Sterile feeding unit

Claim 2

A feeding unit for using once only and specially intended for feeding infants, said unit comprising three main elements including a teat, a feeding-bottle and a hood for protecting said teat, said elements being joined together in a sterile and fluidtight manner so as to form a feeding unit which is inoperative as a feeding unit in a first inoperative position of said teat, which is ready to operate in a second operative position of said teat and which is operative as a feeding unit after heating said feeding-bottle and removal of said hood, said teat comprising a heel having a cylindrical internal face, said feeding-bottle having a spout adapted to be closed at its upper portion and provided with orifices along the lateral cylindrical periphery of said spout above a ledge adapted to serve as a support for said heel so as to close said orifices in the lateral wall of the spout with said cylindrical face for the first inoperative position of said unit, the diameter of said teat level with said face being slightly less than the external diameter of the cylindrical portion of said spout.

Claim 3

A feeding unit as claimed in claim 1, in which said teat-protecting hood is coupled, in the first inoperative position of said unit, to the external wall of the body of said feeding bottle by means of an adhesive strip, a shoulder on said hood resting by its internal wall on a flange of said heel, while in the second ready to operate position of said feeding unit obtained, after removal of said adhesive strip, by a thrust of said shoulder on said flange, the heel of said teat is applied by its cylindrical face against the lateral wall of said spout and by its lower face against the face of said feeding-bottle, the upper part of said heel being applied against the lower face of said ledge in such manner that a feeding preparation passes from said feeding-bottle into said teat.

Claim 4

A feeding unit as claimed in claim 1, in which the upper face of said spout is closed by a conical member so as to permit the flow of powdered milk stored in said teat into water stored in said feeding-bottle, during the setting into operation of said feeding unit.

Claim 5

A disposable feeding unit, particularly for feeding infants, comprising a feeding-bottle, a teat mounted on the feeding-bottle and arranged from movement between a first and second position with respect to the feeding-bottle, and a removable hood for protecting the teat mounted on the feeding-bottle and arranged for movement with the teat, the feeding-bottle, teat and hood being joined together in a sterile and fluid-tight manner to form a feeding unit which is inoperative as a feeding unit in the first position of the teat, the feeding unit being ready to operate in the second position of the teat and the feeding unit being operative after removal of the hood in the second position of the teat, said feeding-bottle having a cylindrical upstanding spout closed at its upper end and provided with orifices along the laterial cylindrical wall of said spout, said teat comprising a heel having a cylindrical internal face cooperating with the lateral wall of said spout and arranged for covering said orifices in the lateral wall of said spout in the first position of said teat rendering the feeding unit inoperative, said teat being movable from the first position to the second position for uncovering the orifices in the lateral wall of said spout so as to render the feeding unit ready to operate and permitting a feeding preparation in said bottle to pass through said orifices in said spout to said teat.

Claim 6

A disposable feeding unit, particularly for feeding infants, comprising a feeding-bottle, a teat mounted on the feeding-bottle and arranged from movement between a first and second position with respect to the feeding-bottle, and a removable hood for protecting the teat mounted on the feeding-bottle and arranged for movement with the teat, the feeding-bottle, teat and hood being joined together in a sterile and fluid-tight manner to form a feeding unit which is inoperative as a feeding unit in the first position of the teat, the feeding unit being ready to operate in the second position of the teat and the feeding unit being operative after removal of the hood in the second position of the teat, said feeding-bottle having a cylindrical upstanding spout closed at its upper end and provided with orifices along the laterial cylindrical wall of said spout, said teat comprising a heel having a cylindrical internal face cooperating with the lateral wall of said spout and arranged for covering said orifices in the lateral wall of said spout in the first position of said teat rendering the feeding unit inoperative, said teat being movable from the first position to the second position for uncovering the orifices in the lateral wall of said spout so as to render the feeding unit ready to operate and permitting a feeding preparation in said bottle to pass through said orifices in said spout to said teat.

Claim 7

A feeding unit according to claim 4, wherein said spout is formed in one piece with said feeding-bottle.

Claim 8

A feeding unit according to claim 4, wherein said spout is provided with a ledge below said orifices in the Lateral wall of said spout, said ledge serving as a support for said heel so as to cover said orifices with the cylindrical face of the heel for the inoperative position of said feeding unit, the diameter of said cylindrical internal face of said heel being slightly less than the external diameter of the cylindrical wall of said spout.

Claim 9

A feeding unit according to claim 4, wherein said hood is coupled in the first inoperative position of said feeding unit to the external wall of the body of said feeding bottle by means of an adhesive strip, a shoulder on said hood resting by its internal wall on a flange of said heel, while in the second ready to operate position of said feeding unit obtained, after removal of said adhesive strip, by a thrust of said shoulder on said flange, the heel of said teat is applied by its cylindrical face against the lateral wall of said spout and by its lower face against the face of said feeding-bottle so as to uncover the orifices in the lateral wall of said spout so as to permit a feeding preparation to pass from said feeding-bottle into said teat.

Claim 10

A feeding unit according to claim 4, wherein the upper end of said spout is closed by a conical member so as to permit the flow of powdered milk stored in said teat into said water stored in said feeding-bottle, during the setting into operation of said feeding unit.

Claim 11

A feeding unit according to claim 4, wherein said teat is provided with a plurality of grooves at the cylindrical internal face thereof, said teat being rotated about said spout to cause said grooves to register with said orifices in said spout in the second position of said teat.

Claim 12

A feeding unit according to claim 9, wherein said heel of said teat has a flange with an outer face of a predetermined configuration, and said hood has a skirt portion having an internal face having a configuration cooperating with the configuration of the outer face of the flange to permit rotation of said teat by rotation of said hood.

Claim 13

A feeding unit according to claim 10, wherein said plurality of grooves are axially extending grooves and correspond in number to the number or orifices in said spout, said feeding-bottle being provided with abutment means for limiting the rotational movement of said teat.

Claim 14

A feeding unit according to claim 11, wherein said teat is provided with rib means for cooperating with said abutment means of said feeding-bottle.

Claim 15

A feeding unit as claimed in claim 4, in which said hood comprises a skirt adapted to co-operate with the outer face of the flange of the heel of said teat by means of a plurality of grooves, so as to put said teat and said feeding-bottle into communication by rotation of said teat with respect to said feeding-bottle up to an abutment, until the orifices in said spout are opposite grooves formed in the internal wall of said teat.