JP7770233B2 - Refillable container - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a refill container.

As shown in Patent Document 1 below, for example, a refill container has been known that includes a vertically extending container body that holds the contents to be refilled into the container, and a closure stopper that is removably fitted into the mouth of the container body. With this refill container, the mouth of the container body is held in an inverted position and connected to the mouth of the main container. When the refill container is pushed toward the main container, the closure stopper is detached from the mouth of the container body, and the contents in the container body are refilled into the main container.

JP 2015-143126 A

However, with the conventional refill containers mentioned above, when transferring the contents from the container body into the main container, they can sometimes become unstable and unstable relative to the main container.

The present invention aims to provide a refillable container that can be stabilized relative to the main container when the contents of the main container are refilled into the main container.

The refill container of the present invention comprises a vertically extending container body that holds the contents to be refilled into the container; an inner stopper member that is attached to the mouth of the container body in a state where rotational movement about the container axis is restricted; and a connecting member that is attached to and detached from the mouth of the container as the container rotates relative to the container about the container axis. The connecting member is rotatably attached to the container body or the inner stopper member about the container axis. The connecting member has a contents ejection hole and an air exchange passage that open toward the interior of the container and the container body, respectively. The inner stopper member is provided with a bottomed, cylindrical closure stopper that blocks communication between the ejection hole and the air exchange passage and the interior of the container body. The lower end opening of the air exchange passage opens toward the inside of the closure stopper, and the closure stopper detaches from the inner stopper member as the inner stopper member and the connecting member rotate relative to the container axis.

With the refill container in an inverted position, the connecting member is rotated relative to the main container about the container axis to secure the connecting member to the mouth of the main container, and then the container body and inner plug member are rotated relative to the connecting member and the main container about the container axis, causing the closure stopper to detach from the inner plug member. This allows the inside of the container body and the main container to communicate through the spout hole and the air replacement passage, and the air inside the container is discharged through the air replacement passage, while the contents of the container body flows into the container through the spout hole.
As described above, when the contents of the container body are transferred into the main container, the refill container is not pushed in an inverted position toward the main container, but rather the refill container and the main container are rotated relative to each other around the container axis, making it less likely that the refill container will wobble relative to the main container.
Since the lower end opening of the air replacement passage faces the inside of the occlusion plug, when the occlusion plug is removed from the inner plug member, the air inside the container that has passed through the air replacement passage enters the occlusion plug, making it easier for the occlusion plug to float up toward the inside of the container body, making it possible to prevent the occlusion plug from obstructing the flow of the content liquid and air, and allowing the contents to be refilled smoothly.

The air replacement passage may be located inside a vertically extending cylindrical body, and the cylindrical body may be inserted into the occlusion plug.

Because the cylindrical body is inserted into the occluding plug, when the occluding plug is removed from the inner plug member, the air inside the container that has passed through the air replacement passage is reliably drawn into the occluding plug, making it easier for the occluding plug to float up.

A guide member may be provided between the closure plug and the connecting member to move the closure plug toward the inside of the container body relative to the inner plug member as the inner plug member and the connecting member rotate relative to each other around the container axis.

A guide member is provided between the closure plug and the connecting member. As described above, after the connecting member is fixed to the mouth of the container, when the container body and inner plug member are rotated relative to the connecting member and container about the container axis, the closure plug is moved toward the inside of the container body relative to the inner plug member by the guide member and released.

The occluding plug may be connected to the inner plug member via a breakable weakened portion, and a rotation prevention portion may be provided between the occluding plug and the connecting member to prevent further relative rotation of the occluding plug and the connecting member around the container axis after the occluding plug has been moved toward the inside of the container body relative to the inner plug member by the guide portion.

A rotation prevention section is provided between the occlusion plug and the connecting member. When the occlusion plug is moved toward the inside of the container body relative to the inner plug member by the guide section, the relative rotation of the occlusion plug and the connecting member about the container axis is restricted, even if the weakened section has not broken. This makes it possible to rotate the inner plug member about the container axis relative to the occlusion plug, ensuring that the weakened section breaks.

This invention allows the refill container to be stabilized relative to the main container when the contents of the container body are refilled into the main container.

1 is a partial vertical cross-sectional view of a refill container shown as one embodiment. 1 in an inverted position, and the connecting member is fixed to the opening of the refill container. FIG. FIG. 3 is a view showing the state in which the blocking plug has been detached from the inner plug member in FIG. 2 .

Hereinafter, a refill container according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
1, the refillable container 1 according to this embodiment includes a container body 11, an inner plug member 12, and a connecting member 13. The opening 11a of the container body 11 and the connecting member 13 are covered with a film F.

The container body 11 is formed in a cylindrical shape with a bottom, and contains the contents to be refilled into the container 10. The inner plug member 12 and the connecting member 13 are also formed in a cylindrical shape with a top. The container body 11, the inner plug member 12, and the connecting member 13 are arranged coaxially with a common axis (container axis) O.
Hereinafter, the direction along the common axis O will be referred to as the vertical direction, the mouth 11a side of the container body 11 along the common axis O will be referred to as the upper side, and the bottom side of the container body 11 will be referred to as the lower side. When viewed from the vertical direction, the direction intersecting the common axis O will be referred to as the radial direction, and the direction going around the common axis O will be referred to as the circumferential direction.

The inside plug member 12 has a first top wall 21 and a first peripheral wall 22, and is attached to the opening portion 11a.
The first peripheral wall 22 is fitted to the mouth portion 11 a. Restricting portions 23 that abut against each other in the circumferential direction are formed on the inner peripheral surface of the first peripheral wall 22 and the outer peripheral surface of the mouth portion 11 a, respectively. As a result, the inside plug member 12 is provided in the mouth portion 11 a in a state where its rotational movement in the circumferential direction is restricted.
The first top wall 21 is formed in an annular shape and is disposed on the upper opening edge of the mouth portion 11a. A first seal cylinder 21a is formed on the first top wall 21 and protrudes downward and is fitted into the mouth portion 11a. The first seal cylinder 21a protrudes downward from the opening periphery on the underside of the first top wall 21. The first seal cylinder 21a is disposed coaxially with the common axis O.

The inner plug member 12 is provided with a bottomed, cylindrical closure plug 14. The closure plug 14 is arranged coaxially with the common axis O. The closure plug 14 is connected to the inner plug member 12 via a breakable weakened portion 15.

The block plug 14 is disposed within the first seal tube 21a. The outer peripheral surface of the block plug 14 is radially spaced apart from the inner peripheral surface of the first seal tube 21a. The upper opening edge of the block plug 14 is located slightly below the upper surface of the first top wall 21. The lower portion of the block plug 14 protrudes downward from the lower opening of the first seal tube 21a. The bottom wall of the block plug 14 is formed into a downwardly protruding spherical shape. The outer peripheral surface of the block plug 14 is formed with a flange portion 14a that protrudes radially outward and extends continuously over the entire circumferential length. The flange portion 14a is located below the upper end of the block plug 14 and is located at the same vertical position as the lower opening of the first seal tube 21a. The weakened portion 15 radially connects the flange portion 14a to the first seal tube 21a. The weakened portion 15 is formed as a thin plate that extends continuously over the entire circumferential length. The blocking plug 14 blocks communication between the inside of the first sealing cylinder 21 a and the inside of the container body 11 .
It is also possible to omit the weakened portion 15 and instead provide the block plug 14 in a detachable manner on the first seal cylinder 21a.

The connecting member 13 has a second top wall 24 and a second peripheral wall 28, and is attached to the inner plug member 12. The connecting member 13 may also be attached to the mouth portion 11a of the container body 11.
The second peripheral wall 28 is rotatably mounted on the first peripheral wall 22 of the inside plug member 12 while being restricted from moving up and down. The second top wall 24 is formed in an annular shape and is disposed on the upper surface of the first top wall 21 of the inside plug member 12.

The second top wall 24 is formed with a connecting tube 25, a second seal tube 24a, and an insertion tube 26. The connecting tube 25, the second seal tube 24a, and the insertion tube 26 are arranged coaxially with a common axis O.

The connecting tube 25 extends upward from the upper surface of the second top wall 24 and is attached to the mouth 10a of the container 10 as shown in Figures 2 and 3. The connecting tube 25 is fitted to the mouth 10a of the container 10. On the inner circumferential surface of the connecting tube 25, a second locking portion 25a is formed. This second locking portion 25a is attached to and detached from the first locking portion 10b formed on the outer circumferential surface of the mouth 10a of the container 10 as the connecting member 13 rotates circumferentially relative to the container 10. In the illustrated example, the first locking portion 10b and the second locking portion 25a are threaded. However, the first locking portion 10b and the second locking portion 25a are not limited to threads and may be modified as appropriate.

Hereinafter, the circumferential direction in which the connecting member 13 is rotated relative to the container 10 to engage the second locking portion 25a with the first locking portion 10b will be referred to as the tightening side, and the opposite direction will be referred to as the loosening side.

The second sealing cylinder 24a protrudes upward from the periphery of the opening on the upper surface of the second top wall 24. The second sealing cylinder 24a is fitted into the mouth 10a of the container 10. The upper end of the second sealing cylinder 24a is located below the upper end of the connecting cylinder 25.
Insertion tube 26 extends downward from the periphery of the opening on the underside of second top wall 24 and is inserted between the outer circumferential surface of occlusion plug 14 and the inner circumferential surface of first seal tube 21 a. The lower end of insertion tube 26 is located above flange portion 14 a of occlusion plug 14.

In the illustrated example, a cylindrical body 27 extending in the vertical direction is provided inside the second top wall 24 .
The cylindrical body 27 protrudes upward and downward from the second top wall 24. The amount by which the cylindrical body 27 protrudes upward from the second top wall 24 is smaller than the amount by which the cylindrical body 27 protrudes downward from the second top wall 24. The upper end of the cylindrical body 27 is located below the upper end of the second seal cylinder 24a. The lower end of the cylindrical body 27 is located below the lower end of the insertion cylinder 26.
The central axis L of the cylindrical body 27 is radially spaced from the common axis O. The outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical body 27 is connected to the inner peripheral surface of the second top wall 24 via a connecting portion 13 a. The connecting portion 13 a is connected to a portion of the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical body 27 that is radially spaced from the inner peripheral surface of the second top wall 24 by a small distance.

The connecting member 13 is formed with a content ejection hole 16 and an air replacement passage 17 that open toward the interior of the container 10 and the container body 11, respectively.
In the illustrated example, the inside of the cylindrical body 27 serves as the air replacement passage 17, and the portion of the inside of the second top wall 24 other than the cylindrical body 27 and the connecting portion 13a serves as the spout hole 16. The flow path cross-sectional area of the spout hole 16 is larger than the flow path cross-sectional area of the air replacement passage 17. The spout hole 16 and the air replacement passage 17 face the block plug 14 in the vertical direction, and communication between the spout hole 16 and the air replacement passage 17 and the inside of the container body 11 is blocked by the block plug 14. The lower end opening of the air replacement passage 17 faces the inside of the block plug 14. The cylindrical body 27 is inserted into the block plug 14.

A guide portion 18 and a rotation prevention portion 19 are provided between the blocking plug 14 and the connecting member 13.

The guide portion 18 moves the blocking plug 14 toward the inside of the container body 11 relative to the inner plug member 12 as the inner plug member 12 and the connecting member 13 rotate relative to each other in the circumferential direction.
In the illustrated example, the guide portion 18 is composed of a protrusion 14b formed on the outer peripheral surface of the blocking plug 14 and an inclined surface 26a formed on the inner peripheral surface of the insertion tube 26 of the connecting member 13.
The protrusion 14b is formed in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped that is long in the vertical direction. The protrusion 14b extends continuously from the upper end of the occlusion plug 14 to the upper surface of the flange portion 14a. A plurality of protrusions 14b are provided at intervals in the circumferential direction.
The inclined surface 26a is part of the inner surface that defines a recess 26c formed on the inner peripheral surface of the insertion tube 26, and extends downward toward the tightening side. The recess 26c reaches the lower end opening edge of the insertion tube 26 and opens downward. The protrusion 14b is inserted into the recess 26c. The inclined surface 26a faces diagonally downward toward the loosening side. Multiple inclined surfaces 26a are provided at intervals in the circumferential direction. The inclined surface 26a faces the protrusion 14b in the circumferential direction.

The anti-rotation portion 19 prevents the blocking plug 14 and the connecting member 13 from rotating relative to each other in the circumferential direction any further after the blocking plug 14 has been moved toward the inside of the container body 11 relative to the inner plug member 12 by the guide portion 18.
In the illustrated example, the anti-rotation portion 19 is composed of a protrusion 14 b and a rising surface 26 b formed on the inner circumferential surface of the insertion tube 26 of the connecting member 13 .
The protrusion 14b is the same as that of the guide portion 18. Note that a protrusion dedicated to the anti-rotation portion 19 may be provided.
The upright surface 26b is a part of the inner surface that defines the recess 26c formed on the inner circumferential surface of the insertion tube 26, and extends straight in the vertical direction. The upright surface 26b faces the loosening side. The upright surface 26b extends downward from the tightening side end of the inclined surface 26a.

Next, we will explain the function of the refill container 1.

First, the refillable container 1, from which the film F has been removed, is placed in an inverted position, and the mouth 10a of the container 10 is inserted into the connecting tube 25. The connecting member 13 is then rotated toward the tightening side relative to the container 10, locking the second locking portion 25a into the first locking portion 10b. This secures the connecting member 13 to the mouth 10a of the container 10. At this time, the second sealing tube 24a of the connecting member 13 is fitted into the mouth 10a of the container 10, and the upper opening edge of the mouth 10a of the container 10 abuts against the upper surface of the second top wall 24.

When the container body 11 is then rotated in the same direction, the restricting portions 23 are formed separately on the inner circumferential surface of the first peripheral wall 22 of the inner plug member 12 and on the outer circumferential surface of the mouth portion 11a of the container body 11, causing the inner plug member 12 and container body 11 to rotate toward the tightening side relative to the container 10 and connecting member 13. At this time, the protrusion 14b on the outer circumferential surface of the occluding plug 14 slides along the inclined surface 26a formed on the inner circumferential surface of the insertion tube 26 of the connecting member 13, causing the occluding plug 14 to move toward the inside of the container body 11 relative to the inner plug member 12, and applying a vertical tensile force to the weakened portion 15.

Thereafter, as this rotation continues, if the weakened portion 15 is not broken, the protrusion 14b on the outer peripheral surface of the occluding plug 14 will abut against the raised surface 26b formed on the inner peripheral surface of the insertion tube 26 of the connecting member 13, causing the inner plug member 12 to rotate in the tightening direction relative to the occluding plug 14, and a circumferential tensile force will be applied to the weakened portion 15. This will reliably break the weakened portion 15, and the occluding plug 14 will be released from the inner plug member 12.
As a result, the inside of the container body 11 and the inside of this container 10 are connected through the pouring hole 16 and the air replacement passage 17, and the air inside the container 10 is discharged through the air replacement passage 17 while the contents inside the container body 11 flows into the container 10 through the pouring hole 16.

As explained above, with the refillable container 1 of this embodiment, when the contents of the container body 11 are refilled into the main container 10, the refillable container 1 and the main container 10 are rotated relative to each other in the circumferential direction, rather than the refillable container 1 being pushed in an inverted position toward the main container 10, making it less likely that the refillable container 1 will wobble relative to the main container 10.

The lower end opening of the air replacement passage 17 faces the inside of the occluding plug 14. Therefore, when the occluding plug 14 is removed from the inner plug member 12, the air inside the container 10 passes through the air replacement passage 17 and enters the occluding plug 14, making it easier for the occluding plug 14 to float up toward the inside of the container body 11. This prevents the occluding plug 14 from interfering with the flow of the liquid contents and air, allowing for smooth refilling of the contents.

Since the cylindrical body 27 is inserted into the block plug 14, when the block plug 14 is removed from the inner plug member 12, the air in the container 10 that has passed through the air replacement passage 17 can be reliably introduced into the block plug 14, making it easy to float the block plug 14.
The bottom wall of the blocking plug 14 is formed in a downwardly protruding spherical shape, so that when the blocking plug 14 is removed from the inner plug member 12, the air inside the container 10 that has passed through the air replacement passage 17 can impart buoyancy to the bottom wall inside the blocking plug 14 with little bias, making it easier to reliably float the blocking plug 14.

Since a rotation prevention portion 19 is provided between the occlusion plug 14 and the connecting member 13, when the occlusion plug 14 is moved toward the inside of the container body 11 relative to the inner plug member 12 by the guide portion 18, even if the weakened portion 15 is not broken, the relative circumferential rotation of the occlusion plug 14 and the connecting member 13 is restricted, allowing the inner plug member 12 to rotate circumferentially relative to the occlusion plug 14, ensuring that the weakened portion 15 is broken.

The technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

For example, the inner plug member 12 may be formed integrally with the container body 11 .
The direction in which the connecting member 13 is rotated circumferentially relative to the container 10 in order to fix the connecting member 13 to the mouth portion 10a of the container 10, and the direction in which the container body 11 and the inner stopper member 12 are rotated circumferentially relative to the connecting member 13 and the container 10 in order to move the blocking plug 14 toward the inside of the container body 11 relative to the inner stopper member 12 using the guide portion 18, may be opposite to each other.

The guide portion 18 and the anti-rotation portion 19 may not be provided.
The occlusion plug 14 may be provided with a cylindrical portion that is inserted between the outer peripheral surface of the insertion tube 26 and the inner peripheral surface of the first seal tube 21 a, and a first protrusion may be formed on the outer peripheral surface of this cylindrical portion, while a second protrusion that abuts against the first protrusion from below may be formed on the inner peripheral surface of the first seal tube 21 a. In this configuration, for example, the outer peripheral surface of the occlusion plug 14 may be abutted against the inner peripheral surface of the insertion tube 26 to restrict relative rotation between the occlusion plug 14 and the connecting member 13.

In addition, the components in the above embodiments may be replaced with well-known components as appropriate, and the above embodiments and modifications may be combined as appropriate, without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Refill container 10 Main container 10a Mouth of main container 11 Container body 11a Mouth of container body 12 Inner plug member 13 Connecting member 14 Blocking plug 15 Weakened portion 16 Spout hole 17 Air replacement passage 18 Guide portion 19 Anti-rotation portion 27 Cylinder O Common axis (container axis)

Claims (4)

a container body extending in the vertical direction, in which contents to be refilled into the container are accommodated;
an inner plug member provided at the opening of the container body in a state in which rotational movement around the container axis is restricted;
a connecting member that is attached to and detached from the opening of the container in response to a relative rotation about the container axis with respect to the container;
the connecting member is attached to the container body or the inner plug member so as to be rotatable around the container axis,
The connecting member is formed with a content ejection hole and an air replacement passage that open toward the interior of the container and the container body, respectively;
the inner plug member is provided with a bottomed, cylindrical blocking plug that blocks communication between the pouring hole and the air replacement passage and the inside of the container body;
a lower end opening of the air replacement passageway facing inward of the blocking plug;
The refillable container has a closure stopper that is detached from the inner stopper member as the inner stopper member and the connecting member rotate relative to each other about the container axis. The air replacement passage is located inside a cylindrical body extending in the vertical direction,
2. The refill container of claim 1, wherein the barrel is inserted into the closure plug. A refillable container according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a guide portion is provided between the closure plug and the connecting member, which moves the closure plug toward the inside of the container body relative to the inner plug member as the inner plug member and the connecting member rotate relative to each other about the container axis. the occlusion plug is connected to the inner plug member via a breakable weakened portion,
A refillable container as described in claim 3, wherein a rotation prevention portion is provided between the occlusion plug and the connecting member to prevent the occlusion plug and the connecting member from rotating relative to each other around the container axis any further after the occlusion plug has moved toward the inside of the container body relative to the inner plug member by the guide portion.