Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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TETHERED PLASTIC SCREW STOPPER
TECHNICAL FIELD
10011 This invention relates.to a tethered plastic screw stopper.
BACKGROUND
19021 in the field of liquid packaging, it is very common to seal the
aperture of a
container with a stopper, often made from a plastic material. Such container
is usually a
plastic or glass bottle, but other materials may be used as well.
10031 The stopper has a tubular shape closed at. its top. edge by a top
wall. The
stopper comprises a .roof attached to a tamper shell through bridges. Bridges
are
distributed around the circumference of the roof and the tamper shall. The
bridges may be
made when molding the stopper or after through undergoing a cutting step
during the
manufacturing process.
10041 Usually the bottle neck includes outer fixation feature, such as
thread(s) for
screw type stopper or annular fixation rings tbr snap type stopper, to secure
the stopper on
the bottle neck,
10051 For screw type stoppers, the tamper shell comprises inner
thread(s)
arranged inside side walls. The bottle neck fixation feature may include outer
thread(s).
Such combination of outer and inner thread(s) allows the stopper to be screwed
on a bottle
neck to seal it and unscrewed for bottle opening. A snap type stopper may
include an
inner annular area and the bottle neck fixation feature may include outer
fixation ring, in
order to slot in tbrce the stopper on the bottle neck. A snap type stopper may
include a
tamper shell with .a movable sealing roof from a closed position to .a partial
opening
position, and reversely. The. roof may be separated upon opening or may be
connected to
the tamper shell.
10061 in a bottle sealing position of the stopper, the tamper shell may
be secured
around the bottle neck through inner shell retaining features or through the
retaining
features diameter being smaller than a diameter of a tamper shell of the
bottle neck.
10071 The roof may be removable. During bottle opening, the bridges lbrm
a
weakness line and may be torn apart from the roof, separating it from the
bottle. The
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weakness line may be torn when user unscrews the tamper shell of the stopper
or when
user lifts the roof by tilting.
10081 There is a recycling risk with separable roof as consumers may not
always
screw or snap. back the roof onto the bottle neck once empty. The stopper may
be thrown
away as litter or put into the trash bin, or worse make its way into a
landfill, which is not
good in view of the environmental considerations.
10091 One solution includes linking the roof to the tamper shell secured
on the
bottle neck, so the roof stays attached to the bottle after bottle opening.
Such an attached
stopper may be called a "tethered stopper."
100101 U.S. Patent No. 9,010,555 teaches a plastic screw stopper
including a
peripheral strip between a. tamper shell and a roof. Such peripheral strip is
linked to the
tamper shell through a bottom weakness line and to the roof through a top
weakness line.
The bottom weakness. line and top weakness line are parallel- and extend
across the
periphery of the stopper in order to incorporate one or two hinges in elosc.
proximity to
each other. When unscrewing the stopper the bottom weakness line and top
weakness line
tear apart, but the two hinges hold the roof on the tamper shell. The roof
becomes
Immovable and as capable- of toggling around the hinges beside of the stopper
secured on
the bottle neck.
100111 U.S. 8,490,805 teaches a plastic screw stopper comprises a
helicoidal strip
between a tamper shell and a roof Such helicoidal strip is obtained by cutting
the tamper
shell around the stopper. The outer wall of the tamper shell is placed,
against a blade and
the stopper is moved in rotation relative to the blade according to an angular
stroke greater
than an entire turn or more than 360. During rotation, the-stopper is being
moved in an
axial. movement relative to the blade. The cut line forms a helicoidal
weakness line which
remains attached at one end to the tamper shell and at its opposite end to the
roof after
opening.
100121 Other known art prior art systems include a tethered stopper
comprising a
spiral. strip. The spiral strip is made during the stopper molding so there is
no cutting or
slitting operations,. Other known prior art systems includes tethered -
stoppers comprising
two strips linking the closure shell to the tamper band secured on the bottle.
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SUMMARY
100131 This invention is a tethered plastic screw stopper where its
closure shell
remains attached to its tamper band after the bottle is opened by use of a
strip made into
the plastic material of the stopper between the tamper band and the closure
shell using a
bottom weakness line and a top weakness line. Each strip remains connected to
the
tamper band secured on the bottle neck by a least a. bottom hinge managed into
the bottom
weakness line. The opposite ends, of melt strip are directly linked to the
closure shell
through a junction point.
I00l4] The stoppe,r further comprises a specific top weakness line where
the
junction point of the strip with. -the. closure shell is located over a bottom
bridge located at
the nearest from the bottom hinge(s), so called "nearest bottom bridge" on a
side of the
Setewing direttinn of therelosure
100151 Thus, the invention systematically allows the nearest bottom
bridge to he
broken due to the junction point location where the closure shell and the
strip ends are
upwardly moved the farthest from the tamper band during closure shell
unscrewing
motion. A force is applied on the -closest bridge due to the specific position
of the junction
point of the end of the strip.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
1.00161 The. figures are not necessarily to scale and some -features may
be
exaggerated or minimized, such as to show details of particular components.
Emphasis is
placed on illustrating the principles of the invention. In the figures, like
reference
numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the different views.
180.171 Figure 1 is a diagrammatic lateral view of a tethered stopper in a
closed
position on a bottle..
100181 Figure 2 is a diagrammatic lateral view similar to Figure 1 during
the
opening of the stopper.
100191 Figure 3 is a diagrammatic horizontal cross section view along the
bottom
weakness line a tethered stopper.
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100201 Figure 4 is a diagrammatic horizontal cross section view along the
top
weakness line of the tethered stopper.
DETAILED. .DESC7RIPTION
100211 As =inked, detailed embodiments Of the present disclosure are
disclosed
herein. The disclosed embodiments are merely examples that may be embodied in
various
andalternative forms, and combinations thereof As used herein, for example,.
exemplary,
and similar terms, re* expansively to embodiments that serve as an
illustration,
specimen, model or pattern..
100221 In some instances, well-known components, systems, materials or
methods
have not been described in detail in order to avoid. Obscuring the present
disclosure.
Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not
to be
interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a
representative basis for
teaching one skilled in the art to variously emplOythe present disclosure.
100231 Phrasing such as 'configured tot peribnn a function, including in
the claims,
can include any or all of being sized, shaped, positioned in the arrangement,
and
comprising material to perform the function.
100241 Terms indicating quantity, such as. 'first' or 'second* are used
for
exemplary and explanation purposes and are not intended, to dictate the
specific ordering
of a component with respect to other components. Terms indicating position
such as 'top'
or 'bottom' and 'left' or right' are used for exemplary and explanation
purposes with
respect to other components.
100251 Various embodiments of the present disclosure are disclosed
herein. The
described embodiments are merely exemplary illustrations of implementations
set for a
clear understanding of the principles of the disclosure. Variations,
modifications, and
combinations may be made to the described embodiments without departing from
the
scope of the claims. All such variations, modifications, and combinations are
included
herein by the scope of this disclosure and the claims.
100261 This invention relates to a tethered plastic screw stopper 100 for
closing a
bottle neck 102. The. stopper 100 is integrally made of one plastic piece by a
molding
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fabrication step. Other parts or elements of the stopper 100 can be further
created into the
entire plastic piece through a cutting or slitting step.
100271 The. stopper 100 is a strew type and comprises inner fixation
features, such
as thread(s), designed. to cooperate with outer complementary fixation
features Made on
the bottle neck 102.
100281 In some embodiments, as illustrated in Figures 1 through 4, the
screwing
direction of the stopper 100 is typically clockwise and extends from right to
left. The
screwing orientation is represented as a directional arrow in Figures 1
through 4. The
unscrewing direction of the stopper .100 oppositely extends relative to the
screw direction,
so counterclockwise from left to rights In other embodiments, the screwing
direction can
be designed counterclockwise.
100291 The stopper 100 comprises a closure shell 104 and underneath a
tamper
band 106. The. tamper band 106 and the closure shell 104 are separably linked
together by
way of a strip 108..
100301 In some embodiments, the stopper 100 includes one strip 108. In
other
embodiments, the stopper 100 includes two or more strips 108. For example, the
stopper
100 includes two strips 108 positioned on opposite sides of the stopper I(X).
The two
strips 108 can be positioned in a symmetrical Or asymmetrical layout.
100311 The strip 108 is separably connected to the closure 'shell. 104
through a
plurality of top bridges 11.2 that ibrm a top weakness line 110. Similarly,
the strip 1.08 is
separably connected to the tamper hand 106 through a plurality of bottom
bridges 116 that
form a bottom weakness line 114.
100321 The bottom weakness line 114 comprises at least one hinge 118
configured
to connect the strip 108 and the tamper band 106. In some embodiments, the
bottom
weakness line 114 comprises two hinges 118. where each hinge 118 connects a
respective
strip 108 to the tamper band 1%. The two hinges 118 can be spaced through a
hole or. a
less thick material managed into the tamper band 106 between the two hinges
118.
100331 The top bridges 112 and bottom bridges 116 are each configured to
he
stretched and ultimately broken when unscrewing the closure Shell 104. The top
and
bottom bridges 112, 116 are regularly or irregularly positioned around the
perimeter of the
top and bottom weakness lines 110, 114 respectively. However, at the location
of the
hinge(s) 1.18, the top and bottom bridges 112, 116 are not present
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10034j Each strip 108 comprises an extremity at an end of the top
weakness line.
110, linking the strip 108 with the closure shell 104 at a junction point
120.. For example,
in the embodiment having two strips 108, there is a.junction point 1.20 at
each end of the
top weakness line 110, linking the extremity of each strip 108 to the closure
shell 104.
100351 The top weakness line 110 is configured in order to firm an end
122 of the
strip 108 positioned above a bottom bridge 116 located at the nearest to the
hinge 118 on
the left side of the hinge considering a clockwise screwing direction of the
closure shell
104. When facing the stopper looking at the hinge(s) 118, if the screw
direction is
clockwise, then the junction point of the left strip relative to the hinge
.118 is located over
the nearest left bottom bridge 116 (denoted with parallel vertical lines in
Figure 2).
10036] The end of the top weakness line located on the left of the hinge
118 for a
clockwise screwing stopper is angularly located between - 40" to 40" relative
to the
-vertical axis of the bottom bridge 1.16 located at the nearest: from the
hinge .1.18. In some
embodiments, the hinge .118 is more .particularly located between - 20 to 20
relative to
the vertical axis of the bottom bridge 116 located at the nearest from the
hinge 11.8. For
example, when looking at the hinge 118, the junction point 120 of the left
strip 108. is
angularly situated approximately 20 relative to the = left nearest bottom
bridge 116. Such
angular variation is shown in the drawings illustrated in dotted lines on
Figures 3 and 4.
100371 in Some embodiments, the top weakness line 110 is asymmetric
relative to
the bottom weakness line .114 which is symmetric relative to a vertical plane
crossing the
diameter of the stopper 100. So when molding or further slitting. the stopper
100, the top
weakness line 110 is angularly switched or turned offset in relation with the
position of the
hinge(s) 118 Of the bottom weakness line 114. Thus, one strip 108 (c.a.,. the
left strip) in a
clockwise screwing configuration, is shorter than the opposite strip 108
(e.g., the right
strip). In other embodiments, such as Show in. Figure 3, the -bottom weakness
line 114 is
symmetric relative to a vertical plane crossing the diameter of the stopper
100 where the
plane being shown by a fine continuous line.
100381 While various embodiments. of the invention have been described,
it will be
apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that many more embodiments and
implementations are possible that are within the scope of this invention.
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