Edge seal closure

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6758376
  • Patent Number
    6,758,376
  • Date Filed
    Tuesday, July 9, 2002
    22 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, July 6, 2004
    20 years ago
Abstract
A twist open/twist close edge seal closure is described wherein the closure has a sealing disc supported on the interior portion thereof which vertically rises and lowers depending on the rotation of the closure. The sealing disc has a folding finger which compresses against the sealing rib of the container to provide an adequate seal thereof and allows dispensing of the container contents around the exterior portion of the sealing disc upward through a dispensing channel and through the dispensing spout of the edge seal closure. The closure further comprises an anti-crush rib for seating on a container top wall and preventing crushing of the container neck. The container neck preferably includes a quad-lead thread having a pitch wherein a quarter rotation of the closure will open the container and allowing dispensing of the contents therein.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




1. Technical Field of the Invention




The present invention relates to twist open twist close edge seal closures and in particular to an edge seal closure which is threadably engaged onto a container and which has a sealing disc with folding finger located thereon for edge sealing of the container rim.




2. Discussion of the Prior Art




Many types of dispensing closures have been developed for release of liquids or like material held within a container, such as a bottle. Typically, these dispensers feature a closure which is permanently affixed to the container neck or which is threadably held thereon. More often, these closures are formed with an aperture such that, when the closure is twisted open, the aperture reveals a pathway through an interior mouth of the container. For release of liquids held within the container, the closure is twisted to the open position and the container is turned in the upside down position to allow liquid to flow through the neck and mouth of the container. However, most prior art twist open, twist close designs often leak into the threaded area of the container neck, which continues to be a problem. Thus, it is desirable to have a twist open and twist close closure which adequately seals or mates against the rim of the container and prevents these known prior art problems.




U.S. Pat. No. 5,111,967 discloses a plastic dispensing closure for a container which has a twist open, twist close design. This design however utilizes a second softer plastic to provide an effective sealing gasket around the upper portion of the closure. The application of this second softer plastic requires a dual or co-injection molding process in order to mold the closure with a hard plastic and then mold the softer plastic forming the seal thereafter. This second molding step is often prohibitively expensive, time consuming and inefficient.




In view of the deficiencies in known dispensing closures, it is apparent that a top dispensing closure is needed for use with a container wherein the closure has a linerless sealing feature, the closure raises with reduced rotation revealing a fluid communication path with the container and, the closure has a ratcheted tamper indicating band having a tamper indicating function as well as preventing closure back-off from the bottle neck.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




The present invention is for an improved twist open/twist close one piece dispensing closure for use with a cooperatively structured container neck. The edge seal twist open/twist close closure of the present invention resolves many of the problems of the prior art devices noted above.




A first object of the present invention is to provide an easy to use twist open/twist close edge seal closure which allows fluid contained in the container to exit therefrom upon opening.




An additional object of the present invention is to provide a twist open/twist close edge seal closure which provides a dispensing spout extending outward from the dispensing orifice and which provides an adequate sealing disc for mating against the rim of the container top wall.




An even further object of the present invention is to provide an edge seal closure which adequately seals the neck of the container and prevents leakage of fluid or other materials in the container from dispensing around the threads of the container when the edge seal closure of the present invention is in the open or closed position.




It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a sealing disc on an edge seal twist open/twist close closure wherein the sealing disc provides a folding finger which mates against the rim of the container.




An additional object of the present invention is to provide a twist open/twist close edge seal closure which is rotatably engaged on the threads of the container neck and which has limit stops preventing the edge seal closure from rotating beyond a particular point from the container.




An even further object of the present invention is to provide a twist open/twist close edge seal closure wherein the sealing disc of the closure has ribs and spokes to support the sealing disc and provide adequate compression against the container top wall and rim such that complete sealing is effectuated when the edge seal closure is fully threaded onto the container neck.




Yet an even further object of the present invention is to provide a container having a neck and cantilevered from the neck is a top wall having a sealing rib or rim extending therefrom.




The twist open/twist close edge seal closure of the present invention provides for a twist open/twist close edge seal closure which is threadably engaged on the neck of the container, the edge seal closure having an upwardly extending spout and a side wall with a curved dispensing wall therebetween, a plurality of inwardly extending spokes which are supported against the interior side wall by a matching plurality of ribs, the spokes supporting a sealing disc therebelow, the sealing disc designed such that upon threaded application of the twist open/twist close edge seal closure onto a container, the folding finger of sealing disc compresses against the top surface of the container.




All of the above outlined objectives are to be understood as exemplary only and many other objectives of the invention may be gleaned from the disclosure herein. Therefore no limiting interpretation of the objectives noted are to be understood without further reading of the entire specification, claims and drawings included herewith.











DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS




A better understanding of the edge seal closure of the present invention may be had by reference to the attached drawings wherein like numerals referred to like elements, and wherein:





FIG. 1

is a side-sectional view of the edge seal closure of the present invention;





FIG. 1



a


is top perspective view of the twist open/twist close edge seal closure disclosed in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 2

is a side sectional view of the edge seal closure depicted in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 3

is a partial side cut away view the edge seal closure and container combination depicted in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 4

is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the edge seal closure of the present invention;





FIG. 5

is a side view of the alternative embodiment depicted in

FIG. 4

;





FIG. 6

is a partial side sectional view of the alternative embodiment depicted in FIG.


4


.





FIG. 7

shows a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the closure and container;





FIG. 8

shows a sectional view of the top dispense closure of

FIG. 7 and a

corresponding container;





FIG. 9

shows a sectional view of the closure and container of

FIG. 7

in the open position;





FIG. 10

shows a perspective view of the alternative closure of

FIG. 7

further depicting a partial cut-away portion; and,





FIG. 11

shows a sectional view of the alternative closure of FIG.


7


.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT




The twist open/twist close edge seal closure


10


of the present invention is depicted in FIG.


1


. As seen therein, the edge seal closure


10


is comprised of an upper dispensing spout


12


which has a dispensing aperture


11


located at the upper most portion thereof. Additionally, the edge seal closure


10


has a lower side wall


14


which is below the spout


12


and which has a curved dispensing wall


13


interposed there between. The twist open/twist close edge seal closure


10


of the present invention may also have a tamper indicating band


16


which is frangibly connected to the lower most edge of side wall


14


.




The twist open/twist close edge seal closure


10


of the present invention further has a sealing disc


30


on the interior thereof which is provided for mating against the top container wall


40


. The sealing disc


30


of the twist open/twist close edge seal closure of the present invention is interposed and held in place interiorly from the outer side wall


14


of the closure and may be placed vertically in the interior portion thereof anywhere between the spout and the lower portion of the side wall inclusive.




As depicted in the present embodiment, the sealing disc


30


is interposed in the interior of the twist open/twist close edge seal closure and is suspended in place by ribs


36


and spokes


34


. Ribs


36


are formed interiorly of the closure


10


and adjacent the curved dispensing wall


13


in order to provide adequate support for the sealing disc as the sealing disc


30


will be compressed against the container sealing edge


45


. The sealing disc


30


, as shown in the present example, is supported by plurality of spokes


34


, each of the spokes correspondingly held in place and affixed to the side wall by ribs


36


. The plurality of spokes


34


extend inwardly to the center hub


35


which may provide an enlarged support area for disc


30


such that adequate compression against the container top wall


40


, and more particularly container sealing edge


45


, may occur. Ribs


36


separate the peripheral edge of the sealing disc


30


from the inner surface of side wall


14


to produce a dispensing pathway there between. Thus, the flow dispensing material from the container may be adjusted not only by the vertical disposition of the closure on the container but also by the width of ribs


36


.




As depicted in the present embodiment and as is shown in

FIG. 2

, the sealing disc


30


is annular in order to match the annular container sealing edge


45


. However, various embodiments and designs are felt to fall within the teachings and disclosure of the present invention and the teachings herein are not limited to any particular sealing disc or surface.




As shown more clearly in

FIG. 2

, the sealing disc


30


has a flat sealing edge


33


which is formed on the peripheral portion of the disc


30


. Flat sealing edge


33


is provided such that a flat contacting surface is provided for mating against the flat container sealing edge


45


found on the container top wall


40


. Adjacent flat surfaces of both the sealing disc


30


and the container sealing edge


45


is used in order that adequate sealing is provided and such that the material contained within the container is not improperly dispensed through dispensing orifice


44


. Further, as can be seen from

FIG. 2

, the sealing disc


30


is comprised of an inner curved surface portion


38


which extends inwardly from the flat sealing edge


33


and which may depend inwardly into the dispensing orifice


44


. The design of the curved surface


38


in combination with the flat sealing edge


33


, the added support of center hub


35


, plurality of spokes


34


and ribs


36


all of which provide adequate support such that increased compression may be brought to bear between the flat sealing edge


33


and the container sealing edge


45


.




As can be seen from

FIG. 1



a,


and

FIG. 3

, the twist open/twist close edge seal closure


10


of the present invention is utilized in combination with a container having an upper side wall


44


and at least one thread


41


disposed thereon. As the edge seal closure


10


of the present invention is rotated about the upper side wall


42


and threads


41


of the container, sealing disc


30


moves vertically away from the dispensing orifice


44


of the container such that a dispensing distance


49


, as depicted in

FIG. 3

, is provided for dispensing of material contained within the container. Continued counter-clockwise rotation raises the sealing disc


30


, and the entire edge seal closure


10


, away from the container neck and container sealing edge


45


and allows material contained therein to be dispensed through the dispensing orifice and upward through release channel


48


between the outer peripheral edge of sealing disc


33


and inner portion of side wall


14


.




As can be seen from

FIG. 3

, the twist open/twist close edge seal closure


10


of the present invention is fully raised such that the material may be dispensed through release channel


48


and through the spout


12


in order to exit the dispensing aperture


11


of the closure


10


. The spout


12


, provided with the edge seal closure


10


of the present invention, allows for accurate dispensing of the material contents of the container while also preventing the material from leaking back on to the threads of the container. As also noted in

FIGS. 1

,


2


and


3


, there is provided on the interior side wall of the edge seal closure a sealing bead


18


which extends inwardly to contact the upper side wall


42


of the container thereby preventing leakage of the material once dispensed from entering the area between threads


41


. The sealing bead


18


may therefore extend inwardly from the side wall


14


of the edge seal closure


10


of the present invention, a sufficient distance such that a compressive seal or contact is made between the sealing bead


18


and the flat upper side wall


42


of the container.




As may also be seen from FIG.


3


and

FIG. 1

, a stop


43


is provided towards the upper end of threads


41


on the container which will thereby prevent continued counterclockwise rotation of the edge seal closure


10


of the present invention and to thereby prevent removal of the closure from the container. Thus, as can be clearly seen from

FIG. 1

, stop


43


is located towards the top end of the thread


41


and may have a flat contacting end


28


. As the twist open/twist close edge seal closure


10


of the present invention is rotated in the counter-clockwise direction, thread


17


of the closure, which may have flat thread end


27


depicted in

FIG. 2

, will eventually contact stop


43


by abutting against flat end


28


and thereby prevent continued counter-clockwise rotation. Such position of the stop


43


may indicate the upper most dispensing distance


49


for vertical travel or disposition of the disc


30


and for the closure


10


.




As may be further seen from

FIG. 1

, a tamper indicating (TI) band may be provided on the lower edge of the side wall


14


which may be frangibly connected to the side wall. Thus, upon initial counter-clockwise rotation of the edge seal closure


10


of the present invention, tamper indicating band


16


may contact tamper indicating bead


47


on the container in interference relationship and, as the side wall


14


rises, TI bead


47


prevents continued movement of TI band


16


thereby causing the TI band


16


to break away from the side wall


14


.




As shown in

FIG. 1



a,


the twist open/twist close edge seal closure of the present invention may have a plurality of vertical knurls located on the exterior of side wall


14


. These plurality of knurls.


14




a


may allow easy grasp and turning by the user of the present invention in order to open and close the edge seal closure.




As is also shown in

FIG. 1



a,


the sealing disc


30


is supported by the spokes


34


and further has the flat portion


33


and curved surface


38


extending inwardly therefrom. All of these areas provide adequate support and contacting surface for direct sealing of the container sealing edge


45


and closing of the dispensing orifice


44


.




The edge seal closure


10


of the present invention may be made of a number of plastics or other material allowing for ease of manufacturing and use. Typical injection molding operations may be utilized to injection mold the closure and various types of plastics are available as long as the peripheral portion


33


of the sealing disc is sufficiently rigid to compressively or tightly seal the container.




Structures which do not require an upwardly extending spout


12


as disclosed in

FIG. 1

may utilize the alternative embodiment of the sealing top


100


depicted in FIG.


4


. As shown therein, the collar


105


supports a plurality of upwardly extending spokes


104


which have at their upper most portion inwardly directed supports


103


. These supports, as similarly shown in the first embodiment, support along the lower edge thereof the sealing disc


107


which similarly has a flat sealing surface


109


along its outer peripheral edge and an inwardly curved depending sealing portion


108


, as is depicted in FIG.


6


and FIG.


5


. The flat sealing surface


109


contacts the container rib


124


such that when the collar


105


is rotated in a counter-clockwise direction, the sealing disc


107


separates from the container rim


124


and provides a dispensing channel


110


for release of the container contents. Thread


122


formed on the exterior side wall of the container allows collar


105


to threadably engage the container and vertically rise and lower thereon depending on the rotation imposed on collar


105


. The threaded sealing top


100


disclosed in

FIGS. 4

,


5


and


6


provides an adequate twist open/twist close edge seal closure which does not require an upwardly extending spout but which provides adequate support and compressive seal against the top rim of the container while also providing a visible feedback to the user that the container is adequately closed and sealed. Further, the user may define the proper dispensing channel


110


necessary for dispensing the required amount of material contained within the container.




As is similarly shown in

FIG. 1

, a stop


123


is placed on container side wall


120


in between threads


122


in order to prevent full removal of the threaded sealing top


100


of this embodiment and thereby limiting the vertical displacement of the sealing disc


107


from the container rim


124


. Also, the edge seal closure


100


may further have a tamper indicating band


106


placed thereon such that upon initial rotation of the collar


105


around container neck


125


, tamper indicating band


106


separates from the lower most edge of collar


105


.




Referring now to

FIGS. 7 and 8

, an alternative embodiment of the edge seal closure and container is shown. The twist open/twist close edge seal closure


210


has a lower side wall


262


, a curved dispensing wall


264


disposed above the lower side wall


262


, and a spout


260


for dispensing liquids contained within a container


214


. As depicted in

FIGS. 8 and 10

, extending radially inward from the curved dispensing wall


264


and lower sidewall


262


are a plurality of anti-crush ribs


248


, preferably six ribs


248


being equidistantly spaced. The anti-crush ribs


248


have a flat bottom surface


223


for seating on container top wall


224


and thereby prevent over-rotation of the edge seal closure


210


which may crush the upper portion of container neck


218


. The anti-crush ribs


248


may extend upward and radially inward as spokes


254


to a central position within the closure


210


.




Extending from an inner portion of each anti-crush rib


248


is a spoke


254


. Each of the preferably six spokes


254


converge in the center of the edge seal closure


210


. The spokes


254


provide strength and rigidity to closure


210


normally provided by a typical closure top wall. In turn, this allows top dispensing of the edge seal closure


210


. As best seen in

FIG. 10

, centrally located and depending from the spokes


254


is a sealing disc


256


. The sealing disc


256


in combination with a folding finger


250


prevents liquid from escaping from dispensing orifice


225


. The sealing disc


256


has a circular shape and a linerless seal or folding finger


250


depending from a peripheral edge of said disc. The sealing disc


256


does not extend radially to the inner surface of the lower side wall


262


. This provides an opening or fluid pathway


258


between sealing disc


256


and sidewall


262


wherein liquid contents may flow from container


214


when the closure


210


is in the open position shown in FIG.


10


. The folding finger


250


extends circumferentially about the edge seal closure


210


having a diameter substantially equal to a container dispensing orifice


225


. The folding finger


250


compressively seals against the container sealing rib or rim


226


inhibiting liquid escape from the container


214


when the closure


210


is rotatably threaded on the container


214


. The finger


250


preferably sealably engages the sealing rib


226


of container


214


when the anti-crush ribs


248


engage container top wall


224


preventing damage to the folding finger


250


due to over-rotation of closure


210


.




As seen in

FIG. 11

, on the inner portion of lower side wall


262


are preferably quad-lead threads


246


, meaning there are four threads for easy application of the closure


210


on the container


214


. In order to obtain a desirable quarter-turn opening characteristic, the quad-lead threads


246


preferably have a pitch of 2 threads per inch. Due to the short length of the closure threads


246


, the quad-lead threads


246


are also preferable in order to provide increased contact with the container threads


222


. The quad-lead threads


246


have a small first end


247


for easy starting and a blunt second end


249


. The blunt second ends


249


of the quad-lead closure threads


246


contact container rotation stops


228


, seen in

FIGS. 7-10

, extending from the container neck


218


. The rotation stops


228


may be spaced apart about 180 degrees and preferably have a tapered or ramped first surface such that the quad-lead threads


246


may easily move over the stops


228


as the closure


210


is threadably rotated on the container


214


. However, the container stops


228


also have a second flat surface perpendicular to the container neck


218


which the blunt end


249


of threads


246


abuts such that the threads


246


can not pass over the stops


228


. This also has an advantage of providing user feedback. When the closure


210


is rotatably opened through a height necessary to reveal the fluid pathway


258


, the blunt ends contact the stops


228


providing user feedback that the closure


210


is open for dispensing.




As shown in

FIGS. 7 and 10

, extending about the outer circumference of the lower side wall


262


are knurlings


252


. The knurlings


252


enhance the grip of closure


210


to aid in twisting open or twisting close the edge seal closure


210


. Beneath the knurling


252


and connected to lower side wall


262


by frangible webs


241


is a tanper indicating tear strap or band


240


shown in

FIGS. 8 and 9

. The frangible webs


241


also extend radially inward and downward forming ratchets


243


which engage container ratchets


220


and prevent the closure


210


from backing off the container


214


during shipping. If the closure


210


were to back-off the container


214


during, for instance, shipping the container


214


would not be sealed and contents therein would likely leak. Therefore, the tamper indication tear strap


240


performs two functions—first, it provides a tamper indicating means and second, it inhibits closure back-off associated with a two thread per inch pitch.




The container


214


, as depicted in

FIGS. 7 and 10

has a shoulder


216


upon which are a plurality of container ratchets


220


. The ratchets


220


have a first tapered surface for allowing application of the closure


210


and a flat surface which contacts ratchets


243


to prevent back off of closure


210


. The container ratchets


220


engage the tamper indicating band ratchets


241


to prevent the closure


210


from backing off the container


214


. Above the shoulder


216


are quad-lead container threads


222


, preferably having a pitch of two threads per inch, allowing a quarter rotation to dispose the closure


210


to an open position. The quad-lead threads


222


also allow the closure


210


to be easily started on the container


214


. Disposed within the container threads


222


are the rotation stops


228


, discussed above, which prevent the closure


210


from being fully removed from the container neck


218


. Also included between the container threads


222


may be torque retention detents (not shown) which provide a user with feedback that the closure


210


is fully closed. The increased torque to rotate closure


210


may signal the user that the container


214


is sealingly engaged by the closure


210


.




As shown in

FIG. 10

, above the container threads


222


is a container top wall


224


extending radially inward in a cantilevered manner from the neck


218


. Extending above the container top wall


224


is the sealing rim or rib


226


which defines the dispensing orifice


225


. Since the sealing rib


226


and the container top wall


224


are cantilevered radially inward from the container neck


218


, over rotation of a closure may cause the container neck


218


to crush in on itself. In this embodiment however, the anti-crush ribs


248


of closure


210


are seated on container top wall


224


stopping over-rotation of closure


210


, and preventing crushing of the container neck


218


.




The foregoing detailed description is primarily given for clearness of understanding for the edge seal dispensing closure of the present invention and no unnecessary limitations are to be understood therefrom or from the particular examples, functions and embodiments given herein. Modifications and other variations will become obvious to those skilled in the art upon reading of the disclosure contained herein including the figures and submitted claims without parting from the spirit of the invention of this scope of the appended claims.



Claims
  • 1. An edge seal closure for a container, comprising:an edge seal closure having an upper dispensing aperture and a side wall, said edge seal closure further having a sealing disc interposed within said side wall and depending from a plurality of spokes, said sealing disc separated on a peripheral edge from said side wall; a container threadably engageable with said edge seal closure and having a neck and a top wall, a sealing rim extending from said top wall, said rim sealingly engageable with a folding finger depending from said sealing disc.
  • 2. The edge seal closure of claim 1 further comprising anti-crush ribs extending radially inward from said sidewall to said spokes.
  • 3. The edge seal closure of claim 1 wherein said top wall is cantilevered radially inward from said container neck.
  • 4. The edge seal closure of claim 3, said sealing rim extending from said top wall and defining said dispensing aperture.
  • 5. The edge seal closure of claim 4, further comprising anti-crush ribs extending from an inner portion of said closure side wall and being disposed on said container top wall when said closure is in a closed position and said folding finger is sealingly engaging said sealing rim.
  • 6. The edge seal closure of claim 4 further comprising a spout extending upward from said side wall and having said dispensing aperture therein.
  • 7. The edge seal closure of claim 6 wherein a container thread is a quad-lead thread.
  • 8. The edge seal closure of claim 3 further comprising a thread on an outer surface of said container neck, said container further having a rotation stop engageable with a blunt end of a closure thread formed on an interior surface of said side wall of said edge seal closure.
  • 9. The edge seal closure of claim 3 further comprising a thread formed on an interior surface of said closure sidewall having a blunt end operably engaging a rotation stop of said container neck.
  • 10. The edge seal closure of claim 8 wherein said closure further has a curved dispensing wall disposed between a spout and said side wall, said spout having a diameter which is less than a diameter of said side wall.
  • 11. The edge seal closure of claim 1 further comprising a tamper indicating tear strap having ratchets extending radially inward from an inner surface thereof.
  • 12. The edge seal closure of claim 1 wherein a tamper indicating tear strap is frangibly connected to a lower edge of said edge seal closure.
  • 13. An edge seal closure for a container, comprising:an annular side wall portion, a curved wall dispensing portion thereabove, and a spout disposed above said curved wall dispensing portion; a plurality of anti-crush ribs extending radially inward from said side wall portion and said curved wall dispensing portion; a spoke extending radially inward from each of said plurality of anti-crush ribs and converging at an inner central location within said closure; a sealing disc depending from said plurality of spokes and having a folding finger depending from a peripheral edge of said sealing disc.
  • 14. The edge seal closure of claim 13 wherein said sealing disc and said side wall define an opening therebetween.
  • 15. The edge seal closure of claim 13 further comprising quad-lead threads extending from an inner surface of said side wall of said closure.
  • 16. The edge seal closure of claim 13 further comprising a tamper indicating tear strap band frangibly connected to said closure and having a plurality of ratchets disposed along an inner surface of said tamper indicating tear strap band.
  • 17. The edge seal closure of claim 13, said container having an annular neck with quad-lead threads extending helically around an outer surface of said container neck.
  • 18. The edge seal closure of claim 17 said container further having at least one rotation stop disposed on said container neck engageable with a blunt end of a closure thread.
  • 19. An edge sealing closure for a container, comprising:an annular side wall, a plurality of radially inwardly directed spokes extending from an interior of said annular side wall, a sealing disc depending from said spokes and having a folding finger extending about a peripheral edge of said sealing disc, anti-crush ribs disposed between said spokes and said interior of said annular side wall, an upwardly extending spout and a dispensing wall, said dispensing wall disposed between said annular sidewall and said upwardly extending spout, said annular sidewall having knurling and a tamper-indicating tear band frangibly connected thereto, said tear band having a plurality of ratchets on an inner surface thereof.
  • 20. The edge seal closure of claim 19 said container having a neck, a top wall extending radially inward from said container neck, a sealing rib disposed above said container top wall defining a dispensing orifice, a quad-lead thread disposed on an exterior surface of said container neck, and a plurality of container ratchets on said container neck.
  • 21. An edge seal closure, comprising:a top dispensing closure having a plurality of interiorly disposed radially extending strengthening spokes, an annular disc depending from said spokes and having a folding finger depending from a peripheral edge of said disc, a plurality of anti-crush ribs extending from said closure sidewall between said sidewall and said spokes, and a tamper indicating tear band depending from said closure, said tear band having a plurality of ratchets extending from an inner surface thereof.
  • 22. An edge seal closure, comprising:a top dispensing closure having a plurality of anti-crush ribs extending from an inner portion of a sidewall portion in a spaced configuration; said container neck having a container top wall, said container top wall cantilevered radially inward and having a sealing rib extending therefrom; said top dispensing closure threadably connected to said container neck for vertical displacement thereon; said anti-crush rib abutting said container top wall.
  • 23. The edge seal closure of claim 22, further comprising a plurality of spokes extending from said anti-crush ribs, and converging at a central position within said top dispensing closure, a sealing disc depending from said spokes and having a folding finger depending from a peripheral edge of said sealing disc.
  • 24. The edge seal closure of claim 23 wherein said folding finger compressively seals against said sealing rib.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO PRIOR APPLICATION

This Continuation-in-part application claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/973,526, filed on Oct. 9, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,427,881 which is incorporated herein by reference.

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Continuation in Parts (1)
Number Date Country
Parent 09/973526 Oct 2001 US
Child 10/191206 US