Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Lid of a container
The invention relates to a lid of a container, in particular of a beverage
can.
Containers of the type described above are produced, for example, as re-
closable beverage
cans. In a particularly advantageous embodiment of such cans, a pour opening
is provided in the
lid panel that is like the remainder of the can made of metal, typically made
of aluminum or
tinplate. This opening is closed by a closure element bearing against the
interior of the can at the
lid panel. This closure element is moved by an actuating element actuatable
from the exterior,
for example, by a flap or a slider, from a closed position to an open
position, whereby the pour
opening is exposed for emptying the can and can again be closed in a tight
manner after the
initial opening. Such a beverage can be learned, for example, from the
applicant's AT 507 950
Al.
A major problem with re-closable beverage cans is the required low bacterial
count. After the
initial opening and partial emptying of the beverage can, remains of the
content often remain in
the region of the pour opening, which after re-closuring are a source of
contamination and hence
of the occurrence of mold and the like.
It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a lid for a re-closable
container that also after
re-closure and during prolonged storage prevents contaminants from occurring
or entering in the
region of the can opening as well as possibly in the beverage can.
In view of this object, the present invention provides that the actuating
element comprises at least
one second sealing means that seals the at least one outlet opening in
relation to the upper side
of the lid. The combination of two sealing means leads to the fact that the
first sealing means
being arranged on the interior on the closure element prevents any leakage of
the beverage
contents via the outlet opening, whereas the second sealing means seals the
outlet
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opening relative to the environment and thereby prevents contaminants from
entering at the
outlet opening during the production cycle, in particular during bottling,
where appropriate during
post treatment and during transportation to the customer.
In a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, at least one further
opening is provided,
spaced apart from the at least one outlet opening and penetrating the lid,
which is likewise
sealed by the second sealing means relative to the upper side of the lid. This
second opening
penetrating the lid is a pressure equalization opening which when actuating
the actuating
element for opening the container is first exposed in order to relieve the
pressure usually
prevailing in the beverage can when it is filled with a carbonated beverage,
in order to then
expose the outlet opening itself. This second opening as well is susceptible
to contamination, so
that this pressure equalization opening is in this embodiment of the invention
also sealed by the
second sealing means which is arranged on the actuating element. It can also
be provided,
however, that this opening is by a further, third sealing means protected
against contamination
from the environment.
A particularly good seal is achieved when the second and/or third sealing
means is formed as a
sealing lip and/or a sealing edge. In a particularly preferred embodiment of
the invention, the
sealing lip or sealing edge forms an angle with the lid panel different from
90 degrees, which
results in an improved seal against the environment.
It is presently particularly preferably provided that the second sealing means
is formed integrally
with the actuating device. This facilitates mounting the closure device on the
lid during
production and reduces misalignment and as a result any problems with the
sealing properties of
the second sealing means.
Since the actuating element is usually made of rigid plastic material, whereas
the sealing means
needs to exhibit flexible properties for sealing, it is particularly
preferably provided that the
actuating element is produced as a two-component injection-molded member in
order to enable
production as a member being integrally formed with the sealing means
according to the
invention.
In a further embodiment of the invention, the actuating element comprises at
least one hinge
over which the second sealing means extends. Opening the container and thereby
exposing of
the outlet opening is therewith facilitated in that the actuating element
comprises a hinge which
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facilitates lifting and/or displacing the actuating element. The arrangement
of the second sealing
means over the hinge ensures that the outlet opening and possibly the
ventilation opening are
securely sealed when the container is re-closed. Reliable sealing of the
opening located in the
lid is in particular ensured when the second sealing means extends
substantially parallel to the
outer edge of the actuating element. In this manner, all openings in the lid
panel covered by the
actuating element are sealed by the second sealing means against the
environment.
In a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, at least one spacer
element is arranged
at least in part parallel to the second sealing means. The sealing means is
due to the internal
pressure and the deformation of the container lid resulting therefrom as well
as during opening
and re-closing of the container subjected to forces that accelerate the wear
of the sealing
means. The spacer element, preferably being formed as an outer edge, then has
the duty to
absorb these forces in order to thereby achieve a mechanical decoupling,
thereby reducing the
forces acting upon the sealing means.
In one variant with particular advantages the second sealing means comprises a
first region
which in the open position of the closure element is located in the region of
the outlet opening
and this first portion comprises only a sealing bead. It is often inevitable
that the sealing element
during the opening motion in a first region passes over the edge of the pour
opening. A sealing
lip can thereby or during a later closing motion be damaged or destroyed. It
is therefore
particularly advantageous that the sealing element is in these regions formed
in a robust manner
and comprises, for example, only a sealing bead. In practice, this is designed
such that the
sealing lip and the sealing bead unite in the transition to this first region.
In this, partially
somewhat lesser sealing is accepted to avoid problems when opening and re-
closing.
In a further embodiment, there is provided a lid of a container having at
least one outlet opening
which penetrates said lid and can be re-closed by at least one closure
element,
wherein said at least one closure element is arranged on an underside of said
lid,
wherein said at least one closure element can by an actuating element arranged
on an
upper side of said lid be moved from a closed position, in which said at least
one outlet opening
is closed, into an open position, in which said at least one outlet opening is
at least partially
exposed,
wherein said at least one closure element comprises a first sealing means for
sealing
said at least one outlet opening in relation to said underside of said lid,
wherein said actuating element comprises at least one second sealing means
which
seals said at least one outlet opening in relation to said upper side of said
lid; and
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wherein said at least one second sealing means is designed at least partly as
a double
seal, and said at least one second sealing means comprises a first region
which is in the open
position of said at least one closure element located in the region of said at
least one outlet
opening, and wherein said first region comprises only a sealing bead.
The invention is below explained in more detail by way of a non-restricting
embodiment with
accompanying figures.
Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of the lid according to the invention,
Fig. 2 shows a sectional view of the lid of Fig. 1,
Fig. 3 shows a sectional view of the actuating element shown in Fig. 1,
Fig. 4 shows the underside of the actuating element facing the lid panel,
Fig. 5 shows a further embodiment of the second sealing means in a sectional
view, and
Fig. 5a and Fig. 5b show variants of Fig.5.
The invention relates to a lid of a container, in particular of a beverage
can, having at least one
outlet opening which penetrates the lid and can be re-closed by at least one
closure element,
where the at least one closure element is arranged on the underside of the
lid, and the at least
one closure element can by an actuating element arranged on the upper side of
the lid be
moved from a closed position, in which the at least one outlet opening is
closed, into an open
position, in which the outlet opening is at least partially exposed, and the
at least one closure
element comprises a first sealing means for sealing the at least one outlet
opening in relation to
the underside of the lid.
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Fig. 1 shows a lid 100 according to the invention in a perspective view, where
on the lid panel
101, an actuating element 110 is arranged which is designed in two parts, and
the actuating
element 110 comprises a fixation element 110a that is via a hinge 111 in
connection with a
sliding element 110b.
As shown in the sectional view of Fig. 2, the lid panel 101 comprises a pour
opening 103 which
is in the closed position of the actuating element 110 closed by a closure
element 120 arranged
below the lid panel 101. This closure element 120 comprises a first sealing
means 121 that seals
the container content in relation to the underside of the lid panel (101),
thereby preventing
leakage of the re-closed beverage can.
In the lid panel 101, an opening is furthermore arranged which continues in
the closure element
120 as a pressure equalization opening 122 into which a pin 112 of the
fixation element 110
engages when the container is closed.
Fig. 3 shows the actuating element 110 in a sectional view, where on the
underside of the
actuating element 110, a second sealing means 130 is arranged which extends
substantially
along the outer edge of the actuating element 110 (Fig. 4). Furthermore, a
third sealing means
131 is disposed on the fixation element 110a and surrounds the pin 112. This
third sealing
means 131 is formed as a double seal comprising a sealing lip 131a and a
sealing bead 131b
which is formed in the manner of an 0-ring. In this, the sealing bead 131b
serves not only for
sealing purposes but also as a spacer element that protects the sealing lip
from excessive load
during improper opening or closing. The sealing lip 131a intersects the
bearing plane El of the
actuating element 110 on the lid panel 101 at an angle of about 40 to 50 .
With the
arrangement of the inventive third sealing means 131 on the underside of the
actuating element
110, the pressure equalization opening 122 is sealed in relation to the
environment when the
container is closed.
In this embodiment of the invention the second and the third sealing means
130, 131 are made
from a single material, namely the same as that of the actuating element 110.
The sealing lip
131a is designed in a particularly slim manner in order to achieve sufficient
flexibility and thereby
sealing.
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Figs. 5 show further embodiments of the third sealing means 131 according to
the invention,
where it should be noted that the following comments apply analogously to the
second sealing
element 130.
A sealing edge 131b of the sealing bead is in the variant of Fig. 5 further
provided in addition to
a sealing lip 131a, where the entire sealing means 131 is designed as a soft
component of an
actuating element 110 produced by two-component injection-molding.
The variant of Fig. 5a provides that only the sealing lip 131a is made of soft
material, and a
variant is shown in Fig. 5b which provides an actuating element 110 with the
sealing means 131
made of a single material resulting in cost advantages. In this case, the
design of the sealing lip
131a is crucial in order to ensure an adequate seal.
It is understood that the lid according to the invention is not restricted to
the embodiment
described above The second sealing means can in particular be arranged in
different ways on
the actuating element and have different cross-sections. The outlet opening in
the lid panel and
an optionally provided pressure equalization opening are sealed from the
environment by
appropriate sealing means on the actuating element.
