Patent Application
20140231451
The present invention relates generally to temporary liquid soap or sanitizer dispenser support structures and systems, and methods for providing such temporary support structures and dispenser systems in the event of an emergency situation, a pandemic, a large public gathering or the like.
Liquid soap or sanitizer dispensers provide a user with an amount of liquid soap or sanitizer upon actuation of the dispenser. The terms “soap” or “sanitizer,” as defined herein, mean any skincare product, and representative examples include soaps, sanitizers, moisturizers, cleansers and disinfectants. Permanent liquid soap or sanitizer dispensers are well-known and may often be found in public restrooms and other public places. These known permanent liquid soap or sanitizer dispensers comprise a permanent outer enclosure, a supply of liquid soap or sanitizer contained within the permanent outer enclosure and a dispensing mechanism for dispensing the liquid soap or sanitizer to a user. The permanent outer enclosure is typically formed from a durable and long-lasting material, such as plastic or metal.
From time to time, the liquid soap or sanitizer supply held within a permanent liquid soap or sanitizer dispenser will become depleted or otherwise need to be replenished. In general, there are two methods for refilling the liquid supply within a dispenser. First, the liquid may be held in a reservoir formed within the outer enclosure which can be accessed so that additional liquid may be poured or otherwise injected into the reservoir. Second, and much more popular in modern liquid dispenser systems, the liquid supply is stored within a separate removable refill unit held within the outer enclosure. Empty refill units are then removed and replaced with full refill units, as needed. Removable liquid refill units may be flexible bag-like structures, rigid box-like structures, rigid but collapsible structures or have some other configuration with a pump and outlet secured thereto. These more modern liquid dispenser systems are generally preferred because they are easier to refill, they decrease the likelihood of spills and they are more hygienic in comparison with the older pouring the liquid in a reservoir approach.
Known liquid dispensers are permanent, meaning such dispensers are intended to have a useful life of several years. These dispensers, however, are complex, require many parts and have a relatively long lead time during high demand periods, such as, during times of pandemics, such as, for example, the swine flu pandemic that occurred a few years ago. In addition, it is not practical to install permanent dispensers in locations that temporarily host events, such as carnivals, community fairs, concerts and the like.
It would be desirable to provide a temporary liquid dispenser system that can be mass produced and distributed in short order to battle pandemic conditions, even if these systems have a useful life of only several weeks or several months, or for temporary events. The present invention is directed to such a temporary dispenser system.
A temporary dispenser system is provided herein. In one embodiment, the system comprises a temporary support structure, a removable liquid container supported by the temporary support structure and holding a supply of liquid to be dispensed by the system, and a pump and outlet fluidically attached to the removable liquid container in order to dispense a supply of liquid or foam upon actuation.
The temporary soap or sanitizer support structures and dispenser systems disclosed herein are particularly useful for use in public emergency situations. Examples of such situations include pandemics, large fires such as forest fires, earthquakes, floods and the like. Or for temporary events, such as carnivals, community fairs, concerts and the like. In these situations, a large number of temporary fluid dispenser systems may be deployed in kit form with a minimum amount of effort and at a low cost in order to help ensure public hygiene during such situations.
Exemplary temporary support structures for holding fluid dispensing mechanisms and/or refill units are disclosed herein. Some exemplary temporary support structures have one or more flat panels which form a temporary support structure by being folded or attached to one another. The temporary support structure includes a base for supporting the temporary structure in an upright position; a holder for receiving a removable refill unit that holds a supply of liquid to be dispensed by the system, and an upright section extending from the base to the holder.
Another exemplary temporary support structure for holding fluid dispensing mechanisms and/or refill units includes a first flat panel in a flattened condition. The first flat panel includes cut lines and fold lines. The first flat panel may be folded into the shape of a base. The temporary support structure includes a second flat panel in a flattened condition. The second flat panel has cut lines and fold lines. The second flat panel may be folded into a shape of a tower and secured to the base. The tower includes a holder for holding a fluid dispense mechanism to dispense fluid onto an object.
Exemplary methodologies of creating a temporary support structure for holding fluid dispensing mechanisms and/or refill units are also provided. One exemplary method of providing a temporary support structure for a dispensing system includes cutting one or more flat panels into desired shapes and creating predetermined fold lines in the one or more cut flat panels. Wherein cutting the flat panels into desired shapes includes cutting the flat panel so that at least one flat panel will form a holder for holding a refill unit or a dispenser. The methodology also includes cutting the flat panels so that at least one flat panel will form a base for supporting the temporary support structure on a floor, and cutting the flat panel so that at least one flat panel will form an intermediate portion between the base and the holder.
These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with regard to the following description and accompanying drawings in which:
In particularly preferred embodiments, the temporary support structure 102 comprises one or more flat or essentially two-dimensional panels which are folded and attached to one another to form the three-dimensional structure 102. In some embodiments, the attaching of the various flat panels is advantageously accomplished without use of any additional elements separate from the panels themselves, such as staplers, glue, rivets, clips or the like. For example, the flat panels may attach to each other via mating tab in slot interactions or the like. Such embodiments are easily manufactured and may then be shipped to end-use customers in a knocked-down or flat state which greatly facilitates and reduces the cost of the shipping and storage process by minimizing the space required for storing the system before actual use.
Such embodiments also are easily erected by the end-use customers when it becomes time for them to be deployed on a temporary basis. In some embodiments, temporary support structure 102 is formed out of a flat piece of cardboard that is stamp cut and has fold lines that are pre-bent. A user simply folds along the fold lines to form a section and locks the section together with tabs. If the temporary support structure 102 is made of multiple sections, the sections may be locked together with tabs. In some embodiments, a user may use plastic clips, staples, glue or the like to lock the sections together or to strengthen a tab connected joint.
The illustrated temporary support structure 102 is in the form of a stand, such that the liquid container 104 may be easily accessed by a user in a standing position next to the stand. The support structure 102 has a base 106 and a tower 107. The base permits the support structure 102 to remain stable when placed on a supporting surface, such as a floor, in an outside or in an inside environment. In some embodiments, the base has a square footprint. In some embodiments, the base has a rectangular footprint. Various base footprint configurations may be provided to increase stability or to facilitate locating the temporary dispensers in certain locations, such as for example, against a wall or in a corner.
Additional, panel portions comprising extending flange elements (not shown) may alternatively or additionally be used to improve the upright stability of the standing support structure 102. In yet further embodiments, one or more ballast elements (not shown) may be placed within or around the base 106 in order to improve the stability of the overall system 100. Such ballast elements might include pouches filled with water or sand, or even one or more soap or sanitizer-filled containers 104 which may be used to replace the container 104 which is currently disposed in the top portion 108 of tower 107.
The top portion 108 of the support structure 102 houses the removable liquid container 104. As previously known, the container 104 may be a flexible bag-like structure, a rigid box-like structure, a collapsible rigid structure or have some other configuration. In order to refill the liquid soap or sanitizer supply of the system 100, the user needs only to remove the existing empty container 104 and replace it with a full container 104. In additional embodiments (not shown), the liquid may be directly held in a reservoir formed within a temporary liquid dispenser system 100, to be refilled by injecting more liquid into the reservoir.
Container 104 is connected to a dome pump 112 and outlet nozzle 115 to form a refill unit 113. Accordingly, when the container 104 is removed from the temporary support structure 102, the dome pump 112 and outlet nozzle 115 are also removed and replaced.
The top portion 108 of the support structure 102 has an access panel 110 which is normally in a closed position, as illustrated in
In the illustrated temporary dispenser system 100, a liquid dome pump 112 and outlet 115 are attached to and removable with the liquid container 104 in the form of a refill unit 113 (
The container 104 may have printed information on a portion of the container 104 which is viewable by a user through the aperture 114 when installed in the support structure 102. The printed information may include instructions for using the system 100, a description of the chemical formulation of the liquid inside the container 104, governmental regulatory information and the like. In addition, aperture 114 allows a user or maintenance personnel to determine whether refill unit 113 is empty or needs to be replaced.
Any type of liquid dispenser may be used in connection with the temporary liquid dispensing systems disclosed herein. In the particular system 100 illustrated in
Electrically-activated dispensers may also be used in connection with the temporary dispenser systems disclosed herein. In one such embodiment, an electric dispenser includes a motion detector to provide for a hands-free or “touchless” operation. Such electrically-activated dispensers require an electrical power source, like a battery or an external power source electrically connected to the liquid dispenser.
As illustrated in
Preferably, and optionally, a scaled down touch-free electronic dispenser (not shown) may be used. For example, an electronics package including a sensor for sensing an object, a processor, a battery for providing power and an actuator may be attached to a receptacle for receiving a refill unit and may be inserted into the opening 304 on the top of the dispenser system 100. The electronics package need not include an exterior housing because the components will be protected by the dispenser system 100. Thus, once the electronics package has been inserted into the opening 304, a refill unit (not shown) may simply be dropped through the opening 304 and into a receptacle for receiving a refill unit.
As already discussed above, in the particular temporary liquid soap or sanitizer dispenser system 100 of
In other embodiments, a pumping portion of a liquid dispenser may instead be directly attached to and supported by the support structure and each time a new liquid container is installed into the support structure, the user fluidically connects the new container with the pumping portion of the liquid dispenser on the support structure. Optionally, the new container may be emptied or poured into a container secured to the pumping portion of the liquid dispenser.
The liquid dispenser portion of the liquid dispenser system 100 may contain one or more foaming elements therein to mix the liquid from the container 104 with air to form a foam for dispensing to a user. Suitable foaming elements include, for example, an air pump and one or more screens, meshes, porous membranes or sponges.
The illustrated temporary support structure 102 additionally includes a drip catch portion 118 disposed on the front face of the structure 102 underneath the liquid refill unit 113. The drip catch portion 118 catches fluid and/or foam which drips out of the liquid refill unit 113 after a dispensing action has been completed. The particular drip catch portion 118 in the illustrated system 100 is a inserted at an angle into the central area of the top portion 108, but other drip catch portion structures may be used. Although not shown in
Another embodiment of a temporary liquid soap dispensing system 400 is illustrated in
The system 400 of
In the particular system 400, the touch-free dispenser 412 has a hands-free activation. Thus, a sensor element 450 of the touch-free dispenser 412 is exposed by the aperture 454 in the top portion 408 of the support structure 402. A user waves his or her hand near the sensor element 450 in order to activate the touch-free dispenser 412.
The drip catch portion 418 illustrated in
Yet another embodiment of a temporary liquid soap dispensing system 500 is illustrated in
A method for providing several temporary dispenser systems in the event of an emergency situation is also provided. This method may be used in connection with any one of the particular temporary dispenser systems 100, 400 or 500 disclosed herein, or other such systems. Thus, the method comprises gathering multiple emergency response kits together and storing them in anticipation of an emergency situation arising. Each one of the emergency response kits includes one or more support structure elements in an unassembled condition, or knocked down state, in combination with an initial liquid container filled with a supply of liquid soap or sanitizer. Storing the support structure elements in an unassembled condition reduces the space taken up by the support structure elements, and therefore decreases the cost of storage. When an emergency occurs, several emergency response kits may then be quickly shipped to the location of the emergency, to be assembled and deployed for use.
Another exemplary methodology of providing a temporary support structure to a user includes cutting a flat panel into a desired shape and creating predetermined fold lines in the cut flat panel. In some embodiments, cutting the flat panel into a desired shape includes cutting the flat panel so that it will form a holder for holding a refill unit. In addition, in some embodiments, cutting the flat panel into a desired shape includes cutting the flat panel so that it will form a base for supporting the temporary support structure on a floor. Further in some embodiments, cutting the flat panel into a desired shape includes cutting the flat panel so that it will form a tower between the base and the holder. Still yet, in some embodiments, cutting a flat panel into a desired shape includes cutting one or more additional flat panels that may be secured to the first flat panel. Further, in some embodiments, cutting a flat panel into a desired shape includes cutting a single flat panel to form the desired shape. In some cases, the holder is part of the tower. The exemplary methodology also includes providing instructions for a user to fold the cut flat panel to form a temporary support structure.
In addition, base 600 includes a plurality of predetermined fold lines 610 and a plurality of slots 622 for receiving locking tabs 620 when the cut out flat stock 601 is folded to form base 600. Base 600 also includes a plurality of slots 630 cut out of the base 600 for receiving locking tabs 720 (
While the present invention has been illustrated by the description of embodiments thereof and while the embodiments have been described in considerable detail, it is not the intention of the applicanta to restrict or in any way limit the scope of the appended claims to such detail. Additional advantages and modifications will readily appear to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the invention, in its broader aspects, is not limited to the specific details, the representative apparatus and illustrative examples shown and described. Accordingly, departures may be made from such details without departing from the spirit or scope of the applicants' general inventive concept.
