The present invention relates to a multiple-dose bottle with dosage spout for products, particularly for medicines.
It is known that some products, such as for example medicines, if contained in multiple-dose bottles, use preservatives in order to avoid any likely bacterial contaminations caused by direct contact of the contained product with the surrounding air.
Currently applicable statutory provisions require, in the near future, the elimination of these preservatives from multiple-dose bottles and this disadvantageously entails the inadequacy of known kinds of bottle, which do not ensure complete asepsis of the product.
As an alternative, in order to obviate this drawback of known kinds of multiple-dose bottle, single-dose bottles which are used only once and therefore require no preservatives are used for the dosage of these products.
However, even these single-dose bottles are not free from drawbacks, including the fact that the asepsis of the product is ensured at the cost of wasting material, since the single-dose bottle is discarded after a single application of the product.
A dispensing bottle suitable for storing a sterile solution is disclosed in US-A-4 739 906.
Further examples of containers provided with applicators, suitable for preserving substances, are available from US-A-5 727 892, US-A-5 743 441 and CH-A-528 415.
The aim of the present invention is to eliminate the above drawbacks of conventional bottles, providing a multiple-dose bottle with dosage spout for products, particularly medicines, which allows to fully eliminate the use of preservatives which are harmful to human health, to contain an aseptic product which can be used even more than once, and to reduce the waste of material and therefore the manufacturing and packaging costs of bottles for an equal volume of contained product.
Within the scope of this technical aim, an object of the present invention is to achieve the above aim with a structure which is simple, relatively easy to provide in practice, safe in use, effective in operation and relatively cheap.
This aim and this object are both achieved by the present multiple-dose bottle with dosage spout for products, particularly medicines, having the features set forth in the appended claims.
Further characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of a multiple-dose bottle with dosage spout for products, particularly medicines, according to the invention, illustrated only by way of non-limitative example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:
With particular reference to the above figures, the reference numeral 1 generally designates a multiple-dose bottle for products, particularly medicines, according to the invention.
The multiple-dose bottle 1 is constituted by a conventional bellows-like part S, made of a material of a deformable type, and comprises a dosage spout 2 constituted by a nozzle 3 on which a cap 4 is fitted hermetically: compression of the bellows-like part S causes the liquid to seep between the nozzle 3 and the cap 4.
The nozzle 3 is made of substantially rigid material, is ogive-shaped and is crossed by at least one aperture 5 for the outflow of the liquid; the cap 4 is made of flexible material and has a dispensing port 6 formed at an external protrusion 7 which is substantially nipple-shaped.
Advantageously, the nozzle 3 and the cap 4 are both made of a material such as plastic and/or rubber and must be sterilizable, inert and impermeable to liquids.
In its tip region 8, proximate to the protrusion 7, the cap 4 is thinner, so as to allow the liquid to seep between the aperture 5 and the port 6.
The cap 4 is thicker in the intermediate region 9, so as to ensure a better hermetic clamping against the surface of the nozzle 3; said nozzle is rigidly coupled to the mouth 10 of the bottle 1, which is in turn surmounted by the base 11 of the cap 4.
Figures 1 to 5 illustrate a first embodiment of the bottle 1 and some of its components in detail: the nozzle 3 has two apertures 5 and the port 6 of the cap 4 is constituted by a diametrical slit 12 on the top of the protrusion 7.
As an alternative to the slit 12, and in a manner which is fully equivalent thereto, the port 6 might also be constituted by a star-shaped arrangement of cuts or by a capillary tube formed on the protrusion 7.
Conveniently, a ring 13 is secured to the base of the cap 4 and is adapted to keep the cap 4 and the nozzle 3 rigidly coupled to the mouth 10 of the bottle 1.
Figures 6 to 9 illustrate a second embodiment of the bottle 1, showing its main components: in this case, the nozzle 3 is provided with two apertures 5 and is axially provided with a pin 14 which is adapted to close the port 6, which in this case is constituted by a substantially circular hole 15 of the protrusion 7.
Figure 10 illustrates an embodiment of the bottle 1 in which a ring 16 is coupled to the mouth 10 of said bottle; said ring is connected, by conventional sealing means 17, to a hood 18 for closing the cap 4 and can be eliminated once the sealing means 17 have been removed.
In figure 13, the ring 16 is rigidly coupled to the mouth 10 and protrudes downwards with a partial containment body 19 which is adapted to support the bottle 1 in vertical position.
In the bottle 1 of figure 14, the ring 16 is internally provided with conventional means for coupling to a securing ring 13 interposed between the ring and the mouth 10.
Said coupling means are generally removable and are constituted by a portion which is coupled, by pressing or by interlocking, to the ring 13 or by a threaded portion which can be screwed on a correspondingly threaded portion of the ring 13.
Figures 15 to 21 are views of some additional possible embodiments of the nozzle 3 and of the cap 4 which are fully equivalent to one another.
The use of the bottle according to the invention is as follows: when inactive, the cap 4 adheres perfectly to the nozzle 3, preventing any possible external contamination and any possible outflow of liquid contained in the bottle 1.
During use, by applying an adapted pressure to the bellows-like part S, the end portion 8 of the cap 4 lifts off the nozzle 3 so as to allow the liquid to seep from at least one aperture 5 to the dispensing port 6.
Once the pressure of the bellows-like part S has ceased, the portion 8 of the cap rests again in close contact with the nozzle 3, thus closing the apertures 5 for the outflow of the liquid and simultaneously preventing the inflow of external contaminants.
The invention thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations all of which are within the scope of the appended claims.
In practice, the materials used, as well as the shapes and the dimensions, may be any within the scope of the protection of the appended claims.
Where technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, those reference signs have been included for the whole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly, such reference signs do not have any limiting effect on the interpretation of each element identified by way of example by such reference signs.