Dispensing – With cutter and/or punch – To form dispensing opening in container
Reexamination Certificate
1999-04-14
2001-01-30
Derakshani, Philippe (Department: 3754)
Dispensing
With cutter and/or punch
To form dispensing opening in container
C222S321900
Reexamination Certificate
active
06179164
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a dispenser for media which may be at least partly solid or flowable, in forms such as liquid, pasty and/or gaseous. Preferably, the media are grainy or powdery and thus suitable as bulk media. The dispenser is held single-handedly and is simultaneously operated with the fingers of one hand. Thus, the pharmaceutical, cosmetic or similar media are expelled. Such media may be designed for application to the respiratory tract, that is, for nasal or oral administration.
The dispenser may be provided for a single discharge action or a single unidirectional operating stroke. Thus, return means for returning the dispenser from the end position to the initial or rest position may be omitted. The dispenser may also permit several actuating strokes in sequence, each restarting from a different position or the above-mentioned rest position.
For discharging minutely dosed medium quantities of as high as 30, 20, 15 or 12 mg and as low as 5 mg, highly compact dispensers suffice. Although the reservoir chamber containing the medium premeasured for a single discharge dose may be an elongated capsule or cup, it is, however, of advantage to shape it as a flat tray and/or spherically domed. Thus, the medium is flushed out of the open reservoir chamber by a second or conveying medium such as a liquid, gas or air. The dosing medium is thereby atomized in the second medium to achieve a uniform distribution and singling of the particles up to the exit from the medium outlet.
The cup depth of the reservoir chamber may be less than 7, 5 or 4 mm and more than 2 mm. Its largest diameter is less than 20, 15 and 10 mm and more than 3 or 6 mm or greater than the cup depth. The reservoir is replaceable after having been emptied of its contents. The chamber volume of the reservoir is filled only partly with medium to facilitate its loosening right from the start of discharge. The reservoir or magazine body may be dimensionally stable or flexibly bendable in the zones connecting to the rigid chamber. It is made in the form of a transparent or non-transparent or non-translucent blister having film-thin walls. Prior to discharge, the filled reservoir chamber is sealed to be pressure-tight and sterile. The closure is formed by an adhesively or hot-sealingly attached film of plastic, or a metal foil such as aluminum. The foil, which is planar, covers the chamber opening and sealingly adjoins the chamber body directly up to the bounds of the chamber opening as well as full-length about the circumference thereof. Thus, no medium can enter between chamber body and closure from the chamber. Reference is made to the German Patent Application 197 04 849, published Aug. 13, 1998, U.S. Pat. No. 5,964,417, issued Oct. 12, 1999 and the German Laid-Open Document 195 02 725, laid open Aug. 1, 1996, including the features and effects described therein in the present invention.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
An object of the invention is to provide a medium dispenser which avoids the disadvantages of prior art configurations or assures the advantages of the cited configuration. Another object is to permit translation of the reservoir into various function postures, for example, for sequentially triggering various functions of the dispenser. A further object is to endow the dispenser with a high conveying power for a small stroke. Still another object is to facilitate replacement of the reservoir or a magazine. Other and further objects of the invention will be obvious upon an understanding of the illustrative embodiment about to be described, or will be indicated in the appended claims, and various advantages not referred to herein will occur to one skilled in the art upon employment of the invention in practice.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention provides for operationally producing a functional motion of the reservoir in the course of a discharge cycle or an associated actuation. Such a motion may be a linear stroke motion, an indexing motion oriented transverse thereto or an opening motion oriented transverse to the indexing. Due to the indexing motion, the reservoir is moved from a protected starting position of the reservoir chamber into the position determined for discharge. Due to the opening motion a wall, particularly a chamber lid providing an outlet closure, is provided with an outlet opening for the medium. Due to the stroke motion the complete dispenser may be shortened so that it is particularly well held in the hand during discharge. The opening motion commences just before or together with the indexing motion which ends either before the opening member engages the closure of the reservoir chamber or thereafter, but before the opening motion ends. In the latter case the opening member, while already engaging the closure, executes two motions oriented transverse to each other. Thus, the closure is opened particularly effectively or over a large width. The stroke motion may be used to control or open a further outlet closure, or valve, to convey the second medium, to limit the operating motion or stroke, to prime the second medium or the like.
A reservoir support exchangeably accommodating the reservoir is synchronously movable with the reservoir, particularly over the functional stroke, not over the working stroke but, where necessary, over the indexing motion. The reservoir support may form a boundary or cylinder or plunger of a compression chamber or pump chamber, may comprise the opening member for the outlet closure, may form the stop, may constrict an outlet duct for the second medium leading to the reservoir chamber and being constricted prior to flow commencement of this medium, may form a counter for counting the discharge cycles or may form an indicator of the counter, may improve or stiffen the mutual mounting of the two bases or casing units, may bound an annular chamber adjoining an outermost dispenser wall, may form an abutment for a return spring or a downholder for the reservoir, may movably or rotatably but centrally receive the reservoir, may cause a resilient tensioning relative to one of the base units and transverse to the stroke, etc.
In operation the reservoir or reservoir support is entirely enclosed within a housing. The casing parts thereof are formed directly by the two base units. For exchanging the reservoir or to render it manually accessible the housing needs to be opened. Instead of entirely separating the two housing parts, one of the housing parts comprises an access opening which is closed off in operation by a lid, such as an end lid. This lid includes a stud having the medium outlet, the opening member, a setting member of the positioner, means for positioning the reservoir without motion play, an actuating handle, an abutment for a spring or the like. The lid may be located axially mountable, radially insertable or pivotable on the associated housing part and bound that part of the outlet duct for the second medium which leads to the reservoir chamber or that outlet duct which leads from the reservoir chamber to the medium outlet. All of these functions may be caused by a one-part or multi-part component. The associated remaining housing part centers the reservoir or reservoir support which prevents withdrawal and which disables the axial withdrawal of the associated unit from the other unit. Additionally this housing part may directly drive the reservoir or reservoir support over the associated stroke path relative to the other housing part. In the closed position the lid and the associated housing part are mutually positionally secured via a snap connector causing a seal.
The indexing motion may be caused by mutually axially mating circumferential serrations having slanting flanks like the counter means. Reference is made to U.S. Pat. No. 4,565,302, issued Jan. 21, 1986, for including further features and effects described therein in the present invention.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4565302 (1986-01-01), Pfeiffer et al.
patent: 5469989 (1995-11-01), Graf et al.
patent: 5964417 (1999-10-01), Amann et al.
paten
Derakshani Philippe
Ing. Erich Pfeiffer GmbH
Quarles & Brady LLP
LandOfFree
Dispenser for media, particularly powder does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Dispenser for media, particularly powder, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Dispenser for media, particularly powder will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2461012