U.S. patent number 3,674,183 [Application Number 05/111,544] was granted by the patent office on 1972-07-04 for dispensing device.
Invention is credited to Catherine M. Venable, Herny B. Venable.
United States Patent |
3,674,183 |
Venable , et al. |
July 4, 1972 |
DISPENSING DEVICE
Abstract
A dispersing valve comprises a disc having a sinuous slit which
is cut at an angle with respect to the face of the disc to form at
least two, and preferably three, valve members, one of which is
larger than the other one or two and is designed to permit passage
of fluid when the container to which the valve is attached is
compressed. The at least one other valve permits excess fluid and
air to return to the interior of the container when it is released.
The multiple valve arrangement is formed by the angular nature of
the slit, permitting highly efficient dispensing and resealing
action.
Inventors: |
Venable; Herny B. (Chadds Ford,
PA), Venable; Catherine M. (Chadds Ford, PA) |
Family
ID: |
22339122 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/111,544 |
Filed: |
February 1, 1971 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
222/212; 222/564;
222/490 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D
47/2031 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B65D
47/04 (20060101); B65D 47/20 (20060101); B65d
037/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;222/562,541,212,215,213,490,564 ;215/40,56 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Schacher; Richard A.
Assistant Examiner: Slattery; James M.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A multiple valve structure comprising
a planar body of resilient material; and
a continuous, nonorthogonal cut extending through said body from
one major surface thereof to the other major surface thereof,
said cut opening at one major surface in a first line having a
generally sinuous pattern and having at least two lateral reversals
in direction in the plane of said one major surface,
said cut opening at the other major surface in a second line having
a generally sinuous pattern and having at least two lateral
reversals in direction in the plane of said other major surface,
and
the lateral excursions of said first line being significantly
greater than the lateral excursions of said second line,
each of said excursions forming an independently operable valve
member, adjacent ones of said valve members being operable by fluid
pressure applied to opposite major surfaces of said planar
body.
2. A structure according to claim 1 wherein
the valve member formed by one excursion of said first and second
lines is characterized by a significantly greater surface area than
the valve member formed by an adjacent excursion.
3. A structure according to claim 1 wherein
said cut extends through said body at an angle of between
20.degree. and 70.degree. with respect to said major surfaces.
4. A structure according to claim 1 wherein
each end of said cut lies within said body.
5. A structure according to claim 1 wherein
each of said first and second lines forms a sawtooth pattern in
which each lateral reversal is an acute angle.
Description
This invention relates to dispensing apparatus and specifically to
a valve apparatus for use in a flexible container whereby fluids of
various viscosities can be dispensed.
For many years a number of prior art workers have been concerned
with the design of a valve of a type which would, when applied to a
flexible wall container, permit liquids of various viscosities, up
to and including pastes, to be dispensed by reducing the volume of
the container, squeezing the material through the valve. There are
many patents dealing with this general subject including patents
showing discs having slits cut therein whereby the material is
forced against the wall of a disc, distorting the slit and
permitting material to pass therethrough.
Many problems have developed with disc and slit valves of this type
including the tendency of material to remain on the exterior
surface of the slit after dispensing, whereupon the material would
dry and inhibit further action of the dispensing mechanism. An
additional problem is that the material, once dried, would become
lodged in the opening on the occasion of a subsequent dispensing
operation, thereafter holding the valve open and preventing the
necessary sealing operation, whereupon the material within the
container would evaporate or change characteristics, leading to
degeneration of the product in the container.
In any of these circumstances it is possible to use one of the
prior art valves in conjunction with a closing cap or other
mechanism so that the container is sealed by the secondary cap,
thereby preventing drying or degeneration of the contained
material. However, the use of an additional cap effectively does
away with the need for a valve, it being simpler to simply provide
a cap which closes a simple pouring spout.
An object of the present invention is to provide a disc type valve
structure in which a plurality of valves are provided to dispense
material therethrough and provide a good seal after dispensing.
A further object is to provide a valve structure which permits
material to be expressed therethrough by a flexible wall container
and which, after dispensing, recovers excess material and
substantially prevents deposits of material on the exterior portion
of the valve.
A still further object is to provide a multiple valve structure in
which one valve acts as a dispensing valve and at least one other
valve is provided adjacent thereto to withdraw excess material from
the outside of the valve into the container.
A further object is to provide a valve structure wherein a
plurality of valves are formed by a continuous slit in a resilient
disc member, the valve formed being operative to promote dispensing
and cleaning of the valve as the container associated therewith is
compressed and released.
In order that the manner in which the foregoing and other objects
are attained in accordance with the invention can be understood in
detail, particularly advantageous embodiments thereof will be
described with reference to the accompanying drawings which form a
part of this specification and wherein:
FIG. 1 is an elevation in section of a valve disc mounted in the
cap of a flexible bottle;
FIG. 2 is a plan view of a disc valve in accordance with the
invention, the view being that from the interior of a
container;
FIG. 3 is a plan view of the disc of FIG. 2 from the exterior of
the container;
FIG. 4 is a section along 4--4 of FIG. 3;
FIG. 5 is a section along diameter 5--5 of FIG. 3;
FIG. 6 is a section along lines 6--6 of FIG. 3;
FIGS. 7-9 are alternative embodiments of disc valves in accordance
with the present invention; and
FIG. 10 is an enlarged section of a portion of a valve disc showing
a suitable structure for the disc.
Briefly described, the present invention provides a valve structure
formed by slitting a disc along a generally sinuous line to form at
least two, and preferably three, valve members. One valve member is
larger than the other one or two valve members. Each valve member
is formed by a slit which is slanted with respect to the major
plane of the disc, or, phrased differently, the slit can be
described as being formed by the movement of a line lying at an
acute angle with the plane of the disc as it moves with respect to
the disc axis.
The term "disc" as used herein refers to a substantially flat body
of resilient material but is not necessarily limited to a circular
disc. Clearly, oval, rectangular or other perimetral shapes can be
employed although circular discs will be disclosed herein for
simplicity.
Referring now to the drawings, it will be observed that FIG. 1
shows a conventional container 1 which is generally referred to as
a "squeeze bottle" and can be made of any conventional materials
such as polyethylene, polypropolene or the like. The specific
material employed for construction of the bottle is relatively
unimportant, the significant aspect being that the bottle is
flexible and can be compressed to reduce the interior volume
thereof and to force material contained therein out of the
bottle.
The bottle includes a neck portion 2 which can be exteriorly
threaded to receive an interiorly threaded cap 3 which closes the
open neck of the bottle and supports a disc valve in accordance
with the present invention. The cap includes an interior annular
groove 4 into which can be placed a disc 5 including the present
valve structure. The upper portion of the cap is closed by a
transverse end wall 6 which includes a central protrusion 7 having
an end portion 8 which can be severed along a line indicated by
dotted line 9 after purchase to produce a permanent opening in the
end of the cap. Thereafter, the volume of the bottle is separated
from the exterior of the bottle only by the valve structure of disc
5.
The manner in which a preferred embodiment of the valve structure
is formed can be seen more clearly in FIGS. 2 and 3, FIG. 2 being a
view of disc 5 from the interior of the bottle and FIG. 3 being a
view of the same disc as it would be seen from the exterior of the
bottle. The valves are formed by a sinuous slit or cut indicated
generally at 10, the cut on the inner surface of the disc
describing a linear shape which can be characterized as having two
hills separated by a relatively broad valley. One "hill" 11 of the
cut forms a valve portion 12, the seat for which constitutes a
slanted surface extending between the hill portion 11 and the
opening of that portion of the cut at the other surface of the disc
at 13. Valve portion 12 thus hinges along a line which
approximately follows opening point 13 of the cut but is also
slanted through the thickness of the disc on approximately the same
angle as the cut.
At the other end of the cut a second small valve 14 is formed by
the "hill" 15 of the cut, the opening of that portion of the cut on
the opposite side of the disc being identified at 16.
The central portion 17 of the cut forms a substantially larger
valve 18, the opening of cut portion 17 on the back surface of the
disc being identified as 19. As viewed in FIG. 2, valves 12 and 14
tend to open in a direction which is out of the paper, while valve
18 opens more easily in a direction which would be into the paper
as viewed in FIG. 2. The contrary condition exists in FIG. 3.
The action of these valves can be seen most easily by referring to
FIGS. 4-6 in which sectional views of each valve are shown.
Referring first to FIG. 5, it will be observed that as the bottle
is compressed, air and/or liquid contained within the bottle is
forced against the inner surface of disc 5, pressing against the
inner surface of valve 18 and forcing it away from its seat,
permitting material to pass through in the direction of arrow 20.
In FIGS. 4 and 6 valves 12 and 14 are forced open when material has
been expressed from the bottle and the natural resilience of the
walls thereof is working to restore the bottle to its original
condition, causing a decreased pressure within the container and an
increased pressure outside of the container. The increased external
pressure forces valves 12 and 14 open, permitting the influx of air
as shown by arrows 21 and 22, respectively. Arrows 21 and 22 also
indicate the path followed by any excess liquid which is allowed to
remain in the cavity between valve 5 and end wall 6 of the cap
(FIG. 1), thus cleaning the outer surface of the cap and especially
the region along the slit which forms valve 18. It will be observed
that the cleaning action in the valve wherein a single cut forms
all three valves is substantially more efficient than in a
structure in which the valves are formed by separate cuts because
the liquid remaining outside of the valve disc tends to follow and
remain adjacent this cut. Thus, when valves 12 and 14 are open
excess material lying along the portion of cut 10 identified as 19
will tend to flow along the cut to portions 13 and 16 and be
withdrawn back into the bottle by the influx of air.
The relationship of the slanted cut or slit to the major plane of
the disc can be understood more clearly from a description of the
lines formed at the inner and outer surfaces of disc 5. The line
formed by the cut at the inner surface of the disc can be
analogized to an electrical sine wave having a specific
peak-to-peak amplitude, that amplitude being comparable to the
total excursion of the line or the distance "a" in FIG. 2. The
analogy is not a precise one because the "wave" formed by the line
is not truly cyclic, valve 18 being wider than the others; but with
this difference being understood, the analogy is reasonably
close.
Then, the line formed by the opening of the cut on the opposite
(outer) surface of the disc can be regarded as a sinuous wave
having the same phase as the line on the inner surface, but having
a much smaller amplitude indicated as "b" in FIG. 2. Also, the line
on the outer surface is displaced laterally from the one on the
inner surface, resembling a displacement (continuing the analogy)
in DC level of one wave with respect to the other.
The lateral displacement (downward in FIGS. 2 and 3) and the
difference in amplitude are the result of the angles at which the
valves are cut. The angle of the portion between slit openings 17
and 19 is approximately 70.degree. with respect to either disc
face, while the angle formed by each of the small valves is about
20.degree.. These are preferred angular relationships and have been
found to be highly effective in nursing bottles and in medicine and
liquid soap dispensing bottles.
As shown in the drawings, each valve-forming cut lies entirely
within the peripheral confines of the body. However, it will be
recognized that, for convenience, it may be desirable to form the
valves with a cut which severs the body into two parts, after which
the structure is essentially made unitary again by clamping the
edges, as with annular rings.
It will be observed that as a direct result of the cleaning action
and the superior seating action resulting from the formation of
these valves by slanted cuts, dropping or shaking the bottle does
not permit material contained therein to be sprayed or jarred out
of the bottle, there being no excess to lie outside of the disc and
insufficient force to open the valve.
An alternative embodiment of the invention can be seen in FIG. 7
wherein the slit in a valve disc 30 is of a generally sinuous
nature but forms relatively sharp peaks rather than gentle curves.
However, a similar configuration results and a likewise similar
result is obtained in a structure wherein a slit 31 alternates
between peaks 32, 33 and 34, each portion of the cut being slanted
in a manner similar to that described with reference to FIGS. 2-6,
forming a central main valve portion 35 and smaller valve portions
36 and 37, valve 35 being the valve by which material is expressed
from the interior of the bottle and valves 36 and 37 functioning to
permit the return of excess material and air into the bottle. It
will be observed that disc 30, as viewed in FIG. 7, is seen from
the exterior of the bottle.
A further embodiment is shown in FIG. 8 wherein the cut, again
generally sinuous in character, forms a central valve with a
central U-shaped slit 41 in a disc 40. Smaller discs are formed by
inverted U-shaped cut portions 42 and 43, producing the smaller
valves to permit reentry of excess material and air into the bottle
after the desired amount has been expressed through the main valve
formed by the portion 41 of the slit.
Yet another embodiment is shown in FIG. 9 in which a disc 45
contains a slit 46 which is similar to the slit in disc 40 of FIG.
8 in that it has a major U-shaped portion 47 and a smaller valve
formed by a smaller U-shaped slit portion 48 at one end of slit 46.
As will be recognized in view of the above discussion, the valve
structure in disc 45 includes only two valves, a large valve 49
formed by portion 47 and a smaller valve 50 formed by portion 48.
Although this embodiment is not regarded as being as efficient as
those previously discussed, it constitutes an alternative approach
which is also advantageous.
FIG. 10 shows a section of a portion of one of the discs disclosing
a specific laminate structure which is especially desirable for use
in the discs discussed with reference to FIGS. 2-9. In FIG. 10 the
disc indicated generally at 51 includes a central fiber layer
including orthogonally extending fibers 52 and 53 forming a fabric
layer through the center of and sandwiched between layers of
elastomer 54 and 55. Typical suitable elastomers include such
materials as polybutidiene or polychloroprene, the major
characteristic being a flexibility and resilience which permits
good sealing action and a restoration of the material to its
original form.
While certain advantageous embodiments have been chosen to
illustrate the invention it will be understood by those skilled in
the art that various changes and modifications can be made therein
without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the
appended claims.
* * * * *