US2975938A - Can spout - Google Patents

Description

March 21, 1961 J. MARFISI CAN SPOUT Filed Dec. 51, 1958 m m n T Q WM V W h ATTORNEY.

United States Patent CAN SPOUT Joseph Marfisi, 211 Bonvue St., Pittsburgh 14, Pa., as-

signor of one-fourth to William J. Ruauo, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Filed Dec. 31, 1958, Ser. No. 784,417

1 Claim. (Cl. 222-90) This invention relates to a can spout and, more particularly, to a spout or dispenser which may be punched through an end of a can and sealed thereto in a liquidtight manner so as to facilitate dispensing of the liquid contents of the can.

It is known in the art to puncture the top or end of acan by means of a spout, which is inserted therethrough to aid in dispensing the liquid contents. An outstanding disadvantage of conventional spouts is that they do not form a liquid-tight seal with the punctured end of the can, therefore, the contents, particularly in the case of oil will leak at the joint. Another disadvantage is that such spouts are relatively complicated in construction and are made of special parts which are expensive to manufacture, furthermore they are not easily and quickly attachable or detachable with respect to the can.

An object of my invention is to provide a novel can spout or dispenser which is devoid of the above named disadvantages of conventional spouts and which may be easily and quickly punched through, locked and tightly sealed with respect to the end of the can to enable dispensing of the liquid contents therethrough.

A more specific object of my invention is to provide a spout which may be punched through one end of the can and which includes spring means for yieldably urging a washer into liquid-tight sealing engagement with such end of the can after puncturing of the can and after the spout has been rotated 90 to lock the spout to the can.

Another object of my invention is to provide a detachable spout for insertion in an end of a can or other container and which is made of relatively simple and inexpensive parts, also which forms a hermetical seal.

Other objects and advantages of my invention will become more apparent from a study of the following description taken with the accompanying drawing wherein:

Fig. 1 is a side or elevational view of a can spout embodying the principles of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a side view thereof.

Fig. 3 is a vertical, cross-sectional view taken along line HIIII of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 shows the spout illustrated in Figs. 1-3 as it is being inserted or punched through an end of the can.

Fig. 5 shows the spout of Fig. 4 after being turned 90 into locking engagement with the punctured end of the can.

Fig. 6 is a top view, partly in cross-section, taken along line VI-VI of Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a top view showing a modification provided with an air inlet tube, and

Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view, taken along line VIII VIII of Fig. 7.

Referring more particularly to Figs. 1-3 of the drawing, numeral 10 denotes a metal tube of substantially oval shaped cross-section, having one end cut angularly so as to provide a sharp point 11 and an angularly disposed cutting edge 12 which is sufiiciently sharp so as to r- 2,975,938 lc Patented Mar. 21, 1961 metal spout portion 18 of round cross-section. A helical spring 15 has one end which fits into a metal washer or seat 16 which is held in position by crimped portions or protuberances 17 formed on tube 18. The lower end of spring 15 seats against a metal washer 14 which surrounds tube 18. Normally, the spring 15 urges the washer 13 against the top shoulder of tube 10 where it merges integrally into tube 18 of reduced diameter. A cap 19 may be slipped-fitted, or if desired, screw threaded, onto the top end portion of tube 18.

In operation, when it is desired to attach the spout to an end of a can, a fragmentary portion of which can is identified by numeral 21 in Figs. 4 and 5, tube portion 18 is grasped and point 11 is pushed with force through the top end of the can whereupon the cutting edge 12 will puncture the top of the can and cut out an oval shaped portion 22 thereof, as shown in Fig. 4. Then tube 18 is rotated while spring 15 is under compression, that is, from the position shown in Fig. 4 to that shown in Fig. 5, so that the shoulder portion 23 will rest against the bottom peripheral surface of the hole-surrounding portion of the punctured opening. Upon release of tube 18, spring 15 will tightly push or urge rubber washer 13 against the top surface of the can to provide a liquidtight seal about the punctured opening. The contents of the can may now be emptied by tilting the can and allowing the liquid contents to pour through tubes 10 and 18. I

When it is desired to store the can in a refrigerator, for example, if it is a can containing fruit juices or the like, cap 19 may be slip-fitted or otherwise secured to the top of tube 18.

When it is desired to remove spout, tube 18 is grasped and pushed downwardly so as to compress spring 15 and turned through an angle of 90 from the position shown in Fig. 5 to that shown in Fig. 4 so as to allow withdrawal of tube 10 through the correspondingly shaped opening 22.

A modification is shown in Fig. 7-8 wln'ch is identical in all respects with the spout hereinbefore described except that an additional air inlet tube 26 is provided inside tube 18 which may be soldered or otherwise attached thereto, and wherein an opening 27 is made in tube 10 to prevent air pockets and to allow outside 4811' to freely enter the can to permit freer flow of liquid therefrom.

The can spout described above is useful for dispensing liquids or fluid contents from cans, and is especially suitable -for dispensing olive oil and the like, which otherwise has a high tendency to leak.

Thus it will be seen that I have provided an efficient can spout which can be easily and quickly inserted in an end of a can and locked thereto by simply rotating the spout through an angle of 90, which spout is provided with a highly reliable spring-actuated seal to prevent leakage of the liquid contents through the punctured hole formed in the end of the can; furthermore I have'provided a can spout or dispenser of relatively simple and inexpensive construction which readily adapts itself for mass production.

While I have illustrated and described several embodiments of my invention, it will be understood that these are by way of illustration only, and that various changes and modifications may be made within the contemplation of my invention and within the scope of the following claim.

I claim:

A can spout having a tube composed of a lower tube 3 portion oval-shaped in cross-section, said portion having a shoulder at its upper end and an inclined lower cut ting end, a spout-forming cylindrical tube portion of smaller cross-section than said lower tube portion integrally connected to, and extending outwardly from, said shoulder, a helical spring surrounding said cylindrical tube portion, a washer of resilient material normally biased by said spring toward said shoulder of said ovalshaped tube portion, a metallic washer resting on said washer of resilient material and forming a seat for the lower end of said spring, means projecting radially from said cylindrical tube portion, said means comprising a cup-shaped metal washer serving as a stop for the upper end of said spring, and protuberances on said cylindrical tube portion for retaining said cup-shaped Washer thereon, whereby, when said cutting end is pressed through and punctures an end wall of a can and said tube portions are turned 90 about their axes, while said spring is under compression, said spring will urge said shoulder against the inner surface of said end wall and will urge the said washer of resilient material against the outside surface of said end Wall so that the spout will be held fast to the can in liquid-tight relationship therewith, and an air inlet tube secured to the inner wall of said cylindrical tube Portion and projecting into said oval-shaped tube portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,145,778 McCrystle July 6, 1915 2,024,913 Dilley Dec. 17, 1935 2,585,801 Lieuwen Feb. 12, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 857,465 France Apr. 15, 1940

Images