U.S. patent application number 10/924794 was filed with the patent office on 2006-03-02 for bottle closure.
Invention is credited to Robert Lin.
Application Number | 20060043052 10/924794 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 35941565 |
Filed Date | 2006-03-02 |
United States Patent
Application |
20060043052 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Lin; Robert |
March 2, 2006 |
Bottle closure
Abstract
A bottle closure is disclosed to include a muzzle fastened to
and covered on the bottle neck of a bottle, a cap hinged to the
periphery of the muzzle for closing on the muzzle to seal the
bottle neck of the bottle, the cap having an operating structure
for gripping by the user's hand to turn the cap relative to the
muzzle between a close position and an open position, and a seal
tearably connected to the muzzle to seal the operating structure of
the cap.
Inventors: |
Lin; Robert; (Hsin-Chuang
City, TW) |
Correspondence
Address: |
ROSENBERG, KLEIN & LEE
3458 ELLICOTT CENTER DRIVE-SUITE 101
ELLICOTT CITY
MD
21043
US
|
Family ID: |
35941565 |
Appl. No.: |
10/924794 |
Filed: |
August 25, 2004 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
215/253 ;
215/237; 220/254.3; 222/556 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D 47/0838 20130101;
B65D 2251/1025 20130101; B65D 2251/1066 20130101; B65D 2251/20
20130101; B65D 2401/15 20200501 |
Class at
Publication: |
215/253 ;
215/237; 222/556; 220/254.3 |
International
Class: |
B65D 47/00 20060101
B65D047/00; B65D 39/00 20060101 B65D039/00 |
Claims
1. A bottle closure comprising: a muzzle connectable to the
bottleneck of a bottle; a cap hinged to the periphery of said
muzzle for closing on said muzzle to seal the bottle neck of the
bottle to which said muzzle is fastened, said cap comprising an
operating structure for gripping by the user's hand to turn said
cap relative to said muzzle between a close position and an open
position; and a seal tearably connected to said muzzle to seal said
operating structure of said cap.
2. The bottle closure as claimed in claim 1, wherein said muzzle
has a spout at a top side thereof.
3. The bottle closure as claimed in claim 2, wherein said cap
comprises a downwardly suspended bottom plug adapted to seal said
spout of said muzzle.
4. The bottle closure as claimed in claim 1, wherein said muzzle
comprises a flat circular top protrusion, and a recessed portion
formed in the periphery of said flat circular top protrusion.
5. The bottle closure as claimed in claim 4, wherein said cap
comprises a vertical peripheral wall fitting over the periphery of
said flat circular top protrusion of said muzzle.
6. The bottle closure as claimed in claim 1, wherein said operating
structure of said cap comprises a recessed portion adapted to
receive said seal.
7. The bottle closure as claimed in claim 6, wherein said seal has
a bevel at one end thereof corresponding to one end of the recessed
portion of said operating structure.
8. The bottle closure as claimed in claim 6, wherein said operating
structure of said cap comprises a retaining block protruded from
the recessed portion thereof for engaging said seal.
9. The bottle closure as claimed in claim 8, wherein said seal
comprises a retaining notch adapted to receive the retaining block
of said operating structure of said cap.
10. The bottle closure as claimed in claim 6, wherein said
operating structure of said cap comprises two bevels at two ends of
the recessed portion thereof.
11. The bottle closure as claimed in claim 1, wherein said seal
comprises a seal body tearably connected to the periphery of said
muzzle, and a finger strip extended from one end of said seal
body.
12. The bottle closure as claimed in claim 1, wherein said seal
comprises a thin connecting portion tearably connected to the
periphery of said muzzle.
13. The bottle closure as claimed in claim 12, wherein said thin
connecting portion is serrated.
14. The bottle closure as claimed in claim 12, wherein said thin
connecting portion is perforated.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a bottle closure for
closing the bottle neck of a bottle and more particularly, to such
a bottle closure, which will not be opened accidentally when
fastened to the bottle neck of a bottle.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] Various liquid products, fore example, shampoo, face lotion,
liquid cosmetics, etc. are sold in bottle. A bottle for this
purpose, as shown in FIG. 9, comprises a bottle body 90, and a
bottle closure formed of a muzzle 91 and a cap 93 and fastened to
the bottleneck of the bottle body 90. The muzzle 91 has a spout 92
at the top. The cap 93 is hinged to the periphery of the muzzle 91,
having a plug 94 for sealing the spout 92. According to this
design, the cap 93 can easily be opened from the muzzle 91. When
the compressible bottle body 90 is compressed or when the bottle
falls to the ground, the cap 93 may be opened accidentally, thereby
resulting in a contamination. Further, consumers may try to open
bottled liquid products in a show rack to smell the liquid content
or to pour a small amount of the liquid content for test. Once a
bottle liquid product is opened before sale, no body would like to
buy it.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] The present invention has been accomplished under the
circumstances in view. It is one object of the present invention to
provide a bottle closure, which prohibits people from opening the
bottled product freely before sale, maintaining the quality of the
bottled product and preventing contamination. It is another object
of the present invention to provide a bottle closure, which enables
the consumer to determine the intact of the bottled product from
the outer appearance. To achieve these and other objects of the
present invention, the bottle closure comprises a muzzle
connectable to the bottle neck of a bottle; a cap hinged to the
periphery of the muzzle for closing on the muzzle to seal the
bottle neck of the bottle to which the muzzle is fastened, the cap
comprising an operating structure for gripping by the user's hand
to turn the cap relative to the muzzle between a close position and
an open position; and a seal tearably connected to the muzzle to
seal the operating structure of the cap.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0006] FIG. 1 is an elevational view of a bottle closure according
to the present invention.
[0007] FIG. 2 is another elevational view of the bottle closure
according to the present invention.
[0008] FIG. 3 is still another elevational view of the bottle
closure according to the present invention.
[0009] FIG. 4 is a sectional elevation of the bottle closure
according to the present invention.
[0010] FIG. 5 illustrates the seal separated from the muzzle of the
bottle closure according to the present invention.
[0011] FIG. 6 is a schematic sectional view of the present
invention after removal of the seal.
[0012] FIG. 7 is an elevational view showing the cap opened from
the muzzle after removal of the seal according to the present
invention.
[0013] FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing the cap opened from the
muzzle after removal of the seal according to the present
invention.
[0014] FIG. 9 is an opened view of a bottle closure according to
the prior art.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0015] Referring to FIGS. 1.about.4, a bottle closure in accordance
with the present invention is shown comprising a muzzle 10, a cap
20, and a seal 30.
[0016] The muzzle 10 comprises an inner shell 11, a bottom open
chamber 111 defined within the inner shell 11 and adapted to
receive the bottle neck 101 of a bottle 100, an engagement portion
112 formed integral with the inner shell 11 within the bottom open
chamber 111 and adapted to secure the inner shell 11 to the bottle
neck 101 of the bottle 100, an outer shell 12 jointed to and
covered over the inner shell 11, a flat circular top protrusion 14
raised from the top side of the outer shell 12, a top spout 13
vertically disposed at the center of the flat circular top
protrusion 14 in fluid communication with the bottom open chamber
111, two bevels 151 formed in the vertical peripheral wall of the
flat circular top protrusion 14, and a recessed portion 15 formed
in the vertical peripheral wall of the flat circular top protrusion
14 and connected between the two bevels 151. The top spout 13 is
preferably made having an inner diameter gradually increased from
the inside of the muzzle 10 toward the outside so that fluid can
conveniently be poured out of the bottle 100 through the top spout
13. The engagement portion 112 can be an inner/outer thread or
annular protrusion subject to the structure design of the
bottleneck 101 of the bottle 100.
[0017] The cap 20 comprises a hinge 21 connected to the peripheral
wall of the outer shell 12 of the muzzle 10, a cylindrical plug 22
perpendicularly downwardly extended from the center of the bottom
wall for plugging into the top spout 13 to seal the passage, a
vertical peripheral wall 23 fitting over the flat circular top
protrusion 14 of the muzzle 10, and an operating structure 24 for
operation by the user to open the cap 20 from the muzzle 10. The
operating structure 24 comprises two bevels 244 formed in the
vertical peripheral wall 23 of the cap 20, a recessed portion 241
formed in the vertical peripheral wall 23 of the cap 20 and
connected between the two bevels 244, a retaining block 242
protruded from the recessed portion 241 and a pull 243 formed
integral with the peripheral wall 23 at the top side of the
recessed portion 241.
[0018] The seal 30 fits the recessed portion 15 of the muzzle 10
and the recessed portion 241 of the cap 20, comprising a seal body
32, a finger strip 31 extended from one end of the seal body 32,
two bevels 311 and 321 respectively formed in the distal end of the
seal body 32 and the distal end of the finger strip 31
corresponding to the bevels 151 of the muzzle 10 and the bevels 244
of the cap 20, a retaining notch 322 formed in the seal body 32 and
adapted to receive the retaining block 242 of the cap 20, and a
thin serrated (or perforated) connecting portion 323 connected
between the seal body 32 and the periphery of the muzzle 10.
[0019] Referring to FIGS. 1.about.3 again, the seal 30 is connected
to the muzzle 10 by the connecting portion 323 corresponding to the
recessed portion 15 of the muzzle 10, and a gap 15A is left between
the seal 30 and the recessed portion 15 of the muzzle 10.
[0020] After installation of the bottle closure the bottle neck of
a bottle 100, the cap 10 is closed on the muzzle 10 to insert the
operating structure 24 into the gap 15A between the seal 30 and the
recessed portion 15 of the muzzle 10 and to further engage the
retaining block 242 of the cap 20 into the retaining notch 322 of
the seal body 32 of the seal 30, and therefore cap 20 is locked to
the muzzle 10 (see FIG. 4). When wishing to open the bottle 100,
pull the finger strip 311 to break the serrated (or perforated)
connecting portion 323 and to further remove the seal 30 from the
muzzle 10. After removal of the seal 30 from the muzzle 10, the
operating structure 23 is exposed to the outside (see FIG. 5), and
the user can pull the pull 243 to open the cap 20 from the muzzle
10 (see FIGS. 6.about.8) and then pour the contained matter out of
the bottle 100.
[0021] A prototype of bottle closure has been constructed with the
features of FIGS. 1.about.8. The piezo-transformer carrier
functions smoothly to provide all of the features discussed
earlier.
[0022] Although a particular embodiment of the invention has been
described in detail for purposes of illustration, various
modifications and enhancements may be made without departing from
the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, the seal body
can be made having a retaining block, and the cap can be made
having a retaining notch for receiving the retaining block of the
seal body; the seal can be made having one end fixedly connected to
the muzzle and a bottom side tearably connected to the muzzle.
Accordingly, the invention is not to be limited except as by the
appended claims.
* * * * *