Inductively Heatable Fluid Reservoir for Low-Residue Viscous Dispensing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing dispensers for viscous fluids, such as soap and personal lubricants, face issues with residual fluid left in the dispenser, leading to contamination, waste, and inefficiency, particularly when these fluids require heating before use.
Innovation Solution
A dispenser design that includes a housing with a heating element, a proximity sensor, and an actuator to heat and dispense viscous fluids without contact, using a collapsible reservoir and a mechanism to control the dispensing force, ensuring minimal residual fluid and efficient use.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If motion-activated dispensing is used for viscous fluids, then contamination is reduced, but residual fluid left in the dispenser becomes messy and non-hygienic
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by heating the viscous fluid to alter its physical state and reduce viscosity. This allows the fluid to flow more completely through the dispensing mechanism, minimizing residual fluid left in the dispenser while maintaining the motion-activated contamination-free dispensing benefit
Solution Approach 2:
The heating element performs preliminary action by warming the viscous fluid before dispensing occurs. This pre-heating ensures the fluid reaches optimal flow characteristics beforehand, enabling complete dispensing without leaving messy residuals in the mechanism
2Productivity
If heating element is added to dispense viscous fluids, then fluid flow is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the heating function with the existing dispenser structure by integrating a heating element into the housing. This combination allows viscous fluid heating without requiring a separate heating device, thus improving fluid dispensing efficiency while minimizing the increase in overall device complexity
3Loss of substance
If large reservoir is used, then residual fluid waste is acceptable, but space requirement increases
Solution Approach 1:
By changing the temperature parameter of the viscous fluid through heating, the patent enables complete dispensing of fluid from the reservoir. This reduces fluid waste without requiring an excessively large reservoir, as the heated fluid flows more completely through the dispensing mechanism leaving minimal residuals
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 effectively heats and dispenses viscous fluids without contamination or waste, providing a hygienic and efficient solution for viscous substances like personal lubricants.
Implementation Method 1
a heating element, such as a resistance heater
Implementation Method 2
a proximity sensor mounted in the housing and configured to detect movement within the gap
Implementation Method 3
an actuator coupled to the pressing member and configured to urge the pressing member toward and away from the opening
Data Source
AI summary
A fluid reservoir includes a reservoir body, a heating structure, a piston, and an outlet port. The reservoir body includes a cross section, and a translation axis. The cross section is uniform along the translation axis. When fluid is housed in the reservoir, the heating structure is thermally coupled to the fluid. The heating structure energizes the fluid housed in the reservoir. The piston translates along the translation axis. An available volume of the reservoir to house the fluid is defined by a distance between the piston and an end of the reservoir body. When the piston is translated along the translation axis toward the end, a volume of the fluid that has been energized by the heating structure flows from the reservoir and through the outlet port. The volume of energized fluid is linearly proportional to a length of the translation of the piston.