JP7499394B2 - Fat and oil container spout - Google Patents

Description

Article 30, Paragraph 2 of the Patent Act applies. Shipping date: August 24, 2021, Shipping location (shipping destination): Yokkaichi Center, Kokubu Chubu Co., Ltd., Publisher: J-Oil Mills Co., Ltd.

The present invention is directed to a method for preventing the blowing out of oil and fat (liquid blowing) when the oil and fat are poured out from a container filled with the oil and fat.
The present invention relates to a spout for a grease container that can suppress the above-mentioned problems.

In recent years, the shift to more environmentally friendly products has been underway in the field of food and beverage packaging containers. For example, efforts are being made to significantly reduce the amount of plastic used by switching from plastic containers to paper containers, thereby reducing plastic waste and garbage volume, and ultimately reducing _CO2 emissions.

On the other hand, containers have been known in the art that make it easy to pour out the liquid contents from the container by attaching a cap with a pouring tube to the opening of the container. In such capped containers with a pouring tube, it is generally desired that the liquid contents drip little and drain easily.
When the liquid contents to be filled into such a container with a pouring tube are relatively high viscosity liquids such as cosmetics such as milky lotion, oils, dressings, sauces, etc., the liquid does not drain well after pouring out, and the liquid contents tend to remain in the pouring tube, which can lead to dripping. Therefore, various structures of the pouring tube and cap have been considered, or a so-called squeeze bottle using a flexible plastic container as the container body is adopted, and after the contents are pushed out by squeezing the container, the suction force (suck back) when the container returns to its original shape is used to pull the residue in the pouring tube back into the container, thereby preventing dripping.

For example, a cap for a liquid container has been disclosed in which the inner diameter of the nozzle portion is locally narrowed to prevent dripping from a liquid container filled with lotion such as milky lotion (Patent Document 1).
Furthermore, for example, a pouring cap has been disclosed in which a flange piece having a predetermined width is provided at the upper end of a pouring tube of a predetermined height, in order to improve liquid drainage and prevent discomfort and stains caused by dripping, even when the content liquid is a relatively high viscosity liquid such as hair treatment oil, and a straightening tube is provided at the entrance of the pouring passage formed by the pouring tube (Patent Document 2).
Furthermore, a pouring cap has been disclosed that prevents dripping and soiling of the pouring tube even when pouring a highly viscous liquid content such as a thick sauce by configuring the communicating hole of the pouring tube to have a straight section and an enlarged diameter section (Patent Document 3).

However, Patent Documents 1 to 3 do not mention or suggest at all the problem of liquid spraying out from the spout when the container is gripped.

Utility Model Registration No. 3160981 Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-169355 JP 2010-095304 A

The present invention aims to provide a spout that can suppress the spraying (liquid spraying) of grease from the spout when a container with a solid fat content (SFC) of 5% or less at 20°C is gripped to pour the grease from the container, and in particular to provide a spout that can be attached to an environmentally friendly paper pack container.

That is, the present invention relates to the following (1) to (5).
(1) A synthetic resin spout for pouring oil or fat having a solid fat content (SFC) of 5% or less at 20°C from inside a container to outside the container,
The oil/fat flow path of the spout includes a space having a shape in which at least two or more cylinders having different diameters are connected,
A spout characterized in that the difference in diameter of the cylinders at the portion connecting the cylinders is 0.05 mm or more and less than 0.5 mm.
(2) The diameter of the flow path at the outlet of the spout in the direction of flow of the grease when pouring the grease from inside the container to outside the container is 1.5 mm or more and 3.0 mm or less (1
) a spout as described in
(3) The spout according to (1), characterized in that the flow path is a space having a shape in which two or more cylinders are connected to each other and a truncated cone is further connected to each other from the downstream side in the flow direction of the grease when the grease is poured from inside the container to outside the container.
(4) When the grease is poured from inside the container to outside the container, the diameter of the upstream side of the truncated cone in the flow direction of the grease is larger than the diameter of the downstream side,
The spout according to (3), characterized in that the difference in diameter between the two diameters is 0.01 mm or more and 4 mm or less;
(5) The spout described in (1) is characterized in that the container is a paper pack container.

According to the present invention, a pouring spout can be provided that can suppress the spraying (liquid spraying) of fats and oils having a solid fat content (SFC) of 5% or less at 20°C when the fats and oils are poured out of a container.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a cap 1 with a spout according to the present invention in an open state. FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the pour spout 22 of the present invention shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the spout of the comparative embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a container 10 in which a cap 1 with a spout according to the present invention is attached to a container body 5 . FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a part of a product in which a container 10 having a container body 5 fitted with a cap 1 with a spout according to the present invention is filled with grease Lc.

As mentioned above, in products in which a capped container equipped with a pouring tube is filled with a relatively viscous liquid content such as oil, various studies have been conducted on the shapes of the pouring tube, the cap body, etc. to ensure that the liquid content drains easily after it has been poured out and to prevent dripping.
In the course of investigating problems such as dripping of oils and fats, the inventors first noticed a phenomenon in which oils and fats spurt out of the spout when pouring begins. As a result of investigating this spurting phenomenon, it was confirmed that, for example, if the container body is made of a relatively soft material such as soft plastic or a paper pack, the container is crushed when held by hand, which causes the air present inside the container to be pushed out, and the grease remaining in the flow path of the spout is also pushed out by the pushed-out air, resulting in the spurting phenomenon.
The inventors have found that in a cap provided with a pouring tube (spout), if the step on the inner peripheral surface of the pouring tube is greater than or equal to a predetermined size, the step creates a liquid pool of grease, which is one of the causes of the above-mentioned blowing phenomenon. The step on the inner peripheral surface of the pouring tube can be created when the pouring tube is molded using a mold, but the inventors have found that by keeping this step within a predetermined range, the occurrence of liquid pools of grease can be prevented, and as a result, the blowing phenomenon can be suppressed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the pour spout according to the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

1 and 2 are cross-sectional views of a cap 1 equipped with a spout according to the present invention, with FIG. 1 being a cross-sectional view showing the entire cap 1 in an open state, and FIG. 2 being an enlarged cross-sectional view of the spout 22 according to the present invention shown in FIG. 1.
As shown in FIG. 1, the cap 1 comprises a cap body 2 having a spout 22 erected above a top wall 21, and a cap lid body 3 connected to the cap body 2 by a hinge structure 4 so as to be able to open and close, and the entire cap 1 is integrally molded from a synthetic resin such as polyethylene.

FIG. 2 is a view showing a spout 22 of the present invention, which illustrates the essential structure of the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 2, the spout 22 is a cylinder that communicates with the upper opening of a container (not shown) via an opening 21A formed in the lower surface of the top wall 21.
The inner circumferential surface 220 of the spout 22 forms a flow path for pouring the grease from inside the container to outside the container, and the flow path includes a space having a shape in which at least two or more cylinders having different diameters are connected. The flow path includes a first cylinder 220A extending vertically to the opening 21A from the downstream side in the flow direction of the grease when the grease is poured from inside the container to outside the container, and a second cylinder 220B extending vertically to the opening 21A.
A second cylinder 220B extends vertically to the first cylinder 220A and has a larger diameter than the first cylinder 220A, and a truncated cone 220B extends from the upstream end of the second cylinder 220B to the periphery 21B of the opening 21A.
20C are connected together to form a structure.

The diameters ( _D220B0 , _D220B2 , _D220B4 ) of the second cylinder 220B are 0.25 to 1.0 mm smaller than the diameters ( _D220A0 , _D220A2 , _D220A4 ) of the first cylinder 220A.
0.05 mm to 0.5 mm or more.
In particular, the difference in diameter of the cylinders at the portion connecting the first cylinder 220A and the second cylinder 220B, i.e., the difference between the diameter D _220A4 of the upstream end 220A4 of the first cylinder 220A in the flow direction of the grease and the diameter D _220B2 of the downstream end 220B2 of the second cylinder 220B, is 0.05 mm or more and less than 0.5 mm.
In a preferred embodiment, the diameter _D220A2 of the downstream end 220A2 of the first cylinder 220A in the flow direction of the grease is
The diameter D of the nozzle _{220A4 may be 0.01 mm to 0.1 mm larger than the diameter D of the nozzle 220A4} .
Alternatively, in a preferred embodiment, the diameter D _220B4 of the upstream end 220B4 of the second cylinder 220B is smaller than the diameter D 220B2 of the downstream end 220B2 of the second cylinder _220B.
2 , may be 0.01 mm to 4 mm greater.
In a preferred embodiment, the diameter _D22 of the upstream end 220C4 of the truncated cone 220C is
_0C4 is 2.0 mm smaller than the diameter D _220C2 of the downstream end 220C2 of the truncated cone 220C.
The thickness can be as large as 5.0 mm or more and 5.0 mm or less.
Furthermore, in a preferred embodiment, the diameter of the flow path at the outlet of the spout in the flow direction of the grease when pouring the grease from inside the container to outside the container, i.e., the first cylinder 220
The diameter D _220A2 of the downstream end 220A2 of A can be, for example, 1.5 mm or more and 3.0 mm or less.

As shown in FIG. 2, in the present invention, no straightening portion that protrudes downward or to the side is provided at or near the peripheral portion 212 of the opening 21A formed in the lower surface of the top wall 21.

2, the spout 22 has a lip portion 226 that extends outwardly around the entire circumference at the outlet in the direction of the flow of the grease. As an example of the lip portion (not shown), a lip portion cut at an acute angle so that one side extends at the outlet of the spout, or a lip portion with a brim in the extending direction may be used.
2, the outer circumferential surface 224 of the spout 22 expands toward the bottom of the tube. As an example of the outer circumferential surface (not shown), the outer circumferential surface may extend vertically toward the bottom of the tube.

In order to clarify the effects of the present invention, a comparative example of a cap different from the embodiment of the present invention, particularly a cap with a different spout aspect, is shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the spout of the comparative example, which corresponds to Fig. 2 which is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the spout 22.
As shown in Figure 3, in the comparative embodiment, spout 92 is a cylinder that communicates with the upper opening of a container (not shown) via an opening 91A formed on the underside of top wall 91, and the inner surface 920 of spout 92 has a spatial structure formed by a cylinder 920A extending vertically to opening 91A from the downstream side in the flow direction of the grease, and a truncated cone 920C that expands in diameter from the upstream end of cylinder 920A to the periphery 91B of opening 91A.
Here, a step 922 caused by a step between the cylinder 920A and the truncated cone 920C in the comparative embodiment will be compared with a step 222 caused by a step between the first cylinder 220A and the second cylinder 220B in the embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG.
The diameter D _220A4 of the upstream end 220A4 of the first cylinder 220A is equal to the diameter D _920A4 of the upstream end 920A4 of the comparative example cylinder 920A, and the diameter D 220B2 of the downstream end 220B2 of the second cylinder 220B according to the present invention is equal to the diameter D _220B2 of the downstream end 920B2 of the truncated cone 920C of the comparative example.
Even if the diameters D _920C2 of the step portions 222 and 920C2 are the same, the amount of liquid that can be stored in the step portions of both is smaller in the step portion 222 of the embodiment of the present invention.
That is, in the present invention, the structure (flow path) of the inner circumferential surface 220 of the spout 22 is a space formed by the first cylinder 220A, the second cylinder 220B, and the truncated cone 220C described above, and further, the difference in diameter between the first cylinder 220A and the second cylinder 220B at the portion connecting them is set to 0.
By setting the step to be greater than or equal to 0.05 mm and less than 0.5 mm, the step on the inner surface 220 of the spout 22 is kept within a specified range, thereby preventing the accumulation of grease and oil in the step portion 222 and suppressing the grease and oil blowing out phenomenon, i.e., oil spraying.

As shown in FIG. 3, in the comparative embodiment, an opening 21A formed on the lower surface of the top wall 91
A downwardly protruding flow straightening portion 93 is provided at a peripheral portion 912 of the top wall 91. A step 914 formed between the flow straightening portion 93 and the lower surface of the top wall 91 can accumulate liquid or air.
On the other hand, in the present invention, by not installing the straightening section as shown in Figure 2, it is possible to suppress the entrainment of air that enters from the outside or remains inside the container when pouring out the oil or fat, thereby achieving smooth pouring of the oil or fat.

1, the cap body 2 of the cap 1 equipped with the spout 22 according to the present invention further comprises a cylindrical outer wall 23 fitted to the mouth of a container (not shown), the above-mentioned top wall 21 closing the upper part of the cylindrical outer wall 23, a cylindrical inner wall 24 provided concentrically inside the cylindrical outer wall 23 and hanging down from the top wall 21, and an annular seal portion 25 located between the cylindrical outer wall 23 and the cylindrical inner wall 24, provided concentrically and hanging down from the top wall 21. An internal thread portion 232 may be formed on an inner circumferential surface 230 of the cylindrical outer wall 23 over the entire circumference in the circumferential direction.
In this embodiment, a protrusion 26 extending annularly along the circumferential direction may be provided on the upper surface of the top wall 21 of the cap body 2 outside the spout 22 described above.

As shown in FIG. 1, the spout 22 can be provided slightly closer to the connection side of a hinge structure 4, which will be described later.

The cap lid body 3 that is fitted onto the cap body 2 includes a plug portion 31 that covers or opens the upper surface of the cap body 2 and closes the spout 22. The plug portion 31 may include a cylindrical plug portion 31A that fits into the spout 22 and a fitting plug portion 31B that fits into the lip portion 226 of the spout 22. The cap lid body 3 may also be provided with an operating portion 32 on the opposite side to the hinge structure 4, where a user can hook a finger or nail when opening the cap lid body 3.

Next, a container equipped with cap 1 will be described as an example of a mode of use of a cap with a pour spout according to the present invention.
FIG. 4 shows a container 10 equipped with a cap 1 with a pour spout (not shown) according to the invention.
The container 10 comprises a container body 5 and the cap 1 according to the present invention, and the container body 5 is connected to a resin inner lid (not shown) that engages with the cap 1. The inside of the container 10 is filled with grease Lc (not shown), which will be described later.

The container body 5 can be a container made of a paper material (so-called paper pack), and a laminate layer can be provided on the outside and inside of the container body 5 in accordance with the fat or oil Lc so as to be suitable for storage, transportation, etc. For example, when the fat or oil Lc is a liquid edible fat or oil described later, the laminate layer can be provided with a barrier layer that imparts or improves enzyme barrier properties and light blocking properties that prevent the transmission of visible light, ultraviolet light, and the like.
The container body may be a bottle made of resin such as polyethylene (PE) or polyethylene terephthalate (PET) other than a paper carton.
The resin inner lid connected to the container body 5 can be made of the same material as the cap 1 .

The fats and oils Lc having a solid fat content (SFC) of 5% or less at 20° C. are not particularly limited and may be either edible or non-edible, with edible fats and oils being preferred.
Examples of edible oils and fats include vegetable oils such as rapeseed oil, soybean oil, sunflower seed oil, cottonseed oil, peanut oil, rice oil, corn oil, safflower oil, olive oil, kapok oil, sesame oil, evening primrose oil, linseed oil, and perilla oil, and synthetic oils and fats such as medium-chain fatty acid triglycerides.

Next, the oil and fat Lc is poured into the container 10 equipped with the cap 1 having the spout 22 of the present invention.
This section explains examples of how to use products filled with this ingredient.
5A and 5B are enlarged cross-sectional views of the periphery of the cap 1 in a product in which the container 10 with the cap 1 is filled with the grease Lc.
Figure 5(b) shows the state in which the container 10 is further tilted to pour out the grease Lc, Figure 5(c) shows the state in which the container 10 is slightly returned to its original position after pouring, and Figure 5(d) shows the state in which the container 10 is returned to its original position.
As shown in Figures 5(a) to (d), the container 10 includes a container body 5, a resin inner lid 51 connected to the container body 5, and a cap 1 attached to the upper opening 10A of the container 10, and the cap 1 and the inner lid 51 are configured to engage with each other (see Figure 5(d) and the like).
.
When using the product, the product is tilted (FIGS. 5(a) and (b)) and, if necessary, the container body 5 is squeezed (compressed), whereby the oil or fat Lc is poured out through the upper opening 10A of the container 10, through the opening 21A provided in the top wall 21 of the cap 1, and through the spout 22 of the cap 1 (FIG. 5(b)).
After using the product, when the product is returned to its position as shown in FIG. 5(c), the grease Lc remaining inside the spout 22 is returned by its own weight into the container through the opening 21A and the upper opening 10A.
In addition, when the oil Lc is pushed out by squeezing (compressing) the container body 5,
When the spout 22 is restored to its original shape, the grease Lc remaining in the spout 22 is pulled back into the container by the suction force (suck back). At this time, the difference in diameter between the upstream end of the first cylinder 220A of the spout 22 and the downstream end of the second cylinder 220B is set to 0.05 mm or more and less than 0.5 mm, so that the grease Lc is not drawn into the stepped portion 2
The oil and fat Lc does not accumulate in the spout 22, and when the container 10 is crushed the next time it is held by hand and the air inside the container is pushed out from the spout 22, the oil and fat Lc can be prevented from spouting out.

A cap 1 having a spout 22 according to the present invention (FIG. 2) and a comparative example spout 92 (
The occurrence of oil and fat spouting (liquid spouting) was investigated using 700 mL paper cartons each equipped with a cap with a cap as shown in Fig. 3. The caps were attached to the paper cartons in the positions shown in Fig. 4. The dimensions of the spouts in Figs. 2 and 3 are as follows:
(The spout in Figure 2)
Diameter D _220A2 of the downstream end 220A2 of the first cylinder 220A: 1.8 mm
Diameter _D220A4 of the upstream end 220A4 of the first cylinder 220A: 1.77 mm
Diameter _D220B2 of downstream end 220B2 of second cylinder 220B: 1.87 mm
Diameter D _220B4 of the upstream end 220B4 of the second cylinder 220B: 1.99 mm
Diameter _D220C2 of downstream end 220C2 of truncated cone 220C: 1.99 mm
Diameter _D220C4 of the upstream end 220C4 of the truncated cone 220C: 5.5 mm
(The spout in Figure 3)
Diameter D _920A2 of downstream end 920A2 of cylinder 920A: 1.8 mm
Diameter D _920A4 of the upstream end 920A4 of the cylinder 920A: 1.77 mm
Diameter D _920C2 of the downstream end 920C2 of the truncated cone 920C: 2.23 mm
Diameter D _920C4 of the upstream end 920C4 of the truncated cone 920C: 5.48 mm

The evaluation was carried out according to the following procedure.
(1) Grasp the side of a paper pack that is placed stationary and lift it up.
(2) Tilt it and pour in a small amount of oil.
(3) Return the paper carton to its original position, place it back on the desk, and let go of it.
(4) Grasp the paper pack again to lift it up.
(5) The steps (1) to (4) were repeated 10 times, and the number of times that the oil and fat blew out was evaluated.

As a result of the evaluation, when the cap having the spout 92 of the comparative embodiment was used, grease spurted out once. In contrast, when the cap 1 having the spout 22 of the present invention was used, grease spurted out no more. From this result, it became clear that the cap 1 having the spout 22 of the present invention can suppress grease spurting out.

The pour spout of the present invention is useful as a pour spout capable of suppressing the spouting (liquid spouting) of fats and oils when the fats and oils are poured out of a container filled with the fats and oils.
It should be noted that the present invention may include the following aspects.
[Aspect 1]
A synthetic resin spout for pouring oil or fat having a solid fat content (SFC) of 5% or less at 20°C from inside a container to outside the container,
The oil/fat flow path of the spout includes a space having a shape in which at least two or more cylinders having different diameters are connected,
A spout characterized in that the difference in diameter of the cylinders at the part connecting the cylinders is 0.05 mm or more and less than 0.5 mm.
[Aspect 2]
The spout described in embodiment 1, characterized in that the diameter of the flow path at the outlet of the spout in the flow direction of the grease when pouring the grease from inside the container to outside the container is 1.5 mm or more and 3.0 mm or less.
[Aspect 3]
The spout described in aspect 1 is characterized in that the flow path consists of a space in the shape of two or more connected cylinders with a truncated cone connected to it, from the downstream side in the flow direction of the grease when the grease is poured from inside the container to outside the container.
[Aspect 4]
When the grease is poured from inside the container to outside the container, the diameter of the upstream side of the truncated cone in the flow direction of the grease is larger than the diameter of the downstream side,
A spout according to claim 3, characterized in that the difference between the diameters of both the spouts is 0.01 mm or more and 4 mm or less.
[Aspect 5]
The spout according to claim 1, wherein the container is a paper pack container.

1 Cap 2 Cap body 3 Cap lid body 4 Hinge structure 5 Container body 51 Inner lid 10 Container 10A Upper opening 21 Top wall 21A Opening 21B Periphery 212 Periphery 22 Spout 220 Inner surface 220A First cylinder 220A2 Downstream end of first cylinder 220A4 Upstream end of first cylinder D _220A0 Diameter of first cylinder D _220A2 Diameter of downstream end of first cylinder D _220A4 Diameter of upstream end of first cylinder 220B Second cylinder 220B2 Downstream end of second cylinder 220B4 Upstream end of second cylinder D _220B0 Diameter of second cylinder D _220B2 Diameter of downstream end of second cylinder D _220B4 Diameter of upstream end of second cylinder 220C Circular truncated cone 220C2 Downstream end of frustum of cone 220C4 Upstream end of frustum of cone D _220C2 Diameter of downstream end of frustum of cone D _220C4 Diameter of upstream end of frustum of cone 222 Step portion 224 Outer periphery 226 Lip portion 23 Cylindrical outer wall portion 230 Inner circumferential surface 232 Male thread portion 24 Cylindrical inner wall portion 25 Annular seal portion 26 Projection portion 31 Plug portion 31A Cylindrical plug portion 31B Fitting plug portion 32 Operation portion 91 Top wall 91A Opening 91B Periphery 912 Periphery 914 Step portion 92 Spout 920 Inner circumferential surface 920A Cylinder 920A2 Downstream end of cylinder 920A4 Upstream end of cylinder D _920A2 Diameter of downstream end of cylinder D _920A4 Diameter of upstream end of cylinder 920C Circular truncated cone 920C2 Downstream end of circular truncated cone 920C4 Upstream end of circular truncated cone D _{920C2 Diameter of downstream end of circular truncated cone D 920C4 Diameter} of upstream end of circular truncated cone 922 Step portion 93 Straightening portion Lc Oil

Claims (10)

A container for storing fats and oils having a solid fat content (SFC) of 5% or less at 20°C,
The container comprises a container body, an inner lid, and a cap;
The container body is formed of a paper material,
The inner lid is connected to an opening formed in the container body,
The cap is
a cap body having a spout that forms an opening smaller than the opening formed by the inner lid ;
A cap lid body capable of covering the spout ,
A cap side thread portion provided on an inner peripheral surface of the cap body engages with an inner lid side thread portion provided on an outer peripheral surface of the inner lid.
container. 2. The container of claim 1,
the cap includes a hinge structure that connects the cap lid body to the cap body in an openable and closable manner,
The central axis of the spout is provided on the top wall of the cap body closer to the hinge structure than the center of the top wall.
container. 3. The container of claim 2,
The opening of the container body is formed on a slope of the container body.
container. A container according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The spout includes a lip portion extending outwardly around the entire periphery at an outlet in the flow direction of the grease,
container. A container according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The cap lid body includes a cylindrical plug portion that fits into the spout.
container. A container according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The cap body includes a protrusion extending annularly along a circumferential direction on the outer side of the spout.
container. A container according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The cap lid body includes an operation part for hooking a finger or a nail when opening the cap lid body.
container. 8. The container of claim 7,
The operating portion is provided above the spout when the cap lid body is in a closed state.
container. A container according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The cap body includes:
a cylindrical outer wall portion on which the cap side thread portion is formed;
A top wall that closes an upper portion of the outer wall portion;
a cylindrical inner wall portion provided inside the outer wall portion and extending downward from a lower surface of the top wall;
including,
container. A container according to any one of claims 1 to 3;
The oil and fat contained in the container body;
Equipped with
Oil and fat products.

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