

It may, in some variants, be presumed that the cap is moving and the bottle or preform is stationary when aiming to open and/or close the bottle or preform with the cap. Alternatively, forces may be applied to the bottle or preform with respect to the cap presuming the cap is stationary and the bottle or preform is moving. In some variants, the cap and the bottle/ preform may both be moved when aiming to open and/or close the bottle or preform with the cap.

In some variants, the rotational force is applied in the clockwise direction to engage the recesses and protrusions and the rotational force is applied in the counterclockwise direction to disengage the recesses and protrusions. Alternatively, these directions to engage and disengage the recesses and protrusions may be the other way round.

In the bottle or preform for a bottle according to the present disclosure and in the bottle cap for a bottle or preform according to the present disclosure, the cap comprises a coupling to a retention ring held below the collar of a bottle, wherein the retention ring is coupled to the cap via a hinge and/or via a breakable seal. In some variants, the retention ring may be held below the collar by a series of protrusions. These protrusions may be of any shape which allows the retention ring to be placed over the collar by machine or by hand but does not let the retention ring to move past the collar towards the mouth of the neck.

Alternatively, the retention ring may envelop the collar on the three sides of the collar not attached to the neck. This may lead to a more secure coupling between the retention ring and the collar of the neck. It also may allow for more robust breakable seals which may have a lower chance of accidentally breaking during transportation or storage.

This enveloping retention ring may lead to the neck of the bottle or preform requiring only one (1) collar which may reduce the amount of waste plastic, the amount of resources needed to manufacture the neck and decrease costs for the manufacturer.

The breakable seal or seals may allow the user to easily identify if the bottle or preform has been opened or tampered with before the bottle or preform arrives at its destination.

The hinge between the cap and the retention ring may allow the retention ring to remain coupled to the cap and thus, the cap may remain coupled to the bottle so as to satisfy, for example, the Single-Use Plastics Directive passed by the EU Parliament on 27 March 2019 which requires caps to be connected to bottles.

Alternatively, the retention ring may be coupled to the cap via any means of coupling.

In some variants, the problem of requiring one force followed by a concurrent force in order to open the closure is solved as the current disclosure replaces these forces with just a concurrent force with an axial and a rotational component to disengage the protrusion and the recess or just a single force in the axial or rotational direction due to the design of the recesses and protrusions. It may therefore be easier to disengage the cap from the bottle/preform.

In the bottle or preform for a bottle according to the present disclosure, there is a plurality of recesses and protrusions. This may allow the number of threads to increase when compared to a standard screw cap bottle, such as the PCO 1881 neck and cap assembly, which in turn, may allow the pressure from the (for example carbonated) beverage inside the bottle to be shared over more threads, reducing the load on said threads and increasing the lifespan of said threads As the number of threads may be increased, this may reduce the amount of rotation needed to secure and unsecure the contents of the bottle or preform.

The PCO 1881 cap and neck assembly requires up to 270 degrees of rotation to unsecure the cap from the neck and then up to a further 270 degrees of rotation to uncouple the cap from the neck, whereas with e.g. three repeating recesses like those described in this disclosure, the rotation required to uncouple the cap from the neck may be a maximum of 120 de grees, thus the bottle, preform and cap according to the present disclosure may increase the lifespan of the cap and the neck.

When said recesses are coupled with an equal number of protrusions, the couplings may lead to a reduced number of parts when compared to United States patent 5,316,161 A.

The child-proof container mentioned above requires a number of teeth on two surfaces and three main components, the neck, the inner cap, and the outer cap, compared to the present solution which requires only one cap and a neck.

The reduction in parts may lead to increased lifespans and a reduction in the number of manufacturing errors.

The combination of these advantages may allow a reduction in the height of the finish of the neck, wherein the finish is the portion of the neck from the collar to the rim of said neck, and a reduction in the height of the cap. This may lead to reduced manufacturing costs, reduced use of resources, reduced manu^¬ facturing emissions and reduced waste of plastic on the neck as the weight of the neck may be reduced by up to 50% and the weight of the cap may be reduced by up to 30% when compared to PCO 1881. In the bottle or preform for a bottle according to the present specification, each recess comprises a section in a rotational direction which is angled away from the collar of the neck, or the underside of the cap, in an axial direction. An example of this is a helical thread or a recess which is parallel to the collar of the neck at one end and then slopes upward away from the collar at the other end. This reduces the impact forces on the protrusion as there are no sudden changes of direction. This may lead to reduced wear on the protrusion and a prolonged lifetime of the protrusion. In the bottle or preform for a bottle according to the present specification, the point where two or more recesses begin is on the same first axial level and the point where two or more recesses end is on the same second axial level for all recesses and all protrusions.

This allows the recesses to be adapted to the best shape for the application while still ensuring that a tight seal is maintained when the protrusions and recesses are engaged.

In the bottle or preform for a bottle according to the present specification, there is a gap between each recess large enough for a protrusion to be insertable in said gap. This allows the protrusions to fit easily into said gaps so that the user can begin the engagement process. It also allows for easy uncoupling of the cap from the neck at the completion of the disengagement process.

In some variants, the protrusions may therefore be completely covered by the recesses. This may allow the protrusions to slide in between the recess to allow for easy securing and opening of the closure, increase the pressure sustainability of the neck and lead to a more secure method of keeping the contents of the bottle or preform inside the bottle or preform.

In the bottle or preform for a bottle according to the present specification, the rotational length of each recess is approximately equal. This allows for the point of engagement for each protrusion-recess coupling to be at the same point of each recess, allowing the cap to be strongly secured. This leads to a lower chance of accidental loss of product during transportation or storage.

In some variants, the rotational length of each recess is a maximum of 360/n degrees, wherein n (2 <= n <= 10) is the number of recesses located on the neck or cap. This reduces the amount of material needed to manufacture the cap or neck and thus, reduces manufacturing costs and emissions.

In the bottle or preform for a bottle according to the present specification, the beginning of each recess is equidistant from the beginning of the other recess or recesses located on the cap or neck. This means that if there are 3 recesses located on the cap or the neck for example, the beginning of each recess is 120° apart. Should there be 4 recesses, the beginning of each recess is 90° apart. This allows for the pressure from the product contained inside the bottle or preform to be shared between the protrusion-recess couplings when they are engaged. This leads to less wear on these components and thus, a longer lifetime and a lower chance of structural failure. In some variants, the location of the recesses and protrusions are such that the closure of the bottle or preform for a bottle is secured when the protrusions and recesses have engaged.

This ensures that the bottle or preform for a bottle is sealed when the protrusions and re^¬ cesses are engaged, which may reduce the chance that product inside the bottle or preform gets lost during transportation or storage and allows any protrusion to fit into any recess.

In some variants, the recesses act as a plurality of interrupted threads. This may lead to a slower release of pressure from the bottle or preform should the bottle or preform contain a carbonated liquid. The gaps between the recesses may allow the pressure to release over a longer period of time, thus reducing the changes that a carbonated liquid will foam and escape from the bottle or preform at a high velocity during the disengagement process.

In some variants, the protrusion and recess system may be designed such that if the protrusions are broken or sheared off, the bottle or preform may be kept unlocked, allowing access to the contents of said bottle or preform.

In some variants, the protrusion and the recess are shaped such that said protrusion and said recess are engagable with each other in a snap fit manner. A snap fit engagement may secure the cap in place as it may require a deliberate force to open it so it may reduce the likelihood of the contents of the bottle being released during transportation or storage.

Additionally or alternatively, the protrusion and the recess may be shaped to secure the bottle by means of friction against one another or any other means for securing.

In some variants, the rotational force required to rotationally separate the protrusion and the recess may be above a predefined threshold.

In some variants, the axial force required to axially separate the protrusion and the recess may be above a predefined threshold.

These forces which may require a force above a predefined threshold to open may aid the retention of the product contained within the preform or bottle, should the preform or bottle be disturbed during transportation or storage. In the bottle or preform for a bottle according to the present disclosure, the neck comprises a collar. This may allow for an axial travel of a protrusion in an axial direction towards the collar to be limited by said collar.

Additionally or alternatively, the travel of the protrusion in an axial direction with respect to the preform may be limited by the top of the cap coming into contact with the rim of the neck when said neck is attached to a preform.

Additionally or alternatively, the travel of the protrusion in an axial direction with respect to the bottle may be limited by the shoulder of the bottle or the top of the cap when it comes into contact with the rim of the neck when said neck is attached to a bottle.

In some variants the underside of the cap limits the axial travel in an axial direction towards the underside of the cap.

The limiting of the axial travel of the protrusion may aid the ease of opening and closing the bottle or preform as the limiting may indicate that enough force in an axial direction has been achieved and that a force in a rotational direction may be required to disengage the cap from the neck.

In some variants, a surface of the recess, or the bottle, or the preform, or the cap, is shaped such that a rotational travel of the protrusion is limitable, by said surface, in a rotational direction away from an opening of said recess when said recess and said protrusion are en^¬ gaged.

This surface may indicate that the protrusion has reached the rotational limit of travel and may indicate to the user that the recess and the protrusion are engaged and may indicate that the bottle or preform is now secured.

In some variants, the limiting may be indicatable that a force with an axial component and/or a rotational component is required to start a disengagement process of said protrusion and said recess from each other.

The surface also may indicate that the user has turned the cap or the neck in the wrong direction to unsecure the mouth of the bottle or preform and so, the surface may also indicate which direction the rotational force is needed in order to open the bottle or preform. The surface may also indicate which direction the axial force may need to be applied in order to open the bottle or preform.

In some variants, a surface of the recess, or the bottle, or the preform, or the cap is shaped such that the rotational travel of the protrusion is limitable, by said surface, in a rotational direction away from an opening of the recess when the recess and the protrusion are disengaged.

This surface may indicate that the rotational force that has been applied to the bottle or the preform or the cap has been applied in the wrong direction to begin the engagement process. The surface may also indicate that the disengagement process has been completed and that an axial force is now needed to open the closure and allow the contents of the preform or bottle to be released.

In some variants, a surface of the recess, or the bottle, or the preform, or the cap is shaped such that the rotational travel of the protrusion is limitable, by said surface, in a rotational direction towards an opening of the recess when the recess and the protrusion are disen^¬ gaged.

This surface may indicate that an axial force is required to begin the engagement process of the recess and the protrusion.

In some variants, the angle between a first surface of the recess which limits the axial travel of the protrusion in an axial direction towards the mouth of the neck when said protrusion and said recess are engaged, and a surface of the protrusion which engages with said recess, is approximately 0°.

This may allow for the recess and the protrusion to be flush against one another which may allow for a more secure engagement of the protrusion and the recess as they can utilize a friction fit which utilizes the friction of the two surfaces contacting each other as well as the pressure pushing on the cap from inside the bottle or preform should said bottle or preform contain a carbonated liquid.

In some variants, an angle between an outer face of the neck or an inner face of the cap, and a surface on the recess which limits the axial travel of the protrusion in an axial direction when said recess and said protrusion are engaged, is 90°, approximately ±10°, which may reduce wearing of the threads due to friction and may increase the pressure sustainability of the neck. In some variants, there may be a gap between the edge of the cap closest to the collar and the collar. This gap may allow the cap to move in the rotational direction without contacting the collar. This may increase the lifespan of the cap by reducing friction wear.

In some variants, the cap may comprise a tamper evident tab. This tab may provide an additional identifier for the user to identify if the bottle or preform has been opened prior to the arrival to its destination.

The tab may comprise a piece of material which protrudes away from the bottle or preform to allow easy opening of said tab. The tab may comprise a piece of material which protrudes towards the bottle or preform, wherein said piece of material may be limited in the rotational and the axial directions by the surfaces located on the neck of the bottle or preform. The tab may be located near a weakened line located on the cap which is designed to be uncoupled from the cap so that the cap can then be disengaged from the neck of the bottle or preform. The tab may not allow the cap to be disengaged with the neck of the bottle or preform until said tab is removed from the cap.

In some variants where the protrusion is located on the cap, the protrusion may be enga- geable in a snap fit manner to a recess located on the neck of a bottle or a preform.

This allows the cap to be flexible in the design so it can adapt to any bottle that uses a snap fitable recess, thus the cap may be able to help reduce plastic in manufacturing and may reduce emissions as described above.

In some variants, the cap may have a diameter of approximately 32mm if the bottle or preform contains, for example, carbonated beverages or alternatively, the cap may have a dia meter of approximately 38mm if the bottle or preform contains, for example, non-carbonated beverages.

In some variants, the cap may comprise a series of grooves around the outer face of said cap. These grooves may aid the opening and closing of the closure by providing additional friction for the user.

Alternatively, these grooves may be notches, indent, protrusions or any other type of modi^¬ fication which may aid the opening of the closure by providing additional friction. In some variants, the cap may comprise a recess, a protrusion, or a combination of both to help open the closure in the axial direction located on the outer face of the cap opposite the hinge. This may aid the opening of the closure in the axial direction by providing the user an easily identifiable place to apply an axial force. The location of this aid increases the moment of the cap, reducing the amount of force needed to open the closure.

Alternatively, this recess, protrusion, or combination of a recess and a protrusion may be located at any point on the outer surface of the cap.

Alternatively, there may be a plurality of these elements located around the outer face of the cap.

In some variants, the neck of the bottle or preform may comprise a collar which, as described before, limits the axial travel of the protrusion should said protrusion be located on the cap.

The collar also keeps the retention ring from sliding over the mouth of the bottle or preform, thus keeping the cap coupled to the bottle or preform.

In some variants where the protrusion is located on the bottle or preform, the protrusion may be engageable in a snap fit manner to a recess located the cap. This allows the bottle or preform to be adaptable in its design so said bottle or preform can couple with any bottle cap that incorporates a snap fitable recess.

In some variants, the diameter of the neck may be of a above a threshold diameter to be coupled with a cap which has a diameter of, for example, 32mm should the bottle or preform contain carbonated beverages or alternatively, the neck may be coupled with a cap which has a diameter of, for example, 38mm should the bottle or preform contain non-carbonated beverages.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other aspects of the solution will now be further described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying figures, wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts. Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a schematic illustration of a preform, a neck, and a cap according to some example implementations as described herein in a dismantled state;

Figure 2 shows a perspective view of a schematic illustration of a preform, a neck, and a cap according to some example implementations as described herein in a constructed state;

Figure 3 shows a lower perspective view of a schematic illustration of a cap according to some example implementations as described herein;

Figure 4 shows an upper perspective view of a schematic illustration of a cap according to some example implementations as described herein;

Figures 5 and 5a shows a side view of a schematic illustration of a neck according to some example implementations as described herein;

Figure 6 shows a cross-sectional side view of a schematic illustration of an engaged cap and neck according to some example implementations as described herein;

Figure 7 shows a cross-sectional upper perspective view of a schematic illustration of a cap with a retention ring enveloping the collar according to some example implementations as described herein;

Figure 8 shows a cross-sectional upper perspective view of a schematic illustration of an engaged cap and neck according to some example implementations as described herein;

Figure 9 shows an upper perspective view of a schematic illustration of a cap comprising a tamper evident tab according to some example implementations as described herein;

Figure 10 shows a lower perspective view of a schematic illustration of a cap comprising a tamper evident tab according to some example implementations as described herein; and

Figure 11 shows a upper perspective side view of a schematic illustration of a neck comprising a recess configuration according to some example implementations as described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As seen in the figures, the implementation outlined herein describes a preform 100 comprising a cap 1 and a neck 2.

The solution is not limited to the specific embodiments described herein and in some variants, the preform is presumed to be vertical with the mouth of the preform at the top. Modified elements of second and third embodiments are marked with the suffix (prime) and """ (double prime) respectively.

Figures 1 and 2 show the preform 100, the neck 2 and the cap 1 in a dismantled state and a constructed state, respectively, wherein figure 1 shows that the neck 2 is, in this variant, directly molded onto the preform 100 and the cap 1 as a separate piece. Figure 2 shows the assembly in a constructed state.

As can be seen in figure 3, in this variant, the retention ring 3 of the cap 1 can be placed over the collar (4, see figure 5) of the preform 100 by hand or by machine and the retention ring elements 5 ensure that the retention ring 3 does not slip upward towards the mouth of the preform 100.

The retention ring elements 5 are, in this variant, triangular shaped. However, additionally or alternatively, the retention ring elements 5 may be any other 3D shape that holds the retention ring 3 in place and ensures that said retention ring 3 does not move past the collar towards the mouth of the preform 100 and keeps the cap 1 coupled with the preform 100.

The cap 1 comprises a protruding ring 6 which, when combined with the retention ring elements 5, ensures the retention ring 3 does not move past the collar of the preform 100 in either axial direction as the protruding ring 6 and retention ring elements 5 are either side of the collar holding said collar in place.

The cap 1 comprises an annular partition 7 located on the underside of the cap 8 which seals the preform 100 when combined with the annular rim (9, see figure 5) so as to ensure that the contents of the preform 100, should there be any, do not escape during transportation or storage.

The protrusion 10 on the inner face of the cap 11 comprises a truncated helical thread and three limiting surfaces 12, 13, 14 which limit the rotational travel of the protrusion once the protrusion comes into contact with the recess 15.

There is multiple repeating helical threads around the inner surface of the cap 11 placed at, in this variant, equidistant points from each other so as to ensure secure sealing of the mouth of the preform 100 when the protrusion 10 and the recess 15 are engaged.

The protrusion 10 is designed so that it can engage with the recess 15 in a snap fit manner such that the protrusion 10 is not limited to the design shown in figure 3. Additionally or alternatively, the protrusion 10 may be a peg, a lug or any other shape which may be snap fitable into the recess 15.

The limiting surface 12 which limits the rotational travel of the protrusion when the protrusion 10 and recess 15 are engaged, is approximately vertical and is directly coupled to the protrusion 10 at one end and in close proximity to the protruding ring 6 at the other end.

The gap between the end of the surface 12 and the protruding ring 6 is, in this variant, such that it allows the securing protrusion (16, see figure 5) to move through the gap but not move through freely resulting in the limiting surface 12 deflecting when a rotational force is applied to the cap 1 and said surface 12 comes into contact with the securing protrusion.

As the rotational force continues to be applied, the deflection of the limiting surface 12 becomes greater until said surface snaps into place behind the securing protrusion 16 in a snap fit manner.

The protrusions 10 are located and designed such that the axial distance between the left end of the axial direction limiting surface 14 of the protrusion 10, as looking from the perspective of figure 3, and the protruding ring 6 is equal for all four protrusions. This distance is also equal between the lowest point of the inner limiting surface 13 of the protrusion 10 and the protruding ring 6 for all four protrusions 10, allowing any protrusion 10 on the inner face of the cap 11 to fit into any recess 15 on the outer face of the neck 20.

As can be seen in figure 4, the cap 1 is coupled to the retention ring 3 via a hinge 17 and via a series of breakable seals 18, wherein one surface of the hinge 17 and the breakable seals 18 are directly coupled to the outer face of the cap 19 and another surface of said hinge 17 and said seals 15 are directly coupled to the upper surface of the retention ring 20.

The hinge 17 keeps the cap 1 coupled to the retention ring 3 and thus said cap 1 coupled to the preform 100 reducing the chance that the cap 1 is lost. The breakable seals 18 give an easy to see indication if the cap 1 has been opened before arrival at its destination.

Grooves 21 are placed periodically around the upper part of the outer surface of the cap 19 to aid the opening of the cap 1.

Additionally or alternatively, the grooves 21 may be notches, indents, protrusions or any other kind of element which aids the user to open the cap 1. The recess 15 in this variant can be seen in figure 5, wherein said recess 15 comprises a helical thread shaped such that it can receive the protrusion 10 located on the inner surface of the cap 11, and three limiting surfaces 22, 23, 24 which limit the rotation travel of the protrusion 10.

The right end of the recess 15 as seen in figure 5 which acts as a limiting surface 22, interacts with the outer vertical limiting surface 12 of the protrusion 10. When the cap 1 is moved in the rotational direction towards the opening of the recess 15 which allows the engagement process to start, the limiting surface 22 may limit the rotational travel of the protrusion 10. This happens with the protrusion 10 has not had an axial force towards the collar 4 applied to it. As a result, the outer vertical limiting surface 12 on the protrusion 10 will contact the limiting surface 22 located on the recess 15 and indicate to the user that an axial force needs to be applied to begin the engagement process.

The left end of the recess 15 which acts as a limiting surface 23 interacts with the inner ver tical limiting surface 13 and the axial direction limiting surface 14 located on the protrusion 10. If the cap 1 and the neck 2 are disengaged and a rotational force is applied to the cap in the wrong rotational direction to begin the engagement process, the limiting surface 23 loca ted on the recess 15 may come into contact with the lower and the inner limiting surfaces 13, 14 of the protrusion 10. Although the rotational travel of the protrusion 10 has been limi^¬ ted, the user may feel that the protrusion 10 has not snap fitted behind the securing protru^¬ sion 16 and may then know that the cap 1 needs to be rotated in the other rotational direction.

The left limiting surface 23 of the recess 15 may also interact with limiting surfaces 13, 14 of the protrusion 10 when the disengagement process has been completed. This limiting may indicate to the user that the recess 15 and the protrusion 10 are now disengaged and that an axial force towards the mouth of the preform 100 is needed in order to open the closure and obtain the contents of the preform 100.

The gap between the lower limiting surface 24 of the recess 15 and the protrusion 10 is large enough to allow almost frictionless movement between the protrusion 10 and the re^¬ cess 15 when the system is being engaged and disengaged but not large enough that the cap 1 can freely move when the recess 15 and the protrusion 10 are engaged.

The recess 15 is not limited to this helical thread design. Alternatively, the recess 15 may be triangular, rectangular, sinusoidal, or any other design which may allow the protrusion 10 to engage with the recess 15 in a snap fit manner.

The recess 15 in this variant also has no backstop extending in an axial direction from the helical thread of the recess 15 towards the collar 4 of the neck 2.

Alternatively, if there is a backstop, the backstop can be directly coupled to the recess 15, directly coupled to the collar 4 of the neck 2 or protruding ring 6 of the cap 1, or directly coupled to both the recess 15 and the collar 4 or the recess 15 and the protruding ring 6.

The securing protrusions 16 are placed, in this variant, at equidistant locations on the outer face of the neck 20 under the recesses 15 and are coupled directly to the collar 4 so said securing protrusion 16 cannot move.

The location of the securing protrusions 16 are such that a limiting surface 12 can snap fit behind said securing protrusion 16 and secure the cap 1 in place when a rotational force is applied on said cap 1 and allow a minimal amount of rotational movement once the limiting surface 11 has snapped into place.

The recesses 15 are designed and located such that the axial distance between the lowest point of the right end of the recess 15 which acts as a limiting surface 22, and the collar 4 is equal for all four recesses 15. The axial distance between the lowest point of the left end of the recess 15 which acts as a liming surface 13 and the collar 4 is also equal for all four recesses 15. This allows any recess 15 to accept any protrusion 10.

The rotational distance between the openings of each recess 15 is greater than the rotational distance between the leading edge of the protrusion 10 (the left most point of the axial direction limiting surface 14 of the protrusion 10) and the trailing edge of the protrusion 10 (the uppermost point of the outer limiting surface 13 of the protrusion 10) to allow for easy insertion of the protrusion 10 between two of the recesses 15 and so the entirety of the protrusion 10 is contacting the lower limiting surface 24 of the recess 15 giving a more secure engagement between the protrusion 10 and the recess 15.

Figure 5a shows some dimensions of the recesses 15. The length of each recess A is the same for all recesses 15 located on the neck. The gap between each recess B is the same for all gaps between recesses 15 and is shorter than length A. Each recess 15 begins at a first axial level C and ends at a second axial level D. These dimensions may allow for a more se- cure bottle or preform for a bottle 100 and the user may find it easier to begin the engagement process as it does not matter which protrusion 10 interacts with a recess 15 as they are all the same.

Alternatively, these recesses 15 could be located on the cap 1.

Figure 6 shows a cross-sectional side view of how the cap 1 and the neck 2 interact when the protrusion 10 and the recess 15 are engaged.

The annular rim 9 fits inside the annular partition 7 when an axial force towards the collar 4 of the neck 2 is applied to the cap 1 so that the annular rim 9 is in contact with the surfaces inside the annular partition 7, sealing the preform 100 and ensuring the contents of the preform 100 do not escape.

During application of the axial force, a rotational force is applied to the cap 1 in a rotational direction with respect to the neck 2 of the preform 100 which leads to the protrusion 10 beginning the engagement process with the recess 15.

After a predetermined amount of rotation, the protrusion 10 comes into contact with the securing protrusion 16 which provides a resisting force to the rotational force.

The cap 1 is then rotated further until the limiting surface 11 snaps in behind the securing protrusion 16.

The protrusion 10 and the recess 15 are further held in place due to the contact between the protrusion 10 and the surface 24 which limits the axial travel of the protrusion 10 in an axial direction towards the mouth of the neck 2 when the protrusion 10 and the recess 15 are engaged which is located on the recess 15. Due to the shape of the recess 15, the protrusion 10 and the limiting surface 24 will come into contact with each other and eventually, the protrusion 10 will be wedged between the limiting surface 24 located on the recess 15, the collar 4, and the securing protrusion 16. This may ensure that the contents of the preform are secured until the disengagement process begins.

The disengagement process begins by applying a rotational force to the cap 1 with respect to the neck 2 of the preform 100 in the opposite rotational direction, wherein the securing protrusion 16 provides a resisting force as it contacts the limiting surface 13. In order for the limiting surface 13 to move past the securing protrusion 16, the rotational force is above a predefined threshold. Once this threshold is reached, the protrusion 10 will snap out from behind the securing protrusion 16, mirroring the method of how the protrusion 10 snapped in behind the securing protrusion 16.

After the limiting surface 13 has passed the securing protrusion 16, an axial force away from the collar 4 is applied and this axial force is also above a predefined threshold in order to disengage the cap 1 from the neck 2.

Figure 6 also shows how the retention ring 3 is held on to the collar 4, wherein the retention ring 3 sits against the collar 4 and is held in position by the retention ring elements 5 which are directly coupled to said retention ring 3 and the protruding ring 6 which is located on the cap 1.

Figure 7 shows an alternative design of the retention ring 3'. In this embodiment the retention ring 3' would also be in contact with the upper surface of a collar 4, enveloping the entire collar 4, when in combination with the retention ring elements 5, while still being able to rotate independently of said collar 4. This design means the retention ring 3' replaces the protruding ring 6 (see figure 3), reducing the number of parts needed to be manufactured. This may lead to reduced resource usage, fewer emissions and a lower manufacturing cost.

Figure 8 shows an alternative design of the protrusion 10' and the recess 15' and limiting surfaces 14' and 24'. In this embodiment, instead of the angle between the surface 24' of the recess 15' which limits the axial travel of the protrusion 10 in an axial direction towards the mouth of the neck when the protrusion 10 and the recess 15 are engaged, and the outer face of the neck 20 being approximately 120° (see figure 6), the angle between the outer face of the neck 20 and the lower limiting surface of the recess 24' is approximately 90°.

This may allow the preform 100 to contain pressures up to 8 bar and reduce the friction wear between the limiting surfaces 14', 24' which contact each other during closing and opening of the closure.

Figure 8 also shows a gap between the cap 1 and the collar 4. This gap is large enough so that when the recess 15' and the protrusion 10' are engaged, the bottom edge of the cap 25 does not contact the collar 4. This may lead to reduced friction wear as the edge 25 and the collar 4 do not contact each other when a rotational force is applied to the cap 1 during the engagement or disengagement process. Figure 9 shows the tamper evident tab 26. This tab is located near a weakened line (27, see figure 10) which can break when a large enough force is applied to the tab 26 leading to the tab 26 uncoupling from the cap 1. The tab comprises a piece of material 28 which protrudes away from the neck of a said bottle to allow the user to tear off the tab 26.

Alternatively, this piece of material 28 may be a lug, a loop, a hook or any other kind of protrusion which aids the user to tear off the tab 26.

Figure 10 shows the inward protrusion 29 coupled to the tamper evident tab 26. This protrusion stops the closure from being opened before a said preform 100 reaches its destination by limiting the rotational and axial movement of the cap 1 in relation to the preform 100. This inward protrusion 29 may be of any shape which inhibits the opening of the closure.

One the tamper evident security tab 26 is torn off, there is a recess (30, see figure 9) created in the cap 1. This recess 30 coupled with the natural overhang of the cap 1, allows the user to open the cap via an axial force away from the collar 4 of the neck 2 of a said preform 100.

Alternatively, this recess 30 may be a protrusion to aid the opening of the closure.

Figure 11 shows an upper perspective view of the neck 2 of the bottle or preform of a bottle 100 with an alternative shape of the lower limiting surface 24" of the recess 15.

This variant shows the lower limiting surface 24" connecting directly with the collar 4 of the neck 2. This still limits the rotational travel of the protrusion 10 away from the opening of the recess 15 but instead of the protrusion 10 being wedged in like a previous variant, the protrusion 10 is simply blocked from travelling any further in the rotational direction away from the opening of the recess 15.

The above-described variants of the devices and their functional and operating aspects serve only for a better understanding of the structure, mode of functioning and properties; they do not restrict the disclosure to the exemplary embodiments, for instance. The figs are partially schematic, wherein substantial properties and effects are shown in some cases considerably enlarged, in order to clarify the functions, operating principles, technical configurations and features. Here each mode of functioning, each principle, each technical configuration and each feature, which is/are disclosed in the figures or in the text, can be combined freely and in any manner with all claims, each feature in the text and in the other figures, other modes of functioning, principles, technical configurations and features that are contained in this disclosure or result therefrom, so that all conceivable combinations are to be associated with the described method and devices. Here combinations are also comprised between all individual embodiments in the text, meaning in each section of the description, in the claims and even combinations between different variants in the text, in the claims and in the figures. For the value ranges cited here, it is the case that all numerical intermediate values are disclosed. Even the claims do not limit the disclosure and thus the combination options of all features shown with one another. All disclosed features are explicitly disclosed here also individually and in combination with all other features.

Claims

1. A bottle or a preform for a bottle (100), comprising: a neck (2), wherein

- the neck (2) comprises a collar (4), and a cap (1),

- the cap (1) comprises a coupling to a retention ring (3) held below or on the collar (4) of the neck (2),

- the retention ring (3) is coupled to the cap (1) via a hinge (17) and/or via a breakable seal (18), and

- one of said cap (1) and said neck (2) comprises a plurality of protrusions (10), and the other one of said cap (1) and said neck (2) comprises a plurality of recesses (15),

- each recess (15) or protrusion (10) comprises a section in a rotational direction which is angled away from the collar (4) of the neck (2), or away from an underside of the cap (8), in an axial direction,

- two or more recesses (15) or protrusions (10) begin at substantially a same first axial level (C),

- two or more recesses (15) or protrusions (10) end at substantially a same second axial level (D),

- between adjacent recesses (15) or protrusions (10) there is a gap (B) of a sufficient size for a protrusion (10) or recess (15) to be insertable in said gap (B),

- a rotational length (A) of each recess (15) or protrusion (10) is approximately equal,

- a beginning of each recess (15) or protrusion (10) is equidistant from the beginning of the other recess/es (15) or protrusion/s (10) located on the cap or neck.

2. A bottle or preform for a bottle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the protrusion (10) and the recess (15) are shaped such that said protrusion (10) and said recess (15) are engagable with each other in a snap fit manner.

3. A bottle or a preform for a bottle (100) as claimed in any one of the above claims, wherein a first surface of the recess (24, 24"), or the neck (2) of the bottle, or the neck (2) of the preform for a bottle (100), or the cap (1), is shaped such that a rotational travel of the protrusion (10) is limitable, by said surface (24, 24"), in a rotational direction away from an opening of said recess (15) when said recess (15) and said protrusion (10) are engaged, and wherein the limiting is indicatable that a force with an axial component and/or a rotational component is required to start a disengagement process of said protrusion (10) and said recess (15) from each other.

4. A bottle or preform for a bottle (100) as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein an angle between a first surface (24, 24', 24") of the recess (15) which limits the axial travel of the protrusion (10) in an axial direction towards the mouth of the neck (2) when said protrusion (10) and said recess (15) are engaged, and a surface of the protrusion which engages with said recess, is approximately 0° approximately ±10°.

5. A bottle or preform for a bottle (100) as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein an angle between an outer face of the neck (20) or an inner face of the cap (11), and a surface (240 on the recess (15) which limits the axial travel of the protrusion (10) in an axial direction towards the mouth of the neck (2), or towards a bottom edge of the cap (25), when said recess (15) and said protrusion (10) are engaged, is approximately 90°, approximately ±10°.

6. A bottle cap (1) for a bottle or preform for a bottle (100), wherein the bottle cap (1) comprises: a protrusion (10) or a recess (15), wherein a disengagement of the cap (1) from a said bottle or a said preform for a bottle (100) requires an application of an axial force and/or a rotational force to said cap (1) with respect to a neck (2) of a said bottle or a said preform (100), wherein the cap (1) comprises a coupling to a retention ring (3) held below a collar (4) of a said bottle, wherein the retention ring (3) is coupled to the cap (1) via a hinge (17) and/or via a breakable seal (18), a first surface, wherein an axial travel of the protrusion (10) located on a said bottle or a said preform for a bottle (100), in an axial direction towards an underside of the cap (8) is limitable by said first surface.

7. A bottle cap (1) as claimed in claim 6, comprising a second surface (24, 24"), wherein the recess (15) comprises said second surface (24, 24"), and wherein a rotational travel of the protrusion (10) in a rotational direction away from an opening of the recess (15) is limitable by the second surface (24, 24") when the recess (15) is engaged with a protrusion (10) located on the neck (2) of a bottle or a preform for a bottle (100).

8. A bottle or preform for a bottle (100) as claimed in claim 7, wherein the limiting of the rotational travel is indicatable that a force with an axial component and/or a rotational component is required to start a disengagement process of said protrusion (10) and said recess (15) from each other.

9. A bottle cap (1) as claimed in any claim 7 or 8, wherein the protrusion (10) is engagable in a snap fit manner to a recess (15) located on the neck (2) of a said bottle or a said preform for a bottle (100), or, the recess (15) is engagable in a snap fit manner to a protrusion (10) located on the neck (2) of a said bottle or a said preform for a bottle (100).

10. A bottle cap (1) as claimed in any one of claims 6, 7 or 9 comprising one or more of: an angle between an inner face of the cap (11) and a surface (24') on the recess (15) which limits the axial travel of the protrusion (10) in an axial direction towards a bottom edge of the cap (25) when said recess (15) and said protrusion (10) are engaged, is 90°, approximately ±10° each recess (15) comprises a section in a rotational direction which is angled away from the underside of the cap (8) in an axial direction.

11. A bottle cap (1) as claimed in any one of claims 6, 7, 9 or 10, wherein the cap (1) comprises a tamper evident tab (25) located adjacent to a weakened line (26).

12. A bottle or a preform for a bottle (100), comprising: a neck (2), a collar (4), a protrusion (10) or a recess (15), wherein the bottle or preform for a bottle (100) is shaped such that a disengagement of a said bottle cap (1) from the bottle or preform for a bottle (100) requires an application of an axial force and/or a rotational force to the said bottle cap (1) with respect to the neck (2) of the bottle or the preform for a bottle (100), and a first surface, wherein an axial travel of the protrusion located on a said bottle cap (1), in an axial direction towards a collar (4) of the bottle or preform for a bottle (100) is limitable by said surface

13. A bottle or preform for a bottle (100) as claimed in claim 12, comprising a second surface (24, 24"), wherein the recess (15) comprises said second surface (24, 24"), wherein a rotational travel of the protrusion (10) in a rotational direction away from an opening of the recess (15) is limitable by the second surface (24, 24") when the recess (15) is engaged with a protrusion (10) located on a said bottle cap (1),

14. A bottle or preform for a bottle (100) as claimed in claim 13, wherein the limiting of the rotational travel is indicatable that a force with an axial component and/or a rotational component is required to start a disengagement process of said protrusion (10) and said recess (15) from each other.

15. A bottle or preform for a bottle (100) as claimed in claim 12 or 13, wherein the protrusion (10) is engagable in a snap fit manner to a recess (15) located on a said bottle cap (1) or the recess (15) is engagable in a snap fit manner to a protrusion (10) located on a said bottle cap (1).

16. A bottle or preform for a bottle (100) as claimed in claim 12 or 13 comprising one or more of: an angle between an outer face of the neck (20) of the bottle or preform for a bottle (100) and a surface (24) on the recess which limits the axial travel of the protrusion (10) in an axial direction towards a mouth of the neck (2) when said recess (15) and said protrusion (10) are engaged, is 90°, approximately ±10°, wherein each recess (15) comprises a section in a rotational direction which is angled away from the collar (4) of the neck (2) in an axial direction.