US2368836A - Container and closure cap - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 6, 1945. I E. E. HOLWICK 2,368,836.

CONTAINER AND CLOSURE CAP Filed Nov. 19, 1941 INVENTOR.

Patented Feb. e, 1945- v UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 v oonmmsa m ziosona car Earl E. Holwick, Lanna Beach, Calif. Application November 19, 1941, Serial No. 419,785:

7 Claims. (01. 222-398) This invention relates specifically to containers and their closure caps, such a bottles, collapsible tubes, cans and the like, in which liquids, pastes,

' powders or pellets may be distributed to the retailmarket.

The principal object of the present invention is the production of containers provided with means whereby the contents may be dispensed without the necessity of removing their closure caps.

Another principal object is a means whereby dispensing of the contents may be limited according to its kind.

An important object is to provide means whereby containers may be opened and closed in the least possible time, thereby preventing excessive evaporation of volatile liquids.

Another important object is the provision of acontainer having a closure cap that cannot be dropped, misplaced or lost.

Another important object is the provision of means for movably securing a closure cap on a container.

A further object is the provision of facilities for preventing the contents from coming in contact with the threads on the container neck which may prevent the operation of properly closing the container.

Another object is the provision of a container provided with means of limiting the movement of opening and closing the container.

A further object is the provision of means to discourage the practice of refilling the container with substitute products.

A still further object is a container that may be opened and closed with one hand.

These and other objects and advantages will be obvious to those of skill in the art upon examination hereof, as, for instance, economy of manufacture, compactness, ease and surety of operation and adaptability.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, my invention consists in certain novel features of construction an arrangement of parts which will be hereinafter more fully described and claimed; but; for a full understanding of m invention and of its objects and advantages, reference may be had to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a side view of a collapsible tube and 1 cap made in accordance with my invention and showing an orifice the contents.

Fig. 2 is a front view of a closure cap.

in the side thereof for exuding Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a closure cap, taken on line 28-28 of Fig.2.

Fig. 4 is a view of a circular resilient member employed to movably secure a closure cap on a container.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view of a container and its neck for receiving a closure cap.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view of a cap taken on line Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken on line 2828 of Fig. 2, showing the cap in closed position.

Fig. 9 is a cross section of a modification.

i Fig. 10 is across section of a further modificat on.

Fig. 11 is a sectional view taken on line 26-26 of the modification shown in Fig. 10.

Referring to the drawing, and more particularly to Fig. 5, the container B, which may be a bottle, a can or a collapsible tube, and may be made of glass, metal, fibre, plastics or the like, i provided with a neck F, having a screw thread IS, a short unthreaded sleeve-like extension 2|, a shoulder l5 having a downwardly extended notch or notches l8 provided with a vertical side and'an inclined side.

The annular resilient locking member 4, as illustrated in Figures 4, 6 and 8, is provided with a projection 5 which may be called a post or pin, extending upwardly at one end of said member, and a bend"6 provides an inclined downwardly extended projection forming'a spring pawl 1 on the opposite end of said member.

The closure cap A, is provided with an aperture or outlet I 3, which may be a slot as shown in Figures 2 and 6, or may be round in shape. The apertur may be of size or shape to suit the consistency and purpose of the product for which the container may be employed. Take for instance, pastes, creams, iellies or semi-solid glutinous substances which require pressure to cause them to flow, may be and usually are contained 'edge of the slot is tapered downwardly as indicated at 29. By so doing. a very desirous eiiect may had, which not only enables the slot to be wiped clean, but provides a means by which the contents may flow outwardly toward the end or top of the cap when pressure is applied to the tube.

The inner portion of the closure cap is provided with an unthreaded, cylindrical portion I I, that extends between the gasket 9 to the screw thread I6, and is adapted to fit snugly and slide over the sleeve extension H on the neck of the container, and thereby forcing all material from the cap that may harden or gum up, which may prevent, operation thereof and also prevent the contents from coming in contact with the threads I6 which may cause an unsanitary condition. It may be noticed too, that the extension 2|, closes the aperture in the neck of the container.

At the lower end of the screw thread in the cap, I have provided a segmental ridge or projection 20, having a shoulder 2 at one end and a shoulder 3 at the opposite end and forming a recess 8 between the ends or shoulders of the projection. A skirt I is provided at the lower portion of the cap, not only to conceal the mechanical elements of the cap, but to prevent the cap from being removed from the container.

The outer periphery of the skirt or cap may be provided with ribs I2, or may be provided with one or more projections of various forms, so that the cap may be easily turned on the neck of the container with one or more fingers while holding the container in the hand.

To assemble the container and closure cap into operative unity, it is only necessary to place the ring-like resilient member over the neck of the container with its projecting element or post 5 extending upward. The cap may then be screwed onto the neck of the container. The annular resilient member 4 may also be dropped into the cap with the post 5 extending inward toward the gasket 9, the cap may then be screwed onto the neck,

In turning the cap on the neck of the container, the shoulder 3, engages the post 5, and moves the resilient locking member 4, until the sleeve 2! is firmly held against the gasket 9. The notch I8 on the shoulder I5 of the neck F, may be so positioned so that when the'ccntainer is completely closed, the inclined pawl end 1 of the resilient member 4, will drop into and permanently engage the vertical side of the notch I8, the projection 5 being slidably positioned in the recess 8 between the shoulders 2 and 3. It may be seen that the locking member 4 is in a compressed condition when the cap is in either an open or closed position, which is due to the spiral shape of the member and thereby holds the projecting ends of the member in their respective positions within the notchand recess.

To open the closure aperture, the cap is turned in the direction of opening, the threads causing the gasket 9 to be drawn away from the sleeve 2 I, which in turn clears or opens, the aperture I3. In turning the cap in the opening movement, the shoulder 3, is moved away from the post 5 and the shoulder 2 engages the opposite side of the post 5, and the movement is then stopped because of the inclined pawl 'I being permanently engaged into the notch I8.

When the cap is in open position, as shown in Fig. 6, the ridge 20 is in a position over the downwardly inclined end or pawl I of the resilient member 4, and thereby holding said end into the notch I8. However, when the cap is in closed position, the recess 8 is over the inclined end I,

fi l

Ill)

as shown in Fig. 8, and thereby prevents the bend 6 from being straightened out.

There are several important factors that must be taken into consideration to determine the size of the aperture necessary to effectively dispense the various products accordingly to their kind, that may be housed in a container of this nature.

Take for instance, a container for holding and dispensing pills, the aperture must be slightly larger than the pills and considerably larger than the slot in the closure cap of a collapsible tube. Therefore the space between the gasket and the sleeve 2 I, must be increased sufficiently to enable the aperture to be formed in the cylindrical unthreaded portion of the cap. To increase the space between the gasket 8 and the sleeve 2 I, the recess 8, as shown in Fig. '7, as being only onehalf of a turn of the cap, can be increased to almost a full turn, by shortening the length of the ridge 20. The size of the neck on the container,

and the degree of the slant of the threads, will also increase the said space. By replacing the notch I8 in the shoulder I5, to a recess as shown 'at 23 in Fig. 9, the space may be additionally intension between the container and the cap whereby to hold the cap against accidental movement when in open position. Therefore the ring-like member may require and may be provided with an additional coil to sufliciently provide the tension necessary for the additional space between the gasket and sleeve. Thus it may be seen, that the distance in which the cap may be turned, may be increased or decreased without departing from the spirit of my invention.

If the shoulder I5 on the container is provided with a recess 23, as shown in Fig. 9, instead of the notch I8, as shown in Fig. 8, and the projection 20 in the cap is provided with a notch I8, as shown on the neck of the container, in place of the recess 8, as shown in Figures 6 and 7, the resilient member 4 may be turned upsidedown and have the same effect, except that the cap will slide over the inclined projection I, instead of turning the resilient member.

In the modification shown in Fig. 9, the cap C is provided with a small opening 22 and a spout extension on the aperture I3, which extend into the cap below the gasket 9. The opening 22 is designed to allow air to be sucked into the container as the liquid is being poured out of the container E. The container, which may be a bottle, can orthe like, is provided with a recess 23, instead of the notch I8. This recess permits the inclined end I of the annular spring member 11, the neck F on the container E, and the 010- sure cap D, are each formed with a spirally arranged ridge I6 and a groove 30, to provide screw threads by which the neck and cap may be associated. The neck F may be provided with a notch 24, for receiving the inturned end 25 of the spring member, or may be provided with the notch or notches I8 for receiving the spring pawl I of the spring member, as shown in Figure 6. The spiral shape of the spring member 4, being compressed between the neck and the cap, thereby providing ass on slight pressure of a finger, thereby cutting of! said cap wherebyflto limit movement of said cap,

the-flow of the contents. By releasing this pressure, the spring forces the cap in open position and sucks air into the container, whereupon the cap is again pressed, a small amount of liquid is forced out of the container. Therefore it may be seen that as little as one drop of liquid may be exuded out of the container by constructing the cap and neck in accordance with this invention. It may also be pointed out, that the thread and groove as shown in Fig. 10, maybe formed on the neck and cap shown in Fig. 9. Another important feature of this invention is that when the cap is in open position, the aperture is always in the same position.

It may be seen by the foregoing description and bythe accompanying drawing, that I have economically provided a simple and novel means of movably securing a closure cap on a container, that may be operated by one hand, that may be opened or closed with a slight movement and cannot be dropped or lost.

While I have illustrated and described with particularity the preferred forms of my invention, I do not desire to be limited to the exact structural detail thus illustrated and described; but intend to cover all forms and arrangements which come within the definitions of my invention. 1

I claim: I

l. The combination, in a contanier, of a screw neck having a notch, with a spiral resilient member disposed about said neck and provided with a post, and a side apertured screw cap having inwardly facing spaced shoulders, one of the-said shoulders adapted to engage said post and turn said member into permanent engagement with said notch in closed position and the other said shoulder adapted to stop movement of said cap when said side aperture is in open position.

2. The combination, in a container, of a threaded neck having an unthreaded sleeve-like extension, with a screw cap provided with an unthreaded cylindrical portion, means for movably securing said cap on said neck, and said extension and cylindrical portion adapted to cooperate in opening and closing a side aperture in said cylindrical portion upon movement of said cap, said means comprising a spiral spring having a ratchet connection at the base of said neck and a vertical element incased in a curved recess formed in said cap.

3. The combination, in a container, comprising a threaded neck having an unthreaded extension, with a screw cap provided with an unthreaded cylindrical section, an outlet formed in said section and a member having a ratchet conand said extension and section adapted to cooperate in opening and closing said outlet, and

a gasket adapted to engage said extension and seal said container.

4. The combination, in a container, of a threaded neck having a shoulder provided with a notch, with an apertured screw cap having a curved segmental recess, a spiral spring interposed between said neck and cap and provided with a downwardly inclined end engaging said notch and an upwardly turned end for engaging shoulders at each end of said recess, anda skirt formed on said cap adapted to fit over and to conceal said resilient member and notch to prevent removal of said cap.

5. The combination in a container, of a threaded neck having an external notch, with a threaded cap having a segmental projection providing spaced shoulders therein, and a spiral spring interposed in said cap, one end of said spring being shaped to provide ayielding pawl and the other end bent to form a vertical pin, one of said shoulders adapted to engage one side of said pin and turn said pawl into permanent engagement within said notch, and the other said shoulder adapted to slidably engage the opposite side of said pin and stop movement thereof and thereby prevent unscrewing of said cap.

. 6. The combination, in a container, of a threaded neck having a notch, with a side apertured screw cap having a curved recess, and a coiled spring disposed between said neck and cap and provided with oppositely turned ends, one of said ends being bent to provide a means for engaging said notch and the other of said ends forming a post secured in said recess and adapted to stop movement of said cap when said aperture is in open position.

'7. The combination with a container neck having an opening therethrough, a cap threaded on said neckand provided with an outlet therein for register with said opening, a coiled spring compressed between said neck and cap and provided with oppositely turned ends, one of said ends being bent to provide a means of ratchetly engaging a notch on said, neck and the other of said ends forming a post for engaging elements in said cap to limit rotary movement of the latter, the threads connecting said neck and cap being arranged to provide grooves between the turns of said threads, said grooves being of greater width than the width of said threads and adapted to enable said cap to be held in open position by said spring and enabling said cap to be pressed from open to closed position whereby to close communication between said opening and outlet thereby interrupting or cutting 01! the flow of the contents of the container.

EARL E. HOLWICK.

Images