US3341067A

US3341067A - Paper towel dispensing cabinet for different sized towels

Info

Publication number: US3341067A
Application number: US507894A
Authority: US
Inventors: Lehyman J Bastian
Original assignee: Scott Paper Co
Current assignee: Kimberly Clark Tissue Co
Priority date: 1965-11-15
Filing date: 1965-11-15
Publication date: 1967-09-12
Anticipated expiration: 1984-09-12

Description

L. J. BASTIAN Sept. 12, 1967 PAPER TOWEL DISPENSING CABINET FOR DIFFERENT SIZED TOWELS Filed Nov. I5. 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. LEHYMAN J. BASTIAN ATTORNEY L. J. BAS'ITIAN Sept-12,1967

PAPER TOWEL DISPENSING CABINETFOR DIFFERENT SIZED TOWELS Filed Nov. 15, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet a INVENTOR. LEHYMAN J. BASTIAN ATTORNEY United States Patent Ofiice 3,341,067 Patented Sept. 12, 1967 vania Filed Nov. 15, 1965, Ser. No. 507,894 3 Claims. (Cl. 221-44) This invention relates to a new and improved paper towel dispenser and, more particularly, to a dispensing cabinet capable of dispensing both C-fold and multifold towels.

In the past, there have been several varieties of paper towel cabinets which have been designed to dispense more than one type of towel. This is desirable for several reasons; one being that it enables towel users to have greater flexibility in purchasing from different companies having different towel products to obtain a more competitive price. Some of these cabinets were capable of dispensing both C-fold and multifold towels. However, these cabinets were generally quite complex in construction and expensive to manufacture. Furthermore, in order to allow the reliable dispensing of different types of towels, it has generally been found necessary to supply additional parts to the cabinet in sets which could be interchanged in order to convert the dispensing device arranged for use with one type of towel fold to an arrangement for use with the other type of towel fold. These interchangeable parts or dispenser-coverting members would become misplaced or lost during use of one particular type of towel and subsequent convertability of the cabinet to enable it to dispense another type of towel fold was then not possible.

The towel dispenser of the present invention is of a particularly unique design and construction in that the cabinet housing portion including the dispensing means is comprised of a single piece integrally formed from one piece of metal sheet and is capable of reliably dispensing both C-fold and multifold towels without the necessity of any dispenser-converting members or interchangeable parts. This affords substantial reductions in cost and manufacturing complexity. The cabinet also embodies a backing plate which, as normally used, serves as a mounting means to attach the paper towel dispenser to a wall. The back mounting plate contains means coopearting with means on the housing for allowing the housing to be withdrawn from the wall or opened in order that a new supply of paper towels maybe inserted therein.

An important feature of the invention which aids in allowing the advantages of the invention to be achieved is the particular construction, shape, and position of an improved front towel stack support ledge which provides support to the stack of towels at their front edge but is spaced for a short distance from the edge of the dispensing opening so as to provide an open space beneath the central portion of the lowermost towel adjacent the front edge of the dispensing opening. In the case of multifold towels, when the lowermost towel is withdrawn, the next succeeding towel can be loosely partially withdrawn into this cavity whereby it is retained within the cabinet but relatively free from the frictional forces normally present between the front and rear towel support ledges and the paper towel due to the weight of the upstanding stack of paper towels within the cabinet.

The use of a ledge constructed as mentioned above re duces the criticality of the relative difference in height between the front support ledge and the back support ledge which has necessitated largely the use of interchangeable converting members of different heights in cabinets previously employed to provide for dispensing of both C-f-old and multifold towels from the same cabinet.

The precise configuration of this ledge will be subsequently described in greater detail. In general, it is preferred that the front towel support ledge be at a higher elevation than the rear towel support ledge. In this manner, the towel adjacent the dispensing opening of a cabinet will be more clearly visible and exposed to a user, making the grasping and dispensing of towels more convenient.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved paper towel dispensing cabinet.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a towel dispensing cabinet having a housing portion and a dispensing means integrally formed from a single piece of sheet material.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a towel dispensing cabinet which is capable of reliably dispensing both C-fold and multifold paper towels without requiring interchangeable or adjustable parts.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a device embodying the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken through the device shown in FIGURE 1 illustrating the manner in which C-fold towels are supported and dispensed therefrom;

FIGURE 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken through the device shown in FIGURE 1 illustrating the manner in which multifold towels are supported and dispensed therefrom;

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view in spaced-apart relation of the mounting plate and of the housing of the cabinet;

FIGURE 5 is a partial plan layout view of 'a housing blank prior to being formed into shape and illustrating the lines along which the material is bent during formation.

Referring to the drawings, a housing of the cabinet, indicated generally as 10, has side walls 11, a front wall 12, a top 13, and a bottom indicated generally by reference numeral 14. Housing 10 cooperates with a backing plate 15 to form a paper towel dispensing cabinet suitable for attachment to a wall or other support means.

Housing 10 is formed from a single sheet of material, preferably metal, after being cut into a flat pattern or blank, an illustrative portion of which is shown in FIG- URE 5. The side walls 11, 11 are folded back and the

top

13, 13 is folded down with

flaps

17, 17 secured to the upper ends of side walls 11, 11 by spot welding.

The lower section of front wall 12 and the front portion of bottom 14 have an inwardly depressed portion forming a front stack support ledge indicated generally by reference numeral 18. As shown in FIGURE 5, bottom wall 14 has

front tabs

19, 19 and

back tabs

20, 20 which are folded in an upwardly depending manner from bottom 14 as bottom 14 is folded inwardly. As shown in FIG- URE 4,

tabs

19 and 20 are then spot welded to the inside surface of side walls 11, 11. A dispensing opening 21 is provided in bottom 14.

Those familiar with sheet metal cabinet construction will readily appreciate the relatively few simple fabrication steps required in the formation of the above housing structure 10. The bottom rear corners of side walls 11 of the housing 10 are provided with bearing openings 22 which may be aligned with suitable bearing openings 23 near the bottom of shallow flanges 24 on each side of backing plate 15. Bearing stud members or pins 25 pivotally connect the housing 10 to the plate 15 through the

openings

22 and 23.

Plate 15 is provided with suitable slots 26 through which fasteners may be inserted to mount the cabinet on the wall.

The top margin of plate 15 is provided with a depending flange 27 having a reversed downwardly extending lip 28 which releasably engages a resilient locking member 29 secured to the top 13 of housing to hold the cabinet closed. On downward depression of member 29 by force applied through an opening 30 in top 13, the cover may be swung forwardly and downwardly about pins 25 to expose the cabinet interior for the insertion of a new stack of fresh towels to be dispensed.

Turning now to the more specific features of the front towel stack support ledge, the lower end of front wall has a downwardly and inwardly sloping wall portion 31 passing into a downwardly and more inwardly sloping shelf portion 32 recessed upwardly and depressed inwardly into the interior of the cabinet from the general level of bottom wall 14. Shelf portion 32 terminates in a downwardly and outwardly depending riser portion 33 which terminates at an inwardly depending lip portion 34.

It should be noted that the upwardly and inwardly depressed portion of housing 10, forming the front towel stack support ledge 18 and comprised of wall portion 31, shelf portion 32, and riser portion 33, does not extend entirely to each side of housing 10 but is depressed starting at a point spaced from each side. This is done so that the depressed portion may be formed easily into the single sheet of the housing without interfering with the formation of the corners of the cabinet adjoining the front wall, bottom, and sides which would complicate the formation of the structure.

The forward edge 35 of dispensing opening 21 is formed by the rear edge of lip portion 34. The rear edge 36 of dispensing openings 21 is curved forwardly at each side of the cabinet and reverses again toward the sides to terminate into a slot connecting the front edge 35 with the rear edge 36. This is shown clearly in FIGURE 5.

Rear edge 36 is part of a substantially horizontal portion 37 of bottom wall 14 which comprises rear towel stack support ledge. Horizontal portion 37 terminates rearwardly in an upwardly sloping depending portion 38 which serves to lessen the weight of a stack of towels within housing 10 upon the lowermost towel to be dispensed. The rear edge of towels stacked within housing 10 presses toward backing plate and, when the towels approach bottom 14, the slope of portion 38 reduces force of the stack against the bottom towel.

Referring now specifically to FIGURES 2 and 3, the manner in which both C-fold and multifold towels are dispensed from the same housing and dispensing means or opening is clearly illustrated. FIGURE 2 shows the position of a C-fold towel within the housing and illustrates the position of an end 39 of the towel which hangs down into the opening and may be grasped by a user for removal. It can be seen that as the C-fold towels feed down toward the dispensing opening, the front edge of the towel contacts sloping wall portion 31 of the front panel which helps to fan the towels slightly in the desired manner. At the same time the towel is tilted so that it slants down and back. By fanning the towels along slope 31 and in the radius intersecting or connecting sloping wall portion 31 and shelf portion 32, the weight of the stack of toweling is distributed along the front edge of more than one towel. This reduces the stack pressure on the towel being dispensed, thereby minimizing the danger of tearing during dispensing. A slight interference fit of C-fold towels in the cabinet is preferred between sloping wall portion 31 and back plate 15 of the cabinet to further reduce the stack pressure on the bottom towel. This does not effect the dispensing of multifold towels as they are generally narrower. FIGURE 3 illustrates the position of a multifold towel within the housing and the position of an end 40 of the towel which hangs down into the opening for grasping and removal by a user. It can be seen that due to the open space beneath the centrol portion of the lowermost towel adjacent the front edge of the dispensing opening, the forward edge 16 of the multifold towel is permitted to drop down in a relatively loose condition substantially free from stack pressure. The towels are reliably retained within the cabinet until desired dispensing, however, by the inwardly depending lip portion 34 located below the shelf portion 32 of front towel stack support ledge 18.

From the above description, it will be apparent that many alterations may be made in the specific apparatus without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The precise description of the embodiment of the invention shown is not intended to unduly limit the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A paper towel cabinet comprising a backing plate and a one-piece housing forming front, side, top and bottom walls, said housing being removably attachable to said backing plate so as to allow insertion of a stack of folded paper towels, the bottom wall of said housing comprising a front towel stack support ledge integrally formed therein and a rear towel stack support ledge spaced rearwardly of said front stack support ledge but connected thereto by integral upstanding side tabs which are secured to said side walls of said housing, said spaced front and rear towel stack support ledges defining a dispensing opening in said bottom wall whereby paper towels of both the C-fold and the multifold type can be reliably dispensed, said front towel stack support ledge comprising an inwardly depressed section at the lower end of said front wall and at the front end of said bottom wall, said section having a downwardly and inwardly sloping wall portion, a downwardly and more inwardly sloping shelf portion and a downwardly and outwardly depending riser portion terminating in an inwardly depending lip portion extending to the front edge of said dispensing opening in a plane substantially parallel to but spaced from the plane of said shelf portion.

2. A paper towel cabinet according to claim 1, wherein said inwardly depressed section extends from a line passing through the center of the front and bottom walls of said cabinet toward each side wall to points spaced from each side wall.

3. A paper towel cabinet according to claim 1, wherein said inwardly depressed section is contiguous about its entire periphery with portions of said housing comprising said front and bottom walls.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,661,455 3/1928 Barbieri 22145 2,027,672 1/1936 Broeren 221 2,488,040 11/1949 Straubel 22144 2,830,728 4/1958 Kreuger et al. 22148 3,203,586 8/1965 Downham 221-55 SAMUEL F. COLEMAN, Primary Examiner.

Claims

1. A PAPER TOWEL CABINET COMPRISING A BACKING PLATE AND A ONE-PIECE HOUSING FORMING FRONT, SIDE, TOP AND BOTTOM WALLS, SAID HOUSING BEING REMOVABLY ATTACHABLE TO SAID BACKING PLATE SO AS TO ALLOW INSERTION OF A STACK OF FOLDED PAPER TOWELS, THE BOTTOM WALL OF SAID HOUSING COMPRISING A FRONT TOWEL STACK SUPPORT LEDGE INTEGRALLY FORMED THEREIN AND A REAR TOWEL STACK SUPPORT LEDGE SPACED REARWARDLY OF SAID FRONT STACK SUPPORT LEDGE BUT CONNECTED THERETO BY INTEGRAL UPSTANDING SIDE TABS WHICH ARE SECURED TO SAID SIDE WALLS OF SAID HOUSING, SAID SPACED FRONT AND REAR TOWEL STACK SUPPORT LEDGES DEFINING A DISPENSING OPENING IN SAID BOTTOM WALL WHEREBY PAPER TOWELS OF BOTH THE C-FOLD AND THE MULTIFOLD TYPE CAN BE RELIABLY DISPENSED, SAID FRONT TOWEL STACK SUPPORT LEDGE COMPRISING AN INWARDLY DEPRESSED SECTION AT THE LOWER END OF SAID FRONT WALL AND THE FRONT END OF SAID BOTTOM WALL, SAID SECTION HAVING A DOWNWARDLY AND INWARDLY SLOPING WALL PORTION, A DOWNWARDLY AND MORE INWARDLY SLOPING SHELF PORTION AND A DOWNWARDLY AND OUTWARDLY DEPENDING RISER PORTION TERMINATING IN AN INWARDLY DEPENDING LIP PORTION EXTENDING TO THE FRONT EDGE OF SAID DISPENSING OPENING IN A PLANE SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO BUT SPACED FROM THE PLANE OF SAID SHELF-PORTION.