Resealable pouring element for cardboard/plastic composite packages with a tamper-evident seal to indicate the initial opening

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11840380-B2
Application number	US-202017772922-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 13, 2020
Priority date	Nov 29, 2019
Publication date	Dec 12, 2023
Grant date	Dec 12, 2023

Abstract

Represented and described is a resealable pouring element for cardboard/plastic composite packages, in particular beverage packages, with a base element having a circumferential fastening flange as well as an external thread, with opening means arranged at least in the unopened state of the pouring element in the interior of the base element and with a screw cap with internal thread, wherein the opening means are designed such that when the composite package is initially opened by unscrewing the screw cap by breaking the composite material of the package or a barrier layer located in the base element, a pour opening is created inside the pouring element and wherein at least one tamper-evident seal is arranged between the base element and the screw cap. In order to reduce the assembly effort for such a resealable pouring element, it is provided that an anchor ring is arranged below the screw cap and is connected to the screw cap via a hinge a rotationally fixed manner and in that the tamper-evident seal consists of an indicating element, whose one end is fixedly connected to the anchor ring or the screw cap and in which the other end is connected to the anchor ring by means of a predetermined breaking point in such manner that the predetermined breaking point of at least one mandrel element arranged on the fastening flange is broken when the screw cap is unscrewed and thus indicates to the consumer that an initial opening has already taken place.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A resealable pouring element for cardboard/plastic composite packages, in particular beverage packages, with a base element having a circumferential fastening flange as well as an external thread, with opening means arranged at least in an unopened state of the pouring element in an interior of the base element and with a screw cap with internal thread, wherein the opening means are designed such that when a composite package is initially opened by unscrewing the screw cap, the opening means breaks a composite material of the package or a barrier layer located in the base element, a pour opening is created inside the pouring element and wherein at least one tamper-evident seal is arranged between the base element and the screw cap,
wherein an anchor ring is arranged below the screw cap and is connected to the screw cap via a hinge in a rotationally fixed manner and in that the tamper-evident seal consists of an indicating element, whose one end is fixedly connected to the anchor ring or the screw cap and in which the other end is connected to the anchor ring by means of a predetermined breaking point in such manner that the predetermined breaking point of at least one mandrel element arranged on the fastening flange is broken when the screw cap is unscrewed and thus indicates to the consumer that an initial opening has already taken place.

2. A pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein the anchor ring is freely and radially rotatable around the base element and is connected to the base element in a tension-resistant manner in an axial direction.

3. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein the anchor ring has at least one cam on its upper side, which is arranged in the region of the indicating element, has an oblique surface and engages into a corresponding recess of the lower edge of the screw cap.

4. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein the predetermined breaking point of the indicating element is arranged in the screw-off direction of the screw cap before the fixed connection with the anchor ring.

5. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein the predetermined breaking point of the indicating element is arranged in the screw-off direction of the screw cap behind the fixed connection with the anchor ring.

6. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein the indicating element is designed as a radially projecting loop and in that the predetermined breaking point of the indicating element is arranged on the fixed connection with the anchor ring.

7. The pouring element according to claim 6 ,
wherein the loop encloses the mandrel element on the fastening flange before the initial opening.

8. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein a membrane is provided as a predetermined breaking point of the indicating element.

9. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein the mandrel element is arranged radially outside the anchor ring on the fastening flange.

10. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein an internal bead is designed circumferentially on the anchor ring.

11. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein the mandrel element is arranged below the anchor ring on the fastening flange.

12. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein the indicating element and the mandrel element are aligned with one another in an unopened position such that the predetermined breaking point of the mandrel element is broken after an angle of rotation of 3° to 10° when the screw cap is screwed on.

13. The pouring element according to claim 12 ,
wherein the predetermined breaking point of the mandrel element is broken after an angle of rotation of 5° to 7° when the screw cap is screwed on.

14. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein the predetermined breaking point breaks when the screw cap is screwed on at a torque of >0.2 Nm.

15. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein the predetermined breaking point is broken when the screw cap is screwed on before the composite package is initially opened or before the barrier layer is broken.

16. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein the lower cut between the anchor ring and the screw cap is higher than the upper end of the indicating element.

17. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein the indicating element is arranged opposite the hinge in relation to the circumference of the screw cap.

18. The pouring element according to claim 1 ,
wherein at least one tamper-evident seal is used as transport protection.

Assignees

• Sig Technology Ag

Inventors

• Wassum Markus
• Koller David
• Huber Hansjörg

Classifications

• B65D5/748 Primary

  a major part of the container wall or membrane being left inside the container after the opening · CPC title

• B65D41/3409

  the tamper element being integrally connected to the closure by means of bridges · CPC title

• B65D2401/15

  Tearable part of the closure (B65D2401/60 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B65D5/747 Primary

  with means for piercing or cutting the container wall or a membrane connected to said wall · CPC title

• B65D55/024

  Closures in which a part has to be ruptured to gain access to the contents (B65D41/32, B65D43/0235, B65D55/022, B65D55/06 take precedence) · CPC title