INVERTED CONTAINER WITH AUTOMATIC CAP

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to an inverted container with an automatic cap from which the internal substance in a vessel body is discharged by an increase of the internal pressure of the vessel body that is generated when the vessel body is pressed. In more detail, the present disclosure relates to an inverted container with an automatic cap that is configured to be changed into an open mode or a close mode by rotating an up and down knob at 90° such that, in the open mode, when a user just holds and presses a vessel body, a discharge hole of the up and down knob automatically opens and the internal substance is very smoothly discharged, and when the force pressing the vessel body is removed, the discharge hole is automatically closed by elastic restoring force of an elastic member and leakage of the internal substance can be effectively prevented, and, particularly in the close mode, the discharge hole of the up and down knob is not unexpectedly opened, so the internal substance does not unexpectedly leak even if the vessel body is unexpectedly pressed in distributing, carrying, and keeping, thereby being able to further increase reliability of the product.

BACKGROUND ART

In general, substances, such as liquid-state cosmetics, liquid-state detergents, body products such as shampoo and rinse, liquid-state sauces such as Ganjang (soy sauce) or vinegar, are stored in containers and discharged and used by an appropriate amount when they are needed.

Such containers mostly have an outlet for discharging the internal substance on the top thereof. However, when a small amount of the internal substance remains in such containers, the small amount of internal substances remain on the bottom of the containers, so it is difficult to discharge the small amount of internal substances through the outlet, and accordingly, it is substantially difficult to completely use the internal substances. Many containers are thrown away with a small amount of internal substance remaining therein in most cases for this reason, so there is a problem that a portion of the internal substances is wasted and causes environmental pollution as well.

Accordingly, containers having an outlet on the bottom have been proposed and such containers are configured to be erected on a table because the bottom of a container cap (supporting cap) is made flat and are configured such that the outlet is opened and closed by turning the container cap.

However, since the outlet is formed on the flat bottom of the container cap of such containers, the internal substances are discharged with dirt such as dust adhering to the edge of the outlet, through the outlet, so the dirt is mixed in the internal substance, which cause a sanitary problem.

Further, since the outlet of the containers is formed at the lower end of the containers and liquid-state internal substances gravitate to the lower part of the containers, there is a problem that when the outlet is opened, a large amount of internal substances are unnecessarily discharged and wasted.

An “Upside down container” has been disclosed in Korean Patent No. 10-1542590 to solve these problems.

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an inverted-type container of the related art and FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing the inverted-type container of the related art.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the inverted-type container of the related art includes: a container body 10 that is filled with an internal substance, is formed in a tube type so that a user can discharge the internal substance by pressing the container body, and has an outlet 11 on the bottom; a supporting cap 20 that is formed in a cylindrical shape with an open bottom, is coupled to the container body 10 such that the top thereof communicates with the outlet 11 of the container body 10, and is supported on the bottom on the floor; an operation knob 30 that is coupled to the edge of the outlet 11 of the container body 10 or the supporting cap 20 to be able to ascend/descend, has a lower end positioned higher than the lower end of the supporting cap 20, and has a discharge hole 32, through which the internal substance is discharged, at the center of the bottom thereof; a close member 40 that is disposed between the outlet 11 of the container body 10 and the operation knob 30 and of which the lower end closes the discharge hole 32 of the operation knob 30 that has ascended, and a diaphragm 50 that is formed such that the thickness decreases toward the edge from the center, has a through hole 51, through which the close member 40 is disposed, at the center, is disposed between the outlet 11 of the container body 10 and the close member 40, and connects/disconnects the outlet 11 of the container body 10 and the discharge hole 32 while being deformed by the internal pressure of the container body 10, in which when a user moves down the operation knob 30, the discharge hole 32 of the operation knob 30 is spaced from the lower end of the close member 40 and opened, and when a user presses the container body 10, the internal substance is discharged to the outside because the internal pressure of the container body 10 is increased, the diaphragm 50 is deformed, and the outlet 11 and the discharge hole 32 are connected; however, when the user takes the pressing hand off the container body 10, the internal substance remaining between the diaphragm 50 and the discharge hole 32 of the operation knob 30 is suctioned into the container body 10 by vacuum suction force that is generated by a decrease of the internal pressure of the container body 10.

However, according to the inverted-type container of the related art, an ascending/descending projection 31 is formed on the inner surface of the operation knob 30, is inserted in an ascending/descending groove 27 of a fitting tube portion 21 of the supporting cap 20, and is configured to move along the ascending/descending groove 27, when the operation knob 30 is turned and moved down from the container body 10 to discharge the internal substance from the container body 10, the ascending/descending projection 31 is moved along the ascending/descending groove 27. According to the inverted-type container of the related art, when a user first opens the

discharge hole 32 of the operation knob 30 by moving down the operation knob 30 by turning the operation knob 30 and then presses the container body 10, the internal pressure of the container body 10 is increased and the pressure applied to the top of the diaphragm 50 is increased, so the edge of the diaphragm 50 is pressed down and a gap is generated between the edge and the inner surface of the fitting tube portion 21 of the supporting gap 20, whereby the internal substance flows to the discharge hole 32 of the operation knob 30 through the gap and is then discharged to the outside. In this structure, when a user first opens the discharge hole 32 of the operation knob 30 and then presses the container body 10, the internal pressure of the container body 10 is increased and the internal substance is discharged, so the diaphragm 50 is necessarily required to prevent the internal substance from being unexpectedly discharged through the discharge hole 32.

However, there is the advantage that the diaphragm 50 of the inverted-type container prevents the internal substance from being unexpectedly discharged through the discharge hole 32, but there is the problem that the internal substance is not smoothly discharged due to the diaphragm 50. That is, there is a problem that when it is required to discharge a large amount of internal substance, the diaphragm 50 acts as an obstacle, if anything, so the internal substance is not smoothly discharged.

Further, when a user wants to stop discharge of an internal substance (erect the container), the user has to first close the discharge hole 32 of the operation knob 30 by moving up the operation knob 30 to the initial position by turning the operation knob 30 in the opposite direction in order to prevent the internal substance from being discharged out of the container body 10 through the discharge hole 32, so it is inconvenient for a user to have to move up the operation knob 30 to the initial position by turning the operation knob 30 in the opposite direction.

Further, according to the inverted-type container of the related art, if a user does not immediately move up the operation knob 30 after using the container, there may be a problem that the remaining internal substance leaks out through the diaphragm 50 and the discharge hole 32, so the portion around the discharge hole 32 is contaminated and the discharge hole 32 is clogged with the dried and hardened substance.

Further, a “Cap opening and closing device for liquid vessel” has been disclosed in Korean Patent No. 10-1357310.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the external appearance of the liquid vessel of the related art and FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the external appearance of the cap part of the liquid vessel.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, the cap opening and closing device for liquid vessel of the related art is composed of: a vessel 10; a cap 20 thread-fastened to the inlet of the vessel 10; and an opening/closing member 30 installed in the vessel 10 through between the cap 20 and the inlet of the vessel 10 and discharging or stopping an internal substance when the vessel 1 is pressed from the outside. The opening/closing member 30 is composed of: a rotary opening/closing member 31 being a cylindrical member being open on the top and the bottom and composed of a cylindrical dial 31a that protrudes to the top from the lower portion to be inserted in a center hole 21 of the cap 20, a flange 31b that is integrally formed with a larger diameter at the lower portion of the cylindrical dial 31a and is seated on the inner surface at the lower portion of the cap 20, a pair of protruding plates 31c that symmetrically protrudes at both sides perpendicularly to the inner surface of the cylindrical dial 31a, and a liquid discharge hole 31d that is formed at the center of the top of the cylindrical dial 31a; a vertical moving rod member 32 having a rod shape and composed of two pairs of protrusions 32a that are symmetrically formed on both sides of an upper end, respectively, such the pair of protruding plates 31c of the rotary opening/closing member 31 is inserted and rotated with rotation of the rotary opening/closing member 31, lower end protrusions 32b that protrude in the same directions as the two pairs of protrusions 32a from both sides of a lower end, lower portion protrusions 32d that protrude from both sides of a lower portion and each have a circular plate 32c vertically formed at the end thereof, and a circular outer circumferential groove 32e that is formed right mover the lower end protrusions 32b; and a vessel internal member 33 composed of a circular portion 33b in which the upper end of the vertical moving rod member 32 is inserted through an upper hole 33a formed at the center and that is inserted between the cap 20 and the vessel 10, a band-shaped member 33c that is formed in a U-shape on both sides of the lower portion of the circular portion 33b, a lower slit 33d in which the lower end protrusions 32d of the vertical moving rod member 32 are inserted at the center of the lowermost surface of the band-shaped member 33c, and inner protrusions 33f that protrude inward from the inner surfaces of both walls of the band-shaped member 33c and each have an inner circular plate 33e formed to bring the circular plates 32c of the vertical moving rod member 32 in contact with each other.

However, in the cap opening and closing device for liquid vessel of the related art, the size of the opening/closing member 30 that discharges or stops an internal substance when the vessel 10 is pressed is larger than the inlet of the vessel 10, so it is very difficult to push or take the opening/closing member 30 into or out of the inlet of the vessel 10 in assembling or refilling with an internal substance.

In particular, when a user refills the vessel with an internal substance after using up the internal substance in the vessel, the user has to reduce the volume by holding and pressing the vessel internal member 33 with the internal substance adhering thereto with a hand and then has to insert the internal substance into the inlet of the vessel 10, so refilling is very inconvenient. Further, there is a problem that the structure of the cap opening and closing device is complicated, the number of parts is large, and assembling is difficult, so assemblability is deteriorated and the manufacturing cost is increased.

DISCLOSURE
Technical Problem

The present disclosure has been made in an effort to solve the problems described above and a first objective of the present disclosure is to provide an inverted container with an automatic cap that is configured to discharge an internal substance in a vessel body by an increase of the internal pressure of the vessel body that is generated when a user presses the vessel body and that is configured to be changed into an open mode or a close mode by a user rotating an up and down knob at 90° such that, in the open mode, even though a user just holds and presses the vessel body, a discharge hole of the up and down knob automatically opens and the internal substance is very smoothly discharged, and when the force pressing the vessel body is removed, the discharge hole is automatically closed by elastic restoring force of an elastic member and leakage of the internal substance can be effectively prevented, and, particularly in the close mode, the discharge hole of the up and down knob is not unexpectedly opened, so the internal substance does not unexpectedly leak even if the vessel body is unexpectedly pressed while the container is distributed or carried and stored, thereby being able to further increase reliability of the product.

Further, a second objective of the present disclosure is to provide an inverted container with an automatic cap that is configured to discharge an internal substance in a vessel body by an increase of the internal pressure of the vessel body that is generated when a user presses the vessel body and that is configured to very easily discharge an internal substance and prevent unexpected leakage of the internal substance even without a diaphragm of the related art because even though an up and down knob is not turned and moved down, unlike the related art, a discharge hole of the up and down knob is automatically opened and simultaneously an internal substance is discharged through the discharge hole by an increase of the internal pressure of the vessel body, and on the contrary, even though the up and down knob is not turned and moved up, unlike the related art, the up and down knob closes the discharge hole while being moved up by elastic restoration force of an elastic member, whereby leakage of the internal substance is automatically prevented.

Technical Solution

In order to achieve the objectives, an inverted container with an automatic cap includes: a tube-type vessel body that has a space for accommodating an internal substance therein, has a first fastening portion at the lower portion, and has a first outlet for discharging the internal substance at the center of the first fastening portion; a support cap that a second fastening portion therein to be separably coupled to the first fastening portion, has a second outlet communicating with the first outlet at the center, and has a flange for supporting on the floor at the lower portion; an up and down knob that is installed horizontally rotatably at a predetermined angle in the support cap to be able to change into a vertically descending-possible state and is partially exposed outside the second outlet to discharge an internal substance through a discharge hole formed at the center by being vertically moved down by discharge pressure of the internal substance when a user presses the vessel body; an elastic member that is installed in the support cap to return the up and down knob to the initial position by elastically supporting upward the up and down knob; and a close member that is installed in the support cap to selectively open/close the discharge hole of the up and down knob and is configured to close the discharge hole when the up and down knob is moved up and to open the discharge hole when the up and down knob is moved down.

Further, an opening/closing guide rail may be formed on the inner surface of the second outlet in the support cap to change into an open mode (or unlocking mode) (descending-possible state) or a close mode (locking mode) (descending-impossible state) by horizontally rotating the up and down knob, a down groove for vertical descending of the up and down knob may be formed on a first side of the opening/closing guide rail, and a stopper for limiting the horizontal rotation angle of the up and down knob may be formed on a second side of the opening/closing guide rail.

Here, the open mode is an unlocking mode as a descending-possible state in which it is possible to pen the discharge hole of the up and down knob by rotating the up and down knob at 90° counterclockwise to discharge an internal substance.

Further, the close mode is a locking mode as a descending-impossible state in which an internal substance is prevented from unexpectedly leak by preventing the discharge hole of the up and down knob from being unexpectedly opened by rotating the up and down knob at 90° clockwise.

Further, the close member includes:

- an annular close body having a step formed on the outer surface to be seated on a support rib formed in the support cap; and a close rod formed at the center of the close body to open/close the discharge hole of the up and down knob and formed in a downwardly gradually tapered shape.

Further, the up and down knob includes:

- a knob body formed in a hollow structure, having a space therein in which the close rod is inserted, and having a discharge hole that is opened/closed by the close rod at the lower end; a spring contact portion formed at the upper end of the knob body to be supported on the elastic member; an anti-internal substance leakage surface formed on the outer surface of the middle portion of the knob body to be in close contact with the inner surface of the second outlet; opening/closing guide protrusions formed at both sides of the outer surface of the knob body to move along the opening/closing guide rail; and handles formed at both sides of the outer surface of the lower end of the knob body exposed outside the second outlet to rotate the knob body at 90° counterclockwise or 90° clockwise.

Further, an opening/closing indicator showing an open mode or a close mode of the discharge hole is formed on the bottom of the support cap.

Further, the elastic member includes:

- an annular lower base supported on the bottom in the support cap; an annular upper base being in contact with the spring contact portion; and a plurality of elastic portions integrally formed between the lower base and the upper base, disposed between the close body and the knob body, and having a plurality of unit tension cells, which has a diamond-shaped tension rib and a stretchable space formed in the tension rib and longitudinally extends, to generate elastic restoration force in the up-down direction when the unit cells are contracted and stretched in the up-down direction.

Advantageous Effects

As described above, the present disclosure has the following effects.

First, an opening/closing guide rail is formed along the inner surface of a second outlet in a support cap, a down groove for vertical descending of an up and down knob on a first side of the opening/closing guide rail, and a stopper for limiting the horizontal rotation angle of the up and down knob is formed on a second side of the opening/closing guide rail, so a user can change the container into an open mode or a close mode by rotating the up and down knob at 90°, whereby the discharge hole of the up and down knob is automatically opened and an internal substance is very smoothly discharged when a user only holds and presses a vessel body in the open mode, and when the user stops the force pressing the vessel body, the discharge hole is automatically closed by elastic restoration force of an elastic member and it is possible to effectively prevent leakage of the internal substance, and particularly, the discharge hole of the up and down knob is not unexpectedly opened in the close mode, so the internal substance does not unexpectedly leak even if the vessel body is unexpectedly pressed in distributing, carrying, and keeping, whereby it is possible to further increase the reliability of the product.

Second, an internal substance in the vessel body is discharged by an increase of pressure that is generated when the vessel body is pressed, and unlike the related art, the discharge hole of the up and down knob is automatically opened and the internal substance is discharged through the discharge hole even though the up and down knob is turned and moved down, and on the contrary, even though the up and down knob is not turned and moved up, unlike the related art, the up and down knob automatically closes the discharge hole while being moved up by elastic restoration force of the elastic member, whereby leakage of the internal substance is prevented, so there is the advantage that it is very easy to discharge the internal substance and prevent the internal substance from unexpectedly leaking even without a diaphragm of the related art.

Third, unlike the opening/closing devices of an automatic cap of a liquid container of the related art, the size of an opening/closing structure for preventing an internal substance from being discharged and from leaking is smaller than the inlet of the vessel body, the entire structure is simple, the number of parts is small, so there is an effect that assembly is easy and the manufacturing cost is reduced, and there is an advantage that it is very convenient to refill the container with an internal substance.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an inverted-type container of the related art.

FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the inverted-type container of the related art.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the external appearance of a liquid vessel of the related art.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the external appearance of the cap part of the liquid vessel.

FIG. 5 is an assembled perspective view showing an inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 is an exploded bottom view showing the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 8A-8D are a view showing a support cap, an up and down knob, a close member, and an elastic member in the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 9A-9B are an enlarged view showing the top and the bottom of the support cap in the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 is a view showing the up and down knob in the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 11A-11B are an enlarged view showing the top and the bottom of the close member in the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 12 is an enlarged perspective view showing the elastic member in the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 13 is an enlarged front view showing the elastic member in the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 14 and 16 are views showing a close state of a discharge hole of the up and down knob as cross-sectional views taken along line A-A in FIG. 5.

FIGS. 15 and 17 are views showing an open state of the discharge hole of the up and down knob when the internal pressure of a vessel body is increased by pressing the vessel body.

FIG. 18 is an enlarged view of FIG. 16.

FIG. 19 is an enlarged view of FIG. 17.

BEST MODE

Hereafter, preferred embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings such that those skilled in the art can easily achieve the present disclosure.

Technologies well known in the art and not directly relevant to the present disclosure are not described in the following description of this embodiment. This is for more clearly communicating the subject of the present disclosure without making the subject unclear by omitting unnecessary description.

Hereafter, an inverted container with an automatic cap according to the present disclosure is described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 5 is an assembled perspective view showing an inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 7 is an exploded bottom view showing the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, FIGS. 8A-8B are a view showing a support cap, an up and down knob, a close member, and an elastic member in the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, FIGS. 9A-9B are an enlarged view showing the top and the bottom of the support cap in the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing the up and down knob in the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, FIGS. 11A-11B are an enlarged view showing the top and the bottom of the close member in the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, FIG. 12 is an enlarged perspective view showing the elastic member in the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, FIG. 13 is an enlarged front view showing the elastic member in the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, FIGS. 14 and 16 are views showing a close state of a discharge hole of the up and down knob as cross-sectional views taken along line A-A in FIG. 5, FIGS. 15 and 17 are views showing an open state of the discharge hole of the up and down knob when the internal pressure of a vessel body is increased by pressing the vessel body, FIG. 18 is an enlarged view of FIG. 16, and FIG. 19 is an enlarged view of FIG. 17.

As shown in the figures, an inverted container 100 with an automatic cap according to the present disclosure includes: a vessel body 110 that is made of an elastic material, has a space 111 for accommodating an internal substance therein, has a first fastening portion 113 at the lower portion, and has a first outlet 115 for discharging the internal substance at the center of the first fastening portion 113; a support cap 120 that has a second fastening portion 123 therein to be separably coupled to the first fastening portion 113, has a second outlet 125 communicating with the first outlet 115 at the center, and has a flange 127 for supporting on the floor at the lower portion; an up and down knob 130 that is installed horizontally rotatably at a predetermined angle in the support cap 120 to be able to change into a vertically descending-possible state and is partially exposed outside the second outlet 125 to discharge an internal substance through a discharge hole 131 formed at the center by being vertically moved down by discharge pressure of the internal substance when a user presses the vessel body 110; an elastic member 140 that is installed in the support cap 120 to return the up and down knob 130 to the initial position by elastically supporting upward the up and down knob 130; and a close member 150 that is installed in the support cap 120 to selectively open/close the discharge hole 131 of the up and down knob 130 and is configured to close the discharge hole 131 when the up and down knob 130 is moved up and to open the discharge hole 131 when the up and down knob 130 is moved down.

Further, the inverted container 100 with an automatic cap according to the present disclosure is technologically characterized in that an opening/closing guide rail 126 is circumferentially formed on the inner surface of the second outlet 125 in the support cap 120, a down groove 128 for vertical descending of the up and down knob 130 is formed on a first side of the opening/closing guide rail 126, and a stopper 129 for limiting the horizontal rotation angle of the up and down knob 130 is formed on a second side of the opening/closing guide rail 126 such that the container is changed into an open mode or a close mode by rotting the up and down knob 130 horizontally by 90°, so, in the open mode, even though a user holds and presses the vessel body, the discharge hole of the up and down knob is automatically opened and the internal substance is smoothly discharged, and when the force pressing the vessel body is removed, the discharge hole is automatically closed by elastic restoration force of the elastic member, so it is possible to effectively prevent leakage of the internal substance, and particularly, in the close mode, the discharge hole of the up and down knob is not unexpectedly opened, so even if the vessel body is unexpectedly pressed in distributing, carrying, and keeping, the internal substance is not unexpectedly discharged, whereby it is possible to further increase reliability of the product.

Hereafter, the configuration of the inverted container 100 with an automatic cap is described in more detail.

First, as shown in FIGS. 5, 6, and 7, the vessel body 110, which may be an elastic container that can discharge an internal substance when being pressed by a user, is an elastic container that is filled with body products, such as a liquid-state cosmetic, a liquid-state detergent, a liquid-state shampoo, and a liquid-state rinse, and liquid sauces such as Ganjang or vinegar. The vessel body 110 has a space 111 for accommodating an internal substance therein,

a fastening portion (neck portion) 113 at the lower portion, and a first outlet 115 (see FIG. 7) for discharging the internal substance at the center of the first fastening portion 113.

Further, the support cap 120, which is coupled to the lower end of the vessel body 10 to keep the vessel body 110 erected on a table (not shown), is formed in a cylindrical shape with an open bottom and the top thereof is coupled to the bottom of the vessel body 110.

As shown in FIGS. 7, 8A-8D, and 9A-9B, the support cap 120 has a second fastening portion 123 therein to be separably coupled to the first fastening portion 113, a second outlet 125 communicating with the first outlet 115 at the center, and a flange 127 for supporting on the ground at the lower portion.

Further, the up and down knob 130 is installed to be horizontally rotatable at a predetermined angle in the support cap 120.

When a user holds and presses the vessel body 110, the internal pressure of the vessel body 110 is increased, that is, the discharge pressure of the internal substance is increased, so the up and down knob 130 is vertically moved down and positioned to be partially exposed outside the second outlet 125 such that the internal substance is discharged through the discharge hole 131 formed at the center.

Referring to FIGS. 8A-8D, the opening/closing guide rail 126 is formed on the inner surface of the second outlet 125 in the support cap 120 to change into a descending-possible state (open mode or unlocking mode) or a descending-impossible state (close mode or locking mode) by horizontally rotating the up and down knob 130.

A down groove 128 for vertical descending of the up and down knob 130 is formed on a first side of the opening/closing guide rail 126 and a stopper 129 for limiting the horizontal rotation angle of the up and down knob 130 is formed on the second side of the opening/closing guide rail 126.

Further, the elastic member 140 is installed in the support cap 120 to elastically support and return the up and down knob 130 to the initial position. That is, when an internal substance is discharged with the up and down knob 130 moved down and an exposure hole 132 open, the elastic member 140 is pressed (compressed) down by the discharge pressure, but when the internal substance stops being discharged, the elastic member 140 is elastically restored to the initial position.

The configuration of the elastic member 140 is described in more detail. The elastic member 140 includes: an annular lower base 141 supported on the bottom in the support cap 120;

an annular upper base 142 being in contact with a spring contact portion 133; and a plurality of elastic portions 145 integrally formed between the lower base 141 and the upper base 142, disposed between a close body 151 and a knob body 132, and having a plurality of unit tension cells, which has a diamond-shaped tension rib 143 and a stretchable space 144 formed in the tension rib 143 and longitudinally extends, to generate elastic restoration force in the up-down direction when the unit cells are contracted and stretched in the up-down direction.

The lower base 141 and the upper base 142 are each formed in a ring shape, and the lower base 141 is configured to be in contact with the bottom in the support cap 120 and the upper base 142 is configured to be in contact with the spring contact portion 133.

The elastic portions 145 are disposed between the close body 151 and the knob body 132, the tension ribs 143 are formed in diamond shapes between the lower base 141 and the upper base 142, the stretchable spaces 144 are formed in the tension ribs 143, and a plurality of unit cells longitudinally extends to generate elastic restoration force in the up-down direction when the unit cells are contracted and stretched in the up-down direction.

Further, the close member 150 is installed in the support cap 120 to selectively open/close the discharge hole 131 of the up and down knob 130 and is configured to close the discharge hole 131 when the up and down knob 130 is moved up and to open the discharge hole 131 when the up and down knob 130 is moved down.

The configuration of the close member 150 is described hereafter in more detail with FIG. 11.

The close member 150 includes: an annular close body 151 having a step 152 formed on the outer surface to be seated on a support rib 121 formed in the support cap 120; and a close rod 153 formed at the center of the close body 151 to open/close the discharge hole 131 of the up and down knob 130 and formed in a downwardly gradually tapered shape.

Prominences and recessions 157 are formed on the inner surface of the support rib 121 and the outer surface of the lower end portion of the close body 151 to firmly fix the close body 151.

A plurality of reinforcing ribs 154 is formed on the outer surface of the close rod 153, thereby increasing the durability of the close rod 153 itself and stably maintaining the position of the close rod 153.

That is, the ribs are configured such that the close rod 153 is positioned at a correct position and is accurately inserted into the discharge hole 131 when the up and down knob 130 is moved up and down.

A cross-shaped support bar 155 supporting the close rod 153 is formed at the upper portion of the close body 151 and an internal substance intake hole 156 is formed in the close rod support bar 155. A plurality of reinforcing ribs 154 is integrally formed at the lower portion of the cross-shaped support bar 155.

The configuration of the up and down knob 130 is described hereafter in more detail with FIGS. 10 and 11.

The up and down knob 130 includes: a knob body 132 formed in a hollow structure, having a space therein in which the close rod 153 is inserted, and having a discharge hole 131 that is opened/closed by the close rod 153 at the lower end; a spring contact portion 133 formed at the upper end of the knob body 132 to be supported on the elastic member 140; an anti-internal substance leakage surface 134 formed on the outer surface of the middle portion of the knob body 132 to be in close contact with the inner surface of the second outlet 125; opening/closing guide protrusions 135 formed at both sides of the outer surface of the knob body 132 to move along the opening/closing guide rail 126; and handles 136 formed at both sides of the outer surface of the lower end of the knob body 132 exposed outside the second outlet 125 (see FIGS. 9A-9D) to rotate the knob body 132 at 90° counterclockwise or 90° clockwise.

The knob body 132 is formed in a hollow structure, has a space therein in which the close rod 153 is inserted, and has a discharge hole 131 that is opened/closed by the close rod 152 at the lower end. It is preferable that an inclined surface 131a is formed on the inner surface of the discharge hole 131 so that the close rod 153 is smoothly inserted into the discharge hole 131.

The spring contact portion 133 is formed flat on the outer surface of the upper end of the knob body 132 to be supported on the elastic member 140.

The upper base 142 of the elastic member 140 is stably in contact with the spring contact portion 133, so the up and down knob 130 is more stably supported by the elastic member 140 and the up and down knob 130 does not shake left and right when moving up and down, whereby the close rod 153 is correctly positioned in the discharge hole 131 of the up and down knob 130, and accordingly, the problem of unexpected leakage of an internal substance through the discharge hole 131 is not generated.

The anti-internal substance leakage surface 134 is stepped on the outer surface of the middle portion of the knob body 131 to be in close contact with the inner surface of the second outlet 125.

The opening/closing guide protrusion 135 is formed at both sides of the outer surface of the knob body 132 to move along the opening/closing guide rail 126. That is, the opening/closing guide protrusion 135 is configured to move along the opening/closing guide rail 126 in contact with the opening/closing guide rail 126.

The handles 136 are formed at both sides of the outer surface of the lower end of the knob body 132 exposed outside the second outlet 125 to rotate the knob body 132 at 90° counterclockwise or 90° clockwise.

Further, an opening/closing indicator 122 (see FIGS. 9A-9B) showing the open mode or the close mode of the discharge hole 131 is formed on the bottom of the support cap 120, so when a user first changes the container into the open mode (or unlocking mode) by holding and rotating the handles 135 at 90° counterclockwise and then presses the vessel body 110 to discharge an internal substance, the up and down knob 130 is moved down and opens the discharge hole 131 by the discharge pressure of the internal substance, and in this case, the internal substance can be discharged through the discharge hole 131 (see FIG. 19).

On the other hand, when the user stops the force pressing the vessel body 110 to stop discharge of the internal substance (when erecting or keeping the container), the vessel body 110 is elastically restored and the up and down knob 130 is moved up by the internal suction force of the vessel body 10, and in this case, the discharge hole 131 is closed (blocked) by the close rod 153 of the close member 150, whereby leakage of the internal substance is prevented (see FIG. 18).

Thereafter, the user changes the container into the close mode (or locking mode) by holding and rotating the handles 135 at 90° clockwise, whereby the discharge hole of the up and down knob is not unexpectedly opened particularly in the close mode, so even if the vessel body 110 is unexpectedly pressed in distributing, carrying, and keeping, the internal substance does not unexpectedly leak, and accordingly, it is possible to further increase the reliability of the product.

Hereafter, the operation of the inverted container with an automatic cap according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure is described with reference to the drawings.

First, in order to discharge the internal substance of the vessel body 110, a user holds the handles 135, as in FIGS. 9A-9B, and rotates the up and down knob 130 at 90° counterclockwise in the direction of an arrow, thereby changing the container into the open mode (or unlocking mode) (see FIGS. 9A-9B).

Next, when the user holds and presses the vessel body 110, the up and down knob 130 is moved down and opens the discharge hole 131 by an increase of the internal discharge pressure of the vessel body 110, and in this case, the elastic member 140 is moved (compressed) down and the internal substance can be discharged through the discharge hole 131 (see FIG. 19).

On the other hand, when the user stops the force pressing the vessel body 110 to stop discharge of the internal substance (when erecting or keeping the container), the vessel body 110 is restored into the initial shape by elastic restoration force of the vessel body 110, and in this case, suction force is generated in the vessel body 110.

Further, the up and down knob 130 is moved up by the elastic restoration force of the elastic member 140, and in this case, the discharge hole 131 is closed (blocked) by the close rod 153 of the close member 150, whereby leakage of the internal substance is prevented (see FIG. 18).

Thereafter, the user changes the container into the close mode (or locking mode) by holding and rotating the up and down knob 130 at 90° clockwise (see FIGS. 9A-9B), whereby the discharge hole 132 of the up and down knob is not unexpectedly opened, so even if the vessel body 110 is unexpectedly pressed in distributing, carrying, and keeping, the internal substance does not unexpectedly leak, and accordingly, it is possible to further increase the reliability of the product.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

As described above, the present disclosure has the following effects. First, an opening/closing guide rail is formed along the inner surface of a second outlet in a support cap, a down groove for vertical descending of an up and down knob on a first side of the opening/closing guide rail, and a stopper for limiting the horizontal rotation angle of the up and down knob is formed on a second side of the opening/closing guide rail, so a user can change the container into an open mode or a close mode by rotating the up and down knob at 90°, whereby the discharge hole of the up and down knob is automatically opened and an internal substance is very smoothly discharged when a user only holds and presses a vessel body in the open mode, and when the user stops the force pressing the vessel body, the discharge hole is automatically closed by elastic restoration force of an elastic member and it is possible to effectively prevent leakage of the internal substance, and particularly, the discharge hole of the up and down knob is not unexpectedly opened in the close mode, so the internal substance does not unexpectedly leak even if the vessel body is unexpectedly pressed in distributing, carrying, and keeping, whereby it is possible to further increase the reliability of the product.

Second, an internal substance in the vessel body is discharged by an increase of pressure that is generated when the vessel body is pressed, and unlike the related art, the discharge hole of the up and down knob is automatically opened and the internal substance is discharged through the discharge hole even though the up and down knob is turned and moved down, and on the contrary, even though the up and down knob is not turned and moved up, unlike the related art, the up and down knob automatically closes the discharge hole while being moved up by elastic restoration force of the elastic member, whereby leakage of the internal substance is prevented, so there is an advantage that it is very easy to discharge the internal substance and prevent the internal substance from unexpectedly leaking even without a diaphragm of the related art.

INVERTED CONTAINER WITH AUTOMATIC CAP

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