Patent Publication Number: US-8123058-B2

Title: Closure with stopping mechanism

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to a closure and particularly to a closure with a stopping mechanism. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  shows a top perspective view of an embodiment of a closure, with portions of the container partially broken away; 
         FIG. 1A  shows a top view of the closure embodiment of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 1B  shows a front view of the closure embodiment of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 1C  shows a right side view of the closure embodiment of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 2  shows a sectional view of the closure embodiment of  FIG. 1  taken along line  2 - 2 ; 
         FIG. 3  shows a bottom perspective view of the closure of  FIG. 1 , with the liner removed; 
         FIG. 4  shows a top perspective view of the container of  FIG. 1 , with portions of the container partially broken away; 
         FIG. 5  shows an enlarged, top perspective view of another embodiment of the container of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 6  shows an enlarged, side view of the closure of  FIG. 3  with portions of the closure partially broken away; 
         FIG. 7  shows a sectional view of the closure embodiment of  FIG. 1  taken along line  7 - 7 ; 
         FIG. 8  shows an enlarged, sectional view of the closure embodiment of  FIG. 7  illustrating the interaction of the child resistant lock of the closure with the container lug, the position of the child resistant lock before the safety feature is engaged is shown in broken lines; 
         FIG. 9  shows an enlarged, sectional view of the closure embodiment of  FIG. 7  illustrating the interaction of the stop lug of the closure with the container lug; 
         FIG. 10  shows an enlarged, bottom view of the closure embodiment of  FIG. 3 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     It is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of “including,” “comprising,” or “having” and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items. Unless limited otherwise, the terms “connected,” “coupled,” “in communication with” and “mounted,” and variations thereof herein are used broadly and encompass direct and indirect connections, couplings, and mountings. In addition, the terms “connected” and “coupled” and variations thereof are not restricted to physical or mechanical connections or couplings. 
     Furthermore, and as described in subsequent paragraphs, the specific mechanical configurations illustrated in the drawings are intended to exemplify embodiments of the invention and that other alternative mechanical configurations are possible. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1-10 , a closure  10  utilizing a stopping mechanism  60  with a container  1  is illustrated as a child resistant closure, but other closures, such as pull/push closures or either dispensing or non-dispensing, closures may be provided in any number of different shapes and sizes and still utilize the stopping mechanism  60  which comprises a stop lug  40  and a spring gap  20 . Closure  10  may engage a container neck  2  of container  1  by a variety of means which function to make closure removable or non-removable from container  1  as known in the art. Closure  10  may be formed of a rigid or semi-rigid polymeric material such as polyethylene, polypropylene, or some other material commonly known to one of ordinary skill in the closure art. Moreover, closure  10  may be formed in a variety of sizes and shapes depending on the desired use of the closure and container associated therewith. As will be recognized by those skilled in the art, a variety of tamper indicating means or devices may also be used with closure  10 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1-10 , closure  10  may comprise an inner skirt or shell  16  and an outer skirt or shell  17 , both depending from a top wall  18 . Inner shell  16  is adapted to removably or fixedly receive the upper end or neck  2  of container  1 . The interior surface of inner shell  16  includes suitable connecting means, such as a conventional thread  16   a  adapted for threaded engagement with mating container thread  3 . At the top of neck  2  is an opening  4  permitting access to the contents of container  1 . At least one child resistant container lug  7  is provided at the base of neck  2 , adjacent the container shoulder  1   a . Alternatively two such lugs  7  and  8  may be provided, on opposing sides of neck  2 . Closure  10  is threaded axially upon container neck  2  until subsequent abutment of at least one child resistant container lug  7  engages or abuts at least one stop lug  40  of the closure. Stop lug  40  and spring gap  20  may act as a barrier to prevent closure  10  from being seated too far down upon container neck  2 ; it may also be used to align or orient the closure with respect to a label, instructions, symbols, tamper-indicating mechanisms, latch or hinge mechanisms, a particular container side such as a front side  5  of container  1 , or to orient the closure relative to the container&#39;s shape ( FIG. 1 ). Specifically when closure  10  is rotated clockwise onto the threaded container neck  2  of container  1 , stop lug  40  depending from inner shell  16  is threaded down to the point where stop lug  40  engages with the corresponding and interfering container lug  7 . Upon being seated as desired on container neck  2 , closure  10  will be properly oriented with respect to container  1  because of the corresponding stop lug with spring gap and container lug engagement. The position of engagement of stop lug  40  and container lug  7  may be varied to insure that closure  10  will be oriented properly relative to container  1 . Outer shell  17  may be designed with a variety of shapes and sizes, including a shape which is the same as inner shell  16 . However as shown in FIGS.  1  and  1 A- 1 C, outer shell  17  may also be shaped to conform to the shape of container  1 , which in the embodiment illustrated is substantially square. Although container  1  is shown in detail in  FIGS. 1 ,  2 ,  4 ,  7 ,  8 , and  9 , it is merely representative of containers and container finishes in general, and it is to be understood that there are a variety of containers of different shapes, sizes, and neck finishes that may be used with the closure embodiments herein. For example another embodiment of a container  101  is shown in  FIG. 5 , a container neck  102  includes a container lug  107 . Container lug  107  has a stop face  107   a  with a vertical rib  107   d , as more fully described below, adjacent to the cam surface  107   b . A child resistant face  107   c  is spaced from stop face  107   a.    
     Additionally, the position of engagement of stop lug  40  with container lug  7  may in some cases limit the axial distance traveled by closure  10  along container neck  2 , so that a clearance will be left between top wall  18  and container lip  6 , which could allow leakage from inside container  1 . To prevent such leakage, as shown in FIGS.  2  and  7 - 10 , a liner  80  may be positioned inside closure  10  to initially seal container lip  6 , and may be used to re-seal the container lip upon subsequent closings. Liner  80  may be held within closure  10  before being applied to container neck  2 . During assembly of the liner  80  and closure  10 , center projection  18   b  absorbs the stress or forces applied to annular projections  18   a  to reduce deformation of the annular projections. Adhesives may be included to bond the liner to the closure during assembly. Additional annular projections may also be included to reduce deformation during the assembly of the liner to the closure. Liner  80  is preferably disc shaped and substantially flat prior to application to container neck  2 . However as shown in  FIG. 2 , upon placement of closure  10  onto neck  2  during assembly, liner  80  may be positioned or domed into contact with container lip  6  by one or more projections downwardly depending from top wall  18 , such as but not limited to annular projections  18   a  and a center projection  18   b . Annular projections  18   a  are preferably V-shaped in vertical cross section. When screwing closure  10  onto neck  2 , the central portion  84  of liner  80  will be forced downward by depending annular projections  18   a  and center projection  18   b  while an outer peripheral edge  82  of liner  80  is forced into engagement with the container lip  6 . When liner  80  is fully engaged with the container lip  6 , the central portion  84  may be offset from the outer peripheral edge  82  adjacent the container lip  6  as shown in  FIG. 2 . The use of projections  18   a ,  18   b  will consistently position liners  80  against the container lip or sealing surface for later induction or conduction welding to seal the package. Depending projections  18   a  and  18   b  will serve to compensate for the lack of over-travel of the aligned closure  10  relative to container  1  to consistently seal the container. Although annular projections  18   a  and center projection  18   b  is shown in specific detail in the figures, it should be understood that a variety of shapes, sizes, positions, and constructions may be used and still provide for consistent sealing of the container. It should also be understood that a plug seal (not shown) or a variety of different radial seals (also not shown) can be formed to depend from top wall  18  or skirt of closure body  10  in position to engage the interior or exterior of container neck  2  when closure  10  is engaged with container neck  2 . In other words, when closure  10  is seated upon container neck  2  to the point where stop lug  40  and container lug  7  engage ( FIG. 7 ), possibly to orient closure  10  to the shape of the container, a plug or radial seal can engage and seal the interior or exterior, above or below thread  3 , of container neck  2 . A plug or radial seal may serve to seal a linerless container from the time the contents are received into the container and the closure is applied and for the duration of the useful life of the container. Alternatively, closure  10  may accommodate, for example, a variety of types of liners including re-seal liners positioned to engage container lip  6 , the use of malleable seal materials positioned along the inner surface of top wall  18 , foil seals, retort seals, or other seals known to those skilled in the art. Seal retainers may also be used in various embodiments of the closure. 
     As described above and shown in FIGS.  3  and  6 - 10 , one or more stop lugs  40  may project down from inner shell  16 . A free end  40   b  of each stop lug  40  may extend along inner shell  16  and beyond a lower portion or termination edge  16   c  of inner shell  16 . An abutment surface  41  is provided adjacent the bottom end  40   b  of stop lug  40 , and which abutment surface  41  preferably has an increased surface area adapted to resist deformation as the rotational pressure increases once contact between stop lug  40  and container lug  7  occurs. A variety of shapes such as a reverse taper, as well as various positions, constructions, quantities, and dimensions of stop lug  40  may be used and still fall within the spirit of an embodiment of the invention. For example as shown in  FIGS. 3 ,  6 , and  7 - 10 , stop lug  40  may include a support rib  42 . Support rib  42  may extend from closure top wall  18  along inner shell  16  to the free end  40   b  of stop lug  40  or may vary in length whereby it extends only partially along the length of the inner shell. Support rib  42  normally extends outwardly from an outer surface  16   b  of inner shell  16 . Support rib  42  serves to strengthen stop lug  40  as well as inner shell  16 , and can increase the surface which may abut the container lugs without increasing the entire thickness of the inner shell. Support rib  42  may also function as an unscrewing lug during the molding process, or may be used in combination with a plurality of dedicated unscrewing lugs  52 . Support rib  42  may be provided in a variety of sizes, shapes, positions, and constructions as for example extending from the inner shell to the outer shell, and in numbers to provide for support of all stop lugs  40 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 3 ,  6 , and  7 - 10 , to reduce over-torque and subsequent over threading, inner shell  16  has a downwardly projecting stop lug  40  extending beyond terminating end  16   c . Stop lug  40  is substantially resilient and in a relaxed, unflexed first state ( FIGS. 3 ,  6 ,  7 ,  8 , and  10 ) before engaging with the container lug  7 . However, upon placement of closure  10  onto neck  2  during assembly, specifically when stop lug  40  initially engages a stop face  7   a  of container lug  7 , stop lug  40  is deformed or positioned into a tensioned, flexed second state ( FIG. 9 ) in which a bridge  24  of spring gap  20  positioned adjacent to each stop lug  40  is deformed allowing for stop lug  40  to substantially close spring gap  20  of the inner shell. Bridge  24  normally flexes and/or curves radially ( FIG. 9 ) when deformed by stop lug  40 ; however bridge  24  may be designed to flex in a variety of directions or by a variety of means such as but not limited to annularly, vertically, or in combinations thereof. Stop lug  40  is able to travel into spring gap  20  substantially towards or adjacent the abutment surface  16   d  of the external stop extension  16   e  of inner shell  16 . External stop extension  16   e  is shown in FIGS.  3  and  6 - 10  as tapering into the terminating end  16   c  of inner shell  16 . Thus, when closure  10  is threaded onto container neck  2  ( FIGS. 1 ,  2 , and  7 - 9 ), bridge  24  of spring gap  20  potentially may be compressed or deformed to the point where stop lug  40  is positioned substantially flush against abutment surface  16   d , preventing the closure  10  from further rotation and traveling past the desired vertical and/or annular distance upon container neck  2 . Further in the second state or flexed position ( FIG. 9 ) of stop lug  40  and deformed bridge  24  of spring gap  20 , each of stop lug  40  and bridge  24  of spring gap  20  has living memory urging the stop lug back toward its unflexed position. Thus the spring gap and/or the stop lug is capable of resisting permanent deformation, and thus may align or orient the closure relative to the position of container lug  7 . This stopping mechanism  60  permits closure  10  to be assembled at varying torques and still assure that the closure is aligned relative to the container, and more specifically that child resistant lock  30   a  has cleared container lug  7  assuring the child resistant mechanism is properly engaged. As a result, the over travel allowance, typically 30 degrees, currently designed into closure and containers is decreased. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 8 and 10 , spring gap  20  has a first distance D 1  in the unflexed position relative to closure stop lug  40 . Spring gap first distance D 1  can be reduced to a second distance D 2  ( FIG. 9 ) when stop lug  40  engages container lug  7  and rotational forces placed on the closure flexes the stop lug into the spring gap. As shown in  FIG. 6 , spring gap  20  has a recess  22  extending upwardly from terminating end  16   c  of inner shell  16  towards top wall  18 . As shown in  FIG. 10 , recess  22  defines bridge  24  of a radial thickness R 2 , wherein the radial thickness R 1  of inner shell  16  is larger than R 2 . The bridge  24  connects stop lug  40  to abutment surface  16   d  on the opposite side of the recess adjacent the external stop extension  16   e  of inner shell  16 . Although recess  22  and spring gap  20  are shown in detail in the figures, it should be understood that each of the recess and/or spring gap may be provided in a variety of shapes, such as curved, wedged shaped, or tapered; in a variety of sizes such as differing lengths and cross sections; in a variety of constructions such as adjacent a closure CR lug (as shown); in a variety of positions such as spaced from drop lug  40  and/or support rib  42 ; and quantities, and still function to permit stop lug  40  to be positionable between its flexed ( FIG. 9 ) and unflexed ( FIGS. 3 ,  6 ,  7 ,  8 , and  10 ) positions. For example, the recess may extend through the entire inner shell  16  from outer surface  16   b  to inner surface  16   f  of inner shell  16 , or otherwise stated the entire radial thickness R 1 , and thus no bridge  24 . Also the recess may extend from inner surface  16   f  instead of outer surface  16   b , or both surfaces  16   f  and  16   b  leaving a bridge of material therebetween. Another example, the stopping mechanism may be positioned in the outer shell of a closure, or permit the functioning of a dispensing orifice of a closure. Also, the stop lug does not have to flex substantially annularly; it may flex in various other directions relative to the spring gap, including but not limited to vertically or radially, depending on the desired application of the closure. Also, a bias or guide mechanism directing or restricting movement of a stop lug may be used in the closure, however it should be understood that this structure is not limited to the closure and may be part of the container neck. For example as shown in  FIG. 5 , a vertical rib  107   d  provided on stop face  107   a  of container lug  107  may prevent outward radial movement of stop lug  40 . Other examples of the use of a guide mechanism to direct movement of a stop lug may include shaping the stop face  107   a  of the container lug  107  so as to be angled or tapered back (not shown) into the container lug thereby guiding the stop lug  40  radially inwardly to create a more aggressive engagement between the closure stop lug and container lug when over-travel of the closure occurs. 
     The use of stop lug  40  with spring gap  20  reduces assembly complications at the time of initial application of closure  10  to container  1  and thru the repeated application of the closure to the container during the useful life of the container. Specifically, at the time of assembling closure  10  with container  1 , the capping torque applied to the closure may be sporadic and is not a precisely controllable variable. In such case the use of spring gap  20  and stop lug  40  provides sufficient strength to resist over-torque during the capping process. Spring gap  20  thus reduces the potentially deleterious effects of over-torque, for example, preventing the over tightening of the closure and reducing the potential breakage of stop lugs; it also serves to consistently orient or rotate the closure in relation to the container. 
     It should be understood that a variety of other structures may be utilized with the stopping mechanism  60  having stop lug  40  and spring gap  20 , such as and not limited to closure child resistant locks  30   a  and  30   b  ( FIG. 3 ) or tamper indicating devices (not shown), in the embodiments of the invention, but these other structures are not necessary to utilize the other inventive features of the present embodiments. Any number of safety features known in the art may be used in an embodiment of the present invention. For example as shown in FIGS.  3  and  6 - 8 , child resistant locks  30   a  and  30   b  may be provided to work in combination with stopping mechanism  60  in order to provide child resistant features in the closure. As shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , a double-walled “squeeze and turn” safety closure may be utilized, however a variety of single or double-walled closures may be provided within the scope of this invention. Closure  10  has a deformable annular outer shell  17  depending from top wall  18 . Outer shell  17  may be straight or tapered. Opposing squeeze pads  17   a  and  17   b  are formed on the corners of the square shaped outer shell  17 , spaced at about 180 degrees, to provide a guide for the proper location to apply pressure to deform shell  17  in order to overcome the safety features preventing removal of closure  10 . Squeeze pads  17   a  and  17   b  are tapered outwardly from top wall  18  away from the center of the closure, with the squeeze pads being wider in width adjacent top wall  18  and narrowing towards the free end of the squeeze pad which is spaced from the closure top wall  18 . Squeeze pads  17   a  and  17   b  intuitively compel adults to squeeze further down from the closure top wall  18 , due to finger size, which increases squeeze efficiency and allows for an increased effectiveness in overcoming the safety feature of the closure. Young children tend to grip higher on the closure where the squeeze force is significantly increased and their smaller fingers are less likely to tactilely find the squeeze efficiency advantage at the base of the closure, thus making the closure more difficult for children to open. 
     As shown in FIGS.  4  and  7 - 9 , container neck  2  includes at least one lug  7  disposed thereon. In one embodiment, the container neck  2  includes two lugs  7  and  8 . Container lug  7  is diametrically aligned with container lug  8  along the outer surface of neck  2 . However, depending on the desired range of rotation of the closure  10  about the container neck  2 , the container neck  2  according to one embodiment may include one or more lugs that are disposed at various points around the container neck  2 . However, an embodiment may include lugs, locks, and stops that are aligned differently so as to provide a varied range of rotation. Container neck  2  may include two child-resistant stops or faces  7   c ,  8   c  integrally formed with container lugs  7  and  8 , as shown in  FIGS. 4 and 7 . However, another embodiment of closure  10  may also encompass child-resistant stops that are not aligned nor integrally formed with lugs  7 ,  8 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1 ,  1 A- 1 C,  2 ,  3 , and  7 , pressure pads  17   a  and  17   b  are spaced about 90 degrees apart from a pair of child resistant locks  30   a  and  30   b . Child resistant locks  30   a  and  30   b  are accordingly also diametrically opposed to each other, disposed along an inner surface of outer shell  17 . Child resistant locks  30   a ,  30   b  project from top wall  18  and outer shell  17 . Child resistant locks  30   a ,  30   b  will cam over container lugs  7 ,  8  disposed on neck  2  when closure  10  is secured onto container  1 . More specifically, locks  30   a ,  30   b  will flex outwardly to travel over the cam surfaces  7   b ,  8   b  of container lugs  7 ,  8 , locking the closure in place. Child resistant locks  30   a  and  30   b  each may have at least one inwardly tapered or curved side  33   a  and  33   b , which facilitates passage of child resistant locks  30   a ,  30   b  past cam surfaces  7   b ,  8   b  of container lugs  7 ,  8  as closure  10  is rotated onto container  1 . Upon further rotation of closure  10  onto neck  2  during assembly, stop lugs  40  respectively engage stop faces  7   a ,  8   a  and thus operably engage stopping mechanism  60 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 7 ,  8 , and  9 , container lugs  7  and  8  positioned on lower container neck  2  each have a respective abutment child resistant face  7   c ,  8   c  that prevents removal of closure  10  by interferingly engaging lock engaging faces  32   a ,  32   b  on child resistant locks  30   a , 30   b  positioned on the inside of outer shell  17 . As shown in  FIG. 8 , when inward pressure is not applied to the squeeze pads while simultaneously turning closure  10 , child resistant lock  30   a  will aggressively engage container lug  7  by flexing inwardly into the container lug along abutment child resistant face  7   c , thus significantly increasing the child resistance of the package. In order to overcome the safety lock, inward pressure must be applied to both squeeze pads  17   a  and  17   b  to ovalize outer shell  17  while simultaneously turning closure  10 . Ovalizing outer shell  17  positions locks  30   a ,  30   b  out of interference contact with abutment child resistant faces  7   c ,  8   c  and permits rotational motion and removal of closure  10 . 
     Also shown in  FIGS. 2 ,  3 , and  7 , squeeze pads  17   a  and  17   b  may be respectively aligned with a pair of stiffening webs  71 ,  72  and  73 ,  74 . The two diametrically opposed pairs of stiffening webs  71 ,  72  and  73 ,  74  extend radially between and are integrally connected at their respective axially opposite ends to inner shell  16  and outer shell  17 . Each pair of stiffening webs  71 ,  72  and  73 ,  74  extend downwardly from top wall  18  of closure  10 . The stiffening webs may be provided in a variety of positions, quantities, constructions, and dimensions, and still permit squeeze-and-turn manipulation release of the child resistant engagement of closure  10 . 
     The foregoing detailed description is given primarily for clearness of understanding and no unnecessary limitations are to be understood therefrom for modifications will become obvious to those skilled in the art upon reading this disclosure and may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and scope of the appended claims.