The invention relates to a paper towel dispenser for dispensing individual towels from a stack of interfolded towels, which dispenser comprises at least one guide means is arranged to support a leading panel of a first towel adjacent a front wall and present a leading edge of said leading panel parallel to the lower edge of the front wall.
A wide variety of vertically positioned or upright towel and napkin dispensers are known from the prior art. A typical dispenser for a stack of towels is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,334,544. A problem with this dispenser is that when a first towel is withdrawn from the dispenser, the subsequent towel may be presented in a manner that makes it difficult to grip as the restricted opening causes the towel to bunch up. A further problem is that the subsequent towel may not be properly withdrawn, requiring the user to feel for the towel underneath the dispenser and possibly to extend his/her fingers into the opening to access the next towel. This is unsatisfactory from a hygienic point of view.
An alternative solution is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,811,878, where a funnel-shaped guide is provided directly under a stack of towels for guiding and presenting consecutive towels to a user. The guide extends below the dispenser and is shaped to direct a leading edge of a towel to the user. A problem with this arrangement is that the funnel shaped part of the guide causes the stack to sag in the middle and may cause the first towel to wedge and tear. The design of the guide will make it very difficult for the user to reach the next towel, as the guide will be blocked by the first towel. A further problem is that the positioning of the part of the guide means used for presenting the leading edge of the towel is likely to cause the guide to be grabbed by a large number of users. Again, this is unsatisfactory from a hygienic point of view.
In order to solve this problem it may be necessary to allow a leading edge of the towel to extend out of the dispenser. Firstly, this is not desirable from a hygienic point of view. Secondly, a user may be able to grab and pull the leading edge of the towel before the mechanism has started to feed the stack. If the stack is subjected to a pulling force prior to or during the feeding operation, then the operation may be disrupted by the stack tearing in the wrong position or wedging a feeding mechanism, causing the dispenser to malfunction.
The invention aims to solve the above problems by providing an improved dispenser as defined by the appended claims.
In the subsequent text, terms such as inner, outer, front and rear are used to define relative positions of components making up the dispenser, as viewed by a person using the invention.
According to one embodiment of the invention, these objects are achieved by means of a paper towel dispenser comprising a housing for holding a stack of interfolded towels, said housing comprising a front wall; a rear wall, two outer side walls, an upper wall and a support surface for supporting the stack of towels inside the dispenser. The stack of towels may be located adjacent and parallel to at least the front wall, wherein the folds in said towels are arranged parallel to at least the front wall. The front wall extends a predetermined distance below the support surface and a dispensing opening is located between the inner surface of the front wall and an edge of the support surface facing the front wall. The dispensing opening may be located below a lower front edge of the stack of towels. At least one guide means may be arranged to support a leading panel of a first towel in a presentation position behind and adjacent the front wall. A leading edge of said leading panel of a first towel may be arranged parallel to the lower edge of the front wall along the entire length of the towel. In this context, the length of the towel is measured parallel to the front wall and the width parallel to a side wall.
The at least one guide means may comprise a first section and a second section, where the first section comprises at least one portion arranged spaced a predetermined distance away from the front wall and the second section is arranged adjacent to and substantially parallel with the front wall. When a user grips the leading panel and withdraws a first towel, the leading edge of a subsequent towel will be caused to curl, due to the friction between the interfolded layers. In order to allow the leading edge of a subsequent towel to uncurl towards the presentation position, the first section of the guide means comprises an enlarged portion that is spaced away from the inner surface of the front wall. This enlarged portion allows the leading panel of a subsequent towel to uncurl and drop downwards into the presentation position under its own weight. This operation will be described in further detail below.
The first section of the guide means comprises an upper portion arranged to extend downwards from the support surface from a position adjacent the dispensing opening. The vertical extension of the first portion may be equal to the thickness of the support surface, or may continue a short distance below the support surface. The first section further comprises an enlarged lower portion having a predetermined curvature with its apex directed away from the front wall. The curvature of the lower portion may be substantially semicircular, or be shaped as a sine curve, a hyperbolic curve or similar.
Alternatively, the first section may be arranged to extend downwards from a position spaced a predetermined distance from the dispensing opening and the front wall toward the front wall. The first section may be attached to either or both of the side walls or the lower side of the support surface. According to a first example, the first section may be arranged to extend downwards at an angle towards the second section. According to a second example, the first section may be arranged to extend downwards with a predetermined curvature towards the second section.
Preferably, the width of the dispensing opening may be equal to or greater than the width of the stack of towels. This arrangement prevents the side edges of a towel to be withdrawn from catching in the dispensing opening. Hence, consecutive towels may be prevented from bunching and/or tearing during withdrawal, which could otherwise interrupt of the dispensing process. The depth of the dispenser opening, that is the horizontal distance between the inner surface of the front wall and the front end of the support surface, is selected depending on the type and/or quality of towel to be dispensed. Along the initial part of the first section of the guide means the depth of the dispenser opening must be sufficient to allow a curled leading panel of a towel to pass into the enlarged portion of the guide means. For instance, a comparatively thick, high grade towel will require a relatively deep dispensing opening and more space to uncurl as compared to a thinner low grade towel.
The second section is arranged adjacent to and substantially parallel with the front wall in order to support the leading panel of a towel in the presentation position. The horizontal distance between the inner surface of the front wall and the facing surface of the second section may be equal to or less than the depth of the dispenser opening.
In order to facilitate dispensing, the leading panel of a first towel is preferably arranged visible through a cut-out in the lower edge of the front wall. According to the invention, the at least one guide means is discontinued adjacent the cut-out, so that the guide means may be concealed behind the lower edge of the front wall. The vertical extension of such a cut-out may be selected less than or equal to the vertical extension of the front wall below the support surface. This arrangement allows the hand of a user to be automatically guided towards the visible portion of the first towel. In this way the dispenser will be kept clean and hygienic, as the user will have no incentive to touch the dispenser adjacent the cut-out and accidentally come into contact with the guide means. The relatively low front wall will also cover the subsequent towel and the stack itself and assists in keeping the dispenser clean and hygienic.
According to a first example, the dispenser may be provided with a central cut-out in the lower edge of the front wall. Depending on design parameters for the dispenser, the cut-out could also be positioned off-set relative to a central vertical plane through the front wall of the dispenser. In these cases, the guide means is preferably arranged on both sides of the cut-out. According to a second example, the dispenser may be provided with a cut-out arranged adjacent a corner of the front wall, terminating at an adjacent side wall. In this case, a single guide means could be arranged to extend from the opposite side wall, parallel with the front wall and terminate adjacent the cut-out. In order to access a leading panel of a new stack of towels, a further recess or cut-out may be provided in at least a front section of the support surface behind the cut-out in the lower edge of the front wall. The width of such a further cut-out may be equal to or less than the available distance between or space behind the cut-out in the lower edge of the front wall. The depth of the further cut-out may be selected to extend a distance from a third up to the entire width of the support surface. Preferably, the further cut-out should end a predetermined distance from the side wall, in order to provide sufficient support for the stack of towels at both ends and to prevent an end of said stack to sag.
As stated above it is desirable to keep the first towel concealed behind the front wall and only expose a portion of the towel through the said cut-out. In order to achieve this, the front wall is preferably arranged to extend a distance below the support surface corresponding to the width of one folded panel of an interfolded towel.
A further advantage of the invention is that the presented first panel of each consecutive interfolded towel will be located in the same position relative to the cut-out in the front wall. In this way, the entire front wall of the dispenser, including the area of the cut-out, may be used for informative text or pictorial design. This will allow a logotype, informative text or a design pattern to be continued into the cut-out section of the front wall. Alternatively, a printed indicator can be provided on the visible portion of the leading first panel. The indicator may be a marker appearing to be displaced across the cut-out as consecutive towels are dispensed, where the current position of the marker is an indication of the remaining number of towels. Alternatively, a coloured section printed on the visible panel may appear to change position or colour as the stack of towels is gradually depleted. Such a coloured section may be integrated with a design on the front wall of the dispenser.
The invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached figures. It is to be understood that the drawings are designed solely for the purpose of illustration and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention, for which reference should be made to the appended claims. It should be further understood that the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale and that, unless otherwise indicated, they are merely intended to schematically illustrate the structures and procedures described herein.
FIGS. 8A/E shows a sequence of events occurring while a towel is being dispensed from the dispenser in
The presented leading panel 10 of each consecutive interfolded towel will be located in the same position relative to the cut-out 13 in the front wall 3. This allows the entire front wall 3 of the dispenser, including the area of the cut-out 13, to be used for informative text or pictorial design. For instance, a logotype, informative text or a design pattern can be continued from the front wall 3 into the cut-out 13 in the front wall. Alternatively, a printed indicator can be provided on the visible portion of the leading first panel. According to a first example, the indicator may be a marker appearing to be displaced across a horizontal or vertical limiting edge of the cut-out 13 as consecutive towels are dispensed, where the current position of the marker is an indication of the remaining number of towels is the dispenser. Alternatively, a coloured section of the visible panel can be printed appearing to change position or colour as the stack of towels is gradually depleted.
The guide means 14 comprises a first section 14a and a second section 14b. The first section 14a comprises an enlarged portion arranged spaced a predetermined distance away from the front wall in order to allow the leading edge of a subsequent towel to uncurl towards the presentation position. In
The first section of the guide means 15a, 16a comprises a portion arranged spaced a minimum predetermined distance x3 away from the front wall 3 in order to allow the leading edge of a subsequent towel to uncurl towards the presentation position. This minimum predetermined distance x3 is preferably at least a third of the width x2 of a folded towel placed on the support surface in the dispenser. The vertical extension of this widened portion is preferably between a third and two thirds of the extension x1 of the front wall as indicated in
Preferably the minimum predetermined distance x3 is located at or above a third and half of the length of the extension x1 of the front wall, measured from the support surface 8.
The user will grip and pull the leading panel of a first towel T1 (see
When the first towel T1 passes through the dispensing opening 9, as shown in
The width of the dispensing opening is equal to or greater than the width of the stack of towels. The depth of the dispenser opening, that is the horizontal distance between the inner surface of the front wall 3 and the front end of the support surface 8, is selected depending on the type and/or quality of towel to be dispensed. Along the initial part of the first section of the guide means the depth of the dispenser opening must be sufficient to allow a curled leading panel of a towel to pass into the enlarged portion of the guide means. For instance, a comparatively thick, high grade towel will require a relatively deep dispensing opening and more space to uncurl as compared to a thinner low grade towel.
The invention is not limited to the above examples, but may be varied freely within the scope of the appended claims.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
PCT/SE08/50409 | 4/10/2008 | WO | 00 | 10/8/2010 |