Stopper for discharge container and discharge container with stopper

Abstract

To provide a stopper for a discharge container that can be easily switched between a function of preventing a nozzle head from being carelessly pressed down and a function of enabling use as a finger hook.SOLUTION: A stopper 1 for a discharge container comprises: an inner peripheral part 2 which is held at a neck part 56; an outer peripheral part 6 which is provided radially outside relative to the inner peripheral part 2; a gap part 7 which is located between the inner peripheral part 2 and the outer peripheral part 6, and in which a nozzle head 55 is put when the nozzle head 55 is pressed down; a flange part 9 which extends radially outward from the outer peripheral part 6; and a stopper part 11 which is arranged in parallel with the flange part 9 and can move to and away from the neck part 56 to move between a backward movement position where the stopper part is apart from the neck part 56 and allows the nozzle head 55 to enter the gap part 7 and a forward movement position where the stopper part gets closer to the neck part 56 and protrudes to the gap part 7 above the outer peripheral part 6 to stop the nozzle head 55 from being pressed down.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3A

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a stopper for a dispensing container used in a dispensing container which dispenses contents by depressing an upwardly biased nozzle head, and to a dispensing container with a stopper that is provided with this dispensing container stopper. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art In containers filled with contents such as shampoo, body soap, hand soap, and facial cleanser, a dispensing container equipped with a dispenser that dispenses the contents by depressing an upwardly biased nozzle head is widely used.

[0003] In this type of dispensing container, in order to prevent the nozzle head from being inadvertently pressed down during transportation, etc., it is common to attach a stopper to the neck portion located between the nozzle head and the base cap that holds the dispenser on the container.

[0004] In the past, in many cases, this type of stopper was simply discarded after being removed from the dispenser when used. In response to this, the applicant of the present application has proposed a stopper that can be used as a finger hook when pushing down the nozzle head, as shown in Patent Document 1, thereby making it easy to push down the nozzle head with one hand. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6278840 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, the stopper in Patent Document 1 is attached to the neck in the upside-down position when preventing the nozzle head from being pressed down and when used as a finger hook. This means that users may not realize that the stopper removed for discharging the contents can be used as a finger hook, and may not be reused as such.

[0007] In view of these points, the present invention aims to propose a stopper for a discharge container that can be easily switched between its function of preventing the nozzle head from being inadvertently pressed down and its function of being able to be used as a finger hook, thereby encouraging its use as a finger hook, and a discharge container with a stopper that is equipped with this discharge container stopper. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The present invention provides a stopper for a dispensing container, which is attached to a neck portion of a dispensing container having a container for accommodating a content, a base cap attached to a mouth portion of the container, a nozzle head biased upwardly relative to the base cap, and a neck portion located between the base cap and the nozzle head, An inner periphery that is held by the neck portion; An outer circumferential portion provided radially outward from the inner circumferential portion; a gap portion located between the inner peripheral portion and the outer peripheral portion, into which the nozzle head enters when the nozzle head is pressed down; A flange portion extending radially outward from the outer circumferential portion; The stopper for a discharge container comprises a stopper portion arranged in parallel with the flange portion, capable of moving forward and backward relative to the neck portion, and moving between a retracted position where it is away from the neck portion to allow the nozzle head to enter the gap portion, and an advanced position where it approaches the neck portion and protrudes into the gap above the outer periphery to prevent the nozzle head from being pushed down.

[0009] It is preferable that the flange portion has a gap portion extending in the front-rear direction and into which the stopper portion is fitted.

[0010] It is preferable to have an inverting portion that integrally connects the rear end of the flange portion and the rear end of the stopper portion and maintains the stopper portion in the retracted position in an outward orientation, while maintaining the stopper portion in the advanced position in an inward orientation inverted from the outward orientation.

[0011] The present invention also provides a discharge container with a stopper, comprising the discharge container and the stopper for the discharge container, The discharge container is flat in a plan view, The flange portion is also a discharge container with a stopper that is located inside the discharge container in a plan view in a state where it is oriented in a direction along the longitudinal direction of the discharge container in a plan view. Effect of the Invention

[0012] The stopper portion of the stopper for a discharge container of the present invention prevents the nozzle head from being pushed down when moved to the forward position, and allows the nozzle head to be pushed down when moved to the backward position. In addition, since a finger can be hooked on the flange portion, the nozzle head can be easily pushed down with one hand. Thus, according to the stopper for a discharge container of the present invention, the function of preventing the nozzle head from being accidentally pushed down and the function of being usable as a finger hook can be switched simply by moving the stopper portion forward or backward, which encourages use as a finger hook. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a plan view of one embodiment of the stopper for a dispensing container according to the present invention, showing a state in which the stopper portion is displaced to a retreated position. [Diagram 2] 2 is a plan view of the stopper for the discharge container shown in FIG. 1 in a state where a stopper portion is displaced to an advanced position. FIG. [Figure 3A] 2 is a diagram of a stopper-equipped dispensing container in which the stopper for the dispensing container shown in FIG. 1 is attached to the dispensing container (the stopper for the dispensing container is a cross-sectional view taken along AA in FIG. 1, and the dispensing container is a front view). [Figure 3B] FIG. 3B is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of FIG. 3A. [Figure 4A] 3B is a diagram showing the stopper-equipped discharge container shown in FIG. 3A from another viewpoint (the stopper for the discharge container is a cross-sectional view taken along BB in FIG. 1, and the discharge container is a side view). FIG. [Figure 4B] FIG. 4B is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of FIG. 4A. [Diagram 5] 3B is a diagram showing the state in which the nozzle head is pressed down from the state shown in FIG. 3A to discharge the contents onto the palm of the hand (the stopper for the discharge container is a plan view, and the discharge container is a cross-sectional view taken along DD in FIG. 3A). [Figure 6A] 3B is a diagram showing a state in which the stopper portion shown in FIG. 3A is displaced to an advanced position (the stopper for the discharge container is a cross-sectional view taken along CC in FIG. 2, and the discharge container is a front view). [Figure 6B] FIG. 6B is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of FIG. 6A. [Figure 7] 3A is a diagram showing the stopper-equipped discharge container shown in FIG. 6A from another viewpoint (the stopper for the discharge container is a plan view, and the discharge container is a cross-sectional view taken along line DD in FIG. 3A). DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] Hereinafter, a stopper 1, which is one embodiment of the stopper for a dispensing container according to the present invention, and a dispensing container with a stopper 100, which is one embodiment of a dispensing container with a stopper, will be described with reference to the drawings. The dispensing container with a stopper 100 is a container in which the stopper 1 is attached to the dispensing container 50. In the following description, the up-down direction is a direction along the axis O (the central axis of the stopper 1 and the dispensing container 50) shown in FIG. 3A, and the side where the container 51 described later is located is the lower side, and the side where the nozzle head 55 is located is the upper side. The front side is the side where the discharge port 55c is located, and the back side is the opposite side. The left side and the right side are the left-right directions when viewed from the front side to the back side. The radial direction is a direction perpendicular to the axis O in a plane perpendicular to the axis O, and the circumferential direction is a direction that rotates around the axis O in this plane.

[0015] First, the discharge container 50 will be described with reference to Figures 3A, 4A, and 5. The discharge container 50 includes a container 51 and a discharger 52 attached to the container 51. The discharger 52 includes a base cap 53, a pump 54, and a nozzle head 55.

[0016] Container 51 is a bottomed tubular shape formed like a bottle with axis O as the center, and has a cylindrical mouth at the top to which base cap 53 is attached. Contents (such as shampoo, body soap, hand soap, and facial cleanser, for example) are stored inside container 51. Container 51 of this embodiment is shaped to be flat (e.g., elliptical, rounded rectangular, or truck-shaped) in plan view. As shown in FIG. 5, container 51 of this embodiment is elliptical in plan view.

[0017] The base cap 53 is attached to the mouth of the container 51 and holds the pump 54 in a suspended state on the container 51. The mechanism for attaching the base cap 53 to the mouth of the container 51 may be such that a male thread is provided on the outer circumferential surface of the mouth of the container 51 and a female thread is provided on the inner circumferential surface of the base cap 53, or the two may be engaged by an undercut. The base cap 53 of this embodiment has a cylindrical neck 56 extending upward along the axis O.

[0018] Pump 54 is composed of a cylinder, piston, check valve, spring, stem, etc. (not shown). The stem is hollow and disposed inside neck 56, and is biased upward by a spring. A nozzle head 55 is attached to the upper end of the stem. In pump 54 thus configured, when the stem is moved up and down, the piston moves within the cylinder, and the contents contained in container 51 are sucked into the cylinder, further pressurized, and flow inside the stem.

[0019] When connected to the stem, the nozzle head 55 is biased upward by a spring via the stem. When the nozzle head 55 is biased upward, the neck 56 is exposed between the base cap 53 and the nozzle head 55, as shown in Figures 3A and 4A. A cylindrical outer peripheral wall 55a having a larger diameter than the neck 56 is provided at the lower part of the nozzle head 55, and when the nozzle head 55 is pressed down, the neck 56 is located radially inside the outer peripheral wall 55a.

[0020] Nozzle head 55 has an internal passageway that communicates with the inside of the stem, and this internal passageway communicates with nozzle 55b that protrudes radially outward from nozzle head 55. Therefore, when nozzle head 55 is pushed down to drive pump 54, the content contained in container 51 passes through the inside of the stem and the internal passageway of nozzle head 55, and is then discharged to the outside world from discharge port 55c provided at the tip of nozzle 55b.

[0021] Next, the stopper 1 will be described with reference to Figs. 1, 3A and 4A.

[0022] In this embodiment, the stopper 1 has an inner peripheral portion 2 that is C-shaped in plan view as shown in FIG. 1 and extends along an axis O as shown in FIGS. 3A and 4A. The inner peripheral portion 2 is elastically deformable so that an opening of the C-shaped portion opens, and is a portion that is held by the neck portion 56 by being inserted into the neck portion 56 through this opening. The inner peripheral surface of the inner peripheral portion 2 in this embodiment is formed in an uneven shape as shown in FIG. 1, and is configured to locally contact the outer peripheral surface of the neck portion 56. In addition, as shown in FIG. 1, inner cutout portions 3 are provided on the right and left sides of the inner peripheral portion 2. The inner cutout portion 3 is formed so as to cut out the upper end portion of the inner peripheral portion 2 as shown in FIG. 3B, and the height of the inner peripheral portion 2 where the inner cutout portion 3 is located is lower than the other portions.

[0023] The lower end of the inner circumferential portion 2 is integrally connected to a plate-like connecting portion 4 that extends radially outward and has a C-shape in a plan view. A through hole 5 that extends in an arc shape is provided on the front side of the connecting portion 4 as shown in FIG. 1. Note that the through hole 5 of this embodiment also penetrates through the outer circumferential portion 6, which will be described later, as shown in FIG. 4B. One of the functions of the through hole 5 is to reduce the amount of resin used in the stopper 1. In addition, by providing the through hole 5, any contents or the like that enter between the inner circumferential portion 2 and the connecting portion 4 can be discharged to the outside.

[0024] The outer edge of the connecting portion 4 has a C-shape in plan view as shown in FIG. 1, and is integrally connected to the outer peripheral portion 6 extending along the axis O as shown in FIGS. 3B and 4B. A gap 7 with an open upper side is provided between the inner peripheral portion 2 and the outer peripheral portion 6. Furthermore, outer cutout portions 8 are provided on the right and left sides of the outer peripheral portion 6 as shown in FIG. 1. The outer cutout portions 8 are shaped to cut out the upper end portion of the outer peripheral portion 6 as shown in FIG. 3B, and the height of the outer peripheral portion 6 where the outer cutout portions 8 are located is lower than the other portions.

[0025] The upper end of the outer peripheral portion 6 is integrally connected to a flange portion 9 extending radially outward. A pair of flange portions 9 are provided on the right and left sides. The flange portion 9 in this embodiment is plate-shaped, and as shown in FIG. 1, the shape in plan view is such that the width (length from the front side to the back side) increases from the inner end (end connected to the upper end) of the outer peripheral portion 6 toward the radially outward side, and then extends radially outward while maintaining a substantially constant width. In addition, a gap portion 10 is provided in the widthwise center of the flange portion 9, which has a shape that penetrates the flange portion 9 in the thickness direction. The radially inner width of the gap portion 10 is substantially the same as the width of the outer cutout portion 8 described above. The radially outer portion of the outer cutout portion 8 expands toward the widthwise outer side.

[0026] The gap 10 is provided with a stopper portion 11 arranged in parallel with the flange portion 9. The stopper portion 11 in this embodiment is plate-shaped and has a rectangular shape in a plan view as shown in Fig. 1. The stopper portion 11 is provided at a position that is the same height as the flange portion 9, and its lower surface is located at approximately the same height as the upper surface of the inner peripheral portion 2 at the portion where the inner cutout portion 3 is provided and the upper surface of the outer peripheral portion 6 at the portion where the outer cutout portion 8 is provided, as shown in Fig. 3B.

[0027] As described later, the stopper portion 11 can move (advance) from the state shown in FIG. 1 to the state shown in FIG. 2 (from the state shown in FIG. 1 to the state approaching the inner circumferential portion 2), and can also move (retract) from the state shown in FIG. 2 to the state shown in FIG. 1. Here, the position of the stopper portion 11 in the state shown in FIG. 1 is referred to as the "retracted position", and the position in the state shown in FIG. 2 is referred to as the "advance position". In the following description, the radially inner side of the stopper portion 11 may be referred to as the "front side", and the radially outer side may be referred to as the "rear side". On the upper surface of the stopper portion 11, there are provided a finger hook portion 12 used as a finger hook when moving forward and backward, and an indicator portion 13 indicating the direction in which the stopper portion 11 is moved (in this embodiment, the direction in which the stopper portion 11 is moved from the advanced position shown in FIG. 2 to the retreated position shown in FIG. 1).

[0028] The above-mentioned flange portion 9 and stopper portion 11 are integrally connected by a reversing portion 14 shown in Fig. 1. A pair of reversing portions 14 are provided on both the front side and the back side of the stopper portion 11. The reversing portion 14 of this embodiment has, at one end thereof, a first thin-walled portion 15 integrally connected to the rear end (outer end) of the flange portion 9, and at the other end thereof, a second thin-walled portion 16 integrally connected to the rear end (outer end) of the stopper portion 11. The reversing portion 14 can be elastically deformed from an outward position protruding radially outward as shown in Fig. 1 to an inward position protruding radially inward as shown in Fig. 2.

[0029] When the stopper 1 having such a shape is pushed into the neck 56 of the dispensing container 50 with the opening of the C-shaped part in the inner circumferential part 2 facing the neck 56, the stopper 1 is elastically deformed to open the opening, and the stopper 1 can be attached to the neck 56. When the stopper 1 is attached to the neck 56, as shown in FIG. 5, the pair of flange parts 9 are attached in a state where they are located on the left and right sides (the pair of flange parts 9 are oriented in a direction along the longitudinal direction of the dispensing container 50 which is flat in plan view). In this state, the pair of flange parts 9 are accommodated inside the dispensing container 50 in plan view, so that the flange parts 9 do not get in the way during transportation, etc.

[0030] After the stopper 1 is attached to the neck portion 56, a force directed inward in the radial direction is applied to the stopper portion 11 as shown in Figs. 6A and 7 to advance it. When the stopper portion 11 is advanced, the first thin portion 15 and the second thin portion 16 are bent and the inverted portion 14 is elastically deformed inward as shown in Figs. 2 and 7, so that the stopper portion 11 is maintained in the advanced position. In addition, in the advanced position, the stopper portion 11 is in a state of protruding from the radially outer side with respect to the gap portion 7 below the outer peripheral wall 55a of the nozzle head 55 as shown in Fig. 6B, and is supported from below by the upper surface of the inner peripheral portion 2 at the portion where the inner cutout portion 3 is provided and the upper surface of the outer peripheral portion 6 at the portion where the outer cutout portion 8 is provided. Therefore, even if the nozzle head 55 is to be pushed down, the outer peripheral wall 55a comes into contact with the stopper portion 11 and is prevented from being pushed down, so that the nozzle head 55 can be prevented from being inadvertently pressed and the contents from being unintentionally discharged.

[0031] When discharging the contents from the stopper-equipped dispensing container 100, a radially outward force is applied to the stopper portion 11 to retract it, as shown in Figs. 3A and 5. When the stopper portion 11 is retracted, the first thin portion 15 and the second thin portion 16 are restored to their original states, while the inverted portion 14 is elastically deformed to an outward posture, as shown in Figs. 1 and 5, so that the stopper portion 11 is maintained at the retracted position. In addition, since the stopper portion 11 is separated radially outward from the gap portion 7 at the retracted position, the outer peripheral wall 55a of the nozzle head 55 is allowed to enter the gap portion 7. In other words, the nozzle head 55 can be pushed down to drive the pump 54, so that the contents accommodated in the dispensing container 50 can be discharged to the outside world from the discharge port 55c.

[0032] In particular, according to the stopper-equipped discharge container 100 of this embodiment, the contents can be easily discharged even with one hand. This point will be specifically described with reference to FIG. 3A and FIG. 5. The imaginary line shown in FIG. 5 indicates the right hand H with the palm facing up. When discharging the contents with one hand, for example, the right hand H is inserted with the palm facing up from the front side of the stopper-equipped discharge container 100. At this time, the neck part 56 is inserted between the middle finger F3 and the ring finger F4. As a result, as shown in FIG. 3A, the right flange part 9 can be supported from below with the middle finger F3, the left flange part 9 can be supported from below with the ring finger F4, and the thumb F1 can be brought into contact with the upper surface of the nozzle head 55. That is, the flange part 9 can be stably supported by the middle finger F3 and the ring finger F4. In this state, the thumb F1 can easily apply force, so that the nozzle head 55 can be easily pressed down. In addition, since the discharge port 55c is directed toward the palm, the contents can be discharged onto the palm by pressing down the nozzle head 55.

[0033] Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiment, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of the spirit of the present invention described in the claims unless otherwise specifically limited in the above description. For example, the configuration of the above-mentioned embodiment can be appropriately added or deleted, and the configuration of one embodiment can be applied to another embodiment. Furthermore, the effects of the above-mentioned embodiment are merely examples of the effects resulting from the present invention, and do not mean that the effects of the present invention are limited to the above-mentioned effects.

[0034] For example, although the stopper portion 11 in this embodiment is integrally connected to the flange portion 9 etc., the stopper portion 11 may be a member separate from the flange portion 9. Also, in this embodiment, the stopper portion 11 is supported at two points, namely, the upper surface of the inner peripheral portion 2 at the portion where the inner cutout portion 3 is provided and the upper surface of the outer peripheral portion 6 at the portion where the outer cutout portion 8 is provided, but it may be supported at any one point or at three or more points. [Explanation of symbols]

[0035] 1: Stopper (stopper for discharge container) 2: Inner circumference 3: Inner cutout 4:Connection part 5:Through hole 6: Outer periphery 7: Gap 8: Outer cutout 9: Flange part 10: Gap 11: Stopper part 12: Finger grip 13:Display section 14: Inversion section 15: First thin section 16:Second thin wall part 50:Discharge container 51: Container 52:Dispenser 53: Base cap 54: Pump 55: Nozzle head 55a: Outer wall 55b: Nozzle 55c: Discharge port 56: Neck 100: Dispensing container with stopper F1: Thumb F3: middle finger F4: Ring finger H:Right hand O: Axis line

Claims

1. A stopper for a dispensing container is attached to a neck portion of a dispensing container having a container for accommodating a content, a base cap attached to a mouth portion of the container, a nozzle head biased upwardly relative to the base cap, and a neck portion located between the base cap and the nozzle head, An inner periphery that is held by the neck portion; An outer circumferential portion provided radially outward from the inner circumferential portion; a gap portion located between the inner peripheral portion and the outer peripheral portion, into which the nozzle head enters when the nozzle head is pressed down; A flange portion extending radially outward from the outer circumferential portion; A stopper for a discharge container comprising: a stopper portion arranged in parallel with the flange portion, capable of moving forward and backward with respect to the neck portion, and which moves between a retracted position where it is away from the neck portion to allow the nozzle head to enter the gap portion, and an advanced position where it approaches the neck portion and protrudes into the gap above the outer periphery to prevent the nozzle head from being pushed down.

2. The stopper for a discharge container according to claim 1 , wherein the flange portion has a gap portion extending in the front-rear direction and into which the stopper portion is fitted.

3. 3. A stopper for a discharge container as described in claim 2, which has an inverted portion that integrally connects the rear end of the flange portion and the rear end of the stopper portion, and maintains the stopper portion in the retracted position in an outward orientation, while maintaining the stopper portion in the advanced position in an inward orientation inverted from the outward orientation.

4. A stopper-equipped discharge container comprising the discharge container and the stopper for a discharge container according to any one of claims 1 to 3, The discharge container is flat in a plan view, The flange portion is located inside the discharge container in a plan view when oriented in a longitudinal direction of the discharge container in a plan view.

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