Flexible stem valves selectively actuable by a common operator

Abstract

One end of a resiliently flexible valve stem is supported in a coaxially aligned, axially adjustable, socket means and mounts a ball at its other end for normally closing the seat of an outlet orifice of a nozzle. A portion of the valve stem intermediate its ends is operatively associated with a laterally reciprocable operator bar for selectively effecting flexure of the valve stem to displace the valve ball on its seat to open the orifice to release a fluid to be dispensed through the nozzle. A plurality of such valve assemblies are actuable by a common operator bar and the adjustment means of each valve can be selectively manipulated to render one or more of the valves inoperable to establish a desired pattern of flow of fluids from the valves which remain operable, or to vary the time sequence of operation of the valves proportionally to the degree of adjustment of the individual valves, or to vary flow rates.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates generally to fluid dispenser valves.The invention appears to be of special utility in the manufacture of cardboard or paperboard containers in applying hot melt adhesives to the various flaps or other surfaces thereof. Accordingly, the invention will be described with particular reference to such application but without implying limitation to any particular type of fluid or work surface.In the manufacture of paperboard cartons, it is frequently desirable to apply a plurality of glue beads or stripes to a flap, for example, of the container or carton blank. For this purpose a variety of devices have heretofore been devised. Some of these, for example, Walker et al U.S. Pat. No. 3,088,433 and Fox U.S. Pat. No. 3,126,574, merely provide a plurality of parallel spaced outlet nozzles with a common manifold under the control of a single valve element, no one of the individual outlet orifices being individually adjustable or capable of being rendered inoperable. Other devices, for example, Blair U.S. Pat. No. 3,508,849, Craig U.S. Pat. No. 3,190,259, Ziemba U.S. Pat. No. 3,286,689, Lockwood U.S. Pat. No. 3,348,520 and Guthrie U.S. Pat. No. 3,420,208, disclose a variety of multiple nozzle glue guns having outlet orifices individual ones of which can be rendered inoperable in order to achieve a desired pattern of a desired number of glue stripes or the like. However, the prior devices are relatively complex, expensive and cumbersome in use, particularly in effecting changes from one glue pattern to another.The present invention provides a simplified, relatively inexpensive, normally closed valve structure, comprising a simple assembly of readily replaceable parts, that is readily externally adjustable to alter the open time of the valve or the flow rate of the fluid to be discharged through the outlet orifice, or to render the valve inoperable.The invention also provides a durable, yet inexpensive, ball valve seat structure that is extremely well adapted to withstand high temperature, high pressure usage.The invention further provides a multiple nozzle glue gun with individual valve elements having flexible stems actuable by a common operator, each of the valve elements having individually adjustable means to render selected ones of the valve inoperable for achieving a desired pattern of plurality of glue stripes with the other operable valves. Further, the pattern is variable, not only with respect to the number of the array of nozzles remaining in actuable condition but, also, in a manner to vary the time sequence of operation of the valves so that, for example, one of the nozzles will delivery a shorter bead or stripe of glue then an adjacent nozzle. In yet another mode of adjustment of the multiple nozzle fluid dispenser of this invention, the flow rate of one or all of the nozzles can be adjusted readily.A full understanding of the invention, and of its further objects and advantages, will be had from the following description of a presently preferred embodiment thereof. It will be understood that this description, and the accompanying drawings which form part of it, are intended only as illustrative and not as a limitation upon the scope of the invention.

Description

Claims

1. A valve comprising:

a valve body having a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet, said outlet being formed with a valve seat;

a valve stem holder positioned in said body in spaced relationship to said valve seat;

a valve stem comprising a finite length of laterally flexible material in said body that normally extends between said valve seat and said stem holder;

said stem being connected at one end to said stem holder and having a valve element at the other end of said stem normally engaging said seat to close said outlet:

and operator means in said body engageable with said stem to laterally flex said stem, said valve element and said valve seat having shape characteristics to translate flexure of said stem into displacement of said valve element relative to said outlet for opening said valve.

2. A valve as defined in claim 1 in which the material of said valve stem is also resilient, said valve element and said valve seat having shape characteristics to translate release of said stem by said operator means into replacement of said valve element relative to said outlet for closing said valve.

3. A valve as defined in claim 1 in which said stem is pivotally connected at said one end to said stem holder.

4. A valve as in claim 3 in which said stem is swivelly connected to said stem holder by a slidably related ball and socket means.

5. A valve as defined in claim 1 including a means comprising said valve seat and said stem holder to vary the spacing therebetween for adjustment of said stem between essentially linear and flexed configurations while said valve element is in normally closed engagement with said seat.

6. A valve as defined in claim 1 in which said seat comprises a ring of an elastomeric material encircling said outlet and in which said outlet includes a rigid orifice means within said ring to radially outwardly compress said ring into fluid sealing engagement with a surrounding wall surface.

7. A valve as defined in claim 6 in which said valve element comprises a ball and in which said rigid orifice means comprises a tubular metallic liner for said outlet.

8. A multiple nozzle fluid dispenser comprising:

a body with a plurality of valves having outlet nozzles,

each of said valves having a laterally flexible stem with a valve element at one end for opening and closing the corresponding one of said nozzles,

and operator means in said body for laterally flexing all of said stems in common.

9. A dispenser as defined in claim 8 in which said operator means comprises a single rigid member that is, at least unidirectionally, engageable with said stems upon a movement of said member.

10. A dispenser as defined in claim 8 in which each of said valves has adjustment means for flexing its associated stem independently of actuation of said operator means in order to vary the degree or degrees of response of a stem or stems to a cycle of operation of said operator means.

11. A dispenser as in claim 10 in which each of said valves has a stem holder positioned in spaced relationship to a seat for said valve element and connected to the other end of said stem.

12. A dispenser as defined in claim 11 in which said valve element and said valve seat of each of said valves have shape characteristics to translate flexure of said stem by said operator means into displacement of said valve element relative to the seat for opening and closing the valve.

13. A dispenser as in claim 12 in which each of said stems comprises a length of a resilient material.

14. A dispenser as defined in claim 10 in which said ajustment means includes a stem holder connected to the other end of the corresponding one of said stems.

15. A dispenser as defined in claim 10 in which said operator means has a fixed amplitude of operation for flexing said stems and in which each of said adjustment means has a range for flexing said stem to a degree at least as great as the range of said operator means.

16. A dispenser as defined in claim 15 in which said adjustment means comprises a valve seat and a stem holder that are relatively moveable to vary the spacing therebetween for adjustment of said stem between essentially linear and flexed configurations while said valve element is in normally closed engagement with said seat.

17. A dispenser as defined in claim 15 in which said operator means comprises an elongate rigid bar having a longitudinal slot formed therein for each of said stems, each of said slots having sufficient length to accomodate flexure of a stem induced by the corresponding adjustment means.

18. A dispenser as defined in claim 10 in which said operator means comprises an elongate rigid bar mounted in said body for reciprocation along its longitudinal axis and in which said valves are oriented in parallel in a plane intersecting the axis of reciprocation of said bar.