Resealable pushable container closure and cover therefor

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6321924
  • Patent Number
    6,321,924
  • Date Filed
    Friday, October 8, 1999
    24 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, November 27, 2001
    22 years ago
Abstract
A container closure is disclosed which includes a shell attachable to a container around a container opening thereof. The shell has a shell opening in fluid communication with the container opening when the shell is attached to the container. A tip is received on the shell movable between a closed position sealing the shell opening and an open position. A cover is releasably attached to the shell in a manner indicative of the tip being positioned in the closed position when the cover is attached to the shell. Both the shell and the cover may be provided with tamper-evident bands. The present invention is particularly well adapted to be formed as a push-pull container closure for sports bottles and the like.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




1. Field of the Invention




The present invention relates to container closures, more specifically the present invention relates to push-pull type container closures for sports water bottles and the like.




2. Prior Art




The prior art discloses a wide variety of pushpull type container closures. Representative samples are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,104,008; 5,265,777; 5,096,077; and 5,429,255. Additionally, the prior art discloses a wide variety of closures incorporating tamper-evident bands. Examples of appropriate tamper-evident bands can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,259,522; 4,418,828; and 4,497,765. However, the prior art does not provide a push-pull type container closure with an effective tamper-evident band in meaningful locations on the push-pull type container. Furthermore, many of the push-pull type container closures of the prior art are difficult to manufacture and do not effectively guarantee complete resealing of the closure during operation. For example, one common type of push-pull closure is referred to as a sports top. Many existing sports tops use a “shrink” or “cello” sleeve to additionally be applied for the purpose of tamper evidence. This causes additional cost, added capital, and decreasing operating efficiencies.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




The object of the present invention is to overcome the drawbacks of the prior art and to provide an easily manufactured container closure which provides a reliable sealing condition.




The objects of the present invention are achieved by providing a container closure which includes a shell adapted to be attached to a container around a container opening thereof with the shell having a shell opening adapted to be in fluid communication with the container opening when the shell is attached to the container. A tip is received on the shell movable between a closed position sealing the shell opening and an open position. A cover is releasably attached to the shell and the cover is indicative of the tip being positioned in the closed position when the cover is attached to the shell.




The cover may include a tamper-evident band on a lower portion thereof. The cover may include a top, a cylindrical side extending down from the top, wherein the tamper-evident band is formed by a lower portion of the side below a score line. The side above the score line may be flexed inwardly to break off the tamper-evident band at the score line. Alternatively, the cover of the present invention may provide a device to prevent relative rotation of the tamper-evident band in one or both directions. With the rotation prevention device, continued rotation of the cover will break off the tamper-evident band along the score line. The shell may also be provided with a tamper-evident band at a lower portion thereof.




The tip may be slidably received on the shell with the shell including a central stem and the shell opening formed as an annular opening surrounding the stem. The shell may further include an annular wall surrounding and spaced from the annular opening. The tip may include an inner and outer sleeve member both positioned adjacent the annular wall and including at least one ring-sealing member extending from the sleeve member and in sliding engagement with the annular wall. It may further include a tip opening in fluid communication with the shell opening when the tip is in the open position and an annular stem-sealing member surrounding the tip opening with the stem-sealing member in sealing engagement with the stem when the tip is in the closed position.




The cover may include a connecting flange coupled to the top of the cover which is releasably engageable with a groove of the stem to releasably attach the cover to the shell.




These and other advantages of the present invention will be clarified in the description of the preferred embodiment taken together with the attached figures wherein like references will represent like characters throughout.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS





FIG. 1

is a partially exploded perspective view of a container closure according to a first embodiment of the present invention.





FIG. 2

is a partially exploded sectional view of the container closure illustrated in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 3

is a plan view of a shell of the container closure illustrated in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 4

is a cross-sectional view of the shell illustrated in

FIG. 3

taken along line IV—IV;





FIGS. 5



a


and


b


are enlarged plan and sectional views of a portion of the shell illustrated in

FIGS. 3-4

;





FIG. 6

is a cross-sectional view of a tip of the container closure illustrated in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 7



a


is a cross-sectional view of the dust cover of the container closure illustrated in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 7



b


is a bottom plan view of the dust cover illustrated in

FIG. 7



a;







FIG. 8

is a partially exploded perspective view of a container closure according to, a second embodiment of the present invention;





FIGS. 9



a-c


are sectional views of the container closure illustrated in

FIG. 8

; and





FIG. 10

is a perspective view of a container closure according to a third embodiment of the present inventor.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS





FIG. 1

illustrates a container closure


10


according to the present invention. The container closure


10


includes a shell


12


that is adapted to attach to a container (around a container opening thereof). A tip


14


, is slidably received on the shell


12


and moveable between a closed position and an open position as will be described hereinafter. A dust cover


16


is releasably attached to the shell


12


, with the cover


16


indicative of the tip


14


being positioned in the closed position when the cover


16


is attached to the shell


12


.




The configuration of the shell


12


can be more easily reviewed in connection with

FIGS. 3 and 4

. The shell


12


includes a central stem


18


surrounded by an annular opening


20


. The annular opening


20


is adapted to be in fluid communication with the container opening when the shell


12


is attached to the container. An annular wall


22


surrounds the annular opening


20


and is spaced from the stem


18


by a plurality of bridging elements


24


. As shown in

FIG. 3

, the bridging elements


24


are arranged in two sets of diametrically opposed pairs, the first set of bridging elements


24


being spaced from the second set of bridging elements


24


by about 50°.




The stem


18


includes a cover-attaching member in the form of a groove


26


around an upper portion of the stem


18


. The groove


26


serves to releasably attach the cover


16


as will be described hereinafter. As shown in

FIG. 4

, the annular wall


22


does not extend to the full height of the stem


18


. This will facilitate the manufacturing of the shell


12


. The diameter of the stem


18


is slightly smaller above the groove


26


than below the groove


26


. The function of the smaller diameter of the stem


18


will be described in connection with the tip


14


. A gate well


27


is provided at the top of the stem


18


. The gate well


27


prevents flashing created during the injection molding process from extending above the top surface of the stem


18


, protecting the user against sharp corners and the like.




The top of the annular wall


22


includes a pair of radially inwardly extending stops


28


. Each stop


28


is engagable with the tip


14


to stop the upwardly sliding movement of the tip


14


in the open position (shown in

FIG. 2

) as will be described hereinafter. A greater number of stops


28


may also be provided. The annular wall


22


includes two undercuts


29


each extending approximately 130° around the inner portion of the annular wall


22


. The undercuts


29


cooperate with the tip


14


to create an audible click in the closed position as will be described below.




The shell


12


includes an upwardly extending annular ring


30


surrounding and radially spaced from the annular wall


22


as shown in FIG.


4


. The spacing of the ring


30


from the annular wall


22


effects the manufacturing of the shell


12


. During molding, of the shell


12


a sleeve is positioned between the ring


30


and annular wall


22


. Retraction of the sleeve creates the space between the ring


30


and the annular wall


22


which permits the inwardly flexing of the ring


30


during extraction from the mold. As shown in

FIG. 4

, the annular wall


22


extends higher than the ring


30


. The ring


30


includes an undercut


31


positioned below a plurality of outwardly extending projections


32


formed at the upper end


30


. The projections


32


are shown in detail in

FIGS. 5



a


and


b


and essentially form a ridge around the top of the ring


30


. The projections


32


at least initially attach the cover


16


to the shell


12


. The projections


32


also form a rotation-stopping mechanism relative to a portion of the dust cover


16


as will be described in connection with the dust cover


16


.




The shell


12


includes a substantially cylindrical body


34


extending from the annular wall


22


. As shown in

FIG. 1

a plurality of vertically extending gripping ribs


35


can be positioned on the outer cylindrical portion of the body


34


to assist in the rotation of the shell


12


. A plurality of vertically extending gripping ribs


35


can be positioned on the cylindrical portion of the body


34


to assist in the rotation of the shell


12


. A sealing ring


36


is attached to an inner surface of the cylindrical body


34


surrounding the annular opening


20


. The sealing ring


36


is adapted to seal against the container around the container opening when the shell


12


is attached to the container. Threads


38


are formed on an inner cylindrical portion of the body


34


of the shell


12


. The threads


38


are intended to cooperate with corresponding threads of the container for attaching the shell


12


to the container. A tamper-evident band


40


extends down from the cylindrical portion of the body


34


. The tamper-evident band


40


may be formed in a conventional fashion such as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,497,765 or 4,418,828. Specifically, the tamper-evident band


40


may include a plurality of leaders or ribs, a score line through the leaders, and a plurality of wings.




The tip


14


is slidably positioned on the shell


12


between an open and a closed position. The tip


14


is shown in greater detail in FIG.


6


. The tip


14


includes a tip opening


42


which is adapted to be in fluid communication with the annular opening


20


of the shell


12


when the tip


14


is in the open position generally shown in FIG.


2


. The tip opening


42


is surrounded by a stem-sealing member


44


which is adapted to engage with the sides of the stem


18


below the groove


26


to seal the tip opening


42


when tip


14


is in the closed position. As noted above, the diameter of the stem


18


above the groove


26


is smaller than the sealing portion of the stem below the groove


26


. This construction avoids the “snap” of the stem-sealing member


44


being received into the groove


26


which the user could misinterperate as sealing of the closure


10


. The stem-sealing member


44


preferably seals below the groove


26


. The stem sealing member


44


has a diameter slightly smaller than the sealing portion of the stem


18


below the groove


26


and the stem-sealing member


44


is adapted to flex outwardly slightly. This construction ensures a good seal between the stem sealing member


44


and the stem


18


. The tip


14


includes a sleeve member extending down from the stem sealing member


44


including an inner sleeve


46


and an outer sleeve


48


. The inner sleeve


46


includes a projection formed by a radially outwardly extending annular bead


50


and the outer sleeve


48


includes a radially inwardly extending annular seal


52


. The annular bead


50


and seal


52


are positionally spaced from one another (i.e. the annular bead


50


and seal


52


are not directly opposed from each other). The non-alignment, or offsetting of the annular bead


50


and seal


52


improves manufacturability of the tip


14


. If the annular bead


50


and seal


52


were aligned a molding insert with a very narrow web between the opposed bead


50


and seal


52


would have to be used increasing the difficulties in manufacturing. The present design avoids these difficulties. The inner sleeve


46


and outer sleeve


48


are adapted to be positioned on opposite sides of the annular wall


22


with both the annular bead


50


and seal


52


in sliding, sealing engagement with the annular wall


22


. If desired the bead


50


may be sized to also move in a sliding sealing engagement with the annular wall


22


to form a seal. The bead


50


of the tip


14


slides over the undercuts


29


of the shell


12


to produce an audible and tangible click as the tip


14


is moved to the closed position. The audible and tangible click indicates to the user the closed position. In the uppermost position of the tip


14


, the annular bead


50


of the inner sleeve


46


will abut against the stops


28


to limit the upward movement of the tip


14


relative to the shell


12


. This position, shown in

FIG. 2

is the open position of the tip


14


. In the open position of the tip


14


, the stem sealing member


44


is positioned above the stem member


18


such that the tip opening


42


is in fluid communication with the annular opening


20


for dispensing the contents of the container through the container opening. The tip


14


additionally includes a grippable ledge


54


extending radially outwardly from an upper portion of the sleeve member to allow for easy grasping and movement of the tip


14


between the up, open position and the down, closed position.




The dust cover


16


is illustrated in detail in

FIGS. 7



a


and


b


. The cover


16


includes a top


56


with a cylindrical side


58


extending down from the top


56


. A plurality of gripping ribs


59


may be provided on the outer portion of the cylindrical side


58


to provide for easy gripping of the cover


16


as shown in

FIGS. 8 and 10

. An annular connecting flange


60


is attached to and extends downwardly from the inner surface of the top


56


. The connecting flange


60


is adapted to snap into the groove


26


of the stem


18


to releasably attach the cover


16


to the shell


12


. With this configuration, it can be assured that when the connecting flange


60


is engaged with the groove


26


of the stem


18


, the tip opening


42


and stem-sealing member


44


for the tip


14


will be positioned below the groove


26


such that the stem-sealing member


44


is sealed against the stem


18


. This configuration assures that when the cover


16


is re-attached to the shell


12


(i.e. after use), the tip


14


is positioned in the closed position. The bottom of the connecting flange


60


includes a chamfered or tapered portion which assists in manufacturing.




A tamper-evident band


62


is formed as a lowermost portion of the cylindrical side


58


below a score line (not shown). A plurality of long leaders


64


and standard leaders


66


are provided extending across the score line for the construction of tamper-evident band


62


. The leaders


64


and


66


form a frangible connection between the tamper evident band


62


and the lowermost portion of the cylindrical side


58


. The long leaders


64


will extend, below the score line, between adjacent projections


32


and combine to serve as a rotation prevention mechanism preventing relative rotation between the tamper evident band


62


and the shell


12


. Additionally, a plurality of radially inwardly extending ramp-shaped projections


68


are positioned on the inner cylindrical side


58


below the score line to be part of the tamper-evident band


62


. The projections


68


are received in the undercut


31


below the projection


32


of the annular ring


30


to initially attach the cover


16


to the shell


12


. Before the tamper evident band


62


is separated from the dust cover


16


(i.e. before the first consumer use) the projection


68


attach the dust cover


16


to the shell


12


. After the tamper evident band


62


is separated from the dust cover


16


the connecting flange


60


and groove


26


is used to attach the dust cover


16


to the shell


12


. The projections


68


will help retain the severed tamper-evident band


62


on the closure


10


.




The container closure


10


will generally operate as follows. The container closure


10


will be assembled by the manufacturer as illustrated in FIG.


1


and subsequently attached to an appropriate container, such as a sports-drink bottle, i.e. water bottle, juice bottle, or the like. The container closure


10


will be attached to the container by threading the shell


12


onto an appropriately threaded closure by use of threads


38


. The inclusion of both tamper-evident bands


40


and


62


will provide the necessary level of security to the user. The container may, contain an optional thin foil protective covering, covering the container opening which must be removed prior to use. On purchasing the product, the user can remove the shell


12


from the container by unthreading of the shell


12


which will break away the tamper-evident band


40


in the known manner. The user then will remove the thin foil(if provided) covering the container opening and replace the shell


12


. To access the tip


14


, the user will need to remove the cover


16


from the shell


12


which requires the separation of the tamper-evident band


62


from the cover


16


. The tamper-evident band


62


can be separated from the remaining portions of the cylindrical side


58


by inwardly flexing of the cylindrical side


58


above the score line. The spacing of the annular ring


30


from the annular wall


22


allows for the inward flexing of the cylindrical side


58


above the score line for breaking of the tamper-evident band


62


. Alternatively, the tamper-evident band


62


may be removed from the dust cover


16


by twisting of the upper portion of the dust cover


16


relative to the shell


12


. During twisting of the dust cover


16


the interengagement of the long leaders


64


and the projections


32


will prevent the tamper-evident band


62


from rotating, allowing the leaders


64


and


66


to be broken at the score line to sever the tamper-evident band


62


. The receipt of projections


68


in undercut


31


below the projections


32


of the ring


30


will maintain the tamper-evident band


62


on the ring


30


as the cover


16


is removed from the shell


12


as illustrated in FIG.


3


. With the cover


16


removed from the shell


12


, the tip


14


can be moved to the open position and the material dispensed from the container. The container is easily resealed by sliding the tip


14


to the closed position where the stem-sealing member


44


engages the stem


18


below the groove


26


to seal the tip opening


42


. The replacement of the cover


16


on the shell


12


may indicate the movement of the tip


14


to the closed position by the engagement of the connecting flange


60


in the groove


26


as described above. Consequently the cover


16


may be indicative of the tip


14


being in the closed position when the cover


16


is attached to the shell


12


.




Where the provision of a second tamper-evident band


62


on the cover


16


is not desired, the score line can be eliminated effectively preventing the formation of the tamper-evident band


62


. With this configuration, the projections


68


could cooperate with the projections


32


of the annular ring


30


to form a permanent second attaching mechanism for releasably attaching the cover


16


to the shell


12


. As discussed above, the connecting flange


60


and groove


26


will form the first cover-attaching mechanism. This configuration of cover


16


should be designed with suitably flexible plastic so that the projection


68


can easily slip over the projections


32


. Additionally, this design requires a dimensioning of the dust cover


16


such that the connecting flange


60


is received in the groove


26


at the same time as the projections


68


are received in the undercut


31


. Without tamper-evident band


62


the leaders


64


and


66


need not be provided.





FIG. 8

illustrates a container closure


10


′ according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The container closure


10


′ is substantially the same as the container closure


10


illustrated in

FIGS. 1-7



b


. The container closure


10


′ does not include a rotation-preventative mechanism for the tamper-evident band. As shown in

FIGS. 9



a


-


9




c


only standard leaders


66


attach the tamper-evident band


62


to the remainder of the side


58


, the long leaders


64


have been replaced with standard leaders


66


. Additionally, the plurality of projections


32


is replaced with a continuous ridge


33


. The plurality of projections


68


are received in the undercut


31


below the ridge


33


. The provision of a plurality of projections


68


instead of a continuous bead allows the dust cover to more easily snap onto the ring


30


by reducing hoop stresses which would otherwise be present. The ramp-type structure of the lower side of the projections


68


also assist in the placement of the dust cover


16


on the shell


12


. Without the rotation-preventative mechanism the side


58


of the dust cover


16


is inwardly flexed to remove the tamper-evident band


62


.

FIGS. 9



a


-


9




c


illustrate the operative positions of the container closure


10


′ including the simultaneous use of both the connecting flange


60


and the projections


68


to attach the dust cover


16


to the shell


12


. If the tamper-evident band


62


is used (i.e. if a score line is provided partially through the leaders


66


) then only the connecting flange


60


will be used for the attachment of the dust cover


16


subsequent to removal of the tamper-evident band


62


. As shown in

FIG. 8

a plurality of gripping ribs


59


are provided on the outer portion of the cylindrical side


58


to provide for easy gripping of the cover


16


. The ribs


59


may be used with the dust cover


16


of any embodiment of the present invention.





FIG. 10

illustrates a container closure


10


″ according to a third embodiment of the present invention. The modified container closure


10


″ is substantially the same as the container closures


10


and


10


″ illustrated in

FIGS. 1-9



c


. The container closure


10


″ includes the ridge


33


with all standard leaders


66


as described in connection with container closure


10


′.




The container closure


10


″ includes a separate rotation stopping mechanism to assist in the removal of the tamper-evident band


62


of the cover


16


. In the container closure


10


″ a plurality of outwardly extending ears


70


are positioned on the cylindrical side


58


of the dust cover


16


below the score line to be part of the tamper-evident band


62


. The shell


12


includes a plurality of upwardly extending stop members


72


positioned outside of the ring


30


engageable with the ear


70


to prevent rotation of the tamper-evident band


62


. The ear


70


and stop member


72


cooperate to assist in the removal of the cover


16


by preventing rotation of the tamper-evident band


62


. Twisting of the cylindrical side


58


by grasping of the gripping ribs


59


can be utilized for breaking the tamper-evident band


62


in addition to flexing of the cylindrical side


58


above the score line similar to the container closure


10


. The addition of the ears


70


and the stop member


72


allows the cover


16


to be made out of relatively harder plastics for a wider variety of applications.




It will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that various modifications may be made to the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. Consequently, the scope of the present invention is intended to be defined by the appended claims.



Claims
  • 1. A container closure comprising:a shell having a body removably attachable to a container around a container opening thereof, said shell having a shell opening in fluid communication with the container opening when said shell is attached to the container, said shell having a tamper-evident band at a lower end thereof when said shell is originally attached to the container, wherein said tamper-evident band is removed from said shell when said shell is removed from the container; a tip slidably received on said shell movable between a lower closed position sealing said shell opening and an upper open position; and a cover releasably attached to said shell and adapted to cover said tip, said cover having a tamper-evident band at a lower end thereof when said cover is originally attached to said shell, wherein said tamper-evident band is removed from said cover when said cover is removed from said shell, wherein said cover contains a tip receiving portion of said shell when said cover is attached to said shell to be indicative of said tip being positioned in said closed position when said cover is attached to said shell.
  • 2. The closure of claim 1 wherein said cover is attachable to said closure after said tamper-evident band of said cover has been removed.
  • 3. The closure of claim 1 wherein said tip is slidable on an annular wall of said shell which surrounds said shell opening.
  • 4. The closure of claim 1 wherein said shell and said tip are shaped to produce an audible indication of the movement of said tip to said closed position.
  • 5. A container closure comprising:a shell having a body removably attachable to a container around a container opening thereof, said shell having a shell opening in fluid communication with the container opening when said shell is attached to the container, said shell having a tamper-evident band at a lower end thereof when said shell is originally attached to the container, wherein said tamper-evident band is removed from said shell when said shell is removed from the container; a tip slidably received on said shell movable between a lower closed position sealing said shell opening and an upper open position; and a cover releasably attached to said shell and adapted to cover said tip, said cover having a tamper-evident band at a lower end thereof when said cover is originally attached to said shell, wherein said tamper-evident band is removed from said cover when said cover is removed from said shell, wherein said cover contains a tip receiving portion of said shell when said cover is attached to said shell to be indicative of said tip being positioned in said closed position when said cover is attached to said shell, wherein said cover is attachable to said shell in a position indicative of said tip being positioned in said closed position when said cover is attached to said shell.
  • 6. A closure comprising:a shell having a body removably attachable to a container around a container opening thereof, said shell having a shell opening in fluid communication with the container opening when said shell is attached to the container, said shell having a tamper-evident band at a lower end thereof when said shell is originally attached to the container, wherein said tamper-evident band is removed from said shell when said shell is removed from the container; a tip slidably received on said shell movable between a lower closed position sealing said shell opening and an upper open position; and a cover releasably attached to said shell and adapted to cover said tip, said cover having a tamper-evident band at a lower end thereof when said cover is originally attached to said shell, wherein said tamper-evident band is removed from said cover when said cover is removed from said shell, wherein said cover contains a tip receiving portion of said shell when said cover is attached to said shell to be indicative of said tip being positioned in said closed position when said cover is attached to said shell, wherein said shell includes an annular wall surrounding said shell opening and an annular ring extending from said body and surrounding and spaced from said annular wall, said annular ring including at least one projection extended radially outwardly of said annular ring.
  • 7. A container closure comprising:a shell having a body attachable to a container around a container opening thereof, said shell having a shell opening in fluid communication with the container opening when said shell is attached to the container, and said shell including an annular wall surrounding said shell opening; an annular ring extending from said body and surrounding and spaced from said annular wall, said annular ring including at least one projection extending radially outwardly of said annular ring; a tip slidably received on said annular wall and movable between a closed position sealing said shell opening and an open position, wherein said shell and said tip are shaped to produce an audible indication of the movement of said tip to said closed position; and a cover releasably attached to said closure for covering said tip, wherein said cover is adapted to be reattached to said closure after removal therefrom.
  • 8. The closure of claim 7 wherein said cover is attachable to said shell in a position indicative of said tip being positioned in said closed position when said cover is attached to said shell.
  • 9. The closure of claim 7 wherein said shell includes a first tamper-evident band at a lower portion thereof and said cover includes a second tamper-evident band at a lower portion thereof.
  • 10. A closure comprising:a shell having a body attachable to a container around a container opening thereof, said shell having a shell opening in fluid communication with the container opening when said shell is attached to the container, and said shell including an annular wall surrounding said shell opening; and a tip slidably received on said annular wall and movable between a closed position sealing said shell opening and an open position, wherein said shell and said tip are shaped to produce an audible indication of the movement of said tip to said closed position; and a cover releasably attached to said closure for covering said tip, wherein said cover is adapted to be reattached to said closure after removal therefrom, wherein said cover contacts a portion of said shell surrounded by said annular wall when said cover is attached to said shell to indicate said tip is in said closed position when said cover is attached to said shell.
  • 11. A container closure comprising:a shell having a body attachable to a container around a container opening thereof, said shell having a shell opening in fluid communication with the container opening when said shell is attached to said container, said shell including an annular wall extending from said body and surrounding said shell opening, and said shell including a central member surrounded by said annular wall; a tip slidably received on said annular wall of said shell movable between a closed position sealing against said central member to close said shell opening and an open position; and a cover releasably attached to said shell, said cover contacting said central member when said cover is attached to said shell to be indicative of said tip being positioned in said closed position when said cover is attached to said shell.
  • 12. The closure of claim 11 wherein said shell includes a first tamper-evident band at a lower portion thereof and said cover includes a second tamper evident band at a lower portion thereof.
  • 13. The closure of claim 11 wherein said shell and said tip are shaped to produce an audible indication of the movement of said tip to said closed position.
  • 14. A container closure comprising a one-piece shell attachable to a container around a container opening thereof, said shell having a body, a shell opening, a tip-receiving structure extending from said body including an annular wall surrounding said shell opening, and an annular ring extending from said body and surrounding and spaced from said annular wall, said annular ring including at least one projection extended radially outwardly of said annular ring; anda tip slidably received on said annular wall and adapted to seal against a portion of said tip-receiving structure for closing said shell opening, wherein a portion of said tip-receiving structure is above said tip when said tip closes said shell opening.
Parent Case Info

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/869,501, filed Jun. 5, 1997, entitled “Resealable Pushable Container Closure and Cover Therefor”, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,975,369, issued Nov. 2, 1999.

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Continuations (1)
Number Date Country
Parent 08/869501 Jun 1997 US
Child 09/415444 US