Abstract:
A cylindrical container for preferably foam compound cylinder is described, including a base portion separately couplable with a head portion, the head portion including an attachment flange adapted to accommodate a valved head of the cylinder and couplable with an attachment flange of an application device of the substance contained in the cylinder, and attachment part engageable with a thread of the base portion.

Description:
This is a national stage of PCT/EP10/067,997 filed Nov. 23, 2010 and published in English, which claims the priority of Italian number MI2009A 002068 filed Nov. 25, 2009, hereby incorporated by reference. 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a container for cylinder with attachment for application means, for example an application gun. 
     DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART 
     The use of guns is known for the application of foamy substances in the construction field and for the do-it-yourself. 
     The foamy substances are useful for example for installing and thermally insulating sashes of doors, windows and rolling-shutter boxes; insulating thermohydraulic and conditioning systems; sealing and filling holes, cracks and cavities in roofs and walls, gluing cover panels. 
     The foaming substance, e.g. polyurethane, is contained in compressed form in cylinders with opening/closure valves. 
     Said guns include a flanged attachment for the cylinders adapted to allow the valve to be opened and therefore the foaming substance to be inlet for the application thereof which will expand when it comes in contact with the external environment. 
     The operation of attaching the cylinder to the gun is a critical step as it is required to open the valve only once the attachment has been made thus limiting to the utmost the leakage of foaming substance. 
     Normally the head of the cylinder, about the valve, is equipped with a ring with external thread couplable with the internal thread of the attachment of the gun. The rotation of the cylinder with respect to the gun determines both the attachment and the progressive opening of the valve. 
     Disadvantageously, there is often foam leakage because the rotation of the cylinder is progressive and therefore the valve starts opening before there is sealing between the gun and cylinder. 
     Consequently the operator is always forced to work with a dirty attachment which over time always makes the replacement of the cylinder increasingly difficult thus accelerating the wear of the gun. Furthermore the leakage of foamy material (often polyurethane) is certainly not an environmentally friendly event. 
     DE-1801838-A1 describes a container composed of two parts for accommodating a cylinder. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is the object of the present invention to make a container for cylinders preferably containing foamy material associable with means of application such as guns, capable of eliminating the leakage of material, which is safe, fast and versatile to use. 
     In accordance with the invention, such an object is achieved with a cylindrical container for preferably foam compound cylinder comprising a base portion separately couplable with a head portion, and coupling means engageable with a thread of the base portion, characterized in that the coupling means comprise at least an arm with teeth adapted to engage with a screw-female type attachment to a thread obtained on the external surface of the base portion adapted to be inserted in the head portion. 
     These and other features of the present invention will become increasingly apparent from the following detailed description of one of its exemplary non-limiting practical embodiments disclosed in the accompanying drawings, in which: 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  shows a perspective view of a container coupled with a gun; 
         FIG. 2  shows a perspective view of the container uncoupled from the gun; 
         FIG. 3  shows a partially cross-sectioned front view of the container coupled with the gun; 
         FIG. 4  shows a partially cross-sectioned front view of the container uncoupled from the gun; 
         FIG. 5  shows a similar view to the one in  FIG. 2  with the addition of an internal adaptor; 
         FIG. 6  shows a similar view to the one in  FIG. 3  with the addition of the internal adaptor; 
         FIG. 7  shows a similar view to the one in  FIG. 4  with the addition of the internal adaptor; 
         FIG. 8  shows a perspective view of the container with safety clamp in sealing position; 
         FIG. 9  shows a perspective view of the container with safety clamp in release position; 
         FIG. 10  shows a partially cross-sectioned front view of the container with safety clamp in sealing position; 
         FIG. 11  shows a partially cross-sectioned front view of the container with safety clamp in release position; 
         FIG. 12  shows a cross-section view of the container with clamp in release position; 
         FIG. 13  shows a cross-section view of the container with clamp in sealing position. 
     
    
    
     A hollow transparent cylindrical container  1  made with plastic material, preferably polypropylene  1 , for cylinder  2  containing compressed polyurethane foam consists of a portion of hollow cylindrical base  3  couplable with a portion of hollow cylindrical head  4  having an attachment flange  5 . 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The base  3  has a closed bottom  6  with external cavity  7  and an external surface  8  with external thread  9  adapted to engage with teeth  10  of a pair of arms  11  associated with the external surface  12  of the head  4 . 
     The base  3  is sized so as to be inserted inside the head  4  which includes a pair of windows  13  through which the contact occurs between the teeth  10  and the thread  9 . 
     The arms  11  are integral with the external surface  12  of the head  4  by means of two horizontal connecting strips  14  which permit a minimum rotation useful for nearing or separating the teeth of the thread  9 . The end  15  of the arms  11  opposite to the teeth  10  is connected to the external surface  8  of the head  4  by means of a slightly elastic curved profile  16  useful for ease of movement of the teeth  10 . 
     The arms  11  are not symmetric with respect to the axis of the cylindrical container  1  to allow the teeth  10  to be coupled with the thread  9  at vertically various heights, thus taking on the right rotation pitch. The windows  13  also have various sizes to adapt to the various lengths of the two arms  11 . Essentially the teeth  10  are a threaded portion adapted to engage with the thread  9 . 
     The attachment flange  5  of the head  4  includes an external thread  17  adapted to couple with an internal thread  18  of an attachment flange  19  integral with a gun  20  for applying the foaming substance. 
     An entry hole  21  for the foaming substance is provided at said attachment flange  19  to be coupled and adapted to open the valve  22  of the head  50  of the cylinder  2 . 
     The figures also show an adaptor  23  useful for using different non-standard cylinders with container  1  and gun  20  with standard attachments  5 ,  19 . 
     The adaptor  23  consists of a cylindrical portion  24  ( FIGS. 3-4 ) which engages the gun  20  and a truncated-conical portion  25  which couples with a flare  251  of the flange  5  of the container  1 . A passing hole  26  is provided inside which couples on one hand with the hole  21  of the attachment flange  19  of the gun, and on the other with a pin  27  of the valve  22  of the cylinder  2 . Furthermore the adaptor  23  has an internal ring-shaped rib  30  adapted to interact with the head edge of the hole  21  of the flange  19 . The size of said rib  30  is very small and therefore not seen in the drawings even though it is explicitly indicated in  FIG. 4 . 
     The assembly of the above-described components occurs in the following way. 
     The cylinder  2  is inserted in the head  4  which is forced closed downward from the base  3  until the head  50  with the valve  22  of the cylinder  2  is brought in contact with the flange  5  of the head  4  of the container  1 . During this step the external thread  9  translates axially on the shaped teeth  10  to allow the sliding only in the direction of closure unless there is pressure on the arms  11  by the operator. 
     The container  1  is then connected to the gun  20  by coupling said threads  17  and  18  of the two attachment flanges  5  and  19 . If the valve  22  of the cylinder  2  does not adapt to the flange  19  of the gun  20 , the use of an adaptor  23  is provided. 
     The cylinder  2  is still closed but hermetically separated from the external environment. 
     The screw-female coupling between the base  3  and the teeth  10  is designed to allow an axial advancement of 2-3 mm (average opening travel of the valves of the cylinders on the market); thereby a rotation of the base  3  between 60° and 120° is sufficient to completely and quickly open the valve  22 . One single twisting movement is sufficient to the operator to cause said rotation. Consequently the leakage of foam in the attachment zone is limited if not absent and nevertheless does not invade the external environment as in any case it remains inside the container  1 . 
     Advantageously the rib  30  permits to localize any deformations of the adaptor  23  due to the pressure of the head edge of the hole  21  on the adaptor  23 . Otherwise there could be an outwards leakage of foam, albeit slight, due to the failed sealing of the flange  19  of the gun  20 . 
     The container  1  according to the invention involves an economic saving, is lightweight, safe, universal and flexible; it is reusable, simple and practical to use; maintenance is almost non-existent; it solves the problem of cleaning the adaptor; it is transparent and therefore it is easy to notice leaked foam. 
     Moreover it is safe for the operator as if the gun falls there will not be foam leakage due to the detachment of said ring from the cylinder or perforating of the cylinder itself. 
       FIGS. 5-7  show an assembly comprising an internal adaptor  100  adapted to accommodate a ring  110  with external thread  111  located as described above on the head of many of the current cylinders  200 , for connecting to the guns  20 . 
     The adaptor  100  comprises a passing hole  101 , a circular internal compartment  102  for the ring  110 , and an external circular compartment  103  for the external adaptor  23 . 
     Advantageously the container  1  according to the invention is usable for any type of cylinder containing pressurized material adapted to be applied with an external means of convenient use for the operator. The means of application could therefore not be a gun  20  but rather any means adapted to channel the substance in the cylinder towards the external environment, for example a dispensing handle such as spray can or a dispenser having button such as spray can containing shaving foam. 
     The substance contained may not be foamy, e.g. a lubricant (oil), a food substance, any one chemical substance difficult to apply precisely by means of the sole valve  22  of the cylinder  2 ,  200 . 
       FIGS. 8-13  show the container  1  with a safety clamp  300  consisting of a ring-shaped profile having variable geometry ( FIGS. 12-13 ) consisting of a first adjacent section  301  and which essentially follows the curvature of the cylindrical profile of the head portion  4  of the container  1 , a second section  302  which tends to separate from said cylindrical profile of the head portion  4 , a third section  303  similar to the first section  301  and a fourth section  304  similar to said second section  302 . 
     The first  301  and the second section  302  include a fitting  310  in which the profile of the second section  302  progressively separates from the profile of the head portion  4  of the container  1 , as the tangent rotates slightly and progressively counter-clockwise. 
     Instead, a fitting  311  between the second  302  and the third section  303  includes a step  305  which suddenly nears the profile of the clamp  300  to the profile of the head portion  4  of the container  1 . 
     A fitting  312  between the third  303  and the fourth section  304  is similar to the fitting  310 . 
     A fitting  313  between the fourth  304  and the first section  301  is similar to the fitting  311 . 
     The clamp  300  is rotatably mounted about the container  1  above arms  111  at teeth  110 . The arms  111  are flexible, fixed to the head portion by coupling means  112 , and include a hook-shaped end  113  adapted to partially wrap the clamp  300  which tends to bend the arms  111  inwards. 
     The clamp  300  is adapted to rotate with respect to the container  1  between a sealing position ( FIG. 13 ) in which the teeth  110  are pressed against the thread  9  thus therefore preventing the uncoupling between the base portion  3  and the head portion  4 , and a release position ( FIG. 12 ) in which the teeth  110  are uncoupled from the thread  9  thus therefore allowing the uncoupling between the base portion  3  and the head portion  4 . 
     The first  301  and the third section  303  are for manoeuvring by the user, the second  302  and the fourth section  304  serve to near and separate the teeth  110  to and from thread  9  of the base portion  3 . Essentially, arms  111  are therefore held by the clamp at the second  302  and the fourth section  304 . 
     In sealing position ( FIG. 13 ) the clamp  300  is configured with the arms  111  at the fittings  310  and  312  in which the profile  302  grips the teeth  110  to the thread  9 , while in release position the clamp  300  is configured with the arms  111  at the fittings  311  and  313  in which the teeth  110  are not in contact with the thread  9 . 
     Advantageously the user may tighten the clamp  300  by simply rotating it with respect to the arms  111 , said sealing being much safer with respect to the simple elastic force induced by the arms  11  in the  FIGS. 1-7 . 
     Consequently the clamp  300  permits a safe, long-lasting and easy-to-make sealing.