JP7451441B2 - Lever cover for trigger type liquid ejector - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a lever cover for a trigger-type liquid ejector that operates a pump by operating a control lever to eject liquid contained in a container body from a nozzle.

The ejector body attached to the mouth of the container has a pump that sends out the liquid, an operating lever that operates the pump, a delivery channel that forces the liquid to the pump, and a delivery port that is the outlet end of the delivery channel. Trigger-type liquid ejectors are known that include a nozzle provided therein. A nozzle is equipped with an ejection hole inside a cylindrical outer circumferential wall with a cross-sectional shape such as a triangle or square, and directs the liquid that has been pressure-fed by a pump through a delivery channel to a delivery port from the ejection port to the outside. It erupts. Further, the nozzle is configured such that the open/closed state of the ejection hole can be switched by, for example, a rotational operation on the outer peripheral wall.
In such a trigger-type liquid ejector, when the operating lever is operated with a fingertip, the pump is activated, and the liquid is pumped from the container body to the nozzle, and is ejected from the ejection hole in the form of mist, foam, direct injection, etc. (For example, see Patent Document 1)

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-213495

In recent years, trigger-type liquid sprays containing liquid disinfectants and disinfectants such as alcohol and ethanol have been installed at store entrances as a measure to prevent infectious diseases such as influenza and the new coronavirus. Disinfection and sterilization are performed by operating a control lever and squirting disinfectant and disinfectant onto hands and fingers.

However, since such trigger-type liquid ejectors are used by an unspecified number of people, there is a risk of spreading infection if viruses or bacteria attach to the control lever itself. was there.

An object of the present invention is to create a lever cover for a trigger-type liquid ejector that can disinfect and sterilize viruses and bacteria attached to the operating lever, in order to solve the problems in the prior art described above.

Among the means for solving the above problems, the main means of the present invention are:
A lever cover for a trigger-type liquid ejector, comprising a pump that pumps the content liquid contained in a container body toward a nozzle provided with an ejection hole, and an operation lever that drives the pump,
A fitting part that fits at least the operating lever and covers the front surface, and a fitting part that extends from the fitting part to a position in front of the spout hole and guides a part of the liquid content spouted from the spout hole to the finger grip surface of the fitting part. It is characterized by having a guiding part that does.
According to the main means of the present invention, each time the operating lever with the lever cover attached is operated, the ejected content liquid flows through the guiding part to the finger-resting surface which is the front surface of the lever cover, so that the finger-resting surface is disinfected or removed. Can be bacterium.

Further, another means of the present invention is provided in addition to the above-mentioned main means of the present invention, in which the guide part includes a front wall to which a part of the ejected content liquid adheres, and a guide part that directs the content liquid adhering to the front wall toward the fitting part. This has an additional means of having an inclined surface for dropping the liquid and a guide hole for allowing the liquid content to pass from the inclined surface to the finger-holding surface of the fitting part.
With the above means, the content liquid can be reliably guided to the finger-holding surface of the fitting part.

Further, another means of the present invention is one in which the upper end of the front wall is provided on the ejection path of the content liquid ejected from the ejection hole.
With the above means, a part of the content liquid ejected from the ejection hole can be reliably attached to the front wall.

Further, another means of the present invention is one in which the above-mentioned means is further provided with a residual means for causing the content liquid to remain on the finger-holding surface.
With the above means, the highly volatile content liquid can remain on the finger resting surface.

Further, another means of the present invention is such that the remaining means is constituted by arranging a plurality of horizontally elongated convex portions or concave portions at predetermined intervals in parallel on the finger resting surface. It was added.
Alternatively, the remaining means is configured by connecting and arranging a plurality of inclined convex portions or concave portions in a zigzag shape on the finger resting surface.
With the above means, the liquid content that has passed through the guide hole and flowed out onto the finger resting surface can easily remain in the convex portion or recessed part that constitutes the residual means, so that the finger resting surface can be wetted with the liquid content, that is, a disinfected or sterilized state. It is possible to hold it for a relatively long time.

In the present invention, when the operating lever to which the lever cover is attached is operated to eject, the liquid content is guided to the finger-resting surface, which is the surface of the lever cover, and the finger-resting surface can be disinfected or sterilized.

FIG. 1 is a side view showing a part of a trigger-type liquid ejector equipped with a lever cover as an embodiment of the present invention in cross section. It is a front view showing a first embodiment of a lever cover. (a) is a front view showing a second embodiment of the lever cover, and (b) is a front view showing a third embodiment of the lever cover.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a side view showing a part of a trigger type liquid ejector equipped with a lever cover as an embodiment of the present invention in cross section, and FIG. 2 is a front view showing a first embodiment of the lever cover.
First, the configuration of the trigger type liquid ejector to which the lever cover is attached will be briefly described.
In this embodiment, the central axis of the container body 2 is referred to as the central axis O1, and along this central axis O1, the side of the container body 2 is referred to as the lower side, and the opposite side of the mounting cap 5 side is referred to as the upper side. Further, the direction along the central axis O1 is referred to as the up-down direction or the vertical direction, and the direction perpendicular to the up-down direction and parallel to the plane of paper is referred to as the front-back direction, which is a direction perpendicular to both the up-down direction and the front-back direction. is called the left-right direction.

The trigger-type liquid ejector A shown in FIG. 1 is attached to the opening 2a of a container body 2 containing liquid disinfectant or disinfectant (hereinafter referred to as "content liquid") such as alcohol or ethanol, for example. It is used by being attached via the cap 5, and is made of a synthetic resin material.

The trigger-type liquid ejector A is formed with a pump 10 that sucks up the liquid contained in the container body 2 and ejects it forward (leftward in the drawing, the same applies hereinafter), and a spout hole 35 that spouts the liquid contained. It has a nozzle 30, an operation lever 51 that constitutes a trigger mechanism 50 that drives the pump 10, and a main body cover 40 that covers a main body (not shown) of a jet device that mainly sends the content liquid sucked up by the pump 10 to the nozzle 30. It is composed of

A detailed explanation of the ejector body will be omitted, but the suction device receives the action of the pump 10 and sucks up the liquid content through a pipe 6 formed mainly along the vertical direction and hanging down into the container body 2. It includes a cylinder part (not shown), an injection cylinder part (not shown) extending horizontally from the suction cylinder part, and a guide member 20 described later.
A delivery channel (not shown) for delivering the content liquid to the nozzle 30 is provided inside the injection cylinder.

The pump 10 includes a cylindrical cylinder 11 and a plunger 12 that is provided so as to be able to reciprocate within the cylinder 11. In the ejector main body, when the pump 10 is driven and the inside of the cylinder 11 is pressurized, the injection cylinder part and the suction cylinder part communicate with each other, and at the same time the communication between the suction cylinder part and the pipe 6 is cut off. . Further, when the pressure inside the cylinder 11 is reduced, communication between the injection cylinder part and the suction cylinder part is cut off, and at the same time, communication between the suction cylinder part and the pipe 6 is established. The communication between the injection cylinder and the suction cylinder and the communication between the suction cylinder and the pipe are carried out by known check valves provided respectively.

At a position in front of the main body cover 40, a guide member 20 assembled to a front end portion of an injection cylinder portion (not shown) is provided. The guide member 20 is integrally formed with a mounted cylinder part 22 and a guide shaft part 23 that coaxially extend forward from a guide partition wall (not shown) disposed opposite to the front end of the injection cylinder part. A cylindrical annular space 24 is provided in which the shaft portion 23 and the mounted cylinder portion 22 face each other in the radial direction. Further, a fitting cylinder part (not shown) that extends rearward and fits into the injection cylinder part is integrally formed in the guide partition wall, and furthermore, a fitting cylinder part (not shown) that extends rearward and fits into the injection cylinder part is provided between the delivery channel in the injection cylinder part and the annular space 24. A communication hole (not shown) is provided to communicate with each other.

The nozzle 30 includes an outer circumferential wall 32, and a partition wall 33 is provided inside the outer circumferential wall 32. The outer peripheral wall 32 has a cylindrical shape with a substantially triangular cross section, and constitutes the outer shell of the nozzle 30. The partition wall 33 is formed of a plate-shaped member perpendicular to the central axis O2 of the outer circumferential wall 32, and covers the open end of the mounted cylindrical portion 22. A cylindrical mounting tube 34 is integrally connected to the partition wall 33 . The mounting cylinder 34 covers the outer periphery of the mounting cylinder part 22, and a convex portion provided on the inner peripheral surface of the mounting cylinder 34 undercuts into an annular groove provided in the outer peripheral surface of the mounting cylinder part 22, thereby forming a nozzle. 30 is rotatably attached to the attached cylinder portion 22.

The partition wall 33 is provided with an ejection hole 35 passing through it along the central axis O2. The ejection hole 35 is formed of a small hole having a smaller cross-sectional area than the injection cylinder forming the delivery flow path, and is capable of ejecting the content liquid that has been pressure-fed into the injection cylinder in the form of mist to the outside. It becomes.

A closed cylinder part 36 formed in a cylindrical shape and coaxial with the ejection hole 35 is integrally provided on the inner surface of the partition wall 33 facing the attached cylinder part 22 (right side in the figure), and the closed cylinder part 36 is installed. By slidably fitting into the inner circumferential surface of the cylindrical portion 22 , the open end of the mounted cylindrical portion 22 is fluid-tightly closed by the partition wall 33 . Furthermore, a switching cylinder part 37 is integrally provided on the inner surface of the partition wall 33 so that the central axis O2 thereof coincides with that of the closing cylinder part 36, and the switching cylinder part 37 is located inside thereof. The switching cylinder part 37 is slidably fitted to the outside of the guide shaft part 23. The closing cylinder part 36 and the switching cylinder part 37 are rotatable relative to the mounted cylinder part 22 and the guide shaft part 23, respectively.

A pair of connection channels 23a extending in a direction along the central axis O2 are provided on the front side wall surface of the guide shaft portion 23 symmetrically about the central axis O2. On the other hand, on the inner circumferential surface of the switching cylinder section 37, a pair of connecting channels 37a extending in the direction along the central axis O2 from the tip thereof to a position overlapping the connecting channel 23a of the guide shaft section 23 are provided. It is arranged symmetrically around the center. Further, a spin groove (chamber) 27 is formed in a space where the partition wall 33 and the guide shaft portion 23 face each other.

When the nozzle 30 is in the open position shown in FIG. ) 27, and as a result, the nozzle 30 is brought into an open state in which the ejection hole 35 is communicated with the delivery channel and the content liquid can be ejected.

On the other hand, although details are not shown, when the nozzle 30 is rotated from the open position to the closed position by 120 degrees around the central axis O2, the connection flow path 23a of the guide shaft portion 23 and the connection flow path 37a of the switching cylinder portion 37 are connected. The nozzle 30 is shifted in the circumferential direction and becomes a non-communicating state, and the nozzle 30 is brought into a closed state in which the ejection hole 35 is blocked from the delivery flow path and the content liquid cannot be ejected. In this way, by rotating the nozzle 30 and setting it in the closed position or the open position, the opening/closing state of the ejection hole 35 can be switched.

Therefore, when the trigger-type liquid ejector A is not in use, by keeping the nozzle 30 in a closed state, it is possible to store the nozzle 30 in a state where ejection of liquid due to erroneous operation is prevented.

The trigger mechanism 50 includes an operating lever 51 and an urging member 52 that urges the operating lever 51 forward. The operating lever 51 is a substantially square-shaped member in side view that extends downward from the lower end of the main body cover 40 at a position near the lower end of the nozzle 30 .

The operating lever 51 is rotatably supported by the ejector main body via a pivot (not shown), and is rotatably connected to the tip of the plunger 12 at an intermediate portion thereof by a pin member 13. Further, a biasing member 52 whose one end is fixedly held on the ejector body is engaged with the operating lever 51, and when the operating lever 51 is manually operated, the biasing member 52 causes the operating lever to 51 can be biased in the direction (clockwise in FIG. 1) to return it to the initial state shown by the solid line in FIG. Although the biasing member 52 is configured, for example, by a plate spring formed in a curved shape, it may have another configuration as long as it has the above-described function.

When the operating lever 51 is pulled backward with a finger from the initial state shown by the solid line to the ejection state shown by the two-dot chain line, the plunger 12 is driven and the inside of the cylinder 11 can be pressurized. When the finger is released, the biasing member 52 returns, the operating lever 51 is returned from the ejection state to the original initial state, and the pressure inside the cylinder 11 can be reduced.

A lever cover 60 is attached to the operating lever 51 and is detachably provided. As shown in FIG. 2, the lever cover 60 is located between a fitting portion 61 that fits into the operating lever 51 and a finger hook surface 62 that is a front surface of the fitting portion 61 to a position in front of the spout hole 35. The guide portion 63 is provided.

In this embodiment, the fitting part 61 is a rectangular cylindrical member that has an opening at the upper end into which the operating lever 51 is inserted and is closed at the lower end, and is removably fitted to the outer surface of the operating lever 51. Although shown as a configuration, any configuration may be used as long as it includes at least a finger hook surface 62 that covers the front surface of the operation lever 51 in a state where it is fitted into the operation lever 51.

The guiding portion 63 includes a sloped surface 64 formed obliquely upward from the upper position of the finger rest surface 62, a front wall 65 extending upward from the upper end of the sloped surface 64, and a pair of surfaces facing each other in the left-right direction. It is formed with a side wall 66 and a guide hole 67 formed at the base end of the inclined surface 64 and at the connecting portion with the finger rest surface 62. As shown in FIG. 1, the upper end of the front wall 65 is located on the ejection path of the liquid content ejected from the ejection holes 35, that is, on the extension of the central axis O2 passing through the ejection holes 35. .

When using the trigger type liquid ejector A, pinch the nozzle 30 and rotate it from the closed position to the open position, so that the ejection hole 35 is in the open state in which it communicates with the delivery channel and can eject the liquid content. Set. Next, while holding the trigger-type liquid ejector A with one hand, the user operates the operating lever 51 by pulling the finger that is in contact with the finger holding surface 62 backward. Then, the operating lever 51 rotates from the initial state toward the ejection state, the plunger 12 moves, the pump 10 is driven, and the inside of the cylinder 11 is pressurized. As a result, the liquid content in the cylinder 11 is introduced into the suction cylinder, and due to the action of a check valve (not shown), the injection cylinder and the suction cylinder are opened and communicated with each other, and the suction cylinder and the pipe are opened. 6 is closed and cut off, the liquid content is pumped and supplied from the suction tube section into the injection tube section. Then, the internal pressure of the injection cylinder increases, so that the liquid inside the injection cylinder flows forward from the injection hole 35 through the communication hole (not shown), the annular space 24, the connection flow path 37a, the connection flow path 23a, and the spin groove (chamber) 27. A mist is sprayed towards the
At this time, as shown in FIG. 1, since the lever cover 60 also rotates from the initial state to the ejection state together with the operating lever 51, the guiding portion 63 also transitions from the initial state shown by the solid line to the ejection state shown by the broken line. I will do it.
Note that when the lever cover 60 is attached to the operating lever 51, the length of the operating lever 51 can be substantially extended downward by the amount of the fitting portion 61, so that the operability of the operating lever 51 is improved. Is possible.

Since the upper end of the front wall 65 of the lever cover 60 is located on the extension line of the central axis O2 passing through the spout hole 35, most of the content liquid is atomized toward the front from the spout hole 35. However, some of the content liquid will adhere to the inner surface of the front wall 65. Then, when the ejection operation of pulling the operating lever 51 is repeated several times, the liquid content flows out in the form of drops on the inner surface of the front wall 65, and flows down from the front wall 65 onto the inclined surface 64.

In the ejection state when the operating lever 51 is pulled, the inclined surface 64 is set in a substantially horizontal position. Therefore, the content liquid that has flowed down on the slope surface 64 can be temporarily stored in the holding space S surrounded by the slope surface 64, the front wall 65, and the pair of side walls 66, and the content liquid that has accumulated here can be stored on the operating lever 51. When it returns to its initial state, it passes through the guide hole 67 and flows down onto the finger rest surface 62. Thereby, it becomes possible to wet the lever cover 60, especially the finger-resting surface 62, with the liquid content (alcohol, ethanol, etc.), and it becomes possible to disinfect or sterilize the finger-resting surface 62. Therefore, even if an unspecified number of people use the trigger type liquid ejector A, it is possible to suppress the spread of virus or bacterial infection.

Note that even when the nozzle 30 of the trigger-type liquid ejector A is ejected downward, the liquid content is temporarily ejected in the holding space S surrounded by the inclined surface 64, the front wall 65, and the pair of side walls 66, as described above. When the trigger type liquid ejector A is returned to its original upright position (see FIG. 1), the liquid content will flow down onto the finger grip surface 62.

By the way, in order to maintain a disinfected or sterilized state, it is necessary to maintain the finger-holding surface 62 wet with the liquid content for as long as possible. Therefore, in the following, a residual means for keeping the content liquid such as relatively highly volatile alcohol or ethanol on the finger gripping surface 62 will be explained.

FIG. 3(a) is a front view showing a second embodiment of the lever cover, and FIG. 3(b) is a front view showing a third embodiment of the lever cover.
In the second embodiment of the lever cover shown in FIG. 3(a), a plurality of horizontally elongated convex portions or concave portions are arranged in parallel on the finger resting surface 62 at predetermined intervals to form a residual means 70.
On the other hand, in the third embodiment of the lever cover shown in FIG. 3(b), a plurality of inclined convex portions or concave portions are connected and arranged in a zigzag shape on the finger resting surface 62 to form a residual means 70.

In any of the embodiments described above, the content liquid that has passed through the guide hole 67 and flowed out onto the finger-holding surface 62 is likely to remain in the convex portion or concave portion that constitutes the residual means 70. Therefore, it is possible to maintain a state in which the finger-holding surface 62 is wet with the liquid content, that is, a disinfected or sterilized state for a relatively long period of time.
In addition, the remaining means 70 has a convex portion or a concave portion that also functions as a non-slipper. Therefore, it is possible to reliably perform the ejection operation by pulling the operating lever 51 backward.
Furthermore, in the above embodiment, since the lever cover 60 is configured to be detachable from the operating lever 51, it is possible to use the existing trigger type liquid ejector A as is.

Although the structure of the present invention and its effects have been described above with reference to Examples, the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned Examples.

In the above embodiment, the lever cover 60 is attached to the operating lever 51 of the existing trigger-type liquid ejector A. You can also use it as

Further, in the above embodiment, the content liquid flows toward the lower end of the finger-holding surface 62 of the fitting portion 61 by passing through the guide hole 67 formed at the connecting portion between the base end of the inclined surface 64 and the finger-holding surface 62. Although shown and described, the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and a gap is formed in the portion where the base end of the inclined surface 64 and the finger rest surface 62 face each other, and a connection is made within the gap. A configuration may also be adopted in which a plate is arranged and the base end of the inclined surface 64 and the finger rest surface 62 are connected only by the connecting plate. In this configuration, the content liquid flows from the inclined surface 64 through the connecting plate and reaches the fitting part 61, but at the same time, it also flows from the gaps on both sides of the connecting plate toward the finger hooking surface 62, so as described above. It is possible to disinfect or sterilize the finger-resting surface 62 with the liquid contained therein.

Further, in the second and third embodiments of the lever cover, a configuration in which an oblong or slanted convex portion or concave portion is formed on the finger holding surface 62 as the residual means 70 has been shown and described. The form is not limited to the above embodiment, and the combination of the convex portions or concave portions can be set as appropriate as long as the content liquid adhering to the finger rest surface 62 can be retained for a certain period of time. For example, a structure in which convex portions and concave portions are arranged alternately, or a structure in which concave and convex portions are formed in a textured pattern may be used.

Further, the trigger type liquid ejector A to which the lever cover 60 is attached is not limited to the above embodiment. That is, as long as the trigger-type liquid ejector is of a type in which the content liquid is ejected from the ejection hole 35 of the nozzle 30 by pulling the operation lever 51, the pump and other internal configurations may be of any type.

The present invention can be applied to a wider range of applications in the field of trigger-type liquid ejectors.

2: Container body 2a: Mouth portion 5: Mounting cap 6: Pipe 10: Pump 11: Cylinder 12: Plunger 13: Pin member 20: Guide member 22: Mounted cylinder portion 23: Guide shaft portion 23a: Connection channel 24: Annular space 27: Spin groove (chamber)
30 : Nozzle 32 : Outer wall 33 : Partition wall 34 : Mounting cylinder 35 : Spout hole 36 : Closure cylinder part 37 : Switching cylinder part 37a : Connection channel 40 : Body cover 50 : Trigger mechanism 51 : Operation lever 52 : Biasing member 60: Lever cover 61: Fitting portion 62: Finger rest surface 63: Guide portion 64: Inclined surface 65: Front wall 66: Side wall 67: Guide hole 70: Remaining means A: Trigger type liquid ejector O1: Center axis O2: Center Axis S: Holding space

Claims (6)

A pump (10) that pumps the liquid contained in the container body (2) toward a nozzle (30) provided with a spout hole (35), and an operating lever (51) that drives the pump (10). A lever cover (60) for a trigger type liquid ejector (A), comprising:
A fitting part (61) that covers at least the front surface of the operating lever (51), and a fitting part (61) that extends from the fitting part (61) to a position in front of the spout hole (35) and that ejects water from the spout hole (35). A lever cover for a trigger-type liquid ejector, characterized in that the lever cover has a guiding part (63) that guides a part of the content liquid to the finger-holding surface (62) of the fitting part (61). The guide part (63) has a front wall (65) to which a part of the ejected content liquid adheres, and an inclined surface ( 64); and a guide hole (67) for passing the content liquid from the inclined surface (64) to the finger gripping surface (62) of the fitting part (61). cover. The lever cover for a trigger-type liquid ejector according to claim 2, wherein the upper end of the front wall (65) is provided on the ejection path of the content liquid ejected from the ejection hole (35). The lever cover for a trigger-type liquid ejector according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a residual means (70) for causing the content liquid to remain on the finger-holding surface (62). 5. The lever for a trigger-type liquid ejector according to claim 4, wherein the residual means (70) is constituted by a plurality of horizontally elongated convex portions or concave portions arranged in parallel on the finger gripping surface (62) at predetermined intervals. cover. 5. The lever cover for a trigger type liquid ejector according to claim 4, wherein the residual means (70) is constituted by a plurality of inclined convex portions or concave portions connected and arranged in a zigzag manner on the finger rest surface (62).

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