Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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A BOTTLE-NECK CLOSURE CAPSULE
The present invention relates to a closure capsule
for placing on a bottle-neck, and of the type comprising
a top patch for covering the end face of said bottle-neck
and a skirt connected to the periphery of said patch.
Such capsules are used in particular for covering
the necks of conventional wine bottles or for cov~ring
bottles of spirits. The top patch, which may optionally
be provided with a stamp representing -tax or duty, and
which is of a size that is a function of the type o~
bottle, carries various kinds of information, in
particular the origin of the contents and the quality
thereof. It may also serve for keeping track of alcohol
duty for accounting purposes.
At present, the patch is in the form of a plane
disk. The periphery of the disk overlies folds formed at
one of the open ends of the skirt, said folds themselves
overlying the annular end face of the neck of the bottle.
The patch is fixed onto the folded annular zone of the
skirt by means of fastening tools. As a result,
information cannot be marked by embossing on the entire
area of the patch since embossed information would be
crushed when the patch is fastened onto the skirt.
The object of the present invention is to provide a
closure capsule of the -type mentioned above which makes
it possible for the patch to carry printing in relief
provided by stamping.
The invention achieves this object by the fact that
the top patch is in the form of a cup having a rim, with
said skirt and said patch being connected together via
the rim of the cup.
In a first variant embodiment, the cup overlies the
adjacent end of the skirt.
In a second variant embodiment, the cup is engaged
inside the adjacent end of the skirt.
By means of the above disposition, the operation of
folding over an end ring of the skirt is omitted as is
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the need to apply axial force on the patch in order to
bond it to the skirt.
As a resul-t, the top face of the capsule is
unencumbered in appearance and constitutes an ideal
medium for receiving printing and/or embossing
operations.
In addition, the presser wheels used for fixing the
capsule onto the bottle-neck do not encounter obstacles
in their go-and-return movement along the skirt while
crimping the capsule on the bottle-neck, thereby ensuring
that appearance remains undamaged.
The skirt is advantageously bonded to the ri~ of the
cup by means of glue.
Another object of the invention is to provide a
closure capsule that serves ~o protec-t the contents of
the bottle fitted with the capsule against acts of
malicious vandalism, and in particular against the
capsule and the cork being pierced by a syringe.
This object is achieved according to the invention
by the fact tha-t the capsule further includes a
tamperproofing disk that covers the inside face of the
cup .
This disk is advantageously made of stainless steel.
Its thickness is preferably in the range 0.01 mm to 1 mm.
Other advantages and characteristics of the
invention appear on reading the following description of
various embodiments given by way of non-limiting example
and made with reference to the accompanying drawings, in
which:
Figure 1 is a vertical section through a closure
capsule of the invention and a bot-tle-neck about to
receive said capsule;
Fi.gure 2 is a view on a larger sca'e showing the
bond between the cup and the skirt in a first variant
embodiment;
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Figure 3 is a view on a larger scale showing the
bond between the cup and the skirt in a second variant
embodiments;
Figures 4 and 5 show variants of Figures 2 and 3 in
which the closure capsule of the invention does not
include a tamperproofing disk;
Figures 6 and 7 show variants of the embodiments of
Figures 2 and 3 in which a capsule of the invention has a
tamperproofing disk in the form of a substance cast in
the bottom of the cup;
Figure 8 is a diagram of the process whereby a cup
of the invention as shown in Figures 2 and 3 is made;
Figure 9 shows a tamperproofing disk being installed
in a cup; and
Figure 10 is a section on line X-X of Figure 9.
Reference 1 designate~ a closure capsule for
applying to the top end 2 of the neck 3 of a wine bottle.
In conventional manner, the capsule 1 comprises a
top patch 4 for covering the top face 5 of the bottle-
neck 3 and a skirt 6 bonded to the patch 4 and designed
to be pressed against the side wall 7 of the bottle-neck
3 by crimping.
The dimensions of -the capsule 1 match the dimensions
of the bottle-neck 3 on which it is to be fitted.
In general, the neck 3 of the bottle has a ring 8
disposed at a distance d from the top face 5 of the
bottle-neck 3.
The skirt 6 is tapering in shape, and the patch 4 is
in -the form of a cup having a rim 9. The rim 9 of the
cup 4 is bonded to the top annular zone 10 of the skirt 6
by gluing.
In a first variant embodiment, -the cup 4 covers the
narrow end of the skirt 6.
In another variant embodiment, the cup 4 is engaged
inside the adjacent end of the skirt 6.
The depth of the cup 4 is pre~erably substantially
equal to or less than the above-defined distance d such
that the rim 9 extends no further than to the vicinity of
the ring 8 when the capsule 1 is in place on the neck 3
of the bottle.
A tamperproofing disk 11 is disposed on the insida
of the bottom of the cup 4. This disk 11 is bonded to
the cup 4 by a spot of glue 13. It covers at least the
central portion o the inside face of the cup 4 such that
when the capsule 1 is put into place on a bottle-neck 3,
the disk 11 covers the top end of the cork 12. The disk
11 preferably also covers at least a portion of the
annular end of the bottle-neck 3.
The characteristics of the disk 11, namely the
material from which it is made and the thickness of the
disk 11 are selected in such a manner as to prevent acts
of malicious vandalism, and in particular to prevent a
syringe being passed through the disk 11.
In a preferred embodiment, the disk 11 is made of
stainless steel in the work-hardened state and its
thickness lies in the range 0.01 mm to 1 mm, and
preferably in the range 0.02 mm to 0.05 mm.
However, the disk 11 may be made of any other
material that is difficult to pierce, e.g. ceramics,
porcelain, polyamides, polyolefins, polyacetals, PVC,
polystyrenes, polyesters, thermosetting resins, or
multicomponent resins.
The skirt 6 and the cup 4 are preferably made in
conventional manner from a sheet or strip of a multilayer
complex preferably including two sheets of aluminum
disposed on either side of a sheet of polyethylene. The
weight of the sheet of polyethylene preferably lies in
the range 30 grams per square meter (g/m2) to 80 g/m2.
The thickness of the sheets of aluminum lies in the range
8 micrometers to 40 micrometers. The aluminum sheet on
the inside of the capsule is preferably 12 micromaters
thick, the weight of the polye-thylene shee-t is preferably
50 g/m2 and the thickness of the outside aluminum sheet
is preferably 25 micrometers. This type of complex
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avoids folds while the capsule 1 is being crimped on the
neck 3 of the bottle.
The strip of complex may also include a surface
layer of adhesive.
The skirt 6 and the cup 4 may also be made either
from a strip of a single material, e.g. aluminum, ~in,
PVC, polystyrene, polyproplyene, or polyester, or else
from strips of composite materials, coated papers, or
assemblages made using monocrystalline waxes or
10 polyolefinsO
Various designs or patterns may be deposited on the
complex during manufacture of the cup 4 or of the skirt
6.
Figures 8 to 10 show a manufacturing line for making
cups 4 from a strip 20 of multilayer complex or from a
strip of generally preprinted capsule material which is
wound out step~by-step from an unwinding device 21.
Reference 22 designates a station for hot transfer
of printing onto the bottom face of the strip 20;
reference 23 designates a station for forming relief by
stamping; reference 24 represents a station for
calibrating the relief; reference 25 designates a station
for inking the relief; reference 26 designates
precutting-out of the cup; reference 27 designates
stamping of the cup; reference 28 designates cutting out
of the cup 4; reerence 29 designates the winding up
means for recovering the waste strip; reference 30
designates the station for recovering the completed cup
4; reference 31 designates placing a spot of glue 13
inside the cup 4; reference 32 designates cutting out and
placing the tamperproofing disk 11; reference 33
designates ejecting the cup 4; and reference 34
designates the station for transferring it onto the
spindle of a capsule-installing machine 35.
In a variant shown in Figures 6 and 7, the
tamperproofing disk 11 may be implemented by cas~ing a
plastic into the bottom of the cup 4.
