AU4734000A - Bottle closure - Google Patents

Description

WO 00/73166 PCT/AUOO/00606 1 TITLE: BOTTLE CLOSURE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention THIS INVENTION relates to a bottle closure. 5 2. Prior Art Plastic bottles (eg., of P.E.T.) having screw closures, are well-known. Such bottles, with 28mm necks, are commonly used in the beverage industry, in capacities ranging from 250ml to 3 litres. this means that such bottles are relatively inexpensive to purchase, or to 10 manufacture, as the injection-moulded blanks are readily available. To date, such bottles have not found acceptance in other food areas, eg., for edible oils, or for detergents or other like products, where it is preferred to use non-threaded closures. SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION 15 It is an object of the present invention to provide a non threaded closure which can be used with bottles having screw-threaded necks. It is a preferred object to provide such a closure which can be used with different types of screw-threaded bottle necks. 20 It is a further preferred object to provide a closure with an integral sealing cap or cover. It is a still further preferred object to provide a closure which is relatively inexpensive and easy to manufacture; is easy to use; and provides a reliable seal to the bottle neck. 25 Other preferred objects of the present invention will become apparent from the following description. In a broad aspect, the present invention resides in a closure for a bottle of the type having a neck with at least one screw-threaded formation, the closure including: 30 a tubular body, open at one end, having an outer wall or skirt; and an inner wall or skirt, spaced radially inwardly from the outer WO 00/73166 PCT/AUOO/00606 2 wall or skirt, and connected thereto at or adjacent the other end of the body, by an end wall portion; and at least one inwardly-directed flange, on the outer wall or skirt, at or adjacent the one end, to engage the screw-threaded 5 formation(s). Preferably, the end wall portion is an annular end wall having a hole portion provided with a removable disc portion, connected to the annular end wall portion by a frangible portion. Preferably, the removable disc portion is removed before or when the contents of the 10 bottle are to be dispensed. Preferably, the radial distance between the inner and outer wall or skirts is equal to, or less than, the sum of the wall thickness of the neck and the height of the screw threaded formation, to provide sealing engagement between the neck and the inner and outer walls or skirts. 15 Preferably, the inner wall or skirt is of reduced length relative to the outer wall or skirt. While the flange may be a single circumferential flange, it may be provided as a plurality of flange segments, eg., equally spaced around the outer wall or skirt. Preferably, the flange (or flange segments) 20 provide locking (and more preferably, also sealing) engagement between the tubular body and the bottle neck. Preferably, a cap is provided for sealing engagement with the outer wall or skirt and/or the annular end wall portion. Preferably, the cap is formed integrally with the tubular body and may be connected 25 thereto by a flexible hinge. Preferably, the cap overlies an annular pouring extension of the tubular body which is preferably co-axially hinged with the inner wall or skirt. The annular pouring extension may sealably engage the cap when the latter is closed. 30 Preferably, the closure (and its integral cap) are injection moulded from suitable plastics, eg., polypropylene, polyethylene or other suitable food quality plastics.

WO 00/73166 PCT/AUOO/00606 3 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS To enable the invention to be fully understood, a preferred embodiment will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: 5 FIG. 1 is a perspective top view of a first embodiment of the closure; FIGS. 2 and 3 are respective top plan views of the closure; FIG. 4 is a part-sectional side view taken on section line A-A on FIG. 2; 10 FIG. 5 is a view, on an enlarged scale, of detail E on FIG. 4; FIG. 6 is a part-sectional side view taken on line B-B on FIG. 3; FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of detail F on FIG. 6; FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of detail G on FIG. 6; 15 FIG. 9 is a bottom plan view of the closure; FIG. 10 is a sectional view taken on line C-C on FIG. 9; FIG. 11 is a top plan view of a second embodiment of the closure; and FIG. 12 is a part-sectional side view taken on line C-C on 20 FIG. 11. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to FIG. 1, the closure 10 of the first embodiment, is moulded from a suitable food quality plastics material and has a closure 25 body 11 and cap 12 interconnected by an integral hinge member 13. A finger grip 14 is provided on the cap 12, diametrically opposed to the hinge member 13, to enable the cap 12 to be opened and closed relative to the closure body 11. The closure 10 is arranged to be fitted to plastic bottles 100 30 (eg., manufactured from P.E.T.) of the type having a neck 101 with one or more screw-threaded formations, and usually provided with a circumferential flange 102 to be engaged or gripped by the user's fingers WO 00/73166 PCT/AUOO/00606 4 when carrying a bottle or emptying the contents therefrom. (The flange 102 is also used to support the bottle 100 during filling of the bottle.) As shown in more detail in FIGS. 4, 6, 9 and 10, the closure body 11 is of generally tubular construction with an outer wall or skirt 15 5 connected to a co-axial inner wall or skirt 16 (of reduced length), by an annular wall portion 17. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the radial distance between the outer and inner walls 15, 16, is equal to, or just less than the sum of, the wall thickness of the bottle neck plus the height of the screw threaded formations 103a, 103b. This ensures sealing engagement 10 between the closure body 11 and the neck 101 a, 101 b of the bottle. A circumferential flange 18 is provided on the inner face of the outer wall 15 adjacent the open end of the closure body 11, the flange 18 being provided to engage under the lowermost of the screw-threaded formations 103a, 103b of the bottle necks 101a, 101b. (FIG. 4 illustrates 15 the neck of a 28mm M.C.A. bottle; while FIG. 6 illustrates the neck of a 28mm P.C.O. bottle.) When moulded, a removable disc 19 closes a central dispensing hole through the annular wall portion 17 of the closure body 11, the disc being secured to the annular end wall portion 17 by an 20 integrally-moulded frangible portion 21 which enables the disc 19 to be pushed free from the closure body 11, to leave a hole through which the bottle's contents may be dispensed. A tubular pouring extension 22, substantially co-axially aligned with the inner wall 16, extends from the opposite side of the 25 annular end wall portion 17 and has an outwardly-directed circumferential flange or lip 23 (about a dispensing outlet 23a), where the flange or lip 23 is adapted to sealably engage an inner surface 12a of the cap 12, when the latter is closed. As shown, particularly in FIGS. 6 and 8, the cap 12 has an 30 end wall 24 and a substantially frusto-conical side wall 25, where an inwardly-directed peripheral flange 26 releasably engages an outwardly directed peripheral flange or lip 27 on the annular end wall portion 17.

WO 00/73166 PCT/AUOO/00606 5 the flanges 26, 27 provide releasable sealing engagement between the cap 12 and the closure body 11. In use, the closure 10 is pressed down over the neck 101a, 101 b of the bottle, and the inwardly-directed flange 18 engages under the 5 lowermost of the screw-threaded formations 103a, 103b on the neck 101a, 101b. The closure 10 is applied to the bottle 100 after the bottle has been filled with the intended contents, eg., edible oil, tomato sauce, detergent, liquid cleaner or the like. When the user wishes to dispense any of the contents from 10 the bottle, the cap 12 is hingedly raised and the disc 19 is released by pressing so as to fracture the frangible portion 21. The bottle 100 can then be wholly or partially inverted to enable some or all of the contents to be dispensed. (The removal of the disc 19 is only required the first time the contents are dispensed.) 15 By closing the cap, the flanges 26, 27 on the cap 12 and closure body 11 are returned to sealable engagement to prevent unwanted release of the contents. The engagement of the flange 18 with the screw-threaded formation 103a, 103b, and the engagement of the mouth of the neck 20 101 a, 101 b between the outer and inner walls 15, 16 ensures a leak-proof seal between the closure 10 and the bottle 100. Referring to FIGS. 11 and 12, the closure 1OA of the second embodiment has minor design difference t the closure 10 of FIGS. 1 to 10. In particular, the outer wall or skirt 15A is deeper, with an extended 25 skirt portion 15a below the peripheral flange 18A. In a further modified embodiment (not shown), the extended skirt portion 15a may sealably engage the circumferential flange 102a on the neck 101b of the bottle. In addition, the design of the hinge 11 3A for the cap 112A has been modified. 30 In another embodiment (not shown), the flange or lip 23 on the pouring extension 22 may sealably engage the inner face 24a of the end wall 24 of the cap 12, when the latter is closed.

WO 00/73166 PCT/AU00/00606 6 With the closure of the present invention, the non removable, non-screw-type closures 10, 10A can be fitted to existing screw-neck-type bottles 100 so that the necessity for special bottle moulding blanks, for bottles having non-screw-threaded closures, at 5 higher cost, is avoided. In addition, the closure 10, 10A can be fitted to plastic bottles 100 of both common types available in the market without any modifications. Various changes and modifications may be made to the 10 embodiments described and illustrated without departing from the scope of the present invention defined in the appended claims.

Claims (11)

1. A closure for a bottle of the type having a neck with at least one screw-threaded formation, the closure including: 5 a tubular body, open at one end, having an outer wall or skirt, and an inner wall or skirt, spaced radially inwardly from the outer wall or skirt, and connected thereto at or adjacent the other end of the body, by an end wall portion; and at least one inwardly-directed flange, on the outer wall or 10 skirt, at or adjacent the one end, to engage the screw-threaded formation(s).

2. A bottle closure as claimed in Claim 1, wherein: the end wall portion is an annular end wall having a hole portion provided with a removable disc portion, connected to the annular is end wall portion by a frangible portion, the removable disc portion being removed before or when the contents of the bottle are to be dispensed.

3. A bottle closure as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein: the radial distance between the inner and outer walls or skirts is equal to, or less than, the sum of the wall thickness of the neck 20 and the height of the screw threaded formations, to provide sealing engagement between the neck and the inner and outer walls or skirts.

4. A bottle closure as claimed in Claim 3 wherein: the flange is a single circumferential flange.

5. A bottle closure as claimed in Claim 3 wherein: 25 the flange is provided as a plurality of flange segments, equally spaced around the outer wall or skirt.

6. A bottle closure as claimed in Claim 4 or Claim 5 wherein: the flange (or flange segments) provide locking and sealing engagement between the tubular body and the bottle neck. 30

7. A bottle closure as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 6 wherein: a cap is provided for sealing engagement with the outer wall WO 00/73166 PCT/AU00/00606 8 or skirt and/or the annular end wall portion.

8. A bottle closure as claimed in Claim 7 wherein: the cap is formed integrally with the tubular body and is connected thereto by a flexible hinge. 5

9. A bottle closure as claimed in Claim 7 or Claim 8 wherein: the cap overlies an annular pouring extension on the tubular body, substantially co-axially aligned with the inner wall or skirt.

10. A bottle closure as claimed in Claim 9 wherein: the annular pouring extension sealably engages the cap 10 when the cap is closed.

11. A bottle closure as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 10, wherein: the closure (and its integral cap) are injection-moulded from polypropylene, polyethylene or other suitable food quality plastics. 15