U.S. patent application number 11/985134 was filed with the patent office on 2008-05-22 for container with lid.
This patent application is currently assigned to Enplas Corporation. Invention is credited to Takuhito Ohse.
Application Number | 20080116204 11/985134 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39020758 |
Filed Date | 2008-05-22 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080116204 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Ohse; Takuhito |
May 22, 2008 |
Container with lid
Abstract
There is provided a container with lid capable of preventing
evaporation of a liquid, which is stored in the container, even if
the liquid is continuously pipetted from the container. The
container 10 with lid has a tubular container body 12 having a
bottom 12b at the lower end thereof and having an opening 12a at
the upper end thereof, a first lid portion 14 for opening and
closing the opening 12a of the container body 12, a second lid
portion 16 for opening and closing an opening 14a which is formed
in the first lid portion 14, a first connecting portion 18 which
connects the first lid portion 14 with the container body 12, and a
second connecting portion 20 which connects the second lid portion
16 with the first lid portion 14, wherein the container body 12,
the first and second lid portions 14, 16, and the first and second
connecting portions 18, 20 are integral-molded. A first sealing
member 22 is mounted on the first lid portion 14, and a second
sealing member 24 is mounted on the second lid portion 16.
Inventors: |
Ohse; Takuhito;
(Saitama-shi, JP) |
Correspondence
Address: |
BACHMAN & LAPOINTE, P.C.
900 CHAPEL STREET, SUITE 1201
NEW HAVEN
CT
06510
US
|
Assignee: |
Enplas Corporation
|
Family ID: |
39020758 |
Appl. No.: |
11/985134 |
Filed: |
November 14, 2007 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
220/254.6 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B01L 2300/043 20130101;
B01L 3/50825 20130101; B01L 2200/026 20130101; B01L 2300/044
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
220/254.6 |
International
Class: |
B65D 51/18 20060101
B65D051/18 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Nov 20, 2006 |
JP |
2006-312947 |
Claims
1. A container with lid comprising: a tubular container body having
a bottom at one end thereof and having an opening at the other end
thereof; a first lid portion capable of opening and closing the
opening of the container body; a second lid portion capable of
opening and closing an opening which is formed in the first lid
portion; a first connecting portion which connects the first lid
portion with the container body; and a second connecting portion
which connects the second lid portion with the first lid portion,
wherein the container body, the first and second lid portions, and
the first and second connecting portions are integral-molded.
2. A container with lid as set forth in claim 1, which further
comprises a first sealing member, mounted on said first lid
portion, for sealing a gap between a peripheral portion of said
first lid portion and the opening of said container body when the
opening of said container body is closed by said first lid
portion.
3. A container with lid as set forth in claim 2, wherein said first
sealing member has a closing portion capable of opening and closing
a central portion of the opening of said first lid portion.
4. A container with lid as set forth in claim 3, wherein said
closing portion has a cut.
5. A container with lid as set forth in claim 1, which further
comprises a second sealing member, mounted on said second lid
portion, for sealing a gap between said second lid portion and the
opening of said first lid portion when the opening of said first
lid portion is closed by said second lid portion.
6. A container with lid as set forth in claim 1, wherein said first
connecting portion is folded when the opening of said container
body is closed by said first lid portion, and said second
connecting portion is folded when the opening of said first lid
portion is closed by said second lid portion.
7. A container with lid as set forth in claim 1, wherein said
container body, said first and second lid portions, and said first
and second connecting portions are made of a resin material, and
said first and second sealing members are made of a material which
is softer than said resin material.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention generally relates to a container with
lid. More specifically, the invention relates to a container (or a
vessel) having a lid for holding the interior thereof in a sealed
state.
[0003] 2. Description of the Prior Art
[0004] Conventionally, a large number of containers called
microcentrifuge tubes having a volume of 1.5 ml have been used as
specimen sampling containers, sample assaying containers and so
forth in various fields of biochemistry, such as genetic
engineering, cell culture and pharmacological evaluation.
[0005] If such a microcentrifuge tube is used as a sample assaying
container, a sample is often solved in a volatile solvent, such as
methanol, when the sample is assayed. However, when a conventional
microcentrifuge tube having no structure for holding the interior
thereof in a sealed state is used for assaying a small amount of
liquid sample, there are some cases where the liquid sample
evaporates during operation, so that the concentration of the
sample varies or the amount of the sample is insufficient by
evaporation.
[0006] As containers for preventing such evaporation of samples,
there are proposed various sealed containers (sealed
microcentrifuge tubes) with lid capable of holding the interior
thereof in a sealed state (see, e.g. Japanese Patent Publication
No. 4-31945 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-323176).
[0007] However, if such a conventional container with lid proposed
in Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-31945 or Japanese Patent
Laid-Open No. 10-323176 is used for assaying a sample, the interior
of the container can not be held in a sealed state since a lid is
open when the sample is assayed. In addition, if such a
conventional container with lid is used for temporarily storing a
reagent therein, a small amount of reagent is continuously pipetted
into each of wells of a microplate or the like from the container
while the lid of the container is open, so that there is the
possibility that the reagent evaporates if the reagent is
volatile.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] It is therefore an object of the present invention to
eliminate the aforementioned problems and to provide a container
with lid capable of preventing evaporation of a liquid, which is
stored in the container, even if the liquid is continuously
pipetted from the container.
[0009] In order to accomplish the aforementioned object, a
container with lid according to the present invention comprises: a
tubular container body having a bottom at one end thereof and
having an opening at the other end thereof; a first lid portion
capable of opening and closing the opening of the container body; a
second lid portion capable of opening and closing an opening which
is formed in the first lid portion; a first connecting portion
which connects the first lid portion with the container body; and a
second connecting portion which connects the second lid portion
with the first lid portion, wherein the container body, the first
and second lid portions, and the first and second connecting
portions are integral-molded.
[0010] In this container with lid, a first sealing member is
preferably mounted on the first lid portion for sealing a gap
between a peripheral portion of the first lid portion and the
opening of the container body when the opening of the container
body is closed by the first lid portion. In this case, the first
sealing member preferably has a closing portion capable of opening
and closing a central portion of the opening of the first lid
portion, and the closing portion preferably has a cut.
[0011] In the above-described container with lid, a second sealing
member is preferably mounted on the second lid portion for sealing
a gap between the second lid portion and the opening of the first
lid portion when the opening of the first lid portion is closed by
the second lid portion. In addition, the first connecting portion
is preferably folded when the opening of the container body is
closed by the first lid portion, and the second connecting portion
is preferably folded when the opening of the first lid portion is
closed by the second lid portion. Moreover, the first and second
lid portions, and the first and second connecting portions are
preferably made of a resin material, and the first and second
sealing members are preferably made of a material which is softer
than the resin material.
[0012] According to the present invention, it is possible to
prevent evaporation of a liquid, which is stored in the container,
even if the liquid is continuously pipetted from the container.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] The present invention will be understood more fully from the
detailed description given herebelow and from the accompanying
drawings of the preferred embodiments of the invention. However,
the drawings are not intended to imply limitation of the invention
to a specific embodiment, but are for explanation and understanding
only.
[0014] In the drawings:
[0015] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of
a container with lid according to the present invention;
[0016] FIG. 2 is a plan view of the container with lid of FIG.
1;
[0017] FIG. 3 is a side view of the container with lid of FIG.
1;
[0018] FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV of FIG.
2;
[0019] FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view showing a first lid
portion of the container with lid of FIG. 1;
[0020] FIG. 6 is an enlarged sectional view showing a second lid
portion of the container with lid of FIG. 1;
[0021] FIG. 7 is an enlarged plan view of a first sealing member of
the container with lid of FIG. 1;
[0022] FIG. 8 is a side view of the first sealing member of FIG.
7;
[0023] FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line IX-IX of FIG.
7;
[0024] FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing a state that the first
lid portion of the container with lid of FIG. 1 is open while the
second lid portion thereof is closed;
[0025] FIG. 11 is a sectional view showing a state that the first
and second lid portions of the container with lid of FIG. 1 are
closed; and
[0026] FIG. 12 is a sectional view showing a state that the second
lid portion of the container with lid of FIG. 1 while the first lid
portion thereof is closed.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0027] Referring now to the accompanying drawings, the preferred
embodiment of a container with lid according to the present
invention will be described below in detail.
[0028] As shown in FIGS. 1 through 4, a container 10 with lid in
this preferred embodiment comprises: a tubular container body 12
having a bottom at the lower end thereof and an opening 12a at the
upper end thereof; a first lid portion 14 for opening and closing
the opening 12a of the container body 12; a second lid portion 16
for opening and closing an opening 14a which is formed in the first
lid portion 14; a first connecting portion 18 which connects the
container body 12 with the first lid portion 14; and a second
connecting portion 20 which connects the first lid portion 14 with
the second lid portion 16. The container body 12, first lid portion
14, second lid portion 16, first connecting portion 18 and second
connecting portion 20 are made of a flexible resin material, such
as polypropylene, having excellent chemical resistance and heat
resistance, and are integral-molded by injection molding or the
like. The container 10 with lid in this preferred embodiment
further comprises a first sealing member 22 mounted on the first
lid portion 14, and a second sealing member 24 mounted on the
second lid portion 16.
[0029] The container body 12 comprises: a substantially cylindrical
large-diameter portion 12c having a substantially circular opening
12a at the upper end thereof; a substantially cylindrical
small-diameter portion 12d, the diameter of which is smaller than
that of the large-diameter portion 12c; and a tapered portion 12e
having a substantially circular bottom portion 12b at the lower end
thereof. The small-diameter portion 12d extends downwards from the
bottom of the large-diameter portion 12c, and the tapered portion
12e extends downwards from the bottom of the small-diameter portion
12e, so that a liquid storing chamber 12f having a volume of about
0.5 to 1.5 ml is formed in the container body 12.
[0030] The first lid portion 14 comprises a substantially
cylindrical member which has a substantially cylindrical opening
14a. As shown in FIGS. 1 through 5, the first lid portion 14 has a
groove portion 14b, which is formed in the top face thereof (the
upper surface in FIG. 5) and which extends in circumferential
directions so that a cylindrical portion 22b (see FIG. 9) of the
first sealing member 22 (which will be described later) is fitted
into the groove portion 14b, and a groove portion 14c which is
formed in the side face thereof and which extends in
circumferential directions so that an engaging portion 22c (see
FIG. 9) of the first sealing member 22 (which will be described
later) is fitted into the groove portion 14c. Furthermore, the
outside diameter of a portion of the first lid portion 14 (a
cylindrical portion shown by 14d in FIG. 5), which is inserted into
the opening 12a of the container body 12 when the container body 12
is closed by the first lid portion 14, is slightly smaller than the
inside diameter of the opening 12a of the container body 12. Thus,
as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, when the container body 12 is closed
by the first lid member 14, the cylindrical portion 14d of the
first lid member 14 is housed in the opening 12a of the container
body 12, and the first sealing member 22 mounted on the first lid
member 14 is compressed to seal the peripheral portion of the
opening 12a of the container body 12.
[0031] As shown in FIGS. 1 through 4 and 6, the second lid member
16 comprises: a substantially guitar-shaped flat plate portion 16a
having a protruding portion 16b which extends from the side face of
a substantially circular plate portion in substantially parallel
thereto; and a cylindrical portion 16c which extends downwards from
the bottom face of the substantially circular plate portion of the
flat plate portion 16a in substantially perpendicular thereto and
which has a substantially circular opening 16d at the lower end
thereof. The side face of the cylindrical portion 16c has a groove
portion 16e which extends in circumferential directions and into
which a substantially cylindrical second sealing member 24 of a
softer material, such as a rubber, e.g. silicon rubber, than the
resin material is fitted. Furthermore, the outside diameter of the
cylindrical portion 16c of the second lid portion 16 is slightly
smaller than the inside diameter of the opening 14a of the first
lid member 14. Thus, when the opening 14a of the first lid portion
14 is closed by the second lid portion 16 as shown in FIGS. 10 and
11, the cylindrical portion 16c of the second lid portion 16 is
housed in the opening 14a of the first lid portion 14, and the
second sealing member 24 fitted into the groove portion 16e of the
second lid portion 16 is compressed to seal the opening 14a of the
first lid member 14.
[0032] As shown in FIGS. 1 through 4, the first connecting portion
18 comprises a strip-like portion which substantially linearly
extends from a portion near the upper end of the side face of the
large-diameter portion 12c of the container body 12 to a portion
near the lower end (the lower end in FIGS. 3 and 4) of the side
face of the first lid portion 14 to connect the container body 12
with the first lid portion 14. The central portion of the first
connecting portion 18, except for both end portions thereof, is
thin to such an extent that it can be folded as shown in FIGS. 11
and 12. Thus, the opening 12a of the container body 12 can be
closed by the first lid portion 14 as shown by arrow B in FIG.
4.
[0033] As shown in FIGS. 1 through 4, the second connecting portion
20 comprises a strip-like portion substantially linearly extending
from a portion near the lower end (the lower end in FIGS. 3 and 4)
of the side face of the first lid portion 14, which is the opposite
side face to the first connecting portion 18 in radial directions,
to the side face of the flat plate portion 16a of the second lid
portion 16, which is the opposite side face to the protruding
portion 16b. The central portion of the second connecting portion
20, except for both end portions thereof, is thin to such an extent
that it can be folded as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. Thus, the
opening 14a of the first lid portion 14 can be closed by the second
lid portion 16 as shown by arrow A in FIG. 4.
[0034] The first sealing member 22 is made of a softer material,
such as a rubber, e.g. silicon rubber, than the resin material. As
shown in FIGS. 7 through 9, the first sealing member 22 comprises a
cylindrical portion 22b having a substantially circular opening
22a, an engaging portion 22c protruding and extending from the
cylindrical portion 22b, and a closing portion for opening and
closing the opening 22a of the cylindrical portion 22b. The
engaging portion 22c protrudes outwards in radial directions from
the upper end of the side face of the cylindrical portion 22b. The
engaging portion 22c extends so as to have a substantially U-shaped
cross section to form a gap 22e between the tip thereof and the
cylindrical portion 22b, and extends over the entire periphery of
the cylindrical portion 22b in circumferential directions thereof.
The cylindrical portion 22b of the first sealing member 22 is
fitted into the groove portion 14b which is formed in the top face
of the first lid portion 14 (the upper surface in FIG. 5), and the
tip portion of the engaging portion 22c is fitted into the groove
portion 14c which is formed in the side face of the first lid
portion 14. Thus, the first lid member 14 is clamped and held
between the cylindrical portion 22b and the engaging portion 22c,
so that the first sealing member 22 is fixed to the first lid
member 14. The closing portion 22d comprises a substantially
plate-like portion which is slightly inclined upwards as a distance
from the center thereof decreases. The closing portion 22d has a
cross-shaped cut 22f which is made therein so as to cross at the
center thereof as shown in FIG. 7, so that a pipette chip or like
can be inserted into the container body 12 through the cut 22f to
pipette a liquid from the container body 12 even if the opening 12a
of the container body 12 is closed by the first lid portion 14 as
shown in FIG. 12.
[0035] Referring to FIGS. 10 through 12, an example of a method for
using the container 10 with lid in this preferred embodiment will
be described below.
[0036] First, as shown in FIG. 10, the first lid portion 14 of the
container 10 with lid is open while the second lid portion 16
thereof is closed. In this state, a liquid, such as a reagent, is
put in the container body 12. Then, as shown in FIG. 11, the first
lid portion 14 is closed. In this state, the opening 12a of the
container body 12 is air-tightly closed by the first sealing member
22 which is mounted on the first lid portion 14, and the opening
14a of the first lid portion 14 is air-tightly closed by the second
sealing member 24 which is mounted on the second lid portion 16, so
that the interior of the container body 12 can be held in a sealed
state. If a liquid, such as a reagent, is thus put in the container
body 12 in a state that the opening 14a of the first lid portion 14
is closed by the second lid portion 16, the interior of the
container body 12 can be held in a sealed state by closing the
first lid portion 14 without causing the operator's hand to contact
the opening 14a of the first lid portion 14 and the closing portion
22d of the first sealing member 22, so that it is possible to
prevent contamination of the liquid in the container body 12.
[0037] Then, as shown in FIG. 12, the second lid portion 16 of the
container 10 with lid is open while the first lid portion 14
thereof is closed. In this state, a pipette or the like can be
inserted into the container body 12 through the cross-shaped cut
22f to pipette the liquid from the container body 12 while the
interior of the container body 12 is substantially held in a sealed
state without substantially opening the interior of the container
body 12, since the cross-shaped cut 22f is made in the closing
portion 22d of the first sealing member 22 although the peripheral
portion of the opening 12a of the container body 12 is sealed by
the first sealing member 22 which is mounted on the first lid
portion 14. Therefore, even if a liquid, such as a volatile
reagent, is held in the container body 12, it is possible to hold
gastightness in the container body 12 to prevent evaporation in the
container body 12. In addition, the opening and closing directions
of the first lid portion 14 are opposite to those of the second lid
portion 16, and the second lid portion 16 has the protruding
portion 16b, so that it is possible to simply open and close the
first lid portion 14 and second lid portion 16 by the operator's
one hand.
[0038] While the large-diameter portion 12c of the container body
12, the first lid portion 14 and the second lid portion 14 in the
container 10 with lid have been substantially linearly arranged in
the above-described preferred embodiment, it is not always required
to substantially linearly arrange them if they are
integral-molded.
[0039] While the first sealing member 22 has been mounted on the
first lid portion 14 of the container 10 with lid in the
above-described preferred embodiment, it is not required to provide
the first sealing member 22 if the first lid portion 14 has a shape
corresponding to the first sealing member 22 mounted thereon while
a soft material is used as the material of the container body 12
and so forth to be integral-molded. Alternatively, it is not
required to provide the first sealing member 22 if a closing
portion corresponding to the closing portion 22d of the first
sealing member 22 is formed so as to be integrated with the first
lid portion 14 and if the outside diameter of a portion (the
cylindrical portion 14d) of the first lid portion 14 to be inserted
into the opening 12a of the container body 12 is increased so that
the cylindrical portion 14d of the first lid portion 14 can be
fitted into the opening 12a of the container body 12 to seal the
peripheral portion of the opening 12a of the container body 12 when
the opening 12a of the container body 12 is closed by the first lid
portion 14, while a soft material is used as the material of the
container body 12 and so forth to be integral-molded. Also in such
constructions, it is possible to prevent evaporation of a liquid,
such as a reagent, in the container body 12 when the liquid is
pipetted by means of a pipette chip.
[0040] Similarly, while the second sealing member 24 has been
mounted on the second lid portion 16 of the container 10 with lid
in the above-described preferred embodiment, it is not required to
provide the second sealing member 24 if the cylindrical portion 16c
of the second lid portion 16 has a shape corresponding to the
second sealing member 24 mounted thereon while a soft material is
used as the material of the container body 12 and so forth to be
integral-molded.
[0041] Alternatively, it is not required to provide the second
sealing member 24 if the outside diameter of the cylindrical
portion 16c of the second lid portion 16 is increased so that the
cylindrical portion 16c of the second lid portion 16 can be fitted
into the opening 14a of the first lid portion 14 to seal the
opening 14a of the first lid portion 14 when the opening 14a of the
first lid portion 14 is closed by the second lid portion 16, while
a soft material is used as the material of the container body 12
and so forth to be integral-molded.
[0042] A container with lid according to the present invention can
be utilized as a microcentrifuge tube in various fields of
biochemistry, such as genetic engineering, cell culture and
pharmacological evaluation, and can be utilized as one of various
containers, such as sampling containers, assaying containers,
reaction containers and centrifuge containers.
[0043] While the present invention has been disclosed in terms of
the preferred embodiment in order to facilitate better
understanding thereof, it should be appreciated that the invention
can be embodied in various ways without departing from the
principle of the invention. Therefore, the invention should be
understood to include all possible embodiments and modification to
the shown embodiments which can be embodied without departing from
the principle of the invention as set forth in the appended
claims.
* * * * *