The invention relates to a closure device for a container for dispensing a substance from the closure device into the container.

Closure devices of this type are known in a large number of embodiments, for instance from WO 2009/031 167 Al, from DE 44 10 323 Al , from EP 0 093 090 Bl, from US 2008/0124432 Al , from WO 2007/145 772 A2, and from EP 1 976 768 Bl .

It is an object of the present invention to develop a closure device of the type named at the outset in such a way that it is easy to handle as well as safe to use on the one hand and cheap to produce on the other. This object is achieved according to the invention by a closure device having the features set out in claim 1.

It has been found according to the invention that components of a thread for performing the perforation displacement required for providing the fluid connection between the substance chamber and the inside of the container may also be used as a component of a safety device which prevents the attachment part from being removed from the lid part after these two parts have been connected to complete the substance chamber. One of the thread components is at the same time a part of the safety device which is designed as a latch or snap-in locking device. This double function simplifies the design of the closure device. At the same time, the closure device is universally applicable as it is not necessary to provide the container with a thread component for performing the perforation displacement. The safety device ensures that the substance filled into the substance chamber is origi- nal. This is particularly advantageous if the substance is a medical substance. The lid part thread component may be an internal thread. To this end, the attachment part thread component may be an external thread portion which is at least partially complementary to the internal thread. The bottom of the substance chamber may be provided with a point of weakness which makes it easier for the perforation component to perforate the bottom. The point of weakness may be in the shape of a cross. The point of weakness may be provided in the bottom at a side of the bottom remote from the substance chamber.

A design according to claim 2 proved to be particularly suitable in terms of a cost-effective production of the closure device. The thread guide member may be a thread guide member which is formed on an external sleeve wall of the attachment part. If the lid part thread component is an internal thread, this guide member has the function of an external thread which is complementary thereto.

Two oppositely arranged thread guide members according to claim 3 ensure a safe function both as a thread and as a safety device at the same time.

A latch window according to claim 4 is cheap to produce.

A thread component according to claim 5 makes the closure device easier to handle as less than two revolutions of the lid part relative to the attachment part are required to dispense the substance. The internal thread may be provided in the lid part. Designing the attachment part or the lid part in one piece makes the closure device easier to produce. The attachment part or the lid part may be made of plastics. The attachment part or the lid part may be injection- molded parts. The attachment part or the lid part may be 2-component plastic parts.

A guide sleeve according to claim 7 prevents the attachment part from tilting relative to the lid part, in particular when connecting the lid part with the attachment part and during the perforation displacement. An annular stop member according to claim 8 prevents the bottom from being perforated by the perforation component in an unwanted manner.

A sealing sleeve according to claim 9 ensures that the container is hermetically sealed by the closure device. When the closure device is attached and the container is sealed by the sealing sleeve, the container may then for example be shaken to mix the substance with another component provided in the container. The sealing sleeve may be formed on a wall of the attachment part, for example on a dead stop for the lid part. An embodiment of the invention will hereinafter be explained in more detail by means of the drawing in which

Figure 1 is a perspective isometric view of a closure device for a container for dispensing a substance from the closure device into the container;

Figure 2 is a side view of the closure device; Figure 3 is a detailed view of the closure device from direction III in Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a broken-open perspective view of a lid part of the closure device;

Figure 5 is a broken-open perspective view of an attachment part of the closure device which is connectable with a container opening on the one hand and with the lid part on the other;

Figure 6 shows an axial longitudinal section through the closure device;

Figure 7 is an enlarged view of the detail VII in Figure 6; Figure 8 is a sectional view along line VIII- VIII in Figure 2; and Figure 9 is an enlarged view of detail ΓΧ in Figure 8. A closure device 1 for a container which is not shown in the drawing and which may be provided with the closure device 1 serves to dispense a substance from the closure device 1 into the container.

The closure device 1 has an attachment part 2 (cf. Figure 5) which is at- tachable to the container and is thus connectable with a container opening. Furthermore, the closure device 1 has a lid part 3 (cf. Figure 4) which is connectable with the attachment part 2 in order to complete the closure device 1. A safety device 4 which is for example visible in the enlarged detailed view according to Figure 9 and will be explained below prevents the attachment part 2 from being removed from the lid part 3 after connecting the attachment part 2 with the lid part 3.

As is in particular visible from the axial sectional view according to Figure 6, the attachment part 2 defines a substance chamber 5 with the lid part 3. In this substance chamber 5, the closure device 1 receives the substance to be dispensed, for example a medical powder. The substance chamber 5 is laterally and upwardly bounded by a sleeve portion 6 of the lid part 3 which is open towards the attachment part 2, and downwardly by a bottom 7 which is a component of the attachment part 2. The bottom 7 has a point of weakness 8 in the form of a cross-shaped V-groove on the lower side of the bottom 7.

A free edge region of the sleeve portion 6 facing the bottom 7 is a perforation component 9 in the form of a cutting edge. The perforation component 9 serves to open the bottom 7 by perforation which causes the bottom 7 to tear open at the point of weakness 8, thus producing a fluid connection be- tween the substance chamber 5 and an inside of the container to which the closure device 1 is attached.

A perforation displacement of the perforation component 9 relative to the bottom 7 is performed by rotating the attachment part 2 relative to the lid part 3 about a central longitudinal axis 10. The longitudinal axis 10 is at the same time the rotational symmetry axis of the sleeve portion 6 of the lid part 3. The perforation displacement of the perforation component 9 relative to the bottom is performed by a thread 1 1. The thread 1 1 comprises an attachment part thread component 12 in the form of two thread guide members which are formed on the outside of an upwardly open guide sleeve 13. The at- tachment part thread component 12 has a total of two thread guide members which are spaced from each other by 180° when seen in the circumferential direction about the longitudinal axis 10, in other words they are arranged opposite to each other. Furthermore, the thread 1 1 has a lid part thread component 14 in the form of an internal thread comprising less than two circumferential pitches which is formed on the inside of an external wall 15 of the lid 3. The two thread guide members which form the attachment part thread components 12 run in the internal thread of the lid part thread component 14. The external wall 15 surrounds the sleeve portion 6 of the lid part 3, thus forming a gap. An axial rotational symmetry axis of the external wall 15 coincides with the longitudinal axis 10. The external wall 15 and the sleeve portion 6 are connected in one piece by a lid portion 16 which seals the lid part 3 in the upward direction.

Each of the two thread guide members of the attachment part thread components 12 forms at the same time a latch member of the safety device 4.

A latch member of the safety device 4, which is in each case complemen- tary to the thread guide members of the attachment part thread component 12, is in each case formed by a latch window 17 in the external wall 15 of the lid part 3. The illustrated embodiment is provided with two latch windows 17 which are spaced from each other by 180° when seen in the circumferential direction about the longitudinal axis 10, in other words they are opposite to each other (also cf. Figure 8).

The thread guide members of the attachment part thread component 12 have in each case a latch nose 18 which protrudes beyond the inner circumference of the external wall 15 and latches with the respective latch window 17 when the thread guide members of the attachment part thread component 12 in the internal thread of the lid part thread component 14 are on a level with the latch windows 17 so as to prevent the attachment part 2 from being removed from the lid part 3 by screwing the lid part 3 off the attachment part 2. Screwing the lid part 3 further down the attachment part 2 is possible due to an oblique surface 19 the thread guide member of the attachment part thread component 12 is provided with in this direction of screwing so that the latch nose 18 is pressed into the inner circumference of the external wall 15 when the oblique surface 19 comes into contact with the inside of the external wall 15.

The guide sleeve 13 serves as an external guide for the sleeve portion 6 which is partially inserted into the guide sleeve 13 and thus forms a counter sleeve for the guide sleeve 13. The guide sleeve 13 has internal guide protrusions 20 in the form of two internal circumferential ribs (cf. for example Figure 5) which are axially spaced from each other. Via these guide protrusions 20, the sleeve portion 6 is in contact with the inside of the guide sleeve 13. At the same time, it is the function of the guide protrusions 20 to seal the sleeve portion 6 relative to the guide sleeve 13 and thus to hermetically seal the substance chamber 5.

A removable annular stop member 21 is formed in one piece with the lid part 3 and thus forms a component of the lid part 3. The annular stop mem- ber 21 is an elongation of the external wall 15 of the lid part 3 towards a dead stop 22 of the attachment part 2 and is connected with the external wall 15 via a circumferential line of weakness 23. The annular stop member 24 has an actuation flap 24 which can be grasped from the exterior. The function of the annular stop member 24 is to ensure a defined relative position of the lid part 3 and of the attachment part 2 so that a defined axial minimum distance is maintained between the perforation component 9 and the bottom 7 in order to ensure that the perforation component 9 is unable to perforate the bottom 7 as long as the annular stop member 21 has not been removed.

The attachment part 2, which is attached to the container, is provided with a sealing sleeve 25 which is formed on the attachment part 2 and runs from the bottom 7 toward the inside of the container. The sealing sleeve 25, which is in turn an integral component of the attachment part 2, allows the attachment part 2 to be sealed against a boundary wall of the container which defines the container opening of the container. To this end, the sealing sleeve 25 has a sealing member in the form of an external circumferential sealing lip 26.

The exterior of the sealing sleeve 25 is surrounded by a closure sleeve portion 27 of the attachment part 2 which closure sleeve portion 27 is provided at a radial distance to the sealing sleeve 25. The closure sleeve portion 27 is formed on the dead stop 22. The closure sleeve portion 27 is only illus- trated schematically in the drawing. The closure sleeve portion 27 can be provided with an internal thread on the inside which allows the closure sleeve portion 27 to be screwed to a container neck which bounds the container opening. The closure sleeve portion 27 may also be designed in such a way that the attachment part 2 is latched with the container neck. The closure sleeve portion 27 may be provided with its own tamper-evident closure which makes it impossible for the attachment part 2 to be removed from the container without being destroyed after the attachment part 2 has been connected with the container.

The attachment part 2 and the lid part 3 are each formed in one piece. Both the attachment part 2 and the lid part 3 are plastic parts which are produced by injection molding. The attachment part 2 and the lid part 3 are in particular 2-component injection molded parts. The point of weakness 8 - other than the rest of the bottom 7 - may for example be a component made of soft plastics. Likewise, the entire bottom 7 - other than the guide sleeve 13 of the attachment part 2 surrounding the bottom 7 - may be made of soft plastics. Alternatively or additionally, the sealing lip 26 - other than the sealing sleeve 25 - may be made of soft plastics or the entire sealing sleeve - other than the guide sleeve 13 - may be made of soft plastics. The other portions of the attachment part 2 and of the lid part 3, in particular the annular stop member 21, may be components made of hard plastics.

The closure device 1 is used as follows:

In a first step, the closure device 1 is filled with the substance to be dispensed into the container. To this end, the lid part 3 is oriented in such a way that the opening of the sleeve portion 6 points upwards. The sleeve portion 6 of the lid part 3 is then filled with the substance, for example a substance in the form of granules, powder or any other pharmaceutical form such as a liquid. Then the attachment part 2 is screwed into the lid part 3 in the anticlockwise direction. To this end, the two thread guide members of the attachment part thread component 12 are inserted into the internal thread of the lid part thread component 14 and the attachment part 2 is screwed into the lid part 3 in the anticlockwise direction until a free lower edge region of the annular stop member 21 comes into contact with the dead stop 22. Just before this stop is reached, the latch noses 18 of the thread guide members of the attachment part thread component 12 latch with the associated latch windows 17 as shown in particular by Figure 9. At this point, screwing the attachment part 2 out of the lid part in the clockwise direction is no longer possible as the two parts 2, 3 are now inseparably connected with each other. At the same time, the substance chamber 5 is now sealed tightly and hermetically. Evidence of tampering is thus pro- vided by the safety device 4 which is formed by the latch windows 17 and the latch noses 18 which prove that the substance filled into the substance chamber 5 has not been altered.

After filling the substance into the substance chamber 5 and providing the inseparable connection between the attachment part 2 and the lid part 2, the assembled closure device 1 is screwed or attached to the container. The container may be a bottle of plastics or glass whose bottle neck may optionally be provided with a thread. In order to dispense the substance into the substance chamber 5, the annular stop member 21 is removed by grasping the actuation flap 24 and pulling the annular member 21 away from the remaining external wall 15 of the lid part 3. Thus, an axial path is released between the external wall 15 and the dead stop 22. The lid part 3 may now be screwed further into the attachment part 2 in the anticlockwise direction. When this happens, the oblique surfaces 19 of the latch noses 18 run across boundaries of the latch windows 17, causing the respective thread guide member of the attachment part thread component 12 to be pressed toward the inside of the external wall 15. The lid part 3 is now turned in the anticlockwise direction even further which causes the thread formed of the two thread components 12, 14 to perform the axial perforation displacement of the perforation component 9 relative to the bottom 7. The cutting edge of the perforation component 9 causes the bottom 7 to tear open in the region of the line of weak- ness 8, thus causing the bottom 7 to burst open so that the substance in the substance container 5 is able to enter the inside of the container. The entire system consisting of the closure device 1 and the container is now shaken for the substance to mix with another solvent provided in the container. The entire closure device 1 is now removed from the container. The sub- stance / solvent mixture may now be dispensed via the container opening and administered orally, for example.

The substance may be a pharmaceutical product, for example a probiotic product.