Cap for a container and opening means therefor

A cap (1) having a top (2) and a depending skirt (3) which receives the neck of a container at its lower end, wherein the skirt (3) is provided at its outer and upper end portion with a first engaging means (6, 7) for engaging an annular spanner located around the cap (1), and a seating means (8) at the base of the first engaging means (6, 7) on which the annular spanner rests. Preferably the cap is for a medicine container and is circular. In a further embodiment the cap is a two part child resistant cap designed to provide tamper evidence. There is further provided a medical implement adapted to engage over the cap and a kit comprising the cap and an annular spanner.

This invention relates to a cap for a container particularly for a medical 
container, and means for opening the cap. 
A problem particularly associated with medical containers is that the 
medicine gums up the screw thread of the container cap thus making it 
difficult to open, particularly for older arthritic people. In one 
container cap proposed to mitigate this problem a perpendicular flange is 
provided on the top of the cap with an aperture through which a pen is 
received to twist open the cap. Another similar proposal involved a cap 
having spaced peripheral castellations upstanding from the top of the cap 
so that a spoon or pen laid across the top and between the castellations 
could be used to lever open the cap. (Reference to this latter cap is 
found in the November 1990 edition of Packaging Magazine at pages 24 and 
25). The pen or spoon however tends not to grip sufficiently to easily 
open the cap. 
According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a cap having 
a top and a depending skirt which receives the neck of a container at its 
lower end, wherein the skirt is provided at its outer and upper end 
portion with a first engaging means for engaging an annular spanner 
located around the cap, and a seating means at the base of the first 
engaging means on which the annular spanner rests. 
In a second aspect of the invention there is provided A medical implement 
having a multiple purpose comprising an annular spanner having an inner 
surface with a second engaging means for engaging over a cap for a medical 
container. 
The grip around the circumference of the cap (rather than on the top 
surface of the cap) by the annular spanner allows easy opening of the 
container. The annular spanner does not therefore need to be continuous, 
so long as it grips sufficiently around the cap. 
The first and second cooperating engaging means may be screw threads, or if 
the cap was e.g. hexagonal shape, a hexagonal annular spanner could be 
used to engage round the circumference of the hexagonal cap. Preferably 
the first and second engaging means are however one or more cooperating 
projection and/or recesses. 
The annular spanner may form part of a medical implement, such as a spoon 
or tablet storage box. 
The cap and annular spanner (or medical implement) may be sold separately, 
or as a kit which form the third aspect of the invention. 
Accordingly in a third aspect of the invention there is provided a kit 
comprising a cap having a top and a depending skirt which receives the 
neck of a container at its lower end, there being first engaging means 
provided on the outer portion of the skirt; and an annular spanner having 
an inner surface with second engaging means for engaging with said first 
engaging means when the annular spanner is located around the cap. 
The cap may be formed as a two piece child resistant cap of the type which 
is simultaneously depressed and twisted such as described in British 
Patent Nos. 2167050, and 2142612. The cap of this latter patent has an 
aperture through the top of the outer piece of the cap which is closed by 
a tamper evident tab. A tamper evident projection is provided on the top 
of the inner piece of cap and breaks the tamper evident tab when the cap 
is depressed for opening. The tamper evident tab however catapults off 
with the force of the depression and can hit the user in the eye. Patent 
No. 2167050 describes a manually removable tamper evident tab. 
Accordingly in a fourth aspect of the invention there is provided a cap of 
the two part child resistant type cap which is opened by simultaneous 
depression and rotation and comprises an inner piece having a top with 
tamper evident projection and a depending annular skirt; an outer piece 
having a top with an aperture therethrough for receiving the tamper 
evident projection, a tamper evident tab normally closing the aperture and 
having connecting pieces, and a depending annular skirt; the top of the 
inner piece being urged away from the top of the outer piece by resilient 
means in the closed position; wherein said connecting pieces of the tamper 
evident tab comprise at least one hinge piece and a breakable piece which 
will break before the hinge piece when the tamper evident projection is 
forced against the tab in response to the outer piece being depressed to 
open the cap. 
The tamper evident projection may be formed to interegage with the aperture 
in the top of the inner piece of the cap, to aid in opening the cap. In 
the cap of GB2167050, there is provided a hexagonal projection which 
interengages with a hexagonal aperture. 
The invention will now be described by way of example only with reference 
to the accompanying drawings in which; 
FIG. 1. is a partly sectioned side view of a cap container. 
FIG. 2. is a plan view of the cap of FIG. 1. 
FIG. 3. is a sectioned side view of a second container cap, which shows the 
cap in a closing position (right hand side) and opening position (left 
hand side). 
FIG. 4. is a plan view of the cap of FIG. 3. 
FIG. 5. is an unsectioned side view of the cap on FIG. 3. in its closing 
position. 
FIG. 6. is an enlarged sectioned side view of the top of the cap of FIG. 3, 
in its closing position. 
FIG. 7. is an enlarged sectioned side view of the top of the cap of FIG. 3, 
in its opening position, with an optional stud shown as dotted. 
FIG. 8. is a plan view of a double dosing spoon. 
FIG. 9. is a side view of the spoon of FIG. 8. 
FIG. 10. is sectioned side view of a tablet storage box. 
FIG. 11. is a plan view of the storage box of FIG. 10. with its lid open; 
and 
FIG. 12. is a view of the storage box of FIG. 10. from underneath. 
FIG. 13 and 14. show a sectional side view and plan view of another tablet 
storage box.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a one piece unitary circular shaped cap 1 for a 
pharmaceutical container (not shown) is formed by injection moulding with 
a plastics suitably polypropylene, and comprises a top 2 and a depending 
annular skirt 3, which in this case is circular. As normal, the neck of 
the container is receivable at the lower end of the skirt 3 to mate with a 
screw thread 4 on the inner surface thereof. A linear circular wad 5 is 
provided at the top end of the screw thread 4. 
In order to open the cap if it becomes jammed, a first engaging means 6, 7 
is provided in the form of a plurality of co-axial, mutually spaced ribs 6 
and flutes 7 around the outer and upper end portion of the skirt 3. At the 
base of the ribs 6 and flutes 7 is formed on upper continuous shoulder 8 
extending around the circumference of the skirt for an annular spanner to 
abut against. A lower continuous shoulder 8a extends around the bottom 
outer edge of the skirt 3, and a finer ribbed pattern 9 allowing a twist 
grip is provided between the upper 8 and lower 8a shoulders. A standard 
frangible tamper evident ring 10 depends from the bottom edge of the skirt 
3. 
Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, a unitary double dosing injection moulded 
plastics spoon, suitably made of polypropylene comprises an annular 
spanner 12 (defining an spanner aperture 12a), which in this instance is 
circular and continuous, and a 5 ml and 2.5 ml spoon 13 and 14 extending 
diametrically outwardly from the spanner 12. Two spaced lugs 15 are 
provided adjacent each spoon extending radially inwardly from the inner 
surface of the spanner, and define a niche 16 therebetween. The lugs 15 
and niches 16 (which are narrower than the ribs 6 and flutes 7 of the 
cap), form a second engaging means. In operation, the annular spanner is 
pushed down over and around the top 2 of the cap 1 to abut the upper 
shoulder 8 thereof. In this position each lug 15 meshes in a corresponding 
flute 7 between two ribs 6, and substantially diametrically opposed ribs 6 
are similarly engaged in the niches 16 between the corresponding pairs of 
lugs 15. This illustrates how general projection and corresponding 
recesses can form engaging means in accordance with the invention. On now 
gripping the spoons 13 and 14 (as a handle) and twisting the spanner 12 
anti-clockwise, the jammed cap 1 can be opened and removed. 
A further medical implement embodying an annular spanner in accordance with 
the invention is shown in FIGS. 10 to 12. Here a tablet storage box 17 is 
formed of an inner basin 18, 19 having an inner annular wall 18 and base 
19, an outer annular wall 20 connected at its top edge by a web 21 to the 
upper portion of the inner wall 18, and having an outturned lip 22 for 
engaging a corresponding lip 23 depending from the lower surface of the 
two sliding leaves 24 (which form the lid of the storage box 17). The 
leaves 24 are shown in their open position in FIG. 11. As shown in FIG. 
10, the lower portion of the outer annular wall 20 extends below the base 
19 of the inner basin 18, 19 and form the annular spanner 25 of the dual 
purpose storage box. Four lugs 26 (again narrower than the ribs 6 of the 
cap) extend radially inwardly from approximately the 12, 3, 6, and 9 
o'clock positions of the lower outer annular wall 20 to form the second 
engaging means for cooperably engaging between the adjacent ribs 6 on the 
cap 1. 
As is illustrated by the ovular outer wall 20 of the storage box, reference 
herein to annular should not be narrowly construed, and may also include 
for example a hexagonal shape. The ovular shape of the storage box 
provides sufficient twist grip for unjamming the cap 1, or optionally the 
leaves 24 could be opened (as shown in FIG. 11) to provide an additional 
handle. 
Referring now to FIGS. 3 to 5, there is shown a two piece cap embodying the 
first engaging means as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 which is one aspect 
of the invention, and also embodying a tamper evident hinged tab as 
another aspect of the invention. This two piece cap is of the general 
child resistant type which requires to be simultaneously depressed and 
twisted for removal. 
As shown in FIG. 3, the cap comprises a hollow inner piece 26 receivable 
within an outer shell, piece 27. The inner piece 26 comprises a planar 
circular top 28 with a depending skirt 29, inner screw thread 30, a tamper 
evident hexagonal boss 31 extending centrally from the top 20 of the inner 
piece 26 and a plurality of equally spaced studs 32 arranged therearound 
adjacent respective corners of the hexagonal boss 31. A linear wad 33 is 
located against the inner surface of the top 28. 
The outer piece 27 also comprises a planar circular top 34 with a depending 
circular skirt 35. The top of the outer piece 34 is provided with a 
central cooperable hexagonal aperture 36, and six resiliant plastic 
tongues 37 depending at an angle from the inner surface of the top 34 of 
the outer piece and serially arranged adjacent each side of the hexagonal 
aperture 36. A tooth 38 having a gently inclined rear slip surface 38a 
extends downwardly from the root of each resilient tongue 37. A hexagonal 
tamper evident tab 39 is formed over the hexagonal aperture 36 and held by 
a hinge piece 40 and an opposed frangible (notched) connecting piece 41 
(FIG. 6), being notched to weaken it. An upper and lower continuous 
shoulder 42 and 43 is provided as for the cap of FIGS. 1 and 2. 
In the cap closing position (shown on the right hand side of FIG. 3) the 
tongues 37 urge the top of the inner piece 28 from the top of the outer 
piece 34 but engage with the studs 32 for clockwise closing of the cap. 
Anticlockwise rotation in this position results in the studs 32 riding 
over the tongues 37 in a `clicking` fashion. 
To unlock or open the cap, the annular spanner 12, 25 is pushed over and 
around the cap to engage the ribs 6 and flutes 7 and then urged against 
the upper continuous shoulder 42 to depress the outer cap piece 27 against 
the hexagonal boss 31 of the inner cap piece 26 and thus break the 
frangible connecting piece 41 to hinge open the tamper evident tab 39 
against hinge piece 40 and reveal the hexagonal boss. In this embodiment 
the hexagonal boss 31 (which is deeper than the boss shown in GB 2167050) 
acts not only as a tamper evident means but also locks with the hexagonal 
hole 36 to help in opening the cap. The teeth 38 also engage behind the 
adjacent studs 32 on depression of the outer piece to form a further 
unlocking or drive mechanism. If however this mechanism becomes gummed up 
by the medicine, the spanner 12, 25 can still be used to open the cap. It 
will be appreciated that in the absence of the upper continuous shoulder, 
the lower shoulder can act as the seating means for the annular spanner. 
It will also be appreciated that by having a weaker frangible connecting 
piece 41, the tamper evident tab is not catapulted off, as it is with the 
cap of GB 2142612, but rather hinges back. Another way of achieving this 
hinging action is to have connecting pieces of the same strength, but with 
a contact stud 44 (shown as optional and dotted in FIG. 7.) on the 
underside of the tamper evident tab adjacent one of the connecting pieces 
so that the stud is first to contact the hexagonal boss and the resultant 
pressure breaks said adjacent connecting piece, i.e. it is the breakable 
connecting piece. 
FIGS. 13 and 14 show another tablet storage box in accordance with the 
invention which is slightly different from that shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, 
but retains where possible the same reference numbers.