GB1599652A - Dispensers - Google Patents

Description

(54) IMPROVEMENTS IN DISPENSERS (71) I, ALAN DAVID ROSE, of Vicarage Mews, School Hill, Findon Village, West Sussex BN14 OTR, a British Subject, formerly of 8 The Broadway, Oadby, Leicester, do hereby declare the invention, for which I pray that a patent may be granted to me, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement::- This invention is concerned with improvements in dispensers for flowable materials, and more particularly to a dispenser comprising a rigid tubular body having a dispensing outlet at one end and a rotatable member at the other end, a flexible container for the flowable material being located within the body and sealed thereto at one end in communication with the outlet, the other end of the container being connected to the rotatable member so that on rotation the container twists and compresses the flowable material causing it to be expelled through the outlet. Dispensers of this kind are disclosed in my U.K. Patent Application No. 31798/76 (Serial No. 1 582252).

The present invention provides a dispenser for flowable material comprising a rigid tubular body having a dispensing outlet at one end and a rotatable member at the other end, a flexible container for the flowable material being located within the body and sealed thereto at one end in communication with the outlet, the other end of the container being connected to the rotatable member so that on rotation the container twists and compresses the flowable material causing it to be expelled through the outlet; said outlet being provided in a dispensing component removably fitted to said one end of the body, the flexible container comprising an inner flexible bag for said flowable material sealed to the dispensing component so that the flowable material can pass through said outlet, and an outer flexible bag within which the inner bag is removably located, the outer bag being secured at said one end to the body and at said other end to the rotatable member whereby when the inner bag is empty it can be removed from within said outer bag by removing the dispensing component from the body.

Preferably said rotatable member is made in parts which fit together to define a slot in which said other end of said flexible container is frictionally but displaceably held when the parts are fitted together.

Such a container is more particularly described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Fig. 1 shows a cross-sectional side view of the top portion of a dispensing device, and Fig. 2 shows a perspective cut-away view of the lower end portion of the device of Fig.

1.

Referring to the drawings; the device comprises a dispensing component 11, made of metal, or more suitably moulded from plastics material, and removably fitted to the top edge of a tubular housing 2, for example by screw-threading 66 as shown in the drawing. The dispensing component provides an outlet for the liquid, having a manually operable valve 18 with a nozzle 21.

A container for the material to be dispensed comprises an inner bag l0a and an outer bag lOb, the outer bag being permanently attached to the top edge of the tubular housing 2, and the inner bag being permanently sealed to the dispensing component 11, for example to a depending flange 64. The lower end of the outer bag lOb is formed into a flat tail 43 which is attached to the centre of a rotatable member 32, carried al the lower end of the housing 2. A series of pips 36 spaced at regular intervals around the outer surface of the housing co-operates with a series of teeth 34 formed on the inner cylindrical surface of the end cap to operate in the manner of a resilient ratchet to hold the end cap in any particular position.

However the pips 36 and teeth 34 may be replaced by saw-tooth section co-operating teeth which provide considerably more resistance to rotation in the untwisting direction than in the twisting direction. Rotation of the end cap twists the lower end portion 41 of the outer bag lOb so that the contents of the inner bag l0a will be expelled through the outlet when the valve 18 is opened. The method by which the tail of the bag is attached to the end cap provides a compensating device 40 which allows the bag to move axially towards the outlet end as it is twisted.

As can best be seen from Fig. 2, the tail 43 of the bag passes through a slot in a transverse wall 49 of the end cap 32. The end cap is in fact made in two halves 32a, 32b, which meet in a diametrical plane, the part 32b having a shallow recess 53 which, together, with the adjacent surface ofthe part 32a defines a slot through which the tail 43 of the bag passes. The two halves of the end cap are secured together by any convenient manner, such as glueing, welding, or as in this case by the snap fitting of studs 60 on the part 32a in corresponding apertures in the part 32b. This split end cap arrangement makes it a simple matter to locate the tail 43 of the bag in the slot, and does not require any elaborate threading procedure.Moreover, it is an important feature of this dispensing device that the tail of the bag should be firmly gripped in the slot, which is of rigid material, so that it can only be drawn through the slot by the application of substantial axial force from the bag as it twists.

This ensures that the twisting portion of the bag is securely controlled and kept on the axis of rotation of the end cap. The portion of the tail 43 below the transverse wall 49 is concealed within the end cap by enclosure disc 59 which fits within a rebate 57 in the end cap.

When the rotatable end cap is twisted in the manner previously described, the liquid in the inner bag 1 ova is compressed, and can be discharged through the nozzle 21 on depressing the valve 18. When the inner bag is empty, the dispensing component 11 can be removed together with the inner bag l0a, and replaced by another dispensing component with a full inner bag. Thus, the tubular housing and end cap and outer bag lOb can be re-used for a number of refills.

WHAT I CLAIM IS: 1. A dispenser for flowable material comprising a rigid tubular body having a dispensing outlet at one end and a rotatable member at the other end, a flexible container for the flowable material being located within the body and sealed thereto at one end in communication with the outlet, the other end of the container being connected to the rotatable member so that on rotation the container twists and compresses the flowable material causing it to be expelled through the outlet; said outlet being provided in a dispensing component removably fitted to said one end of the body, the flexible container comprising an inner flexible bag for said flowable material sealed to the dispensing component so that the flowable material can pass through said outlet, and an outer flexible bag within which the inner bag is removably located, the outer bag being secured at said one end to the body and at said other end to the rotatable member whereby when the inner bag is empty it can be removed from within said outer bag by removing the dispensing component from the body.

2. A dispenser according to Claim 1 wherein said rotatable member is made in parts which fit together to define a slot in which said other end of said flexible container is frictionally but displaceably held when the parts are fitted together.

3. A dispenser for flowable material substantially as described herein with reference to the drawings.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims (3)

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. attached to the end cap provides a compensating device 40 which allows the bag to move axially towards the outlet end as it is twisted. As can best be seen from Fig. 2, the tail 43 of the bag passes through a slot in a transverse wall 49 of the end cap 32. The end cap is in fact made in two halves 32a, 32b, which meet in a diametrical plane, the part 32b having a shallow recess 53 which, together, with the adjacent surface ofthe part 32a defines a slot through which the tail 43 of the bag passes. The two halves of the end cap are secured together by any convenient manner, such as glueing, welding, or as in this case by the snap fitting of studs 60 on the part 32a in corresponding apertures in the part 32b. This split end cap arrangement makes it a simple matter to locate the tail 43 of the bag in the slot, and does not require any elaborate threading procedure.Moreover, it is an important feature of this dispensing device that the tail of the bag should be firmly gripped in the slot, which is of rigid material, so that it can only be drawn through the slot by the application of substantial axial force from the bag as it twists. This ensures that the twisting portion of the bag is securely controlled and kept on the axis of rotation of the end cap. The portion of the tail 43 below the transverse wall 49 is concealed within the end cap by enclosure disc 59 which fits within a rebate 57 in the end cap. When the rotatable end cap is twisted in the manner previously described, the liquid in the inner bag 1 ova is compressed, and can be discharged through the nozzle 21 on depressing the valve 18. When the inner bag is empty, the dispensing component 11 can be removed together with the inner bag l0a, and replaced by another dispensing component with a full inner bag. Thus, the tubular housing and end cap and outer bag lOb can be re-used for a number of refills. WHAT I CLAIM IS:

1. A dispenser for flowable material comprising a rigid tubular body having a dispensing outlet at one end and a rotatable member at the other end, a flexible container for the flowable material being located within the body and sealed thereto at one end in communication with the outlet, the other end of the container being connected to the rotatable member so that on rotation the container twists and compresses the flowable material causing it to be expelled through the outlet; said outlet being provided in a dispensing component removably fitted to said one end of the body, the flexible container comprising an inner flexible bag for said flowable material sealed to the dispensing component so that the flowable material can pass through said outlet, and an outer flexible bag within which the inner bag is removably located, the outer bag being secured at said one end to the body and at said other end to the rotatable member whereby when the inner bag is empty it can be removed from within said outer bag by removing the dispensing component from the body.

2. A dispenser according to Claim 1 wherein said rotatable member is made in parts which fit together to define a slot in which said other end of said flexible container is frictionally but displaceably held when the parts are fitted together.

3. A dispenser for flowable material substantially as described herein with reference to the drawings.