Fluid Dispenser With Moveable Nozzle Shield For Manual Activation

This application claims priority to the 7 Jun. 2024 filing date of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 63/657,180, which is incorporated herein by reference.

This invention relates to fluid dispensers, and more particularly to hand cleaning fluid dispensers that can be touchlessly operated.

It is known to provide hand cleaning fluid dispensers with touchless pump activation mechanisms, which allow hand cleaning fluid to be dispensed onto a user's hand without requiring the user to touch the dispenser. This reduces the risk of the dispenser becoming contaminated by the user's hands, and can therefore help to reduce the spread of infections.

A disadvantage of touchless pump activation mechanisms is that they typically require a source of electricity in order to function. If no electricity is available, for example due to a depleted battery or power outage, the touchless pump activation mechanism will become inoperable.

In order to avoid inoperability, it is known to provide an emergency lever that can be used to manually activate the fluid pump, so that fluid can still be dispensed even when no electricity is available. An example of a prior art dispenser having an emergency leveris shown in.

The applicant has identified a disadvantage of the prior art is that users will often use the emergency lever to manually activate a touchless hand cleaning fluid dispenser, even when electricity is available. This increases the risk of the dispenser becoming contaminated by the user's hands.

It is believed that the presence of a visible emergency lever may cause some users to incorrectly assume that a dispenser is intended to be manually operated. The applicant has found that the use of signage to explain the function of the emergency lever has reduced the occurrence of unnecessary manual operation, but has not eliminated it.

To at least partially overcome some of the disadvantages of previously known systems, devices and methods, in one aspect the present invention provides a fluid dispenser having a touchless pump activation mechanism that touchlessly activates a fluid pump, and an alternative pump activation mechanism for manually activating the fluid pump, wherein the alternative pump activation mechanism is activated by manually moving a nozzle shield of the fluid dispenser from a first position to a second position.

The applicant has appreciated that having a nozzle shield that is able to manually activate the fluid pump eliminates the need to have a separate visible emergency lever. This preferably reduces the likelihood that users will touch the dispenser unnecessarily.

Further aspects of the invention include:

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, comprising: a fluid reservoir containing a supply of a fluid to be dispensed; a spout for discharging the fluid; a fluid pump that dispenses the fluid out through the spout on activation of the fluid pump; a nozzle shield that at least partially covers the spout; a touchless pump activation mechanism that touchlessly activates the fluid pump; and an alternative pump activation mechanism for manually activating the fluid pump; wherein the nozzle shield is moveable between a first position and a second position; and wherein the alternative pump activation mechanism is activated by manually moving the nozzle shield from the first position to the second position.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the fluid pump comprises a piston that is moveable between an extended position and a retracted position; and wherein the fluid pump is activated by moving the piston between the extended position and the retracted position.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the nozzle shield is pivotable about a nozzle shield pivot axis, and wherein moving the nozzle shield from the first position to the second position comprises pivoting the nozzle shield about the nozzle shield pivot axis.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the alternative pump activation mechanism comprises a piston activation member that is pivotable about a piston activation axis between a rest position and a shifted position; wherein the piston activation member comprises a piston activation surface; wherein, when the piston activation member pivots from the rest position to the shifted position, the piston activation surface engages with the piston to move the piston from the extended position to the retracted position; wherein the piston activation member comprises a camming surface; wherein the nozzle shield comprises a cam arm; wherein, when the nozzle shield moves from the first position to the second position, the cam arm engages with the camming surface to move the piston activation member from the rest position to the shifted position.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein, when the fluid pump is activated by the touchless pump activation mechanism, the piston activation member is configured to remain stationary at the rest position.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the fluid dispenser further comprises a housing having a mounting member; wherein the mounting member has a right wall and a left wall, and a pump mounting structure located between the right wall and the left wall; wherein the pump mounting structure carries the fluid pump.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the nozzle shield comprises a nose portion that at least partially covers the spout, a right rear extension that extends rearwardly adjacent to the right wall, and a left rear extension that extends rearwardly adjacent to the left wall; wherein the right rear extension is pivotally mounted to the right wall; and wherein the left rear extension is pivotally mounted to the left wall.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the right rear extension is positioned laterally outwardly from the right wall; and wherein the left rear extension is positioned laterally outwardly from the left wall.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the nozzle shield comprises a nozzle shield axle that extends between the right rear extension and the left rear extension; wherein the right wall and the left wall each have a nozzle shield mounting opening; and wherein the nozzle shield axle extends through the nozzle shield mounting opening of the right wall and the nozzle shield mounting opening of the left wall.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the piston activation member comprises a central plate carrying the piston activation surface, a right activation arm that extends rearwardly from the central plate adjacent to the right wall, and a left activation arm that extends rearwardly from the central plate adjacent to the left wall; wherein the right activation arm is pivotally mounted to the right wall; and wherein the left activation arm is pivotally mounted to the left wall.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the right activation arm is positioned laterally outwardly from the right wall; and wherein the left activation arm is positioned laterally outwardly from the left wall.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the right activation arm and the left activation arm each have an activation arm opening; wherein the right wall and the left wall each have a piston activation member mounting projection that extends laterally outwardly; wherein the piston activation member mounting projection of the right wall extends through the activation arm opening of the right activation arm; and wherein the piston activation member mounting projection of the left wall extends through the activation arm opening of the left activation arm.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the camming surface is a right camming surface and the cam arm is a right cam arm; wherein the right rear extension comprises the right cam arm; wherein the right activation arm comprises the right camming surface; wherein the left rear extension comprises a left cam arm; wherein the left activation arm comprises a left camming surface; and wherein, when the nozzle shield moves from the first position to the second position, the right cam arm engages with the right camming surface and the left cam arm engages with the left camming surface to move the piston activation member from the rest position to the shifted position.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the touchless pump activation mechanism comprises a touchless activation lever that engages with the piston.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the touchless activation lever engages with at least one side surface of the piston; and wherein the piston activation surface of the piston activation member engages a top surface of the piston.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein the touchless activation lever is positioned laterally inwardly from the right wall and the left wall.

A fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, wherein, when the fluid pump is activated by the touchless pump activation mechanism, the nozzle shield is configured to remain stationary at the first position.

A fluid dispenser housing, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, comprising: a nozzle shield; a touchless pump activation mechanism for touchlessly activating a fluid pump; and an alternative pump activation mechanism for manually activating the fluid pump; wherein the nozzle shield is moveable between a first position and a second position; and wherein the alternative pump activation mechanism is activated by manually moving the nozzle shield from the first position to the second position.

A method of operating a fluid dispenser, which optionally incorporates one or more features of any one or more of the preceding and/or following aspects, the fluid comprising: the method comprising: if the touchless pump activation mechanism is operable, placing a user's hand below the spout to activate the touchless pump activation mechanism; and if the touchless pump activation mechanism is inoperable, manually moving the nozzle shield from the first position to the second position to activate the fluid pump.

show a fluid dispenserin accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The fluid dispenserincludes a dispenser housing, a fluid reservoir, a fluid pump, a touchless pump activation mechanism, and a nozzle shield assembly. The nozzle shield assemblyis also referred to herein as the alternative pump activation mechanism.

The dispenser housingincludes a housing body, a mounting member, and a housing cover. The housing body, which is best shown in, is a rectangular structure that extends vertically from a bottom endto a top end, and is configured to be mounted to a vertical support structure such as a wall. The housing bodyhouses the touchless pump activation mechanism.

The mounting memberextends forwardly from the top endof the housing body, and has a vertical right wall, a vertical left wall, and a pump mounting structurelocated between the right walland the left wall. The right walland the left walleach have a nozzle shield mounting openingand a piston activation member mounting projectionthat extends laterally outwardly from the wall,. The pump mounting structureis configured to carry the fluid pump.

The housing cover, which is shown in, has a top walland two side walls. The housing coverattaches to the housing body, with the top wallpositioned over the top endof the housing body, and the side wallsextending down towards the bottom endof the housing body. The housing bodyand the side wallsdefine an internal chamberfor receiving the fluid reservoir, as is known in the art.

The fluid reservoiris a bottle containing a supply of a hand cleaning fluid to be dispensed from the fluid dispenser. The fluid reservoirhas an open top, not shown, that attaches to the fluid pump.

The fluid pumpis best shown in, and includes a piston chamber forming body, a piston member, and a dip tube. The piston memberis moveable relative to the piston chamber forming bodybetween the extended position shown inand the retracted position shown in. An internal biasing member, not shown, biases the piston membertowards the extended position.

The piston memberhas a central bodythat extends upwardly from the piston chamber forming body, and an elongated spoutthat extends forwardly from the central bodyto a fluid outlet. The central bodyhas side surfacesthat are configured to engage with the touchless pump activation mechanism, and a top surface.

The dip tubeextends downwardly from the piston chamber forming bodyfor drawing fluid from the fluid reservoir. The fluid pumpis activated by moving the piston memberbetween the extended position and the retracted position, which draws fluid in through the dip tubeand discharges the fluid out through the fluid outlet, as is known in the art.

The touchless pump activation mechanismis best shown inas including an electric motor assembly, a touchless activation lever, and a control unit. The touchless activation leverextends from a motor attachment pointto a pump attachment point. At the pump attachment point, the touchless activation leverengages with the side surfacesof the piston member. On activation of the electric motor assembly, the touchless activation leverpivots about the pump attachment pointbetween the raised position shown inand the lowered position shown in, which moves the piston memberbetween the extended position shown inand the retracted position shown in.

Although not shown in the drawings, the fluid dispenserincludes at least one sensor that is configured to detect the presence of a user's hand placed below the fluid outlet, as is known in the art. The sensor is in communication with the control unit, which activates the electric motor assemblywhen a user's hand is detected. The electric motor assemblymay be powered by any suitable power source, such as a battery or wired connection to an external power supply.

As can be seen in, the nozzle shield assemblyincludes a nozzle shieldand a piston activation member. Referring to, the nozzle shieldincludes a nose portionand two rear extensions. The rear extensionseach have a cam armthat extends upwardly from an elbow portion. A nozzle shield axleextends between the elbow portionsalong a nozzle shield pivot axis. The rear extensionsare also referred to herein as the right rear extensionand the left rear extension, and the cam armsare also referred to herein as the right cam armand the left cam arm.

As can be seen in, the nose portionof the nozzle shieldis positioned above the spoutand substantially covers the spout. This helps to prevent users from touching and possibly contaminating the spout.

The rear extensionsextend rearwardly adjacent to the right and left walls,of the mounting member, and the nozzle shield axleextends through the nozzle shield mounting openings. This allows the nozzle shieldto pivot about the nozzle shield pivot axisrelative to the mounting member.

As can be seen in, the piston activation memberhas a central platewith a downwardly extending piston activation projection. An activation armextends rearwardly from each of the right and left sides of the central plate. Each activation armhas a circular openingand a rearwardly facing camming surface. The activation armsare also referred to herein as the right activation armand the left activation arm; the camming surfacesare also referred to herein as the right camming surfaceand the left camming surface; and the circular openingsare also referred to herein as the activation arm openings.

As can be seen in, the piston activation memberis positioned with the mounting projectionsof the mounting memberextending through the circular openingsof the activation arms. This allows the piston activation memberto pivot relative to the mounting memberabout a piston activation axis. As can be seen in, the camming surfacesof the piston activation memberare positioned adjacent to the cam armsof the nozzle shield, and the piston activation projectionis positioned adjacent to the top surfaceof the piston member.

The nozzle shield assemblyprovides an alternative mechanism for activating the fluid pump. In particular, the nozzle shieldcan be pivoted about the nozzle shield pivot axisfrom the first position shown into the second position shown inby manually pushing the nose portiondownwards. On movement of the nozzle shieldfrom the first position to the second position, the cam armsof the nozzle shieldengage with the camming surfacesof the piston activation member, which pivots the piston activation memberabout the piston activation axisfrom the rest position shown into the shifted position shown in. On movement of the piston activation memberfrom the rest position to the shifted position, the piston activation projectionengages with the top surfaceof the piston member, which moves the piston memberfrom the extended position shown into the retracted position shown in.

A preferred method of operating the fluid dispenserwill now be described with reference to the Figures. During normal operation, the touchless pump activation mechanismhas a supply of electricity, such as from a battery or wired power source. In order to activate the dispenser, a user places their hand below the fluid outlet, which triggers the control unitto activate the electric motor assembly. On activation of the electric motor assembly, the touchless activation leveris moved between the raised position shown inand the lowered position shown in, which moves the piston memberbetween the extended position shown inand the retracted position shown in, which causes fluid to be drawn from the fluid reservoirand dispensed onto the user's hand from the fluid outlet.

In the event that the supply of electricity is interrupted, for example due to a depleted battery or power outage, the nozzle shield assemblyprovides an alternative mechanism for operating the fluid pump. In particular, a user can activate the fluid pumpby manually pushing the nose portionof the nozzle shielddownwardly, which causes the nozzle shieldto pivot from the first position shown into the second position shown in, which pivots the piston activation memberfrom the rest position shown into the shifted position shown in, which in turn moves the piston memberfrom the extended position shown into the retracted position shown in, which causes fluid to be dispensed from the fluid outlet. When the user manually releases the nose portion, the internal biasing mechanism of the fluid pumpreturns the piston memberto the extended position, which pivots the piston activation memberfrom the shifted position to the rest position, which in turn pivots the nozzle shieldfrom the second position show inback to the first position shown in.

Advantageously, the nozzle shieldserves the dual functions of covering the spout, which helps to prevent contamination of the spout, and providing a lever for manually activating the fluid pump, which allows the dispenserto remain operational even when the supply of electricity is interrupted. Furthermore, since the dispenserdoes not include any obvious mechanism for manual operation, it is believed that users who are unfamiliar with the dispenserwill be less likely to touch the dispenserunnecessarily.

It will be understood that, although various features of the invention have been described with respect to one or another of the embodiments of the invention, the various features and embodiments of the invention may be combined or used in conjunction with other features and embodiments of the invention as described and illustrated herein.

The invention is not limited to the particular structures of the preferred embodiments that have been shown in the drawings. Rather, any functionally equivalent structures could be used.