AU734497B2 - Dispenser - Google Patents

Description

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Applicant: SPYROS DROUSIOTIS Invention Title:

DISPENSER

The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me: 0 2-

DISPENSER

This invention relates to a dispenser, and more particularly a dispenser for individually dispensing elongate objects, and has been particularly developed for containing and dispensing toothpicks, although it is not 20 restricted to such objects and may also apply to other elongate objects, such as matches, cigarettes and the like.

In both commercial and domestic food eating situations it is desirable that items, such as toothpicks, be individually dispensable whereby, for hygienic reasons, oeeee contact with adjacent toothpicks be prevented, whilst also allowing for ease of isolating a toothpick from a large bundle of items of relatively small cross-section when S *grasping an individual toothpick can, in some circumstances, be awkward for some persons with certain handicaps effecting their manipulative skills.

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a dispenser for individually dispensing elongate objects, such as toothpicks, and which overcomes, or at least minimises, the hygienic and manipulative problems referred to above.

The invention therefore envisages a dispenser for elongate objects, said dispenser including a container in which a store of such objects is retained, part of the interior of said container being so shaped that only one of said objects in turn will gravitate into a confined space, and means carried by the container for axially urging the object in the confined space at least partially out of a container through an outlet port from the container, and wherein said container further includes an outer housing and an inner canister axially slidable into and out of said housing and defining with said housing a chamber for the receipt of said store of objects.

One preferred embodiment of the invention, as applied to the dispensing of toothpicks, will now be described with reference to accompanying drawings, in which; Figure 1 is a perspective view of the two main components of the dispenser in a separated condition, Figure 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the dispenser of Figure 1 in the assembled and operational condition, and Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 of Figure 2.

Turning to the drawings, the dispenser of this S 30 preferred embodiment comprises a housing 10 closed at the S* sides 11, top 12, bottom 13, and one end 14, but open at the remaining end 15 to allow a canister 16 to pass into the housing and which, when inserted within the housing provides, together with the housing, a storage chamber 17 for a supply of toothpicks lying in parallel relationship with each other.

The canister 16 has an upstanding wall 18, and a lower portion 18a of which houses a dispensing mechanism 19, and from which a V-shaped supporting wall 20 extends ***ee 4and on which a supply of toothpicks is supported. The end wall 18, and the V-shaped supporting wall 20 are dimensioned so as to be slidably and snugly received within the interior of the housing 10 when the canister and the housing are united, whilst the canister is completed by upper, side and lower flanges 21 which abut against the end surfaces of the side or top and bottom walls 11, 12 and 13 of the housing when the canister is inserted within the housing.

With the canister partially inserted within the housing a supply of toothpicks can be inserted by downward -and inward movement into the chamber 17 within the dispenser, whereafter the canister is fully inserted into the housing. An individual toothpick will gravitate to lie along the bottom-most part of the V of the V-shaped canister so as to be isolated and confined at that point :i from the remainder of the stored supply of toothpicks, while the bottommost part of the V of the V-shaped canister 20 is axially aligned with the dispensing mechanism 19 and an outlet port 22 through the opposite end wall 14 of the housing.

The dispensing mechanism 19 comprises an elongate plunger 23 received through an aperture 24 through the end wall portion 18a of the canister and axially aligned with an individual toothpick at the bottom of the V of the Vshaped canister, whereby when axially finger actuated the toothpick will be partially dispensed through the outlet.

30 port 22 through the opposite end wall 14 of the housing, whereby it can be grasped and removed from the dispenser, allowing another individual toothpick from the stored supply to gravitate to the bottom of the V of the V-shaped canister, and for subsequent dispensing.

The plunger 23 of the dispensing mechanism 19 has a compression coil spring 25 associated therewith, normally urging the plunger via a diametrically extending pin 26, outwardly of the aperture 24 until the pin contacts a partition 27 through which the plunger extends so as to prevent the plunger from being ejected from the aperture 24. The spring 25 is held between the pin 26 and a radially inwardly extending circumferential flange 28 at the inner end of the aperture 24, and is compressed upon axial finger actuation of the plunger during the dispensing of the toothpick. However, thereafter upon release of finger pressure the plunger under action of compression -spring 25 returns to a position retracted from the interior of the housing and as shown in Figure 2.

In order to prevent toothpicks accidentally moving through the outlet port 22, when the dispensing mechanism 19 is not actuated, the port 22 may include a flexible diaphragm, or a plurality of radially inwardly o ooo 20 extending flexible fins, defining an aperture of a size slightly less than the cross-sectional dimensions of the toothpicks, and which flexible diaphragm or fins deflect to allow passage of a toothpick through the port 22 when the dispensing mechanism 19 is actuated.

Claims (4)

1. A dispenser for elongate objects, said dispenser including a container in which a store of such objects is retained, part of the interior of said container being so shaped that only one of said objects in turn will gravitate into a confined space, and means carried by the container for axially urging the object in the confined space at least partially out of a container through an outlet port from the container, and wherein said container further includes an outer housing and an inner canister axially slidable into and out of said housing and defining with said housing a chamber for the receipt of said store of objects.

2. A dispenser as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said confined space is defined by a groove extending lengthwise of the container and parallel with the length of the objects which it is to receive, and sized such as to receive only one object at a time. A dispenser as claimed in Claim 2, wherein the groove is defined by the bottom of an elongate V-shaped cavity. 25 4. A dispenser as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein said groove is provided along the length of said canister at said chamber. oo A dispenser as claimed in any one of the 30 preceding claims, wherein said means for urging an object out of said confined space is a spring loaded plunger assembly aligned with one end of said confined space with said outlet port being aligned with the other end of said confined space.

6. A dispenser as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein said outlet port contains flexible means at least partially closing said outlet port and adapted to flex outwardly to allow passage of an object through said outlet port when said means for urging an object out of a said confined space is actuated, whilst at other times preventing the passage of an object through said outlet port.

7. A dispenser substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Dated this 10th day of April 2001 SPYROS DROUSIOTIS By their Patent Attorneys GRIFFITH HACK Fellows Institute of Patent Attorneys of Australia a *oe