Device for dispensing a fluid product

Abstract

The invention relates to a device for dispensing a fluid product comprising a pump and a dispensing head (1), the pump comprising a pump body (14) containing a pump chamber (14a), an attachment ring (10) for attaching the pump body (14) to a reservoir, in particular with a neck seal (11) positioned therebetween, a plunger (16) sliding inside the pump body (14) between a rest position and an actuation position, the plunger (16) sliding around a hollow axial rod (15), and an elastic return member (50) for returning the pump to its rest position after each actuation, the dispensing head (1) being attached to the hollow axial rod (15), and the elastic return member (50) being positioned between the attachment ring (10) and the dispensing head (1).

Description

Fluid product dispensing device

[0001] The present invention relates to a device for distributing a fluid product.

[0002] Documents FR2343137 and FR2403465 describe a distribution device comprising a pump including a pump body in which a piston can move, mounted to slide on an actuating rod, the pushing force exerted on the rod by the user being transmitted to the piston via a spring, so that by actuating the actuating rod, a relative displacement of the piston occurs with respect to the rod.

[0003] Document WO2020128269A1 describes an improved version of the above pump.

[0004] Documents WO2024028556 and US2023034207 describe other prior art devices.

[0005] These pumps do, however, have some drawbacks. For example, they contain two metal springs, which is not advantageous from a recycling standpoint. Furthermore, they include a ram, which works in conjunction with the return spring and is necessary for priming the pump.

[0006] The present invention aims to provide a fluid product distribution device that does not reproduce the aforementioned disadvantages.

[0007] The present invention thus aims to provide a fluid product distribution device that improves recycling by eliminating metal springs.

[0008] The present invention also aims to provide a fluid product distribution device that simplifies priming.

[0009] The present invention also aims to provide a fluid product dispensing device that is simple and inexpensive to manufacture and assemble.

[0010] The present therefore relates to a fluid product distribution device comprising a pump and a distribution head, said pump comprising a pump body containing a pump chamber, a fixing ring for fixing said pump body to a reservoir, in particular with interposition of a neck seal, a piston sliding in said pump body between a rest position and an actuation position, said piston sliding around a hollow axial rod, and an elastic return member for returning said pump to its rest position after each actuation, said distribution head being fixed to said hollow axial rod, said elastic return member being interposed between said fixing ring and said distribution head, said hollow axial rod having a groove receiving a radial projection of said distribution head, in particular formed at a lower axial end of an axial channel of said distribution head.

[0011] Advantageously, the said elastic return element is non-metallic.

[0012] Advantageously, the said elastic return mechanism is a bellows.

[0013] Advantageously, said pump body has a top opening closed by said piston and a bottom opening, said hollow axial rod having an internal axial channel closed axially on the bottom side and communicating with the outside by a radial orifice, said piston having on a radially external edge an external sealing lip to ensure sealing against said pump body, and on a radially internal edge an internal sealing lip, to seal said radial orifice hermetically at rest.

[0014] Advantageously, a hollow axial insert is fixed in said hollow axial rod, said hollow axial insert having said radial orifice.

[0015] Advantageously, said distribution head includes a vent.

[0016] Advantageously, a valve seal is provided to ensure the sealing of said fixing ring with said pump body.

[0017] Advantageously, in the rest position, an upper axial edge of said piston cooperates in a hermetic manner with said valve seal.

[0018] These features and advantages, and others, will become clearer in the following detailed description, made with reference to the attached drawings, given as non-limiting examples, and on which:

[0019] This is a schematic cross-sectional view of a fluid product distribution device comprising a fluid product distribution pump according to an advantageous embodiment, in its rest position, and

[0020] This is a schematic perspective view of the distribution head of the device.

[0021] In the description, the terms "upper", "lower", "top", and "bottom" refer to the upright position of the device shown in the figures. The terms "axial" and "radial" refer to the longitudinal central axis of the pump.

[0022] Figures 1 and 2 represent a fluid product distribution device comprising a pump according to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, which improves upon a prior art device as described in document WO2020128269A1.

[0023] The pump includes a pump body 14 containing a pump chamber 14a. The pump body 14 is axially open on both sides, with an upper opening advantageously closed by a piston 16 and a lower opening advantageously closed by an inlet valve (not shown).

[0024] A fixing ring 10 is provided to fix the pump body 14 onto the neck of a reservoir (not shown), preferably with the interposition of a neck seal 11. A valve seal 13 ensures the sealing of the fixing ring 10 with the pump body 14.

[0025] The piston 16 slides in a sealed manner in the pump body 14, between a rest position and an actuation position, advantageously around a hollow axial rod 15 with a first internal axial channel 15a.

[0026] The first internal axial channel 15a opens axially towards the top of the rod 15 to connect to a distribution head 1 provided with a distribution orifice 2.

[0027] The dispensing head 1 advantageously includes a nasal tip 3 intended to be at least partially inserted into a nostril during use, and a radial flange 4 providing support for the user's fingers during actuation. An insert 5 is advantageously positioned upstream of the dispensing orifice 2, both to limit dead volume and define a low-volume expulsion channel, and to form a spray profile (not shown) at the dispensing orifice 2 to generate a spray. This insert 5 is advantageously inserted into an axial channel 6 of the dispensing head 1, this axial channel 6 cooperating with the axial rod 15 after assembly of the dispensing head 1 onto the pump.

[0028] Towards the bottom, the first internal axial channel 15a is advantageously also open axially and the hollow axial rod 15 advantageously receives a hollow axial insert 17.

[0029] This hollow axial insert 17 has a second internal axial channel 17a which opens axially upwards into the first internal axial channel 15a of the hollow axial rod 15.

[0030] Towards the bottom, the second internal axial channel 17a is advantageously closed axially, and the hollow axial insert advantageously has a radial orifice 17b to connect the second internal axial channel 17a with the outside of the hollow axial insert 17.

[0031] Optionally, the rod 15 and the insert 17 could be formed from a single piece, for example by molding.

[0032] The distribution head 1 is fixed to the hollow axial rod 15. Advantageously, it is the axial channel 6 which is fixed to the hollow axial rod 15 and which extends axially around the upper part thereof.

[0033] This axial channel 6 has at its lower axial edge a radial projection 6' projecting radially inwards.

[0034] The rod 15 has a groove 15' receiving said radial projection 6' of said axial channel 6. In this way, the distribution head 1 is indissoluble from the rod 15.

[0035] An elastic return element 50, advantageously non-metallic, interposed between the distribution head 1 and the fixing ring 10, is provided to drive the pump towards its rest position, and return it to this rest position after each actuation.

[0036] In the example shown, this elastic return element 50 is formed by a bellows, which elastically forces the hollow axial rod 15 towards its rest position. The bellows advantageously comprises a lower axial end 51 fixed to the retaining ring 10 and an upper axial end 52 fixed to said distribution head 1.

[0037] Optionally, the elastic return element 50 can be overmolded onto said distribution head.

[0038] The present invention makes it possible to produce a pump with a minimum of component parts, which is advantageous by making the manufacture and assembly of the pump less complex and therefore less expensive.

[0039] During actuation, this bellows 50 is compressed, so that after actuation, the compressed bellows will elastically return to its uncompressed position, bringing with it the rod 15 and the distribution head 1 back to its rest position, which in turn returns the piston 16 back to its rest position by drawing the next dose of fluid product into the pump chamber 14a.

[0040] An external radial edge of the piston 16 advantageously forms an external sealing lip 16a, to ensure sealing against the internal surface of the pump body 14.

[0041] An upper axial edge 16b of the piston 16 advantageously ensures a seal against the valve seal 13 when at rest.

[0042] The seal between the piston 16 and the hollow axial insert 17 is advantageously ensured by an internal part of the piston 16, preferably of conical shape, forming an internal sealing lip 16c.

[0043] At rest, the radial orifice 17b is advantageously aligned with the internal sealing lip 16c, so as to be perfectly sealed. The seal between the outside and inside of the reservoir is therefore advantageously ensured, on the one hand, by the contact between the upper edge 16b of the piston 16 and the valve seal 13, and on the other hand, between the internal sealing lip 16c and the hollow axial insert 17.

[0044] Advantageously, pre-compression is provided during actuation, which ensures proper distribution of the entire dose without the risk of partial actuation. This pre-compression can be achieved in any known way, for example, by generating an initial resistance to actuation that the user must overcome to activate the pump.

[0045] At the beginning of the actuation stroke, the force exerted by the user on the distribution head 1 is transmitted to the hollow axial rod 15, which, once a threshold force is reached, can slide downwards. The resistance to this sliding generates a resistance to actuation, and therefore pre-compression, which requires the application of a threshold force to actuate the pump.

[0046] As can be seen on the figure, a vent 9 connected to the bellows 50 is advantageously provided in the distribution head 1, particularly in the nasal tip 3.

[0047] Alternatively, the bellows 50 could include one or more vent(s), formed by one or more hole(s) in the deformable wall of the bellows 50.

[0048] The pump described above operates as follows. At rest, the seal inside the reservoir (not shown) is ensured by the neck seal 11 between the ring 10 and the reservoir (not shown), by the valve seal 13 between the ring 10 and the pump body 14, by the contact between the upper edge 16b of the piston 16 and the valve seal 13, and by the internal sealing lip 16c of the piston 16 against the hollow axial insert 17.

[0049] The reservoir, not shown in the drawings, and which can be any type, is filled with a liquid, in particular a pharmaceutical one, to be distributed, especially to be sprayed.

[0050] The fixing ring 10 can be made of plastic. It can be screwed, crimped, snapped into place or otherwise fixed to the tank.

[0051] The user must first prime the pump by running it to expel the air until the pump chamber 14a is filled with liquid. During priming, the air contained in the pump chamber 14a is expelled, and when the pump returns to its rest position, liquid is drawn into the pump chamber 14a, in a well-known manner.

[0052] After priming, the pump is ready to be used to dispense a dose of liquid with each actuation.

[0053] To perform this actuation, the user presses axially on the distribution head 1 to push in the rod 15. Since the liquid is incompressible, the piston 16 moves around the insert 17 while the bellows 50 deforms. When the piston 16 uncovers the radial orifice 17b, the liquid contained in the pump chamber 14a is expelled.

[0054] The liquid is rapidly expelled through the radial orifice 17b, the second internal channel 17a and the first internal channel 15a, towards the distribution head 1 assembled on the pump.

[0055] After this, the user ceases to exert pressure on the rod 15. The bellows 50 decompresses and returns the distribution head 1 to its rest position, which pulls the rod 15 and the insert 17 upwards, thus sealing the radial orifice 17b and closing the pump chamber 14a relative to the distribution head 1. This creates a vacuum in the pump chamber 14a, so that liquid is drawn from the reservoir, while air replaces this liquid in the reservoir, passing through the central opening of the valve seal 13 around the rod 15, and advantageously through the vent 9. When the upper edge 16b of the piston 16 comes into contact with the valve seal 13, no more air can enter, and the piston 16 is blocked; the pump has returned to its rest position and is ready for further actuation.

[0056] One advantage of the pump shown in the figures is that it has no metal parts, which on the one hand makes the manufacture and assembly of the pump less complex and therefore less expensive, and on the other hand is advantageous for recycling, particularly if the reservoir is made of the same material as the pump, because then all the packaging goes into the same recycling stream, without dismantling or sorting.

[0057] The present invention has been described with reference to an advantageous embodiment, but it is understood that a person skilled in the art may make any modifications to it, without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined by the attached claims.

Claims

Fluid product distribution device comprising a pump and a distribution head (1), said pump comprising a pump body (14) containing a pump chamber (14a), a fixing ring (10) for fixing said pump body (14) to a reservoir, in particular with interposition of a neck seal (11), a piston (16) sliding in said pump body (14) between a rest position and an actuation position, said piston (16) sliding around a hollow axial rod (15), and an elastic return member (50) for returning said pump to its rest position after each actuation, said distribution head (1) being fixed to said hollow axial rod (15), said elastic return member (50) being interposed between said fixing ring (10) and said distribution head (1),characterized in that said hollow axial rod (15) has a groove (15') receiving a radial projection (6') of said distribution head (1) formed at a lower axial end of an axial channel (6) of said distribution head (1), such that said distribution head (1) is irremovable from said hollow axial rod (15). Device according to claim 1, wherein said elastic return member (50) is non-metallic. Device according to claim 2, wherein said elastic return member (50) is a bellows. A device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said pump body (14) has a top opening closed by said piston (16) and a bottom opening, said hollow axial rod (15) having an internal axial channel (15a) closed axially on the lower side and communicating with the outside through a radial orifice (17b), said piston (16) having on a radially external edge an external sealing lip (16a) to ensure sealing against said pump body (14), and on a radially internal edge an internal sealing lip (16c), to seal said radial orifice (17b) tightly at rest. Device according to claim 4, wherein a hollow axial insert (17) is fixed in said hollow axial rod (15), said hollow axial insert (17) having said radial orifice (17b). Device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said distribution head (1) includes a vent (9). Device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a valve seal (13) is provided to ensure the sealing of said fixing ring (10) with said pump body (14). A device according to claim 7, wherein, in the rest position, an upper axial edge (16b) of said piston (16) cooperates in a sealing manner with said valve seal (13).

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