JP7597637B2 - Double container - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a double-layered container, in particular a double-layered container in which the container body for housing a refill container can be separated into two parts.

A known conventional double-walled container is one that consists of a jar-shaped refill container (inner container) and a cylindrical container body (outer container) with an insertion opening for the jar container on the top surface, with the refill container fitted into the container body (Patent Document 1).

Patent Publication No. 2018-34836

The container body of the double container of Patent Document 1 is molded as a whole as a single unitary member.
However, in recent years, there has been a demand for molding the cylindrical container body itself into two parts, an inner part and an outer part, which are separable from each other.
For example, in the case of a refillable jar-type container, in order to give it a luxurious feel, it may be required to decorate the inner container body and to form the outer container body surrounding the inner container body from a transparent material.
Furthermore, if the inner container body is made of different materials to provide decoration and the outer container body is made of different materials to ensure transparency, it is desirable to make the two separable so that the materials can be recycled when discarded.
In order to meet such demands, it is necessary to consider in advance how to assemble the inner container body to the outer container body. For example, if the inner container body is fitted inside the outer container body by an undercut fitting or the like, it becomes difficult to separate and dispose of it.

The first object of the present invention is to provide a double container in which the container body for storing a refill container is divided into two bodies, an inner container body and an outer container body, and these two bodies can be detachably fitted together to enable the two bodies to be disposed of separately.
A second object of the present invention is to design the fitting force between the inner container body and the outer container body in a user-friendly manner (in particular, to make it easy to remove the inner container body from the outer container body and to avoid accidental removal).

The first means comprises a cylindrical container body 1 having an opening on the top,
The refill container 40 is housed in the container body 1.
The container body 1 is formed of an inner container 20 having a vertical storage cylinder 22 for storing the refill container 40 and an insertion opening O for the refill container 40 at the upper end of the storage cylinder 22, and a bottomed cylindrical outer container body 2 into which the inner container 20 is inserted.
The inner container 20 and the outer container 2 are formed as separate bodies that can be separated from each other.
In the double container, a fitting portion A formed at a lower portion of the storage cylinder 22 is detachably fitted into a fitting portion B formed on a bottom wall 4 side of the outer container body 2 ,
The fitted portion B is formed as an inner peripheral surface 8i of an engagement tube 6 standing upright from the bottom wall 4,
The storage cylinder 22 is formed with an opening at its lower end, and a plurality of slits 30 are drilled extending upward from the lower end side of the storage cylinder 22, so that the cylinder wall portions between the slits 30 form flexible pieces 32,
The engaging portion A formed by the lower end portion 33 of each of the flexible pieces 32 is provided so as to be separably engaged with the engaged portion B.

In this means, as shown in Figures 1, 4 and 6, a container body 1 for storing a refill container 40 is formed so as to be separable from an inner container 20 having a vertical storage tube 22 for storing the refill container 40 and an insertion port O for the refill container 40 at the upper end of the storage tube 22, and a bottomed, cylindrical outer container body 2 into which the inner container 20 is inserted.
The fitting portion A formed at the lower portion of the storage cylinder 22 is configured to be detachably fitted into the fitted portion B formed on the bottom wall 4 of the outer container body 2 .
According to this structure, the inner container body 20 and the outer container body 2 can be disposed of separately, which contributes to the reuse of resources.
In this means, as shown in FIG. 1(A), the fitted portion B is formed as the inner peripheral surface 8i of the engagement tube 6 standing up from the bottom wall 4, and the storage tube 22 is formed at the lower end opening.
As shown by dotted lines in FIG. 1B, a plurality of slits 30 are drilled extending upward from the lower end of the storage tube 22, so that the tube wall portions between the slits 30 form flexible pieces 32, and the fitting portions A formed at the lower ends of these flexible pieces 32 are arranged to be detachably fitted into the fitted portions B.
According to this structure, the engaging force between the engaging portion A and the engaged portion B is relaxed or released by the inward bending of the flexible piece 32, so that the inner container body 20 can be easily removed from the outer container body 2.

The second means has the first means, and engagement means 10, 34 are formed in the mating portion A and the mated portion B, which engage with each other in a separable manner as a pull - out prevention mechanism T that prevents the inner container 20 from being pulled out from the outer container body 2.

In this means, as shown in Figures 1(A), 4(A), and 6(A), the engaging portion A and the engaged portion B are formed with engagement means 10, 34 that separably engage with each other as a pull-out prevention mechanism T that regulates the inner container 20 from being pulled out from the outer container body 2.
This structure eliminates or reduces the risk of the inner container body 20 accidentally coming off the outer container body 2 when using the double container of the present invention (for example, when pulling out the refill container 40 from the storage tube 22), making it easy to use.

The third means includes the first means or the second means , and by fitting the refill container 40 to the inner surface of the storage tube 22, each flexible piece 32 abuts against the surface of the refill container 40 so as not to bend or deform inward,
In this contact state, the lower end portion 33 of the flexible piece 32 is pressed against the inner peripheral surface 8 i of the engagement cylinder 6 .

In this means, as shown in FIG. 1, the refill container 40 is fitted into the inner surface of the storage tube 22, so that each flexible piece 32 abuts against the surface of the refill container 40 so as not to bend or deform inward, and in this abutting state, the lower end of the flexible piece 32 is pressed against the inner surface 8i of the engagement tube 6.
According to this structure, the fitting force between the fitting portion A (the lower end portion 33 of the flexible piece 32) and the fitted portion B (the inner surface 8i of the engaging tube 6) can be increased when the refill container 40 is stored in the storage tube 22, thereby reducing the risk of the inner storage body 20 suddenly detaching from the outer container body 2.

According to the present invention, the container body that houses the refill container is divided into two bodies, an inner container body and an outer container body, and these two bodies are detachably fitted together, so that the two bodies can be disposed of separately.
Furthermore, according to the present invention, the fitting force between the inner container and the outer container can be designed in a user-friendly manner, which makes it possible, for example, to easily remove the inner container from the outer container, or to prevent the two from accidentally coming apart.

1 shows the structure of a double container for a first embodiment of the present invention, in which (A) is a half cross-sectional view of the entire double container viewed from the front, and (B) is a cross-sectional view of the double container from the same direction with the cap omitted. The double container structure of FIG. 1 is shown with the cap removed, FIG. 1A being a side view, and FIG. 1B being a half cross-sectional view seen from the front. This shows the function of the double container in Figure 1, where (A) is a diagram illustrating the process of removing the refill container from the state in Figure 1(B), (B) is a diagram showing the state after the refill container has been removed, and (C) is a diagram illustrating the process of further separating the inner container body and the outer container body from the state after the refill container has been removed. The figure shows the structure of a double container for a reference example of the present invention, where (A) is a half-sectional view of the entire double container seen from the front, and (B) is a half-sectional view of the entire double container seen from the front after the cap has been removed. The operation of the double container in Figure 4 is shown, where (A) is a diagram illustrating the process of removing the refill container, and (B) is a diagram illustrating the process of further separating the inner container body and the outer container body after removing the refill container. This shows the structure of a double container for another reference example of the present invention, where (A) is a half-sectional view of the entire double container seen from the front, and (B) is a half-sectional view of the entire double container seen from the front after the cap has been removed. The operation of the double container in Figure 6 is shown, where (A) is a diagram illustrating the process of removing the refill container, and (B) is a diagram illustrating the process of further separating the inner container body and the outer container body after removing the refill container.

Figures 1 to 3 show a double-walled container according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The double-walled container of this embodiment is composed of a container body 1, a refill container 40, and a cap 60. Each of these components can be made of, for example, synthetic resin. More detailed materials will be described later.

The container body 1 is a container body for accommodating the refill container 40, and in the present invention, comprises an outer container body 2 and an inner container body 20.
The inner container body 20 and the outer container body 2 are formed as separate bodies that can be separated from each other.

The outer container body 2 is a cylindrical member with a bottom overall, and in this embodiment, an outer peripheral wall 12 for inserting the inner container 20 is erected from the peripheral end of the bottom wall 4, and an engaging tube 6 for fitting with the inner container 20 is erected from the upper surface of the bottom wall 4 with a certain gap between it and the outer peripheral wall 12.
In the illustrated example, the inner portion of the outer periphery 4a of the bottom wall 4 is formed with a horizontal raised portion 4b.
As shown in FIG. 1B, an upward step 14 is formed on the inner peripheral portion of the upper surface of the outer peripheral wall 12 .
The outer container body 2 may be made of a transparent material.
The outer container body 2 can be formed from, for example, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or amorphous polyester resin (PETG, PCTA, PCTG, etc.).

The engagement cylinder 6 is a portion for fitting with a storage cylinder 22 described later, and is formed lower than the outer peripheral wall 12 .
In this embodiment, the inner peripheral surface 8i of the engagement cylinder 6 serves as a fitted portion B for fitting into a fitting portion A of a storage cylinder 22 described below.
In the illustrated example, an annular engaging protrusion is provided around the inner peripheral surface 8i of the engaging cylinder 6 as a first engaging means 10 for engaging with a fitting portion A described below.
These structures may be modified as appropriate, for example, the engaging protrusions may be omitted.
Moreover, the fitted portion B does not necessarily have to be the inner peripheral surface 8i of the engagement cylinder 6. The fitted portion B can be a substantially vertical fitted surface portion formed at an appropriate position on the lower part of the outer container body 2.

The inner container 20 is a member for accommodating a refill container, and is generally cylindrical in shape overall, and is formed taller than the outer peripheral wall 12 .
The inner container 20 has a storage tube 22 that opens at its upper end for an insertion port O for the refill container 40, and in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1(B), an auxiliary tube portion 28 is vertically attached via an outward flange 26 from a location near the upper end 24 of the storage tube 22.
The lower end of the storage cylinder 22 is fitted into the engagement cylinder 6 , and the auxiliary cylinder portion 28 is inserted into the outer circumferential wall 12 .
The inner container 20 can be formed from a material that can be decorated with pictures, patterns, letters, etc.
The inner container 20 may be made of, for example, polypropylene (PP).

The storage cylinder 22 is a vertically oriented cylinder for storing the refill container 40 therein.
The lower end of the cylindrical wall of the storage cylinder 22 is formed into a fitting portion A which can be fitted into the fitted portion B of the outer container body 2 (the inner peripheral surface 8i of the engagement cylinder 6 in the illustrated example).
In this embodiment, the storage cylinder 22 is formed as a cylinder with an open bottom end, and a plurality of slits 30 are drilled in the bottom end of the cylinder wall and extend upward. The cylinder wall portions between the slits 30 form flexible pieces 32 that can be bent and deformed inward.
The lower ends 33 of the flexible pieces 32 form a fitting portion A.
In the illustrated example, the fitting portion A is formed to be thicker from its lower end to its upper end, and a contact protrusion L is formed near the upper end of the inner surface of the fitting portion A, which abuts against an appropriate position on the outer peripheral surface of the refill container 40 described below (in the illustrated example, the lower part of the outer peripheral surface).
In this manner, the flexible pieces 32 cannot bend inward when the refill container 40 is fitted into the inner container 20. This ensures that the fitting portion A abuts (presses) against the fitted portion B, as described below.
However, these structures can be modified as appropriate, and the abutment projection L may be omitted, and the entire inner surface of the flexible piece 32 may be arranged to abut against the outer peripheral surface of the refill container 40 .

In this embodiment, the fitting portion A has second engaging means 34 that meshes with the first engaging means 10 at a position facing the fitted portion B. The second engaging means 34 in the illustrated example is formed in a recess (engagement element receiving portion) into which the engagement protrusion fits.
However, unlike the illustrated example, the first engaging means 10 may be formed as a concave engaging means, and the second engaging means 34 may be formed as a convex engaging means.
The first engagement means 10 and the second engagement means 34 are engaged with each other, and the two engagement means form a pull-out prevention mechanism T that prevents the inner container body 20 from being pulled out from the outer container body 2 .
The locking force between these engaging means 10, 34 is designed to be greater than the frictional force acting between the refill container 40 and the storage tube 22 when the refill container 40 fitted in the storage tube 22 is pulled upward.
This prevents the inner container 20 from being accidentally detached from the outer container body 2 when the knob 50 is pulled up from the state shown in Fig. 1(B) with a finger. Therefore, the refill container 40 can be reliably pulled out from the inner container 20 by the pulling operation.

In the illustrated example, the auxiliary cylinder portion 28 has a large-diameter lower cylinder portion 28a extending vertically from a small-diameter upper cylinder portion 28c via an expanded diameter portion 28b.
In the illustrated example, the lower cylindrical portion 28 a is inserted into the outer peripheral wall 12 , while the expanded diameter portion 28 b and the upper cylindrical portion 28 c are disposed above the upper end of the outer peripheral wall 12 .
In this structure, the upper cylindrical portion 28c serves as a gripping portion (gripping tube), and by gripping and pulling up the upper cylindrical portion 28c from the state shown in Figure 1, the inner container body 20 and the outer container body 2 can be separated.
Additionally, a male thread portion MS1 for screwing with a cap 60, which will be described later, is formed on the outer circumferential surface of the upper cylinder portion 28c.
In this embodiment, an engagement recess R, which also serves as a screw notch, is formed at an appropriate position on the outer peripheral surface of the upper tubular portion 28c (in the illustrated example, positions on both the left and right sides of Figure 1 (B)), and this engagement recess R is provided so as to be able to accommodate a knob portion 50, which will be described later.
2A, the engaging recess R in the illustrated example is defined by a horizontal recessed bottom portion rb and recessed side portions rs extending in an inverted V shape from both ends of the recessed bottom portion rb when viewed from the outside in the cylindrical radial direction of the auxiliary cylindrical portion 28. However, the shape of the engaging recess R can be changed as appropriate.
The lower cylindrical portion 28 a serves as a guide cylinder that is inserted into the inner surface of the outer peripheral wall 12 when the inner container 20 is fitted into the outer container body 2 .
The lower cylindrical portion 28a is arranged so that simply by inserting the lower cylindrical portion 28a into the inner surface of the outer peripheral wall 12, the positions of the fitting portion A on the inner container body 20 side and the fitted portion B on the outer container body 2 side are aligned.
The lower cylindrical portion 28a has a cylindrical length approximately equal to the vertical length of the outer peripheral wall 12. An engaging protrusion 29 that fits with the upward step portion 14 is provided on the upper end of the outer surface of the lower cylindrical portion 28a, as shown in FIG.

The refill container 40 is a container body that can be refilled into the container body 1, and is fitted into the storage tube 22 so as to be able to be pulled out upward.
The refill container 40 in the illustrated example has a flange 46 attached to the upper end of a cylindrical peripheral wall 44 that stands up from the peripheral end of a bottom plate 42 , and this flange 46 is placed on the upper end portion 24 of the storage cylinder 22 .
As shown in FIG. 1A, an annular contact rib 47 is provided on the upper surface of the flange 46 to be engaged with a packing P, which will be described later.
A ring cylinder 48 that surrounds the upper end 24 of the storage cylinder 22 is hung from the peripheral end of the flange portion 46 .
A pair of knobs 50 which are inserted into the engaging recesses R are provided vertically from the lower end of the ring cylinder 48 .
A slip-preventing member MS2 is provided on the outer surface of the knob 50. As shown in Fig. 2A, the slip-preventing member MS2 in the illustrated example is formed as a plurality of ridges that run obliquely in correspondence with the threads of the male thread portion MS1, and has an appearance as if it were a part of the screw structure. However, this appearance can be modified as appropriate.

The cap 60 has a peripheral wall 64 extending vertically from the peripheral end of a top plate 62 for fitting onto the upper cylindrical portion 28c.
The cap peripheral wall 64 has an internal thread FS formed on its inner surface, which meshes with the external thread MS1.
A packing P is attached to the back surface of the top plate 62 .

When using the container of the present invention, first remove the cap 60 from the state shown in FIG. 1(A) as shown in FIG. 1(B), and after using up the contents in the refill container 40, grasp the pair of knobs 50 from both radial sides of the refill container 40 and pull it up as shown in FIG. 3(A), thereby removing the refill container 40 from the inner container 20, and the emptied container body (see FIG. 3(B)) can be filled with a new refill container 40.
In addition, in the state shown in Figure 1 (B) with the cap 60 removed, the flexible piece 32 of the inner container 20 is sandwiched and held between the inner surface 8i of the engaging tube 6 of the outer container body 2 and the outer surface of the refill container 40, so that the engaging portion A does not separate from the engaged portion B, and the inner container 20 is prevented from being pulled out.
Furthermore, when discarding the entire double container, the outer surface of the outer container body 2 is held, and the upper cylindrical portion 28c, which is the gripping portion, is grasped and pulled up, and as shown in Figure 3 (B), the flexible piece 32 bends inward, causing the mating portion A to separate from the mated portion B.
3(C), the inner container body 20 is lifted up from the outer container body 2. This allows the inner container body 20 and the outer container body 2 to be separated and discarded.

Other embodiments of the present invention will be described below. In these descriptions, explanations of structures that are the same as those in the first embodiment will be omitted.

4 and 5 show a double container according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
In this embodiment , the structure of the inner container 20 and the structures of the fitting portion A and the fitted portion B are modified from the configuration of the first embodiment.
That is, the auxiliary cylindrical portion 28 is omitted from the structure of the inner container 20 of the first embodiment, and the storage cylinder 22 has a medium diameter cylindrical portion 22b protruding upward from the upper end of the large diameter cylindrical portion 22a inserted into the outer peripheral wall 12, and a small diameter cylindrical portion 22c protruding upward from the upper end of the medium diameter cylindrical portion 22b, as shown in FIG. 5(A).
The large diameter cylindrical portion 22 a is inserted into the inside of the outer circumferential wall 12 .
In this embodiment , the outer peripheral surface 8o of the engaging tube 6 serves as a fitted portion B, and this fitted portion B and a fitting portion A, which is the lower end portion of the storage tube 22, are provided so as to be fitted together.
The second engagement means 34 is formed on the inner surface of the lower end of the storage tube 22, which is the fitting portion A. The illustrated second engagement means 34 is formed of a single annular groove, but the structure thereof can be modified as appropriate.

6 and 7 show a double container according to another embodiment of the present invention.
In this embodiment , the fitting portion A is screwed into the fitted portion B in the configuration of the previous embodiment (see Figs. 4 and 5) . That is, as shown in Fig. 7(B), the first engaging means 10 is shaped like a male screw, and the second engaging means 34 is shaped like a female screw. Also, the storage tube 22 is formed so as to be rotatable with respect to the outer circumferential wall 12.
This allows the inner container 20 to be securely attached to and detached from the outer container body 2 by screwing and unscrewing operations.
In the illustrated example, the first engaging means 10 and the second engaging means 34 are formed as positive threads, but they may also be formed as negative threads.

Next, effects of the embodiment of the present invention will be described.
A common feature of all embodiments is that the container body 1 for storing the refill container 40 is formed so as to be separable from an inner container 20 having a vertical storage tube 22 for storing the refill container 40 and an insertion port O for the refill container 40 at the upper end of the storage tube 22, and a bottomed, cylindrical outer container body 2 into which the inner container 20 is inserted. The outer container body 2 is configured so that a fitting portion A formed at the lower part of the storage tube 22 can be detachably fitted into a fitting portion B formed on the bottom wall 4 side of the outer container body 2, and therefore the inner container body 20 and the outer container body 2 can be disposed of separately.
Next, in an embodiment in which the mating portion A and the mated portion B are formed with engagement means 10, 34 that detachably engage with each other as a pull-out prevention mechanism T that prevents the inner container 20 from being pulled out from the outer container body 2, the risk of the inner container 20 suddenly coming off the outer container body 2 when using the double container of the present invention can be eliminated or reduced, making it easy to use.
In addition, the engaging portion B is formed as the inner surface 8i of the engaging tube 6 that stands up from the bottom wall 4, and the storage tube 22 is formed at its lower end opening, and by drilling a plurality of slits 30 extending upward from the lower end side of the storage tube 22, the tube wall portion between each slit 30 forms a flexible piece 32.In an embodiment in which the engaging portion A formed by the lower ends of these flexible pieces 32 is arranged to be detachably engaged with the engaging portion B, it is easy to remove the inner storage body 20 from the outer container body 2.
Next, the effects of the reference example of the present invention will be described.
By fitting the refill container 40 into the inner surface of the storage tube 22, each flexible piece 32 abuts against the surface of the refill container 40 so that it cannot bend or deform inward, and when the lower end of the flexible piece 32 is pressed against the inner surface 8i of the engaging tube 6 in this abutting state, the risk of the inner storage body 20 suddenly detaching from the outer container body 2 can be reduced.
In addition, the engaging portion B is formed as the outer peripheral surface 8o of the engaging tube 6 that stands up from the bottom wall 4, and the storage tube 22 has an open lower end and is rotatably inserted into the outer container body 2. In a configuration in which the engaging portion A of the storage tube 22 is screwed into the engaging portion B, it is possible to reliably prevent the inner storage body 20 from accidentally coming off from the outer container body 2.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Container body 2... Outer container body 4... Bottom wall 4a... Outer peripheral part 4b... Protruding part 6... Engagement tube 8i... Inner peripheral surface 8o... Outer peripheral surface 10... First engaging means (engager) 12... Outer peripheral wall 14...Upward stepped portion 20...Inner container 22...Storing cylinder 22a...Large diameter cylinder part 22b...Medium diameter cylinder part 22c...Small diameter cylinder part 24...Upper end part 26...Outward flange 28...Auxiliary cylinder part 28a...Lower cylinder part 28b...Enlarged diameter part 28c...Upper cylinder part 29...Engagement convex part 30...Cut 32...Flexible piece 33 ...Lower end portion 34...Second engaging means (engaging element receiving part)
40: Refill container 42: Bottom plate 44: Cylinder peripheral wall 46: Flange portion 47: Contact rib 48: Ring cylinder 50: Knob portion
60: Cap 62: Top plate 64: Cap peripheral wall A: Fitting portion B: Fitted portion FS: Female thread portion L: Contact protrusion MS1: Male thread portion MS2: Anti-slip O: Insertion port P: Packing R: Engagement recess rb...concave bottom rs...concave side T...anti-slip mechanism

Claims (3)

A cylindrical container body (1) having an opening at the top;
and a refill container (40) housed in the container body (1),
The container body (1) is formed of an inner container (20) having a vertical storage cylinder (22) for storing the refill container (40) and opening an insertion opening (O) for the refill container (40) at the upper end of the storage cylinder (22), and a bottomed cylindrical outer container body (2) into which the inner container (20) is inserted,
The inner container body (20) and the outer container body (2) are formed as separate, separable bodies.
In the double container, a fitting portion (A) formed at the lower part of the storage cylinder (22) is detachably fitted into a fitting portion (B) formed on the bottom wall (4) of the outer container body (2),
The fitted portion (B) is formed as an inner peripheral surface (8i) of an engagement tube (6) standing upright from the bottom wall (4),
The storage cylinder (22) is formed with an opening at the bottom end, and a plurality of slits (30) are drilled extending upward from the bottom end side of the storage cylinder (22), so that the cylinder wall portion between each slit (30) forms a flexible piece (32),
The double container is characterized in that the fitting portion (A) formed by the lower end portion (33) of these flexible pieces (32) is provided so as to be separably fitted into the fitted portion (B) . The double container according to claim 1, characterized in that the mating portion (A) and the mated portion (B) are formed with engaging means (10, 34) that detachably engage with each other as a pull-out prevention mechanism (T) that regulates the inner container body (20) from being pulled out from the outer container body (2). By fitting the refill container (40) into the inner surface of the storage cylinder (22), each flexible piece (32) abuts against the surface of the refill container (40) so as not to bend or deform inward,
3. The double container according to claim 1 , wherein in this contact state, the lower end portion (33) of the flexible piece (32) is pressed against the inner peripheral surface (8i) of the engagement tube (6).

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