AU2016287454B2

AU2016287454B2 - Container having a bactericidal insert

Info

Publication number: AU2016287454B2
Application number: AU2016287454A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Karine COURTIN
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2015-06-30
Filing date: 2016-06-30
Publication date: 2021-06-24
Anticipated expiration: 2036-06-30
Also published as: BR112017028024A2; KR20180022707A; CN107743471A; RU2018103170A; FR3038302B1; AU2016287454A1; CA2990744A1; EP3317206B1; JP2018519221A; EP3317206A1; RU2018103170A3; WO2017001591A1; IL256536B; CN107743471B; PL3317206T3; FR3038302A1; RU2721502C2; IL256536A; US20180186518A1; ES2748817T3

Abstract

The invention relates to a container (10) for storing and dispensing a fluid product, having a body (12) delimiting a volume in which the product is held, and having a dispensing end piece (14) through which the product is intended to exit the container (10), and having at least one insert (16, 18, 36) situated in the internal volume of the body (12), which is in contact with the fluid product and which comprises at least one bactericidal material, characterized in that said at least one insert (16, 18, 36) is made entirely of the bactericidal material.

Description

CONTAINER HAVING A BACTERICIDAL INSERT TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to a container for storing and dispensing a fluid product such as for example a cosmetic product, which is designed to limit potential

proliferation of bacteria in the fluid product. More specifically, the invention proposes a container having means for

substituting chemical additives.

BACKGROUND

It is to be understood that, if any prior art is referred to herein, such

reference does not constitute an admission that the prior art forms a part of the common general knowledge in the art, in Australia or any other country.

Numerous fluid products, such as for example cosmetic products, are contained in hermetically sealed containers, to avoid any oxidation of the product and to

avoid contamination of the product by bacteria for example. Such containers notably have a flexible or rigid body, the walls of which

are hermetically sealed to air and to any other type of pollutant, and an end piece for dispensing the product.

In order to avoid oxidation of the product, the container comprises a dispensing end piece which is designed to only allow the product to exit, which is then referred to as an "airless" type end piece. Such an end piece is designed to open in the

direction the product exits and to close automatically as soon as the desired amount of product has exited.

The container is then designed to be deformable and compressible as the product is withdrawn. Indeed, by applying pressure on the walls of the container a

pressure is formed within the container, causing the product to exit.

The document FR-A-3.011.826 describes an "airless" type dispensing end piece, which makes it possible to prevent any contamination of product remaining inside the container, whetherwhen a certain amount of the product is made to exit the container, or instead when a user withdraws the exited product. Thus, numerous solutions exist to protect the product against potential contamination coming from outside the container. The preservation of the product as such, inside the container, is achieved by the use of preservative compounds such as for example antioxidants, anti-mold agents, bactericides, virucides, or anti-fungal agents. Such compounds may have a harmful effect, notably when the product in which they are used is a cosmetic product intended to be applied on the skin. That is why it has been proposed to market products not having such compounds. To ensure a good shelf life, it has then been proposed to toughen the hygiene and sterility conditions of production sites, which proves to be particularly complex and costly to implement. The aim of the disclosure is to propose a container that is designed to limit the proliferation of potential polluting elements in the product that is contained inside the container. SUMMARY In a first aspect, disclosed is a container for storing and dispensing a fluid product having a body of lengthened shape and is obtained from a cylindrical tube of which a lower end (12a) is flattened to close it and delimiting a volume in which the fluid product is held, and having a dispensing end piece through which the fluid product is intended to exit the container, and having at least one insert situated in the internal volume of the body, which is in contact with the fluid product and which comprises at least one bactericidal material, wherein said at least one insert is made entirely of the bactericidal material, wherein said at least one insert consists of a grid forming a sheet which extends in a median main plane of the body, and wherein one end of the grid is fixed to the body by permanent deformation by crushing of said lower end of the body on said end of the grid. The presence of an insert composed of bactericidal material in the internal volume of the container makes it possible to place the product still present in the container in contact with said bactericidal material.

The various manipulations of the container to withdraw the product

make it possible to achieve mixing of the product, in order to increase the proportion of product that comes into contact with the insert

The said at least one insert may be made of another material which is entirely covered by said bactericidal material.

The said at least one insert may comprise of at least one bead which is free to move within the internal volume of the body.

The said at least one insert may comprise of a porous or perforated element that is capable of being passed through by the fluid.

Preferably, said at least one insert is arranged between the dispensing end piece and the internal volume of the body.

The said at least one insert may cover at least in part the inner walls of the body. The said at least one insert may be made of a material selected from

copper and silver.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other characteristics and advantages of the disclosure will become clear on reading the detailed description that follows, for the understanding of which reference

should be made to the appended figures, among which: - figure 1 is a schematic representation in lateral view of a container

for a fluid product having two inserts according to thedisclosure; - figure 2 is a section of the container represented in figure 1, along a

median vertical main plane thereof; and

- figure 3 is a schematic representation of another container having an insert according to an alternative embodiment of thediscloure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In figures 1 and 2 a container 10 for containing a fluid or liquid product is represented. This product may be for example a cosmetic cream or a gel.

The container 10 has a hollow body 12 which is here of lengthened shape, and it is obtained from a cylindrical tube of which a lower end 12a is flattened to

close it. According to the embodiment represented in figures 1 and 2, the body 12 is made of a flexible material, such as a plastic material. It may also be made of a ductile,

easily deformable material. The container 10 also has an end piece 14 for dispensing the product,

through which the product is intended to be withdrawn by the user.

According to the embodiment represented in figures 1 and 2, the end piece 14 seals the upper end 12b of the body 12.

Moreover, here, the end piece 14 for dispensing the product is an end piece which only allows the product to exit, that is to say that it prevents anything from penetrating inside the internal volume of the container 10, whether it is a certain amount

of the product which could have exited the container, or instead air. This end piece 14 is an end piece of the so-called "airless" type. It here

consists of an end piece such as described in the document FR-A-3.011.826 to which reference may be made for more details on the structure or operation.

Thanks to this end piece 14, the internal volume of the container 10 is isolated from the exterior and more particularly from any polluting element that could cause oxidation or contamination by bacteria of the product present therein.

It may be that contamination of the product occurs before the first use thereof, for example during the process of manufacturing the product, or instead while it

is being introduced into the container 10, despite the numerous precautions that may be

put in place on site. To avoid any proliferation of this contamination in the product, the

container 10 has at least one insert 16 which is arranged within the internal volume of the

body 12 and which is permanently in contact with the product contained within the container 10.

The insert 16 is made of a bactericidal material. As non-limiting

examples, the bactericidal material is preferably copper, it may also be silver. In the case of copper, when it comes into contact with the product, the

insert 16 releases Cu++ ions, which have a bactericidal effect. According to a first embodiment, the insert is made of another material, such as a plastic material or another metal, which is covered, by plating or by deposition, with the bactericidal material. This notably makes it possible to reduce the production

cost of the insert 16. According to another embodiment, the insert 16 is made entirely of this

bactericidal material.

According to the embodiment represented in figures 1 and 2, the insert 16 is in the form of a substantially flat grid, which extends along a median main plane of

the container. Here, this median plane is the vertical plane according to the orientation of the figures, which passes through the flat lower end 12a of the body 12. Thus, according to a particular embodiment, a lower end of the insert 16 is situated at the level of the lower end 12a of the body 12 and it is maintained in the body 12 by permanent

deformation by crushing of the lower end 12a of the body 12, when this lower end 12a of the body 12 is closed.

The grid shape of the insert 16 makes it possible to increase the contact surface of the insert 16 with the product contained within the container, which makes it possible to treat a larger amount of product.

According to an alternative embodiment, not represented, the container has one or more inserts which are in the form of beads made of bactericidal material or

covered with bactericidal material. These beads are capable of moving freely within the container, to be able to come into contact with the entirety of the product contained

therein. These beads further have the advantage of enabling homogenization of the product which is mixed by said beads during their movement within the container.

Furthermore, since the walls of the body 12 are flexible, this makes it possible to mix the product in the container 10 at each manipulation thereof, further increasing the amount of product that comes into contact with the insert 16, whether it is when it is in the form of one grid or instead in the form of one or more grids. According to an alternative embodiment, the container has a second insert 18 situated at the level of the end piece 14 for dispensing the product. This second insert 18 is here also produced in the form of a grid based on bactericidal material, which is modelled into a hopper shape, separating the opening of the end piece 14 from the internal volume of the body 12.

Here, the second insert 18 has a cylindrical grid 20 substantially coaxial to the vertical main axis of the end piece 14 and a bottom grid 22 at the lower end of the

cylindrical grid.

Thanks to this second insert 18, product that flows towards the dispensing end piece 14 is forced to pass through the grid constituting the second insert

18. This amount of product then comes into contact with the bactericidal material, which then exerts its action on the product. This makes it possible to dispense product that has been sterilized

beforehand. The shape and dimensions of the second insert 18 are defined to make

it possible to treat an average amount of product which is withdrawn at each use. In figure 3 is represented another container 30 with rigid walls. For

example, the container is made of glass. This container 30 here also has a body 32 in which the product is stored and an open dispensing end piece 34. This end piece 34 is capable of receiving a cap, not

represented, for closing the opening of the end piece 34. According to this embodiment, the product is withdrawn directly from

the opening of the end piece 34, for example with a finger or an appropriate tool. This container has an insert 36 provided in the body 32. This insert is

also made of a bactericidal material, as described previously, such as for example it is made of copper.

In order not to hinder the withdrawal of product, the insert 36 is pressed against the walls of the body 32.

Here, the insert 36 consists of a grid covering the cylindrical wall and the

bottom wall of the body 32. According to an alternative embodiment, the insert consists of a sheet based on bactericidal material, or instead consists of a layer of the bactericidal

material, which is applied on these walls. The dimensional characteristics of the grid constituting each insert 16, 18, 36 that is to say its pitch and the thickness of each bar, are defined as a function of the product, notably as a function of its viscosity.

Such an insert 16, 18, 36 makes it possible to sterilize the product present in the container 10 at any moment, and whatever the conditions of use of the

container.

The result is better hygiene and security of use for any user and a reduction in the commercialization costs of the product in such a container since the

hygiene constraints of the production site may be relaxed. The container 10, 30 has been described as containing a cosmetic product. It will be understood that such a container may be used for any type of fluid

product, whether for a cosmetic product, a pharmaceutical product or a food product notably.

Also, it has been mentioned above that the material constituting the insert 16 may be copper or silver. It will be understood that these two materials are non

limiting examples of the disclosure and that each insert 16 may be made of an alloy of one and/or the other of these two materials or instead of any other material or alloy having bactericidal properties and which is also chemically compatible with the fluid

product intended to be contained within the container. In the claims which follow and in the preceding description of the

disclosure, except where the context requires otherwise due to express language or necessary implication, the word "comprise" or variations such as "comprises" or "comprising" is used in an inclusive sense, i.e. to specify the presence of the stated

features but not to preclude the presence or addition of further features in various

embodiments of the disclosure.

Claims

1. Container for storing and dispensing a fluid product, having a body of

elongate shape the body being formed from a cylindrical tube of which a lower end (12a) is flattened to close it, the body delimiting a volume in which the fluid product is held and

having a dispensing end piece through which the fluid product is intended to exit the container ,

and having at least one insert situated in the internal volume of the body, which is in contact with the fluid product and which comprises at least one bactericidal

material, wherein said at least one insert is made entirely of the at least one bactericidal material,

wherein said at least one insert comprises of a grid forming a sheet which extends in a median main plane of the body, and wherein one end of the grid is fixed to the body by permanent deformation by crushing of said lower end of the body on said end of

the grid

2. Container according to claim 1, wherein the container further comprises at least one bead which is free to move within the internal volume of the body.

3. Container according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said at least one insert comprises a porous or perforated element which is capable of being passed through by the

fluid.

4. Container according to anyone of the preceding claims, wherein said at least one insert is arranged between the dispensing end piece and the internal volume

of the body.

5. Container according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein

said at least one insert covers at least in part the inner walls of the body.

6. Container according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said at least one insert is made of a material selected from copper and silver.