CONTAINER DESIGN

RECIPIENT

English Abstract

CONTAINER HOLDER AND ACTUATOR FOR AEROSOL CANS
Abstract of the Disclosure
A container holder for air freshener, deodorizer
or other conventional household aerosol cans. The
container holder is wall mountable and comprises a
holder body into which the container is placed and
a cover portion which is slideably mounted onto the
holder body. As the cover is pushed in the downward
direction a tongue located on the inside surface of
the cover top causes the container valve to actuate
releasing a spray of the container contents into the
environment. Upon release of the cover, the covery
springs upward to its rest position causing the
container valve to shut.

Claims

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive
property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:
1. A holder apparatus for retaining and
engaging pressurized cans, said pressurized cans having
a valve and nozzle located on the can, said holder
apparatus adapted to be wall-mountable and comprising
a holder body adapted to hold a pressurized can, a
removable cover, extension means within the cover for
engaging the valve of the pressurized can when said
cover moves downward relative to said holder body, and
means for slideably mounting the cover over the holder
body, including at least one longitudinally extending
rail and a longitudinally extending groove for receiving
said rail with one of said rail and groove on the inside
surface of said cover and the other on the outside surface
of said holder body, so that when the cover is placed onto
the holder body, the rail engages said groove to produce
a slideable fit between the cover and the holder body.
2. A holder apparatus as in claim 1 wherein
the extension means is a tongue extending into the
cover interior space in alignment with the valve of
the pressurized can.
3. A holder apparatus as in claim 1 having
grip means projecting from said cover for use in depressing
said cover relative to said holder body.

4. A holder apparatus as in claim 1 wherein
the cover is rectangular in shape and includes a top,
two side walls and a front wall with an opening formed
therein to permit a portion of the can contents to
pass from within the holder body interior into the
environment upon actuation of the valve affixed to the
can.

Description

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Back~round of the Inventlon
The present invention relates to an apparatus for
dispensing the contents of pressurized aerosol cans.
Descri~tlon of thP Prlor Art
Prior wall holders for aerosol cans such as the
holder disclosed in U~S. Patent 4,111,338 normally
have a cover or lever pivotally mounted to the holder
body. The cover or lever is pivotally mounted to the
body with bolts, hinges and the like forming a move-
able joint between the holder cover and bodyO When
hinges or bolts are used to connect the cover of the
holder to the holder body, the appearance of the appa-
ratus is awkward since the cover protrudes from the hold-
er body as shown in the drawings of U.S. Patent4,111r338. The use of the hinge fasteners unnecessar-
ily complicates the design and fahrication of the
holder, resulting in added costs. Furthermore, the
hinges connecting the cover to the holder body may
wear or break on frequent use or on application of
excessive hand force to depress t:he cover.
Summary of the Invention
It is an object of the present invention to pro-
vide a wall holder for dispensing the contents ofpressurized aerosol cans, with the holder having a
slender, streamlined design and a minimum of
mechanical parts.
The wall holder of the present invention is
designed to hold aerosol cans for dispensing room air
fresheners, insecticide repellent, smoke deodorizers
and the like. The wall holder consists of a cover
portion and a holder body. The holder body is attach-
able to the wall of a room or bathroom by screw means
or adhesives. An aerosol can is placed upright in an

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opening of the holder body. The holder body is formed
with rails on the outersurface of its sidewalls. The
cover has grooves on the innersurface of each of its
sides for engaging the rails of the holder body as
the cover is slipped over it. As the cover is manually
depressed, a tongue on the inside top surface of the
cover actuates the can nozzle~ When the nozzle is
actuated, a spray is emit~ed to the environment through
an opening in the cover.
Brief Description of the Drawings
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the holder body
of the pr~sent invention.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the cover for
the holder body.
FIGo 3 is a top view of the holder body with
aerosol can positioned therein and cover engaging the
holder body.
Detailed Descrip~ion
The wall holder of the invention in FIG. 1
includes a holder body 10 and a cover 30. The holder
body 10 is preferably rectan~ular as shown in FIG. 1,
but may also be of cylindrical shape. The holder is
formed by sidewalls 14 and 16, a backwall 12 and a
bottom 18. A key hole 13 in the back wall is shaped
to recei~e a screw or fastening means for affixing the
holder body to a wall. Alternatively, the holder body
may be attached to the wall by adhesive applied to the
suter surface of the backwall 12.
Rails 20 and 22 are located on each of the side-
walls 14 and 16 respectively. The rails 20 and 22 run
substantially along the vertical length of the holder
body and protrude slightly from the sidewall surface.
The holder body may be compris~d of common plastic

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material such as polyethylene or polystyrene. The
rails are preferably integrally molded with the
holder body, but they may also be made of different
material, such as metal and glued or fastened to the
sidewalls.
The slideable cover 30 for the holder body shown
in FIG. 2 is shaped to conform into the holder body
10. In the preferred embodiment, it is rectangular
in shape. However, it should be semicylindrical in
shape if the holder body is cylindrical. The cover
30 is formed with a top 32, sidewalls 34 and 36, and
a front 37. An opening 42 is formed in the upper por-
tion of the front 37. Grooves 38 and 40 are located
on the inside surface of the sidewalls 34 and 36
respectively and are shaped to receive rail~ 20 and
22 in sliding fit~ The grooves extend vertically
along the length of the sidewalls and protrude out-
wardly from the sidewalls. A tongue protruding down-
wardly from the top 32 may be of varied configuration
such as o rectangular or circular ~hape and of varied
lengths and width. A preferred configuration for the
tongue is that of a rectangular bar located about mid-
way between the sidewalls 34 and 36 and passing from
near the front edge of top 32 to or in close proximity
to the central axis of the cover 30. A manual depres-
sion means such as lip 44 is affixed to and protrudes
outwardly from the cover. Preferably the lip 44 is
positioned near the lower edge of the front surface
37 and is of sufficient width and length to allow
convenient placement of one or more fingers. The
cover 30 together with the tongue 46, grooves 38 and
40 and the lip A4 may preferably be cast molded from
plastic material such a polyethylPne or polystyrene
plastic. In use, the can holder body 10 is first
fastened to a wall by affixing the back surface 12 to
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the wall ~urface by screw means or adhesive. An aerosol
can is then placed into the holder body so $hat the
bottom of the can rests against the bottom 18. The
slideable cover 30 is then placed over the holder body
10 so that rails 20 and 22 of the holder body engage
grooves 38 and 40 of the sidewalls of the cover. The
cover is slid down along the rails until tongue 46
comes to rest against the valve means 52 conventionally
located at the top of an aerosol can. In order to
ob~ain spray from the contents of the can, finger
pressure may be exerted downwardly on lip 44 where-
upon the cover slides downwardly along rails 14 and
22 causing the tongue 46 to actuate valve 52 of the
can~ The can contents then sprays from the can nozzle
(not shown) through opening 42 and into the environ-
ment. On release of lip 44 the cover springs upward-
ly causing valve 52 to shut~ Small plastic leaf
springs or the equivilent may be affixed to the inside
of the top surface 32 of the cover to facilitate move-
ment of the cover upon release of the lip 44.
While the present invention has been describedwith reference to a specific preferred embodiment,
it should be apprceciated that other arrangements are
possible without departing from the concept of the
invention. The invention is intended ~o be limited
only by the language of the claims and equivalents
thereofO
.