WO2004110888A1 - Synthetic resin cap, closing device, and container-packed beverage - Google Patents

Abstract

A synthetic resin cap comprising a cap main body having a top plate and a sleeve depending from the peripheral edge of the top plate, the inner surface of the top plate of the cap main body being formed with an annular inner seal projection adapted to be fitted in the container mouth and an annular open end seal projection adapted to abut against the open end of the container mouth, the open end seal projection being deformedly bent in a direction to increase its diameter until it abuts against the cap main body, the top plate being provided with a positioning raised portion disposed such that it abuts against the open end when the open end seal projection is deformedly bent until it abuts against the cap main body; a closing device using the synthetic resin cap; and a container-packed beverage.

Description

 Description Synthetic resin caps, closures, and packaged beverages

 TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a synthetic resin cap that is attached to a container mouth to close the container mouth, a closing device using the cap, and a packaged beverage. Background art

 As this kind of synthetic resin cap, there is a linerless type in which a liner is omitted and a cap body has a sealing function.

 As the cap of the linerless type, a cap having an inner seal projection formed on the top plate to be fitted into the container mouth is widely used.

 The conventional synthetic resin cap has a problem in that when it is attached to the opening of the container, if the tightening is insufficient, the sealing performance is reduced, and if the tightening is excessive, the opening torque is excessive.

 For this reason, there has been a demand for a technology that can reliably optimize sealing performance and opening torque. Disclosure of the invention

 The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a synthetic resin cap capable of reliably adjusting sealing performance and opening torque. In the synthetic resin cap of the present invention, an annular open end seal projection which is in contact with the open end of the container opening is formed on the inner surface of the top plate, and the open end seal protrusion is used to connect the synthetic resin cap to the container opening. When it is attached to the cap, it is bent by the container mouth in the radial direction until it comes into contact with the cap body, and it is bent until the top end of the opening end seal projection comes into contact with the cap body. A positioning projection is provided which comes into contact with the opening end when doing so.

The positioning projection is preferably provided integrally with the inner seal projection. The open end seal protrusion may be configured to include an upright cylindrical portion extending downward from the top plate portion, and an expansion tubular portion extending in a skirt shape from the upright cylindrical portion. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

 FIG. 1 is a partial cross-sectional view showing one embodiment of the closing device of the present invention.

 FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of a part of the synthetic resin cap shown in FIG.

 FIG. 3 is a process diagram showing a process of attaching the synthetic resin cap shown in FIG. 1 to a container mouth.

 FIG. 4 is a process diagram showing a state where the synthetic resin cap shown in FIG. 1 is attached to a container mouth. BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

 1 and 2 show one embodiment of the closing device of the present invention. The closing device shown here is composed of a container 21 and a synthetic resin cap 1 attached to a mouth portion 20 thereof. Have been.

 The container 21 is made of a synthetic resin such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or glass or the like. Is formed. The opening end 20b of the container opening 20 is formed flat along a substantially horizontal plane.

 The synthetic resin cap 1 has an annular shape fitted into the container opening 20 on the inner surface of the top plate portion 2 of the cap body 4 including a disc-shaped top plate portion 2 and a cylindrical portion 3 hanging down from the periphery thereof. An inner seal projection 12 and an annular open end seal projection 13 that abuts on the open end 20 b (in particular, the outer peripheral edge 20 c) of the container opening 20 are formed to project downward. Has been established.

 The cylindrical portion 3 of the cap body 4 has a horizontal score 6 (weak line), a main portion 8 above the horizontal score 6, and a tamper-evidence ring portion (TE ring portion) connected to the lower end of the main portion 8 by a bridge 7. It is divided into nine.

On the inner surface of the raw portion 8, a screw portion 10 to be screwed with the male screw portion 22 of the container mouth portion 20 is formed. Tabs 11 are provided on the inner surface of the TE ring portion 9 as a plurality of thin plate-like locking means for locking the container 21 to prevent the movement of the TE ring portion 9 when the cap 1 is opened. Have been.

 The cap 1 is formed of a synthetic resin material such as high-density polyethylene and polypropylene.

 The inner seal projection 12 comes into contact with the inner peripheral surface 20 a of the container mouth 20 when it is fitted into the container mouth 20.

 The inner seal projection 12 is preferably formed so that the diameter gradually increases downward, and the outer diameter of the maximum outer diameter portion 12a is larger than the inner diameter of the container opening 20.

 The inner seal projection 12 is preferably formed so that it can be elastically deformed in the diameter-reducing direction so as to be able to fit into the container opening 20.

 That is, as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 2, the inner seal projection 12 is naturally bent and deformed at the base 12 b in the diameter reducing direction (the direction in which the tip 12 c moves inward in the radial direction). It is preferable to be configured so that

 The protrusion length of the inner seal projection 12 is preferably 1 to 5 mm (preferably 2 to 4 mm).

 The thickness of the inner seal projection 12 is preferably 0.5 to 2 mm (preferably 0.5 to 1 mm).

 The inclination angle of the outer surface of the inner seal projection 12 with respect to the vertical direction (the direction perpendicular to the top plate 2) is preferably 5 to 30 degrees (preferably 10 to 20 degrees).

 The height position of the maximum outer diameter portion 12a is preferably set so that the distance between the maximum outer diameter portion 12a and the top plate portion 2 is 4 mm or less (preferably 3 mm or less).

 The outer diameter of the maximum outer diameter portion 12a is preferably set to 21.74 to 23.74 mm (preferably 21.994 to 22.994 mm).

 The difference between the outer diameter of the maximum outer diameter portion 12a and the inner diameter of the container mouth portion 20 is preferably 1 mm or less (preferably 0.1 to 0.6 mm).

The open end seal protrusion 13 is for sealing the open end 20 b (particularly, the outer peripheral edge 20 c) of the container mouth 20, and is formed radially outward from the inner seal protrusion 12. , A cylindrical upright cylindrical portion 13 a extending substantially vertically downward from the inner surface of the top plate portion 2, and an upright cylindrical portion 13a, and has a skirt-like expansion cylinder portion 13b whose diameter increases downward from the lower end. The projecting length of the open end seal projection 13 is preferably l to 4 mm (preferably 1.5 to 3 mm).

 The length of the upright cylindrical portion 13a is preferably 0.5 to 3 mm (preferably l to 2 mm), and the thickness is 0.1 to: Imm (preferably 0.2 to 0.5 mm). ) Is preferable.

 It is preferable that the length of the extended cylindrical portion 13 b is 0.5 to 3 mm (preferably 1 to 2 mm), and the thickness is set to be larger than the thickness of the upright cylindrical portion 13 a. Specifically, the thickness is preferably 0.2 to 1.5 mm (preferably 0.4 to Imm).

 It is preferable that the inclination angle of the expansion cylindrical portion 13b with respect to the vertical direction is 20 to 60 degrees.

 The open end seal projection 13 is formed at the base end 13 c of the upright cylindrical portion 13 a so as to be able to bend and deform in the radially increasing direction.

 The inner diameter of the upright cylindrical portion 13 a is set smaller than the outer diameter of the container mouth 20.

 It is preferable that the diameter of the lower edge portion 13 d of the expansion cylinder portion 13 b is set to be larger than the outer diameter of the container mouth portion 20.

 A thin portion 2b that is thinner than the outer peripheral portion 2a is formed at the center of the top plate portion 2. The thin portion 2 b is formed on the center side of the base portion 12 b of the inner seal projection 12. The thin portion 2b is preferably circular.

 The thickness of the thin portion 2b is preferably 0.5 to 2.0 mm (preferably 1.0 to 1.5 mm).

 The height of the step portion 2c between the outer peripheral portion 2a and the thin portion 2b is preferably 0.1 to 1.0 mm (preferably 0.2 to 0.8 mm).

 At the inner corner 15 of the continuous portion of the top plate 2 and the cylinder 3, a reinforcing wall portion 14 that expands in a tapered shape from above to below so as to fill the corner 15. It is formed.

The reinforcing wall portion 14 is for increasing the rigidity of a continuous portion between the top plate portion 2 and the cylindrical portion 3 and for preventing the top plate portion 2 from bulging and deforming when the internal pressure of the container 21 is increased. The width is The thickness is preferably 0.2 to 2 mm (preferably 0.5 to I. 8 mm).

 The reinforcing wall portion 14 is preferably made of the same material as the cap body 4 and is preferably formed integrally with the cap body 4.

 In the cap 1 of the present embodiment, the top plate portion 2 is provided with the positioning projection 16 which is in contact with the opening end 20 b of the container opening 20.

 The positioning convex portion 16 is for making the distance between the top plate portion 2 and the opening end 20b substantially constant, and for making the winding angle at the time of cap attachment substantially constant, and has a substantially rectangular cross section. The projection is formed toward

 The positioning projection 16 is formed integrally with the inner seal projection 12 on the outer surface side of the inner seal projection 12.

 The positioning projection 16 is formed at a position where the lower surface 16a contacts the opening end 20b when the cap 1 is attached to the container mouth 20.

 The positioning protrusion 16 may be formed in a continuous annular shape in the circumferential direction, or may be formed in a discontinuous annular shape composed of a plurality of island-shaped protrusions arranged along the circumferential direction.

 The height A of the positioning projection 16 is preferably 0.2 to: I. 5 mm (preferably 0.5 to Lmm).

 If the height A is less than this range, the opening torque tends to be excessive, and if the height A exceeds this range, the sealing performance tends to be reduced.

 It is preferable that the width B of the positioning projection 16 is 0.5 to 1.5 mm (preferably, 0.5 to 1.3 mm).

 Hereinafter, the operation of the cap 1 when the cap 1 of the present embodiment is attached to the container opening 20 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG.

 When the cap 1 is wound around the container mouth 20, the inner seal protrusion 12 is fitted into the container mouth 20, and abuts against the inner peripheral surface 20 a of the container mouth 20 without any gap.

 When the inner seal projection 12 is fitted into the container opening 20, the inner seal projection 12 is reduced in diameter in the base 12b (the direction in which the tip 12c moves radially inward). It is elastically bent and deformed (see Fig. 3).

As a result, the outer diameter of the inner seal projection 12 becomes smaller, and the inner seal projection 12 can be fitted into the container mouth 20. Since the inner seal projection 12 fitted into the container mouth 20 is elastically deformed in the diameter reducing direction, a pressing force in the diameter expanding direction is applied to the container mouth 20 by its elastic restoring force. Added.

 With the rotation of the cap 1, the outer peripheral edge 20c of the open end 20b of the container mouth 20 abuts against the inner surface of the expanded cylindrical portion 13b of the open end seal projection 13 to apply an upward force. Add (see Figure 3).

 When an upward force is applied to the expansion cylinder portion 13 b by the container mouth portion 20, a force in the radial direction is applied to the open end seal protrusion 13, and the open end seal protrusion 13 is formed at the base end portion. At 13 c, it is bent and deformed in the radial direction, and the tip side moves radially outward. As shown in FIG. 4, when the cap 1 is further rotated, the opening end seal protrusion 13 is further bent and deformed in the radially expanding direction by the container mouth portion 20, and the tip portion 13 e is moved to the cap body 4 (see FIG. Then, it comes into contact with the reinforcing wall section 14).

 In this state, an obliquely upward pressing force is applied to the upright cylindrical portion 13 a by the outer peripheral edge 20 c of the opening end 20 b, and the expanded cylindrical portion 13 b is applied to the expanded cylindrical portion 13 b by the reinforcing wall portion 14. An obliquely downward drag acts, whereby the open end seal projection 13 is slightly bent and deformed so as to protrude outward at the middle portion in the longitudinal direction.

 For this reason, the open end seal projection 13 is bent outward at the base end 13c, and is also bent outward at the intermediate portion in the longitudinal direction.

 Therefore, the open end seal projection 13 is pressed against the open end 20 b (particularly the outer peripheral edge 20 c) by its elastic restoring force, and a gap is formed between the open end 20 Ob (particularly the outer peripheral edge 20 c). Contact immediately, and seal the container opening 20.

 At this time, since the open end seal projection 13 abuts not on the entire open end 20b but on a narrow area including the outer peripheral edge 20c, the force applied to the open end 20b by the open end seal projection 13 Acts intensively in the vicinity of the outer peripheral portion 20 c.

 In the state shown in FIG. 4, the opening end 20b of the container opening 20 is in contact with the lower surface 16a of the positioning projection 16.

 Thereby, the height position of the cap 1 with respect to the opening end 20b is determined, and the distance between the top plate 2 and the opening end 20b becomes a predetermined value.

For this reason, the deformation amount of the opening end seal projection 13 becomes a predetermined value, and The pressing force of the opening end seal projection 13 to the predetermined value is a predetermined value.

 The container 21 is hermetically sealed by attaching the cap 1 to the container opening 20 in the above process.

 When the cap 1 attached to the container opening 20 is turned in the opening direction, a large number of tabs 11 provided on the inner surface of the TE ring 9 are locked to the lower end of the bulging step 23 of the container opening 20. As a result, the main portion 8 of the cap body 4 rises with the rotation, while the TE ring portion 9 is prevented from moving upward.

 As a result, a tensile force acts on a large number of narrow bridges 7 connecting the main part 8 of the cap and the TE ring part 9, these bridges 7 break, and the TE ring part 9 moves from the main part 8. The cap 1 is disconnected and the cap 1 is opened.

 In the cap 1 of the present embodiment, the top plate portion 2 is provided with a positioning projection 16 that comes into contact with the opening end 20 b when the opening end seal projection 13 is bent and deformed until it comes into contact with the cap body 4. Therefore, when the cap is attached, the distance between the top plate 2 and the opening end 20b can be set to a predetermined value, and the pressing force of the opening end seal projection 13 against the opening end 20b can be set to a sufficient value.

 Therefore, sufficient sealing performance can be obtained.

 Further, since the distance between the top plate 2 and the opening end 20b can be set to a predetermined value, the tightening angle when the cap is mounted can be set to a predetermined value.

 Therefore, the opening torque can be set to an appropriate value.

 The locking means of the tamper evidence ring 9 is not limited to the tab 11 in the above embodiment, and is described, for example, in Japanese Patent Application No. 8-46445 filed by the present applicant. Types including wings and beads, and Japanese Patent Application Nos. A locking means combining a locking claw on the container side and a locking protrusion on the tamper evidence ring described in Nos. 15 and 7-109850 may be employed.

In the present invention, a container-filled beverage filled with a beverage can be obtained by filling a beverage such as a fruit juice beverage, a tea beverage, and a coffee beverage into the container 21 and attaching the cap 1 to the mouth 20 thereof. Industrial applications

 As described above, in the synthetic resin cap of the present invention, since the positioning protrusion that contacts the opening end is provided on the top plate, the distance between the top plate and the opening end when the cap is attached is reduced. A predetermined value is set, and the pressing force of the opening end seal projection against the opening end is set to a predetermined value, so that sufficient sealing performance can be obtained.

 Further, since the distance between the top plate and the opening end can be set to a predetermined value, it is possible to set the winding angle when the cap is attached to a predetermined value and set the opening torque to an appropriate value.

Claims

The scope of the claims 1. A synthetic resin cap in which an annular inner seal protrusion to be fitted into a container mouth is formed on an inner surface of a top plate portion of a cap body having a top plate portion and a tubular portion hanging down from a peripheral edge thereof. .  An annular open end seal projection is formed on the inner surface of the top plate to abut the open end of the container mouth,  When the synthetic resin cap is attached to the container mouth, the opening end seal projection is bent and deformed in the radially enlarged direction by the container mouth until it comes into contact with the cap body.  A synthetic resin cap, wherein a top plate portion is provided with a positioning projection which comes into contact with the opening end when the opening end seal projection is bent and deformed until it comes into contact with the cap body.  2. The synthetic resin cap according to claim 1, wherein the positioning projection is provided integrally with the inner seal projection.  3. The opening end seal projection according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises an upright cylindrical portion extending downward from the top plate portion, and an expansion tubular portion extending in a skirt form from the upright cylindrical portion. Cap made of synthetic resin.  4. A closure device comprising a container and a synthetic resin cap attached to the mouth thereof,  The synthetic resin cap has an annular inner seal projection that is fitted into the container opening on the inner surface of the top plate of the cap body having the top plate and a tube hanging down from the periphery thereof.  An annular open end seal projection is formed on the inner surface of the top plate to abut the open end of the container mouth,  When the synthetic resin cap is attached to the container opening, the opening end seal projection is bent and deformed in the radially expanding direction by the container opening until it comes into contact with the cap body. When the top plate is bent and deformed until the open end seal projection contacts the cap body. Wherein a positioning projection that abuts the opening end is provided on the closing device. 5. A packaged beverage in which a beverage is filled in a closure device having a container and a synthetic resin cap attached to the mouth thereof,  The synthetic resin cap has an annular inner seal projection that is fitted into the container opening on the inner surface of the top plate of the cap body having the top plate and a tube hanging down from the periphery thereof.  An annular open end seal projection is formed on the inner surface of the top plate to abut the open end of the container mouth,  When the synthetic resin cap is attached to the container opening, the opening end seal projection is bent and deformed in the radially expanding direction by the container opening until it comes into contact with the cap body.  A container-filled beverage having a top plate portion provided with a positioning convex portion that comes into contact with the opening end when the opening end seal projection is bent and deformed until it comes into contact with the cap body.