Plastic product dispenser body with moving bottom

Description

DOMAIN OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to the domain of packaging for pasty cosmetic products such as creams, or products in the divided state such as makeup powders.

It is particularly applicable to plastic dispenser bodies, for example pots for cosmetic products provided with a bottom and a lid typically screwed to the bottom.

It may also relate to packaging of food products or pharmaceutical products.

STATE OF THE ART

Commercial pots usually used comprise a plastic body consisting of a bottom and a lateral skirt, for which the top opening is threaded, and a threaded cap closing off the top opening.

Problems that Arise

Firstly, plastic bodies or pots according to the state of the art typically have a rigid bottom with a depth usually varying from 3 to 6 cm or even more, such that it is difficult to access all the product contained in the pot and to achieve a high restitution rate of the product contained in the said pot.

Secondly, in many cases, the pasty product is collected from the said pot with the fingers and is then applied usually to the face or to the skin. This type of collection and this manual application make the user's fingers dirty and possibly cause pollution of the product to be applied.

Furthermore, an increasing number of dispensers include complementary means of facilitating dispensing or application of the said product. These complementary means may also form means of heating or cooling the product to be dispensed.

Traditional dispenser bodies or pots are not suitable for the addition of such complementary means.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

According to the invention, the hollow body of a dispenser for a product, typically a cosmetic product, typically with a symmetry of revolution about an axial direction of the said body, comprises a sidewall and a supporting bottom, the said sidewall having an upper edge typically provided with an outer thread, forming an opening and is characterised in that:

• • a) the said body comprises a part, forming all or part of the said bottom, free to move in the axial direction under a manual axial force applied on the said part, due to a portion of the flexible wall of the said sidewall or the said bottom surrounding the said moving part and the thickness being chosen such that the said flexible wall is resilient in bending and forms a hinge,
  • b) the said flexible wall portion is an annular portion inscribed within a circle typically centred on the said axial direction of the said body,
  • c) the said body is formed from a plastic material that can be subjected to the said resilient bending for the said flexible wall portion,
  • such that the said stress or manual axial pressure applied on the said moving part pushes it into the said body along an axial displacement, the said moving part coming out of the said body and typically moving into its original axial position as soon as the said manual pressure is removed.

The combination of means according to the invention solves the problems that arise.

The applicant has observed that it is thus possible to have a plastic dispenser body with a bottom with an axial travel distance such that a technical effect can be implemented or triggered, this technical effect being of any nature among previously known technical effects.

This technical effect may relate to dispensing of the said product. Thus, for example, axial displacement of the said moving part may act as a propellant for the said product, displacement that can be repeated as often as required during dispensing or application of the said product, the product being expelled when the said manual pressure is applied, the said body possibly being closed by a mesh, and air entering in the said body during elastic return of the said moving part.

This technique may also relate to an operation to be carried out before the actual dispensing itself; for example, it may be to trigger mixing of two products, or to trigger heating or cooling of the said product.

Since an increasing number of dispensers include complex technical functions, it is important to have dispenser bodies that are suitable for integration of such technical functions.

DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

All Figures relate to bodies (1) according to the invention forming pots.

FIGS. 1a to 1e relate to a body (1) with a flared sidewall (2), while FIGS. 2a to 2c and 3a to 3b relate to another body (1) with a straight sidewall (2).

FIG. 1a is a section through the body (1) in a vertical plane including the axial direction (10) of the said body.

FIG. 1b is a side view.

FIG. 1c is a top view.

FIG. 1d is an enlarged view of the top straight part surrounded by circular dashed lines in FIG. 1a.

FIG. 1e is an enlarged view of the lower part of FIG. 1a, the part is surrounded by dashed lines in the form of a rectangle.

FIG. 2a shows a section corresponding to that in FIG. 1a in the left part, and a side view corresponding to that in FIG. 1b in the right part.

FIG. 2b is a top view.

FIG. 2c corresponds to FIG. 2a and represents a dispenser (6) comprising the said body (1) with a lid (4) and an auxiliary part (5) inside the said body.

FIGS. 3a and 3b are partial enlarged views of the left part in FIG. 2c.

FIG. 3a represents the top part of the dispenser (6) with its lid (4) and FIG. 3b represents the bottom (3).

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

According to the invention, the said plastic material may comprise a blend of two plastic materials, a first plastic material with a said high bending modulus, with a bending modulus of more than 350 MPa, and a second plastic material with a said low bending modulus, the bending modulus being less than 350 MPa.

The content by weight of the said first plastic material may vary from 40% to 80%, and content by weight of the said second plastic material may vary from 60% to 20%. The said first plastic material may be a thermoplastic material typically chosen from among PE, PP, and the said second plastic material is an elastomer, typically SEBS.

According to one embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 1a to 1e, the said sidewall (2) of the said body (1) may be a flared wall (2′).

In this body:

• • a) the said sidewall (2) may form a sequence of several circular wall portions, starting from the said upper edge and working towards the bottom, typically three walls P₁ (21), P₂ (22) and P₃ (23), with outside diameters D₁, D₂ and D₃ in decreasing order of diameter, each of the said diameters being taken at the top part of the said corresponding wall (21, 22, 23),
  • b) the said sequence of several circular wall portions, typically 3 walls P₁ (21), P₂ (22) and P₃ (23), may have decreasing average thicknesses E₁, E₂ and E₃,
  • c) the said bottom (3) may have a diameter D₄<D₃ and a thickness E₄ equal to at least 1.5E₃,
  • d) the said thickness E₃ may be chosen such that the said relatively thin wall portion P₃ (23) forms the said flexible wall portion (11) forming the said hinge and thus the said bottom (3) forms the said moving part (12).

Similarly, in the said body (1):

• • a) D₂/D₁ may be between 0.80 and 0.92,
  • b) D₂/D₃ may be between 0.6 and 0.8,
  • c) D₃/D₄ may be between 0.5 and 0.7,
  • and the said sidewall (2) may have an outside profile typically corresponding to a segment of a parabola as shown in FIGS. 1a and 1b.

The height H of the said body (1) may typically vary from 30 mm to 60 mm and the diameter D₁ that is larger varies from 40 mm to 70 mm.

Beside, in the said body (1);

• • a) the said average thickness E₁ of the wall P₁ or the upper wall may be between 5 mm and 2 mm,
  • b) the said average thickness E₂ of the wall P₂ or the median wall may be between 1 mm and 2 mm,
  • c) the said average thickness E₃ of the wall P₃ or the lower wall may be between 0.3 mm and 1.

According to the invention, and as shown in FIG. 1e, the said walls P₂ (22) and P₃ (23) may have a typically constant thickness E₂ and E₃, the said walls P₂ (22) and P₃ (23) being connected through an intermediate wall P₂₃ (24) with a variable thickness E₂₃ over its height H₂₃, the said height H₂₃ being between 2 and 5 mm.

As can be seen in FIG. 1a, the said wall P₁ (21) or upper wall may have a constant inside diameter over its entire height H₁, the said height H₁ varying from 12 mm to 30 mm, and preferably from 15 mm to 25 mm.

As can be seen in FIG. 1d, in which the said upper edge (20) or the top part of the said wall P₁ (21) may have a click fit means (25) that will cooperate with an auxiliary part (5), the said auxiliary part (5) typically closing off the said opening (201) and forming means of application of the said product.

In FIG. 1d, this means is a circular groove into which an add-on part click fits to obstruct the said opening (201) and possibly form a means of application of the said product.

As illustrated in FIG. 1e, the said wall P₃ (23) or the lower wall may have an average angular slope α₃ with the said typically plane bottom (3) varying from 20° to 40°, the said wall P₂ having an average angular slope α₂ such that α₃=α₂+Δα where Δα varies from 10° to 30°.

According to another embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 2a to 3b, the said sidewall (2) may form a typically cylindrical straight skirt (2″) connected to the said bottom (3), the said bottom (3) comprising the said flexible wall portion (11) and the said moving part (12).

The said straight skirt (2″) may have an average thickness E₁ between 5 mm and 2 mm, and the said bottom (3) may include:

• • a) a peripheral part F₁ (30) with the said average thickness E₁,
  • b) a median part F₂ (31) with thickness E₂ between 0.3 mm and 1 forming a portion of the flexible wall (11),
  • c) a central part F₃ (32) with thickness E₃ between 1 mm and 2 mm, the said central part F₃ (32) forming the said moving part (12) of the said bottom.

The said median part F₂ (31) may form or include an outer re-entrant ring (310) with a slope β₁ varying from 30° to 70° and a projecting inner ring (311) with a slope β₂ varying from −10° to 50°.

Preferably, as illustrated in FIG. 3b, when the said stress or manual pressure (7) is not applied, the said central part F₃ (31) may be offset inwards with respect to the said peripheral part F₁ with a height h varying from 2 to 5 mm, so as to avoid or limit the risk of a force being accidentally applied on the said central part F3 (31).

As illustrated also in FIG. 3b, the said straight skirt (2″) and the said bottom (3) may have a radius of curvature of the fillet R varying from 5 to 15 mm, and typically from 6 mm to 10 mm.

According to the invention, the said straight skirt (2″) may have a round or oval or square or rectangular cross-section, taken perpendicular to the said axial direction. In fact, the skirt may have any shape.

Regardless of the embodiment of the invention, the said body (1) may be a moulded part, typically formed by injection of the said plastic material.

The said axial displacement when the said stress or manual pressure (7) is applied to the said moving part (12), pushes it into the said body (1), and may cover an axial distance varying from 2 mm to 10 mm, and typically from 3 to 6 mm.

This axial distance is chosen depending on the technical functions built into the said body that require the said auxiliary part (6).

Another purpose of the invention is a product dispenser containing a body (1) according to the invention, a means (4) of closing off the said opening and typically an auxiliary part (5) that depends on the said axial displacement for its operation.

EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS

FIGS. 1a to 1e show a first example embodiment of a body (1) according to the invention.

In this example, the said body (1) is a pot with a flared wall (2′) that can contain a pasty product or a solid product in the divided state, such as a makeup powder. The opening (201) of this body may be closed off by an auxiliary part (5) (not shown in FIGS. 1a and 1d) that will be used for application of the product.

In this example, part of the sidewall (2, 2′) forms the said flexible wall portion (11), while the said bottom (3) forms the said moving part (12).

This pot may be closed off by a lid provided with an inner thread that will cooperate with the thread (200) of the upper edge (20) of the sidewall (2) of the said body (1).

FIGS. 2a to 3b form a second example embodiment of a body (1) according to the invention.

In this example, the said body (1) is a pot with a straight skirt (2″) and the said bottom includes the said flexible wall portion (11) and the said moving part (12).

The figures show the said auxiliary part (5) that is a device with a metallic wall for which axial displacement will trigger a physical process, for example such as mixing of two products contained in the said body, separately until the said manual pressure is applied.

ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides a means of making a body made of a plastic material, part of which forms a sort of sealed entry door, enabling reliable and repeated action on the content(s) of the said body, typically using an auxiliary part, and typically in order to either propel the product towards the opening of the body for application, or to mix several products.

But the invention is not limited to these two technical effects alone.

More and more packagings incorporate complex technical functions, either for traceability of products, to make tamper resistant containers, to enable guaranteed identification, protection against theft, etc., and these technical functions may be passive or may possibly be activated at a given moment of the life of the product, knowing that such activation may require a simple elementary means such as axial displacement, knowing that electromagnetic waves or signals can be stopped by metal walls of some packaging means.

	List of marks

	Dispenser body	1
	Axial direction	10
	Flexible wall portion	11
	Moving part	12
	Sidewall of 1	2
	Flared wall	2′
	Straight skirt	2″
	Upper edge	20
	Outer thread	200
	Opening	201
	Portion P1 of 2	21
	Portion P2 of 2	22
	Portion P3 of 2	23
	Intermediate wall P23	24
	Click fit means	25
	Bottom of 1	1
	Peripheral part F1	30
	Median part F2	31
	Outer ring	310
	Inner ring	311
	Central part F3	32
	Lid	4
	Lower edge	40
	Inner thread	400
	Seal	41
	Auxiliary part	5
	Dispenser = 1 + 4 + 5	6
	Manual axial pressure	7