Device for dispensing oblong objects, comprising one main opening and at least one other elongated opening

• US 7,628,292 B2
• Filed: 03/03/2004
• Issued: 12/08/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Clariant Production France SAS (Clariant AG)
• Original Assignee: Airsec Sas (Clariant AG)
• Inventors: Nobilet, Roger, Lancesseur, Didier
• Primary Examiner(s): Crawford; Gene
• Assistant Examiner(s): Waggoner; Timothy R
• Application Number:
  US10/547,483
• Publication Number:
  US 20070034630A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,106 Days
• Field of Search: 221/267, 221/309, 221/310
• US Class Current: 221/267
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 50/30 Containers specially adapted for packaging, protecting, dispensing, collecting or disposing of surgical or diagnostic appliances or instruments for wound clamps A61B17/10; for ligaturing clips A61B17/122; packages or dispensers for surgical gloves or finger-stalls A61B42/40
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 1/26 Thin-walled containers, e.g. formed by deep-drawing operations B65D1/165 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 11/02 of curved cross-section thermally insulated B65D81/3813
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 43/16 hinged for upward or downward movement cigar or cigarette receptacles A24F15/00; suitcases, ètuis A45C; casings for cosmetic substances with hinged covers A45D40/22; toolboxes B25H3/02; hinges of door or similar type E05D ; boxes for switchboards with hinged covers H02B1/066
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 43/26 Mechanisms for opening or closing, e.g. pedal-operated for refuse receptacles B65F1/1623
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 51/04 hinged B65D51/10 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 81/266 for absorbing gases, e.g. oxygen absorbers or desiccants B65D51/244, B65D51/30 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 83/00 Containers or packages with special means for dispensing contents dispensing means incorporated in removable or non-permanently secured container closures B65D47/00; for shops, stores, offices, bars, or the like A47F1/04; showcases or show cabinets with dispensing arrangements A47F3/02; magazines for screws or nuts in combination with spanners, wrenches or screwdrivers B25B23/06; for use in connection with the handling of sheets, webs, or filamentary material B65H
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 83/02 for dispensing rod-shaped articles, e.g. needles packages for cigarettes provided with dispensing means B65D85/1009; dispensers for drinking straws A47G21/184
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 83/0409 the dispensing means being adapted for delivering one article, or a single dose, upon each actuation B65D83/0445 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 83/0481 the articles passing through a small opening or passage, without additional dispensing devices and without retaining means for the following article

Abstract

A device for dispensing oblong objects comprising: (i) a main dispensing opening for allowing the objects to be dispensed to pass therethrough one by one; (ii) at least one other opening of elongate shape, one of whose sides opens into the main dispensing opening, the elongate opening having an opening width equal to or greater than a minimum thickness of the object to be dispensed; and (iii) guide surfaces for guiding the objects to be dispensed. The guide surfaces lie along front sides of the elongate opening and face the objects to be dispensed, so as to collect and guide the objects toward at least one of the elongate openings.

Claims

1. A device for dispensing oblong objects comprising:

a main dispensing opening for allowing the objects to be dispensed to pass therethrough one by one;

at least one other opening of elongate shape, one of whose sides opens into the main dispensing opening, the elongate opening having an opening width equal to or greater than a thickness of the object to be dispensed and wherein the elongate opening or openings comprise slots of substantially constant width; and

guide surfaces for guiding the objects to be dispensed, said surfaces lying along front sides of the elongate openings and facing the objects to be dispensed, so as to collect and guide said objects to be dispensed toward at least one of the elongate openings.

2. The device as claimed in claim 1, comprising at least two elongate openings arranged radially with respect to an axis of the main dispensing opening.

3. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the elongate opening or openings have the shape of slots.

4. The device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the slot-shaped elongate opening or openings have at least one of their sides curved, or two symmetrically curved sides, the curved sides forming a restriction.

5. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the elongate openings have a length at least equal to twice the width of the objects to be dispensed.

6. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the main dispensing opening is a circular opening, the diameter of which approximates a minimum width of the objects to be dispensed.

7. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the rim of at least one of the openings includes at least one portion made of elastic material, said portion being intended to allow an object dispensed to be held in the opening by being lightly gripped therein.

8. The device as claimed in claim 7, wherein the elastic material is selected from the group consisting of natural rubbers, mono-olefin rubbers, isobutylene/isoprene, ethylene/vinyl acetate (EVA), ethylene propylene (EPR), ethylene-propylene-diene monomer (EPDM), ethylene/acrylic ester (EMA-EEA) polymers;

fluoropolymers;

diolefin rubbers, polybutadienes, butadiene-styrene (SBR) copolymers, rubbers based on condensation products, polyester and polyurethane thermoplastic rubbers, silicones, styrene rubbers, styrene-butadiene-styrene (SBS) and styrene-isoprene-styrene (SIS) rubbers.

9. The device as claimed in claim 1, comprising the form of a disk.

10. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the guide surfaces for guiding the objects to be dispensed are made of rigid material, allowing sliding of the objects to be dispensed.

11. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the rigid material constituting the guide surface is at least selected from the group consisting of polyethylenes, polypropylenes, ethylene/propylene copolymers and blends thereof;

polyamides;

polystyrenes (PS);

acrylonitrile butadiene-styrene (ABS) copolymers and styrene-acrylonitrile (SAN) copolymers;

polymethyl methacrylates (PMMA);

polyethylene terephthalates (PET);

polyvinyl chlorides; and

polycarbonates.

12. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the dispensed objects are identical to one another and are in the form of parallelepipedal strips or stems of elliptical, polygonal or circular cross section.

13. A container for containing objects to be dispensed and having at least one opening into which the dispensing device of claim 1 is mounted.

14. The object-dispensing container as claimed in claim 13, wherein the dispensing device is assembled inside the container.

15. The dispensing container as claimed in claim 13, wherein the container is closed off in a sealed manner by a removable stopper.

16. The container as claimed in claim 15, wherein the stopper is articulated to the container via a hinge, an axis of which is approximately perpendicular to an axis of the container.

17. The container as claimed in claim 13 formed from at least one thermoplastic polymer material selected from the group consisting of polyethylenes, polypropylenes, ethylene/propylene copolymers and blends thereof;

polyamides;

polystyrenes (PS);

acrylonitrile-butadiene=styrene (ABS) copolymers and styrene-acrylonitrile (SAN) copolymers;

polymethyl methacrylates (PMMA);

polyethylene terephthalates (PET);

polyvinyl chlorides; and

polycarbonates.

18. The container as claimed in claim 13, including at least one desiccating element.

19. The container as claimed in claim 18, wherein the desiccating element comprises desiccating layers molded onto an internal surface of the container and/or of the stopper.

20. The container as claimed in claim 18, wherein the desiccating element constitutes walls of the container and/or of the stopper.

21. The container as claimed in claim 18, wherein the desiccating element comprises (i) desiccating compositions formed from blends of thermoplastic polymers and/or copolymers and (ii) mineral desiccants.

22. The container as claimed in claim 21, wherein the thermoplastic polymers and/or copolymers forming the desiccating element are selected from those forming said container, taken by themselves or as a blend, optionally combined with at least one elastomer used for producing elastic contact regions of the elongate openings.

23. The container as claimed in claim 18, wherein the desiccants used in the composition of the desiccating elements are selected from the group consisting of anhydrous metal salts, metal oxides that can react with water vapor, silica gels, molecular sieves, starch, montmorillonite, polybutadienes and polysiloxanes.

24. A container that is assembled with a device defined by claim 1, wherein said container forms an assembly for the storage and dispensing of oblong objects.

25. A device of claim 1 wherein said objects are substantially polygonal, circular, or elliptical.

26. A device of claim 1 wherein the elongate opening further comprise resilient regions extending from the elongate opening to create friction on objects being dispensed.

27. A device for dispensing oblong objects comprising:

a main dispensing opening for allowing the objects to be dispensed to pass therethrough one by one;

at least one other opening of elongate shape, one of whose sides opens into the main dispensing opening, the elongate opening having an opening width equal to or greater than a thickness of the object to be dispensed and wherein the elongate opening or openings are slots whose width increases toward the main dispensing opening; and

guide surfaces for guiding the objects to be dispensed, said surfaces lying along front sides of the elongate openings and facing the objects to be dispensed, so as to collect and guide said objects to be dispensed toward at least one of the elongate openings.