LIQUID DISPENSING DEVICE COMPRISING DROP-CHECK MECHANISM, AIR FILTER AND MULTIFUNCTION MEMBRANE VALVE

Abstract

A liquid dispensing device includes a multifunction membrane valve that, in addition to allowing the dispensing of drops with a drop-check mechanism, ensures and isolates the passage of the air to be filtered so that it does not contaminate the liquid in the interior of the dispensing device; it has a reduced number of parts; it facilitates proper assembly by counter pressure, without the need for threads or complex coupling elements; it avoids the need for rotational alignment when assembling the parts, among other advantages.

Claims

1. A liquid dispensing device, comprising: a flow circulation body (40) with at least one air compensation through hole (41), a valve holder in the form of a rod (42) with channels along its length (43) disposed on the upper surface of the flow circulation body; and upper through holes (44) in the upper surface of the circulation body; a membrane valve (30) with an upper part (31) covering the valve holder, with a droplet opening (36) at a tip of the valve holder; in the lower part of the membrane valve is disposed a horizontally extending portion (32), or across the width, and continuously a vertically extending portion (33); wherein the vertical extension portion comprises windows (34) for the flow of air into the dispensing device; wherein the vertical extension portion comprises at least one annular protrusion in its lower end area (38) which allows the securing between the upper casing and the flow circulation body; wherein the horizontally extending portion comprises at least one annular protrusion on its inner surface (35); and an upper casing (20) that covers the membrane valve and part of the flow circulation body, where the lower part of the upper housing has a pressure coupling (24) with the lower end of the flow circulation body, the upper casing comprises at least one side hole placed at the height of the windows (22) of the membrane valve.

2. The liquid dispensing device, according to claim 1, wherein the upper casing comprises a pressure coupling protrusion (24) at the height of a notch at the lower end of the flow circulation body (45).

3. The liquid dispensing device, according to claim 1, wherein the upper surface of the flow circulation body comprises an annular depression (48) at the height of an annular protrusion of the horizontal extension portion (35).

4. The liquid dispensing device according to claim 1, wherein the flow circulation body comprises an annular depression at the height of the windows of the membrane valve (49).

5. The liquid dispensing device, according to claim 1, wherein the air compensation through hole (41) of the circulation body includes a filter (50) which has walls in the shape of a hollow cylinder and a stopper, where this filter is suitable to be inserted within the cylindrical walls inside the flow circulation body (46); between the walls of such filter a flat filtration membrane (52) is disposed perpendicular to the air flow.

6. The liquid dispensing device according to claim 1, wherein the air compensation through hole of the circulation body includes a solid porous filter with an external stopper portion (50c, 50d).

7. The liquid dispensing device according to claim 1, further comprising a silicone protective cap (61) being attached to the internal annular wall of the circulation body (46).

8. The liquid dispensing device according to claim 1, wherein the upper inner part of the lid (10) comprises a central protrusion (11) and a guide annular wall (12) of a width where a tip of the membrane valve fits (30).

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0020] The following figures illustrate some embodiments of the present invention—said figures or their description are not intended to limit in any way the scope of protection defined by the claims.

[0021] FIG. 1: An exploded view of the present invention.

[0022] FIG. 2: A cross-sectional view of the present invention is shown with different embodiments of the porous filter.

[0023] FIG. 3: The present invention is shown arranged in a bottle

[0024] FIG. 4: The upper casing.

[0025] FIG. 5: A first embodiment of the valve holder.

[0026] FIG. 6: A second embodiment of the valve holder.

[0027] FIG. 7: A cross-sectional view of the membrane valve.

[0028] FIG. 8: Two isometric views of the membrane valve.

[0029] FIG. 9: A cross section of the lid.

[0030] FIG. 10: A porous filter retention device.

[0031] The reference numbers included in the figures refer to the following elements: [0032] 10: Lid [0033] 11: Central protrusion of the cover [0034] 12: Guide annular wall [0035] 13: Notch in cover [0036] 14: Evaporation window [0037] 20: Upper casing [0038] 21: Depression of the upper casing [0039] 22: Side hole disposed at the height of the window [0040] 23: Attachment element with drop bottle neck [0041] 24: Snap on coupling protrusion [0042] 30: Membrane valve [0043] 31: Upper part of membrane valve [0044] 32: Horizontal or wide extension [0045] 33: Vertical extension [0046] 34: Windows [0047] 35: Annular protrusion on the inner surface of the membrane valve [0048] 36: Droplet opening [0049] 37: Upper annular protrusion at the beginning of the horizontal extension portion [0050] 38: Annular protrusion in the lower end area of the membrane valve [0051] 40: Flow circulation body [0052] 41: Air compensation through hole [0053] 42: Bar or elongated portion [0054] 43: Channels [0055] 44: Upper through holes [0056] 45: Notch at the lower end of the circulation body [0057] 46: Internal annular wall of the circulation body [0058] 47: Lower sloping portion of the circulation body. [0059] 48: Upper annular depression of the circulation body. [0060] 49: Annular depression at the level of the membrane valve windows. [0061] 50: Filter [0062] 50a: Filter with hollow cylinder shape [0063] 50b: Solid porous filter [0064] 50c: Solid porous filter with external stopper [0065] 50d: Large thickness porous solid filter [0066] 51: External stopper [0067] 52: Filtration membrane [0068] 60: Silicone protective cap [0069] 61: Narrow hole [0070] 70: Protective cap or Seal

PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION OR DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0071] The present invention is for use with pharmaceutical liquids of various kinds, but in a preferred embodiment it has been elaborated with ophthalmic liquids in mind, which are conventionally dispensed in dispensers of the type known as tip and cap (Tip & Cap), these dispensers being manufactured mostly by a Blow/Fill/Seal system.

[0072] In a preferred form, the solution according with the present invention can also be combined with solutions known from prior state of the art to design its incorporating resistance to bacteria, thus this could include bacteriostatic surfaces that inhibit bacterial growth to eliminate or avoid any impurities which may be introduced.

[0073] The membrane valve (30) could be made of polyethylene, a thermoplastic elastomer, polypropylene, or a synthetic polymer, such as silicone.

[0074] In a first embodiment, the air compensation through hole (41) of the circulation body includes a filter (50) with walls in the form of a hollow cylinder and an external stopper (51), such filter is suitable to be inserted between some internal cylindrical walls of the flow circulation body (46), notice that between the walls of this filter a flat filtration membrane (52) is located perpendicular to the air flow. In a second embodiment of the filter, this is a solid porous filter, without stoppers (50b) and a thickness such that through it the air must pass, of between 2 to 3 mm. In a third embodiment, the solid porous filter has an external stopper (50c). In a fourth embodiment, the portion of the filter that has contact with the liquid inside the dispensing device has a silicone liner (50d), of approximately 0.05 mm. From the foregoing, it is understood that the circulation body could comprise an internal annular wall (46) suitable to house one of the different types of filters proposed here. The present invention could comprise a silicone protective cap (60) coupled to the internal annular wall of the circulation body which has the function of protecting the air filter (50a, b, c, and d) from contact with some components of the formula of the liquid inside the bottle, avoiding any such event could alter the structure or performance of the filter (50a, b, c, and d). The passage or return of the air is done through a narrow hole (61) which functions as a drop-check valve that allows air to pass through, but not liquids. The concept of the drop-check valve of the narrow opening (61) is produced due to the self-sealing of the elastic characteristics of the silicone, the narrow hole (61) is made by stretching the piece of silicone (60), drilling it with a fine tool like a needle and then letting it revert to its original shape.

[0075] In one preferred embodiment, the lower part of the upper casing is press-fitted to a notch (24) in the lower end of the flow circulation body, aided and secured by counter pressure exerted with the upper annular protrusion (37) of the filtering membrane. In another preferred embodiment, the coupling between the upper casing and the lid is through depressions (21) in the upper casing and notches in the lower edges of the lid (13), all of them always under pressure, or counter pressure with fittings of the “click” type. The circulation body could have an outwardly inclined lower portion (47) to force the opening of the upper casing and subsequent coupling with it.

[0076] In another preferred embodiment, the present invention comprises a protective cap (70) that protects the drip system in a more efficient way than the previous ones because it covers and inhibits the exposure of the air intake hole of the upper casing or the upper opening of the cap.

[0077] The upper inner part of the lid (10) comprises a central protrusion (11) in order to displace the excess liquid suitable for contacting the drop outlet nozzle of the dispenser, optionally an absorbent body could be attached to it; this central protrusion has at least one evaporation space/hole which allows communication with the outside environment to achieve evaporation of the remaining liquid from a drop after each use, even with the lid placed on the dispenser. In addition, this lid presses the beak of the membrane valve and ensures the airtightness of the system; optionally, a guide annular wall (12) of a width slightly larger than the beak of the membrane valve could be provided, in such a way that the tip of the valve (30) fits inside the guide annular wall of the lid, and thus avoid leaks in case the container, by mistake, is stored upside down and/or a change in atmospheric pressure occurs.