Dispenser

• US 6,143,257 A
• Filed: 08/04/1999
• Issued: 11/07/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 08/28/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Ecolab USA Incorporated (Ecolab, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Ecolab, Inc.
• Inventors: Tolliver-Rogers, Loleta T., Howes, Ronald Bruce, Hoerning, Douglas Sherwin, Spriggs, John Ross, Boche, Daniel K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bomberg, Kenneth
• Application Number:
  US09/366,811
• Time in Patent Office: 461 Days
• Field of Search: 22/54, 22/651, 22/630, 422/263, 422/264, 241/38
• US Class Current: 422/264
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 15/4418 in the form of liquids A47L15/4409, A47L15/4436, A47L15/4445 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 2105/60 Audible signals
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 33/37 of metering of detergents or additives
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 39/022 in a liquid state D06F39/024 takes precedence

Abstract

A dispenser 100 for dispensing a chemical product that is dissolved by diluent. The dispenser includes a package 170 having a diaphragm, or fingered collar 180 attached to its opening. The diaphragm 180 has a plurality of flexible members or flexible fingers 185. The dispenser may utilize an injection manifold 109 that is sized and configured to be positioned on a washing machine top proximate the gap between the washing machine'"'"'s top and lid. Still further, the invention includes a low level chemical product indicator. The indicator includes a focused light source 98a and 98a. The focused light source is a high intensity light emitting diode having a viewing angle of less than 6° and an intensity of above 10,000 mcd. The dispenser also includes an apparatus and method in which a dispensing time of a dispenser is dynamically varied in response to diluent temperature during operation of the dispenser.

Claims

1. A dispensing apparatus, comprising:

(a) a dispenser, the dispenser receiving a diluent and outputting a use dilution comprising a chemical product diluted by the diluent, wherein a dispensing rate of chemical product for the dispenser varies with a temperature of the diluent; and

(b) a temperature sensor sensing the temperature of the diluent and outputting a temperature signal representative thereof; and

(c) a controller, coupled to the dispenser and the temperature sensor, the controller operating the dispenser to dispense an amount of use dilution having a predetermined amount of chemical product, wherein the controller dynamically varies a dispensing time of the dispenser while the dispenser is dispensing use dilution in response to the temperature signal to deliver the predetermined amount of chemical product.

2. The dispensing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller samples the temperature signal at periodic intervals to determine an instantaneous delivery rate of chemical product from a current temperature of the diluent, and wherein the controller maintains a running total of chemical product dispensed by summing partial amounts of chemical product dispensed during individual periodic intervals, the partial amounts calculated from the instantaneous delivery rates.

3. The dispensing apparatus of claim 2, wherein the controller further includes a table relating delivery rates to diluent temperatures for the chemical product, and wherein the controller accesses the table to determine instantaneous delivery rates.

4. The dispensing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the dispenser is a solid chemical dispenser where the chemical product is provided as a solid concentrate that is contacted by the diluent to form the use dilution, the dispenser including a diluent inlet valve for controlling the flow of diluent which contacts the solid concentrate, and wherein the controller is coupled to the diluent inlet valve to control operation of the dispenser.