Patent Application
20070045447
The present invention relates in a method for combining and improving two existing types of common day sprayers, retaining the most beneficial features of each and creating a hybrid between a bottle-top trigger sprayer and a hand operated, pre-pressurized, air powered sprayer. This new product will fulfill the needs for many applications and create a line of sprayers that are superior to common bottle-top trigger sprayers and more convenient than present day pressurized-air sprayers. More particularly, this invention demonstrates a method of building pressurized-air sprayers that are pre-pressurized utilizing a finger or handgrip squeezing motion.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,196,828 Basile, U.S. Pat. No. 4,537,334 Spengler, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,053,372 Abedi are all traditional pump-up sprayers by where one hand usually holds the reservoir while the other hand operates the pump. Basile and Spengler utilize a conventional knob on top of the sprayer to operate the pump. In the Abedi design the whole sprayer head becomes a handle for the pump. These sprayers are pre-pressurized, pump-up sprayers that are powered by the operator's hand and arm forces and are not pressurized in a handgrip fashion.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,235,353 Capra, U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,595 Hammett, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,183,185 Hutcheson are all secondary compressed reservoir sprayers. Here product from the main reservoir is pumped into a second reservoir that holds the product under pressure through a mechanical means. The Capra sprayer's second reservoir maintains this pressure utilizing a spring and piston. Hammett and Hutcheson utilize a resilient rubber bladder to store the product under pressure. These sprayers may be operated by one hand though do not use pre-pressurized air to dispense their product.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,279,784 O'Neill and U.S. Pat. No. 6,527,202 Tseng eliminate metal springs in the pump. Both do not pre-pressurize air and otherwise function like normal bottle-top trigger sprayers.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,522,547 Dobbs is a valve system that builds and regulates product pressure just prior to the nozzle for improved distribution.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,535,950 Barriac is one of many methods of dispensing two products with one pump stroke. Mentioned is a dual-trigger, though unlike the present invention it has one trigger that operates two pumps simultaneously.
Many patents for various sprayer designs exist however, we have found no evidence of any type of pre pressurized air sprayers that are pressurized with a handgrip squeeze motion also none in which pressurizing the reservoir and dispensing the product can be accomplished using just one hand.
Most other patent ideas refer to plans for cheaper construction, mixing two liquids, child proofing, pressure regulation, nozzle configurations, remote pressurizing, motion pressurizing, and electric pumps. Other existing patents disclose variables with differing hardware and goals when compared to this proposed Wipper invention.
It is a primary object of the present invention to combine the benefits of both pressurized-air sprayers and bottle-top trigger sprayers. Providing the many benefits attributed to pressurized-air sprayers in combination with the convenient single-handed pumping and dispensing actions found in common trigger sprayers. It would be common knowledge that both sprayers have their own unique benefits.
The common bottle-top trigger sprayers most often used offer the following benefits. They are the spray bottle pumps we are the most familiar and comfortable with. These familiarities should be beneficial for consumer acceptance in a new sprayer's design. One of the most important design features would be that pumping is done using only one hand in a pistol-grip hand-squeeze fashion. The hand-trigger's position and angle are comfortable and good for aiming the product's flow. Also, the hand-trigger may act as a hook to hang the sprayer from. These sprayers are generally used in combination with smaller reservoirs of less than one quart.
Common pressurized air sprayers have many benefits that are superior to features found in standard trigger sprayers. These benefits include that the liquid being dispensed does not pass through the pump mechanism and only air passes through the pump. Therefore, any chemical being dispensed will not make contact with and cause premature harm to the pump. A higher and more consistent operating pressure may also be achieved. These features allow for a much wider range of products that can be dispensed. The products dispensed can be, more chemically destructive, hotter, or of thicker viscosity. Another important benefit is the ability to spray continuously in-between re-pressurizing pumps. This allows for the application of products that require a more even distribution pattern. Also, a pump of this design is generally more durable when compared to a trigger sprayer. This type of sprayer is generally used with larger reservoirs of over one quart in size.
The new design of this invention fills a void between the two sprayers described. It would be used for applications requiring a small reservoir capacity usually 1 to 16 ounces as compared to traditional pressurized air sprayers that are usually over 16 ounces and range up to a few gallons. The smaller size that is usually found in a bottle-top trigger sprayer is now provided with the benefits of a compressed air sprayer while retaining the trigger sprayers convenient features. In other designs the smaller pressurized air powered sprayers required two hands to operate the pump associated with pressurizing air into the reservoir.
Sprayers themselves have a wide variety of uses. They are used for distributing many products in many fields and are used for recreational, household, industrial, and commercial purposes.
Many patents for various sprayers have existed to meet a wide variety of needs. There are no known claims past or present that disclose the unique benefits claimed in the present Wipper invention.
It is the main objective of this invention to create a pressurized air sprayer where the means for compression is provided in a finger or handgrip squeeze motion.
One sprayer style of this invention would be to reverse the flow of a common bottle-top trigger sprayer. This is done in a way that the sprayer retains its familiar shapes we are accustomed to. This is an important feature for consumer acceptance. Instead of pumping out fluid, the pump now ingests air, compressing it into the reservoir bottle. The stored air pressure is utilized to dispense product within the reservoir through a conduit that is supplied with a valve and a means for its operation.
It is further an objective to produce a one-hand operable, finger or handgrip powered, pressurized-air sprayer. The position of the pumping mechanism could vary and be linked to, or directly attached to the sprayer's pump. Or a traditional pressurized sprayer that is provided a finger or handgrip surface, which is used to compress air for the reservoir.
In either design a handgrip squeeze motion is used to operate an air pump. Repetitive handgrip squeezing motions are used to compress air, which is deposited into the interior of a reinforced reservoir that contains a product to be dispensed. A conduit within and starting near the bottom of the reservoir transfers product to a valve that is supplied as a means for its operation. This means of operation could be any form triggering mechanism of its own or one operated by the main compression-trigger. When the compression-trigger is utilized a portion of that stroke could be dedicated to operating the dispensing-valve and is then a dual-purpose trigger. This trigger could be provided with a lock out device so the dispensing portion of the stroke is not accidentally used while pressurizing the reservoir. Another method would be to provide a latching mechanism that temporarily attaches the compression-trigger to the means for operating the dispensing-valve. Then when product dispensing is desired, the latching mechanism is activated so on this stroke the dual-purpose trigger also operates the dispensing-valve. This latching mechanism could be made in many various ways and should automatically disengage itself for the following compression strokes. It should also be made operable by the same hand that is operating the compression-trigger. When the dispensing-valve is opened, air pressure within the reservoir forces product up through the conduit past the valve and out through a desired orifice for its use.
It should be noted that some common parts such as springs or dispensing-valves are missing from some illustrations to better focus on the unique features of the illustration. The drawings may also vary in their scale from one figure to another.
In reference to
The subsequent items for
Various o-rings and seals for items like valve #13 in
Air intake #1 may be provided with filter material to provide for a clean air supply.
Check-valves #2 and #7 may vary in their design, being a ball and spring as shown, rubber flaps as found on many compression sprayers, or any other commonly used check-valves. The location of these valves will also vary and may be made removable and repairable if desired.
Dispensing-valves and their means of activation will vary in their designs and locations.
Trigger-guards will vary to accommodate the needs of each trigger design. They may be a protrusion of plastic as in
The source of handgrip powered air pressure could be provided by a piston/plunger style pumping mechanism as shown. It could also be any other type of common pump available such as a bellows, that are activated by a handgrip squeeze fashion.
A pressure relief-valve could be added anywhere in the system to eliminate over-pressurization. They would vary in their type and location to best suite each design. The design of valve assembly # 13 could also relieve extra pressure though it would do so by dispensing product. For this reason the best choice would be utilizing a valve that is located in direct communication with the compressed gas areas.
Trigger lever stop #18 and filter #19 have common features found on most generic spray devices today. Not all of these features are considered common to the present art are listed though they may be incorporated into the new designs of this invention.
Cap # 36 is used to retain the spring and create a seal for the pump chamber. It may be fitted with an integrated pressure relief valve as shown. It may be threaded, removable, and fitted with various seals if required. Check-valve cap #31, which may be threaded and removable, retains check valve #34. Dual-purpose trigger #33 is used for both air compression and product distribution. For this design the first longer portion of the stroke provides compression while the very last portion provides a means to activate the dispensing-valve. An ambidextrous thumb style trigger stop #50 is provided to keep trigger #33 from entering the dispensing portion of the stroke while compressing the reservoir. To dispense product thumb lever #50 is depressed before or during the first portion of the stroke, which allows the trigger to be fully retracted opening the dispensing-valve. The dispensing-valve not shown may be a generic one similar to the one displayed in
It is the main objective of this invention to create a pressurized air sprayer where the means for air compression is provided in a finger or handgrip squeeze motion.
One embodiment of this invention reverses the flow of a bottle-top trigger sprayer. Instead of pumping out fluid the pump now ingests air. The compressed air is deposited into a properly reinforced reservoir. In doing so we convert the trigger sprayer into a pressurized air sprayer. Multiple trigger compression strokes are used to compress air into the reservoir. Product inside the reservoir is pushed out through a conduit to a dispensing-valve supplied with a means for its operation. When the dispensing-valve is opened compressed air in the reservoir is used to dispense product, in a continuous manner, until the product has been depleted or additional pressurizing strokes are required.
In another embodiment a pressurized air sprayer's traditional design utilizes a handgrip squeeze motion to power the pressurizing pump. A sprayer that utilizes finger or handgrip pumping motions and transfers the hand-squeeze motions to power an air pump. The pump supplies compressed air, which is deposited into a reinforced reservoir that contains a product to be distributed. This compressed air is then utilized to dispense the product through a conduit that is provided with a valve to control distribution.
In yet another embodiment, a pressurized sprayer's handheld pump is operated in a hand squeeze manor and is remotely located from the reservoir container. Triggers for pressurizing and dispensing product are operable with one hand. Two flexible tubes are provided one to communicate pressurized air into the reservoir and the other tube to distribute product back to the sprayer body so it can be dispensed.
While several embodiments of this invention have been described, various feature combinations for these sprayers may be combined to form other versions without departing from the main scope of this invention. Thus, the following variations of features for this invention are listed such that their use in different configurations may be readily understood.
PUMP; the pump or pumps for compressing air may be located anywhere that is most effective for each particular design. The pumping device could be made of any common design or style and will vary depending on each individual application.
COMPRESSION-TRIGGER; the pressurizing finger or hand-trigger may be located where a trigger sprayer's trigger normally is, in a somewhat vertical position. Also it may be located on top of a pressurized air sprayer, in a somewhat horizontal position. However, squeezing the pump trigger would require lifting the reservoir, which may not prove to be advantageous. Furthermore, the compression-trigger could be placed in any other location depending on each individual application. One or more fingers in a handgrip squeeze motion may operate this trigger. A compression-trigger may be designed as a pivoting lever, a parallel sliding handle, or a button that is directly or remotely connected to one or more compression pumps.
DISPENSING-VALVE; The type of valve used may be of any common style already available. It may be located anywhere that is most convenient for its use and will vary with each individual sprayer design.
DISPENSING-VALVE'S MEANS FOR OPERATION; the valve could be operated through the use of a second trigger, button, or linkage to a dual-purpose trigger that would provide a means for its operation. A trigger for dispensing may work inside and be protruding through or be along side the compression-trigger. It may also be a button or trigger that is activated with a finger or thumb and be located anywhere convenient or, it could also be operated via a dual-purpose trigger.
DUAL-PURPOSE TRIGGER; a dual-purpose trigger is a trigger that operates both pressurization and dispensing. Two examples of this trigger are disclosed though an array of many lever arrangements could be used to create a dual-purpose trigger that is in accordance with this invention. For a sprayer with a single dual-purpose trigger the compressing trigger also activates the dispensing-valve. In one system described the last portion of the trigger's travel activates product flow. In this system a lockout devise could be provided so pulling the hand-trigger too far will not accidentally dispense product during pressurizing strokes. In a second system the dual-purpose trigger temporarily attaches itself to a means for operating the dispensing-valve. The attaching mechanism should be designed to automatically disengage itself when the trigger is released.
TRIGGER GUARDS; a trigger-guard could be utilized, which prevents activating the dispensing-valve during compression strokes. Any type of trigger-guard that would prevent an accidental dispensing product could be used. It could be any form of mechanical barrier or lockout devise. The trigger-guard may be associated with a button, lever, or any other form of trigger that is used to activate the dispensing-valve. Because the dispensing-valves will vary in type and location their trigger-guards will have to be customized for each particular design.
RESERVOIR; the reinforced reservoirs may vary in size and shape. They may be made larger or smaller to vary the amount of overall weight, pre-pressurizing strokes, and reservoir volume required. They may be provided with a wide footprint for standing upright, as shown in
REMOTE RESEERVOIR; a sprayer design of this invention may be provided with a remotely located reservoir. Here the one hand operable pump/valve sprayer head assembly is tethered to the reservoir by two or more flexible conduits. One conduit transfers compressed air from the sprayer head to the reservoir. The second conduit or conduits are utilized to deliver product from the reservoir to the sprayer head for distribution. The reservoir may be provided with a clip, strap, or any means for attach itself to the user. The sprayer head may also be provided with a means for attaching itself to the reservoir while not in use.
LOCKOUTS; lockouts for various features could be added as desired. This could be the aforementioned lockout that prevents pulling a dual-purpose trigger of this invention too far during the pre-pressurizing mode. One could be used to lock back the pre-pressurizing trigger to keep it fully back and out of the way for easier use when dispensing product. A type of lockout found on many common sprayers today could also be used to lock constantly on or off the dispensing-valve or its trigger.
PRESSURE-RELEIF VALVES; as in many compressed air sprayers pressure-relief valves could be utilized to prevent over pressurizing. The dispensing-valve as in
SHROUDS; decorative shrouds could be added to any of the designs to cover mechanically moving parts and for appearance value. They may also serve as a function for operating the dispensing-valve and be incorporated into a part similar to part #38 in
NOZZLES; nozzles may vary with each application and may be of any generic type. Nozzles may be made adjustable, selectable, and or interchangeable. They may have various spray patterns or spray in a stream and they may also be of the foam generating type. Nozzles may also be designed for spraying powders or other specialty products.
SEALS; the sealing methods illustrated throughout could be simple o-rings or specially formed gaskets for each particular scenario. These sealing methods could vary and substitutions could be made due to effectiveness, cost, and availability.
While several embodiments of this invention have been demonstrated it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that what has been described here is considered, at present, to be the preferred embodiments. There are many ways of executing the construction of a compressed air sprayer in which the power for air compression is provided in a finger or handgrip squeezing motion. It would be possible to configure a sprayer of this invention with many variations in parts, placements, angles, shrouds, and sizes, along with any common forms of seals, valves, pumps, reservoirs, filters, lockouts, and nozzles available. Parts and features described herein should be mixed and matched to form various configurations that would best execute each particular need for that sprayer's application. In accordance with the Patent Statute, changes may be made in the handgrip powered pressurized air sprayer without actually departing from the true spirit and scope of this invention. The appended claims are intended to cover all such changes and modifications which fall under the overall scope of this invention.
