Dispenser

Abstract

To provide a two stage cylinder pressure accumulation type discharger capable of preventing a piston guide from being disengaged from a stem due to an impact such as falling.SOLUTION: A holding member 2a including a cylinder 2b, a piston 2c, an accumulator cylinder 2d, an accumulator piston 2e1, a discharge port 2e2, a stem 2e3, and a piston guide 2e, an internal flow path 2f, a biasing part, and an accumulator biasing part, 2g 2h, in the discharger in which a piston guide side 2e3 has a rod part 6 and the rod part 6 has a fitting part side 6a, the discharger 2 has a piston guide receiving part side 2c3, the piston guide receiving part side 2c3 has an elastic part side 2c4, and lowering of the piston guide side 6a with respect to a stem side 2e3 due to disengagement of the fitting part side 2e2 is suppressed by receiving the piston guide side 2e3 from below.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a dispenser. [Background technology]

[0002] A dispenser that is attached to the mouth of a container body and dispenses contents accommodated in the accommodation space of the container body, the dispenser comprising a holding member having a discharge port, a stem, and a piston guide, and an internal flow path that extends from the accommodation space to the discharge port via a pump chamber defined by a pressure accumulator cylinder, a pressure accumulator piston, the cylinder, and the piston, the piston guide having a fitting portion that is fitted into a seated portion and an inner peripheral surface of the stem to restrict upward and downward movement relative to the stem, the pressure accumulator piston rises relative to the seated portion against the biasing force of the pressure accumulator biasing portion due to the accumulation of pressure in the pump chamber, and A known dispenser has a seat that separates from the seat to open an internal flow path, and when the holding member is pressed down, the holding member, together with the accumulator piston, descends relative to a pressure accumulator cylinder that has a smaller cross-sectional area than the cylinder, and then descends relative to the cylinder, along with the accumulator cylinder and piston, thereby sending and discharging the contents from the pump chamber to the discharge port, and when the pressing operation is released, the holding member rises relative to the pressure accumulator cylinder, and then rises relative to the cylinder, along with the accumulator cylinder and piston, thereby sucking the contents from the storage space into the pump chamber (see, for example, Patent Document 1). A two-stage cylinder pressure accumulator dispenser with the above configuration can achieve a large discharge volume. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2023-143668 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the dispenser having the above-described configuration, the piston guide may become disengaged from the stem due to an impact such as being dropped, resulting in discharge failure.

[0005] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a two-stage cylinder pressure-accumulating dispenser that can prevent the piston guide from coming loose from the stem due to an impact such as being dropped. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] One aspect of the present invention is as follows.

[0007] [1] A dispenser that is attached to the mouth of a container body having a mouth, a body, and a bottom, connected in this order, and that dispenses contents contained in a storage space of the container body, A cylinder; a piston that slides on the cylinder; an accumulator cylinder having a cross-sectional area smaller than that of the cylinder; an accumulator piston that slides on the accumulator cylinder; a holding member having a discharge port, a stem, and a piston guide; an internal flow path extending from the accommodation space to the discharge port via the pressure accumulator cylinder, the pressure accumulator piston, and a pump chamber defined by the cylinder and the piston; a biasing portion that generates a biasing force that raises the holding member relative to the cylinder; a pressure-accumulator biasing portion that generates a biasing force that moves the pressure-accumulator piston downward relative to the piston guide, the piston guide has a seated portion and a rod portion extending upward from the seated portion, the pressure accumulator piston has a seating portion that rises relative to the seated portion against the biasing force of the pressure-accumulation biasing portion due to the pressure accumulated in the pump chamber, and separates from the seated portion to open the internal flow path, the rod portion has a fitting portion that fits into an inner circumferential surface of the stem to restrict upward and downward movement of the rod portion relative to the stem, a discharger in which, by a pressing operation for pressing down the holding member, the holding member, together with the pressure accumulator piston, descends relative to the pressure accumulator cylinder, and then descends relative to the cylinder, together with the pressure accumulator cylinder and the piston, thereby sending and discharging the content from the pump chamber to the discharge port; and, by releasing the pressing operation, the holding member, after rising relative to the pressure accumulator cylinder, rises relative to the cylinder, together with the pressure accumulator cylinder and the piston, thereby sucking the content from the storage space into the pump chamber, a piston guide receiving portion supported by the pressure accumulator cylinder and receiving the piston guide from below; The piston guide receiving portion has an elastic portion that allows the piston guide to descend relative to the pressure accumulator cylinder by elastically deforming, and prevents the piston guide from descending relative to the stem due to the fitting of the fitting portion being released by supporting the piston guide from below.

[0008] [2] the accumulator cylinder has a receiving portion that receives the accumulator piston from below as the holding member and the accumulator piston descend relative to the accumulator cylinder through the pressing operation, the receiving portion has an annular upper surface that protrudes radially inward along the entire periphery on the inner circumferential surface of the pressure accumulator cylinder, the piston guide receiving portion has a main body portion that receives a lower end surface of the piston guide, The discharger according to [1], wherein the elastic portion of the piston guide receiving portion has a plurality of elastic pieces spaced apart in the circumferential direction, each of which integrally connects the main body portion to the receiving portion. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a two-stage cylinder pressure-accumulator type dispenser that can prevent the piston guide from coming loose from the stem due to an impact such as being dropped. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1]FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a state before a pressing operation of the discharge container according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 2A is a top view of the accumulator cylinder shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of part A in FIG. [Figure 4] 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a state when a pressing operation is started from the state shown in FIG. 3. FIG. [Figure 5] 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a state when the pressing operation is completed from the state shown in FIG. 4. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0012] As shown in FIG. 1 , in one embodiment of the present invention, a dispensing container 1 includes a dispenser 2 and a container body 3. The container body 3 includes a mouth 3a, a body 3b, and a bottom 3c, which are connected in this order, and defines an internal storage space S for storing contents 4. The dispenser 2 is attached to the mouth 3a of the container body 3 and dispenses the contents 4 stored in the storage space S of the container body 3 in response to operation. In this embodiment, the vertical direction is a direction along a central axis O passing through the center of the mouth 3a, the upward direction is a direction from the bottom 3c toward the mouth 3a along the vertical direction, and the downward direction is the opposite direction, the radial direction is a direction perpendicular to the central axis O, and the circumferential direction is a direction circumferential around the central axis O. The contents 4 are not particularly limited, and are a liquid in this embodiment.

[0013] As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the dispenser 2 includes a cylinder 2a, a piston 2b sliding on the cylinder 2a, a pressure-accumulating cylinder 2c having a cross-sectional area smaller than that of the cylinder 2a, a pressure-accumulating piston 2d sliding on the pressure-accumulating cylinder 2c, a holding member 2e having a discharge port 2e1, a stem 2e2, and a piston guide 2e3, an internal flow path 2f extending from the storage space S to the discharge port 2e1 via a pump chamber 2f1 defined by the pressure-accumulating cylinder 2c, the pressure-accumulating piston 2d, the cylinder 2a, and the piston 2b, a biasing portion 2g that generates a biasing force to raise the holding member 2e relative to the cylinder 2a, and a pressure-accumulating biasing portion 2h that generates a biasing force to lower the pressure-accumulating piston 2d relative to the piston guide 2e3. In this embodiment, the discharge port 2e1 discharges (sprays) the contents 4 in a mist form. However, the discharge port 2e1 is not limited to this configuration, and may be configured to discharge the contents 4 in a straight flow, for example.

[0014] The holding member 2e has a connecting portion 2e4 that connects the stem 2e2 to the accumulator cylinder 2c, and the connecting portion 2e4 holds the accumulator cylinder 2c on the stem 2e2 so that the accumulator cylinder 2c is movable up and down within a certain range. That is, the accumulator cylinder 2c is movable upward relative to the stem 2e2 until the upper end surface of the accumulator cylinder 2c abuts against the lower surface of the connecting portion 2e4 that connects the accumulator cylinder 2c to the stem 2e2, and is movable downward relative to the stem 2e2 until the locked portion 2c1 of the accumulator cylinder 2c abuts against the locking portion 2e5 of the connecting portion 2e4 in the up and down direction and is locked. In this embodiment, the locked portion 2c1 is formed by the lower surface of a circumferential groove provided on the outer peripheral surface of the accumulator cylinder 2c, and the locking portion 2e5 is formed by a plurality of protrusions that protrude radially inward, but the present invention is not limited to this.

[0015] The piston guide 2e3 has a seated portion 5a and a rod portion 6 extending upward from the seated portion 5a. The pressure-accumulating piston 2d has a seating portion 2d1 that rises relative to the seated portion 5a against the biasing force of the pressure-accumulation biasing portion 2h due to the accumulated pressure in the pump chamber 2f1, thereby separating from the seated portion 5a and opening the internal flow path 2f (see FIG. 4). The piston guide 2e3 also has a cylindrical portion 2d2 extending upward from the seating portion 2d1. The rod portion 6 has a fitting portion 6a that fits into the inner circumferential surface of the stem 2e2, thereby restricting upward and downward movement relative to the stem 2e2. In this embodiment, the fitting portion 6a is formed by a circumferential groove. The inner circumferential surface of the stem 2e2 has a plurality of ribs arranged circumferentially at intervals and extending vertically. Each rib has a protrusion 2e6 that protrudes radially inward and fits into the fitting portion 6a.

[0016] The accumulator piston 2d has a pressure accumulator sliding portion 2d3 that extends radially outward from the seating portion 2d1 and slides up and down on the accumulator cylinder 2c, and the cylindrical portion 2d2 of the accumulator piston 2d has an inner sliding portion 2d4 that slides up and down on the inner circumferential surface of the lower end portion of the stem 2e2 at the upper end portion of the cylindrical portion 2d2, and the accumulator piston 2d has an abutment portion 2d5 radially outward from the inner sliding portion 2d4, and is movable upward relative to the stem 2e2 and the piston guide 2e3 until the abutment portion 2d5 abuts against the lower end surface of the stem 2e2, and is movable downward relative to the stem 2e2 and the piston guide 2e3 until the seating portion 2d1 abuts against a seated portion 5a of the piston guide 2e3.

[0017] The stem 2e2 has an upper pressure accumulator spring receiving portion 2e7 on the outer peripheral surface of the stem 2e2 below the connecting portion of the connecting portion 2e4, which receives the upper end of the pressure accumulator biasing portion 2h, which is a compression spring that can expand and contract in the vertical direction. The pressure accumulator piston 2d has a lower pressure accumulator spring receiving portion 2d6 that receives the lower end of the pressure accumulator biasing portion 2h radially outward of the abutting portion 2d5.

[0018] The piston guide 2e3 has a rod-like shape extending in the vertical direction and has an expanded diameter portion 5 whose diameter expands downward, and the expanded diameter portion 5 has a seating portion 5a. The piston guide 2e3 also has a flange portion 5b at the lower end of the expanded diameter portion 5.

[0019] The discharger 2 includes a cylinder 2a, a mounting cap 2i, and a retaining member 2j. The cylinder 2a includes a cylindrical cylinder wall 2a1 centered on a central axis O, a flange 2a2 extending radially outward from the upper end of the cylinder wall 2a1, and a suction port 2a3 of a pump chamber 2f1. The piston 2b slides up and down on the cylinder wall 2a1. The mounting cap 2i includes an annular flange holder 2i1 centered on the central axis O and a retaining cylindrical portion 2i2 extending downward from the outer periphery of the flange holder 2i1 and retaining against the outer periphery of the port 3a with the flange 2a2 sandwiched between the flange holder 2i1 and the port 3a. The retaining member 2j is annular and surrounds the pressure accumulator cylinder 2c. It is attached to the upper end of the cylinder 2a and prevents the piston 2b from slipping out upward from the cylinder 2a.

[0020] The connecting portion 2e4 of the holding member 2e has an upper spring bearing portion 2e8 that receives the upper end of the biasing portion 2g, which is a compression spring that can expand and contract in the vertical direction. The retaining member 2j has a lower spring bearing portion 2j1 that receives the lower end of the biasing portion 2g.

[0021] The holding member 2e has a discharge port 2e1 and a push-down head 2e9 that is held at the upper end of the stem 2e2 so as to be movable in the up and down direction and that receives a push-down operation. In this embodiment, the push-down head 2e9 is a finger-type that receives a push-down operation with a finger, but is not limited to this. Note that the holding member 2e is not limited to a configuration that includes the push-down head 2e9.

[0022] The dispenser 2 has a forward and inverted unit 2k, which has a lower suction port 2k1 and an upper suction port 2k2 located above the lower suction port 2k1. When the discharge container 1 is in the upright position, the holding member 2e moves up and down to flow the contents 4 from the storage space S through the lower suction port 2k1 to the suction port 2a3 of the pump chamber 2f1. When the discharge container 1 is in the inverted position, the holding member 2e moves up and down to flow the contents 4 from the container body 3 through the upper suction port 2k2 to the suction port 2a3 of the pump chamber 2f1. The forward and inverted unit 2k allows the contents 4 to be dispensed in both the upright and inverted positions. Note that the forward and inverted unit 2k may not be provided.

[0023] The cylinder wall 2a1 of the cylinder 2a has an outside air inlet 2a4 that introduces outside air to replace the contents 4 into the storage space S as the contents 4 are discharged, and the dispenser 2 has an outside air introduction valve 2l attached to the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder wall 2a1. The outside air introduction valve 2l allows air to flow from the outside air introduction port 2a4 toward the storage space S while suppressing air flow in the opposite direction. The outside air introduction valve 2l can prevent the contents 4 from leaking out of the storage space S through the outside air introduction port 2a4 when discharging in an inverted position. Note that a configuration without the outside air introduction valve 2l is also possible.

[0024] The dispenser 2 has an overcap 2m ​​that exposes the press-down head 2e9 when removed from the mounting cap 2i, but this is not limiting.

[0025] The pressure-accumulation biasing portion 2h and the biasing portion 2g may be made of any material, and in this embodiment, they are made of metal. The piston guide 2e3, the stem 2e2, the pressure-accumulation piston 2d, and the pressure-accumulation cylinder 2c may be made of any material, and in this embodiment, they are made of resin.

[0026] In the dispenser 2, when the holding member (push-down head 2e9) is depressed, the holding member 2e, together with the accumulator piston 2d, descends relative to the accumulator cylinder 2c as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, and then descends relative to the cylinder 2a, together with the accumulator cylinder 2c and piston 2b, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, thereby sending and discharging the contents 4 from the pump chamber 2f1 to the discharge port 2e1. Furthermore, when the depression operation is released, the holding member 2e, together with the accumulator cylinder 2c, ascends relative to the cylinder 2a, together with the accumulator cylinder 2c and piston 2b, thereby sucking the contents 4 from the storage space S into the pump chamber 2f1. With the two-stage cylinder accumulator dispenser 2 configured as described above, the contents 4 can be forcefully discharged with a light operation by the accumulator cylinder 2c with a smaller cross-sectional area at the start of the depression operation, and thereafter, the contents 4 can be continued to be discharged by the cylinder 2a with a light operation that maintains the momentum of the depression operation. Therefore, a large discharge amount can be achieved while preventing the operating force from becoming excessive and the stroke of the cylinder 2a from becoming excessive.

[0027] 3 and 4, the dispenser 2 has a piston guide receiving portion 2c3 that is supported by the pressure accumulator cylinder 2c and receives the piston guide 2e3 from below, and the piston guide receiving portion 2c3 has an elastic portion 2c4 that allows the piston guide 2e3 to descend relative to the pressure accumulator cylinder 2c by elastically deforming, and by receiving the piston guide 2e3 from below, prevents the piston guide 2e3 from descending relative to the stem 2e2 due to disengagement of the fitting portion 6a. The piston guide receiving portion 2c3 allows the holding member 2e including the piston guide 2e3 to descend relative to the pressure accumulator cylinder 2c in the early stages of depression when the contents 4 are discharged by a pressing operation due to elastic deformation of the elastic portion 2c4, and also prevents the piston guide 2e3 from descending relative to the stem 2e2 due to disengagement of the fitting portion 6a due to an impact such as a drop, due to a supporting force corresponding to the elastic force of the elastic portion 2c4. The piston guide receiving portion 2c3 may or may not be configured to provide a supporting force to the piston guide 2e3 before the pushing-down operation. If the piston guide receiving portion 2c3 is configured to provide a supporting force, the magnitude of the supporting force can be set appropriately taking into consideration the biasing force of the pressure-accumulation biasing portion 2h, etc.

[0028] The pressure accumulator cylinder 2c has a receiving portion 2c2 that receives the pressure accumulator piston 2d from below as the holding member 2e and the pressure accumulator piston 2d descend relative to the pressure accumulator cylinder 2c when a pressing operation is continued after the pressure accumulator piston 2d has been received by the receiving portion 2c2. Even if the force of the pressing operation weakens, the force of the pressure accumulator biasing portion 2h presses down the piston 2b via the receiving portion 2c2, so that the force of the discharge of the contents 4 can be maintained, thereby realizing stable discharge.

[0029] The receiving portion 2c2 has an annular upper surface that protrudes radially inward over the entire circumference on the inner circumferential surface of the pressure accumulator cylinder 2c. The pressure accumulator cylinder 2c has a fitting cylinder 2c5 that extends downward from the receiving portion 2c2 and is integrally connected to the receiving portion 2c2, and a fitted cylinder 2c6 that is integrally attached to the inner circumferential surface of the fitting cylinder 2c5 and is integrally connected to the piston 2b.

[0030] The piston guide receiving portion 2c3 has a main body portion 2c7 that receives the lower end surface of the piston guide 2e3. The elastic portion 2c4 of the piston guide receiving portion 2c3 has multiple (three in this embodiment) elastic pieces 2c8 spaced apart in the circumferential direction and integrally connected to the receiving portion 2c2. The main body portion 2c7 has a columnar shape extending in the vertical direction, and the radially inner end 2c9 of each elastic piece 2c8 is connected to the lower end of the outer circumferential surface of the main body portion 2c7. Each elastic piece 2c8 has a radially inner end 2c9, a radially outer end 2c10 that is connected to the receiving portion at a position shifted circumferentially to one side relative to the radially inner end 2c9, and an intermediate portion 2c11 that connects the radially inner end 2c9 and the radially outer end 2c10. As shown in FIG. 2, in a natural state before elastic deformation, the multiple elastic pieces 2c8 are defined by openings that penetrate in the vertical direction, the same number as the number of elastic pieces 2c8. When the internal flow path 2f is depressed, the content 4 in the pump chamber 2f1 is sent toward the discharge port 2e1 through the gaps between the elastically deformed elastic pieces 2c8. The material of the piston guide receiving portion 2c3 is not particularly limited, but in this embodiment, the piston guide receiving portion 2c3 is made of a resin material.

[0031] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the above-described embodiments can be modified in various ways without departing from the gist of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0032] 1 Discharge container 2 Dispenser 2a Cylinder 2a1 Cylinder wall 2a2 flange 2a3 Intake port 2a4 Outside air intake 2b piston 2c Accumulator cylinder 2c1 Locked part 2c2 Receiving part 2c3 Piston guide receiving part 2c4 Elastic part 2c5 fitting tube 2c6 Mated cylinder 2c7 Main body 2c8 Elastic piece 2c9 Radial inner end 2c10 Radial outer end 2c11 middle part 2d Accumulator piston 2d1 Seating area 2d2 Cylindrical part 2d3 Accumulator sliding part 2d4 Inner sliding part 2d5 Contact part 2d6 Lower pressure accumulator spring support 2e Retaining member 2e1 Discharge port 2e2 stem 2e3 Piston Guide 2e4 connection 2e5 Locking part 2e6 Protrusion 2e7 Upper pressure storage spring support 2e8 Upper spring holder 2e9 Depressor Head 2f Internal flow path 2f1 Pump room 2g Force part 2h Accumulator energizing section 2i Mounting Cap 2i1 Flange holder 2i2 Locking cylinder part 2j Stopper 2j1 Lower spring holder 2k forward and inverted unit 2k1 Lower suction port 2k2 Upper suction port 2l fresh air intake valve 2m overcap 3 Container body 3a Mouth 3b Torso 3c bottom 4 Contents 5 Expanded diameter part 5a Seated part 5b Flange part 6 Rod section 6a Fitting part O center axis S Storage space

Claims

1. A dispenser that is attached to the mouth of a container body having a mouth, a body, and a bottom, connected in this order, and that dispenses contents contained in a storage space of the container body, A cylinder; a piston that slides on the cylinder; an accumulator cylinder having a cross-sectional area smaller than that of the cylinder; an accumulator piston that slides on the accumulator cylinder; a holding member having a discharge port, a stem, and a piston guide; an internal flow path extending from the accommodation space to the discharge port via the pressure accumulator cylinder, the pressure accumulator piston, and a pump chamber defined by the cylinder and the piston; a biasing portion that generates a biasing force that raises the holding member relative to the cylinder; a pressure-accumulator biasing portion that generates a biasing force that moves the pressure-accumulator piston downward relative to the piston guide, the piston guide has a seated portion and a rod portion extending upward from the seated portion, the pressure accumulator piston has a seating portion that rises relative to the seated portion against the biasing force of the pressure-accumulation biasing portion due to the pressure accumulated in the pump chamber, and separates from the seated portion to open the internal flow path, the rod portion has a fitting portion that fits into an inner circumferential surface of the stem to restrict upward and downward movement of the rod portion relative to the stem, a discharger in which, by a pressing operation for pressing down the holding member, the holding member, together with the pressure accumulator piston, descends relative to the pressure accumulator cylinder, and then descends relative to the cylinder, together with the pressure accumulator cylinder and the piston, thereby sending and discharging the content from the pump chamber to the discharge port; and, by releasing the pressing operation, the holding member, after rising relative to the pressure accumulator cylinder, rises relative to the cylinder, together with the pressure accumulator cylinder and the piston, thereby sucking the content from the storage space into the pump chamber, a piston guide receiving portion supported by the pressure accumulator cylinder and receiving the piston guide from below; The piston guide receiving portion has an elastic portion that allows the piston guide to descend relative to the pressure accumulator cylinder by elastically deforming, and prevents the piston guide from descending relative to the stem due to the fitting of the fitting portion being released by supporting the piston guide from below.

2. the accumulator cylinder has a receiving portion that receives the accumulator piston from below as the holding member and the accumulator piston descend relative to the accumulator cylinder through the pressing operation, the receiving portion has an annular upper surface that protrudes radially inward along the entire periphery on the inner circumferential surface of the pressure accumulator cylinder, the piston guide receiving portion has a main body portion that receives a lower end surface of the piston guide, 2. The dispenser according to claim 1, wherein the elastic portion of the piston guide receiving portion has a plurality of elastic pieces that are spaced apart in the circumferential direction and each integrally connects the main body portion to the receiving portion.

Images