Vessel

Abstract

The disclosure relates to a vessel for holding fluid. The vessel has at least one wall defining a mouth, the mouth having an inner surface, an outer surface, an end surface and one or more spouts located at the junction of the inner and end surfaces. At least one of the one or more spouts comprises a recess in the inner surface and an outlet at the end surface, the recess being shaped to transition smoothly from the inner surface to the outlet. The disclosure also relates to a vessel and lid assembly and a pouring attachment for a bottle having the mouth as described above.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0001]The present invention relates to a vessel for holding and dispensing fluid.[0002]The invention has been developed primarily for use in the pharmaceutical and food industries; for example, for holding and dispensing liquid medication and liquid ingredients respectively and will be described hereinafter with reference to these applications. However, it will be appreciated that the invention is not limited to these particular fields of use; for example, it may be used in any industrial, domestic or commercial industries in which fluids need to be dispensed accurately or without spillage; for example, the vessels may be used to hold and dispense engine oil, water, milk, paints or dyes.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Fluids are usually stored in vessels such as vials, bottles, containers, jugs, kettles, decanters and buckets.[0004]In the pharmaceutical industry or food industry, liquid medication or liquid ingredients are often sold in small glass or plastic ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0014]Advantageously, the provision of at least one spout allows a user to more readily control pouring of the fluid and reduces the chance of spilling, overflowing and / or dripping. Furthermore, the provision of a recess allowing the fluid to travel smoothly from the body of the vessel to the outlet, allows the volume flow rate to be controlled.

[0045]Advantageously, the provision of a recess allows the fluid to travel smoothly from the body of the vessel to the outlet, allows the volume flow rate to be better controlled and reduces the chance of a sudden spurt of fluid.

Problems solved by technology

It is often difficult, especially for the elderly, to accurately control the pouring of a small amount of liquid.

The liquid may travel too quickly from the body of the bottle to the outlet resulting in a large or sudden volume of liquid being expelled due to the sharp contour between the body of the bottle and the mouth.

This may result in a splash or an overflow.

Thus, it may be difficult to avoid wastage, which, relative to the size of the dosage, may constitute a considerable proportion of the liquid.

Dripping or overflow may also cause the formation of a sticky residue on the outside surface of the mouth, which can interrupt screwing and unscrewing of the cap, or on the outside surface of the bottle, which can feel unpleasant.

In these cases, controlled pouring is required to prevent spillage outside of the receiving inlet as this would cause wastage, mess and a potential safety hazard.

Funnels are sometimes used for this application, but are not always readily available.

The telescopic mouth requires manual extraction however, and for sticky residues or ‘clean’ fluids, using a finger to pull out the telescopic mouth may result in the user having sticky hands or contaminating the fluid stored within.

If the fluid is viscous the telescopic mouth may become lodged within the main mouth and a long period of use may result in the telescopic mouth breaking.

Due to the non-uniformity of the mouth, however, screw-on caps cannot be used to seal the jug.

In these examples, the jugs may not be sealed sufficiently to be watertight and airtight and are thus not usually utilized for long-term storage of liquids.

Jugs are generally too large for dispensing small volumes of fluids.

The spout protrudes from the side of the kettle and thus kettles cannot be as compactly stored side-by-side as bottles with substantially straight sides.

Kettles are not ideally used to store liquids for extended periods of time.

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