Disposable tray sump foamer, assembly and methods

• US 5,372,281 A
• Filed: 10/12/1993
• Issued: 12/13/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/1992
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Gremed Group, Corp.
• Original Assignee: Ballard Medical Products (Kimberly-Clark Corporation)
• Inventors: Palmer, Darrel, Cook, Robert P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mitchell, David M.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kaufman, Joseph A.
• Application Number:
  US08/135,112
• Time in Patent Office: 427 Days
• Field of Search: 222/1, 222/80, 222/81, 222/82, 222/156, 222/180, 222/189, 222/190, 222/209, 222/325, 222/401, 222/402, 222/541
• US Class Current: 222/1
• CPC Class Codes: A47K 5/16 with mechanical drive food mixers A47J43/04
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 7/0025 with a compressed gas supply

Abstract

A biological agent growth-limiting and cross contamination suppressing foaming assembly. The foaming assembly comprises a disposable foamable-liquid transport and foaming cartridge and a housing cooperatively used with the cartridge to produce and dispense foam from the cartridge. The cartridge comprises a low-cost package comprising a molded tray which provides cavities for liquid containing chambers, air and liquid communicating channels, and initially sealed but frangible ports and a liquid impervious sheet which covers an open face of the tray to seal otherwise open portions of the chambers, channels and ports. The housing comprises a vertical wall mounting plate, a cartridge accommodating and servicing cover hingeably affixed to the mounting plate, a pump which provides pressurized gas to produce the foam within the cartridge, and sharpened stems or shafts to open the frangible ports. Foamable-liquid is stored within the cartridge during shipment, foamed within the cartridge under pressure from the pump, and dispensed as a foam from a spout which is a part of the tray.

Claims

1. A method for using a foam dispenser comprising a disposable foam cartridge comprising the steps of:

(a) providing a housing, at least one foam dispensing cartridge comprising frangibly openable inlet ports and a sealed outlet port, and a one-way pump comprising inlet port franging hollow shafts disposed for concurrent frangible entry into said frangibly openable inlet ports;

(b) if any spent dispensing cartridge is in the housing, separating the one-way pump from said spent cartridge and removing the spent dispensing cartridges from said housing;

(c) placing a previously unused cartridge in said housing;

(d) frangibly inserting the one-way pump franging hollow shafts into said frangibly openable inlet ports

(e) opening the seal on the outlet port;

(f) actuating the one-way pump to dispense foam through the outlet port;

(g) repeating step (f) until the cartridge is empty, then repeating steps (b) through (g).

2. A method for maintaining a biological agent growth-limiting and cross contamination free environment while providing a medically antiseptic foam from a foam dispensing assembly comprising the steps of:

(a) providing a housing having a replaceable manually operable pump means, a means for mounting the housing to a substantially vertical wall in a predetermined orientation and container covering means;

(b) providing at least one unused disposable sealed foamable-liquid transport and foaming container;

(c) opening the container covering means of said housing;

(d) removing any spent container from said container covering means, thereby removing all contaminated liquid reservoirs including liquid contained in foam creating sites within the spent container and thereby separating parts of the pump means which frangibly communicated pressurized and other gas to the spent container;

(e) observing the franging parts of the pump means for contamination;

(f) if the franging parts are contaminated, replacing the replaceable pump means;

(g) placing an unused disposable container into said container covering means;

(h) using franging parts of the pump means, frangibly breaking the seal of the container thereby providing at least one gas communicating pathway between the pump means and the container;

(i) closing said container covering means;

(j) removing all other seals from the container such as a plug from a foamed liquid dispensing spout associated with said container;

(k) manually operating said pump to dispense foam from said container;

(l) if no foam is dispensed during the operating step, returning to step (c);

(m) returning to step (k).

3. A method according to claim 2, comprising the additional steps of observing the fill level of the container;

if the fill level shows the container to be spent, returning to step (c).

4. A method of using a disposable foamer cartridge comprising the steps of:

providing a sealed disposable foamer cartridge comprising a relatively large internal storage chamber of foamable liquid, a relatively small internal pump chamber, a foam creating site and passages for air, foamable liquid and foam;

placing and retaining the disposable foamer cartridge in a holder;

equipping the holder with a manual air pump;

causing a seal to be broken so that atmospheric pressure is imposed upon the foamable liquid in the large storage chamber and selectively pressurized air from the pump is imposed upon a relatively small quantity of foamable liquid in the pump chamber whereby effluent loam comes into being at the foaming site.

5. A method according to claim 4 wherein the placing and retaining step positions the disposable cartridge in a selectively operable wall mounted holder.

6. A method according to claim 4 wherein the causing step comprises penetrating of at least one frangible wall of the cartridge.

7. A method according to claim 4 wherein the penetrating step comprises driving a rigid part of the pump through a frangible wall.

8. A method by which foam is created and discharged from an initially sealed disposable foamer cartridge comprising the steps of:

providing the initially sealed disposable foamer cartridge with a quantity of foamable liquid within a relatively large hollow region disposed between a tray and a sheet covering adhered to one side of the tray;

placing the disposable foamer cartridge in a wall mounted holder;

removably connecting a manual air pump carried by the holder to the foamer cartridge by puncturing the sealed foamer cartridge thereof to admit air at atmospheric pressure to the large hollow region and air from the air pump selectively to a relatively small pump chamber, charged periodically from the large hollow region, and to a foaming site to displace and foam foamable liquid.

9. A method by which foam is created from foamable liquid and discharged from a foamer cartridge comprising the steps of:

placing the foamable liquid within a relatively large reservoir of the foamer cartridge so that foamable liquid in the large reservoir is contiguous with a thin impervious membrane forming one side of the foamer cartridge;

charging a relatively small pump chamber with a small quantity of foamable liquid from the large reservoir so that foamable liquid in the small pump chamber is contiguous with the thin impervious membrane;

displacing air under pressure from a manual air pump contiguously along a thin impervious membrane to a foaming site and to the small pump chamber;

displacing foamable liquid from the small pump chamber contiguously along the thin impervious membrane to the foaming site;

co-mingling said air under pressure and said delivered foamable liquid at the foaming site to create a flow of foam;

displacing the foam contiguously along the thin membrane and discharging the foam from the foamer cartridge.

10. A method of foam production comprising the steps of:

placing a sealed foamer in a holder;

breaking a foamer seal to supply air to the interior of the foamer, to accommodate creation of foam from air and foamable liquid and to accommodate discharge of foam;

connecting a manual air pump directly to an air influent site of the foamer;

combining foamable liquid and pressurized air in the foamer to create foam;

discharging the foam from the foamer.

11. A method of foam production comprising the steps of:

breaking a foamer seal to supply air to an interior of the foamer, to accommodate creation of foam from air and foamable liquid and to accommodate discharge of foam;

connecting a manual air pump directly to an air influent site of the foamer;

displacing pressurized air and foamable liquid within the foamer, at least some of which displacement is contiguous with an impervious film at one side of the foamer so as to combine the air and foamable liquid to create foam;

displacing the foam along a predetermined path within the foamer, at least part of which is contiguous with the film, to a discharge location.

12. A method for installing a manual air pump and a disposable foamable-liquid containing and foaming cartridge in a holder for use as a foam producing assembly comprising the steps of:

(a) unlatching and rotating the holder to an open orientation whereat access is provided for installing the cartridge and air pump;

(b) inserting the air pump into the holder in an orientation keyed by complementary fittings on the holder the air pump;

(c) twisting the air pump in a first direction relative to the holder and thereat locking the air pump in place with pawl means to assure precise pump orientation relative to the holder;

(d) displacing the container into the holder in a predetermined container orientation relative to the holder;

(e) forcing the cartridge against the air pump such that puncturing means disposed on the air pump puncture frangible barriers on the container to break a seal on the container and open air transporting communication between the pump and the container;

(f) counter-rotating the holder to a closed and latched position for use.

13. A method according to claim 12 comprising the additional steps of:

(g) unlatching and rotating the holder to an open orientation whereat access is provided to the cartridge from which the foamable liquid has been expended and to the pump used to expend the foamable liquid.

(h) removing the liquid expended cartridge;

(i) inspecting the puncturing means for contamination;

(j) if the puncturing means are found to be contaminated, manually releasing the pawl means;

(k) twisting the air pump in a second direction relative to the holder and thereby removing the air pump from the holder;

(l) inserting an uncontaminated air pump into the holder in the orientation keyed by complementary fittings on the holder the air pump;

(m) twisting the air pump in the first direction relative to the holder and thereat locking the air pump in place with pawl means again assuring precise pump orientation relative to the holder;

(n) displacing a fresh foamable liquid container into the holder in the predetermined container orientation;

(o) forcing the fresh cartridge against the air pump such that puncturing means disposed on the air pump puncture frangible barriers on the container to break a seal on the container and open air transporting communication between the pump and the container;

(p) counter-rotating the holder to the closed and latched position for use.

14. A method for installing a manual air pump in a holder for use as a part of a liquid storage and controlled emission assembly comprising the steps of:

(a) providing an air pump comprising means for puncturing and for communicating air to sealed, frangibly openable liquid storage device ports disposed for puncturing and communicating at predetermined sites and means for engaging pawl means in a predetermined orientation relative to said puncturing and communicating means;

(b) providing an empty holder for said pump comprising means for spatially orienting said pump relative to said predetermined sites and pawl means for securing said pawl engaging means such that the puncturing and communicating means are disposed for alignment with said frangibly openable ports;

(c) inserting the air pump into the holder in an orientation keyed by complementary fittings between the air pump and holder;

(d) twisting the air pump until the pawl means lock against the pawl engaging means to securely hold the air pump in said predetermined orientation.