Cap unit

Abstract

To provide a cap unit which improves TE properties.SOLUTION: In the cap unit 10, the cap 20 includes the cap body 30 and the TE cylindrical portion 40, the TE cylindrical portion 40 is composed of the TE band 41 having a band near-side end 41a and a band far-side end 41b, the band near-side end 41a and the band far-side end 41b are connected by the breakable weakened connecting portion 42, and the vessel mouth portion 60 has the band pressing portion 63 disposed so as to press the TE band 41 toward the outer peripheral side before the cap is opened.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a cap unit that can be opened by rotating a cap in an opening direction relative to a container opening. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there has been known a cap unit consisting of a cap and a container mouth portion, which is configured to be openable by rotating the cap in the opening direction relative to the container mouth portion, in which the cap has a cap body that screws onto the container mouth portion and a TE tubular portion that is attached to the container mouth portion below the cap body, the TE tubular portion being composed of a TE band having a front end portion of the band located on the front side in the opening direction and a rear end portion of the band located on the rear side in the opening direction, and the front end portion of the band and the rear end portion of the band, which are arranged opposite each other in the circumferential direction, are connected by a breakable weakened connecting portion (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] The cap unit described in Patent Document 1 ensures tamper evident (TE) properties, which indicate that the cap has been opened by a change in the state of the cap when it is opened. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2015-217966 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, with the cap unit described above, depending on the manner in which the cap is attached, it is difficult to visually confirm from the outside the change in the state of the cap when it is opened, and there are cases in which the TE properties cannot be exhibited well.

[0006] Therefore, the present invention is intended to solve these problems, and has an object to provide a cap unit that has a simple structure and improves TE performance. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention provides a cap unit comprising a cap and a container mouth portion, and configured to be unsealable by rotating the cap relative to the container mouth portion in an opening direction, wherein the cap comprises a cap body that screws onto the container mouth portion, and a TE tubular portion that is attached to the container mouth portion below the cap body, the TE tubular portion being composed of a TE band having a front end portion of the band located on the front side in the opening direction and a rear end portion of the band located on the rear side in the opening direction, the front end portion of the band and the rear end portion of the band being arranged opposite each other in the circumferential direction are connected by a breakable weakened connection portion, and the container mouth portion has a band pressing portion that is arranged to press the TE band toward the outer periphery before the cap is opened, thereby solving the above problem. In the cap unit, the band pressing portion may be arranged to press a portion of the TE band near the front end of the band toward the outer periphery. In any of the above cap units, the band pressing portion may be formed in the shape of a flap protruding from the outer surface of the container mouth portion toward the outer periphery, and before the cap is opened, it may be pressed by the TE band and positioned in an elastically deformed state so that its outer edge is biased toward the inner periphery and downward. In any of the cap units described above, the front end of the band may have a non-breakable connecting bridge that is connected to the cap body. In any of the above cap units, the band pressing portion has a rear edge facing the rear in the opening direction, and the rear edge may be formed at an incline relative to the radial direction so that it moves closer to the front in the opening direction as it moves toward the outer periphery. In any of the above cap units, the band pressing portion has a front edge facing the front side in the opening direction, and the front edge is formed at an inclination with respect to the radial direction so that it moves closer to the front side in the opening direction as it approaches the outer periphery, and the inclination angle of the rear edge with respect to the radial direction may be greater than the inclination angle of the front edge with respect to the radial direction. In any of the cap units described above, the outer peripheral edge of the band pressing portion may be formed into an arcuate surface that follows the inner peripheral surface of the TE cylindrical portion. In any of the cap units described above, the resin constituting the cap may have a higher hardness than the resin constituting the container opening. In any of the above cap units, the container mouth portion is formed to be able to engage with a ratchet formed on the inner surface of the TE band, and has a protrusion that limits the rotation of the TE band toward the rear in the opening direction by engaging with the ratchet, and the band pressing portion and the protrusion may be formed in a circumferential line. In any of the above cap units, the outer surface of the container mouth portion may have an inclined portion that is inclined so that its diameter decreases as it extends upward, and the band pressing portion may be formed to protrude toward the outer periphery from the inclined portion. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] The present invention can improve the TE performance with a simple configuration. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a cap unit according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing the cap unit after the cap is opened, cut near the band pressing portion. [Figure 4] 10A and 10B are explanatory diagrams showing the state before and after opening the cap. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are explanatory diagrams showing the state before and after opening the cap. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] A cap unit 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[0011] First, as shown in Figure 1, the cap unit 10 consists of a cap 20 and a container mouth portion 60, and can be opened by rotating the cap 20 (cap body 30) relative to the container mouth portion 60 in the opening direction (the direction indicated by the arrow in Figure 1).

[0012] In this specification, the circumferential orientation of each part of the cap 20 and the container mouth portion 60 is defined based on the opening direction (the direction indicated by the arrow in Figure 1), which is the direction in which the cap 20 (cap body 30) is rotated relative to the container mouth portion 60 when opening the cap.

[0013] The specific configuration of each component of the cap unit 10 will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[0014] The cap 20 is made of synthetic resin such as high density polyethylene, and is attached to the opening 60 of the container as shown in FIG. Here, the resin that constitutes the cap 20 is harder than the resin that constitutes the container mouth portion 60, and in this embodiment, high-density polyethylene is used as the resin that constitutes the cap 20, and low-density polyethylene is used as the resin that constitutes the container mouth portion 60.

[0015] As shown in Figure 1, the cap 20 comprises a cap body 30 that fits over and screws onto the container mouth 60, and a TE tubular portion (tamper-evident tubular portion) 40 that fits over and is attached to the container mouth 60 on the lower side of the cap body 30.

[0016] As shown in Figures 1 and 4, the cap body 30 comprises a disk-shaped top surface 31, a cylindrical skirt portion 32 hanging down from the outer periphery of the top surface 31, and a cap side thread portion 33 formed on the inner periphery of the skirt portion 32 and capable of threading into a mouth side thread portion 62 formed on the outer periphery of the container mouth 60, and is fitted onto the outside of the container mouth 60 and threaded thereto.

[0017] The TE cylindrical portion 40 is a cylindrical portion that is fitted onto the lower region of the mouth side thread portion 62 of the container mouth portion 60, and in this embodiment, as can be seen from Figures 1 and 3, it is composed of two TE bands (tamper-evident bands) 41 arranged circumferentially and arranged on the outer periphery of the container mouth portion 60 while being connected to the lower end of the skirt portion 32 by at least one (in this embodiment, multiple) weakened connecting portion 50 that can be broken when the cap is opened.

[0018] As shown in Figures 1 and 3, each TE band 41 has, at its lower position, a band front end 41a located on the front side in the opening direction and a band rear end 41b located on the rear side in the opening direction, and the band front end 41a of one TE band 41 and the band rear end 41b of the other TE band 41, which are arranged opposite each other in the circumferential direction, are connected by a breakable weakened connecting portion 42.

[0019] As shown in Figures 1 and 3, each TE band 41 has a non-breakable connecting bridge 43 formed at the front end 41a of the band and connected to the cap body 30 (skirt portion 32), and a plurality of ratchets 44 formed on its inner surface.

[0020] As shown in Figure 1, the non-breakable connecting bridge 43 connects the front end 41a of the TE band 41 at a lower position to the lower end of the cap body 30 (skirt portion 32), and is a portion that will not break even when the cap is opened, and in this embodiment has a curved portion.

[0021] 3, the ratchet 44 is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the TE band 41 and engages with a plurality of protrusions 61 formed in the lower region of the container opening 60 to restrict rotation of the TE band 41 toward the rear in the opening direction relative to the container opening 60. However, rotation in the opposite direction, the closing direction, is permitted.

[0022] The container mouth portion 60 is configured as the mouth portion of a container that contains liquid contents such as a beverage, and in this embodiment, it is configured as a spout made of a synthetic resin such as low-density polyethylene attached to a container configured as a paper pack.

[0023] As shown in Figure 2, the container mouth 60 is formed to be able to engage with the ratchet 44, and has a protrusion 61 on its outer surface that limits the rotation of the TE band 41 toward the rear in the opening direction by engaging with the ratchet 44, the mouth side screw portion 62 mentioned above, and a band pressing portion 63. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the protrusions 61 and the band pressing portions 63 are formed side by side in the circumferential direction.

[0024] The band pressing portion 63 is positioned so as to press each TE band 41 toward the outer periphery before the cap is opened. Specifically, as shown in Figures 3 and 5, the band pressing portion 63 is positioned so as to press the portion of the TE band 41 closer to the band front end 41a (i.e., the portion closer to the band front end 41a than the circumferential center of the TE band 41) and the portion near the center of the axial height of the TE band 41 toward the outer periphery.

[0025] In this embodiment, as shown in Figure 4, the band pressing portion 63 is formed in the shape of a flexible flap that protrudes outward from the outer surface of the container mouth portion 60 (more specifically, the inclined portion 60a of the outer surface of the container mouth portion 60 that is inclined so that its diameter decreases as it goes upward), and is positioned in a state where it is pressed by the TE band 41 and its outer peripheral edge 63c is elastically deformed so that it moves inward and downward before the cap is opened.

[0026] As shown in Figure 4(b), the band pressing portion 63 is formed so as to protrude directly to the side (in a direction perpendicular to the up-down direction) from the outer peripheral surface of the container mouth portion 60 in an unloaded state when not pressed by the TE band 41. However, the band pressing portion 63 may also be formed so as to be inclined downward as it approaches the outer periphery in an unloaded state. In this case, when the cap 20 is attached to the container mouth portion 60, the TE band 41 can smoothly elastically deform the flap-shaped band pressing portion 63 so that the outer peripheral edge 63c moves inward and downward. From the same viewpoint, the inner peripheral surface of the TE band 41 may be formed so as to be inclined so as to approach the outer peripheral side as it goes downward. In this embodiment, the inner peripheral surface of the TE band 41 is formed without inclination (formed parallel to the up-down direction).

[0027] As shown in Figure 3, the band pressing portion 63 has a front edge 63a facing the front side in the opening direction, a rear edge 63b facing the rear side in the opening direction, and an outer peripheral edge 63c facing the outer peripheral side (in an unloaded state where the band pressing portion 63 is not pressed by the TE band 41).

[0028] As shown in FIG. 3, the front edge 63a and the rear edge 63b are formed to be inclined with respect to the radial direction so as to move closer to the front side in the opening direction as they approach the outer periphery. As shown in FIG. 3, the angle of inclination of the rear edge 63b relative to the radial direction is larger than the angle of inclination of the front edge 63a relative to the radial direction, and the length of the rear edge 63b is designed to be longer than the length of the front edge 63a.

[0029] As shown in FIG. 3, the outer peripheral edge 63c is formed into an arcuate surface (an arcuate surface convex toward the outer periphery in this embodiment) that fits along the inner peripheral surface of the TE cylindrical portion 40 (TE band 41). 4(b), the upper surface of the outer peripheral edge 63c is formed to be inclined so as to approach the outer periphery as it approaches the lower side, so that when the cap 20 is fitted onto the container opening 60 and screwed, the band pressing portion 63 can be smoothly elastically deformed so as to approach the inner periphery and the lower side. The upper surface may also be rounded.

[0030] Furthermore, the front corner 63d between the front edge 63a and the outer peripheral edge 63c, and the rear corner 63e between the rear edge 63b and the outer peripheral edge 63c are curved (R-shaped) as shown in FIG. 4, and more specifically, the radius of curvature of the front corner 63d is set smaller than the radius of curvature of the rear corner 63e.

[0031] Next, the operation of each part when the cap is opened will be described below.

[0032] First, when opening the cap, the user rotates the cap body 30 in the opening direction (the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. 1), causing the weakened connection portion 50 to break and separating the cap body 30 from the TE tubular portion 40 (each TE band 41). The cap body 30 rotates in the opening direction and moves upward due to the engagement between the mouth-side thread portion 62 of the container mouth 60 and the cap-side thread portion 33 of the cap body 30. On the other hand, the TE band 40 does not rotate due to the engagement between the ratchet 44 formed on the TE band 41 and the protrusion 61 formed on the container mouth 60, as described above.

[0033] As the cap body 30 moves in this manner, the front end 41a of each TE band 41 is pulled toward the rear in the opening direction (while being lifted upward) by the non-breakable connecting bridge 43, causing the weakened connecting portion 42 to break.

[0034] At this time, the TE band 41 is pressed toward the outer periphery by the band pressing portion 63, so when the weakened connecting portion 42 breaks, the TE band 41 is pushed toward the outer periphery and moves, as shown in Figures 4 and 5.

[0035] In the cap 20 of this embodiment obtained in this manner, the container mouth portion 60 has a band pressing portion 63 that is arranged to press the TE band 41 toward the outer periphery before the cap is opened, making it easier to break the weakened connecting portion 42 when the cap is opened, and after the cap is opened, the TE band 41, which is connected to the cap body 30 only by the non-breakable connecting bridge 43, can be positioned (expanded) toward the outer periphery, thereby ensuring good TE properties that indicate that the cap 10 has been opened.

[0036] Furthermore, since the band pressing portion 63 is positioned to press the portion of the TE band 41 near the band front end portion 41a toward the outer periphery, it becomes easier to break the weakened connecting portion 42 when the cap is opened, and the amount of plastic deformation of the non-breakable connecting bridge 43 can be increased, making it less likely to return to its original position, thereby improving the TE properties.

[0037] In addition, the band pressing portion 63 is formed in the shape of a flap that protrudes from the outer peripheral surface of the container mouth portion 60 toward the outer peripheral side, and is positioned in an elastically deformed state so that its outer peripheral edge 63c is pushed toward the inner peripheral side and downward side by the TE band 41 before the cap is opened. As a result, when attaching the cap 20 to the container mouth 60, the flap-shaped band pressing portion 63 can be pressed by the TE band 41 descending from above onto the container mouth 60, causing the band pressing portion 63 to elastically deform so that the outer peripheral edge 63c moves toward the inner peripheral side and downward side. This eliminates the need to make design changes to the normal method of attaching the cap 20 to the container mouth 60, and avoids increasing the manufacturing burden.

[0038] Furthermore, the rear edge 63b of the band pressing portion 63 is formed at an angle relative to the radial direction so that it moves closer to the front in the opening direction as it moves toward the outer periphery. Therefore, when attaching the cap 20 to the container mouth portion 60, the TE band 41, which rotates toward the front in the opening direction, can smoothly press the flap-shaped band pressing portion 63 so that the outer periphery edge 63c moves closer to the inner periphery and downward.

[0039] Furthermore, since the angle of inclination of the rear edge 63b of the band pressing portion 63 relative to the radial direction is greater than the angle of inclination of the front edge 63a of the band pressing portion 63 relative to the radial direction, the TE band 41, which rotates toward the front in the opening direction, can smoothly press the flap-shaped band pressing portion 63 so that the outer peripheral edge 63c moves toward the inner peripheral side and downward side, thereby elastically deforming it.

[0040] Furthermore, the outer peripheral edge 63c of the band pressing portion 63 is formed into an arc-shaped surface that conforms to the inner peripheral surface of the TE cylindrical portion 40 (TE band 41), so that when the cap 20 is attached to the container mouth portion 60, the flap-shaped band pressing portion 63 can be smoothly pressed by the inner peripheral surface of the TE band 41, causing it to elastically deform.

[0041] Furthermore, since the resin that constitutes the cap 20 is harder than the resin that constitutes the container opening 60, the band pressing portion 63 can be elastically deformed well before the cap is opened.

[0042] Furthermore, the band pressing portion 63 is formed to protrude toward the outer periphery from the inclined portion 60a of the container mouth 60, which is inclined so that its diameter decreases as it extends upward. Therefore, when the cap 20 is attached to the container mouth 60, the flap-shaped band pressing portion 63 can be smoothly elastically deformed so that the outer peripheral edge 63c moves toward the inner periphery and downward.

[0043] The above describes in detail an embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various design modifications can be made without departing from the present invention as described in the claims, such as forming the cap unit 10 by any combination of the configurations of the above or below embodiments and modified examples.

[0044] For example, in the above-described embodiment, the container mouth portion 60 is described as a spout attached to a paper carton serving as a container, but the specific form of the container mouth portion 60 is not limited to this and may be any form, such as the mouth portion of a PET bottle.

[0045] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the TE tubular portion 40 is described as being composed of two TE bands 41, but the TE tubular portion 40 may also be composed of one or three or more TE bands 41. Specifically, when the TE tubular portion 40 is composed of one TE band 41, the TE band 41 is wrapped around the outer periphery of the container mouth portion 60 in a circular shape so that the rear end 41b and the front end 41a of the TE band 41 face each other circumferentially, the rear end 41b and the front end 41a of the TE band 41 are connected by a weakened connecting portion 42, and the front end 41a of the band is connected to the cap body 30 by a non-breakable connecting bridge 43. Furthermore, when the TE cylindrical portion 40 is composed of three or more TE bands 41, the three or more TE bands 41 are arranged circumferentially to form a ring on the outer periphery of the container mouth portion 60, the rear end 41b of the TE band 41 and the front end 41a of the TE band 41 adjacent to the TE band 41 are connected by a weakened connecting portion 42, and the front end 41a of each TE band 41 is connected to the cap body 30 by a non-breakable connecting bridge 43.

[0046] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the band pressing portion 63 is described as being formed in the shape of a flap that protrudes from the outer peripheral surface of the container mouth portion 60 toward the outer peripheral side, but the specific form of the band pressing portion 63 may be any as long as it is formed so as to press the TE band 41 toward the outer peripheral side before the cap is opened. Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the band pressing portion 63 is described as being formed to extend parallel to the circumferential direction as shown in FIG. 2, but the specific form of the band pressing portion 63 is not limited to this, and for example, the band pressing portion 63 may be formed so as to be oblique to the circumferential direction. [Explanation of symbols]

[0047] 10 Cap unit 20 ··· Cap 30 ··· Cap body 31...Top section 32 ··· Skirt part 33 ··· Cap side thread 40 TE cylindrical section 41 TE band 41a Front end of band 41b: Back end of band 42 ... weakened connection 43. Non-breaking connecting bridge 44 Ratchet 50... Weakened connection 60 ··· Container opening 60a... Slope section 61 ... protrusion 62 ··· Mouth side thread 63 Band pressing part 63a Front edge 63b... Back edge 63c...periphery edge 63d Front corner 63e... Back corner

Claims

1. A cap unit comprising a cap and a container mouth portion, and configured to be unsealable by rotating the cap in an unsealing direction relative to the container mouth portion, The cap includes a cap body that is screwed onto the container opening, and a TE cylindrical portion that is attached to the container opening on a lower side of the cap body, The TE cylindrical portion is composed of a TE band having a front end portion of the band located on the front side in the opening direction and a rear end portion of the band located on the rear side in the opening direction, The band front end portion and the band rear end portion, which are arranged opposite to each other in the circumferential direction, are connected by a breakable weakened connection portion, The cap unit is characterized in that the container opening has a band pressing portion arranged to press the TE band toward the outer periphery before the cap is opened.

2. 2. The cap unit according to claim 1, wherein the band pressing portion is arranged to press a portion of the TE band near the front end of the band toward the outer periphery.

3. The cap unit described in claim 1, characterized in that the band pressing portion is formed in the shape of a flap protruding from the outer surface of the container mouth portion toward the outer periphery, and is positioned in a state where it is pressed by the TE band and its outer edge is elastically deformed so that it leans toward the inner periphery and downward before the cap is opened.

4. 2. The cap unit according to claim 1, wherein the front end of the band has a non-breakable connecting bridge that is connected to the cap body.

5. The band pressing portion has a rear edge facing the rear side in the opening direction, The cap unit according to claim 3 , wherein the rear edge is formed to be inclined with respect to the radial direction so as to move toward the front side in the unsealing direction as it approaches the outer periphery.

6. The band pressing portion has a front edge facing the front side in the opening direction, The front edge is formed to be inclined with respect to the radial direction so as to move toward the front side in the opening direction toward the outer periphery, The cap unit according to claim 5 , wherein the angle of inclination of the rear edge relative to the radial direction is larger than the angle of inclination of the front edge relative to the radial direction.

7. 4. The cap unit according to claim 3, wherein the outer peripheral edge of the band pressing portion is formed into an arc-shaped surface that fits along the inner peripheral surface of the TE cylindrical portion.

8. 2. The cap unit according to claim 1, wherein the resin constituting the cap has a higher hardness than the resin constituting the opening of the container.

9. the container opening has a protrusion that is formed to be engageable with a ratchet formed on the inner peripheral surface of the TE band and that limits rotation of the TE band toward the rear in the opening direction by engaging with the ratchet; The cap unit according to claim 1 , wherein the band pressing portion and the protrusion are aligned in the circumferential direction.

10. The outer peripheral surface of the container opening has an inclined portion that is inclined so as to decrease in diameter upward, The cap unit according to claim 1 , wherein the band pressing portion is formed so as to protrude from the inclined portion toward the outer periphery.

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