im@ im?? Y A. E. awww-t DISFEIISING BOTH@- Filec March l0, 1966 l l r mvENT-ose. was mm@ Mmmwm United States Patent O 3,323,689 DISPENSING BOTTLE Austin E. Elmore, South Pasadena, Calif., assignor to Era-More Product Engineering Service, Scottsdale, Ariz., a corporation of Arizona Filed Mar. 10, 1966, Ser. No. 533,309 4 Claims. (Cl. 222-385) yby a bellows of highly eiiicient and easily to operate construction.
Still another object of this invention is to provide a dispeasing apparatus for a rigid bottle structure by which substantially all of the contents of the bottle may be removed by the mere pumping of a bellows associated with the dispensing apparatus.
`It is a further object of this invention to provide the aforementioned dispensing apparatus with a spout discharge element which is drip-proof and ceases to discharge or leak any liquid from the contents of the receptacle after the pumping action on the bellows or the equivalent has been stopped.
Still another object of this invention is to provide means for moving the aforementioned spout to seal oit and lock the material in the receptacle as when shipping or when the receptacle is placed in a horizontal or upside-down position.
Still another object of this invention is to provide a pump operated dispensing device which may discharge contents at high velocity and volume from a rigid container and adapted to be manipulated to produce drop by drop discharge of such contents, and which device incorporates features for automatically eliminating any drip from the discharge once the pumping action has been stopped.
Further features and advantages of this invention will appear from a detailed description of the drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the dispensing bottle incorporating the features of this invention.
F IG. 2 isa front elevation of the bottle shown in FIG. l.
FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view on the line 3-3 of FIG. 2.
FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view on the line 4-4 in FIG. 3.
As an example of one embodiment of this invention, there is shown a dispensing apparatus for a receptacle, bottle or the like, incorporating the features of this in vention comprising the bottle having the usualintegral neck 11 having the external closure cap threads 12. The unique dispensing device applicable to such a bottle consists of aclosure sleeve 13 having an integral radially disposed ange 14 having abottom surface 15 adapted to sealingly engage thelip 16 of the spout on the bottle 10. A mounting and securing cap 17 has internal threads 18 matingly engaging the threads 12 of theneck 11 and anabutment surface 19 adapted to sealingly engage thetop surface 20 of the ange 14 of theclosure sleeve 13. Avent hole 21 is formed in the flange 14 and is in communication with thebore 22 of theneck 11. A radially aligned vent hole 23 is formed in the cap 17. When the dispensing device is in use the cap 17 andsleeve 13 are relatively rotated to bring thevents 21 and 23 in align- ICC ment. When the device is not in use or when the bottle with the dispenser is being shipped o-r is otherwise not in its normal vertical position shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, thevents 21 and 23 are moved out. of communicative alignment by relative rotation of cap 17 andsleeve 13.
A discharge spout 24 is -mounted to swivel in sealed relationship in a diametrically disposed bore 25 in the shut-offvalve member 26. A radially positionedintake port 27 in the spout 24 is arranged to be in communication with, an aligned port 28 formed in the shut-offvalve member 26 when the outer discharge end 29 of the spout is positioned in downward discharge position as shown in FIG. 3. The port 28 is surrounded by a depending integral discharge sleeve 30 in the bore of which is fixed and sealed the discharge tube 31 on the lower end of which is mounted a check valve 32 having avalve disc 33 normally supported in closed position on the valve seat 34 of the check valve 32, the arrangement being that fluid may flow up into the bottom of the tube 31 but cannot ow down out of that tube, except for limited 'low through a smallbleed hole 35 in thevalve disc 33.
Asuction sleeve 36 is formed integral with thevalve member 26 and located concentrically around the outside of the discharge sleeve 30' and spaced therefrom by the passageway 37 which communicates with the passageway 38 above and around the radially disposed tubular portion 39 of thevalve member 26 containing the bore 25 supporting the spout 24. Asuction tube 40 has its upper end sealingly secured around the outside of thesuction sleeve 36 and is of smaller diameter than thebore 22 of theneck 11 so as to provide apassageway 41 in thespout bore 22 and the outside diameter of thesuction tube 40. A check valve 42 is mounted in the lower end of the suction tube closely associated with the bottom 44a of the bottle 10 and has a check valve disc 43 operatively engaging the valve seat 44 so as to limit How upwardly into the bottom of the suction tube while preventing all flow downwardly out from the end of the suction tube.
On top of thevalve member 26 is mounted a suction and compression member 45 which may preferably take the form of abellows 46 having a closed top 47 and amounting stem 48 having suitable mounting threads 49 received in the threadedsocket portion 50 forming the top portion of thevalve member 26 so that pressure or suction may be applied in the passageway 38 by pressing on or releasing the top 47 of the bellows 46a.
In operation: With the above described apparatus mounted on theneck 11 of the bottle 10 as shown, and with liquid in the bottle, the spout 24 is turned to downward discharging position withports 27 and 28 aligned and thevent openings 21 and 23 aligned. Pressure is then exerted on the top 47 of the compression member 45 which causes a pressure to build up in the passageway 38 and into passageway 37 which exerts a pressure in the area 51 between the inside of the suction tube 4t) and the outside of the discharge tube 31, since check valve disc 43 is thus engaged with the check valve seat 44 at this time. Discharge then passes up through the check valve 32 raisingcheck valve disc 33 and discharging the contents up through the discharge tube 31, passageways 28-27 and out through the spout 29.
When the top 47 of thebellows 46 is released, suction is then created in the area 51 between the tubes 31 and 4l) with the result that thecheck valve disc 33 closes on its seats 34 while the check valve disc 43 then raises sucking in liquid in the bottom of thesuction tube 40. This fills the area 51 between thetubes 31 and 41 so that when the bellows 47 is again pressed after it has been released to full suction position the check valve disc 43 will again close while checkvalve disc 33 opens letting the fluid in the bottle come up and discharge out through the spout 2.9.
It is important to note that when thebellows 46 has moved to fully extended suction position and stopped so that no pressure or suction is present in the chamber 51, a slow bleed down through thebleed orifice 35 in the check valve disc 31 allows the column in the discharge tube 31 to draw backwardly any liquid in the spout 29 to arrest any drip from the spout after the completion of the dispensing operation. Thisorifice 35 does not materially affect the suction of uid into the area 51 when the bellows is released to draw in uid into the area 51 as described.
When the bottle is to be stored, the spout 29 is turned upwardly from its discharging position as shown in FIG. 3 so as to move theport 27 thereof out of alignment with the port 28 to prevent any leakage of liquid out in that area and theports 21 and 23 are relatively positioned so that they are not in alignment and therefore seal o the bottle against any leakage in any position as when shipping, storing, and the like.
While the apparatus herein disclosed and described constitutes a preferred form of the invention, it is also to be understood that the apparatus is capable of mechanical alteration without departing from the spirit of the invention and that such mechanical arrangement and commercial adaptation as fall within the scope of the appended claims are intended to be included herein.
Having thus fully set forth and described this invention what is claimed and desired to be obtained by United States Letters Patent is:
1. A dispensing device for a liquid receptacle comprising in combination:
(A) a Valve member,
(B) means for mounting said valve member on the liquid receptacle,
(C) a discharge spout movably mounted in said valve member,
(D) a discharge tube fixed to said valve member extending into said receptacle,
(E) a port in said valve member communicating with said discharge tube,
(F) a port in said spout arranged to be in aligned cornmunicative position with said port in said valve mem- Cil ber when said spout is moved to discharge position on said valve member,
(G) a suction tube xed on said valve member and surrounding said discharge tube and extending into said receptacle,
(H) a check valve in the lower end of said suction tube limiting flow into said suction tube and into the area between the inside of said suction tube and the outside of said discharge tube,
(I) a check valve in the lower end of said discharge tube limiting ow from said area between said tubes into said discharge tube,
(J) and a suction and compression member mounted on said valve member communicating with said area between said suction and discharge tubes operable to render said device operative.
2. In a dispensing device as set forth in claim 1 wherein said means for mounting said valve member includes au openable and closable vent between the interior of said receptacle and atmosphere. y
3. In a dispensing device as set forth in claim 1 wherein said discharge spout rotates in said valve member from a down-turned discharge position of closure of said ports in said valve member and said discharge spout to an upturned closed position of said ports.
4. In a dispensing device as set forth in claim 1 wherein said check valve in the lower end of said discharge tube includes a check valve disc including a bleed hole therein allowing restricted flow through said check valve from said discharge tube into said area between said discharge tube and said suction tube when said suction and compression member is inoperative so as to prevent drip from said spout when in operative position.
References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,625,304 1/1953 Nart 222-212 X 2,920,795 l/1960 Piker 222-209 X 3,143,252 8/1964 Shapiro 222--382 X ROBERT B. REEVES, Primary Examinez'.
F. R. HANDREN, Assistant Examiner.