Fluid container

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10093459-B2
Application number	US-201515510662-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 11, 2015
Priority date	Sep 12, 2014
Publication date	Oct 9, 2018
Grant date	Oct 9, 2018

Abstract

A fluid container includes a support body having a reservoir for accommodating fluid, and a nozzle body attached to the support body. The support body has a lid for closing the reservoir. The nozzle body includes: a formation unit for forming an opening through the lid; a pipe communicating with the opening for permitting passage of the fluid; and a discharge port communicating with the pipe for discharging the fluid. In a first state, the formation unit and the lid are separated as the nozzle body and the support body are engaged. In a second state, the opening of the lid is formed as the nozzle body moves in a direction to approach the support body from the first state. In a third state, at least a part of the formation unit and the lid are separated as the nozzle body moves in an opposite direction from the second state.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A fluid container, comprising:
a support body having
a reservoir for accommodating fluid;
a lid unit for closing the reservoir; and
a pair of first engaging units each provided with an engagement surface; and

a nozzle body attachable to the support body and including
an opening formation unit for forming an opening through at least a part of the lid unit;
a pipe provided in the opening formation unit and configured to permit passage of the fluid;
a discharge port communicating with the pipe and configured to discharge the fluid;
a pair of second engaging units located on an inner circumferential surface of the nozzle body, the second engaging units being configured to engage with the engagement surfaces of the first engaging units, respectively; and
a protrusion portion protruding from the inner circumferential surface of the nozzle body and located upstream of the second engaging units in a first direction in which the nozzle body moves toward the support body to be attached to the support body,

wherein
the nozzle body is rotatable in a rotation direction of the nozzle body from a first state, to a second state, and then to a third state with respect to the support body,
in the first state, the opening formation unit and the lid unit are separated from each other, and the opening formation unit is located at a first position relative to the lid unit,
in the second state, the opening formation unit passes through the lid unit and located at a second position relative to the lid unit, and the protrusion portion contacts and presses against the support body in the first direction, and
in a third state, the opening formation unit is located at a third position downstream of the first position in the first direction and upstream of the second position in the first direction,
the engagement surface of each of the first engaging units is an end surface of the first engaging unit and configured to face the corresponding second engaging unit in the first direction,
the support body further includes a movement restriction unit radially outwardly protruding from an outer circumferential surface of the support body and configured to restrict a further rotation of the nozzle body in the rotation direction from the third state,
the first engaging units are separately formed on different halves of the outer circumferential surface of the support body, and
the second engaging units are separately formed on different halves of the inner circumferential surface of the nozzle body.

2. The fluid container according to claim 1 , wherein
the engagement surface of each of the first engaging units includes
a first region inclined downstream in the first direction,
a second region positioned downstream of the first region in the first direction, and
a third region positioned upstream of the second region in the first direction,

in the first state, each of the second engaging units is engaged with the first region of the engagement surface of the corresponding first engaging unit,
in the second state, each of the second engaging units is engaged with the second region of the engagement surface of the corresponding first engaging unit, and
in the third state, each of the second engaging units is engaged with the third region of the engagement surface of the corresponding first engaging unit.

3. The fluid container according to claim 2 , wherein
the support body further includes a locking unit protruding outwardly from the outer circumferential surface of the support body and located downstream of the first engaging units in the first direction, and
the locking unit is configured to temporarily fix one of the second engaging units in the second region in the second state where said one of the second engaging units is engaged with the engagement surface of the corresponding first engaging unit.

4. The fluid container according to claim 2 , wherein
a length of each of the first engaging units gradually increases from the first region toward the second region in the first direction, and
the nozzle body is configured to move in the first direction gradually toward the support body when one of the second engaging units is moved while being engaged with the first region of the engagement surface of the corresponding first engaging unit.

5. The fluid container according to claim 1 , wherein
the opening formation unit has a piercing edge facing the lid unit in the first direction and configured to tear the lid unit to form the opening,
the piercing edge is inclining in the first direction,
in the second state, an entirety of the piercing edge is arranged within the reservoir, and
in the third state, a part of the piercing edge is arranged within the reservoir and a different part of the piercing edge is arranged outside the reservoir.

6. The fluid container according to claim 5 , wherein
the piercing surface of the opening formation unit has an upstream end, and multiple downstream ends downstream of the upstream end in the first direction, and
in the third state, the multiple downstream ends of the piercing edge of the opening formation unit are arranged within the reservoir whereas the upstream end of the piercing edge of the opening formation unit is arranged outside the reservoir.

7. The fluid container according to claim 1 , wherein
the support body and the nozzle body are formed of a transparent or translucent material.

8. The fluid container according to claim 1 , wherein
the nozzle body is configured to rotate in the rotation direction while moving toward the support body in the first direction from the first state to the second state, and
the nozzle body is configured to rotate in the rotation direction while moving away from the support body in a second direction from the second state to the third state, the second direction being opposite to the first direction.

9. The fluid container according to claim 1 , wherein the support body further includes a guide unit radially outwardly protruding from the outer circumferential surface of the support body, wherein
the guide unit is arranged opposite to the engagement surfaces of the first engaging units and configured to guide one of the second engaging units to move while said one of the second engaging units is engaged with the engagement surface of the corresponding first engaging unit.

10. The fluid container according to claim 9 , wherein
the guide unit is opposite to one of the engagement surfaces in a same half of the outer circumferential surface of the support body,
a distance between the guide unit and said one of the engagement surfaces in the first direction is equal to or more than a length of the second engaging unit in the first direction.

11. A fluid container, comprising:
a support body having a reservoir for accommodating fluid; and
a nozzle body attached to the support body,

wherein
the support body has a lid unit for closing the reservoir,
the nozzle body includes:
an opening formation unit for forming an opening through at least a part of the lid unit;
a pipe communicating with the opening of the lid unit, the pipe permitting passage of the fluid; and
a discharge port communicating with the pipe, the discharge port discharging the fluid,

the fluid container is configured to realize
a first state where the opening formation unit and the lid unit are separated as the nozzle body and the support body are engaged,
a second state where the opening of the lid unit is formed by the opening formation unit as the nozzle body moves in a first direction to approach the support body from the first state, and
a third state where at least a pa

Assignees

• Unicharm Corp

Inventors

• Ikegami Takeshi

Classifications

• B65D35/44 Primary

  Closures (closure members of interest apart from this application B65D39/00 - B65D55/00; forming bottom closures after filling B65B7/14) · CPC title

• B65D51/221

  a major part of the inner closure being left inside the container after the opening · CPC title

• B65D35/38

  Nozzles · CPC title

• A61J1/1406

  Septums, pierceable membranes · CPC title

• A61J1/1412

  Containers with closing means, e.g. caps · CPC title