Technical scope

The invention relates to the area of cartridges adapted to dispense a product such as a liquid or a powder in a container containing a liquid product. More particularly, the invention relates to a cartridge which can be arranged on a container allowing a solution to be prepared in situ.

Description of the prior art

Food or non-food formulations in the form of powder or fluid are very widespread. Said formulations must be stored and prepared under strict conditions of hygiene or safety. Formulations in the form of powder or fluid can be arranged in packaging separated from the contents in which they will subsequently be diluted or dispersed. For example, the formulation can be arranged in sealed packaging, said packaging being opened in order to release the powder or the fluid into a container such as a bottle. Said handling is generally carried out by the end user and implies a risk of contamination of the water or the formulation.

Devices or containers comprising an independent reservoir for storing a formulation are known. For example, US201 1 /0226770 describes a closure which is closed at its outer end and allows a fluid product to be distributed in a bottle. Problems may arise when the cartridge needs to cooperate with the neck of the container, in particular when the neck of the containers show different formats, such as different diameters or different lengths.

Therefore there is a need for a device which is suitable to be mounted on a container and allows a solution to be prepared in situ by mixing a product contained in the device, for example a fluid or a powder, with a liquid contained in the container, and which solves, at least in part, one or several of the aforesaid problems of the known devices.

Brief description of the invention

It is an object of the present invention to provide a cartridge configured to dispense a product in a container with opening means that are configured to cooperate with the neck of containers wherein said necks have different formats. Thus, the invention provides a cartridge which is suitable to cooperate with the neck of a container in order to allow a product contained in the cartridge to flow out into said container, said cartridge including: - a reservoir which is suitable to contain the said product, said reservoir having a lower opening on its lower wall to transfer said product from the reservoir into the container;

- movable sealing means to close the opening of the reservoir, the moveable sealing means comprising a cylindrical body and one or more flaps closing the lower aperture of the cylindrical body, wherein said cylindrical body is dimensioned to surround the lower wall of the reservoir and to slide along it between a closing and an opening position, wherein in the opening position the one or more flaps are opened by the pressure exerted by the lower wall of the reservoir on said flaps;

- a socket arranged to surround both the lower wall of the reservoir and the moveable sealing means;

the cartridge being remarkable in that the moveable sealing means further comprises at least one ring, wherein the ring or one of the rings is configured to cooperate with the neck of the container in order to allow the moveable sealing means to slide along the lower wall of the reservoir by the pressure exerted on said ring by the neck of the container causing the opening of the one or more flaps, and in that at least one ring of the moveable sealing means comprises holding lugs configured to cooperate with an internal relief of the socket in order to maintain the moveable sealing means in position inside the socket, closing the opening of the reservoir.

With preference, the socket is integral with the reservoir. With preference, the one or more flaps are linked to the ring configured to cooperate with the neck of the container. Preferably, the movable sealing means comprises two rings distributed along the cylindrical body in order to show a lower ring and an upper ring, wherein the one or more flaps are linked to the lower ring.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the movable sealing means comprises two rings distributed along the cylindrical body in order to show a lower ring and an upper ring, wherein the lower ring is the one arranged to cooperate with the neck of the container. This arrangement allows the cartridge to be opened with a reduced stroke of the movable means when sliding along the wall of the reservoir.

In an embodiment, the internal relief of the socket is an internal thread or is one or more hoops. In the embodiment wherein the internal relief is an internal thread, the cartridge can be screwed on the neck of the container and the internal thread also cooperate with the holding lugs to maintain the moveable sealing means in the closing position. In the embodiment wherein the internal relief is one or more hoops, the one or more hoops cooperate with the holding lugs to clip the moveable sealing means in the closing position. In an embodiment, the movable sealing means is provided with clipping means in order to be fixed on the reservoir wall.

In an embodiment, the socket shows a lower aperture dimensioned to receive the neck of the container, wherein the lower aperture has an internal diameter higher than the external diameter of the ring, or of at least one of the rings of the movable sealing means.

Preferably, the internal relief of the socket is one or more hoops and the ring or one of the rings that is configured to cooperate with the neck of the container has an outer diameter of at least twice the diameter of the opening of the reservoir. Such configuration allows the cartridge to cooperate with containers having necks of different diameters. Preferably, the reservoir forms a tube such that the lower opening of said reservoir is an aperture of the same diameter than said reservoir. Thus, the reservoir is a tube opened on one side.

Preferably, the movable sealing means comprises two rings distributed along the cylindrical body so as to show a lower ring and a upper ring, wherein the upper ring of the movable sealing means comprises holding lugs configured to cooperate with an internal thread of the socket in order to maintain the moveable sealing means in position inside the socket, closing the opening of the reservoir. When the socket comprises an internal thread the cartridge is suitable to be mounted on the neck of a reservoir.

In a variant of the invention, the movable sealing means comprise two rings distributed along the cylindrical body so as to show a lower ring and an upper ring, the upper ring of the movable sealing means comprises holding lugs configured to cooperate with one or more internal hoops of the socket, in order to maintain the moveable sealing means in position inside the socket, closing the opening of the reservoir. In such arrangement, the one or more internal hoops are clipping means cooperating with the holding lugs to clip the moveable sealing means on a closing position of the reservoir.

Optionally, the lower wall of the reservoir shows a bevelled or twisted shape so that its periphery shows a variation in height from the top of the reservoir, wherein the periphery is intended to come into contact with the one or more flaps.

In an embodiment, the movable sealing means comprises a plurality of flaps, each flap having at least one side in common with an adjacent flap and whose distal ends form a point or line of junction to said plurality of flaps and the lower wall of the reservoir will exert a pressure on the proximal end of the flaps so as to open them when the movable sealing means slide along said lower wall. In another embodiment, the moveable sealing means comprise a single flap, wherein the flap is connected to the lower ring by a frangible zone defining a perimeter of rupture, suitable to be ruptured by a pressure exerted by the lower wall of the reservoir so as to open it when the movable means slide along said lower wall, and the flap and the lower ring are made of the same material, the frangible zone being obtained by reducing the thickness of the wall of the flap. Preferably, the flap is further connected to the lower ring by at least one hinge in a form of a leg showing a thickness portion.

Brief description of the drawings :

Figure 1 shows a sectional view of a cartridge according to a particular embodiment in a position ready for use and mounted on a container.

Figures 2a and 2b show respectively a lower and an upper view of the movable sealing means according to a particular embodiment of the invention, wherein the cartridge has a single flap.

Figure 3 shows a sectional view of a cartridge according to a particular embodiment in a position after use (i.e. after the moveable sealing means has been opened).

Detailed description of the invention

The present invention is defined by the accompanying independent claims. Preferred embodiments are defined in the dependent claims.

Reference is made to figure 1 , wherein a cartridge 1 according to the invention is depicted, said cartridge 1 is suitable to be mounted on and to cooperate with the neck 3 of a container 5 in order to allow a product contained in the cartridge 1 to flow out into said container 5. The cartridge 1 comprises a reservoir 7 which is suitable to contain a product, such as, for example, a fluid or a powder. When said cartridge is arranged on the neck 3 of a container 5, it allows the fluid product or the powder to flow out into said container 5. The container 5 is preferably filled with a liquid, thus that the product and the liquid form a solution. In a preferred embodiment, the cartridge comprises means to be screwed on the neck of the container allowing the possibility to safely shake the assembly formed by the cartridge and the container in order to mix the product and the liquid. The user can later have access to the solution by removing the cartridge from the neck of the container. According to a preferred embodiment, the product flows out from the reservoir 7 into the interior of the container 5 as a result of gravity. As an alternative to this, the reservoir 7 can be a flexible material which is suitable to be compressed in order to force the product to flow out from the reservoir 7 into the container 5, for example through a valve produced in a resilient material. In a preferred embodiment, the reservoir 7 has a lower opening 9 on its lower wall 1 1 to transfer the product from the reservoir 7 into the container 5. Preferably, the reservoir 7 forms a tube, and the lower opening 9 of said reservoir is an aperture of the same diameter than said reservoir 7. Thus, the reservoir 7 is a tube opened on one side. In a variant of the invention, the lower wall of the reservoir forms a bottleneck having a diameter smaller than the diameter of the upper wall of the reservoir.

In a preferred variant of the present invention, the cartridge 1 comprises a movable means 13 for sealingly closing the reservoir 7 that comprises at least one or a plurality of movable flaps 17. In a preferred manner, said movable means 13 for sealingly closing can control the closing and the opening of the reservoir 7 in a reversible and reproducible manner. In a disposable version of the present cartridge, the movable means 13 are no longer able to serve to re-close the reservoir 7 once the one or more flaps have been opened.

Thus, according to the invention, the cartridge 1 comprises moveable sealing means 13 to close the opening 9 of the reservoir 7. The moveable sealing means 13 comprises a cylindrical body 15 and one or more flaps 17 closing one the lower aperture of the cylindrical body 15. The cylindrical body 15 is dimensioned to surround the lower wall 1 1 of the reservoir 7 and to slide along it between a closing and an opening position. In the closing position, the one or more flap 17 close the lower aperture 9 of the reservoir. In the opening position, the one or more flaps 17 are opened by the pressure exerted by the lower wall of the reservoir on said flaps 17, and the distal end of the lower wall 1 1 of the reservoir passes through the cylindrical body 15 of the movable sealing means. The moveable sealing means 13 further comprises at least one ring (19, 21 ) configured to cooperate with the neck 3 of the container 5 in order to allow the moveable sealing means 13 to slide along the lower wall 1 1 of the reservoir by the pressure exerted on said ring (19, 21 ) by the neck 3 of the container 5 thereby causing the opening of the one or more flaps 17.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, and as depicted on figure 2a and 2b, the movable sealing means 13 comprise two rings (19, 21 ) distributed along the cylindrical body 15 so as to show a lower ring 19 and an upper ring 21 , wherein the lower ring 19 is the one arranged to cooperate with the neck of the container. In an embodiment, not represented, the moveable sealing means comprise clipping means cooperating with complementary clipping means on the wall of the reservoir in order to be maintained in position for closing the opening of the reservoir. In such a case, it is understood that the clipping means are broken when a pressure is exerted on the ring of the movable sealing means in order to allow it to slide along the reservoir so as to open the one or more flaps. In this embodiment, it is preferred that the movable sealing means have only one ring.

In an embodiment, the cartridge 1 has a socket 23 arranged to surround both the lower wall 1 1 of the reservoir 7 and the movable sealing means 13. The socket shows a lower aperture dimensioned to receive the neck 3 of the container 5. As it can be seen in figures 1 and 3, the lower aperture has an internal diameter greater than the external diameter of the ring 19, or of at least one of the rings (19, 21 ), of the movable sealing means 13. When the socket comprises an internal thread 27, the internal diameter of the socket 23 is reduced by said internal thread 27. When the movable sealing means comprises only one ring, this ring has an external diameter lower than the internal diameter of the socket. In such a case, the ring, which is the ring configured to cooperate with the neck of the container, preferably further shows holding lugs configured to cooperate with an internal thread of the socket, or with clipping means inside the socket, in order to maintain the moveable sealing means in position inside the socket, closing the opening of the reservoir. When the movable sealing means comprise two rings (19, 21 ) at least the lower ring 19 has an external diameter lower than the internal diameter of the socket 23. Preferably both the upper 21 and the lower ring 19 have an external diameter lower than the internal diameter of the socket 23. This allows the moveable sealing means 13 to move inside the socket 23.

When the movable sealing means 13 comprise two rings (19, 21 ), the upper ring 21 preferably comprises holding lugs 25 configured to cooperate with an internal thread 27 of the socket 23 in order to maintain the moveable sealing means 13 in position inside the socket 23, closing the opening 9 of the reservoir 7. Preferably, the holding lugs 25 are laid on the top of the internal thread 27 of the socket 23 in order not to be retained by the thread 27 when the movable sealing means 13 is sliding along the reservoir. In such an embodiment, it is understood that the cartridge 1 can be screwed on the neck 3 of the container 5, the internal thread of the socket cooperating with the external thread of the neck of the container.

In a variant of the invention (not represented), the upper ring of the movable sealing means comprises holding lugs configured to cooperate with one or more internal hoops (i.e. clipping means) inside the socket in order to maintain the moveable sealing means in position inside the socket, closing the opening of the reservoir. In such an embodiment, it is understood that the cartridge can be press on the neck of the container in order to be opened. Preferably the ring or one of the rings that is configured to cooperate with the neck of the container has an outer diameter of at least twice the diameter of the opening of the reservoir in order to allow the cartridge to be opened by cooperation with necks of different diameters. In both cases, the neck is put in contact with the lower ring of the movable sealing means 13 and the screwing or the pressing of the cartridge causes the entry of the neck deeper into the cartridge thereby exerting a pressure on the lower ring 19 of the movable sealing means 13. The moveable sealing means 13 is forced to slide along the wall of the reservoir causing the distal end of the lower wall of the reservoir to pass through the moveable sealing means 13, by the rupture of weakened lines forming a frangible zone on the one or more flaps 17.

Optionally, in order to assist the rupture of the weakened lines forming frangible zone on the one or more flaps, the lower wall of the reservoir shows a bevelled or twisted shape so that its periphery, that is intended to come into contact with the one or more flaps, shows a variation in height with respect to the top of the reservoir.

As said earlier, the moveable sealing means may comprise a single flap or a plurality of flaps. In an embodiment (not represented), the moveable sealing means comprises a plurality of flaps each flap having at least one side in common with an adjacent flap and whose distal ends form a point or line of junction to said plurality of flaps and the lower wall of the reservoir will exert a pressure on the proximal end of the flaps so as to open them when the movable sealing means slide along said lower wall. The distal end of the lower wall of the reservoir is in contact with the proximal end of the flaps so as to activate the opening of the movable sealing means. Weakened lines are arranged on the sides of the flaps and break under the effect of the pressure. The flaps will carry out a rotational movement with respect to their initial positions so that once the reservoir has been opened, the flaps will be arranged parallel to the lower wall of the reservoir.

In a preferred embodiment, the movable sealing means 13 comprise a single flap 17. The flap is connected to the lower ring by a frangible zone defining a perimeter of rupture, suitable to be ruptured by a pressure exerted by the lower wall of the reservoir so as to open it when the movable means slide along said lower wall, and the flap and the lower ring are made of the same material, the frangible zone being obtained by reducing the thickness of the wall of the flap. Preferably, the flap is further connected to the lower ring by at least one hinge in a form of a leg showing a thickness portion.

In a preferred manner, even after opening of the movable sealing means 13, the one or more flaps 17 remain connected to the lower ring 19 of the movable sealing means 13 by means of their proximal end when the movable sealing means comprises a plurality of flap, and by means of the hinge when the movable sealing means 13 comprises a single flap 17. Thus, no fragments can contaminate the solution in the container.

The cartridge according to a particular embodiment of the invention not shown can comprise a second opening on the top of the reservoir. The second opening of the reservoir can be closed by a removable cover. The cover can cooperate with the upper walls of the reservoir by fixing means known to the person skilled in the art, for example a system of notches, or tapping, or threading or soldering.

Figure 3 shows a sectional view of a cartridge according to the invention in its opened position, i.e. after the opening of the movable sealing means 13. The respective displacement of the lower wall 1 1 of the reservoir 7 through the movable sealing means 13 has allowed the frangible zone arranged in the periphery of the flap 17 to break. The flap 17 cooperates with the lower wall 1 1 of the reservoir 7. The hinge of the flap 17 nevertheless remains connected to the lower ring 19 of the movable sealing means 13. The cartridge can be produced by moulding a plastic material. As an alternative to this, constituent elements of the cartridge can be in aluminium, soft steel, cardboard or any other material. In a preferred manner, only the outside surface of the cartridge is in the said materials whilst the movable sealing means 13 is of plastics material.

The variants discussed in the present application are particularly adapted to applications in the food or non-food area.

The cartridge of the present invention provides the advantage of allowing the preparation in situ of a liquid composition (solution or dispersion) under the best conditions of hygiene. The reservoir 7 can contain, apart from pharmaceutical components and food complements, food quality products suitable to be consumed in the liquid form by mixing the said product with a liquid contained in the container 5. As an alternative to this, the product contained in the reservoir 7 can be non-food, for example a care product, a cleaning product or a cosmetic product. In said case, the tightness of the cartridge 1 , and particularly of the movable sealing means 13, allows the product to be conserved shielded from the atmosphere and the deterioration is thereof avoided. If the product contained in the reservoir 7 is in concentrated form, thus presenting a risk for the user, the present invention will allow the preparation of a diluted solution without risk of contact. The diluted solution formed could be used without any particular precaution.