JP7780334B2 - Dispensing cap and dispensing container - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a dispensing cap that is attached to the mouth of a container, and a dispensing container with a dispensing cap attached to the mouth.

Dispensing containers with various dispensing caps attached to the openings of containers containing kitchen detergents, household detergents, shampoos, conditioners, etc. have been known for some time. For example, Patent Document 1 shows a dispensing container with a dispensing cap attached to the opening of the container, which can be placed upside down on a flat surface such as a desk, and when in use, the container is lifted while in the inverted position and the body of the container is pressed to dispense the contents from the dispensing cap.

The dispensing container in Patent Document 1 is equipped with a dispensing cap equipped with a slit valve. When the container is placed in an inverted position, the slit of this slit valve closes, preventing the contents from being dispensed. However, when the container is pressed and the internal pressure increases, the wall portion with the slit elastically deforms, opening the slit and allowing the contents to be dispensed.

WO 2004/002843

However, when a dispensing container equipped with such a dispensing cap is forcefully placed in an inverted position on a surface, the impact can cause the contents to leak out of the slit and drip onto the surface. Dripping of contents can be prevented by making the slit harder to open by increasing the thickness of the wall where the slit is located or by using a harder material for the slit valve. However, in this case, the slit becomes harder to open even during normal use, and the contents cannot be dispensed without applying strong pressure to the container, reducing usability.

The present invention aims to solve these problems by providing a dispensing cap and dispensing container that maintains ease of use while effectively preventing the contents from dripping even when the cap is placed forcefully on a surface in an inverted position.

The present invention provides a pouring cap that is attached to the mouth of a container and supports the container when the container is placed in an inverted position on a support surface,
a cap body having an annular wall whose tip contacts the placement surface to support the container, and a communication port leading to a content storage space of the container, with base member side claws provided radially inside the annular wall and through holes provided radially outside the base member side claws;
a slit valve having an elastically deformable partition wall and slits dividing the partition wall into a plurality of partition wall portions, wherein when the contents are fed from the communication port to a pouring passage connected to the slits, the partition wall portion elastically deforms to pour out the contents;
a slide member having slide member-side claw portions, which are attached to the cap body by inserting the slide member-side claw portions into the through holes and engaging with the base member-side claw portions, and which is held movably relative to the cap body along the axial direction of the annular wall,
the slide member has a protruding portion that protrudes outward beyond the tip end portion when the tip end portion is separated from the placement surface,
the cap body has an opposing wall that faces the partition wall when the tip end is separated from the placement surface,
When the container is placed in an inverted position on the placement surface, the sliding member slides due to the protrusion contacting the placement surface, and the sliding member side claw portion of the sliding member comes into contact with the slidable member, causing the slit valve to slide as well, and the opposing wall comes into contact with the partition wall, thereby closing the pouring passage.

It is preferable that the opposing wall has a protrusion that protrudes toward the partition wall.

It is preferable that the slit valve is connected to the partition wall and has a base that is thicker than the partition wall, and that the sliding member contacts the base when sliding.

The slit valve preferably has an elastic portion supported by the cap main body portion, and the elastic portion elastically deforms when the container is placed in an inverted position on the mounting surface and the slit valve slides due to the sliding member, and returns to its original shape when the container is separated from the mounting surface, thereby moving the slit valve.

It is preferable that the cap be provided with a lid portion that is connected to the annular wall via a hinge portion and swings between a closed position in which it covers the partition and is held by the cap body portion, and an open position in which the partition is exposed.

The annular wall has an engaging portion protruding from an outer circumferential surface,
The cover preferably has an engaged portion that engages with the engaging portion in the open position.

The present invention also relates to a dispensing container in which the dispensing cap is attached to the opening.

With the dispensing cap and dispensing container of the present invention configured as described above, when the container is placed in an inverted position on a support surface, the protrusion that comes into contact with the support surface causes the sliding member to slide, and the sliding member then comes into contact with the support surface, causing the slit valve to slide as well, causing the opposing wall to come into contact with the partition wall and close the dispensing passage. Therefore, even if the dispensing container is placed in an inverted position on the support surface with great force, it is possible to effectively prevent the contents from dripping. Furthermore, because the sliding member returns to its original position when the container is lifted from the support surface, there is no interference with the movement of the slit valve during normal use and usability is not impaired.

1A and 1B are diagrams showing an embodiment of a pouring container according to the present invention in an upright position, in which (a) is a plan view and (b) is a partial cross-sectional view taken along line AA. FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line BB shown in FIG. 1. 2 is a diagram showing the pouring container shown in FIG. 1 placed in an inverted position on a placement surface. FIG. 1A is a partially enlarged view showing the state in which the pouring passage is closed, and FIG. 1B is a partially enlarged view showing the state immediately before the pouring container is lifted from the mounting surface and the contents are poured out.

One embodiment of a dispensing cap and dispensing container according to the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. The axis O shown here is the central axis of the annular wall 3a, which will be described below. In the following description, the radial direction refers to a direction perpendicular to the axis O within a plane perpendicular to the axis O, and the circumferential direction refers to a direction circumferentially around the axis O within this plane.

As shown in Figure 1, the dispensing container 10 of this embodiment includes a container 1 and a dispensing cap 2. The dispensing cap 2 is composed of a base member 3, a slit valve 4, a stopper 5, and a slide member 6. The base member 3 and stopper 5 correspond to the "cap body" in this specification. Each of the components that make up the dispensing container 10 of this embodiment is shaped around the axis O as shown in the figure.

In this embodiment, the container 1 is formed in a bottle shape as shown in the figure. The container 1 has a disk-shaped bottom 1a, a cylindrical body 1b attached to the outer edge of the bottom 1a, a cylindrical mouth 1c with a smaller diameter than the body 1b, and a male thread 1d attached to the outer surface of the mouth 1c. A content storage space S for storing contents is defined inside the container 1. In this embodiment, after the contents are placed in the content storage space S, the container 1 seals the content storage space S by adhering a sealing material SM shown in Figure 2 to the mouth 1c. The sealing material SM is removed from the mouth 1c when in use.

The base member 3 has an annular wall 3a that surrounds the mouth portion 1c. The inner surface of the annular wall 3a is provided with a female thread portion 3b that corresponds to the male thread portion 1d. As shown in Figure 2, when the container 1 is in an upright position, the upper part of the annular wall 3a is curved radially outward, and its tip portion 3c is shaped to bulge outward.

As shown in FIG. 2, a top wall 3d is provided radially inward of the annular wall 3a. In this embodiment, the top wall 3d has an outer edge connected to the annular wall 3a that extends horizontally radially inward, then slopes upward radially inward, and then extends horizontally radially inward again. An opening 3e is provided at the center of the top wall 3d, penetrating the top wall 3d. A claw-shaped base member-side claw portion 3f is provided on the upper surface of the top wall 3d radially outward of the opening 3e. A plurality of through holes 3g are provided radially outward of the base member-side claw portion 3f, penetrating the top wall 3d at intervals in the circumferential direction. A retaining portion 3h, whose tip portion bulges radially outward, is provided radially outward on the radially outward side of the through hole 3g. A recessed portion 3j, into which a slit valve 4 and an inner plug 5 are fitted, is provided on the underside of the annular wall 3a.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 1, a thin, bendable hinge portion 3k is provided at the top of the annular wall 3a. A lid portion 3m is integrally connected to the hinge portion 3k. The lid portion 3m can be pivoted relative to the annular wall 3a, with the hinge portion 3k serving as a pivot point. Note that the position of the lid portion 3m shown by the solid lines in FIG. 1 is referred to as the closed position, and the position of the lid portion 3m shown by the imaginary lines is referred to as the open position. As shown in the figure, the outer edge of the lid portion 3m connected to the hinge portion 3k extends horizontally, with the central portion curved downward. A lid-side retaining portion 3n is provided on the underside of the outer edge of the lid portion 3m. The lid-side retaining portion 3n engages with the retaining portion 3h when the lid portion 3m is displaced to the closed position, thereby maintaining the lid portion 3m in the closed position. Additionally, a cylindrical engaged portion 3p extending upward is provided in the curved central portion of the lid portion 3m, and an engaging portion 3q protruding radially outward and with a bulging tip is provided on the outer circumferential surface of the annular wall 3a. When the lid portion 3m is displaced to the open position, the engaging portion 3q fits into the hole in the engaged portion 3p, thereby maintaining the lid portion 3m in the open position.

The slit valve 4 is made of a relatively soft material such as rubber or elastomer. As shown in Figure 2, the slit valve 4 of this embodiment comprises a relatively thick, annular base 4a, a thin-walled cylindrical wall 4b extending upward from the inner edge of the base 4a, and a thin-walled partition wall 4c connected to the upper end of the cylindrical wall 4b and curved to protrude downward. A slit 4d that is cross-shaped in plan view is provided in the center of the partition wall 4c. The slit 4d divides the partition wall 4c into multiple partition wall portions (four partition wall portions in this embodiment).

The base 4a has a protrusion 4e on its underside, whose cross-sectional shape is a triangle tapering downward. The base 4a also has an elastic portion 4f on its outer circumferential surface. In this embodiment, the elastic portion 4f is annular overall, with the radially inner portion being thinner than the radially outer portion, allowing the radially inner portion to elastically deform in the vertical direction.

The inside plug 5 is comprised of a top wall 5a located in its center and curved downward, a peripheral wall 5b extending downward from the outer edge of the top wall 5a, a connecting wall 5c extending radially outward from the peripheral wall 5b, and a fitting wall 5d extending upward from the outer edge of the connecting wall 5c and fitted and held against the inner circumferential surface of the recessed portion 3j. In this embodiment, the top wall 5a faces the partition wall 4c when assembled into the dispensing cap 2, as described below, and corresponds to the "facing wall" in this specification. The outer edge of the upper surface of the top wall 5a is provided with a ring-shaped protrusion 5e with a semicircular cross section. The protrusion 5e is located radially outward from the outer edge of the slit 4d. The peripheral wall 5b is provided with a plurality of communication ports 5f that penetrate the peripheral wall 5b at intervals along the circumferential direction.

The slide member 6 has a circular ring wall 6a extending horizontally. The through hole provided in the center of the ring wall 6a is referred to as the spout 6b. The underside of the ring wall 6a is provided with an inner annular wall 6c that surrounds the spout 6b and an outer annular wall 6d that connects to the outer edge of the ring wall 6a. Furthermore, on the underside of the ring wall 6a, between the inner annular wall 6c and the outer annular wall 6d, multiple claw-shaped slide member claws 6e are provided at intervals in the circumferential direction. Furthermore, on the upper surface of the ring wall 6a, multiple protrusions 6f that are triangular in side view are provided at intervals in the circumferential direction.

As shown in Figure 2, the base member 3, slit valve 4, inner plug 5, and slide member 6 of this embodiment are assembled into the dispensing cap 2 by inserting the cylindrical wall 4b of the slit valve 4 into the opening 3e of the base member 3, inserting the fitting wall 5d into the inside of the recessed portion 3j, and then inserting the slide member claw 6e into the through-hole 3g to engage the slide member claw 6e with the base member claw 3f.

When the dispensing cap 2 is assembled in this manner, the outer edge of the elastic portion 4f is sandwiched between the underside of the top wall 3d and the upper surface of the fitting wall 5d. In this state, the underside of the slide member claw 6e contacts the upper surface of the base 4a. As described below, the slide member claw 6e has the function of sliding the slit valve 4 when the slide member 6 slides. It is sufficient for the slide member 6 to be in contact with the slit valve 4 when the slide member 6 slides. In the state shown in FIG. 2, the underside of the slide member claw 6e may be spaced apart from the upper surface of the base 4a. In this state, a dispensing passage T is defined between the peripheral wall 5b and the cylindrical wall 4b, and between the top wall 5a and the partition wall 4c, connecting the communication port 5f to the slit 4d.

As shown in Figure 2, the protrusion 6f of the slide member 6 protrudes outward beyond the tip 3c of the base member 3. In this embodiment, the protrusion 6f protrudes from the tip 3c by a length P.

In this embodiment, the dispensing cap 2 is attached to the container 1 to which the sealing material SM is adhered during distribution. In other words, in this state, the sealing material SM is covered by the dispensing cap 2, preventing damage to the sealing material SM during distribution. Furthermore, by displacing the lid portion 3m to the closed position as shown in Figure 1, the partition wall 4c of the slit valve 4 is covered by the lid portion 3m, preventing damage to the partition wall 4c.

When using the dispensing container 10, the dispensing cap 2 is rotated relative to the container 1 to remove it, the sealing material SM is removed from the container 1, and then the male threaded portion 1d is threadedly engaged with the female threaded portion 3b to attach the dispensing cap 2 to the container 1. In this state, the communication port 5f is connected to the content storage space S. The lid portion 3m is then moved from the closed position to the open position, and the dispensing container 10 is placed in an inverted position. The dispensing container 10 is then placed on a flat support surface PS, such as a desk, as shown in Figure 3. In this embodiment, the annular wall 3a has a radially outward extension on the side where the tip portion 3c, which contacts the support surface PS, is located. Therefore, the dispensing container 10 is placed stably on the support surface PS.

In the dispensing container 10 of this embodiment, as shown in Figure 2, the protrusion 6f protrudes beyond the tip 3c. Therefore, when the dispensing container 10 is placed in an inverted position on the support surface PS as shown in Figures 3 and 4(a), the protrusion 6f is pushed up by the support surface PS to the same position as the tip 3c. In other words, the slide member 6 slides toward the inside of the container 1 by a length equal to the protrusion amount P, and the slide member claw 6e also pushes up the base 4a, causing the slit valve 4 to slide toward the inside of the container 1. Here, the protrusion 5e on the inside plug 5 in this embodiment is configured to contact the partition wall 4c when the slit valve 4 slides by the protrusion amount P. In other words, the dispensing passage T from the communication port 5f to the slit 4d is closed when the protrusion 5e contacts the partition wall 4c. Therefore, even if the inverted dispensing container 10 is forcefully placed on the mounting surface PS, the flow of contents from the contents storage space S into the communication port 5f is restricted by the dispensing passage T, effectively preventing the contents from dripping from the slit 4d.

When sliding the slit valve 4 to close the pouring passage T, the top wall 5a may be configured to contact the partition wall 4c without using the protrusion 5e. However, if the protrusion 5e is used, the protrusion 5e will come into local contact with the partition wall 4c, increasing the contact pressure between the two, thereby more reliably closing the pouring passage T.

When the slide member 6 slides the slit valve 4 toward the inside of the container 1, the tip of the protrusion 4e contacts the connecting wall 5c, as shown in Figure 4(a). That is, the protrusion 4e functions as a stopper when sliding toward the inside of the container 1. The protrusion 4e is a part of the slit valve 4 made of a soft material and is elastically deformable. That is, the slide member 6 can slide a distance greater than the protrusion amount P due to the elastic deformation of the protrusion 4e. For example, if the mounting surface PS is uneven and the portion of the mounting surface PS where the protrusion 6f contacts is slightly higher than the portion where the tip 3c contacts, if the slide member 6 can only slide the protrusion amount P, the dispensing container 10 placed on the mounting surface PS will be supported by the protrusion 6f without the tip 3c contacting the mounting surface PS, resulting in an unstable state. However, with the configuration of this embodiment, both the tip 3c and the protrusion 6f contact the mounting surface PS, allowing the dispensing container 10 to be placed stably.

Furthermore, the slide member 6 of this embodiment slides the slit valve 4 by bringing the slide member claw portion 6e into contact with the thick, strong base portion 4a. In other words, if the slide member claw portion 6e comes into contact with a weaker portion of the slit valve 4, the slit valve 4 may be damaged, or only the weaker portion may undergo partial elastic deformation, preventing the slit valve 4 from sliding sufficiently. However, this embodiment prevents such problems.

To dispense the contents, the dispensing container 10 is lifted from the mounting surface PS while still in the inverted position. This causes the pushed-up slide member 6 to slide back to its original position as shown in Figure 4(b), and the convex portion 5e comes into contact with the partition wall 4c, opening the previously closed dispensing passage T. Therefore, when the body 1b of the container 1 is pressed to pressurize the contents storage space S, the contents of the contents storage space S pass through the communication port 5f and the dispensing passage T, and the pressure elastically deforms the partition wall portion of the partition wall 4c separated by the slit 4d, opening the slit 4d and allowing the contents to be dispensed from the dispensing outlet 6b.

The elastic portion 4f provided on the slit valve 4 has its outer edge sandwiched between the underside of the top wall 3d and the upper surface of the fitting wall 5d, and is therefore elastically deformed when the base 4a is pressed in as shown in FIG. 4(a). Therefore, when the dispensing container 10 is lifted from the mounting surface PS, the elastically deformed elastic portion 4f returns to its original state. Here, the slide member 6, which was pushed up in the state shown in FIG. 4(a), can slide to the position shown in FIG. 4(b) by its own weight. In this embodiment, however, the restoring elastic portion 4f returns the slit valve 4 to its original position. At this time, the restoring force of the elastic portion 4f acts on the slide member-side claw portion 6e via the base 4a, ensuring that the slide member 6 can slide to its original position.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this specific embodiment, and unless otherwise specified in the above description, various modifications and variations are possible within the spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the claims. Furthermore, the effects of the above embodiment are merely examples of the effects that can be obtained from the present invention, and do not mean that the effects of the present invention are limited to the above-mentioned effects.

For example, in this embodiment, the cap body is made up of two components, the base member 3 and the inner plug 5, but these may also be integrated into a single component.

1: Container 1a: Bottom 1b: Body 1c: Mouth 1d: Male thread 2: Spout cap 3: Base member (cap body)
3a: Annular wall 3b: Female threaded portion 3c: Tip portion 3d: Top wall 3e: Opening 3f: Base member side claw portion 3g: Through hole 3h: Holding portion 3j: Concave portion 3k: Hinge portion 3m: Lid portion 3n: Lid side holding part 3p: engaged part 3q: engaging part 4: slit valve 4a: base 4b: cylindrical wall 4c: partition wall 4d: slit 4e: protrusion 4f: elastic part 5: inner stopper (cap main body)
5a: Top wall (opposing wall)
5b: Peripheral wall 5c: Connecting wall 5d: Fitting wall 5e: Convex portion 5f: Communication port 6: Slide member 6a: Ring wall 6b: Spout 6c: Inner annular wall 6d: Outer annular wall 6e: Slide member side claw portion 6f: Protrusion 10: Spouting container O: Axis P: Protrusion amount PS: Placement surface S: Content storage space SM: Sealing material T: Spouting passage

Claims (7)

A pouring cap that is attached to the mouth of a container and supports the container when the container is placed in an inverted position on a placement surface,
a cap body having an annular wall whose tip contacts the placement surface to support the container, and a communication port leading to a content storage space of the container, with base member side claws provided radially inside the annular wall and through holes provided radially outside the base member side claws;
a slit valve having an elastically deformable partition wall and slits dividing the partition wall into a plurality of partition wall portions, wherein when the contents are fed from the communication port to a pouring passage connected to the slits, the partition wall portion elastically deforms to pour out the contents;
a slide member having slide member-side claw portions, which are attached to the cap body by inserting the slide member-side claw portions into the through holes and engaging with the base member-side claw portions, and which is held movably relative to the cap body along the axial direction of the annular wall,
the slide member has a protruding portion that protrudes outward beyond the tip end portion when the tip end portion is separated from the placement surface,
the cap body has an opposing wall that faces the partition wall when the tip end is separated from the placement surface,
When the container is placed in an inverted position on the placement surface, the protrusion contacts the placement surface, causing the slide member to slide, and the slide member side claw portion of the sliding member comes into contact with the slit valve, causing the opposing wall to contact the partition wall and close the pouring passage, thereby forming a pouring cap. The dispensing cap according to claim 1, wherein the opposing wall has a protrusion that protrudes toward the partition wall. The dispensing cap according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the slit valve is connected to the septum and has a base that is thicker than the septum, and the sliding member contacts the base when slid. The dispensing cap according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the slit valve has an elastic portion supported by the cap body portion, and the elastic portion elastically deforms when the container is placed in an inverted position on the mounting surface and the slit valve slides due to the sliding member, and returns to its original shape when the container is separated from the mounting surface, thereby moving the slit valve. The dispensing cap according to any one of claims 1 to 4, comprising a lid portion connected to the annular wall via a hinge portion and swinging between a closed position in which the lid portion covers the partition and is held by the cap body portion, and an open position in which the lid portion exposes the partition. The annular wall has an engaging portion protruding from an outer circumferential surface,
The pouring cap according to claim 5 , wherein the lid portion has an engaged portion that engages with the engaging portion in the open position. A dispensing container having the dispensing cap described in any one of claims 1 to 6 attached to the opening.