A container (3) includes an opening (8) for dispensing flowable or pourable substances located in the container and a closing device (11) closing the opening (8) and removable to free the opening (8). An auxiliary receptacle (13) is provided for holding an additive (27) to be added to the contents of the container (3), and is detachably attached to the container (3). The auxiliary receptacle comprises a discharge opening which can be freed by removing a closure and which is provided for discharging the additive (27), and can be placed with its freed discharge opening on the opening (8) of the container (3) after removing its closure device (11) to form a passage. That passage is provided for adding the additive (27), is sealed from the outside and extends between the auxiliary receptacle (13) and container (3).

The present invention relates to a container with an opening for delivery of flowable or pourable materials present in the container and with a closure device closing the opening and removable for clearance of the opening.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Such containers filled with contents to be delivered are known in the most varied forms and for different uses of the delivered contents. For example, they can be ampule-like containers which contain pharmaceuticals which must be delivered from the container for injection purposes, infusion purposes or the like.

In the areas of medical applications and generally technical applications in which contents to be delivered from a container are used for treatment or processing procedures, to some extent the problem arises that the substance to be delivered is a composition of agents which are incompatible with respect to joint storage suitability. In other words, these agents which must be stored separately may only be combined to form the material to be delivered from the container when use of this binary substance takes place. The requirement of separate storage and combination of the agents which takes place before use leads disadvantageously to increased storage effort and awkward handling.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a container that facilitates simplified storage and handling of two agents that must be stored separately and combined prior to use.

In a container, this object is basically achieved by an auxiliary receptacle being provided for accommodating an additive to be added to the contents of a container and being removably attached to the container. The auxiliary container has an outlet which can be cleared by removing a closure for the discharge of the additive. The auxiliary receptacle cleared outlet can be attached to the opening of the container after removal of its closure to form a passage which is sealed to the outside between the auxiliary receptacle and the container for adding the additive.

Storage is simplified by the detachable connection of the present invention between the container and the auxiliary receptacle which contains the additive because the two agents, although they are separate from one another, form one storage unit. The handling necessary for delivery of the substance is greatly simplified because the addition of the additive to the container contents takes place especially easily and conveniently. The auxiliary receptacle can be coupled with its outlet to the opening of the container. The unit including the container and auxiliary receptacle attached to its opening can be shaken, for example, to induce the required mixing of the two agents, or, when the additive is an agent of a specific particle size which can be shaken in the form of a single large particle, for example, a tablet, to move it through the passage between the auxiliary receptacle and the container.

When the substances to be delivered are highly-sensitive products, as is the case for pharmaceuticals, where international standards for aseptic packaging must be met, the container is advantageously produced using the process known in the pertinent technology as the Bottelpack® system. This process enables cost-effective automated forming (blowing or vacuum forming), charging and sealing of receptacles.

According to this system or when using another production process, preferably the container with its closure device and the auxiliary receptacle with its closure are produced from plastic as a one-piece body. Weak points are formed in the body which constitute desired break points at which the closure device of the container and the auxiliary receptacle can be removed and separated from the container. In this way, both the container can be opened very easily, and the auxiliary receptacle can be removed to be able to handle it separately.

Preferably, on the outlet of the auxiliary receptacle, a weak point is also formed which constitutes desired break point for separation of the closure of the auxiliary receptacle for clearance of its outlet.

When the container is a type of ampule with an opening provided on a neck part projecting coaxially to the main axis of the ampule, the body forming the unit including the container and auxiliary receptacle can be configured such that the neck area of the ampule is lengthened by an extension. The extension extends in the direction of the main axis of the ampule, and has weak points which form the desired break points for the container closure and the auxiliary receptacle.

This extension of the body can be formed in partial areas which border the closure device of the container and the closure of the auxiliary receptacle in the form of flat plates. Grasping surfaces are then formed by which the closure device and the auxiliary receptacle can be easily separated from the container at the desired break points.

Other objects, advantages and salient features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, which, taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings, discloses a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

With reference to the figures, the present invention is explained using the example of an ampule container produced in one piece from thermoplastic using the Bottelpack® system, as known in the pertinent art. In this process for producing and charging containers, at least one tube of softened plastic material is extruded into an opened mold. In the course of closing the lower parts of the mold, welding processes are carried out on the tube to form the container bottom. The tube, or in the event that several containers are being formed, the tubes, is or are cut off above the mold by a cutting element to form the pertinent fill opening. The mold is then moved with the unit having the open fill opening or the open fill openings into a charging position in which the container or containers, after the container shape has been formed by expansion by blown air or vacuum molding, is filled with the contents. Then, a head welding process is carried out on the top of the container or containers, by which the closure of the filled unit is produced.

FIG. 1shows a unit1which has been produced according to the Bottelpack® system, with a one-piece body. A filled, ampule-like container3forms the lower end part of the body. The container3has a neck part7projecting coaxially up along the main axis5of the ampule to the container opening8. On the neck part7, a body extension9extends upwardly along the main axis5of the ampule. As shown inFIG. 1, a closure device11forming the closure of the opening8of the container and an auxiliary receptacle13are formed as integral components of the body extension9. Between the components of the body extension9, weak points21are formed which constitute desired break points for separating the components and for the removal of the closure device11from the container opening8.

As shown most clearly inFIGS. 2 and 3, the body extension9has partial areas in the form of flat plates15,17, and19. They form grasping surfaces for facilitating the removal of the components forming the body extension9at the desired break points and from the ampule-like container3.FIG. 2shows the operating state in which the auxiliary receptacle13has been removed from the rest of the unit.FIG. 3shows the next following operating state during use, in which by use of the grasping surfaces17and19, the closure23of the auxiliary receptacle13is removed by separation at the pertinent desired break points to clear the outlet25of the auxiliary receptacle13. Moreover,FIG. 3shows that the closure device11is separated from the neck area7of the container3using the grasping surface15to clear its opening8. The body extension9, by including plates15,17and19, receptacle13and closure23, extends in a direction of a transverse axis6, perpendicular to main axis5of ampule3over a width corresponding to the ampule within the direction of transverse axis6.

FIG. 4shows the operating stage which follows during use, in which the auxiliary receptacle13with the additive contained in it in the form of a tablet27is brought to the opening8of the container3in order to dispense the tablet27into the container3by the outlet25and the opening8. AsFIG. 5shows, the outlet25on the auxiliary receptacle13forms a coupling sleeve29which can be slipped onto the neck part7and which matches or mates with the neck part7of the container3. A passage is formed by neck part7and coupling sleeve7, is sealed to the outside, and extends between the auxiliary receptacle13and the interior of the container3. The unit reclosed in this way can now be shaken to dissolve the tablet27which has been added to the container3in the desired manner and to mix the additive which has been added to the container3with the other container contents.FIG. 6shows that after removing the auxiliary receptacle13, the contents of the container3which are now mixed with the additive can be delivered by the now cleared opening8.

It will be understood that in place of the tablet27shown as an additive in the auxiliary receptacle13, another additive which can be shaken or which is a liquid can be added to the contents of the container3. The container3and the auxiliary receptacle13may be formed with other container shapes than those shown in the drawings. In place of the Bottelpack® system, other production processes can be used to form the unit with the container and auxiliary receptacle.