ES2837077T3 - Fluid product dispenser - Google Patents

Abstract

Manufacturing process of a fluid product applicator (A1; A2; A3; A4; A5) comprising an external cover (1; 1a; 1b; 1c; 1d) (1; 1a; 1b; 1c; 1d) defining a surface (13; 13a; 13b; 13c; 13d) external application formed by an upper wall (12; 12a; 12b; 12c; 12d) and destined to be put in contact with an application surface, defining this cover (1; 1a ; 1b; 1c; 1d) external an internal cavity (10) delimited by a lateral wall (11; 11a; 11b; 11c; 11d) covered by the upper wall (12; 12a; 12b; 12c; 12d), communicating the cavity (10) internal with the external surface (13; 13a; 13b; 13c; 13d) of application through at least one hole (14; 14a; 14b; 14c; 14d) formed in the wall (12; 12a; 12b; 12c; 12d) upper, the applicator (A1; A2; A3; A4; A5) of fluid product also comprising a piece (2; 2a; 2b; 2c; 2d) of porous material defining an internal network of cells open to through which the fluid product can pass, and stando the piece (2; 2a; 2b; 2 C; 2d) of porous material arranged in said internal cavity (10), the internal network of open cells of the part (2; 2a; 2b; 2c; 2d) of porous material made directly inside the cavity (10) internal, thus serving as a formation receptacle for the piece (2; 2a; 2b; 2c; 2d) of porous material.

Description

DESCRIPTION

Fluid product dispenser

The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a fluid product applicator that comprises an external cover defining an external application surface formed by an upper wall and intended to be brought into contact with an application surface, this external cover defining a internal cavity delimited by a side wall covered by the upper wall, the internal cavity communicating with the external application surface through at least one through hole formed by the upper wall, the fluid product applicator also comprising a piece of porous material that defines an internal network of open cells through which the fluid product can pass, the piece of porous material being arranged in said internal cavity. The preferred fields of application of the present invention are those of perfumery, cosmetics or even pharmacy.

In the prior art, document US5199808 is already known, which describes applicators of this type, applying a foam located in a cavity, the wall of which forms a perforated application surface. More precisely, it is an annular piece or a layer of foam that is arranged in a cavity, the perforated application wall of which is flexible.

This type of foam part has a triple disadvantage, that is, it is necessary to previously mold the part, handle it and arrange it in the cavity and keep it in place in this cavity. Furthermore, it is inevitable that the flowable product returns to the application wall passing the periphery of the foam piece bypassing it, and not through it. Finally, it is difficult in this configuration to obtain an undercut mechanical engagement of the foam piece and the cavity.

Document GB 2240 032 A describes another type of applicator in which a piece of porous material is made directly in a cavity of an external cover.

To solve these problems, the present invention proposes a manufacturing method according to claim 1, in which the internal network of open cells of the piece of porous material is directly made inside the internal cavity, thus serving as a receptacle for formation for the piece of porous material. In other words, the piece of porous material is created in the outer shell. Therefore, a close contact between the piece of porous material and the outer covering is guaranteed, avoiding any peripheral leakage. The handling and assembly procedures are eliminated. Mechanical hitches are easily achievable.

According to one embodiment, the piece of porous material can be a sintered part that is directly sintered inside the internal cavity of the external cover. Advantageously, the outer shell and the porous material are chemically compatible, so that a chemical bond is created between them. And when the outer shell and the porous material are chemically incompatible, the porous part and the outer shell form mechanical engagement profiles to keep the porous part in the internal cavity.

Peripheral leakage problems (elusion of the piece of porous material) are frequently found with rigid porous materials, such as Porex®, because their contour is irregular and, therefore, they create open cells of larger dimensions than those of the internal network. With the method of the present invention, these open periphery cells are eliminated. The sintering process can even be mastered in such a way that the sintered particles or balls fuse with the inner wall of the cavity or are crushed against. Furthermore, a sufficient retention is created.

According to another advantageous characteristic of the invention, the piece of porous material at least partially fills said at least one through hole. Therefore, it is possible to provide that the piece of porous material comes flush with the external application surface. It can even protrude beyond the external application surface to give a raised structure, which can favor a massaging or exfoliating action.

According to another aspect, the outer shell can be externally temperature regulated during sintering of the porous material in the inner cavity, especially so as not to deform or damage it.

The outer covering can also be made of a rigid or flexible material.

As a variant of the sintered part, the porous material part can also be a foam obtained from a liquid foam, which is expanded, then solidified, inside the internal cavity. In the case where a part of the foam, after solidification, protrudes out of the internal cavity, the method may provide for removing the protruding parts. This can be particularly beneficial with foams that form a tough sealed skin on the surface that must be removed to open the internal network of open cells. The protruding parts can simply be flush or eroded.

The invention resides in creating a network of open cells directly inside the outer shell that serves either as a crucible or as a formation vessel. Sintering is the preferred procedure, but foaming is equally possible.

The invention will now be described more fully with reference to the attached drawings, giving by way of non-limiting example, various embodiments of the invention.

In the figures:

Figure 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view through a fluid product dispenser made according to a first embodiment of the invention,

Figure 2 is an enlarged view of the applicator A1 of Figure 1,

Figure 3 is a top view of the applicator A1 of Figure 2, and

Figures 4 to 7b are schematic views in vertical cross section illustrating four other embodiments of the present invention.

The fluid product dispenser, as visible in Figure 1, comprises a fluid product reservoir R to which is associated a fluid product applicator A1. The reservoir R can be made of any suitable material and have any aesthetic and / or functional shape. The reservoir R can have an elongated and thin configuration such that a general pen configuration is attributed to the dispenser. The reservoir R in Figure 1 can, for example, be made of drawn glass. It is advantageously transparent. It contains a fluid product, preferably of low viscosity, such as a perfume, a serum, a make-up ink, a fluid make-up base, an oil. The viscosity of the fluid product F is of the order of a few centipoise or even tens of centipoise, generally less than 100 centipoise. The reservoir R defines a neck R1 in which the fluid applicator A1 is fixedly and in a sealed manner.

The fluid product applicator A1 comprises an outer cover 1, a piece 2 of porous material and optionally a protective cap 3. According to the invention, the piece 2 of porous material is directly made or molded inside the external cover 1.

As can be seen in Figure 2, the outer cover 1 defines an internal cavity 10 which here is completely filled by the piece 2 of porous material. The internal cavity 10 is also likely not to be completely filled by the piece 2 of porous material. More precisely, the outer cover 1 comprises a side wall 11, which here is substantially or perfectly cylindrical. This side wall 11 is covered at its upper end by an upper wall 12 which is traversed by several through holes 14, which are more clearly visible in Figure 3. The external surface of the application wall 12 defines an application surface 13 that is intended to be brought into contact with an application surface, such as the skin, nails or even hair. Therefore, it can be said that the external application surface 13 communicates directly with the internal cavity 10 through the through holes 14. With reference to Figure 3, it can be seen that the application wall 12 comprises five through holes 14, that is, a central hole and four peripheral holes extending around the central hole. The application surface 13 is formed between and around these through holes 14. At its lower end, the side wall is attached to an annular flange 15 which forms a central opening 151. Therefore, the internal cavity 10 is delimited by the side wall 11, the application wall 12 and the annular flange 15. It can be seen in Figure 2 that the piece 2 of porous material extends into the through holes 14 until it comes flush with the external application surface 13. For its part, the piece 2 of porous material does not extend inside the central opening 151 of the annular flange 15. However, it could be otherwise. Likewise, it would also have been likely that the piece 2 of porous material did not extend into the through holes 14, or at least not completely.

Below the annular flange 15, the external cover 1 forms a clamp 16 that defines two external shoulders 18 and 19, as well as a fixing skirt 17 comes to cooperate with the neck R1 of the fluid product reservoir R. Therefore, it can be said that the interior of the tank R communicates with the internal cavity 10 through the neck R1, the clamp 16 and the central opening 151 of the flange 15. The possibility of providing a flap at the neck level is not excluded. R1, from the clamp 16 or even from the central opening 151.

According to the invention, the piece 2 of porous material is a sintered piece that is sintered directly inside the internal cavity 10. In a completely conventional way, sintering is obtained by means of a stack of particles or fusible balls that are subjected to a temperature high enough to melt the particles or balls on the surface so that they fuse together, thus creating an internal network of cells. open. Instead of forming the sintered part out of the outer shell 1, then returning it to the inside of the inner cavity 10, the present invention recommends, on the contrary, to partially or totally fill the inner cavity 10 with particles or fuse balls, then perform sintering directly inside the internal cavity 10. Sintering of the particles or balls within the internal cavity 10 allows a close contact to be created with the internal wall of the internal cavity 10. It is also possible, according to the material chosen to form the outer cover 1, to create a chemical bond between the piece 2 of porous material and the outer cover 1. As previously seen, therefore, the sintered piece 2 of porous material may or may not even partially fill the internal cavity 10, the through holes 14 and / or the central opening 151. If a chemical bond between the sintered part and the external cover 1 is not possible, the annular flange 15, as well as the penetration of the parts 24 of the sintered part in the through holes 14, form mechanical hooking profiles that make it possible to maintain the part 2 sintered in a perfectly stable manner inside the internal cavity 10. Without departing from the framework of the invention, also it is likely to form a part of the piece 2 of porous material inside the clamp 16 through the central opening 151. A part of the piece 2 of porous material can even penetrate inside the neck R1.

Instead of a sintered part, it is also possible to apply a foam obtained from a liquid foam, which is expanded, then solidified, inside the internal cavity 10. In other words, the expansion of the liquid foam takes place directly inside the internal cavity 10 and generates the internal network of open cells in situ. Here again, a chemical bond is likely or not. Other types of porous materials can also be implemented within the framework of the present invention.

During the formation of the internal network of open cells inside the internal cavity 10, it is probable to regulate the external cover in temperature, from the outside, in order not to damage it under the effect of the heat necessary for the formation of the part. 2 of porous material. The outer surface of the cover that forms the cavity 10 can, for example, be cooled, tempered or even heated, as the case may be.

With reference now to Figure 4, a very schematic view of an applicator A2 is seen whose external cover 1a is summarized to a cover comprising a side wall 11 a open towards the bottom and closed at its upper end by an application wall 12a perforated by several through holes 14a. The outer surface of the wall 12a forms an engagement surface 13a. The piece 2a of porous material, which can be sintered or foamed, occupies only the internal cavity 10, with the exclusion of the through holes 14a. This piece 2a of porous material can be kept inside the outer cover 1a, for example, due to the fact that a chemical bond has been made between the piece 2a of porous material and the outer cover 1a. Indeed, it can be seen in Figure 4 that there is no hooking profile allowing the piece 2a of porous material to be retained inside the cover 1a.

In Figure 5b, the fluid product applicator A3 comprises an external cover 1b comprising a side wall 11 b internally forming an engaging profile 112. The application wall 12b is perforated with a single through hole 14b which is filled by a part 24b of the piece 2b of porous material. The portion 24b can be specified to be flush with the application surface 13b. The piece 2b of porous material need not be chemically bonded to the outer cover 1b, because it can simply be held inside the inner cavity 10 by the latch profile 112. The part 24b can also promote or complete the mechanical engagement of the piece 2b of porous material on the external cover 1b.

In Figure 6, the fluid product applicator A4 comprises an outer cover 1c, which can advantageously be made of a resistant flexible material, which in particular can be easily deformed by crushing. This cover 1c comprises a side wall 11c that is closed at its upper end by an application wall 12c perforated by several through holes that are partially filled by the piece 2c of porous material. Especially it can be seen that the parts 24c of the piece 2c of porous material partially fill the through holes 14c. Therefore, the piece 2c of porous material remains withdrawn from the application surface 13c. However, taking into account that the outer covering is made of a crushing flexible material, it is possible to bring the parts 24c into contact with the application surface (skin, nails, hair) by forcing or crushing the application wall 13c. The piece 2c of porous material can be held inside the internal cavity 10 by chemical bonding, or even by mechanical hooking means (not shown).

Reference will now be made to Figures 7a and 7b to describe a last embodiment of the invention, in which the piece 2d of porous material is a foam, obtained by expansion of a liquid foam, then solidification. In Figure 7a, an outer cover 1d is seen comprising a side wall 11d, as well as an application wall 12d perforated by the through holes. The liquid foam has been deposited inside the outer cover 1d, before it expanded, then solidified. Figure 7a represents the result after expansion and solidification. The 2'd foam completely fills the internal cavity 10, as well as the through holes, and even protrudes outward beyond the application surface 13d at 25. Likewise, the foam protrudes below the external cover 1d at 26. Some expanded foams have the property of forming a strong, sealed outer skin that closes the inner network of open cells. In this case, this skin is formed on the surface of parts 25 and 26 of Figure 7a. According to the invention, these protruding parts 25 and 26 are removed, for example, by flushing or abrasion, so that they reach a fluid product applicator A5 as represented in Figure 7b. It can be seen that the portions 24d are now located flush with the engagement surface 13d and that the piece 2d of porous material no longer protrudes outside the outer cover 1d at its lower end. By means of this removal operation of the protruding parts 25 and 26, the internal network of open cells is again opened towards the outside, so that a fluid product can pass through it.

The outer cover can be made by injection of plastic material or even metal drawing. It can also be made of glass or ceramic. The application wall can attribute a cold effect to contact with the skin. Its thickness can range from a few tenths of a millimeter to several millimeters. The wall of the internal cavity can be treated or covered with a film or covering allowing to improve the adherence of the piece of porous material in the cavity. Through holes can represent a particular logo or pattern. In some cases, the through holes will define an accumulated through section which may be greater than the application surface of the cover application wall defined between and around the through holes. In other words, if the piece of porous material comes flush with the application surface, the accumulated surface of the piece of porous material at the level of the through holes may be larger than the application surface defined by the cover around the through holes. In other cases, the holes will define an accumulated passage section lower than the application surface.

It is understood that the different characteristics of the outer covering and of the piece of porous material in the different embodiments can be combined with each other without departing from the scope of the invention. A solidified expanded foam can be applied in place of a sintered part. The outer covering 1 can be rigid, transparent, opaque, deformable, crushing. The piece of porous material may partially or completely penetrate into the through holes, or not penetrate at all. It may even protrude beyond the application surface 13c to come into contact with the application surface, for example, to ascribe a massaging or abrasive effect. A flexible foam will provide a soft contact, while a sintered part, for example, of the Porex® type, will attribute an abrasive effect.

Thanks to the present invention, a fluid product applicator is obtained, the piece of porous material of which closely fits, or even adheres, to the inner wall of the inner cavity of the outer cover.

Claims (10)

1. Manufacturing process of a fluid product applicator (A1; A2; A3; A4; A5) comprising an external cover (1; 1a; 1b; 1c; 1d) (1; 1a; 1b; 1c; 1d) defining an external application surface (13; 13a; 13b; 13c; 13d) formed by an upper wall (12; 12a; 12b; 12c; 12d) and destined to be brought into contact with an application surface, this cover (1 ; 1a; 1b; 1c; 1d) external an internal cavity (10) delimited by a lateral wall (11; 11a; 11b; 11c; 11d) covered by the upper wall (12; 12a; 12b; 12c; 12d), communicating the internal cavity (10) with the external application surface (13; 13a; 13b; 13c; 13d) through at least one passage hole (14; 14a; 14b; 14c; 14d) formed in the wall (12; 12a; 12b; 12c; 12d) upper, the applicator (A1; A2; A3; A4; A5) of fluid product also comprising a piece (2; 2a; 2b; 2c; 2d) of porous material defining an internal network of cells openings through which the fluid product can pass , the part (2; 2a; 2b; 2 C; 2d) of porous material arranged in said internal cavity (10), the internal network of open cells of the part (2; 2a; 2b; 2c; 2d) being made of porous material made directly inside the internal cavity (10), thus serving as a formation receptacle for the part (2; 2a; 2b; 2c; 2d) of porous material. Manufacturing method according to claim 1, in which the part (2; 2a; 2b; 2c) of porous material is a sintered part that is directly sintered inside the internal cavity (10) of the cover (1 ; 1a; 1b; 1c) external. Manufacturing method according to claim 1 or 2, in which the outer cover (1; 1a; 1b; 1c; 1d) and the part (2; 2a; 2b; 2c; 2d) of porous material are chemically compatible, so that a chemical bond is created between them. Manufacturing method according to claim 1 or 2, in which the outer covering (1; 1b) and the part (2; 2b) of porous material are chemically incompatible, forming the part (2; 2b) of porous material and the external cover (1; 1b) profiles (15; 112) with mechanical engagement to keep the porous part (2; 2b) in the internal cavity (1; 1b). Manufacturing method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the piece (2; 2b; 2c; 2d) of porous material at least partially fills said at least one hole (14; 14b; 14c; 14d) of He passed. Manufacturing method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the piece (2; 2b; 2d) of porous material comes flush with the external application surface (13; 13b; 13d). Manufacturing method according to any one of claims 2 to 6, in which the external cover (1; 1a; 1b; 1c; 1d) is externally temperature regulated during sintering of the porous material in the internal cavity (10) . Manufacturing method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the outer cover (1c) is flexible. Manufacturing method according to claim 1, in which the piece (2d) of porous material is a foam obtained from a liquid foam, which is expanded, then solidified, inside the internal cavity (10). Manufacturing method according to claim 9, in which at least a part (25, 26) of the foam, after solidification, protrudes out of the internal cavity (10), the method providing for removing the parts (25, 26) that stick out.