The disclosure and figures of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/772,199, filed on Nov. 28, 2018, are specifically incorporated by reference herein as if set forth in their entireties.
In one aspect, the present disclosure is directed to dispenser assemblies for rolled sheet materials, and more particularly, is directed to dispenser assemblies for selectively dispensing from a plurality of supplies of rolled sheet material. Other aspects are also described.
Dispensers for sheet materials, such as for dispensing tissue paper, paper towels, or other paper products, are commonly used in hospitals, restrooms, and other facilities. Some dispensers have more than one supply of sheet material, e.g., multiple rolls of sheet material, for dispensing/feeding. When a supply of sheet material in such dispensers is running low or has been fully dispensed, a transfer of the feeding of sheet material to a new supply generally must be performed, which often must be done manually. Accordingly, it can be seen that a need exists for a dispenser assembly that can selectively switch/transfer the feeding/dispensing of sheet material between a plurality of supplies of sheet material between a plurality of supplies of sheet material, e.g., when a supply of sheet material is running low or has been fully dispensed. The present disclosure addresses these and other related and unrelated problems/issues in the relevant art.
In one aspect, the present disclosure is directed to a dispenser assembly for dispensing sheet materials such as rolls of tissue, paper towels, and/or other rolled sheet material products. The dispenser assembly generally includes a dispenser housing having a plurality of supplies of rolled sheet material supported therein.
Each supply of rolled sheet material is supported by a corresponding support assembly within the dispenser housing. In one construction, the plurality of supplies of sheet material can include a first supply of sheet material supported by a corresponding first support assembly, and a second supply of sheet material supported by a corresponding second support assembly. The first and second support assemblies can be spaced apart from each other along the dispenser housing.
The dispenser assembly further can include a dispensing system for controlling the dispensing of selected, predetermined amounts of sheet material from at least one of the plurality of supplies of sheet material. The dispensing system can include a plurality of driven roller assemblies for engaging and driving the sheet material from the supplies of rolled sheet material. Each driven roller assembly generally will be associated with at least one supply of the plurality of supplies of sheet material for dispensing sheet material therefrom. For example, the first supply of rolled sheet material can be dispensed by a first driven roller assembly and the second supply of rolled sheet material can be dispensed by a second driven roller assembly.
Each driven roller assembly can have at least one driven roller driven by a drive mechanism (e.g., a motor or other suitable drive mechanism) in communication therewith. In one variation, the drive mechanism can be operatively connected to the driven roller(s) by a belt or series of belts (e.g., one or more belts engaging a belt pulley or belt gear connected to each of the driven rollers).
The dispensing assembly further can include at least one guide roller that engages the sheet material and is rotatable with the rotation of the driven roller to help facilitate feeding and dispensing of the sheet material.
The dispenser assembly further can include additional guide or pressing rollers positioned adjacent each of the driven rollers to help guide the sheet material during dispensing thereof without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.
Each of the driven rollers can be configured to rotate in a desired or selected direction, and typically can be rotated by the drive mechanism for a selected number of rotations as needed to dispense the selected amounts of sheet material from their corresponding supply of rolled sheet material, but generally will remain stationary when the drive mechanism is reversed or driven in the opposite direction. For example, each driven roller can include or can be coupled to a clutch mechanism (e.g., a hybrid or one-way clutch mechanism) or other disengageable drive connection that engages the driven roller and causes it to rotate when driven/rotated in one direction and disengages the driven roller and allows it to stay substantially stationary when driven in the opposite direction.
For example, the first driven roller can be rotated when the drive mechanism is driven in a first direction to dispense sheet material from the first supply of rolled sheet material, while the second driven roller can remain generally stationary such that sheet material is not dispensed from the second supply of rolled sheet material. When the drive mechanism is driven in a second direction, the second driven roller can be rotated to dispense selected predetermined amounts of sheet material from the second supply of rolled sheet material, while the first driven roller can be disengaged and remain generally stationary such that sheet material is not dispensed therefrom.
Accordingly, the dispenser assembly of the present disclosure provides for selective dispensing of sheet material from the plurality of supplies of sheet material as needed. For example, upon a change or reversing of the driving direction of the drive mechanism, the dispenser can switch the dispensing of sheet material from the one supply of sheet material to the other. This change or switch/transfer of feeding from one supply to another can be substantially automatic, i.e., in response to a signal from a sensor or monitoring system, by a command from a control system for the dispenser, manually by a switch upon receipt of one or more signals from a device external to the dispenser assembly, etc.
The drive assembly additionally can include a tensioning assembly including one or more biasing members for providing a substantially constant tension along the drive belt. In one variation, the one or more biasing members (e.g., including one or more tension springs) can be operatively connected to the motor (e.g., one end of the one or more springs can be connected to the motor or a support therefor, and another end of the one or more springs can be connected to the dispenser housing or a component attached thereto).
The tensioning assembly can include a bracket movably supporting the drive mechanism along the dispenser housing, and the one or more biasing members can be coupled to the bracket to bias the tensioning assembly sufficient to apply tension along the drive belt and/or for providing dampening of vibrations from an operation of the dispenser assembly.
The dispenser assembly can include at least one cutting mechanism (e.g., including a tear bar(s), serrated cutting blade(s), knife(s), or other sharpened portion(s)) positioned along the discharge of the dispenser housing for severance of dispensed sheet material from the supplies of sheet material.
The dispenser assembly can include pawl member assembly including a pivotally mounted pawl member located proximate or otherwise along the cutting mechanism such that movement of the sheet material into the cutting mechanism for severance thereof moves the pawl member from a first position to a second position. The pawl member assembly further can generate one or more signals that can be sent to a control circuit of the dispenser to notify the control circuit that a portion of the dispensed sheet material has been removed.
The dispensing assembly also can include a sheet material detection sensor including an emitter and a detector focused across at least a portion of the discharge path(s) extending through the discharge. The sheet material detection sensor can be activated by a control system of the dispenser assembly to verify that the sheet material has been removed from the discharge.
The dispensing assembly further can include a monitoring system configured to determine a supply level of the supplies of sheet material, and upon a determination that the supply level of the supplies of sheet material is below a threshold level, the direction of the drive mechanism can be changed.
Various objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon a review of the following detail description, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
It will be appreciated that for simplicity and clarity of illustration, elements illustrated in the Figures are not necessarily drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some elements may be exaggerated relative to other elements. Embodiments incorporating teachings of the present disclosure are shown and described with respect to the drawings herein, in which:
The following description in combination with the Figures is provided to assist in understanding the teachings disclosed herein. The description is focused on specific implementations and embodiments of the teachings, and is provided to assist in describing the teachings. This focus should not be interpreted as a limitation on the scope or applicability of the teachings.
As generally shown in
In one construction, the support assemblies 20/24 can include slots or grooves 30/32 defined in or along the dispenser housing 12 (e.g., in the cover 12A and/or backing portion 12B or other walls, portions, supports, etc. within the dispenser housing 12). The slots 30/32 can be configured to at least partially receive first and second ends 34/36 of the support roll or spindle 38/40 for the first and second supplies 18/22 of sheet material, and at least a portion of each of the supplies of sheet material being supported by and/or resting on or engaging a corresponding guide roller 42/44. The slots or grooves of the roll support assemblies 20/24 can include one or more angled or sloped portions 46/48 having a variable slope or angle to increase and/or decrease an amount of force the supply 18/22 of rolled sheet material exerts on the guide rollers 42/44. The slope of portions 46/48 can be selected such that as the sheet material is fed from the supplies 18/22 of sheet material and is depleted (e.g., the amount and thus the weight of sheet material remaining on a roll 38/40 decreases), the position of the supply rolls 18/22 will change so as to generally maintain a substantially constant downward force exerted by the sheet material supplies 18/22 on the respective guide rollers 42/44.
As generally shown in
As additionally indicated in
In some constructions, the driven rollers 56/58 and/or the guide roller 42/44 can be biased into engagement with each other (e.g., by one or more biasing mechanism, such as springs, e.g., compression springs, tension springs, torsion springs, etc.; elastic cylinders; and/or other suitable biasing mechanisms) to press or otherwise engage the sheet material between the driven rollers 56/58 and guide 42/44 rollers. The roller assemblies 52/54 further can include additional guide or pressing rollers positioned adjacent the driven rollers 56/58 and/or guide rollers 42/4 and to guide or engage the sheet material without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.
In addition, the drive system 50 can include a belt driven transmission assembly 62 including a driven belt 62A operatively connecting or engaging the driven mechanism 60 and driven rollers 56/58 to transfer power therebetween for selectively driving rotation of the first driven roller 42 and/or the second driven roller 44. For example, as indicated in
In the illustrated construction, a single belt 62 is shown operatively connected to the drive mechanism 60 (e.g., engaging the belt gear 71 that is coupled to a driveshaft 60B of the motor 60A) and to each of the driven rollers 56/58 (e.g., engaging the belt gears 67/69 attached thereto or otherwise in operative communication therewith); however, a series of belts can be used to connect the drive mechanism 60 and driven roller 56/58, such as one drive belt connecting the drive mechanism 60 and driven roller 56 and another drive belt connecting the drive mechanism 60 and driven roller 58, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. It further will be understood that in additional or alternative constructions one or more of the driven rollers 56/58 can be connected to the driven mechanism 60 by other suitable transmission assemblies or mechanisms, such as a series of gears or other suitable transmission assemblies.
In an additional or an alternative construction, as generally indicated in
As shown in
The driven rollers 56/58 (or driven rollers 42/44 as shown in
The driven rollers 56/58 (or driven rollers 42/44 as shown in
In one example construction, as generally indicated in
The dispenser assembly 10 further can include a tensioning assembly 80 including one or more biasing members 82. For example, as shown in
The bracket 92 can include a first portion or section 96 that is connected to the motor 60A, and a second portion or section 98 that is movably connected to the wall 94 of the dispenser housing 12. The first portion 96 of the bracket 92 can be connected to the motor 60A by one or more fasteners 100, such as screws, bolts, etc. For example, the fasteners 100 can be received through holes 102 (e.g., threaded or unthreaded holes) defined through the first portion 96 and can also be tightened into or otherwise received in corresponding threaded holes 104 of the motor 60A to secure the motor 60A to the first portion 96. The first portion 96 further can include a flange or projecting portion 96A that defined a passage or opening 96B that is sized, dimensioned, and/or configured for receipt of the motor 60A, e.g., to facilitate a frictional or snap fitting between the motor 60A and the first portion 96.
The first portion 96 further can be connected to the second portion 98 by support rods or posts 106, one or more of which can be integrally formed with the first 96 and/or second 98 portions, as generally shown in
As additionally indicated in
The dispenser assembly 10 also can include a cutting mechanism/assembly 150 for cutting or severance of dispensed sheet material. In one construction, as shown in
As additionally shown in
After receiving a signal that sheet material may have been removed, the control circuitry 5 further can activate a sheet material detection sensor 158 (
The control circuitry 5 can change the driving direction of the driving mechanism 60 based on signals received from the pawl member assembly 149 and/or the sheet material detection sensor 158, e.g., to reverse the motor 60A and alternate dispensing between the supplies 18/22 of sheet material. For example, if the control circuitry 5 receives one or more signals from the signal detection device 153 and/or the sheet material detection sensor 158 that indicate that sheet material cannot be dispensed from one of the supplies 18 or 22 of sheet material (e.g., indicating an error condition, sheet material jam, etc. or that the sheet material has been exhausted from the supply 18 or 22), the control circuitry 5 can generate and transmit one or more signals to the drive mechanism 60 to change the driving direction thereof to dispense from the other supply 18 or 22 of sheet material. In addition, signals received from the signal device 153 and/or the sheet material detection sensor 158 can be used by the control circuitry 5 to calculate, estimate, or otherwise determine a supply level or amount of sheet material remain in the supplies 18 or 22 of sheet material. In one example, the control circuitry 5 can determine the supply level based on the number of times signals are received from the signal device 153 and/or the sheet material detection sensor 158 (e.g., the original amount of sheet material, the lengths of sheet material being dispensed, and the number of activation times for the pawl member 152 and/or sheet material detection sensor 158 can be used to determine the remaining amount of sheet material in the supply). And, when the supply level is at or below a threshold level, e.g., 0%, 5%, 15%, etc., the control circuitry 5 can generate one or more signals to change the direction of the motor 60A and dispense the sheet material from the other supply. The control circuitry 5 further can generate and transmit one or more alerts, alarms, notifications, if/when the control circuitry 5 determines that one or both of the supplies 18/22 are below a threshold level, e.g., 0%, 5%, 15%, 30%, etc., and/or one or more signals received from the signal device 153 and/or the sheet material detection sensor 158 indicate an error condition, sheet material jam, etc.
The dispenser assembly 10 further can include a monitoring system 200 in communication with the control circuitry 5 (e.g., with the controller 100 thereof as shown in
In addition, as shown in
Furthermore, when the processor 100 of the control circuitry 5 determines that the supply level of one of the supplies 18 or 22 is at or below a threshold level, e.g., 0%, 5%, 15%, etc., based on one or more signals received from the monitoring system 200, the control circuitry 5 can generate one or more signals to change the direction of the motor 60A and dispense the sheet material from the other supply 18 or 22. In particular, upon a determination that the supply level of the first supply 18 of sheet material is below a threshold level, the direction of the drive mechanism can be changed from the first direction D1 in
In addition, or in the alternative, a switch 210 disposed along the dispenser housing 12 can be manually activated by a system operator to change the direction of the dispensing mechanism 60, e.g., between directions D1 and D2 shown in
In one example, a sensor, such as a proximity detector or other sensor 160, may be configured to detect an object placed in a detection zone external to the dispenser assembly 10 to initiate operation thereof. This sensor 160 may be a passive sensor that detects changes in ambient conditions, such as ambient light, capacitance changes caused by an object in a detection zone, and so forth. In an alternate embodiment, the sensor 160 may be an active device and include an active transmitter and associated receiver, such as one or more infrared (IR) transmitters and an IR receiver. The transmitter transmits an active signal in a transmission cone corresponding to the detection zone, and the receiver detects a threshold amount of the active signal reflected from an object placed into the detection zone. The control circuitry 5 generally will be configured to be responsive to the sensor for initiating a dispense cycle upon a valid detection signal from the receiver. For example, the proximity sensor 160 or other detector can be used to detect the presence of a user's hand. In some variations, the sheet material detector sensor 158 also can be aligned to detect a user's hand below the dispenser assembly 10 and can include a second infrared emitter/detector pair aligned to detect a sheet hanging in or below the discharge 15.
The controller 100 of the control circuitry can control activation of the dispensing mechanism upon valid detection of a user's hand for dispensing a measured length of the sheet material. In one variation, the control circuitry 5 can track the running time of the motor 60A, and/or receive feedback information directly therefrom indicative of a number of revolutions of the driven roller and correspondingly, an amount of the sheet material feed thereby. In addition, or as a further alternative, as discussed, monitoring systems, sensors, etc., and associated circuitry may be provided for this purpose. Various types of sensors can include IR, radio frequency (RF), capacitive or other suitable sensors, and any one or a combination of such sensing systems can be used. The control circuitry 5 also can control the length of sheet material dispensed. Any number of optical or mechanical devices may be used in this regard, such as, for example, an optical encoder may be used to count the revolutions of the guide or driven rollers, with this count being used by the control circuitry 5 to meter the desired length of the sheet material to be dispensed.
The processing logic for operation of the dispenser assembly 100 in, for example, hand sensor and butler modes, can be part of the control software stored in the memory of the controller 100 of the control system 5. One or more binary flags are also stored in memory and represent an operational state of the dispenser (e.g., “sheet material cut” set or cleared). An operational mode switch in dispenser sets the mode of operation. In the hand sensor mode, the proximity (or hand) sensor 160 detects the presence of a user's hand below the dispenser housing 12 and in response, the drive mechanism 60 is operated to dispense a measured amount of sheet material from one of the supplies 18 or 22. The control circuitry 5 then can monitor when the sheet of material is removed. For example, actuation of the pawl member 152 or triggering/activation of a sheet material detection sensor 158 can determine the removal of sheet material and reset the proximity sensor 160. The proximity sensor 160 also can be controlled to not allow additional sheet material to be dispensed until the proximity sensor is reset. If the proximity sensor 160 detects the presence of a user's hand but does not dispense sheet material, the control circuit can check for sheet material using the sheet material detection sensor 158. If sheet material has not been dispensed (i.e., no sheet material is hanging from the dispenser), the drive mechanism 60 will be activated to dispense a next sheet.
A multi-position switch 162 also can be provided to switch the dispenser operation between a first or standard operation mode and a second mode, such as a butler mode. In such butler mode, the proximity sensor 160 for detecting the presence of a user's hand/object can be deactivated, and the controller 100 can automatically dispense sheet material when the cover is closed and the dispenser assembly 10 is put into operation. The sheet material detection sensor 158 further can determine if a sheet is hanging from the dispenser. If sheet material is hanging, the controller 100 will then monitor when the sheet of material is removed. For example, a cutting mechanism movement detector, which may arranged and configured to detect actuation or movement of the cutting mechanism; the pawl member 152; and/or the sheet material detection sensor 158 can determine the removal of sheet material and reset the dispenser assembly 10. The next sheet will be dispensed automatically. If the sheet material detection sensor 158 determines the absence of hanging sheet material, the drive mechanism 60 will be activated to dispense the next sheet. The controller 100 will then determine if the sheet has been removed before dispensing another sheet.
In one variation, the dispenser assembly 10 is operative in a first mode to be responsive to a signal from the proximity sensor 160 to dispense a sheet of material. The dispenser assembly 10 is operative in a second mode to dispense a next sheet in response to the signal means being activated by movement of the pawl member 152 in response to dispensed sheet material being removed from the dispenser assembly 10. In another variation, the dispenser assembly 10 can be operative in a second mode to dispense a next sheet in response to the signal means 153 being activated by movement of the pawl member 152, and a signal from a sheet material detection sensor 158 that the sheet material has been removed from the dispenser assembly 10.
The dispenser assembly 10 generally can dispense a measured length of the sheet material, which may be accomplished by various means, such as a timing circuit that actuates and stops the operation of the motor 60A driving the driven rollers 56/58 after a predetermined time. In one variation, the motor 60A can provide direct feedback as to the number of revolutions of the driven rollers 56/58, indicative of an amount of the sheet material fed thereby. Alternatively, a motor revolution counter can be provided that measures the degree of rotation of the driven rollers 56/58 and is interfaced with control circuitry 5 (e.g., the controller 100 thereof) to stop the motor 60A after a defined number of revolutions of the motor 60A and/or the driven rollers 56/58. This counter may be an optical encoder type of device, or a mechanical device. The control circuitry 5 may include a device to allow maintenance personnel to adjust the sheet length by increasing or decreasing the revolution counter set point. The multi-position switch 162 can also be in operable communication with the control circuitry 5 to select one of a plurality of time periods as a delay between delivery of an initial sheet and delivery of a next sheet to the user. Embodiments of the present disclosure described herein can also utilize concepts disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,213,782 and 7,370,824, both of which are incorporated by reference herein as if set forth in their entireties, as well as U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/155,528, which also is incorporated by reference herein as if set forth in its entirety.
The foregoing description generally illustrates and describes various embodiments of the present invention. It will, however, be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made to the above-discussed construction of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as disclosed herein, and that it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as being illustrative, and not to be taken in a limiting sense. Furthermore, the scope of the present disclosure shall be construed to cover various modifications, combinations, additions, alterations, etc., above and to the above-described embodiments, which shall be considered to be within the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, various features and characteristics of the present invention as discussed herein may be selectively interchanged and applied to other illustrated and non-illustrated embodiments of the invention, and numerous variations, modifications, and additions further can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the appended claims.
The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/772,199, filed on Nov. 28, 2018.
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