FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to dispensing plastic wrap and/or similar roll materials from an improved dispensing device.
RELATED ART
Plastic wrap, wax paper, parchment paper, aluminum foil, and related packaging and sealing material are typically manufactured in elongated sheets mounted on a roll. Such material is usually dispensed by pulling a desired length from the roll, and cutting the material against a hacksaw type blade or similar knife edge. Traditional dispensers simply contain the material roll within a cardboard boxlike structure, and mount a wrap-width blade on an exposed edge of one wall of the box. Such dispensers are usually weak and prone to deterioration, and additionally expose the user's hands to cuts against the exposed blade.
Other, more complicated dispensers use a mechanical system, typically spring-actuated, to dispense a desired length of wrap, and incorporate a guard or other device to shield the user's hands from the cutting blade. These dispensers are prone to breakage of the mechanism, and jamming of the wrap itself in the dispenser. Additionally, most of these dispensing systems have been designed to be mounted on a wall or under a shelf in order to give the user easy access to the material.
SUMMARY
In one aspect, the present invention provides a dispenser for a material on a roll, the dispenser comprising top, bottom, front and rear walls, and left and right side walls. The top and front walls form a front section, and the rear and bottom walls form a back section. In some versions, the front and back sections are hingedly connected together where the bottom and front walls meet to bring the front and back sections into a closed position when the top and rear walls are brought together, and into an open position when the top and rear walls are moved apart. The front and back sections each include a left side wall section and a right side wall section, the left side wall sections forming the left side wall and the right side wall sections forming the right side wall when the front and back sections are in a closed position. The top wall includes a dispensing slot for dispensing the material and a cutting device for cutting the material.
In other embodiments, the dispenser can include mounts on the front and back section for holding and supporting the rolled material in the dispenser.
Other objects, features, embodiments and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying figures. It is to be expressly understood, however, that each of the figures is provided for purpose of illustration and description only and is not intended as a definition of the limits of the present invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a dispenser;
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an open dispenser;
FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a dispenser;
FIG. 4 is a perspective side view showing the profile of a dispenser;
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an open dispenser holding a material roll;
FIG. 6 is an end perspective view of a dispenser;
FIG. 7 is a top perspective view of a dispenser;
FIG. 8 is a top view of an open dispenser;
FIG. 9 is a top view of an open dispenser and a cylinder;
FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an open dispenser loaded with a material roll on a cylinder;
FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a roll containment mount and a lip detail on a back section of a dispenser;
FIG. 12 is a top view of the inside of a front section;
FIG. 13 is a bottom view of the bottom of a dispenser; and
FIG. 14 is a bottom perspective view of a dispenser.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
A material dispenser in accordance with the present invention provides a unitary container and dispensing system for materials like plastic wrap, aluminum foil, parchment paper or other similar type materials that are would around. The dispenser can have a design that allows the user to dispense material from a counter top, or from a hand-held position. Some embodiments of the dispenser can be easily stored within standard kitchen drawers. The device can incorporate a slide cutter known in the art for cutting plastic wrap and other materials, or a traditional hack-saw blade or other type of cutting blade that is sufficient for cutting a desired roll material.
Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 4, in one embodiment, the dispenser 20 comprises a generally elongated structure having a front section 22, a back section 24, and left and right side walls (only the right side wall 26 is shown in FIG. 1). The front section comprises a top wall 28 and front wall 30 of the dispenser, while the back section comprises a bottom wall 32 and rear wall 34 of the dispenser. As shown in FIG. 2, the front and back sections are connected by hinges 36 to allow the front and back sections to open up and separate from each other along a top edge of the dispenser. Referring to FIGS. 2 and 4, each side wall is comprised of two side wall sections, a front side wall section 38 associated with the front section 22, and a back side wall section 40 associated with the back section 24.
Referring to FIG. 2, the front section can include a recessed cutting slot 42, located near the top edge of the front section, into which a means for cutting a roll material, in this case a slide cutter 44, is inserted. The slide cutter can be any slide cutter known in the art for cutting roll materials that can be accommodated within the cutting slot. The dispenser can also be modified to incorporate a metal type cutting blade instead of a cutting slot with a slide cutter. Additionally, the front section can include one or more, and preferably two, recessed finger slots 46 located at the left and/or right sides of the top of the front section and adjacent to the cutting slot, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, which allows the user access to the exposed sides of roll material.
Referring to FIG. 1, the top rear edge of the front section has a cutout which, when the front and back sections are closed together, forms a material slot (or “dispensing slot”) 48. This slot extends along the width of the dispenser from left to right side walls across the top edge of the front section for easy loading of roll material. The material slot is of a length less than the width of the recessed cutting slot, and is located adjacent and substantially parallel to the cutting slot and the finger slots. This allows material to be dispensed with control when the dispenser is closed.
The front section is connected to the base of the back section in two places by hinges 36, which are equally spaced and located on left and right sides of the inside front section, as shown in FIG. 2. For each hinge, both the front and back sections include a hinge detail in the form of a hinge section 50 which cooperates to create the complete hinge once the front and back sections are connected to form the dispenser, as shown in FIG. 3. Other types of hinges or connectors, such as tape or velcro, can be used as long as the front and back sections can open and close.
Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the front section includes two small magnets 52 that can be located at the inside lip detail (or “tab”) 54 near the left and right side wall sections adjacent to the material dispenser slot 48. The back section also includes two small magnets 56 located on the lower inside lip detail (or “tab”) 58 near the left and right side wall sections, which are adjacent to magnets located on front section when the dispenser is closed. When the dispenser is closed, each front section magnet cooperates by magnetic attraction with its corresponding back section magnet to connect the back and front sections together. Thus, the combination of the magnet locations allows the dispenser to securely close into a locking position when both front and back sections are closed together. The magnets also allow both sections to be separated causing the dispenser to be in an open position for loading and reloading of said materials without buttons or latches commonly found on other dispenser type products.
In this embodiment, the front of the dispenser is at a greater height than the rear of the dispenser when viewed in profile in FIG. 4, with the dispenser front curving backwards toward the rear to produce the cam-like profile. The overall shape of this embodiment distributes the weight of a material roll toward the rear of the dispenser, enhancing stability and ease of use.
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, a material roll can be inserted into the back section and used for dispensing without the need for additional supporting devices. In this case, the material roll is supported by the overall shape of the back section and by ribs 60 that line the back section. The ribs also provide structural stability to the dispenser.
In another embodiment, the parts of the dispenser are generally the same as in the above-described embodiments, but the dispenser is of a more generally rectangular shape, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. The dispenser comprises a front section 62 and a back section 64. The front section comprises a top 66, a front wall 68, and left and right side wall sections 70, and the back section comprises a bottom, rear wall, and left and right side wall sections 72. Referring to FIG. 8, the front and back sections are connected by hinges 74, and magnets are arranged in each section to secure the dispenser in a closed position. As shown in FIG. 7, the dispenser includes a slide cutter 76, a dispenser slot 78, and finger slots 80.
In this embodiment, means for supporting a material roll are included. The supporting means in this case are roll containment mounts 82, shown in FIGS. 8, 9 and 10, that are formed inside of and adjacent to both the left and right back side wall sections within the base or bottom area of the back section. Referring to FIG. 9, the mounts serve to hold a suitably sized cylinder 84, such as a tubing or pipe, that runs along the width of the dispenser. In turn, the cylinder supports and suspends a material roll within the dispenser, as shown in FIG. 10. The cylinder can be made of any material, such as PVC, metal, cardboard, and the like, so long as the cylinder can support and suspend the material roll. Referring to FIGS. 8 and 11, the mounts each include a V or U-shaped notch 86 in which an end of a cylinder can rest.
As shown in FIG. 12, the front section also has supporting means in the form of mounts 88 formed adjacent to the front side wall sections within the top wall area of the front section. The front section mounts are similar in shape to the mounts shown in FIG. 11, and include front V or U-shaped containment notches which, when the front and back sections close, are spaced from and cooperate with the notches of the back section mounts to hold the ends of a cylinder or material roll loosely in position, thus allowing the roll to rotate within the dispenser. The front wall of the front section is spaced from the roll of material contained within the dispenser to allow the material to roll freely without restriction.
Although the dispenser shown in FIG. 5 does not include mounts for supporting a material roll, it should be understood that other embodiments of this dispenser can include roll containment mounts in the back section, and corresponding mounts in the front section. The mounts can be similar to those shown in FIGS. 8, 9, 10 and 11, and can be located inside of and adjacent to both the left and right side wall sections of the back section, and the left and right side wall sections of the front section, similar to the mounts shown in FIGS. 8, 9, 10 and 12.
Although V or U-shaped mounts are shown in the figures, other shapes are possible as long as the mounts can support a cylinder or a material roll for dispensing. Similarly, any other support structure can substitute for the mounts as long a material roll can be dispensed.
In practice, the dispenser can include an over molded rubber footing or other type of footing attached to the bottom of the dispenser for support. For example, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, rubber discs 90 are attached as the footing. Rubber footings 92 are also shown in FIG. 13, which shows a bottom view of an embodiment of the dispenser.
In some cases, the dispenser can be constructed by common manufacturing practices, such as injection molding, and formed using polymers such as polycarbonate, ABS, or like materials. In other cases, the dispenser can be made of stainless steel or any other material that provides sufficient support and stability for dispenser function. Combinations of plastic, metal and/or other materials are also contemplated.
Various parts of a dispenser can be prepared as single items, or can be prepared from component parts. For example, a back section can be made as one piece, i.e., by injection molding. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 3, the back section can be made as separate component parts, then connected together to form the entire back section. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the component parts are connected by screws 92. In other embodiments, the component parts can be designed to press-fit into place using materials and technology well known in the field. Similarly, while hinge pins 94 are used to form a complete hinge in the embodiment of FIG. 3, in other embodiment, a hinge can be formed by press-fitting together hinge components.
In certain embodiments, the dispenser can also include various decorative components, such as the front plate 96 and top plate 98 which are attached to the front section in FIG. 3. The back section can include a recessed detail located on the top center. A small name plate or sticker made of vinyl, acrylic or like materials can be secured into this recessed area for branding purposes. In addition, the name plate or sticker can provide a cling feature to said material which helps keep the material in a ready position on the top portion of the back section, thus preventing the material edge from retracting back into the material dispensing unit.
Referring to FIG. 11, both front and back sections can each include a small lip 100 located near the edge or parting line of both sections and extending along the length of the edge. The lips allow both sections to nest with each other as the dispenser is put into a closed position. Thus, when closed, the front section lip rests upon the back section lip which is designed with a slightly lower level than the front section lip to provide a fit with both sections.
Referring to FIG. 14, this figure shows a bottom 102 of a dispenser in accordance with the present invention.
In use, dispenser sections are manually opened and separated. A roll of material is placed over a cylinder and placed into the roll support V-shaped notches, if any, located inside the dispenser. The leading edge of the wrap is pulled out over the top of the back section and laid to rest while the user closes both the front and back sections. The front and back sections when closed engage each other at said lip details to form the material slot which serves to hold the wrap in a controlled dispensing position. The material is then pulled through the material slot and toward the front section, towards the user, over the cutting slot to a ready position.
To dispense a length of wrap, the user can reach a forefinger into each of the left and right forger slots located on the top of the front section to grasp the exposed sides of the material, and lift and pull the material up and away from the dispenser. The user's hands are protected from being cut if the dispenser employs a slide cutter to cut the materials. When a desired length of material has been pulled from the dispenser, the user lets the wrap rest down against the slide cutter and the user then moves the cutting button back and forth to make the final cut. In preferred embodiments, the dispenser is constructed such that the user does not need to hold or support the dispenser while pulling material up and away from the dispenser.
Although the present invention and its advantages have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Moreover, the scope of the present application is not intended to be limited to the particular embodiments of the process, machine, means, methods and/or steps described in the specification. As one of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate from the disclosure of the present invention, processes, machines, means, methods, or steps, presently existing or later to be developed that perform substantially the same function or achieve substantially the same result as the corresponding embodiments described herein may be utilized according to the present invention. Accordingly, the invention is intended to include within its scope such processes, machines, means, methods, or steps.
Patent Application
20080073371
