Packaging device

Abstract

Packaging device (1), including: - a base (2) including a neck (5), the base defining a housing (3) having an opening (4); - a ring (15) fastened to the neck (5); - a refill (6) containing a composition (C), at least partially received in the housing (3), the refill (6) having a side wall (7) provided with an annular flange (46) oriented radially outwards, the flange (46) comprising a raised portion (50) with respect to the ring (15) when the refill (6) is positioned in the housing (3) so as to leave a space (51) open towards the outside between the raised portion (50) of the flange (46) and the ring (15).

Description

Packaging device

[0001] The present invention relates to a device for packaging a composition contained in a refill removably mounted on a base.Prior art

[0002] The manufacture of environmentally friendly products, i.e. products designed and developed in consideration of environmental issues, is becoming a major concern in helping to address global challenges.

[0003] It is therefore essential to offer more sustainable products to meet these environmental challenges.

[0004] In this context, it is important to develop new products with a better carbon footprint, notably by promoting the use of renewable raw materials and / or raw materials with a good organic and / or natural origin index, and more specifically plant-based raw materials, while reducing the use of petrochemical‑based compounds.

[0005] For the packaging of a composition, notably cosmetic, aesthetically appealing materials that meet environmental criteria are sought.

[0006] However, these materials are usually expensive. Thus, refillable packaging devices have been proposed to reduce the cost of purchasing regularly used products.

[0007] Packaging devices including a base that can removably accommodate a composition refill are thus found on the market. Thus, once the composition in the refill has been used up, the user can put a new refill in the base.

[0008] Such devices are described for example in applications KR20-2022-0001357, EP3889067, JP2023151320, WO2024 / 087504 and EP3889068.

[0009] Applications CN220512390, WO2018 / 115685 and WO2018 / 115685 propose attaching a ring to the neck of the base to better hold the refill.

[0010] FR3060271 describes a refillable device for packaging a cosmetic product. This device comprises a removable cosmetic-product refill, a glass base defining a housing, and a ring for fastening the refill to the base, snap-fitted onto the neck of the base. Removing the refill may require an opening in the bottom of the base, of sufficient diameter for the user to insert their finger and push the refill, which can adversely affect the overall aesthetics of the base, notably if it is transparent.Disclosure of the invention

[0011] There is a need to further improve the devices for packaging a refillable composition, notably to overcome the above drawbacks.Summary of the invention

[0012] The present invention meets this need by means of a packaging device including:

[0013] - a base including a neck, the base defining a housing having an opening;

[0014] - a ring fastened to the neck;

[0015] - a refill containing a composition, at least partially received in the housing, the refill having a side wall provided with an annular flange oriented radially outwards, the flange comprising a raised portion with respect to the ring when the refill is positioned in the housing so as to leave a space open towards the outside between the raised portion of the flange and the ring.

[0016] The space open towards the outside provided between the raised portion of the flange and the ring of the present invention makes it easier for a user to handle the refill of the packaging device. Specifically, this space makes it easier for the user to insert their fingers to apply pressure under the flange and thus allow the refill to be removed. This space also provides a visual reference for the user on the zone to be handled when handling the refill.

[0017] The refill can thus be removed easily, without requiring an opening in the bottom of the housing, if desired.

[0018] The space between the raised portion of the flange of the refill and the ring when the refill is positioned in the housing may have a height of between 5 mm and 50 mm.

[0019] A contact portion of the flange of the refill may bear against the top of the ring.

[0020] The flange may comprise an oblique portion relative to the side wall.

[0021] The ring may include an outer skirt provided with a thread.

[0022] The device may include a cap arranged to be screwed onto the ring. The cap may be made of a mineral material, notably glass.

[0023] The outer skirt may be arranged to snap-fit onto a bead of the neck.

[0024] The cap may comprise an inner seal configured to bear against an upper face of the flange when the cap is screwed onto the ring and the refill is positioned in the housing.

[0025] The refill may have a side wall provided with at least a first fastening relief.

[0026] The ring may include a guide skirt at least partially engaged in the housing, the guide skirt including on its radially inner surface at least a second fastening relief into which the first relief snap-fits once the refill has been mounted in the housing.

[0027] The flange may comprise an annular rib on its upper face.

[0028] The ring may be axisymmetric about a central axis of the housing, the flange extending inside a cylindrical envelope surface that circumscribes the ring.

[0029] The base may be made of a mineral material, notably glass.

[0030] The ring may be made of a thermoplastic polymer material chosen for its mechanical and / or aesthetic properties.

[0031] The refill may be inserted into the housing along an insertion axis coincident with the central axis of the housing.

[0032] The composition contained in the refill is preferably a cosmetic composition, for example a care cream containing at least one moisturizing active agent.

[0033] The raised portion of the flange preferably extends opposite the top of the ring.

[0034] The opening towards the outside of the space between the raised portion and the ring may be radially open.Brief description of the drawings

[0035] The invention can be understood better from reading the following detailed description of a nonlimiting example embodiment thereof, and from examining the appended drawing, in which:

[0036] is a perspective view in axial cross section of an example packaging device, the refill being shown partially inserted into the housing,

[0037] is a partial view in axial cross section of the packaging device in, the refill being shown completely inserted into the housing and a cap being mounted on the ring,

[0038] is a partial perspective view of the base and the ring of the packaging device in,

[0039] is a top view of the ring and the side wall of the refill of the packaging device in,

[0040] is a side view of the top of the ring and the refill of the device in, the refill being shown inserted into the housing,

[0041] is a top view of a variant ring of a packaging device according to the invention,

[0042] is a perspective view of an example packaging device according to the invention, the refill being shown transparent,

[0043] is a perspective view in axial cross section of the device in, and

[0044] is a perspective view of the device in, in which the ring and the cover are separated.Detailed description

[0045] In the rest of the description, elements that are identical or have identical functions bear the same reference signs. In order to make the present description concise, they are not described for each of the figures, only the differences between the embodiments being described.

[0046] The figures have not always been drawn to scale, for the sake of clarity.

[0047] Figures 1 to 5 illustrate an example of a packaging device 1 according to the invention.

[0048] The device 1 comprises a base 2, for example in the form of a cube-shaped pot, as illustrated. The invention is not limited to a base of a particular shape, and said base may be cylindrical, polyhedral other than cubic, spherical, ovoid or of any other shape, as desired.

[0049] The base 2 is for example made of transparent, translucent or opaque mineral glass, coloured or not, or of any other material, notably metallic, wood-based, mineral, ceramic or plastic.

[0050] The base 2 forms a housing 3 that is open at the top. In this example, the housing 3 is axisymmetric about a central axis X.

[0051] The base 2 includes a neck 5 defining the opening 4 of the housing 3. The neck 5 is integral with the base 2.

[0052] The housing 3 is designed to receive at least part of a refill 6.

[0053] The refill 6 is axisymmetric about an axis Y, which is coincident with the axis X once the refill 6 is in place in the housing 3, and comprises a side wall 7 provided at its upper end with a flange 46 oriented outwards, and closed at the bottom by a bottom wall 8.

[0054] The refill 6 defines a cavity 9 containing a composition C, notably a cosmetic composition, accessible via an upper opening 10.

[0055] The refill 6 is for example made of a thermoplastic polymer material, notably polypropylene (PP).

[0056] The outer surface 12 of the side wall 7 is provided with a first relief 11, in the form of an annular bead, located close to the flange 46.

[0057] In this example, the first relief 11 is angularly continuous over the entire periphery of the outer surface 12 of the refill 6.

[0058] The device 1 comprises a ring 15 fastened to the neck 5 of the base 2. This ring 15 is made of a thermoplastic polymer material, for example polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

[0059] The ring 15, which is axisymmetric about the central axis X, comprises a guide skirt 16, an outer skirt 17 and a transverse wall 18.

[0060] The top of the guide skirt 16 is connected to the transverse wall 18 and engaged, at least partially, in the housing 3 of the base 2.

[0061] The radially inner surface 20 of the guide skirt 16 includes at least three axial guide ribs 21 projecting radially inwards. The ribs 21 extend for example over a height H1 of between 5 mm and 30 mm, for example 9 mm.

[0062] The guide skirt 16 extends for example at a distance D1 from the surface 20 of the housing 3 greater than or equal to 0.5 mm when no refill 6 is mounted on the base 2, so as to allow an outwards deformation of the guide skirt 16 when the refill 6 is being mounted.

[0063] As illustrated in, each rib 21 can have a rounded cross-section, notably a circular arc that is convex towards the inside of the housing 3.

[0064] As illustrated in, the external diameter D1 of the side wall 7 is advantageously chosen to make an interference fit between the ribs 21.

[0065] Each rib 21 has a second fastening relief 22, in the form of an indentation, located at a non-zero distance from the upper end of the rib.

[0066] The first and second reliefs cooperate once the refill 6 has been mounted in the housing 3, the annular bead 21 of the refill being housed in the indentations 22 of the ring after an elastic deformation of the two parts, thus fastening the refill 6 to the ring 15. Since the first relief 11 extends over the entire periphery of the refill 6, the refill 6 can be mounted at any angular position, which facilitates placement thereof.

[0067] In this example, each second relief 22 is a rounded concave indentation facing the inside of the housing 3, notably in the form of a circular arc, in a longitudinal section. This shape can facilitate mounting and removal of the refill. As illustrated, the transverse wall 18 may include a first conical portion 30 inclined towards the opening 4 of the housing 3, extended radially outwards by a second conical portion 31 inclined towards a shoulder 32 at the base of the neck 5, this second inclined portion 31 being connected to an annular surface 33 perpendicular to the central axis X. The surface 33 is extended downwards, from its radially outer edge, by said outer skirt 17.

[0068] The transverse wall 18 also comprises an annular rib 34 bearing against the upper rim of the neck 5, this rib 34 extending downwards from the join between the second portion 31 and the surface 33.

[0069] The transverse wall 18 also has, level with the first portion 30, for each rib 21, a recess 40 at the same angular position relative to the central axis X as the corresponding rib 21.

[0070] The recesses 40 form zones of preferential deformation around each rib 21 to facilitate the deformation of the ring 15 at the ribs 21 when the refill 6 is being mounted.

[0071] Each recess 40 covers, in this example, a larger angular sector than the corresponding rib 21, notably an angular sector which is at least two, and more preferably three, times larger.

[0072] The recesses 40 may be elongate in the circumferential direction, as illustrated.

[0073] The outer skirt 17 is arranged to snap-fit onto a bead 41 of the neck 5, holding the ring 15 on the base 2.

[0074] The outer skirt 17 is also provided with a thread 42 for screwing a cap 43 onto the ring 15.

[0075] As illustrated in Figures 2 and 5, the flange 46 comprises a raised portion 50 with respect to the ring 15 when the refill 6 is positioned in the housing 3 so as to leave a space 51 open towards the outside between the raised portion 50 of the flange 46 and the ring 15.

[0076] This space 51 has a height He, measured along the central axis X, of between 5 mm and 50 mm, allowing a finger to be inserted into the space 51.

[0077] This space 51 has a minimum depth Pe, measured perpendicularly to the central axis X, of between 0.5 mm and 5 mm, and a maximum depth Pee of between 0.5 mm and 5 mm, allowing a finger to be inserted into the space 51.

[0078] The flange 46 also comprises a contact portion 52 bearing against the top of the ring 15 and an oblique portion 53 connecting the contact portion 52 and the raised portion 50.

[0079] The oblique portion 53 is for example conical and inclined towards the opening 4 of the housing 3.

[0080] The flange 46 also comprises an annular rib 55 on an upper face of the raised portion 50.

[0081] This annular rib 55 compresses an inner seal 56 in the cap 43 when the cap 43 is screwed onto the ring 15 and the refill 6 is positioned in the housing 3.

[0082] The flange 46 extends inside a cylindrical envelope surface SE that circumscribes the outer skirt 17 of the ring 15. This provides an aesthetic appearance of continuity between the neck 5 and the refill 6.

[0083] When mounting the refill 6 on the base 2, the user can begin by positioning the refill 6 above the housing 3, ideally by engaging an inner portion of the refill 6 in the housing 3, as in

[0084] The clamping between the refill and the ring can be chosen so that when the user releases the refill 6, the latter descends by itself under the effect of its weight into the housing 3. The user can also help to lower the refill by pushing it downwards.

[0085] During this descent, the side wall 7 of the refill 6 rubs against the ribs 21, thereby limiting the speed of descent of the refill 6.

[0086] The height H1 of the ribs 21 can be determined so as to generate the desired friction.

[0087] At the end of the descent, the user can press on the refill so that the bead 11 snap-fits into the indentations 22.

[0088] The flange 46 is then substantially bearing against the top of the ring 15 via its contact portion 52.

[0089] To replace the refill 6, the user removes the refill 6 in the housing 3 by grasping the flange 46, ideally inserting one or more fingers into the space 51.

[0090] Additional guide ribs 21 may be provided on the ring 15, without indentations and shorter than those provided with indentations, so as not to hinder the snap-fitting.

[0091] The number of ribs 21 may be different, as for example inwhere the ring 15 comprises five ribs 21.

[0092] The rib 34 may be angularly discontinuous.

[0093] Another embodiment is illustrated in Figures 7 to 9.

[0094] This embodiment differs mainly by the shape of the ring 15 and by the use of a cover 60.

[0095] As shown notably in, the ring 15 comprises a guide skirt 16, an outer skirt 17 and a transverse wall 18 connected at the top to the guide skirt 16 and the outer skirt 17.

[0096] The guide skirt 18 is provided with ribs 21 and second reliefs 22.

[0097] The transverse wall 18, which comprises the recesses 40 level with the indentations 21, has a different shape. It comprises an annular inner surface 61 perpendicular to the central axis X, an annular outer surface 62 perpendicular to the central axis X, and an annular portion 63 connected at the top to the inner surface 61 and at the bottom to the outer surface 62, the annular portion 63 extending perpendicularly to the central axis X.

[0098] It will be noted that the central axis X coincides with a central axis of the ring 15.

[0099] The outer surface 62 comprises radial ribs 65 for stiffening the ring 15, these radial ribs 65 also being connected to the annular portion 63.

[0100] As shown in, in this embodiment, the outer skirt 17 comprises a plurality of fastening tabs 70, in this example six tabs 70. The tabs 70 are arranged to snap-fit into the bead 41 of the neck 5.

[0101] Each tab 70 may comprise a snap-fit relief 71 on an inner face for engaging on the bead 41.

[0102] The tabs 70 are delimited laterally by recesses 72 open downwards.

[0103] The recesses 72 may have a downwardly flared shape with a widthLeof between 0.5 mm and 15 mm.

[0104] The recesses 72 may extend over a height, measured along the central axis X, of between 75% and 100% of the height of the outer skirt 17.

[0105] Each tab 70 may cover an angular sector, about the central axis X, of between 20° and 180°, preferably between 30° and 70°. The angular extent of the tabs 70 may be identical between the tabs 70 or variable.

[0106] The tabs 70 are configured to deform outwards when the ring 15 is mounted on the neck 5.

[0107] Each tab 70 comprises groups 75 of notches 76.

[0108] The notches 76 in a group 75 extend parallel to each other over the same angular extent in a direction perpendicular to the central axis X.

[0109] The notches 76 are configured to cooperate with corresponding notches 77 of an inner face of an annular upright 78 of the cover 60 to axially lock the cover 60 with respect to the ring 15.

[0110] The annular upright 78 covers the outer skirt 17 of the ring 15 on the outside to prevent the tabs 70 of the outer skirt 17 from disengaging from the bead 41 of the neck 5.

[0111] The notches 77 of the annular upright 78 of the cover 60 are for example formed by annular ribs extending over the entire periphery on an inner face of the annular upright 78.

[0112] The shape of the notches 76 of the outer skirt 17 and the shape of the corresponding notches 77 of the cover 60 are chosen so as to enable the ring 15 and the cover 60 to be assembled by translation in a single direction, notably parallel to a central axis of the ring 15.

[0113] In this embodiment, the thread 42 used to screw on the cap 43 is formed on an outer face of the annular upright 78.

[0114] The top of the annular upright 77 is connected to a transverse wall 80 extending above the ring 15.

[0115] As illustrated, the transverse wall 80 may include a first conical portion 81 inclined towards the opening 4 of the housing 3, extended radially outwards by a second conical portion 82 inclined towards the shoulder 32 at the base of the neck 5, this second inclined portion 82 being connected to an annular surface 83 perpendicular to the central axis X. The surface 83 is extended downwards, from its radially outer edge, by the annular upright 78.

[0116] The cover 60 is for example made by stamping a metal sheet.

Claims

Packaging device (1), including:- a base (2) including a neck (5), the base defining a housing (3) having an opening (4);- a ring (15) fastened to the neck (5);- a refill (6) containing a composition (C), at least partially received in the housing (3), the refill (6) having a side wall (7) provided with an annular flange (46) oriented radially outwards, the flange (46) comprising a raised portion (50) with respect to the ring (15) when the refill (6) is positioned in the housing (3) so as to leave a space (51) open towards the outside between the raised portion (50) of the flange (46) and the ring (15).Device (1) according to Claim 1, wherein the space (51) between the raised portion (50) of the flange (46) of the refill (6) and the ring (15) when the refill (6) is positioned in the housing (3) has a height (He) of between 5 mm and 50 mm.Device (1) according to one of Claims 1 and 2, wherein a contact portion (52) of the flange (46) of the refill (6) bears against the top of the ring (15).Device (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the flange (46) comprises an oblique portion (53) relative to the side wall (7).Device (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, the ring (15) including an outer skirt (17) provided with a thread (42), and the device (1) including a cap (43) arranged to screw onto the ring (15).Device (1) according to the preceding claim, wherein the cap (43) comprises an inner seal (56) configured to bear against an upper face of the flange (46) when the cap (43) is screwed onto the ring (15) and the refill (6) is positioned in the housing (3).Device (1) according to the preceding claim, wherein the flange (46) comprises an annular rib (55) on its upper face.Device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the ring (15) is axisymmetric about a central axis (X) of the housing (3), the flange (46) extending inside a cylindrical envelope surface (SE) that circumscribes the ring (15).Device (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, the base (2) being made of a mineral material, notably glass.Device (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, the ring (15) being made of a thermoplastic polymer material chosen for its mechanical and / or aesthetic properties.

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