U.S. patent number 3,604,562 [Application Number 04/836,104] was granted by the patent office on 1971-09-14 for dispensing package.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Amicon Corporation. Invention is credited to Herbert H. Loeffler.
United States Patent |
3,604,562 |
Loeffler |
September 14, 1971 |
DISPENSING PACKAGE
Abstract
In a dispensing container for use in dispensing packaged
articles wherein a biasing means is used to push the packaged
articles towards an outlet therefrom, the particular improvement
whereby a compressed polymeric foam is used as a biasing means,
thereby providing a biasing force that remains more uniform with
time as the package is emptied of articles and also avoids locally
high pressures bearing on the packaged articles.
Inventors: |
Loeffler; Herbert H.
(Arlington, MA) |
Assignee: |
Amicon Corporation (Lexington,
MA)
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Family
ID: |
25271251 |
Appl.
No.: |
04/836,104 |
Filed: |
June 24, 1969 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
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767211 |
Oct 14, 1968 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
221/56; 221/279;
206/449 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D
83/0817 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B65D
83/08 (20060101); B65d 083/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;206/57,56AC,56,16B,16C
;221/36,56,279,34,48 ;220/93 ;217/64,86,35 ;312/71 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Schwartz; Raphael H.
Parent Case Text
RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation-in-part of copending and
commonly owned U.S. Ser. No. 767,211, now abandoned filed Oct. 14,
1968 by Herbert H. Loeffler.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A dispensing package comprising a container having an opening, a
stack disposed within said container opposing said opening, said
stack including articles having dimensions smaller than said
opening and arranged to pass through said opening and divider
sheets interposed between adjacent articles in said stack, said
divider sheets having dimensions greater than said opening the
limitation, "and being constructed of a light and flimsy sheet
material," and a resilient foam biasing means within said container
in position to force said stack toward said opening with a marginal
portion of the end divider sheet engaged by the margin of said
opening.
2. A dispensing package as claimed in claim 1 wherein each divider
sheet has a marginally projecting tab and said opening includes a
tab cutout in registration with said tab to permit said tab to pass
through said opening.
3. A dispensing package as claimed in claim 1 in which said
articles are membranes of the type used in ultrafiltration or
reverse osmosis.
4. A dispensing package as claimed in claim 1 in which said foam
biasing means includes holes cut in it to achieve optimum
distribution of said biasing force.
5. A dispensing package as claimed in claim 1 in which a piston
board is interposed between said stack and said foam biasing means.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
It has long been known to package articles in boxes in such a way
that they are forced towards an exit port of the box by a biasing
means placed on the opposite side of the articles from the exit
port. Thus, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 977,305 to Heppe discloses
such a packaging means. Because of the convenience of such
automatic advancement of articles to be dispensed, other such
devices have been developed over the years as witnessed by U.S.
Pat. No. 2,592,138 to Gwoosh et al. wherein a stack of razor blades
is urged towards an opening by a spring as the blades are removed
one-by-one from the top of the dispensing case.
Such prior art devices, however, have a number of drawbacks which
limit their utility in some applications. For example, there is a
very nearly linear decay in force exerted by springs on the
packaged articles as the spring expands. Therefore, the biasing
force must be relatively high when the package is filled and
relatively low as it nears being empty. While this factor is
unimportant when metallic items like razor blades are being
packaged, it can be a serious problem when more delicate articles
(for example, membranes or like porous articles which can be
reduced in porosity by extended storage at high pressures) are to
be packaged.
Moreover, springs and like biasing devices require piston members
to distribute their force over the entire lower surface of a stack
of packaged articles. This additional piston member adds to the
cost of the packaged item and can never be dispensed with unless
the lowest of the packaged articles, e.g. a razor blade, can itself
act as a piston. Moreover, the bottom of the package which supports
the spring action must also be relatively heavy (or comprise a
reinforcing insert) to accommodate maximum force exerted by a
spring in the package.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an
improved positive-action dispensing package. It is a particular
object of the invention to provide such a dispensing package that
need not be compressed excessively on filling and that is adequate
for the packaging of many relatively pressure-sensitive and/or
abrasion-sensitive items.
Another object of the invention is to provide a dispensing package
that can be readily and safely assembled either by machine or by
hand.
Still another object of the invention is to provide an economical
positive-action dispensing package that does not depend primarily
on use of mass-production techniques for its economy and
convenience.
Another object of the invention is to provide a simplified,
positive-action, dispensing package whereby the pressure is exerted
over such a large area of the packaged items being dispensed that
an intervening piston board may, in a proper case, be dispensed
with.
Other objects of the invention will be obvious to those skilled in
the art on reading the instant specification.
These objects have been substantially achieved by using a
compressible cellular, polymeric foam as a biasing means interposed
between the bottom of a dispensing container and a stack of
packaged items to be dispensed. The use of this foam enables a
number of advantages to be achieved at once:
1. The foam may bear, with about equal pressure, over nearly the
entire lower surface of the packaged articles. This advantage often
obviates the necessity of a piston board and very nearly always
allows the use of (1) a lighter weight container and/or (2) a
lighter weight piston board.
2. The foam will not lose its pressuring capabilities at a linear
rate as it expands. The force exerted by a spring in expanding to
four times its compressed rate will drop to one-fourth of its
original force. A foam, however, may be selected that will drop to
only one-half or even only three-quarters of its force during a
like expansion. Conversely, pressure required for a reasonably
efficient filling of a "foam-pressured package is reduced." This is
particularly helpful in hand-fill packaging operations.
3. The foam provides a good protective reinforcement of the box as
it expands. Whereas a spring, as it expands, allows a hollow volume
to form in the region adjacent the spring, the adjacent walls of
which are relatively vulnerable to being punctured. This is not
important in some applications: but it is important when high
humidity is to be avoided in proximity to articles, such as those
at the bottom of the package, which are not to be used for some
time in the future.
4. Moreover, economical advantage is derived from the fact that the
foam which is utilized can be waste foam, i.e. nonreprocessable
trimmings which are byproducts of other manufacturing
processes.
ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a foam-activated, positive-action,
dispensing container of the invention showing thereon each of the
parts of the container and their relationship one-to-the-other.
Referring to FIG. 1, it is seen that dispensing container 12
comprises a bearing surface such as base board 14, and open-ended
box member 16 having a flange 17 which is to be glued or otherwise
attached along the outer surfaces of base board 14. A cover 18 may
be used to cover box member 16 if desired.
Inside box member 16 and resting on base board 14 opposing the open
end of box member 16 are the following items reading from bottom to
top:
a. resilient polymeric cellular foam biasing means 20,
advantageously soft polyurethane foam such as the polyether type
sold under the trade designation "UU 34 Ether" by Rogers
Corporation; this biasing means is to be compressed between base
board 14 and
b. a piston board 22;
c. a stack of packaged articles 23 comprising alternating divider
sheets 24 and membranes 26.
Divider sheets 24 have a marginally projecting tab 25 which, when
pushed through tab cutout 52 of opening 28 in box member 16, allow
the sheet to be removed quickly and conveniently exposing the
membrane in an easily accessible position. In practice, foam
biasing means 20, acts on piston board 22 to advance stack 23 of
articles to opening 28 in box member 16.
The foam specified above is of low density, i.e. about 1.5 pounds
per cubic foot when not under compression. Holes 19 may be cut in
it when desirable to reduce the total spring effect, and to achieve
optimum distribution of the biasing force but this is usually not
necessary. It has been found that the specified foam can be
compressed to less than 15 percent of its original volume with a
pressure which does not exceed more than about two or three times
the amount of pressure necessary to achieve initial compression.
Thus only slowly decaying pressure ranging from about 0.1 to 0.3
pounds per square inch is experienced as the package is emptied. It
will be understood that many foam products have this characteristic
and are suitable for use in forming the container according to the
invention.
This device is particularly useful in packaging permeable membranes
of the type used in ultrafiltration and/or reverse osmosis
applications. Many of these membranes have very thin barrier layer,
e.g. of about 0.1 to 5 microns in thickness; thus they must not be
subject to any excessive abrasion. Moreover, many of these
membranes have highly porous substrates that are easily
compressed-- sometimes at pressures below 5 p.s.i.g.-- to the
detriment of the performance characteristics of the membrane. Thus
such membranes require a packaging means which minimizes both a
risk of abrasion and excessive packaging pressure, while
maintaining a convenient dispensing action.
That the package of the invention is particularly useful in such
membrane packaging is evident. The foam pressurizing means is of
sufficient size to distribute its relatively low force over the
largest possible area, i.e. the area roughly defined by piston
board 22.
Moreover, divider sheets 24 are constructed to have dimensions
greater than opening 28, i.e. a relatively large diameter with
respect to both membranes 26 and with respect to the opening 28 in
box member 16, while the membrane articles have dimensions smaller
than opening 28 and are arranged to pass through the opening. Thus
when foam biasing means pushes a stack 23 to the opening 28, only
the divider sheets 24 will impinge on the lower perimeters 50 of
opening 28. The membrane itself will be restrained by force exerted
by the entire divider sheet rather than by a narrow band of
pressure about its perimeter.
The divider sheet is advantageously constructed of a light and
flimsy sheet material thus a tab 25 of this divider sheet can be
frictionally engaged by a finger slid over tab cutout 52. The sheet
is then pulled out of the box. Very little, if any, abrasive action
is exerted on the membrane by the removal of the divider sheet,
because the removed divider sheet has been held near its
circumference by the box and the next lower divider sheet. The
smaller diameter membrane is only subject to very little, if any,
abrasive action.
Although the illustrated embodiment of the invention utilizes a
piston board, those skilled in the art, on reading the instant
specification, will realize that this board may be dispensed with
when the character of the packaged article is suitably rigid so
they can act themselves as piston boards.
Moreover, those skilled in the art, on reading the instant
specification, will be aware that the relatively constant
dispensing force achievable with the instant invention will be of
advantage when incorporated into downwardly facing dispensing
devices which have heretofore had to depend to an excessive extent
on frictional resistance of packaged articles to downward flow, so
that they would require articles to be biased under excessive
pressure when the dispenser was filled and/or allow the articles to
be under too little pressure when the dispenser was nearly
empty.
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