(2) Description of the Related Art Manually operated liquid sprayers are generally provided in two types, those operated by manually pivoted triggers to actuate their pump mechanisms and dispense liquid from the sprayers, and those operated by manually reciprocated plungers to actuate their pump mechanisms and dispense liquid from the sprayers. Both types have several similar components but the trigger operated sprayers generally have pump chambers with center axes oriented horizontally with the sprayers in upright positions and the plunger operated sprayers generally have pump chambers with center axes oriented vertically with the sprayers in upright positions.

Sprayers of both types typically have a vent passage that passes through the sprayer and vents the interior of the liquid container attached to the sprayer to the exterior environment of the sprayer. The vent passage is necessary for

proper operation of both sprayer types. In actuation of the pump mechanisms of the sprayers, as liquid is dispensed from the containers attached to the sprayers a vacuum is created in the containers by the decreasing volume of the liquid dispensed by the sprayers. If no vent passage were provided in the sprayers, the increasing vacuum would eventually prevent the proper operation of the sprayers. Therefore, the vent passages are provided to enable air from the exterior environment of the sprayers to pass through the vent passages and into the interior of the containers to prevent the creation of the vacuum in the containers.

Many sprayers have been designed that are capable of dispensing liquid in both upright and inverted orientations of the sprayers. By inverted what is meant is that the sprayer is turned 180° from its upright orientation. This enables the liquid dispensed from these types of sprayers to reach areas that would be difficult to reach if the sprayer were operated in its upright orientation. However, in the design of such sprayers two problems had to be overcome.

A manually operated sprayer typically employs a dip tube extending downwardly from the sprayer dispenser housing through the interior of the liquid container attached to the dispenser housing to a distal end of the tube adjacent the bottom of the container. The dip tube draws liquid from the container on manual actuation of the sprayer pump mechanism.

The dip tube is usually designed so that its distal end is positioned close to the bottom of the container with the sprayer and container in their upright orientations so that the last amount of liquid remaining in the container can be dispensed from the container by operation of the pump.

However, when the sprayer dispenser housing and liquid container are inverted, the distal end of the dip tube would be positioned above the level of liquid in the container.

With the end of the dip tube raised out of the liquid, the sprayer will dispense the liquid remaining in the dip tube on actuation of the pump mechanism, but once the liquid in the

dip tube has been dispensed further actuation of the pump mechanism will result in only air being dispensed from the container.

In addition, with both the sprayer and liquid container inverted the vent passage of the sprayer is exposed to the liquid and the liquid can leak through the vent passage.

Thus, when a typical trigger sprayer is operated in the inverted orientation with the sprayer dispenser housing positioned below the container, liquid would leak through the sprayer vent passage and the end of the dip tube would project above the level of liquid in the container resulting in only air being dispensed once the liquid in the dip tube had been dispensed.

Those types of sprayers that have been designed for operation in both upright and inverted orientations prevent the liquid in the container from leaking through the sprayer vent passage and also continue to supply liquid to the sprayer pump mechanism with the sprayer in an inverted orientation.

However, the designs of many invertable sprayers are complicated and have required valve assemblies to open and close the vent passage when the sprayer dispenser housing is in its upright and inverted orientations, respectively, and valve assemblies to close and open auxiliary liquid supply passages when the sprayer dispenser housing is in its upright and inverted orientations, respectively. Adding additional valve assemblies increases the construction cost of manually operated liquid dispensers and even a slight cost increase, multiplied over the substantial numbers of the manually operated sprayers manufactured becomes a significant cost increase.

These cost increases could be avoided by a design of a manually operated sprayer that is operable in both upright and inverted orientations where the construction of the sprayer is not significantly different from the construction of a sprayer that typically operates in only the upright orientation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The manually operated sprayer of the present invention overcomes the shortcomings of prior art sprayers designed for operation in upright and inverted orientations by providing the sprayer with a simplified sliding valve construction that both closes a vent passage and opens a second liquid passage to the pump mechanism of the sprayer when the sprayer is inverted. Thereby, the sliding valve both prevents liquid from leaking from the sprayer dispenser housing and supplies liquid to the pump mechanism of the sprayer when the sprayer is in its inverted orientation. The sliding valve of the invention may be employed in both pivoting trigger operated sprayers and reciprocating plunger operated sprayers, but is described as being employed in a compact, vertically reciprocating plunger sprayer operated by a pivoting trigger.

The sprayer dispenser housing is basically comprised of a pump section that contains the pump mechanism and liquid discharge passage, and a liquid supply section that includes the closure for attaching the sprayer dispenser housing to a liquid container, a portion of the liquid supply passage having the dip tube attached thereto, and the sliding, reciprocating valve of the invention.

The pump mechanism is basically comprised of a cylindrical pump chamber containing a cylindrical plunger mounted in the pump chamber for sliding, reciprocating movement in the pump chamber. The plunger is comprised of a plunger piston at one end that is mounted in the pump chamber for reciprocating movement and a tubular plunger rod that extends from the plunger piston to the opposite end of the plunger. A trigger mounted on the pump section of the dispenser housing is operatively connected to the plunger and on manual movement of the trigger the plunger reciprocates in the pump chamber between charge and discharge positions of the plunger relative to the pump chamber. When moved to its charge position, the plunger draws liquid through the liquid supply section of the dispenser housing into the pump chamber.

On movement of the plunger to its discharge position, the liquid drawn into the pump chamber is discharged from the pump section of the dispenser housing through the discharge passage that includes a swirl chamber and a discharge orifice. A ball check valve and a pressure build up diaphragm valve control the drawing of liquid into the pump chamber and the discharge of liquid from the pump chamber in response to reciprocating movements of the plunger.

The plunger rod is received in a portion of the first liquid supply passage in the liquid supply section of the dispenser housing. This end of the plunger is received in a sealed, sliding engagement inside the portion of the first liquid supply passage. The first liquid supply passage has an intermediate, tubular section that extends from the portion of the passage receiving the plunger rod to an annular shoulder that radiates outwardly from the intermediate tube section. A dip tube adapter extends from the annular shoulder and the dip tube is received in the dip tube adapter. A second liquid supply passage passes through the annular shoulder. The second liquid supply passage has a center axis that is parallel to the center axis of the first liquid supply passage. The second liquid supply passage also has an opening exposed to the interior of the container attached to the dispenser housing. The opening of the second liquid supply passage is positioned in a plane that is oriented perpendicular to the center axis first liquid supply passage.

An annular closure wall on the liquid supply section of the dispenser housing extends over the top of the liquid container neck when the dispenser housing is attached to the liquid container. A vent passage extends through the closure wall. The vent passage has a center axis that is parallel with the center axis of the first and second liquid supply passages. The vent passage is positioned in the closure wall adjacent the portion of the first liquid supply passage that receives the plunger rod and which also extends through the center of the closure wall.

The sliding valve has a cylindrical collar that is mounted around the intermediate tube section of the first liquid supply passage for sliding movement over the tube section along a line of movement that is parallel to the center axis of the first liquid supply passage. At a bottom end of the collar, with the sprayer dispenser housing positioned in an upright orientation, a liquid stopper projects axially downwardly. The liquid stopper is positioned to engage in and seal closed the opening of the second liquid supply passage when the dispenser housing is positioned in an upright orientation. At the opposite end of the valve collar, or the upward end with the dispenser housing positioned in an upright orientation, a vent stopper projects axially from the valve collar. The vent stopper is positioned to engage in and seal closed the vent passage when the dispenser housing is moved to its inverted orientation.

Thus, in the upright orientation of the dispenser housing, the sliding valve slides downwardly over the intermediate tubular section of the first liquid passage and its liquid stopper seats in the opening of the second liquid passage sealing it closed. Simultaneously, the vent stopper at the opposite end of the valve unseats from the vent passage and thereby vents the interior of the liquid container through the vent passage to the exterior of the dispenser housing.

When the dispenser housing is moved to its inverted orientation the sliding valve slides over the intermediate tubular section of the first liquid passage causing its liquid stopper to unseat from the opening of the second liquid passage. This communicates the liquid in the inverted liquid container with the first liquid passage through the second liquid passage. Simultaneously, the vent stopper of the sliding valve engages in the vent passage sealing it closed and preventing the leakage of the liquid in the container through the vent passage to the exterior of the dispenser housing.

The construction of the sliding valve provides one component part that is capable of sealing closed a second liquid supply passage while opening a vent passage, and sealing closed the vent passage while opening the second liquid supply passage when the sprayer dispenser housing is in its upright and inverted orientations, respectively.

Brief Description of the Drawings Further objects and features of the present invention are revealed in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention and in the drawing figures wherein: Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of the sprayer dispenser in its upright orientation and with its pump plunger and lever actuator in their charge positions; Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the sprayer dispenser in its upright orientation and with its pump plunger and lever actuator in their discharge positions; Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the sprayer dispenser in its inverted orientation; Figure 4 is a partial cross-sectional view of the sliding valve; and Figure 5 is a partial cross-sectional view along the line 5-5 of Figure 4 and showing more detail of the sliding valve.

Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment The manually operated sprayer dispenser of the invention is contained within a two-piece dispenser housing that includes a pump mechanism section 12 and a liquid supply passage section 14. The pump mechanism section 12 contains the component parts of the pump mechanism as well as a liquid swirl chamber and priming and check valves that control the drawing of liquid into the pump mechanism and the discharge of the liquid from the pump mechanism and through the swirl chamber and from the sprayer dispenser. The supply passage housing section 14 contains a primary liquid supply passage and a secondary liquid supply passage as well as an air vent passage and a sliding valve that controls the opening and

closing of the secondary liquid supply passage and the air vent passage. All of the component parts of the sprayer dispenser to be described can be constructed of plastic material, however, in the preferred embodiment the spring of the pump mechanism is a metal coil spring. Additionally, although the illustrated embodiment is of a manually operated sprayer dispenser, the subject matter of the invention is equally well-suited for use in a foaming liquid dispenser.

Furthermore, although the operative environment described and shown in the drawings is a sprayer dispenser in which the center axis of the pump mechanism is oriented coaxially with the center axis of the dip tube as will be explained, the sliding valve of the invention is equally well-suited for use in trigger sprayers having the center axis of the pump mechanism oriented at an angle relative to the center axis of the dip tube.

The pump mechanism section 12 of the dispenser housing has an exterior side wall 16 that is shaped as a truncated cone with a circular bottom edge 18 at its base and a circular top edge 22 at its apex. A circular groove 24 is formed in the interior surface of the side wall 16 adjacent its bottom edge 18. The groove 24 is employed in attaching the pump mechanism section 12 of the dispenser housing to the liquid supply passage section 14, as will be explained. The groove 24 extends around the interior of the side wall 16 except for a portion of the side wall that is interrupted by a trigger access opening 26 adjacent the base 18 of the side wall.

Positioned on circumferentially opposite sides of the access opening 26 is a pair of lever flanges 28 that project radially outwardly from the exterior wall 16 of the pump mechanism section of the housing. Only one of the lever flanges 28 is shown in the drawings. The lever flanges have slots 32 formed in their mutually opposing interior surfaces and circular recesses 34 at the tops of the slots as viewed in Figure 1 that receive pivot pins of a trigger lever of the sprayer dispenser to be described.

A circular discharge passage opening 36 extends through the pump mechanism section exterior wall 16 at the center of its top edge 22. A cylindrical discharge passage wall 38 extends from the discharge opening 36 into the interior of the pump mechanism section exterior wall 16. At a distal edge of the discharge passage wall 38 it connects with a cylindrical pump chamber wall 42. The pump chamber wall 42 extends further inwardly into the interior of the pump mechanism section exterior wall 16 to a circular distal edge 44 of the pump chamber wall that surrounds an opening to the interior volume 46 of the pump mechanism.

A circular orifice button 52 is press fit into the interior of the liquid discharge passage in the discharge passage opening 36 at the apex of the housing pump mechanism section. The orifice button 52 has a spray orifice 54 passing therethrough.

Also contained in the liquid discharge passage defined by the cylindrical discharge passage wall 38 is a liquid spinner 56. The liquid spinner has a circular base 58 that is press fit into the interior of the discharge passage wall 38 and seats against an annular shoulder 62 defined by the connection between the discharge passage wall 38 and the pump chamber wall 42. The base 58 has a plurality of passages 64 passing therethrough that communicate the pump mechanism interior volume 46 with an interior volume 66 of the liquid discharge passage. Extending upwardly from the base 58 of the liquid spinner is the spinner head 68 having a swirl chamber 72 at its distal end. The distal end of the spinner head 68 engages against the orifice button 52. Therefore, liquid passes through the swirl chamber 72 immediately before being discharged through the orifice opening 54 of the orifice button.

A cylindrical wall 74 of a resilient, flexible check valve is inserted into the liquid discharge passage wall 38 over the spinner head 68. The cylindrical check valve 74 has an annular, flexible and resilient diaphragm valve element 76

that extends radially inwardly from the cylindrical wall 74.

A center opening in the annular diaphragm valve element 76 surrounds the spinner head 68 in sealing engagement. The valve element 76 also overlies the liquid passages 64 in the spinner base. The flexibility of the valve element 76 enables it to flex away from the spinner base passage 64 when subjected to increasing liquid pressure in the pump chamber interior volume 46 to allow liquid to pass from the pump chamber interior volume 46 through the spinner base passages 64 and the discharge passage volume 66 before passing through the swirl chamber 72 and being discharged through the orifice opening 54. When not subjected to increasing liquid pressure in the pump chamber interior volume 46, the valve element 76 overlays the spinner base passages 64 and seals them closed.

A priming valve assembly 82 extends downwardly from the liquid spinner 56 through the interior 46 of the pump chamber.

The priming valve assembly includes a cylindrical cage 84 that is secured to the base 58 of the liquid spinner. The cage has several openings 86 that communicate an interior volume of the cage with the pump chamber interior volume 46. A ball valve 88 is contained in the cage and seats against a seat surface 92 at the bottom of the cage as viewed in Figure 1. A tubular priming valve passage 94 extends downwardly from the valve seat 92 through the center of the pump chamber interior volume 46. The distal end 96 of the priming valve passage 94 is flared slightly outwardly.

A plunger rod 98 is mounted to the pump chamber wall 42 for reciprocating movement relative thereto. The plunger rod 98 has a hollow interior bore 102 extending completely therethrough. At the top of the plunger rod as viewed in Figure 1 it fares radially outwardly forming a piston 104 at the top end of the rod. The piston 104 engages in a sealing, sliding contact with the interior of the pump chamber wall 42.

The priming valve passage 94 extends into the interior bore 102 of the plunger rod and the radially outwardly fared distal end 96 of the priming valve passage engages in a sealing,

sliding engagement with the interior surface of the plunger rod interior bore. The bottom end of the plunger rod 98 as viewed in Figure 1 is also flared radially outwardly forming a seal 106 at this end of the rod. A circular flange 108 projects radially outwardly from the exterior of the plunger rod 98. Figure 1 shows the plunger rod 98 in its charge position relative to the pump chamber wall 42 and Figure 2 shows the plunger rod in its discharge position relative to the pump chamber wall.

A coil spring 112 is positioned between the circular flange 108 of the plunger rod and the interior surface of the pump mechanism housing section wall 16. The spring 112 biases the plunger rod 98 to its charged position as shown in Figure 1 and is compressed when the plunger rod is moved to its discharge position shown in Figure 2.

A manual lever or trigger 114 is mounted between the lever flanges 28 of the dispenser housing pump mechanism section 12. The lever 114 is shaped as a bell crank and has a handle 116 at one end and a pawl 118 at its opposite end. A pair of pivot pins 122 project outwardly from opposite sides of the lever 114. Only one of the pins 122 is visible in the drawing figures. The pins 122 extend into the circular recesses 34 formed in the interior surfaces of the dispenser housing lever flanges 28 thereby pivotally mounting the lever 114 to the dispenser housing. The pawl 118 engages against the underside of the plunger rod circular flange 108 as viewed in Figure 1. The lever 114 is shown in its charge position relative to the dispenser housing 12 in Figure 1 and is shown in its discharge position relative to the dispenser housing in Figure 2.

The liquid supply passage section 14 of the dispenser housing has a cylindrical skirt closure 124 with internal screw threading for attachment of the skirt to a complementary threaded neck of a liquid container. Other types of connectors, for example bayonet type connectors, could be used instead of the screw threading of the skirt. An annular

closure wall 126 extends radially inwardly from the top edge of the skirt 124. An annular rim 128 projects axially upwardly from the annular wall 126 and is shaped complementary to the interior groove 24 of the dispenser housing pump mechanism section 12 enabling a snap fit connection between the dispenser housing pump mechanism section 12 and the dispenser housing liquid supply passage section 14. A vent passage 130 passes through the closure wall 126.

A first liquid supply passage extends through the center of the liquid supply passage section 14 of the dispenser housing and communicates the interior bore 102 of the plunger rod 98 with a dip tube 132 that extends downwardly from the liquid supply passage housing section. The first liquid supply passage includes a cylindrical sleeve 134 that passes through the center of the annular closure wall 126 and extends downwardly through a portion of the interior of the liquid supply passage housing section 14. The flared bottom seal 106 of the plunger rod 98 extends into the interior of the cylindrical sleeve 134 and engages in a sealing, sliding engagement with the interior surface of the sleeve. The sleeve 134 has a necked down portion 136 that connects it to a reduced diameter intermediate tube section 138. A pair of circumferentially spaced rails 140 project radially outwardly from the cylindrical sleeve 134. The pair of rails 140 are on opposite sides of the vent passage 130 as shown in Figure 5.

A tubular stem 142 of a dip tube adapter is inserted through the interior of the intermediate tube section 138 of the first liquid passage sleeve. The stem 142 is connected by an annular shoulder 144 to a cylindrical fitting 146 into which the dip tube 132 is inserted. Together, the cylindrical fitting 146, the adapter stem 142, the intermediate tube section 138 and the cylindrical sleeve 134 form the first liquid supply passage communicating the dip tube 132 with the interior bore 102 of the plunger rod 98.

A second liquid supply passage 148 extends through the annular shoulder 144 of the dip tube adapter. The second

liquid supply passage 148 serves as an auxiliary passage communicating the interior volume of a liquid container to which the dispenser housing is attached and the first liquid supply passage.

A sliding valve is mounted on the first liquid supply passage. The sliding valve has a cylindrical collar 152 that is mounted over the exterior surface of the first liquid passage intermediate tube section 138 for sliding, reciprocal movement over the exterior surface. The sliding valve collar 152 has an annular bottom edge 154 and an annular top edge 156 as viewed in Figure 1. It can be seen in Figure 1 that the circumference of the valve collar 152 is larger adjacent its top edge 156 in order to enable this upper portion of the collar to reciprocate in sliding engagement over the exterior surface of the first liquid passage cylindrical sleeve 134. A liquid stopper 158 projects axially from the annular bottom edge 154 of the collar and a vent stopper 162 projects axially from the top edge 156 of the collar. The vent stopper 162 extends in sliding engagement between the pair of rails 140 on the exterior surface of the first liquid passage sleeve 134.

As seen in Figure 5, the vent stopper 162 has a greater axial length than do the pair of rails 140 and therefore the rails do not limit the extent of axial reciprocating movement of the vent stopper 162 or the sliding valve collar 152. However, they do prevent rotation of the collar 152 about the first liquid passage cylindrical sleeve 134 and intermediate tube section 138. Therefore, the pair of rails 140 maintain alignment of the vent stopper 162 with the vent passage 130 and maintain alignment of the liquid stopper 158 with the second liquid supply passage 148.

In operation of the liquid dispenser in its upright orientation shown in Figure 1, the sliding valve collar 152 slides downwardly over the intermediate tube section 138 of the first liquid supply passage causing the liquid stopper 158 to engage and seal closed the second liquid supply passage 148. The downward movement of the collar also causes the vent

stopper 162 to unseat from the vent passage 130, thereby venting the interior of the liquid container attached to the liquid dispenser through the vent passage. Pivoting the lever 114 inwardly causes the lever to raise the plunger rod 98 against the bias of the spring 112. This causes the plunger rod piston 104 to compress air in the pump chamber interior volume 146. The compressed air increases in pressure and causes the diaphragm valve element 76 to flex away from the passages 64 in the spinner base thereby pumping air in the pump chamber interior 46 through the spinner base passages 64 and the discharge passage 66 and out of the dispenser housing through the swirl chamber 72 and the orifice opening 54.

Releasing the lever 114 allows the spring 112 to push the plunger rod 98 downwardly toward its charge position shown in Figure 1. This increases the volume of the pump chamber 46 and creates a vacuum in this interior volume. The vacuum unseats the ball valve 88 and draws liquid from the container up through the dip tube 132, the adapter stem 142 and cylindrical sleeve 134 of the first liquid passage, the interior bore 102 of the plunger rod, the priming valve passage 94 and through the cage openings 86 of the priming valve assembly and into the pump chamber interior volume 46.

Subsequent manual pivoting of the lever 114 moving it back to its discharge position shown in Figure 2 increases the pressure of the liquid drawn into the pump chamber interior volume 46. This increase in liquid pressure is transmitted through the spinner base passages 64 and causes the diaphragm valve element 76 to flex away from the passages. This enables the liquid to pass through the discharge passage interior volume 66 and the swirl chamber 72 and is dispensed from the sprayer housing through the orifice 54.

Subsequently releasing the lever 114 allows the spring 112 to return the plunger rod 98 toward its charge position shown in Figure 1, again drawing liquid into the pump chamber interior volume 46 in the manner previously described.

With the liquid dispenser moved to its inverted orientation shown in Figure 3, the operation of the pump mechanism is the same as that described above with reference to the liquid dispenser in its upright orientation. However, the path followed by the liquid supplied to the pump chamber interior volume 46 is slightly different. With the dispenser housing inverted as shown in Figure 3, the sliding valve collar 152 slides over the intermediate tube section 138 of the first liquid passage away from the second liquid passage 48 and toward the vent passage 130. The vent stopper 162 engages in the vent passage 130 and seals closed this passage, preventing liquid in the container from passing through the vent passage and leaking from the dispenser housing. The movement of the valve collar also causes the liquid stopper 158 to unseat from the second liquid supply passage 148. This opens the second liquid supply passage and enables liquid in the inverted container to pass through the second liquid supply passage and into that portion of the first liquid supply passage defined by the dip tube adapter cylindrical fitting 146. From there the liquid is drawn into the pump chamber interior volume 46 in the same manner as when the pump mechanism is manually actuated with the dispenser housing in its upright orientation.

The construction of the liquid dispenser and its sliding valve provides a liquid dispenser that is capable of operation in upright and inverted orientations without requiring the addition of several component parts to the construction of an existing liquid dispenser that is operable only in an upright orientation. Furthermore, the particular construction of the sliding valve and the positioning of its liquid stopper 158 and vent stopper 162 relative to the second liquid supply passage 148 and vent passage 130, respectively, enable reliable sealing operation of the sliding valve that would not be possible with variations of this valve construction. For example, if the vent passage extended radially through the cylindrical sleeve 134 of the first liquid supply passage and

the second liquid supply passage 148 extended radially through the intermediate tube section 138 and adapter stem 142 of the first liquid supply passage, the effective sealing of the sliding valve and its ability to reciprocate freely over the exterior surface of the intermediate tube section 138 would act against each other. It would be necessary for the annular collar of the sliding valve to surround the intermediate tube section loosely in order to ensure it could slide and reciprocate freely over the exterior surface of the intermediate tube section as the dispenser housing is moved between its upright and inverted positions. However, a loose sliding fit of the annular collar over the intermediate tube section would not provide an effective seal over a vent passage through the cylindrical sleeve 134 and a second liquid supply passage through the intermediate tube section 138 and adapter stem 142. With the particular construction of the liquid dispenser where the vent passage center axis 172 and second liquid supply passage center axis 174 are parallel to the center axis 176 of the first liquid passage and to the line of reciprocating sliding movement 178 of the sliding valve collar (all shown in Figure 4), the sliding valve collar can be dimensioned to slide freely over the intermediate tube section without having any effect on the ability of the sliding valve to seal closed the vent passage and the second liquid supply passage.

While the present invention has been described by reference to a specific embodiment, it should be understood that modifications and variations of the invention may be constructed without departing from the scope of the invention defined in the following claims.