JP7510869B2 - Refill containers and replacement containers - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a refill container that is used by replacing an outer container, and a replacement container that includes a refill container and an outer container.

Conventionally, for example, containers for storing cream-like or gel-like contents (such as cosmetics) are known that have an inner container for storing the contents and an outer container for detachably holding the inner container (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

In this type of container, the inner container is used as a refill container, and after the contents are used up, the original inner container is removed from the outer container and a new inner container is attached to the outer container. In other words, this type of container (refill container) is advantageous in terms of resource conservation, as the outer container can be reused.

JP 2011-157083 A

As mentioned above, the refill container is used by attaching it to an outer container, but since it is possible to remove the contents even when it is not attached to the outer container, there is a risk that the refill container will be used alone. However, this type of usage is not desirable, as it can lead to problems such as the container being prone to tipping over because it is not supported by the outer container (when used properly, the weight of the outer container lowers the center of gravity, but when the refill container is used alone, the center of gravity is higher than when used properly).

In view of these circumstances, the present invention aims to provide a refill container and a replacement container that can be attached to an outer container and encourage proper use.

The present invention relates to a refill container that contains contents and is used by replacing it with an outer container,
A container body having a storage space for contents;
a cover body having a top wall portion covering the storage space, a peripheral wall portion connected to the top wall portion and extending downward, and a female screw portion provided on an inner peripheral surface of the peripheral wall portion;
The refill container comprises a ring body that is rotatably held on the container body inside the peripheral wall portion, has a male threaded portion that screws into the female threaded portion, and has an anti-rotation portion that prevents the ring body from rotating relative to the outer container when the ring body is attached to the outer container.

the container body includes a bottom portion and a container body side peripheral wall portion which define the storage space, a flange portion which extends radially outward from the container body side peripheral wall portion, and an annular wall portion which is connected to the flange portion, into which the ring body is inserted and which rotatably holds the ring body;
It is preferable that the ring body is integrally connected to the annular wall portion via a weakened portion before being inserted into the annular wall portion.

It is preferable that the flange portion is located radially outward from the annular wall portion and has a stopper portion that prevents the ring body from slipping out upward.

The present invention also relates to a replacement container that includes any of the refill containers described above and the outer container.

Such a replacement container further includes an exterior cap that covers the lid body and is held by the lid body in a non-rotatable manner,
It is preferable that either the lid body or the outer cap has an elastic piece that engages with an engaging portion provided on the other to prevent the outer cap from coming off the lid body, while being disengaged from the engaging portion when elastically deformed.

In the refill container of the present invention, the female thread of the lid is screwed into the male thread of the ring body that is rotatably held on the container body. Therefore, even if the lid is rotated relative to the container body without the refill container attached to the outer container, the ring rotates with the lid, and the female thread and the male thread remain screwed together, so the lid cannot be removed. On the other hand, when the refill container is attached to the outer container, the ring is prevented from rotating on the outer container by the anti-rotation part, so that when the lid is rotated relative to the outer container, the female thread and the male thread are released from the screwed together, and the lid can be removed. In other words, since the contents cannot be removed unless the refill container is attached to the outer container, it is possible to encourage proper use by attaching the refill container to the outer container. In addition, by attaching the refill container to the outer container, the refill container can be stably held.

1 is a cross-sectional side view of a first embodiment of a replacement container according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side view of the refill container shown in FIG. 1 , showing a state in which a container body and a ring body are integrally connected via a weakened portion. FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional side view of a second embodiment of a replacement container according to the present invention. 4 is a cross-sectional side view showing a state in which the exterior cap is being removed from the refill container shown in FIG. 3.

Hereinafter, one embodiment of the refill container and replacement container according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In this specification, the up-down direction refers to the direction along the axis O shown in the drawings. The radial direction refers to the direction perpendicular to the axis O in a plane perpendicular to the axis O, and the circumferential direction refers to the direction rotating around the axis O in this plane.

Figure 1 shows a replacement container 10A, which is a first embodiment of a replacement container according to the present invention. The replacement container 10A of this embodiment is composed of a refill container 1A and an outer container 5. The refill container 1A is also composed of a container body 2, a lid body 3, and a ring body 4.

The container body 2 has a disk-shaped bottom (container body side bottom 2a) centered on the axis O, and a cylindrical peripheral wall (container body side peripheral wall 2b) extending upward from the container body side bottom 2a. The inner space (storage space S) partitioned by the container body side bottom 2a and the container body side peripheral wall 2b stores contents such as cream-like cosmetics.

The upper end of the container body side peripheral wall 2b is provided with a flange 2c extending radially outward. The lower surface of the flange 2c is provided with an annular wall 2d extending downward. As shown in the partial enlarged view of part A in FIG. 1, the inner peripheral surface of the annular wall 2d is provided with an engagement recess 2e that is a partial recess of the annular wall 2d that is radially outward, and the outer peripheral surface of the annular wall 2d is provided with a protrusion 2f that is a partial protrusion of the annular wall 2d that is radially outward. The engagement recess 2e and the protrusion 2f may be intermittent in the circumferential direction, or may be continuous in the circumferential direction to form an annular shape.

Flange portion 2c also has a stopper portion 2g located radially outward from annular wall portion 2d. Stopper portion 2g extends radially outward with the same thickness as flange portion 2c and is formed in a shape similar to a part of flange portion 2c.

The lid 3 has a disk-shaped top wall 3a that covers the storage space S. The bottom surface of the top wall 3a is provided with an annular seal wall 3b that abuts against the inner surface of the container body side peripheral wall 2b. The outer edge of the top wall 3a is provided with a cylindrical peripheral wall (lid side peripheral wall 3c) that extends downward. The inner surface of the lid side peripheral wall 3c is provided with a female thread 3d.

The ring body 4 is generally cylindrical, and has a male thread 4a on its outer circumferential surface that screws into the female thread 3d. The inner circumferential surface of the ring body 4 has an annular recess 4b that engages with the protrusion 2f, as shown in the partially enlarged view of part A in FIG. 1. The ring body 4 is rotatably held in the container body 2 by the protrusion 2f engaging with the annular recess 4b. The lower end of the inner circumferential surface of the ring body 4 has a groove 4c that extends from the bottom to the top, as shown in the partially enlarged view of part B in FIG. 1. In this embodiment, a plurality of grooves 4c are provided at intervals in the circumferential direction. The grooves 4c are the part that corresponds to the "rotation prevention portion" in this specification.

Although the ring body 4 may be formed separately from the container body 2, the ring body 4 in this embodiment is formed integrally with the container body 2 as shown in FIG. 2. Specifically, the upper end of the ring body 4 and the lower end of the annular wall portion 2d are formed in a state where they are integrally connected via a breakable thin portion (weakened portion w). When a force is applied to push up the ring body 4, the weakened portion w breaks and the ring body 4 can be attached to the container body 2. In addition, a stopper portion 2g that connects to the flange portion 2c is provided at the upper portion of the annular wall portion 2d, so that the pushed-up ring body 4 does not slip out of the annular wall portion 2d. In other words, by providing the stopper portion 2g, the workability during installation can be improved. In addition, by forming the container body 2 and the ring body 4 integrally, the number of molding dies is reduced compared to when they are formed separately, which also contributes to cost reduction.

The outer container 5 has a disk-shaped bottom (outer body side bottom 5a) that is thicker than the container body side bottom 2a, and a cylindrical peripheral wall (outer body side peripheral wall 5b) that extends upward from the outer body side bottom 5a and is thicker than the container body side peripheral wall 2b. The container body 2 is housed inside the outer body side bottom 5a and the outer body side peripheral wall 5b as shown in the figure.

A cylindrical upper peripheral wall portion 5c is provided at the top of the outer body side peripheral wall portion 5b and is inserted between the container body side peripheral wall portion 2b and the annular wall portion 2d of the contained container body 2. By inserting the upper peripheral wall portion 5c between the container body side peripheral wall portion 2b and the annular wall portion 2d, the container body 2 is stably held in place relative to the outer container 5 with reduced wobbling.

As shown in the partially enlarged view of part A in FIG. 1, the outer peripheral surface of the upper peripheral wall portion 5c is provided with an engaging protrusion 5d that fits into the engaging recess 2e. The shape and position of the engaging protrusion 5d in the circumferential direction may be any shape that fits into the engaging recess 2e, and may be intermittent in the circumferential direction or may be continuous in the circumferential direction to form a ring.

At the base of the upper peripheral wall 5c, a rib 5e is provided that fits into the groove 4c of the housed container body 2 (see the enlarged partial view of part B in FIG. 1). When the container body 2 is housed inside the exterior body side bottom 5a and the exterior body side peripheral wall 5b, the rib 5e fits into the groove 4c, so that the ring body 4 can be held against the exterior container 5 without rotating.

In the replacement container 10A configured as described above, when the refill container 1A is not attached to the outer container 5, even if the lid body 3 is rotated to remove it from the container body 2, the female threaded portion 3d of the lid body 3 is threadedly engaged with the male threaded portion 4a of the ring body 4, and the ring body 4 is rotatably held on the container body 2, so the ring body 4 rotates together with the lid body 3. Therefore, the female threaded portion 3d and the male threaded portion 4a remain threadedly engaged, and the lid body 3 cannot be removed.

On the other hand, when the refill container 1A is attached to the outer container 5, the rib 5e fits into the groove 4c, and the ring body 4 is held in the outer container 5 without rotating. Therefore, when the lid body 3 is rotated relative to the outer container 5, the female thread portion 3d and the male thread portion 4a are released from the screw engagement, and the lid body 3 can be removed.

As described above, according to the replacement container 10A of this embodiment, the lid 3 cannot be removed unless the refill container 1A is attached to the outer container 5, and therefore the contents cannot be removed, which encourages proper use by attaching the refill container 1A to the outer container 5. In addition, by attaching the refill container 1A to the outer container 5, the refill container 1A is held stably.

Next, a second embodiment of the refill container according to the present invention will be described with reference to Figs. 3 and 4. The refill container 10B of this embodiment is composed of a refill container 1B, an outer container 5, and an outer cap 6. The refill container 1B also includes the above-mentioned container body 2 and ring body 4, and includes a lid body 13 instead of the lid body 3.

The lid 13 has a top wall 13a, a seal wall 13b, a lid-side peripheral wall 13c, and a female threaded portion 13d, which are configured similarly to the top wall 3a, the seal wall 3b, the lid-side peripheral wall 3c, and the female threaded portion 3d of the lid 3. As shown in the partially enlarged view of FIG. 3, the lower end of the lid-side peripheral wall 13c is provided with an elastic piece 13e that extends radially outward and then downward and is capable of elastically deforming radially inward. The outer peripheral surface of the elastic piece 13e is provided with a claw-shaped portion.

The outer cap 6 has a disk-shaped top wall 6a and a cylindrical outer wall 6b extending downward from the outer edge of the top wall 6a. The inner peripheral surface of the outer wall 6b is provided with a recess 6c that engages with the claw-shaped portion of the elastic piece 13e (see the enlarged partial view of FIG. 3). In this embodiment, the elastic piece 13e and the recess 6c have the function of preventing the lid body 13 from rotating relative to the outer cap 6 and holding it against removal. The elastic piece 13e and the recess 6c are provided in one or more pieces in the circumferential direction, but the elastic piece 13e and the recess 6c may be configured to be annular and have a separate function of preventing the lid body 13 from rotating relative to the outer cap 6 (for example, a groove is provided on the front side of the lid body 13 and a rib is provided on the inside of the outer cap 6). The recess 6c is the portion corresponding to the "engagement portion" in this specification.

The exterior cap 6 is not attached to the refill container 1B when it is distributed on the market, but is attached to the lid body 13 when it is used.

Even in the case of the replacement container 10B configured in this way, the lid 13 cannot be removed from the refill container 1B unless it is attached to the outer container 5, which encourages proper use by attaching the refill container 1B to the outer container 5. Furthermore, in the replacement container 10B of this embodiment, it is preferable that the decorativeness of the container body 2 and the lid 13 is suppressed, while the decorativeness of the outer container 5 and the outer cap 6 is enhanced. When configured in this way, costs related to the decorativeness of the container body 2 and the lid 13 can be reduced, and since the container body 2 and the lid 13 are covered by the outer container 5 and the outer cap 6 during use, the appearance is not impaired.

When the contents are used up and the container is replaced with a new refill container 1B, the elastic piece 13e can be elastically deformed radially inward as shown in FIG. 4 to disengage the elastic piece 13e from the recessed portion 6c, allowing the exterior cap 6 to be removed from the lid body 13 and reused.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiment, and various modifications and alterations are possible within the scope of the spirit of the present invention described in the claims unless otherwise specifically limited in the above description. Furthermore, the effects of the above embodiment are merely examples of the effects resulting from the present invention, and do not mean that the effects of the present invention are limited to the above effects.

For example, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, a rib 5e is provided on the outer container 5 and a groove 4c is provided on the ring body 4, and this groove 4c functions as a "rotation prevention portion." However, a groove may be provided on the outer container 5 and a rib may be provided on the ring body 4, and this rib may function as a "rotation prevention portion." Also, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, a recess 6c is provided on the outer cap 6 and an elastic piece 13e is provided on the lid body 13 as a configuration for preventing the outer cap 6 from coming off the lid body 13, but the recess may be provided on the lid body 13 and the elastic piece may be provided on the outer cap 6.

1A, 1B: Refill container 2: Container body 2a: Container body side bottom (bottom)
2b: Container body side peripheral wall portion 2c: Flange portion 2d: Annular wall portion 2e: Engagement recess 2f: Convex portion 2g: Stopper portion 3: Lid body 3a: Top wall portion 3b: Seal wall 3c: Lid body side peripheral wall portion (peripheral wall portion)
3d: Female thread portion 4: Ring body 4a: Male thread portion 4b: Annular recess 4c: Groove portion (rotation prevention portion)
5: Outer container 5a: Outer body side bottom portion 5b: Outer body side peripheral wall portion 5c: Upper peripheral wall portion 5d: Engagement protrusion portion 5e: Rib 6: Outer cap 6a: Top wall portion 6b: Outer peripheral wall portion 6c: Recess portion (engagement portion)
10A, 10B: Replacement container 13: Lid 13a: Top wall 13b: Sealing wall 13c: Lid side peripheral wall 13d: Female thread 13e: Elastic piece O: Axis S: Storage space w: Weakened portion

Claims (5)

A refill container that contains contents and is used by replacing it with an outer container,
A container body having a storage space for contents;
a cover body having a top wall portion covering the storage space, a peripheral wall portion connected to the top wall portion and extending downward, and a female screw portion provided on an inner peripheral surface of the peripheral wall portion;
a ring body that is rotatably held on the container body inside the peripheral wall portion, has a male threaded portion that screws into the female threaded portion, and has a rotation prevention portion that prevents the ring body from rotating relative to the outer container when the ring body is attached to the outer container. the container body includes a bottom portion and a container body side peripheral wall portion which define the storage space, a flange portion which extends radially outward from the container body side peripheral wall portion, and an annular wall portion which is connected to the flange portion, into which the ring body is inserted and which rotatably holds the ring body;
The refill container according to claim 1 , wherein the ring body is integrally connected to the annular wall portion via a weakened portion before being inserted into the annular wall portion. The refill container according to claim 2, wherein the flange portion is located radially outward of the annular wall portion and has a stopper portion that prevents the ring body from slipping out upward. A replacement container comprising the refill container according to any one of claims 1 to 3 and the outer container. An exterior cap is further provided which covers the lid and is held by the lid so as not to be rotatable,
The refill container according to claim 4, wherein one of the lid body and the outer cap engages with an engaging portion provided on the other of them to hold the outer cap against the lid body so as to prevent it from coming off, and has an elastic piece that disengages from the engaging portion when elastically deformed.

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