Beverage container cap and beverage container

The stopper design for carbonated beverages efficiently manages internal pressure by rotating the outer lid to open or close the vent hole within a 90-degree range, addressing the need for a simple and effective pressure release mechanism in beverage containers.

JP7804959B2Active Publication Date: 2026-01-23田辺猛夫
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Patent Information

Application Number
JP2024089043
Authority / Receiving Office
JP · JP
Patent Type
Patents
Current Assignee / Owner
Priority Date
2023-10-25
Filing Date
2024-05-31
Publication Date
2026-01-23
Estimated Expiration
2044-05-31

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Existing beverage container stoppers for carbonated beverages lack a simple and effective mechanism for releasing internal pressure while preventing leakage and facilitating easy drinking.

Method used

A stopper design with an inner plug and outer lid that includes a vent hole sealed by a seal member, allowing the vent hole to be opened or closed by rotating the outer lid within a 90-degree range, and a rotation restriction mechanism that ensures easy switching between sealed and open states, along with a stopper interlocking mechanism for convenient attachment and detachment.

Benefits of technology

The design effectively manages internal pressure in carbonated beverages by allowing easy venting without leakage and facilitates easy opening and closing, ensuring a practical and hygienic beverage container stopper.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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Patent Text Reader

Abstract

To provide a plug body for a beverage container for carbonated beverage having internal pressure releasing means with a simple structure and a beverage container equipped with the plug body.SOLUTION: A plug body S comprises an inner plug part 3 which is inserted into an upper opening 2 of a container body 1 to seal the upper opening 2, and an outer lid part 4 which is rotatably attached to the inner plug part 3 so as to cover an outside of the inner plug part 3, the inner plug part 3 is provided with a vent 5 that communicates between the outside of the inner plug part 3 and the inside of the container body 1 when the inner plug part 3 closes the upper opening 2, the outer lid part 4 is configured so that a seal member 6 moves away from the vent 5 to open the vent 5, when the seal member 6 is provided to seal the vent 5 and the outer lid part 4 is rotated relative to the inner plug part 3 in a direction to screw the plug body S out of the upper opening 2 of the container body 1.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2
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Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a beverage container closure that is compatible with beverages containing carbonated gas, and to a beverage container. [Background technology]

[0002] BACKGROUND ART Beverage containers that can also accommodate beverages containing carbon dioxide (hereinafter referred to as carbonated beverages) have been proposed.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 below discloses a beverage container comprising a cylindrical container body with a bottom and a stopper that closes the opening of the container body, in which a pressure adjustment port is formed on the surface of the stopper facing the inside of the container body for reducing the internal pressure within the container body when the internal pressure within the container body increases, a pressure relief passage that connects the pressure adjustment port to an exhaust port is formed inside the stopper, and a pressure adjustment valve that is biased to a closed state by a spring force is provided within the pressure relief passage. This pressure adjustment valve is configured to keep the pressure adjustment port closed when the internal pressure within the container body is normal, but to open and release the internal pressure when the internal pressure within the container body exceeds the spring force, thereby avoiding the problem of carbon dioxide gas being released appropriately and making it impossible to open the stopper even if the internal pressure increases due to the container body containing a carbonated beverage. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-38360 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The present invention provides a beverage container stopper having a simple structure that is compatible with carbonated beverages similar to that of Patent Document 1, but that has an internal pressure release means different from that of Patent Document 1, and a beverage container equipped with this stopper. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The gist of the present invention will be explained with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0007] A stopper (S) for a beverage container that can be detachably attached to an upper opening (2) of a container body (1) by rotating and screwing the stopper (S), The stopper S comprises an inner stopper part 3 that is inserted into the upper opening 2 of the container body 1 to seal the upper opening 2, and an outer lid part 4 that is rotatably attached to the inner stopper part 3 so as to cover the outside of the inner stopper part 3 and is used to open and close the stopper S, The inner plug portion 3 is provided with a vent hole 5 that communicates the outside of the inner plug portion 3 with the inside of the container body 1 when the inner plug portion 3 closes the upper opening 2, and the vent hole 5 is provided at a position eccentric to the rotation center of the inner plug portion 3, The outer lid portion 4 is provided with a seal member 6 that seals the vent hole 5, and the seal member 6 is provided at a position eccentric to the rotation center of the outer lid portion 4, When the outer lid portion 4 is rotated relative to the inner plug portion 3 in a direction that screws the stopper body S into the upper opening 2 of the container body 1, the sealing member 6 moves toward the vent hole 5, and the vent hole 5 is sealed by the sealing member 6. From this sealed state of the vent hole 5, when the outer lid portion 4 is rotated relative to the inner plug portion 3 in a direction that screws the stopper body S out of the upper opening 2 of the container body 1, the sealing member 6 moves out of the vent hole 5, and the vent hole 5 is opened. Then, the internal gas in the container body 1 is discharged to the outside of the stopper S through the rotation clearance between the inner stopper part 3 and the outer lid part 4 from the opened vent hole 5. It is designed to The stopper S is equipped with a rotation restriction mechanism 7 that restricts the rotation range of the outer lid portion 4 relative to the inner stopper portion 3 to a rotation angle of 90 degrees or less, and is configured so that by rotating the outer lid portion 4 within the rotation range restricted by this rotation restriction mechanism 7, a state in which the vent hole 5 is sealed by the sealing member 6 and a state in which the sealing member 6 disengages from the vent hole 5 and opens the vent hole 5 can be switched.The rotation restriction mechanism 7 has a stopper interlocking mechanism 8 that rotates the inner stopper portion 3 in conjunction with the outer lid portion 4 when the outer lid portion 4 exceeds the rotation range restricted by this rotation restriction mechanism 7, and is configured so that the stopper S can be screwed into or unscrewed from the upper opening 2 of the container body 1 when the outer lid portion 4 and inner stopper portion 3 rotate in conjunction with each other by this stopper interlocking mechanism 8.

[0008] The rotation restriction mechanism 7 is The outer lid portion 4 is provided with a moving portion 9 that rotates in accordance with the rotation of the outer lid portion 4, and the inner plug portion 3 is provided with a rotation stopper collision portion 10 against which the rotating moving portion 9 collides, so that the rotation of the outer lid portion 4 relative to the inner plug portion 3 is restricted by the movement of the moving portion 9 against the rotation stopper collision portion 10, The plug interlocking mechanism 8 is This relates to the stopper body of a beverage container as described in claim 1, characterized in that when the outer lid portion 4 is rotated even after the moving portion 9 collides with the rotation prevention collision portion 10, the rotational force applied to the outer lid portion 4 is transmitted to the inner plug portion 3 via the moving portion 9 in a colliding state and the rotation prevention collision portion 10, causing the inner plug portion 3 to rotate in conjunction.

[0009] The rotation restriction mechanism 7 is This relates to the stopper body of a beverage container as described in claim 2, characterized in that it has a stopper separation mechanism part 11 that makes it impossible to separate the outer lid part 4 and the inner stopper part 3 when the outer lid part 4 is in a rotation-restricted state relative to the inner stopper part 3 and the moving part 9 has collided with the rotation-stop collision part 10, and that makes it possible to separate the outer lid part 4 and the inner stopper part 3 when the outer lid part 4 is in the middle of rotation relative to the inner stopper part 3 and the moving part 9 has not collided with the rotation-stop collision part 10.

[0010] The stopper S relates to a stopper for a beverage container as described in claim 1, characterized in that the inner stopper portion 3 has a male thread portion 13, and the stopper S is removably attached to the upper opening 2 of the container body 1 by screwing this male thread portion 13 into a female thread portion 12 provided in the upper opening 2 of the container body 1.

[0011] The present invention also relates to a beverage container characterized in that the stopper S of the beverage container according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is detachably attached to the upper opening 2 of the container body 1 by rotational screw engagement. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] Since the present invention is configured as described above, by rotating the outer lid portion relative to the inner plug portion in a direction that screws the plug body into the upper opening of the container body, the vent hole is sealed by the sealing member, thereby creating a state that prevents beverage leakage. When it is desired to drink the beverage inside the container body, from this leak-proof sealed state, the outer lid portion is rotated relative to the inner plug portion in a direction that screws the plug body out of the upper opening of the container body, causing the sealing member to move away from the vent hole and opening the vent hole. As a result, if the internal pressure inside the container body is high due to the carbonated beverage or the like contained therein, the vent hole can be released. Through the rotation clearance between the inner plug and the outer lid Carbon dioxide To the outside of the plug The stopper can be easily rotated open when the pressure inside the container body is released, and the rotation restriction mechanism allows for easy switching between the leak-proof sealed state and when the user wants to drink the beverage (when the internal pressure of the container body is released) by rotating it by 90 degrees or less.By continuing to rotate the outer lid even after this switching operation is complete, the stopper linkage mechanism rotates the inner stopper together with the outer lid, allowing the stopper to be screwed onto or unscrewed from the upper opening of the container body, resulting in a beverage container stopper and beverage container with a simple structure that is extremely practical.

[0013] Furthermore, in the invention described in claim 2, the rotation restriction mechanism, which can switch between a sealed state and an open state of the vent hole by the sealing member by rotating the outer lid portion within a rotation range of 90 degrees or less, and the stopper interlocking mechanism, which rotates the inner stopper portion together with the outer lid portion in conjunction with the inner stopper portion after the switch is completed, can be easily designed and realized with a simple configuration, resulting in a stopper for a beverage container with an even more practical configuration.

[0014] Furthermore, in the invention described in claim 3, the outer lid portion can be separated from the inner plug portion using the plug separation mechanism, which allows both the outer lid portion and the inner plug portion to be washed separately, making it possible to keep the plug hygienic, resulting in a beverage container plug with an even more practical configuration.

[0015] Furthermore, in the invention described in claim 4, the stopper has an inner stopper portion that can be screwed onto the upper opening of the container body and an outer lid portion that can rotate relative to this screwed inner stopper portion, resulting in a stopper for a beverage container with a simple structure that can be easily designed and realized, making it even more practical. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0016] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a first embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged front cross-sectional view showing the first embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing the plug of Example 1, viewed from above. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the plug of Example 1 as viewed from below. [Figure 5] FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional plan view illustrating a state in which the vent hole is sealed by the sealing member, showing the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional plan view showing the first embodiment, illustrating a state in which the sealing member has been removed from the vent hole, leaving the vent hole open. [Figure 7] 1 is an explanatory enlarged front sectional view of a rotation restriction mechanism having a plug interlocking mechanism and a plug separation mechanism, showing the plug (outer plug portion omitted) of Example 1. FIG. [Figure 8] 1A is a bottom view of the outer lid portion and FIG. 1B is a plan view of the inner plug portion showing the plug of Example 2. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0017] The best mode for carrying out the present invention will now be briefly described with reference to the accompanying drawings, illustrating the operation of the present invention.

[0018] The stopper S of the beverage container of the present invention is detachably attached to an upper opening 2 of a container body 1 having an upper opening 2 by rotational screw engagement. Alternatively, the beverage container of the present invention has a container body 1 having an upper opening 2 and the stopper S detachably attached to the upper opening 2.

[0019] The stopper S of the present invention comprises an inner stopper part 3 that is inserted into an upper opening 2 of the container body 1 to seal the upper opening 2, and an outer lid part 4 for opening and closing the stopper S that is rotatably attached to the inner stopper part 3 so as to cover the outside of the inner stopper part 3. The inner stopper part 3 is provided with a vent hole 5 that communicates between the outside of the inner stopper part 3 and the inside of the container body 1 when the inner stopper part 3 closes the upper opening 2, and the vent hole 5 is provided at a position eccentric to the rotation center of the inner stopper part 3, while the outer lid part 4 is provided with a seal member 6 that seals the vent hole 5, This sealing member 6 is provided at a position eccentric to the rotation center of the outer lid portion 4, and when the outer lid portion 4 is rotated relative to the inner plug portion 3 in a direction to screw the stopper body S into the upper opening 2 of the container body 1, the sealing member 6 moves toward the vent hole 5, and the vent hole 5 is sealed by this sealing member 6, and when the outer lid portion 4 is rotated relative to the inner plug portion 3 from this sealed state of the vent hole 5 in a direction to unscrew the stopper body S from the upper opening 2 of the container body 1, the sealing member 6 moves out of the vent hole 5, and the vent hole 5 is opened.

[0020] Therefore, when the beverage in the container body 1 is not to be consumed, the outer lid portion 4 is rotated relative to the inner plug portion 3 in a direction that screws the stopper body S into the upper opening 2 of the container body 1, and the vent hole 5 is sealed by the sealing member 6, creating a sealed state that prevents beverage leakage. When it is desired to drink the beverage in the container body 1, from this sealed state that prevents beverage leakage, the outer lid portion 4 is rotated relative to the inner plug portion 3 in a direction that screws the stopper body S out of the upper opening 2 of the container body 1, and the sealing member 6 moves out of the vent hole 5, opening the vent hole 5. Therefore, when a carbonated beverage is placed in the container body 1 and the internal pressure is high due to carbon dioxide gas, the beverage can escape through the vent hole 5. Through the rotation clearance between the inner plug part 3 and the outer lid part 4 Carbon dioxide To the outside of the plug S There is no inconvenience such as the stopper body S being ejected and becoming difficult to open (rotate), and the stopper body S can be easily opened and rotated to drink the carbonated beverage inside the container body 1.Furthermore, this configuration in which the vent hole 5 and the sealing member 6 are misaligned by rotating the outer lid portion 4 relative to the inner stopper portion 3, switching between a sealed state and an open state, is a simple configuration that can be easily designed and realized.

[0021] Furthermore, the stopper S of the present invention is configured such that the rotation range of the outer lid portion 4 relative to the inner stopper portion 3 is restricted by a rotation restriction mechanism 7 to a rotation angle of 90 degrees or less, and by rotating the outer lid portion 4 within the rotation range restricted by this rotation restriction mechanism 7, it is possible to switch between a state in which the vent hole 5 is sealed by the sealing member 6 and a state in which the sealing member 6 is released from the vent hole 5, leaving the vent hole 5 open. Therefore, the outer lid portion 4 can be easily rotated within a rotation range of 90 degrees or less both when the beverage in the container body 1 is not to be consumed (to achieve a sealed state that prevents beverage leakage) and when the beverage is to be consumed (to release the internal pressure in the container body 1).

[0022] Furthermore, when the outer lid portion 4 exceeds the rotation range restricted by the rotation restricting mechanism 7 , the inner plug portion 3 rotates together with the outer lid portion 4 due to the plug interlocking mechanism portion 8 of the rotation restricting mechanism 7 .

[0023] In other words, the sealing member 6 can be used to switch the vent hole 5 between sealed and open with a small rotation operation of less than 90 degrees using the rotation restriction mechanism 7, and if the rotation operation of the outer lid portion 4 continues even after the switching operation is completed, the inner stopper portion 3 will rotate together with the outer lid portion 4, allowing the stopper body S to be screwed into or unscrewed from the upper opening 2 of the container body 1. [Example]

[0024] A specific embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0025] This embodiment is applied to a portable water bottle as shown in Figures 1 and 2, in which a synthetic resin stopper S is detachably attached to the upper opening 2 of a metal container body 1, and when the stopper S is removed from the container body 1, the user can directly attach their mouth to the upper opening 2 and drink the beverage contained in the container body 1.

[0026] The structure for attaching and detaching the container body 1 and the stopper S will be explained below. As shown in FIG. 2, a female thread portion 12 is formed on the inner surface of the upper opening 2 of the container body 1, while a male thread portion 13 that screws into this female thread portion 12 is provided on the outer surface of the inner stopper portion 3 of the stopper S, which will be described later. The stopper S is attached to the upper opening 2 of the container body 1 by rotating the stopper S (clockwise in FIG. 1) to screw (screw) the male thread portion 13 into the female thread portion 12, and the stopper S can be removed from the upper opening 2 of the container body 1 by rotating the stopper S in the unscrewing direction (counterclockwise in FIG. 1).

[0027] Regarding the stopper S of this embodiment, the stopper S is composed of an inner stopper portion 3 that is inserted into the upper opening 2 of the container body 1 to seal the upper opening 2, and an outer lid portion 4 that is rotatably attached to the inner stopper portion 3 so as to cover the outside of the inner stopper portion 3 and is used to open and close the stopper S.

[0028] Specifically, the inner plug portion 3 is made of synthetic resin and comprises a cylindrical inner plug main body 14 with a bottom and a diameter that allows it to be inserted into the upper opening 2 from above, and a covering portion 15 that is connected to the entire circumference of the upper edge of the inner plug main body 14, protrudes slightly outward, and then hangs down; when the inner plug main body 14 is inserted into the upper opening 2 from above, the upper end and the entire outer circumferential side surface of the upper opening 2 are covered from above by this covering portion 15 (see Figures 2 to 4).

[0029] In addition, this inner plug portion 3 has a ring-shaped beverage leakage prevention gasket 16 attached to the lower part of the inner plug main body portion 14, which is in close contact with the inner peripheral surface near the upper opening 2 of the container body 1, and the male screw portion 13 is integrally molded on the lower outer peripheral surface above this beverage leakage prevention gasket 16 (see Figures 2 and 4).

[0030] Furthermore, small-diameter vent holes 5 are formed through the disk-shaped bottom of the inner plug body 14 of the inner plug 3, which connect the outside of the inner plug 3 with the inside of the container body 1 when the inner plug 3 closes the upper opening 2, and are located eccentrically with respect to the rotation center of the inner plug 3 (see Figures 2, 3, 4 and 6). The vent holes 5 are used to vent the internal pressure (carbon dioxide pressure) when a carbonated beverage is stored in the container body 1, and furthermore, vent grooves 24 are formed (integrally molded) at four locations on the upper part of the covering part 15, which function as discharge paths for discharging the carbon dioxide gas discharged from the vent holes 5 to the outside of the stopper S.

[0031] The outer lid portion 4 is made of synthetic resin and comprises a cylindrical outer plug portion 17 with a bottom and a diameter dimension that allows it to be inserted into the inner plug main body portion 14 from above and to be rotatable horizontally relative to the inner plug main body portion 14, and an exterior portion 18 that is shaped to cover the upper part of the outer plug portion 17 and the entire outer circumferential side surface of the covering portion 15 from the outside when the outer plug portion 17 is inserted into the inner plug main body portion 14 from above (see Figures 2 to 4).The outer circumferential side surface of the exterior portion 18 is integrally formed with a number of vertically elongated recesses 19 in the circumferential direction of the exterior portion 18, and the user can place their hands (fingers) in these recesses 19 to provide a non-slip effect when opening, closing, or rotating the stopper S (outer lid portion 4).

[0032] Furthermore, a small-diameter mounting hole 20 is formed through the disk-shaped bottom of outer plug portion 17 of outer lid portion 4 at a position eccentric to the rotation center of outer lid portion 4, and a seal member 6 made of an elastic material such as synthetic rubber and sealing the vent hole 5 is inserted into and attached to this mounting hole 20. In other words, in outer lid portion 4, the seal member 6 that seals the vent hole 5 is provided on the disk-shaped bottom of outer plug portion 17 at a position eccentric to the rotation center of outer lid portion 4 (see Figures 2 to 4).

[0033] When the outer lid portion 4 is rotated relative to the inner plug portion 3 in a direction that screws the stopper body S into the upper opening 2 of the container body 1, the sealing member 6 moves toward the vent hole 5, and the vent hole 5 is sealed by the sealing member 6. When the outer lid portion 4 is rotated relative to the inner plug portion 3 from the sealed state of the vent hole 5 (the state in Figures 2 and 5) in a direction that screws the stopper body S out of the upper opening 2 of the container body 1 (the direction shown by the arrow in Figure 5), the sealing member 6 moves out of the vent hole 5, and the vent hole 5 is opened, as shown in Figure 6.

[0034] Therefore, for example, if a carbonated beverage is stored in the container body 1, and the carbonated beverage is not to be consumed, the outer lid portion 4 is rotated relative to the inner plug portion 3 in a direction that screws the stopper body S into the upper opening 2 of the container body 1, and the vent hole 5 is sealed by the sealing member 6, thereby preventing beverage leakage. When a carbonated beverage is to be consumed, from this leak-proof sealed state, the outer lid portion 4 is rotated relative to the inner plug portion 3 in a direction that screws the stopper body S out of the upper opening 2 of the container body 1, and the sealing member 6 moves out of the vent hole 5, opening the vent hole 5. As a result, even if the internal pressure inside the container body 1 is high due to carbon dioxide gas, the carbon dioxide gas is released through the vent hole 5, and The liquid is discharged to the outside of the plug S through the rotation clearance (gap) between the inner plug part 3 and the outer lid part 4. The stopper S is configured so that the carbonated beverage in the container body 1 can be drunk by easily rotating the stopper S to open it, without causing any inconvenience such as difficulty in opening (rotating) the stopper S.

[0035] The mounting structure of the inner plug portion 3 and the outer lid portion 4 will be explained below. As shown in Figure 3, mounting grooves 21 are provided at opposing positions on the inner circumferential surface of the inner plug body portion 14 of the inner plug portion 3, while as shown in Figure 4, a plate-shaped moving portion 9 that can engage with the mounting grooves 21 is provided horizontally outwardly at an opposing position on the outer circumferential surface of the outer plug portion 17 of the outer lid portion 4.

[0036] As shown in FIG. 7, the mounting groove 21 is formed as a substantially inverted T-shaped groove comprising vertical groove portions 21A having a groove length in the vertical (up-down) direction and an open groove upper portion, a first horizontal groove portion 21B extending long and continuously from the lower end of each vertical groove portion 21A to one side (the right side in FIG. 7) along the circumferential direction (horizontal direction) of the inner plug main body portion 14, and a second horizontal groove portion 21C extending short and continuously from the lower end of each vertical groove portion 21A to the other side (the left side in FIG. 7) along the circumferential direction of the inner plug main body portion 14, and the inverted T-shaped mounting grooves 21 located at opposing positions are configured to be point-symmetrical with respect to the rotation center of the inner plug portion 3 as the center of symmetry.

[0037] The outer plug part 17 can be inserted into the inner plug main body part 14 from above by aligning the position of the moving part 9 with the vertical groove part 21A and engaging the moving part 9 with the vertical groove part 21A from its upper open part, and when the outer plug part 17 is inserted into the inner plug main body part 14 until the moving part 9 reaches the lower limit of insertion and engagement of the vertical groove part 21A, the outer lid part 4 (outer plug part 17) is rotated horizontally in a clockwise direction (screw-in (screw-engagement) direction) to move the moving part 9 to the first horizontal part continuing from the lower end of the vertical groove part 21A. When the outer plug portion 17 is engaged with the groove portion 21B, the outer plug portion 17 is prevented from slipping out of the inner plug main body portion 14, and the outer lid portion 4 is attached to the inner plug portion 3. Even if the outer lid portion 4 is rotated horizontally counterclockwise (in the unscrewing direction) from this attached (prevented) state, and the moving portion 9 is moved from the first horizontal groove portion 21B through the vertical groove portion 21A so that a portion of the moving portion 9 (the tip portion in the rotational movement direction) engages with the second horizontal groove portion 21C, the outer plug portion 17 remains prevented from slipping out of the inner plug main body portion 14, and the outer lid portion 4 is attached to the inner plug portion 3. In addition, one of the vertical groove walls on both sides of the vertical groove portion 21A is formed as an inclined wall so that the opening width of the upper open portion becomes wider toward the upper side (see FIG. 7), which makes it easy to insert and engage the moving portion 9 from the upper open portion of the vertical groove portion 21A, and facilitates assembling the outer lid portion 4 to the inner plug portion 3.

[0038] In addition, the stopper S of this embodiment is equipped with a rotation restriction mechanism 7 that restricts the rotation range of the outer lid portion 4 relative to the inner stopper portion 3 to a rotation angle of 90 degrees or less, and is configured so that by rotating the outer lid portion 4 within the rotation range restricted by this rotation restriction mechanism 7, it is possible to switch between a state in which the vent hole 5 is sealed by the sealing member 6 and a state in which the sealing member 6 is detached from the vent hole 5 and the vent hole 5 is opened.The rotation restriction mechanism 7 also has a stopper interlocking mechanism 8 that rotates the inner stopper portion 3 in conjunction with the outer lid portion 4 when the outer lid portion 4 exceeds the rotation range restricted by this rotation restriction mechanism 7, and is configured so that the stopper S can be screwed into or unscrewed from the upper opening 2 of the container body 1 by the stopper interlocking mechanism 8 rotating the outer lid portion 4 and the inner stopper portion 3 in conjunction.

[0039] This rotation restriction mechanism 7 is composed of the mounting groove 21 provided in the inner plug portion 3 (inner plug main body portion 14) and the moving portion 9 provided in the outer lid portion 4 (outer plug portion 17), and a rotation stop collision portion 10 against which the moving portion 9, which moves in a swiveling manner as the outer lid portion 4 rotates, collides is provided in the mounting groove 21 of the inner plug portion 3 (inner plug main body portion 14), and the rotation of the outer lid portion 4 relative to the inner plug portion 3 is restricted by the moving portion 9 colliding with the rotation stop collision portion 10.

[0040] In addition, the rotation prevention collision portion 10 is formed by the vertical groove end wall 10A of the first horizontal groove portion 21B, which is the horizontal rotation limit of the moving portion 9, and the vertical groove end wall 10B of the second horizontal groove portion 21C, as the moving portion 9 moves back and forth (rotates) horizontally between the first horizontal groove portion 21B and the second horizontal groove portion 21C of the mounting groove 21 (via the vertical groove portion 21A) (see Figures 5 to 7). In other words, the outer lid portion 4 is configured so that the moving portion 9 can move back and forth horizontally in rotation relative to the inner plug portion 3 within the rotation range allowed by the vertical groove portion 21A, the first lateral groove portion 21B, and the second lateral groove portion 21C (the rotation range until the end portion of the moving portion 9 at the tip end of the rotational movement direction collides with the vertical groove end wall 10A, which serves as the rotation stop collision portion 10 on the first lateral groove portion 21B side, and the vertical groove end wall 10B, which serves as the rotation stop collision portion 10 on the second lateral groove portion 21C side).The width (along the circumferential direction of the inner plug main body 14) of the vertical groove portion 21A, the groove length (along the circumferential direction of the inner plug main body 14) of the first lateral groove portion 21B, and the groove length (along the circumferential direction of the inner plug main body 14) of the second lateral groove portion 21C are set and configured so that the horizontal rotation of the outer lid portion 4 relative to the inner plug portion 3 is within a rotation range of 90 degrees or less (approximately 30 to 40 degrees in this embodiment).

[0041] The outer lid portion 4 is configured so that when the outer lid portion 4 is rotated relative to the inner plug portion 3 in a direction that screws the stopper body S into the upper opening 2 of the container body 1, the moving portion 9 collides with the rotation stopper collision portion 10A of the first horizontal groove portion 21B, and the sealing member 6 seals the vent hole 5 (see Figure 5).Furthermore, when the outer lid portion 4 is rotated relative to the inner plug portion 3 in a direction that screws the stopper body S out of the upper opening 2 of the container body 1, the moving portion 9 collides with the rotation stopper collision portion 10B of the second horizontal groove portion 21C, and the sealing member 6 disengages from the vent hole 5, opening the vent hole 5 (see Figure 6).The operation of opening and closing the vent hole 5 (forward / reverse rotation of the outer lid portion 4) can be easily performed by rotating the outer lid portion 4 by a very small amount, less than 90 degrees (approximately 30 to 40 degrees in this embodiment).

[0042] Furthermore, the plug interlocking mechanism 8 is configured so that when the outer lid portion 4 is rotated horizontally even after the moving portion 9 collides with the rotation stopper collision portion 10, the rotational force applied to the outer lid portion 4 is transmitted to the inner plug main body portion 14 (inner plug portion 3) via the moving portion 9 in the colliding state and the rotation stopper collision portion 10, causing the inner plug portion 3 to rotate in conjunction.

[0043] That is, when the outer lid portion 4 is rotated in the direction in which the stopper S is screwed (clockwise) and the end portion on the tip side in the rotation direction of the moving portion 9 is caused to collide with the rotation stopper collision portion 10A (vertical groove end wall) of the first horizontal groove portion 21B (when the vent hole 5 is sealed with the sealing member 6), the inner plug main body portion 14 (inner plug portion 3) is also configured to rotate in conjunction with the direction in which the stopper S is screwed, and as a result, the male thread portion 13 of the inner plug main body portion 14 is screwed into the female thread portion 12 of the upper opening 2 and the inner plug portion 3 (stopper body S) is attached to the upper opening 2 of the container body 1 (the beverage leakage prevention gasket 16 is pressed against the inner circumferential surface in the vicinity of the upper opening 2), and the outer lid portion 4 is screwed from the screw-attached state of the stopper S in which the beverage leakage prevention gasket 16 is pressed against the upper opening 2 to the inner plug portion 3, thereby unscrewing the stopper S from the upper opening 2. When the outer lid portion 4 is rotated in the direction in which the inner plug portion 3 is unscrewed (counterclockwise), the frictional force of the pressure of the beverage leakage prevention gasket 16 against the upper opening 2 causes only the outer lid portion 4 to rotate relative to the inner plug portion 3 without the inner plug portion 3 rotating, and the sealing member 6 is released from the vent hole 5 (the internal pressure inside the container body 1 is released), and when the moving portion 9 passes over the vertical groove portion 21A and collides with the rotation prevention collision portion 10B (vertical groove end wall) of the second horizontal groove portion 21C, further rotating the outer lid portion 4 counterclockwise causes the inner plug main body portion 14 (inner plug portion 3) to rotate in conjunction with the direction in which the plug S is unscrewed, and as a result, the inner plug main body portion 14 rotates against the frictional force of the pressure of the beverage leakage prevention gasket 16, and the male thread portion 13 unscrews from the female thread portion 12 of the upper opening 2, and the plug S together with the inner plug portion 3 is removed from the upper opening 2 of the container body 1.

[0044] In addition, a temporary locking protrusion 22 protrudes inward near the rotation prevention collision portion 10A of each first horizontal groove portion 21B (see Figures 5 and 7). Meanwhile, a temporary engagement recess 23 with which the temporary locking protrusion 22 can engage is provided on the outer peripheral edge near the tip end of each moving portion 9 in the screw rotation direction (see Figures 4 and 5). When each moving portion 9 collides with the rotation prevention collision portion 10A of each first horizontal groove portion 21B, the temporary locking protrusion 22 simultaneously engages and locks into the temporary engagement recess 23 (see Figure 5). In other words, when the outer lid portion 4 is rotated in the screwing direction, the moving portion 9 collides with the rotation stop collision portion 10A of each first horizontal groove portion 21B, and the sealing member 6 seals the vent hole 5 to create a sealed state that prevents beverage leakage.However, this sealed state that prevents beverage leakage is maintained in a temporary locked state (a state in which beverage does not leak from the vent hole 5) that is not easily released by the concave-convex engagement between the temporary locking convex portion 22 and the temporary engagement concave portion 23.

[0045] Furthermore, the concave and convex shapes of the temporary locking convex portion 22 and the temporary engagement concave portion 23 are configured so that the engagement strength of the concave and convex portions is weaker than the frictional pressure force of the beverage leakage prevention gasket 16 against the upper opening 2, and when the outer lid portion 4 is rotated in the unscrewing direction to open the stopper body S, the temporary engagement concave portion 23 of the outer lid portion 4 engages and disengages with the temporary locking convex portion 22 of the inner stopper portion 3, which is prevented from rotating by the frictional pressure force of the beverage leakage prevention gasket 16, and the outer lid portion 4 rotates in the unscrewing direction relative to the inner stopper portion 3 (the sealing member 6 moves out of the vent hole 5, opening the vent hole 5 (discharging the internal pressure inside the container body 1)), and then the stopper interlocking mechanism portion 8 rotates the inner stopper portion 3 (stopper body S) in the unscrewing direction.

[0046] In addition, the rotation restriction mechanism 7 of this embodiment has a stopper separation mechanism 11 that makes it impossible to separate the outer lid portion 4 from the inner stopper portion 3 when the rotation of the outer lid portion 4 relative to the inner stopper portion 3 is restricted when the moving portion 9 has collided with the rotation stopper collision portion 10, and that makes it possible to separate the outer lid portion 4 from the inner stopper portion 3 when the outer lid portion 4 is in the middle of rotation relative to the inner stopper portion 3 when the moving portion 9 has not collided with the rotation stopper collision portion 10.This stopper separation mechanism 11 separates the outer lid portion 4 from the inner stopper portion 3, allowing both the outer lid portion 4 and the inner stopper portion 3 to be washed separately, and maintaining the stopper body S in a hygienic state.

[0047] Specifically, the plug separation mechanism 11 is composed of the mounting groove 21 formed in an inverted T shape and the moving part 9 that engages with the mounting groove 21, and has two states: a rotation-restricted state of the outer lid part 4 in which the moving part 9 (all of it) is present in the first horizontal groove part 21B of the mounting groove 21 and is in collision with the rotation-stop collision part 10A of the first horizontal groove part 21B, and a rotation-restricted state of the outer lid part 4 in which a part of the moving part 9 is present in the second horizontal groove part 21C of the mounting groove 21 and is in collision with the rotation-stop collision part 10B of the second horizontal groove part 21C. In the restricted state, the outer lid portion 4 is prevented from slipping upward relative to the inner plug portion 3, making it impossible to separate the outer lid portion 4 from the inner plug portion 3. When the outer lid portion 4 is in the mid-rotation state after the moving portion 9 has been moved from the first horizontal groove portion 21B to the vertical groove portion 21A or from the second horizontal groove portion 21C to the vertical groove portion 21A, the moving portion 9 (outer lid portion 4) can be inserted and removed upward along the vertical groove portion 21A as shown by the arrow in Figure 7, allowing the outer lid portion 4 to be separated (removed) from the inner plug portion 3 (see Figure 7).

[0048] Therefore, when the user is applying a rotational force to the outer lid portion 4 to screw or unscrew the stopper S, the outer lid portion 4 is unlikely to come off from the inner stopper portion 3 (less likely to interfere with the rotational operation of the stopper S for the purpose of screwing or unscrewing), and the outer lid portion 4 is configured to be in a mid-rotation state relative to the inner stopper portion 3 so that the inner stopper portion 3 and the outer lid portion 4 can be separated only when the user intentionally wants to disassemble the stopper S, such as during cleaning. [Example]

[0049] A specific second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

[0050] In this embodiment, the configurations of the outer lid portion 4 and the inner plug portion 3 are different from those in the first embodiment.

[0051] Specifically, the sealing member 6 is provided on the disk-shaped bottom of the outer plug portion 17 of the outer lid portion 4 as in Example 1, but in this example, the mounting holes 20 are formed through the disk-shaped bottom at positions eccentric to the rotation center of the outer lid portion 4, at two symmetrical positions about the rotation center of the outer lid portion 4, and the sealing member 6 is attached to each of the two mounting holes 20. That is, in this example, the sealing members 6 are provided at two positions on the disk-shaped bottom of the outer plug portion 17 of the outer lid portion 4.

[0052] The sealing members 6 are provided in two locations so that when the outer lid portion 4 is attached to the inner plug portion 3, it can be easily attached without having to worry about the positional relationship between the sealing members 6 and the vent hole 5, and this makes it easy to assemble the plug body S (attaching the outer lid portion 4 to the inner plug portion 3).

[0053] In other words, in the case of a configuration in which the sealing member 6 is provided in only one location as in Example 1, the rotation range of the outer lid portion 4 relative to the inner plug portion 3 is restricted by the rotation restriction mechanism 7, and therefore, when attaching the outer lid portion 4 to the inner plug portion 3, if the positional relationship between the sealing member 6 and the vent hole 5 is incorrect (if the outer lid portion 4 is not attached to the inner plug portion 3 in a positional relationship in which the rotational movement trajectory of the sealing member 6 matches the vent hole 5), the sealing member 6 will not be able to seal the vent hole 5. Therefore, in order to prevent such assembly errors, it was necessary to make the shapes of the moving parts 9 located at opposing positions (for example, the length and width along the direction of rotational movement) different from each other, and to make the shapes of the vertical groove parts 21A of the mounting grooves 21 located at opposing positions (for example, the opening width of the upper opening part of the vertical groove parts 21A) different from each other to correspond to these shapes, so that if the positional relationship between the seal member 6 and the vent hole 5 is not correct, the moving parts 9 cannot be engaged with the mounting grooves 21 (vertical groove parts 21A). However, according to this embodiment, it is possible to make the positional relationship between the seal member 6 and the vent hole 5 correct. The configuration is such that even if the outer lid portion 4 is attached to the inner plug portion 3 without using either of the two sealing members 6, the vent hole 5 can be sealed (the positional relationship between the two sealing members 6 and the moving portion 9 is set), so the assembly work of the plug body S can be performed more easily than in Example 1, and there is no need to devise ways to make the shapes of each moving portion 9 or each mounting groove 21 (vertical groove portion 21A) different.In this example, the shapes of the moving portions 9 located in opposing positions are formed to be the same as each other, and the shapes of the vertical groove portions 21A of the mounting grooves 21 located in opposing positions are also formed to be the same as each other.

[0054] Further, each of the moving portions 9 of this embodiment is provided with the provisional engagement recesses 23 on the outer peripheral edge near both ends in the rotation direction (two locations: the outer peripheral edge near the tip in the screw-and-rotate direction and the outer peripheral edge near the tip in the screw-and-unscrew direction), while the inner plug portion 3 of this embodiment is provided with the provisional engagement recesses 23 on the outer peripheral edge near the rotation stop collision portion (vertical groove end wall) 10A of each of the first horizontal groove portions 21B of the inner plug main body 14 and the rotation stop collision portion (vertical groove end wall) 10B of the second horizontal groove portion 21C. A temporary locking protrusion 22 is provided protruding inward near the groove end wall 10B, and is configured so that when each moving part 9 collides with the rotation stop collision part 10A of each first horizontal groove part 21B, the temporary locking protrusion 22 simultaneously engages and locks into the temporary engagement recess 23, and also when each moving part 9 collides with the rotation stop collision part 10B of each second horizontal groove part 21C, the temporary locking protrusion 22 simultaneously engages and locks into the temporary engagement recess 23.

[0055] That is, when the outer lid portion 4 is rotated in the screwing direction, the movable portion 9 collides with the rotation stop collision portion 10A of each of the first horizontal groove portions 21B, and the sealing member 6 seals the vent hole 5 to establish a sealed state that prevents beverage leakage. However, this sealed state that prevents beverage leakage is maintained in a temporary fastening state (a state in which beverage does not leak from the vent hole 5) that is not easily released by the concave-convex engagement between the temporary locking convex portion 22 and the temporary engagement concave portion 23. Conversely, when the outer lid portion 4 is rotated in the screwing direction, When the movable portion 9 collides with the rotation stopper collision portion 10B of each second horizontal groove portion 21C, the open state of the vent hole 5 is maintained in a temporarily locked state in which it is not easily released due to the recessed and projecting engagement between the temporary locking projection 22 and the temporary engagement recess 23 (this temporarily locked open state of the vent hole 5 is maintained when the outer lid portion 4 is rotated in the screwing direction so that the beverage leakage prevention packing 16 of the inner plug portion 3 comes into close contact with the inner peripheral surface of the container body 1 in the vicinity of the upper opening 2, and the resulting pressure frictional force the law of nature The inner plug portion 3 is prevented from rotating, and the temporary engagement recess 23 of the outer lid portion 4 engages and disengages with the temporary engagement protrusion 22 of the inner plug portion 3, so that the outer lid portion 4 rotates in the screwing direction relative to the inner plug portion 3, making it possible to seal the vent hole 5 with the sealing member 6.

[0056] The other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment.

[0057] The present invention is not limited to the first and second embodiments, and the specific configuration of each component can be designed as appropriate. [Explanation of symbols]

[0058] 1 Container body 2 Upper opening 3 Internal plug part 4 Outer lid part 5 Ventilation hole 6 Sealing material 7 Rotation restriction mechanism 8. Valve interlocking mechanism 9 Moving Part 10. Rotation stopper collision part 11 Plug separation mechanism section 12 Female thread 13 Male thread S plug body

Claims

1. A stopper for a beverage container that can be detachably attached to an upper opening of a container body by rotating and screwing the stopper, The stopper comprises an inner stopper portion that is inserted into the upper opening of the container body to seal the upper opening, and an outer lid portion for opening and closing the stopper that is rotatably attached to the inner stopper portion so as to cover the outside of the inner stopper portion, the inner plug portion is provided with a vent hole that communicates the outside of the inner plug portion with the inside of the container body when the inner plug portion closes the upper opening, and the vent hole is provided at a position eccentric to the rotation center of the inner plug portion; The outer lid portion is provided with a seal member that seals the vent hole, and the seal member is provided at a position eccentric to the rotation center of the outer lid portion, When the outer lid portion is rotated relative to the inner plug portion in a direction in which the plug body is screwed onto the upper opening of the container body, the sealing member moves toward the vent hole, sealing the vent hole; when the outer lid portion is rotated relative to the inner plug portion from this sealed state of the vent hole in a direction in which the plug body is unscrewed from the upper opening of the container body, the sealing member moves out of the vent hole, opening the vent hole, and internal gas within the container body is discharged to the outside of the plug body through the opened vent hole via the rotational clearance between the inner plug portion and the outer lid portion. The stopper is equipped with a rotation restriction mechanism that restricts the rotation range of the outer lid portion relative to the inner stopper portion to a rotation angle of 90 degrees or less, and is configured so that by rotating the outer lid portion within the rotation range restricted by this rotation restriction mechanism, the state in which the vent hole is sealed by the sealing member and the state in which the sealing member disengages from the vent hole and opens the vent hole can be switched between.The rotation restriction mechanism also has a stopper linkage mechanism that rotates the inner stopper portion in conjunction with the outer lid portion when the outer lid portion exceeds the rotation range restricted by this rotation restriction mechanism, and is configured so that the stopper can be screwed into or unscrewed from the upper opening of the container body by the stopper linkage mechanism rotating the outer lid portion and inner stopper portion in conjunction with each other.

2. The rotation restriction mechanism includes: The outer lid portion is provided with a moving portion that rotates in accordance with the rotation of the outer lid portion, and a rotation stopper collision portion against which the rotating moving portion collides is provided on the inner plug portion, and the rotation of the outer lid portion relative to the inner plug portion is restricted by the moving portion colliding with the rotation stopper collision portion, The plug interlocking mechanism is The stopper of the beverage container as described in claim 1, characterized in that when the outer lid portion is rotated even after the moving portion collides with the rotation prevention collision portion, the rotational force applied to the outer lid portion is transmitted to the inner stopper portion via the moving portion in the collided state and the rotation prevention collision portion, causing the inner stopper portion to rotate in conjunction.

3. The rotation restriction mechanism includes: The stopper body of a beverage container as described in claim 2, characterized in that it has a stopper separation mechanism that makes it impossible to separate the outer lid portion and the inner stopper portion when the outer lid portion is in a rotation-restricted state relative to the inner stopper portion after the moving portion has collided with the rotation-preventing collision portion, and that makes it possible to separate the outer lid portion and the inner stopper portion when the outer lid portion is in the middle of rotation relative to the inner stopper portion after the moving portion has not collided with the rotation-preventing collision portion.

4. 2. A beverage container stopper as described in claim 1, characterized in that the stopper has a male threaded portion on the inner stopper portion, and the stopper is removably attached to the upper opening of the container body by screwing this male threaded portion into a female threaded portion on the upper opening of the container body.

5. A beverage container characterized in that the beverage container stopper according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is detachably attached to an upper opening of a container body by means of a rotational screw engagement.

Citation Information

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