Patent Grant
10687600
Women's cosmetics are expensive. There is a need for an efficient and economical way to store and apply cosmetics without wasting cosmetic products that may dry out or spill from a cosmetic dispenser.
The invention relates to cosmetic dispensers, and in particular to a plunger-driven cosmetics dispenser.
An apparatus is disclosed including but not limited to a plunger driven dispenser comprising a handle having an inner section and an outer section and a top; a storage chamber formed inside of the inner section the contains a highly viscous product, wherein the storage chamber has a tapered opening at the bottom and an aperture in the top of the storage chamber, wherein the aperture further comprises a coned tip surrounding the aperture; a plunger formed inside of the outer section that fits into the storage chamber and extrudes the cosmetic product through the coned tip aperture under pressure applied to the plunger; and an aperture in the top that receives cosmetic product from the storage chamber through the coned tip aperture and a spike to seal the storage chamber.
A particular illustrative embodiment of the invention, a plunger-driven type cosmetic dispensing apparatus and method are disclosed herein. In a particular illustrative embodiment of the invention, a cosmetic product dispenser and method for application of cosmetics from the cosmetic dispenser are disclosed herein. The cosmetic product is generally a cosmetic product such as “foundation”, the foundation being a highly viscous fluid. The foundation is generally applied to a person's face. The cosmetic dispenser contains the cosmetic product. The cosmetic product is extruded through a hole in the top of the cosmetic dispenser under the influence of a plunger that urges the cosmetic product from a storage chamber formed in the dispenser and onto the application top, a brush head and fibers in this instance. In a particular illustrative embodiment of the invention, a cosmetic brush (also referred to herein as a brush) includes but is not limited to a brush head base and brush fibers extending from the brush head base is provided. The brush head base is shaped similar to an interior surface of a bottle cap. The brush head base has an opening or hole formed in a center of the brush head which allows the foundation to flow from a coned tip aperture in the cosmetic dispenser storage chamber, through the opening formed in the brush head under the influence of the plunger that extrudes the cosmetic product through the coned tip aperture onto the brush head and fibers. The cosmetic product such as a “foundation” flows onto the brush bristles of the brush head for application of the cosmetic product from the brush head fibers to a person's body, usually a person's face.
In a particular illustrative embodiment of the invention, the brush bristles are formed in a “crop circle” shaped pattern, that is, a concentric circle of brush fibers are attached to the circular brush head surrounding a circle of a no bristles area on the brush head and the hole formed in the center of the brush head. The brush works as traditional foundation brush once foundation has been applied from the cosmetic dispenser storage chamber to the brush fibers.
In a particular illustrative embodiment of the invention, the cosmetic product dispenser (“dispenser”) includes but is not limited to a two-section handle, the handle having an inner section and an outer section and a plurality of tops. A storage top and an application top are disclosed herein. The storage top (for example, an alien head with a sealing spike) seals the cosmetic product inside of the cosmetic dispenser storage chamber so that the cosmetic product does not dry out or spill from the cosmetic dispenser storage chamber. The application top is a brush that receives the cosmetic product from the dispenser storage chamber for application to a person's face. It should be understood that other products and materials such as body paint can be stored in the dispenser and other application tops, such as a sponge brush, are provided to apply other highly viscous fluids, such as the body paint are attached as an application head to the cosmetics dispenser.
In a particular illustrative embodiment of the invention, a two-part handle is provided for the cosmetic dispenser includes but is not limited to a top-half inner section and a bottom-half outer section. The top half of the two-part handle (“handle”) is a hollow inner section formed by a vacancy in a resin molded piece that serves a storage chamber for the cosmetic product inside of a metallic cylinder having a flat top. The resin molded piece and storage chamber are formed inside of a metallic outer shell having a cylindrical shape opened at a lower end and having the flat top with a hole in the center at an upper end of the inner section of the handle. The hole in center of the flat top of the inner section allows cosmetic product to flow out of the storage chamber in an application mode and allows sealing by a spike inserted into the hole by a storage top, such as the alien head with a spike in the storage mode. The open lower end of the inner section receives a plunger formed on the lower outer section of the dispenser handle. The diameter of the metallic outer shell of the top section of the handle (inner section) is slightly less than the diameter of the outer section of the bottom half of the handle that slides over the inner section.
When the cosmetic dispenser is in storage mode, for storage during travel or when not in use, a storage cap (also referred to herein as a “storage top”) is placed over the top of the surface of the cosmetics dispenser and storage chamber. In the present illustrative embodiment, the storage top, for example, an alien head, a spike is provided on the bottom of the alien head so that when the storage top is placed on the top of the two-part dispenser handle of the cosmetics dispenser, the spike enters the coned tip aperture of the storage chamber and seals the cosmetic product inside of the storage chamber.
The spike enters the hole in the cosmetic storage chamber, in the present example, the coned tip aperture and seals the storage chamber at the coned tip aperture as the spike engages and touching the coned tip aperture leading into the cosmetic storage chamber. The spike also clears the coned tip aperture as the spike passes through and penetrates the coned tip aperture and prevents the cosmetic product from clogging the coned tip aperture. The spike also substantially prevents the cosmetic product, such as a viscous liquid foundation from drying out during storage. The storage chamber forms a elliptically tapered shaped interior storage chamber having flared out sides at the bottom of the storage chamber (in the present example, the storage chamber is formed out of a hardened resin) and having an aperture, opening, hole or gap in the top of the storage chamber wherein the storage chamber has a coned tip surrounding the aperture (the combination of the storage chamber aperture and the coned tip are referred to herein as a “coned tip aperture”) in the storage chamber. The coned tip aperture sticks out and protrudes through the metallic surface flat top of the cylindrical handle inner section opening by one millimeter. The coned tip aperture engages a hole in application top, such as the brush handle. The coned tip aperture allows cosmetic product to flow from the storage chamber through the coned tip aperture, through the hole in application top and onto the application top, (brush head and brush fibers) during an application mode for the cosmetics dispenser. The coned tipped aperture receives a sealing member such as a spike from the storage top (alien head) to seal the cosmetics product inside of the storage chamber during storage mode.
The outer section of the handle is the bottom half of the handle. The outer section forms an outer shell made of the aluminum metallic handle will be slightly wider than the top half (inner section) of the handle. The plunger formed in outer section, bottom half of handle, smoothly slides over the sides of inner section, the top half of the brush. By pushing outer section of the handle upwards, the cosmetic product, such as foundation is extruded from the storage chamber inside of the top half of the handle.
The storage chamber in the top half of the handle holds and stores the cosmetic product, such as a foundation. The bottom half of the handle is used to, not only complete the brush handle as a whole, but also to push the foundation in an upward direction though the storage chamber and coned tip aperture and hole in the brush head onto the brush head base and brush fibers or another application top.
The outer section of the two-part dispenser handle forms the bottom half of the dispenser handle. The bottom half of the dispenser handle is formed with a plunger shaped interior. The plunger shaped interior forms a plunger that is a solid piece. A top surface of the plunger forms a circular, flat section of the plunger. The plunger is encased inside of metallic outer surface of the bottom section of the handle. The metallic handle is like narrow shell. The top of the plunger will be used to push foundation out of top half of the brush. The plunger is shaped and formed to look similar to an upside-down intake valve of a car engine, but not as slim.
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In another particular embodiment, the spike is made of a material that is harder than the material from which the coned tip aperture is made, thereby facilitating a seal between the spike and the coned tip aperture, caused by deformation and radial compression of the softer coned tip aperture as the spike enters the coned tip aperture.
The spike 4, is a longitudinally tapered spike 4 having a longitudinal axis that is perpendicular to a plane passing through the storage tank storage top surface. The spike is fixed to the bottom of the storage top and extends along the spike's longitudinal axis from the bottom of the storage top at a perpendicular angle from a plane formed in the bottom of the storage top surface. As the storage head is screwed onto the storage chamber top, the tapered spike is inserted into a storage chamber coned tip aperture to seal the storage chamber aperture. A diameter of the tapered spike, measured along and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the spike, is increasing larger from the bottom tip of the spike to the top of the spike where the spike is attached to a bottom surface of the storage top. The diameter of the spike is slightly larger than the diameter of the storage chamber coned tip aperture at a point where the spike contacts the interior sides of the storage chamber coned tip aperture after the storage top is screwed down in place on the storage chamber top. In a particular embodiment illustrative embodiment, the spike is made of a material softer than the harder resin storage chamber and the coned tip aperture on the storage chamber so that the spike is both flexible and compressible. The soft sides of the spike are radially compressed when the spike extended down into the storage chamber aperture to the point where the spike diameter is greater than the diameter of an interior diameter of the coned tip aperture in the storage chamber so that the sides of the spike are radially compressed by the smaller diameter storage of chamber coned tip aperture, providing a seal between the compressed spike and the storage chamber coned tip aperture. In a particular embodiment the spike is made of a flexible and compressible material so that the spike flexes to allow angular deflection of the spike when aligning spike and storage top with the coned tip aperture and securing the storage top on the top of the cosmetic dispenser for storage.
In another particular embodiment of the invention, the coned tip is a separate piece from the storage chamber, wherein the coned tip and aperture has the same shape lay but is installed separately into the inner section and allows fluid flow from the storage chamber through a hole in top of the storage chamber where the separate piece coned tip aperture connects to allow flow from the storage tank through the separate piece onto a brush head or to receive a sealing spike from storage top.
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The illustrations of embodiments described herein are intended to provide a general understanding of the structure of various embodiments, and they are not intended to serve as a complete description of all the elements and features of apparatus and systems that might make use of the structures described herein. Many other embodiments will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description. Other embodiments may be utilized and derived there from, such that structural and logical substitutions and changes may be made without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Figures are also merely representational and may not be drawn to scale. Certain proportions thereof may be exaggerated, while others may be minimized. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.
Such embodiments of the inventive subject matter may be referred to herein, individually and/or collectively, by the term “invention” merely for convenience and without intending to voluntarily limit the scope of this application to any single invention or inventive concept if more than one is in fact disclosed. Thus, although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, it should be appreciated that any arrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substituted for the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to cover any and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments. Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments not specifically described herein, will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description.
The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided to comply with 37 C.F.R. § 1.72(b), requiring an abstract that will allow the reader to quickly ascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. In addition, in the foregoing Detailed Description, it can be seen that various features are grouped together in a single embodiment for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed embodiments require more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subject matter lies in less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment. Thus, the following claims are hereby incorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as a separately claimed subject matter.
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