Drug – bio-affecting and body treating compositions – Preparations characterized by special physical form
Reexamination Certificate
1999-06-01
2001-05-08
Page, Thurman K. (Department: 1615)
Drug, bio-affecting and body treating compositions
Preparations characterized by special physical form
C424S405000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06228375
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a small, single-use, disposable container having various configurations which can durably be carried in a pocket and containing a hand-sanitizing solution or substance with easy opening capability to allow the user to discreetly and frequently sanitize the hands from common bacteria, viruses or biological agents.
BACKGROUND—PRIOR ART
Today's society involves increased secondary physical interactions with other people such as from door handles, table pens, sinks, towel dispensing machines, flushing handles, water fountains, shopping cart handles, on public transportation systems, public restrooms, and doors entering most buildings. Direct contact such as hand shaking can be particularly dangerous to transfer of germs since most people will rub their face or cover their mouth or nose when coughing or sneezing.
Current hand sanitizing methods in public location are typically washing of the hands in a rest room sink. This involves turning the water on-off by touching a potentially contaminated handle, turning a handle for a paper towel or pushing button for an air dryer—again touching a potentially contaminated surface, and finally grabbing on a door handle which has the most potential contamination when leaving the rest room. I have observed that approximately 50% of the men leaving a men's restroom do not wash their hands and contaminate the door handle. These individuals go on to greet others by shaking their hands potentially spreading contamination.
Paper or cloth towels in a small packet is another method for cleaning hands but this method involves a cumbersome process requiring two hands to tear open a packet, remove the towel, find someplace to through the packet away, unfold a towel, wipe both hands, through away the towel. The towel approach is more for cleaning hands covered with a foreign substance such as barbecue sauce, grease, butter, or other light substances.
Bottles of hand sanitizing lotions in bottles exist but are cumbersome to carry in a pocket and are intended for anywhere from 25 to 200 uses. These containers require a relatively large cap for opening and closing. Once opened there is the risk of a substantial quantity of leakage due to their high volume compared to a single use requirement. These bottles also require two hands to operate. Multi-use containers also require the passing from one person to another, again risking contamination on the outside of the bottle. Multi-use containers pose the challenge of dispensing the right quantity. Normally one must be very careful not to dispense too much. You must quickly focus on what you are doing and attempt to get the right amount out of the bottle.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,063,057 by Spellman, et all, entitled Cosmetic Capsules addresses the small packaging issues and requirements for cosmetic products. The MHS specific packaging configurations significantly differ in structure from the structure shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,063,057. MHS's method use claim for hand sanitizing solutions is not addressed in Spellmen's patent.
Packaged towels and bottles are impracticable to use in social settings where an individual has shaken many hands and would like to discreetly sanitize his/her hand. Similarly, packaged towels are difficult to open in public areas such as subways or crowds of people and bottles are difficult to carry in shirt or pants pockets.
OBJECTIVES AND ADVANTAGES
The objective of the micro hand sanitizers (MHS) is to provided and more efficient method of carrying and using sanitizing solutions in public environments and in situation involving significant exposure to bacterial, viral and biological agents. MHS use can to help stop the spread of these bacterial, viral, and biological threats and protect the user from the most common way of contacting these threats. As used in this application, the term “sanitizing substance” includes compounds designed to defeat common household germs, bacterial, viruses and biological agents. Micro hand sanitizers (MHS) has significant advantages over current methods.
(a) The micro encapsulating container is significantly smaller than any other cleansing container with a substance volume of approximately 0.5 to 2.0 milliliters, just enough for a single use to sanitize both hands. This small size allows the MHS to be carried in a shirt, pants pocket, coat pocket, or larger quantities in a briefcase, or purse.
(b) The MHS's individual packaging allows the user to carry the quantity deemed necessary in a pocket and the remainder in the desk, briefcase or purse. The individual packaging also allows for a bowl or jar of MHS to be placed in restrooms, food preparation areas, or areas where bacterial, viral, or biological contamination may exist.
(c) The MHS is a single use system therefore the simple squeezing of a capsule squirts the right amount. MHS's single use size does not require the slow, careful watching of the quantity being dispensed. The user can focus on something else, such as watching a computer screen, watching the road while driving, involved in another activity.
(d) Several of MHS's easy to use single hand opening system allows one to discreetly sanitize one's hands in a group of people after shaking many hands and not bring about much attention.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3585982 (1971-06-01), Hollinshead
patent: 5063057 (1991-11-01), Spellman et al.
patent: 5089269 (1992-02-01), Noda et al.
patent: 5380534 (1995-01-01), Schurig et al.
Di Nola-Baron Liliana
Page Thurman K.
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