US3574431A

US3574431A - Continuous roll towel dispenser

Info

Publication number: US3574431A
Application number: US785890A
Authority: US
Inventors: Charles A Henderson
Original assignee: Kimberly Clark Corp
Current assignee: Kimberly Clark Corp
Priority date: 1968-12-23
Filing date: 1968-12-23
Publication date: 1971-04-13
Anticipated expiration: 1988-04-13

Abstract

A continuous roll towel dispenser including an upper cabinet for housing a clean towel roll and a lower cabinet for housing a used towel roll. The two cabinets are vertically spaced from each other so that a length of towel extending from the clean towel roll in the upper cabinet to the used towel roll in the lower cabinet is exposed between the cabinets. The exposed length of towel between the cabinets is spaced a substantial distance away from the rear walls of the cabinets so that both sides of the exposed length of towel are readily accessible to the user. A first driving roll in the upper cabinet is driven in response to withdrawal of towel from the clean towel roll, and is connected through a chain and sprocket mechanism to a second drive roll in the lower cabinet for automatically driving the used towel roll each time a new length of clean towel is withdrawn. Each of the upper and lower cabinets includes a hinged wall portion for providing access to the towel rolls contained therein. A takeup rod is included in the lower cabinet for automatically drawing any slack towel into the lower cabinet after each driven movement of the used towel roll. A modified embodiment is disclosed in which an actuator must be operated by the user to permit the withdrawal of clean towel, and the length of towel that can be withdrawn following each operation of the actuator is limited to a predetermined length.

Description

United States Patent Primary Examiner-Patrick D. Lawson Attorney-Wolfe, Hubbard, Leydig, Voit & Osann ABSTRACT: A continuous roll towel dispenser including an upper cabinet for housing a clean towel roll and a lower cabinet for housing a used towel roll. The two cabinets are vertically spaced from each other so that a length of towel extending from the clean towel roll in the upper cabinet to the used towel roll in the lower cabinet is exposed between th cabinets. The exposed length of towel between the cabinets is spaced a substantial distance away from the rear walls of the cabinets so that both sides of the exposed length of towel are readily accessible to the user. A first driving roll in the upper cabinet is driven in response to withdrawal of towel from the clean towel roll, and is connected through a chain and sprocket mechanism to a second drive roll in the lower cabinet for automatically driving the used towel roll each time a new length of clean towel is withdrawn. Each of the upper and lower cabinets includes a hinged wall portion for providing access to the towel rolls contained therein. A takeup rod is included in the lower cabinet for automatically drawing any slack towel into the lower cabinet after each driven movement of the used towel roll. A modified embodiment is disclosed in which an actuator must be operated by the user to permit the withdrawal of clean towel, and the length of towel that can be withdrawn following each operation of the actuator is limited to a predetermined length.

CONTINUOUS ROLL TOWEL DISPENSER The present invention relates generally to continuous roll towel dispensers and, more particularly, to continuous roll towel dispensers adapted to have the towel user withdraw successive increments of clean towel from a supply roll contained in a locked cabinet.

It is a primary object of the present invention to provide an improved continuous roll towel dispenser which completely separates the clean towel roll from the used towel roll so that the clean towel cannot be contaminated by the used towel. A related object of the invention is to provide such an improved continuous roll towel dispenser which separates the clean towel roll and the used towel roll and yet is relatively compact.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved continuous roll towel dispenser of the foregoing type which requires only a relatively short length of towel for threading" a new towel from the clean towel roll to the used towel roll. In this connection, still another object of the invention is to provide such a continuous roll towel dispenser which facilitates threading of the towel from the clean towel roll to the used towel roll during replacement of the towel rolls.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved continuous roll towel dispenser of the type described above which facilitates use of both sides of the exposed length of clean towel.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide such an improved continuous roll towel dispenser which feeds a sufficient length of towel to the user on each pull" that only one pull is necessary to provide the user with adequate toweling for each use, thereby improving the efficiency of the dispenser.

A still further object of the invention is to provide such an improved continuous roll towel dispenser which avoids unsightly exposure of used or soiled toweling to the user afte each pull.

It is still another object of the invention to provide such an improved continuous roll towel dispenser which can be efficiently manufactured at a relatively low cost, and from relatively few parts. Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a continuous roll towel dispenser embodying the present invention and mounted on the surface of a supporting wall;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged vertical section taken along line 2-2 in FIG. 1 with the takeup mechanism in the lower cabinet in its retracted position;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary vertical section corresponding to the lower portion of FIG. 2 with the takeup mechanism in an advanced position;

FIG. 4 is a horizontal section taken along line 4-4 in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged end elevation of a limited pull mechanism which may be embodied in the continuous roll towel dispenser shown in FIGS. 1 through 4;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged end elevation of the same mechanism shown in FIG. 5 but in a different operative state; and

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary side elevation of the mechanism shown in FIG. 5.

While the invention is susceptible of various modifications and alternative forms, certain specific embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings which will be described in detail herein. It should be understood, however, that it is not intended to limit the invention to the particular forms disclosed but, on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention.

Turning now to the drawings, and referring first to FIG. 1, a continuous roll towel dispenser indicated generally at 10 is firmly mounted by suitable fasteners on a supporting wall 11. A clean towel roll 12 (FIG. 2) is placed inside the dispenser and the towel T is threaded through the dispenser and on to a used towel roll 13, with an appropriate length of the towel remaining exposed for use. After one exposed length of the towel has been used, the next user simply pulls down on the towel to bring a clean length of towel into the exposed position, and the used or soiled length of towel is automatically removed from the exposed position toward the used towel roll 13.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the clean towel roll 12 is mounted within an upper cabinet, the used towel roll 13 is mounted within a lower cabinet, and the upper and lower cabinets are vertically spaced so that a length of towel extending from the clean towel roll 12 to the used towel roll 13 is exposed between the two cabinets. Thus, in the illustrative embodiment, the clean towel roll 12 is supported on a ramp 20 within an upper cabinet 21, and the toweling T is withdrawn from the clean towel roll 12 through an egress slot 22 formed by a bottom member 23 and a front wall member 24 at the lower front corner of the cabinet 21. As can be seen in FIG. 2, the opposed edges of the bottom member 23 and the front wall member 24 are curled so that the towel T passes smoothly thereover.

From the egress slot 22 in the upper cabinet 21, the towel T extends downwardly to an ingress slot 30 formed by a lower cabinet 31. More particularly, the ingress slot 30 is formed at the upper front corner of the cabinet 31 by a top member 32 and a front wall member 33, with the opposed edges of the two members 32 and 33 being curled so that the toweling T passes smoothly thereover. Inside the lower cabinet 31, the towel T passes over a fixed transverse guide rod 34 and is then wound around the used towel roll 13. Since the two cabinets 21 and 31 are vertically spaced from each other, as shown most clearly in FIGS. 1 and 2, a substantial length of towel is exposed for use between the two cabinets. This exposed length of towel may be varied by simply adjusting the vertical spacing of the two cabinets 21 and 22, but it is generally preferred to have about 10 to 12 inches of toweling exposed between the two cabinets. To permit access to the clean and used towel rolls 12 and 13 in the cabinets 21 and 31, respectively, the front sections of the cabinets are hinged at 35 and 36, respectively, and locking means (not shown) are preferably provided to secure the hinged sections to adjacent stationary sections of the respective cabinets.

In accordance with another feature of this invention, the upper and lower cabinets 21 and 31 are adapted to space the exposed length of towel T a substantial distance away from the rear walls of the cabinets so that both sides of the exposed length of toweling are readily accessible to the user. Thus, as shown most clearly in FIG. 2, the towel egress slot 22 in the upper cabinet 21 and the towel ingress slot 30 in the lower cabinet 31 are positioned so that the exposed length of towel T is substantially coplanar with the front surfaces of the two cabinets 21 and 31. Consequently, substantially the entire space between the bottom member 23 of the upper cabinet 21 and the top member 32 of the lower cabinet 31 is available to the user, so that both sides of the exposed length of towel are readily accessible to permit maximum utilization thereof. Furthermore, the towel egress slot 22 and towel ingress slot 30 are positioned so that the exposed length of towel extends substantially from the lower front corner of the upper cabinet 21 to the upper front comer of the lower cabinet 31, so that there is no portion of the exposed length of toweling lying against a cabinet surface. This is not only desirable for sanitary reasons, but also makes substantially the entire surface area of the exposed length of towel T available to the user. Moreover, as will be apparent from the ensuing discussion, the user may pull the exposed length of towel T outwardly away from the cabinets 21 and 31, thereby further increasing the accessibility of the exposed toweling. Accordingly, it can be seen that the dispenser pennits each successive exposed length of towel to be used with maximum efficiency, thereby prolonging the life of each clean towel roll 12 placed in the upper cabinet 21, with attendant cost reductions to the owner.

For the purpose of taking up the previously exposed length of towel T from between the cabinets 21 and 31 each time a new length of clean towel is withdrawn from the clean towel roll 12 in the upper cabinet 21, the dispenser includes a driving means for driving the used towel roll 13 in the lower cabinet 31 in response to each successive withdrawal of towel from the clean towel roll 12 in the upper cabinet 21. More particularly, the driving system includes a first drive roller 40 rotatably mounted in the upper cabinet 21 so as to frictionally engage the cleanrtowel T as it is withdrawn from the roll 12. The drive roller 40 is positioned near the forward edge of the ramp 20 so that the clean towel roll 12 supported on the ramp 20 rests against the roller 40. As clean toweling is unwound from the roll 12, the roll 12 gradually slides downwardly over the ramp 20 toward the drive roller 40 so that the periphery of the towel roll 12 remains in continuous engagement with the roller 40.

To provide reliable frictional engagement between the surface of the drive roller 40 and the towel T, the roller 40 is provided with a roughened surface, such as shot blasted metal, emery cloth, or the like, and the towel T is biased firmly against the roughened surface of the roller 40 by means of a spring-loaded roller 41 mounted on the front wall member 24. Thus, each time a fresh length of clean towel is withdrawn from the supply roll 12, the roller 40 is rotated, thereby rotating a sprocket 42 meshing with a drive chain 43. The drive chain 43 extends over a pair of idler sprockets 4-4 and 45 journaled on the end wall of the cabinet 21, and then downwardly along the back panel 46 of the dispenser into meshing engagement with a sprocket 47 on a second drive roller 48 rotatably mounted in the lower cabinet 31. The drive roller 48, in turn, engages the periphery of the used towel roll 13, so that each time a length of clean towel is withdrawn from the roll 12, the used towel roll 13 is automatically driven to take up the previously exposed length of toweling. As in the case of the first drive roller 40, the second drive roller 48 is provided with a roughened surface to maintain frictional engagement with the toweling wound on the roll 13.

It will be understood that the towel user may pull the exposed length of towel away from the front walls of the cabinets 21 and 31, so that a certain amount of slack towel will remain when the towel is released by the user. In order to take up this slack toweling when the next user pulls a fresh length of clean towel out of the cabinet 21, it is preferred to drive the roller 48 in the lower cabinet 31 at a rate faster than that of the roller 40 in the upper cabinet 21. This faster drive rate may be achieved by designing the sprockets 42 and 47 to drive the lower roller 48 through several revolutions, e.g., four to five, in response to each revolution of the upper roller 40. For example, if the two

rollers

40 and 48, and the corresponding sprockets 42 and 47, have equal diameters, the upper sprocket may be provided with 10 teeth and the lower sprocket 40 teeth to provide a 1:4 drive ratio. Consequently, the entire length of previously exposed used toweling, including any slack toweling, is quickly taken up by the roll 13 each time a fresh length of clean toweling is withdrawn from the roll 12. It will be appreciated that the exact length of toweling to be taken up by the roll 13 will continually vary, depending on the length of towel withdrawn by successive users and/or the orientation of each fresh length of towel relative to the cabinets 21 and 31; however, the roll 13 quickly takes up the available toweling until a predetermined tension is attained in the toweling leading onto the roll 13, at which time the drive roller 48 simply slips over the surface of the towel roll 13 for the balance of the driving movement of roller 48. That is, the roll 13 automatically takes up whatever length of towel is released to it by the user during the initial portion of each driving movement of the roll 48, and the roller 48 then merely idles for the balance of the driving movement.

As successive increments of used or soiled toweling are wound on the used towel roll 13, the axis thereof moves upwardly and forwardly along a pair of inclined guide members 50 mounted on the opposite end walls of the lower cabinet 31. More particularly, the ends of the shaft 51 of the used towel roll 13 are fitted within the guide members 50 so that as the diameter of the roll 1.3 increases, the shaft 51 gradually advances up the ramps formed by the guide members 50. The weight of the used towel roll 13, including its central shaft 51, is sufficient to maintain the roll in frictional engagement with the stationary drive roller 48. However, the nip between the roller 48 and the roll 13 is not as tight as that maintained between the rollers 40 and 41 in the upper cabinet 21, so that the roller 48 may slip on the surface of the roll 13 during the idle movement described above.

In order to facilitate achieving and maintaining accurate alignment between the operative elements in the two separate cabinets 21 and 31, the rear panel 46 of the dispenser is preferably common to both cabinets. That is, both cabinets 21 and 31 are mounted on the same rear panel so that the two cabinets, and the elements therein, are always in proper alignment with each other, as long as the two cabinets are mounted on the proper predetermined locations on the common panel 46. To accommodate the chain 43 in the space between the upper and lower cabinets 21 and 31, respectively, a chain housing 52 is fitted around the vertical runs of the chain 43 and secured to the rear panel 46 of the dispenser. As can be seen in FIG. 1, the chain housing 52 preferably does not extend across the entire width of the rear panel 46 of the dispenser, so that the maximum space between the upper and lower cabinets 21 and 31 is made available to the towel user.

In accordance with a further aspect of the present invention, an automatic slack takeup mechanism is included in the lower cabinet 31 for taking up any slack developed in the exposed length of towel after each driven movement of the used towel roll 13. As explained previously, such a slack can be produced by the user drawing the exposed toweling away from the front surfaces of the cabinets 21 and 31 so that the length of exposed towel during use is greater than the vertical distance between the egress and

ingress slots

22 and 30. In the particular embodiment illustrated, the automatic slack takeup mechanism includes a generally U-shaped rod 60 (see FIG. 4), the transverse section 600 of which rests on the upper surface of the towel span between the ingress slot 30 and the guide rod 34, in the lower cabinet 31. The rod 60 is pivotally mounted on the end walls of the cabinet 31 by means of the side arms 61 and 62 fitting into complemental mounting elements 63 and 64 on the cabinet end walls. As long as the used towel T is tensioned between the guide rod 34 and the ingress slot 30, either by the pulling force applied by the use or by the driven movement of the towel roll 13, the takeup rod 60 is maintained in its retracted or elevated position, shown in FIG. 2, by the tensioned towel T. However, when the tension on the towel is released, the weight of the takeup rod 60 tends to draw the towel T downwardly between the two support points formed by the guide rod 34 and the lower edge of the ingress slot 30, thereby taking up any slack in the exposed length of the towel T outside the cabinet 31. Thus, the slack is, in effect, transferred from the outside to the inside of the cabinet 31. The advanced or lowered position of the takeup rod 60 for one slack condition is shown in FIG. 3, but it will be understood that the amount of slack to be taken up by the rod 60 will continually vary, depending upon the length of towel withdrawn by the user and the degree to which the user pulls the towel away from the front walls of the two cabinets 21 and 31, so that the rod 60 will assume different attitudes. Since the takeup rod 60 acts on the span of towel between the ingress slot 30 and the fixed guide rod 34, it will be appreciated that the operation of the takeup rod 60 is independent of the diameter of the used towel roll 13.

In accordance with an important aspect of a modified embodiment of the invention, control means are operatively associated with the drive roll in the upper cabinet for automatically terminating movement of the first roller at a selected position to limit the length of towel that can be withdrawn by the user in a single pull. Thus, in the modified embodiment shown in FIGS. 5 through 7, an actuator 70 extends forwardly through a slot in the front wall of the upper cabinet 21, and instructions on the front surface of the dispenser direct the user to push the actuator 70 inwardly when it is desired to pull a fresh length of clean towel from the upper cabinet. The exposed end of the actuator 70 is bent upwardly as at 70a to facilitate pushing movement thereof by the user. When the actuator 70 is in the retracted position shown in FIG. 5, a generally U-shaped control member ll. connected to the inner end of the actuator 70 is positioned so that a lug 71a on one end thereof blocks a pin 72 projecting laterally from a control disc 73 fixed to the shaft of the roller 40. As long as the control member 71 remains in this position, the roller 40 cannot be rotated, and thus towel T cannot be withdrawn through the nip of the rollers 40 and 41.

When the user pushes the actuator 70 inwardly, the control member 71 slides rearwardly along a guide member 74 until the lug 71a clears the pin 72 to permit rotational movement of the control disc 73 and, therefore, the drive roller 40. The user then withdraws a fresh length of clean towel from the upper cabinet 21, thereby rotating the drive roller 40 as described previously. As the drive roller 40 is rotated, the pin 72 on the control disc 73 is moved into camming engagement with a leg 74 of the control member 71, as shown in FIG. 6, thereby returning the control member 71 to its original position, shown in FIG. 5. This return movement of the control member 71 also returns the actuator 70 to its retracted position so that it is in position to be depressed by the next user. Thus, when the pin 72 completes one revolution, it again abuts the lug 71a on the control member 71 to limit the length of towel withdrawn from the clean towel roll. It will be appreciated that the length of towel that can be withdrawn in any given dispenser embodying the illustrative limited pull mechanism will depend on the diameter of the drive roller 40. For example, in one exemplary embodiment of the invention, a drive roller having a diameter of 3 inches is employed, thereby permitting a length of slightly over 9 inches of clean towel to be withdrawn each time the user depresses the actuator 70, i.e., for each revolution of the drive roller 40.

As can be seen from the foregoing detailed description, the present invention provides a continuous roll towel dispenser which completely separates the clean towel roll and the used towel roll so that the clean toweling cannot be contaminated by the used toweling. Although the clean towel roll and the used towel roll are contained in completely separate cabinets, the overall assembly is still relatively compact so that it requires a relatively small wall area and room volume. Moreover, the threading" of a new towel from the clean towel roll to the used towel roll is considerably more simple than in many continuous roll towel dispensers proposed heretofore, and only a relatively short length of towel is required for such threading. A further advantage of the dispenser provided by this invention is that the exposed length of clean towel is spaced away from the dispenser so as to facilitate use of both sides of the exposed towel. Furthermore, a sufficient length of towel is fed to the user on each pull so that only one pull is necessary to provide the user with adequate toweling for each use, thereby improving the efficiency of the dispenser. Finally, the improved dispenser automatically takes up the previously exposed toweling in response to each pull by the user, so that the unsightly exposure of used or soiled toweling is avoided. The dispenser provided by this invention can also be manufactured at a relatively low cost; for example, the two separate cabinets are of symmetrical design, so that the same parts can be used to form both cabinets.

lclaim:

l. A continuous roll towel dispenser comprising the combination of an upper enclosed cabinet containing means for rotatably mounting a clean towel roll within said upper enclosed cabinet, a lower enclosed cabinet containing means for rotatably mounting a used towel roll within said lower enclosed cabinet, said upper having a bottom wall vertically spaced from the top wall of said lower cabinet so that a length of towel extending from said clean towel roll is exposed between said cabinets, and driving means responsive to withdrawal of towel from said clean towel roll in said upper enclosed cabinet for driving said used towel roll in said lower cabinet to take up the previously exposed length of towel from between the cabinets each time a length of clean towel is withdrawn from said clean towel roll.

2. A continuous roll towel dispenser as set forth in claim 1 wherein said upper and lower cabinets are adapted to space the exposed length of towel a substantial distance away from the rear walls of said cabinets so that both sides of the exposed length of towel are readily accessible to the user.

3. A continuous roll towel dispenser as set forth in claim 1 wherein each of said upper and lower cabinets includes a hinged wall portion for providing access to the towel rolls contained therein when said hinged wall portion is in its open position, and for completely enclosing said towel rolls in said cabinets when said hinged wall portion is in its closed position.

4. A continuous roll towel dispenser as set forth in claim 1 wherein said upper and lower cabinets are mounted on a common rear panel.

5. A continuous roll towel dispenser as set forth in claim 1 wherein said upper cabinet forms an elongated towel egress slot at the lower front corner thereof and said lower cabinet forms an elongated towel ingress slot at the upper front corner thereof so that the exposed length of towel between said egress and ingress slots is substantially free of the cabinet surfaces.

6. A continuous roll towel dispenser as set forth in claim 1 wherein said driving means includes a first roller in said upper cabinet and frictionally engaging said towel for movement in response to the withdrawal of towel from said clean towel roll, a second roller in said lower cabinet and frictionally engaging the towel on the used towel roll therein for driving said used towel roll, and means interconnecting said first and second rollers for automatically driving said second roller to drive said used towel roll in response to movement of said first roller upon withdrawal of towel from said clean towel roll.

7. A continuous roll towel dispenser as set forth in claim 6 which includes control means operatively associated with said first roller for terminating movement of said first roller at a selected position, actuating means operated by the user to move said control means to an advanced position to clear said first roller for movement to permit withdrawal of the towel from said clean towel roll, said control means including means responsive to movement of said first roller for automatically returning the control means to its original position to terminate the movement of said first roller at said selected position and thereby limit the length of towel withdrawn from said clean towel roll.

8. A continuous roll towel dispenser as set forth in claim 1 which includes means in said lower cabinet for automatically taking up any slack in the exposed length of towel after each driven movement of said used towel roll.

9. A continuous roll towel dispenser as set forth in claim 1 in which a transversev guide rod is mounted above the space for the used towel rod in said lower cabinet so that the towel entering the lower cabinet passes over said guide rod before being wound on the used towel roll, and a movable slack takeup member is included in said lower cabinet for resting on the towel span between said guide rod and the entrance to the lower cabinet so that the takeup member automatically draws any slack towel downwardly inside the lower cabinet whenever said towel is in an untensioned condition.

Claims

1. A continuous roll towel dispenser comprising the combination of an upper enclosed cabinet containing means for rotatably mounting a clean towel roll within said upper enclosed cabinet, a lower enclosed cabinet containing means for rotatably mounting a used towel roll within said lower enclosed cabinet, said upper having a bottom wall vertically spaced from the top wall of said lower cabinet so that a length of towel extending from said clean towel roll is exposed between said cabinets, and driving means responsive to withdrawal of towel from said clean towel roll in said upper enclosed cabinet for driving said used towel roll in said lower cabinet to take up the previously exposed length of towel from between the cabinets each time a length of clean towel is withdrawn from said clean towel roll.

9. A continuous roll towel dispenser as set forth in claim 1 in which a transverse guide rod is mounted above the space for the used towel rod in said lower cabinet so that the towel entering the lower cabinet passes over said guide rod before being wound on the used towel roll, and a movable slack takeup member is included in said lower cabinet for resting on the towel span between said guide rod and the entrance to the lower cabinet so that the takeup member automatically draws any slack towel downwardly inside the lower cabinet whenever said towel is in an untensioned condition.