JPH0217651Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field] The present invention relates to an applicator for products, and in particular,
having a driven piston slidably disposed within the applicator, the piston exhibiting minimal predetermined frictional resistance to axial movement within the applicator; Concerning an applicator designed to be easily moved upwards.

[Conventional technology and problems]

Much effort has been devoted to dispensing devices for liquids and other fluids. For example, Swedish patent no. A shaped flexible hollow head is attached having a groove opening therethrough. In one form of the container according to the above patent, the transparent tube is provided with a plunger, which is provided with a number of ring-shaped flanges extending rearwardly from it relative to the hollow head. When using,
Part of the hollow head was crushed by the hand and twisted.
The volume within the head is reduced and material is expelled from the groove. When the crushing force is released, the groove closes as the hollow head returns to its original volume, thus creating a slight negative pressure within the container and thus moving the plunger in the direction of the hollow head. .

U.S. Patent No. 3,088,636 (inventor Walter B.
Spatz, May 7, 1963) describes a container for a semi-solid or fluid body having dispensing means for controlling the discharge of said body; The vessel has a flexible plastic head, a self-closing evacuation opening, and a one-way (one-way movement) follower means that can reduce the effective volume within the vessel. The inward deflection of the plastic head reduces the volume within the dispenser and opens the outlet, thus allowing fluid to exit therefrom. Attached to the central rear portion of the follower is a one-way latch mechanism having a number of circumferentially spaced latch fingers extending outwardly and rearwardly; It engages the inner wall of the container and thus prevents rearward movement of the follower within the container. When the pressure on the head is released, the lip of the discharge outlet is closed and the head elastically returns to its original shape, thus creating a partial vacuum in the container and forcing it all the way over the driven means. Atmospheric pressure is allowed to act, thus forcing the follower means forward within the container.

U.S. Patent No. 3,768,705 (inventor Walter B.
Spatz, October 30, 1973) also relates to a dispensing device for fluids, which is movably slidable in a flexible plastic container behind the fluid contained therein. A single-path follower is shown.
A butterfly check valve is placed at the outlet of the container, which opens in response to the container being pushed at any point to permit dispensing. When the force pushing on the container is removed, the outlet check valve closes, thus preventing air from entering the container as the flexible container wall returns to its original position, thus preventing air from entering the container. Negative pressure is generated. The follower has one-way latching means similar to that shown in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. has. As in the aforementioned US Pat. No. 3,088,636, the follower is moved forward in the container by atmospheric pressure as a result of the vacuum being created after the dispensing operation.

U.S. Patent No. 4301948 (Inventor Joachim Czech
and Hans Sieghart, November 24, 1981) describes a pump action dispenser for liquid and pasty products, the dispenser having a container with a lower end. is closed by a slidable piston and has a head at its upper end, said head having a variable volume pump chamber. The pump chamber itself is isolated from the product in the container by the first check valve.
The first check valve can be opened only towards the pump chamber, which is further isolated from the outlet passage by a second check valve, which can be opened only towards the outlet. Due to the pressure manually applied to the pump head piston from the outside, the volume of the pump chamber is reduced and the product is forced through the second check valve and the outlet, thus dispensing a portion of the product. When said pressure is removed, the pump chamber returns to its original volume, thus creating a partial vacuum in the pump chamber, the second check valve is closed, and the first check valve is opened, so that the product is From the container it is allowed to enter the pump chamber and the dispensed amount of product is changed.

As shown in the above-mentioned patents, despite many efforts made in this field, problems such as complexity of the applicator, assembly of parts, unreliability of function, excessive cost, etc. The problem still remains. Prior art applicators require complex valve structures or multi-piece follower means, thus requiring tedious assembly operations, and yet are not always reliable in operation. These shortcomings have led to messy, inconvenient, and expensive applicators.

[Purpose of invention]

The purpose of the present invention is to eliminate the above-mentioned problems.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an economical and reliable applicator that requires minimal parts and assembly operations.

Another object of the invention is to provide a hand-operated applicator suitable for adhesives or creams, having an elevator-type driven piston for applying products containing solids.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved applicator having a driven piston of integral construction, said driven piston improving the functionality and convenience of the applicator relative to other parts of the applicator. can be designed to optimize the

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a pump-type dispenser that is more convenient than conventional dispensers without increasing the cost.

[Summary of the idea]

The present invention provides a product dispensing device in which a product is accommodated in an axial hole of a tubular container body having an upper end for dispensing the product and an open lower end, wherein the product dispensing device a driven piston slidably attached to the lower end of the hole in the container body to support the container body; a friction ring dimensioned to be a tight fit within the aperture to apply a predetermined vertical pushing force against the inner surface; and an outer circumferential sidewall, the friction ring further depending from the lower outer periphery of the front portion at the lower end thereof; comprising at least two opposed helical strips fixed to the upper circumference of the friction ring, said helical strips conforming to the cross-sectional shape of said hole to form at least two circumferential contact bands, and said side wall being applied to said front portion. substantially elastically expanding and contracting in the longitudinal direction in response to an axial pushing force, resulting in a variation in length, resulting in an inversely proportional variation in the lateral dimension of said peripheral contact band, said driven piston being hollow; It is characterized in that the front surface and inner surfaces of the side walls are exposed to the atmosphere.

[Example of idea]

The present invention will be explained below with reference to embodiments shown in the drawings.

1-3 show details of the pump-type dispenser 10, which includes a container body 50, a self-sealing dispensing nozzle 30, a resilient upper end 20, and a driven piston 70. The product to be dispensed (not shown) fills the dispenser 10 and can be any fluid or liquid.

The container body 50 is made of a substantially rigid material (e.g., metal, cardboard, plastic, or a composite material of two or more of these) and has a tubular portion 51 open at both ends. A snap engagement groove 54 is formed on the outer side 52 of the upper end. The tubular portion 51 preferably has a circular axially extending lumen, although the internal cross section of said lumen may be of any desired shape (e.g. square, rectangular or oval), but circular. This is desirable. This is because it is difficult to seal around pistons that have different shapes.

Although absolute rigidity of the tubular portion 51 is not required,
Substantial rigidity is desired. This is because the amount of product dispensed during a dispensing operation is influenced by the volume changes allowed by the non-rigid structure, and in addition, due to the rigidity, the driven piston 70
This is because it helps to have the inner wall of the tubular section parallel to the piston to provide a proper seal between the piston and the piston. Preferred materials for the tubular section 51 are plastics, for example polypropylene, polyacrylonitrile or polyethylene terephthalate. This is because plastic is easy to manufacture.

An integral base 6 is provided on the outer periphery of the lower end of the container body 50.
0 is made, the base 60 extends downwardly and outwardly from the outer surface of the tubular section 51, and the tip of the base 60 is in the same plane as the lower end of the tubular section 51 and spaced outwardly therefrom.

The resilient upper end 20 is preferably made of a resilient material (eg, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, polyacrylonitrile, elastomer or polymer) and has a rounded ceiling 21 with a smooth outer surface. The rounded ceiling section 21 is approximately 41.3 mm (1.625 inches)
When used for a container body having an outer diameter of
Preferably made to have a thickness within the range of approximately 0.43 to 0.51 mm (0.017 to 0.020 inches) with a radius of curvature of approximately 50 mm (2.0 inches), but the actual thickness will depend on the material used. , can vary widely depending on factors such as the diameter of the container. A skirt 22 projects downward from the outer periphery of the ceiling portion 21, and a snap engaging rib 25 is formed on the inner periphery of the lower end of the skirt 22. Skirt 22 and its snap engaging rib 2
5 is dimensioned to permit the upper end 20 to lock into the upper end 52 of the tubular section and its snap engagement groove 54. As will be appreciated, the seal along the connection between the top end 20 and the container body 50 must be liquid-tight at the application pressure for proper operation of the applicator. The illustrated snap/lock connection means are shown by way of example only and may be achieved by making the container body 50 and the top end 20 integral or by connecting them by methods such as screws, spin welding or gluing. It is also possible to eliminate the need for such seals.

A dispensing passage 23 is created through the skirt 22 and extends radially outwardly through the tubular projection 28 . surrounding the protrusion 28;
An outwardly projecting circular retaining wall 26 is formed at a radial distance from the outer surface of the retaining wall 26.
are placed concentrically around a common central axis perpendicular to the central axis of the main body 50. Protrusion 28 and retaining wall 26 are connected to outlet base ring 24 at their inner ends. A retaining rib 27 is formed on the inner periphery of the tip of the retaining wall 26, and the retaining rib 27 is attached to the protrusion 2.
Go inward towards the outer surface of 8.

The self-seal dispensing nozzle 30 may consist of any check valve that allows product to be extruded under pressure and provides a clean product shut-off and seal when the pressure is released. The check valve in the illustrated example is made of silicone rubber (e.g., "Silastic® MDX 4" available from Dow Corning, Midland, Mich.).
4526"), although a variety of other materials and molding methods may be used. Although the nozzle 30 shown in FIG. Other types of nozzles having a construction of
Inside the nozzle 30, a cylindrical open inlet end 32 and an outlet end are formed, said outlet end being connected to each corrugation 31.
terminating in a closed groove 33 between. The nozzle 30 is approximately 0.76 mm at its cylindrical open end 32.
(0.03 inch) wall thickness and at pleat 31
It is desirable to have a wall thickness of 0.51 mm (0.02 inch). At the bottom end of the open end 32 is a mounting flange 3.
4 are made in one piece, and the mounting flange 34 projects outward in a plane perpendicular to the central axis of the nozzle 30. The nozzles 30 are preferably molded with the corrugations 31 closed at their tips, after which the grooves 33 are cut as desired, thereby ensuring that said grooves 33 can be completely closed. Ru. Thus, being able to close completely is important. This is because the nozzle 30 must be able to prevent fluid (air, etc.) from flowing into the applicator.

Nozzle 30 is attached to applicator 10 by fitting its open end 32 over projection 28 and is positively held in position by retaining ring 40 .
The ring 40 slides over the outer surface of the nozzle 30 and is snapped past a retaining rib 27 extending inwardly of the retaining wall 26. Retaining ring 40 is preferably made from polypropylene or polyethylene, but may be made from other relatively rigid materials. Dimensions of retaining ring 40 and said rib 27
is positioned such that when the nozzle 30 is installed, the ring 40 is pressed against the flange 34 to ensure that the flange 34 is tightly sealed against the outlet base ring 24. The manner in which the nozzle 30 is attached to the applicator is not critical and can be done in various known or conceivable ways, for example by gluing, spin welding or even by mechanical means. Alternatively, the nozzle 30 can be placed inside, close to the dispensing passageway (e.g., in an outwardly extending outlet groove).
There may be cases where it is desirable to install.

The integral follower piston 70 is preferably made of polypropylene or polyethylene, but may be made of other resilient materials, and slides into the container body 51 of the dispenser 10, as shown in FIG. placed possible.

FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of the driven piston 70,
In this piston 70, the side walls of the piston expand and contract longitudinally in response to axial forces applied on the piston surface, and such changes in length cause the opposite lateral dimensions of the peripheral contact band. No bellows pleats are required to create a proportional change. The driven piston 70 has at least one integral body having the same cross-sectional shape as the bore and capable of exhibiting changes in longitudinal and lateral dimensions as described above in response to an axial force applied on the piston surface. It can be any structure with a peripheral contact band.

This driven piston 70 may be made of any resilient material and includes a relatively thin but rigid flat surface 76;
It has a side wall 83 extending downward and a friction ring 81. The side wall 83 has a helical strip 7 connected to each other.
8, a helical thread 78 emerges from below the periphery of the piston face 76 and is mounted on the periphery of the friction ring 81 at its lower end. This piston 7
0 has two right-handed and two left-handed helical threads 78, each of which makes one complete turn (one revolution) from piston face 76 to friction ring 81. The helical strips 78 are arranged in a cross-section and are interconnected at intersection points 85, thus forming a web-like or porous continuous structure that constitutes the side wall 83. The helical strip 78 also includes:
It acts as a peripheral contact band of the same cross-sectional shape as the applicator's lumen and, in the resting state, is an interference fit within said lumen to generate a predetermined force perpendicular to the inner surface of the lumen. It is desirable that it be made to the appropriate dimensions. Friction ring 81 also provides a predetermined amount of frictional resistance to movement of piston 70 within the applicator lumen, such that axial forces acting on piston face 76 cause the piston sidewall 83 to It is dimensioned to allow for longitudinal expansion and contraction. The piston surface 76 is similarly dimensioned to create a predetermined normal force against the inner surface of the applicator lumen and to form a seal therewith to keep the product above the piston surface. It will be done.

The frictional resistance to movement created by friction ring 81 allows the axial force acting on piston face 76 to longitudinally expand and retract sidewall 83 . Each helical thread 78 tends to expand laterally when compressed longitudinally and inversely contracts laterally when stretched longitudinally. spiral strip 78
The intersection of the oppositely placed pairs (i.e., one left-handed and one right-handed) of This ensures that the lateral dimensions change in response to longitudinal stresses by preventing the "kinking" that the strips would otherwise undergo. Although it has been discovered that at least two opposed helical strips 78 are desirable to prevent such twisting, any number of helical strips 78 may be satisfactorily used and their intersecting, Spacing etc. may be varied as desired.

One method of making the sidewalls is to give the cylindrical tubular sidewalls a shape that provides the desired functional properties (e.g., to form the spiral/diamond shape shown in Figure 3). This is a method of drilling multiple holes.

The dispenser 10 is first partially assembled with the exception of the driven piston, and then the partially assembled dispenser 10 is turned upside down and inserted from the open end of the container body 50 into said open end. Preferably, the product is filled leaving sufficient unfilled space for the piston 70 before the piston is inserted into the container body 50. After insertion of the piston 70, a bottom cover (not shown) may be placed over the open end of the container body for aesthetic purposes;
This shall not prevent atmospheric pressure from being maintained within the hollow lower part of the piston. This is because if this is prevented, the operation of the applicator 10 will be hindered. The method of filling applicator 10 is not critical, and any suitable method may be used.

During the dispensing operation, the rounded portion 21 of the resilient upper end 20 is pressed down by hand, thus reducing the volume within the dispensing device and thus increasing the pressure of the product within it. . Although pressure changes within the applicator are exerted through the product placed therein onto the piston face 76 and then to the side walls of the piston, the piston 70 has some resistance to backward movement within the applicator. Designed to maintain minimum frictional resistance.

The tendency of piston 70 to expand its lateral dimension in response to the increase in pressure within applicator 10 causes driven piston 70 to occur along its contact band 78 against the inner surface of tubular portion 51. The vertical force applied to the applicator 10 is increased proportionally.
The resistance of piston 70 to rearward movement within is increased. This increased resistance to movement increases the pressure within the applicator as the resilient upper end 20 is pushed down further. This internal pressure increases until it exceeds the critical pressure required to begin dispensing from the nozzle 30. In the illustrated example, such a critical pressure allows the liquid product contained within the container to pass through a relatively small passageway 23 (which in the preferred embodiment has a diameter of approximately 6.4 mm, or 0.25 inch). It is the sum of the pressure drop required to extrude, the pressure required to open the pleats 31 of the nozzle 30, and the pressure required to force the product through the opened pleats 31. The dispensing pressure for the applicator can therefore be scheduled and controlled by varying the dimensions of the dispensing channel and the functionality of the nozzle, taking into account the viscosity of the product to be dispensed. In the illustrated example, the viscosity of the liquid product is
Approximately when it is 300000cp (Burdskfield)
It is 0.11Kg/cm ² (1.5psig).

When the pressure in the dispenser 10 reaches a critical dispensing pressure in the dispensing passage 23, product is extracted and such dispensing continues until the pressure in the dispenser falls below said critical pressure. When the force pushing down on the upper end 20 is released, the pressure within the applicator is reduced to the resilient upper end 2.
As 0 returns to its original position, it begins to fall. When the internal pressure approaches atmospheric pressure, the nozzle 30 tends to close elastically. As the resilient upper end 20 continues to move towards its original position, a partial vacuum is created within the applicator 10, and such negative pressure causes atmospheric pressure to act on the outer surface of the leaves 31 of the nozzle 30, The groove 33 is thus closed, and the nozzle is therefore closed in a liquid-tight manner. The partial vacuum within the applicator 10 does not escape from the nozzle 30 or the seal formed between the contact band 78 and the inner surface of the tubular section 51. This is because these can prevent outside air from entering the applicator 10. In the preferred embodiment, 0.25 mm between the piston 70 and the inner diameter of the tubular section 51.
(0.010 inch) interference fit ensures adequate sealing with five contact bands 78. Other methods for liquid-tightly sealing the piston 70 within the container body 50 may be used satisfactorily as well.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 is a partially exploded perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the dispenser according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken along line 2--2 in FIG. 1; and FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the driven piston in FIG. It is a diagram. 10... Applicator, 20... Elastic upper end, 30
... application nozzle, 50 ... container body, 70 ... driven piston, 76 ... piston surface, 78 ... contact band.

Claims (1)

[Claims for Utility Model Registration] 1. A product dispensing device configured to accommodate a product in an axial hole of a tubular container body having an upper end for dispensing the product and an open lower end, The container includes a driven piston slidably attached to the lower end of the hole in the container body to support the product, the piston being made of an elastic material, and having a front portion that contacts the product and a static a friction ring dimensioned to be a tight fit within the bore so as to apply a predetermined vertical pushing force against the inner surface of the bore in the condition, and an outer circumferential side wall; including at least two opposing helical strips secured to the upper circumference of the friction ring at the depending lower end, the helical strips conforming to the cross-sectional shape of the hole to form at least two circumferential contact bands, and the side wall substantially elastically expanding and contracting in the longitudinal direction in response to an axial pushing force applied to the frontal portion, resulting in a variation in length, resulting in an inversely proportional variation in the lateral dimension of said peripheral contact band; The applicator is characterized in that the driven piston is hollow, and the inner surface of the front and side walls thereof are exposed to the atmosphere. 2. Said driven piston further comprises two right-hand helical strips and two left-hand helical strips depending from the lower edge of said front part and fixed at their lower ends to the upper edge of said friction ring, each said helical strip being Applicator according to claim 1, characterized in that each applicator is formed as a complete helical revolution and has a perforated side wall. 3. Said driven piston further includes a depending end friction ring, said ring dimensioned to be a tight fit within said bore, and in static conditions to a predetermined perpendicular to the inner surface of said bore. The side wall further includes at least two opposing helical strips depending from the lower edge of the front portion and secured at their lower ends to the upper edge of the friction ring, the helical strips having a cross-sectional shape of the aperture. The applicator according to claim 1, characterized in that it forms at least two outer circumferential contact bands in accordance with the above.