JP7680149B2 - beverage container - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a beverage container that stores a beverage inside.

Conventionally, beverage containers with lids that store beverages inside are known. The beverage container has a cylindrical container body with a bottom and a lid that covers an opening at the top of the container body. The lid has a drinking spout that is a through hole and an opening/closing member that covers the drinking spout. A user of the beverage container opens the opening/closing member and drinks the beverage in the beverage container through the drinking spout.

Conventional beverage containers are described, for example, in Patent Document 1.

JP 2016-047741 A

In this type of beverage container, a plug gasket is provided on the underside of the opening/closing member. When the opening/closing member is closed, the plug gasket seals the drinking spout. As described in Patent Document 1, conventional plug gaskets have an elastic protrusion that contacts the drinking spout. The inside of the elastic protrusion is hollow to allow the elastic protrusion to elastically deform. In other words, in the conventional structure, a space is provided between the opening/closing member and the elastic protrusion.

However, in conventional structures, it was necessary to provide the above-mentioned space inside the plug gasket while taking into consideration the flexibility of the plug gasket itself. This meant that designing the plug gasket was not easy, and there was a problem in that the product would become larger in the height direction by the amount of the above-mentioned space.

The present invention was developed in consideration of these circumstances, and aims to provide a beverage container that can seal the drinking spout with a plug gasket when the opening and closing member is closed, is easy to design, and allows for a compact product.

The beverage container of the present invention is a beverage container that stores a beverage inside, and comprises a bottomed cylindrical container body and a lid body that covers the opening at the top of the container body. The lid body has a lid member with a drinking spout that penetrates in the vertical direction, an opening/closing member that rotates between a closed state that covers the drinking spout and an open state that opens the drinking spout, and a stopper gasket that seals the drinking spout. The stopper gasket has a fixing part that is fixed to the opening/closing member and an annular lip part that contacts the edge of the drinking spout when the opening/closing member is in the closed state.

According to the present invention, the drinking spout can be sealed with an annular lip. Furthermore, the design of sealing with the lip does not require complex design related to the flexibility of the plug gasket, making the design easier. Furthermore, the height of the lip can be reduced, making it possible to miniaturize the product.

The plug packing preferably further has a rib protruding from the fixed portion, and when the opening/closing member is in the closed state, the rib protrudes from the underside of the fixed portion toward the inside of the mouth and does not contact the edge of the mouth. This allows the beverage that has accumulated on the lip of the plug packing to be drawn to the rib by surface tension, and then dropped from the rib through the mouth into the container body.

The rib preferably has multiple convex apexes arranged at intervals from each other. In this case, the multiple convex apexes make the outer peripheral surface of the rib into multiple intermittently arranged surfaces rather than a single continuous annular surface. This reduces the amount of beverage that can adhere to the outer peripheral surface of the rib, and allows the beverage to be guided downward from the rib and dropped efficiently.

It is also preferable that the drinking spout is an elongated hole having a long diameter and a short diameter when viewed from above, and that the rib has two convex apexes aligned in the long diameter direction. This allows the two convex apexes to be efficiently positioned while ensuring a gap between the edge of the drinking spout and the convex apexes. Furthermore, by providing a gap between the two convex apexes, it is possible to prevent beverage from adhering and accumulating between the edge of the drinking spout and the rib in the short diameter direction where the spacing between the drinking spouts is narrow.

It is also preferable that the rib further has a concave portion that smoothly connects the multiple convex apexes. This can reduce the strange appearance caused by the multiple convex apexes. It can also increase the strength of the multiple convex apexes. It also makes it harder for dirt to accumulate between the multiple convex apexes.

In addition, when the opening/closing member is in the closed state, it is preferable that the rib is positioned eccentrically forward with respect to the drinking spout. In this way, the distance between the rib and the edge of the drinking spout behind the rib can be made wider. This allows the beverage attracted to the rib to fall more efficiently into the container body.

It is also preferable that the surface of the ribs is smooth and free of irregularities. This allows the beverage attracted to the ribs to fall more efficiently into the container body.

According to the present invention, the drinking spout can be sealed with an annular lip. Furthermore, the design of sealing with the lip does not require complex design related to the flexibility of the plug gasket, making the design easier. Furthermore, the height of the lip can be reduced, making it possible to miniaturize the product.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the beverage container. FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the beverage container. FIG. 2 is a partial longitudinal sectional view of a beverage container. FIG. FIG. FIG. 11 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a plug gasket according to a modified example.

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings.

1. Beverage container configuration
FIG. 1 is a side view of a beverage container 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the beverage container 1. FIG. 3 is a partial vertical cross-sectional view of the upper portion of the beverage container 1. The beverage container 1 is a tumbler with a lid that can store a beverage (liquid) such as tea or mineral water inside. A user of the beverage container 1 can carry the beverage container 1 with the beverage stored therein in a bag or the like, and can open an opening/closing member 23 of the beverage container 1, which will be described later, to drink the beverage inside as needed. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the beverage container 1 includes a container body 10 and a lid 20.

The container body 10 is a main body part that stores a beverage inside. The container body 10 is made of, for example, stainless steel. The container body 10 has a cylindrical shape with a bottom. That is, the container body 10 has a disk-shaped bottom 11 and a substantially cylindrical side wall 12 that extends upward from the edge of the bottom 11. The bottom 11 and the side wall 12 each have a double structure, with a vacuum layer between the inner surface and the outer surface. This allows the beverage stored inside the container body 10 to be kept warm or cold.

The outer peripheral surface of the side wall portion 12 has the shape of an inverted truncated cone. That is, the diameter of the outer peripheral surface of the side wall portion 12 gradually increases as it extends upward. The outer diameter of the upper end of the container body 10 is larger than the outer diameter of the lower end of the container body 10. In this way, by making the outer peripheral surface of the side wall portion 12 into a tapered shape that gradually increases in diameter as it extends upward, it is possible to prevent the container body 10 from slipping out of the user's hand when the user grasps the outer peripheral surface of the side wall portion 12.

The inner surface of the side wall portion 12 has a first inner surface 121, an inclined surface 122, and a second inner surface 123. The first inner surface 121 is a cylindrical surface centered on the central axis A of the container body 10. A full water line 124 indicating the upper limit of the beverage that can be stored is formed near the upper end of the first inner surface 121. The inclined surface 122 is a surface that expands radially outward as it extends upward from the upper end of the first inner surface 121. The inner diameter of the inclined surface 122 gradually expands as it extends upward.

The second inner circumferential surface 123 is a cylindrical surface centered on the central axis A. The second inner circumferential surface 123 extends upward from the upper end of the inclined surface 122. The inner diameter r2 of the second inner circumferential surface 123 is larger than the inner diameter r1 of the first inner circumferential surface 121. The second inner circumferential surface 123 is formed with a female thread 13. The female thread 13 is a spiral groove.

The lid body 20 is a part that covers the opening at the top of the container body 10. The lid body 20 is detachable from the top of the container body 10. A user carries the beverage container 1 with the lid body 20 attached to the container body 10. The user also removes the lid body 20 from the container body 10 when refilling the beverage or cleaning the beverage container 1. With the lid body 20 attached to the container body 10, a portion of the lid body 20 is inserted into the opening at the top of the container body 10.

As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the lid 20 of this embodiment has a lower member 21, an upper member 22, an opening/closing member 23, a first gasket 24, a second gasket 25, and a plug gasket 26. The lower member 21, the upper member 22, and the opening/closing member 23 are each made of a synthetic resin that is not easily elastically deformed.

The lower member 21 is a substantially cylindrical member that constitutes the lower part of the lid body 20. With the lid body 20 attached to the container body 10, the lower member 21 is inserted into the opening at the top of the container body 10. A male thread 27 that can be screwed into the female thread 13 of the container body 10 is formed on the outer circumferential surface of the lower member 21. The male thread 27 is a helical protrusion. The lid body 20 is attached to the container body 10 by screwing the male thread 27 into the female thread 13 of the container body 10.

The upper member 22 is a generally disk-shaped member located above the lower member 21. The lower member 21 described above has a number of claw portions 211. The claw portions 211 extend upward from the outer periphery of the lower member 21, with their tips protruding radially outward. The upper member 22 has step portions 221 with which the claw portions 211 can engage. The multiple claw portions 211 engage with the step portions 221. This fixes the upper member 22 and the lower member 21 together, making them one piece.

The lower member 21 and the upper member 22 are an example of a "lid member" in the present invention. That is, in this embodiment, the "lid member" is composed of two members, the lower member 21 and the upper member 22. However, the "lid member" may be composed of a single member, or may be composed of three or more members. The lower member 21 and the upper member 22 have a drinking spout 28. The drinking spout 28 is a through hole that passes through the lower member 21 and the upper member 22 in the vertical direction. In addition, the drinking spout 28 is provided in a position that is eccentric forward (toward the pouring side) from the center of the lower member 21 and the upper member 22.

The opening/closing member 23 is a member for opening and closing the drinking spout 28 of the upper member 22. The opening/closing member 23 rotates about a hinge 222 provided on the upper member 22 between a closed state in which the drinking spout 28 is covered and an open state in which the drinking spout 28 is open. The lid 20 also has an operation button 29. The opening/closing member 23 is maintained in the closed state by engaging with the operation button 29. Furthermore, when the user presses the operation button 29, the operation button 29 and the opening/closing member 23 are disengaged, and the opening/closing member 23 can be rotated from the closed state to the open state.

The first gasket 24 and the second gasket 25 are sealing members for preventing the beverage from leaking out from between the container body 10 and the lid body 20. The first gasket 24 and the second gasket 25 are annular about the central axis A. The first gasket 24 and the second gasket 25 are formed from an elastically stretchable elastomer.

The first gasket 24 is fixed at a position lower than the male thread 27 of the lower member 21. When the male thread 27 of the lid body 20 is screwed into the female thread 13 of the container body 10, the first gasket 24 comes into contact with the inner circumferential surface of the container body 10. More specifically, the first gasket 24 elastically deforms and adheres to the boundary 125 between the first inner circumferential surface 121 and the inclined surface 122. This seals the gap between the upper end of the first inner circumferential surface 121 and the first gasket 24.

The second gasket 25 is fixed at a position above the male thread 27 of the lid body 20. When the male thread 27 of the lid body 20 is screwed into the female thread 13 of the container body 10, the second gasket 25 comes into contact with the inner circumferential surface of the container body 10. More specifically, the second gasket 25 elastically deforms and adheres to the portion of the second inner circumferential surface 123 of the container body 10 above the female thread 13. This seals the gap between the second inner circumferential surface 123 and the second gasket 25.

The plug gasket 26 is a sealing member for sealing the drinking spout 28 when the opening/closing member 23 is in the closed state. The plug gasket 26 is made of an elastically expandable and contractible elastomer. Figure 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the plug gasket 26. Figure 5 is a bottom view of the plug gasket 26. As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the plug gasket 26 has a fixing portion 31, a lip portion 32, and a rib 34.

The fixing part 31 is fixed to the underside of the opening/closing member 23 (the underside in the closed state). More specifically, the fixing part 31 is fixed to the underside of the opening/closing member 23 with an adhesive. This integrates the opening/closing member 23 and the plug gasket 26. The adhesive surface between the opening/closing member 23 and the fixing part 31 has an uneven shape. This increases the area of the adhesive surface, allowing the fixing part 31 to be firmly fixed to the opening/closing member 23.

The lip portion 32 is a thin-walled portion that can be elastically deformed. The lip portion 32 protrudes outward and downward from the peripheral edge of the lower end of the fixed portion 31. When the opening/closing member 23 is in the closed state, the lip portion 32 of the plug gasket 26 comes into contact with the edge of the drinking spout 28. More specifically, the upper surface of the edge of the drinking spout 28 is an inclined surface that gradually reduces in diameter as it approaches the drinking spout 28. The lip portion 32 fits closely to this inclined surface while elastically deforming. This seals the drinking spout 28.

When the interior of the stopper gasket is made hollow as in the past, it was necessary to provide a space inside the stopper gasket while taking into consideration the flexibility of the stopper gasket itself. Furthermore, because it was necessary to secure the above-mentioned space, it was difficult to reduce the size of the stopper gasket in the height direction. In contrast, if the structure of the present embodiment is such that the drinking spout 28 is sealed with the annular lip portion 32, complex design regarding the flexibility of the stopper gasket 26 is not required. This makes it easier to design the stopper gasket 26. Furthermore, since no space is required inside the stopper gasket 26, the height of the lip portion 32 can be reduced. This makes it easier to reduce the size of the stopper gasket 26 in the height direction.

In addition, in this beverage container 1, adhesive is filled without any gaps between the opening/closing member 23 and the plug gasket 26. Therefore, even though the opening/closing member 23 and the plug gasket 26 are separate parts made of different materials, beverages and dirt do not accumulate between these parts. Therefore, the user of the beverage container 1 does not need to remove the plug gasket 26 from the opening/closing member 23 to wash it. This reduces the workload of the user when washing the beverage container 1.

As shown in FIG. 5, the outer shape of the plug gasket 26 is circular in plan view. Therefore, the lip portion 32 is annular in plan view. Also, as shown in FIG. 4, the cross section of the lip portion 32 is an arc shape that bulges outward. Therefore, the inner peripheral surface of the lip portion 32 forms an annular pocket 33 that opens inward. When the beverage container 1 is in use, some of the beverage may accumulate in the pocket 33 of the lip portion 32. In that case, when the opening/closing member 23 is rotated from the closed position to the open position, the beverage accumulated in the pocket 33 may splash around.

The plug packing 26 of this embodiment has a rib 34 for allowing beverages collected in the pocket 33 of the lip portion 32 to fall downward. The rib 34 protrudes from the underside of the fixed portion 31 (the underside of the fixed portion 31 when the opening/closing member 23 is in the closed state) toward the space inside the lip portion 32. In FIG. 5, the position of the drinking spout 28 relative to the plug packing 26 when the opening/closing member 23 is in the closed state is shown by a two-dot chain line. As shown in FIG. 5, when the opening/closing member 23 is in the closed state, the rib 34 protrudes from the underside of the fixed portion 31 toward the inside of the drinking spout 28. However, the rib 34 does not come into contact with the edges of the drinking spout 28 of the upper member 22 and the lower member 21.

As shown by the dashed line in FIG. 4, the beverage that accumulates in the pocket 33 of the lip portion 32 is attracted to the rib 34 arranged on the inside of the lip portion 32 by surface tension. The beverage that is attracted to the rib 34 then falls downward along the surface of the rib 34 due to its own weight. At this time, since the rib 34 is not in contact with the edge of the drinking spout 28, the beverage falls into the container body 10 without accumulating between the edge of the drinking spout 28 and the rib 34. As a result, it is possible to prevent the beverage from accumulating in the pocket 33 of the lip portion 32.

As shown in Figures 3 and 5, the rib 34 is positioned eccentrically forward (toward the pouring side) with respect to the spout 28. This allows for a wider gap between the rib 34 and the edge of the spout 28 behind the rib 34 (the side opposite the pouring side). This further prevents the beverage drawn to the rib 34 from accumulating between the edge of the spout 28 and the rib 34. This allows the beverage to drop more efficiently from the rib 34 into the container body 10.

The surface of the ribs 34 of the stopper gasket 26 is not textured as is usually the case with gaskets. Therefore, the surface of the ribs 34 is smooth and free of irregularities. This allows the beverage attracted to the ribs 34 to drop more efficiently into the container body 10. Specifically, it is preferable to make the surface roughness of the ribs 34 smaller than the surface roughness of the first gasket 24 and the second gasket 25. Furthermore, the surface roughness of the ribs 34 of the stopper gasket 26 may be smaller than the surface roughness of the lip portion 32.

In particular, the rib 34 in this embodiment has two convex apexes 341. The two convex apexes 341 are spaced apart from each other. When the opening/closing member 23 is in the closed state, the two convex apexes 341 each protrude toward the inside of the drinking spout 28. In this way, by forming the rib 34 into a shape having multiple convex apexes 341, the outer circumferential surface of the rib 34 becomes multiple intermittently arranged surfaces rather than a single continuous annular surface. This reduces the amount of beverage that can adhere to the outer circumferential surface of the rib 34. Therefore, the beverage can efficiently drop downward from the rib 34.

As shown by the two-dot chain line in Figure 5, the drinking spout 28 of this embodiment is an elongated hole having a long diameter and a short diameter when viewed from above. The two convex apexes 341 described above are aligned in the long diameter direction. In this way, the two convex apexes 341 can be efficiently positioned while ensuring a gap between the edge of the drinking spout 28 and each convex apex 341.

In addition, when the drinking spout 28 is a long hole, the beverage may accumulate between the edge of the drinking spout 28 and the rib 34 in the short diameter direction where the spacing is narrow, making it difficult for the beverage to fall downward. However, in the shape of this embodiment, a gap is provided between the two convex apexes 341 that are lined up in the long diameter direction. This makes it possible to prevent the beverage from accumulating between the edge of the drinking spout 28 and the rib 34 (for example, the part indicated by symbol B in Figure 5) in the short diameter direction where the spacing of the drinking spout 28 is narrow.

As shown in Figs. 4 and 5, the rib 34 has a concave portion 342 between the two convex apexes 341. The concave portion 342 gently connects the two convex apexes 341 with a concave curved surface. In this way, the appearance of the plug gasket 26 is less awkward than if the two convex apexes 341 protruded steeply. The strength of the two convex apexes 341 can also be increased. Furthermore, dirt is less likely to accumulate between the two convex apexes 341, making it easier to keep the plug gasket 26 clean.

However, if the depth d of the concave portion 342 is too shallow, the effect of the two convex apexes 341 in promoting the dropping of the beverage is weakened. For this reason, in order to efficiently drop the beverage from each convex apex 341, it is desirable that the depth d of the concave portion 342 be, for example, 2.0 mm or more. It is more desirable that the depth d of the concave portion 342 be 2.5 mm or more. It is even more desirable that the depth d of the concave portion 342 be 3.0 mm or more.

2. Modifications
Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment.

The rib 34 in the above embodiment has two convex apexes 341. However, the rib may have three or more convex apexes arranged at intervals from each other.

In the above embodiment, the two convex apexes 341 are connected by a concave portion 342 having a gently curved surface. However, the rib does not have to have such a concave portion. In other words, the rib may have a steep concave between multiple convex apexes.

The rib does not have to have multiple convex apexes. That is, the rib may have a single convex apex. For example, the plug packing 26 may have a shape as shown in FIG. 6. As shown in FIG. 6, the rib 34 may protrude downward from the fixed portion in a generally trapezoidal shape, and the lower surface of the rib may be a flat surface.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the plug gasket 26 has ribs 34. However, the plug gasket does not have to have ribs.

In the above embodiment, the outer peripheral surface of the container body 10 has a tapered shape that gradually expands in diameter as it approaches the top. However, the outer peripheral surface of the container body may also be a straight cylindrical surface.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the inner circumferential surface of the container body 10 has a first inner circumferential surface 121, an inclined surface 122, and a second inner circumferential surface 123. However, the inner circumferential surface of the container body may be a straight cylindrical surface that does not have an inclined surface.

The beverage container 1 in the above embodiment has a female thread 13 on the inner peripheral surface of the upper part of the container body 10, and a male thread 27 on the lid 20 is screwed into the female thread 13 (internal thread type). However, the beverage container may have a male thread on the outer peripheral surface of the upper part of the container body, and a female thread on the lid may be screwed into the male thread (external thread type).

In addition, the beverage container 1 in the above embodiment was a tumbler with a lid 20. However, the beverage container may also be a stainless steel mug.

The detailed shape of the beverage container may differ from that shown in the drawings of this application. The elements appearing in the above embodiments and variations may be combined as appropriate to the extent that no contradictions arise.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 beverage container 10 container body 11 bottom 12 side wall 13 female thread 20 lid 21 lower member 22 upper member 23 opening/closing member 24 first packing 25 second packing 26 stopper packing 27 male thread 28 drinking spout 29 operation button 31 fixing portion 32 lip portion 33 pocket 34 rib 121 first inner circumferential surface 122 inclined surface 123 second inner circumferential surface 124 full water line 125 boundary portion 211 claw portion 221 step portion 222 hinge 341 convex top portion 342 concave portion A central axis

Claims (7)

A beverage container for storing a beverage therein,
A cylindrical container body with a bottom;
A lid body that covers an opening at the top of the container body;
Equipped with
The lid body is
A lid member having a drinking spout penetrating in the vertical direction;
An opening/closing member that rotates between a closed state that covers the drinking spout and an open state that opens the drinking spout;
a plug gasket that seals the drinking spout when the opening/closing member is in the closed state;
having
The plug packing is
A fixing portion fixed to the opening/closing member;
an annular lip portion that contacts an edge portion of the drinking spout when the opening/closing member is in the closed state;
having
The lip portion protrudes outwardly and downwardly from the fixing portion . 2. The beverage container of claim 1,
The plug packing is
Further, a rib protruding from the fixed portion is provided.
A beverage container, wherein when the opening/closing member is in the closed state, the rib protrudes from the underside of the fixing part toward the inside of the drinking spout and does not contact the edge of the drinking spout. 3. The beverage container according to claim 2,
The rib is
A beverage container having a plurality of convex peaks arranged at intervals from one another. 4. The beverage container of claim 3,
The drinking spout is a long hole having a major axis and a minor axis when viewed from above,
A beverage container, wherein the rib has two convex apexes aligned in the major axis direction. A beverage container according to claim 3 or claim 4,
The rib is
The beverage container further comprises a recessed portion smoothly connecting the plurality of convex apexes. A beverage container according to any one of claims 2 to 5,
A beverage container, wherein when the opening/closing member is in the closed state, the rib is positioned in a position eccentric to the front relative to the drinking spout. A beverage container according to any one of claims 2 to 6,
The beverage container has a smooth surface without any irregularities.

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