US 5,137,260 AGranted

Child resistant container with flush latched closure

OwnerHarold T. Pehrinventor

Life of this patent

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Abstract

A child resistant container with a flush latched closure includes a container with a resilient latch tongue member hinged thereto, the tongue including upper and lower pawls forming a latch recess therebetween. A closure or cap is hinged to the container and includes a latch bar sized and shaped to be flushly received within the latch recess to prevent gripping access to the latch bar. The cap hinge is of such a configuration that the cap cannot be separated from the container body with the cap latched closed. The latch is released by flexing the latch tongue toward the container which moves the upper pawl out of the way of the latch bar and moves the lower pawl beneath the latch bar to expose a gripping edge of the latch bar to allow a fingernail or the like to be used to open the cap. The latch tongue is positionable in such a manner as to avoid use of the latch to close the container, and the cap and container body are cooperatively sized to seal the container without the cap being latched thereto.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A child resistant latch mechanism for removably latching a closure member hinged to a container body and comprising:

(a) a resilient and elongate latch tongue including pawl means forming a recess thereacross;
(b) a bar sized and shaped to be received substantially entirely and flushly within said recess;
(c) said bar being positioned on one of said closure member or said container body and in spaced relation thereto;
and
(d) said tongue being connected at a first and thereof to the other of said closure member on said container body and having a distal second end opposite said first end;
said tongue being flexible between said first and second ends and said recess being located between and in spaced relationship to both of said first and second tongue ends, such that when said bar is positioned in said recess said closure member is latched to said container body inhibiting grasping access to said bar for aid in opening said closure member and said tongue distal second end is exposed to direct manual manipulation by a user;
said tongue being engageable by a user and flexed by direct manipulating away from said bar when said bar is positioned in said recess so as to expose said bar to direct manipulation by a user and so as to release said pawl means therefrom to enable a user to thereafter separate said tongue from said bar and open said closure member.

4 more elements

A child resistant container comprising:

(a) a container body;
(b) a closure member hingedly connected to said container body;
(c) an abutment formed on said container body, said abutment terminating in a fulcrum end;
(d) a latch tongue connected at one end to said container body, being positioned in covering relation to said abutment, and extending past said fulcrum end, an opposite distal end of said tongue being flexible about said fulcrum end;
(e) pawl means positioned on said tongue and forming a latch recess across said tongue, said recess being positioned in spaced relation to said fulcrum end;
(f) a latch bar positioned on said closure member and forming a pawl receiving aperture therewith, said bar being sized and shaped to be received entirely and flushly within said recess;
and
(g) a portion of said pawl means being received through said aperture and said bar being positioned in said recess to latch said closure member closed upon said container body, whereby grasping access to said bar to open said closure member is inhibited by said bar being flushly positioned in said recess and whereby flexure of said distal end about said fulcrum end releases said pawl means from said bar and exposes said bar for grasping access to thereby enable said closure member to be opened from said container body.

5 more elements

A child resistant container comprising:

(a) a container body;
(b) a closure member;
(c) hinge means pivotally connecting said closure member to said container body, said hinge means being configured to inhibit separation of said closure member from said container body when said closure member is closed upon said container body and to allow separation of said closure member from said container body when said closure member is pivoted open from said container body;
(d) said closure member having a depending peripheral rim, said container body having a peripheral shoulder engaged by said rim when said closure member is closed upon said container body, and said rim and said shoulder being cooperatively configured to inhibit prying access to said rim to thereby release said closure member from said container;
(e) an abutment formed on said container body, said abutment terminating in a fulcrum end;
(f) a latch tongue connected at one end to said container body, being positioned in covering relation to said abutment, and extending past said fulcrum end, an opposite distal end of said tongue being flexible about said fulcrum end;
(g) pawl means positioned on said tongue and forming a latch recess across said tongue, said recess being positioned in spaced relation to said fulcrum end;
(h) a latch bar positioned on said closure member and forming a pawl receiving aperture therewith, said bar being sized and shaped to be received entirely and flushly within said recess;
and
(i) a portion of said pawl means being received through said aperture and said bar being positioned in said recess to latch said closure member closed upon said container body, whereby grasping access to said bar to open said closure member is inhibited by said bar being flushly positioned in said recess and whereby flexure of said distal end about said fulcrum end releases said pawl means from said bar and exposes said bar for grasping access to thereby enable said closure member to be opened from said container body.

7 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 07/365,518Filed 13 Jun 1989 · continuation in part
Priority: 26 Feb 1988
Granted: 11 Aug 1992
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification16 codes

E05D 9/005
Flaps or sleeves specially designed for making from particular material, e.g. hoop-iron, sheet metal, plastics: from plastics
B65D 43/164
The container and the lid being made separately: and connected by interfitting hinge elements integrally with the container and the lid formed…
B65D 50/045
Requiring the combination of simultaneous actions, e.g. depressing and turning, lifting and turning, maintaining a part and turning another one:…
E05C 3/14
With latching action: with operating handle or equivalent member rigid with the latch

Family

Serial160,571Parent of this continuation · filed 26 Feb 1988
Serial277,228Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 29 Nov 1988
US 4,787,526 AParent of this continuation · filed 29 Nov 1988
US 4,925,041 AParent of this continuation-in-part
US 5,137,260 AThis patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.