Dispensing – Plural sources – compartment – containers and/or spaced jacket – With selecting means
Reexamination Certificate
1999-06-01
2001-02-20
Kaufman, Joseph A. (Department: 3754)
Dispensing
Plural sources, compartment, containers and/or spaced jacket
With selecting means
C222S482000, C222S556000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06189738
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention concerns a dispenser for flowable media with a main body, to which at least two stores can be attached to accommodate said media, where the main body has a first channel and at least one second channel to permit separate dispensing of the media from the stores, and is equipped with a first, manipulable closing device with which at least one of the channels can be sealed tight.
A dispenser of this kind, preferably made of injection-moulded plastic, is available on the market as a so-called “double tube” and is manufactured by Messrs. Yoschida, Japan. This dispenser has two concentric stores designed as tubes, the inner tube being positioned inside the outer tube. The outer tube has a substantially larger diameter than the inner tube. The two tubes contain different flowable media, which are hereinafter referred to as “products”. Each of the tubes has its own outlet port, with which it can be attached to the separate channels of the main body, which are designed as product ports. The main body has a cover plate, with which the product ports can be jointly sealed. The channels can be sealed by a cap.
Although this dispenser enables two different products to be stored in a very small space, it is only possible to dispense both products from the dispenser simultaneously. Separate dispensing of the two products is impossible. Furthermore, the dispenser requires special bottles with specially designed bottlenecks. As the bottlenecks are positioned next to one another, they must be of particularly narrow design. In order to keep the dispenser down to a reasonable size, the bottles must also be designed in such a way that they can be positioned very close to one another. Special bottles of this kind are relatively expensive.
Consequently, the object of the present invention is to further develop a generic dispenser in such a way that each product can be dispensed separately from the other products without resulting in mixing of the products.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the invention, the object is solved in that the main body has at least one additional closing device, with which one of the channels can be sealed tight, independently of the other channels.
Based on the configuration of the dispenser according to the invention, two or more products can be stored completely separately in a small space and dispensed individually, without contaminating one another during dispensing. For example, a daytime and night-time face cream, foundation and makeup remover or a shampoo and matching conditioner, can be stored together but dispensed separately.
A dispenser with a first and second channel for dispensing two different media preferably has a first closing device, where the first closing device is designed as a cover plate which can be connected to the main body in rotating fashion, and a second closing device. The second closing device likewise has a cover plate which can be connected to the main body or the first cover plate in rotating fashion.
In a particularly advantageous configuration of the dispenser according to the invention, the second channel is positioned at roughly 90 degrees to the first channel, and the axes of rotation of the cover plates are offset in the same way as the channels.
In a dispenser according to the invention, in which a first and second connector are provided on the main body, to which the stores can be separately attached, the stores and the connectors are positioned concentrically and the first connector has a smaller diameter than the second connector, so that one of the stores is positioned inside the other. In this context, there is a space between the connectors, through which one of the media can flow out of the store.
In a preferred configuration, the stores are tubes. The filling of the tubes is considerably simplified by the design according to the invention. The open ends of the tubes which have not yet been welded, are screwed into the connectors, filled with the different products and then welded together in a common welding step. The inner and outer tubes then have a common welded seam. The connectors of the main body can be adapted to the diameters of the outlet ports of the tubes as required. Standard tubes can be used, meaning that the special tubes required by the prior art can be dispensed with. This simplifies manufacturing, reduces inventory costs and simultaneously offers greater flexibility in the manufacturing of different dispensers.
In a preferred configuration of the dispenser according to the invention, at least one of the cover plates has U-shaped guide elements, which engage guide grooves provided on the main body. The guide elements are mounted in the guide grooves in rotating fashion and guide the cover plate. This design ensures particularly stable mounting of the cover plate. Alternatively, mounting pins can be provided on the cover plate—preferably integrally moulded—which engage corresponding holes provided in the main body which serve to accommodate the mounting pins. The respective design of the mounting method for the cover plates depends on the nature of the application.
It is also possible for at least one of the cover plates to have mounting pins which can be connected in rotating fashion to supports provided on the main body or the other cover plate. Of course, all the cover plates can also be mounted on supports of this kind in rotating fashion, so that the arrangement described previously, comprising guide elements and guide grooves, can be dispensed with.
In a dispenser according to the invention, which is preferably designed for the use of stores designed as bottles, the bottles can be mounted parallel to one another on the main body using corresponding connectors.
In order to ensure the unequivocal assignment of the products to the respective cover plates, the cover plates can be designed in different colours. In this way, the danger of switching the products is substantially reduced. Numerous other options for assignment would also be conceivable in this context.
An example of the invention is illustrated in the drawing and described in detail based on the figures. The figures show the following:
REFERENCES:
patent: 1698404 (1929-01-01), Hopkins
patent: 2218092 (1940-10-01), Nitardy
patent: 5765725 (1998-06-01), Matt
patent: 5794819 (1998-08-01), Smith
patent: 5873494 (1999-02-01), Dallas
Cartagena Melvin A.
Diller, Ramik & Wight PC
Innocos Innovative Verpackungen fur die Kosmetische Industrie Gm
Kaufman Joseph A.
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