Dispensing – Collapsible wall-type container – With wall-collapsing means
Reexamination Certificate
1999-09-07
2001-03-20
Shaver, Kevin (Department: 3754)
Dispensing
Collapsible wall-type container
With wall-collapsing means
C222S179000, C251S009000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06202893
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF INVENTION
This invention relates to dispensers for collapsible containers, and more particularly to a sanitary dispenser for collapsible containers which dispenses a metered amount of fluid.
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
In the medical field it is critical to maintain sanitary conditions in order to prevent the spread of bacteria from one patient to another, or cross infect patients. This is particularly true when dealing with women's health issues and endoscopies which require the use of lubricating fluid or gel to examine the patient. These lubricants come in large tubes and also in small single use foil packets.
However, large tubes contain much more lubricant than required for a single examination, while the smaller packets typically do not contain enough lubricant, requiring the physician's assistant to repeatedly open the packets for the physician which is a time consuming and cumbersome process. Moreover, once the physician's hand touches the end of a tube, that tube becomes contaminated and may not be used on other patients, thus wasting the remaining contents of the tube and thus inventory.
A typical hospital may remove from inventory as many as eighty tubes of lubricant per day, most of which is not actually used, but rather is unused and destroyed as a result of contamination of the tube as mentioned above.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a sanitary dispenser for a collapsible container which dispenses substantially all of the contents of the container as needed and without waste.
It is a further object of this invention to provide such a dispenser which dispenses a metered amount of the contents without risk of contaminating the container.
It is a further object of this invention to provide such a dispenser which prevents cross infection of patients.
It is a further object of this invention to provide such a dispenser which may be operated by a single person.
It is a further object of this invention to provide such a dispenser which minimizes waste of the contents.
It is a further object of this invention to provide such a dispenser which saves money by reducing content waste.
The invention results from the realization that a truly sanitary and efficient dispenser for a collapsible container can be achieved in an apparatus having two plates on opposite sides of the collapsible container for holding it and a cam for urging the plates together to compress the collapsible container and to uniformly dispense metered amounts and then eventually substantially all of the contents from the container as needed without waste, the cam having a fall or a notch so that after the plates are almost together and the full contents of the collapsible container have been dispensed in one revolution of the cam, the plates automatically retract and separate for removing and replacing the empty container whereupon the dispensing process begins again with a new collapsible container.
This invention features a sanitary dispenser for a collapsible container. First and second spaced plates receive between them a collapsible container of material to be dispensed. A rotatable cam urges the at least one of the plates toward the other to collapse the container to dispense a metered amount of material. An actuator subsystem rotates the cam.
The cam preferably includes a fall for releasing the plates and to remove the collapsed container. A spring urges the first and second plates apart. One of the first and second plates typically includes a channel, facing the other plate, for directing material out of the container as the plates compress the container.
The actuator subsystem preferably includes a clutch. The actuator subsystem also may include an arm connected on one end to the clutch and a piston driver device for pivoting the arm. A foot pedal actuates the piston driver device. The piston driver device may be pneumatic. A pressure release valve is preferably included for depressurizing the piston driver device each time the cam is rotated.
The plates may include pivot means responsive to the collapsible container, for allowing the plates to maintain even pressure on the container to uniformly empty the fluid from the container.
The first and second plates, the rotatable cam, and the actuator subsystem are preferably enclosed in a stainless steel housing.
This invention features a sanitary dispenser for a collapsible container, the dispenser comprising: first and second plates for receiving therebetween a collapsible container of material to be dispensed, at least the first plate movable with respect to the second plate, the first plate including a cam follower; a cam positioned in cooperation with the cam follower, the cam including a fall which receives the cam follower; and an actuator subsystem for rotating the cam, the actuator subsystem including a clutch mechanism connected to the cam, a pivotable arm connected to the clutch mechanism, a piston driver positioned to move the arm, and a pump for activating the piston driver to move the arm and engage the clutch mechanism to rotate the cam by a predetermined amount to move the first plate and dispense a portion of the material from the collapsible container until the fall receives the cam follower.
Springs may be included for biasing the first plate in a spaced relationship with respect to the second plate to urge the plates apart when the fall of the cam receives the cam follower.
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Beale Nathaniel M.
Rufini Brian M.
Beale Nathaniel M.
Iandiorio & Teska
Keasel Eric
Shaver Kevin
Teska Kirk
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