Liquid dispensing units
First Claim
1. A liquid dispenser comprising:
- a housing;
a reservoir configured to store a liquid;
a fluid passage disposed in the housing, the fluid passage having an inlet and an outlet;
a pump disposed in the housing, the pump having an opening disposed in a pump body, the opening in fluid communication with the reservoir, the pump configured to allow air disposed therein to pass through the opening;
a motor disposed in the housing, the motor configured to drive the pump, the pump configured to encourage a flow of liquid from the reservoir into the inlet and out of the outlet of the fluid passage;
a first sensor configured to generate a signal based on a distance between an object and the first sensor; and
an electronic processor configured to receive the signal from the first sensor and to determine a dispensation volume of the liquid, the dispensation volume varying as a function of the distance between the object and the first sensor such that, as the distance between the object and the first sensor increases or decreases, the dispensation volume correspondingly increases or decreases;
the processor further configured to control the motor to dispense approximately the dispensation volume of the liquid.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A soap dispenser can be configured to dispense an amount of liquid soap, for example, upon detecting the presence of an object. Certain embodiments of the dispenser include a housing, reservoir, pump, motor, sensor, electronic processor, and nozzle. In certain embodiments, the sensor can be configured to generate a signal based on a distance between an object and the sensor. In certain embodiments, the electronic processor can be configured to receive the signal from the sensor and to determine a dispensation volume of the liquid. The dispensation volume can vary as a function of the distance between the object and the sensor. The processor can be configured to control the motor to dispense approximately the dispensation volume of the liquid.
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Citations
29 Claims
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1. A liquid dispenser comprising:
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a housing; a reservoir configured to store a liquid; a fluid passage disposed in the housing, the fluid passage having an inlet and an outlet; a pump disposed in the housing, the pump having an opening disposed in a pump body, the opening in fluid communication with the reservoir, the pump configured to allow air disposed therein to pass through the opening; a motor disposed in the housing, the motor configured to drive the pump, the pump configured to encourage a flow of liquid from the reservoir into the inlet and out of the outlet of the fluid passage; a first sensor configured to generate a signal based on a distance between an object and the first sensor; and an electronic processor configured to receive the signal from the first sensor and to determine a dispensation volume of the liquid, the dispensation volume varying as a function of the distance between the object and the first sensor such that, as the distance between the object and the first sensor increases or decreases, the dispensation volume correspondingly increases or decreases; the processor further configured to control the motor to dispense approximately the dispensation volume of the liquid. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A liquid dispenser comprising:
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a housing; a reservoir configured to store a liquid; a fluid passage disposed in the housing, the fluid passage having an inlet and an outlet; a pump and a motor disposed in the housing, the pump configured to be driven by the motor to encourage a flow of liquid from the reservoir into the inlet and out of the outlet of the fluid passage; a sensor configured to generate a signal indicative of a range between an object and the sensor, the signal increasing or decreasing as the range between the object and the sensor increases or decreases; and an electronic processor configured to receive the signal from the sensor and to determine a variable dispensation volume, the determined variable dispensation volume increasing or decreasing as the signal increases or decreases; the electronic processor further configured to energize the motor to drive the pump to encourage approximately the variable dispensation volume of the liquid to be dispensed out of the outlet of the fluid passage. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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Specification