Patent Application
20090175747
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The present invention generally relates to vacuum devices, more particularly, to manual vacuum devices intended for use in evacuating gases, including air, from plastic storage pouches.
Vacuum evacuation of a container may be used to preserve freshness of food or other perishables within the container. Vacuum evacuation may also be used to reduce gas volume to increase storage space for blankets, clothes, or other compressible contents within a container. Hand operated, or manual, vacuum devices can be light weight, of simple construction, and cheap to produce. Manual vacuum devices have been used to evacuate deformable and rigid containers and have also been used in conjunction with a variety of one-way valves to create evacuation systems.
One manual vacuum device has a two-stroke piston pump for evacuating deformable and rigid containers. The pump has a piston disposed inside a cylinder, the cylinder having a pluggable flexible vacuum cup disposed on a bottom end thereof. The piston has a peripheral check valve that allows gas to flow past the piston toward a cylinder cap. To evacuate rigid containers, the flexible vacuum cup is placed over a flexible check valve that is applied over access openings of the rigid containers. The flexible vacuum cup is prevented from completely collapsing under pumping action by an inwardly projecting annular lip on a bottom end of the pump cylinder. The cylinder also has a pluggable port through a side wall of the cylinder to allow attachment of a flexible hose to aid in evacuating deformable containers.
Another manual vacuum device has a one-piece elastomeric end cap and vacuum cup assembly that fits around a bottom end of a cylinder. A suction cup on a bottom end of the assembly extends from an annular base that surrounds a central recess. The central recess defines an uncollapsible space between the bottom end of the assembly and a container surface.
Yet another manual vacuum device has a cylinder with a lower end that flares outwardly to define a frustoconical outer surface. A suction cup having a central aperture is disposed inside an end of the cylinder. A periphery of the suction cup extends radially past the flared end of the cylinder allowing the periphery of the suction cup to collapse, but leaving a central chamber defined by an uncollapsed central portion of the suction cup.
A still further manual vacuum device has a pump that attaches to a central portion of a container cover. The pump has a cylinder and a piston that has a peripheral check valve that allows gas to flow past the piston away from the container. The cylinder is press fit over a flange on the container cover such that a sealing engagement is accomplished between a face of the cylinder and the flange, as well as between an end surface of the cylinder and an upper surface of the cover.
Another manual vacuum device has an outer tube that telescopically slides on an inner tube, the inner tube having a piston at a top end thereof. The top end of the outer tube has a cap with a check valve for allowing gas to flow out of the outer tube. A bottom end of the inner tube is open and is press fit over a rigid one-way valve on a container. The piston has a central hole and a peripheral check valve that allows gas to flow past the piston toward the container and out of the pump through a space between the tubes. Pulling the outer tube away from the container creates a vacuum in the inner tube and pushing the outer tube toward the container forces gas out of the outer tube.
Another manual vacuum device has a piston with a peripheral check valve disposed in a cylinder. An elastomeric suction cup and an elastomeric valve housing are fitted over a bottom end of the cylinder. Moving the piston away from the suction cup draws a vacuum on the suction cup. Moving the piston toward the suction cup causes a one-way ball valve in the elastomeric housing to close and forces gas in the cylinder past the piston and out to the atmosphere through a hole in a top end of the cylinder.
A further manual vacuum device has a piston disposed in a cylinder for evacuating freezer bags. A conical nozzle having an axial passageway is attached at a wide end of the nozzle to an end of the cylinder. The piston has a peripheral check valve that allows gas to flow past the piston and away from the nozzle. The nozzle has four lateral passages near a narrow end thereof, the passages connecting the axial passageway to an outer surface of the nozzle. A check valve covers the nozzle axial passageway at the end of the cylinder allowing gas to enter the cylinder. A circumferential groove is disposed in the outer surface of the nozzle. The groove is positioned between the lateral passages and the wide end of the nozzle for the purpose of receiving an 0-ring for tightly holding freezer bag walls against the nozzle.
A reversible manual vacuum device has a piston movable inside a cylinder for evacuating a bottle through a stopper that has a slit valve and is disposed in an open end of the bottle. The stopper has a peripheral flange and a raised annular wall extending upwardly from the flange. A bottom of the cylinder fits around the annular wall and contacts the peripheral flange. A piston disposed on an end of a hollow piston rod slides within the cylinder and a reversible one-way mushroom valve is disposed within a hole in the center of the piston. A reversible combination vacuum and pressure valve is also disposed in the stopper. Drawing the piston away from the stopper creates a vacuum in the cylinder. Pushing the piston toward the stopper forces gas through the mushroom valve, into the hollow piston rod, and out to the atmosphere through a hole in a top end of the piston rod.
Yet another manual vacuum device functions to draw a sudden vacuum on containers and bodily wounds. The pump has a hollow piston rod connected to a piston disposed in a cylinder. The cylinder has a closed end and a gas-flow orifice at an opposite end with a cup shaped end member having a central opening disposed over the orifice. The piston has a peripheral check valve that allows gas to flow past the piston toward the orifice. When the piston is drawn away from the orifice, gas in the volume between the piston and the closed end escapes past the check valve, travels through the hollow piston rod, and exhausts out of the piston rod to the atmosphere through a hole near a top end of the piston rod. When the piston is pushed back toward the orifice, the volume of gas between the piston and a top of the cylinder expands causing a vacuum to be created. As the piston nears the orifice, the hole in the piston rod comes into communication with the volume of gas between the piston and the closed end of the cylinder, which causes a sudden vacuum to be drawn on the orifice.
A manual vacuum evacuation system has a rigid check-valve in a bag wall and a pump for evacuating gas from the bag. The check-valve has an inner part that extends through a hole in the bag wall and threadably mates with an outer part of the check-valve to squeeze the bag wall and a flat holding washer therebetween. The pump has a cylinder and a piston disposed in the cylinder, the piston having a peripheral check valve. An open end of the cylinder has an annular flange over which fits an elastomeric ring. The ring has an annular wall extending from a bottom side of the ring, the annular wall being placed against a surface of the flat washer to seal the pump to the valve.
In one aspect of the present invention, a pump for evacuating a container comprises an evacuation chamber having a closed end and an evacuation end and a piston slidably disposed within the evacuation chamber and attached to a first end of a piston rod. The piston rod extends through an opening in the closed end of the evacuation chamber, and a handle is attached to a second end of the piston rod. A check valve is disposed on the piston to allow gas to flow past the piston when the piston is reciprocated toward the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber. A flexible suction cup is adapted to form a gastight seal with a surface and extends from the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber. The flexible suction cup has an aperture disposed therethrough for fluid communication with the evacuation chamber. A plurality of support members extends from the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber to restrict movement of the flexible suction cup between the surface and the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber to prevent a portion of the suction cup from collapsing onto the surface while still maintaining a gastight seal with the surface. Each support member has a distal surface disposed outside of an outer perimeter of the flexible suction cup.
In another aspect of the present invention, an evacuation system comprises a one-way valve disposed on a container and a pump for evacuating the container. The pump includes an evacuation chamber having a closed end and an evacuation end, and a piston slidably disposed within the evacuation chamber. The piston is attached to a first end of a piston rod, wherein the piston rod extends through an opening in the closed end of the evacuation chamber and a handle is attached to a second end of the piston rod. A check valve is disposed on the piston to allow gas to flow past the piston when the piston is reciprocated toward the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber. A flexible suction cup is adapted to form a gastight seal with a surface of the container surrounding the one-way valve and extends from the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber. The flexible suction cup has an aperture disposed therethrough for fluid communication with the evacuation chamber. A plurality of support members extends from the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber to restrict movement of the flexible suction cup between the surface and the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber to allow fluid communication between an interior of the container and the evacuation chamber through the one-way valve when the one-way valve is in an open position while the piston is being reciprocated between the closed end and the evacuation end. Each support member has a distal surface disposed outside of an outer perimeter of the flexible suction cup.
In a further aspect of the present invention, a gastight interface for an evacuation device comprises a flexible suction cup adapted to form a gastight seal with a surface surrounding a valve disposed on a container and extending from an evacuation end of an evacuation chamber. The flexible suction cup has an aperture disposed therethrough for fluid communication with the evacuation chamber. A plurality of support members extends from the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber to restrict movement of the flexible suction cup between the surface and the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber to allow fluid communication between an interior of the container and the evacuation chamber through the valve when the valve is in an open position while the piston is being reciprocated between the closed end and the evacuation end. Each support member has a distal surface disposed outside of an outer perimeter of the flexible suction cup.
Other aspects and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description, wherein similar structures have similar reference numbers.
The present disclosure is directed to apparatuses such as vacuum pumps that create a vacuum to evacuate a void volume and/or remove a gas, such as air, from a container. A container may include, for example, a sealable plastic container, a storage pouch with a valve, a can, a bottle, a hermetically sealable volume, a container with a removable lid with a valve associated therewith, and the like, and/or other containers suitable for vacuum packaging. While specific embodiments are discussed herein, it is understood that the present disclosure is to be considered only as an exemplification of the principles of the invention. The present disclosure is not intended to limit the disclosure to the embodiments illustrated.
As seen in
A piston 102 is disposed in an interior 104 of the tube 100, as shown in
The handle 112 may be symmetrically disposed with regard to the piston rod 108 or may be asymmetrically disposed with regard to the piston rod, as best seen in
It is also contemplated that a flared member (not shown) may be spaced along the piston rod 108 below the handle 112 to allow a user's fingers to be comfortably disposed between the handle 112 and the flared member. The flared member may enhance the utility of the manual vacuum pump 50 by allowing a user to establish an alternate grip on the handle 112. The flared member may be integral with the handle 112 or separately attached to the piston rod 108.
The end cap 208, which may include knurling 264 to promote ease of installation, may be attached to the second opening 204 of the tube 100 by any means known in the art, for example, by an interference press fit, a tapered press fit, an adhesive, threads, or by a bayonet socket 258, as shown in
As best seen in
An interface member 134 is mounted to the first end 202 of the tube 100. The interface member 134 includes a generally tapered first end 136 and a generally frustoconical flexible suction cup 138 opposite the first end. An evacuation aperture 140 extends through the interface member 134 from the generally tapered first end 136 to the flexible suction cup 138. A peripheral groove 142 is recessed into an outer peripheral surface 144 of the interface member 134. The generally tapered first end 136 and the peripheral groove 142 allow the interface member 134 to be press fit into the first opening 200 of the tube 100, wherein end wall 214 of the tube 100 fits into the peripheral groove 142 to hold the interface member within the first opening.
A support assembly 250 is attached to the first end 202 of the tube 100. In the embodiment shown in
A surface of a container on which the flexible suction cup 138 is placed may require variable amounts of contact with the flexible suction cup to form a gastight seal therebetween, depending on characteristics of the surface, environmental conditions, the size of a one-way valve disposed on the surface, or other factors. To accommodate these factors while providing a gastight seal between the flexible suction cup 138 and the surface, it may be desirable to be able to adjust the restriction of movement of the flexible suction cup 138 when placed on the surface.
A further embodiment includes an adjustable support assembly 450 having a multi-setting bayonet socket 406 attachment as illustrated in
In another embodiment shown in
Illustratively, an evacuation system employing the manual vacuum pump 50 described herein includes a one-way valve disposed on a container that allows gas to be evacuated from the container. Referring to
The closure mechanism 304 may comprise first and second interlocking closure elements that each may include one or more interlocking closure profiles (not shown). Further, a sealing material such as a polyolefin material or a caulking composition such as silicone grease may be disposed on or in the closure elements and closure profiles to fill in any gaps or spaces therein when occluded. The ends of the closure elements and closure profiles may also be welded or sealed by ultrasonic vibrations as is known in the art. Illustrative closure profiles, closure elements, sealing materials, and/or end seals useful in the present invention include those disclosed in Pawloski U.S. Pat. No. 4,927,474, Tomic et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,655,273, Sprehe U.S. Pat. No. 6,954,969, Kasai et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,689,866, Ausnit U.S. Pat. No. 6,185,796, Wright et al. U.S. Pat. No. 7,041,249, Anderson U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0091179, Pawloski U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0234172, Tilman et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0048483, Anzini et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0093242, or Anzini et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0111226. Other closure profiles and closure elements useful in the present invention include those disclosed in, for example, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/725,120, filed Mar. 16, 2007, and U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 11/818,585, 11/818,586, and 11/818,593, each filed Jun. 15, 2007. It is further appreciated that the closure profiles or closure elements disclosed herein may be operated by hand, or a slider may be used to assist in occluding and de-occluding the closure profiles and closure elements. It is also contemplated that a pouch useful herein may also be closed by other methods known to those skilled in the art other than, or in conjunction with, interlocking profiles, including, for example, heat sealing as disclosed in, for example, Bassett et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2007/0155607.
The sidewalls 306, 308 of the storage pouch 300, and/or the closure mechanism 304, may be formed from thermoplastic resins by known extrusion methods. For example, the sidewalls 306, 308 may be independently extruded of thermoplastic material as a single continuous or multi-ply web, and the closure mechanism 304 may be extruded of the same or different thermoplastic material(s) separately as continuous lengths or strands. Illustrative thermoplastic materials include polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), metallocene-polyethylene (mPE), low density polyethylene (LDPE), linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), ultra low density polyethylene (ULDPE), biaxially-oriented polyethylene terephthalate (BPET), high density polyethylene (HDPE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), among other polyolefin plastomers and combinations and blends thereof. Further, the inner surfaces of the respective sidewalls 306, 308 or a portion or area thereof may, for example, be composed of a polyolefin plastomer such as an AFFINITY™ resin manufactured by Dow Plastics. Such portions or areas include, for example, the area of one or both of the sidewalls 306, 308 proximate and parallel to the closure mechanism 304 to provide an additional cohesive seal between the sidewalls when the storage pouch 300 is evacuated of gas. The sidewalls 306, 308 may also be formed of air-impermeable film, such as an ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer (EVOH) ply adhesively secured between PP and LDPE plies to provide a multilayer film. Other additives such as colorants, slip agents, and antioxidants, including for example talc, oleamide or hydroxyl hydrocinnamate may also be added as desired. The closure mechanism 304 may also be extruded primarily of molten PE with various amounts of slip component, colorant, and talc additives in a separate process. The fully formed closure mechanism 304 may be attached to each sidewall 306, 308 using a strip of molten thermoplastic weld material, or by an adhesive known by those skilled in the art, for example. Other thermoplastic resins and air-impermeable films useful in the present invention include those disclosed in, for example, Tilman et al. U.S. Patent application publication No 2006/0048483.
The containers and resealable pouch described herein can be made by various techniques known to those skilled in the art including those described in, for example, Geiger et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,755,248. Other useful techniques to make a resealable pouch include those described in, for example, Zieke et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,741,789. Additional techniques to make a resealable pouch include those described in, for example, Porchia et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,012,561. Additional examples of making a resealable pouch as described herein include, for example, a cast post applied process, a cast integral process, and/or a blown process.
Illustratively, the valve 302a-302c may be a check valve or a one-way valve, to allow gas to be evacuated from the storage pouch 300 and maintain a vacuum when the closure mechanism 304, as previously described herein, has been sealed. Illustrative valves useful in the present invention include those disclosed in, for example, Newrones et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0228057, Buchman U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2007/0172157, and Tilman et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2007/0154118. The valve 302a may be a flat film valve as disclosed in, for example, Engel et al. U.S. Pat. No. 7,178,555, or a commercially available flat film valve such as, for example, a PLITEK® PV-28 or PV-44, both manufactured by Plitek, LLC, in Des Plaines, Ill. As a further example, the valve 302b may be an offset aperture valve as disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/818,591 filed on Jun. 15, 2007.
Further referring to
It is further contemplated that a suitable container for use with the manual vacuum pump may include rigid walls 310, as shown in
The evacuation system described herein is operated, for example, by placing the interface member 134 of the manual vacuum pump 50 over the one-way valve 302a-302c located on a container. The interface member 134 is positioned over the one-way valve 302a-302c such that the evacuation aperture 140 is disposed above the one-way valve. The flexible suction cup 138 may now form a seal with a surface surrounding the one-way valve 302a-302c. As the piston rod 108 is reciprocated upwardly from the tube 100, the O-ring 124 maintains a seal with the inner surface 126 of the tube and the lower sidewall 123 of the peripheral groove 120. A vacuum is created by an expanding volume between the piston 102 and the one-way valve 302a-302c. The flexible suction cup 138 may partially collapse around a periphery thereof under the force of this vacuum to form a gastight seal with the one-way valve 302a-302c. However, the support members 254 restrict further collapse of the flexible suction cup 138 that might block gas flow through the valve 302a-302c. In another embodiment, the restraint button 266 also makes contact with the one-way valve 302a-302c to further allow the flexible suction cup 238 to engage and form a seal with the valve without blocking gas flow through the valve.
As the piston rod 108 is reciprocated downwardly into the tube 100, the O-ring 124 slides transversely across the peripheral groove 120 to a position wherein the O-ring is disposed over the notch 130a. The seal between the O-ring 124 and the lower sidewall 123 of the peripheral groove 120 is broken allowing passage of gas past the O-ring and through the notch 130a. Gas is exhausted from the tube 100 through clearances between the tube and the end cap 208 and between the end cap and the piston rod 108. The evacuation cycle is repeated by reciprocating the piston rod 108 within the tube 100.
The present disclosure provides an evacuation system that comprises a vacuum device that may form a gastight seal with a one-way valve on a container. The evacuation system enables the evacuation of a storage container, such as a vacuum storage pouch, to allow food or other perishables to be stored in the container for an extended period of time.
Numerous modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the foregoing description. Accordingly, this description is to be construed as illustrative only and is presented for the purpose of enabling those skilled in the art to make and use the disclosure and to teach the best mode of carrying out same. The exclusive rights to all modifications within the scope of the impending claims are reserved. All patents, patent publications and applications, and other references cited herein are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.
