Valve unit for liquid container

Claim 1

A valve unit for a liquid container, said unit comprising: a tubular core element, of thermoplastic material, having an upper end closure wall with a slightly protruding flange, a plurality of radial openings below said end wall and flange, and a radial extension spaced from said upper end and flange; a housing secured to said radial extension and having an inwardly directed flange with an inner edge; a ring valve having an inner edge that cooperates with said end wall flange and an outer edge that cooperates with the inner edge of said inwardly directed flange; a spring, surrounding said tubular core element, having one end supported by said radial extension and the other end in engagement with said ring valve; and a tube connected to said tubular core element, said tube and tubular core element forming a draw-off conduit; characterized in that said housing comprises an upper, cup-shaped metal part (12) and a lower, cup-shaped metal part (13), each said part having at its open end an outwardly extending radial flange (14, 15), which flanges (14, 15) are secured to each other; wherein said lower cup-shaped part has a wall with at least one opening (19), has an inwardly curved bottom (16) fitting over the radial extension (2) of the core element (1), and has a central opening to allow passage of said draw-off conduit; wherein said upper cup-shaped part (13) has a central opening, the diameter of which is smaller than the outer diameter of the ring valve (10, 11); and wherein said valve unit further comprises a bushing (23) having a slide fit upon a cylindrical outer surface of said upper cup-shaped part (13).