This a a continuation-in-part of application serial number 733 ,207 filed May 13 , 1985. All subject matter set forth in appli¬ cation serial number 733 , 207 filed May 13 , 1985 is hereby incor¬ porated into the present application.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

This invention relates to dispensing and more particularly to aerosol dispensing devices incorporating a mounting cup or a clo¬ sure for sealing with an aerosol container of the aerosol dis¬ pensing device. Information Disclosure Statement

Aerosol containers and aerosol mounting cups have been so well known and so well established in the prior art that the basic shape and the basic dimensions of the aerosol containers and the mounting cups are standard in the aerosol industry. In the aerosol industry, an aerosol container is typically made of tin plated steel or aluminum and is provided with an opening in the container encircled by an annular bead for sealing with a peri¬ pheral rim formed in the mounting cup . The mounting cup receives an aerosol valve assembly for providing fluid communica¬ tion betv/sen the interior of the aerosol container and the exterior of the aerosol container upon activation of the aerosol valve assembly by a user. The prior art has produced various types of aerosol valves, aerosol valve mechanisms, aerosol dispensing buttons, aerosol dispensing spouts, aerosol overcaps, and various other aerosol dispensing mechanisms for use with a variety of aerosol products as should be well known among those skilled in the art.

The aerosol valve mechanism and the mounting cup is typi¬ cally fabricated at a valve assembly plant and shipped to a filling plant whereat the valve mechanism and mounting cup is sealed to the aerosol container with the aerosol product and the propellant retained therein. The mounting cup has a peripheral rim which is capable of being crimped to an annular bead located on the aerosol container to establish a seal between the mounting cup and the aerosol container. A plastic or rubber sealing material is located on the peripheral rim of the mounting cup for insuring the sealing engagement between the peripheral rim of the mounting cup and the annular bead of the aerosol container. The peripheral rim of the mounting cup is formed in a substantially

inverted U-shaped configuration with the sealing material located in an interior space of the inverted U-shaped peripheral rim . The peripheral rim of the mounting cup is placed upon the annular bead of the aerosol container with the sealing material disposed therebetween. The mounting cup is then deformed or crimped by an expanding collet to bring the peripheral rim of the mounting cup into sealing engagement with the annular bead of the aerosol container.

In the past, numerous sealing materials and sealing devices have been proposed by the prior art for enhancing the seal between the peripheral rim of the mounting _, cup and the annular bead of the aerosol container . One of the first sealing materials utilized was a cured in place sealing material wherein a liquid sealing material was applied to an interior surface of the peri¬ pheral rim of the mounting cup . The liquid sealing material was cured through a sequence of curing ovens to evaporate volatile solvents from the liquid sealant material to leave a resilient residue on the interior surface of the peripheral rim for providing a fluid tight seal when the peripheral rim of the mounting cup was crimped to the annular bead of the aerosol container.

Others in the prior art have utilized mounting cups formed from a metallic sheet material which had been precoated or lami¬ nated with a plastic sealing material. As the mounting cup was formed from the laminated plastic and metallic sheet material, the laminated plastic sealing material was located within the peripheral rim of the mounting cup to provide a seal when the mounting cup was secured or crimped to the aerosol container.

Another proposal in the prior art for a mounting cup sealing material was the use of a preformed sleeve of plastic material which was inserted onto the peripheral rim of the mounting cup . The preformed sleeve of plastic material is set forth in the pub¬ lished European Patent Application under serial number 0 , 033 , 626.

Another proposal in the prior art for a mounting cup sealing material is set forth in the Patent Cooperation Treaty Published Patent Application serial number PCT/US83 /01463 wherein a heated mounting cup was immersed within vessel containing plastic par- ticulate material. A thin coating of the plastic particulate material

was thereby affixed to the heated mounting cup . The mounting cup with the affixed thin coating of the plastic p articulate material was then removed from the vessel and was heated to pro¬ duce a uniform coating of plastic sealing material on the interior surface of the peripheral rim of the mounting cup .

Although various proposals have been made in the prior art to improve the seal between the peripheral rim of the mounting cup and the annular bead of the aerosol container, little or no effort has been undertaken to improve the shape or configuration of the mounting cup . The seal between the peripheral rim of the mounting cup and the annular bead of the aerosol container remains of great concern to both the valve assembly plants and the filling plants since the seal between the mounting cup and the aerosol container must be capable of being gas tight for a period of years. In addition, the seal between the mounting cup and the aerosol container must be low in cost to enable aerosol pro¬ ducts to be competitive with non-aerosol products in the consumer market.

The problem ^' is further complicated by the fact that the var¬ ious sealing materials namely, the cured in place sealing material, the plastic sleeve material, the laminated plastic sealing material, and the plastic p articulate sealing material all have different thickness which may vary beyond the normal tolerances of the mounting cup and the annular bead of the aerosol container. Furthermore, although quality control is paramount in the aerosol industry, the peripheral rims of the mounting cups manufactured by the valve assembly plants and the annular beads of the aerosol container manufactured by container plants have nominal varia¬ tions which are within quality control limits. In some cases, the difference in thickness of the plastic sealing material and the nominal variations of the peripheral rim of the mounting cups and /or the annular beads of the container are compounded to pro¬ duce a defective seal in a completed aerosol product which may remain undetected until discovered by the ultimate consumer.

Accordingly, it should be realized that the seal between the mounting cup and the aerosol container is of prime importance to the aerosol industry. Furthermore, since the size and the shape

of the annular bead of the aerosol container and the size and the shape of the mounting cup have been virtually unchanged for more than twenty years , it is not surprising that substantially all of the effort to enhance the seal between the mounting cup and the aerosol container has been directed to the sealing material located between the aerosol container and the mounting cup .

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved mounting cup for sealing with a container of an aero¬ sol device wherein the peripheral rim of the mounting cup com¬ prises an improved inner region contour which is deformed when the mounting cup is crimped to the annular bead of the aerosol container.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved mounting cup for sealing with a container of an aerosol device wherein the improved inner region contour of the peripheral rim of the mounting cup allows only a portion of the peripheral rim to contact the annular bead of the container when the mounting cup is disposed on the container and which i ner region contour of the peripheral rim is reformed to be substantially the same shape as the contour of the annular bead when the mounting cup is crimped to the aerosol container.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved mounting cup for sealing with a container of an aerosol device wherein the improved inner region contour of the peripheral rim of the mounting cup adjusts for variation of dimensions in the mounting cup peripheral rim and adjusts for variations in the dimensions in the annular bead of the container to provide a superior seal therebetween.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved mounting cup for sealing with a container of an aerosol device which is suitable for use with a cured in place sealing material, a preformed plastic sleeve material, a laminated sealing material, a plastic particulate sealing material and all other type of sealing material used in the aerosol industry .

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved mounting cup for sealing with a container of an aerosol device which comprises a new mounting cup shape prior to the crimping

process but which has a conventional mounting cup shape subse¬ quent to the crimping and sealing of the peripheral rim of the mounting cup to the annular rim of the aerosol container.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved mounting cup for sealing with a container of an aerosol device wherein the improved mounting cup may be used with conventional crimping equipment in the aerosol industry.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved mounting cup for sealing with a container of an aerosol device wherein the peripheral rim of the improved mounting cup has an initial shape substantially different from the shape of the annular bead of the container and which peripheral rim is reformed during the crimping process to have substantially the same shape as the annular bead of the aerosol container.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved mounting cup for sealing with a container of an aerosol device which is suitable for use with all existing aerosol valves.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved mounting cup for sealing with a container of an aerosol device wherein the improved mounting cup provides a superior seal inde¬ pendent of the sealing material without any additional cost in the fabrication of the mounting cup .

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved method for forming a seal between a mounting cup and a container of an aerosol device wherein the crimping of the mounting cup reforms the peripheral rim of the mounting cup to be substantially the same shape as the contour of the annular bead of the aerosol container to provide a sealing engagement between the mounting cup and the aerosol container.

The foregoing has outlined some of the more pertinent objects of the present invention. These objects should be con¬ strued as being merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications of the invention. Many other beneficial results can be obtained by applying the disclosed invention in a different manner or modifying the invention within the scope of the invention. Accordingly other objects in a full understanding of the invention may be had by referring to the summary of the

invention, the detailed description describing the preferred embodiment in addition to the scope of the invention defined by the claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings .

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is defined by the appended claims with specific embodiments being shown in the attached drawings. For the purpose of summarizing the invention, the invention relates to an improved mounting cup for sealing with a container of an aerosol device, the container having an annular bead extending about an opening in the container with the annular bead having an inner surface contour. The invention comprises a mounting cup having a peripheral rim for sealing with the annular bead of the container. The peripheral rim has an inner region contour being substantially different in shape from the inner sur¬ face contour of the annular bead of the container. The differ¬ ence in the shape of the inner region contour of the peripheral rim from the shape of the inner surface contour of the annular bead allows only a portion of the inner region contour of the peripheral rim to contact the inner surface contour of the annular bead when the mounting cup is disposed on the container. The shape of the inner region contour of the peripheral rim is deformed when the mounting cup is crimped to the annular bead of the container. The deformation of the inner region contour reforms the shape of the inner region contour to be substantially the same shape as the inner surface contour of the annular bead to provide a sealing engagement between the mounting cup and the container.

In a more specific embodiment of the invention, the mounting cup is preferably formed of a material which is substantially more ductile than the material forming the annular bead of the con¬ tainer. Preferably, a sealing material is secured to the inner region contour of the peripheral rim for sealing any voids between the inner region contour of the peripheral rim and the inner surface contour of the annular bead when the mounting cup is crimped to the container.

In one embodiment of the invention, the inner surface con¬ tour of the annular bead has a generally partially circular cross- section defining a bead radius of curvature. The inner region contour of the peripheral rim has a rim radius of curvature

sub stan tially greater than the bead radius of curvature of the annular bead. The inner region contour of the peripheral rim may be provided with a generally flattened or slightly curved cross-section for allowing only a circular portion of the inner region contour of the peripheral rim to contact the inner surface contour of the annular bead when the mounting cup is disposed on the container.

The mounting cup includes a sidewall extending between a central area and the peripheral rim with the crimping of the mounting cup to the annular bead including the enlargement of the sidewall adjacent the annular bead to deform the inner region contour of the peripheral rim against the inner surface contour of the annular bead whereby the inner region contour of the periph¬ eral rim is reformed into the shape of the inner surface contour of the annular bead and is established into sealing engagement therewith.

The invention is also incorporated into the method of forming a seal between a mounting cup and a container of an aerosol dis¬ pensing device. The container has an annular bead extending about an opening in the container with the annular bead having an inner surface contour. The method includes firstly, forming a peripheral rim in the mounting cup with the peripheral rim having an inner region contour being substantially different in shape from the inner surface contour of the annular bead of the con¬ tainer. Secondly, the peripheral rim of the mounting cup is placed on the annular bead of the container. Thirdly, the mounting cup is crimped in proximity to the inner region contour of peripheral rim to reform the inner region contour of the peripheral rim to be substantially the same shape as the inner surface contour of the annular bead to provide a sealing engage¬ ment between the mounting cup and the container.

The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the more pertinent and important features of the present invention in order that the detailed description that follows may be better understood so that the present contribution to the art can be more fully appreciated. Additional features of the invention will be described hereinafter which form the subject of the claims of the invention. It should

be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the conception and the specific embodiments disclosed may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention. It should also be realized by those skilled in the art that such equivalent construc¬ tions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention , reference should be made to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which :

Fig. 1 is a side sectional view of a prior art mounting cup for an aerosol dispensing device;

Fig . 2 is a side sectional view of the aerosol dispensing mechanism including the prior art mounting cup shown in Fig . 1 disposed upon an aerosol container;

Fig . 3 is a side sectional view of the aerosol dispensing mechanism including the prior art mounting cup shown in Fig . 1 secured to the aerosol container;

Fig . 4 is a side sectional view of a first embodiment of an improved mounting cup of the present invention;

Fig . 5 is a side sectional view of an aerosol dispensing mechanism including the improved mounting cup of Fig. 4;

Fig . 6 is a side sectional view of the aerosol dispensing mechanism including the improved mounting cup of Fig . 4 - being disposed upon an aerosol container;

Fig . ^• 7 is a side sectional view of the aerosol dispensing mechanism including the improved mounting cup of Fig . 4 being secured to the aerosol container;

Fig . 8 is a side sectional view of the completed aerosol device with the aerosol dispensing mechanism of Fig . 5 shown secured to the aerosol container;

Fig . 9 is a side sectional view of a second embodiment of the improved mounting cup of the present invention;

Fig. 10 is a side sectional view of a third embodiment of the improved mounting cup of the present invention;

Fig . 11 is a side sectional view of a fourth embodiment of the improved mounting cup of the present invention shown secured to an aerosol container;

Fig , 12 is an enlarged side sectional view of the first embodiment of an improved mounting cup of the present invention showing an angle of thirty degrees ;

Fig. 13 is an enlarged side sectional view of a variation of the first embodiment of an improved mounting cup of the present invention showing an angle of forty-five degrees; and

Fig. 14 is an enlarged side sectional view of another varia¬ tion of the first embodiment of an improved mounting cup of the present invention showing an angle of ten degrees.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several Figures of the drawings.

DETAILED DISCUSSION

Fig . 1 is a side sectional view of a prior art mounting cup 10 having a substantially flat base 12 disposed in a central area 14 with a peripheral rim 16 being integrally connected to the base 12 by a sidewall 18. The mounting cup 10 is shown including a mounting cup turret 20 formed in the central area 14 of the mounting cup 10. The mounting cup turret 20 is formed by side- walls 22 for defining an interior cavity 24 of the turret 20 for accommodating an aerosol valve assembly 26 shown in Figs. 2 and 3. The aerosol valve assembly 26 is crimped to the mounting cup 10 by crimps 28 with a valve body 30 of the aerosol valve assembly 26 being sealed to an internal surface 32 of the mounting cup 10 by a gasket 34. The mounting cup turret 20 also includes a valve stem orifice 36 for enabling a valve stem 38 to extend therethrough to provide fluid communication between the interior and the exterior of the aerosol device. An optional annular lip 39 is included "for providing additional material to the mounting cup 10 when the mounting cup 10 is crimped to an aero¬ sol container 40 as will be described in greater detail hereinafter. The aerosol valve assembly 26 is shown in Figs . 2 and 3 without a valve button or an overcap but the operation of the aerosol valve assembly 26 should be well known to those skilled in the art and for the sake of clarity will not be further explained herein.

The peripheral rim 16 of the prior art mounting cup 10 is substantially an inverted U-shape having an inner region contour 41 and an outer region contour 42 which are generally partially circular in configuration defining an internal space 43 for receiving an annular bead 44 of the aerosol container 40 therein. The interior surface 32 of the mounting cup 10 in this embodiment is provided with a sealing material 46 for providing a fluid-tight seal between the peripheral rim 16 and the annular bead 44 of the aerosol container 40.

The annular bead 44 extends about an opening 48 in the aerosol container 40 with the annular bead 44 being rolled into the configuration as shown in Figs . 2 and 3 thereby defining an inner surface contour 51 proximate the opening 48 of the aerosol

container 40 and an outer surface contour 52 remote from the opening 48 in the aerosol container 40. The annular bead 44 has a generally circular cross-section such that the inner surface contour 51 and the outer surface contour 52 are partially circular in cross-section as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. In the prior art mounting cup 10 , the inner region contour 41 and the outer region contour 42 has a radius of curvature substantially equal to the rεtd is of curvature of the inner surface contour 51 and the outer surface contour 52 , respectively, to enable the internal space 43 of the peripheral rim 16 to fully receive the annular bead 44. The annular bead 44 is typically constructed of a type T-2 or type T-3 tin-coated steel whereas the mounting cup 10 is made of a more ductile material such as type D T-l tin-plated steel.

Fig. 2 illustrates the prior art mounting cup 10 being dis¬ posed upon the annular bead 44 of the aerosol container 40. As that can be clearly seen from Fig. 2 , the inner region contour 41 and the outer region contour 42 of the peripheral rim 16 of the mounting cup 10 respectively engage the inner surface contour 51 and the outer surface contour 52 of the annular bead 44 of the aerosol container 40. In addition, virtually the entire internal space 43 of the peripheral rim 16 is occupied by the annular bead 44 of the container 40. Accordingly, in the prior art mounting cup 10 , the inner region contour and the outer region contour 41 and 42 were specifically formed for a contacting fit with the inner surface contour and the outer surface contour of 51 and 52 of the annular bead 44 and to minimize any voids within the internal space 43.

Fig. 3 illustrates prior art mounting cup 10 secured to the aerosol container 40. The sidewall 18 of the mounting cup 10 is deformed by an expansion collet (not shown) to produce a mounting cup crimp 54 adjacent the annular bead 44 of the aerosol con¬ tainer 40 to provide a sealing engagement between the mounting cup 10 and the aerosol container 40.

The prior art mounting cup 10 has been formed in the shape as shown in Figs. 1-3 for many decades since it was believed that a contacting fit as shown in Fig . 2 was the most advantageous to

create a seal between the peripheral rim 16 and the annular bead 44. Accordingly , the majority of efforts of the prior art to improve the seal between the mounting cup 10 and the aerosol container 40 were concentrated into improving the sealing material 46 between the peripheral rim 16 and the annular bead 44.

Fig . 4 is a side sectional view of a first embodiment of a mounting cup 10A of the present invention comprising a substan¬ tially flat base 12A disposed in a central area 14A with a periph¬ eral rim 16A being integrally connected to the base 12A by a side- wall 18 A . The mounting cup 10 A is shown including a mounting cup turret 20A formed in the central area 14A of the mounting cup 10 A. The mounting cup turret 20 A is formed by sidewalls 22A for defining an interior cavity 24A of the turret 20A for accom¬ modating the aerosol valve assembly 26 shown in Figs. 5-8. The aerosol valve assembly 26 is identical to the aerosol valve assembly 26 shown in Figs. 2 and 3 but it should be understood that any valve assembly incorporating a mounting cup or any valveless mounting cup is suitable for use with the present inven¬ tion. The aerosol valve assembly 26 is crimped to the mounting cup 10A by crimps 28A with the valve body 30 of the aerosol valve assembly 26 being sealed to an interior surface 32A of the mounting cup 10A by a gasket 34. The mounting cup turret 20 A also includes a valve stem orifice 36 A for enabling the valve stem 38 to extend therethrough to provide fluid communication between the interior and the exterior of the aerosol device. An optional annular lip 39 A is included for providing additional material to the mounting cup 10A when the mounting cup is crimped to the aero¬ sol container 40.

The peripheral rim 16A of the improved mounting cup 10A has an inner region contour 41A and an outer region contour 42A defining an interior space 43A for cooperating with the annular bead 44 of the aerosol container 40. In this embodiment the interior surface of the mounting cup 32A is provided with a sealing material 46 for providing a fluid-tight seal between the peripheral rim 16A and the annular bead 44 of the aerosol con¬ tainer 40.

The outer region contour 42A of the peripheral rim 16A of

the improved mounting cup 10A is generally partially circular in cross-section in a manner similar to the outer region contour 42 of the peripheral rim 16 of the prior art mounting cup 10 shown in Figs. 1-3. In addition, the outer region contour 42 A of the peripheral rim 16A has a radius of curvature substantially equal to the radius of curvature the outer surface contour 52 of the annular bead 40.

As can be clearly seen from Fig . 4, the inner region contour 41A of the peripheral rim 16A of the improved mounting cup 10A is substantially different in shape from the inner surface contour 51 of the annular bead 44. The inner region contour 41A of the peripheral rim 16A of the improved mounting cup 10A shown in Fig. 4, extends into the interior space 43 normally defined by the peripheral rim 16 of the prior art mounting cup 10 shown in Fig . 1. In the embodiment shown in Fig 4, the inner region contour 41A comprises a flattened annular surface having a substantially linear cross-section and angularly disposed relative to the sidewall 18 A of the mounting cup 10A. The substantially linear region forms an angle A of approximately 30 degrees relative to the side- wall 18 A. Since the inner region contour 41A is shown as a linear tapered region, the radius of curvature of the inner sur¬ face region 41A is infinite but it should be understood that the inner surface contour 41A may be slightly curved about a large radius of curvature or may be convexly curved into the interior space 43A of the peripheral rim 16A to accomplish the intended purpose of the invention.

In a manner identical to Figs . 2 and 3 , the annular bead 44 shown in Fig . 6 extends about an opening 48 in the aerosol con¬ tainer 40 with the annular bead 44 having an inner surface con¬ tour 51 proximate the opening 48 of the aerosol container 40 and an outer surface contour 52 remote from the opening 48 in the aerosol container 40. The annular bead 44 has a generally cir¬ cular cross-section such that the inner surface contour 51 and the outer surface contour 52 are generally partially circular in cross-section as shown in Figs . 5-8.

Fig . 6 illustrates the mounting cup 10 A being disposed upon

the aerosol container 40 with the peripheral rim 16A engaging the annular bead 44. As it can be clearly seen from Fig . 6 , the inner region contour 41A inhibits the complete seating of the mounting cup 10A on the annular bead 44 in contrast to the prior art shown in Fig. 2. The inner region contour 41 A of the peri¬ pheral rim 16A allows only a portion of the inner region contour 41A to contact the inner surface contour 51 of the annular bead 44. Accordingly, only a circular portion of the inner region con¬ tour 41A of the peripheral rim 16A contacts the inner surface contour 51 of the annular bead when the mounting cup 10 A is disposed on the aerosol container 40. Furthermore, the internal space 43A of the improved mounting cup 10A does not fully receive the annular bead 44 as the prior art mounting cup 10. In contrast to the prior art mounting cup 10 , a void 58A is created between the peripheral rim 16A and the annular bead 44 as shown in Fig . 6.

Fig . 6 also illustrates an expandable collet 60A having an annular collet head 62A for crimping the mounting cup 10A into sealing engagement with the aerosol container 40. The internal space 43 of the peripheral rim 16 of the prior art mounting cup 10 completely received the annular bead 44 as shown in Fig . 3 and was believed to provide the proper seating of the peripheral rim 16 on the annular bead 44 prior to the crimping process. The internal space 43A of the peripheral rim 16A of the mounting cup 10A of the present invention does not completely receive the annular bead 44 as shown in Fig . 6 prior to the crimping pro¬ cess. In view of the improved inner region contour 41 A of the peripheral rim 16A of the present invention inhibiting the com¬ plete reception of the annular bead 44, one would expect that an improper seal would be created between the improved mounting cup 10A and the aerosol container 40. However, in contrast to what one would expect, the use of the improved inner region con¬ tour 41A to inhibit the peripheral rim 16A from completely receiving the annular bead 44 as shown in Fig. 6 produces an enhanced and more reliable seal than heretofore known in the art.

Fig . 7 is a side sectional view illustrating the sealing

engagement between the inner region contour 41A of the periph¬ eral rim 16A of the mounting cup 10A and the annular bead 44 of the aerosol container 40. In this embodiment, the expandable collet 60A has been moved radially outwardly for enabling the annular collet head 62A to form a crimp 54A in the sidewall 18A of the mounting cup 10 A. Simultaneously therewith, the expandable collet head 62A has reformed the inner region contour 41A to approximate the generally partial circular cross-section of the inner surface contour 51 of the annular bead 44. As the inner region contour 41A of the peripheral rim 16A is reformed into conformity with the inner surface contour 44 of the annular bead 40 , the mounting cup 10 A is brought into sealing engagement with the aerosol container 40. During the deforming process, the base 12 A of the mounting cup 10A is raised in Fig . 7 to provide addi¬ tional material to form the crimp 54 A. Simultaneously therewith, the inner region contour 41 A is drawn downwardly in Fig. 7 to a position whereat the inner region contour 41A of the mounting cup 10A provides a mating engagement with the inner surface contour 51 of the annular bead 44.

After formation of the crimp 54A shown in Fig . 7, the collet heads 62A are moved radially inwardly to a position as shown in Fig . 6 and are removed to provide the finished aerosol dispensing device as shown in Fig . 8. As it can be seen from an examina¬ tion of Figs. 3 and 8 , the outward appearance of the peripheral rim 16A of the improved mounting cup 10A of the present inven¬ tion is substantially the same as the outward appearance of the peripheral rim 16 of the prior art mounting cup 10. Accordingly, after crimping of the improved mounting cup 10A , the mounting cup 10A appears to be identical to the prior art mounting cup 10 to the casual observer.

In the prior art process, the peripheral rim 16 of the mounting cup 10 is positioned for complete contact with the annular bead 44 as shown in Fig. 2. In the event of a signifi¬ cant variation in the size or the shape of the peripheral rim 16 and/or the annular bead 44 , a void is produced between the pe¬ ripheral rim 16 and the annular bead 44. During the crimping of the prior art mounting cup 10 , there is only little downward

movement of the inner region contour 41 of the peripheral rim 16 relative to the annular bead 44 in Fig 2. Thus leaks may develop between the peripheral rim 16 and the annular bead 44 at the point or points of the significant variation in the size or the shape of the peripheral rim 16 and/or the annular bead 44.

In the improved mounting cup 10 A of the present invention, the inner region contour 41A of the peripheral rim 16A inhibits the peripheral rim 16A from completely^ contacting the annular bead 44 in contrast to the prior art mounting cup 10. Accordingly, during the crimping of the improved mounting cup 10 A, there is significant downward movement of the inner region contour 41A of the peripheral rim 16 A relative to the annular bead 44. The inner region contour 41A is drawn downwardly in Fig . 7 during the deformation process to a position whereat the inner region contour 41A is brought into tight engagement with the annular bead 44. The deformation process of the improved mounting cup 10A compensates for any variations in the size or the shape of the peripheral rim 16A and/or the annular bead 44 since the entire inner region contour 41A is selectively deformed during the crimping process . Accordingly, the peripheral rim 16A may be deformed to a greater degree or a lesser degree at the point or points of the significant variation in the size or the shape of the peripheral rim 16A and/or the annular bead 44 , In contrast, the prior art sealing process relied on a complete and uniform contact of the peripheral rim 16 of the mounting cup 10 to the annular bead 44 prior to the crimping process as shown in Fig . 2. There¬ after, the prior art mounting cup was uniformly crimped without regard for any significant variation in the size or the shape of the peripheral rim 16 and/or the annular bead 44. The inner region contour 41A of the peripheral rim 16A functions as a wedge during the crimping process whereby the expandable collet head 62A will deform and draw down the peripheral rim 16A of the mounting cup 10A into sealing engagement with the annular bead 44 of the container 40. During the crimping process , the annular bead 44 of the container 40 functions as a fulcrum to reform the inner region contour 41 A of the peripheral rim 16A . After the crimping process is completed, the inner region contour

41A remains in tight intimate contact with the annular bead 44 of the container 40 regardless of any nominal manufacturing varia¬ tions that may be present in the peripheral rim 16A and/or the annular bead 44 of the container 40.

The present invention has been found useful with virtually any presently available aerosol valve dispensing devices incorpor¬ ating a mounting cup as well as numerous types of cans or con¬ tainers having an annular bead 44. The present invention also provides superior seals on containers constructed of different types of materials including but not limited to ferrous and non- ferrous metals .

Fig . 9 is a side sectional view of a portion of the improved mounting cup 10B wherein the inner region contour 41B is shown as a curve having a radius of curvature greater than the radius of curvature of the outer region contour 42B . In addition , Fig . 9 illustrates the use of a cured in place sealing material 46B as heretofore described.

Fig . 10 is a side sectional view of a portion of the improved mounting cup 10C wherein the inner region contour 41C is a curved surface which convexly extends into the internal space 43C of the peripheral rim 16C .

Fig . 11 is a side sectional view illustrating the invention being applied to a valveless mounting cup 10D . The nature and use of the valveless mounting cup 10D should well known to those skilled in the art.

Fig . 12 is a side sectional view of the preferred embodiment of the invention shown in Figs. 6-8. The annular bead 44 of the aerosol container 40 defines the opening 48 of the aerosol con¬ tainer 40 which opening has an inner diameter D which diameter is typically is 1.000 inches in the United States . The sidewall 18A of the improved mounting cup 10A is typically established in the industry to have an outer diameter E between 0.992 inches and 0.994 inches . The outer diameter E of the sidewall 18A is smaller than the inner diameter D of the opening 48 in the aerosol container 40 for enabling the introduction of propellant into the aerosol container 40 between the outer diameter E of the sidewall 18A and the inner diameter D of the opening 48 in the aerosol

container 40 when the mounting cup 10 A is placed over the aero¬ sol container 40 as should be well known to those skilled in the art. Angle A of linear portion 70 A of inner region contour 41 A is established at 30° relative to the sidewall 18A . A linear portion 70A of the inner region contour 41A is expanded radially out¬ wardly of the outer diameter E of the sidewall 18A to provide a diameter equal to or greater to the inner diameter D of the opening 48 in the aerosol container 40. When the improved mounting cup 10A is moved downwardly onto the aerosol container 40 , the radially expanded linear portion 70 A of the inner region contour 41A of the peripheral rim 16A contacts the inner surface contour 51 of the annular bead 44 of the aerosol container 40. As it can be clearly seen from Fig . 6 , an interference fit occurs between between the inner region contour 41A and the inner sur¬ face contour 51 prior to a central area 71 A of the peripheral rim 16A contacting a central area 72A of the annular bead 44. Accor¬ dingly, the outer diameter E of the sidewall 18 A is of a size to enable the flow of propellant between the outer diameter E of sidewall 18A and the inner diameter D of the opening 48 whereas the inner region contour 41A has an outer diameter which is equal to or greater to the inner diameter D of the annular bead 44 to provide the interference fit therebetween. The interference fit between the inner region contour 41A and the inner surface con¬ tour 51 is believed in part to produce the superior seals produced by the present invention .

Fig . 13 illustrates a variation of the first embodiment wherein the angle B of a linear portion 70E of the inner region contour 41E is established at 45 degrees relative to the sidewall 18E. A termination 74E of the linear portion 70E is located at a higher level relative to the level of the termination 74A of the linear portion 70A of the inner region contour 41A of the embodi¬ ment shown in Fig . 12.

Fig . 14 illustrates a further variation of the embodiment shown in Fig . 12 wherein the angle C of the linear portion 70F is established at 10 degrees relative to the sidewall 18F . In this embodiment, the termination 74F of the linear region 70F is disposed along a plane 80F extending through the outer termina-

tion 78F of the outer surface contour 42F of the peripheral rim 16F .

Extensive tests have been preformed on the mounting cups set forth herein in an attempt to define the critical parameters of operation. All of the mounting cups shown in the present speci¬ fication have been demonstrated to have substantially less leakage when compared to standard mounting cups using identical sealing materials. It is believed that one of the critical parameter for the operation of the mounting cup is that the outer diameter E of the sidewall 18A is less than the inner diameter D of the opening 48 of the annular bead 44 to enable the introduction of propellant therebetween. Furthermore, the inner region contour 41 A which extends between the central area 71 A and the plane 80 A extending through the outer terminals 78A has at least a portion thereof with a diameter greater than the outer diameter D of the sidewall 18A to enable the intimate contact between the inner surface con¬ tour 51 of the annular bead 44 when the mounting cup 10 A is placed upon the aerosol container 40. This permits the introduc¬ tion of the propellant between the inner diameter D of the opening 48 and the outer diameter E of the sidewall 18A when the mounting cup 10 A is slightly elevated relative to the annular bead 44 while simultaneously permitting intimate contact between the inner region contour 41 A and the inner surface contour 51 of the aero¬ sol container when the mounting cup 10 A is positioned on the annular bead 44. It should be appreciated that other variations of the embodiments specified herein may be resorted to for ac¬ complishing the same or similar inventive concept which has pro¬ duced a vastly superior seal which was heretofore unknown in the prior art.

The present disclosure comprises the forgoing specification and drawings and the appended claims. Although this invention has been described in the preferred form with a certain degree of particularity, it should be understood that the present disclosure of the preferred form has been made only by way of example and that numerous changes in the details of construction and the com¬ bination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as herein¬ after claimed.