JP7545293B2 - container - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a container, and in particular to a container that is opened by breaking a part of it.

One type of disposable container that is opened once and discarded after the contents are removed is one that has a cap (see Patent Document 1, etc.). Another type of disposable container is one that is opened by breaking part of the container, such as an ampule (see Patent Document 2).

JP 2015-193983 A International Publication No. 2018/190422

Disposable containers with caps have a large number of parts, and if the cap is made of resin in addition to the container body, the amount of resin material used increases, resulting in a large environmental impact. In contrast, disposable containers that are opened by breaking part of the container can reduce the amount of material used, but if the broken part is exposed, there is a risk that the broken part may be opened unintentionally. There is also a risk that the broken part cannot be broken properly when opening.

The present invention was made to solve the above problems, and aims to provide a container that can prevent unintentional opening at the broken part and has excellent openability.

The container according to the present invention is made of a resin material and comprises a container body in which the contents are stored, and a cover member attached to the container body. The container body comprises a main body portion in which the contents are stored, a cylindrical portion having a first end and a second end, and communicating with the main body portion at the first end side, and a welding portion that is welded to close the second end of the cylindrical portion. The cylindrical portion has a break portion between the first end and the second end, and breaking of the break portion forms an outlet for removing the contents from the main body portion. The cover member is formed in a ring shape so as to cover the break portion and surround the cylindrical portion from the outside, and is attached rotatably to the cylindrical portion.

In the above container, a groove extending around the central axis of the cylindrical portion can be formed in the container body, and an annular protrusion that rotatably fits into the groove can be formed on the inner wall surface of the cover member.

In the above container, the cover member may further include a plurality of claws extending toward the second end of the cylindrical portion and arranged in a circumferential direction.

In the above container, the cylindrical portion can be formed so that the outer diameter of the portion closer to the second end than the breaking portion increases toward the second end.

In the above container, at least the portion of the cylindrical portion closer to the second end than the breaking portion can be configured to be hollow.

In the above container, the container body can be integrally formed from the same resin material.

According to the present invention, a breakable portion is provided in the cylindrical portion that communicates with the main body portion, and at least the portion of the cylindrical portion that is outside the breakable portion is configured to be hollow. Since the hollow portion of the cylindrical portion has a bulge, the thickness of the outer wall portion of the hollow portion is relatively thin and soft, and even if only a small amount of resin material is used to configure the hollow portion, a certain level of strength can be maintained. Therefore, by using the hollow portion of the cylindrical portion by pinching it with the fingers, etc., it is possible to effectively transmit the force required for breaking to the breakable portion when opening, and the container can be easily opened. As a result, a container that is easy to open and environmentally friendly is provided.

FIG. 2 is a front view of a container according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. FIG. 2 is a front view of the container body without the cover member attached. FIG. 4 is a left side view of the container body without the cover member attached. FIG. FIG. FIG. FIG. 1 is an external view of contents attached to a hard surface.

Hereinafter, a container according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
＜1. Overall structure＞
Fig. 1 shows a front view of a container 100 according to one embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 2 shows a left side view of the container 100. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the terms "upper (top surface)", "lower (bottom surface)", "left", "right", "front (front face)", and "rear (back face)" are defined as shown in Figs. 1 to 4. However, the terms "upper" and "lower" used here do not limit the manner in which the container 100 is used.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the container 100 has a container body 1 in which the contents are contained, and a cover member 2 attached to the container body 1. The container body 1 is a sealed container in which the contents are sealed, and is opened by breaking a part of it, and is not resealable. Therefore, the container body 1 is a disposable container that is opened once and discarded after the contents are removed. In this embodiment, the container body 1 can be discarded together with the cover member 2 attached to it.

The type of contents contained in the container body 1 is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, medicine or food. The form of the contents is also not particularly limited, and may be, for example, gel, liquid, granular, or other contents. Although details will be described later, the container 100 of this embodiment can eject medicine onto a hard surface and attach it like a stamp, and can be used, for example, to apply medicine to the inner surface of a toilet bowl. In addition, for example, the container 100 can also be used to apply medicine to the inner surface of a trash can. A medicine suitable for stamping onto a hard surface is typically a gel-like adhesive having fluidity, and when used to apply to the inner surface of a toilet bowl, it preferably contains a cleaning agent for cleaning the toilet bowl. In addition, the medicine in this example may contain other appropriate ingredients such as fragrances, disinfectants, deodorants, and colorants.

<2. Configuration of each part>
<2-1. Container body>
3 and 4 are a front view and a left side view, respectively, of the container body 1. The container body 1 has a main body portion 10 in which the contents are accommodated, a cylindrical portion 20 extending upward from the upper end of the main body portion 10, and a welding portion 30 extending further upward from the upper end of the cylindrical portion 20, which are integrally formed from a resin material.

The main body 10 is elliptical in front view and relatively flat in the front-rear direction, and has an internal space S1 for accommodating contents. The main body 10 has a central axis L (see FIG. 1) that extends linearly in the vertical direction, and the tubular portion 20 and the welding portion 30 that is continuous therewith also have central axes L that extend linearly in the vertical direction, and these are coincident. In other words, the tubular portion 20 and the welding portion 30 extend straight upward from the center of the upper end of the main body 10, coaxially with the main body 10. In the following description, the "circumferential direction" and "radial direction" are based on the central axis L of the main body 10, the tubular portion 20, and the welding portion 30, unless otherwise specified.

An opening (not shown) is formed at the upper end of the main body 10, and the tubular part 20 is connected to close this opening. The tubular part 20 is formed in a cylindrical shape as a whole, and the lower end (first end) 20A is connected to the opening of the main body 10. As a result, the internal space S2 of the tubular part 20 is connected to the internal space S1 of the main body 10. On the other hand, the upper end (second end) 20B of the tubular part is closed by the welding part 30. The welding part 30 is a part that is crushed flat and welded to close the upper end 20B of the tubular part 20. In other words, the welding part 30 is typically formed by crushing one end of a certain tubular member flat so that the inner space disappears, and welding the same end to maintain that state. Note that in the original tubular member, the part adjacent to the welding part 30 and maintaining the space inside even after the welding part 30 is formed is the tubular part 20.

As shown in Figures 2 and 4, the welded portion 30 is flat in the front-to-rear direction, and the portion of the tubular portion 20 near the welded portion 30 is configured so that the thickness in the front-to-rear direction gradually decreases as it approaches the welded portion 30.

In this embodiment, the welded portion 30 is heat welded by pressing a heat block against it, ultrasonic sealing, or other methods. Note that, although the welded portion 30 has been described above as being flat, the welded portion 30 in this embodiment is shrunk to a wavy shape by the heat applied during heat welding. In other words, the concept of flat here includes this shrunk state.

In this embodiment, the container body 1 is made of a flexible material and has squeezability. In other words, the container body 1 is a squeeze container, and after opening, the contents can be pushed out from the internal space S1 by pressing the main body 10 with a finger or the like to compress and deform it.

As described above, the container body 1 is formed from the same resin material, but the main body portion 10 can be formed from a resin material different from that of the cylindrical portion 20 and the welded portion 30. Alternatively, they can be made from a material other than resin. Preferred examples of the resin material that makes up these portions 10, 20, and 30 include polyethylene, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, and the like. There are no particular limitations on the method for molding the container body 1, but a preferred example is blow-fill molding, which allows the main body portion 10, cylindrical portion 20, and welded portion 30 to be molded as a single unit. This method allows the container body 1 to be filled with the contents while it is being molded.

3 and 4, the cylindrical portion 20 has a base portion 21 and a removal portion 22 arranged in order from the lower end portion 20A to the upper end portion 20B. The lower end of the base portion 21 corresponds to the lower end portion 20A of the cylindrical portion 20, and the upper end of the removal portion 22 corresponds to the upper end portion 20B of the cylindrical portion 20. The cylindrical portion 20 has an annular breaking portion D1 at the boundary between the base portion 21 and the removal portion 22, and is configured to break relatively easily along the breaking portion D1. When the breaking portion D1 breaks, the container body 1 is separated into a portion formed by the main body portion 10 and the base portion 21 connected thereto, and a portion formed by the removal portion 22 and the welding portion 30 connected thereto. As a result, an outlet S3 for taking out the contents from the main body portion 10 is formed, and the container body 1 is opened. The outlet S3 is formed at the upper end of the base portion 21.

The base 21 has a lower portion 211 with a constant diameter that extends upward from the lower end 20A, and an upper portion 212 that is continuous with the upper end of the lower portion 211. In this embodiment, the cross sections of the lower portion 211 and the upper portion 212 are circular. The lower end of the upper portion 212 has a larger diameter than the upper end of the lower portion 211, and a step (groove) D2 is formed around the entire circumference at the boundary between the lower portion 211 and the upper portion 212. The role of this step D2 will be described later. The upper portion 212 gradually reduces in diameter from its lower end to its upper end. The upper end of the upper portion 212 is continuous with the lower end of the removed portion 22, and the lower end of the removed portion 22 has a larger diameter than the upper end of the upper portion 212. Therefore, a groove is formed around the entire circumference at the boundary between the upper portion 212 and the removed portion 22, and this groove constitutes the above-mentioned fracture portion D1. As a result, when an external force is applied to the tubular portion 20, such as twisting it circumferentially around the central axis L and/or bending it along the direction of the central axis L, the tubular portion 20 breaks relatively easily along the breaking portion D1. That is, the breaking portion D1 is a portion where stress is more likely to concentrate than other portions of the tubular portion 20 when an external force is applied to the tubular portion 20, and is preferably the portion where stress is most concentrated. In addition, the groove in the breaking portion D1 narrows the diameter of the internal space of the tubular portion 20, so that the contents of the main body portion 10 can be prevented from moving above the groove before use.

In this embodiment, the lower end of the removal portion 22 is annular. The removal portion 22 is configured so that the thickness in the front-to-rear direction gradually decreases from its lower end toward its upper end. Meanwhile, the removal portion 22 is configured so that it gradually becomes wider from its lower end toward the upper end in a front view. However, the upper end of the removal portion 22 is an upwardly convex arc shape, and the area near the upper end of the removal portion 22 becomes narrower toward the upper end. Also, the welded portion 30 is wider than the widest portion of the removal portion 22 in a front view.

As is clear from the above, in this embodiment, the front surface of the removal portion 22 is inclined forward from the top to the bottom, and the rear surface of the removal portion 22 is inclined backward. Therefore, when opening the container body 1, the removal portion 22 can be easily pinched by placing two fingers on each of these surfaces. Also, when two fingers are placed on each of the front and rear surfaces of the removal portion 22 and the removal portion 22 is pinched between these two fingers, the welding portion 30 is also pinched between these two fingers. At this time, in this embodiment, since the welding portion 30 is shrunk in a wavy manner, the welding portion 30 that touches the fingers provides resistance, making it difficult for the fingers to fall off the removal portion 22. This further improves the ease of opening the container body 1.

<2-2. Cover member>
5 to 7 respectively show a plan view, a bottom view and a cross-sectional view of the cover member 2. Note that Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VII-VII in Fig. 5, and in Fig. 7, the position of the container body 1 when the cover member 2 is attached is shown by a dotted line for reference.

The cover member 2 includes an annular portion 40 that surrounds the tubular portion 20 from the outside so as to cover the fracture portion D1, and a plurality of claws 50 that protrude from the upper end of the annular portion 40. The annular portion 40 has a double-tube structure that includes a cylindrical outer wall portion 41 and a cylindrical inner wall portion 42 that is arranged slightly inside the outer wall portion 41, and further includes an annular protrusion portion 44 that protrudes radially inward from the lower portion of the inner wall portion 42. The outer wall portion 41 and the inner wall portion 42 are connected by an annular upper wall portion 43 that extends radially near their respective upper portions. The upper portion of the outer wall portion 41 protrudes slightly upward from the upper wall portion 43. In addition, the upper end of the inner wall portion 42 is located slightly below the upper end of the outer wall portion 41, and the lower end of the inner wall portion 42 is located slightly above the lower end of the outer wall portion 41. Therefore, when the annular portion 40 is viewed from the side, the inner wall portion 42 and the upper wall portion 43 are completely covered by the outer wall portion 41. The cylindrical portion 20 is inserted into the space inside the inner wall portion 42.

When the cylindrical portion 20 is inserted into the space inside the inner wall portion 42 so that the annular portion 40 surrounds the cylindrical portion 20, the protruding portion 44 is rotatably hooked onto the step D2 formed on the base 21 of the cylindrical portion 20. This makes it difficult for the cover member 2 to slide upward relative to the cylindrical portion 20. Also, at this time, the lower end of the annular portion 40 is mostly in contact with the upper surface of the main body portion 10, and the cover member 2 can hardly or not slide downward relative to the cylindrical portion 20 at all. As a result, the relative positions of the cover member 2 and the cylindrical portion 20 are fixed. However, since the protruding portion 44 is rotatably hooked onto the step D2, the cover member 2 can rotate around the cylindrical portion 20 around the central axis L.

When the protrusion 44 is hooked on the step D2, the annular portion 40 covers the broken portion D1, and in this embodiment, in particular covers almost the entire base 21 and the lower portion of the removal portion 22. Therefore, the cover member 2 can stably cover and protect the broken portion D1. In addition, the outlet S3 formed after the breakage portion D1 is broken is located in the space inside the annular portion 40 when the protrusion 44 is hooked on the step D2. In this embodiment, the inner diameter of the inner wall portion 42 is narrower than the maximum width of the removal portion 22 of the cylindrical portion 20. Therefore, even if the protrusion 44 overcomes the step D2 and slides upward, the cover member 2 will not fall off the cylindrical portion 20, and loss of the cover member 2 is prevented.

As described above, a number of claws 50 are arranged on the upper end of the cover member 2. The claws 50 stand upward from the annular portion 40 and are arranged along the circumferential direction of the annular portion 40. In this embodiment, the claws 50 are arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction. The claws 50 also extend upward from the upper portion of the annular portion 40, more specifically, from the upper portion of the outer wall portion 41 and the upper wall portion 43. Therefore, when the cylindrical portion 20 is inserted into the space inside the inner wall portion 42 and the protruding portion 44 is hooked on the step D2 from below, the claws 50 extend toward the upper end portion 20B of the cylindrical portion 20.

In this state, the claw 50 does not come into contact with the tubular portion 20, but if the cover member 2 is lifted upward and the protruding portion 44 overcomes the step D2, the claw 50 may come into contact with the removal portion 22 and the welding portion 30. As a result, the contact between the claw 50 and the removal portion 22 and the welding portion 30 creates resistance, further preventing the cover member 2 from falling off the tubular portion 20.

The material constituting the cover member 2 is not particularly limited, but in consideration of its role in protecting the fracture portion D1, it is preferable that the material has a certain degree of hardness, and is preferably at least harder than the base portion 21. For example, the cover member 2 can be made of a hard synthetic resin such as polyethylene or polypropylene, or a metal such as aluminum.

<3. How to use>
Next, a method of using the container configured as described above will be described. First, in the state shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the welded portion 30 or the removal portion 22 is pinched between fingers and rotated around the central axis L. This breaks the breakable portion, and the base portion 21 and the removal portion are separated. As a result, the outlet S3 opens at the top of the base. Following this, the main body portion 10 is pressed while pressing the multiple claws 50 against a hard surface. As a result, the medicine in the main body portion 10 is pushed out from inside the main body portion 10, passes through the base portion 21, and is discharged to the outside through the outlet S3 arranged inside the annular portion 40. After that, the medicine that has passed through the space inside the annular portion 40 spreads radially from the multiple gaps between the multiple claws 50 while contacting the hard surface. As a result, the contents are attached to the hard surface in a radially spread manner, as shown in FIG. 8. Therefore, the medicine is formed into a flower-like pattern, and the hard surface can be beautifully decorated. In this manner, the nail 50 functions to apply the medicine to a hard surface like a stamp.

<4. Features>
The container according to this embodiment can provide the following effects.
(1) Since the breaking portion D1 of the cylindrical portion 20 is covered by the cover member 2, the breaking portion D1 can be protected and the container body 1 can be prevented from being unintentionally opened. In addition, since the cover member 2 is rotatably attached to the container body 1, even if the annular portion 40 or the claw 50 of the cover member 2 gets caught on the removal portion 22 when, for example, the removal portion 22 or the welded portion 30 is gripped with fingers and rotated, the cover member 2 rotates together with the removal portion 22, so that the breaking operation of the breaking portion D1 is not hindered. Therefore, the container 100 can be easily opened.

(2) In the cylindrical portion 20, at least the portion on the upper end 20B side of the breaking portion D1, i.e., the removal portion 22, is configured to be hollow, but the contents are generally contained only in the internal space S1 of the main body portion 10, and are not substantially contained in the internal space S2 of the cylindrical portion 20. That is, the entire cylindrical portion 20 is substantially hollow and filled with air, so it has a bulge. Therefore, in this embodiment, even though the thickness of the outer wall portion of the cylindrical portion 20 is relatively thin and soft, and only a small amount of resin material is used to construct the cylindrical portion 20, the cylindrical portion 20 has a certain strength due to the pressure of the air in the internal space S2. Therefore, when opening the container body 1, the hollow removal portion 22 can be used by pinching it with fingers, etc., to effectively transmit the force required to break the cylindrical portion 20 at the breaking portion D1. This improves the openability of the container body 1. In addition, because the cylindrical portion 20 having the breaking portion D1 has a simple structure, the amount of resin material used to mold it is reduced, making it environmentally friendly.

(3) As described above, at least the removal section 22 is configured to be hollow, so that of the two members that are separated when the breaking section D1 breaks, the one that contains the removal section 22 to be discarded is not filled with contents. Therefore, the contents can be used up without waste. In addition, it is possible to prevent the contents from scattering due to the impact when the breaking section D1 breaks.

(4) Depending on the form of the contents, the contents may move within the container body 1 (internal spaces S1 and S2). More specifically, for example, if the contents are liquid or granular, when the main body 10 is oriented vertically upward and the tubular portion 20 is oriented vertically downward, the contents may move at least partially from the internal space S1 of the main body 10 into the internal space S2 of the tubular portion 20. However, when at least the main body 10 is oriented vertically downward and the tubular portion 20 is oriented vertically upward, if at least the removal portion 22 is hollow, the container body 1 can be easily opened by pinching the removal portion 22 with the fingers, as described above. In addition, the contents can be used up without waste, and scattering of the contents can be prevented.

5. Modifications
Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, the following modifications are possible. In addition, the gist of the following modifications can be combined as appropriate.

<5-1>
The annular portion 40 of the cover member 2 does not need to be annular, and may have any shape, such as a square ring, as long as the cover member 2 is rotatable relative to the container body 1. The configuration of the cover member 2 can be changed as appropriate, and is not particularly limited as long as it covers the breakable portion D1 and is configured to be rotatable relative to the container body 1. For example, the position where the step D2 is formed may be other than the lower end of the cylindrical portion 20, and the protruding portion 44 of the cover member 2 may be appropriately determined in accordance with the position of the step D2.

<5-2>
In the above embodiment, the contents were contained only in the main body portion 10 of the container body 1, but they may also be contained near the lower portion 211 of the base 21, or further in the upper portion 212.

<5-3>
When the container 100 is used for the purpose of applying a medicine to a hard surface like a stamp, the shape of the medicine discharged from the container 100 does not have to be a floral pattern, and may be simply circular or rectangular. In this case, the claws 50 can be omitted from the cover member 2. In addition, the claws 50 do not need to be arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction, and can be appropriately set according to the desired shape of the medicine to be discharged. In addition, the claws 50 may be in contact with the cylindrical portion 20 to some extent.

<5-4>
In the above embodiment, the hollow portion of the tubular portion 20 is filled with air, but it may be filled with other gases, for example, an inert gas such as nitrogen gas or argon gas.

<5-5>
In the above embodiment, the removal portion 22 above the breaking portion D1 of the cylindrical portion 20 is hollow, but it does not necessarily have to be hollow. For example, the removal portion 22 may be solid, or may be shaped like a plate or block so that the user can easily grasp it with his or her fingers.

<5-6>
The welded portion 30 may be embossed during welding. In this case, when the removal portion 22 and the welded portion 30 are pinched between two fingers to apply a force to break the breaking portion D1, the unevenness caused by the embossing on the surface of the welded portion 30 can provide a slip-proof effect for the fingers. This makes it difficult for the fingers to fall off the removal portion 22, further improving the ease of opening the container body 1.

100 Container 1 Container body 2 Cover member 10 Main body portion 20 Cylindrical portion 20A Lower end portion (first end portion)
20B Upper end (second end)
21 Base portion 22 Removal portion 30 Welding portion 40 Annular portion 50 Claw S3 Extraction port

Claims (6)

A container body formed of a resin material and accommodating contents;
A cover member attached to the container body;
Equipped with
The container body includes:
A main body portion in which the contents are accommodated;
a cylindrical portion having a first end and a second end, the first end being in communication with the main body portion;
a welding portion that is welded to close the second end of the cylindrical portion,
the tubular portion has a break portion between the first end and the second end, and when the break portion breaks, an outlet for removing the content from the main body portion is formed;
the cover member is formed in an annular shape so as to cover the breaking portion and surround the cylindrical portion from the outside, and is attached to the container body so as to be rotatable with respect to the cylindrical portion while being held by the container body ;
a portion of the tubular portion closer to the second end than the breaking portion and the welded portion are exposed to the outside from the cover member;
container. A groove is formed in the container body, the groove extending around the central axis of the cylindrical portion,
The container according to claim 1 , wherein an annular protrusion is formed on an inner wall surface of the cover member so as to rotatably fit into the groove. The container according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the cover member further includes a plurality of claws that extend toward the second end of the cylindrical portion and are arranged in a circumferential direction. The container according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the cylindrical portion is formed so that the outer diameter of the portion closer to the second end than the breaking portion increases toward the second end. The container according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein at least a portion of the cylindrical portion closer to the second end than the breaking portion is hollow. The container according to claim 1 , wherein the container body is integrally formed from a same resin material.