Container, closure, and methods for manufacture

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12291379-B2
Application number	US-202318391984-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 21, 2023
Priority date	Sep 20, 2019
Publication date	May 6, 2025
Grant date	May 6, 2025

Abstract

In some embodiments, apparatuses and methods are provided herein useful to contain and dispense a fluid, such as a thixotropic fluid. In some embodiments, a bottle having a closure cap includes a control device, a base, and a disk, where the base and disk define a mixing chamber configured to facilitate mixing of any serum or liquid separated from the fluid back therein. In some embodiments, a dispensing bottle includes a non-removable closure cap with a tamper evident feature that indicates whether the cap was previously opened. By one approach, the dispensing bottle includes discontinuous threads on a bottle neck and ratchet projections on a closure cap that engage the discontinuous thread(s) to prevent or inhibit manual removal of the cap from the bottle.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A dispensing bottle comprising:
a container body with a thixotropic fluid therein, the container body having a neck with threads thereon, the bottle threads being discontinuous such that the bottle threads have at least one space therein such that between a first thread portion and a second thread portion a first space is disposed, the container body not including an inner liner;
a closure cap having a base and a control device,
the base having a skirt with an inner surface thereof having base threads disposed thereon and base ratchet projections extending from the inner surface thereof, the base threads configured to engage the threads on the neck and at least a portion of one of the ratchet projections configured to engage the first space between the first thread portion and the second thread portion to prevent or hinder manual removal of the closure cap from the container body, the base having a retaining ring, and a central portion having an opening therein aligned with an internal shaft terminating at a non-planar end surface opposite the central portion, the opening permitting the fluid to egress through the opening when the opening is unobstructed,
the control device being reclosably movable between a closed first position to an open second position, the control device not including a silicone rubber valve;

a disk attached to an interior of the base, the disk having a pinhole and partial annular slots disposed around the pinhole; and
a mixing chamber defined by the disk, the central portion, the skirt, and the internal shaft, wherein multiple fluid channels are formed by the non-planar end surface of the internal shaft and the disk:
wherein the closure cap is capable of maintaining the thixotropic fluid in stable equilibrium without leakage with the bottle in an inverted position such that the closure cap is at a bottom thereof with the control device in the closed first position; and
wherein application of pressure to the container body with the control device in the open second position enables controlled dispensing of the thixotropic fluid, with fluid being dispensed through the partial annular slots, through the mixing chamber, and through the fluid channels before exiting the dispensing bottle via the opening in the base, and wherein release of pressure on the container body enables prompt cessation of dispensing by permitting air to flow back into the container body, and spring back and reversal of flow of thixotropic fluid in the interior channel, without movement of the disk relative to the base.

2. The dispensing bottle of claim 1 , wherein the control device is a flip-top lid having an interior projection, the projection blocking the opening of the base inhibiting egress of the fluid inside the container body in the first position and the second position permits egress of the fluid through the opening of the base.

3. The dispensing bottle of claim 1 wherein the mixing chamber has a capacity of about 2 mL to about 11 mL and wherein the disk is attached to the base via the retaining ring.

4. The dispensing bottle of claim 3 wherein the mixing chamber has a capacity of about 5 mL to about 7 mL for a dispensing bottle having a capacity of about 250 ml to 1000 ml.

5. The dispensing bottle of claim 1 wherein the mixing chamber prevents serum from leaking from the dispensing bottle and wherein the mixing chamber mixes serum that has separated from the thixotropic fluid back into the thixotropic fluid.

6. The dispensing bottle of claim 1 wherein the thixotropic fluid travels from the container body through the partial annular slots, through the mixing chamber, through the channels formed by the internal shaft and the disk, and through the opening in the central portion of the base, and through pinhole in the disk during dispensing.

7. The dispensing bottle of claim 1 further comprising an internal cut-off blade having a ledge on an inside of the opening.

8. The dispensing bottle of claim 1 wherein the central portion comprises a dome-shaped central surface having a peripheral planar surface therearound.

9. The dispensing bottle of claim 1 wherein the non-planar end surface terminating the internal shaft opposite the central portion comprises a stepped configuration creating a plurality of teeth and a plurality of depressions in the non-planar end surface.

10. The dispensing bottle of claim 1 wherein the non-planar end surface terminating on the internal shaft opposite the central portion comprises at least some arcuate surface portions forming one or more depressions.

11. The dispensing bottle of claim 1 wherein the disk has a diameter of about 20-40 mm and the internal shaft has a height of about 4-12 mm and a diameter of about 3-9 mm.

12. The dispensing bottle of claim 1 wherein the disk is stationary relative to the base and both the cap and the disk are comprised of a single food grade plastic.

13. The dispensing bottle of claim 1 wherein air is admitted through at least one of the pinhole and the partial annular slots.

14. The dispensing bottle of claim 1 wherein the disk further comprises a plurality of extensions extending from a first side of the disk such that the extensions extend toward the base when the disk is attached thereto.

15. The dispensing bottle of claim 1 wherein the disk further includes one or more intermediate openings between the annular slots and the pinhole.

16. A dispensing bottle comprising:
a container body having a neck with bottle threads thereon, the bottle threads being discontinuous such that the bottle threads have at least one space therein such that between a first thread portion and a second thread portion a first space is disposed;
a closure cap having a base and a control device,
the base having at least, a dome-shaped wall with an opening, an outer skirt, with an inner surface thereof having base threads disposed thereon and base ratchet projections extending from the inner surface thereof, an inner skirt connected to the outer skirt by a planar portion, and an internal shaft inwardly depending from the dome-shaped wall, the internal shaft terminating at a non-planar end surface;
the control device being movable from a closed position to an open position;
a disk attached to an interior of the base by snapping the disk into the base, the disk having one or more flanges extending from the disk toward the base, a centrally disposed post, and a plurality of openings through the disk; and
a mixing chamber defined by the disk, the dome-shaped wall, the inner skirt, and the internal shaft, wherein multiple fluid channels are formed by the non-planar end surface of the internal shaft and the disk,
wherein the bottle threads are sized and located to threadingly engage the base threads once the closure cap is secured to the container body and at least a portion of one of the ratchet projections engages the first space between the first thread portion and the second thread portion to prevent or hinder manual removal of the closure cap from the container body.

17. The dispensing bottle of claim 16 , wherein the control device is a flip-top lid hingedly connected to the base, the flip-top lid having a projection and being movable between the closed position where the projection blocks the opening and the open position where the projection does not obstruct the opening of the base.

Assignees

• Heinz Co Brands H J Llc

Inventors

• Hiltser Balint
• Lueb Guus
• Devries Charlotte Catherine Erik
• Bertens-Vlems Kim
• Cox Thomas
• Fox Jamie

Classifications

• B65D55/022

  with ratchet effect between relatively rotating parts (B65D41/3404, B65D50/04 take precedence) · CPC title

• B65D41/04

  Threaded or like caps or cap-like covers secured by rotation · CPC title

• B65D41/0471

  with means for positioning the cap on the container, or for limiting the movement of the cap, or for preventing accidental loosening of the cap · CPC title

• B65D51/1644

  the element being a valve (B65D51/1661 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B65D47/2081

  in which the deformation raises or lowers the valve port · CPC title