JPH0649519B2 - Method for sealing container neck with composite container lid - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial field of use] The present invention relates to a method for sealing the neck of a container, more specifically,
The present invention relates to a method of sealing a container neck with a composite container lid including a synthetic resin inner stopper and a metal outer lid.

[Conventional technology]

As a container lid for containers such as beverage bottles
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 186357/1987, a composite container lid including a synthetic resin inner stopper and a metal outer lid has been proposed and put into practical use. The inner plug is a substantially cylindrical fitting wall, an annular flange extending radially outward from the upper end of the fitting wall,
And is connected to the outer peripheral edge of the flange via a plurality of bridges arranged at intervals in the circumferential direction, is located radially outside of the flange, and projects upward beyond the upper surface of the flange. Has a locking ring. In the inside of the fitting wall of the inside plug, a shielding wall having a plurality of outlets is generally provided. On the other hand, the outer lid has a substantially circular top wall and a substantially cylindrical skirt wall hanging down from the peripheral edge of the top wall. On the upper part of the skirt wall, there is formed an annular ridge which is projected inward in the radial direction. The inner diameter of the annular protrusion is smaller than the outer diameter of the locking ring of the inner plug. The outer lid and the inner stopper are combined by inserting the inner stopper into the outer lid. When inserting the inner plug into the outer lid, the locking ring of the inner plug elastically rides over the protrusion of the outer lid, and thus the inner plug is held in the outer lid.

The composite container lid as described above is applied to, for example, a container having a mouth-neck portion in which a male thread is formed on the outer peripheral surface. To attach the composite container lid to the mouth and neck and seal the mouth and neck, first, the composite container lid is fitted to the mouth and neck. Then, the top wall of the outer lid is pressed to lower the composite container lid. Thus, the fitting wall of the inner plug is inserted into the mouth and neck, and the flange of the inner plug is brought into close contact with the top surface of the mouth and neck.
In addition, in the inside plug, the locking ring is moved down with respect to the flange, and as a result, the plurality of bridging portions are broken and the locking ring is separated. Further, while pressing the top wall of the outer lid, the skirt wall of the outer lid is deformed along the male thread of the mouth and neck to form a female thread.

To open the mouth and neck of the container, the outer lid is rotated to release the screw engagement between the female thread and the male thread of the mouth and neck, and the outer lid is detached from the mouth and neck. In this way, the locking ring separated from the flange due to the breakage of the bridge portion is separated from the mouth and neck together with the outer lid. On the other hand, the other part of the inner plug remains in the mouth and neck, and when the contents are discharged from the mouth and neck, the intended action (control of discharge amount, so-called dripping prevention, etc.) is performed.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

However, the conventional method of mounting the lid of the composite container on the mouth and neck and sealing the mouth and neck has the following problems. That is,
When attaching the lid of the composite container to the mouth and neck, it is important that all of the multiple bridging portions of the inside plug are broken and the locking ring is separated from the flange. The bridging part tends to remain without breaking. Thus, even if the outer lid is detached from the mouth and neck in order to open the mouth and neck, the locking ring connected to the flange by the bridging portion that remains without breaking together with the other parts of the inside plug. Also remains in the mouth and neck. Alternatively, if the outer lid is detached from the mouth and neck in order to open the mouth and neck, there arises a problem that the entire inner plug is detached from the mouth and neck together with the outer lid.

In order to solve such a problem, it is considered that the strength of a plurality of bridging portions in the inside plug is significantly reduced.
However, in this way, when the inner plug is inserted into the outer lid in order to combine the inner plug and the outer lid, and the locking ring of the inner plug is made to elastically ride over the ridge of the outer lid, a plurality of This causes a separate problem that the individual bridging portions are broken and parts other than the locking ring of the inner plug fall off from the outer lid.

The present invention has been made in view of the above facts, and its main technical problem is to eliminate the need for excessively reducing the strength of a plurality of bridging portions in an inside plug, and to eliminate a plurality of bridging portions in the inside plug. It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved method of sealing the neck of a container with a composite container lid, which ensures that all of the above can be ruptured as expected.

[Means for Solving the Problems]

As a result of earnest research, the present inventors have made it possible to deform the outer peripheral edge portion of the top wall of the outer lid downward when attaching the composite container lid to the mouth and neck, thereby making the locking ring in the inner plug relatively large. It has been found that by lowering it, it is possible to surely break all of the plurality of bridging portions as expected without the need to excessively reduce the strength of the plurality of bridging portions.

That is, according to the present invention, it is provided with a synthetic resin inner plug and a metal outer lid, the inner plug is a substantially cylindrical fitting wall, an annular flange extending radially outward from the upper end of the fitting wall, And a locking ring that is connected to the outer peripheral edge of the flange via bridging portions arranged at intervals in the circumferential direction and is located radially outside of the flange, and the metal outer lid is It has a substantially circular top surface wall and a substantially cylindrical skirt wall that hangs down from the peripheral edge of the top surface wall, and an annular ridge protruding inward in the radial direction is formed at the upper part of the skirt wall. The inner diameter of the inner plug is smaller than the outer shape of the locking ring of the inner plug, the inner plug is inserted into the outer lid, and the locking ring of the inner plug elastically rides over the ridge of the outer lid. Seals the mouth and neck of the container by means of a composite container lid that is adapted to retain the inner plug within the outer lid The composite container lid is fitted to the mouth and neck, and then the composite container lid is lowered to fit the fitting wall of the inner plug into the mouth and neck and The flange is brought into close contact with the top surface of the mouth / neck, and then the outer peripheral edge of the top wall of the outer lid is deformed downward, whereby the locking ring of the inner plug is lowered with respect to the flange. At least breaking all of the plurality of bridges.

[Action]

According to the method according to the present invention, when the lid of the composite container is attached to the mouth and neck, the outer peripheral edge portion of the top wall of the outer lid is deformed downward, thereby lowering the locking ring of the inner plug with respect to the flange. . Thus, all of the bridges connecting the locking ring to the flange are reliably broken.

〔Example〕

Hereinafter, embodiments according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a composite container lid used in an embodiment of the method of the present invention. The composite container lid, generally designated by the numeral 2, is composed of a combination of an inner stopper 4 and an outer lid 6.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, an inner plug 4 that can be integrally molded by injection or compression molding from a suitable synthetic resin such as polypropylene or polyethylene.
Has a fitting wall 8, an annular flange 10, a locking ring 12 and a shield wall 14. The fitting wall 8 has a substantially cylindrical shape. More specifically, the fitting wall 8 has a substantially cylindrical upper portion, an inverted frusto-conical inclined portion which is inclined slightly inward in the radial direction downward, and a substantially cylindrical lower end portion. On the outer peripheral surface of the upper portion of the fitting wall 8, three sealing annular projections 15 are formed. The annular flange 10 extends radially outward from the upper end of the fitting wall 8. The lower surface of the annular flange 10 is substantially horizontal in its entirety, but on the upper surface, the inner portion is inclined upwards radially outward, and the outer portion thereof is substantially horizontal. The locking ring 12 is an annular flange 10.
Is arranged on the outer side in the radial direction. As clearly shown in FIG. 3, between the annular flange 10 and the locking ring 12, there are a plurality of pieces (8 pieces in the case shown) spaced at intervals in the circumferential direction.
The bridging portion 16 is provided, and the locking ring 12 is
It is connected to the annular flange 10 via 6. Conveniently, the locking ring 12 projects upwards beyond the upper surface of the annular flange 10. The shielding wall 14 arranged at the lower end of the fitting wall 8 has a substantially horizontal outer portion and a conical inner portion that is inclined upward inward in the radial direction. As clearly shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of (three in the case shown) discharge openings 18 are formed at intervals in the circumferential direction on the outer side of the shielding wall 14. The shield wall 14 can be omitted if desired.

Next, the outer lid 6 will be described with reference to FIG. 4. The outer lid 6 formed of a metal thin plate such as an aluminum thin plate, a chromic acid treated thin plate, or a tin thin plate has a substantially circular top wall 2.
0 and a substantially cylindrical skirt wall 22 that hangs from the peripheral edge of the top wall 20. Although not necessary, the skirt wall 2 may be used to create a so-called Pilfer proof property.
A circumferential weakening line 24 extending in the circumferential direction is formed in the skirt wall 22, and the skirt wall 22 has a main portion 26 above the weakening line 24 and a pilfer proof skirt 28 below the circumferential weakening line 24. It is expedient to be compartmentalized. The circumferential weakening line 24 itself can be composed of a plurality of circumferentially spaced slits 30 extending in the circumferential direction and a plurality of bridging portions 32 located between the slits 30. One of the bridging portions 32 is a high-strength non-breaking bridging portion 32a whose circumferential width is larger than that of the other bridging portions 32. An axial weakening line 34 extending in the axial direction is formed in the pill fur proof skirt 28 in association with one end of the high-strength non-breaking bridging portion 32a in the circumferential direction. This axial weakening line 34 may be a score formed by reducing the material thickness. If desired, the axial weakening line 34 may be omitted, as is well known to those skilled in the art, by having all the bridges 32 in the circumferential weakening line 24 be broken upon opening. Also,
All the bridging portions 32 in the circumferential weakening line 24 are made to be high-strength non-breaking bridging portions, and the pilfer proof hem 2
It is also possible to form a number of weakening lines in the axial direction, which are broken in 8 when opened. At the upper end of the main portion 26 of the skirt wall 22, unevenness or knurls 36 for preventing slippage are provided.
Are formed. Further, immediately below the unevenness or the knurl 36, there is formed an annular projection 38 which is projected inward in the radial direction. The inner diameter d ₁ of the annular protrusion 38 is set to be slightly smaller than the outer diameter d ₂ of the locking ring 12 in the inside plug 4 described above. (D ₁ <
d _2). Further, in the illustrated specific example, a liner 40 having a substantially disc shape that can be molded from an appropriate synthetic resin is provided on the inner surface of the top wall 20.

The inner plug 4 and the outer lid 6 as described above are combined as shown in FIG. 1 to form the composite container lid 2. More specifically, the inner plug 4 is inserted into the outer lid 6 and positioned at the position shown in FIG. At this time, the locking ring 12 of the inner plug 4 is elastically deformed to ride over the annular protrusion 38 of the outer lid 6 from below to above, and
When inserted to the position shown in FIG. 1, the locking ring 12
Interfering with the annular protrusion 38 holds the inner plug 4 in the outer lid 6.

Composite container lid 2 composed of a combination of an inner stopper 4 and an outer lid 6
Applies to a container, which may be made of glass or a suitable synthetic resin, with a mouth and neck, generally designated 42 in FIG. The mouth / neck portion 42, which may be of a known form per se, has a substantially cylindrical shape with an open top surface, and has a male thread 44 and an annular locking projection located below the male thread 44 on its outer peripheral surface. Strips 46 are formed.

The following is a detailed description of an embodiment of the method according to the invention for sealing the mouth / neck 42 with the composite container lid 2.

First, as shown in FIG. 5, the composite container lid 2 is fitted on the mouth / neck portion 42. At this time, the lower end of the fitting wall 8 of the inner plug 4 having a relatively small diameter enters the mouth / neck portion 42, and thus the composite container lid 2 is positioned with respect to the mouth / neck portion 42 as required.

Next, the pressing tool 48 is lowered and the composite container lid 2
Be acted upon. Explaining the configuration of the pressing tool 48, the illustrated pressing pressure tool 48 includes an outer member 50 and an inner member 52. The outer member 50 is the circular upper wall 5.
4, an upper cylindrical wall 56 having a relatively small diameter that hangs from the peripheral edge of the upper wall 54, an annular wall 58 that extends radially outward from the lower end of the upper cylindrical wall 56, and a comparatively downward hang from the peripheral edge of the annular wall 58. It has a large diameter lower cylindrical wall 60. An annular recess 62 is formed at the lower end of the inner surface of the lower cylindrical wall 60, and in the area radially outside the annular recess 62, the lower surface of the lower cylindrical wall 60 is directed downward and outward in the radial direction. It is tilted. The outer diameter d ₃ of the annular recess 62 is substantially the same as or slightly smaller than the outer diameter d ₄ of the outer lid 6 of the composite container lid 2 (d ₃ ≦ d ₄ ), and the inner diameter d ₅ of the lower cylindrical wall 60 is The outer diameter of the outer lid 6 is smaller than the outer diameter d ₄ by a predetermined value (for example, about 2 mm) (d ₅ <d ₄ ). The lower cylindrical wall 60 is further formed with a plurality (for example, three) of openings 64 extending in the vertical direction at intervals in the circumferential direction. The upper end of the outer member 50 is connected to an appropriate lifting mechanism (not shown) that can be composed of a cam mechanism, a hydraulic cylinder mechanism, or the like, and can be lifted and lowered as required. Meanwhile, the inner member
52 is accommodated in the outer member 50 so as to be vertically movable. The inner member 52 has a disc-shaped main portion 66 and a columnar protrusion 68 protruding upward from the upper surface of the main portion 66. The outer diameter of the main portion 66 corresponds to the inner diameter of the lower cylindrical wall 60 of the outer member 50. Between the upper surface of the main portion 66 of the inner member 52 and the lower surface of the upper wall 54 of the outer member 50, elastic means 70, which may be a coil spring, for elastically biasing the inner member 52 downward is interposed. There is.
Further, in the main portion 66 of the inner member 52, a plurality of (for example, three) pins 72 projecting outward in the radial direction at intervals in the circumferential direction are planted. The projecting portion of each of the pins 72 is inserted into each of the openings 64 formed in the lower cylindrical wall 60 of the outer member 50, and the pin 72 abuts the lower end of the opening 64 so that the outer member The downward movement of the inner member 52 with respect to 50 is restricted.

The operation of the pressing tool 48 as described above is as follows. When the outer member 50 of the pressing tool 48 is lowered by a lifting mechanism (not shown), the inner member 52 is also lowered together with the outer member 50, and as shown in FIG. The bottom surface of the annular recess 62 of the outer member 52 contacts the outer surface of the top wall 20 of the outer lid 6 of the composite container lid 2 together with the lower surface. After that, the outer lid 6 is also lowered in response to the lowering of the pressing tool 48, and when the outer lid 6 is slightly lowered, the liner 40 arranged on the inner surface of the top wall 20 thereof is inserted into the inner plug 4 , More specifically, it abuts on its locking ring 12 and therefore together with the outer lid 6 the inner plug 4
Is also lowered. Then, as shown in FIG. 6, the insertion wall 8 of the inner plug 4 is fitted into the mouth / neck portion 42. Then, as shown in FIG. 6, the annular flange 1 of the inner plug 4
0 to the position where the lower surface of 0 abuts on the top surface of the mouth and neck 42
Is lowered, further lowering of the inner stopper 4 is prevented.

Then, the inner plug 4 is lowered so that the fitting wall 8 of the inner plug 4 is closed.
When it is fitted into the inside, a considerable resistance acts on the lowering of the inside plug 4, and the annular flange 10 of the inside plug 4 also comes into contact with the top surface of the mouth / neck portion 42 after the lower surface abuts on the inside plug. 4 is prevented from descending, but a pressing tool 48 is provided on the outer surface of the top wall 20 of the outer lid 6.
The pressing force defined by the elastic means 70 is applied. Therefore, when the inner plug 4 is lowered and the fitting wall 8 is fitted into the mouth / neck portion 42, or after the lowering of the inner plug 4 is prevented, the outer lid 6 is further removed from the inner plug 4. As shown in FIG. 6, the liner 40 of the outer lid 6 presses the locking ring 12 of the inner plug 4 and lowers relative to the annular flange 10 of the inner plug 4 (initial lowering). )
Excuse me. For the time being, the inventors of the present invention have found that all of the bridging portions 16 connecting the locking ring 12 to the annular flange 10 in the inside plug 4 by the relative lowering of the locking ring 12 with respect to the fitting wall 8 as described above. It was thought that it could be satisfactorily broken. However, experiments conducted by the present inventors have revealed that it is not uncommon for at least a part of the bridging portion 16 to remain without being broken. The reason for this is that the locking ring 12 in the inner plug 4, the bridge 16 itself, the annular flange 10, and also the liner 40 of the outer lid 6.
It is presumed that the above relative movement of the locking ring 12 with respect to the annular flange 10 is allowed by elastic deformation such as. On the other hand, in order to surely break all the bridging portions 16, it is conceivable to make the cross-sectional area of the bridging portions 16 excessively small. 4 is inserted and the two are combined, the bridging portion 16 is cut off, so that a part of the inner plug 4 other than the locking ring 12 falls off from the outer lid 6.

Therefore, in the method according to the present invention, the outer member 50 of the pressing tool 48 is moved by the lifting mechanism (not shown).
Is further lowered from the position shown in FIG. 6 to the position shown in FIG. And by this, the 7th
As shown in the figure, excessive pressing force is applied from the bottom surface of the annular recess 62 of the outer member 50 to the outer peripheral edge portion of the top wall 20 of the outer lid 6, thus lowering the outer peripheral edge portion of the top wall 20 of the outer lid 6 downward. It is transformed into. Thus, the locking ring 12 of the inner plug 4 is further lowered to the position shown in FIG. 7 through the liner 40, so that all of the bridge portions 16 are surely broken, and thus, in the inner plug 4. The locking ring 12 is separated from the annular flange 10. In this case,
The inner member 52 of the pressing tool 48 remains stationary without being lowered with the outer member 50, and thus, as will be readily understood by a comparative reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. The inner member 52 is moved upward relative to the outer member 50 by a predetermined amount against the elastic biasing action of the elastic means 70.

In the illustrated embodiment, the pressing tool 48 is further maintained by the action of a thread forming tool (not shown) which may be of a form known per se while maintaining the state shown in FIG. The main portion 26 of the skirt wall 22 of the outer lid 6 is deformed along the male thread 44 of the mouth / neck portion 42 to form the female thread 74. And, again, the lower end of the pill fur proof skirt 28 on the skirt wall 22 of the outer lid 6 is bent radially inward by the action of a locking tool (not shown), which itself may be of a known form. And is locked to the lower surface of the annular locking projection 46 of the mouth / neck portion 42. Thereafter, the outer tool 5 of the pressing tool 48 is lifted by a lifting mechanism (not shown).
0 is raised and the inner tool 52 is also raised accordingly. Thus, the mounting of the composite container lid 2 on the mouth / neck portion 42 is completed, and the mouth / neck portion 42 is sealed.

To open the mouth / neck portion 42, the outer lid 6 is rotated counterclockwise as viewed from above in FIG. As a result, the female thread 74 of the outer lid 6 moves along the male thread 44 of the mouth / neck portion 42, so that the outer lid 6 does not move upward with rotation. However, the lower end of the pilfer proof skirt 28 on the skirt wall 22 of the outer lid 6 cannot move upward because it is locked by the annular locking ridge 46 of the mouth / neck 42. Thus, the bridging portion 3 of the circumferential weakening line 26
A stress corresponding to 2 is generated to break the bridging portion 32, and a corresponding stress is also generated to the axial plug weakening line 34 to break the axial weakening line 34. Thus,
The pill fur proof skirt 28 is opened from an endless annular shape to an endless belt shape, so that the locking of the mouth / neck portion 42 with respect to the annular locking ridge 46 is released. On the other hand, the high-strength non-breaking bridging portion 32a in the circumferential weakening line 26 is maintained without being broken. After that, the outer lid 6 can freely move upward with rotation and is detached from the mouth / neck portion 42 as shown in FIG. Bridge part 16 when wearing
The locking ring 12 in the inside plug 4 that has been separated from the annular flange 10 by the breakage of is lifted together with the outer lid 6 by the interference of the annular protrusion 38 of the outer lid 6 and is detached from the mouth / neck portion 42. . On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 8, the portion of the inner plug 4 other than the locking ring 12 remains in the mouth / neck portion 42. After opening the mouth / neck portion 42 in this way, the contents contained in the container can be discharged through the discharge opening 18 formed in the shielding wall 14 of the inner plug 4.

<Advantages of the Invention> According to the method of the present invention, when the composite container lid 2 is mounted on the mouth / neck portion 42, the outer peripheral edge portion of the top wall 20 of the outer lid 6 is forcibly deformed downward, whereby the inner stopper is formed. The locking ring 12 of No. 4 is sufficiently lowered with respect to the annular flange 10 and thus all the bridge portions 16 connecting the locking ring 12 to the annular flange 10 are reliably broken. Therefore, without causing the problem that the bridging portion 16 is blocked when the inner plug 4 is combined with the outer lid 6 by weakening the bridging portion 16 excessively, the composite container lid 2 is attached to the mouth / neck portion 42. When mounting, all the bridging portions 16 of the inner plug 4 are broken as expected, and the locking ring 12 of the inner plug 4 is attached to the annular flange 1.
It can be reliably separated from zero, thus avoiding problems with improper separation of the locking ring 12.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing an example of a lid of a composite container used in an embodiment of the method of the present invention in a partial cross section. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the inner stopper in the composite container lid of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a side view showing a partial cross-section of the inner stopper of the composite container lid of FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is a side view showing a part of the outer lid of the composite container lid of FIG. 1 in section. FIG. 5, FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 are partial sectional views for explaining an embodiment of the method of the present invention in which the composite container lid of FIG. 1 is attached to the mouth and neck to seal the mouth and neck. The side view or half sectional view shown. FIG. 8 is a side view showing a state in which the mouth / neck portion sealed by the composite container lid of FIG. 2 ... Composite container lid 4 ... Inner stopper 6 ... Outer lid 8 ... Inner stopper fitting wall 10 ... Inner stopper annular flange 12 ... Inner stopper locking ring 16 ... Inner stopper bridging part 20 ... Top wall of outer lid 22 ... Skirt wall of outer lid 38 ... Annular ridge of outer lid 42 ... Mouth neck 48 ... Pressing tool 50 ... Outer member of pressing tool 52 ... Inside of pressing tool Member 70 ... Elastic means of pressing tool

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A synthetic resin inner stopper and a metal outer lid,
The inner plug has a substantially cylindrical fitting wall, an annular flange extending radially outward from an upper end portion of the fitting wall, and an outer peripheral edge portion of the flange via bridge portions arranged at intervals in the circumferential direction. And a locking ring located radially outside of the flange, the metal outer lid having a substantially circular top wall and a substantially cylindrical skirt wall depending from a peripheral edge of the top wall. An annular ridge protruding inward in the radial direction is formed on the upper part of the wall, the inner diameter of the ridge is smaller than the outer diameter of the locking ring of the inner plug, and the inner plug is attached to the outer lid. Insert inside,
The mouth of the container is provided by a composite container lid in which the retaining ring of the inner stopper elastically rides over the ridges of the outer lid to retain the inner stopper within the outer lid. A method of sealing the neck; covering the mouth-neck with the composite container lid, and then lowering the composite container lid to fit the fitting wall of the inner plug into the mouth-neck. The flange of the inner plug is brought into close contact with the top surface of the mouth and neck, and thereafter the outer peripheral edge of the top wall of the outer lid is deformed downward, whereby the locking ring of the inner plug is fixed to the flange. Descending relative thereto to break all of the plurality of bridging portions. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein a pressing force is applied to the ceiling wall of the outer lid to lower the composite container lid. 3. The locking ring of the inner plug is projected upward beyond the upper surface of the flange, and the locking ring is formed by applying a pressing force to the top wall of the outer lid. The method of claim 2 wherein the method is initially lowered with respect to. 4. A male screw thread is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the mouth-neck portion, and the skirt wall of the outer lid is screwed while the pressing force is applied to the top wall of the outer lid. The method according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the female thread is formed by deforming along the thread. 5. When a pressing force is applied to the top wall of the outer lid,
The method according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein an excessive pressing force is applied to the outer peripheral edge portion of the top wall of the outer lid to deform it downward.