Claims
- 1. A liquid dispenser for use with a removable liquid supply container, the liquid dispenser comprising:a. clamping means for regulating the flow of liquid from the dispenser and substantially sealing the liquid in the container from ambient air; b. support means for holding the container in a substantially elevated position above the clamping means, the support means having guide means for adjusting an area in which the container is positioned in the dispenser to accommodate at least two volume sizes of the container; and c. connector means having a passage extending from an opening end through the clamping means to a discharge end, the connector means for communicating with the interior of the container to permit the gravity flow of liquid from the container and out of the discharge end.
- 2. The liquid dispenser according to claim 1 wherein the clamping means further comprises a sliding member for clamping a portion of the passage of the connection means in a closed position to prevent the flow of the liquid from the dispenser and to disengage the portion of the passage to permit the flow of the liquid from the dispenser in an open position.
- 3. The liquid dispenser according to claim 2 wherein the sliding member includes a channel that accommodates the passage of the connector means.
- 4. The liquid dispenser according to claim 3 wherein the dispenser further comprises a cooling plate positioned between the clamping means and the liquid supply container, the cooling plate used to cool the liquid exiting from the container through the passage of the connector means.
- 5. The liquid dispenser according to claim 4, wherein the cooling plate comprises a metallic plate with a protruding knob which correspondingly fits into the channel of the clamping means to position the plate between the clamping means and the container.
- 6. The liquid dispenser according to claim 5, wherein the protruding knob of the plate comprises an opening to accommodate the passage of the connector means.
- 7. The liquid dispenser according to claim 1 wherein the guide means comprises at least two opposing peripheral flanges positioned on the support means, one of the flanges being stationary and the other flange being removable to adjust the area to be occupied by the container to the at least two volume sizes of the container.
- 8. A liquid dispenser for use with a removable liquid supply container, the liquid dispenser comprising:a. clamping means for regulating the flow of liquid from the dispenser and substantially sealing the liquid in the container from ambiant air; b. support means for holding the container in a substantially elevated position above the clamping means, the support means having guide means for adjusting an area in which the container is positioned in the dispenser to accommodate at least two volume sizes of the container; c. connector means having a passage extending from an opening end through the clamping means to a discharge end, the connector means for communicating with the interior of the container to permit the gravity flow of liquid from the container and out of the discharge end; and d. cooling means positioned between the clamping means and the liquid supply container, the cooling means used to cool the liquid exiting from the container through the passage of the connector means.
- 9. The liquid dispenser according to claim 8 wherein the clamping means further comprises a sliding mechanism which is spring activated to clamp a portion of the passage of the connection means in a closed position to prevent the flow of the liquid from the dispenser and to disengage the portion of the passage to permit the flow of the liquid from the dispenser in an open position.
- 10. The liquid dispenser according to claim 9 wherein the sliding mechanism comprises a channel which accommodates the passage of the connector means.
- 11. The liquid dispenser according to claim 8, wherein the cooling means comprises a metallic plate with a protruding knob which correspondingly fits into the channel of the clamping means to position the plate between the clamping means and the container.
- 12. The liquid dispenser according to claim 11, wherein protruding knob of the plate comprises an opening to accommodate the passage of the connector means.
- 13. The liquid dispenser according to claim 8 wherein the guide means comprises at least two peripheral flanges positioned on the support means, one of the flanges being stationary and the other flange being removable to adjust the area to be occupied by the container to the at least two volume sizes of the container.
- 14. A method for regulating the flow of liquid from a liquid supply container comprising the steps of:a. positioning a liquid supply container on support means for holding the container of the liquid dispenser, the support means having guide means for adjusting an area in which the container is positioned to accommodate at least two volume sizes of the container; b. opening a clamping means of the dispenser for regulating a gravity flow of a liquid from the dispenser through a connector means for communicating with the interior of the container and into a selected vessel; and c. cooling the liquid of the gravity flow as it leaves the container.
- 15. The method according to claim 14 wherein the opening step further comprises applying tension to a sliding mechanism of the clamping means to move the sliding mechanism from a closed position to an open position to regulate the gravity flow of the liquid.
- 16. The method according to claim 14 wherein the guide means used in the positioning step further comprises at least two peripheral flanges positioned on the support means, one of the flanges being stationary and the other flange being removable to adjust the area to be occupied by the container.
RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 09/225,257, filed Jan. 4, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,026,988, which is a division of U.S. Ser. No. 08/811,135, which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 08/292,732, filed Aug. 18, 1994, now abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (11)
Continuations (1)
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Number |
Date |
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Parent |
08/292732 |
Aug 1994 |
US |
Child |
08/811135 |
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US |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
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Parent |
09/225257 |
Jan 1999 |
US |
Child |
09/510936 |
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US |