Automatic towel dispenser
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional towel dispensers are not designed to accommodate pre-perforated toweling and can be difficult to load, as they are configured for continuous rolls and require complex threading of toweling through guide systems.
Innovation Solution
A towel dispenser with a housing that contains pre-perforated toweling, equipped with a motor, perforation sensor, and controller to automatically dispense individual towels based on perforation detection, allowing easy loading and separation at pre-made perforations, using a drive roller and sensor roller with different surface speeds to apply tension and expand perforations for easy tearing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If conventional towel dispensers are configured for continuous rolls of non-perforated toweling, then they can dispense towels using a motor and guide system, but they cannot accommodate pre-perforated toweling and require complex threading through the guide system
Solution Approach 1:
The dispenser is modified to detect and respond to pre-existing perforations in the toweling, effectively segmenting the continuous dispensing process into individual towel portions at the perforation points. This allows the system to accommodate pre-perforated toweling without requiring complex manual threading, as the perforations themselves serve as natural segmentation points that the sensor can detect and the motor can use to control dispensing length.
2Manufacturing precision
If a motor is operated for a predetermined time to dispense toweling, then individual towel lengths can be controlled, but the system cannot detect pre-made perforations to automatically stop dispensing
Solution Approach 1:
The system replaces purely time-based motor control with a sensor-based detection system that identifies perforations in the toweling. The sensor detects the presence of perforations and sends signals to the controller, which then deactivates the motor at the precise moment a perforation is detected. This substitution of mechanical time-based control with optical/electronic sensing achieves both precise towel length control and automatic perforation detection.
3Ease of operation
If conventional dispensers use a single-speed motor for toweling movement, then the system is simple to operate, but it cannot apply tension to expand perforations for easy tearing
Solution Approach 1:
The system introduces dynamic speed control with two distinct operational modes: a first speed for transporting the toweling through the dispenser, and a second, faster speed for applying tension to expand perforations when detected. The controller dynamically switches between these speeds based on sensor input, allowing the motor to serve dual functions of simple transport and perforation expansion without requiring entirely separate mechanical systems.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables efficient and easy dispensing of pre-perforated towels, simplifying the loading process and ensuring consistent towel lengths, as the motor deactivates upon detecting a perforation, allowing for easy separation and removal of individual towels.
Implementation Method 1
a perforation sensor for sensing the perforation and configured to generate a signal when the perforation passes through the housing
Data Source
AI summary
A towel dispenser includes a housing for receiving toweling. The housing includes a main body; a loading door that is configured to rotate relative to the main body between a closed position and an open position; and a guide system that includes a first roller attached to the main body and a second roller attached to the loading door. The towel dispenser may include a motor for driving dispensing of the toweling from the housing and an associated sensor. The towel dispenser can be mounted to an underside of a cabinet. In an aspect, the front wall of the main body and a lip of the loading door collectively define a gap to which the guiding system guides the toweling and through which towels are dispensed when the loading door is in the closed position.