The invention relates to an assembly including a container and a capping device that is equipped with a cap and makes it possible to keep said cap attached to the neck of a container, which prevents losing the cap completely.
In the state of the art, there are known capping devices that make it possible to store a cap attached to a neck of the container. Such a capping device is, for example, described in document EP1406820 or US2018086510.
The capping device consists of a lower ring that is intended to be retained on the neck of the container, a cap that is intended to cover the orifice of the container in order to seal it, two elastic sheets that link the cap to the lower ring and a locking device positioned to lock the cap in a tilted open position.
Such a capping device is not fully satisfactory. In particular, this cap is intended to be hooked onto the neck of the container and cannot be adapted to other types of neck. Additionally, the movement of the cap between the closed position and the tilted open position is a simple pivoting movement, which limits the height of the cap and/or the neck that can be used. This limits the applications of said capping device. In particular, it is not suitable for containers intended to receive carbonated drinks because the pressure that prevails inside containers of this type would lead to undesired opening of the cap.
In addition, the locking device is not adapted to all types of caps and does not ensure sufficient reliability to maintain the tilted open position on screwed caps, for example.
An idea based on the invention is to provide an assembly comprising a container and a capping device equipped with a cap attached to the neck of the container suitable for screwing onto the neck of the container that:
According to one embodiment, the invention provides a kit that includes:
the capping device further comprises a locking device configured to lock the cap when it is in the tilted open position, said locking device comprising:
Thanks to such an arrangement, the locking device guarantees a robust locking, with a large angle, of the cap in its tilted open position. Additionally, with respect to a locking device that would consist of a strip that would be configured to go against the neck of the container, the proposed arrangement allows limiting the radial dimension of the strip. This is particularly advantageous insofar as a strip having a too large radial dimension is likely to impair the reliability and performance of bottling operations during which the capping devices are transported in particular on conveyors before being put into operation on the containers.
According to other advantageous embodiments, such an assembly can have one or more of the following features.
According to one embodiment, the strip and the protruding portion are configured in such a way that, when the cap is in the tilted open position and the second section of the lower ring is in the lowered position, the strip and the protruding portion are in contact to each other in an area located in the plane of the clamping collar.
According to an embodiment, e1>L−e2 wherein:
L: the length of the sheets in an initial state in which the cap is in the closed position;
e1: a radial distance between a contact area of the strip intended to come into contact with the protruding portion when the cap is in the titled open position and an intersection between a straight line passing through the upper ends of the sheets and a plane of symmetry of the sheets one in relation to the other; and
e2: a radial distance between a contact area of the protruding portion intended to come into contact with the strip when the cap is in the titled open position and an intersection between a straight line passing through the lower ends of the sheets and the plane of symmetry P.
According to an embodiment, e1>L−e2+e3+e4 wherein:
e3: radial clearance between the lower ring and the neck in a radial direction to the axis X and inscribed in the plane of symmetry P; and
e4: a radial clearance between the protruding portion and the clamping collar.
According to an embodiment, e1=L−e2+e3+e4+Δ with Δ comprised between 0.05 et 2 mm.
According to an embodiment, the protruding portion protrudes beyond a lower limit of the outer peripheral skirt.
According to an embodiment, the first section of the lower ring includes a front area that is diametrically opposite the second section and two engaging areas that are each arranged between the front area of the first section and the second section, the engaging elements are arranged only in the two areas to allow a radial movement of the lower ring capable of facilitating the passage of a part of the second section on each side of the clamping collar during the movement of the second section between the lowered position and the released position. In this way, the tensile forces that will be exerted on the lower ring to allow the second section to move between the lowered position and the raised position are less, which facilitates the use of the capping device.
According to an embodiment, the second section does not have engaging elements.
According to an embodiment, the front area of the first section lacks engaging elements.
According to an embodiment, the engaging elements are protrusions that protrude radially inwardly.
According to an embodiment, the second section extends over an angular range comprised between 90 and 180°.
According to an embodiment, the front area of the second section extends over an angular range comprised between 40 and 150°.
According to an embodiment, each of the two engaging areas extends over an angular range comprised between 10 and 90°.
According to an embodiment, the first section and the second section are separated from each other by two thinned areas in which the lower ring locally presents a decrease in radial thickness in order to allow the second section to articulate with respect to the first section.
According to another embodiment, the lower ring has a sufficiently thin thickness to allow the pivoting of the second section with respect to the first section without thereby the first section and the second section being separated from one another by two thinned areas.
According to an embodiment, the outer peripheral skirt includes a cut-out portion and the elastic sheets are attached to said outer peripheral skirt at said cut-out portion. Such a configuration makes it possible to provide elastic sheets having sufficient length, while limiting the dimensions of the gaps made between the cap and the lower ring and likely to allow the passage of dust.
According to an embodiment, the lower ring is connected to the outer peripheral skirt by frangible bridges.
According to an embodiment, the capping device is molded in one piece.
According to an embodiment, the sheets and the locking device are configured in such a way that, during the pivoting movement of the cap between the released position and the titled open position, the elastic sheets are subjected to a tensile force that increases up to an intermediate unstable position and that then decreases from said intermediate unstable position towards the titled open position.
According to an embodiment, when the cap is in its titled open position and the second section of the lower ring is in the lowered position, the opening angle of the cap is greater than 120° and, advantageously, greater than or equal to 145° and, for example, of the order of 180°.
The invention will be better understood and other purposes, details, features and advantages thereof will become more apparent during the following description of various particular embodiments of the invention, provided solely by way of illustration and not limitation, with reference to the attached drawings.
In the description and figures, the axis X corresponds to the axis of rotation of the cap 1 of the capping device when it is screwed onto the neck 2 of the container. By convention, the “radial” orientation is directed orthogonal to the axis X and the axial orientation is directed parallel to the axis X. The terms “external” and “internal” are used to define the relative position of one element with respect to another, e.g. with reference to the axis X, an element close to the axis X is thus qualified as internal as opposed to an external element located radially on the periphery.
The terms “upper” and “lower” are used to define the relative position of one element with respect to another, with reference to a position in which the orifice 3 of the neck 2 is oriented upwards and the cap 1 is in the closed position on the neck 2 of the container, an element intended to be placed lower being designated as lower and an element intended to be placed higher being designated as upper. The terms “in front” and “behind” are used to define the relative position of one element with respect to another along a diameter perpendicular to the axis X.
With reference to
As represented in
According to an embodiment, the helical thread 6 formed on the neck 2, as well as the helical thread 7 formed on the cap 1 are interrupted. In other words, the adjacent helical ribs are separated by a space that forms a vent and that makes it possible, in particular, to evacuate the gas inside the container while the cap 1 is still attached to the neck 2.
The capping device includes a lower ring 9 that is retained on the neck 2 of the container, a cap 1 that is intended to cover the orifice 3 of the container in order to seal it, and an articulation device 10 that connects the cap 1 to the lower ring 9. Cap 1 is movable between a closed position, shown in
As shown in particular in
As shown in particular in
Advantageously, the lower ring 9 is, before the first opening of the container, connected to the cap 1 by frangible bridges, not illustrated in figures, intended to break during the opening of the cap 1. These frangible bridges thus constitute tamperproof seals.
The lower ring 9 is held axially on the neck 2 of the container as long as it can rotate with respect to the latter around the axis X. As shown in
According to an embodiment, the lower ring 9 includes two narrowed areas, that is to say, whose radial thickness is less than the radial thickness of the lower ring 9 outside said narrowed areas. The two narrowed areas delimit the first section 16 and the second section 17. The narrowed areas thus form pivots that allow the second section 17 to be articulated with respect to the first section 16. According to another embodiment, the lower ring 9 does not have narrowed areas that delimit the first and second sections 16, 17.
As shown in
The lower ring 9 is held axially on the neck 2 of the container by means of the clamping collar 5. As shown in
As shown in
The first section 16 of the lower ring 9 consists of a front area 19 that is diametrically opposite to the second section 17 of the lower ring 9 and two engaging areas 20, one of which is represented in
In the embodiment shown, the articulation device 10 includes two sheets 11, 12, seen in particular in
Returning to
The locking device includes a heel 22, in particular, seen in
The locking device consists of a protruding portion 24 that protrudes axially upwards, that is, towards the outer peripheral skirt 14 of cap 1, from the second section 17 of the lower ring 9. The protruding portion 24 also protrudes between the two sheets 11, 12.
As shown in
As shown respectively in
The dimension el is such that e1>L−e2, with L: the length of the sheets 11, 12, in the initial state, when the cap is in the closed position. This ensures that the strip 23 comes into contact against the protruding portion 24 and that the sheets 11, 12 are tensioned when the cap 1 is in the tilted open position.
Additionally, e1>L−e2+e3+e4 with e3: the radial clearance between the protruding portion 24 and the clamping collar 5 and e4: the radial clearance between the lower ring 9 and the neck 2 according to the forward/reverse direction, that is, according to a direction radial to the axis X and inscribed in the plane of symmetry P. Preferably, e1=−e2+e3+e4+Δ with Δ between 0.05 and 2 mm, and is determined in such a way that the protruding portion 24 is in contact against the clamping collar 5 when cap 1 is in the tilted open position.
On the other hand, as shown in
The kinematics of cap 1 is as follows. During the first unscrewing, the cap 1 leaves the closed position and moves away from the lower ring 9 to the released position, illustrated in
Subsequently, the cap 1 can then be rotated backwards in the direction of the titled open position in which the outer peripheral skirt 14 extends upwards from the top wall 13. During the movement of the cap 1 backwards in the direction of its titled open position, the strip 23 abuts against the protruding portion 24 and thus causes the pivoting of the second section 17 of the lower ring 9 which pivots from the raised position to the lowered position.
The possibilities of stretching the sheets 11, 10 together with the aforementioned features of the blocking device, make it possible to create a hard point during the tilting of the cap 1 between the released position, represented in
As shown in
In this way, the cap 1 remains in its titled open position since, by reason of the aforementioned arrangement, the cap 1 cannot rotate towards the released position in which the cap 1 faces the dispensing orifice 3 while the second section 17 of the lower ring 9 remains in the lowered position.
Advantageously, when the cap 1 is in its titled open position and the second section 17 of the lower ring 9 is in the lowered position, the opening angle of the cap 1 is greater than 120° and, advantageously, greater than or equal to 145° and, for example, of the order of 180°. The opening angle corresponds to the protruding angular section that is formed at the intersection between a plane parallel to the upper wall 13 of cap 1 and a horizontal plane.
To close cap 1 again, the user tilts cap 1 forward to the released position. During this inclination, the contact between the strip 23 and the protruding portion 24 disappears, which allows the movement of the second section 17 of the lower ring 9 towards the raised position.
When the second section 17 is in the raised position and the cap 1 is in the released position, said cap 1 can then be screwed back onto the neck 2 of the container. During screwing, the lower ring 9 is driven in rotation around the X axis and the second section 17 of the lower ring 9 rotates towards the lowered position as the cap 1 is close to the clamping collar 5.
Advantageously, the capping device assembly is molded in a single piece made of synthetic material, such as polyethylene and advantageously high-density polyethylene. Advantageously, the capping device is molded in the configuration of
Although the invention has been described in relation to several particular embodiments, it is more than evident that it is in no way limited by them and that it includes all the technical equivalents of the described means, as well as their combinations if they fall within the scope of the invention as defined by the claims.
The use of the verb “consist of”, “comprising” or “include” and its conjugated forms do not exclude the presence of other elements or stages other than those established in a claim.
In the claims, any reference signs between parentheses are not to be construed as limiting the claim.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
20383031.0 | Nov 2020 | EP | regional |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/EP2021/083150 | 11/26/2021 | WO |