Spraying apparatus nozzle

• US 5,927,604 A
• Filed: 10/01/1997
• Issued: 07/27/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 04/06/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: INCRO Limited
• Original Assignee: INCRO Limited
• Inventors: Laidler, Kevin O.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kashnikow, Andres
• Assistant Examiner(s): EVANS, ROBIN OCTAVIA
• Application Number:
  US08/941,260
• Time in Patent Office: 664 Days
• Field of Search: 239/104, 239/106, 239/114, 239/115, 239/123, 239/451, 239/452, 239/453, 239/455, 239/600, 239/602, 239/333, 239/337
• US Class Current: 239/104
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 1/00 Nozzles, spray heads or other outlets, with or without auxiliary devices such as valves, heating means B05B3/00, B05B5/00, B05B7/00 take precedence; nozzles for baths with water or gas jets A61H33/00, e.g. A61H33/6063, A61H33/6021, A61H33/026 or A61H33/027; Nozzles specially adapted for fire-extinguishing A62C31/02; Nozzles for generating high velocity abrasive fluid jets B24C5/04; nozzles for jet-ink printing mechanisms B41J2/135; nozzles for filling containers B65B39/00; nozzles for liquid-dispensing, e.g. in vehicle service stations B67D7/42
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 1/3405 to produce swirl
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 1/341 before discharging the liquid or other fluent material, e.g. in a swirl chamber upstream the spray outlet
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 1/3415 with swirl imparting inserts upstream of the swirl chamber
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 1/3421 with channels emerging substantially tangentially in the swirl chamber
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 1/3436 the interface being a plane perpendicular to the outlet axis
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 11/1011 without substantial movement of the nozzle in the direction of the pressure stroke
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 11/1053 combined with means, other than pressure, for automatically opening a valve during actuation; combined with means for automatically removing closures or covers from the discharge nozzle during actuation
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 15/52 for removal of clogging particles
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 15/525 by increasing the cross section of the discharge openings
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 83/20 operated by manual action, e.g. button-type actuator or actuator caps actuators formed as a rigid elongate spout B65D83/306
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 83/345 Anti-clogging means for outlets

Abstract

A hollow body having a nozzle opening (19) to discharge fluid as a jet or spray; the body comprising a first part having an inlet (12a) to admit fluid under pressure into the first part, and a second part (16) movable relative to the first part and said first and second parts are relatively movable from an abutting position in which they define therebetween the nozzle opening and a fluid feed passage (18) in the body and leading to the nozzle opening, and a cleaning position in which the fluid feed passage is split open longitudinally and the nozzle opening is split open to expose the nozzle and passage defining surfaces of said parts, for cleaning.

Claims

1. A nozzle device comprising:

a) a hollow body having a nozzle opening to discharge fluid as a jet or spray;

b) the body comprising a first part having an inlet to adnit fluid under pressure into the first part, and a second part movable relative to the first part;

c) wherein the nozzle opening and a feed passage leading to the nozzle opening meet at a junction and are defined between portions of abutment surfaces of the first and second parts; and

d) wherein the parts are at least partially separable to expose the feed passage and the nozzle opening and the junction for wiping;

e) an integral flexible hinge attaches first part to second part to allow one of said parts to be swung away from the other to separate and expose said surfaces entirely while the parts remain connected by the hinge,

f) said parts (14,16) have sealing means bordering said portions of said surfaces adjacent to said nozzle opening junction and feed passage; and

g) said sealing means comprises a projecting formation on one of said surfaces which sealingly engages in a recessed formation or groove in the other surface, when said parts are swung to abut at an interface between said surfaces and are held in abutment by retaining means.

2. A nozzle device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the first part (14) is a base attachable to a fluid container vessel (43) having valve means openable by movement of the base to supply a flow of the fluid under pressure to the inlet (12A), and the second part is a lid (16) which can be swung into snap-fit engagement with the base.

3. A nozzle device as claimed in claim 2 wherein the retaining means (40,41:

51,52) allows the lid (16) to be pried open.

4. A nozzle device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the surfaces (17) are stepped to provide inclined surface portions (17D) which serve as said sealing means.

5. A nozzle device as claimed in claim 1 wherein each of said surfaces (17) has a concavity (17B) therein which defines part of each of the nozzle opening (19), the feed passage (18) and the junction (15).

6. A nozzle device as claimed in claim 5 wherein the junction is formed as a swirl chamber (15).

7. Spraying apparatus comprising a nozzle device as claimed in claim 2, a vessel (43) containing fluid under pressure, valve means actuable by depression of a pipe (12) in the valve means to release said fluid into said pipe, wherein the device (10) and pipe (12) are arranged so that manual application of pressure to a top surface of the lid is transmitted via the interface to the base to move the body towards said vessel for actuating said valve means.

8. Spraying apparatus comprising a nozzle device as claimed in claim 1 attached to an outlet (61,62) of a body (64) of the apparatus, a vessel (66) to contain fluid to be sprayed releasably attached to said body (64), and a trigger (65) actuable for pumping fluid from said vessel to said outlet (62).

9. Spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein a cleaning member (21) is provided on the trigger to obscure and wipe said nozzle opening (19).

10. Apparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein a cleaning member (13:

45) is provided for the nozzle device (10) in order to obscure said nozzle opening (19) and to wipe said nozzle opening (19) when the body is depressed to open the valve means.