CLOSURE FOR A CONTAINER AND CONTAINER WITH SUCH A CLOSURE

Abstract

The present invention relates to a closure for a container with a base element directly or indirectly attachable to a container, a flip-top lid attached to the base element by a hinge such that the flip-top lid can be moved between an opened and a closed position, and a tamper evident element for indicating whether the flip-top lid had been opened at least once by a user or not. The flip-top lid comprises a top cover element and an outer side wall extending therefrom. The tamper evident element is linearly movable between a first position and a second position, wherein the flip-top lid further comprises an inner side wall, which extends only around a part of the circumference of the closure, wherein at least parts of the inner side wall and at least parts of the outer side wall together form guidance means for enabling and controlling the linear movement.

Claims

1. Closure for a container with a base element (100) directly or indirectly attachable to a container, a flip-top lid (200) attached to said base element (100) by a hinge (150) such that the flip-top lid (200) can be moved between an opened and a closed position, and a tamper evident element (400) for indicating whether the flip-top lid (200) had been opened at least once by a user or not, said flip-top lid (200) comprising a top cover element (220) and an outer side wall (240) extending therefrom, wherein said tamper evident element (400) is movable between a first position and a second position, wherein said tamper evident element (400) is in its first position, when said closure is in its as-manufactured status or when said flip-top lid (200) has not been opened yet by the user, and wherein said tamper evident element (400) is operable by a user to be moved from its first position into its second position and to concurrently move said flip-top lid (200) for the first time from of its closed position into its opened position, characterized in that said closure is arranged such that said tamper evident element (400) is attached to said flip-top lid (200) and arranged such that it is linearly movable relative to said flip-top lid (200) from its first to its second position, said flip-top lid (200) further comprises an inner side wall (260), which extends only around a part of the circumference of said closure, wherein at least parts of said inner side wall (260) and at least parts of said outer side wall (240) together form guidance means for enabling and controlling the linear movement of said tamper evident element (400) from its first position to its second position, wherein said tamper evident element (400) is, in its as-manufactured status or when said flip-top lid (200) has not yet been opened by the user, frangibly connected to said base element (100) by at least one frangible bridge (402), and wherein said tamper evident element (400) has a first latch element (482, 484) and said flip-top lid (200) has a second latch element (282, 284), said first latch element (482, 484) and said second latch element (282, 284) are arranged such that they keep or latch the tamper evident element (400) in its second position once the tamper evident element (400) has been moved into its second position for the first time.

2. Closure according to claim 1, wherein said base element (100) has a recessed portion (120), extending only around a part of the circumference of said closure, wherein said closure is arranged such that said tamper evident element (400) extends at least partly into said recessed portion (120) of said base element (100), when said tamper evident element (400) is in its first position.

3. Closure according to claim 2, wherein said closure is arranged such that said tamper evident element (400) is at least partly retracted out of said recessed portion (120) when being moved from its first position into its second position.

4. Closure according to claim 3, wherein said base element (200) comprises an indicator portion (122) being arranged in said recessed portion (120) such that said indicator portion (122) is not visible when said tamper evident element (400) is in its first position but said indicator portion (122) is visible when said tamper evident element (400) is in its second position.

5. Closure according to claim 1, wherein a radially inner surface of said outer side wall (240) comprises a longitudinally extending guidance groove (242, 244) and wherein a radially outer surface of said tamper evident element (400) comprises a protrusion (482, 484), said guidance groove (242) and said protrusion (484) are arranged such that said protrusion (482, 484) at least partly extends into said guidance groove (242) for guiding or controlling the linear movement of said tamper evident element (400) between its first position and its second position or for supporting such guiding or controlling.

6. Closure according to claim 5, wherein said guidance groove (242, 244) comprises a latching protrusion (282, 284) being arranged such that it interacts with said protrusion (482, 484) of said tamper evident element (400) when said tamper evident element (400) is in its second position such that said tamper evident element (400) is latched in its second position.

7. Closure according to claim 1, wherein said outer side wall (240) and said inner side wall (260) of said flip-top lid (200) are arranged such that a lower edge of either the outer side wall (240) or of said inner side wall (260) or a lower edge of both said outer side wall (240) and said inner side wall (260) abut the base element (100) over the complete circumference of the closure, when said flip-top lid (200) is in its closed position.

8. Closure according to claim 1, wherein said tamper evident element (400) comprises an actuating protrusion (410) for being operated by a user to move the tamper evident element (400) from its first position to its second position, when opening the closure for the first time, and to move the flip-top lid (200) out of its closed position.

9. Closure according to claim 8, wherein said actuating protrusion (410) extends from a radially outward directed surface of said tamper evident element (400) into a radially outward direction.

10. Closure according to claim 8, wherein said actuating protrusion (410) extends, in a circumferential direction, over at least 70% of the circumferential extension of the tamper evident element (400).

11. Closure according to claim 1, wherein said flip-top lid comprises a slit (300) being arranged such that said tamper evident element (400) extends at least partly through said slit (300), when said tamper evident element (400) is in its second position, and such that said tamper evident element (400) does not extend through said slit (300), when said tamper evident element (400) is in its first position.

12. Closure according to claim 1, wherein said flip-top lid comprises a slit (300) being arranged such that said tamper evident element (400) extends at least partly into said slit (300) but not through said slit (300), when said tamper evident element (400) is in its second position, and such that said tamper evident element (400) does not extend into said slit (300), when said tamper evident element (400) is in its first position, or alternatively wherein said flip-top lid comprises a slit (300) being arranged such that said tamper evident element (400) is moved closer to said slit (300) when being moved from its first position to its second position without extending into said slit (300) or through said slit (300).

13. Closure according to claim 11, wherein said tamper evident element (400) comprises at least one additional latching element, which interacts with a part or parts of said flip-top lid (200), such that a latching effect is achieved, latching or keeping the tamper evident element (400) in its second position, once the tamper evident element (400) has been moved into its second position for the first time.

14. Closure according to claim 1, wherein said top cover element (220) of said flip-top lid (200) comprises a deepening or indentation (224) extending over a portion of said top cover element (220).

15. Closure according to claim 14, wherein said flip-top lid (200) comprises a slit (300) being arranged such that said tamper evident element (400) does extend at least partly through said slit (300) or alternatively does extend into said slit (300) but not through said slit (300), when said tamper evident element (400) is in its second position, and such that said tamper evident element (400) does not extend through said slit (300), when said tamper evident element (400) is in its second position, wherein said through hole or slit (300) is at least partly arranged within said deepening or indentation (224).

16. Closure according to claim 15, wherein said closure is arranged such that the tamper evident element (400) extends, when being in its second position, through said slit (300) alternatively into said slit (300) only in said deepening or indentation (224) of said flip-top lid (200).

17. Closure according to claim 1, wherein said top cover element (220) of said flip-top lid (200) comprises at least one flat surface (222) forming a standing surface or a platform for allowing a closure or a container connected to said closure to be arranged in an upside down position.

18. Closure according to claim 17, wherein the closure is arranged such that said tamper evident element (400) extending at least partly through a slit (300) in said flip-top lid (200) when being in its second position does not extend beyond the plane defined by said at least one flat surface (222) of said top cover element (220) when being in its second position.

19. Closure according to claim 14, wherein said deepening or indentation (224) has the form of a trench extending radially over the complete top cover element (220).

20. Closure according to claim 1, wherein said parts of said inner side wall (260) and said parts of said outer side wall (240) together form the guidance means and a channel (310) in which said tamper evident element (400) can be moved, wherein there is at least one bridging element (252, 254) provided in said channel (310) and connecting said inner side wall (260) and said outer side wall (240), wherein said tamper evident element has at least one corresponding slit (452, 454) through which said at least one bridging element extends.

21. Closure according to claim 1, wherein said tamper evident element (400) comprises an indicator portion (422) being arranged at a radial outer surface of said tamper evident element (400) such that said indicator portion (422) of said tamper evident element (400) is visible when said tamper evident element (400) is in its first position and which is not visible and covered by the outer side wall (240) of said flip-top lid (200), when said tamper evident element (400) is in its second position.

22. Container with a closure according to claim 1, wherein said closure is attached to or attachable to the container or wherein said closure is integrally formed with the container or part of the container.

23. Method for manufacturing a closure according to claim 1, wherein said base element (100) and said flip-top lid (200) are manufactured by injection molding and in an open status with said flip-top lid (200) being in its opened position.

Description

[0047] These and other advantages of the closure and the system according to the present invention will become even more apparent in view of the following figures showing a preferred embodiment of a closure according to the present invention.

[0048] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of an embodiment of the closure according to the present invention with the flip-top lid in its closed position and with the tamper evident element in its first position,

[0049] FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the embodiment of the closure as shown in FIG. 1, however with the tamper evident element being in its second position,

[0050] FIG. 3 shows a front view of the embodiment of the closure as shown in FIG. 2,

[0051] FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of the embodiment as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 after having been molded in an open state and before the first closing of the flip-top lid during the manufacturing process,

[0052] FIG. 5 shows a top view of the device as shown in FIG. 4,

[0053] FIG. 6 shows a partial cross-sectional view of the embodiment as shown in FIG. 1 with the tamper evident element in its first position,

[0054] FIG. 7 shows a partial cross-sectional view of the embodiment as in FIG. 6, however with the tamper evident element being in its second position,

[0055] FIG. 8 shows another embodiment of the closure according to the present invention after having been molded in an open state and before the first closing of the flip-top lid during the manufacturing process (similar to FIG. 4), and

[0056] FIG. 9 shows still another embodiment of the closure according to the present invention after having been molded in an open state and before the first closing of the flip-top lid during the manufacturing process (similar to FIGS. 4 and 8).

[0057] FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a closure 10 with a base element 100 and a flip-top lid 200 being attached to said base element 100 by a hinge (150, see FIG. 5). Said flip-top lid 200 comprises a top cover element 220 and an outer side wall 240 extending therefrom.

[0058] Between the top cover element 220 and the outer side wall 240 there is curved transition portion or edge portion 230, which, in this embodiment, extends around the complete circumference of the closure 10. The top cover element 220 furthermore comprises a deepening or indentation 224, extending like a trench over the complete radial extension of the top cover element 220, from an area where the hinge is located to the opposite side (along the a-axis), so that the indentation 224 forms a trench which extends in a direction being perpendicular to an axis of rotation around which the flip-top lid 200 is moved from its closed into its opened position (being parallel to the x-axis).

[0059] The top cover element 220 comprises two flat surfaces 222, one on each side of the trench or indentation 224, which can be used as a standing surface in case the closure or the container to be attached with this closure shall be stored or placed in an upside down position.

[0060] As can be well seen in FIG. 1 the top cover element 220 comprises a slit 300, through which parts of the tamper evident element 400 can extend to the outside, when said tamper evident element 400 is in its second position (see FIG. 2). However, in FIG. 1 the tamper evident element is in its first position, so that the tamper evident element 400 does not extend through the slit 300. The slit 300 is curved and extends around a part of the circumference and essentially over the complete width of the indentation 224, but, in this embodiment, the slit 300 is only provided within the area where the indentation is provided and not in the area of the two flat surfaces 222.

[0061] The base element 100 is directly or indirectly attachable to a container (not shown), and the base element 100 comprises an outer side wall 140. The dimensions of the base element 100 and the flip-top lid 200 are selected such that the outer surfaces of the outer side walls 140 and 240 have the same outer diameter and therefore flush with each other.

[0062] In an area essentially opposed to the position where the hinge is arranged the base element 100 comprises a recess portion 120, extending only around a part of the circumference of said closure, in this embodiment the recess portion one 20 extends about an angle of about 80°.

[0063] The closure 10 comprises a tamper evident element 400, being linearly movable, relative to the flip-top lid, between a first position, as shown in FIG. 1, and a second position, as shown in FIG. 2. Said tamper evident element 400 comprises an actuating protrusion 410 being operated by a user to move the tamper evident element from its first position into its second position. The recess or indentation 175 in the base element 100 below a recessed portion 120 (see especially FIG. 2) enables easier access for the user to the actuating protrusion 410 for operating the device.

[0064] As can be well seen in FIG. 1 the tamper evident element 400 extends essentially completely into the recessed portion 120 of said base element 100, thereby covering part of the recessed portion 120 from view, in this embodiment essentially covering the complete recessed portion 120 from view. The tamper evident element 400 has, on its outer side, an indicator portion 422, in this embodiment bearing the wording “closed”, which is fully visible when the tamper evident element 400 is in its first position as shown in FIG. 1.

[0065] The tamper evident element 400 is frangibly connected to the base element 100 via frangible bridges 402.

[0066] FIGS. 2 and 3 show the embodiment of FIG. 1, however, with the tamper evident element 400 moved into its second position. As can be well seen, the frangible bridges 402 have been destroyed when the tamper evident element 400 has been moved out of its first position.

[0067] The tamper evident element 400 has been moved out of the recessed portion 120 of the base element 100, making an indicator portion 122 of the base element 100 visible, which had been covered by the tamper evident element 400 while it has been in its first position. In this embodiment the indicator portion 122 shows the wording “open”. The indicator portion 422 with the wording “closed” on the outer side of the tamper evident element 400 is now covered by the outer side wall 240 of the flip-top lid 200 and is therefore not visible anymore.

[0068] Beside the destroyed frangible bridges 402, the visible indicator portion 122 and the wording “open”, the different “status” of the closure becomes especially clearly visible as the tamper evident element 400 now also extends through the slit 300 at the top cover element 220 of the flip-top lid 200 to the outside. The extension of the tamper evident element 400 to the outside of an upper area of the flip-top lid 200 is not only very well visible from nearly all directions, but is also sensible especially by fingers of a user, which is specifically helpful for blind persons or persons with restricted or poor eyesight.

[0069] As can be well seen in FIG. 3, however, the tamper evident element 400 extends through the slit only up to a height of the plane determined by the two flat surfaces 222 of the top cover element 220 or the flip-top lid 200. This has the advantage that the closure or a system with a closure and the container can be still placed or stored in an upside down position, without affecting the tamper evident element 400.

[0070] FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of the embodiment as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 in a status directly after having been (injection) molded in an open state and before the first closing of the flip-top lid during the manufacturing process. FIG. 4 therefore very well shows the position of the tamper evident element 400 in the recessed the portion 120 of the base element 100.

[0071] The tamper evident element 400 also comprises a first latch element 482 which can move within a corresponding guidance groove 242 provided in a radial inner surface of said outer side wall 240 of said flip-top lid 200. The longitudinally extending guidance groove 242 comprises a latching protrusion 282 which is arranged such that it interacts with the corresponding protrusion 482, acting as a first latch element, of the tamper evident element 400, when said tamper evident element 400 is in its second position. Thereby the tamper evident element 400 is attached in its second position once it is moved into this second position by the user.

[0072] The tamper evident element 400 of this embodiment comprises two longitudinally extending slits 452, 454 (essentially extending parallel to the z-axis), the function of which will be described in connection with FIG. 5.

[0073] The base element 100 comprises a spout 700 with a dispensing opening 710, and the flip-top lid 200 comprises, at the inner side thereof, an extension 810, which is inserted into the dispensing opening 710 of the spout 700, and an outer ring 820, which encloses the spout 700, when said flip-top lid 200 is in its closed position.

[0074] FIG. 5 shows the embodiment of the closure as shown in FIG. 4, however in a top view. FIG. 5 especially shows the structure of the flip-top lid 200 while, at a side essentially opposite to the side where the hinge 150 is arranged (in FIG. 5 on the right side), the flip-top lid 200 comprises an additional inner side wall 260, forming, together with parts of the outer side wall 240, a channel 310 between the outer side wall 240 and the inner side wall 260 for guiding and controlling the movement of the tamper evident element 240. The thickness of this channel 310 is adapted to the thickness of the tamper evident element 400, so that the tamper evident element 400 is guided such that it can essentially only move in a longitudinal direction linearly between its first position and its second position, avoiding or minimizing movement in other directions.

[0075] In the channel 310 there are two bridging elements 252, 254 bridging a radially inner surface of said outer side wall 240 and a radially outer surface of said inner side wall 260. These two bridging elements 252, 254 additionally guide the tamper evident element 400 having corresponding slits 452 and 454, as can be well seen in FIG. 4.

[0076] The bridging elements 252 and 254, however, not only serve as an additional control and guidance of the tamper evident element 400 in the channel 310, but the bridging elements 252 and 254 also secure that the thickness of the channel 310 is kept essentially constant over its complete extension or over most part of its extension, even if a pressure should be applied from the outside. This further ensures a proper functioning, especially a proper and controlled movement of the tamper evident element 400 within the channel 310, and it also provides additional protection against any possible manipulation of the tamper evident element 400 and the closure 10.

[0077] FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 show partial cross-sections of the embodiment of the closure, with FIG. 6 showing the tamper evident element 400 in its first position and with FIG. 7 showing the tamper evident element 400 in its second position.

[0078] As can be well seen in FIG. 6, with the tamper evident element 400 being in its first position and connected to the base element 100 via frangible bridges (not visible in this figure), so that it cannot be moved out of its position without breaking the frangible bridges, the flip-top lid 200 is also kept in its position due to the interaction of the protrusion 482 of the tamper evident element being in engagement with parts of the outer side wall 240, namely an end portion of the guidance groove 242 of the outer side wall 240, in which said protrusion 482 extends and in which it is able to move, when said tamper evident element 400 is moved from its first position (FIG. 6) into its second position (FIG. 7).

[0079] FIG. 7 shows the same partial cross-section as FIG. 6, however with the tamper evident element 400 in its second position. As can be well seen in FIG. 7, the protrusion 482 of the tamper evident element 400 abuts at the upper end of the guidance groove 242 and is kept in this position by a latching/by an interaction with a corresponding latch element 282 of said flip-top lid 200.

[0080] FIG. 7 also clearly shows how the tamper evident element 400, being in its second position, extends through the slit 300 to the outside.

[0081] FIG. 8 shows another embodiment of a closure of the present invention, which is very similar to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 7. Similar or same elements are therefore indicated with the same reference numerals and it is referred to the description in beforehand in order to avoid repetitions.

[0082] Different to the embodiment shown in the earlier figures, the embodiment shown in FIG. 8 has a different tamper evident element 400, which has only one longitudinal slit (not two slits as the first embodiment). The function, however, is similar, and also this slit 452 engages with a corresponding bridging element provided in said channel between said outer side wall 240 and said inner side wall 260 of said flip-top lid 200. Of course, in this embodiment there is therefore only one bridging element provided in said channel between said outer side wall 240 and said inner side wall 260, positioned such that it matches with the slit 452.

[0083] Furthermore, also different to the first embodiment, the tamper evident element comprises two protrusions 482 and 484 (instead of one protrusion in the first embodiment) at a radial outer side of the tamper evident element 400, and the outer side wall 240 comprises, on its radially inner surface, two corresponding guidance grooves 242 and 244 for guiding and controlling the linear movement of said tamper evident element 400.

[0084] FIG. 9 shows a still further embodiment of the closure of the present invention, which is very similar to the embodiment shown in FIG. 8. Similar or same elements are therefore indicated with the same reference numerals and it is also referred to the description in beforehand in order to avoid repetitions.

[0085] In this embodiment the tamper evident element 400 does not comprise any slit, and therefore there are also no corresponding bridging elements provided in the channel between the outer side wall 240 and the inner side wall 260 of the flip-top lid 200. Otherwise this embodiment is identical to the embodiment shown in FIG. 8.

[0086] It is clear to the expert that various amendments can be made to the embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined by the attached claims, and any features disclosed in connection with the embodiments or the general description can be important for realizing the invention, either alone or in any combination thereof.