Patent Application
20130140310
The present disclosure relates to an apparatus and kit for opening a small container using only one hand.
One area of applicability for this apparatus and kit is for preparing a solution for cleaning the mouths of patients incapable of performing this task themselves. This incapacity means that the oral care needs of the patient must be performed by a medical professional, typically a nurse. Current hospital schedules and responsibilities favor the use of the most efficient and least time intensive procedures and products for each task.
The task of oral care generally uses implements such as single use applicators and suction apparatus. The applicators may have absorbent foam on the distal end which serves to absorb a cleaning solution that may then be applied to the patient's teeth. The cleaning solution may be provided in a separate container that has a large supply of solution for multiple uses. It is important in the use of a large supply, however, that the cleanliness of the supply be maintained by avoiding the insertion of a used applicator into the supply liquid.
Alternatively, some suppliers use a “burst pack” of liquid sized to deliver an amount appropriate for a single use. The burst pack is designed to rupture with the application of a predetermined amount of force delivered by the medical professional. The burst pack is typically packaged with the applicator in a single-use bag. When the pack is ruptured, the liquid within it flows to the lowest point in the interior of the bag, where it contacts the absorbent foam of the applicator. One example of this packaging format may be found in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/649,730 directed to a pack of oral care items.
In still another alternative, “peel packs” that have an area of weakness that is separated to open the container, e.g. the interface between peelable lids or foils from walled containers, have also been used. Peel packs unfortunately, require the use of two hands and so are somewhat dissatisfactory when time and efficiency are of the essence.
While burst pack and peel pack technologies have been accepted considering the lack of satisfactory alternatives, their use can prove challenging. With respect to burst packs they rely on the application of force to rupture the pack; given the range of strength of the individuals charged with opening the pack, some individuals have a difficult time forcing the burst pack to rupture. In some cases opening requires the use of two hands to provide the force; other individuals apply too much force too quickly, which results in a violent rupturing of the pack that can result in spills and leakage. Peel packs, as noted above, require the use of both hands.
What is needed is a package and method for opening a small container that is easy to use, preferably with a single hand, and that opens the container without an explosive rupture or excessive movement that can uncontrollably spill filled contents and cause delay and additional work for the user.
In response to the problems discussed above, there is provided a lid piercer that pierces or punctures the lid of a small container. The container may hold a filler material that is a liquid, gel, powder or granules needed for a specific task. The lid piercer is desirably usable with one hand.
Also provided is an oral care kit that contains the lid piercer; such a kit includes a bag containing implements needed to perform oral care for a patient. The kit also has a container of oral care solution and the container is made from a cup with a top or lid covering it. The kit also has a lid piercer disposed in relation to the container such that a user may bend the tip of the lid piercer into the top of the container to pierce the top and release the oral care solution.
The tip of the lid piercer has may form an angle between 30 and 150 degrees, more particularly between 60 and 120 degrees and still more particularly between 90 and 110 degrees.
In the use of the kit, when the lid is pierced, the oral care solution will flow to the lowest portion of the bag where it desirably is absorbed onto the applicator's absorbent end, which is typically foam. The bag is desirably sealed on all sides and has a frangible region on an upper portion. The bag may then be opened at the upper portion using the frangible region, and the applicator withdrawn from the bag and used in the conventional manner to clean a patient's teeth and oral cavity.
Other objects, advantages and applications of the present disclosure will be made clear by the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the disclosure and the accompanying drawings wherein reference numerals refer to like or equivalent structures.
Reference will now be made to the drawings in which the various elements of the present disclosure will be given numeral designations and in which the disclosure will be discussed so as to enable one skilled in the art to make and use the disclosure. It is to be understood that the following description is only exemplary of the principles of the present disclosure, and should not be viewed as narrowing the pending claims. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that aspects of the various embodiments discussed may be interchanged and modified without departing from the scope and spirit of the disclosure.
The lid piercer 10 has a tip 4 that actually pierces the top 24 of the container 20. The tip 4 desirably comes to a point 12 facing toward the central opening 2 in order to concentrate the force applied by the user and pierce or puncture the top more easily. The tip 4 may form an angle as shown in
In order to help the lid piercer 10 to accept the container 20, the lid piercer 10 desirably has two cut out portions, 6 one on either side of the tip 4. The body 8 of the lid piercer 10 is desirably made from a thin plastic material since the body 8 must be flexible and bend to accept the container 20 without breaking. The body 8 must also be flexible so that the tip 4 can bend to pierce the container 20 without breaking. Common and inexpensive plastics like polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester or other polymeric sheets having a thickness of about 0.1 to 1.5 mm are desirable for the body 8 of the lid piercer 10. The embodiment shown in the drawings has a thickness of 30 mils and is made from glycol modified polyethylene terephthalate (PETG).
As can be discerned from the Figures, the container 20 is desirably made from two parts, a cup 22 and a lid or top 24. The cup 22 is desirably made from a plastic that is stiffer than the body 8 of the lid piercer 10. The top 24 is desirably paper, a foil, a plastic cover or combination thereof, i.e. a laminate that is easily pierced without fragments or pieces being ripped from it. In the embodiment shown in the Figures, the top 24 is an extrusion coated foil having a thickness of about 2.6 mils.
The container 20 may be prepared by filling the cup 22 with the desired amount of the preferred filler, e.g. oral care solution 34 and sealing the top 24 to the cup 22 by methods known to those skilled in the art. The lid piercer 10 may be used to pierce or puncture the top 24 merely by deflecting the lid piercer tip 4 toward the top 24 with the use of the thumb while the other fingers of the same hand cradle the cup 22. This one handed operation is a significant advantage as it frees the other hand.
The container described herein may have a variety of fillers, oral care solution being but one of many. Other fillers may be, for example, food ingredients like sugar, flavorings, sauces, spices, juices and the like. Fillers may be chemicals like chlorine granules, e.g. for pool maintenance, fertilizers, gasoline or oil additives for automobiles and equipment, inks and stains for signage and crafts, and paints. Fillers may also include topically applied substances like skin lotions, make-up remover, shampoo, soap and the like. Fillers may also include medicaments like anti-fungal and anti-biotic ointments, cough and other orally dispensed medicines. Fillers may, in short, include any material that is used in small quantities.
In the use of the oral care kit, the lid piercer 10 with the container 20 inserted, is placed in a flexible bag 30 with, for example, implements 32 to be used in cleaning a patient's mouth (
Each bag desirably includes a frangible region located at or adjacent the upper end or top portion. The frangible region may be a series of perforations, a score line or weakened portion of the bag, a tear strip or the like or combinations thereof. This frangible region allows the user to easily and cleanly open the bag to access the contents.
In order to use the kit, the lid piercer 10 is used to pierce the container 20 while it is still in the bag 30 merely by deflecting the lid piercer tip 4 toward the top 24 by applying force to the lid piercer tip 4 with the use of the thumb while the other fingers of the same hand cradle the cup 22. Other means of applying force may also be used and will be equally successful provided sufficient force is applied to puncture the top 24.
As used herein and in the claims, the term “comprising” is inclusive or open-ended and does not exclude additional unrecited elements, compositional components, or method steps.
While various patents have been incorporated herein by reference, to the extent there is any inconsistency between incorporated material and that of the written specification, the written specification shall control. In addition, while the disclosure has been described in detail with respect to specific embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various alterations, modifications and other changes may be made to the disclosure without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. It is therefore intended that the claims cover all such modifications, alterations and other changes encompassed by the appended claims.
