U.S. patent application number 10/229683 was filed with the patent office on 2004-03-04 for dispensing method utilizing disposable coverings that prevents spread of disease through cross-contamination.
This patent application is currently assigned to Eastman Kodak Company. Invention is credited to Herdzik, Jan A., Kerbs, Robert E., Stephany, Thomas M..
Application Number | 20040040989 10/229683 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 31976291 |
Filed Date | 2004-03-04 |
United States Patent
Application |
20040040989 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Herdzik, Jan A. ; et
al. |
March 4, 2004 |
Dispensing method utilizing disposable coverings that prevents
spread of disease through cross-contamination
Abstract
A package containing contents for dispensing, the package
includes a body having an outlet for permitting the contents to be
dispensed; a dispensing mechanism having a first opening aligned
with the outlet for permitting the dispensed contents to pass
therethrough; and a disposable covering having a second opening in
alignment with both the outlet and the first opening, wherein the
disposable covering covers the dispensing mechanism and is
discarded after use.
Inventors: |
Herdzik, Jan A.; (Rochester,
NY) ; Stephany, Thomas M.; (Churchville, NY) ;
Kerbs, Robert E.; (Pittsford, NY) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Thomas H. Close
Patent Legal Staff
Eastman Kodak Company
343 State Street
Rochester
NY
14650-2201
US
|
Assignee: |
Eastman Kodak Company
|
Family ID: |
31976291 |
Appl. No.: |
10/229683 |
Filed: |
August 28, 2002 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
222/566 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A61F 9/0008 20130101;
B65D 25/48 20130101; B65D 35/24 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
222/566 |
International
Class: |
B65D 005/72 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A package containing contents for dispensing, the package
comprising: (a) a body having an outlet for permitting the contents
to be dispensed; (b) a dispensing mechanism having a first opening
aligned with the outlet for permitting the dispensed contents to
pass therethrough; and (c) a disposable covering having a second
opening in alignment with both the outlet and the first opening,
wherein the disposable covering covers the dispensing mechanism and
is discarded after use.
2. A package as in claim 1, wherein the disposable covering may be
punctured to produce the second opening.
3. The package as in claim 1, wherein the disposable covering may
be pre-punctured to produce the second opening.
4. The package as in claim 1, wherein the disposable covering is a
chamfered tip.
5. The package as in claim 1, wherein the disposable covering may
be pre-scored and torn off to produce the second opening.
6. The package as in claim 1, further comprising a storage
appendage attached to the container, and the disposable covering is
disposed upon the storage appendage before being placed on the
dispensing mechanism for actual use.
7. The package as in claim 6, wherein the storage appendage may be
bent in a plurality of directions for efficient placement of the
storage appendage.
8. The package as in claim 1, further comprising a strip containing
a plurality of disposable coverings, and the strip is placed upon
the container for permitting efficient removal of the disposable
coverings.
9. The package as in claim 1 further comprising a plurality of
disposable coverings placed stacked in registration.
10. The package as in claim 6, further comprising a plurality of
disposable coverings placed either upon the storage appendage,
within a separate housing, or stored upon the body.
11. The package as in claim 6 further comprising a case containing
both the package and the separate housing.
12. The package as in claim 11, wherein the case contains the
package and the separate housing is dispensed separately from the
case.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The invention relates generally to the field of packaging
and, more particularly, to medical and consumer packaging which
uses disposable coverings placed over fixed applicators for
enhancing the effectiveness of dispensing medicines and other
substances, improving cleanliness, and preventing cross
contamination.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] In the treatment of a number of problems such as infections
and cuts of the skin, along with more serious maladies such as
infections of the ear and nose, various delivery methods are
employed. Depending upon the medical effectiveness, sprays, viscous
substances, and some tube dispensable fluids are employed as
treatments. Since medical substances are usually packaged with
considerably more than one dose within a container, repeated use of
the medicine raises the possibility that infection can be
transferred from one dispensing site to another. Additionally, the
proliferation of diseases such as AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency
Syndrome) and other infectious diseases has incited fear and
anxiety in the public, and causes a reluctance within the public to
share or otherwise contact appliances or substances which may have
been casually contacted by others. Another example is the sharing
of toothpaste between several people who are both ill and healthy.
The sharing of the toothpaste could enhance the transfer of disease
from the ill individuals to the healthy ones.
[0003] U.S. Pat. No. 5,064,122 addresses some of the above concerns
by disclosing a disposable nozzle for intranasal spray containers.
This indeed takes a step in addressing the problem of
cross-contamination and public fear, but does so at a significant
cost. Precision nozzles must be discarded after each use of a
medicine, adding to the increasing costs involved with health
care.
[0004] Therefore, a need exists for a novel and cost-effective
method to dispense substances among a population of patients with a
low cost and simple method to prevent the transfer of disease and
the elimination of undue anxiety.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more
of the problems set forth above. Briefly summarized, according to
one aspect of the present invention, the invention resides in a
package containing contents for dispensing, the package includes
(a) a body having an outlet for permitting the contents to be
dispensed; (b) a dispensing mechanism having a first opening
aligned with the outlet for permitting the dispensed contents to
pass therethrough; and (c) a disposable covering having a second
opening in alignment with both the outlet and the first opening,
wherein the disposable covering covers the dispensing mechanism and
is discarded after use.
[0006] These and other aspects, objects, features and advantages of
the present invention will be more clearly understood and
appreciated from a review of the following detailed description of
the preferred embodiments and appended claims, and by reference to
the accompanying drawings.
ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECT OF THE INVENTION
[0007] The present invention has the advantage of preventing
diseases from being transferred by providing disposable coverings,
which prevents the contact of the infection from one site or
individual to the medicine dispenser, and thus prevents
contaminating another dispensing site or individual.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] FIG. 1 is a drawing detailing the dispensing of medicine
into an eye;
[0009] FIG. 1a is a drawing detailing the dispensing of a consumer
product such as toothpaste;
[0010] FIG. 2 is a drawing detailing a covering showing the manual
puncturing of the covering;
[0011] FIG. 2a is a drawing detailing that the tip of the covering
having pre-punctured openings;
[0012] FIG. 2b is a drawing where the disposable covering has a
chamfered tip;
[0013] FIG. 2c is a drawing of a covering whose opening is made by
pre-scoring the tip of the covering, and removing the tip to
produce an opening in the covering;
[0014] FIG. 3 is a drawing detailing a package where coverings are
stored upon a dispensing mechanism;
[0015] FIG. 3a is a drawing detailing a package where,coverings are
stored upon a dispensing mechanism, the mechanism being moveable
for efficient placement;
[0016] FIG. 4 is a drawing showing the coverings being supplied in
strips where the strips are attached to the dispensing
mechanism;
[0017] FIG. 5 is a drawing showing the coverings being supplied as
a stack of strips that are stacked in registration;
[0018] FIG. 6 is a drawing that has a plurality of stacked strips
attached to a storage appendage;
[0019] FIG. 6a is a drawing where the stacked strips are housed
within a separate container;
[0020] FIG. 6b is a drawing where the stacked strips are stored
upon the dispenser body;
[0021] FIG. 7 is a drawing showing where the stacked strips and the
dispenser are stored within the same package; and
[0022] FIG. 8 is a drawing showing where the strips and body are
packaged separately.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0023] Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown a drawing of a medical
package application 10 of the present invention. The dispenser body
15 has an integral tip 20 with an opening 25 that allows the
content 40, which is eye medication, to be dispensed. The dispenser
body 15 is aligned with the disposable covering 30 which itself has
an integrated opening 35 that lay in direct alignment with the
opening 25 of integral tip 20. When the disposable covering 30 is
applied over the integral tip 20 of dispenser body 15, the opening
25 and the integrated opening 35 exist in direct alignment thus
permitting the dispensing of content 40 into eye 45. If more than
one infected area needs to be medicated, disposable coverings 30
used after each application prevent cross-contamination. That is,
after each application, the used disposable covering 30 is disposed
of and a new disposable covering 30 is used.
[0024] Referring now to FIG. 1a, there is shown a drawing of a
consumer package application 50 of the present invention. The
dispenser body 15 has an integral tip 20 with an opening 25 that
allows the content 40, which is toothpaste, to be dispensed. The
dispenser body 15 is aligned with the disposable covering 30 which
itself has an integrated opening 35 that lay in direct alignment
with the opening 25 of integral tip 20. When the disposable
covering 30 is applied over the integral tip 20 of dispenser body
15, the opening 25 and the integrated opening 35 exist in direct
alignment thus permitting the dispensing of content 40 onto
toothbrush 55.
[0025] In a typical household where medications and consumer items
such as toothpaste are used interchangeably with multiple members
of a household, serious cross-contamination issues are present. As
disclosed previously, if disposable coverings are used to isolate
germs from multiple individuals, transfer of disease is harder to
occur and a much higher level of household hygiene is achieved.
[0026] Referring now to FIGS. 2-2c, there are shown four different
embodiments detailing how the disposable coverings 30, can have
several different tip configurations. Referring to FIG. 2,
disposable covering 30 can have an opening 60 manually punctured 65
by puncturing tool 70. Referring next to FIG. 2a, disposable
covering 30 can have a pre-punctured opening 75. Referring next to
FIG. 2b, disposable covering 30 can have a tip 80 weakened by a
chamfer 85, that facilitates removal of tip 80 that, when removed,
will create an opening such as pre-punctured opening 75 from FIG.
2a. Referring next to FIG. 2c, disposable covering 30 includes a
pre-scored portion 90 that facilitates the removal of tip 95 that,
when removed, will also create an opening such as pre-punctured
opening 75 from FIG. 2a.
[0027] Referring now to FIG. 3, dispenser body 15 has a fixed
storage appendage 100 integral with dispenser body 15 for storage
of disposable coverings 30.
[0028] Referring next to FIG. 3a, dispenser body 15 has a bendable
or movable storage appendage 105 integral with dispenser body 15
for storage of disposable coverings 30, and may be bent in a
plurality of directions for facilitating storage.
[0029] Referring now to FIG.4, dispenser body 15 includes a strip
110 containing a plurality of disposable coverings 30. This strip
110 is placed upon dispenser body 15 by any suitable means for
efficient removal of disposable coverings 30.
[0030] Referring next to FIG. 5, a stack of strips 110 includes a
plurality of disposable coverings 30, shown in stacked registration
115, as a method for providing multiples of disposable coverings
30.
[0031] Referring now to FIG. 6, there are shown two views of a
flattened storage appendage 120 for use with strips 110 of either
single disposition 121 or in stacked registration 115, for storage
and disposition of disposable coverings 30.
[0032] Referring next to FIG. 6a, there is shown a dispenser body
15, with disposable coverings 30 in stacked registration 115 shown
being stored in a separate single storage container 125.
[0033] Referring next to FIG. 6b, there is shown a dispenser body
15 with disposable coverings 30 shown in stacked registration 115,
and attached directly to dispenser body 15.
[0034] Referring now to FIG. 7, there is shown an embodiment where
dispenser body 15 and a strip 110 of disposable coverings 30
(disposed in stacked registration 115) are packaged together in
dual storage container 130.
[0035] Referring last to FIG. 8, there is shown an embodiment where
the dispenser body 15 and the strip 110 of disposal coverings 30
(disposed in stacked registration 115) are packaged separately in
single storage containers 125.
[0036] The invention has been described with reference to a
preferred embodiment. However, it will be appreciated that
variations and modifications can be effected by a person of
ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope of the
invention.
[0037] Parts List
[0038] 10 medical package application
[0039] 15 dispenser body
[0040] 20 integral tip
[0041] 25 opening
[0042] 30 disposable covering
[0043] 35 integrated opening
[0044] 40 content
[0045] 45 eye
[0046] 50 consumer package application
[0047] 55 toothbrush
[0048] 60 opening
[0049] 65 manually punctured
[0050] 70 puncturing tool
[0051] 75 pre-punctured opening
[0052] 80 tip
[0053] 85 chamfer
[0054] 90 pre-scored portion
[0055] 95 tip
[0056] 100 fixed storage appendage
[0057] 105 bendable storage appendage
[0058] 110 strip
[0059] 115 stacked registration
[0060] 120 flattened storage appendage
[0061] 121 single disposition
[0062] 125 single storage container
[0063] 130 dual storage container
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