US 3,951,289 AGranted

Safety-closure device

AssigneeEyelet Specialty Co., Inc.

InventorWilliam James Landen

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Abstract

The invention contemplates selectively openable closure means that is tamper-proof, in the sense that a correct sequence of two deliberate and independent movements of two parts is necessary in order to achieve access to the contents of the bottle or the like which is protected by the closure. The specific construction that is described involves a bottle with a neck having a circular opening, and a closure cap having a cylindrical wall to overlap and lock to the outer surface of the neck. The closed end of the cap has an axially projecting stiffly yieldable annular section which engages a chamber at the circular neck opening, in the course of closing the bottle. The nature of the lock is such as to avoid "plugged" closure and to compliantly preload the yieldable engagement, utilizing the resilient action to retain the lock and to establish a liquid seal of the bottle contents.

Tamper-proof selectively openable closure means, comprising a body including a neck with a circular axial-end opening having a conically tapered counterbore at the outward-end thereof, and a cap for selectively opening and closing said opening, said cap and the exterior of said neck having coacting telescoping parts for removably securing the same, and said coacting telescoping parts including axially extending means having circumferentially continuous resiliently loaded sealing contact with said opening when said cap is in secured position;

said cap being of singlepiece integral molded plastic construction, comprising an outer relatively thick generally cylindrical annular portion having the means for removable securing to the exterior of said neck, a closure wall integrally and continuously and axially resiliently yieldably closing one axial end of said generally cylindrical portion, and a downwardly extending inner cylindrical sleeve projection radially spaced from said outer portion and connected to said outer portion via an integral and relatively thin annular portion of said closure wall, thereby establishing an axially yieldable connection of said sleeve projection and of said outer portion, said sleeve projection having a circumferentially continuous outwardly exposed edge short of the lower end of said sleeve projection and of substantially the maximum diameter of the taper of said counterbore, the lower end of said sleeve projection being characterized by an inwardly tapered relief below said edge, said edge interfering with said tapered counterbore in the course of establishing a secured cap and neck engagement, and the taper of said counterbore being of such axial extent that contact of said edge therewith is the only closure and sealing contact and is maintained throughout the range of relative axial displacement involved in establishing the disengaging a secured cap and neck engagement, whereby the essentially line-contact nature of edge-to-taper engagement assures against the cap ever "plugging" the neck opening, and whereby compliant axial deflection of said annular portion may provide a substantial axial preload upon said sealing contact.

Abstract

Claims21