Method for manufacturing an application member for applying liquid cosmetic product, application member and applicator

Abstract

The disclosure provides a method of fabricating an applicator member for applying a liquid cosmetic, the method comprising a step of making a porous core out of sintered material and a step of overmolding a shell on the porous core, the shell including at least one inlet orifice for admitting liquid cosmetic into the core and at least one dispenser orifice for dispensing liquid cosmetic by means of the core. The disclosure also provides an applicator member obtained by the method and an applicator comprising such an applicator member and a reservoir.

Claims

1. A method of fabricating an applicator member for applying a liquid cosmetic, the method comprising: making a porous core out of sintered material to form a plurality of pores such that the liquid cosmetic flows through the core by capillarity; and overmolding a shell on the porous core, the shell having at least one inlet orifice for admitting the liquid cosmetic into the porous core and at least one dispenser orifice for enabling the porous core to dispense the liquid cosmetic, wherein the porous core comprises at least one projection that projects out from the overmolded shell through the at least one dispenser orifice.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the making of the porous core comprises machining the porous core.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the sintered material comprises a polyolefin.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the sintered material comprises a polyester or glass.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the overmolded shell comprises a polymer comprising a polyolefin.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the overmolded shell comprises a polymer comprising a polyester.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the overmolded shell comprises a flexible polymer.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the overmolded shell has thickness less than 2.0 mm.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the overmolded shell includes a fastener skirt for fastening the applicator member on a reservoir.

10. A system, comprising: an applicator member for applying a liquid cosmetic, the applicator member comprising a porous core and a shell, the applicator member being obtained by: making the porous core out of sintered material; and overmolding the shell on the porous core, the shell having at least one inlet orifice for admitting the liquid cosmetic into the porous core and at least one dispenser orifice for enabling the porous core to dispense the liquid cosmetic, wherein the porous core comprises at least one projection that projects out from the overmolded shell through the at least one dispenser orifice.

11. The system according to claim 10, further comprising an applicator for the liquid cosmetic that is to be dispensed, the applicator comprising a reservoir for containing the liquid cosmetic for dispensing and the applicator member, the applicator member being assembled on the reservoir.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one projection extends beyond an outside surface of the overmolded shell by a maximum of 5 mm.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein the porous core receives the liquid cosmetic directly from a reservoir via the at least one inlet orifice.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

(1) Other characteristics and advantages of the invention appear from the following description of implementations of the invention given as non-limiting examples and with reference to the accompanying figures, in which:

(2) FIG. 1 is a section view of a liquid cosmetic applicator obtained by a fabrication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

(3) FIG. 2 is a perspective view from above of the FIG. 1 applicator; and

(4) FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing the steps of the method of fabricating the liquid cosmetic applicator member shown in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(5) FIG. 1 is a section view of a liquid cosmetic applicator 10.

(6) The applicator 10 comprises a reservoir 12 having a neck 14 and an applicator member 16 for applying liquid cosmetic and that is assembled on the neck 14 of the reservoir. The reservoir 12 has walls that are rigid. Alternatively, the reservoir 12 may have walls that are flexible. The liquid cosmetic is contained in the reservoir 12.

(7) The applicator member 16 has a porous core 18 made of sintered material. As an example of a porous core made of sintered material, mention may be made of a porous core comprising polypropylene marketed under the trademark Porex, e.g. as defined in Document WO 2008/021539, to which the reader may refer. The porous core 18 has open pores. For example, the pores may be of a size lying in the range 7 micrometers (m) to 300 m, preferably in the range 30 m to 150 m, and the volume porosity, defined as the ratio of empty volume over the total volume, may lie in the range 10 vol % to 70 vol %, and preferably in the range 20 vol % to 50 vol %.

(8) The applicator member 16 also has a shell 20 overmolded on the porous core 18. By way of example, the shell 20 may be made of polypropylene.

(9) The shell 20 overmolded on the porous core 18 covers the entire porous core 18, with the exception of an inlet orifice 22 for admitting liquid cosmetic into the porous core 18, and of a plurality of dispensing orifices 24 for dispensing the liquid cosmetic from the porous core 18, i.e. by means of the porous core 18.

(10) In FIG. 1, in the section view, the shell 20 overmolded on the porous core 18 has three dispenser orifices 24.

(11) As shown in the embodiment of FIG. 2, the shell 20 overmolded on the porous core 18 has seven dispenser orifices 24.

(12) In the flow direction of the liquid cosmetic during application, i.e. while the liquid cosmetic is being dispensed from the reservoir 12 to the outside of the applicator 10, with the applicator member 16 assembled on the reservoir 12, the inlet orifice 22 for admitting the liquid cosmetic into the porous core 18 is arranged upstream from the porous core 18, and the liquid cosmetic dispenser orifices 24 are arranged downstream relative to the inlet orifice 22. Thus, when the applicator member 16 is assembled on the reservoir 12, it should be observed that the inlet orifice 22 is arranged facing the opening defined by the neck 14 of the reservoir 12, and the dispenser orifices 24 are freely accessible from outside the applicator 10.

(13) The porous core 18 has projections 26 on the surface of the porous core 18. Once the shell 20 has been overmolded onto the porous core 18, these projections 26 project from the overmolded shell 20 through the dispenser orifices 24. The surfaces of the projections 26 are arranged outside the overmolded shell 20 and together they form a surface for applying the liquid cosmetic.

(14) The projections 26 may form a pattern that projects from the overmolded shell 20. The overmolded shell 20 may thus cover a specific portion of the porous core 18 between the projections 26, and they may form a pattern such as a logo or decoration.

(15) In FIG. 1, the overmolded shell 20 has a fastener skirt 28 for fastening the applicator member 16 on the reservoir 12. The fastener skirt 28 of the applicator member 16 is formed during overmolding of the shell 20 on the porous core 18. The fastener skirt 28 comprises a plurality of resilient tabs, each having a free end 30 with an internal rib 32 configured to co-operate with the neck 14 of the reservoir 12.

(16) The applicator 10 also has a sealing gasket 34 arranged between the neck 14 of the reservoir 12 and the applicator member 16, more particularly a sealing gasket 34 of annular shape arranged between the neck 14 of the reservoir 12 and the overmolded shell 20 in order to avoid the liquid cosmetic passing between the applicator member 16 and the reservoir 12. The sealing gasket 34 may be a separate fitting or it may form an integral portion of the shell 20.

(17) In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the applicator 10 also has a fastener ferrule 38 of shape complementary to the shape of the fastener skirt 28 and that prevents the resilient tabs of the fastener skirt 28 from moving radially. The fastener ferrule 38 blocks the resilient tabs in a configuration for fastening the applicator member 16 on the neck 14 of the reservoir 12. Alternatively, the fastener ferrule 38 could include the fastener tabs and serve to hold the applicator member 16 axially, which member would then not have any fastener tabs.

(18) By way of example, the overmolded shell 20 may present thickens of 0.8 mm, the porous core 18 may be generally in the shape of a cylinder having a diameter of about 15 mm and a maximum height, ignoring the projections 26, of about 7 mm. The inlet orifice 22 may present a diameter of about 6 mm, and the dispenser orifices 24 may each present a diameter of about 2 mm.

(19) The method 100 of fabricating the applicator member 16 is shown in FIG. 3.

(20) During a first step 102, the porous core 18 is made of sintered material. The porous core 18 may be obtained by sintering beads of polypropylene in a sintering mold. The sintering mold may include recesses that correspond to the projections 26 of the porous core 18. The projections 26 may be flush with the outside surface of the shell 20 or they may extend beyond the outside surface, by way of example they may extend beyond the outside surface by a maximum of 5 mm, or a maximum of 2 mm, or preferably a maximum of 1 mm.

(21) Thereafter, in a second step 106, the shell 20 is overmolded on the porous core 18. Thereafter, the porous core 18 is placed in an injection mold and the material that is to form the shell 20 is injected into the injection mold, between the injection mold and the porous core 18 so as to overmold the shell 20 on the porous core 18.

(22) Parameters for overmolding are themselves known and may easily be determined as a function of the injected material.

(23) The injected material is sufficiently fluid, i.e. its viscosity is sufficiently low, to enable it to penetrate into the injection mold between the walls of the injection mold and the porous core 18. The injected material also presents viscosity that is sufficiently high to avoid closing all of the open pores of the porous core 18 under the effect of being injected under pressure.

(24) During the second step 104, it is also possible to inject the material for forming the fastener skirt 28 for fastening the applicator member 16 on the reservoir 12.

(25) Alternatively, the sintering mold need not include recesses and the porous part made of sintered material that is obtained after sintering the polypropylene beads may be generally cylindrical in shape, for example. The porous sintered material is then machined during a machining step 104 that is performed between the first step 102 and the second step 106, so as to form the projections 26 on a face of the porous part. This serves to obtain the porous core 18.

(26) Alternatively, the core 18 is molded directly into shape, in particular with its projections 26. Furthermore, the sintering mold may include projections for forming recesses in the porous core 18.

(27) It can be understood that the machining step 104 is optional and depends on the first step 102 during which the porous core 18 is made. It can be understood that even if the porous core 18 is obtained by molding in a sintering mold that has recesses for forming the projections 26 of the porous core 18, it is possible subsequently to perform a machining step 104, e.g. in order to perform a step of finishing the projections 26.

(28) It may be observed that the open pores of the porous core 18 may be selected as a function of the liquid cosmetic that is to be dispensed, in particular as a function of the viscosity of said liquid. Conversely, it is possible to adapt the formulation of the liquid cosmetic for dispensing as a function of the open pores of the porous core 18.

(29) Although the present disclosure is described with reference to a specific implementation, it is clear that various modifications and changes may be undertaken thereon without going beyond the general ambit of the invention as defined by the claims. In addition, individual characteristics of the various implementations mentioned may be combined in additional implementations. Consequently, the description and the drawings should be considered in a sense that is illustrative rather than restrictive. In particular, it can be understood that the number and locations of the inlet and liquid cosmetic dispensing orifices may vary. In addition, the shape of the projections may vary and it is not limited to the rounded cylindrical shape shown in the figures. The technique for fastening the applicator member on the reservoir may be different. For example, the fastener skirt may be screwed onto the neck of the reservoir.