RU2780153C2 - Pump mechanism activated by single rotation for continuous aerosol spraying - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: sprayers.

SUBSTANCE: method for release of a product from an inner volume of a container, to which a power unit is attached, includes stages, at which: (1) a sleeve of a drive of the power unit is rotated in one direction by 360° or less relatively to the container to draw some amount of the product from the specified inner volume into a pumping chamber and to exert pressure on the pumping chamber; (2) a temporary pressure on the drive of the power unit is provided to open a valve connected via fluid to the pumping chamber and normally shifted to a closed position to release part of the product from the pumping chamber through a nozzle during a time interval, when the temporary pressure on the drive is provided; (3) pressure relief from the drive is provided to ensure the possibility of return of the valve to the closed position before all the product drawn into the pumping chamber at the stage (1) is released through the nozzle; (4) pressure on the drive and pressure relief from it are repeated sequentially one or more times until all the product drawn into the pumping chamber at the stage (1) is released through the nozzle; and (5) stages (1)-(4) are repeated to draw additional amounts of the product from the inner volume of the container and to release additional amounts of the product through the nozzle; moreover, during the time, when the product is released from the container, the rotation of the power unit relatively to the container is prevented, and the rotation of power unit 2 relatively to the container is constantly prevented in the direction opposite to the specified one direction of rotation at the stage (1).

EFFECT: increase in the efficiency of aerosol spraying.

10 cl, 40 dwg

Description

Technical field

The present invention relates to nebulizers, in particular continuous spray aerosol nebulizers, which are mechanically activated and pressurized by non-chemical means.

State of the art

Chemically and mechanically actuated aerosol dispensers have been used for many years and are still popular for their convenience. However, aerosol dispensers that use a chemical propellant are subject to increased scrutiny and restrictions due to their adverse environmental impacts, as well as handling and protection hazards. In addition, traditional non-chemical mechanical aerosol dispensers tend to be disadvantageous from chemically actuated aerosols because they are large and typically require many steps in their operation, making them difficult to use, especially for people suffering from diseases or disorders such as arthritis. They also require the use of a large number of parts and a large amount of material for their manufacture, which, with an increase in the cost of energy resources, makes their production prohibitively expensive. This, in turn, makes them too expensive to be used as consumer goods in the low price range. In addition, there is a general reluctance to move away from aerosol systems powered by a compressed propellant gas containing a bag in a metal container or a piston in devices with a metal container.

Some mechanically actuated aerosol devices contain storage chambers that require a step in which a metered amount of product is first obtained, which is then transferred to a force chamber that is pressurized to spray the product for a predetermined period of time. These types of devices are not energy efficient and degrade over time and/or use, and are too costly due to their unusual material structure and dynamic nature to be used in the range of desired products currently using fingertip pumps or valve packages for chemically delivered aerosol. Bag-in-metal devices are complex systems that do not have all the features for delivering aerosol by chemical means.

By way of example, US Pat.

US Pat. No. 4,147,280 to Spatz requires the use of dual separate coils and a lid to perform an unusual manipulation to dispense product as an aerosol. U.S. Patent Nos. 4,167,041, 4,174,052, 4,174,055, and 4,222,500 assigned to Capra et al., No. 4,872,595 to Hammet et al., No. 5,183,185 to Hutcheson et al., and No. 6,708,852 to Blake all use storage chambers. In addition, Blake's patent requires many steps to complete the installation.

Also, information sources include other US Pat. Nos. 4,423,829 and 4,387,833 that may be of interest. All of them have the disadvantages of being commercially acceptable and reasonable in the case of mass large-scale production in the current market conditions.

Despite ongoing efforts to provide the devices described in the above patents, there continues to be a need for a more user-friendly, less expensive, and compact, mechanically actuated continuous aerosol spray mechanism that sprays product in a manner similar to the commonly used powered nebulizers. into action chemically. In particular, it would be desirable to provide a continuous aerosol pump system that is operated by one turn and does not suffer from the disadvantages found in conventional chemically or mechanically actuated aerosol dispensers.

The essence of the invention

The present invention is a continuous atomizer which, among many features, does not rely on the use of chemical propellants and does not require a filling chamber used in traditional mechanically driven aerosol dispensers, which reduces the number of steps required to control conventional delivery systems that is close in convenience to chemically actuated spray systems and/or that is sized to be comparable to traditional finger and trigger actuated pumps.

The mechanically actuated atomizer according to the present invention provides a mouth or neck with a gripping part(s), including for products currently used for spraying finger pumps, and has a large number of parts compared to the number of parts in single-stroke pumps. In addition, it provides a longer spray than traditional mechanically actuated sprayers.

The continuous spray atomizer according to the present invention includes a power assembly that can be attached to a product container to obtain a continuous release of product with one turn or partial turn of the actuator to compress the product and prepare it for spraying. The power assembly can be used with various energy storage means, such as springs, gases, or resilient materials, to apply pressure to the product to be sprayed while turning the actuator.

The power assembly comprises a rotating drive sleeve connected via drive means to the piston such that rotation of the drive sleeve causes the piston to reciprocate in the first direction to suck the product from the container and into the pumping chamber. The reciprocating movement of the piston in the first direction stores energy in the energy storage means which act on the piston to move it in a second direction opposite to the first direction to compress the product in the pumping chamber. The spool valve has a normally closed position, in which the release of product from the pumping chamber is blocked, and an open position, in which the release of the product is ensured. The reciprocating actuator is connected to the spool valve to move it to the open position when the actuator is pressed. As the product in the pumping chamber empties, the energy storage means pushes the piston back to its original position to prepare it for another spray cycle. The release mechanism coupled to the drive means is also actuated by pushing the drive to disengage the drive means such that movement of the piston in the second direction does not cause movement of the drive sleeve.

The drive means comprises an engagement disk connected to perform rotation as a result of rotation of the drive sleeve, a lead screw connected to the engagement disk through the meshed teeth of the gear wheel so that the lead screw is rotated by the engagement disk, and a piston housing connected to perform reciprocating motion when turning the lead screw. The piston is held by the piston body to reciprocate within the barrel, and the barrel defines the pumping chamber.

The exhaust mechanism contains the engagement disk, the meshed teeth of the gear wheel between the engagement disk and the lead screw, and the drive. When the actuator is pressed, it moves the engagement disc away from the lead screw and disengages the gear teeth.

The engaged screw thread between the lead screw and the piston body and the axial grooves and keys between the outer surface of the piston body and the cylindrical sleeve cause the piston body and piston to reciprocate from the first rest position to the second position to suck the product from the container into the pump chamber when the sleeve is rotated drive. This movement of the piston also causes energy to be stored in the energy storage means which exert pressure on the product drawn into the pumping chamber. In the specific example disclosed herein, a full charge of the product to be sprayed can be drawn into the pumping chamber by only rotating the drive sleeve through approximately 360°, but if necessary, the system can be designed to obtain a full charge of the product to be sprayed, when turning the drive sleeve to a smaller angle or, if necessary, to a larger angle. In addition, the drive sleeve may be rotated less than a full turn to obtain less than a full charge of product to be sprayed.

The energy storage element contains a spring in the form of a sprayer and its components disclosed in the present description, however, as an alternative, it may contain a pneumatic or elastic component and methods disclosed in simultaneously pending applications with serial numbers 11/702,734 and 12/218,295, filed February 6 2007 and July 14, 2008, respectively, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Regardless of what type of energy storage device(s) is used, it is preferably preloaded or precompressed when the piston is in its rest position in which the product in the pumping chamber is subjected to adequate pressure to obtain a suitable product release when the piston is in its rest position. position or close to its original position.

The mechanically driven mechanisms of the present invention provide the user with the ability to perform one turn of the drive sleeve and depress the spray drive to produce a sustained release of the product to be sprayed or sprayed. In addition, after product has been aspirated into the pumping chamber, the atomizer may be actuated to spray the product in any orientation of the atomizer. In addition, the mechanism presented herein can be used with much smaller necks and the ratio of piston to cylinder diameters allows for easier actuation with much less force. These forces consist only of the friction that occurs at the lead screw-to-piston housing interface and between the piston housing and barrel as the piston moves along its predetermined path.

In the atomizer according to the present invention, the release mechanism prevents the "reversal" of the drive sleeve, which would otherwise occur when the piston moves back under the driving force of the energy storage means during the spray cycle.

Such new mechanisms can be used in conjunction with standard spray drives or drives presented, for example, in patent Nos. 6,609,666 B1 and 6,543,703 B2.

Brief description of the drawings

The above description, as well as other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description when considered together with the accompanying drawings, in which the same reference numbers designate like parts throughout the views and in which:

in fig. 1 is a front elevational view of the nebulizer provided herein;

in fig. Figure 2 is a slightly enlarged longitudinal section taken along line 2-2 in Figure 1 showing the pump and energy storage device in a compressed primed position, ready to spray product;

Fig. 3 is a more enlarged sectional view of the mechanism of Fig. 2;

in fig. 4 is an enlarged section similar to that of FIG. 3, but showing the mechanism with the actuator depressed and the spool valve open to spray the product, with the piston returned to its original position;

in fig. 5 is a partial enlarged sectional view taken along line 5-5 in FIG. 4 showing the engagement of the parts between the drive sleeve and the drive head which causes the drive head to rotate as the drive sleeve rotates;

in fig. 6 is an exploded isometric view of the nebulizer of FIG. 1-5;

in fig. 7 is a vertical side view of a container lid used in the assembly shown in FIG. 1-5;

in fig. 8 is a sectional view taken along line 8-8 in FIG. 7;

in fig. 9 is an isometric top view of the container lid shown in FIG. 7;

in fig. 10 is an isometric view from the bottom of the container lid;

in fig. 11 is a vertical side view of the cylindrical piston cup used in the mechanism shown in FIG. 1-5;

in fig. 12 is a sectional view taken along lines 12-12 in FIG. eleven;

in fig. 13 shows a side view of the cylindrical piston cup with the direction of view along the arrow 13 in FIG. eleven;

in fig. 14 is an upright side view of the piston housing used in the mechanism described herein;

in fig. 15 is a side view of the piston housing with the direction of view along the arrow 15 in FIG. fourteen;

in fig. 16 is a sectional view taken along line 16-16 in FIG. fourteen;

in fig. 17 is a vertical side view of a lead screw used in the mechanism of the present invention;

in fig. 18 shows a side view of the lead screw with the direction of view along the arrow 18 in FIG. 17;

in fig. 19 shows a side view of the lead screw with the direction of view along the arrow 19 in FIG. 17;

in fig. 20 shows a longitudinal section taken along line 20-20 in FIG. 17;.

in fig. 21 is a top isometric view of the lead screw;

in fig. 22 is an enlarged side view of a vertical piston used in the mechanism of the present invention;

in fig. 23 is a sectional view taken along line 23-23 in FIG. 22;

in fig. 24 is a top isometric view of the piston;

in fig. 25 is a vertical side view of a spool valve used in the mechanism of the present invention.

in fig. 26 shows a side view of the spool valve with the direction of view along the arrow 26 in FIG. 25;

in fig. 27 is a sectional view taken along line 27-27 in FIG. 26;

in fig. 28 is a sectional view taken along line 28-28 in FIG. 26;

in fig. 29 is an isometric bottom view of a spool valve;

in fig. 30 is a top isometric view of a spool valve;

in fig. 31 is a vertical side view of the drive hub used in the mechanism of the present invention;

in fig. 32 is a side view of the drive sleeve when viewed along arrow 32 in FIG.

in fig. 33 is a sectional view taken along lines 33-33 in FIG. 32;

in fig. 34 is a top rear isometric view of the drive hub;

in fig. 35 is an enlarged bottom isometric view of the drive hub;

in fig. 36 is a vertical side view of the drive head used in the mechanism of the present invention;

in fig. 37 is a side view of the drive head when viewed along arrow 36 in FIG. 35;

in fig. 38 is a sectional view taken along line 38-38 in FIG. 37;

in fig. 39 is a sectional view taken along line 39-39 in FIG. 37;

in fig. 40 is an enlarged top isometric view of the drive head;

in fig. 41 is a vertical side view of the engagement disc used in the release mechanism of the present invention;

in fig. 42 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line 42-42 in FIG. 41;

in fig. 43 is a top isometric view of the engagement disk;

in fig. 44 shows an isometric bottom view of the engagement disc;

in fig. 45 is a vertical side view of an actuator used in the mechanism of the present invention;

in fig. 46 is a longitudinal sectional view of the actuator;

in fig. 47 is a bottom isometric view of the actuator;

in fig. 48 is a partial longitudinal sectional view of the mechanism in a stationary state before turning the drive sleeve to suck product into the pumping chamber and store energy in the energy storage device, that is, in the embodiment shown, before the force spring is compressed;

in fig. 49 is a partial sectional view of the mechanism in a state in which the drive hub is partially rotated about one-eighth of a full turn;

in fig. 50 is a partial sectional view of the mechanism in a state in which the drive hub is rotated approximately one-fourth of a full turn;

in fig. 51 is a partial sectional view of the mechanism in a state in which the drive hub is rotated approximately three-eighths of a full turn;

in fig. 52 is a partial sectional view of the mechanism in a state in which the drive hub is rotated approximately half a full turn;

in fig. 53 is a partial sectional view of the mechanism in a state in which the mechanism is fully charged and ready to spray product;

in fig. 54 is an enlarged sectional view of the mechanism of FIG. 53, shown with the drive to disengage the engagement disk partially depressed, but with the spool valve still in the sealed position;

in fig. 55 is an enlarged partial sectional view of the mechanism with the actuator fully depressed to move the spool valve to the unsealed position so that product can flow from the pumping chamber to the outside through the outlet nozzle;

in fig. 56 is an enlarged sectional view of the mechanism with product released from the pressure chamber, the piston returned to its original position, and the spool valve returned to its sealed position, while the spool valve remains disengaged;

in fig. 57 is an enlarged sectional view of the mechanism with the actuator, piston and spool valve returned to their original position, and the drive gear re-engaged, ready for another spray cycle;

in fig. 58 is an upright front view of a modified atomizer according to the present invention in which the drive sleeve has a cushioned molded sleeve and extends down a considerable distance from the top end of the container;

in fig. 59 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line 59-59 in FIG. 58;.

in fig. 60 is an enlarged sectional view of the nebulizer of FIG. 58 and 59 showing the system in a fully charged position, ready to spray product;

in fig. 61 is a view similar to that of FIG. 60, but with the actuator depressed and the spool valve open to release the product from the pumping chamber, and showing that the piston has returned to its original position;

in fig. 62 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 62-62 in FIG. 61 showing the parts engaged between the drive sleeve and the drive head;

in fig. 63 is an exploded isometric view of the atomizer assembly of FIG. 58-62;

in fig. 64 is a vertical side view of the improved drive hub used in the assembly of FIG. 58-62;.

in fig. 65 is a vertical rear view of the drive hub;

in fig. 66 shows a top rear isometric view of the drive bushing;

in fig. 67 is a sectional view taken along line 67-67 in FIG. 65;.

in fig. 68 is a view from the bottom end of the drive sleeve when looking in the direction of arrow 68 in FIG. 64;

in fig. 69 is a greatly enlarged bottom isometric view of the drive hub of FIG. 64 - 68;

in fig. 70 is a vertical side view of the drive head used in the assembly of FIG. 58-62.

in fig. 71 is a side view of the top of the drive head when viewed along the arrow 71 in FIG. 70;

in fig. 72 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line 72-72 in FIG. 71;

in fig. 73 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line 73-73 in FIG. 71;

in fig. 74 is a top isometric view of the drive head;

in fig. 75 is a bottom isometric view of the drive head;

in fig. 76 is a vertical side view of the actuator used in the assembly of FIG. 58-62;

in fig. 77 is a side view of the actuator in a vertical position;

in fig. 78 is a sectional view taken along line 78-78 in FIG. 77;

in fig. 79 shows a top rear isometric view of the actuator;

in fig. 80 is a top front isometric view of the actuator;

in fig. 81 is a bottom isometric view of the actuator;

in fig. 82 is an upright side view of the cylinder head used in the embodiment of the present invention in FIG. 58-62;

in fig. 83 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line 83-83 in FIG. 82;

in fig. 84 is a top isometric view of the cylinder head;

in fig. 85 shows a bottom view in isometric projection of the cylinder cover;

in fig. 86 is a top isometric view of an alternative lead screw form that can be used in any embodiment of the present invention disclosed herein;

in fig. 87 is a vertical side view of the lead screw of FIG. 86;

in fig. 88 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line 88-88 in FIG. 87;

in fig. 89 is an enlarged partial longitudinal sectional view of such a form of mechanism incorporating the improved lead screw of FIG. 86 shown in the rest position before being actuated to draw product into the pumping chamber;

in fig. 90 is a view similar to that of FIG. 89, but showing the drive sleeve partially rotated and the piston housing and piston partially moved from their original position to draw product into the pumping chamber;

in fig. 91 is a view similar to that of FIG. 90, but showing the drive sleeve rotated approximately a quarter of a turn and the piston housing and piston moved further forward to draw product into the pumping chamber;

in fig. 92 is a view similar to that of FIG. 91, but showing the drive hub rotated about three-eighths of a full turn;

in fig. 93 is a view similar to that of FIG. 92, but showing that the drive sleeve has been turned almost half a full turn and the pumping chamber is nearly full;

in fig. 94 is a longitudinal sectional view similar to that of FIG. 48 but showing the mechanism fully loaded and ready to spray product;

in fig. 95 is a view similar to that of FIG. 94, but showing the actuator partially depressed to move the engagement disc to disengage it from the lead screw;

in fig. 96 is a view similar to that of FIG. 95 but showing the actuator fully depressed to open the spool valve to allow the piston to be moved by the power spring to atomize the product from the pumping chamber;

in fig. 97 is a view similar to that of FIG. 96, but showing that the actuator has returned to its original position enough to close the spool valve, but the engagement disc is still disengaged from the lead screw;

Detailed description

The first preferred embodiment of the present invention is indicated generally by 10 in FIG. 1-57. In this embodiment, a power assembly 11 comprising a pumping mechanism 12 and a driving mechanism 13 is attached to the upper end of the container C for pumping and spraying product from the container.

The pumping mechanism 12 includes a tubular piston 20 held by a cylindrical piston body 30 for reciprocating the piston in a pumping chamber 40 at the lower end of a cylindrical canister 50 attached to a container lid 60 which is attached to the upper end of container C. The lower end of the cylindrical canister 50 includes a one-way ball check valve 150 connected to dip tube 151 to allow product to flow from the dip tube into the pump chamber, but to prevent backflow from the pump chamber into the dip tube.

According to FIG. 3-5 and 7-13, the upper end of the piston housing 30 is slidably placed in the first cylindrical wall 61 extending upward from the inner boundary of the first annular wall 62 on the lid 60 of the container, and the upper end of the cylindrical cup 50 is threaded to the second cylindrical wall 63 extending from the outer boundary of the annular wall 62. The third cylindrical wall 64, extending from the outer boundary of the second annular wall 65, vertically shifted and radially removed outward from the first annular wall, is threaded to the upper end of the container for attaching the container lid to the container. A radially inwardly curved protrusion 66 at the upper end of the first cylindrical wall 61 extends inwardly along the upper end of the piston body to enable it to be held mounted on the container lid, and the drive sleeve retaining protrusion 67 extends outward from the top of the container lid over the downwardly extending cylindrical wall 64 for engagement. with locking means on the drive hub to hold it mounted on the container lid as described below. The outer skirt 68 extends downward from the outer edge of the annular wall 65 and is spaced outward from the downwardly extending wall 64. The outer surface of the skirt is substantially flush with the outer surface of the container and provides a smooth outer surface of the atomizer. A vent pad 160 is sandwiched between the second annular wall 65 of the container lid and the upper end of the container to vent gases from the container as product is consumed from the container.

The piston body and the piston are driven in reciprocating motion by a lead screw 70 coaxially extending in the piston body. According to FIG. 18-21, the lead screw has a through axial hole 71, an annular protrusion 72 extending radially outward and located at its upper end, and a ring with gear teeth 73 on the underside of the protrusion. The valve seat tube 74 extends upward from the upper end of the lead screw at the upper end of the hole 71, and the cylindrical wall 75 extends upwardly coaxially with the valve seat tube. The screw thread 76 on the outer side of the upper end of the lead screw below the boss 72 engages the screw thread 31 in the piston body, and the keys 51 on the inner surface of the cylindrical cup 50 engage with the slots 32 on the outer periphery of the boss 33 on the piston body to limit the rotation of the piston body whereby, as the lead screw is rotated, the engaged screw threads cause the piston body and piston to reciprocate in the first direction to enlarge the pump chamber and draw product into it.

According to FIG. 3-5 and 22-24, the piston 20 has a through axial bore 21 and a main housing portion 22 attached at the lower end of the piston housing. The elongated upper end 23 of the piston extends into the lead screw bore 71 and has an outwardly expanding seal 24 at its upper end, placed in sliding sealing engagement in the bore 71 to prevent leakage of product along the piston 20 from the lead screw bore 71. The expanding sealing ring 25 at the lower end of the piston extends outwardly under the lower end of the piston housing and engages in sliding sealing engagement with the surface of the pump chamber 40.

As the piston body 30 and piston 20 reciprocate upward to suck product into the pumping chamber 40, the force spring 140 located between the protrusion 33 on the piston body and the annular wall 62 of the container lid compresses to store energy and causes the piston body and piston to exert back pressure on the product in the pumping chamber.

Spool valve 80, best shown in FIG. 3-5 and 25-30, has a valve element 81 emerging from it with an outwardly expanding seal 82 extending from its lower end, placed with the possibility of sliding sealing engagement in the valve seat tube 74 on the lead screw. Cylindrical elongate member 83 is coaxial with valve member 81 and has an outwardly expanding seal 84 at its lower end, configured to slide seal engagement with the inner surface of cylindrical wall 75 extending outwardly around the valve seat tube. As long as seal 82 is in engagement with valve seat tube 74, product flow from pump chamber 40 is blocked. A central hole 85 and an annular passage 86 are formed at the upper end of the spool valve for attaching the spool valve to the drive sleeve 100 as described below. Channels 87 are formed through the spool valve between the center hole and the annular duct to allow product flow through the spool valve from the lead screw hole in the open position of the spool valve. As long as expanding seal 82 is located anywhere within the length of seat tube 74, the spool valve is in the closed position and flow through it is blocked, but as soon as expanding seal 82 passes below the inner surface of the seat tube, the valve opens and upward flow is created through the spool valve.

The drive mechanism 13 includes a rotating drive sleeve 90 connected to the drive head 100 to rotate it, an engagement disc 120 removably coupled to the lead screw and having a plurality of retainers 123 attaching it to the drive head to rotate the lead screw when the drive sleeve is rotated, and an actuator 130 attached to the actuator head for reciprocating motion and to the engagement disc for disengaging the engagement disc from the lead screw when the actuator is at least partially depressed and for reciprocating the spool valve 80 attached to actuator head to open the spool valve when the actuator is fully depressed.

The drive sleeve 90, best shown in FIG. 3-5 and 31-35 has a cylindrical side wall 91 with a circular base 92 and a top 93 having an elongated opening 94 on its top through which an actuator 130 is installed. Diametrically opposed tabs 95A and 95B extend downward into the housing from the top end. side wall on opposite sides of opening 94, and pairs of closely spaced parallel tabs 96 and 97 on the inner surface of the housing on opposite sides near its base form diametrically opposed slots 98A and 98B that are generally vertically aligned with tabs 95A and 95B. A plurality of circumferentially spaced latches 99 located on the inside of the circular base are engaged under the outer edge of the collar 67 on the upper end of the container lid 60 to hold the drive sleeve on the container lid.

Actuator head 100, best shown in FIG. 3-5 and 36-40 has a vertical cylindrical side wall 101 with a stepped annular protrusion 102 extending outward in the radial direction at its lower end. A short cylindrical wall 103 extends downward from the outer edge of the protrusion 102, and a plurality of slots 104 formed at the base of the protrusion and spaced around its circumference receive latches 123 on the engagement disc 120 (FIGS. 41-44) to secure the engagement disc to the drive head. Radially outwardly formed extensions 110 on wall 103 form circumferentially spaced slots 111 around the interior of wall 103 to receive protrusions 126 on the engagement disk described below. Tabs 105A and 105B projecting outward from diametrically opposite sides of wall 103 at the base of the drive head fit into slots 98A and 98B on the interior of the base of the drive hub to transmit rotation to the drive head when the drive hub is rotated. Pairs of vertically spaced parallel extending protrusions 106A and 106B extending upwardly along respective diametrically opposite sides of the outer surface of the side wall 101 define channels 107A and 107B into which tabs 95A and 95B are inserted on the inner top surface of the actuator sleeve also to transmit rotation to the actuator head during rotation. drive bushings. The upper end of the wall 101 is closed by an end wall 108 having a first cylindrical sleeve 109A extending upward from its center and a second smaller cylindrical sleeve 109B extending upward near the first pin. Pin 112 extends downward from the center of wall 108 coaxially with socket 109A, and cylindrical wall 113 extends downward from wall 108 coaxially with pin 112 and at a certain distance outward from pin 112. A plurality of holes 114 are formed through wall 108 in the space between pin 112 and the wall. 113 to ensure product flow through the drive head during the spray cycle.

Downward-extending pins 131, 132 on actuator 130 are frictionally engaged with bushings 109A and 109B, respectively, to secure the actuator to the actuator head. The pin 112 extending downward from the center of the end wall 108 is frictionally engaged with the central hole 85 at the upper end of the spool valve 80, and the cylindrical wall 113 is frictionally engaged with the annular channel 86 surrounding the hole 85 to hold the spool valve in the drive head.

Engagement disk 120, best illustrated in FIG. 3-5 and 41-44 comprises an annular wall 121 with a cylindrical wall 122 extending downward from its inner boundary and a plurality of retainers 123 projecting upward from its outer boundary and spaced apart from each other by a certain distance around its circumference. A plurality of longitudinally oriented ribs 126 on the outer surface of wall 122 engage slots 111 in drive head 100 to assist in transmitting rotation to the engagement disc as the drive head rotates. The downwardly extending cylindrical wall 122 is rotatable and axially slidable along the first cylindrical wall 61 protruding upward from the container lid 60, and the annular wall 121 is located under the annular protrusion 72 on the lead screw and has a ring with engagement teeth 124 on its upper surface inserted into engagement with the gear teeth 73 on the underside of the lead screw boss 72 by the drive return spring 125 embedded between the annular wall 121 on the engagement disc and the first annular wall 62 of the container lid.

Pins 131 and 132 on actuator 130 have corresponding holes 131A and 132A. Hole 131A communicates at its inner end with a fluid channel 133 extending to a mechanical comminution unit (MBU) (not shown) and hole 132A has a blind inner end.

In FIG. 48-53 show the mechanism for actuating the power unit 11 to draw the product into the pump chamber 40 and pump it for subsequent spraying. In FIG. 48 shows the mechanism in its original position with the piston 20 at the bottom of the pumping chamber. As the drive hub 90 rotates within its operating range of motion as shown in FIG. 49-53, the drive head 100, the engagement disk 120, and the lead screw 70 are rotated to pull the piston body 30 and the piston 20 upward to suck the product through the dip tube 151 and then the ball valve 150 into the pumping chamber. This movement of the piston housing also compresses the force spring 140 which exerts pressure on the product in the pumping chamber. The product is locked in the pump chamber and the piston and lead screw bores by a 150 ball valve at the bottom of the pump chamber and a 80 spool valve at the top of the lead screw bore.

The actuation of the power unit for spraying the compressed product from the pumping chamber is shown in FIG. 53-57. In FIG. 53, the piston and piston housing are in a position where the pumping chamber is completely filled and the actuator 130 is in its rest position. When the drive is initially squeezed out according to FIG. 54, the drive head 100, spool valve 80, and engagement disk 120 move downward to disengage the gear teeth 124 on the engagement disk and the gear teeth 73 on the lead screw. Moving the engagement disc down also compresses the actuator return spring 125. During this time, due to the length of the seat tube 74, the seal 82 at the lower end of the spool valve element 81 remains in sealing engagement with the seat tube to lock the product in the pumping chamber and prevent movement of the piston and piston housing until the engagement disc is disengaged from the actuator head, thereby preventing rotation of the drive screw and actuator sleeve that would otherwise occur when the piston and piston housing move to their original position. Further pressing the actuator 130 according to FIG. 55 and 56 drives seal 82 out of seat tube 74 allowing spring 140 to force product out of the pumping chamber. without causing rotation of the drive head and drive bushing.

After the actuator 130 is released, the actuator return spring 125 causes the engagement disc 120, the actuator head 100, and the actuator 130 to return to their original positions as shown in FIG. 57. This results in first the seal 82 on the spool valve 80 engaging into the seat tube 74 to stop further movement of product out of the atomizer, and then re-engaging the gear teeth 73 and 124 to prepare the mechanism for the next spray cycle. Atomization of the product from the pumping chamber can be achieved in one operation, or carried out in stages until the pumping chamber is empty. In FIG. 57 shows the power assembly returned to its original position, in which it is ready for the next spray cycle as indicated in the above description.

An improved spray device 200 is shown in FIG. 58-85. This embodiment has substantially the same structure and function as the previous embodiment except for at least one difference in the construction of the drive sleeve, drive head, actuator and cylinder cover, and in the structure engaged between the drive sleeve and the drive head to drive rotation of the drive head when the drive sleeve is turned. All other components of the assembly, including piston 20, piston barrel 30, pump chamber 40, barrel 50, engagement disc 120, actuator return spring 125, power spring 140, unidirectional ball check valve 150, and dip tube 151, are identical or substantially identical to the components of the same parts in the previous implementation and perform similar functions.

In the atomizer 200, the drive sleeve 201 is elongated relative to the drive sleeve 90 in the first embodiment, and extends at its lower end a considerable distance downwards beyond container C. An outer sleeve 202 of a relatively softer material is placed on the central outer portion of the drive sleeve and has slightly recessed gripping surfaces 203 and 204 on its diametrically opposite sides to facilitate gripping of the drive hub to rotate it. In a preferred design, the sleeve is multilayer molded onto the drive sleeve. Such a sleeve, if necessary, can be excluded.

According to FIG. 58-69, the drive sleeve has a sidewall 205 with a circular base flush-fitted and pivotally received at the upper end of the sidewall of the container. The side wall terminates in an inclined lower end 206 having a longer portion of the side wall oriented toward the front side of the container C. The upper end 208 of the side wall is egg-shaped in horizontal section and has an elongated opening 209 at its top through which the drive (discussed in the illustration) is received. below description). Walls 210 and 211 extend downward from opposite sides of opening 209, and short tabs 212 and 213 extend downward from the center of the bottom edge of walls 210 and 211. Reinforcing baffles 214 extend between walls 210, 211 and the adjacent upper end of housing side wall 205. Pairs of closely spaced and longitudinally extending parallel ribs 215 and 216 are located on the inner top surface of the housing on opposite sides thereof directly below and generally aligned with tabs 212 and 213 to form elongated vertically extending slots 217 and 218 and a plurality of circumferentially spaced locking means. 219 are made on the inner side of the side wall 205 of the housing, placed slightly below the ribs 215 and 216 and shifted relative to these ribs in the circumferential direction.

The actuator head 220 in this embodiment, best represented in FIG. 59-63 and 70-75 is similar to the actuator head 100 in the previous embodiment, except that the cylindrical bushings 221 and 222 extending upward from the end wall 108 have a lower height relative to the bushings 109A and 109B in the first embodiment. All other parts of the drive head 220 are the same as the parts in the previous embodiment and function in the same way, and the parts are given the same reference numbers as the corresponding parts in the previous implementation. Thus, the plurality of slots 104 formed at the base of the protrusion 102 receive the latches 123 on the engagement disk 120 for fixing the engagement disk to the drive head. Tabs 105A and 105B projecting outward from diametrically opposite sides of wall 103 at the base of the actuator head engage in slots 217 and 218 on the inside of the side wall of the actuator sleeve, and tabs 212 and 213 extend into channels 107A and 107B formed between vertically extending parallel projections 106A and 106B extending upwardly along respective diametrically opposite sides of the outer surface of the side wall 205 to transmit rotation to the actuator head when the actuator sleeve is rotated. Pin 112 extends downward from the center of end wall 108 and cylindrical retaining wall 113 extends downward coaxially with pin 112 to engage with spool valve 80 like the previous embodiment. Thus, the pin 112 is frictionally engaged in the central hole 85 at the upper end of the spool valve 80, and the retaining wall 113 is frictionally engaged in the annular passage 86 surrounding the hole 85 to hold the spool valve to the actuator head.

The actuator 230 in this embodiment is of substantially the same design as the actuator 130 in the previous embodiment. It differs essentially in that the downwardly extending pins 231, 232 on the actuator 230 are slightly shorter than the pins 131 and 132 in the previous embodiment. In other words, actuator 230 functions similarly to actuator 130 previously discussed. Thus, pins 231 and 232 frictionally engage bushings 221 and 222, respectively, in actuator head 220 to retain the actuator on the actuator head.

The entire assembly is fixed to container C by a modified container lid 240, which differs from the container lid 60 previously discussed only in that there is no external downwardly extending cylindrical wall 68. In all other respects, the container lid 240 is of the same design and functions like the container lid previously discussed and the corresponding parts are given the same reference numbers.

A modified power assembly according to the present invention is shown in FIG. 86-97. This embodiment of the present invention is constructed and functions similarly to the first embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 1-57 and discussed in the above description, except that the leaf spring members 300, 301 are integrally formed on the top of the collar 72' on the lead screw 70'. These leaf spring members act between the engagement disk 120 and the actuator head 100 and act as an actuator return spring to move the actuator head, engagement disk, and actuator 130 to their upper rest positions. The leaf spring elements 300, 301 may be used in combination with the return spring 125 shown in the drawings and used in the first two embodiments disclosed herein, or may be used alone without the return spring 125 (not shown).

Thus, in FIG. 89 shows the mechanism with the drive 130 and the piston 20 in their original positions, the gear teeth 73 on the underside of the boss 72' of the lead screw 70' are engaged with the gear teeth 124 on the top of the annular wall 121 of the engagement disk 120, and the spool valve 80 is in the closed position.

In FIG. 91-93 show the drive sleeve in various phases of rotation to rotate the engagement disc and lead screw to lift the piston 20 to expand the pump chamber 40 and draw product into it, as described above. This movement of the piston also compresses the energy storage force spring 140 which acts on the protrusion 33 on the piston housing 30 to move the piston in the direction of applying pressure to the product in the pump chamber 40.

In FIG. 94 shows the mechanism fully charged and ready for the spray cycle, with the actuator 130 in its raised home position, the piston 20 moved to expand the pump chamber 40 and draw the full charge of product into it, and the power spring 140 compressed and displaced the piston housing and piston. in the direction of application of pressure to the product in the pumping chamber.

In FIG. 95 shows the actuator 130 partially depressed to disengage the teeth 124 of the gear on the engagement disk from the teeth 73 of the gear on the lead screw while holding the spool valve 82 in the closed position.

In FIG. 96 shows actuator 130 fully depressed to open spool valve 82 to allow piston 20 to be driven by power spring 140 to dispense product from pump chamber 40. In this state of the mechanism, the engagement disk remains disengaged from the lead screw.

On fig. 97 the piston has forced all the product out of the pumping chamber 40 and returned to its original position. According to FIG. 97, the actuator remains fully depressed, spool valve 82 remains in the open position, and the engagement disk remains disengaged from the lead screw, while actuator return springs 125 and 300, 301 are compressed. When the actuator is released so that it can return to its original position, the actuator return springs will first displace the engagement disc, and thus the actuator head and spool valve, sufficient to close the spool valve, but with the engagement disc , still disengaged from the lead screw. This early closing of the spool valve blocks the release of product from the pumping chamber and prevents the piston from moving to its home position before the engagement disc and lead screw are re-engaged, thereby ensuring that the actuator sleeve is not subject to rotation by the piston during its reverse movement to starting position. Full release of the drive allows the lead screw to re-engage with the engagement disc.

The general pumping mechanism used in all embodiments of the present invention requires only one turn or partial turn of the drive sleeve, which may be left or right handed in design. Turning the drive sleeve causes the piston to move upward in the pump cylinder to draw product into the pump chamber and store energy in the energy storage means. Significantly, pressing the actuator to open the spool valve and release product from the pumping chamber also disengages the drive means between the piston and the actuator sleeve so that the piston can return to its original position without causing the actuator sleeve to rotate.

Any of several different types of energy storage means can be adapted to the general pump mechanism, including the spring mechanism as discussed herein, or the pneumatic mechanism or resilient mechanism presented and described in co-pending patent application number 11/702,734, a full description of which included in the present description by reference. The use of each mechanism will lead to the same results, but as a result of the possibility of using different means of energy storage, certain functional advantages can be achieved. For example, depending on the range of pressure and force desired or required to meet the requirements for different product viscosities, different means of energy storage may be selected.

When using pneumatic energy storage means, the initial static pressure can be easily changed to meet specific requirements. When using a spring-loaded device, a new spring must be used to change the biasing force. In addition, corresponding changes to the piston diameter and cylinder bore can be made.

It can be noted that the spray system disclosed herein provides significant flexibility for a given range of products without the need to design and/or develop an entirely new system. In addition, the power mechanism can be used with conventional mechanically driven pumps or triggers, reducing overall cost and eliminating the need for completely new systems. While venting is required in the embodiments shown, airless systems can still be used. It can be understood that the present invention provides convenience comparable to conventional aerosol systems. The use of the spray gun discussed here eliminates the need for repeated pumping of the drive and finger fatigue just to produce short sprays of product. The embodiments described provide long lasting spray and convenience not available to date at an affordable price.

Since many modifications and combinations of the embodiments described in the above description can be made, and these implementations will be fully understood by those skilled in the art, it is not necessary to limit the present invention to the precise construction and process presented and described in the above description. Accordingly, reference may be made to all suitable modifications and equivalents that fall within the scope of the present invention as defined by the following claims. The words "comprise, "comprises", "comprising", "include(s)" and "comprising", as used herein and in the following claims, are intended to indicate the presence of the claimed features or steps, but they do not exclude the presence or addition of at least one other feature, step or group thereof.

Claims (17)

1. A method for releasing a product from the internal volume of a container to which a power unit is attached, including steps in which (1) rotate the drive sleeve of the power unit in one direction by 360° or less relative to the container to draw some product from the specified internal volume into the pumping chamber and to apply pressure to the pumping chamber; (2) temporarily pressing the actuator of the power assembly to open a valve in fluid communication with the pumping chamber and normally biased to the closed position to release a portion of the product from the pumping chamber through the nozzle during a period of time when the actuator is temporarily pressed; (3) depressurizing the actuator to allow the valve to return to the closed position before all of the product drawn into the pumping chamber in step (1) is discharged through the nozzle; (4) repeatedly pressing and depressurizing the actuator one or more times in succession until all the product drawn into the pumping chamber in step (1) is discharged through the nozzle; and (5) repeating steps (1)-(4) to draw additional product from the internal volume of the container and to release additional product through the nozzle; moreover, during the time when the product is released from the container, the rotation of the power unit relative to the container is prevented, and permanent prevention of rotation of the power unit relative to the container in the direction opposite to the specified one direction of rotation in step (1) is provided. 2. The method according to claim 1, in which steps (1)-(5) are repeated sequentially until all the product contained in the internal volume of the container and capable of being drawn into the pump chamber in step (1) is released. 3. The method of claim. 1, in which the container is a portable container, and the actuator sleeve is rotated by hand, and temporary pressing of the actuator is provided by applying pressure by hand. 4. The method according to claim 1, in which the product is released from the nozzle in atomized form. 5. The method of claim 1 wherein the power assembly is permanently attached to the container. 6. Method according to claim 1, wherein any rotation of the actuator relative to the container is prevented between steps (3) and (4). 7. The method of claim. 1, in which in step (1) the drive sleeve is rotated in said one direction relative to the container for only part of a full turn. 8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the pressurization of the pumping chamber in step (1) is performed using an energy storage device. 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the energy storage device uses one or more springs, one or more resilient materials, or gases to apply pressure to a piston that pressurizes the pump chamber. 10. The method of claim. 9, in which the energy storage device is preloaded or precompressed to apply sufficient pressure to the piston to release the product drawn into the pump chamber in step (1) when the piston is near its original position relative to the bottom of the pump chamber cameras.

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