Pump for a system for dispensing a liquid as a spray, a spray nozzle unit, a system for dispensing a liquid as a spray and a method for dispensing a liquid as a spray
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing dispensing systems face challenges in efficiently dispensing liquids as a spray, particularly with collapsible containers that require higher suction forces and often have complex manufacturing and recycling requirements, while also needing to overcome negative pressure and maintain hygiene.
Innovation Solution
A pump system with a resilient housing and regulator that includes an inner and outer valve, a stem for sideways bending, and a displacement guide, allowing for relative displacement between the outer valve and housing to regulate liquid flow, which is easy to manufacture and recycle, and can be used with collapsible containers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Power
If a conventional pump system is used to dispense liquid as a spray, then the liquid can be dispensed, but the pressure difference required is too large to efficiently atomize the liquid into droplets
Solution Approach 1:
The pump system uses a resilient housing that can dynamically change shape between compressed and relaxed states, allowing the chamber volume to vary continuously during operation. This dynamic volume change creates the necessary pressure differential to atomize liquid into fine droplets for effective spray dispensing.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the physical parameter of chamber volume by utilizing the elastic deformation of the resilient housing. When the housing is compressed, the chamber volume decreases, increasing pressure for spray atomization. This parameter change enables efficient liquid atomization without requiring complex mechanical components.
2Productivity
If a resilient housing is used to create pressure for spray dispensing, then atomization efficiency improves, but the device becomes more difficult to manufacture and recycle
Solution Approach 1:
The pump housing is made from a resilient material that can elastically deform under compression and return to its original shape. This flexible shell approach eliminates the need for complex mechanical pumping mechanisms, simplifying manufacturing while enabling efficient spray dispensing through volume change.
Solution Approach 2:
The pump system is designed as a disposable unit that can be easily manufactured and then discarded after use. The resilient housing and integrated components are made from inexpensive materials that allow for simple mass production and recycling processes, making the system economically viable despite the complexity of spray atomization.
3Reliability
If the pump is designed to work with collapsible containers, then hygiene is maintained, but the suction force required increases due to negative pressure in the container
Solution Approach 1:
The resilient housing is pre-compressed before the pump is activated, storing elastic potential energy that will be released during operation. This preliminary compression provides the initial driving force needed to overcome the negative pressure in collapsible containers, enabling the pump to draw liquid from the container without requiring excessive suction force.
Solution Approach 2:
The resilient housing automatically returns to its original shape after compression, creating a natural suction phase that draws liquid from the collapsible container. This self-service mechanism eliminates the need for additional actuators or complex valve systems, reducing the overall force requirements while maintaining hygiene through seamless operation with the container.
4Device complexity
If a longitudinally acting actuation means is used, then the pump structure is simplified, but the device complexity increases due to the need for a slidable piston mechanism
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the traditional piston and valve mechanisms from the pump design, replacing them with a resilient housing that directly performs the pumping function through elastic deformation. This removal of complex mechanical components simplifies the overall device structure while maintaining the ability to dispense liquid as a spray.
Solution Approach 2:
The resilient housing serves multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as the pump chamber, the actuating mechanism, and the pressure generation system. By combining these functions into a single component, the design eliminates the need for separate pistons, valves, and actuators, thereby reducing device complexity while improving manufacturability.
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 system effectively dispenses liquids as a spray with higher pressure, overcoming the challenges of collapsible containers and enabling easy recycling, while maintaining hygiene and reducing the amount of liquid used per dispensing operation.
Implementation Method 1
The pump (1) includes a housing (100) forming a chamber (110), wherein pressure in the chamber (110) can be varied for pumping liquid from the container (400) to the chamber (110), and further from the chamber (110) to the dispensing opening (120)
Implementation Method 2
The stem (210) is resilient along its length so as to be sideways bendable from an original shape to a distorted shape
Data Source
AI summary
A pump includes a housing forming a chamber; a dispensing opening; and a regulator fixedly arranged in the chamber. The regulator includes an inner valve for regulating a flow of liquid between the container and the chamber; an outer valve for regulating a flow of liquid between the chamber and the dispensing opening; a stem resilient along its length, sideways bendable, and extending in a longitudinal direction of the housing between the inner valve and the outer valve; and a displacement guide located at an outer portion of the stem on an inner side of the outer valve. An outer perimeter of the displacement guide and a portion of an internal surface of a guide region located adjacent the displacement guide are adapted to transfer the sideways bending of the stem to a relative displacement between the outer valve and the housing along the longitudinal direction of the housing.