METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DISPENSING FLUID COMPOSITIONS
First Claim
1. A fluid dispensing system comprising:
- a first and second fluid reservoir configured to contain a first and second constituent, respectively;
a first and second pump, said first and second pump in communication with said first and second fluid reservoir, respectively;
a drive motor, said first and second pump commonly driven by said drive motor;
a control system, said control system coupled to said drive motor;
a first and second valve assembly, said first and second valve assembly in communication with said first and second pump, respectively, each of said first and second valve assemblies including a valve chamber in communication with an inlet port via an inlet channel, an outlet port via an outlet channel, and a recirculation port via a recirculation channel;
a first and second moving valve member disposed in said first and second valve chamber, respectively, and responsive to said control system for directing a constituent between said inlet channel and one of said outlet and recirculation channels, wherein said control system selectively actuates said first and second moving valve members for dispensing a composition containing desired proportions of said first and second constituents.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A miniaturized fluid dispensing system for dispensing customized fluids. The dispenser may include first and second reservoirs containing constituent fluids; a drive motor; at least two pump assemblies commonly driven by the drive motor and in communication with the first and second reservoirs; first and second valve assembly in communication with the first and second pump assemblies; and a control system for selectively controlling the valve assemblies to blend and discharge a composition from the constituent fluids. The system may include a dispensing header to house the valves and to define ‘discharge’ and ‘recirculation’ flow paths for each constituent fluid. The present invention also provides a method for dispensing a fluid regimen (e.g. a plurality of compositions) by periodically blending and discharging varying compositions over time.
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Citations
24 Claims
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1. A fluid dispensing system comprising:
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a first and second fluid reservoir configured to contain a first and second constituent, respectively; a first and second pump, said first and second pump in communication with said first and second fluid reservoir, respectively; a drive motor, said first and second pump commonly driven by said drive motor; a control system, said control system coupled to said drive motor; a first and second valve assembly, said first and second valve assembly in communication with said first and second pump, respectively, each of said first and second valve assemblies including a valve chamber in communication with an inlet port via an inlet channel, an outlet port via an outlet channel, and a recirculation port via a recirculation channel; a first and second moving valve member disposed in said first and second valve chamber, respectively, and responsive to said control system for directing a constituent between said inlet channel and one of said outlet and recirculation channels, wherein said control system selectively actuates said first and second moving valve members for dispensing a composition containing desired proportions of said first and second constituents. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A fluid dispensing system comprising:
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a drive motor; a header; a plurality of fluid reservoirs; a plurality of pump assemblies commonly driven by said drive motor, wherein a first and a second of said pump assemblies are in communication with a first and a second of said fluid reservoirs, respectively; a plurality of valve assemblies each including an inlet channel in communication with a first portion of one of said pump assemblies, outlet channel in communication with said header, recirculation channel in communication with a second portion of said one of said pump assemblies, and including a magnetic moving member for directing fluid from said input channel to one of said output channel and said recirculation channel; a control system coupled to said drive motor and said first and second valve assemblies, wherein said control system activates said drive motor and said first and second valve assemblies in accordance with a formulation to generate a fluid composition. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method of providing a regimen of customized fluid, the regimen including a plurality of compositions to be dispensed over time, comprising the steps of:
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providing a control system, a plurality of fluid reservoirs containing constituent fluids, a drive motor, a plurality of valve assemblies; providing a regimen defining a plurality of composition formulas to define the plurality of compositions to be dispensed over time, the plurality of composition formulas including varying proportions of one or more of the constituent fluids; activating the drive motor and valve assemblies with the control system to dispense the plurality of compositions from the fluid reservoirs over time in accordance with the regimen. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A method of providing a customized fluid, comprising the steps of:
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providing a drive motor, a control system, a plurality of valve assemblies, and a plurality of fluid reservoirs each containing a constituent; generating a flow of a first constituent from a first of the fluid reservoirs; generating a flow of a second constituent from a second of the fluid reservoirs; directing the flow of a first constituent to a first of the valve assemblies, the first of the valve assemblies configured to selectively discharge or recirculate the flow of a first constituent; directing the flow of a second constituent to a second of the valve assemblies, the second of the valve assemblies configured to selectively discharge or recirculate the flow of a second constituent; wherein the first and second of the valve assemblies are responsive to the control system for dispensing a fluid containing desired proportions of the first and second constituents. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24)
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Specification