Dispensing – With recorder – register – indicator – signal or exhibitor – Totalizer for successive dispenser cycles
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-26
2001-10-02
Kaufman, Joseph A. (Department: 3754)
Dispensing
With recorder, register, indicator, signal or exhibitor
Totalizer for successive dispenser cycles
C222S174000, C222S402130, C222S504000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06296147
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
A dispenser for an aerosol container is presented. More specifically, the invention relates to a dispenser capable of facilitating the dispensing of the contents of an aerosol container, especially insecticide, pesticide and/or herbicide materials. By insecticide and/or pesticide materials is meant any materials which exhibit insecticidal and/or pesticidal activity and which can be dispensed via an aerosol container, i.e., maintained under pressure with a gaseous propellant for release as a gaseous suspension of fine solid or liquid particles.
Dispensing of insecticides and/or pesticides as aerosols is well known. One need only look in a local market or hardware store to find aerosol dispensers of insecticides or pesticides. These aerosol “cans” are generally used by pointing the spray nozzle of the can at the area to be treated (such as crevices or corners on the floor, in or around cabinets or on the ceiling), and depressing the spray head to dispense the aerosol spray. Although effective, use of the aerosol dispenser in this manner usually requires the user to repeatedly bend or stretch to bring the can in proximity to the area to be treated. Such repeated bending or stretching can be problematic, especially for a professional user, like an exterminator, who might be required to spend a great deal of time using an aerosol can and may be forced to do an inordinate amount of bending and stretching during the day, with obvious physical disadvantages to, e.g., his/her back, shoulders, etc.
In addition, in order to maximize the use of an aerosol can, that is, to dispense as much of its contents as possible in order to minimize waste, an aerosol can should be held as upright as possible, especially when almost empty. When not held upright, “pools” of the material to be dispensed can be formed within the can and not be dispensed. However, when an aerosol dispenser is being used to apply material along a floor or a ceiling, and especially to a corner of either the floor or the ceiling, it is difficult, if not impossible, to maintain the can in an upright orientation.
Moreover, local and national environmental agencies are beginning to require accounting by professional exterminators and the like of how much insecticide and/or pesticide has been dispensed, so maximum usage of those materials is not exceeded. Use of an aerosol can for dispensing, however, makes reporting requirements difficult to meet.
What is needed, therefore, is a dispenser for an aerosol container that enables the user to dispense the contents of the container while reducing the amount of bending and stretching necessitated. The dispenser should operate so as to maintain an aerosol container in an upright a position as possible and, more advantageously, enable the user to ascertain the amount of material which has been dispensed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a dispenser for an aerosol container which permits the user to apply the contents of the container to a desired location while avoiding, or reducing, the amount of bending and stretching otherwise necessary.
It is another object of the invention to provide a dispenser for an aerosol container which is capable of maintaining the aerosol container in more of an upright position, as compared to conventional uses of the aerosol container, even when being used to apply the contents of the container to a corner of a floor or ceiling.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a dispenser for an aerosol container which can provide the user with an indication of the amount of material dispensed from the aerosol container, for reporting or other purposes.
To overcome the deficiencies of the prior art and to achieve the objects and advantages listed above, applicants disclose, in a preferred embodiment, a dispenser for an aerosol container. The inventive dispenser includes a housing sized to permit at least partial insertion thereinto of an aerosol container; and a dispenser conduit, having a proximal end and a distal end, the proximal end of the conduit being in operative connection with the housing such that the aerosol supply tube of an aerosol container inserted into the housing is operatively connected to the dispenser conduit such that it supplies the contents of the aerosol container to the dispenser conduit for dispensing through the distal end of the dispenser conduit. The dispenser preferably also includes a handle portion, the handle portion at least partially forming the connection between the housing and the dispenser conduit. As such, the handle portion should have a connection conduit, which operatively connects the aerosol supply tube of an aerosol container with the dispenser conduit.
The inventive dispenser also preferably includes an assembly for controlling the dispensing of the contents of an aerosol container, preferably a solenoid/valve assembly in operative connection with the dispenser conduit, most preferably located towards the distal end of the dispenser conduit. In use, when an aerosol container is inserted in the housing, the contents of the aerosol container can be maintained under pressure through the dispenser conduit to the solenoid/valve assembly in order to facilitate dispensing of the contents of the aerosol container. A trigger which actuates the solenoid/valve assembly, causing dispensing of the contents of the aerosol container through the distal end of the dispenser conduit, is advantageously also included.
In use, the solenoid/valve assembly can be powered by one or more batteries, and electrical contact between the one or more batteries and the solenoid/valve assembly can be maintained via an outer conduit disposed about the dispenser conduit and the dispenser conduit itself, each conduit acting to provide a conductive pathway.
In order to maintain the aerosol container in position in the housing, the inventive dispenser can also include a fitting disposed within the housing and having a plurality of angular elements each of which define a shape generally complementary to the shape of either an inner or an outer portion of the surface of the collar of an aerosol container, the elements cooperatively forming a shape such that
i. when the plurality of angular elements define a shape complementary to an inner portion of the surface of the collar, the plurality of angular elements each have a forward portion collectively defining a shape having a diameter greater than the minimum diameter of the collar and a concave portion having a diameter approximately equal to or slightly less than the minimum diameter of the collar; and
ii. when the plurality of angular elements define a shape complementary to an outer portion of the surface of the collar, the plurality of angular elements each have a forward portion collectively defining a shape having a diameter less than the maximum diameter of the collar and a concave portion having a diameter approximately equal to or slightly greater than the maximum diameter of the collar, wherein one or more of the plurality of angular elements is capable of flexing such that the fitting can be applied over the collar and thereby hold the aerosol container by the collar.
Moreover, the fitting can be rotatably disposed within the housing, such as by being suspended on pins journaled into either the fitting, the housing, or both, to provide rotatability, and to thus maintain an aerosol container held by the fitting (and, therefore, the inventive dispenser) in as upright a position as possible.
Further, the dispenser also has a system for indicating the status of at least one characteristic of the dispenser, such as indicating the amount of material dispensed or the dispensing of a predetermined amount of the material to be dispensed.
The present invention is applicable to a variety of dispensers capable of dispensing a material, such as an olfactory stimulating material. By “olfactory stimulating material” is meant any material that affects the olfactory response to the environment of a room or like space. Such material, when dispe
Contadini Carl D.
Dean John J.
Trocola Gary M.
Carmody & Torrance LLP
Kaufman Joseph A.
Waterbury Companies Inc.
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