Aerosol device for dry-washing and treating the hair

Abstract

The present invention relates to an aerosol device comprising: a container containing a cosmetic composition which comprises at least 6% by weight of one or more powders relative to the total weight of the composition, and a dispensing head comprising a body and an end part comprising at least two outlet orifices configured to allow spraying of the composition about a longitudinal axis of the end part in at least two different directions, the dispensing head comprising at least first and second chambers, through which the composition stream successively passes before it exits via the outlet orifices.

Claims

1. An aerosol device comprising: a container containing a cosmetic composition which comprises from 7% to 30% by weight of a powder, relative to the total weight of the composition; and a dispensing head comprising: a body disposed on the container; and: a diffuser mounted to the body and comprising: a peripheral skirt comprising outlet orifices configured to spray the cosmetic composition in different directions with respect to a longitudinal axis of the diffuser; a separation skirt disposed within the peripheral skirt and comprising apertures; a central stem disposed within the separation skirt and comprising at least one longitudinal passage; a first chamber formed between the central stem and the separation skirt; and a second chamber formed between the separation skirt and the peripheral skirt and concentrically surrounding the first chamber, wherein the diffuser is configured such that during dispensing, a portion of the cosmetic composition flows through the longitudinal passage in a first flow direction, flows through the first chamber in a flow second direction, flows through the second chamber in a third flow direction, and then flows through one of the outlet orifices in a fourth flow direction, with the first, second, third, and fourth flow directions being different from one another, and wherein the second and third flow directions are coaxial with respect to the longitudinal axis of the diffuser.

2. The aerosol device of claim 1, wherein the powder comprises a sebum-absorbing powder having a sebum uptake of greater than or equal to 35 ml/100 g.

3. The aerosol device of claim 2, wherein the sebum-absorbing powder is chosen from starch octenylsuccinates, calcium silicates, perlites, zeolites, polylactic acids, silicas, polyamide powders, acrylic polymer powders, silicone elastomer powders, or any combination thereof.

4. The aerosol device of claim 3, wherein the sebum-absorbing powder comprises an aluminum starch octenylsuccinate.

5. The aerosol device of claim 2, wherein the sebum-absorbing powder comprises one or more water-insoluble mineral compounds chosen from metal carbonates, metal oxides, metal sulfates, or magnesium silicates.

6. The aerosol device of claim 2, wherein the sebum-absorbing powder comprises calcium carbonate, magnesium carbonate, alumina, barium sulfate, magnesium oxide, or any combination thereof.

7. The aerosol device of claim 1, wherein: a difference between the first flow direction and the second flow direction is about 90°; and the second flow direction and the third flow direction are opposite coaxial directions.

8. The aerosol device of claim 1, wherein relative to the total weight of the cosmetic composition, the cosmetic composition comprises water in an amount of less than 5% by weight.

9. The aerosol device of claim 1, wherein the cosmetic composition comprises a propellant chosen from air, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, dimethyl ether, C3-C5 alkanes, 1,1-difluoroethane, or any combination thereof.

10. The aerosol device of claim 1, wherein the cosmetic composition comprises a propellant chosen from n-butane, propane, isobutane, or any combination thereof.

11. The aerosol device of claim 1, wherein relative to the total weight of the cosmetic composition the cosmetic composition comprises a propellant in an amount ranging from 10% to 95% by weight.

12. The aerosol device of claim 1, wherein axes of the outlet orifices are coplanar and extend perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the diffuser.

13. The aerosol device of claim 1, wherein the diffuser comprises a dome-shaped wall comprising the outlet orifices.

14. The aerosol device of claim 1, wherein the body defines a cannula that extends along the longitudinal axis and is inclined relative to a longitudinal axis of the container.

15. The aerosol device of claim 1, wherein with respect to the longitudinal axis, the longitudinal passage is radially offset from the apertures, and the apertures are radially offset from the outlet orifices.

16. A method of dry-washing hair, the method comprising: spraying the hair with an effective amount of a cosmetic composition; wherein the cosmetic composition comprises from 7% to 30% by weight of a powder, relative to the total weight of the composition; wherein the cosmetic composition is sprayed from a dispensing head comprising: a body disposed on the container; and a diffuser mounted to the body and comprising: a peripheral skirt comprising outlet orifices configured to spray the cosmetic composition in different directions with respect to a longitudinal axis of the diffuser; a separation skirt disposed within the peripheral skirt and comprising apertures; a central stem disposed within the separation skirt and comprising at least one longitudinal passage; a first chamber formed between the central stem and the separation skirt; and a second chamber formed between the separation skirt and the peripheral skirt and concentrically surrounding the first chamber, wherein the diffuser is configured such that during dispensing, a portion of the cosmetic composition flows through the longitudinal passage in a first flow direction, flows through the first chamber in a flow second direction, flows through the second chamber in a third flow direction, and then flows through one of the outlet orifices in a fourth flow direction, with the first, second, third, and fourth flow directions being different from one another, and wherein the second and third flow directions are coaxial with respect to the longitudinal axis of the diffuser.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising rinsing the cosmetic composition from the hair.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising heating the cosmetic composition after spraying the cosmetic composition onto the hair.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein: a difference between the first flow direction and the second flow direction is about 90°; and the second flow direction and the third flow direction are opposite coaxial directions.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein with respect to the longitudinal axis, the longitudinal passage is radially offset from the apertures, and the apertures are radially offset from the outlet orifices.

Description

(1) The invention will be understood more clearly on reading the following detailed description of a non-limiting illustrative embodiment thereof and on examining the appended drawing, in which:

(2) FIG. 1 is a side view of a spray device according to the invention,

(3) FIG. 2 is a longitudinal section through the dispensing head of the device in FIG. 1,

(4) FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the closure cap of the device in FIGS. 1 and 2,

(5) FIG. 4 is a longitudinal section of FIG. 3 along IV-IV.

(6) FIGS. 5 and 6 are perspective views of the body of the device in FIGS. 1 and 2,

(7) FIG. 7 is a longitudinal section through the body in FIGS. 5 and 6,

(8) FIGS. 8 and 9 are schematic and partial perspective views of the diffuser in FIGS. 1 and 2,

(9) FIG. 10 is a bottom view along the arrow X in FIGS. 8 and 9,

(10) FIG. 11 is a longitudinal section along XI-XI in FIGS. 8 to 10,

(11) FIG. 12 is a view, similar to FIG. 7, of an alternative embodiment,

(12) FIGS. 13 and 14 are partial longitudinal sections along XIII-XIII and XIV-XIV, respectively, in FIG. 12,

(13) FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the diffuser in FIGS. 12 to 14,

(14) FIG. 16 is a view, similar to FIG. 13, of the diffuser on its own,

(15) FIG. 17 is a view of the diffuser in FIGS. 12 to 16 along the arrow XVII,

(16) FIG. 18 is a side view of the body in FIGS. 12 to 17,

(17) FIG. 19 is a view thereof along the arrow XIX,

(18) FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional view thereof along XX-XX, and

(19) FIG. 21 is a cross-sectional view thereof along XXI-XXI.

(20) FIGS. 1 to 11 show a device 1 for spraying a composition, said device 1 comprising a container 2 containing the composition to be sprayed, and a dispensing head 3 which sits on top of the container 2. The initial pressure in the container is, for example, between 1 and 12 bar at 20° C.

(21) The container 2 may comprise a valve holder cup (not shown) crimped onto a body of the container or formed in another way.

(22) The dispensing head 3 comprises a body 5 arranged on the container 2 and cooperating with a diffuser 7. A closure cap 9, visible in FIGS. 3 and 4, is intended to cover the body 5 and the diffuser 7 when the device is not in use. The cap 9 comprises, for example, an annular relief 10 in order to allow it to be held on the container 2 with snap-fit engagement.

(23) The body 5 and the diffuser 7 are configured to allow the composition to be sprayed in at least two different directions, of which there are four in the example described, distributed uniformly about the axis Y of the diffuser. For this purpose, the diffuser 7 comprises four outlet orifices 12, visible in FIGS. 8 to 10, which will be described in detail below.

(24) During the spraying of the composition, the composition stream coming from the container firstly passes through a central channel 25 of the body 5, which is intended to allow the composition to pass from the container 2 as far as the diffuser 7. This central channel 25 comprises a straight portion 25a, which extends in the longitudinal axis X of the device above the container, and an oblique portion 25b, which extends along the axis Y of the diffuser 7 and which is inclined by an angle γ relative to the straight portion 25a. The angle γ is of the order of 20 to 30′, for example.

(25) The diffuser 7 comprises a central stem 28 allowing it to be fixed to the body 5, in the oblique portion 25b. It is fixed by being inserted by force and with snap-fit engagement. For this purpose, the central stem 28 comprises a fixation relief 30, such as an annular bead, intended to snap-fit behind a corresponding relief of the body 5.

(26) The central stem 28 has a shoulder 34 in order to guarantee leaktightness.

(27) Two longitudinal grooves 32 formed on the central stem 28 allow the composition to pass from the body 5 towards the diffuser 7. They are diametrically opposite each other in the example described. These grooves 32 are oriented along the axis Y of the diffuser. They may have a cross section that is partially circular.

(28) In the diffuser 7, the composition stream passes through a first inner chamber 15 and a second outer chamber 16 concentric to the first.

(29) The diffuser 7 comprises a separation skirt 18 between the first and second chambers 15 and 16. This separation skirt 18 is pierced with two apertures 20 to allow the composition stream to pass through. The latter is thus separated into four distinct streams, of which two opposite streams emerge from each of the apertures 20. The latter are uniformly distributed on the circumference of the separation skirt 18, being diametrically opposite each other. Each aperture 20 preferably extends along the entire height h1 of the separation skirt 18, as is illustrated in FIG. 11. The height h1 of the separation skirt 18 is of the order of 2.5 or 4 mm, for example.

(30) The second chamber 16 is surrounded by a peripheral skirt 22 of the diffuser 7, said peripheral skirt 22 cooperating with the body 5 in such a way as to ensure the closure of the second chamber 16. The peripheral skirt 22 comprises the four abovementioned outlet orifices 12 for ensuring the discharge of the composition to the outside. These outlet orifices 12 are distributed uniformly about the axis Y of the diffuser 7, They may each extend along the entire height h2 of the peripheral skirt or along only part thereof. This height h2 may be of the order of 1.9 or 5 mm.

(31) The chambers 15 and 16 preferably have respective widths 11 and 12 of the order of 1.2 mm.

(32) The outlet orifices 12 may comprise a lower portion, in the form of a slit of constant width formed in the bottom of the skirt 22, and an upper portion, which has a semicircular cross section and is formed in the top of the skirt 22, extending away from the shoulder 22a. The composition emerges from the device via the upper portion of the outlet orifices 12, the lower portion being masked and closed by the body 5.

(33) The outlet orifices may each have a cross section of between 0.05 and 5 mm.sup.2, better still between 0.1 and 2 mm.sup.2, for example of the order of 1 mm.sup.2.

(34) The outlet orifices may have any suitable geometric shape. In one embodiment, they may have a circular cross section.

(35) The outlet orifices 12 are offset angularly relative to the apertures 20 of the separation skirt 18. For example, they are each offset by an angle α of the order of 45°, as illustrated in FIG. 10.

(36) The apertures 20 are offset relative to the longitudinal grooves 32. For example, they are offset by an angle β of the order of 90°, as illustrated likewise in FIG. 10.

(37) The body 5 comprises an annular groove 23 intended to receive the peripheral skirt 22 of the diffuser 7. This annular groove 23 is delimited by two concentric ribs 24a and 24b which are configured to engage on each side of the peripheral skirt 22. The two ribs 24a and 24b are continuous. They can bear against shoulders 22a and 18a, which are present on the separation skirt 18 and the peripheral skirt 22 respectively, when the body and the diffuser are assembled. They preferably have respective thicknesses e1 and e2 of the order of 0.7 mm. They form between them a distance d of the order of 1.25 mm. The rib 24b closes the lower portion of the outlet orifices 12.

(38) The annular groove 23 and the ribs 24a and 24b are arranged at an end of the body opposite a mounting skirt 27 for mounting the body 5 on the container 2. The rest of the body, in particular the central channel 25 of the body, is connected to the mounting skirt 27 by a hinge 27a. The mounting skirt is preferably fixed with snap-fit engagement on the container, but it may also be fixed to the latter in another way.

(39) The diffuser 7 has an upper face 35 with a generally curved shape, of which the radius of curvature is, for example, of the order of 6 mm.

(40) The upper face 35 of the diffuser 7 has markers in the form of reliefs 36 with the general shape of a triangle, of which the point is oriented towards the edge of the upper face 35 and towards the peripheral skirt 22 alignment with the outlet orifices 12. The upper end 35 of the diffuser 7 likewise has a central depression 37, which has a circular contour and accommodates the injection sprue.

(41) The composition stream undergoes at least two changes of direction in the diffuser 7. As illustrated in FIG. 9, the composition stream thus passes from a first direction A in the grooves 32 to a second direction B in the first chamber 15, the two directions A and B forming between them an angle of 90°. The composition stream then passes from the direction B to a direction C in the second chamber 16, with a change of direction of the order of 180°, then adopts a direction D corresponding to the emergence of the composition through an outlet orifice 12.

(42) An alternative embodiment will now be described with reference to FIGS. 12 to 21. In this example, the outlet orifices 12 are formed in the diffuser 7 directly. They are formed in a curved portion of the diffuser 7, of hemispherical shape, having a radius of curvature of the order of approximately 6 mm.

(43) The orifices 12 are each oriented outwards on an axis Z, which forms an angle with the axis Y of the diffuser. The angle δ is less than 90°, such that the resulting spray is of conical shape, with the composition being distributed all around the axis Y. The angle δ may be between 10 and 85°, better still between 20 and 80°, for example between 30 and 75°, or even between 40 and 70°. It can be of the order of 60°, for example.

(44) The dispensing head in FIGS. 12 to 21 also differs from that of FIGS. 1 to 11 in terms of the shape of the body 5. In this illustrative embodiment, the latter comprises a cannula 25b through which said channel 25 extends, this cannula having a longitudinal axis Y inclined relative to the longitudinal axis X of the container.

(45) In addition, the mounting skirt 27 for mounting the body 5 on the container 2 is connected to the rest of the body by a hinge 27a situated, relative to the longitudinal axis X, on the same side as the inclination of the axis Y, in such a way that the longitudinal axis Y of the cannula of a movable part of the body 5 is substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis X of the container during the dispensing of the composition.

(46) The invention is not limited to the examples that have just been described.

(47) For example, the valve of the container can be triggered by being pushed down and not by tilting.

(48) The number of outlet orifices may be modified, as may their orientation.

(49) The axes of the outlet orifices, along which axes the sprays are emitted, may or may not be coplanar, or they may or may not be contained in the same cone of axis Y.

(50) The present invention also relates to a process for the dry-washing and cosmetic treatment of the hair, comprising the application to the hair, preferably dry hair, of a cosmetic composition as described above by means of an aerosol device as described above.

(51) The application of the composition may optionally be followed by rinsing after an optional leave-on time, in the presence or absence of heat. Preferably, the application is not followed by rinsing.

(52) The application of the composition may optionally be followed by brushing after an optional leave-on time, in the presence or absence of heat.

(53) The present invention also relates to the use of the cosmetic composition defined above sprayed from the aerosol device according to the invention, for the dry-washing and cosmetic treatment of the hair.

(54) The example that follows serves to illustrate the invention.

EXAMPLES

(55) In the example that follows, all the amounts are indicated as weight percentages of product in unmodified form relative to the total weight of the composition.

(56) The composition below was prepared from the compounds indicated in the table below.

(57) TABLE-US-00002 1 Aluminium starch octenylsuccinate.sup.1 2% Calcium carbonate (D50 = 35 μm).sup.2 5% Hectorite modified with 0.25%   distearyldimethylammonium chloride.sup.3 Isopropyl myristate 2% Ethanol 20.75 Butane qs 100% .sup.1Sold under the trade name Dry Flo Plus by National Starch (86% AM) .sup.2Sold under the trade name Omyacare S60 by Omya .sup.3Sold under the trade name Bentone 38 by Elementis

(58) In the example that follows, all the amounts are indicated as weight percentages of product in unmodified form relative to the total weight of the composition.

(59) The composition below was prepared from the compounds indicated in the table below.

(60) TABLE-US-00003 A Aluminium starch octenylsuccinate.sup.1 10.92%  Calcium carbonate (D50 = 35 μm).sup.2 2.18% Hectorite modified with 0.28% distearyldimethylammonium chloride.sup.3 Isopropyl myristate 0.20% Zinc PCA (micronized zinc 0.05% pyrrolidonecarboxylate) Fragrance 0.35% Butane qs 100% .sup.1Sold under the trade name Dry Flo Plus by National Starch (86% AM) .sup.2Sold under the trade name Omyacare S60 by Omya .sup.3Sold under the trade name Bentone 38 by Elementis

(61) The aerosol device D1 according to the invention, shown in FIGS. 12 to 21, was used to package the above compositions 1 and A. It comprises the following characteristics: a valve equipped with a nozzle with an orifice 0.5 mm in size and an internal restriction orifice 0.8 mm in size, with an additional gas intake 0.40 mm in size, a dispensing head comprising a cannula which ends with a dome-shaped wall equipped with four outlet orifices of coplanar axes that are perpendicular to the longitudinal axis (Y) of the cannula, uniformly distributed about the axis Y, the four orifices being diametrically opposite each other in respective pairs. The outlet orifices have a cross section of 1 mm.sup.2. The dispensing head comprises two concentric chambers communicating via two apertures offset by an angle α of the order of 45° relative to the outlet orifices.

(62) An aerosol device D2 was moreover used to package composition A above. It comprises the following characteristics: a valve equipped with a nozzle with an orifice 0.64 mm in size and an internal restriction orifice 0.64 mm in size, with an additional gas intake 0.64 mm in size, a dispensing head sold by the company Lindal under the name Tribuse and described in patent application EP 2991612, equipped with three orifices whose outlet axes are in the same direction, with a direct outlet 0.5 mm in diameter.

(63) A standard aerosol device D3 was used to package the above composition A. It comprises the following characteristics: a valve equipped with a nozzle with two orifices each 0.5 mm in size and an internal restriction orifice 0.8 mm in size, with an additional gas intake 0.4 mm in size, a dispensing head sold under the name Borsalino by the company Coster, equipped with a single outlet orifice with a direct outlet 0.5 mm in diameter.

(64) Composition A was sprayed onto seven models having combination to greasy hair. The device D1 was used on one side of the head of hair, and the device D3 was used on the other side of the head of hair. In both cases, the same amount of composition was sprayed. The hair was then rubbed to spread the composition over the scalp, and then brushed per half-head.

(65) After brushing, it is observed that the head of hair is visually less greasy after application of the composition with the device D1 according to the invention than after application of the same composition with the device D3. The hair also feels less greasy after application of the composition with the device D1 according to the invention than after application of the same composition with the device D3.

(66) Composition A was also sprayed onto seven models having combination to greasy hair. The device D1 was used on one side of the head of hair, and the device D2 was used on the other side of the head of hair. In both cases, the same amount of composition was sprayed. The hair was then rubbed to spread the composition over the scalp, and then brushed per half-head.

(67) After brushing, it is observed that the head of hair is visually less greasy after application of the composition with the device D1 according to the invention than after application of the same composition with the device D2. The hair also feels less greasy after application of the composition with the device D1 according to the invention than after application of the same composition with the device D2.