CA1306444C - Dispenser-applicator for spreading substances - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
An applicator adapted for storing and spreading pre-measured portions of liquid, gel, creamy, low-melting semi-solid or solid substances on surfaces is disclosed.
The applicator has a rigid base and a thin flexible cover attached to one side of the base to form, together with the base, a collapsible pocket for storing the substance. A
handle is attached to the other side of the base. The thin, flexible cover includes one or more apertures wherethrough the substance contained in the pocket may flow out of the pocket. A protective sealing member, such as a thin film, is removably attached to the exterior of the flexible cover to seal or protect the apertures until the sealing member is removed from the cover. The flexible cover collapses as the substance is squeezed out of the pocket while it is being applied to a desired surface. When the substance contained in the applicator is a low-melting solid or semi-solid, the substance melts or becomes flowable as it comes into contact with a warm surface on which the substance is to be spread.

Description

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DISPENSER-APPLIC7~TOR FOR SPnEADING SUBSTP~NCES

11 l~l~CKGROUND OF T~IE INV13NTION

l. Fleld of the Invention 14 The present invention is directed to a ~5 di~pen~er-appllcator adapted for applying spreadable 1~ ~ubstances to ~olid surfaces. More particularly, the 17 present inv~ntion i8 directed to a dispenser-appllcator fox 18 applylng pre-measured convenient amounts of ~pr~adable ~ ubstances/ such as llquid~, gels, lotions, and readily melting solids, to surfaces.

2. Brief Description of the Prior Ar~
23 Spreadlng varlo~ls substances, ~uch a& lotions, 24 ointments, gel~, lubricant~, skin medications, a~ well a~
liquidy or pasty food~tuff~, on solid surfaces, and 2G frequently on .Lrregular ~urfaces, is very old in the art.
27 Spreading of lotlon~ or semi-solid creamy or pa~ty exte~nal 28 medications on varlous parts of the human body, and the ~0 application of butter to corn-on-the-cob may be mentioned in this connection as specific examples where a convenient, ~2 . `~
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1 preferably pre-measured relatively small portion of a spreadable substance ls to be applied preferably evenly to 3 an irregular surface.

4 In view of -the nature and ubiquitousness of the problem 5 in human experience, it is perhaps not surprising that a B very large number of dispenser dev~ces adapted for various 8 types of specific applications have been described in the 9 prior art.

O United States Patant No. 3,334,374, for example, 1 dlscloses an applicator pad having a liquid impermeable back l1 wall, and a liquid permeable front wall with a pocket or 13 storage space being formed between the two. The front wall may b~ a perforated shset or an absorbent material. A
14 llquld agent to be applied with the applica~or pad is kept 15 in rupturable capsules within the pocket. When the lG applicator pad i9 pressed suf~iciently flrmly against a 1 surface, ~he capsules are ruptured, and the liquid i8 18 applied to the surface througil the front wall.

United State~ Patent No. 2,961,677 discloses an applicator for a single dose of shoe poli~h or the like, 22 having a porous pad. A pocket for liquld or liquidy paste 23 ls formed from a pierceable plastic material on one side oP
~ the porou~ pad in such a manner that during normal storage 2~ the liquid i9 isolated from the pad. A gripping member or 26 handle is mounted to the plastic material leaving the front 7 surface of the pad avallable for contact with a surface upon 28 which the liquid i8 to be spread. When it is desired to u~e .~ the llquid or llquidy paste, the plastic wall separating the ~) porous pad from the liquid is pierced wlth a needle and the 3~
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2 liq~id is slowly squeeæed out to the surface through the pores of the pad.
3 United States Patent No. 4,291,697 discloses a cleaning or applicator device which has a frangible cap~ule of liquid S embedded in a relat~vely flat sponge membPr. The sponge fi embeddlng the capsule i~ mounted to an elongated handle.
When it i~ de~ired to apply the liquld contents of the 8 cspsule with tl-e sponge, pressure is exerted on the ~ponge S) to break the embedded capsule, and tlle llquld i~ allowed to 10 soak lnto the sponge.

12 United State~ Patent No. 4,430,013 describ~s an applicator for a llquid substance having a foam pad, and a 11 liquid reservoir attached to one side of the pad. The 1~ liquid reservoir, although made of relatively rlgid pla~tic, 15 has a weakened portion, caused, for example, by a slit or lG scoring, 30 that pressure exerted in a given direction, or 17 bending of the rigid plastie, breaks the weakene~ portlon.
18 When the weakened portion break3, the liquid ~pills into the ~(3 foam pad and is applied there~rom to a des~red 6urface.
~n applicator device somewhat ~imilar in constructlon 21 and op~ration to the ~ust-described patented device is 23 disclosed in United State~ Patent No. 4,493,574. The "dispenser packaqe" oE the 4,493,574 patent has a flexible 24 pouch adhered to a relatively stiff materlal. The package 26 may be opened along a fault llne or cut pattern in the stlff 27 material by bending or flexing the stiff material in a V-shaped pattern. The dispen~er package of thls patent 2R serves rea~onably well for storing and dlspensing single '10 do3es of liquid sub3tanceR or liquidy paste3 eRpecially in ;l situatlons where even ~preading on a surface i~ not `12 .. . . . . . .
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1 important. For example, the dispenser package of U.S.
3 Patent No. 4,493,574 serves reasonably well for di~pens~ng certaln liquidy or liquidy-pasty food condinnent~, such as mustard, ketchup, or honey.
.~ V.S. Patent No. 4,493,574 also describes an embodiment G of a dispen~er package which contains a sponge to catch the 7 liquidy substance when the overlying stiff material is broken along a fa~lt line. This embodiment i9 ~aid to be s~ suitable for applying the liquidy substance to a surface in a "swab" type application. In reality, howev~r, this 1] device, due to lt~ particular configuration and due to the presence of the relatively sharp edges of the broken stiff 13 material, 1~ not well suited for evenly spreading a liquid 14 on any ~urface. This device i5 particularly ill suited for an application where the surface (such as a wounded ~kin) i~
lC sensltive to touch, pressure, or damage by the broken ~tiff i8 material. The devlce of U.S. Patent No. 4,493,574 i~ al~o not well suited for dispensing ~olld or ~emi-solid substance~, and particularly not æuited for relatively 20 evenly dispensing and spreading solid or semi-solid sllbstances on a solid surface, and even less 80 on an 2~ irregular surface.
Generally speaking, those dispensers and applicators of 24 tlle prior art which aim to dispense a convenient ~ingle 2~ portion or dose of a spreadable material (for example, the 27 appl~cator packages of U.S. Patent Nos. 4,430,013 and '18 4,493,574~ tend either to be unable to dispense all of their contents, or to di~pense the contents in a poorly controlled ~)() manner and therefore waste the spreadable material. This i~

3l clearly ~ndesirable.

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For more background and detailed information on the prior art to the present invention, further reference is made to the following Vnited States Patent Nos. 2,829,393; 3,014,579;
3,214,781; 3,768,916; 3,81S,911; 3,826,259; 3,896,808;
4,148,318; 4,173,978; 4,183,684; 4,240,760; 4,515,703, and to Canadian Patent No. 945918.
In light of the foregoing, it is apparent that the relatively large number oE patent disclosures and devices developed in the prior art for dispensing liquid and pasty materials as well as for applying them on various surfaces, have not solved all problems related to this art~ There is still further serious need in the art for dispensers and applicators well adapted for dispensing and applying convenient amounts, preferably single doses, in a well-controlled manner, not of just liquids but also of gels, semi-solids, and certain solids (such as butter), on solid surfaces. The present invention provides such applicator and dispenser devices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the present invention there is provided a dispenser-applicator for dispensing a substance contained therein to a receiving surface and for spreading the substance on the receiving surface, the d.ispenser applicator comprising:
a substantially riyid base; and a thin flexible substantially impervious plastic film sealed to the base so as to form a sealed collapsible pocket between the film and the surface of the base for containing the substance;

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wherein the thin flexible plastic film is adapted to contact the receiving surface and has at least one aperture for dispensing the substance therethrough and onto the receiving surface by application of pressure on the base to collapse the pocket between the surface of the base and the receiving surface; wherein the film is positioned on the base such that as the pocket collapses the film moves toward the surface of the base and wherein the film is sufficiently thin and flexible such that (a) the film itselE provides no significant resistance to the pressure applied to the base and essentially all pressure applied to the base transfers to the substance in the pocket, (b) the film conforms to the shape of the substance in the pocket when pressure is applied and remains in the shape of the substance in the pocket when the pressure is released and (c) the film distributes the applied pressure over the receiving surface and spreads the substances on the receiving surface as the dispenser-applicator is moved across the receiving surface.
The present invention is able to provide a dispenser-applicator adapted for dispensing a pre-measured dose or portion of a liquid substance, and for applying the same to smooth or rough, regular or irregular solid surfaces.
The invention is also able to provide a dispenser-applicator adapted for dispensing a pre-measured dose or portion of a solid or semi-solid substance which flows out from the applicator to be applied to any solid smooth or rough, regular or irregular surface, when the surface contacts the _~t ,,~

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applicator and is sufficiently warm to melt the substance inside, or lower its viscosity sufficiently to make the substance flow under application of pressure.
The invention is further able to provide a dispenser-applicator for pre-measured or convenient doses of medicinal ointments, solutions, and the like, which is particularly non-traumatic when used on broken, sensitive or injured skin, superficial wounds, or the like.
Generally speaking, the invention is able to provide a dispenser-applicator for pre-measured portions (or less) of liquid, gel, creamy, semi-solid or solid substances which can be relatively slowly released in a controlled manner from the applicator onto a surface as a result of applying motion and pressure, or in the case of solids and semi-solids, as a result of applying sufficient heat to the applicator to cause a phase transition or marked drop in the viscosity of the contents of the applicator.
A handle may be attached to, or form an integral part of, the side of the base opposite to where the cover forms the pocket with the base. A protective sealing member, such as a flexible film or thin rigid material, may be removably attached to the exterior oE the flexible cover to seal the apertures until -6a-C

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1 the protective sealing member is removed from the cover.
2 The substance contained in the pocket may be a liquid, gel, 3 cream, semi-solid or solid~ When the substallce is a liquid, 4 the pocket may also contain a foam or like absorbent 5 material to contain the liguid in its pore~ and allow it to 6 be dispensed in a more controlled msnner than in the absence of such absorbent material. When t~le substance is a gel, 8 cream, seml-solid or solid, it is of such a nature that 9 either application of pressure or heat, or both, cause~ the 10 substance to melt or substantially decrease it~ viscoslty, 11 or otherwi~e flow ~hereby the substance may be dlspensed to a surEace through the apertures of the flexible covex.
]3 The ~ubstance, liquid, gel, cream, lotion, semi-solid, 14 or low melting solid oE tlle above-described nature, ls 15 applied to a ~urface after the protective ~ealing member i3 lG removed from its pO8itiOIl on the cover sealing the 17 apertures. The flexible cover is then pressed aga~nst the 18 sur~ace while the user hold~ the applicator by the handle.
1~ The flexible cover sub3tantially conforms to the surface.

21 If the contents are a liquid, gel, cream, lotion, or other "th~xotropic" ~ub~tance, gentle pressure on the applicator 22 i8 ~ufficient to cause the substance to flow out to the 23 surface while the substance i8 spread on the surface by 24 lateral motion of the applicator. When the contents are a 25 low melting solid or semi-solid, then melting or soEtening 27 of the ~olid or semi-solid on contact with a "warm" surface 28 combined with gentle pressure and lateral motion by the user, ~pplies the ~ub~tance to the desired area of the 2~ surface. "Warm" surface ln this respect means a surface 30 which has a temperature near to, or preferably above~ the .~1 :l2 - ' : :, ' ?
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melting or softening temperature of the solld or semi-601id contents of the applicator. Por example, a pre-mea~ured 4 portion of ~olid bu~ter can ba readily and conveniently spread on a war~ or hot corn-on-the-cob with the applicator 5 of the present invention.
The features of the pre~ent invention can be best . under~toodl together with further objects and advantage~, by 8 reference to the following description, taken ln connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein like numerals 10 indicate like parts.
. 11 13 ~RIEF DESCRIPTION OF T~E DRAWINGS
F~gure 1 iB a perspective view of the fir~t preferred 14 embod~ment of the applicator-dispenser dev~ce of the presen~

IB invention with a protective sealinq member omitted from the viewS

18 Figure 2 i~ a bottom view of the flr~t preferred 19 embodiment with a protective sealing member being omitted 2U from the view;
Figure 3 i~ a cros~-~ec~ional view, the cros~-section 22 being taken on lines 3,3 of Figure 2;
23 Figure 4 i~ an enlarged view of the area indicated at 9 24 on Figure 3;

~r Eigure 5 i8 a cros~-sectional vlew of the second . 2G prePerred embodlment of the applicator-dispenser device of 27 the pre~ent invention, with a protective sealiny member 28 being omltted from the view 2~ Flgllre 6 iB a bottom view of the flrst or second 10 prePerred embodiment, the vlew ~howing a Pirst slze of 32 .

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1 protective sealing member being lightly adhered or peelably 3 sealed in place in the device3 Figure 7 is a cros~-~ectional view of the first 4 preferred embodiment with the protective ~eallng member 5 being in place in the device, the cross-section being ta~en C on line 7,~ of Figure 6~
Figure 8 is a bottom vlew of a thlrd preerred 8 embodiment of the applicator-dispenser device of th~ present ~ inventlon, the view showing a second size of protective ]1 sealing member peelably sealed in place on the device;
Figure 9 is a cross-sectional view, the cros3-section 12 belng taken on linas 9,9 of Figure B;
13 Figure 10 is a bottom view of a fourth preferred embodiment~ .
Flgure 11 i5 a cross-sectional view of the fourth 3C preferred embodiment, the cro~s-section belng taken on llne~
17 11,11 of Figure 10~
18 Figure 12 is a bottom view of a fifth preferred embodiment;
Figure 13 i9 a cross-sectional view of the fiftl 21 preferred embodiment, the cross-section being taken on line~
2 13,13 of Figure 12~
2.~ Figure 14 is a bottom view of the flfth preferred embodimellt with the protective sealing member removed;

2G Figure 15 is a bottom view of a sixth preferred . emboaiment;
27 Figure 16 is a cross-sectional view of the sixth 28 preferred embodiment, the cross-section being taken on lines :10 16,16 of Figure 15 3l :12 . . ................... .. . ....
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.., 2 Flgure 17 1~ a perspective view of a ~eventh preferred embodlment with a protective seallng member omitted from the 3 view, and ~ Flgure l8 i8 a cross-sectional view of the seventh 5 preferred embodiment, the cross-section being taken on llnes G 18,l8 of Figure 17.

8 DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EM~ODIMENTS

The following specification, taken in con~unction with the drawings, sets forth the preferred embodiments of the 11 present invention. The embodiments of the inv~ntion 12 disclosed herein are the best mode~ colltemplated by the inventors or carrying out their invention in a commercial 14 environment, although it should be understood that several l~ modifications can be accompli~hed within the parameters of l7 the present invention.
18 Referring now to Figures 1-4 and 6-7 of the appended drawing~, a first preferred embodimsnt 20 o~ the ID applicator-dispenser device of the present invention i8 21 disclosed. It should be noted at the outset that the 22 applicator-dispenser device of the present invention is best adapted for ~toring and dispensing a relatively small amount 23 of a 3ubstance which is thereafter desired to be spread, 2g preferably relatively evenly, on a surface ~not shown).
~ Preferably, and in most applications of the in~ention, the 2S dispenser-applicator holds a ~lngle convenient portlon of 27 the sub~tance, although it should be understood that the 28 user controls diqpensing such that only the deslred amount 2~ need be diapen3ed.

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,, ~ 13~644~ 1 ] The substallce itself can be a liquid, cream, gel, or 3 semi-solid material, the physical properties of whlch are ; such that the material flows readlly upon appllcation of pressure. Liquid materials naturally flow readily even 5 wlthout pressure. Creams, gels, and like materials, generally speaking, flow readily only under pressure1 7 sometimes such material~ are "thixotroplc" in the sense that their viscosity actually decreases once motion is attained iO under pres6ure.
11 ~lternatively, and particularly when the ~ubstance i~
12 solid, lt must be of such a nature that it melt~ readily or 13 become~ capable of flowing under pre~sure when the . d~spenser-applicator comes into contact wlth the warm 14 surface to which the substance i3 to be applied. Warm lG surface in this re~pect means a surface which is of 9uf ~iciently high temperature to cause melting, or the 17 above-described viscosity change of the 601id ~ubstance.
18 Generally speaking, the dispen~er-applicator of the 20 invention can be used for storing and di3pensing liquid, creamy or cream-like, gelatinous, semi-~olld or ~olid 21 sub~tances in a wide varlety of field~ of appllcation. More 2 specifically, the substance stored and dispen~ed by the 24 dispenser-applicator of the invention may be a food item, such as butter, margarlne, mustard, ketchup, honey, or 2r) liquidy or creamy condiment. The ~ubstance may be in the 27 co~metic or health-care field, for example, a shampoo, 8 body-lotion, or medicinal lotion or ointment.
2~ Alternatlvely, the dispen~er-applicator may contaln a 30 convenlent amount for a one-time application of a household 31 or industrial cleaning agent, or a material which haa :l2 :

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1 indu~trial or lika application. For example, the ~ubstance 2 may be a ~mall portton (single portion) of adhesive or 3 lubricating oil. It should be specifically ùnderstood l"
4 this regard that the pre~ent lnventlon i~ not limited by the field of application of the ~ubstance which i3 dlipensed 6 from the novel dl~penser-applicator.
7 Referring now again back to Figures l-4 and 6-7, th~
8 first preferred embodlment 20 of the dispenser-applicator of ~ the invention include~ a 6ùb~tantially rigid base 22. The 10 base 22, however, does not have to be ab~olutely rigid. If 11 the di~pen~er-applicator i~ to be applied to a cur~ed 13 surface, th~ base 22 may be semi-r1gid 80 a~ to allow the user to contour the ba~e by applying finger pres~ure thu~
14 causing tha dispen~er-applicator to conform ~omewhat to the 15 underlying curved surface. It should be understood that in 16 thi~ document, the tçrm H~ubstantially rigid" iA meant to include eml-rigid and rigid. The base 22, a~ shown, i8 18 rectangular in the horizontal plane, although this shape i9 1~ not c~itical and any other ~hape may be used. The bafie 22 20 i9 preferably mad3 of pla~tic and can be made by such 22 conventional technology as thermoforming or injection molding. However, metal, ~uch as a thln aluminum ~tamping, 23 may be suitabla Eor ~ome applicatlons. In this regard it lu 24 noted that selection of material for the ba~e 22 depend~ on the type of application, that i~, the type of subst~nce to 2G be 6tored in the dispenser-applicator. For certaln 27 application~ rigid polyvinyl chloride (pvc) may be suitable 28 for the base 22; for certain med1cinal and food dlstrlbuting application~ other pla~tics, such as a rigid polye~tar or high impact polystyrena, may be used.
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I What ls important about the base, ~n light of tha foregoing, i~ that the material and thicknes~ be chosen to 3 provlde the desired rigidlty or semi-rigldity, that the : 4 material be compatible with the contents and provide 5 adequ~te chemlcal and phy~lcal barrier prope.rties, tha~ the .; material be compatible with the cover materlal ln terms of ., 7 chemical stability, and that the cover and ba~e be bondable to each other ln surface-to-surface contact or by means o~
. an intermediate material. What i3 also important about the lO base ln~ where it is deslred to leave minimal re~idual 11 contents ln the dispenser-applicator, and where the ~urface 12 o~ application ls relatively flat along the area of cont~ct 13 between the dispens0r-applicator and said surface, that the 1~ inner surface of the base should be sub~tantially flat. If, 15 however, a di~pen~er-applicator is to be made ~peciflcally lG for use on a particular convex curved surface, for example, 17 a cylindrical surface such as a pipe, or a spherical surface : 18 such as a ball, then the base can be formed with an lnherent curvature 80 as to sub~tantlally conform to the sur~ace o~
2~ application as the cover collapse~. Inverse curvature of 22 the base to fit concave surface~ is also po~sible.

23 A handle 29 i~ affixed to one side of the relatively 24 flat ba~e 22. In the herein-described first preferred 26 embodi~ent 20 the handle 24 i9 bar shaped, and 19 integrally 2G constructed, for ~xample, molded, with the base 22. The 27 purpos~ oE the l)andle 24 i~ to enable the user ~not ~hown~
28 to conveniently hold and gently press the dispen~er-appl~cator 20 again~t a ~urface ~not shown) to 2~ whlch the contents are to be applled. For automated applicatlons, the handle 24 may be confiqured ~or optimum . . .
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13(J~444 1 gripping by, or attachment to, a machine rather than by human hands.
3 In alternative embodiments the base may be bonded to the handle so as to make the base substantially rigid by 5 virtue of being affixed to ths handle, even though the C material of the base may be flexible or resil~ent. For example, the handle may be hollow and the base may be a ~ member stretched between two opposite ends of the handle.

A flexible cover 26 is affixed to the baRe 22 on the 31 side whlch is opposite to the location of the handle 24.
12 The flexible cover 26 preferably compri~es a relatively thln sheet of plastic material~ for example, 2.00 mil thick film of polyester. The cover 26 may al30 be a multi-layered film 34 rather than a single layer. For example, the cover 26 may 16 be a metallized pla~tic film, or a larninate of foil and lff film, or a film possassing multiple layer3 of different 17 types o~ plastic wlth or without metal.
38 Selection of materlal for the flexible cover 26 also 20 depends on the particular field of application, or stated 21 differently, on the type of substance dispensed by the 22 applicator-dispenser device of the invention. ~or example, where it i~ required to have a cover 26 po~se3sing 23 relatlvely low water vapor transmission and low oxygen transmission, a dual-layer film such a8 26 polypropylenetpolyvinylidene chloride is one choice, or 27 another choice is metalllzed polyester. There are still 2~ addltional choices wlth ~ub~tantially equivalent properties.
2~J A certain degree of flexLbility, sufficient to collap~e ~10 under gentle pressure while the contents are dispensed, ~3~

1 ~ompat1bility with the ~tored ~ubstance, and adequate te~r 2 strength and abrasion reslstance fo~ ~he intended application are important requlrement~ for the flexible 4 cover 26. The stored substance bears the reference numeral 5 28 on the drawing Figure~.
G Generally speaklng, specific pl~stic or metallized 7 pla~tlc materlals are chosen in accordance with tlle state of packaging arts, for the base 22 and cover 26, such that they r~ possess the physical/chemical barrier properties required to lO store the specific desired contents, and 3uch that they 1] posse~s the re~pective mechanical requirement~ d~scribed above for rlgidity or ~lexibility. ~he materials are al~o 13 selected on the basis of characteristic~ requir¢d to 14 accomplish the bond or ~eal between cover and base, and to tolerate any processing regimen required, such a~ heating or lG various methods of sterllization. Many choices of materials ex$st for each applicatlon of the dispenser-applicator. ~or i8 one embodiment of the present invention which dispense~
lD butter, the base 22 compri~es 10 to l5 mil thick ~naar the 20 periphery) sen~i-rigid polyeste~, and the cover 26 i5 21 flexiblc 2 mil thick composite film of 22 polyeater/polyvinylidene chlorlde, the latter ~urface of ~ which i9 coated with a heat sealant layer of low density 2r polyethylene. The cover and ba~e are affixed together by 2G sealing the perlphery with heat and pressure ~heat-sealing).
~or the purposes of this description, the term "heat 28 sealing" includes all techniques where heat is directly 2~) applied or induced in opposed surfaces such that at least . part of the underlylng material i9 melted 80 as to bond the 10 opposed surfaces together. Thus~ heat ~ealing in the :

I ~ 3L3(~6444 present deqcription include~ the tecl1nlques of ultrasonic 2 welding, dielectric heatlng, and radio-frequency welding.
4 In the herein-described first preferred embodiment 20 the flexible cover 26 is bonded to the periphery of one side 5 of the base 22 by a suitable adhe~ive. On Figure 4, ~n adhesive 30 i8 shown between the cover and the base.

8 However, thi~ illu~tratlon i~ also meant to convey bonding ~ in a broader sense, ~o that item 30 on the drawing may also 10 represent a layer of heat-sealant materlal which ha~ been melted and thereby bonded to the cover and the ba~e~ or 1] alternately, the cover and the ba3e materials have been ]3 fused together directly by heat and pre~sure and item ~0 i3 14 lndicative o~ the zone of fuRion.
In alternative emhodiments the flexible cover 26 may ]5 itself comprise a film ~ncluding a heat sealable layer, ~nd 17 may bs attached to the ba~e 22 by heat sealing. In anoth~r 18 alternativa embodiment, the base rather tha~ the cove~ may 1~ have an $nte~ral layer of material which providP~ the capability ~or heat-sealing. Al~o, another embodlment i8 21 where neither the cover nor ba3e lnherently pos~ess a 22 heat-sealant layer, but rather a thin fllm heat-sealant 23 layer, capable of being sealed both to the cover and the ~9 base, ifl independently introduced between cover and base a~

part of the assembly process to manufacture the invention.
2G Generally speaking, ~tate-of-the-art pla~tic article manufacturing and packaging techn~que~, machin~ry, and 27 materials may be employed for manufacturing the 28 dispenser-applicator devices of the present invention.

3U Where it is desirable to have a metallic ba~e, ~1 state-of-the-art metal-forming methods may be employed.

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~` ~;3U6444 ~ he flexible cover 26 forms, together with the base 22, a pocket or storage space wherein the substance 28 i9 contained. Referring now primarily to the bottom view o 5 Figure 2, a plurallty of holes or apertures 32 are shown in the flexible cover 26. The purpose of the holes or 7 apertures 32 i8 to permit the substance 28 to flow out of the applicator 20 when it i9 desired to ~pread the ~ubstanc~
28 on a receiving surface (not shown).
~ As illustrated in Figure 2 the first preferred 10 embodiment 20 has only three holes 32. It 3hould be 12 expressly understood, however, ln th3s connectlon, that the number of holes or apertures 32 in the flexible cover 26, ~3 and their size and spacing depend on the nature of the 14 substance 2B, the characteri~tics of the ~urface to which the sub~tance i9 t~ be applled, the typical pressure used 17 durlng application and on the des1red rate and pattern of flow of the sub~tance 28 from the di~penser-applicator 20.
18 Referring now further to Figures 6 ~nd 7~ a protectlYe 19 sealing member 34 ls shown in contact with the bottom o~ the 20 flexible cover 26 of the fir~t preferxed etnbodiment 20. The 22 protective sealing member may be only lightly adhered or, 23 alternately, bonded in place, to provlde a leak-proof seal, as descrlbed ln detail below. In ~ome applications, for 2~ example ~hen the ~ubstance 28 is a solid, the ~eallng member 2G 34 may be necessary only for sanitary reason~, that is, to keep the ~urface of the cover 26 clean. Further, where the 27 substance is solid and where it i~ de~ired to keep the 2~J dispenser-applicator clean, the protective sealing member 3 may be omltted altogetller provided the dispenser~applicator 30 (singularly or multlply) is contained within a clean t ',~ ' , . ' ' , ' " ' ' " ' ' ' ,~ . . .
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1 contalner, such as a pouch or bag which itselP proteet3 aga~nst contamination.
3 For certa;n application~, in the firs~ preferred 4 embodiment the sealing mQmber 34 is only lightly adhered to the cover 26 by weak interactive Eorce~ which occur between G the reapective materials of the sealing member 34 and the 8 cover 26. These weak interactive force8, prlmarily electrostatic or hydrophobic in nature, are commonly termed ~ "cling". The "cling" may also be caused (in ~ull or in 10 part) by the presence of a small amount of the contents 12 between the cover 20 and the sealing member 34. In many 13 applicat~ons, when the sub~tance is a liquid or a low 14 vi8c091ty gel or the like, the protective ~ealing member 34 i~ needed not only to keep the cover 26 clean but also to 1~ seal the apertures 32 in a leak-proof manner and thereby to lG retain the substance 28 in the di~penser-applicator 20.
17 Depending on the nature of the appllcatlon, the protective ~ealing member 34 may be made from several type~

20 of materials, but is generally a thin plastic film, for 21 example, 0.6 mil thick polyvlnylidene chloride. ~ecause, 22 generally sp~aking, the ~ealing member 34 mufit have the same 23 chemical barrier properties as the cover 26, lt ls, 24 generally speaking, selected from the same material~.
~r ~rhe protective sealing member 34 is, of course, ~) removably, or peelably, attached to the flexible cover 26, 27 so that it can be removed before tl1e substance 28 is to be 2~ dispen~ed from the appllcator 20 of the invention.
In addition to "cling", several method~ known in the ~() art, for example weak adhesive bonding or peelable heat-sealing in a frangible strip or the like, may be used '"' ' ' ' ,' ...... ,.,.'' :' . ............ I ' ' ' .

` 11 113~?~;4~ ~

1 ~or removably attachlng the protective ~ealing member 34 to 2 the cover 26. In cextain embodiments the protectlve sealing member 34 is a plastic film coated either with a r heat-~ealant layer ~such a~ polyethylene~ or with a pressure sensitlve adhesive.
When the protective sealing member 34 is bonded to the 7 cover 26 in a leak-proof manner, the area, geometry, and 8 exact location of the seal about the periphery of the ~ parforation~ is variable. ~hat i~ important l~ that the iO seal be sufficient to prevent the content~ rom escaping 11 throuqh the seal to the exterior. The thickne3s and type of 12 ~llm chosen for the protectlve 6ealing member 34 depends, ~n 13 part, on the requlred barrier propertie~ and method of 1~ bondlng the protect1ve member 34 to the cover 26. Tha 16 materlal chosen must posse~s sufficient ten~ile strength 1~ such that it does not tear when belng peeled away from the 17 cover. The materlal must also possess ~ufflclent cohesive 8 strength that it doe~ not 3uffer a cohesive failure and 1~ separate internally when peeled away from the cover. Such 20 materials and characteristlcs are well known in the art of 21 plastic film packaging, both for heat-fiealed fllms and adhesively sealed films.
2.1 In one particularly lmportant applicatlon of the 21 present lnvention, t11e fiubstance 28 is ~olid butter which ~.~ flows out of the applicator 20 only when the applicator 2~) touches a fiurface (not showt1) fiufficiently hot to melt or ~5 28 soften the butter. In this application, one embodiment of the protective sealing member 34 i9 conveniently a piece of 2~ waxed paper which is "bonded" to the substantlally flat '"`: 19 .. . . . . . ..................... . . .
.. .. , :- . . . . .
.", , , . ,, .. ... , , I

1~ 13(1Ç~44~ l 1 bottom o~ th~ fl~xible cover by "cling" caused, at l~a~t in 2 part, by the pre~ence of a thin film of bu~ter 3 ~ a ~econd example where buttar lq the contentq, a cover 26 ~ compri~ed primarily land on the external 5 surface) of polyvlnylidene chloride. Used in conjunction, a C suitable protectlve member 34 i~ a piece of SA~N WRAPR ~Dow 7 Chemical), which i8 an approximately 0.6 mil thick film o~
8 polyvinylidene chloride. This material ha~ the property of 9 cl~nging to itself, ~ny residual butter on the 3urface o~

10 the cover does not interfere with the clinging together o 11 thi~ 6pecified cover and thi~ ~pecified protective member.

12 ~ a third example where butter or ointment i~ the 13 contents, the cover i~ ~ade of a 2 mil thick dual-layer film of polyestsr and polyvinylidene chloride. Tho 16 protective sealing member is of the ~ame ba~ic composition 17 as ~he cover, but also po~e~se~ a thln layer of polyethylene, wherein the polyethylene surface provide~ the 1~ heat-sealant layer and allows the protectiv~ me~ber to be heat-~ealed to the cover ln a peelable seal.

21 Thu~, when it la de~red to apply the substance 2~ rom '2 the di~pen~er-applicator 20, a user ~no~ shown) gripa the 3 handla 24 with thumb and foreingex, and with the othe~ hand 2 remov~ the protective sealing me~ber 34 from the ~lexible 2~ cover 26, thereby expo8ing the holes or apertures 32. The content~ of the dispenser~applicator 20 are then forced to 2G 810wly flow out to a de3ired surface ~not ~hown) by g~ntly 27 pre~sing the flexible cover againqt the ~urface (not ~hown) 28 and moving laterally about the desired surface ~o a~ to di~trlbute the content over the desired area. More 3~ particularly, when the ~ub~tance 1~ a cream, gel, lotion~ or ~1 :~2 . . `` ~3~6~
. .

the llke, then th~ pre3s~r~ exerted by tlle user ~not ~hown~
in conjunction with mot~on about the surface is sufficient 3 to slowly and gradually ~quee~e the content~ out of the applicator 20 and substantially control the distributlon of 5 the contents about the surface. When the substance 28 in 7 the dlspenser-appllcator i~ a low melting ~olid, ~UCII as 8 butter, then the solid ~butter) first melts bscau~e of lts contact with a warm or hot surface (not shown) and the 10 resulting melted butter flows out of the appllcator through the holes 32. The flexible cover 26 gradually collapses as 1~ the substance is released from the dlspenser-applicator, so 13 that virtually all of the substance can be squeezed out of 14 the applicator 20.
Generally speaking, gentle pressure and ~ome lateral lG motion iR required to dispense the contents of the 17 applicator in a relatively even and contrDl12d ~anner, 18 although ln some cases gentle pressure may he sufflcient.
1~ The followlng explanatlon explains this is3ue in detail. If the perforations 32 of th~ cover 26 are located 2() approxlmately centxally, then in the unusual sltuation when 22 the dlspenser-applicator i9 applied to a very ~mooth flat 23 surace and pressed upon that ~urface, the contents 28 will 2~ not be dispensed because the ~urEace ln e~fect presses back 2r again~t the cover sealing the periphery of each perforation.

2G I`hel) in order to dispen~e the contents, relative motion of the dispenser-applicator 19 used along the surface. Such ~7 28 motion comblned with inherent ~urface frictlon creates t shearing forces along the plane of tlle perforations, literally ~hearing the contents away and causing them to be 31 deposited in a t~iin layer on the surface of appllcation.
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1 ~lternatlvely, uslng the same tlispenser-applicator on a rough surface, that i9, a surface where there are surface : features such as crevices or bumps to which the area o the 4 cover around the perfo~ations cannot totally conform when the dlRpenser-applicator is pressed against said surface, 7 ~hen flow of contents can occur Witllout lateral motion, tending to flll those non~conformal areas and possibly 8 escaping out from under the dispenser-applicator away from 10 the perlphery, depending on the degree of surface roughness.
In contrast, however, if the perforations of the cover are 11 located at or near ~he extreme periphery of the cover rather 33 than centr~lly, then when the full dispenser-appllcator i8 applied to either a fimooth surEace or a rough surface, the 14 perforations will be generally above the level of the 15 surface. Then as pressure i9 applied, the contents will be lG squeazed out of the dispenser-applicator in dlrections away from its pariphery at ~ome elevation above the surface. In 18 view of the preceding discussion it can be generalized that 20 the dispenser-applicator can be conflgured so as to 2l substantially dispense its contents without lateral motlon.
22 However, ~ubsequent lateral motion would be requ~red if it 23 1~ desired to redistribute the contents about the surface.
2~ Tllerefore, the preferred way to use tlle dispenser-applicator 25 to accompllsl) relatlvely uniform surface distrlbution of 2G content~ 18 typically to apply presaure and lateral motion slmultaneou~ly.
27 As the contents of the devic~ are expressed from it, 28 the cover 26 collapses and moves toward the inner surface of 2~ th~ base 22, so as to approximate thls surfacet thus, in the preferred embodiments, thls inner surface of the base 22 is 3l :~'J

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1 flat, or nearly flat, ~uch that as the cover 26 approximates this surface, there is little or no "dead volume" in which 3 the contalned substance might be trapped and therefore 4 inaccessibleO Thi3 characteristic of minimal dead volu~e r) gains ln importance as the contents gain in cost.
G In the illustrated preferred embodiment of Figure 1, 7 the cover ~8 shown as a Pormed film, and is produced by n conventional mean~ such as thermoPorming. For mo~t ~J applications of the invention, the film compri3ing the cover 10 can be formed into itB final shape prior to ln~ertion of the contents, for example, by thermoforming. Ilowever, in 12 alternative embodiments tlle cover ~ 8 initially a ~tretchable 13 flat film, and coslcomitant wlt31 the filling operation 14 becomes stretched into it3 final configuration.
1~ Alternately~ the cover can be an initially shrinkable film 1C larger than needed in final form, is partially or completely ~ bonded to the periphery of the base, and at some step 1 sub~equent or concomitant to the fllling operation, i~
shrunk into its final smaller configuration.
Flgure 5 show~ a second prefe~red embodiment 36 of the dispen~er-applicator of the present lnventionO ~he second 22 preferred e~bodiment 36 diPfers from the first preferred embodiment 20 only in the constructlon of the handle 24. In 2~ tlle second preferred embodiment 36, the handle 24 is a 2r) separate plece of substantially rigid plastlc and i3 not 27 integrally constructed with the base 22. Rattler, it is 28 attached to the base 22, for example, by use of a ~uitable 2J adhe3ive ~not shown~.
The handle may be conPigured in a variety oP shapes and 31 attached or bonded to the base in a variety of way3 known to ;12 .. .. . ... .. . . .
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1 those ~kllled ill the art of plastic axticle manufacturing.
2 What i~ important about the handle is that it be configured and slzed adequately for gripping with finger~ (or for 4 attachment to a machine) and that it be rigld enough to allow the user to control the mot~on of the ~ di3penser-applicator, 7 Figure3 8 and 9 show a third preferred embod~ment 38 of 8 the dlspen~er-applicator of the present invention for use ~ with liquid contents. In this embodiment 38, the protectlve 10 sealing member 34 is an elongated ~trip of material whic~
] covers and peelably seals the apertures 32 ~n a leak proof 1~ ~eal, The slze of the sealing member 34 shown here i3 much 1~ smaller than that of the flrst preferred embodiment 20 6hown ~4 on Flgures 6 and 7, which i~ a relatlvely large rectangular 15 piece of material. The protective sealing member 34 can be lfi of variou3 size ln relatlon to the size of the cover 26, In 17 Figure 6, it i3 shown of sufflcient size to substantially 18 cover the cover 26. In Figure 8, ~ t is ~hown a~ an 1~ approximately rectangular narrow stripl ~eallng the holes in 20 th~ cover 26, but covering only a small proportion of the 21 cover 26. The latter was done for clarity in ~llustratlng 22 that the protective ~eallng member is not necessarily large.
23 In fact, the prot0ctive member can be so small as to ~u~t 2~ cover or seal the holes 32 with a small surp]us to allow a 2~r) finger grlp for peeling, or large enough to totally overlap ~(; all portions of the cover 26, Ttle choice of 3ize and shape depends on the degree of ~anitary precautions necessary and ~X manuf~cturing con~iderations~
~D Another special feature of the thlrd preferred 30 embodlment 38 is that, enclo~ed within the rlgld ba~e 22 and :, ,, . . ..................... .. . . ...
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the flexible cover 26, it contains an absorbent foam 40, . sponge, o~ like materialO Conseguently, the thlrd preferred embodiment 38 i~ emlnently suitable for storing and dispen~lng low visco~ity liquid materials. Such liquid~ are squeezed out of the ab~orbent foam 40 througll the apertures 32 as the user (not shown) presse~ the appllcator against 7 the surface ~not shown) to which the liquid substance 28 i~
to be applled.
~ Figures 10 and 11 lllustrate a fourth preferred 10 embodiment 42 of the invention. Thi~ embodiment 42 19 11 highly suitable for storing and di~pensing certaln medlcinal ]3 lotions or other materials in situations where the surface of the flexible cover 26 must be kept relatively c1ean. To 14 lnsure cleanliness, a protectlve cover 44 ~pos~essing no ~ apertures) i9 removably attached by heat 6ealing, adhe~ive, lC or by some o~her suitable means known in the art, to the 18 periphery of the ba~e 22. Thus, the protectlve cover 44 1~ enclo~es the flexible cover 26 and tlle protective 0ealing member 34. ~eferring still primarily to the concept of providlng a protective cover 44 for t31e di~pen~er-appllcator of the lnvention, when the contents 28 are a ~olid, the 22 protective member 34 can be omitted. Wtlen it 1~ de6ired to 29 add physical protection, the cover 44 ~similar to the one ~r) ~hown on Figure 11) may be rlgld, and may be snap-fitted to 2G) the base. Such a rigid cover is not intended to he 27 leak-proof.
~ Referring still to medlcal uses and others requiring 2~) cleanliness, it i8 recognized that in the fourth emhodiment ~ 42, the handle 24 and base 22 of the dispenser-applicator :1() are not protected from contamination. It is intended that : 1~

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tl1e fourth embodiment 42 would most likely be u~ed in a 3 situation where a quantity of clean ind~vidual dispenser-applicators are contained as a group within 4 another clean container such as a protective pouch or box.
5 Ths protective cover 44 i~ typically a tough flexlble r, plastic film, such as 4 mil thick polyester, or a rigid 8 plastic film, such as 18 mil thick Kodar~ PEI'G copolyester ~astman Chemical). The configuration of the seal between ~J the protective cover 44 and base 22, a~ ~hown ln Figure ll, 10 is only one possible variation, and the co~cept of using ~
protective cover 44, a8 shown, should be under~tood not to 13 be llmlted by the specific embodiment 42. The ~eometry o~
the protective cover 4~ and the filled di~penser-applicator 15 ia such that when the protective cover 44 is a thin tough . film, it l~ sultable for peelable removal by peeling back ~ from one end of tl1e base 22, such that the film 44 collapses and evert~ as it i3 pulled back 50 a~ to pass over ~he cover 18 26. When the protective cover 44 is a Eigid film, it i8 1~ removably attached to the ba~e 22 in such a way that it can 20 be pulled completely down and away ln order to avoid 22 interference and lmpingement on the cover 25.
~igures 12, l~, and 14 illu~trate a fifth preferred 23 embodiment 48 of the dispenser-applicator of the present 2~ lnvention. In the fifth preferred embodiment q8 several 2~ pocketr~ are formed by attachlng one or more ~lexible cover~
26 to the base 22. Four pockets are illu~trated here by way 27 of example. Each pocket 49, of course, contain~ a substance ~() 28 to be stored and dispen~ed with the applicator 48. The 8() contents of the several pocket~ 49 may be identical with one .11 another. Alternatively, and ~n certain preferred .

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1 embodlment~, th~ several pocket~ contain individual components of multi-component Ry~tems, for ~xampl~, the 4 separate component~ of a multl-componen~ adhesive sy~tem.
Each flexible cover 26 has one or more apertures 32 on 5 the bottom of each pocket 49, and the aperture~ or hole~ 32 for each pocket 49 are ~ealed preferably with a single protective ~ealing member 34, as i8 shown on Figure 13, 8 although each pocket could have it~ own individual ~ protective ~ealing member. U~e o~ the fifth preferred 10 embodiment 4B for di~pen3ing and applying one or more ]I substances 28 from all pockets 49 at the ~ame time i~
3 self-explanatory in l~ht o~ the foregoing description and 1 the drawing Fig~res. The fifth preferred embodi~ent with 14 id~ntical content~ in each pocket i8 particularly useful Eor 15 distributing the contents onto an extremely rough or 17 irregular ~urface.
Figure~ 15 and 16 lllustrate a ~ixth preferred 18 embodiment 50 o~ the dispenser-appl1cator of the invention.
1~ For reason3 of keeping tha sub~tance 28 contalned ~n the sixth embodiment ~terile, or tamper evident, or for some otiler health, safety, or related reason, the ~ixth 22 embodiment 50 ha3 an outer enclo~ure 52 which provide~ a 23 microbial barrier and 1~ capable of maintaining ~terility of 2~ the handle 24, the ba~e 22, and the flexible cover 26, and 25 al~o of the contents 28 and of the protective sealing member 34. The enclosure 52 is made, for example, from two pieces 27 of pla~tic, bonded ~for example, glued or he~t sealed~ to 28 one another, as is ~hown on the cros -~ectional vlew o~

30 Flgure 16.

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I In llght of the foregoing it ~hould be understood that the enclo~ure 52 i in~ended to provide a microbial barrier to maintain sterlllty while ~imultaneously providing some physlcal protection to the dispenser-applicator. As one example, the enclosure 52 is comprised of two component~: a rlgid container 54 ~ub~tantially deep such that the entire 7 dlspen~er-appllcator i~ contained within it3 volume, and a 8 tough lldstock 56 wh~ch i8 peelably ~ealed to the container 54. The contalner 54 can be made, for example, of 10 thermofQrmed 1~ mil thick KodarR PETG copolye~ter IEastman 1] Chemical), with a lidstock 56 of '~Kenpeel 124~ ~Kenpack Converters~ a heat-sealable 4 mil th$ck co-extruded film of 13 high denslty polyethylen~ and ethylene-vlnyl acetate ]4 copolymer. Such an encloqure can be heat-sealed and i~
l~ suitable for radiation 3terilizatlon. This enclosure is lG approprlate under circumstances where it is de~ired to 17 utilize gamma radlatlon to sterllize the 18 dispenser-applicator.
Referrlng now to Figures 17 and 18, a seventh preferred 20 embodiment 58 of the dispenser-appllcator of the pre~ent 22 lnvention ls dlsclosed. The seventh preferred embodlment 58 2~ is ~lmilar in many respects to the fir~t preferred 24 embodlment, wlth the following noteworthy dlfferences. One 25 edge 60 o~ the base 22 contaln~ a plural~ty of notche3 62, 2G whereas the other edge 64 has a curved~up llp shape. By 27 holding the dl~pen~er/applicator at an angle to the desired 28 ~urface, and ~mploylng lateral motion, tlfe notched edge 60 2~ is utlllzed to "scrape" the surface upon which the content~
have already been deposlted, and thereby to form relativaly :11 evenly-~paced rows of the contents on the surfa¢e, and wlth :
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relatively uniform thicknes~ of aach row. The curved-up lip 64 ia u~ed where it i8 desired to spread the substance 3 further ~n the surface, paxticularly in an at~aumatic 4 manner. The~e are but two posRibilities o~ a variety of 5 edge configurations which can be utilized in order to 7 further spread the contents ln some desired way. These two configurations would not neces~rily be uzed on the 3ame b 8 (~ di~penser/applicator and are ~hown ln this ashion only for 10 convenience of illustration.
ll ~eferring now to certain a~pect~ of manufactur1ng the di3penser-applicators of the yre~ent invention, the following i8 noted. In th~ manufacturing proce~s for the 14 invention, whenever a leak-proo~ seal 18 required over the perforations of the cover 26, it is typical, although no~
15 mandatory, that the sea~ing member 34 iB afPixed to the 1~ cover 26 prior to the insertion of the contents into the cover. ~wo principal methods for insertinq the content~

1~ lnto the cover 26 are mentioned. In the fir3t method, the 20 contents are $nserted into the unattached oover, and 21 subsequently bonding of the cover to the ba6e is , accompli~hed. This method iB particularly useful for, but 22 not limited to, solids or semi-solids, or very viscous materials. In the ~econd method, the cover i8 partially 2~ bonded to the base 22 and the contents are injected ~or 2~ example, through a hollow tube) through the remai~ing non-bonded periphery between the coYer and base. Peripheral 27 bonding i9 then completed. This method i~ particularly 28 u3eful for liquids or low vi9c03ity materials. Other 3~ filling methods are al~o possible. For example, the rigid 3l base could po~e~ a small hole through whi~h a smaller ~2 3l3C~
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1 diameter tube is lnserted to inject materlal into the cover, while air from the cover simultaneou~ly vents out of the 3 hole. The small hole can th~n be ~ealed with a drop of a suitable adhesive. In another posYible method for filling 5 with a solld or semi-solid materlal, the baYe 22 i~ held in G an inverted position relatlve to Figure 1, the desired material i~ loaded onto the inner surface of the base, and 8 sub~equently the cover 19 positioned from above, and i9 bonded to the base 22.
The invention is not limited to a particular size.
1] Exemplary ~izes for certain ~peciflc applicators and for preferred embodiments are given below. In those 13 applications where a temperature differential between the l4 d~penser-applicator and the surface iY used to melt or i5 lower the viscosity of the contents of the 17 dispenser-applicator, in order to create more rapid heat i8 transfer the numerical ratlo of the average width of the cover to the depth of the cover would be large, for example, 29 on the order of 5 or 10 to 1. A relatively ~mall version of the dispenser-applicator can be used for buttering a cob of corn. For example, one set of representative dlmen~ion~ for 22 a "butterer" lntended to butter one cob o corn are:
~ handle helght, 10-lS mm 2' base, 30-40 mm ~quare 2~ depth of cover, 5-7 mm width oE perimeter seal, 4-6 n~l.
The cover po~sesses, for example, three holes, each 2q approximately 0.7 mm in diameter, located more or less .10 centrally and approximately S mm from each other.

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On the other hand, a larger version of the dispenser-applicator can be used to apply a meclicinal ointment to the b~ck of a burn victim, for e~ampl~:
: ~ handle helght, 30-40 mm base, 80-100 snm square G depth of cover, 15-20 l~n 7 width of perimeter seal, 5-10 snm.
llole si~e, quantity, and spacing, ln this embodiment, depends on factors a~ discussed elsewhere in this 10 application.
1] Even larger versions are possible, for example, to 13 apply printing ink to a large plate or roller, to apply ]4 lubricant to a giant bearing, or to apply adhesive ~o a large ~urEace (for exasnple, several square feet).
1~ Limltation~ in size are based primarily on strengths oE

17 bonds ln the assembled di~penser-applicator, ~trength~ of the materials used for cover asld base, and convenience of 18 use.

2~) Sever~l modific~tions ln the construction and use of the above~described dispenser-applicator devlce may become 22 readily apparent to tho~e sk.illed in the art ln llght of the 23 foregoing di~closure. Therefore, the scope of the present 24 inventlon should be interpreted solely from the following 267~1cl~imc.

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Claims (25)

1. A dispenser-applicator for dispensing a substance contained therein to a receiving surface and for spreading the substance on the receiving surface, the dispenser-applicator comprising:
a substantially rigid base; and a thin flexible substantially impervious plastic film sealed to the base so as to form a sealed collapsible pocket between the film and the surface of the base for containing the substance;
wherein the thin flexible plastic film is adapted to contact the receiving surface and has at least one aperture for dispensing the substance therethrough and onto the receiving surface by application of pressure on the base to collapse the pocket between the surface of the base and the receiving surface; wherein the film is positioned on the base such that as the pocket collapses the film moves toward the surface of the base and wherein the film is sufficiently thin and flexible such that (a) the film itself provides no significant resistance to the pressure applied to the base and essentially all pressure applied to the base transfers to the substance in the pocket, (b) the film conforms to the shape of the substance in the pocket when pressure is applied and remains in the shape of the substance in the pocket when the pressure is released and (c) the film distributes the applied pressure over the receiving surface and spreads the substances on the receiving surface as the dispenser-applicator is moved across the receiving surface.

2. A dispenser-applicator according to claim 1 comprising a sealing member removably attached to the exterior of the thin flexible film to seal at least one aperture.

3. A dispenser-applicator according to claim 1 comprising a protective cover removably attached to the exterior of the dispenser-applicator to protect the thin flexible film.

4. A dispenser-applicator according to claim 2 comprising a protective cover removably attached to the exterior of the dispenser-applicator to protect the thin flexible film and sealing member.

5. A dispenser-applicator according to claim 3 wherein a protective cover comprises an enclosure means for containing the dispenser-applicator.

6. A dispenser-applicator according to claim 2 wherein the sealing member is adhered to the thin flexible film by inherent chemical or physical attractive forces between the sealing member and the thin flexible film.

7. A dispenser-applicator according to claim 3 wherein the protective cover is removably sealed to the dispenser-applicator in a substantially leak-proof manner.

8. A dispenser-applicator according to claim 1 wherein the side of the base facing the pocket is substantially flat.

9. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein the thin flexible film is sealed to the base so as to form a plurality of pockets, wherein there is at least one aperture in each portion of the film forming each pocket.

10. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims l to 8 wherein a portion of one edge of the base contains notches.

11. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a portion of one edge of the base is a curved surface.

12. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket.

13. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket, the substance comprising a liquid or a viscous liquid.

14. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket, the substance comprising a gel, a cream or a thixotropic material.

15. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims l to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket, the substance comprising a medicinal ointment.

16. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket, the substance comprising a liquid or a viscous liquid which is a medicinal ointment.

17. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket, the substance comprising a gel, a cream or a thixotropic material which is a medicinal ointment.

18. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket, the substance comprising a food, an adhesive, a lubricant or a cleaning agent.

19. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket, the substance comprising a liquid or a viscous liquid which is a food, an adhesive, a lubricant or a cleaning agent.

20. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket, the substance comprising a gel, a cream or a thixotropic material which is a food, an adhesive, a lubricant or a cleaning agent.

21. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket, the substance comprising a solid which becomes capable of flowing under pressure upon contact of the thin flexible film with the receiving surface.

22. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket, the substance comprising a solid which becomes capable of flowing under pressure upon contact of the thin flexible film with the receiving surface and wherein the substance is a solid which melts when the flexible film contacts a receiving surface which is warmer than the substance.

23. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket, the substance comprising a solid which becomes capable of flowing under pressure upon contact of the thin flexible film with the receiving surface and wherein the substance is a solid which melts when the flexible film contacts a receiving surface which is warmer than the substance, the substance comprising a medicinal ointment.

24. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket, the substance comprising a solid which becomes capable of flowing under pressure upon contact of the thin flexible film with the receiving surface and wherein the substance is a solid which melts when the flexible film contacts a receiving surface which is warmer than the substance, the substance comprising a liquid or a viscous liquid which is a food, an adhesive, a lubricant or a cleaning agent.

25. A dispenser-applicator according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein a substance is present in the pocket, the substance comprising a solid which becomes capable of flowing under pressure upon contact of the thin flexible film with the receiving surface and wherein the substance is a solid which melts when the flexible film contacts a receiving surface which is warmer than the substance, the substance comprising butter or margarine.