The invention relates to a self-closing fragrance cartridge for a fragrancer and a fragrancer for dispensing a fragrance.
For the providing of a fragrance which can be delivered by means of a fragrancer, in particular to a vehicle interior, fragrance cartridges have been used for some time. In these, usually a fragrance source is present, from which the fragrance is generated. Here, conventional fragrance cartridges have a housing which delimits a housing interior receiving the fragrance source. In the housing of conventional fragrance cartridges a housing opening is provided, through which a fragrance delivered from the fragrance source can be directed out from the fragrance cartridge or respectively out from the housing interior of the housing of the fragrance cartridge. Usually, in a delivery condition, therefore before the use or respectively before the mounting of the fragrance cartridge on a fragrancer, this housing opening is closed by means of a seal or by means of a cover which is removable and thus basically at risk of being lost. To use the fragrance cartridge, such a seal must firstly be removed or penetrated in a destructive manner before mounting the fragrance cartridge on the fragrancer. A cover closing the housing opening must be removed.
It proves to be disadvantageous here that the housing opening in conventional fragrance cartridges is permanently open before the using of the fragrance cartridge. In the case where the housing opening in delivery condition of the fragrance cartridge is only closed by means of a seal, the housing opening can not be readily closed again if the fragrance cartridge has to be dismantled for maintenance purposes of the fragrancer. By comparison, in the case where the housing opening of the fragrance cartridge in a delivery condition of the fragrance cartridge is closed by means of a cover, the risk exists that this cover becomes lost, so that the housing opening of the fragrance cartridge can also then not be readily closed again. A closing of the housing opening by means of such a cover can also be simply forgotten by the user or respectively operator. This is therefore to be regarded as disadvantageous particularly because the fragrance provided by from the fragrance source of the fragrance cartridge is typically volatile and accordingly exits from the fragrance cartridge when the housing opening is not closed. In the opposite manner, through the permanently open housing opening, contaminations which are present in the environment of the fragrance cartridge can arrive into the housing interior in an undesirable manner.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to indicate new ways for fragrance cartridges, able to be used on a fragrancer, and for such fragrancers—in particular to eliminate the above-mentioned disadvantages.
This problem is solved by the subject of the independent claim 1 and the coordinate claim 15. Preferred embodiments are the subject of the dependent claims.
A basic idea of the invention accordingly is to provide a self-closing fragrance cartridge, in which an actuating element with an element opening is provided displaceably relative to a housing with a housing opening. Here, the actuating element is displaceable relative to the housing in such a way that, in a closed position, no fragrance can exit from the fragrance cartridge, and in a fragrancing position of the actuating element the housing opening with the element opening are arranged communicating fluidically in such a way that the fragrance can be delivered from the fragrance cartridge.
This offers the advantage that in the case of any dismantling of the fragrance cartridge from a fragrancer—as in the case of the maintenance of the fragrancer—the housing opening of the housing of the fragrance cartridge can be automatically closed again, so that it is ensured that for a dwell time of the fragrance cartridge in a dismantled state, no fragrance can exit unused from the fragrance cartridge and be lost. In addition, it is advantageously achieved that a manual closing of the housing opening of the fragrance cartridge can not be forgotten.
A self-closing fragrance cartridge according to the invention is suitable for use in a fragrancer. The self-closing fragrance cartridge has a housing which comprises at least one housing opening. The housing delimits a housing interior on the inner side. In the housing interior, an actuating element is at least partially arranged, which is displaceable with respect to the housing between a closed position and a fragrancing position. The actuating element at least partially delimits an element interior and has at least one element opening. In the closed position of the actuating element, the element interior is closed here in a fluid-tight manner by means of the housing of the fragrance cartridge. By comparison, in the fragrancing position of the actuating element, the housing opening and the element opening are arranged in a fluidically communicating manner. Expediently, in the fragrancing position the housing opening and the element opening are arranged in alignment with one another. A fluidically communicating arrangement of the housing opening and of the element opening in the fragrancing position can, however, also be achieved by a partial overlapping of the housing opening and of the element opening. Here, the housing opening and the element opening in the fragrancing position are arranged in a fluidically communicating manner in such a way that by means of the housing opening and of the element opening the element interior is connected in a fluid-permeable manner with an outer space adjoining the housing on the outer side. Such a fluid-permeable connection is particularly advantageously fragrance-permeable. The proposed closure mechanism of the self-closing fragrance cartridge according to the invention is advantageously able to be implemented in a structurally particularly simple manner, able to be produced at comparatively low costs and, at the same time, is particularly effective, so that it can be ensured in a particularly reliable manner that the fragrance cartridge in a dismantled state of the fragrance cartridge is always closed in such a way that no fragrance can exit unused from the cartridge.
Expediently, the housing opening of the housing in the closed position is closed in a fluid-tight manner by means of the actuating element. Alternatively or additionally, in the closed position the element opening is closed in a fluid-tight manner by means of the housing. This advantageously offers a particularly effective possibility to close the element interior in a fluid-tight, in particular fragrance-tight, manner in the closed position.
In a preferred further development of the self-closing fragrance cartridge, a fragrance source for providing a fragrance is present in the element interior. Here, the fragrance in the fragrancing position is able to be directed out from the element interior and sealed in the closed position of the element interior in a fluid-impermeable manner. This means that in the closed position, the element interior is closed in particular in a fragrance-impermeable manner. Thereby, advantageously it is made possible that an uncontrolled contamination of the element interior or respectively of the fragrance source present in the element interior with impurities present in an environment of the fragrance cartridge can be effectively prevented or at least reduced.
In a further advantageous further development of the self-closing fragrance cartridge, the actuating element is mounted displaceably on the housing via a clamping device for generating an actuating force acting on the actuating element. Here, the actuating element is mounted displaceably on the housing via the clamping device in such a way that on displacing of the actuating element from the closed position into the fragrancing position, a restoring force is built up. This advantageously offers a particular possibility, which is easily able to be implemented, to form the self-closing closure mechanism of the fragrance cartridge.
According to a further preferred further development of the fragrance cartridge, an opener is arranged, in a force-transmitting manner, on the actuating element. Expediently, this opener is formed integrally on the actuating element, therefore is formed in the same material and in one piece with the actuating element. The opener, arranged on the actuating element, is actuatable by means of a displacement force for displacing the actuating element from the closed position into the fragrancing position. Expediently, the opener is also actuatable for displacing the actuating element back from the fragrancing position into the closed position. Advantageously, by means of such an opener, the actuating element can be displaced particularly well.
Expediently, the opener is actuatable for displacing the actuating element from the closed position into the fragrancing position on a mounting of the fragrance cartridge on a fragrancer by means of an activating device provided on the fragrancer with the generation of the displacement force. This advantageously makes it possible that a mounting force which must be applied for placing the fragrance cartridge on the fragrancer contains at the same time a portion which corresponds to the activating force. Therefore, advantageously no separate mounting step is necessary, in which the fragrance cartridge is opened separately. This saves time in the mounting of the fragrance cartridge and accordingly also saves time-related mounting costs.
In a further advantageous further development of the self-opening fragrance cartridge, the actuating element is able to be restored automatically into the closed position on a withdrawing of the displacement force by means of the restoring force. Particularly expediently, the actuating element is able to be automatically restored completely on a complete withdrawing of the displacement force by means of the restoring force. The advantage results herefrom that the fragrance cartridge, after a dismantling of the fragrance cartridge from a fragrancer, is automatically closed directly again, so that no fragrance can exit in an undesired manner and unused out from the fragrance cartridge and be lost.
A further preferred further development of the fragrance cartridge makes provision that the actuating element is displaceable relative to the housing in the manner of a slider. Expediently, the actuating element is displaceable in the manner of a slider substantially in a straight line relative to the housing. This advantageously permits a particularly robust design of the actuating element of the fragrance cartridge.
According to a further advantageous further development of the self-closing fragrance cartridge, the actuating element is rotationally displaceable relative to the housing in the manner of a rotary slider. Expediently, the actuating element is rotationally displaceable relative to the housing about a rotation axis in the manner of a rotary slider. Such an actuating element is advantageously displaceable with a particularly small displacement force which, moreover, depends only slightly on a pressure ratio acting on the actuating element.
In a further preferred further development of the self-closing fragrance cartridge, the actuating element is guided on the housing in a perfectly fitting manner. Expediently, the actuating element is guided on the housing in a perfectly fitting manner in the manner of a clearance fit or transition fit. Particularly expediently, a seal is present in the housing interior between the actuating element and the housing. In such a design of the self-closing fragrance cartridge with actuating element and housing coordinated with one another in a perfectly fitting manner, in the closed position of the actuating element it can be ensured particularly effectively that no fragrance can leave the element interior.
A further advantageous further development of the self-closing fragrance cartridge makes provision that the housing has two housing openings and the actuating element has two element openings. Here, in the fragrancing position of the actuating element, each one of the housing openings is arranged in a fluidically communicating manner with in each case a corresponding element opening of the actuating element. Advantageously, a particularly large amount of fragrance can thus be discharged per unit of time from the cartridge in the fragrancing position of the actuating element.
Expediently, the housing has several housing openings and the actuating element has several element openings. Here, each one of the housing openings is arranged in a fluidically communicating manner with in each case a corresponding element opening in the fragrancing position of the actuating element. Advantageously, an even greater amount of fragrance can thereby be released in the fragrancing position of the actuating element.
In an advantageous further development of the self-closing fragrance cartridge, a number of housing openings corresponds to a number of element openings. This offers production-orientated advantages.
According to a further advantageous further development of the self-closing fragrance cartridge, the fragrance source is arranged between the element openings. Expediently, the fragrance source is arranged centrally between the element openings. Thereby, it is advantageously achieved that a fragrance delivered from the fragrance source in the fragrancing position of the actuating element can be distributed particularly uniformly to the element openings.
In addition, the invention relates to a fragrancer for the dispensing of a fragrance. Expediently, the fragrancer serves for the fragrancing of a vehicle interior. The fragrancer has a fragrance inlet on which a fragrance cartridge according to the invention is able to be mounted in accordance with the above description. The fragrance inlet of the fragrancer forms here expediently the outer space of the fragrance cartridge. The fragrancer has an activating device, by means of which the actuating element of the fragrance cartridge, on mounting of the fragrance cartridge, is displaceable from the closed position into the fragrancing position of the actuating element. The advantages, indicated above, of the self-closing fragrance cartridge according to the invention apply in an analogous manner also to the fragrancer according to the invention.
Further important features and advantages of the invention will emerge from the subclaims, from the drawings and from the associated figure description with the aid of the drawings.
It shall be understood that the features mentioned above and to be explained further below are able to be used not only in the respectively indicated combination, but also in other combinations or in isolation, without departing from the scope of the present invention.
Preferred example embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the drawings and are explained in closer detail in the following description, wherein the same reference numbers refer to identical or similar or functionally identical components.
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Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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102020201192.3 | Jan 2020 | DE | national |