A hopper having a passage through which a medicine can be passed downward is provided. The hopper is configured to cause rippling vibration on an inner surface thereof by an external force applied to the hopper. According to this configuration, the rippling vibration applies a force to the medicine to separate the medicine away from the inner surface of the hopper. This prevents the medicine from easily adhering to the hopper.

A reusable container housing. The housing includes a hollow shell that receives a recyclable cup, e.g., filled with powdered detergent, and holds it sealed and secure. A lid of the housing, when placed on top of the shell to seal its top opening, causes the cup within to be pressed downward past a set of detents and locked thereby. The hollow shell includes an open bottom sealed with a flexible diaphragm. To eject the cup from the housing (e.g., when it is empty), the lid is removed, and the flexible diaphragm is pushed upward thereby forcing the cup upward and past the detents. The cup may then be removed and replaced.

A dispenser has a body with a storage chamber for storing product. A one-way valve of the dispenser includes a valve seat and flexible valve cover seated on the valve seat and defining a normally-closed seam therebetween forming a fluid-tight seal between the valve cover and valve seat. The flexible valve cover is movable relative to the valve seat to allow the passage of substance through the seam and out of the dispenser.

This invention relates to containers of the kind having an outlet through which product is to be dispensed, e.g. food product. There is provided a container for product to be dispensed. The container has an upper part intended to move or deform in order to reduce the volume within the container. The container has an outlet intended to open during movement or deformation of said upper part. The outlet comprises a plurality of movable parts. The outlet further comprises a plurality of fixed parts located between said movable parts. The movable and fixed parts are arranged for shaping product as it is dispensed from the container through the outlet. A method of dispensing and a vending machine for dispensing portions of ice cream or other frozen product from the container are also provided.

Non-durable self-supporting flexible containers having product volumes and structural support volumes are provided with a valve mechanism to facilitate dispensing fluid product from the product support volume. One or more tension-inducing elements may be used to provide the valves with the ability to permit dispensing of fluid product from the product volume upon application of greater than a minimum threshold but less than a maximum threshold of squeeze force to an exterior of the flexible container. The valve may also be re-closable to prevent fluid product from being dispensed subsequent to use. The flexible container may further be provided with a product sensory experience sampling mechanism to provide for consumer interaction with one or more characteristics of the fluid product contained in the product volume without compromising the integrity of the product volume.

Non-durable self-supporting flexible containers having product volumes and structural support volumes are provided with a valve mechanism to facilitate dispensing fluid product from the product support volume. One or more tension-inducing elements may be used to provide the valves with the ability to permit dispensing of fluid product from the product volume upon application of greater than a minimum threshold but less than a maximum threshold of squeeze force to an exterior of the flexible container. The valve may also be re-closable to prevent fluid product from being dispensed subsequent to use. The flexible container may further be provided with a product sensory experience sampling mechanism to provide for consumer interaction with one or more characteristics of the fluid product contained in the product volume without compromising the integrity of the product volume.

A dispenser has a body with a variable-volume storage chamber for storing product. A compression chamber is in fluid communication with the storage chamber for receiving substance therefrom. A one-way valve of the dispenser includes valve seat and flexible valve cover seated on the valve seat and defining a normally-closed seam therebetween forming a fluid-tight seal between the valve cover and valve seat. The flexible valve cover is movable relative to the valve seat to allow the passage of substance through the seam and out of the dispenser. A manually-engageable actuator connected to the dispensing portion is movable between first and second positions to dispense substance within the compression chamber out of the dispenser.

A packet for viscous material includes a pouch that comprises an expressing-shaped first closure end and a second closure end and at least two opposing sidewalls. The closure ends and sidewalls define an enclosure. At least one closure end has an expressing shape and a separate rigid foldable flat cradles the pouch. The flat is of a material that is more rigid than the pouch. A spout-forming area separate from the pouch and the rigid foldable flat, is positioned on a rigid foldable flat side of the packet. The area is of intermediate rigidity or thickness to the pouch and the rigid foldable flat. The spout-forming area is derived as a remnant from a semi-rigid material strip that acts as a pouch-forming tacking strip during a pouch forming process. The spout-forming area reinforces at least a part of the pouch at the pouch expressing shape first closure end. The separate rigid foldable flat overlaps the spout-forming area to cradle the spout-forming area with the cradled pouch. A crease extends longitudinally in the flat and along the pouch to facilitate folding or rolling the more rigid flat to compress the pouch with the spout-forming area to express a content through the expressing-shaped first closure end.

A consumer package is disclosed that can be opened with one hand. The packaging can have a finger or thumb loop attached to a panel that allows a user to use a finger of the same hand holding the package to open the package. The finger or thumb loop can be designed to have strength and structural integrity to open the package rather than just to hold the package. The package can have a finger or thumb grip portion attached to the panel to open the package. The package can have a finger or thumb hold attached to the panel to open the package.

Provided is a multi-chamber dispenser (1) of flowable substances, comprising: a rigid body (100) disposed around first (113) and second (123) storage chambers for storing respective first and second flowable substances, a first inlet fluidly connecting the first storage chamber (113) with a first outlet (141), a second inlet fluidly connecting the second storage chamber (123) with a second outlet (151), a first user-operable apparatus (140) at an exterior of the container and configured, on movement relative to the rigid body (100), to cause a volume of the first flowable substance to be dispensed from the first storage chamber (113) via the first inlet to the first outlet (141), and a second user-operable apparatus (150) at the exterior of the container and configured, on movement relative to the rigid body (100), to cause a volume of the second flowable substance to be dispensed from the second storage chamber (123) via the second inlet to the second outlet (151).