A DISPENSER REGULATOR FIELD

This invention relates to a regulator for regulating flow of liquid from a hand held dispenser and to a hand held dispenser including a regulator. The term liquid is used hereinafter in this specification to be a reference to liquid-like substances such as fluids, lotions, gels and creams. The regulator has a particular application for use with a pump type dispenser that is manually actuated to dispense a volume of liquid. It will be convenient to hereinafter describe the invention with reference to this particular application, however it is to be appreciated that the regulator has other applications with other dispensers such as squeeze bottles and aerosols.

BACKGROUND

Hand held pump dispensers that are used to dispense liquids of a personal nature often include a pump head that is depressed to dispense the liquid into the palm of the user. The pump will generally supply a set volume of liquid provided the pump is primed. If however the pump outlet is exposed to the air the liquid may evaporate causing loss of prime and consequential reduction in the volume of liquid dispensed during the following operation.

It is also desirable for the pump head to be moved decisively otherwise the pump may fail to produce sufficient pressure to dispense the set volume. However the pressure produced by a decisive move of the pump head can cause the liquid to exit the outlet with excessive speed. This can result in the liquid bouncing out of the users palm or causing the user to misjudge the expected trajectory of the liquid.

It would be desirable to provide a dispenser regulator that regulates the flow of the liquid from a dispenser and a dispenser including such a regulator.

The above discussion of acts, materials, devices, and the like is included in this specification solely for the purpose of providing a context for the present invention. It is not suggested or represented that any of these matters formed part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field

relevant to the present invention as it existed in Australia or any other country before the priority date of this invention.

SUMMARY

According to one aspect of the invention there is provided a regulator for regulating flow of liquid from a dispenser, the dispenser having an actuator that is operable to dispense a volume of liquid from a container through an outlet at a first speed, the regulator having an inlet to receive the dispensed liquid and an exit through which the liquid is delivered to the user at a second speed, a passageway extending between the inlet and the exit at least a portion of which is flared at least in a horizontal plane the regulator having at least one obstruction in the passageway to the flow of liquid, whereby the second speed is substantially less than the first speed.

It is preferred that the second speed is between one half to one quarter of the first speed. It is further preferred that at least one obstruction is positioned in the horizontally flared portion of the passageway.

It is preferred that the obstruction extends substantially over the entire width of the flared portion of the passageway causing a vertical constriction of the passageway. It is also preferred that the horizontally flared portion of the passageway includes a vertically flared portion downstream from the obstruction.

It is preferred that the at least one obstruction extends substantially across the entire height of the horizontally flared portion causing a horizontal constriction of the passageway. It is further preferred that the passageway includes a plurality of obstructions each extending substantially across the entire height of the horizontally flared portion causing a horizontal constriction of the passageway. It is further preferred that the passageway includes a constricted portion between the horizontally flared portion and the exit, whereby the constricted portion is configured to retain the liquid within the passageway

by surface tension. It is further preferred that the constricted portion includes a plurality of capillary apertures.

It is preferred that the obstruction is positioned adjacent the exit of the regulator. It is further preferred that the obstruction is movable between an active position whereby it blocks the exit and an inactive position whereby liquid can pass through the exit. It is also further preferred that the obstruction forms part of a resiliently flexible flap that urges the obstruction to adopt the active position including further obstructions positioned in the horizontally flared portion of the passageway.

According to another aspect of this invention there is provided a dispenser for dispensing a liquid including: a container for containing a bulk volume of the liquid; an actuator that is operable to dispense a volume of liquid from the container; and a regulator as hereinbefore defined.

It will be convenient to hereinafter describe the invention in greater detail by reference to the accompanying drawings showing three example embodiments of the invention. The particularity of the drawings and the related detailed description is not to be understood as superseding the generality of the preceding broad description of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

Figure 1 illustrates in cross section a first embodiment of the regulator mounted on an actuator of a dispenser.

Figure 2 illustrates the first embodiment of the regulator for Figure 1 in plan view with a top removed.

Figure 3 illustrates in cross section a second embodiment of the regulator mounted to the actuator.

Figure 4 illustrates the second embodiment of the regulator from Figure 3 in plan view with the top removed.

Figure 5 illustrates in cross section a third embodiment of the regulator mounted to the actuator.

Figure 6 illustrates the third embodiment of the regulator from Figure 5 in plan view with the top removed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring firstly to Figure 1 which illustrates the dispenser 1 including an actuator 2 for dispensing a metered volume of liquid from a container 3 containing a bulk volume 4 of the liquid. The actuator 2 shown is in the form of a pump 2 which is operated by depressing a head 5 towards the container 3. Hereinafter a reference to the pump 2 is a reference to the actuator 2. The form of actuator shown is merely preferred in that the invention may also apply to other configurations of actuator including but not limited to an aerosol type actuator.

Referring still to Figure 1 which shows a regulator 6 or more specifically a body 7 of the regulator 6 mounted to the head 5 of the pump 2 so as to receive the liquid being dispensed through an outlet 18 of the pump 2. The liquid is received through an inlet 9 to a passageway 10 of the regulator 6 positioned adjacent the outlet 8 of the pump 2. The passageway 10 extends vertically towards a top 1 1 of the regulator 6 and then horizontally towards an exit 16.

Referring now to Figure 2 which illustrates the passageway 10 having a horizontally flared portion 12 within which is positioned a plurality of obstructions 13. The obstructions 13 shown are triangular in shape however this shape may vary. Furthermore the number and position of the obstructions 13 may also vary. The horizontal flare 12 and obstructions 13 both combine to reduce the velocity of the liquid dispensed from the pump outlet.

Figure 2 also illustrates the regulator 6 including a plurality of capillary apertures 14 forming part of the passageway positioned adjacent the exit 16 of the regulator 6. These capillary apertures 14 rely on surface tension to further control the flow of liquid from the exit. More specifically the capillary apertures not only further reduce the velocity of the liquid but also act to reduce the likelihood of liquid dripping from the regulator 6.

Referring now to Figure 3 which shows a second preferred embodiment of the regulator 6 having an obstruction 13 which extends across the entire width of the horizontally flared portion 12 of the passageway 10. (see also

Figure 4). The passageway 10 in this embodiment also includes a vertically flared portion 15 downstream of the obstruction 12 which combines with the horizontally flared portion 12 and obstruction 13 to reduce the velocity of the liquid heading towards the exit 16 of the passageway 10.

Referring now to Figure 5 which illustrates a third preferred embodiment of the regulator 6. In this embodiment part of the top 1 1 of the regulator 6 includes a movable flap 17 which provides an obstruction extending across the entire width of the passageway 10 at the exit 16. The movable flap 17 is preferably formed from a resiliently flexible membrane which is urged to adopt an active position obstructing the exit 16 to the passageway 10. When the actuator 2 is operated liquid dispensed into the passageway 10 will build up behind the obstruction urging the flap to move in the direction of the arrow A towards an inactive position whereby the liquid can exit the passageway 10. In this embodiment the regulator 6 may also include obstructions 13 in the horizontally flared portion 12which disperse the liquid across the flap 17 as seen in Figure 6.

The flap 17 not only provides an obstruction but also closes the passageway 10 to air when the dispenser is not in use which reduces the likelihood of the liquid evaporating from the pump 2. This can address problems associated with loss of prime. Furthermore as the flap 17 is urged towards an active position the regulator 6 is unlikely to drip.

Finally it is to be understood that various alterations, modifications and/or additions may be introduced to the parts previously described without departing from the spirit or ambit of the invention. More specifically the features of any one of the embodiments may be added to other embodiments resulting in a regulator that combines features of more than one embodiment.