AUTOMATIC AGITATION CLOSURE FOR A CONTAINER
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present description relates generally to agitation devices, and
specifically to an automatic agitation closure for a container.
DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART
[0002] Liquid preparations such as medicines, aerosols, paints, sauces, fruit juices,
and sherbets are often constituted as non-homogenous mixtures, and not true solutions. For example, certain medicines are a mixture of oil and water components homogenized with chemical substances known as suspending agents. However, oil and water components in the medicine mixture may separate over a period of time, further causing active drug particles to settle to the bottom of the medicine container. Thus, a person consuming the medicine will likely start with a low and possibly non-therapeutic dose at the beginning of a regimen and a high and possibly dangerous dose of medicine concentrated at the bottom of the container towards the end.
[0003] The issue may be further exacerbated by certain hospital or pharmacy
practices where a larger stock container is used to prepare smaller batches of the medicine. For example, epileptic medications are often constituted as oral suspensions in small batches from a larger stock bottle during each refill as per a doctor’s prescription. However, if the larger stock bottle is not shaken or is inadequately shaken by the pharmacist, the resulting medicine would be less concentrated, whereas subsequent suspensions may be more concentrated than the prescription. The resulting variability in doses would affect disease control leading to recurrence of seizures, or

toxicity. This variability is particularly significant for drugs with a narrow therapeutic index. Even in scenarios where the suspension is adequately shaken prior to dispensing, the patients may fail to shake the medication properly during use, leading to undesirable effects on patient health.
[0004] Thus, it is imperative to ensure that the active ingredients in a suspension
are properly dispersed throughout a medicine bottle before administration. Currently, the pharmaceutical companies ensure that a "Shake Well Before Use" reminder accompanies a pharmacy label on suspension preparations. However, these are often overlooked or ignored by patients and/or caregivers.
[0005] Thus, it may be desirable to develop a mechanism to ensure that the
medicine is suitably shaken prior to each use. In particular, it may be useful to design an automatic mechanism that causes the contents of a container to be thoroughly mixed without requiring a separate mixing action implemented by the patient or the caregiver.
SUMMARY
[0006] It is an objective of the present disclosure to provide an automatic agitation
closure for a container that mixes contents of the container by simply unwinding the closure from the container. The closure includes an inner cap coupled to the container and comprising at least one idler gear. The closure further includes an outer cap coupled to the inner cap and comprising a primary gear that is coupled to the idler gear such that a rotation of the outer cap to unwind the closure from the container causes a corresponding rotation of the idler gear. The closure also includes an agitator coupled to the inner cap and the idler gear at a first end and comprising one or more appendages at a second end disposed within the container. The agitator is adapted to rotate upon rotation of the idler gear caused by a rotation of the outer cap. The rotation of the

agitator causes movement of the appendages within the container, the appendages automatically mixing contents of the container.
[0007] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the inner cap is
coupled to the container via a threaded mechanism, and the outer cap is coupled to the inner cap via a threaded mechanism.
[0008] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the inner cap further
comprises a stopper adapted to impede rotation of the outer cap relative to the inner cap once the outer cap completes a designated degree of rotation when unwinding the closure from the container.
[0009] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the agitator
comprises a filler bulb at the first end and a capillary tube at the second end.
[0010] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the agitator
comprises a selected shape, size, relative position, angular orientation, and number of the appendages at the second end to achieve a desired rate of mixing of the contents of the container for every 360-degree rotation of the outer cap.
[0011] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, one or more of a
relative size and a position of one or more of the inner cap, the outer cap, the idler gear, the primary gear, and the stopper are adapted for use in the closure to achieve a user-defined number of rotations of the outer cap required to achieve a desired rate of mixing of the contents of the container.
[0012] It is an objective of the present disclosure to provide a container having an
automatic agitation closure that mixes contents of the container by simply unwinding the closure from the container. The closure includes an inner cap coupled to the container and comprising at least one idler gear. The closure further includes an outer cap coupled to the inner cap and comprising a primary gear that is coupled to the idler

gear such that a rotation of the outer cap to unwind the closure from the container causes a corresponding rotation of the idler gear. The closure also includes an agitator coupled to the inner cap and the idler gear at a first end and comprising one or more appendages at a second end disposed within the container. The agitator is adapted to rotate upon rotation of the idler gear caused by a rotation of the outer cap. The rotation of the agitator causes movement of the appendages within the container, the appendages automatically mixing contents of the container.
[0013] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the container
includes a dome shaped bottom profile adapted to vortex the contents of the container from bottom to top of the container upon rotation of the agitator and the appendages.
[0014] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the container
includes a selected geometrical shape, the geometrical shape comprising a cylindrical, circular, triangular, rectangular, square, conical, pentagonal, and hexagonal shape.
[0015] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the container
includes a medicine container, a paint container, a beverage container, a food container, a cosmetic container, an aerosol container, a chemical storage container, an organic material storage container, or an inorganic material storage container.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0016] These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present systems
and methods will become better understood when the following detailed description is read with reference to the accompanying drawings in which like characters represent like parts throughout the drawings, wherein:

[0017] FIG. 1 illustrates a sectional view of a container having an automatic
agitation closure, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0018] FIG. 2 illustrates a graphical representation depicting certain components
of the closure of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0019] FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary graphical representation of an inner and
outer cap assembly corresponding to the closure of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0020] FIG. 4 illustrates a graphical representation depicting a stopper mechanism
corresponding to the closure of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and
[0021] FIG. 5 illustrates a graphical representation depicting agitation means
corresponding to the closure of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0022] The following description presents an exemplary automatic agitation
means for a container. Particularly, the embodiments presented herein describe an automatic agitation closure for a container that automatically and efficiently agitates the contents of the container to disperse the various constituents of the contents in a more homogenous manner whenever the closure is opened or closed.
[0023] The following description sets forth numerous specific details to provide a
thorough understanding of the present device. However, it may be noted that these specific details are only exemplary and are not intended to be limiting. It is to be

understood that various omissions or substitutions of equivalents may be made as desired to cover various applications or implementations without departing from the spirit or the scope of the present disclosure. Further, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of clarity of the description and should not be regarded as limiting.
[0024] Additionally, in the present description, references to “one embodiment”
or variations thereof, denote inclusion of a particular feature, structure, or characteristic in at least one embodiment of the present disclosure. However, the appearance of the phrase “in one embodiment” in various places in the specification is not necessarily referring to the same embodiment, nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of other embodiments. Furthermore, it may be noted that the terms “a” and “an” used herein do not denote a limitation of quantity, but rather the presence of at least one of the referenced items for use in an embodiment of the present systems and methods.
[0025] It may further be noted that the present automatic agitation closure may be
used with containers of medication, condiments, fruit juices, aerosols, and other substances that may benefit from being mixed, stirred, or agitated prior to use. However, for clarity, an embodiment of the present automatic agitation closure is described in greater detail with reference to a bottle containing a liquid medication, as depicted in FIGs 1-5.
[0026] FIG. 1 illustrates a sectional view 100 of an exemplary container 102 that
may be used to store contents that may benefit from being mixed when stored for more than a designated period of time. In one embodiment, the contents of the container 102 include a liquid suspension such as a medicine. Although, the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1 depicts the container 102 to be cylindrical, in alternative embodiments, the container 102 may have a square, conical, rectangular, or any other

suitable shape. Furthermore, the container 102 may be made of glass, metal, stone, plastic, or any other suitable material.
[0027] As previously noted, certain substances such as liquid suspensions may
include a plurality of constituents formulated as a homogenized solution. However, over time, the heavier and lighter constituents may separate, resulting in a mixture of inferior characteristics. For example, certain organic and natural skincare products contain both oil and water soluble ingredients that separate easily over time in absence of chemical emulsifiers present in conventional skincare products. Furthermore, some of these products may include active ingredients such as pigments, sunscreen particles, and moisturizing compounds that may separate and cluster at different locations in corresponding containers. In order to ensure effective and safe use of the products, the corresponding containers need to be shaken well before use to redistribute the active ingredients uniformly across the formulation.
[0028] Similarly, fruit juices, condiments, pickles, sauces, and other concentrates
may need to be shaken before use to disperse their constituents uniformly across corresponding containers for optimal taste during consumption. However, the instructions to shake before use are either missing, forgotten, or ignored by the user. While neglecting to shake food or beverage containers may only lead to an unsatisfactory dining experience, a similar laxity in mixing the contents of a medicine thoroughly before use may lead to fatal consequences.
[0029] The present disclosure mitigates the inadequate mixing issue affecting all
such application areas by providing an auto agitation closure 104 for the container 102. The closure 104 is designed to automatically mix contents of the container 102 upon opening and closing of the closure 104, thus avoiding the need for a user to separately shake or mix the contents prior to use. To that end, in one embodiment, the closure 104 includes an inner cap 106 comprising an idler gear 108 disposed thereon, and an outer cap 110 coupled to the inner cap 106, for example, via a threaded mechanism.

Further, in certain embodiments, the inner cap 106 is coupled to the container 102, for example, via a threaded mechanism.
[0030] In one embodiment, the closure 104 further includes an agitator 112
coupled to the inner cap 106 and the idler gear 108 at a first end 114 such that a rotational movement of the idler gear 108 causes a corresponding rotation of the agitator 112. A second end 116 of the agitator 112, including one or more appendages 118, extends into the container 102. According to aspects of the present disclosure, an opening or closing of the closure 104 causes rotation of the agitator 112 within the container 102, thereby mixing the contents of the container 102 thoroughly prior to use. In certain embodiments, the container 102 further includes a dome shaped bottom profile 120 that causes the contents of the container 102 to vortex from bottom to top of the container 102 due to the rotating action of the agitator 112 within the container 102. The vortex action efficiently mixes the contents of the container 102 without creating unnecessary bubbles that typically result from rigorous shaking and may lead to non-uniform dispersion of the constituents of the contents.
[0031] The present closure 104, thus, mitigates the issue of no or inadequate
mixing by ensuring suitable agitation of contents of the container 102 as part of every unwind action associated with the closure 104. The various components of the closure 104 and their use in providing automatic agitation of the contents of the container 102 are described in further detail with reference to FIGs. 2-5.
[0032] FIG. 2 illustrates a graphical representation 200 depicting certain
components of the closure 104 of FIG. 1. Specifically, FIG. 2 depicts the agitator 112 coupled to the inner cap 106 and the idler gear 108. In the embodiment depicted in FIG. 2, the agitator 112 includes a filler 202 disposed at the first end 114 and a capillary tube 204 with appendages 118 (not shown in FIG. 2) disposed at the second end 116 of the agitator 112. In the present embodiment, the filler 202 and the tube 204 may be used to provide the functionality of a conventional dropper assembly in addition to the

agitation. In an alternative embodiment, the agitator 112 may be suitably designed to provide some other functionality in addition to agitation. However, in certain embodiments, the agitator 112 may be a solid or hollow structure coupled to the inner cap 106 and the idler gear 108 that may not have any additional function other than agitation.
[0033] Further, FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary graphical representation 300 of an
inner and outer cap assembly corresponding to the closure 104 of FIG. 1. As depicted in FIG. 3, the outer cap 110 includes a primary gear 302 disposed thereon and coupled to the idler gear 108 disposed on the inner cap 106 such that a rotational motion of the outer cap 110 causes a resulting rotation of the idler gear 108. To that end, in one embodiment, one or more bevel gears may be used as the primary gear 302 and/or the idler gear 108. Furthermore, the primary gear 302 may be fixed with a support along the circumference of the outer cap 110, whereas and/or the idler gear 108 may be fixed on the top surface of the inner cap 106 such that it is rotatably coupled to the primary gear 302 as well as to the agitator 112. Accordingly, an unwinding action of the closure 104 causes a rotation of the idler gear 108, which in turn, causes a corresponding rotation of the agitator 112, thereby resulting in mixing of the contents of the container 102. .
[0034] FIG. 4 illustrates a graphical representation 400 depicting a stopper
mechanism corresponding to the closure 104 of FIG. 1. In one embodiment, the inner cap 106 includes the stopper 402 that is configured to stop rotation of the outer cap 110 relative to the inner cap 106 when opening or unwinding the closure 104 from the container 102. To that end, the stopper 402 may include a protrusion, or any other suitable structure disposed on the inner cap 106. Further, in one embodiment, the stopper 402 may be disposed on the inner cap 106 to impede rotation of the outer cap 110 relative to the inner cap 106 once the outer cap 110 has completed, for example, a designated 360-degree rotation.

[0035] In certain embodiments, the relative sizes and position of the inner cap 106,
the outer cap 110, the idler gear 108, the primary gear 302 (see FIG. 3), and the stopper 402 are selected to allow for a designated number or degree of rotation of the outer cap 110 prior to being impeded by the stopper 402. The designated degree or number of rotations of the outer cap 110 to achieve the necessary mixing for the specific contents of the container 102 may be defined or determined by a user as per need. For example, a medication stored in the container 102 may require a single 360-degree rotation of the outer cap 110, but fruit juice stored in the container 102 may require two 360-degree rotations of the outer cap 110 to be properly mixed prior to use. Accordingly, the position of the stopper 402 on the inner cap 106 may be selected so as to allow at least two rotations of the outer cap 110 before being impeded by the stopper 402.
[0036] Further, FIG. 5 illustrates a graphical representation 500 depicting the
second end 116 of the agitator 112 corresponding to the closure 104 of FIG. 1. Although the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5 depicts only two appendages 118, alternative embodiments may include any number of appendages 118 to achieve the desired rate of mixing of the contents of the container 102. Additionally, one or more of a shape, size, relative position, and angular orientation of the appendages 118 may be customized to achieve the desired rate of mixing of the contents of the container 102 per 360-degree rotation of the outer cap 110.
[0037] According to an aspect of the present disclosure, use of the closure 104
allows for desired mixing of the contents of the container 102 as part of the cap unwinding action and without any need for the user to separately shake or stir the contents. As the user twists the outer cap 110 of the container 102, the primary gear 302 multiplies the rotational effort with the help of the idler gear 108 disposed on the inner cap 106. The idler gear 108, in turn, rotates the agitator 112 having the one or more appendages 118. Movement of the appendages 118 creates a stirring effect in

the contents of the container 102, where the mixing is further aided by the dome shaped bottom profile 120 of the container 102.
[0038] As the outer cap 110 completes a designated rotation, for example of about
360 degrees, the stopper 402 impedes further motion of the outer cap 110 relative to the inner cap 106. Subsequently, the continuing twisting force applied by the user to open the closure 104 unwinds the inner cap 106 from the container 102, thus allowing the user to dispense the thoroughly mixed contents of the container 102 for the desired use. Use of the present closure 104, thus, prevents the issues associated with absent or inadequate mixing of fluid suspensions without needing any additional effort from the end user.
[0039] The figures and the foregoing description give examples of the
embodiments of the automatic agitation closure for a container that allows for automatic mixing of the contents of the container as part of the cap unwinding action. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that one or more of the described elements may be combined into a single functional element. Alternatively, certain elements may be split into multiple functional elements. Additionally, elements from one embodiment may be added to another embodiment.
[0040] Although specific features of various embodiments of the present system
and exemplary methods may be shown in and/or described with respect to some drawings and not in others, this is for convenience only. It is to be understood that the described features, structures, and/or characteristics may be combined and/or used interchangeably in any suitable manner in the various embodiments.
[0041] While various embodiments of the present system and method have been
illustrated and described, it will be clear that the present system and method is not limited to these embodiments only. Numerous modifications, changes, variations, substitutions, and equivalents will be apparent to those skilled in the art, without

departing from the spirit and scope of the present system and method, as described in the claims.

We Claim:
1. A closure (104) for a container (102), the closure (104) comprising:
an inner cap (106) coupled to the container (102) and comprising at least one idler gear (108);
an outer cap (110) coupled to the inner cap (106) and comprising a primary gear (302) that is coupled to the idler gear (108) such that a rotation of the outer cap (110) to unwind the closure (104) from the container (102) causes a corresponding rotation of the idler gear (108);
an agitator (112) coupled to the inner cap (106) and the idler gear (108) at a first end (114) and comprising one or more appendages (118) at a second end (116) disposed within the container (102), wherein the agitator (112) is adapted to rotate upon rotation of the idler gear (108) caused by a rotation of the outer cap (110), the rotation of the agitator (112) causing movement of the appendages (118) within the container (102), the appendages (118) automatically mixing contents of the container (102).
2. The closure (104) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the inner cap (106) is coupled to the container (102) via a threaded mechanism, and wherein the outer cap (110) is coupled to the inner cap (106) via a threaded mechanism.
3. The closure (104) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the inner cap (106) further comprises a stopper (402) adapted to impede rotation of the outer cap (110) relative to the inner cap (106) once the outer cap (110) completes a designated degree of rotation when unwinding the closure (104) from the container (102).

4. The closure (104) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the agitator (112) comprises a filler bulb (202) at the first end (114) and a capillary tube (204) at the second end (116).
5. The closure (104) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the agitator (112) comprises a selected shape, size, relative position, angular orientation, and number of the appendages (118) at the second end (116) to achieve a desired rate of mixing of the contents of the container (102) for every 360 degree rotation of the outer cap (110).
6. The closure (104) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the idler gear (108) and the primary gear (302) comprise a bevel gear assembly, and wherein the one or more of a relative size and a position of one or more of the inner cap (106), the outer cap (110), the idler gear (108), the primary gear (302), and the stopper (402) are adapted to achieve a user-defined number of rotations of the outer cap (110) required to achieve a desired rate of mixing of the contents of the container (102).
7. A container (102), comprising:
a closure (104), the closure (104) further comprising:
an inner cap (106) coupled to the container (102) and comprising at least one idler gear (108);
an outer cap (110) coupled to the inner cap (106) and comprising a primary gear (302) that is coupled to the idler gear (108) such that a rotation of the outer cap (110) to unwind the closure (104) from the container (102) causes a corresponding rotation of the idler gear (108);
an agitator (112) coupled to the inner cap (106) and the idler gear (108) at a first end (114) and comprising one or more appendages (118) at a second end (116) disposed within the container (102), wherein the agitator (112) is

adapted to rotate upon rotation of the idler gear (108) caused by a rotation of the outer cap (110), the rotation of the agitator (112) causing movement of the appendages (118) within the container (102), the appendages (118) automatically mixing contents of the container (102).
8. The container (102) as claimed in claim 7, further comprising a dome shaped bottom profile (120) adapted to vortex the contents of the container (102) from bottom to top of the container (102) upon rotation of the agitator (112) and the appendages (118).
9. The container (102) as claimed in claim 7, wherein the container (102) comprises a selected geometrical shape, the geometrical shape comprising a cylindrical, circular, triangular, rectangular, square, conical, pentagonal, and hexagonal shape.
10. The container (102) as claimed in claim 7, wherein the container (102) comprises a medicine container, a paint container, a beverage container, a food container, a cosmetic container, an aerosol container, a chemical storage container, an organic material storage container, or an inorganic material storage container.
Dated this 25th day of July 2018