Patent Application
20060255069
This invention relates to a container and pump, integrally or separately formed, whereby the pump is used to pump liquid, such as gasoline, out of the container into a dispensing hose.
Containers for storing and dispensing liquids, such as gasoline, have been around for as long as there has been a storage or dispensing need.
The problem with many containers of the prior art is that most containers use the same simple opening for the filling up the container and for the dispensing of liquid from the container.
In its most rudimentary design, this involves simply a container with an opening that is closed by securing a threaded cap. When the cap is removed, a funnel is often placed onto the receiving container at its opening and liquid is added to that container through the funnel. Alternatively when the user wants to remove or dispense liquid from the container, the cap is removed and often a neck-shaped spout is attached to the container at the opening so that the user can lift the container and pour liquid out of the container through the spout. This operation, although simple to contemplate, can be difficult to execute.
Various proposals have been developed so that the container does not have to be lifted during use. Pumps have been added to the containers so that the container does not have to be lifted. Hand pumps, which the user flexes a handle, plunger or trigger, to create suction or pressure through a dispensing tube have been made. These hand pumps can require an exhaustive effort on the part of the user as s/he has to pump with her/his hand and, as well, pressure can be required to be maintained within the container so that, as the user pumps, pressure is increased and the liquid is drawn or pushed through the delivery tube from the container. If the container is not pressurized, it often has to be elevated above the outlet of the dispensing device to ensure delivery. The effort of the user required to hand pump and place the container at a suitable elevation, or the design requirements of a container which maintains pressure to make the hand pump operative are all problems of the prior art.
Foot pumps have been proposed so that the user does not have to exhaust his/her hand power, but the problems of the container design or placement have usually remained.
It is an object of the present invention to overcome these problems of the prior art by providing a container, which permits the easy dispensing of liquid.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a container having a foot pump that does not require the storage chamber of the container to be pressurized during operation and which does not require the container to be placed at an elevation above the elevation of the dispensing handle during use.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a container having a foot pump that does not require great effort on the part of the user to pump liquid from the container.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a foot pump that can be used with a liquid storage/dispensing container with its storage chamber not being pressurized to pump liquid out of the container without having to consider the elevation of the container during the dispensing process.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a foot pump that can be either integrally or separately formed with the container to deliver liquid from the storage chamber of the container that is simple in design, economical to make and simple to operate.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a pump which can attached to a container for dispensing the liquid stored therein, all the while achieving ease of use.
Other objects will become apparent on reading the specification.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a container apparatus having a container housing and a foot pump means for pumping liquid connected to the container housing. The container housing has a storage chamber for storing liquid and an opening through which liquid is added into the storage chamber. The foot pump means has a chamber wall defining a pump chamber with an pump chamber entrance opening and a pump chamber exit opening. The container housing has an exit opening in fluid communication with the pump chamber entrance opening to permit liquid in the storage chamber to be drawn and pumped into the pump chamber through the pump chamber entrance opening and out of the pump chamber through the pump chamber exit opening by operation of the foot pump means. There is a valve means comprising a one-way check valve mounted between the storage chamber and the pump chamber to permit operation of the foot pump means, there being an air means to permit the drawing of air into the storage chamber as liquid is being pumped out of the storage chamber by use of the foot pump means.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a container apparatus having a container housing and a bellows foot pump means for pumping liquid connected to the container housing. The container housing has a storage chamber for storing liquid and an opening through which liquid is added into the storage chamber. The bellows foot pump means has a chamber wall defining a pump chamber with a pump chamber entrance opening and a pump chamber exit opening. The container housing has an exit opening in fluid communication with the pump chamber entrance opening to permit liquid in the storage chamber to be drawn and pumped into the pump chamber through the pump chamber entrance opening and out of the pump chamber through the pump chamber exit opening by operation of the bellow foot pump means. There is a valve means comprising a one-way check valve mounted between the storage chamber and the pump chamber to permit operation of the bellow foot pump means, there being an air means to permit the drawing of air into the storage chamber as liquid is being pumped out of the storage chamber by use of the bellow foot pump means.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a foot pump apparatus comprising: a foot pump means mountable to a container for drawing and pumping liquid from the container, whereby the foot pump means has a housing with an entrance opening for receiving liquid, a pump chamber, and an exit opening through which liquid is dispensed. The foot pump apparatus has a coupling means for mounting the foot pump means to a container to be in fluid communication to the chamber of a container to permit the pumping of liquid from the container into the housing through the entrance opening and pump chamber and out the exit opening. There is a valve means comprising a one-way check valve mounted to the foot pump means to regulate the inflow of liquid during use.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a bellows foot pump apparatus comprising: a bellows foot pump means mountable to a container for drawing and pumping liquid from the container, whereby the bellows foot pump means has a housing with an entrance opening for receiving liquid, a pump chamber, and an exit opening through which liquid is dispensed. The bellows foot pump apparatus has a coupling means for mounting the bellows foot pump means to a container to be in fluid communication to the chamber of a container to permit the pumping of liquid from the container into the housing through the entrance opening and pump chamber and out the exit opening. There is a valve means comprising a one-way check valve mounted to the bellows foot pump means to regulate the inflow of liquid for pumping during use.
The invention will be more readily understood after reading the following description of the preferred embodiments with reference to the following drawings in which:
a, 4b and 4c are illustrations of showing the valve member of
Referring to the drawings, there is shown a container referred to generally by the numeral 8 for storing and dispensing liquid, such as gasoline. The container 8 includes a lift handle 10 for lifting and an extended towing handle 12 for tilting and pulling the container along the ground using the wheels 14.
The container 8 comprises a housing 16 within which there is a storage chamber 18 for storing liquid 20. The housing 16 has an opening at 22, covered by a threadedly secured cap 24. In the preferred embodiment, the cap includes a check valve 25, located at its top, which permits air to be drawn into the housing 16 when liquid is drawn out of the housing 16 by the pump as described below. It, however, will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the same effect, during use can be obtained by merely opening the cap during use or providing a small hole opening in the can to permit the drawing in of air as liquid is dispensed. The check valve 25 is preferable and advantageous, but there are obvious alternatives that would be apparent to those in art.
Liquid 20 is first added into the storage chamber 18 through opening 22 after cap 24 is removed. Cap 24 is then remounted over opening 22 for storage and transport. This manner of filling the container 8 is standard.
However, in the embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 6, the container further comprises a foot pump, which in the preferred embodiment is a bellows foot pump, generally referred to by the numeral 26. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that foot pumps, other than bellows foot pumps, such as, for instance, a simple resilient single chamber container, which collapses on downward pressure and reasserts its shape after the release of downward pressure, could also be used advantageously.
In the embodiments illustrated for FIGS. 1 to 6, with like parts having like numbers unless otherwise noted, the bellows foot pump 26 includes a base member 28 with a curved wall that is circular in cross section, and an upper bellows member, referred generally by the numeral 30, having a resiliently collapsible side wall 32, circular in cross section, and a flat top wall 34. Circular is the preferred embodiment but alternate design shapes would also be suitable.
As illustrated in
By making the upper bellows member 30 separate and mountable to the base member 28, the upper bellows member, which will bear the brunt of the wear and tear of usage can easily be replaced after it is worn out without the need to replace the entire pump or the entire container. Variations of the separation of these parts and their design is possible without deviating from the scope of this invention. For instance, in
The bellows pump is connected to the container housing via conduit member 33, which in the preferred embodiments of 1 to 5 are integrally connected to the bellows pump base member 28.
The bellows foot pump 26 is also formed with an exit opening 42 through which liquid can be pumped and after it is drawn through the entrance opening 41 into the bellows chamber 40 from the storage chamber 18, via the passageway of the conduit member 33, during use by repeatedly pressing downwardly on the flat top wall 34 with one's foot and then raising one's foot to let the resilience of the top member 30 reassert its shape.
In the preferred embodiment of
Check valves 44, 45 are standard one-way valves used in pumping operations for liquids and are readily available off of the shelf. The choice of which valve to use is a matter of simple choice.
The check valve 44 ensures that liquid 20 will not flow back into the storage chamber 18 of the container 8 from the bellows chamber 40 once the liquid has passed from the container housing 16 into the bellows pump 26. When the flat top wall 34 is depressed liquid in the bellows chamber 40 is forced out of the bellows pump through opening 42 and check valve 44 is forced closed to prevent passage of liquid from the bellows pump back into the container housing. When the user permits the bellows top member to reassert its original shape, check valve 44 is open and the bellows chamber 40 can refill. Liquid is thereby pumped from the container.
A delivery hose 46 with a delivery nozzle 48 is threadedly attached the bellows pump 26 at the opening 42 with barbed outlet member 49 so that the user can direct delivery of the liquid that has so easily been pumped from the container. The connection of the dispensing hose to the foot pump is achieved, in the embodiments shown in
The check valve 45 ensures that liquid once pumped out of the pump chamber does not flow back into the pump chamber. As will be apparent, this particular check valve 45 can be positioned further away from the pump, for instance, within the delivery hose 46 or nozzle 48. The positioning of the check valve 45, providing it is placed to achieve the aforesaid function, is a choice of design. Similarly, a choice of design is also where the check valve 44 is disposed. The check valve 44 could be disposed within the conduit member 33, the container housing 16 or the bellows pump 30.
As an alternative manner of providing for the valve operation of the pump, there is illustrated a different valve configuration in
The check valve 74 ensures that liquid once pumped out of the pump chamber does not flow back into the pump chamber. As will be apparent, this particular check valve 74 can be positioned further away from the pump, for instance, within the delivery hose 46 or nozzle 48. The positioning of the check valve 74, providing it is placed to achieve the aforesaid function, is a choice of design.
The arrangement of the valve configuration is an issue of design.
As well, variations in the design of the foot pump is possible as shown by the two alternative embodiments of
In
By making the flexible portion of the bellows pump replaceable, it becomes easier to repair the container without having to replace the whole configuration. Because the flexible portion of the bellows pump is the piece that will bear the brunt of wear and tear during normal use, it is advantageous to be able to just replace this particular part.
Throughout, the intricacies of the design of the nozzle and the nozzle hose to be used in conjunction with the invention are standard in the industry and are not described in detail in this specification, other than to point out that advantages of ease of use are achieved.
In the preferred container embodiment, as shown in
However, as in the final embodiment shown, the bellows pump can be formed completely separate from the container and mounted, providing the threading is complementary, directly to a standard liquid container. This is shown in
As shown in those drawings, there is a bellows foot pump 60 mountable to a container 8 for storing and dispensing liquid. The bellows foot pump 60 has a coupling means 22, comprising an 0-ring (not shown) for sealing, and an outer tightening coupling ring 62, which in the preferred embodiment would be the existing container cap that threadedly secures about the threaded opening already existing on the can. Once mounted, the liquid can be dispensed by tilting the can so that the bellows foot pump 60 is in the operative position as shown in
There will be a need for an air means to permit the drawing of air into the container 8 as liquid is being pumped out of the container by use of the bellows foot pump 60 means. If the container to which the bellows foot pump 60 is being mounted does not have an air means the bellows foot pump 60 can be provided with an air means to meet that need. For instance the coupling means 22 in the assembly shown in
Several variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art without deviating from the scope of this invention.
For instance, the bellows pump can be made integrally to the container housing or as separably mountable. The advantage of making the bellows pump separately mountable is that the pump can be replaced without replacing the whole configuration.
In the configuration where the pump means is disposed at the base of the container housing, it becomes easier to use a dispensing hose and a dispensing nozzle configuration because liquid can be easily pumped, without great effort, take full advantage of the nozzle delivery system.
As well, the advantage of the preferred embodiment shown in
Similarly, with the advantages of using a foot pump that can pump liquid from the container housing with the housing in the upright position, still on the ground, the use of transport wheels and a handle becomes a more useful feature. If the container has to be tilted or lifted to a different elevation for use, the handle and wheels can become an awkward hindrance. By being able to pump liquid from the container while it is in the upright position, as are possible with the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 to 6, the wheels and pull handle have added benefit.
Throughout, the choice of materials used in the composition of the parts will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Choices can be made in accordance with the desired strength and environmental regulations required.
It is not intended that this specification be read in a limiting sense, and the minor modifications can be made without deviation from the invention. The scope of the invention is as defined in the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60672424 | Apr 2005 | US |
