JP7797286B2 - Refill container and double container containing the same - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a refill container filled with creamy or viscous cosmetics, medicines, detergents, etc., and a double container housing the refill container.

Jar-type containers, consisting of a lid screwed onto a bottomed, cylindrical container body that holds the contents, are widely used as containers for cream-like contents such as face cream and hair styling cream. One known example of this type of jar-type container, as shown in Patent Document 1, is a double-layered container consisting of an inner container filled with the contents and an outer container that detachably houses the inner container, allowing consumers to remove the inner container and replace it with a new inner container (refill container) when the contents are used up. Because the outer container of such double-layered jar-type containers using refill containers can be reused, it is possible to add value to products by using an outer container with excellent decorativeness and design, while also reducing waste, and this has led to promising uses.

JP 2010-195484 A

The opening of the refill container used in such a jar-type double container is usually provided with a seal material to provide a tight seal during distribution, handling, etc.
Sheets made of plastic film or metal foil are used as sealing materials, but this has the problem of requiring dedicated filling equipment to fill the contents into the inner container and to attach the sheet to the upper opening of the inner container.

The present invention aims to solve the above problems by providing a refill container that can keep its contents sealed without requiring dedicated filling equipment, and a double container that houses the refill container.

The refill container of the present invention, developed to achieve the above-mentioned object, is a refill container comprising a container body filled with contents, and which allows the contents to be removed through an opening formed at the upper end of the container body, and which comprises: an annular body arranged so as to be able to be fitted to the upper end of the container body by a stopper ; and a sealing material which is removably attached to the upper surface of the annular body and which, when peeled, forms an opening for removing the contents filled in the container body on the inside of the annular body, and the sealing material comprises an outer peripheral portion and a central portion which covers the opening inside the outer peripheral portion and is located below the outer peripheral portion, the annular body has at least one pair of levers held hanging in opposite positions, and each of the pair of levers has an oval protrusion on its outer surface which acts as a male screw and also functions as an anti-slip device, and the annular body has a top wall which can abut against the tip of the upper end of the container body, and a hanging wall which can be fitted to the outer surface of the upper end .

In the refill container of the present invention, the sealing material is removably fixed to the upper surface of the annular body, and it is preferable that the annular body has on its upper surface a flat surface portion that adheres the sealing material horizontally, and an inclined surface portion that connects to the inner end of the flat surface portion and inclines the sealing material radially inwardly of the flat surface portion so that it is lower than the flat surface portion and adheres it tightly.

In the refill container of the present invention, the annular body preferably has a seal portion at the outer edge of the sealing material that is flush with the flat surface portion or higher than the flat surface portion .

The present invention also provides a double container that houses the refill container, characterized by comprising a main container that houses the refill container in its internal space through an upper open end provided in a cylindrical portion, and a lid that covers the cylindrical portion and the upper open end, keeping the internal space sealed.

The refill container of the present invention can be fitted with a ring-shaped cap at the top end, allowing it to be sealed without the need for dedicated filling equipment.

Furthermore, according to the refill container of the present invention, a seal that can be peeled off by hand is provided on the top surface of the annular body, so that when in use, an opening for removing the contents can be easily formed by simply peeling off the seal.

Furthermore, the sealing material is composed of an outer peripheral portion and a central portion located inside it, and the central portion, which covers the opening for removing the contents, is positioned lower than the outer peripheral portion. Therefore, when the annular body is attached to the upper end of the container body of the refill container, for example by capping, the central portion will bend upward due to an increase in internal pressure within the refill container, but will not protrude above the annular body. Furthermore, the upward bending of the sealing material suppresses an increase in internal pressure within the refill container, eliminating the risk of the annular body coming off due to this internal pressure.

Furthermore, with the refill container of the present invention, when the sealing material is provided on the upper surface of the annular body by insert molding, an inclined surface is provided on the inner side of the annular body and the sealing material is adhered to this inclined surface. This allows the sealing material to be recessed downward along the inclined surface even if the annular body shrinks after insert molding, making the sealing material more flexible. This effectively suppresses an increase in internal pressure in the container body when the annular body is fitted onto the upper end of the container body of the refill container by capping.

Furthermore, with the double container of the present invention, when the contents are used up, the refill container can be removed from the main container while still suspended from the annular body, and replaced with a new one filled with contents and with the annular body attached to the upper end, allowing the main container to be reused and reducing the volume of waste.

1A and 1B are diagrams showing an embodiment of a refill container according to the present invention, in which FIG. 1A is a plan view and FIG. 1B is a front view. 2A is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of the refill container shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB. 1A and 1B are a plan view and a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC in FIG. 1A, respectively, of an embodiment of a ring-shaped body provided at the upper end of a refill container according to the present invention; FIG. 1C is a bottom view of the ring-shaped body provided at the upper end of the refill container according to the present invention; 1A and 1B are diagrams showing an embodiment of a double container that houses and holds a refill container according to the present invention, in which FIG. 1A is a plan view and FIG. 1B is a front view. 5A is a cross-sectional view of the double container shown in FIG. 4 taken along line DD, and FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional view of the double container shown in FIG. 4 taken along line EE. 1A and 1B are a plan view and a front view, respectively, of a main container constituting a double container according to the present invention; 7 is a front view showing a state in which the refill container shown in FIG. 1 is housed in the main container shown in FIG. 6. FIG. (a) is a cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of a ring-shaped body provided at the upper end of a refill container that constitutes a double container according to the present invention, and (b) is a cross-sectional view of a refill container formed by fitting the ring-shaped body of (a) into the upper end.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the axis O in the drawings is the central axis of the double container of the present invention, and the direction along the axis O is referred to as the "axial direction," and the direction perpendicular to the axis O is referred to as the "radial direction."
FIG. 1 shows one embodiment of a refill container according to the present invention, with FIG. 1(a) being a plan view and FIG. 1(b) being a front view. FIG. 2(a) is a cross-sectional view of the refill container of FIG. 1 taken along line A-A, and FIG. 2(b) is a cross-sectional view of the refill container taken along line B-B. FIG. 3 shows an annular member provided at the upper end of a refill container according to the present invention, with FIG. 3(a) being a plan view, FIG. 3(b) being a cross-sectional view of line C-C in FIG. 3(a), and FIG. 3(c) being a bottom view. FIG. 4 shows one embodiment of a double container according to the present invention, with FIG. 4(a) being a plan view and FIG. 4(b) being a front view. FIG. 5(a) is a cross-sectional view of line D-D in FIG. 4, and FIG. 5(b) is a cross-sectional view of line E-E in FIG. 4. FIG. 6 shows a main container constituting a double container according to the present invention, with FIG. 6(a) being a plan view and FIG. 6(b) being a front view.

Reference numeral 1 denotes the refill container of the present invention, which comprises a container body 10 filled with the contents and an annular body 2 that is fitted to the upper end of the container body 10, preferably by capping. The annular body 2 can be fitted to the upper end of the refill container 1 by various methods, but the following description will use as an example a case in which the annular body 2 is fitted to the upper end of the refill container 1 by capping.

The container body 10 is a cylindrical body with an open top and a bottom, and has a cylindrical peripheral wall 11 and a bottom wall 12 connected to the bottom end of the peripheral wall 11. In this embodiment, the peripheral wall 11 is shown as being cylindrical, but any shape is acceptable as long as it can be filled and held with cream-like or jelly-like contents. The material of the container body 10 is not particularly limited, and it may be made of a synthetic resin such as polyethylene or polypropylene by injection molding or the like, or a thin-walled metal container made by press molding a metal material.

The annular body 2 has a fitting connection portion consisting of a top wall 23 having an opening 21 in the center which serves as an opening for removing the contents from the container body 10, a hanging wall 24 which hangs down in the axial direction from the radially inner edge of the top wall 23 and can fit with the upper end of the container body 10, and a hanging wall 25 which hangs down in the axial direction from the radially outer edge of the top wall 23 and can fit with the upper end of the main container 3.

A sealant 26 is provided on the top surface of the annular body 2 to cover the opening 21. The sealant 26 is capable of sealing the opening 21 while having sufficient bonding strength to be peeled off by pulling with the fingers. It can be attached or welded to the top surface of the annular body 2 using methods such as P-sealing or insert molding, although the method is not particularly limited. The sealant 26 can be made of various materials, including synthetic resins such as polyethylene and polypropylene, as well as metal foil, with flexible materials being particularly preferred.

The hanging wall 24 has an annular rib 24a on its inner surface, and by pressing the annular body 2 from above and plugging it while the inner surface of the hanging wall 24 is abutted against the outer surface of the peripheral wall portion 11 of the refill container 1, the annular rib 24a is undercut and fitted into the annular rib 11a provided on the upper part of the peripheral wall portion 11 of the container body 10 , and the annular body 2 can be attached to the upper end of the container body 10.

The sealing material 26 is removably attached to the upper surface of the annular body 2 and consists of an outer peripheral portion 26a located radially outward and a central portion 26b located inside the outer peripheral portion 26a. As shown in Figures 2 and 3(b), the central portion 26b is recessed axially within the opening 21 and located lower than the outer peripheral portion 26a. When the annular body 2 is attached to the upper end of the container body 10 by capping, the compressed air within the container body 10 pushes upward the axially recessed central portion 26b of the sealing material 26, thereby mitigating the increase in internal pressure of the container body 10 and preventing the capping of the annular body 2 from becoming loose. The sealing material 26 shown by the two-dot chain line in Figure 2 is before it is attached to the container body 10 by capping. When the annular body 2 is attached by capping, the sealing material 26 rises to the position shown by the solid line.

To make it easier to peel off the sealing material 26 with the fingers, it is preferable to form a grip by protruding part of the outer periphery 26a radially outward, or to provide a non-welded portion (non-adhesive portion) on at least part of the outer periphery 26a so that this portion can be used as a handle for peeling off.

The hanging wall 25 has an annular rib 25a on its inner surface. When the refill container 1, which has the annular body 2 at its upper end, is inserted into the internal space of the main container 3 by capping, as described below, the annular rib 25a is removably undercut and fitted into the annular rib 36a on the outer surface of the locking wall 36 located at the upper end of the main container 3, thereby holding the refill container 1 within the main container 3.

The hanging wall 25 has a pair of levers 27 that hang axially from its lower end at radially opposite positions. In this embodiment, the hanging wall 25 is provided with one pair of levers 27, but multiple pairs of levers 27 may be provided. The levers 27 serve as a handle for removing the refill container 1 with the annular body 2 still fitted at its upper end when the contents of the refill container 1 are consumed and it needs to be replaced with a new one.

In this embodiment, the outer surface of the lever 27 is provided with multiple (two in the figure) oval protrusions 27a that are inclined to match the inclination of the spiral male thread 35a provided on the opening 35 of the main container body 3. These protrusions 27a function as male threads when attaching the lid body 4, and also act as anti-slip devices when removing the refill container 1 together with the annular body 2.

Reference symbol V in Figure 4 denotes a double container of the present invention that houses and holds a refill container 1. As described above, the double container 1 comprises a refill container 1 having an annular body 2 fitted to the upper end by being capped, a main container 3 that houses the refill container 1, and a lid 4 that is provided to cover the top of the main container 3. Furthermore, in this embodiment, a cylindrical double container is shown as an example, but this is not limited to this, and various shapes such as an oval, square, or polygonal shape can also be used.

The main container 3 is a bottomed, cylindrical body with an open upper end 30, and has a cylindrical tubular portion 31, a disk-shaped bottom wall portion 32 connected to the lower end of the tubular portion 31, and a holding portion 33 that forms the mouth of the main container 3 and is used to store and hold the refill container 1.

The holding portion 33 is integrally formed with a cylindrical peripheral wall portion 34 that follows the inner wall of the cylindrical portion 31, a mouth portion 35 that extends axially from the upper end of the peripheral wall portion 34, a locking wall 36 that extends axially from the upper end of the mouth portion 35, and a storage shell 37 that connects to the lower end of the locking wall 36 and covers and holds the outer periphery of the stored refill container 1. In this embodiment, the peripheral wall portion 34, mouth portion 35, locking wall 36, and storage shell 37 that make up the holding portion 33 are integrally molded, but they may also be formed separately.

The cylindrical portion 31 has a notch 31a on the inner edge of its upper end, which engages with a protrusion 34a on the outer surface of the peripheral wall portion 34. The bottom wall portion 32 has a ring portion 32a extending in the axial direction, and an annular rib 32b on the inner surface of the ring portion 32a fits into a recess 37b on the outer surface of a ring portion 37a that hangs down from the storage shell 37. This secures the retaining portion 33 to the cylindrical portion 31 at two locations: the peripheral wall portion 34 and the storage shell 37, preventing the retaining portion 33 from coming off the cylindrical portion 31 during handling, etc. While the cylindrical portion 31 and the retaining portion 33 are formed separately in this embodiment, they may also be formed integrally, in which case the structure of the main container body 3 can be simplified.

The material of the main container 3 is not particularly limited, but the cylindrical body 31 can be formed by injection molding or blow molding synthetic resin such as polyethylene or polypropylene, or metal, glass, etc.

The opening 35 has a smaller diameter than the cylindrical portion 31 so that the outer surface of the opening 4 is flush with the outer surface of the cylindrical portion 31 when the lid 4 is attached. A spiral male thread 35a is formed on the outer surface of the opening 35, with notched recesses 35b provided at opposite radial positions. The notched recesses 35b are designed so that when the refill container 1, which has the annular body 2 fitted to its upper end as described below, is inserted into the upper open end 30 of the main container 3 and stored, the pair of levers 27 of the refill container 1 fit into the notched recesses 35b. This prevents the levers 27 from getting in the way when the lid 4 is screwed onto the opening 35.

The locking wall 36 has an annular rib 36a on its outer surface that detachably fits with the annular rib 25a provided on the inner surface of the hanging wall 25 of the annular body 2. When storing the refill container 1 in the main container 3, the refill container 1, with the annular body 2 fitted to its upper end, is inserted into the main container 3 from the upper open end 30. When the locking wall 36 is fitted into the gap between the hanging walls 24 and 25 of the annular body 2, for example by capping, the annular rib 25a of the hanging wall 25 fits with the annular rib 36a of the main container 3, securing and holding the refill container 1 within the main container 3.

When the contents of the refill container 1 have been used up, the pair of levers 27 on the annular body 2 are pinched between the fingers and pushed radially inward. This causes the lower ends 27b of the levers 27 to come into contact with the connecting portions 38 connecting the peripheral wall portion 34 and the housing shell 37, and they move upward along the inclined portions 38a, pushing up the annular body 2. This disengages the annular rib 25a of the annular body 2 from the annular rib 36a of the main container 3, allowing the refill container 1 and the annular body 2 to be removed.

The retaining shell 37 covers and holds the outer periphery of the refill container 1 to be stored, so in this embodiment it has the same shape as the refill container 1, but is not limited to this.

The lid 4 is a cylindrical cap with a top that is screwed onto the mouth 35 of the container body 3. It includes a disk-shaped top wall 41 arranged radially and a cylindrical peripheral wall 42 that hangs down from the outer edge of the top wall 41. The inner surface of the peripheral wall 42 is formed with a female thread 42a that screws into the male thread 35a provided on the mouth 35 of the container body 3. Note that this embodiment shows an example in which the lid 4 is screwed onto the container body 3, but this is not limited to this. For example, the lid 4 may be attached to the container body 3 by undercut fitting.

A disk-shaped gasket 43 is fitted to the underside of the top wall 41. This gasket 43 is sandwiched between the underside of the top wall 41 of the lid 4 and the upper surface of the annular body 2, and serves to seal the opening 21 of the annular body 2 that is opened by peeling off the sealing material 26 after use begins, thereby preventing the contents of the refill container 1 from leaking out. It is also possible to omit the gasket 43 and, for example, to make the lid 4 out of an elastic material so that the top wall 41 of the lid 4 directly seals the opening 21 of the annular body 2 that has been opened.

Next, we will explain how to use the refill container and double container configured in this way. Figure 7 is a front view showing the refill container 1 of Figure 1 housed within the main container 3 shown in Figure 6.

First, the annular body 2 is placed from above onto the upper end of the container body 10 filled with the contents, and the annular body 2 is positioned so that the inner surface of the hanging wall 24 is aligned with the outer surface of the peripheral wall 11 of the container body 10. The annular body 2 is then pressed from above to cap it. As a result, the annular rib 11a of the peripheral wall 11 and the annular rib 24a of the hanging wall 24 fit together, and the container body 10 is held hanging down by the annular body 2.

The container body 10 suspended from the annular body 2 is inserted into the upper open end 30 of the main container body 3, and is aligned so that the lever 27 of the annular body 2 coincides with the notched recess 35b provided in the opening 35 of the main container body 3, as shown in Figure 7. In this state, the annular body 2 is pressed from above, and the locking wall 36 of the main container body 3 is fitted into the gap between the hanging walls 24 and 25 of the annular body 2, and the annular rib 36a of the locking wall 36 fits into the annular rib 25a of the hanging wall 25, and the refill container 1 is housed and held within the main container body 3 via the annular body 2.

When using the container, the sealant 26 on the top surface of the annular body 2 is pulled upward with the fingers as shown by the arrow in Figure 7, thereby peeling it off and forming the opening 21. The contents of the refill container 1 can be scooped up through the opening 21 using fingers, a spoon, or the like for use.

After use, the lid 4 is attached to the opening 35 of the main container 3 by screwing it (the female thread 42a and the male thread 35a together). A gasket 43 is fitted to the underside of the top wall 41 of the lid 4. This seals the opening 21 even if contents remain in the refill container 1, preventing the contents from leaking out.

Furthermore, when the contents inside the container body 10 have been used up, the pair of levers 27 of the annular body 2 are pinched with the fingers and pushed radially inward, pushing the annular body 2 upward and disengaging the annular rib 36a of the locking wall 36 from the annular rib 25a of the hanging wall 25, allowing the container body 10 to be removed while hanging down from the annular body 2. Then, a new refill container 1 filled with the contents is attached to the locking wall 36 of the main container 3 via the annular body 2 in the same manner as above, with the annular body 2 fitted to its upper end, and is stored and held within the main container 3. This allows the main container 3 to be used repeatedly by replacing the refill container 1, thereby reducing product costs and waste.

Figure 8 shows another embodiment of the annular body 2 that fits onto the upper end of the container body 10 of the refill container 1. Figure 8(a) is a cross-sectional view of the annular body 2 when a sealing material 26 is provided on the upper surface of the annular body 2 by insert molding. Figure 8(b) is a diagram showing a method for peeling off the sealing material 26 in a refill container 1 that has the annular body 2 of Figure 8(a) fitted onto its upper end.

The annular body 2 has a flat surface portion 28a on the upper surface of the top wall 23 that horizontally adheres to the sealing material 26, and an inclined surface portion 28b that connects to the inner end of the flat surface portion 28a and slopes downward in the axial direction. By providing the inclined surface portion 28b in this manner and adhering the sealing material 26 to this inclined surface portion 28b, even if the annular body 2 shrinks after insert molding, the inclined surface portion 28b can cause the central portion 26b of the sealing material 26 to be recessed downward, and the central portion 26b of the sealing material 26 can be maintained in a recessed state at the opening 21 so that it is lower than the flat surface portion 28a.

When the sealing material 26 is attached to the top surface of the annular body 2 by insert molding, the top surface of the annular body 2 may become rough after the sealing material 26 is removed, which may reduce the sealing ability with the packing 43 provided on the underside of the top wall 41 of the lid 4. For this reason, it is preferable to provide an annular sealing portion 28c that is equal to or higher than the flat surface portion 28a on the radially outer side of the flat surface portion 28a of the top wall 23 of the annular body 2, and to seal the opening 21 by abutting the sealing portion 28c against the packing 43 of the lid 4.

In addition, the sealing material 26 can be peeled off by folding at least a portion of the outer periphery 26a radially inward to form a tab, or by projecting at least a portion of the outer periphery 26a radially outward from the annular body 2 to form a tab, and by gripping and pulling the tab with the fingers. There are no particular limitations on the method for peeling off the sealing material 26.

The refill container and double container of the present invention can be widely used as containers for storing creamy or viscous cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, detergents, etc.

V Double container 1 Refill container 10 Container body 11 Peripheral wall portion 11a Annular rib 12 Bottom wall portion 2 Annular body 21 Opening 23 Top wall 24 Downward wall 24a Annular rib 25 Downward wall 25a Annular rib 26 Sealing material 26a Outer periphery 26b Central portion 27 Lever 27a Convex portion 28a Flat surface portion 28b Inclined surface portion 28c Sealing portion 3 Main container body 30 Upper open end 31 Cylindrical portion 31a Cutout portion 32 Bottom wall portion 32a Ring portion 32b Annular rib 33 Holding portion 34 Peripheral wall portion 34a Convex portion 35 Mouth portion 35a Male thread 35b Cutout recess 36 Locking wall 36a Annular rib 37 Storage shell 37a Ring portion 38 Connecting portion 38a Inclined portion 4 Lid 41 Top wall 42 Peripheral wall portion 42a Female thread 43 Packing

Claims (4)

A refill container having a container body filled with a content, the content being removable through an opening formed at the top end of the container body,
a ring-shaped body that is disposed on the upper end of the container body so as to be able to be fitted by stoppering , and a sealing material that is disposed on the upper surface of the ring-shaped body so as to be able to be peeled off, and that forms an opening for taking out the contents filled in the container body on the inside of the ring-shaped body by peeling off the sealing material,
the sealing material includes an outer periphery and a central portion that covers the outlet port inside the outer periphery and is located below the outer periphery;
the annular body has at least one pair of levers suspended at opposite positions,
The pair of levers each have an oval projection on an outer surface thereof that functions as a male screw and also as an anti-slip device,
The annular body has a top wall that can abut against the tip of the upper end of the container body, and a hanging wall that can be fitted onto the outer surface of the upper end . the sealing material is removably attached to the upper surface of the annular body,
The refill container according to claim 1, characterized in that the annular body has on its upper surface a flat surface portion that horizontally adheres the sealing material, and an inclined surface portion that connects to the inner end of the flat surface portion and inclines the sealing material radially inward toward the flat surface portion so that it is lower than the flat surface portion and adheres to the sealing material. The refill container according to claim 2, characterized in that the annular body has a sealing portion at the outer edge of the sealing material that is flush with the flat surface portion or higher than the flat surface portion. A double container containing the refill container according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
a main body container that houses the refill container in its internal space through an upper open end provided in a cylindrical portion;
The double container housing the refill container is characterized by comprising a lid body that covers the cylindrical portion and the upper open end and keeps the internal space sealed.