GB2029801A

GB2029801A - Dispenser for Sheet-formed Products in Roll Form

Info

Publication number: GB2029801A
Application number: GB7926774A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: SOPALIN
Current assignee: SOPALIN
Priority date: 1978-08-02
Filing date: 1979-08-01
Publication date: 1980-03-26
Also published as: FR2432293A1; DE2931053A1; IT7924854A0; IT1165282B

Abstract

A dispenser for a sheet formed product 13 wound in a roll 8 on a support 6, comprises a box 1 with an opening at its upper part enabling introduction of the roll. The box has two lateral guides defined by slots 5 for guiding the descending movement of a plurality of the superimposed rolls 8 in the box, and an aperture 12 formed in the lower part of the box from which the sheet-formed product 13 on the lowermost roll is dispensed. The box has a slot (not visible in Figure 1) in its lower part for the extraction of the supports 6 of expended rolls from the box. The slots 5 are covered by strips 9 made at least partly of transparent material to determine, from outside, the position of at least one of the roll supports 6 in its slot 5, whereby to check the amount of sheet-formed product remaining on the lowermost roll 8. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Dispenser for Sheet-formed Products in Roll Form This invention relates to a dispenser of the storage type for a sheet-formed product wound on a support, which is intended in particular, but not exclusively, for communal use.

Paper-dispensers, especially toilet-paper dispensers, are known in which two rolls of paper are disposed side-by-side on the same horizontal shaft, and a movable mask prohibits access to the second roll of paper until the first roll has been used up. When the first roll has been used entirely, movement of the mask gives access to the second roll, the first roll being replaced subsequently with a new roll which, in its turn, serves as a reserve.

These known dispensers are not satisfactory, having regard to the fragility of the mechanism and, on the other hand, difficulty of maintenance which requires relatively difficult controls.

The present invention aims to overcome these difficulties.

According to the invention a dispenser for a sheet-formed product wound on a support, comprises a box with an opening at its upper part enabling introduction of said roll, said box comprising two lateral guides for guiding the descending movement of a plurality of superimposed rolls in the box, an aperture formed in the region of the lower part of the box from which the sheet-formed product is dispensed, means enabling extraction of the roll supports from the box, and means enabling the determination, from outside the box, of the position of at least one of said supports relative to at least one of said guides.

Said lateral guides may be constituted by slots or grooves in the box for the reception of the ends of the shafts of mandrels constituting said supports, the width of the slots or grooves being substantially equal to the diameter of the shafts.

In this case, the dimensions of said aperture may be such as to enable extraction therethrough of said mandrels after extraction of the corresponding shafts from the box.

The means enabling the determination of the position of at least one of the supports may be provided by making at least part of at least one of said guides of a transparent material.

In use of the dispenser in accordance with the invention, a reserve roll of the sheet-formed product, which is in the upper part of the box, serves as a brake against excessive unwinding of the product from the roll being used.

The invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a dispenser in accordance with the invention, Figure 2 is a sectional view taken on the line A-A of Figure 1, Figure 3 is a sectional view taken on the line B-B of Figure 1, Figure 4 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the dispenser in accordance with the invention, Figure 5 is a sectional view taken on the line D-D of Figure 4, Figure 6 is an exploded perspective view of a third embodiment of the dispenser in accordance with the invention, Figure 7 is a perspective view of the assembled dispenser of Figure 6, Figure 8 is a perspective view, partly broken away, of a fourth embodiment of the dispenser in accordance with the invention, Figure 9 is a sectional end view of the lower part of the dispenser of Figure 8, Figure 10 is a perspective view, partly broken away, of a fifth embodiment of the dispenser in accordance with the invention, and Figure 11 is a sectional elevation of the lower part of the dispenser of Figure 10.

The dispenser shown in Figures 1-3 comprises a box 1 of generally parallelepipedic shape for the reception of at least two superposed rolls 8 of a sheet-formed product, for example toilet paper, which is to be dispensed. The upper and lower ends of the box 1 are rounded with a radius substantially equal to the radius of a full roll of the sheet-formed product. The upper part of the box 1 may be closed by a lid 2 pivotally mounted on a shaft 3. The sides 4 of the box have grooves 5, in which are engaged supports for the rolls 8, these supports consisting of shafts 6 which may be integral with, or separate from, mandrels 7 carrying the rolls 8 (see Figure 2). The grooves 5 are covered with masks 9, made at least partly of transparent material, enabling checking, from outside the box 1, of the height of the shafts 6 in the interior of the dispenser.In addition, the box is provided with scales, disposed along the masks 9, to give an indication that, with the lowermost roll 8 almost expended, the second roll should be put into service and that it is suitable to introduce a third roll into the dispenser. Advantageously, and in the case of dispensers intended for communal use, the grooves 5 are provided with non-return means, for example springs 10, which oppose the extraction of rolls 8 from the upper end of the box 1.

As can best be seen from Figure 3, the grooves 5 are terminated at their lower ends by an aperture 1 the width of which is substantially equal to the external diameter of the mandrels 7.

A second, front aperture 12, arranged at the lower part of the dispenser, is provided for the dispensing of the sheet-formed product 13 from the lowermost roll 8. The dimensions of this aperture 12 are such that it is possible to insert several fingers into it, in order to grasp a portion of the outermost layer of the sheet-formed product of a roll when the latter is put into service.

Means 14 enable fixing of the dispenser on a wall.

The way in which the dispenser functions is very simple. The rolls 8 are introduced in succession at the upper end of the box 1 and the first roll is put into use. When it has been used up, the second roll, which descends progressively in the course of use of the first roll, becomes accessible in turn via the aperture 12.

Simultaneously, the mandrel 7 of the first roll arrives against the aperture 11 and is ejected via the latter.

Figures 4 and 5 show another embodiment in which the introduction of the rolls into the dispenser is effected in a direction inclined to the vertical. The two halves 1 5a and 1 Sb of the box 1 are in this case joined by bridging pieces 1 6.

Unlike the embodiment of Figures 1-3, the bottom of the dispenser is not open, but has at the bottom of each groove 5 a circular orifice 17, so that when a roll is used up, its mandrel 7 or the assembly of its shaft 6 and mandrel 7, can be expelled by a force applied to one of its ends.

The dispenser shown iri Figures 6 and 7 comprises a box 1 assembled from two identical half shells 1 a and 1 b, which may be moulded from plastics material in the same mould. These two half shells may be assembled by means of strips 9 of transparent material, for example by sticking. In this embodiment, the aperture 12 for the dispensing of the sheet-formed product also permits passage of the mandrels and shafts of expended rolls. Of course, the width of the strips 9 is such that they permit the passage of the shafts 6 of the rolls between the sides 5 of the shells.

Figures 8-11 1 show other embodiments in which the guiding of the shafts of the rolls is obtained by means of guide rails 1 8 formed in the interior of the box 1. Transparent windows 1 9 enable the positions of the shafts 6 to be observed from outside the box.

The embodiment shown in Figures 8 and 9 is noteworthy in that the extraction aperture 12 for the support shafts of the mandrels aiso serves as the aperture for the dispensing of the sheetformed product. To this end the guide rails 18 are bent in the region of their lower ends so as to permit movement of the mandrel of the roll in service towards the aperture 12 as use proceeds.

In the embodiment of Figures 10 and 1 the guide rails 18 are vertical. At the lower part of these rails, orifices 20 permit the extraction of a shaft 6 when its roll is completely used up, this extraction being done by translation of the shaft as described above with reference to Figure 5. On the other hand, the mandrel 7, disengaged from its shaft, passes to the exterior via a slot 21 under the influence of pressure exerted by the following roll.

In all of the above described embodiments, the aperture 12 is sufficiently large to permit the passage of several fingers to enable broaching of the outermost layer of the sheet-formed product of the new roll which is to be used.

It is, of course, possible to provide at the lower part of the dispenser a housing into which the mandrel support shafts fall. However, the invention is not limited to the case in which the sheet-formed product is wrapped on a mandrel with a shaft. Complementary members can be provided which, by penetration of the interior of the roll support or by contact with the flanks of the roll, ensure the desired guiding.

Compared with hitherto known dispensers for sheet-formed products, the dispenser in accordance with the present invention judiciously uses the difference in diameter between a full roll and its support. The described dispensers enable distributive economies to be realised by ensuring the use of each roll up to the end of its sheetformed product.

The dispenser of the present invention may be used not only for toilet-paper but for other sheetformed products, for example domestic cleaning paper of greater size and aluminium foil.

Of course, modifications may be made to the embodiments which have just been described, in particular by the substitution of equivalent technical means, without thereby departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the ensuing claims.

Claims

1. A dispenser for a sheet-formed product wound in a roll on a support, comprising a box with an opening at its upper part enabling introduction of said roll, said box comprising two lateral guides for guiding the descending movement of a plurality of superimposed rolls in the box, an aperture formed in the region of the lower part of the box from which the sheetformed product is dispensed, means enabling extraction of the roll supports from the box, and means enabling the determination, from outside the box, of the position of at least one of said supports relative to at least one of said guides.

2. A dispenser according to claim 1, wherein said lateral guides are constituted by slots or grooves in the box for the reception of the ends of the shafts of mandrels constituting said supports, the width of the slots or grooves being substantially equal to the diameter of the shafts.

3. A dispenser according to claim 2, wherein the dimensions of said aperture enable extraction therethrough of said mandrels after extraction of the corresponding shafts from the box.

4. A dispenser according to any of the preceding claims, wherein at least part of at least one of said guides is made of transparent material.

5. A dispenser according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said guides are provided at their upper part with means preventing removal of the rolls from the box through said opening.

6. A dispenser according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said box is formed of two halves joined together by bridging pieces.

7. A dispenser according to any of the preceding claims, wherein at the upper part of the box said guides are inclined to the vertical.

8. A dispenser according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said guides are bent at their lower part in the direction of said aperture.

9. A dispenser according to claim 2 or any of claims 4 to 8 when dependent on claim 2, wherein at least one of said slots or grooves opens at its lower part into a circular orifice having a diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the mandrels.

1 0. A dispenser according to claim 2 or any of claims 4 to 8 when dependent on claim 2 and in which said lateral guides are in the form of slots, wherein at least one of said slots opens at its lower part into a circular orifice having a diameter substantially equal to the diameter of said supports.

11. A dispenser according to claim 10, wherein a slot for the extraction of mandrels is disposed in the lower part of the box below the lower ends of said slots.

12. A dispenser for a sheet-formed product constructed and arranged substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to, and as illustrated in, Figures 1 to 3, Figures 4 and 5, Figures 6 and 7, Figures 8 and 9 or Figures 10 and 11 of the accompanying drawings.