Squeeze container

Abstract

To provide a squeeze container which prevents torsional deformation in a body part even when a fastening torque is applied thereto.SOLUTION: A squeeze container 1 made of a synthetic resin includes a mouth part 11, a body part 13 and a bottom part 14, wherein the body part 13 has a flat shape in plan view, and is configured to be deformed by pressing so as to squeeze out a content, the body part 13 has a maximum diameter position 13M at which a flat shape has a maximum diameter in a long axis 15 direction at a height position between an upper end and a lower end, recessed ribs 21 recessed inward in a thickness direction are provided at the maximum diameter position 13M of the body part 13, the recessed ribs 21 extend above and below the maximum diameter position 13M in a height direction within a height range of 10% or more of a height dimension H of the body part 13, and the recessed ribs 21 have a single directional inclination part 23 which is inclined to a lower left side from an upper right side in a front face view and a back face view with the long axis 15 direction as a horizontal direction of the squeeze container 1.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a squeeze container made of synthetic resin, the body of which is configured to be deformed by pressure so that the contents can be squeezed out. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, squeeze containers made of synthetic resin, such as squeeze bottles and tube containers, whose body is configured to be deformed when pressed so that the contents can be squeezed out, have been widely used as containers used for storing paste-like or paste-like contents, such as grated wasabi (paste-like wasabi), grated garlic, grated ginger, mayonnaise, and ketchup.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 describes a synthetic resin squeeze container that is formed into a bottle shape with a mouth, shoulder, body, and bottom by extrusion blow molding (EBM) of a synthetic resin material mainly composed of low-density polyethylene, and the body has a flat shape with a long axis and a short axis that intersect on the axis of the mouth, and is configured to deform when pressed so that the contents can be squeezed out. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2019-119477 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In squeeze containers that dispense the contents by squeezing, the body of the container is required to be soft in order to improve the feeling of squeezing. In addition, in these squeeze containers, due to restrictions such as the shape of the neck and the filling line equipment, a method is sometimes used in which the container body is inserted into a jig or the like and a screw cap is attached with the body fixed.

[0006] However, with such squeeze containers, if a factor occurs that reduces the rigidity of the body of the container, such as when the contents are hot filled or when the amount of resin is further reduced in recent years due to environmental considerations, when a screw cap is attached to the mouth, the container may be twisted and deformed due to the attachment torque of the screw cap, so there is room for improvement in this regard.

[0007] The present disclosure is directed to solving such problems, and has an objective to provide a squeeze container whose body is less likely to be twisted even when a screw tightening torque is applied. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to solve the above problems, the squeeze container of the present disclosure comprises: [1] A squeeze container made of synthetic resin having a mouth, a body, and a bottom, the body being deformed by pressure so as to be able to squeeze out the contents, The body portion has a maximum diameter position at a height position between an upper end portion and a lower end portion, where the width in the left-right direction in a front view is maximum, a concave rib recessed inward in a thickness direction is provided at the maximum diameter position of the body portion, and the concave rib extends above and below the maximum diameter position in a height direction within a height range of 10% or more of a height dimension of the body portion, The concave rib has a unidirectional inclined portion inclined from the upper right to the lower left in at least one of a front view and a rear view of the squeeze container.

[0009] The squeeze container of the present disclosure further comprises: [2] In the configuration described in [1] above, it is preferable that the concave rib has a V-shaped inclined portion that slopes downward or upward from the left / right end portion toward the left / right center portion in at least one of the front view and the rear view.

[0010] The squeeze container of the present disclosure further comprises: [3] In the configuration described in [1] or [2] above, it is preferable that the unidirectional inclined portion is inclined at an angle of 30 degrees or more and 80 degrees or less with respect to the horizontal direction.

[0011] The squeeze container of the present disclosure further comprises: [4] In any of the configurations described in [1] to [3] above, it is preferable that the concave rib is provided below the upper end of the body portion, below a height range of 20% of the height dimension of the body portion. Effect of the Invention

[0012] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a squeeze container whose body is less likely to be twisted even when a screw tightening torque is applied. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a front view of a squeeze container according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a right side view of a squeeze container according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a bottom view of a squeeze container according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 1. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a front view of the squeeze container of Comparative Example 1. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 is a front view of a squeeze container of Comparative Example 2. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] Hereinafter, a squeeze container 1 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings.

[0015] In this specification and claims, the up-down direction means the upper and lower directions when the squeeze container 1 is in an upright position as shown in Fig. 1. The radially outward direction means the direction away from the central axis O along a straight line passing through the central axis O of the squeeze container 1 in Fig. 1 and perpendicular to the central axis O, and the radially inward direction means the direction toward the central axis O along the straight line. The circumferential direction means the direction of rotation around the central axis O.

[0016] The squeeze container 1 according to this embodiment has a flat shape in plan and bottom views (see FIG. 3). The front view of the squeeze container 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a view seen from a direction in which the major axis 15 of the flat shape is in the left-right direction of the figure. Similarly, the right side view of FIG. 2 is a view seen from a direction in which the minor axis 16 of the flat shape is in the left-right direction of the figure.

[0017] The accompanying drawings of the present disclosure are drawn to the same scale in the vertical and horizontal directions, and the aspect ratio of the squeeze container 1 in the drawings represents the aspect ratio of the squeeze container 1 of one embodiment of the present disclosure. However, the configuration, shape, dimensional ratio, etc. of the squeeze container 1 in the accompanying drawings are merely one embodiment of the present disclosure. The present invention should be interpreted based on the wording of the claims, and is not limited to the configuration, shape, dimensional ratio, etc. shown in the drawings.

[0018] A squeeze container 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure shown in Figs. 1 to 5 can be used to store paste-like or paste-like contents, such as grated wasabi (paste-like wasabi), grated garlic, grated ginger, mayonnaise, ketchup, etc.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 1 and other figures, the squeeze container 1 has a mouth 11, a neck 18, a shoulder 12, a body 13, and a bottom 14. In the illustrated case, the squeeze container 1 has a generally bottle-like shape. The body 13 of the squeeze container 1 is a portion that laterally surrounds the storage space S from the lower edge of the shoulder 12 to the boundary with the bottom 14 in FIG. 1. That is, the height dimension H in FIG. 1 is the height of the body 13. Note that the neck 18 and the shoulder 12 may not be provided.

[0020] In this embodiment, the squeeze container 1 is made of synthetic resin in which the mouth 11, the neck 18, the shoulder 12, the body 13 and the bottom 14 are integrally formed from a synthetic resin material mainly made of medium density polyethylene (MDPE). As the main material, a medium density polyethylene having a bending modulus of elasticity of 200 to 700 MPa can be particularly preferably used. The squeeze container 1 can also be made of synthetic resin integrally formed from a synthetic resin material mainly made of another synthetic resin material such as low density polyethylene (LDPE) instead of medium density polyethylene. When low density polyethylene is used for the squeeze container 1, the rigidity of the body 13 when pressed can be further reduced to improve the squeezability. The squeeze container 1 of the present disclosure is assumed to be a soft type container in which the pressing force required to displace the body 13 by 10 mm is 10 [N] or less.

[0021] By making the squeeze container 1 from a synthetic resin mainly made of medium-density polyethylene, the body 13 has a suitable degree of flexibility and is more easily deformed, making it possible to more easily squeeze out the contents of the squeeze container 1.

[0022] The squeeze container 1 may be configured to have an EVOH layer (ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer resin layer) as a barrier layer between the inner layer and the outer layer formed of the main material medium density polyethylene. In this case, an adhesive layer for preventing delamination between the inner layer and the EVOH layer and between the outer layer and the EVOH layer may be configured to be provided. In addition, a recycled layer formed of a material obtained by mixing the main material medium density polyethylene with a recycled material may be provided between the inner layer and the inner adhesive layer. The recycled material is a material obtained by crushing and reusing scraps including the above-mentioned layers of the squeeze container 1, and is mainly composed of the main material medium density polyethylene. In the case of the above-mentioned layer configuration, the ratio of medium density polyethylene to the entire squeeze container 1 is preferably 90% or more.

[0023] The EVOH layer used as the barrier layer is preferably formed from EVOH having an ethylene content of 29 to 44 mol%. By forming the EVOH layer from EVOH having an ethylene content of 29 to 44 mol%, it is possible to prevent the EVOH layer from cracking when the contents are squeezed out while ensuring appropriate oxygen barrier performance. In contrast, if the EVOH layer is formed from EVOH having an ethylene content of less than 29 mol%, there is a risk that the EVOH layer will crack when the contents are squeezed out. Also, if the EVOH layer is formed from EVOH having an ethylene content of more than 44 mol%, the oxygen barrier performance will be insufficient.

[0024] In the present embodiment, squeeze container 1 has a laminated structure having the above-mentioned EVOH layer (barrier layer), so that body portion 13 is soft with appropriate flexibility while the barrier properties of body portion 13 against oxygen permeation are enhanced, thereby suppressing oxidation of the contents.

[0025] In this embodiment, the squeeze container 1 is formed by extrusion blow molding (EBM) a parison having a laminated structure having the above-mentioned layer configuration.

[0026] Next, the configuration of each part of the squeeze container 1 will be described.

[0027] The mouth 11 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and its tip is an outlet 11a for the contents. The open end of the mouth 11 is formed flat, so that after the contents are filled, the outlet 11a can be sealed by attaching a film-like sealing material such as an aluminum seal to the open end. In addition, a male screw 11b is integrally formed on the outer circumferential surface of the mouth 11, and the outlet 11a can be closed with a cap by screwing a screw cap or the like onto the male screw 11b.

[0028] The shoulder 12 is connected to the lower end of the mouth 11 via a neck 18 (see FIG. 1) that is further reduced in diameter than the mouth 11, and extends radially outward from the lower end of the neck 18. In other words, the neck 18 and shoulder 12 connect the lower end of the mouth 11 and the upper end of the body 13. The upper end of the body 13 has a larger cross-sectional shape than the lower end of the mouth 11, and the neck 18 and shoulder 12 connect them.

[0029] In this embodiment, the shoulder portion 12 may be shaped to extend at an angle of 45 degrees or more and 90 degrees or less with respect to a central axis O passing through the central axes of the mouth portion 11 and the body portion 13, for example.

[0030] The body 13 has a flat shape with a long axis 15 and a short axis 16 (see FIG. 3) that intersect on the central axis O of the mouth 11 in a plan view and a bottom view, and is connected at its upper end to the outer circumferential end of the shoulder 12. The inside of the body 13 forms a storage space S (see FIGS. 4 and 5), and the above-mentioned contents can be stored in the storage space S. The body 13 is flexible, and is configured so that it can be deformed by pressing (squeezing) to squeeze the contents stored in the storage space S out through the mouth 11.

[0031] In this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 1, the body 13 has a downwardly bulging shape in which the width in the direction of the long axis 15 is greater at the end (lower end) on the bottom 14 side than at the end (upper end) on the shoulder 12 side, and the width in the direction of the long axis 15 is greatest on the bottom 14 side than at the midpoint between the shoulder 12 and the bottom 14. In this embodiment, the height position at which the width in the direction of the long axis 15 of this body 13 is greatest is referred to as the maximum diameter position 13M (see Fig. 1). In this embodiment, at the maximum diameter position 13M, the width of the body 13 in the direction of the long axis 15 is greatest, and the circumferential length of the body 13 is also greatest.

[0032] Because the body 13 has the above-mentioned downward bulging shape, even if the amount of contents stored in the body 13 decreases, the squeeze container 1 can be stably positioned in an upright position, and the contents can be effectively squeezed out from the mouth 11 when the body 13 is pressed.

[0033] At the maximum diameter position 13M of the body 13, a concave rib 21 is provided that is concave inward in the thickness direction (radial direction) of the body 13. The concave rib 21 extends at least from the maximum diameter position 13M up and down in the height direction over a height range of at least 10% of the height dimension H of the body 13. That is, the concave rib 21 extends upward from the maximum diameter position 13M over a vertical distance of at least 10% of the height dimension H of the body 13. Similarly, the concave rib 21 extends downward from the maximum diameter position 13M over a vertical distance of at least 10% of the height dimension H of the body 13. Note that the concave rib 21 extending over a predetermined height range may be present over the height range in front and back views. In this embodiment, the cross section of the concave rib 21 is substantially arc-shaped as shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5.

[0034] In this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 1, the concave rib 21 forms a unidirectional inclined portion 23 that inclines from the upper right to the lower left on the right side of the central axis O in a front view. In this embodiment, the unidirectional inclined portion 23 is arranged such that adjacent concave ribs 21 are substantially parallel to each other and substantially equally spaced from each other. In this way, by forming the unidirectional inclined portion 23 in which the concave rib 21 inclines from the upper right to the lower left, it is possible to suppress twisting of the body portion 13 when a clockwise attachment torque is applied in a plan view of the screw cap, even if factors that reduce the rigidity of the body portion 13 occur, such as when hot-filling the contents or further reducing the amount of resin in the body portion 13.

[0035] That is, when the squeeze container 1 is rotated clockwise in a plan view in order to screw a screw cap or the like into the mouth 11 of the squeeze container 1, a mounting torque in the same direction is applied to the mouth 11. The squeeze container 1 according to this embodiment has a body 13 formed softly to enhance squeezability, so that the above-mentioned mounting torque is likely to cause wrinkles in a direction from the upper left to the lower right in a front view. However, in this embodiment, a unidirectional inclined portion 23 is formed in a direction substantially perpendicular to the above-mentioned wrinkles, that is, inclined from the upper right to the lower left in a front view, so that the occurrence of wrinkles in the above-mentioned direction from the upper left to the lower right can be suppressed. Therefore, it is possible to effectively suppress twisting deformation when a screw cap or the like is screwed into the mouth 11 of the squeeze container 1.

[0036] In this embodiment, a unidirectional inclined portion 23 inclined from the upper right to the lower left is also formed on the right side of the central axis O in rear view. That is, a unidirectional inclined portion 23 is also formed at a position rotated 180 degrees around the central axis O from the unidirectional inclined portion 23 on the front side. Therefore, the unidirectional inclined portion 23 on the rear side more effectively suppresses torsional deformation when a screw cap or the like is screwed into the mouth 11 of the squeeze container 1. The unidirectional inclined portion 23 may be provided in an area of ​​the body 13 that is visible only in either the front view or the rear view.

[0037] As shown in FIG. 1, the concave rib 21 is inclined with respect to the horizontal direction, and forms a V-shaped inclined portion 25 that draws a V-shape symmetrical with respect to the central axis O in front view. As shown in FIG. 1, the V-shaped inclined portion 25 is composed of a plurality of concave ribs 21 that are parallel to each other, with the right and left sides of the central axis O forming an angle α with the horizontal direction. The V-shaped inclined portion 25 includes a unidirectional inclined portion 23 on the right side of the central axis O. This configuration makes it easier to maintain the balance of the shape of the squeeze container 1 at the time of molding while enjoying the above-mentioned advantages obtained by providing the unidirectional inclined portion 23. In this embodiment, the V-shaped inclined portion 25 that draws a V-shape symmetrical with respect to the central axis O in rear view is also formed. The angle α can be a value of 0 degrees or more and 90 degrees or less, but in this embodiment, the angle α is greater than 0 degrees and less than 90 degrees.

[0038] The angle α that the unidirectional inclined portion 23 and the V-shaped inclined portion 25 make with respect to the horizontal direction is preferably 30 degrees or more and 80 degrees or less. By setting the angle α within this range, it is possible to suppress the twisting deformation of the body portion 13 and to improve the squeezability at the same time. That is, when the angle α is less than 30 degrees (see FIG. 6), the concave rib 21 extends in the short side direction in the front view (the left-right direction in FIG. 1), so that the rigidity of the body portion 13 in the short side direction in the front view is increased. Therefore, since the rigidity of the body portion 13 in the short side direction in the front view is increased, the pressing force required to press the body portion 13 by a predetermined pressing amount (for example, 10 mm) is increased, and the squeezability of the body portion 13 is reduced.

[0039] Furthermore, when the angle α is greater than 80 degrees (see FIG. 7), the concave rib 21 is oriented generally in the vertical direction, and therefore the concave rib 21 is deformed like a bellows by the installation torque (torsion torque) applied when a screw cap or the like is screwed into the mouth 11 of the squeeze container 1, and the body 13 does not have sufficient torsional resistance against the installation torque.

[0040] In this embodiment, the V-shaped inclined portion 25 is configured to form a V shape that is convex downward, but is not limited to this form. The V-shaped inclined portion 25 may be configured to form a V shape that is convex upward in front view and back view. In this case, the concave rib 21 on the left side of the central axis O inclines from the upper right to the lower left, forming a unidirectional inclined portion 23 that effectively suppresses torsional deformation when a screw cap or the like is screwed into the mouth portion 11 of the squeeze container 1.

[0041] When a screw cap or the like is attached to the mouth 11 of the squeeze container 1, the body 13 may be inserted into a ring-shaped jig (a so-called hakama jig) to restrain the circumferential rotation of the body 13, and the screw cap or the like may be attached to the mouth 11. In this case, it is difficult to predict in advance which circumferential position of the body 13 is likely to cause wrinkles due to the application of a twisting torque to the mouth 11. Therefore, it is preferable to prepare both a squeeze container 1 having a V-shaped inclined portion 25 that draws a V-shape that is convex downward and a squeeze container 1 having a V-shaped inclined portion 25 that draws a V-shape that is convex upward, and to adopt the one in which the unidirectional inclined portion 23 is arranged at a circumferential position where wrinkles are likely to occur when a twisting torque is applied to the mouth 11.

[0042] The V-shaped inclined portion 25 may be provided only in a region of the body portion 13 that is visible only when viewed from the front or from the back.

[0043] In this embodiment, the concave rib 21 is provided below the upper end of the body 13, below a height range that is 20% of the height dimension H of the body 13. In other words, the vertical distance between the upper end of the body 13 and the upper end of the concave rib 21 is set to 20% or more of the height dimension H of the body 13. If the concave rib 21 is provided on the upper part of the body 13, it will be difficult to squeeze the body 13 when attempting to expel the contents when the remaining amount becomes small, so the concave rib 21 is not provided on the upper part of the body 13.

[0044] In this embodiment, concave ribs 21 are also provided on the right side surface (see FIG. 2) and left side surface of the body portion 13. The upper portion of the concave rib 21 on the right side of the central axis O in FIG. 1 extends to the right side surface while drawing a substantial arc, and is smoothly connected to the concave rib 21 on the back side on the right side surface.

[0045] By forming the body 13 as described above, the contents can be easily squeezed out from the mouth 11 by pressing the body 13 so that the front side and the back side approach each other. In addition, the body 13 can be easily restored to its original shape after being pressed, making the squeeze container 1 more suitable for applications in which the contents are squeezed out by pressing.

[0046] These concave ribs 21 can deform so as to absorb changes in the internal pressure in accordance with changes in the internal pressure of the body 13. Therefore, even if a change occurs in the internal pressure of the body 13 during a series of processes in which the contents are filled, the mouth 11 is closed, the contents are heat sterilized, and then the contents are cooled, the pressure change can be absorbed by the concave ribs 21, and deformation of the squeeze container 1 can be prevented.

[0047] The bottom 14 is integrally connected to the lower end of the body 13, and functions as a closing part that closes the lower end of the body 13. As shown in Fig. 1, the central part of the bottom 14 has a recess 14a that is recessed upward in a dome shape, and the recess 14a is provided with a cut-off part 14b for the parison in extrusion blow molding.

[0048] In the squeeze container 1 of the present embodiment having such a configuration, as described above, the body 13 can be pressed and crushed by hand or the like so that the front side and the back side approach each other, so that the contents can be easily squeezed out from the spout 11a of the mouth 11. The squeeze container 1 is formed mainly from low-density polyethylene, which is a relatively soft material, so that the body 13 is easy to crush, and the contents can be squeezed out even more easily.

[0049] As described above, the present embodiment is a synthetic resin squeeze container 1 having a mouth 11, a body 13, and a bottom 14, and configured such that the body 13 can be deformed by pressing to squeeze out the contents, the body 13 has a maximum diameter position 13M at a height position between the upper end and the lower end where the width in the left-right direction in a front view is maximum, the maximum diameter position 13M of the body 13 is provided with a concave rib 21 that is concave inward in the thickness direction, the concave rib 21 extends from the maximum diameter position 13M in the height direction to a height range of 10% or more with respect to the height dimension H of the body 13, respectively up and down in the height direction, and the concave rib 21 has a unidirectional inclined portion 23 that inclines from the upper right to the lower left when the squeeze container 1 is viewed from the front and back. By adopting such a configuration, the unidirectional inclined portion 23 extending in a direction perpendicular to the wrinkles caused by twisting deformation when a screw cap or the like is screwed into the mouth 11 of the squeeze container 1 is formed, so that the occurrence of the above-mentioned wrinkles can be suppressed. Therefore, it is possible to effectively suppress torsional deformation that occurs when a screw cap or the like is screwed onto the mouth portion 11 of the squeeze container 1.

[0050] In this embodiment, the concave rib 21 is configured to have a V-shaped inclined portion 25 that inclines downward or upward from the left and right ends toward the left and right center in front and back views. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to enjoy the advantage of suppressing torsional deformation obtained by providing the unidirectional inclined portion 23, while making it easier to maintain the left and right shape balance of the squeeze container 1 during molding.

[0051] In this embodiment, the unidirectional inclined portion 23 is inclined at an angle of 30 degrees to 80 degrees with respect to the horizontal direction. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to suppress the torsional deformation of the body portion 13 and improve the squeezability at the same time.

[0052] In this embodiment, the concave rib 21 is configured to be provided below the upper end of the body 13, below a height range that is 20% of the height dimension H of the body 13. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to prevent a problem that the position of the concave rib 21 makes it difficult to squeeze the upper part of the body 13 when dispensing the contents when the remaining amount of the contents becomes small.

[0053] Although the present disclosure has been described based on various drawings and examples, it should be noted that a person skilled in the art can easily make various modifications and corrections based on the present disclosure. Therefore, it should be noted that these modifications and corrections are included in the scope of the present invention. For example, the functions included in each component can be rearranged so as not to be logically contradictory, and multiple components can be combined into one or divided. In addition, the configurations of each embodiment can be appropriately combined with each other. It should be understood that these are also included in the scope of the present invention.

[0054] For example, in this embodiment, the concave rib 21 is configured to be formed as the V-shaped inclined portion 25, but is not limited to this. The concave rib 21 may be a spiral rib extending from the upper right to the lower left in a front view and a rear view. In this case, a unidirectional inclined portion 23 is provided on both sides of the central axis O.

[0055] In the present embodiment, the unidirectional inclined portion 23 and the V-shaped inclined portion 25 are configured so that the adjacent recessed ribs 21 are arranged substantially parallel to each other and at substantially equal intervals, but the present invention is not limited to this. The adjacent recessed ribs 21 do not have to be parallel to each other or arranged at substantially equal intervals.

[0056] Furthermore, the concave rib 21 is not limited to a configuration that extends continuously around the entire circumference of the body portion 13, but may also be a configuration that extends intermittently around the entire circumference of the body portion 13 (a configuration that extends while being divided in the circumferential direction with intermittent portions).

[0057] Furthermore, the cross-sectional shape of the recessed rib 21 is not limited to a substantially arc-shaped one as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, and the cross-sectional shape can be variously modified.

[0058] Furthermore, the squeeze container 1 is not limited to a bottle shape, but can also be configured as a tube container in which the lower end of a body 13 formed into a cylindrical shape using a laminated tube or the like is crushed flat to form a bottom 14 (closed portion).

[0059] Furthermore, the squeeze container 1 is not limited to those formed by extrusion blow molding, but may be formed by other methods, such as by blow molding a preform that is previously formed into a bottomed cylindrical shape from a synthetic resin material such as low-density polyethylene.

[0060] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the squeeze container 1 is used to store paste-like or grated contents such as grated wasabi (paste-like wasabi), grated garlic, grated ginger, mayonnaise, ketchup, etc., but the present invention is not limited to this and can also be used to store other contents.

[0061] In addition, in this embodiment, the front view is defined as a view from a direction in which the long axis 15 of the flattened body 13 in a planar view is in the left-right direction, but this is not limited to this, and the front view may be defined as a view from any direction in which the maximum diameter position 13M of the body 13 can be seen.

[0062] In the present embodiment, the body 13 is configured to have a flat shape in a plan view, but is not limited to this. The body 13 may have, for example, a substantially circular shape in a plan view, or a rectangular shape. When the body 13 has a substantially rectangular shape in a plan view, the front view may be a view from a direction in which the long side of the rectangular shape extends in the left-right direction. EXAMPLES

[0063] Four types of containers (Example and Comparative Examples 1 to 3) were created that were identical to the squeeze container 1 according to this embodiment except for the arrangement of the concave ribs 21 (see Table 1 and Figs. 6 and 7), and were evaluated for (1) torsional resistance, (2) buckling strength, and (3) body rigidity (squeezability) (see Table 2).

[0064] Table 1 is a table summarizing the arrangement of the concave ribs of the four types of containers created. The embodiment is the squeeze container 1 shown in FIG. 1, and the angle α of the concave rib 21 with respect to the horizontal direction is 60 degrees. Comparative Example 1 is the container shown in FIG. 6, and is the same as the embodiment except that the concave rib 121 is a horizontal rib (angle α=0 degrees) and the concave rib 121 is provided to the left and right ends of the body part 13 in the front and back views. Comparative Example 2 is the container shown in FIG. 7, and is the same as the embodiment except that the concave rib 221 is a vertical rib (angle α=90 degrees) and the concave rib 221 is provided to a position slightly above the center height of the body part 13. Comparative Example 3 is a container in which the concave rib 21 is removed from the squeeze container 1 of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1.

[0065] [Table 1]

[0066] Table 2 shows the evaluation results for the four types of containers. For evaluation item (1) "torsion resistance," each container was filled with hot water at 70°C, the upper end of the mouth 11 was sealed with an aluminum seal, and then the screw cap was attached, and the torsional torque [N·cm] was measured when the container buckled at the point of contact with the fixed jig. For evaluation item (2) "buckling strength," each container was filled with hot water at 70°C, and the buckling strength [N] was measured when a compressive stress was applied to each container in an upright position. For evaluation item (3) "body rigidity," an iron bar with a diameter of 20 [mm] was pressed against the center height of the body 13 of each container, and the pressing load [N] when it was displaced 10 [mm] was defined as the "body rigidity."

[0067] [Table 2]

[0068] According to the evaluation results shown in Table 2, in the "Example" provided with the concave rib 21 forming the unidirectional inclined portion 23 and the V-shaped inclined portion 25, the "torsion resistance" was improved by about 18%, from 40.9 [N·cm] to 48.3 [N·cm], while maintaining the "buckling strength" at the same level, compared to the "Comparative Example 3" without the concave rib. Although wrinkles tend to occur in the direction from the upper left to the lower right of the body 13 in a front view due to the clockwise mounting torque in a plan view for screwing the screw cap or the like into the mouth 11, the unidirectional inclined portion 23 extends in a direction approximately perpendicular to the wrinkles, and thus the occurrence of wrinkles can be suppressed. Therefore, it is considered that the torsional deformation when screwing the screw cap or the like can be effectively suppressed.

[0069] On the other hand, in the "Example", although the "body rigidity" is increased compared to the "Comparative Example 3", the "body rigidity" can be reduced by about 8% compared to the "Comparative Example 1" which also has a high "torsion resistance". This is because in the Comparative Example 1, the concave rib 121 extends in the short direction (left and right direction in FIG. 6) in the front view (see FIG. 6), so the rigidity of the body 13 in the short direction is increased. Therefore, the pressing force required to press the body 13 by a predetermined pressing amount (for example, 10 mm) is increased, and the squeezability of the body 13 is reduced. In the Example, since the concave rib 21 extends in a direction inclined by 60 degrees from the horizontal direction, it is considered that the pressing force required to press the body 13 by a predetermined pressing amount can be reduced by orienting the concave rib 21 in the longitudinal direction (up and down direction) of the body 13 in the front view.

[0070] In "Comparative Example 2", the "body rigidity" can be reduced to the same level as in "Example" by orienting the concave rib 21 in the longitudinal direction (vertical direction) of the body 13 in front view. However, in "Comparative Example 2", the angle between the concave rib 221 (see FIG. 7) and the wrinkles that occur in the direction from the upper left to the lower right of the body 13 in front view due to the mounting torque of the screw cap, etc., becomes shallow, so it is considered that the effect of suppressing torsional deformation when the screw cap, etc. is screwed and engaged is not sufficiently obtained. [Explanation of symbols]

[0071] 1 squeeze container 11 Mouth 11a spout 11b Male thread 12 Shoulder 13 Torso 13M Maximum diameter position 14 Bottom 14a Recess 14b Food cutting section 15 Long axis 16 Short axis 18 Neck 21 Concave rib 23 Unidirectional inclined section 25 V-shaped inclined part 121,221 Concave rib H Height dimension O center axis S Storage space α angle

Claims

1. A squeeze container made of synthetic resin having a mouth, a body, and a bottom, the body being deformed by pressure so as to be able to squeeze out the contents, The body portion has a maximum diameter position at a height position between an upper end portion and a lower end portion, where the width in the left-right direction in a front view is maximum, a concave rib recessed inward in a thickness direction is provided at the maximum diameter position of the body portion, and the concave rib extends above and below the maximum diameter position in a height direction within a height range of 10% or more of a height dimension of the body portion, The squeeze container, wherein the concave rib has a unidirectional inclined portion inclined from the upper right to the lower left in at least one of a front view and a back view of the squeeze container.

2. The squeeze container according to claim 1 , wherein the concave rib has a V-shaped inclined portion that inclines downward or upward from a left or right end portion toward a left or right center portion in at least one of the front view and the rear view.

3. The squeeze container according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the unidirectional inclined portion is inclined at an angle of 30 degrees to 80 degrees with respect to a horizontal direction.

4. 3. The squeeze container according to claim 1, wherein the concave rib is provided below an upper end of the body portion at a position lower than a height range of 20% of a height dimension of the body portion.

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