Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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1
A roll-on applicator
Field of the invention
The present invention relates to a roll-on applicator. The roll-on applicator
according to the present invention is particularly adapted for pretreatment of
fabrics with a portion of liquid detergent.
~o
Background of the invention
Roll-on applicators are well known in the art. Usually, said applicators are
~5 containers comprising a hollow body for liquids, a ball and a retaining
support
means for said ball. These roll-on applicators generally allow to apply a
liquid
film from the inside of the hollow body to a selected surface. The common
problem of these is to avoid leakage or spillage of the contained liquid
during ,
the periods of non-use of said roll-on applicators. The prior art solves this
2o problem using the cooperation of a cap. Indeed, as disclosed in US-3 036
328,
US-4 221 494, US-4 221 495, US-4 475 837 and US-5 051 017, the ball is
forced to engage and bear against a sealing surface of said retaining support
means when the container is closed by the cap. But this solution to avoid
leakage or spillage is inconvenient, if the above retaining support means with
25 the ball is located under the level of the content. Indeed, leakage or
spillage
may occur during the operation of unscrewing the cap. For this reason, the
roll-
on applicator of the prior art usually has the retaining support means for the
ball on top of the corresponding container above the level of the content when
said container is stored in its upright position.
EP-A-0 575 714, for example, describes a circular-sectioned applicator
rotating about the axis defined by opposite pins engaged in the rim of an
orifice. The liquid detergent has to be poured through the orifice before
being
intercepted by said applicator. Therefore, leakage or spillage is prevented
only
by the fact that said orifice is located above the level of the contained
liquid
detergent. This example shows that in the art of roll-on applicating means
exists the need of a leakage- or spillage-free solution ensured without a cap.
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It is an object of the present invention to provide a container with a roll-on
applicating means which is IeaN;-tight when the cap is off or when said
container
does not comprise a cap and when the liquid is above said roll-on applicating
means.
Another disadvantage of the roll-on applicators of the prior art is given by
the fact
that the spread quantity cannot be increased. Instead, the prior art only
teaches a
decrease of said spread quantity. Indeed, the roll-on applicating means
described in
the above mentioned prior art can force the ball to engage and bear against a
sealing surface of said retaining support means to decrease or stop completely
the
flow of the content on said ball. The inverse is never possible. On the
contrary, an
increased spread quantity is useful especially during pretreatment. Indeed,
different
stains may need a greater amount of liquid detergent for a more effective
pretreatment. For example, stains made of certain constituents may need a
greater
quantity of detergent to get a more thorough and effective pretreatment. A
greater
quantity may also be needed to simply cover the dimension of the stain itself.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a container with
roll-on
applicating means allowing to increase the product flow from the interior.
Summar)i of the Invention
The present invention is direcaed to a container adapted to contain and
dispense
a product, said container comprlising a hollow body, a filling opening, a
dispensing
opening, a ball and a flexible and resilient support means for said ball,
wherein said
flexible and resilient support means urges said ball against said dispensing
opening,
achieving a leak-tight engagement between said ball and said dispensing
opening,
and said flexible and resilient support means can be resiliently deformed by
an
external force acting on said ball whereby said leak-tight engagement between
said
ball and said dispensing opening is disengaged, allowing said contained
product to
be spread by said ball, said flexible and resilient support means comprises a
housing
which fits the container and defines said dispensing opening at one extremity,
said
housing comprising in the region of the opposite extremity to said dispensing
opening, at least a resiliently deformable arm urging said ball against said
dispensing
opening to achieve said leak-tight engagement and an interrupted rim against
which
the ball is urged when an external force is applied.
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Brief description of the fi4ures
Figures 1 a and 1 b show a container (shown partially) with an embodiment of
the flexible and resilient support means for a ball according to the present
invention in a cross sectional view.
Figures 2a and 2b show containers (shown partially) with other embodiments
of the flexible and resilient support means for a ball according to the
present
invention.
Figure 3 illustrates the top view of the embodiment of the flexible and
resilient support means for the ball of Figure 2b.
Figure 4 illustrates the embodiment where the ball of Figure 2b and 3 is part
~ 5 of a dosing and dispensing device also adapted for pretreatment of
fabrics.
Detailed description of the invention
An embodiment of the present invention is shown in a cross sectional view in
Figure 1. The present invention provides a container (10) (only partially
shown
in Figure 1 ) adapted to contain and dispense a product. The word "container"
encompasses any form and/or type of containers comprising a hollow body (1 )
and a dispensing opening (2). For example, bottles, tubes, dosing and/or
dispensing devices are containers according to the definition of the present
invention. Said dispensing opening (2) of container (10) may be closed by a
cap. The hollow body (1 ) of the container may be made of a rigid, soft or
flexible material. Soft or flexible materials may be preferred to allow
squeezing
of the hollow body itself for a further controlled dispensing through the
opening.
Specifically for dosing andlor dispensing devices, said hollow body may be
preferably made of a material resistant to water, temperature (up to
95°C).
Specifically, said dosing andlor dispensing devices are adapted for
s5 pretreatment of fabrics, like, for example, the one described in WO
92/09736
and/or WO 92109736. Usually, said dosing and/or dispensing device adapted
for pretreatment comprises a further opening which allows the filling of this
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device. When this device is put inside the washing machine with the fabrics,
said filling opening also allows the dispensing of the content into the wash
liquid of the machine during the wash cycle. The filling opening is usually
located on the top of said dosing and/or dispensing device when said device is
in its upright position.
A partially or completely transparent hollow body (1 ) is a preferred option
to
allow the user to verify the quantity of the content and facilitate measuring
and
dosing with dosing and/or dispensing devices. As another preferred option,
~o said hollow body may further comprise at feast one dosing line on the
external
and/or internal surface of said hollow body (FIG. 4, 11 ). Preferably, said
container is made of a plastic material, such as, for example, polypropylene,
polyethylene, polyurethane or polyvinyl chloride.
~5 The container (10) may be adapted to contain liquid substances. Preferably,
said product is a liquid detergent. According to the present invention the
liquid
detergent may comprise any ingredients known in the art. Such ingredients
may include surfactants, suds suppressors, bleaches, chelants, builders,
enzymes, fillers and perfumes.
An essential feature of the present invention is a ball (3). Said ball is
located
partially inside said hollow body (1 ) at the dispensing opening (2), i.e.
said ball
protrudes at last partially from said dispensing opening. The dimensions of
said
ball and said dispensing opening are tuned to each other so that the ball is
not
normally able to escape through said dispensing opening to the exterior of
said
hollow body. In use, the content of said container is spread by said ball,
since
said ball is always in communication with the content of said container (10).
In
use, part of the content gets in contact with said ball and is then applied
onto a
surface outside said container by rotation of said ball.
Said ball (3) may be hollow or solid, and may have a generally smooth outer
surface or may have an outer surface having some degree of roughness. Said
ball may be made of an open or closed celled structure. Preferably, said ball
is
rigid. The use of a spherical ball permits an omnidirectional spreading, since
a
spherical ball will rotate in any direction with equal efficacy. Other shapes
of
said ball may be utilized, such as, for example, cylindrical or ellipsoidal.
But
such shapes may present functional limitations in that balls of that shapes
will
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only generally rotate about a single axis. Preferably, the present invention
uses
spherical balls to allow an omnidirectional spreading. We found that this
feature is particularly useful to achieve an accurate and comfortable
spreading
of liquid detergent during pretreatment, regardless of the patterns of stains.
On
5 the contrary, if the ball was limited to rotate around one axis, the user
would be
obliged to perform complicated movements with his hand, like twisting the
wrist.
The spreading with an omnidirectional rotating ball is also better controlled,
and therefore avoids waste of liquid detergent, since it is easier to spread
only
on the limited area of the stain.
Specifically for dosing and/or dispensing devices, said ball may be
preferably made of a material resistant to water, temperature (up to
95°C). For
example it is possible to use plastic materials, such as, for example,
polyethylene, polypropylene, polyurethane, or polyvinyl chloride.
The ball (3) is manufactured separately from the hollow body (1 ). This ball
can be then inserted through said dispensing opening into said flexible and
resilient support means by simply pushing said ball through the lip (9) of
said
dispensing opening. This is possible, since said lip (9) of said dispensing
opening is flexible enough to be at least slightly elastically deformed, since
said
lip, part of the hollow body or of the flexible and resilient support means,
is
preferably made of a plastic material. The container (10) can also comprise
more than one ball (3), held separately in different dispensing openings (2)
or
in a common dispensing opening.
The flexible and resilient support means (4) for said ball is another
essential
feature of the present invention. Said flexible and resilient support means
urges
said ball (3) against said dispensing opening (2), achieving a tight
engagement
between said ball and said dispensing opening. Accordingly, said flexible and
so resilient support means closes the dispensing opening with the cooperation
of
said ball. In a preferred embodiment, said flexible and resilient support
means
presses said ball against the most external rim or lip (9) of said dispensing
opening. We found that the engagement between said opening (2) and said
ball urged by said flexible and resilient support means is leak tight for
liquids.
Therefore, it is possible to avoid leakage or spillage during the periods of
non-
use of said container (10) without the cooperation of a cap.
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As a preferred option, said lip (9) of said flexible and resilient support
means
(4) is flexible or deformable. In this manner, the flexible or deformable lip
is
able to conform to and/or compensate for any imperfection in the shape of said
ball, e.g. when said ball does not have a perfect spherical shape. To achieve
this, said flexible or deformable lip may be made of a separate material
attached to the perimeter of said dispensing opening. Said flexible or
deformable lip of said flexible and resilient support means may also be made
by co-injecting a flexible or deformable material, like rubber, forming said
lip
together with a more rigid material for the rest of said flexible and
resilient
~ o support means. A flexible or deformable lip does not affect the strength
andlor
structure of said flexible and resilient support means.
Said flexible and resilient support means (4) is able to be resiliently
deformed by an external force acting on said ball (3). Accordingly, by pushing
~5 said ball to the inside of said container, said leak-tight engagement
between
said ball and said dispensing opening (2) is disengaged. Consequently, said
ball is free to rotate and able to spread the content, since the free passage
between said lip (9) and said ball connects the content with the protruding
part
of said ball. The free passage between said lip (9) and said ball is
hereinafter
2o called "product flow passage". The leak-tight engagement is immediately and
automatically re-established once the external force stops to push said ball
to
the inside of said container. Consequently, the product flow passage is closed
interrupting the product flow from inside said container. No further feature,
like
a cap, is necessary to obtain a leak-tight engagement between said ball and
25 said dispensing opening.
The flexible and resilient support means (4) according to the present
invention allows to adapt the flow of product from the interior of said
container.
Indeed, the dimension of the passage between said lip (9) and said ball (3)
can
3o be adjusted by the user by varying the external force exerted on said ball.
Consequently, the amount of the product flow from the inside of said container
can be controlled by varying the dimension of said passage. Specifically, a
greater product flow can be achieved by pressing said ball further inside said
container. Furthermore, said flexible and resilient support means in
3s combination with a flexible container further allows to dispense or pour
directly
the product onto a surface by pressing onto said ball and squeezing said
flexible container.
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We found that the dimension of the passage between said lip (9) and said
ball (3) can be varied without changing the displacement of said ball inside
said
container. Indeed, this may be done by choosing an appropriate relationship
between the dimension of the diameter of said dispensing opening (2) at said
lip and the dimension of the diameter of said ball. We further found that at a
given perimeter of said lip, and pushing said ball inside said container at a
constant displacement, a greater product flow passage can be achieved with a
ball of greater diameter in respect to a ball of smaller diameter. The same
~o reversed reasoning applies keeping the diameter of the ball constant and
varying the perimeter of said lip. Explained in another way, having a smaller
ball (or greater perimeter of said lip), a greater displacement of the ball is
needed to have the same dimension of the product flow passage in respect to a
container with a greater ball (or smaller perimeter of said lip).
'I 5
This discovery is particularly useful to ensure leak-tightness to the
container
according to the present invention for liquids of any viscosity. Indeed, for
liquids of low viscosity the dimension of the product flow passage does not
need to be as great as for liquids of higher viscosity to achieve dispensing
of a
2o given quantity of spread product. Therefore, considering the viscosity of
the
liquid product, the spread quantity can be optimized by defining the
relationship
lip-ball as described above. Nevertheless, changing the diameter of said ball
may necessitate slight adjustments of the dimension of said flexible and
resilient support means.
We further found that said product flow passage allows that most of the
product not applied onto a surface and remaining on the part of said ball
protruding from said dispensing opening is able to return back inside said
container. Otherwise, without a space defined by said product flow passage,
3o this rest-product would be scraped off by the edge of said lip remaining
outside
and around said dispensing opening. Therefore, said product flow passage of
the roll-on applicator according to the present invention considerably reduces
waste and messiness of product during use.
a5 Figure 1 a shows an embodiment according to the present invention. Said
flexible and resilient support means (4) comprises a spring (5) located under
said ball (3). Said spring presses said ball (3) against said dispensing
opening
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(2) to achieve .said leak-tight engagement during the periods of non-use of
said
container. By exerting a force F on said ball towards the inside of said
container, said spring resiliently deforms and the desired product flow
passage
is created, as shown in Figure 1 b. Said spring may be separately attached or
an integral part of said hollow body (1 ). Furthermore, said spring may be
made
of any possible material, such as, for example, metal or plastic. Said spring
may have any possible shape, such as, for example, helical or cylindrical.
As another preferred embodiment according to the present invention, said
~o flexible and resilient support means comprises in the region opposite said
dispensing opening at least a resiliently deformable arm (6) urging said ball
against said dispensing opening (2) to achieve said teak-tight engagement.
Said arm (6) may be bent at an angle a (Fig. 2a) to achieve said resilient
deformability. Preferably, a is between 0° deg and 90° deg.
Preferably, said
t5 flexible and resilient support means comprises a housing (4a) which fits
the
container and defines said dispensing opening at one extremity, as illustrated
in Figure 2b. The fitment of said housing to said container has to be leak-
tight,
but said fitment may be threaded or snapped to said container. A threaded
fitment of said housing to said container may have the advantage to allow an
2o easy refilling of said container by the user. Therefore, said flexible and
resilient support means (4) may be made of a rigid or flexible housing, said
housing supporting said spring (5) or said flexible arm (6) and may be
inserted
into said dispensing opening (2).
25 As a more preferred embodiment according to the present invention, said
flexible and resilient support means (4) may comprise more than one said
resiliently deformable arm (6) as in Figure 2b. And as a most preferred
embodiment according to the present invention all of said arms are connected
together at a ring of contact or single point of contact (FIG. 2b, 7) with
said ball.
ao Preferably, said single point of contact (7) with said ball is at the point
of the
ball which is most opposite to said dispensing opening (2).
As a further preferred option, said flexible and resilient support means (4)
may comprise, in its region opposite said dispensing opening (2), an
s5 interrupted rim (8) against which the ball (3) is urged when an external
force is
applied. This means that said interrupted rim prevents that said ball is
pushed
further inside said container. But because said rim is interrupted, i.e. said
rim
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has at least on_ a permanently open passage for the content, the passage for
the
product flow is guaranteed. Therefore, said interrupted rim defines the
maximum product flow passage allowed by said flexible and resilient support
means. Furthermore, said interrupted rim impedes that said ball is pushed
further inwards with the risk to break said spring of said flexible and
resilient
support means.
Said flexible and resilient support means (4) may be an integral part to or
separated part to said container (10). Said flexible and resilient support
means
~o may be made of injection resins (like, for example, polypropylene,
polyethylene,
polyamide, polyoxymethylene) or elastomeric polymers like thermoplastic
elastomers (for example, polyurethane rubber, isoprene rubber, styrene-
butadiene rubber) or a combination thereof. Furthermore, two or more stage
injection of materials may be used to achieve a flexible and resilient support
~ s means having, for example, an elastic spring combined with a rigid
attachment
feature.
Figure 4 illustrates a possible embodiment according to the present
invention, i.e. a dosing and/or dispensing device able to be placed inside a
2o washing machine adapted for pretreatment. The pretreatment means
comprising said flexible and resilient support means (4) with said ball (3) is
located in the bottom part of the device (10). Another permanently open
filling
and dispensing opening (12) is on the top part of the same device. This dosing
andlor dispensing device has said pretreatment means located in the bottom
25 part. Therefore, the level of the contained product is always above said
pretreatment means. Therefore, the contained product comes automatically in
contact with said ball (3), since the minimum level of the content is always
higher than said dispensing opening (2). In this manner, the liquid product
needs not to be poured towards said dispensing opening, so that this device
3o remains in a horizontal position during the pretreatment operation. Thus
this
arrangement provides an easy measuring andlor controlling of the amount of
liquid detergent applied onto the fabrics during the pretreatment. The
measuring andlor controlling can be further facilitated by the dosing lines
(11 ).
Nevertheless, the pretreatment means can be easily located on the top part of
35 device nearby the other filling and dispensing opening (12).
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Gripping means (Fig. 4, 14) can also be provided in form of cavities,
depressions or striations on the external surface of the hollow body (1 ).
They
facilitate in holding or even squeezing the device for the pretreatment. This
type of means is easy to produce during the moulding of the body of the
device.
5 Specific dimensions or shapes of the device in general can be selected by
any
person skilled in the art.
