ASSEMBLY DESIGNED TO BE FIXED ON THE NECK OF A FLUID PRODUCT CONTAINER AND DISPENSING DEVICE COMPRISING SAME

Abstract

A unit for fastening on a neck of a receptacle containing a fluid, said unit comprising: a fastener ring (1) that is suitable for fastening a dispenser member (3), such as a pump or a valve, on the neck of the receptacle; and a gasket (2) for interposing between the fastener ring (1) and said neck of the receptacle; said gasket (2) being pre-mounted in clamping engagement in the fastener ring (1), in such a manner as to hold said gasket (2) in its stressed state in said ring (1), both before and after fastening said unit on said neck of the receptacle.

Description

The present invention relates to a unit for fastening on a neck of a receptacle that is suitable for containing a fluid, and to a fluid dispenser device including such a unit.

Cosmetics, perfumery, and pharmacy are advantageous, but not exclusive, fields of application of the present invention.

In the prior art, when fastening a pump or a valve on a receptacle neck, it is known to seal said receptacle neck by means of a gasket. Such a gasket is generally made of an elastomeric or plastics material that is suitable for deforming on being stressed between a top edge of the neck and a fastener element of the pump or valve. Usually, the assembly sequence for assembling such a unit initially comprises a step of fastening the body of the pump or valve in the fastener element, followed by a step of positioning the gasket on the body of said pump or valve, followed by a step of assembling the fastener element on the receptacle neck, trapping said gasket and causing said gasket, the fastener element, and the neck of the receptacle to co-operate in leaktight manner. The fastener element can be fastened on the neck using any appropriate means, such as screw-fastening, snap-fastening, crimping, etc. That sequence thus results in the gasket being compressed between the top edge of the neck and the ring. Such compression thus seals the device, preventing any fluid from passing between the top edge of the neck and the fastener ring.

However, some drawbacks are associated with implementing such an assembly sequence. Thus, while the gasket is being positioned around the pump body or valve, said gasket exerts radial stresses on said body that could possibly lead to said body becoming deformed. This can have consequences on the functioning and sealing of the pump or of the valve. In addition, when the manufacturer of the dispenser is not the manufacturer of the fluid to be dispensed, the dispenser is generally delivered unassembled, and the manufacturer of the fluid must assemble the device after it has been filled. Apart from fastening the pump or valve in the ring, the manufacturer must thus perform all of the other steps of the above-mentioned assembly sequence. Increasing the number of different steps increases the risk of malfunctioning.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,998,168, 3,185,356, and 3,191,815 disclose devices of the prior art.

An object of the present invention is to provide a unit that does not have the above-mentioned drawbacks.

In particular, an object of the present invention is to provide a unit including a gasket, and guaranteeing proper positioning of the gasket relative to the neck and the ring.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a unit including a neck gasket that adapts easily to standard fastener rings.

Another object of the present invention is also to make the mounting of the gasket located between the fastener ring and the neck of a receptacle, and the overall assembly of the dispenser device, more simple, more reliable, and less costly.

The present invention thus provides a unit for fastening on a neck of a receptacle containing a fluid, said unit comprising: a fastener ring that is suitable for fastening a dispenser member, such as a pump or a valve, on the neck of the receptacle; and a gasket for interposing between the fastener ring and said neck of the receptacle; said gasket being pre-mounted in clamping engagement in the fastener ring, in such a manner as to hold said gasket in its stressed state in said ring, both before and after fastening said unit on said neck of the receptacle.

Advantageously, said gasket includes an inside edge that defines a mounting opening, and an outside edge, with the fastening of the gasket in the ring being the result, preferably exclusively, of co-operation between said outside edge of the gasket and said ring.

Advantageously, said gasket is in clamping engagement with an axial side wall of said ring.

Advantageously, the ring and/or the gasket include(s) at least one fastener profile that is suitable for holding said gasket in clamping engagement in said ring.

Advantageously, said ring and/or said gasket include(s) a plurality of fastener profiles that are distributed circumferentially around said side wall of said ring and/or around said outside edge of said gasket, said profiles being spaced apart from one another in such a manner as to form a plurality of anchor points.

In an advantageous first embodiment, said at least one fastener profile is formed on said ring, said profile projecting substantially radially inwards from said side wall of the ring, so as to come to bite into said outside edge of said gasket.

In an advantageous second embodiment, said at least one fastener profile is formed on said gasket, said profile projecting radially outwards from said outside edge of the gasket, so as to come to bear in clamping engagement against said side wall of the ring.

Advantageously, the gasket is held in axial abutment against a radial flange of the ring in the pre-mounted position of the gasket in the ring.

Advantageously, the inside edge of the gasket is not in contact with the dispenser member, such that said gasket does not exert any radial force on said dispenser member.

Advantageously, said fastener ring includes a mounting portion that is suitable for fastening to the dispenser member, said mounting portion being connected to a radial flange that is connected to an axial side wall, said axial side wall supporting fastener means for fastening to a receptacle neck, said gasket, in its pre-mounted state, being in contact with said radial flange, and in clamping engagement with said axial side wall.

The present invention also provides a fluid dispenser device comprising: a fluid reservoir; a dispenser member, such as a pump or a valve, that is suitable for dispensing fluid contained in said reservoir; and a unit as described above.

Advantageously, said gasket does not exert any radial force or stress on said dispenser member, either before or after assembling said unit on said receptacle.

Other characteristics and advantages of the present invention appear more clearly from the following detailed description of several embodiments thereof, given merely by way of non-limiting example, and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic vertical-section view of a unit of the present invention, in which there is mounted a dispenser member;

FIG. 2 is a larger-scale view of a portion of the unit shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic horizontal-section view of a first variant embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic horizontal-section view of another variant embodiment of the present invention.

The unit of the present invention is for fastening on a fluid receptacle, and more particularly on a receptacle neck (not shown) that can be of any kind. The fluid contained in the receptacle can be a liquid, a lotion, a cream, a perfume, a viscous substance, a pasty substance, a pharmaceutical, or even medication that is embedded, dispersed, or dissolved in a propellant gas.

The unit of the invention advantageously comprises two component elements, namely a fastener ring 1, and a gasket 2, generally referred to as a neck gasket. The fastener ring 1 can be any element that is suitable for fastening on a receptacle neck.

The fastener ring 1 shown in FIG. 1 is advantageously of standard type. The ring preferably comprises a mounting portion 10, a radial flange 11, and an axial side wall 12. In considering the orientation in FIG. 1, the mounting portion 10 extends upwards from the radial flange 11, whereas the side wall 12 extends axially downwards from the radial flange 11. Naturally, the structure of the fastener ring is purely illustrative, the present invention being applicable to any type of ring.

The mounting wall 10 has the function of holding a dispenser member 3, e.g. a pump, in secure manner. In this embodiment, this function is fulfilled by crimping or by snap-fastening the fastener ring on the dispenser member 3. The pump shown in FIG. 1 can be of any type, and is therefore not described is greater detail below.

It should be noted that the dispenser member is not necessarily a pump. In particular, a valve that is suitable for releasing an aerosol fluid contained in the receptacle could also be used.

The side wall 12 has, in particular, the function of fastening the fastener ring 1 to the neck of the receptacle once the neck gasket 2 has been positioned correctly. Its positioning is explained in greater detail below. The ring can be fastened to the neck by screw-fastening, by snap-fastening, or even by crimping the ring on the neck of the receptacle. The ring shown in FIG. 1 is a crimping ring.

The neck gasket 2 generally presents an annular configuration. Such a gasket includes a top surface 20 and a bottom surface 21, both of which can be substantially plane. The gasket 2 further includes an inside edge 22 and an outside edge 23. The inside edge 22 defines a mounting opening that is generally circular, and through which the dispenser member 3 can extend.

In the invention, in order to make it easier to mount the fastener and sealing unit on the neck of the receptacle, and in order to obtain proper sealing of the neck, the neck gasket 2 is pre-mounted in clamping engagement in the fastener ring. It is thus held in its stressed state in the ring, both before and after fastening the unit on the neck of the receptacle. In an advantageous characteristic, the fastening of the gasket 2 in the ring 1 is the result of the outside edge 23 of the gasket 2 co-operating, preferably exclusively, with the ring 1, and in particular with the side wall 12 of the ring.

According to another particularly advantageous characteristic, the inside edge 22 of the gasket 2 is not in contact with the dispenser member 3. Thus, in contrast to devices in which the gasket is pre-mounted in clamping manner on the body of the dispenser member, the gasket 2 does not exert any radial compression force on the body 30 of the dispenser member 3, and in particular on its cylindrical portion having an inside surface against which the piston slides. The present invention thus eliminates any risk of said body 30 deforming. Thus, as shown in FIG. 2, a gap can exist between the body 30 of the dispenser member 3 and the inside edge 22 of the gasket, while the gasket 2 is fastened in perfect manner in the ring 1. Such an embodiment also makes it easy to compensate for dispersion in manufacturing tolerances of the gasket, and makes it possible to simplify assembling the gasket in the ring. In a variant, the gasket could be in contact with the body 30, on condition that no radial force or stress is exerted thereon. In addition, and as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, when the gasket 2 is in its pre-mounted position in the ring 1, the top surface 20 of the gasket advantageously comes into abutment against the radial flange 11 of the ring. This simplifies assembling the gasket 2 in the ring 1.

According to an advantageous characteristic, the ring and/or the gasket include(s) one or more fastener profiles providing good anchoring of the gasket in the ring. Examples of fastener profile are shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. As shown in these figures, such fastener profiles are advantageously distributed circumferentially around the side wall of the ring (FIG. 3) and/or around the outside edge of the gasket (FIG. 4). The presence of one or more fastener profiles makes pre-mounting easier when the gasket is fastened to the ring exclusively via its outside edge. The profile(s) limit(s) friction during pre-mounting in comparison with two substantially smooth surfaces. In addition, the dimensional accuracy can be less without any risk of jamming during pre-mounting, since the profile offers greater capacity for deformation. The dimensional accuracy of the gasket and the ring therefore do not need to be very high. The invention thus improves compensation for dispersion in manufacturing tolerances.

FIG. 3 shows a first embodiment in which the fastener ring 1 includes fastener profiles 120. The profiles are spaced apart angularly on the inside face of the side wall 12 of the fastener ring 1. In this embodiment, the profiles are in the form of internal bulges that are eight in number in this embodiment, and are formed in equidistant manner on the side wall 12 of the ring, being separated from one another in pairs by angles of 45°. Such a structure thus gives rise to profiles that project substantially radially inwards from the inside face of the outside wall 12 of the ring, and that are suitable for coming to bite into the outside edge 23 of the gasket so as to hold it in secure engagement. The diameter at the radial ends of said bulges is thus less than or equal to the diameter of the outside edge 23 of the gasket 2, so as provide clamping fastening of said gasket.

FIG. 4 shows a second embodiment in which it is the neck gasket 2 that includes fastener profiles 230. The profiles comprise a plurality of external projections, in this event three, that are distributed uniformly around the outside edge 23 of the gasket. The projections, spaced apart from one another by an angle of 120°, thus project radially outwards from the outside edge 23 of the gasket 2 in such a manner as to provide clamping against the side wall of the fastener ring. The diameter at the radial ends of said projections is thus greater than or equal to the inside diameter of the side wall 12 of the ring 1, so as provide clamping fastening of the gasket. This embodiment presents the advantage of being able to use a standard fastener ring, such as a standard crimping cap, that does not need to be modified in order to be able to pre-mount said gasket. This reduces the costs of manufacture and of assembly.

It should be noted that the number and the distribution of bulges and projections are purely illustrative. In addition, it should be noted that the side wall of the ring, which in the above embodiments is defined as also forming fastener means (crimping, screw-fastening, snap-fastening, or other) for fastening the ring on the neck, could also be an intermediate side wall that does not have such fastener means, and that is, for example, situated between the mounting portion and a specific fastener portion that is dedicated to fastening the ring on the neck. The intermediate side wall could thus serve to hold the neck gasket in secure engagement in the ring. It could also be envisaged to provide fastener profiles both on the gasket 2 and on the ring 1.

Although the present invention is described above with reference to several particular embodiments thereof, naturally it is not limited to the embodiments described and shown, and any useful modification could be applied thereto by a person skilled in the art, without going beyond the ambit of the present invention, as defined in the accompanying claims.

Claims

1. A unit for fastening on a neck of a receptacle containing a fluid, said unit comprising:

a fastener ring (1) that is suitable for fastening a dispenser member (3), such as a pump or a valve, on the neck of the receptacle; and

a gasket (2) for interposing between the fastener ring (1) and said neck of the receptacle;

said unit being characterized in that said gasket (2) is pre-mounted in clamping engagement in the fastener ring (1), in such a manner as to hold said gasket (2) in its stressed state in said ring (1), both before and after fastening said unit on said neck of the receptacle.

2. A unit according to claim 1, in which said gasket (2) includes an inside edge (22) that defines a mounting opening, and an outside edge (23), with the fastening of the gasket (2) in the ring (1) being the result, preferably exclusively, of co-operation between said outside edge (23) of the gasket (2) and said ring (1).

3. A unit according to claim 1 or claim 2, in which said gasket (2) is in clamping engagement with an axial side wall (12) of said ring (1).

4. A unit according to claim 1, 2, or 3, in which the ring (1) and/or the gasket (2) include(s) at least one fastener profile (120, 230) that is suitable for holding said gasket (2) in clamping engagement in said ring (1).

5. A unit according to claim 4, in which said ring (1) and/or said gasket (2) include(s) a plurality of fastener profiles (120, 230) that are distributed circumferentially around said side wall (12) of said ring (1) and/or around said outside edge (23) of said gasket (2), said profiles (120, 230) being spaced apart from one another in such a manner as to form a plurality of anchor points.

6. A unit according to claim 4 or claim 5, in which said at least one fastener profile (120) is formed on said ring (1), said profile (120) projecting substantially radially inwards from said side wall (12) of the ring (1), so as to come to bite into said outside edge (23) of said gasket (2).

7. A unit according to claim 4, 5, or 6, in which said at least one fastener profile (230) is formed on said gasket (2), said profile (230) projecting radially outwards from said outside edge (23) of the gasket (2), so as to come to bear in clamping engagement against said side wall (12) of the ring (1).

8. A unit according to any one of claims 3 to 7, in which the gasket (2) is held in axial abutment against a radial flange (11) of the ring (1) in the pre-mounted position of the gasket (2) in the ring (1).

9. A unit according to any one of claims 2 to 8, in which the inside edge (22) of the gasket (2) is not in contact with the dispenser member (3), such that said gasket (2) does not exert any radial force on said dispenser member (3).

10. A unit according to any preceding claim, in which said fastener ring (1) includes a mounting portion (10) that is suitable for fastening to the dispenser member, said mounting portion (10) being connected to a radial flange (11) that is connected to an axial side wall (12), said axial side wall supporting fastener means for fastening to a receptacle neck, said gasket, in its pre-mounted state, being in contact with said radial flange (11), and in clamping engagement with said axial side wall (12).

11. A fluid dispenser device comprising a fluid receptacle, and a dispenser member (3), such as a pump or a valve, that is suitable for dispensing fluid contained in said receptacle, the device being characterized in that it further comprises a unit according to any preceding claim.

12. A device according to claim 11, in which said gasket (2) does not exert any radial force or stress on said dispenser member (3), either before or after assembling said unit on said receptacle.