System and method for dispensing material

• US 10,314,934 B2
• Filed: 06/26/2017
• Issued: 06/11/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/26/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Procter & Gamble Company
• Original Assignee: The Procter & Gamble Company
• Inventors: Bush, Stephan Gary, Sherman, Faiz Feisal
• Primary Examiner(s): Mruk, Geoffrey S
• Application Number:
  US15/632,509
• Publication Number:
  US 20180369443A1
• Time in Patent Office: 715 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 2209/11 Apparatus for controlling air treatment
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 2209/132 Piezo or ultrasonic elements for dispensing
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 2209/134 Distributing means, e.g. baffles, valves, manifolds, nozzles
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 9/03 Apparatus therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 9/14 using sprayed or atomised substances including air-liquid contact processes
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 23/20 Mixing gases with liquids
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 12/04 for sequential operation or multiple outlets
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 17/0615 spray being produced at the free surface of the liquid or other fluent material in a container and subjected to the vibrations
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 17/0669 Excitation frequencies
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17513 Inner structure

Abstract

A fluid dispensing method, the method comprising steps of: providing a drop on demand apparatus comprising a plurality of nozzles in fluid communication with a fluid reservoir; selecting a subset of the plurality; dispensing fluid via the selected subset of the plurality; pausing all dispensing of fluid; selecting a second subset of the plurality; dispensing fluid via the second selected subset of the plurality.

Claims

1. A method for dispensing a fluid, the method comprising steps of:

a) providing a drop on demand apparatus comprising a plurality of nozzles in fluid communication with a fluid reservoir;

b) selecting a subset of the plurality;

c) repeatedly dispensing fluid via the selected subset of the plurality in a first burst;

d) pausing all dispensing of fluid;

e) selecting a second subset of the plurality;

f) repeatedly dispensing fluid via the second selected subset of the plurality in a second burst.

2. The method according to claim 1 wherein the step of:

providing a drop on demand apparatus comprising a plurality of nozzles in fluid communication with a fluid reservoir, comprises providing a thermal drop on demand apparatus.

3. The method according to claim 1 further comprising steps of:

g) selecting a multitude of non-overlapping subsets of the plurality;

h) alternating the dispensing of fluid via one of the multitude of subsets and pausing wherein for any first subset of the multitude to dispense fluid, each other subset of the multitude dispenses fluid prior to the first subset again dispensing fluid.

4. The method according to claim 1 wherein the step of providing a drop on demand apparatus comprising a plurality of nozzles in fluid communication with a fluid reservoir, comprises providing a fluid comprising a fragrance composition.

5. The method according to claim 1 wherein the first subset of the plurality of nozzles is selected randomly.

6. The method according to claim 1 wherein the steps of dispensing fluid each yield a similar volume of fluid output.

7. The method according to claim 1 wherein the time associated with each fluid dispensing step is substantially less than the time associated with the pausing of dispensing.

8. The method according to claim 1 wherein the step of:

providing a drop on demand apparatus comprising a plurality of nozzles in fluid communication with a fluid reservoir, comprises providing a drop on demand apparatus comprising a plurality of nozzle sets, each nozzle set in fluid communication with one reservoir of a plurality of fluid reservoirs.

9. The method according to claim 1 wherein the step of:

providing a drop on demand apparatus comprising a plurality of nozzles in fluid communication with a fluid reservoir, wherein the apparatus comprises about 80 dispensing nozzles, comprises providing a drop on demand apparatus comprising a plurality of nozzle sets, each nozzle set in fluid communication with one reservoir of a plurality of fluid reservoirs, each nozzle set comprising about 80 nozzles.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein no subset of the plurality is fired again until each other subset of the plurality is fired.