Container with cap and cap

Abstract

To provide a capped container and a cap, suppressed in the degradation of sealability caused by a rise in the inner pressure of the capped container.SOLUTION: A capped container 10 is provided in which an outer ring 34 has an upper side region 35 having upper side sealing parts 35a, 35b coming into contact with a line-unformed region 61a of a mouth cylindrical part 61 of the container in a cap fitted state, and a lower side extension region 36 having a lower side additional sealing part 36a formed at the lower side of the upper side region 35 and arranged at the outer peripheral side of a line-formed region 61b of the mouth cylindrical part 61 of the container with a gap, in the cap fitted state.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a container with a cap and the cap, and particularly to a container with a cap and a cap used for applications where the inside of the container is at a positive pressure.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, as a container with a cap for storing beverages and the like, in a state where the cap is attached to the container, an outer ring formed to protrude downward from the top wall of the cap is brought into close contact with the container mouth cylinder portion, thereby sealing between the container mouth cylinder portion and the outer ring to maintain the airtightness of the container with a cap (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In such a container with a cap, when the container with a cap is stored at a high temperature with a carbonated beverage stored inside, or when the internal pressure of the container with a cap becomes a positive pressure, the top wall of the cap may be deformed so as to bulge in a dome shape due to the increase in the internal pressure. Depending on the degree of deformation of this top wall, the outer ring may move upward with respect to the container mouth cylinder portion and separate from the container mouth cylinder portion, resulting in a problem that the airtightness of the container with a cap may decrease.

[0005] As a measure to suppress the decrease in the airtightness of the container with a cap as described above, it is conceivable to suppress the deformation of the top wall itself by selecting the wall thickness and material of the top wall. However, depending on the content liquid and storage conditions of the container with a cap, it is difficult to prevent the bending of the top wall, and there is also a problem that the design freedom regarding the size and material of the cap is impaired.

[0006] Therefore, the present invention solves these problems, and an object thereof is to provide a container with a cap and a cap that have a simple structure and suppress a decrease in airtightness caused by an increase in the internal pressure of the container with a cap.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] The container with a cap of the present invention is a container with a cap including a container having a container mouth cylindrical portion and a cap attached to the container mouth cylindrical portion, wherein the container mouth cylindrical portion has an unformed line region where a parting line is not formed on its outer peripheral surface, and a formed line region which is a region below the unformed line region and has a parting line formed on its outer peripheral surface, the cap includes a top wall, and an outer ring formed to protrude downward from the top wall and disposed on the outer peripheral side of the container mouth cylindrical portion in a cap-attached state where the cap is attached to the container mouth cylindrical portion, and the outer ring has an upper side region having an upper side seal portion that contacts the unformed line region in the cap-attached state, and a lower side extended region formed below the upper side region and having a lower side additional seal portion disposed with a gap on the outer peripheral side of the formed line region in the cap-attached state. Well, the outer ring has a connecting inner peripheral surface that is curved so as to smoothly connect the inner peripheral surface of the upper sealing portion and the inner peripheral surface of the lower additional sealing portion. Thereby, the above problems are solved. The cap of the present invention is a cap attached to a container mouth cylindrical portion having an unformed line region where a parting line is not formed on its outer peripheral surface and a formed line region which is a region below the unformed line region and has a parting line formed on its outer peripheral surface, the cap includes a top wall, and an outer ring formed to protrude downward from the top wall and disposed on the outer peripheral side of the container mouth cylindrical portion in a cap-attached state where the cap is attached to the container mouth cylindrical portion, and the outer ring has an upper side region having an upper side seal portion that contacts the unformed line region in the cap-attached state, and a lower side extended region formed below the upper side region and having a lower side additional seal portion disposed with a gap on the outer peripheral side of the formed line region in the cap-attached state. Well, the outer ring has a connecting inner peripheral surface that is curved so as to smoothly connect the inner peripheral surface of the upper sealing portion and the inner peripheral surface of the lower additional sealing portion. This solves the above problems.

Advantages of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, the outer ring of the cap has an upper side sealing portion in an upper side region that contacts a line non-formation region in a cap-attached state where the cap is attached to the container mouth cylindrical portion, and is formed below the upper side region, and has a lower side extension region having a lower side additional sealing portion that is arranged with a gap on the outer peripheral side in a line formation region in a cap-attached state. Well, the outer ring has a connecting inner peripheral surface that is curved so as to smoothly connect the inner peripheral surface of the upper sealing portion and the inner peripheral surface of the lower additional sealing portion. By avoiding contact of the outer ring with the line formation region of the container mouth cylindrical portion where a parting line is formed as a trace of the mating surface of the mold, it is possible to avoid the situation where contact of the outer ring with the line formation region of the container mouth cylindrical portion inhibits contact of the upper side sealing portion with the line non-formation region of the container mouth cylindrical portion. Even when the outer ring moves upward with respect to the container mouth cylindrical portion due to an increase in the internal pressure of the container, it is possible to maintain the seal between the container mouth cylindrical portion and the outer ring by bringing the lower side additional sealing portion into contact with the line non-formation region of the container mouth cylindrical portion. Therefore, with a simple configuration, it is possible to suppress a decrease in airtightness caused by an increase in the internal pressure of the container with a cap.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] Hereinafter, the capped container 10 according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0011] As shown in FIG. 2, the capped container 10 includes a synthetic resin container 60 having a container mouth cylindrical portion 61 and a synthetic resin cap 20 attached to the container mouth cylindrical portion 61.

[0012] As shown in FIG. 1, the cap 20 includes a cap body 30 and a TE band 40 connected to the lower end of the cap body 30 via a weakened portion 50.

[0013] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the cap body 30 has a disc-shaped top wall 31 and a cylindrical skirt wall 32 hanging down from the outer peripheral edge of the top wall 31.

[0014] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, an inner ring 33 protruding downward from the lower surface of the top wall 31 and an outer ring 34 protruding downward from the lower surface of the top wall 31 on the outer peripheral side of the inner ring 33 are formed on the top wall 31.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 1, a knurl portion (serration groove) 32a is formed on the outer peripheral wall of the skirt wall 32, and a cap-side screw portion 32b that engages with a container-side screw portion 62 formed on the outer peripheral wall of the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 of the container 60 is formed on the inner peripheral wall of the skirt wall 32.

[0016] As shown in Fig. 2, the inner ring 33 is in a cap-attached state where the cap 20 is attached to the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 (the cap-side screw portion 32b is screwed into the container-side screw portion 62 and the cap 20 is engaged with the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 to the lowermost side). It is in close contact with the inner peripheral side of the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 over the entire circumference in the circumferential direction of the cap at a position below the contact portion of the outer ring 34 with the container mouth cylindrical portion 61, and seals the space between the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 and the cap 20. Note that this inner ring 33 is formed so as to contact the inner peripheral surface of the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 in any of the states shown in Figs. 2 to 4 described later.

[0017] As shown in Fig. 2, the outer ring 34 is in close contact with the outer peripheral side of the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 over the entire circumference in the circumferential direction of the cap in the cap-attached state, and seals the space between the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 and the cap 20. The outer ring 34 has the same cross-sectional shape over the entire circumference in the circumferential direction of the cap.

[0018] As shown in Fig. 2, the outer ring 34 has an upper region 35 located on the outer peripheral side of the unformed line region 61a of the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 described later and a lower extension region 36 formed continuously below the upper region 35 and located on the outer peripheral side of the formed line region 61b of the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 described later in the cap-attached state.

[0019] As shown in Fig. 2, the upper region 35 has upper seal portions 35a and 35b that are in contact (close contact) with the unformed line region 61a of the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 over the entire circumference in the circumferential direction of the cap in the cap-attached state and seal the space between the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 and the outer ring 34. In the first embodiment, it has a first upper seal portion 35a and a second upper seal portion 35b.

[0020] As shown in Fig. 2, the first upper seal portion 35a is formed to be curved convexly toward the inner peripheral side and is formed to contact the outer peripheral surface of the unformed line region 61a in the cap-attached state. As shown in Fig. 2, the second upper seal portion 35b is formed in a flat surface shape, inclined so as to approach the inner peripheral side as it approaches the upper side, above the first upper seal portion 35a. In the state where the cap is attached, it is formed so as to contact an inclined portion (shoulder portion) formed between the upper end portion and the outer peripheral portion of the container mouth cylinder portion 61. The second upper seal portion 35b is inclined so that the angle with respect to the axial direction (vertical direction) of the cap 20 is 40 to 50° (more preferably 42 to 48°). As shown in Fig. 2, the inner peripheral surface of the first upper seal portion 35a and the inner peripheral surface of the second upper seal portion 35b are smoothly connected by a connecting surface formed to be curved so as to be concave toward the outer peripheral side.

[0021] As shown in Fig. 2, in the state where the cap is attached, the lower extension region 36 has a lower additional seal portion 36a disposed with a gap on the outer peripheral side of the line formation region 61b of the container mouth cylinder portion 61 (in other words, not contacting the outer peripheral surface of the line formation region 61b including the parting line 63). In the present embodiment, as shown in Fig. 2, the upper side portion of the inner peripheral surface of the lower additional seal portion 36a is formed as a portion where the cross-sectional shape (the cross-sectional shape when cut by a plane including the vertical direction as shown in Fig. 2) is linear (or curved), and the lower side portion thereof is formed as a portion curved so that the cross-sectional shape is convex toward the lower side and the inner peripheral side. The lower side portion also functions as a corner portion between the lower end portion and the inner peripheral portion of the outer ring 34. Note that the specific form of the lower additional seal portion 36a is not limited to the above, and the cross-sectional shape of its inner peripheral surface may be any shape such as a curved shape, a linear shape, or a combination of a curve and a straight line.

[0022] The lower-side additional seal portion 36a is located at a position away from the outer peripheral surface of the line formation region 61b of the container mouth cylinder portion 61 in the normal state (when the top surface wall 31 is not elastically deformed into a dome shape due to the increase in the internal pressure in the container 60, and the upper-side seal portions 35a and 35b in the upper-side region 35 are in contact with the container mouth cylinder portion 61) as shown in FIG. 2. However, as shown in FIG. 4, when the top surface wall 31 bulges into a dome shape due to the increase in pressure in the container 60, the outer ring 34 moves upward with respect to the container mouth cylinder portion 61, and when the upper-side seal portions 35a and 35b are separated from the container mouth cylinder portion 61, it is formed to contact (adhere) to the non-line formation region 61a of the container mouth cylinder portion 61 over the entire circumference in the cap circumferential direction to seal the space between the container mouth cylinder portion 61 and the outer ring 34.

[0023] Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the entire inner peripheral surface of the lower-side extension region 36 is inclined so as to approach the outer diameter side as it goes downward. By forming the inner peripheral surface of the lower-side extension region 36 in this inclined manner, the mold release during the injection molding of the cap 20 becomes easy, that is, the cap 20 after injection molding can be easily removed from the mold (not shown) disposed on the inner peripheral side of the outer ring 34 during injection molding. Note that the specific aspect of the lower-side extension region 36 may be any shape such as a curved shape, a linear shape, or a combination of a curve and a straight line in the cross-sectional shape of its inner peripheral surface (the cross-sectional shape when cut by a plane including the vertical direction as shown in FIG. 2).

[0024] As shown in FIG. 2, the inner peripheral surface of the outer ring 34 is curved so as to be concave on the outer diameter side, and further has a connecting inner peripheral surface 37 that connects the inner peripheral surface of the first upper-side seal portion 35a and the inner peripheral surface of the lower-side additional seal portion 36a in the vertical direction. The connecting inner peripheral surface 37 is curved so as to smoothly connect the inner peripheral surface of the first upper-side seal portion 35a and the inner peripheral surface of the lower-side additional seal portion 36a, thereby suppressing the occurrence of cracks in the outer ring 34. Due to this connecting inner peripheral surface 37, it can smoothly transition from the state shown in FIG. 3 where the first upper sealing portion 35a is in contact with the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 to the state shown in FIG. 4 where the lower additional sealing portion 36a is in contact with the container mouth cylindrical portion 61. In addition, the connecting inner peripheral surface 37 may be formed such that its cross-sectional shape (the cross-sectional shape when cut by a plane including the vertical direction as shown in FIG. 2) is linear.

[0025] As shown in FIG. 1, the TE band 40 has an annular band main body portion 41 and a flap 42 that is continuously provided at the lower end of the band main body portion 41 and folded back upward on the inner peripheral side of the band main body portion 41, and can be engaged with a container flange (not shown) from below in the cap-mounted state. A plurality of flaps 42 are formed along the circumferential direction of the cap with an interval therebetween.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 1, the weakening portion 50 is a breakable annular portion that connects the lower end of the skirt wall 32 of the cap body 30 and the upper end of the band main body portion 41 of the TE band 40. In the present embodiment, the weakening portion 50 is composed of a plurality of bridges and slits formed alternately in the circumferential direction of the cap. Note that the specific form of the weakening portion 50 may be any as long as it is provided to be breakable.

[0027] A parting line 63 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the container 60. This parting line 63 is formed as a trace of the mating surface of the mold used for molding the container 60, and is formed due to misalignment between the molds on the mating surface. Specific forms of the parting line 63 include, as shown in FIG. 9(a), a stepped one extending along the vertical direction (axial direction of the container 60), as shown in FIGS. 9(a) and 9(b), a stepped one extending along the circumferential direction of the container mouth cylindrical portion 61, and, not shown, a protruding (burr) one protruding outward from the outer peripheral surface of the container 60 extending along the vertical direction (axial direction of the container 60), etc. In addition, in FIGS. 9(a) and 9(b), the step of the parting line 63 is shown with significant exaggeration. Also, in this embodiment, the container 60 is formed by blow molding a preform (not shown) which is a preform, and the parting line 63 of this embodiment is formed at the stage of injection molding the preform (not shown) using a mold.

[0028] As shown in FIG. 2, the container mouth cylinder portion 61 has an upper end side line non-formation region 61a where the parting line 63 is not formed on its outer peripheral surface, and a lower side line formation region 61b which is a region below the line non-formation region 61a and where the parting line 63 is formed on its outer peripheral surface.

[0029] Next, the contact state of the outer ring 34 with respect to the container mouth cylinder portion 61 in this embodiment will be described below with reference to FIGS. 2 to 4.

[0030] First, as shown in FIG. 2, in the normal state in the cap-attached state (when the top surface wall 31 is not elastically deformed into a dome shape due to the increase in the internal pressure in the container 60), the first upper seal portion 35a and the second upper seal portion 35b are in contact with the line non-formation region 61a of the container mouth cylinder portion 61. Also, the lower additional seal portion 36a is disposed at a position away from the outer peripheral surface of the line formation region 61b of the container mouth cylinder portion 61. Here, if the lower additional seal portion 36a contacts in a form that straddles the line non-formation region 61a and the line formation region 61b, or contacts only the line formation region 61b, there is a risk of leakage from the slight gap due to the above-described burr (parting line 63).

[0031] Next, as shown in FIG. 3, when the top surface wall 31 is elastically deformed into a dome shape due to the increase in the internal pressure in the container 60 with the cap 20 attached to the container mouth cylinder portion 61, the outer ring 34 moves upward with respect to the container mouth cylinder portion 61, and first, the second upper seal portion 35b separates from the container mouth cylinder portion 61. Here, when the top wall 31 elastically deforms into a dome shape, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, as the central portion side of the top wall 31 moves more upward than the outer peripheral portion side, the outer ring 34 (and the inner ring 33) tilts so that its lower end portion approaches the inner peripheral side more than in the normal state shown in FIG. 2. Also, in the state shown in FIG. 3, the lower additional seal portion 36a still remains separated from the outer peripheral surface of the line formation region 61b of the container mouth cylindrical portion 61.

[0032] Next, as shown in FIG. 4, when the internal pressure of the container 60 further increases from the state shown in FIG. 3 and the outer ring 34 moves further upward with respect to the container mouth cylindrical portion 61, the first upper seal portion 35a separates from the container mouth cylindrical portion 61, and the lower additional seal portion 36a contacts the line formation region 61b of the container mouth cylindrical portion 61.

[0033] Here, in the present embodiment, it is configured to shift from the state where the first upper seal portion 35a is in contact with the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 shown in FIG. 3 to the state where both the first upper seal portion 35a and the lower additional seal portion 36a are in contact with the container mouth cylindrical portion 61, and then to shift to the state where the lower additional seal portion 36a is in contact with the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 shown in FIG. 4. However, it may be configured to shift from the state where the first upper seal portion 35a is in contact with the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 shown in FIG. 3 to the state where neither the first upper seal portion 35a nor the lower additional seal portion 36a is in contact with the container mouth cylindrical portion 61, and then to shift to the state where the lower additional seal portion 36a is in contact with the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 shown in FIG. 4. Also, it may be configured such that the first upper seal portion 35a separates from the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 and at the same time the lower additional seal portion 36a contacts the container mouth cylindrical portion 61. In the above description, the contact states of the first upper seal portion 35a and the lower additional seal portion 36a with respect to the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 have been described. However, regarding the connection inner peripheral surface 37 formed between the first upper seal portion 35a and the lower additional seal portion 36a, the connection inner peripheral surface 37 may contact the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 at an arbitrary timing, or the connection inner peripheral surface 37 may not contact the container mouth cylindrical portion 61.

[0034] Next, the capped container 10 according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 to 8. Here, in the second embodiment, except for some configurations, it is exactly the same as the first embodiment described above. Therefore, the description of the configurations other than the differences will be omitted.

[0035] First, in the above-described first embodiment, the upper region 35 of the outer ring 34 has been described as having the first upper seal portion 35a and the second upper seal portion 35b as the upper seal portion that contacts the container mouth cylindrical portion 61, as shown in FIG. 2. On the other hand, in the second embodiment, the second upper seal portion 35b is not provided on the outer ring 34. Instead, as shown in FIG. 6, a third seal portion 38 is formed to protrude downward from the top surface wall 31 between the inner ring 33 and the outer ring 34, and in the capped state, it is in close contact with the upper end surface of the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 to seal the space between the top surface wall 31 and the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 over the entire circumference in the circumferential direction of the cap.

[0036] In such a second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, when the top surface wall 31 elastically deforms into a dome shape due to an increase in the internal pressure in the container 60 in a state where the cap 20 is attached to the container mouth cylindrical portion 61, the third seal portion 38 separates from the container mouth cylindrical portion 61 before the second upper seal portion 35b separates from the container mouth cylindrical portion 61.

[0037] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various design changes can be made without departing from the present invention described in the claims.

[0038] For example, in the above-described embodiment, the cap 20 has been described as including a cap body 30 and a TE band 40 connected to the lower end of the cap body 30 via a weakened portion 50. However, the specific form of the cap 20 may be any form as long as it has an outer ring 34.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0039] 10 ··· Container with cap 20 ··· Cap 30 ··· Cap body 31 ··· Top wall 32 ··· Skirt wall 32a ··· Flange portion 32b ··· Cap-side screw portion 33 ··· Inner ring 34 ··· Outer ring 35 ··· Upper region 35a ··· First upper seal portion 35b ··· Second upper seal portion 36 ··· Lower extension region 36a ··· Lower additional seal portion 37 ··· Connecting inner peripheral surface 38 ··· Third seal portion 40 ··· TE band 41 ··· Band main body portion 42 ··· Flap 50 ··· Weakened portion 60 ··· Container 61 ··· Container mouth cylinder portion 61a ··· Region without line formation 61b ··· Region with line formation 62 ··· Container-side screw portion 63 ··· Partition line

Claims

A capped container comprising a container having a container mouth cylinder portion and a cap attached to the container mouth cylinder portion, wherein the container mouth cylinder portion has an unformed line region where a parting line is not formed on its outer peripheral surface, and a formed line region which is a region below the unformed line region and has a parting line formed on its outer peripheral surface, the cap includes a top wall and an outer ring which protrudes downward from the top wall and is disposed on the outer peripheral side of the container mouth cylinder portion in a cap-attached state where the cap is attached to the container mouth cylinder portion, the outer ring has an upper side region having an upper side seal portion that contacts the unformed line region in the cap-attached state, and a lower side extension region formed below the upper side region and having a lower side additional seal portion that is disposed with a gap on the outer peripheral side of the formed line region in the cap-attached state, the outer ring is characterized by having a connecting inner peripheral surface that is curved so as to smoothly connect the inner peripheral surface of the upper side seal portion and the inner peripheral surface of the lower side additional seal portion.

2. The capped container according to claim 1, wherein the inner peripheral surface of the lower side additional seal portion has a portion curved so as to be convex toward the lower side and the inner peripheral side.

3. The capped container according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the inner peripheral surface of the outer ring has a connecting inner peripheral surface formed to be concave on the outer diameter side and connecting the inner peripheral surface of the upper side seal portion and the inner peripheral surface of the lower side additional seal portion.

4. The capped container according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the inner peripheral surface of the lower side extension region is inclined so as to approach the outer diameter side as it goes downward. A cap attached to a container mouth cylinder portion having an unformed line region where a parting line is not formed on its outer peripheral surface and a formed line region which is a region below the unformed line region and has a parting line formed on its outer peripheral surface, the cap includes a top wall and an outer ring which protrudes downward from the top wall and is disposed on the outer peripheral side of the container mouth cylinder portion in a cap-attached state where the cap is attached to the container mouth cylinder portion, The outer ring includes an upper region having an upper sealing portion that contacts the line non-formation region in the cap-attached state, and a lower extension region formed below the upper region and having a lower additional sealing portion that is disposed with a gap on the outer peripheral side of the line formation region in the cap-attached state. The cap is characterized in that the outer ring has a connecting inner peripheral surface that is curved so as to smoothly connect the inner peripheral surface of the upper sealing portion and the inner peripheral surface of the lower additional sealing portion.

Images