Hands-Free Foam Dispenser Control for Liquefaction and Fluid Loss
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Non-pressurized hands-free foam soap dispensers face issues with liquefaction, leading to insufficient foam soap dispensing over time, and fluid dispensers with long tubes experience fluid loss due to evaporation or leakage, resulting in inadequate hand washing fluid delivery.
Innovation Solution
A fluid dispenser with a reservoir, pump, dispensing tube, nozzle, motor, attenuator, processor, and sensor that detects user presence and adjusts dispensing cycles based on time intervals to ensure consistent fluid delivery, including a suck-back mechanism to prevent fluid loss between uses.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a non-pressurized foam soap dispenser is used to reduce installation and maintenance costs, then the initial cost and maintenance cost are reduced, but the foam soap undergoes liquefaction over time resulting in insufficient foam dispensing
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by detecting user presence before dispensing and pre-positioning the appropriate amount of foam in the dispensing tube before use, ensuring that liquefied foam is replaced with fresh foam from the reservoir, thereby maintaining dispensing effectiveness without requiring pressurization
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses sensors to detect user presence and provides feedback to the controller, which then activates the pump to dispense the appropriate amount of foam. This feedback mechanism ensures that foam is dispensed only when needed, reducing waste and maintaining effectiveness despite liquefaction over time
2Ease of manufacture
If foam is generated under the counter and sent to the nozzle via a tube to reduce system cost, then the initial cost and maintenance cost are reduced, but a certain amount of foam remains in the tube and undergoes liquefaction resulting in insufficient foam quantity
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by detecting user presence before dispensing and pre-positioning the appropriate amount of foam in the dispensing tube before use, ensuring that liquefied foam is replaced with fresh foam from the reservoir, thereby maintaining dispensing effectiveness without requiring pressurization
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the parameter of foam quantity by using the processor to determine the appropriate dispensing cycle duration based on time intervals between detections, adjusting the amount of foam dispensed to compensate for any loss due to liquefaction in the tube
3Device complexity
If the dispenser operates without a suck-back mechanism to simplify the system, then the device complexity is reduced, but fluid loss occurs in the dispensing tube during non-use due to evaporation or leakage
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor provides feedback about user presence to the processor, which activates the pump only when needed. This feedback-based control reduces fluid loss by ensuring the pump operates minimally, and the suck-back mechanism uses this timing to prevent leakage during non-use periods
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
The dispenser consistently delivers a sufficient amount of fluid for hand washing, even after extended periods of inactivity, reducing waste and maintaining effectiveness by adjusting dispensing cycles and using a suck-back mechanism to prevent fluid loss.
Implementation Method 1
a foam pump pumps the liquid from the reservoir and the pump converts the liquid to foam
Implementation Method 2
a sensor to detect the presence of a user and the sensor is in communication with the processor
Data Source
AI summary
The invention is a method of dispensing a fluid and a dispenser which will dispense an appropriate amount of fluid to effectively clean a user's hand, even if the dispenser is inactive for a period of time.