The present invention relates to application of a fluid, such as an antibacterial composition, to an individual's hands and, more particularly, is concerned with a wearable fluid-dispensing apparatus for dispensing, among other things, an antibacterial fluid composition.
Concerns about personal hygiene have become increasingly prevalent in modern society. With seemingly ever increasing frequency we hear of spreading viruses, threats of epidemics, and a general heightened awareness of the multitude of germs that we come in contact with every day. For most people, good hygiene is so much an integral part of their daily routine that they think little about it. Among other hygienic practices, for example, individuals wash their hands before and after preparing and/or eating food, and after handling an object or coming into contact with a potentially unsanitary surface. Various products are available to help sanitize an individual's hands, such as wipes infused with a liquid antibacterial solution, antibacterial soaps, and the like.
Consequently, the population as a whole has become ever more conscious of the danger posed by pathogens such as E. coli, Ebola, the growing threat of the bird flu virus and other viruses, as well as the more common pathogens an individual comes into contact with on a daily basis. The constant exposure to a wide variety of bacteria and viruses, particularly through contact with unsanitary surfaces, has the potential to cause any one of a number of undesirable infections. The acquisition and transfer of bacteria via a person's hands is recognized as a major factor in the spread of disease. Thus, antibacterial products for hand washing are formulated to reduce the number of bacteria on a person's hands more effectively than plain soap. In response to this threat, many businesses offer their patrons access to antibacterial products. For instance, supermarkets commonly offer antibacterial wipes for consumers to use to wipe the handle of a shopping cart, as well as antibacterial dispensers in areas dedicated for bottle returns and the like.
However, not every business encountered by consumers offer access to complementary antibacterial products. Further, individuals frequently experience unsanitary situations throughout the day where it is impractical to immediately wash one's hands with soap and water, or to carry a commercially available container of antibacterial solution or a dispenser of antibacterial wipes. Therefore, as an insight by the inventor herein, it would be highly desirable to provide a fashionable wearable device having a means for storing, and quickly and efficiently dispensing, a quantity of antibacterial solution onto the hands of a wearer of the device. Furthermore, as another insight by the inventor herein, it would be desirable to provide such an apparatus wherein a volume of such a solution or composition could be provided within a disposable cartridge adapted to be releasably engaged with a dispensing mechanism integrated into the device.
The present invention, in accordance with the aforementioned insights by the inventor herein, is generally directed to an innovation providing a wearable fluid-dispensing apparatus in the form of an antibacterial fluid-dispensing bracelet having an antibacterial fluid-containing cartridge defining an interior reservoir for retaining a quantity of antibacterial composition in a fluid form and having an extraction port. The bracelet includes a frame defining a central receptacle that is conformally shaped to selectively receive the antibacterial fluid-containing cartridge, wherein the frame has first and second lateral side walls. The bracelet also includes a finger-activated pump assembly mounted proximate to the central receptacle of the frame and engaging the extraction port of the cartridge for selectively extracting the antibacterial fluid from the cartridge. The pump assembly has at least one nozzle port for dispensing the antibacterial fluid therethrough in response to activation of the pump assembly. The pump assembly also has a housing portion, a piston within the housing portion that is movable between a raised position and a depressed position, a compression spring for biasing the piston to the raised position, and a fluid extraction conduit fixedly integrated into the cartridge interior extending proximate to the extraction port of the cartridge. The conduit, housing portion, and pump assembly piston define a fluid pathway between the cartridge interior and the nozzle port. The bracelet further includes a female wristband segment extending from proximate the first lateral side wall of the frame and terminating at a first distal end portion, and a male wristband segment releasably securable to the female wristband segment, extending from proximate the second lateral side wall of the frame, and terminating at a second distal end portion. Together the first and second female and male wristband segments are releasably attachable to one another so as to enable the bracelet to be releasably secured to the wrist of a user.
These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the invention will be further understood and appreciated by those skilled in the art by reference to the following written specification, claims and appended drawings.
The invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, where like numerals denote like elements and in which:
Like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the various views of the drawings.
The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the described embodiments or the application and uses of the described embodiments. As used herein, the word “exemplary” or “illustrative” means “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any implementation described herein as “exemplary” or “illustrative” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other implementations. All of the implementations described below are exemplary implementations provided to enable persons skilled in the art to make or use the embodiments of the disclosure and are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure, which is defined by the claims. For purposes of description herein, the terms “upper”, “lower”, “left”, “rear”, “right”, “front”, “vertical”, “horizontal”, and derivatives thereof relate to the invention as oriented in
Referring now to accompanying
The frame 110 also may have a pair of integral clasps, 122A and 122B, extending from the corresponding respective lateral side walls, 114 and 116, for releasable engagement with the antibacterial fluid-containing cartridge 150 to aid in retaining the cartridge within the central receptacle 120 of frame 110. Preferably, the clasps 122A, 122B are integrally molded with lateral side walls 114, 116 of the frame 110 to form a unitary structure, wherein the clasps are resilient vis-á-vis the frame 110 to enable deflection of the clasps for snap-fitting engagement with cartridge 150, in a manner well known in the art. Those practiced in the art will readily recognize that the clasps can also assume other configurations known in the art.
The wearable fluid-dispensing apparatus or bracelet 100 also includes a wearable member 101 formed by a female wristband segment 102 and a male wristband segment 104. The female wristband segment 102 is affixed to the frame 110 proximate the first lateral side wall 114. The female wristband segment 102 has a series of spaced-apart apertures 103 along a length thereof to aid in fastening the bracelet 100 to a user's wrist or forearm. In like manner, the male wristband segment 104 is affixed to the frame 110 proximate the second lateral side wall 116. The male wristband segment 104 may include one or more pegs 105, or comparable projections, extending therefrom for releasable engagement with selected ones of the apertures 103 of the female wristband 102 to releasably secure the bracelet 100 to a user's wrist or forearm, in a manner well known in the art. Those practiced in the art will recognize that other known configurations of the wearable member 101 attached to the frame 110 are contemplated herein.
Referring now particularly to
As best illustrated in
The piston 134 of the pump assembly 130 is translatable between a raised position (
The annular housing 132 of the pump assembly 130 closely fits or engages with the extraction port 154 of the antibacterial fluid-containing cartridge 150 when the cartridge 150 is fully engaged with the frame 110 and retained in place by the clasps 122A, 122B and 122C, and provides a leak-proof seal at the extraction port 154. The fluid transfer conduit 138 at its upper end is spaced below the extraction port 154 of the cartridge 150 and extends downward through the interior reservoir 152 of the cartridge 150 substantially to the bottom of the cartridge bulge 156 for maximum extraction of the antibacterial fluid therein. The upper wall of the frame 110 can also include fixed risers 124 which are disposed on either side of the upper portion of the piston 134 proximate to the nozzle port 140 thereof to protect the piston 134 of the pump assembly 130 from inadvertent activation or from catching on clothing or other articles.
The piston 134 of the finger-activatable pump assembly 130 can also include a grip surface 144 at a top portion thereof so that the user can get a tactile indication of when the user's finger is properly positioned to activate the pump assembly 130. Additionally, a lever 142 can be affixed to the piston 134 for activation thereof and also includes a grip surface 144 at an end thereof for further tactile feedback to the user. As illustrated in
Referring briefly primarily to
In use, and as illustrated in
When the quantity of antibacterial fluid has been depleted from the interior reservoir 152 of the antibacterial fluid-containing cartridge 150, the user unfastens the clasps 122 from engagement with the cartridge 150 and placing a thumb or finger on the grip portion 158 of the cartridge 150 slides the cartridge 150 downward to disengage from the pump subassembly 130 and frame 110. A new cartridge 150 may then be installed by positioning and sliding the extraction port 154 of the cartridge 150 over the lower port 162 of the housing portion 132 of the pump assembly 130 to tear through a cartridge-opening sealing membrane 157 (
Since many modifications, variations, and changes in detail can be made to the described preferred embodiments of the invention, it is intended that all matters in the foregoing description and shown in the accompanying drawings be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense. Thus, the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents. By way of example, although the exemplary implementation of the present invention has been described particularly for in conjunction with antibacterial fluid-dispensing cartridges, it is contemplated that the invention will be employed for use with cartridges containing other fluids including, for example, sunscreen, insect repellent and any other compositions available in a fluid form useful for being carried by a person for convenient dispensing and rubbing onto the skin, hair, etc., of the individual's body (or another individual's body).
This U.S. non-provisional patent application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application No. 62/189,887, filed Jul. 8, 2015, which incorporated-by-reference herein its entirety.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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62189887 | Jul 2015 | US |