Multi-hole filling nozzle and components thereof

[0014] figure 1 with 2 A non-limiting example of the porous nozzle assembly 20 is shown. figure 2 It is shown that the porous nozzle assembly 20 may generally include a cylinder 22, an optional connecting body 24, and a nozzle body 26. The cylinder 22 moves the plug 28 inside the nozzle body 26 to open and close the nozzle. The optional connecting body 24 connects the cylinder 22 to the nozzle body 26. It should be understood that the nozzle body 26 or its components may include inventions having their own rights independent of and separate from the nozzle assembly 20, and a description of the nozzle assembly is provided to show these components in context.

[0015] figure 2 It is shown that the cylinder 22 may include a housing 30 having an internal hollow space 32 therein. The cylinder 22 also includes a rod 34, a piston 36 and a spring 38. During operation, the cylinder 22 can move the rod 34 upward in the usual orientation to open the nozzle and downward to close the nozzle. If the air pressure to the filling machine is turned off (for emergencies, maintenance, air tube damage, etc.), the spring 38 keeps the plug 28 against the opening in the nozzle body 26 and prevents liquid from flowing out of the nozzle. The cylinder 22 may include any suitable commercially available cylinder.

[0016] The optional connecting body 24 may include elements of any configuration suitable for connecting the cylinder 22 to the nozzle body 26.

[0017] The nozzle body 26 is joined to other parts of the nozzle assembly 20 and forms an outlet of the nozzle assembly 20. The nozzle body 26 includes a housing 42 and has at least one inlet duct 40 that is joined to the housing such that the housing is kept in liquid communication with the inner chamber 44 of the nozzle body 26. The nozzle assembly 20 may also include an optional rod 46 joined to the cylinder rod 34. The flexible diaphragm 48 surrounds at least a part of the length of the cylinder rod 34 or the rod 46.

[0018] The nozzle body 26 has a plurality of spaced apart channels 50 through the nozzle body. The passage 50 may be integrally formed in a part of the nozzle body 26 itself, such as the housing 42, or the passage 50 may be formed as a separate nozzle piece such as an insert or attachment that is joined to the rest of the nozzle body 26. For example, such a separate nozzle piece 52 can be removably attached (such as by a clamp) to the nozzle body housing 42. The term "nozzle member" will be used herein to describe any of the following nozzle configurations: a portion of the nozzle body 26 that has a channel 50 formed therein; or a separate nozzle piece that has a channel formed therein 50. The end of the cylinder rod 34 or optional rod 46 in the nozzle body 26 has a plug 28 for closing the passage 50 and shutting off the nozzle.

[0019] image 3 An embodiment of the nozzle part 52 in the form of a nozzle piece is shown in more detail. The nozzle part 52 has a periphery 54, an inlet side 56 having a surface, and an outlet side 58 having a surface. The nozzle member 52 has a center line L extending from its inlet side to its outlet side. The nozzle member 52 includes a plurality of independently spaced channels 50 that extend through the nozzle member from near its inlet side to its outlet side. In some embodiments, a plurality of channels 50 may be formed into the surface of the inlet side 56 of the nozzle member 52. In other embodiments, such as figure 2 As shown, the inlet side 56 of the nozzle member 52 may have a single opening or recess (or in some cases, more than one opening) formed therein. The recess may have a base adjacent to the inlet side 56 of the nozzle member 52 (for example, it may form a shelf), and the plurality of channels 50 may be formed in the shelf. The term "adjacent" is intended to cover both types of embodiments. Therefore, the passage 50 may form a single or multiple openings 50A in the inlet surface 56 of the nozzle part 52 and multiple openings in the outlet side 58 of the nozzle part 52. It should be understood that in the case where the nozzle body 26 or its housing 42 includes a nozzle member having a channel 50 formed therein, the nozzle body 26 (or its housing 42) will have a nozzle corresponding to those described herein for the nozzle piece. Features.

[0020] image 3 It is shown that the nozzle member 52 may also include a centering feature 60 extending outwardly from the outlet side 58 thereof. The centering feature 60 is used to align the nozzle part with the neck of the bottle to be filled. In this embodiment, the centering feature 60 includes a number of spaced centering elements 60A-60E that include extensions of the periphery 54 of the nozzle member. The centering elements 60A-60E have tapered inner surfaces so that they are wider at their base (or "proximal end") and narrower at their distal end.

[0021] Such as image 3 with 4 As shown, in some embodiments, the channels 50 extending through the nozzle part 52 may be substantially parallel to each other, and may also be parallel to the centerline of the nozzle part 52. The channel 50 can be any suitable size and have any suitable cross-sectional configuration. The channels 50 may all have the same cross-sectional size, or they may have different cross-sectional sizes. Suitable cross-sectional configurations include, but are not limited to, substantially circular cross-sections. The size and configuration of the channels 50 may be set so that when the liquid is dispensed through the nozzle, the liquid is discharged from each channel 50 to the outlet side in an independent flow.

[0022] Such as image 3 with 4 As shown, the surface of the outlet side 58 of the nozzle member 52 may have a plurality of grooves 62 arranged to extend between the openings 50A in the surface of the outlet side 58 of the nozzle member 58. The grooves 62 in the surface of the outlet side 58 of the nozzle member may be of any suitable configuration and may be arranged in any suitable pattern. The groove 62 may be linear, curved, or a combination thereof. The size and configuration of the groove 62 may be set to reduce dripping of liquid from the channel 50 after the nozzle is closed. The groove 62 achieves this purpose by separating the openings 50A on the outlet side 58 from each other, so that any individual liquid meniscus formed at the opening 50A on the outlet side of the nozzle part cannot be combined to produce a large Droplets. Therefore, the groove 62 may at least partially surround the openings 50A to separate the openings from each other. The number of openings 50A separated from each other by the groove 62 may range from one to six or more, depending on characteristics such as the viscosity of the liquid being dispensed. Although it is possible to separate the channel 50 by a large enough distance to avoid any individual liquid meniscus combination formed at the opening 50A on the outlet side of the nozzle part to produce large droplets, the groove 62 allows the channel 50 to be positioned Get closer to each other without this happening.

[0023] in image 3 with 4 In the illustrated embodiment, the groove 62 extends radially outward from the centerline L toward the periphery of the nozzle member. The grooves 62 may intersect each other at the center line L of the nozzle part. The groove 62 may, but does not need to, extend all the way to the periphery of the nozzle part. In the specific embodiment shown, the groove 62 divides the opening 50A into a group of three openings. In this embodiment, the diameter of the opening 50A is about 2 to about 5 mm, and is separated by a distance of 3.4 mm. The groove 62 is about 2 to about 4 mm wide and about 2 mm deep.

[0024] Figure 5 to 7 A non-limiting example of several other possible nozzle channel openings 50A and groove 62 configurations. These figures show that the openings 50A (and therefore the cross-sectional dimensions of the channels) can be of different sizes, and the grooves 62 separating the openings 50A formed thereby can be arranged in many different patterns.

[0025] Picture 8 It is shown that the outlet side 58 of the nozzle part 52 may have a configuration in which the central part of the outlet side 58 of the nozzle part protrudes outward with respect to the rest of the outlet side 58. in Picture 8 In the illustrated embodiment, the configuration may be in the form of a truncated cone configuration or other configurations. Some bottles are easier to be centered by a nozzle part extending from the center of the nozzle part. In this embodiment, the inclined portion can extend into the mouth of the bottle and center the bottle to the nozzle instead of touching the outside of the bottle.

[0026] figure 2 with 9 One embodiment of the plug 28 for filling the nozzle is shown. The plug 28 can be of any suitable configuration and can be made of any suitable material. In the illustrated embodiment, the plug 28 is configured to have a substantially flat distal end that is large enough to simultaneously cover all the openings formed by the passage 50 in the inlet side 56 of the nozzle body . The plug 28 can be made of a single material such as stainless steel. in Picture 9 In the illustrated embodiment, the plug 28 includes a metal insert 70 and a compressible material 72 at least at its end for shutting off the nozzle. Such as figure 2 with 9 As shown, the compressible material 72 can encapsulate the metal insert 70.

[0027] The components of the porous nozzle assembly 20 can be made of any suitable material in any suitable manner. The various components (in addition to any compressible material used for the plug) can be machined or cast from metal such as stainless steel or plastic; or some components can be made of metal, and some components can be made of plastic.

[0028] The porous nozzle assembly 20 functions as follows. The liquid to be filled in the container is delivered to the nozzle inlet 40 under pressure. The cylinder rod 34 is in the closed position. In this position, the liquid is contained in the cavity 44 of the nozzle body 26. After the container is in the position to be filled, the machine program sends a signal to the solenoid valve, which transfers and sends air pressure to the air cylinder. The cylinder rod 34 moves upward to allow the liquid to flow through the channel 50 into the bottle. When the machine program detects that the appropriate amount of fluid has been delivered to the container, it sends a signal to the solenoid valve, which turns and moves the cylinder rod 34 downwards to close the passage 50 and prevent any additional liquid from flowing out of the nozzle.

[0029] As used herein, the term “joined to” includes: a configuration in which an element is directly fixed to another element by directly attaching the element to another element; by attaching the element to an intermediate member and allowing The intermediate element is then attached to another element to directly fix the element to the other element; and the configuration in which one element is integrated with the other element, that is, one element is the other element The basic part of the component. The term "connected to" includes a configuration in which a certain element is fixed to another element at a selected position, and a configuration in which a certain element is completely fixed to another element on the entire surface of one of these elements .

[0030] The dimensions and values ​​disclosed herein should not be understood as strictly limited to the precise values ​​quoted. On the contrary, unless otherwise indicated, each such dimension is intended to represent the quoted value and the functionally equivalent range surrounding that value. For example, the disclosed dimension "40mm" is intended to mean "about 40mm".

[0031] It should be understood that each maximum numerical limit given throughout the specification includes each lower numerical limit, as if such a lower numerical limit is explicitly written in this text. Every minimum numerical limit given throughout this specification shall include every higher numerical limit as if the higher numerical limit is expressly indicated herein. Every numerical range given throughout this specification will include every narrower numerical range that falls within such broader numerical range, as if such narrower numerical range is expressly written herein.

[0032] Unless expressly excluded or otherwise restricted, each document cited in this document, including any cross-references or related patents or patent applications, is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. Reference to any document is not an admission that it is prior art of any invention disclosed herein or protected by the claims, or an admission that it is presented independently or in any combination with any other reference or references, Suggest or disclose any such inventions. In addition, when any meaning or definition of a term in this document conflicts with any meaning or definition of the same term in a document incorporated by reference, the meaning or definition assigned to the term in this document shall prevail.

[0033] Although the present invention has been illustrated and described with specific embodiments, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various other changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the appended claims are intended to cover all such changes and modifications within the scope of the present invention.