WO2003055764A1

WO2003055764A1 - Tamper-proof closure

Info

Publication number: WO2003055764A1
Application number: PCT/EP2002/014025
Authority: WO
Inventors: Frank Römer; Frank Mertens; Martin Albers
Original assignee: Georg Menshen Gmbh & Co. Kg
Priority date: 2001-12-27
Filing date: 2002-12-10
Publication date: 2003-07-10
Also published as: EP1458619A1; DE20120965U1; AU2002361384A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a tamper-proof closure for closing a container opening in a container neck zone. Said tamper-proof closure comprises a cap part (1), mounted in the container neck zone, and a tamper-proof part (2) with an annular element (9). The tamper-proof part is linked with the cap via a link (10, 11) that breaks when subjected to an external force, and comprises a projection system that projects radially from the annular element inward. Said projection system can be brought into engagement behind complementary engagement means in the container neck zone, thereby immobilizing the tamper-proof part vis-à-vis the container neck zone in such a manner that the cap part can only be removed from the container neck zone when simultaneously destroying the breakable link. The projection system comprises substantially cup-shaped integrally formed elements (12) provided at least in diametrical zones of the annular element (9). Said integrally formed elements have a wall (15) that arches inwards and against the cap part, said wall being limited by a rim edge (13) facing the cap part and engaging under the engagement means provided on the container.

Description

tamper-evident closure

The invention relates to a tamper-evident closure for closing a container opening on a container neck area, with a cap part and an originality part according to the preamble of claim 1.

Tamper-evident closures, in which the intact presence of the tamper-evident part provides the consumer with an indication that no tampering with the contents of the container has been carried out, have long been known and are used for a wide variety of applications. The required position fixing of the tamper-evident part in relation to the cap part is generally obtained by the fact that protrusion means, for example cams or collars projecting radially inwards, are provided on the tamper-evident part, which have an interrelated relationship to it when the closure is first screwed onto a container neck provided complementary projection means, for example also in the form of radially outwardly protruding cams or collars on the container part. For closures with relatively large nominal dimensions, the natural flexibility of the tamper-evident part, which can be made of a plastic material such as PS, PE, or PP, is sufficient for the cap and container-side projection means to slide past one another without problems, without excessive stress on the tamper-evident part, even in automatic sealing systems. With smaller nominal dimensions and / or a stiffening external design of the original part, however, difficulties can arise, and in particular the forces between the projection means can become so great that the connection between the cap and original part can break prematurely and thus lead to rejects , Attempts have been made to counter this problem by having the protruding means which engage with one another has designed itself flexible, but this has the disadvantage that the stability of the position-fixing engagement of the projection means is reduced accordingly.

The invention has for its object to provide a tamper-evident closure of the generic type, in which, on the one hand, the position-fixing closure and container-side projection means can be easily moved past one another when screwing on, and on the other hand, the tamper-evident function is guaranteed by maintaining a reliable, stable position fixation of the tamper-evident closure on the container , In particular, the invention is intended to enable the provision of tamper-evident closures for small nominal dimensions and / or designs which have stiffening effects.

This object is solved by the features of claim 1. Thereafter, the locking means on the projection side are formed as shell-shaped projections on a ring element of the originality part. These formations have a free upper edge that creates a rear grip area. The marginal edge is supported on a base in the form of a goblet or shell-like, preferably thin wall protruding from the ring element and extending inwards and upwards, which has a structurally stiffening effect due to the shape mentioned and thus an increased deformation rigidity under the axial forces acting on it Has. These forces only occur when the closures are unscrewed. This reliably guarantees the originality function. On the other hand, the wall can easily yield elastically against the ring element under the radial forces acting on it. These forces occur when the screws are screwed on, so that when the closures are screwed on for the first time, the projections can be easily guided along even highly rigid projection means on the container neck. The tamper-evident closure according to the invention preferably consists of a cap part and an originality part formed separately therefrom. This not only facilitates the formation of the bowl-shaped formations, but also enables the provision of Tamper-evident closures in which the cap and tamper-evident part can consist of different, for example differently colored, plastic materials.

The invention is explained below with reference to the drawing and an embodiment. Show it:

Fig. 1 in longitudinal section a tamper-evident closure according to a

Embodiment of the invention,

Fig. 2 in a perspective plan view of the originality part of the

Tamper-evident closure according to Fig. 1, and

Fig. 3 shows the originality part of FIG. 2 in a perspective bottom view.

With reference to FIG. 1, the tamper-evident closure comprises a cap part bearing the general reference number 1 and a tamper-evident part 2 connected to the cap part 1 in the manner explained in more detail below. The cap part 1 has a peripheral wall 3 and an upper cover wall 4 and can be by means of an on the inside the peripheral wall 3 provided screw thread 5 are screwed onto a neck region (not shown) of a container provided with a complementary screw thread in order to close a pouring opening defined on the container neck region. A sealing cone 6 can be formed on the inside of the top wall 4 and can engage sealingly in the pouring opening.

At a lower end area facing away from the top wall 4, the peripheral wall 3 can, as indicated at 7, be widened radially outwards. The peripheral wall 3 ends at an end or end edge 8, on the side of which a plurality of axial blind holes in the bores 11 are made, which are arranged circumferentially distributed at a suitable angular distance from one another. In the present Embodiment four bores 11 arranged at an angular distance of 90 ° from one another are provided.

The originality part 2 comprises a ring element 9, the outer circumferential surface of which can be axially and radially aligned with the outer circumferential surface of the radially expanded region 7 of the circumferential wall 3. The ring element 9 can be circular or, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, in the form of a polygon. A plurality of pins 10 protrude from an end edge of the ring element 9 opposite the end edge 8 of the cap part, which pins are aligned with the bores 11 and, as shown, can be received therein. The pins 10 can be snap-fit (not shown) into the bores 11 or in some other suitable manner, e.g. by welding or gluing. The pins 10 are dimensioned in cross-section such that they can be caused to tear or shear under a force of sufficient strength, which acts between the original part 2 and the cap part 1, so that the connection between the original part 2 and the cap part 1 is lost ,

On the inner surface of the ring element 9, a multiplicity of shell-shaped projections 12 arranged at an equal angular distance from one another are provided. 2 and 3 show that two pairs of diametrically opposite projections 12 are provided, more or fewer than two pairs can also be provided. The shell-shaped projections 12 are preferably, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, provided on a ring element 9 designed as a polygon on opposite straight sides, while a pin 10 protrudes from the rounded corners of the polygon.

Each projection 12 is formed by a wall 15 formed on the inside of the ring element 9, which extends in the shape of a bowl or goblet inwards and upwards and defines a recess 16 which is open upwards against the cap part 1. The wall 15 also creates an arcuate in the circumferential direction, preferably corrugated edge 13 pointing towards the cap part 1. The wall 15 can have a small wall thickness of, for example, a few 1/10 mm to 1 mm. The edge edges 13 of the shell-shaped formations 12 lie in a common radial plane. It is not necessary for the edge 13 of each shell-shaped projection 12 to lie in a radial plane along the entire circumferential extent. Rather, only a suitable section of the edge 13 or a plurality of sections spaced apart from one another can coincide with the radial plane.

A central region of the wall 15 of each shell-shaped projection 12, as indicated at 14, is preferably indented somewhat radially against the ring element 9, so that the edge 13 assumes a corrugated course.

Each bowl-shaped projection 12 has a circumferential extent, which corresponds to an arc length of the ring element 9, which includes a sector with an angle of at least 10 °, preferably 10 ° to 90 °, most preferably 30 to 45 °.

The cap part 1 and tamper-evident part 2 are preferably molded parts produced separately by injection molding of suitable plastic materials, which, as described, are connected to one another in a separate joining step via the tearable pin / bore connection, so that the formation of the shell-shaped projections 12 does not cause any manufacturing difficulties. If the molding tool is correspondingly complicated, the cap part 1 and originality part 2 could also represent an integral molding. In this case, the tearable connection could be designed in the form of short webs extending between the opposite end faces of the cap and tamper-evident part.

When the intact tamper-evident closure is screwed onto the container neck region, the shell-shaped projections 12 come into contact with complementary projection means (not shown), for example in the form of a radial from The neck portion of the protruding ring collar or individual cams with a somewhat larger radial dimension than the cross-sectional area of the tamper-evident part 2 left free by the shell-shaped formations 12. The shell-shaped formations 12 must therefore yield somewhat radially in order to be able to be guided along the projection means on the container neck. As soon as they have passed the projection means in the course of the further unscrewing movement of the tamper-evident closure, they spring back into the starting position, and the edge edges 13 of the shell-shaped projections 12 thereby come into an underlying relationship to the projection means on the container neck region. If, under these circumstances, an attempt is made to unscrew the tamper-evident closure from the neck area of the container, this movement is prevented by the interlocking relationship between the shell-shaped projections 12 and the projecting means on the container side, unless such an external force is exerted on the cap part 2 that it becomes one Tear the connection between the originality part 2 and the cap part 1 comes. The destruction of the connection can be effected solely by axial tensile forces, in which case the tamper-evident ring 2 and the cap part 1 can initially rotate together when the tamper-evident closure is actuated in the unscrewing direction. Means (not shown) can, however, be provided between the tamper-evident part 2 and the holder neck area, for example in the form of stop cams, which prevent the tamper-evident part 2 from rotating together with the cap part 1. Under these circumstances, the tearable connection would be destroyed primarily by shear forces. Instead of mounting the tamper-evident closure on the neck area of the container by means of cooperating screw threads, a snap connection could also be provided, in which case the tamper-evident closure can be assembled by so-called bouncing.

Claims

claims

1. Tamper-evident closure for closing a container opening on a neck of the container, with a cap part (1) that can be mounted on the neck of the container and an original part (2) with a ring element (9), the original part being connected via a connection (10, 11) that can be broken by the action of an external force. is connected to the cap part and has a projection arrangement projecting radially inwards from the ring element, which can be brought into behind engagement with complementary rear gripping means on the neck portion of the holder in order to fix the tamper-evident part relative to the neck portion of the holder, so that the cap part can only be removed from the neck portion of the holder by breaking the breakable connection , characterized in that the projection arrangement is provided at least on diametrically opposite regions of the ring element (9), essentially shell-shaped projections (12) each with a wall that is curved inwards and against the cap part (15), which is delimited by an edge (13) facing the cap part, which can reach under the container-side gripping means.

2. Tamper-evident closure according to claim 1, characterized in that each bowl-shaped projection has a circumferential extent corresponding to an arc length of the ring element (9) over a sector angle in the range of at least 10 °, preferably 10 ° to 90 °, most preferably 30 ° to 45 ° ,

3. Tamper-evident closure according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that a central region (14) of the wall (15) of each shell-shaped projection (12) is indented at least near the edge (13) against the ring element (9).

4. tamper-evident closure according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that the ring element (9) is designed as a polygon and the cup-shaped Moldings (12) are provided on at least one pair of opposing parallel sections of the polygon.

5. Tamper-evident closure according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the cap part (1) and the tamper-evident part (2) are separate molded parts.

6. Tamper-evident closure according to claim 5, characterized in that the frangible connection comprises a plurality of pins (10) on one of the molded parts which engage in bores (11) in the other molded part.