The present invention relates to a closure and/or filling device for closing and/or filling a reservoir, and to a dispenser device for dispensing a fluid, which dispenser device includes such a reservoir. The present invention is particularly well suited to being used in a spray device for spraying a liquid, in particular in the pharmaceuticals field.
In medication sprays, and in particular in devices in which the pump is pre-filled during packaging of the device, as applies in particular to certain single-dose or two-dose devices, certain problems need to be solved.
A first problem relates to the stability of the fluid and to contamination thereof. While it is stored, a liquid tends to evaporate and/or can be contaminated by external agents such as bacteria, or can even be oxidized by oxygen. To avoid any evaporation, it is necessary to close the reservoirs in airtight manner and to use impermeable materials for the component parts of the reservoirs To avoid any contamination, it is important to keep the number of different materials in contact with the fluid to as small a number as possible, and said materials should be inert relative to the fluid. Suitable materials for satisfying those two requirements are, for example, glass for the reservoir, and special rubbers that do not interact with the liquid for the sealing device(s).
Another problem relates to filling. The pharmaceuticals industry generally requires devices that are easy to fill and that are, if possible, capable of being assembled completely before they are filled with medication. Clearly, the handling of the medication is the most critical step as regards problems that can arise due to the surroundings, and in particular the risk of the fluid being contaminated. It is therefore important to have not only a suitable filling machine, but, above all, to protect the entire filling and assembly process effectively, which can be very complex and therefore also very costly. In addition, the possibility of having a device that is completely pre-assembled before it is filled is going to become increasingly important, in particular for the single-dose or two-dose sprays that are to serve in future use with influenza vaccines. In such a case, the fluid, e.g. the vaccine will be available only a few months (2 to 3 months) before it is used,-and millions of devices will need to be filled within a very short time. In that case, it would be very advantageous for it to be necessary merely to fill the reservoir of a device that has already been completely assembled, it being possible for such assembly to be performed at any time without it being necessary to work to such a short time constraint.
Another problem that arises relates to precompression. When sprays are used, the quality of the spray and the size of the particles depends on the pressure delivered to the liquid as it is being expelled. In order to make such devices less dependent on the actuating force delivered by the user, it is preferred to provide a system capable of delivering sufficient precompression to the liquid before it is expelled.
Currently-available technology does not make it possible to solve all of the problems, or to satisfy all of the requirements mentioned above, and only partial and complex solutions are available in the state of the art.
Thus, devices have been proposed in which a membrane of any shape, material, or type is fixed over the opening of the reservoir, said membrane being designed to be broken or torn by a suitable device when the spray is actuated. That solution makes it possible to solve the problem of the stability of the fluid contained in the receptacle, but it suffers from the drawbacks of being relatively costly because the operation of assembling the membrane onto the reservoir is quite complex. In addition, filling is necessarily performed before the reservoir is assembled in the device, and fixing the membrane requires substances, such as plastics materials, to bond or glue the membrane, and such substances can cause problems related to contaminating the fluid. In addition, no precompression is provided by that type of closure system.
In another solution disclosed by Document FR-2 684 304, when the device is actuated, a rubber stopper which also serves as a pump piston is pierced by a hollow needle which is connected to the spray nozzle of the device. That solution makes it possible to solve the problem of the stability and of the contamination of the fluid contained in the reservoir because it uses only glass and rubber, but it does not make it possible to overcome the problem related to filling the reservoir after it has been assembled. The reservoir must be filled separately before final assembly of the reservoir. Furthermore, no precompression is provided by that system because the rubber offers very little resistance to penetration by the needle. In addition, in some cases, the piercing provided by the needle can remove small particles of rubber that can obstruct the spray or that can be ejected into the user""s nasal cavity. Moreover, although the device is relatively simple to close, it is complex to open, it requires a plurality of components, and is difficult to handle, in particular because of the presence of a needle.
Document U.S. Pat. No. 3,841,329 discloses a syringe provided with a stopper suitable for forming the dispensing piston when the syringe is actuated. That piston-cum-stopper is provided with a slit that opens when the syringe is actuated. No precompression is provided since the slit acts merely as a valve.
An object of the present invention is to provide a closure and/or filling system for a reservoir, in particular serving to be used in a spray device, which system does not suffer from the above-mentioned drawbacks.
Thus, an object of the invention is to provide a reservoir that has a simple and effective closure system which is opened by the pressure that is generated inside the reservoir when it is actuated, without needing a complex opening system that removes or pierces or withdraws portions of components.
An object of the present invention is also to provide such a reservoir that is simple and inexpensive to manufacture and to assemble.
An object of the present invention is also to provide a closure and/or filling system that makes it possible to use as few materials as possible in contact with the fluid contained in the reservoir, and in particular glass for the reservoir, for the closure element, rubber characterized by being inert relative to the fluid.
An object of the present invention is also to provide a closure and filling system for a reservoir, which system can be used as a liquid inlet for easy and fast filling, it being possible, in particular, for filling to be performed prior to complete final assembly of the fluid dispenser device that incorporates the reservoir.
An object of the present invention is also to provide a closure and/or filling system that opens to enable the liquid to be expelled only if a predetermined and sufficiently high pressure is generated when actuating a reservoir, so that the liquid is expelled with a certain amount of precompression. This is particularly advantageous for a spray system.
An object of the present invention is also to provide a reservoir provided with a closure and filling device and that satisfies all of the above requirements simultaneously, i.e. it guarantees the stability of the fluid contained in the reservoir, it prevents the fluid from being contaminated by chemical interaction, it enables the reservoir to be filled quickly and simply, in particular after final assembly of the device, and it guarantees that the fluid is expelled with precompression that can be predetermined.
The present invention thus provides a reservoir for a fluid spray, said reservoir containing a fluid to be dispensed, and provided with a closure and/or filling device for closing and/or filling said reservoir, said device comprising at least one closure element acting as a leaktight closure stopper when at rest, said at least one closure element comprising:
an annular portion whose outside diameter corresponds substantially to the inside diameter of the reservoir, said annular portion being inserted in leaktight manner in said reservoir; and
a central portion having an end wall which closes off said reservoir in leaktight manner when in the rest position;
said reservoir being characterized in that said end wall is provided with at least one slit suitable for opening under the effect of at least a predetermined minimum pressure, so that the fluid is dispensed with predetermined precompression that is sufficient to provide a good spray of fluid, said predetermined pressure threshold being defined by the geometrical shape of said end wall and/or by the thickness of said end wall and/or by the characteristics of the material of said end wall and/or by the dimensions of said slit.
Advantageously, said central portion of said at least one closure element is provided with an axial bore that is closed at one end by said end wall which is made of an elastically-deformable material, and said slit opens by means of said end wall being deformed in response to at least a predetermined minimum pressure being exerted on it.
Advantageously, said closure element is suitable for receiving the end of an actuating member for actuating a dispenser device for dispensing fluid, said actuating member being provided with a fluid expulsion channel and said end of the actuating member being made to be concave so that, under the effect of a predetermined pressure generated inside the reservoir when said actuating member is actuated, said end wall of the closure element deforms towards the outside of the reservoir, into said concave end, thereby opening the slit, and dispensing the fluid contained in the reservoir through said expulsion channel and with precompression.
Advantageously, the actuating member is provided with a shoulder that co-operates with an abutment zone of said closure element so as to transmit the actuating force and so as to move said closure element in said reservoir for the purpose of dispensing the fluid in the reservoir, with precompression.
In a variant embodiment, at least said closure element is suitable for receiving a filling fitting for filling the reservoir with the fluid before or after it is assembled in a dispenser device for dispensing fluid.
Advantageously, said filling fitting is provided with a filling tube which, by exerting a certain amount of pressure on said end wall, deforms it towards the inside of the reservoir so as to pass through said slit as open.
Advantageously, said filling fitting is provided with a radial flange co-operating with the closure element and with the wall of the reservoir so that the pressure exerted by the tube to enable it to pass through the slit does not displace said closure element inside the reservoir.
In a preferred variant embodiment, the closure and/or filling device comprises a first closure element acting as a leaktight closure stopper when in the rest position and as a piston while the fluid is being dispensed, and a second closure element acting as a leaktight closure stopper and/or as a filling element.
Advantageously, a hollow rigid member is disposed in said bore in said second closure element and is suitable for receiving a filling fitting for filling the reservoir, which fitting is provided with a filling tube which, by exerting a certain amount of pressure on said end wall, deforms said end wall towards the inside of the reservoir so as to pass through said slit as open.
Advantageously, said hollow rigid member is provided with a radial flange co-operating with the second closure element and with the wall of the reservoir so that the pressure exerted by the tube to pass through the slit does not displace said second closure element inside the reservoir.
In another variant embodiment, the reservoir is further provided with a third closure element disposed in * fixed manner between the first and second closure elements, said third closure element separating the reservoir in leaktight manner into two sub-reservoirs, each sub-reservoir containing a different fluid, e.g. a powder and a liquid, and said second closure element further acting as a piston to mix the two fluids in one of the sub-reservoirs.
Advantageously, the third closure element is provided with a hollow rigid member which is inserted in its central bore, which makes it possible to open the slit in the end wall under the effect of at least a minimum pressure generated in one of the sub-reservoirs, and which prevents such opening under the effect of a pressure generated in the other sub-reservoir.
Preferably, when the filling tube of the filling fitting passes through said slit, it opens said slit so that an opening is formed around said tube, thereby enabling air to escape as the reservoir fills with the fluid.
The present invention also provides a fluid spray, said fluid spray comprising an actuating member and a reservoir.
Preferably, the reservoir is made of glass, and the closure element(s) is/are made of a substance that is inert relative to the fluid contained in the reservoir, and said fluid is sprayed finely and with precompression each time the device is actuated.