Dispensing – Collapsible wall-type container – Plural container and/or compartment
Reexamination Certificate
2003-03-18
2004-09-14
Scherbel, David A. (Department: 3754)
Dispensing
Collapsible wall-type container
Plural container and/or compartment
C222S095000, C222S099000, C222S105000, C222S181100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06789700
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to dispensers, and more particularly to dispensers for use to progressively dispense a material from a squeezable and collapsible tube.
1. Background of the Invention
Dispenser apparatuses for dispensing paste products from squeezable and collapsible tubes have been known for many years. The purpose of such devices is to allow the user to completely dispense all the paste products contained in the squeezable and collapsible tube without having to manually squeeze the tube since this action can be both physically exerting and/or dexterously challenging to some individuals. Further, it can also typically be very difficult for a user to completely dispense all the paste products from the tube solely by squeezing the tube between his or her fingers. As such, by using a dispenser apparatus, less of the paste product is wasted.
In many instances, dispenser apparatuses of this type are found in such places as lavatories, kitchens, and restaurants. Such dispenser apparatus are adapted to progressively empty the paste, toothpaste, cream or commercial paste content from a squeezable and collapsible tube through a threaded tube discharge mouth or spout, which mouth or spout is normally sealed by a separate cap.
A number of dispenser apparatuses are available on the market. These are typically structured in such a manner that the dispenser apparatus accommodates one squeezable and collapsible tube at a single time. The squeezable and collapsible tube is held in the dispenser apparatus in an inverted position with the discharge mouth of the tube commonly facing downwardly. After removal of the sealed cap at the discharge mouth, pressure is applied to the sealed end of the squeezable and collapsible tube so as to force the paste material to, and through, the open end of the tube, and thus be dispensed from the squeezable and collapsible tube.
Notwithstanding the above common applications of the various dispenser apparatuses currently on the market, the present inventors herein have discovered that another application of a dispenser apparatus is in the hairstyling profession. Hair colouring, hair perming, hair straightening and the like are popular treatment process. The chemical products used for these applications are commonly available in squeezable and collapsible tubes. The inventors herein have discovered that there is a need for a dispenser apparatus to dispense such chemical products from such squeezable and collapsible tubes, particularly in hair salons, spas, and the like.
Hair care products of this type are generally very costly;—particularly if they are professional hair products. As such, theft of these products by customers and employees in salons are surprisingly frequent occurrences. As most salons are often times filled with customers and a full staff of hairstylists, such illegitimate practices become very difficult for the salon owners to monitor. Furthermore, these squeezable and collapsible tubes are usually quite small in size since the amount of chemicals contained therein is typically only suitable for a small number of treatments of a customer's hair. Accordingly, the squeezable and collapsible tubes are easily pocketed and stolen by both customers and employees at the salons. Potentially, many salon owners are at risk of losing thousands of revenues each year to such thefts.
Although locking the hair products in a secure enclosure is one way of preventing theft from customers, it is very inconvenient to the hairstylists who want to have immediately access to the hair products. If the products were locked away in storage, before treatment of a customer's hair, the hairstylists would have to request a key, the secure passcode, or the like, to unlock the enclosure to access the hair products contained therein. After obtaining the particular hair products from the enclosure, the hairstylists would have to lock the enclosure back in place. Since most hairstylists have very tight schedules over the course of the day at the salons, they may sometimes forget to lock the enclosure after removing the hair products from the secure enclosure. As such, there is still the potential for customers and other employees at the salon to have access to the enclosure. Further, in some circumstances, the hairstylists may need to obtain more hair products during treatment of a customer's hair, and having quick access to the hair products from such secure enclosure would be even more inconvenient.
The present inventors herein have provided a dispenser apparatus for squeezable and collapsible tubes which overcomes at least one of the disadvantages described above. In one preferred embodiment, the dispenser apparatus of the present invention has a storage portion which is dimensioned to receive a plurality of squeezable and collapsible tubes therein, and a dispensing portion integrally formed with such a storage portion. When the dispenser apparatus is in use, a single squeezable and collapsible tube is fed from the storage portion into the dispensing portion. The dispenser apparatus is structured such that the squeezable and collapsible tube is only easily removable from the dispensing portion after the material contained in the squeezable and collapsible tube has been substantially completely dispensed therefrom.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A number of patents which describe various kinds of dispenser apparatus are known to the inventors herein. They included the following:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,957,334 issued on Sep. 28, 1999 to Rosario teaches a toothpaste dispensing apparatus having a housing unit, a dispensing unit slidably disposed within the housing unit, and a closure unit hingedly connected to the housing unit. In use, the mouth of the toothpaste tube is engaged in a plate element slidably disposed within the housing unit. The closure unit cooperates with the dispensing unit to provide a double seal arrangement to maintain the contents of the toothpaste tube.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,701,459 issued on Oct. 31, 1972 to Ward teaches a tube paste squeezer adaptable for being mounted to a vertical wall. The device is particularly used for dispensing either toothpaste or shaving cream. The tube paste squeezer comprises a case within which the tube is fitted so as to be fed between a pair of rollers. A pivotable closure seal is adaptable for positioning against the inverted mouth of the tube. The seal includes a flat plate. To dispense the paste from the tube, the user pivots the seal plate away from the mouth of the tube and manually rotates the crank handle. This causes the tube to move slightly upwardly between the rollers so as to cause a quantity of the paste to be dispensed. Thereafter, the seal is pivoted to a closed position again over the mouth of the tube.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,908,863 issued on Sep. 30, 1975 to White teaches a collapsible tube dispenser for toothpaste and similar materials packaged in a collapsible tube. The dispenser comprises a generally wedge-shaped housing member defined by a pair of side walls which flare apart from a bottom end to a top end. The housing further includes a pressure plate, where one end of the plate is pivotably mounted to the housing adjacent the bottom end, and the other end of the plate being freely positioned at the top end of the housing. A threaded member extends through an opening in the housing. When the threaded member is rotated, the pressure plate abuts the collapsible tube to cause the material in the tube to be dispensed through the opening at the top of the housing. When the dispenser is not in use, a hinged cover encloses the top opening of the housing.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,271,985 issued on Jun. 9, 1981 to Andersen teaches an apparatus for dispensing a fluid substance from a flexible container. The apparatus comprises of two opposed plates which are pivotably attached to a frame, and which receive the container therebetween. The plates are movable relatively to one another with the aid of a suitable linkage so as to compress the container between the plates, causing a dose of the subst
Arniotis James Dimitrios
Cescolini David
(Marks & Clerk)
Nicolas Frederick C.
Scherbel David A.
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