WO2010046567A1 - Stopper with anti-rotation device for a guarantee ring - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a stopper for affixing to the neck of a container of liquids, comprising: a main body provided internally with a means of connection to said neck and surmounted by a tubular projection having an outer wall defining a reference axis; a cap covering said tubular projection and provided internally with elastic engagement means which engage with a groove in the tubular projection; a tamper-resistant ring continuing on in the distal direction from said cap, to which it is connected by evenly spaced frangible bridges separated from one another by incisions. According to the invention, said ring is provided with teeth shaped to engage with evenly spaced mating protuberances on a proximal end of the main body, the teeth and/or protuberances having a chamfered prismatic profile.

Description

 CAP WITH ANTI-ROTATION DEVICE OF A RING

GUARANTEE

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] The invention relates to a cap to be fixed, for example by screwing or hooking, on a container neck, in particular on a bottle neck containing a liquid, particularly drinks. This type of plug allows easy closure and opening on the part of the user.

STATE OF THE PRIOR ART [0002] This type of stopper generally comprises three main elements, namely a main body which is screwed onto the neck of the bottle, a closure element and a protective cover. Functionally, it is for the user to be able to move from a state (open for example) to another state (closed for example) in a simple manner, by intervention of the mouth or one hand, with moreover a controlled flow of the liquid. Athletes in particular find here an interest in that they can drink while continuing their physical activity. Young children can favorably use containers equipped with such caps because their handling is very easy and the flow of liquid is controlled.

Furthermore, in a known manner this type of cap comprises at least one so-called tamper-evident ring intended to ensure that the cap has never been opened before its first use.

A first tamper (or security) ring may be provided between the base of the main body and the neck of the bottle. This ring prevents the opening of the bottle by said base which is generally screwed on the neck, and is connected to said base by breakable bridges regularly spaced apart and separated from each other by incisions.

A second tamperproof ring is further provided between the cover and the main body, more precisely between the distal end of said cover and the base. of the tubular projection through which the liquid can escape. This ring is intended to ensure that the cap has never been disconnected from the cap and therefore the bottle has never been opened by removing the cap. In known manner, the ring is internally provided with longitudinal protuberances that is to say oriented parallel to the axis of the plug, which cooperate with grooves oriented in the same direction and which are provided for example on a specific cylindrical wall the main body of the cap.

The second ring generally provided on the caps is connected to the distal end of the hood by breakable bridges regularly spaced and separated from each other by incisions. During the first use, the user turns the hood; this movement normally induces the breaking of the bridges and thus the disengagement of the cover vis-à-vis the ring which remains engaged on the specific cylindrical wall of the main body of the hood through the protuberances of the ring housed in the grooves.

[0007] Due in particular to manufacturing tolerances or variations in the behavior of the plastic material as a function of temperature, it may happen that the contact surface between grooves and protuberances is not sufficient to block any rotation between the ring and the body of the cap. In such a case, the rotation of the cover can cause that of the ring whose protuberances then slide over the grooves; the simultaneous rotation of the cover and the ring does not allow the breaking of the bridges whose effect normally ensures the first use of the plug. There is also destruction of the protuberances of the ring and the grooves of the body of the cap. These effects, which are of course not desired, are detrimental to the quality and image of the finished product.

Furthermore, when mounting the second ring, linked to the hood, on the main body of the cap, and because of the absence of angular indexing of the ring relative to the body in the approach phase, sometimes the longitudinal protuberances of the ring collide with the grooves separating the grooves of the body of the plug, which has the effect of damaging the protuberances and grooves, which makes the subsequent operation random. The risk is indeed once again that the contact surface between protuberances and grooves is no longer sufficient to ensure a locking of the cover relative to the rotating body. The torque exerted by the consumer on the hood then has the effect of rotating both the bonnet and the ring, without breaking the bridges.

[0009] EP 1 065 150 A1 discloses a plug of the type mentioned above; only the functionality of the rings is described in this document so that one can think that they are in the form indicated above; in any case the problem stated above is neither suggested nor disclosed in this prior art.

Other documents can be cited in the field of plugs of this type, commonly known as sport plugs, which are provided with at least one tamper-evident ring but none evokes the problem stated above.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention aims to overcome the disadvantages of the state of the art and in particular the problem of the unwanted rotation of the warranty ring or rings simultaneously with the element (hood or main body) to which they are related to the 'origin.

To do this is proposed according to a first aspect of the invention a cap to be fixed on a liquid container neck comprising:

- A main body internally provided with a connecting means with said neck and surmounted by a tubular projection having an outer wall defining a reference axis;

- A cover covering said tubular projection and provided internally with elastic hooking means cooperating with a flange of the tubular projection; - A tamper evident ring located in the distal extension of said cover to which it is connected by breakable bridges.

According to the invention, said ring is provided with teeth shaped so as to cooperate with regularly spaced complementary profile protuberances provided on a proximal end of the main body, the teeth and / or the protuberances having a chamfered prismatic profile. .

With this type of conjugate profiles, it increases the contact surfaces between the two elements which helps to increase the bonding forces and thus prevent their relative rotation.

Preferably, the teeth of said ring are oriented so that their chamfered portion is directed towards the proximal end of said main body.

Such an orientation of the chamfered portion advantageously allows to guide the teeth of the ring relative to the protuberances of the main body, during assembly when the cover is close to the main body parallel to the axis of the cap. This facilitates the installation of the cap on the main body of the cap during assembly of these parts, without risk of damage to the elements in contact.

Preferably, the teeth of the ring comprise a plurality of chamfered walls located in the distal portion.

In addition, the prismatic profile of the teeth of the ring is such that the teeth have two mutually parallel surfaces, each forming part of a cylindrical or substantially cylindrical surface.

According to another feature, the ring has an outer diameter greater than the outer diameter of the hood. Furthermore, said cap further comprises an outer wall provided with at least one zone facilitating its gripping. It is indeed important that the user can grab the hood easily and reliably, even with wet hands for example. For children it is also important that they can grab the hood as easily as possible.

One solution may be that the outer wall of the cover comprises several flats.

It is also conceivable, without departing from the scope of the invention, that certain areas of the outer wall of the cover have roughness greater than the roughness of other areas of the cover.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Other features and advantages of the invention will emerge on reading the description which follows, with reference to the appended figures, which illustrate:

Figure 1 is a partially broken perspective view of the plug according to one embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2 is a partial perspective view of the protuberances of the main body; and - Figure 3 is a partial perspective view of the teeth of the ring according to a preferred embodiment of the invention.

For clarity, identical or similar elements are identified by identical reference signs throughout the figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF AN EMBODIMENT

As shown in Figure 1, the plug as a whole can be considered as axisymmetric and it comprises a main body 1 internally provided with a connecting means (not visible) with the neck of the container (no shown) containing a liquid. The main body of the cap is surmounted by a tubular projection 2 which has an outer wall defining a reference axis XX.

A cover 3 covers the tubular projection 2, preferably closer to the tubular projection 2. The cover 3 is internally provided with elastic attachment means on the tubular projection 2, preferably on the basis of said projection 2. The attachment means (not visible) may be in the form of an annular inner groove which cooperates with a retaining flange disposed on the base (or proximal part) of the tubular projection 2. Any other elastic attachment means can be retained without departing from the scope of the invention.

A tamper evident ring 4 is provided, disposed in the distal extension of the cap 3 to which it is connected in a known manner, by breakable bridges 5 regularly distributed and separated from each other by incisions. The breakable bridges 5 are thus provided at one end of the ring adjacent to the distal end of the hood 3.

Furthermore the ring 4 has teeth 6 which cooperate with protuberances 7 provided on a proximal end of the main body 1. The protuberances are here arranged in a plurality of angular sectors in an arc of a circle, and their profile is shaped so to cooperate as soon as the plug is assembled, with a chamfered prismatic profile of the teeth 6 of the ring 4. Alternatively, the protuberances 7 may be arranged in a complete circle. The number of protuberances is generally quite high and preferably greater than 10.

In Figure 2 we note in particular that the protuberances 7 have a double slope inclined 9, 10 which cooperates directly with chamfers 11, 12 formed at the distal end of the teeth 6. This double slope 9,10 provides guidance 6 teeth vis-à-vis the protuberances 7 during the bonnet assembly on the main body of the cap. This avoids damaging these elements, many small, so relatively fragile.

Moreover, the teeth 6 have a "root" or anchoring in the ring 4 having a larger section than that of their tapered distal end; in other words, the chamfered ends of the teeth 6 are oriented towards the proximal end of the main body 1.

As it appears more clearly in Figure 3, the teeth 6 are chamfered in several planes: two chamfers 11, 12 are made in two planes forming an acute angle, at the distal end of the teeth 6. The set of 11, 12 forms a tapered tip at the distal end of the teeth 6, which corresponds and cooperates with a conjugate form of the protuberances 7.

These chamfered prismatic profiles allow not only during assembly to guide the teeth 6 of the ring 4 against the protuberances 7 of the main body; furthermore, the walls thus formed and in contact with each other, represent substantially larger contact areas than in the prior art. This avoids the problem of the simultaneous rotation of the tamper ring 4 and the hood 3, when during the first use, the user tries to rotate the hood to open the bottle.

Without departing from the scope of the invention, the protuberances 7 may be chamfered and the teeth 6 then have a complementary profile, for example beveled but not necessarily chamfered.

In all cases, the solution according to the invention is relatively simple and quite effective.

Furthermore, to enhance the chances of anti rotation plugs according to the invention, the cover 3 may have a specific outer wall, for example provided with at least one zone 15 to facilitate gripping. For example the outer wall of the cover 3 may have several flats 15; the flats 15 may have a high roughness, greater than that of the rest of the outer wall of the cover 3.

It is also possible to provide areas of high roughness on the outer wall of the cover 3 that the flats 15 or not.

Claims

1. A cap to be fixed on a neck of liquid container comprising: - a main body (1) provided internally with a means of connection with said neck and surmounted by a tubular projection (2) having an outer wall defining an axis of reference (XX); a cover (3) covering said tubular projection (2) and internally provided with resilient hooking means cooperating with a flange of the tubular projection (2); a tamper evident ring (4) located in the distal extension of said cover (3) to which it is connected by breakable bridges (5); characterized in that said ring (4) is provided with teeth (6) shaped to cooperate with regularly spaced complementary profile protuberances (7) provided on a proximal end of the main body (1), the teeth and / or the protuberances having a chamfered prismatic profile. 2. Stopper according to claim 1 characterized in that the teeth (6) have a chamfered profile. 3. Stopper according to claim 1 or 2 characterized in that the teeth (6) of said ring (4) are oriented so that their chamfered portion is directed towards the proximal end of said main body (1). 4. Stopper according to any one of the preceding claims characterized in that the teeth (6) of the ring (4) comprise a plurality of chanf walls renées (11, 12) located in the distal portion. 5. Stopper according to one of the preceding claims characterized in that the teeth (6) further have two mutually parallel walls, each forming part of a cylindrical or substantially cylindrical surface. 6. Stopper according to any one of the preceding claims characterized in that the teeth (6) comprise a double chamfer forming bevel. 7. Stopper according to any one of the preceding claims characterized in that the ring (4) has an outer diameter greater than the outer diameter of the cover (3). 8. Stopper according to any one of the preceding claims characterized in that said cover (3) further comprises an outer wall provided with at least one area facilitating its grip. 9. Stopper according to claim 8 characterized in that said outer wall comprises a plurality of flats (15) constituting said easy gripping areas. 10. Stopper according to claim 8 or claim 9 characterized in that said areas have roughness greater than that of the remainder of said outer wall of the cover (3).