|
(11) | EP 3 397 567 B1 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT SPECIFICATION |
|
|
| (54) |
CLOSING DEVICE FOR BOTTLES WITH EASILY REMOVABLE SECURITY TAB VERSCHLUSSVORRICHTUNG FÜR FLASCHEN MIT EINFACH ENTFERNBARER SICHERHEITSLASCHE DISPOSITIF DE FERMETURE POUR BOUTEILLES AVEC PATTE DE SÉCURITÉ FACILE À RETIRER |
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Note: Within nine months from the publication of the mention of the grant of the European patent, any person may give notice to the European Patent Office of opposition to the European patent granted. Notice of opposition shall be filed in a written reasoned statement. It shall not be deemed to have been filed until the opposition fee has been paid. (Art. 99(1) European Patent Convention). |
[0001] The present invention relates to a closing device for bottles provided with an easily removable security tab.
[0002] Currently, several closing devices for bottles are known, generally consisting of a stopper and a pourer. Such closing devices are described, for example, in documents WO 99/21773 A1 and GB 2418910 A. Document WO99/21773 discloses a closing device for bottles according to the preamble of claim 1.
[0003] The stopper has an inner thread adapted to engage, to open or close the bottle, with a corresponding thread provided on the outer surface of the pourer. The latter is pressure-fixed into the opening of the bottle neck or, through known means, to the bottle neck.
[0004] Moreover, the stopper is generally inferiorly connected to a jacket for covering the pourer to which it is also constrained in rotation. The connection between the jacket and the stopper is usually achieved by means of an annular breakage line or by means of removable tab elements.
[0005] The removable tab arrangement has the advantage of also providing evidence of the first opening of the bottle. While the simple breakage line does not offer itself the striking visual evidence of the first opening of the bottle, has the advantage of not requiring manual operations before gripping the stopper. Therefore, the manufacturers are committed to the design of easily removable tabs.
[0006] Starting from such a prior art, the object of the present invention is to provide an alternative closure to the known ones that is easily openable, although it is of the type with removable tab.
[0007] This and other objects according to the present invention are achieved by providing a closing device for bottles with facilitated opening as described in claim 1.
[0008] Further features of the closing device for bottles with facilitated opening are described in the dependent claims.
[0009] The features and the advantages of a closing device for bottles with facilitated opening according to the present invention will become apparent from the following exemplary and non-limiting description, made with reference to the accompanying schematic drawings, in which:
figures 1-3 show side views of a first embodiment of the closing device for bottles according to the present invention, before opening the stopper, with tab removed and without stopper, respectively;
figure 4 shows a perspective view of the closing device for bottles of figures 1-3 in exploded configuration;
figures 5 and 6 show a side view and a section of the closing device for bottles of figures 1-3;
figure 7 shows a sectional view of the closing device of figures 1-3 mounted on the bottle;
figure 8 shows a second exemplary embodiment of the closing device, in which the pourer is made in a single piece, without the inner valve;
figure 9 shows a third embodiment of the closing device according to the present invention, in the configuration before the first opening of the stopper;
figure 10 shows a sectional view obtained along line X-X in figure 9; and
figure 11 is an enlarged a view of the detail indicated with XI in figure 10.
[0010] With reference to the figures, reference numeral 10 indicates a closing device for bottles according to the present invention. Such a closing device 10 for bottles 50 comprises:
- a pourer 14, alone or in multiple pieces, which can be constrained to the mouth of bottle and having an upper portion 15 provided with an outer thread 16;
- a stopper 11 having a side portion 13 provided, at the inner part thereof, with a thread 17 for coupling with the outer thread 16 of pourer 14;
- a cylindrical jacket 20 covering a lower portion 18, wherein the cylindrical jacket 20 is constrained both by rotation and by pulling off with respect to pourer 14; and
- a removable tab 19, arranged between stopper 11 and the cylindrical jacket 20.
[0011] In this way, before the first opening of the closing device 10, jacket 20 is integral with stopper 11 by means of the removable tab 19, thereby preventing the rotation of said stopper 11. Only after the removal of tab 19, as shown in figure 2, stopper 11 can be removed.
[0012] Figure 4 also shows an inner pourer and a valve, while in the embodiment of figure 8 the device 10 only comprises a single-piece pourer which includes both the inner pourer and the outer pourer.
[0013] According to the invention, the removable tab 19 is in the shape of a ring that runs along the entire circumference of the closing device 10. The removable tab 19 is delimited by a first upper breakage line 21 connected with stopper 11, and by a lower breakage line 22 connected with jacket 20.
[0014] The removable tab 19 also comprises a horizontal gripping portion 23 arranged between the upper 21 and lower 22 breakage lines. In particular, said horizontal gripping portion 23 is housed in a seat formed in the removable tab 19 and is facing towards a lowered portion 24 for supporting the grip.
[0015] The upper 21 and lower 22 breakage lines are provided with horizontal splits 25 for assisting the removal of the removable tab 19 and can be made by means of bridges 30 or with reduced section portions. Preferably, the horizontal gripping portion 23 has a knurled surface for supporting the grip.
[0016] Jacket 20 comprises a first upper abutment portion 28 for coupling with a seat formed in pourer 14, at the neck of the bottle 50. Jacket 20 also comprises a second lower abutment portion 29 for housing the lower edge of the pourer 14. Thanks to these upper 28 and lower 29 abutment portions, the jacket is constrained in pulling off with respect to pourer 14.
[0017] Furthermore, the relative rotation is prevented by means of a series of inclined teeth 31 and 32 obtained both within jacket 20 and externally to pourer 14.
[0018] In the embodiment of figures 9-11, the horizontal gripping portion 23 of the removable tab 19 is provided, on a rear surface thereof, i.e. the surface facing pourer 14 in the assembled configuration of the closing device 10, with at least one spacer element 33. As shown in figures 10 and 11, the spacer element 33 is configured to abut against the upper portion 15 of the pourer 14 to keep the horizontal gripping portion 23 of the removable tab 19 in a projecting position with respect to the side surface of the jacket 20. In this way, the user is facilitated in gripping the horizontal gripping portion 23 of the removable tab 19, in combination or in addition to the knurled surface for supporting the grip.
[0019] It has thus been seen that the closing device according to the present invention achieves the objects described above.
[0020] The closing device of the present invention thus conceived can be subjected to numerous modifications and variants, all falling within the same inventive concept as defined by the claims; moreover, all details may be replaced with technically equivalent elements. In the practice, the materials used as well as the dimensions thereof can be any according to the technical needs.
- a pourer (14) which can be constrained to the mouth of the bottle (50) and having an upper portion (15) provided with an outer thread (16) and a lower portion (18);
- a stopper (11) having a side portion (13) provided, at the inner part thereof, with a thread (17) for coupling with said outer thread (16) of said upper portion (15) of said pourer (14);
- a cylindrical jacket (20) covering a lower portion (18) of said pourer (14), said cylindrical jacket (20) being constrained both by rotation and by pulling off with respect to said pourer (14); and
- an annular removable tab (19) arranged between said stopper (11) and said cylindrical jacket (20) so that before the first opening of the closing device (10), said jacket (20) is integral with said stopper (11), thereby preventing the rotation thereof;
wherein said removable tab (19) has the configuration of a ring developing along the whole periphery of said closing device (10) and is delimited by a first upper breakage line (21) for connecting with said stopper (11) and by a lower breakage line (22) for connecting with said jacket (20), the closing device (10) being characterized in that said jacket (20) comprises a first upper abutment portion (28) for coupling with a seat obtained in said pourer (14) at the neck of the bottle (50), and a second lower abutment portion (29) for housing the lower edge of said pourer (14).- einen Ausgießer (14), der auf die Mündung der Flasche (50) beschränkt ist und einen oberen Abschnitt (15), der mit einem Außengewinde (16) bereitgestellt ist, und einen unteren Abschnitt (18) hat;
- einen Verschluss (11) mit einem Seitenabschnitt (13), der an seinem Innenteil mit einem Gewinde (17) zum Koppeln mit dem Außengewinde (16) des oberen Abschnitts (15) des Ausgießers (14) bereitgestellt ist;
- einen zylindrischen Mantel (20), der einen unteren Abschnitt (18) des Ausgießers (14) bedeckt, wobei der zylindrische Mantel (20) sowohl durch Drehung als auch durch Abziehen in Bezug auf den Ausgießer (14) beschränkt ist; und
- eine ringförmige entfernbare Lasche (19), die zwischen dem Verschluss (11) und dem zylindrischen Mantel (20) angeordnet ist, sodass, vor der ersten Öffnung der Schließvorrichtung (10), der Mantel (20) einstückig mit dem Verschluss (11) ist, wodurch dessen Drehung verhindert wird;
wobei die entfernbare Lasche (19) die Konfiguration eines Rings hat, die sich entlang des gesamten Umfangs der Schließvorrichtung (10) entwickelt, und durch eine erste obere Bruchlinie (21) zum Verbinden mit dem Verschluss (11) und durch eine untere Bruchlinie (22) zum Verbinden mit dem Mantel (20) abgegrenzt ist, wobei die Schließvorrichtung (10) dadurch gekennzeichnet ist, dass der Mantel (20) einen ersten oberen Anlageabschnitt (28) zum Koppeln mit einer Aufnahme, die in dem Ausgießer (14) am Hals der Flasche (50) erhalten wird, und einen zweiten unteren Anlageabschnitt (29) zum Aufnehmen des unteren Rands des Ausgießers (14) umfasst.- un verseur (14) qui peut être contraint dans le goulot de la bouteille (50) et présentant une partie supérieure (15) dotée d'un filetage extérieur (16) et une partie inférieure (18) ;
- un bouchon (11) présentant une partie latérale (13), dotée, au niveau de sa partie intérieure, d'un filetage (17) pour un couplage avec ledit filetage extérieur (16) de ladite partie supérieure (15) dudit verseur (14) ;
- une gaine cylindrique (20) recouvrant une partie inférieure (18) dudit verseur (14), ladite gaine cylindrique (20) étant contrainte à la fois par rotation et par traction par rapport audit verseur (14) ; et
- une languette amovible annulaire (19) disposée entre ledit bouchon (11) et ladite gaine cylindrique (20) de sorte qu'avant la première ouverture du dispositif de fermeture (10), ladite gaine (20) est solidaire dudit bouchon (11), empêchant ainsi sa rotation ;
ladite languette amovible (19) présentant la configuration d'un anneau se développant sur la périphérie totale dudit dispositif de fermeture (10) et étant délimitée par une première ligne de rupture supérieure (21) pour une liaison avec ledit bouchon (11) et par une ligne de rupture inférieure (22) pour une liaison avec ladite gaine (20), le dispositif de fermeture (10) étant caractérisé en ce que ladite gaine (20) comprend une première partie de butée supérieure (28) pour un couplage avec une embase obtenue dans ledit verseur (14) à l'embouchure de la bouteille (50), et une deuxième partie de butée inférieure (29) destinée à loger le bord inférieur dudit verseur (14).REFERENCES CITED IN THE DESCRIPTION
This list of references cited by the applicant is for the reader's convenience only. It does not form part of the European patent document. Even though great care has been taken in compiling the references, errors or omissions cannot be excluded and the EPO disclaims all liability in this regard.
Patent documents cited in the description