Patent Application
20240367187
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The disclosure relates to sprayer apparatuses and more particularly pertains to a new sprayer apparatus for dispensing fluid from an aerosol spray can.
The prior art describes several sprayer apparatuses which have a tube coupling a dispenser gun to a pressurized fluid container. However, the prior art does not disclose a sprayer apparatus which is configured to attach such a dispenser gun via a tube to a valve stem of an aerosol spray can and an actuator which depresses the valve stem to open the spray valve of the aerosol spray can. Such a device is advantageous in that it allows a user to attach the sprayer apparatus to conventional aerosol spray cans.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a tube with an inlet end and an outlet end. An inner dimension of the inlet end has a size such that the inlet end is configured to receive a valve stem of an aerosol spray can into the inlet and frictionally engage the valve stem to attach to the valve stem. A spray can valve actuator is coupled to the tube at the inlet end and comprises an attachment member and a collar. The attachment member is coupled to the tube, and the collar is coupled to the attachment member with the attachment member being positioned in the collar. An interior dimension of the collar has a size such that the collar is configured to frictionally engage a rim of the aerosol spray can to attach to the aerosol spray can. The attachment member is movable into a lowered position with respect to the collar and is configured to cause the tube to actuate the valve stem to open a spray valve of the aerosol spray can when the attachment member is moved into the lowered position such that a chamber within the aerosol spray can is in fluid communication with the tube.
A dispenser gun is coupled to the tube at the outlet end and comprises a housing, a dispenser valve, and a dispenser actuator. The housing is coupled to the tube, and the tube extends into the housing. The dispenser valve is positioned in the housing and is in fluid communication with the tube. The dispenser valve is movable between an open position and a closed position. The dispenser actuator is operatively coupled to the dispenser valve and extends away from the dispenser valve and out of the housing.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
A spray can valve actuator 26 is coupled to the tube 12 at the inlet end 14. The spray can valve actuator 26 comprises an attachment member 28, a collar 30, and a retainer 32. The attachment member 28 is coupled to the tube 12 and to the collar 30. The attachment member 28 is positioned in the collar 30. An interior dimension of the collar 30 has a size such that the collar 30 is configured to frictionally engage a rim 22 of the aerosol spray can 18 to attach to the aerosol spray can 18. The attachment member 28 is movable into a lowered position 34 with respect to the collar 30 and is configured to cause the tube 12 to actuate the valve stem 20 to open a spray valve 24 of the aerosol spray can 18 when the attachment member 28 is moved into the lowered position 34 such that a chamber within the aerosol spray can 18 is in fluid communication with the tube 12. The attachment member 28 is pivotally coupled to an inner surface 36 of the collar 30 but may be slidably coupled, threadedly coupled, or the like such that the attachment member 28 can be moved alternately into and out of the lowered position 34.
The retainer 32 is coupled to the attachment member 28 and the collar 30 to retain the attachment member 28 in the lowered position 34. The retainer 32 comprises a first engagement member 38 and a second engagement member 40. The first engagement member 38 is coupled to and extends outwardly from the attachment member 28, and the second engagement member 40 is coupled to and extends inwardly from the collar 30. The first and second engagement member 40s have a snap fit connection with each other when the attachment member 28 is positioned in the lowered position 34. In some embodiments, the retainer 32 may have a latch, a threaded fastener, a friction fit, or the like to retain the attachment member 28 in the lowered position 34. In other embodiments, the first and second engagement members 38, 40 of the retainer 32 comprise threads which also facilitate moving the attachment member 28 alternately into and out of the lowered position 34.
The spray can valve actuator 26 also comprises a grip 42 and a pair of removal tabs 44. The grip 42 is coupled to and extends outwardly from the attachment member 28 to facilitate grasping the attachment member 28. The pair of removal tabs 44 is coupled to and extends outwardly from the collar 30 to facilitate grasping the collar 30 to remove the spray can valve actuator 26 from the aerosol spray can 18. The removal tabs 44 extend in opposite directions from each other.
A dispenser gun 46 is coupled to the tube 12 at the outlet end 16. The dispenser gun 46 comprises a housing 48, a dispenser valve 50, a dispenser actuator 52, and a torsion spring 54. The housing 48 is coupled to the tube 12, and the tube 12 extends into the housing 48. The housing 48 has a handle portion 56 and a dispensing portion 58. The tube 12 extends into the handle portion 56, and the outlet end 16 of the tube 12 is positioned at a distal end 60 of the dispensing portion 58 of the housing 48 with respect to the handle portion 56. The handle portion 56 comprises a pistol grip 62. The dispenser valve 50 is positioned in the housing 48 and is in fluid communication with the tube 12. The dispenser valve 50 is movable between an open position and a closed position. The dispenser actuator 52 is operatively coupled to the dispenser valve 50 and extends away from the dispenser valve 50 and out of the housing 48. The dispenser actuator 52 comprises a lever 53 which is pivotable toward the handle portion 56 of the housing 48 to open the dispenser valve 50 and away from the handle portion 56 to close the dispenser valve 50. The dispenser actuator 52 is biased to close the dispenser valve 50. The torsion spring 54 is coupled to the housing 48 and the dispenser actuator 52 to bias the dispenser actuator 52 to close the dispenser valve 50, but the dispenser actuator 52 also may be biased by a compression spring positioned between and engaging the dispenser actuator 52 and the handle, a resiliently bendable material in the dispenser actuator 52, or other conventional means.
The dispenser gun 46 also includes a spray head 64 and a pair of nozzles 66. The spray head 64 is attached to the distal end 60 of the dispensing portion 58 of the housing 48. The spray head 64 has a channel 68 extending therethrough and is in fluid communication with the outlet 16 of the tube 12. Each nozzle 66 of a pair of nozzles 66 is interchangeably couplable to the spray head 64 to fluidly couple to the channel 68. Each nozzle 66 of the pair of nozzles 66 defines a selected nozzle 66 when coupled to the spray head 64, and the selected nozzle 66 is configured for facilitating dispensing a fluid 70 released from the aerosol spray can 18.
The pair of nozzles 66 includes a flat nozzle 72 and a jet nozzle 74. The flat nozzle 72 has an interior shape 76 such that the flat nozzle 72 is configured to dispense the fluid 70 along a plane extending through the flat nozzle 72. The jet nozzle 74 has an interior shape 78 such that the jet nozzle 74 is configured to dispense the fluid 70 along a line extending through the jet nozzle 74. The spray head 64 is rotatable with respect to the housing 48 to cause the selected nozzle 66 to rotate. The spray head 64 is configured to orient a stream of the fluid 70 dispensed through the selected nozzle 66. For example, when the flat nozzle 72 is coupled to the spray head 64, the plane along which the fluid 70 is dispensed is rotated when the spray head 64 is rotated with respect to the housing 48.
An indicator 80 is coupled to the spray head 64 for indicating an orientation of the stream of the fluid 70 dispensed through the selected nozzle 66. The indicator 80 comprises a pair of fins 82 coupled to the spray head 64 and positioned opposite each other across the selected nozzle 66. The fins 82 may be designed to appear visually similar to portions of spray caps of conventional pneumatic spray guns which contain conduits for directing compressed gas into a spray leaving the spray gun to shape the spray. The indicator 80 may comprise indicia which may include a symbol, an alphanumeric character, a graphical image, or the like. The indicator 80 also may comprise a structural member different from the pair of fins 82.
In use, one of the nozzles 66 is attached to the spray head 64. The tube 12 is coupled to the valve stem 20 of the aerosol spray can 18 and the spray can valve actuator 26 is attached to the rim 22 of the aerosol spray can 18. The attachment member 28 is positioned in the lower position to cause the tube 12 to actuate the valve stem 20 to open the spray valve 24 of the aerosol spray can 18 and fluidly couple the chamber of the aerosol spray can 18 with the tube 12. The dispenser actuator 52 is moved to open the dispenser valve 50. A compressed propellent contained in the aerosol spray can 18 urges the fluid 70 contained in the aerosol spray can 18 through the spray valve 24, the tube 12, and the selected nozzle 66. The dispenser actuator 52 is released to close the dispenser valve 50 and prevent the fluid 70 from dispensing out of the selected nozzle 66.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
