Patent Description:
Nutritional and health supplements are the norm of day-to day activities, mostly indoor and outdoor sports. It is desirable and beneficial to have fortified water, juices, fruit drinks; freshly prepared. Besides, instant preparation of beverages or supplements by mixing with water is a viable option in case of substances like vitamins which have a short-shelf life in aqueous solutions at normal temperature.

United States patent no. <CIT> describes a capsule that is inserted into the neck of a bottle, or within a pull-up liquid dispenser cap, said capsule being a container or receptacle for sealably containing a liquid and/or dry material and a dispenser for releasing the material when desired into the bottle through the orifice previously occupied by the first and second plugs frangibly sealed in a first position and unsealed mechanically by depressing an elongated shaft releasing the liquid and/or dry materials into the container body in second position.

United States patent no. <CIT> relates to a closure cap for a container, said closure cap having a cap housing including a substantially cylindrical recess with a top opening and a bottom opening, wherein the bottom opening is closed by means of a pierceable membrane, a plunger comprising a cover and a substantially cylindrical lateral surface extending downward from the underside of the cover, wherein the lateral surface engages in the top opening of the recess and has an outside diameter corresponding substantially to the inside diameter of the recess, and a chamber defined by the cylindrical recess and the plunger which engages in the recess by way of its lateral surface, the plunger and the cap housing being arranged so as to be movable relative to one another between a first, non-active position, in which a bottom edge of the lateral surface is arranged above the membrane of the cap housing and in which the plunger is blocked from being vertically pressed into the recess of the cap housing, and a second, activated position, in which the bottom edge of the lateral surface opens the membrane,.

United States patent application, published as <CIT> relates to a capsule cap for a beverage container and, more particularly, to a capsule cap for a beverage container that separately keeps an additive to be mixed and drinking water in the beverage container and allows for opening the beverage container and dropping the additive at the same time by changing torque into straight force using spiral guides, and increases pressing force of a cutting unit by forming a vertical guide groove at the cutting unit.

United States patent no. <CIT> describes to a capsule closure, the cap of which comprises a receptacle (<NUM>) that is formed on the interior of the lid and that fits into the interior of a corresponding nipple part (<NUM>). An associated film-sealed container capsule (<NUM>) can be locked into the interior of the receptacle (<NUM>), with the film facing downwards (<NUM>), so that the sealing film (<NUM>) lies against the inner diameter of the cap (<NUM>). A circular shoulder that projects inwards (<NUM>) is configured in the interior of the nipple part (<NUM>) below the inserted container capsule (<NUM>). Several fixed and/or displaceable piercing and/or cutting elements (<NUM>) are formed on the inner edge (<NUM>) of said shoulder (<NUM>).

<CIT> describes a dual chamber pack for a multi-dose oral liquid pharmaceutical composition where in the compositions of the first and second chambers. Here the flute-shaped plunger (<NUM>) in a snuggly fitted plug (<NUM>) or dome-shaped plunger (<NUM>) ruptures the polymeric membrane or (<NUM>) by a screw-based mechanism.

United States patent no. <CIT> describes a dispensing capsule with a diaphragm button, stake and frangible membrane for selectively dispersing the contents of a cup into an attached bottle.

<CIT>, which serves as basis for claim <NUM>, discloses a bottle cap which is adapted to retain a quantity of an additive, such as for example aspirin or the like. The additive is retained in an isolated condition within a sealed chamber or within a bladder inside the bottle cap but in fluid communication with the liquid within the bottle.

European patent no. <CIT> Bldescribes caps for bottles with the box for powder material for preparation of beverages. It consists of the box (<NUM>) closed on the bottom-side with the aluminium foil (<NUM>) and slant damper (<NUM>) and on the upper side by the cover (<NUM>). The damper (<NUM>) that may be twisted round the hinge (O) and which have on the upper surface a one-arm vertical flexible lever (<NUM>) arranged above the aluminium foil (<NUM>). The cover (<NUM>) has on the internal plane of the bottom tangs (<NUM>) and (<NUM>), as well as the barrier (<NUM>) by which during winding up and winding off it acts on the lever (<NUM>). By winding off the cover (<NUM>) the free end of the lever (<NUM>) is elastically bended, creating in it the moment of force, which twists the damper (<NUM>) which breaks through and removes the aluminium foil (<NUM>).

The existing state of art suffers from disadvantage of being complex and multifaceted. More the complexity in the components in the interior of the cap-discharge assembly more is the uncertainty in performance of the product. The dispensing cap system more often is too complicated. Inclusion of multiple components in the cap assembly adds significantly to the operational and manufacturing costs.

The inventors of the present invention have surprisingly developed a doser cap for liquid container that comprises top cap with cutting element and bottom cap with additive/powder material/ undiluted solutions/liquid concentrates which is simple in function, construction and implementation. In addition to that, it is cost-effective and user friendly.

It is an object of the present invention, to provide a doser cap enclosing powdered material or undiluted solution comprising a top cap with characteristic cutting unit and cam slot and bottom cap with a characteristic cam guide.

According to an aspect of the present invention there is provided a doser cap for a liquid container, enclosing additives for release in the said liquid container comprising;.

The present invention relates to doser caps for liquid containers. More particularly, the doser caps of the present invention can hold substances like physiologically active substances or health supplements, electrolytes, nutrients, minerals, sweeteners, colorants, flavors, vitamins, proteins; as powders/liquid concentrates. These may also be suitable to hold nutritional and recreational food products or beverages. Further, dosage forms like single or multiple unit dosage forms or spheres can be packed inside the doser cap. These substances held in the doser cap can be introduced into the liquid container without unscrewing the cap, off the container, to form a ready to drink suspension or solution. The doser cap is a tamper resistant and single time usable cap, i.e. this cap can be used once only.

The doser cap according to the invention is designed in a simple manner, such that the dispensing system is essentially formed by just two components which are fitted into one another. The walls of the two components form effective sealing of the reservoir, such that the additives in the reservoir are protected effectively from environmental influences until the additives are released into the liquid container.

The top and bottom units are closely fitted and the cutting unit resides inside the reservoir shaft in a non-active position along with the additives. A peel-off ring serves dual purpose of tamper evidence, as well as provides protection against accidental rotation of the top unit. The peel-off ring must be separated from the top and bottom units before rotating the top unit. The peel-off ring can be designed to be circular with a provision to peel off, or be an incomplete circle to facilitate removal by end user.

After separation, the doser cap is ready to dispense its contents into the liquid container. On rotating the top cap unit, the cutting unit is set into a spirally downward motion, till it pierces the seal of the reservoir shaft. The additives housed inside the reservoir shaft are discharged into the liquid in the container, as the cutting unit systematically cuts the seal along its circumference, during its spirally downward movement.

In an aspect of the present invention, the cutting unit, of the top cap unit, of the doser cap, has a pushing rib.

The pushing rib prevents the cut portion of the seal, from pushing back upwards, and assists in emptying the entire contents of the reservoir shaft into the liquid container. In case of seals made of materials, which do not resist the cutting unit when sheared along the circumference, a pushing rib is optional.

In an aspect of the present invention, the cutting unit of the top cap unit of the doser cap has an entry groove for the cam guide into the cam slot. For top cap units made of flexible materials, the entry groove is optional. While the cam slot assists the cam guide into the cam slot, it prevents the top cap unit from being separated from the bottom cap unit.

According to an embodiment of the present invention there is provided a doser cap comprising bottom cap, top cap, cutting unit, spiral cam slot, pushing rib, and entry groove on top cap.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a doser cap for a liquid container, enclosing additives for release in the said liquid container comprising;.

In a further embodiment, the doser cap the bottom cap unit has a provision to be sealed with the mouth of the liquid container by a peel-off seal.

In a further embodiment, the bottom cap unit further comprises of an annular liner housed around the reservoir shaft.

In a further embodiment, the desired direction to discharge the additives is in the anti-clockwise direction.

In a further embodiment, the desired direction to discharge the additives is in the clockwise direction.

In a further embodiment, the entry groove is provided for smooth entry and assembly of top and bottom cap units.

In a further embodiment, the pushing rib perpendicular to cutting unit is provided, for preventing the said seal from pushing back upwards when cut or sheared.

In a further embodiment, the reservoir shaft has a capacity of up to about <NUM>.

In a further embodiment, the cap is made from polypropylene co-polymers.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the doser cap of the present invention is fastened by means of internal thread on bottom cap and external thread on liquid container. In a preferred embodiment, the container can be a beverage container.

According to an embodiment of the present invention there is provided a cap for beverage container that seals beverage container and allows the user to discharge enclosed additives, such as powder or an undiluted solution as per the discretion of the user in to the beverage container (B); as shown in <FIG>, comprises:.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, once bottom cap unit (<NUM>) and top cap unit (<NUM>) are assembled with peel-off ring (<NUM>), top cap can only move downward as it is guided by cam slot(<NUM>) and cam guide (<NUM>). The peel off ring (<NUM>) blocks the downward motion of top cap. The peel-off ring (<NUM>) in addition to functioning as tamper-evident seal also avoids accidental discharge of the additives; as shown <FIG> and <FIG>.

In an embodiment, the top cap cam slot can be designed so that the top cap can move downward in a clockwise direction.

In an alternative embodiment, the top cap cam slot can be designed so that the top cap can move downward in an anti-clockwise direction.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the top cap unit (<NUM>) of doser cap rests on the bottom cap unit. Top cap unit (<NUM>) is in direct communication with the bottom cap unit (<NUM>) by means entry groove (<NUM>). The entry groove (<NUM>) is provided for smooth entry of cam guide (<NUM>) on bottom cap into cam slot (<NUM>) on the top cap, making sure that cap are locked with each other at right place during assembly, cam guide (<NUM>) has a slight opening angle at top for easy entry and since there is no angle at the back it will be difficult to separate caps without breaking peel off seal (<NUM>) as shown <FIG> and <FIG>. The entry groove is necessary if the material of the top cap is a hard material with less flexibility. For softer materials, the entry groove is optional. Also, the location of the entry groove can be at any point along the circumference of the top cap unit.

In non-active position, the peel-off ring avoids accidental discharge of the additives into the liquid container. This also prevents the pushing rib from accidently damaging the seal. Therefore, it provides child-resistance, tamper-evidence as well as it facilitates damage free transport during shipping. It is also a viable alternative for dispensing of unit doses.

Removal of peel-off ring (<NUM>) brings the doser cap of the present invention in active form. In an embodiment of the present invention this may be referred to as in-between position wherein the cap assembly of the present invention is ready for discharging the contents. Further rotation of the top cap causes the cutting unit (<NUM>) with cutting tip (<NUM>) and cutting edge (<NUM>) to move in spirally downward direction, first puncturing and then cutting the seal (<NUM>) along its circumference, at the bottom cap releasing the contents in to the liquid container.

Closed position as shown in the <FIG> is preferably referred as inactive position.

Open position as shown in the <FIG> is preferably referred as the active position.

In an embodiment of the present invention the cutting unit (<NUM>) and pushing rib (<NUM>) are brought in to ready-position on removal of peel-off ring (<NUM>).

In an embodiment of the present invention the top cap (<NUM>) and cutting unit (<NUM>) is a single piece component without the pushing rib.

In an embodiment of the present invention the top cap (<NUM>) and cutting unit (<NUM>) is a single piece component with the pushing rib.

In an embodiment of the present invention, seals (<NUM>) and (<NUM>) may be made of materials like aluminium foil, plastic, composite materials or the like.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the seal preferably is a heat seal foil.

According to yet another embodiment of the present invention the top cap mainly consists of cap threads, reservoir shaft, heat seal foil, peel-off ring, locator and silicone seal. The cap thread is used to mesh with thread on the beverage bottle. Reservoir shaft is placed to store additives and it also acts as housing for top cap unit. Seal (<NUM>) which may be a heat seal foil is used to separate additives and beverages.

<FIG> shows closed position and open position of embodiment of <FIG>. The pair of column on the top cap provides rigidity to the top cap, should the top cap be made of soft materials.

The material which can be used for heat seal foil may be selected from but not limited to laminates such as <NUM> micron Aluminum (Alu), <NUM> micron polyester, and <NUM> gsm LDPE (low-density polyethylene) ; 50µ HS LDPE +40µ Alu foil +125gsm LDPE Foam + 12µ Pet (poly ethylene terephthalate) - Plain ; 20µ Alu Foil (Soft)/ <NUM> Gauge Poly - Plain; <NUM> Micron soft Alu foil/<NUM> Micron Pet/<NUM> Gauge Poly ; 50gsm Paper/<NUM> Gauge Poly - Plain ; 25µ Alu Foil (Soft)/ <NUM> Gauge Poly - Plain ; 30µ Alu Foil (Soft)/ <NUM> Gauge Poly - Plain, 40µ Alu Foil (Soft)/ <NUM> Gauge Poly - Plain; 12µ Pet/12µ Alu Foil (Soft)/ <NUM> Gauge Poly - Plain. All these could be used for HDPE (high-density polyethylene) bottles.

For PET bottles following materials could be used as heat seal foil may be selected from but not limited to laminates such as12µ HS Pet +40µ Alu Foil +125gsm LDPE Foam +12µ Pet - Plain; 12µ HS Pet +20µ Alu Foil +125gsm LDPE Foam + 12µ Pet - Plain; 20µ Alu Foil (Soft)/12µ HS Pet - Plain, <NUM> gsm Paper/12µ H S Pet.

The peel off seal engaged with beverage bottle is to be broken once bottom cap is unscrewed. Locator is a protrusion on outer side of reservoir shaft located near the top which acts as a cam guide for top cap unit. Cam slot is the slot provided in the top cap to convert the radial motion of twist to axial motion for piercing the foil using piercer to discharge the content. If any softer materials are used, then pair of column (<NUM>) is provided; <FIG>.

Annular liner (<NUM>) preferably made of silicone is used to avoid leakage of water or any other liquid from container to cap if there is any gap between top and bottom cam unit.

A cutting unit is provided which acts like a knife. The length of which can be adjusted as per requirement for <NUM> capacity suitably kept at approximately <NUM>. This cutting unit will help to breach the heat seal foil to disperse enclosed content.

Roughly the length of column for <NUM> capacity is <NUM> which is added in top cap unit.

Materials used for construction of cap preferably are polypropylene, H110, Polycarbonate.

The annular liner placed in the cap weighs in <NUM> to <NUM> gm range. The capacity of the cap is up to <NUM> and if it is brim-full then it could occupy up to <NUM>.

Size of cap can be varied at the bottle neck part. Cap sizes could be modified to suit different type of neck sizes in bottles (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> etc.). Brand name or the company name can be encrypted on the top of cap or on the peel off seal. For additional protection, sleeves could be placed as a protective covering on the cap. The material which could be used preferably silicone.

The beverage container in the doser cap of the present invention may contain potable drinking water or sweetened water or carbonated water, or any other liquid with or without pre-existing additives.

The one or more components of the doser cap of the present invention, more preferably are made from plastic material such as polypropylene copolymers.

The doser cap of the present inventions stores powder and/or undiluted liquid that can be directly dispensed into the container below by rotation of the cap when desired by the user. The doser cap of the present invention may be made available as single unit. The doser cap of the present invention may or may not be packed with the container. Diameter of the doser cap of the present invention can be separately designed for conventional bottles and liquid containers whose diameters range from <NUM> to <NUM>; preferably between <NUM> to <NUM>.

As another embodiment of the present invention, the contents of the doser cap may be released in to any other external container.

Claim 1:
A doser cap for a liquid container, enclosing additives for release in the said liquid container comprising:
a) a bottom cap unit (<NUM>) comprising internal thread (<NUM>) to engage with thread on the liquid container, a reservoir shaft (<NUM>), wherein the bottom side of the shaft is sealed by a seal (<NUM>) and wherein the bottom cap unit (<NUM>) has a cam guide (<NUM>) on outer portion of the reservoir shaft (<NUM>);
b) a top cap unit (<NUM>) comprising a cam slot (<NUM>) that engages with the cam guide (<NUM>) on bottom cap unit (<NUM>), such that the top cap unit (<NUM>) moves spirally down or up as per direction of rotation; and a peel-off ring (<NUM>) which is in contact with the bottom cap unit (<NUM>); the top cap unit (<NUM>) further comprising a cutting unit (<NUM>) having a cutting tip (<NUM>), for piercing the seal (<NUM>) of the reservoir shaft (<NUM>) of the bottom cap unit (<NUM>) and cutting edge (<NUM>) on the inner portion of the top cap unit (<NUM>) for shearing the seal (<NUM>) on rotation of the top cap unit (<NUM>) in desired direction to discharge the additives from the said reservoir shaft (<NUM>) of the bottom cap unit (<NUM>); and
c) an entry groove (<NUM>) for smooth entry of the cam guide (<NUM>) on the bottom cap unit (<NUM>) into the cam slot (<NUM>) on the top cap unit (<NUM>), characterised in that the peel-off ring is also in contact with the top cap unit, and in that the cam guide (<NUM>) has a slight opening angle at top for the entry and with no angle at back to avoid separation of the top and bottom cap units (<NUM>, <NUM>) without breaking the peel off ring (<NUM>).