The present invention is in the field of substance containers and pertains particularly to methods and apparatus for providing a child proof container assembly for storing a substance.
In the art of substance containers, there has long been a concern about children or persons, that should not have access to a particular substance, having the ability to easily open a container accessing the substance within the container. In the prescription industry for example, child proof caps have been provided that operate in a fashion familiar to the adults but not familiar to children. One universal example of this is a child proofed cap that must be pushed down on to unlock the cap and engage the threads on the container before it may be removed to access the substance. Prescription containers are not always readily available to adults for storing a substance that they do not want children or certain other people to have access to. Therefore, what is needed is a container assembly for storing a personal substance that requires an unlocking method that is not readily understandable to a child or someone not familiar enough with the method to access the container.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, a substance container assembly is provided including an outer jacket open at one end, the outer jacket having an internal volume, an inner container having an internal volume, the inner container accessible by opening the container, the inner container fitting into the internal volume of the outer jacket and retained therein through alignment with and seating of at least one protuberance on the inner container or component thereof into at least one opening through the wall of the outer jacket, a compression gap created by material removal of a strategic portion or portions of the inner container beneath the at least one protuberance enabling physical depression of the at least one protuberance below the inside wall of the outer jacket.
In one embodiment, the outer jacket and inner container are tubular. In a variation of this embodiment, the inner container is a clam shell package having an outer diameter and an inner volume for storing the substance. In another variation of this embodiment, the inner container is a tubular inner jacket having an internal volume, the inner jacket closed at one end and having a removable bottom tray to close the open end. In one embodiment, the at least one protuberance is a button form contiguously formed on the outside surface of the inner container. In this variation, the substance container assembly further includes a tubular rear jacket having an outside diameter, an internal volume and at least one opening through the wall of the rear jacket, the rear jacket having an outside diameter just small enough to fit into the outer jacket, and a split ring having an outside diameter and internal volume, the split ring hosting the at least one protuberance and a compression gap wherein the compression gap is a longitudinal gap created by material removal to split the ring.
In a variation of the above embodiment, the at least one protuberance is a button form on the split ring materially contiguous thereto and strategically located central to and opposite of the split ring compression gap. According to this variation, the at least one button form may be aligned with and seated through at least one opening on the rear jacket and at least one opening on the outer jacket, the seat openings of the rear and outer jackets aligned to accept the at least one button form. Also in this variation, the substance container assembly may further include a substance staging platform annular in form having an annular plate with a hole pattern provided there through of a uniform hole diameter to accept rolled cigarettes containing the substance. In this variation, the substance container may include a plurality of tubular seats attached to the annular plate aligned with and individually matched with each hole in the hole pattern, the tubular seats accepting the staged cigarettes therein holding them substantially parallel and spaced apart according to the hole pattern.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a method is provided for securing a substance in a container and securing the container with substance therein into an outer jacket having at least one seat opening provided through the jacket wall, the seat opening adapted to accept seating of at least one compressible button form including (a) opening the container, (b) placing the substance into the container, (c) inserting the container from one end of the container partially into the outer jacket up to the at least one button form, (d) sight aligning the at least one button form to the at least one seat opening, (e) depressing the at least one button form to elevation below the wall of the outer jacket, (f) further inserting the container into the outer jacket, and (g) rotating to seat the at least one button form into the at least one seat opening locking the container into the outer jacket.
In one aspect of the method, in (a) the container is an elongate clam shell package comprising two half shells that snap together. In another aspect of the method, in (a) the container is a tubular container closed at one end with a removable cap to close the open end. In one aspect, in (b) the substance is cannabis cigarettes placed in a staging platform. In one aspect, in (c) the at least one button form is contiguous to a clam shell package as the container. In another aspect, in (c) the at least one button form is contiguous to a split ring used to retain a tubular container into the outer jacket. In this aspect, in (a) the tubular container includes a staging platform comprising an annular plate supporting a through hole pattern and matching tubular seats for staging cannabis cigarettes held spaced apart and parallel within the container.
In another aspect of the method, the substance container is removed from the outer jacket by (h) depressing the at least one button form to elevation below the wall of the outer jacket, (i) pulling or pushing the container out from the outer jacket, and (j) opening the container and retrieving the substance. In the appended method, in one aspect, in (h) the at least one button form is contiguous to a clam shell package. In another aspect, in (h) the at least one button form is contiguous to a split ring used to retain a tubular container having a closed end and a cap to close the open end.
In various embodiments described in enabling detail herein, the inventor provides a unique child proof substance container for storing personal substances. The present invention is described using the following examples, which may describe more than one relevant embodiment falling within the scope of the invention.
Jacket 101 is tubular in this embodiment and can be described as a tube open at one end to accept the substance package, which is a clam shell type form that is also annular in form though not a solid tube. Jacket 101 includes a top piece 102 that may be fixed in one embodiment to one end of the jacket. Top piece 102 is annular in this embodiment, and may be adapted to be permanently fixed to the designated end of the jacket by press fit and or glue. Top piece 102 may be fabricated of a durable polymer material. Top piece 102 may include the annular opening 104 placed at substantial center of the annular form. Opening 104 may allow an operator of substance container 100 to contact and apply a push force on the clam shell package held inside jacket 101, via hinge 105.
Jacket 101 of substance container 100 may include two opposing openings 106 placed through a vertical tube wall of jacket 101. Openings 106 may be in alignment and arrayed on opposite sides of jacket 101. Openings 106 may be dimensionally adapted as seats for accepting identically aligned protuberances, in this case, button forms 103 molded into the clam shell substance package referenced above. The clam shell package has an annular form when closed that is just smaller in outside diameter than the inside diameter of jacket 101. The length of the clam shell package (not visible here) is the same as or substantially equal to the length of jacket 101 so that the clam shell package inside fits against the inside of top piece 102 and may be generally flush at the opposite end with a bottom edge of the jacket tube form.
The clam shell package, not visible here but referenced as an internal element above, may be a molded polymer form that includes a gap space in the design that may enable an operator to squeeze the package at opposing button forms 103 to get the button forms to compress the package form enough fit within the inside diameter of jacket 101 as the closed package is being inserted into jacket 101. Openings 106 have, in this embodiment, an inside diameter slightly larger than the outside diameter of button forms 103. When button forms 103 are brought into alignment with openings 106, the clam shell package springs back to its original diameter and the button forms 103 seat into the jacket openings 106 therefore locking the package form inside the jacket 101.
Clam shell package 200 has a friction surface 206 including a major outside diameter and may be molded in a form that limits the surface area of the major diameter to reduce friction resulting from contact between the outside of clam shell package 200 at the friction surface 206 and the inside diameter wall of jacket 101. Clam shell package 200 comprises two trays that fit together and that are connected by a flexible thin plastic strip functioning as a hinge 105, as depicted in
In a preferred embodiment, the end of clam shell package opposite the connected end includes the aligned and opposing button forms 103 and at that end, a gap may be provided along a length of where the clam shell trays close together such that the button forms protruding above the major diameter of the clam shell package 200 when closed may be depressed at both sides to enable the button forms to flex inward to enable them to slide against the inside diameter of jacket 101. The width of the gap between the tray forms may be just larger than the cumulative difference between the material height of button forms 103 measured from the outside diameter of clam shell package 200. In other words, clam shell package 200 is collapsible to a gap extent by compressing the package at the button forms for insert within and removal from jacket 101.
Clam shell package 200 may be molded from a durable polymer material that is moderately flexible. Trays 201 and 202 may have a same internal volume 204 that doubles when the package is closed. Personal substances or an item or items may be placed in tray 201 or in tray 202 and the package may be manually closed and snapped to contain the substance or items. One of button forms 103 is visible in this view from the perspective of inside of the clam shell package 200. In one embodiment, gap space is provided at the button form ends of tray 201 and tray 202, the gap space comprising uniform material relief 205 from the rectangular rim area surrounding a button form 103 for each tray. In this way, an operator may pinch button forms 103 together a distance allowed by the extent of gap space that is sufficient to allow the outer surfaces of the button forms to be slid out of annular seat openings (106,
Button form 103 is depicted near the end of tray 201. In this embodiment, an oblong protuberance referenced herein as a button form 401 is provided as a modification at the same position on tray 202. In this variant embodiment, jacket 101 described in
At step 504, the operator may insert the clam shell hinge side first partially into the open end of the jacket with the button forms and jacket openings roughly sight aligned. At step 505, the operator may pinch the opposing button forms together to compress the clam shell package diameter at the opposing button forms to enable a user to fully insert the clam shell package into the annular jacket. As the button forms are sliding into the seat openings of the jacket, the clam shell springs back to original form and diameter due to resilience of the material, seating the clam shell package in position within the jacket. After step 505, the substance in the clam shell package is secured within the closed package and inserted and seated or locked into the jacket. In one embodiment, a cap may be provided and placed over the open end of the jacket to further isolate the package within the jacket.
At step 506, the operator may determine to remove the substance from the substance container and may then depress opposing button forms through the corresponding jacket openings with one hand, while at step 507, may push against the clam shell package at the closed end of the jacket using a finger on the other hand. The combination of compression of the clam shell package in 506 and pushing against the package in 507 through the central opening unseats the button forms from the jacket seat openings and enables the clam shell package to be pulled out of the jacket by the operator at step 508. In one embodiment, a child proof substance container may be provided wherein the clam shell package described above is not necessarily required as a clam shell package form to practice the invention.
Substance container 600 includes an outer jacket 601. Outer jacket 601 may be analogous in function and material to jacket 101 described above relative to
In this example, a substance 603 may comprise several rolled cannabis cigarettes, for example, that may be seated within a staging platform 604 so that they may be held parallel in a symmetrical pattern and not be loose within the inner container that fits into outer jacket 601. Staging platform 604 may be manufactured of a lightweight polymer material. Staging platform 604 may be an annular or round form in this embodiment and may comprise an annular plate having a hole pattern provided there through, the holes also annular and with a uniform diameter roughly equal to the diameter of the cannabis cigarettes. In this embodiment, staging platform 604 may stage five cigarettes. Each opening through the plate of staging platform 604 includes an elongate tube seat of uniform length and inside diameter adapted to seat and protect each cigarette 603 holding them substantially parallel and spaced apart according to hole pattern. The outside diameter of staging platform 604 is just smaller than the inside diameter of inner jacket 605 for enabling a frictional slip fit of the staging platform 604 within the inner jacket 605.
An inner jacket cap 602 is provided in this embodiment and is adapted to fit into the open end of inner jacket 605 and to cap the jacket at that end. Inner jacket cap 602 has a rim with a minor outside diameter just smaller than the inside diameter of inner jacket 605 for press fit and a major diameter just smaller than the inside diameter of outer jacket 601 for frictional slip fit. Inner jacket cap 602 may be manufactured of a lightweight polymer material. A split ring 606 may be provided in this embodiment may have an outside diameter just small enough to slip under the inside diameter of outer rear jacket 610. Split ring 606 may be manufactured from a paper or tube board like that used in the manufacture of outer jacket 601. In one embodiment, split ring 606 may be fabricated from a durable resilient polymer material. In one embodiment, all of the material used to fabricate substance container 600 is compostable.
Split ring 606 is split through longitudinally in this embodiment by removing material producing a slot characterized by a uniform longitudinal gap 607 of a predetermined width. Split ring 606 is resilient, may be compressed, and may spring back to original diameter when the compression force is eased. The internal container supported by inner jacket 605 includes a bottom tray 609 adapted to cap inner jacket 605 at that end of the jacket. Bottom tray 609 may be manufactured from a lightweight polymer material and is adapted as the bottom of an internal substance container that fits inside and may be removed from outer jacket 601. Substance container 600 includes a rear jacket 610. Rear jacket 610 may be manufactured of the same material as outer jacket 601. Rear jacket 610 has an inside diameter large enough to accept the outside diameter of bottom tray 609 and connected inner jacket 605, which seats down into bottom tray 609.
Split ring 606 includes an annular button form 608 provided to extend orthogonally from rough center of the split ring on a side opposite analogous in function and material to button form 103 on clam shell package 200 described further above with the exception that only a single button form is required to practice the invention. Outer jacket 601 includes a first button form seat opening 611 having a diameter just larger than the outside diameter of button form 608 enabling the button form to extend through the opening. Similarly, rear jacket 610 includes a second button form seat opening 612 also with a diameter just larger than the outside diameter of button form 608 enabling the button form to extend through the opening.
In a preferred use embodiment, rear jacket 610 fits over split ring 606 whereby button form 608 seats with and extends through opening 612. In this embodiment an operator loading substance 603 (cigarettes) into the inner container would first align the opening 612 in rear jacket 610 to button form 608 and install the rear jacket at the bottom of the inner container. The operator may squeeze or otherwise compress split ring 606 to ensure that the button form 608 may be inserted into seat opening 612. The operator may then slide the inner container with substance loaded therein into outer jacket 601 while visually aligning button form 608 with button form seat opening 611 on outer jacket 601. The operator may compress split ring 606 a second time by depressing the button form 608 while inserting split ring 606 into the open end of outer jacket 601. When button form 608 meets opening 611, split ring 606 springs back to original form as button form 608 is seated into opening 611. In this way, the internal substance container is locked into rear jacket 610 and into outer jacket 601.
To access the substance within the inner substance container supported by inner jacket 605, the operator may depress button form 608 compressing split ring 606 enough to pull the internal substance container out from within outer jacket 601. Rear jacket 610 may remain in position over split ring 606. The operator may remove inner jacket cap 602 from the end of inner jacket 605 to access the substance 603, which in this embodiment comprises rolled cannabis cigarettes. In an embodiment wherein the substance is not rolled or is otherwise loose or packed into the internal substance container, staging platform 604 may not be required to practice the invention. In one embodiment, after an operator removes the internal jacket 605 from outer jacket 601, the operator may also remove rear jacket 610 by depressing button form 608 to compress split ring 606 enough to unseat the split ring from inside the rear jacket. The unique characteristics of substance container 600 over container 100 include a sealable inner substance container, only one required button form, and two protective jackets that fit over the split ring 606 and button form 608 once the split ring is maximally compressed.
It will be apparent with skill in the art that the substance container of the present invention may be provided using some or all the elements described herein. The arrangement of elements and functionality thereof relative to the substance container of the invention is described in at least two different embodiments each of which is an implementation of the present invention. While the uses and methods are described in enabling detail herein, it is to be noted that many alterations could be made in the details of the construction and the arrangement of the elements without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention.
This specification claims priority to a U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 63/348,387, entitled Child Proof Substance Container, filed on Jun. 2, 2022, disclosure of which is included in this specification at least by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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63348387 | Jun 2022 | US |