Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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TWO FLUID PUMP
Related Application
[MI] The present invention claims priority to and the benefits of U.S.
Provisional
Application, Serial No. 61/598,443 titled Two Fluid Pump, which was filed on
February 14,
2012 and is incorporated herein by reference.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present invention relates generally to dispenser systems and a
pumping system for
dispensing two fluids in the form of a foam.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] Fluid dispenser systems, such as fluid soap and sanitizer dispensers,
provide a user with
a predetermined amount of fluid upon actuation of the dispenser. In addition,
it is sometimes
desirable to dispense the fluid in the form of foam. Foam is generally made by
injecting air into
the fluid to create a foamy mixture of liquid and air bubbles.
SUMMARY
[0002] Exemplary embodiments of pumps are disclosed herein. In some
exemplary
embodiments, a pump has a housing and a diaphragm located within the housing.
The
diaphragm separates the housing into a first chamber and a second chamber.
Each chamber
includes a one-way inlet valve for allowing a fluid into the chamber and a one-
way outlet valve
for allowing pressurized fluid out of the chamber. An actuator is connected to
the diaphragm.
Movement of the actuator in a first direction causes the volume of the first
chamber to contract
and causes the first fluid to be expelled from the first chamber while causing
the volume of the
second chamber to expand and draw in the second fluid through the second one-
way inlet valve.
Movement of the actuator in the second direction causes the volume of the
first chamber to
expand drawing the first fluid in through the first one-way inlet valve and
contracts the volume
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of the second chamber causing the second fluid to be expelled through the
second one-way outlet
valve. A mixing chamber is in fluid communication with the one-way outlet
valves and the first
and second fluid combine in the mixing chamber and form a foam.
1100031 Exemplary embodiments of dispensers include a dispenser housing and a
pump system.
The pump system includes a housing and a diaphragm. The diaphragm separates
the housing
into two chambers. The diaphragm has a first position that reduces the volume
of the first
chamber and expands the volume of the second chamber. In addition, the
diaphragm has a
second position that expands the volume of the first chamber and reduces the
volume of the
second chamber. Movement of the diaphragm to the first position causes fluid
to be expelled
from the first chamber and fluid to be drawn into the second chamber; and
movement of the
diaphragm to the second position causes fluid to be expelled from the second
chamber and fluid
to be drawn into the first chamber.
[00041 Exemplary methodologies for creating a foam comprising may included
providing a
pump having a first chamber and a second chamber separated by a diaphragm.
Providing a first
fluid comprising an acid and a second fluid comprising a base. Moving the
diaphragm to a first
position causing the first fluid to be pumped to a mixing chamber and the
second fluid to be
drawn into the second chamber; and moving the diaphragm to a second position
causing the
second fluid to be pumped to the mixing chamber and the first fluid to be
drawn into the first
chamber. A chemical reaction occurs between the first fluid and the second
fluid that causes the
formation of gas and the mixture is expelled as a foam.
100051 Exemplary embodiments of refill units are also provided. One exemplary
refill unit for
a two fluid foam dispenser includes a first reservoir and a second reservoir
formed between two
sheets of material and a first tube extending to the first reservoir and a
second tube extending to
the second reservoir. The first tube and second tube are at least partially
surrounded by the
sheets of material. a mixing chamber is included wherein the mixing chamber is
in fluid
communication with the first and second tubes. An outlet nozzle is located
downstream of the
mixing chamber. First fluid from the first fluid reservoir and second fluid
from the second fluid
reservoir are combined in the mixing chamber and form a foam that is dispensed
out of the
nozzle.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0006] These and other features and advantages of the present invention will
become better
understood with regard to the following description and accompanying drawings
in which:
[0007] Figure 1 illustrates an exemplary pumping system 100 in accordance with
one
embodiment of the present invention.
[0008] Figure 2 illustrates the pump of the exemplary pumping system 100 in a
first pumping
and priming position;
100091 Figure 3 illustrates the pump of the exemplary pumping system 100 in a
second
pumping and priming position;
[0010] Figure 4 illustrates a dispenser having an embodiment of an exemplary
pumping
system; and
[0011] Figure 5 illustrates a foam dispensing system having another embodiment
of a two fluid
pump.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0012] Figure 1 illustrates a schematic view of a pumping system 100. Pumping
system 100
includes a pump 101. Pump 101 has a housing 102. Housing 102 is divided by
diaphragm 104
into a first chamber 112 and a second chamber 114. Diaphragm 104 may be made
with any
flexible material, such as, for example, a thin elastomeric material, plastic,
rubber, or even a thin
piece of metal. An actuator, such as, for example, piston 106 is connected to
diaphragm 104 and
extends through housing 102. A sealing member 108 forms a fluid tight seal
between piston 106
and housing 102. The pumping system may be used in a wall-mounted dispenser, a
tabletop
dispenser or a personal hand held dispenser.
100131 First chamber 112 has a one-way inlet valve 120 to allow a first fluid
into pump 101
and prevents fluid in first chamber 112 from flowing out of first chamber 112.
First chamber
112 also includes a one-way outlet valve 140 to allow fluid to flow out of
first chamber 112
through tube 142 and into mixing chamber 144. Similarly, second chamber 114
includes a one-
way inlet valve 130 for allowing fluid into second chamber 114 and a one-way
outlet valve 146.
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One-way outlet valve 146 allows fluid to flow out of second chamber 114 and
through tube 148
and into mixing chamber 144. The one-way inlet and outlet valves above may be
any type of
one-way valve, such as, for example, a mushroom valve, a flapper valve, a plug
valve, an
umbrella valve, a poppet valve, a duck bill valve, etc. An outlet nozzle 150
is located
downstream of the mixing chamber for dispensing foam formed by combining the
two fluids. In
some embodiments, outlet nozzle 150 contains a series of baffles (not shown)
to increase the
mixing turbulence as the two fluids pass through and are mixed together. In
some embodiments
the nozzle is narrow and elongated causing the two fluids to mix together.
[0014] Pump system 100 also includes a first fluid reservoir 124 for holding a
first fluid and a
second fluid reservoir 134 for holding a second fluid. First fluid reservoir
124 is in fluid
communication with first chamber 112 through tube 122 and one-way inlet valve
120. Second
fluid reservoir 134 is in fluid communication with second chamber 114 through
tube 132 and
inlet valve 130. In one embodiment, pump 101 connects directly to first and
second fluid
reservoirs 124, 134. Optionally, the system is inverted and pump 101 connects
directly to first
and second fluid reservoirs 124, 134, and tubes 122 and 132 may not be needed
because the fluid
flows into the first and second chambers 112, 114 due to gravitational forces.
In one
embodiment, first and second reservoirs 124, 134 are collapsible and tubes
122, 132 are not
needed as vacuum pressure draws the fluid out of the reservoirs.
[0015] Figures 2 and 3 illustrate pump 101 in operation. In Figure 2, piston
106 is moved
inward and diaphragm 104 deflects inward. In this position, the volume of
first chamber 112 is
reduced which causes one-way inlet valve 120 to be in a closed position, and
forces fluid within
first chamber 112 to be expelled out of one-way outlet valve 140. At the same
time, the volume
of second chamber 114 expands creating a vacuum in second chamber 114. The
vacuum causes
one-way outlet valve 146 to be closed and draws fluid from second fluid
reservoir 134 in through
one-way inlet valve 130.
[0016] Conversely, when piston 106 is moved outward, diaphragm 104 deflects
outward
(illustrated in Figure 3) which causes the volume of first chamber 112 to
expand closing one-way
outlet valve 140 and drawing fluid from first reservoir 124 in through one-way
inlet valve 120.
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The volume of second chamber 114 is reduced causing one-way inlet valve 130 to
be closed and
forces fluid out through one-way outlet valve 146.
100171 Referring back to Figure 1, the first fluid flows from the first
chamber 112 through tube
142 and into mixing chamber 144. The second fluid flows from the second
chamber 114 through
tube 148 into mixing chamber 144. When the first and second fluids combine, a
chemical
reaction takes place. The chemical reaction causes the fluid to foam, and the
foam is expelled
out of nozzle 150. In one embodiment, the first and second fluids enter the
mixing chamber 144
at an intersecting angle with respect to each other so that the fluids collide
together. In one
embodiment, the angle is between 30 and 180 degrees.
[0018] In addition, in one embodiment the opening into the mixing chamber 144
from tubes
142, 148 restricts the flow of fluid so that the velocity of the first and
second fluids is increased
as they enter mixing chamber 144.
[0019] In one embodiment, the first fluid includes weak acid and the second
fluid includes a
weak base. When the two fluids combine, a gas is formed. In addition, one or
both of the fluids
may contain a wax. The gas created by the combination of the two fluids mixes
with, and is
trapped in, the wax and forms a thick foam.
[00201 Pump 101 made in accordance with the present invention may be any
suitable size. In
one embodiment, the pump 101 is large enough to move a suitable amount of
fluid in a small
amount of cycles. Such a pump may be operated at a low frequency.
[0021] In one embodiment, pump 101 is small and is operated at a high
frequency moving a
small volume of each liquid into the mixing chamber 144 with each stroke. The
rapid movement
of small volumes of liquid cause a more violent mixing of the two liquids in
mixing chamber
144. In one embodiment, the frequency that pump 101 cycles is greater than
about 30 cycles per
second and in another is greater than about 60 cycles per second. Although
embodiments of
large pumps have been described having lower cycle frequencies than smaller
pumps, larger
pumps with higher cycle frequencies and smaller pumps with lower cycle
frequencies are also
contemplated herein.
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10022] Actuator 106 may be moved electrically or mechanically. In one
embodiment, an
electric motor rotates a gear and the rotational motion is converted into a
reciprocating linear
movement to move the piston 106 back and forth. The electric motor may operate
of an
alternating current source, such as 120 VAC or a direct current source, such
as 6 VDC, and may
be battery operated. In one embodiment, a manual push bar attached to
appropriate gearing
converts a linear motion to a rotational motion and to a reciprocating motion
to move piston 106
back and forth. The gearing may be such that a relatively short stroke is
converted into a large
number of reciprocating cycles.
[00231 Figure 4 illustrates a dispenser 400 having a pump 401. Pump 401 is
similar to pump
101. Pump 401 has a housing 402 that includes a diaphragm 404 separating the
housing 402 into
a first chamber 412 and a second chamber 414. First chamber 412 includes a
first one-way
check valve 420 that is in fluid communication with a first fluid reservoir
424. First chamber
412 also includes a first one-way outlet check valve 440. Second chamber 414
includes a second
one-way check valve 430 that is in fluid communication with a second fluid
reservoir 434.
Second chamber 414 also includes a second one-way outlet check valve 446. A
mixing chamber
444 is in fluid communication with first chamber 412 via tube 442 and is in
fluid communication
with second chamber 414 via tube 448. An outlet nozzle 450 extends from mixing
chamber 444
through housing 402 so that the foamed liquid may be dispensed.
[0024) Pump 401 also includes an actuator, such as, for example, piston 406.
Piston 406
extends through pump housing 402. A seal 408 is provided between piston 406
and housing 402
to prevent fluid from flowing out of the pump housing 402. Piston 406 is
connected to an
electric motor 450 and gearing 452 through linkage 454. Electric motor 450 may
be an AC
motor or a DC motor. Preferably, electric motor 450 is battery operated and
dispenser 400
includes a battery pack (not shown) for operating pump 401. Movement of piston
406 in a first
direction pumps a first fluid from first chamber 412 into mixing chamber 444
and draws a
second fluid from second fluid reservoir 434 into second chamber 414. Movement
of piston 406
in a second direction pumps the second fluid from second chamber 414 into
mixing chamber 444
and draws the first fluid from first fluid reservoir 424 into first chamber
412. When the first
fluid and second fluid meet in mixing chamber 444, a chemical reaction occurs
causing the
mixture of the first fluid and second fluid to form a foam. The foam is
dispensed through nozzle
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450. An actuator (not shown) is used to actuate the dispenser. The actuator
may be a
mechanical actuator, but preferably is an electronic actuator and dispenser
402 is a hands free
dispenser that detects an object and dispenses foam.
[00251 Rather than using electric motor 450 to operate pump 401 of dispenser
402, a manual
operator, such as, for example, a pushbar connected to a rack and pinion gear
system (not
shown), may be used. In one embodiment, a pushbar is connected to a rack that
moves in a
linear, back and forth motion when the pushbar is pushed and released. As the
rack moves
forward, the rack rotates a gear which translates the motion to a
reciprocating back and forth
motion to drive the pump 401. In one embodiment, a spring is used to return
the pushbar back to
its rest position and causes the gear to rotate in the opposite direction
continuing to reciprocate in
a back and forth motion to drive pump 401.
[00261 Figure 5 illustrates another embodiment of a foam dispensing system 500
using two
pumps to pump fluid that combines to form a foam. Foam dispensing system 500
includes a
dispenser housing 502. Located in and about dispenser housing 502 is an
actuator and roller (not
shown). In operation, the actuator causes the roller to roll down tubes 520
and 522 to force
liquid down through the tubes 520, 522. An example of such an actuator and
roller system is
shown and described in co-pending U.S. Non-Provisional Application Serial No.
13/605,17, filed
on September 6, 2012, which claims the benefits of and priority to U.S.
Provisional Patent
Application No. 61/531,935 filed September 7, 2011. Both of which are entitled
WIPER FOAM
PUMP, REFILL UNIT & DISPENSER FOR SAME. These applications are incorporated
herein
by reference in their entirety. Other actuators such as those shown and
described in U.S. Pat.
Nos. 7,281,643, 6,189,740 and 5,464,125, which are incorporated herein in
their entirety, may
also be modified to compress the tubes 520 and 522. The roller (not shown)
rolls down tubes
520 and 522 along area A, or the tubes 520 and 522 are compressed from their
upper portions
downward by other means. Area A may be made longer or shorter. In some
embodiments, at
least a portion of area A includes tubes 520, 522 and material used to form
reservoirs 514 and
516 described in more detail below.
[00271 Dispenser 500 includes a refill unit 508 that includes fluid
reservoirs 514, 516,
fitments 518A, 518B, tubes 520, 522, one-way check valves 530, 532, mixing
chamber 524 and
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outlet 526. In one embodiment, refill unit 508 is made from two sheets of
material, such as, for
example, LDPE, HDPE, Polypro, Vinyl, EVA, PLA or HDPE. The two sheets of
material are
welded together as illustrated by the shaded areas 512. Fitments 518A and 518B
are welded to
the two sheets. Prior to welding, or prior to completing the welding of the
two sheets, tubes 520
and 522 are positioned through fitments 518A and 51813 and between the two
sheets so that
when the sheets are welded in the area designated by A, tubes 520 and 522 are
surrounded by the
sheet material. The sheets are welded to form two chambers 514, 516. Chambers
514, 516 are
illustrated as slightly different sizes; however, they may be made equal in
size, or proportionate
to the desired mix ratio of the two fluids. Similarly, tubes 520, 522 may be
the same size or
different sizes depending on the desired mix ratio. Ends 521, 523 of tubes
520, 522
(respectively) extend up to reservoirs 514, 516. In one embodiment, ends 521,
523 extend up
into reservoirs.
[0028] In one embodiment, one-way valves 540 and 542 are also included. They
are located in
tubes 520, 522 near ends 521, 523, respectively. The one-way check valves
described herein
may be any type of one-way valve, such as, for example, a mushroom valve, a
flapper valve, a
plug valve, an umbrella valve, a poppet valve, a duck bill valve, etc. These
one-way check
valves 540, 542 allow liquid to flow from reservoirs 514, 516 into tubes 520,
522, but not from
tubes 520, 522 back up into reservoirs 514, 516. The addition of these one-way
check valves
allows liquid to be pumped through the tubes 520, 522 even if the tubes 520,
522 are not fully
compressed by the roller or other mechanism for forcing fluid down tubes 520,
522. In this
embodiment, as long as some compression of tubes 520, 522 occurs, the volume
within tubes
520, 522 is reduced and fluid is pumped into mixing chamber 524.
100291 Located at the other end of tubes 520, 522 are valves 530, 532 and
mixing chamber 524.
Valves 530, 532 have a cracking pressure sufficient to prevent fluids from
chambers 514, 616
from unintentional discharge. Valves 530, 532 open under sufficient pressure
created by the
roller (not shown) or other mechanism that forces fluid down tubes 520, 522. A
nozzle 526 is
located downstream of mixing chamber 524 and extends through housing 502 to
dispense foam.
In one embodiment, not shown, the roller in its rest position at the upper end
of travel is
positioned against tubes 520, 522 with sufficient force to pinch the tubes
520, 522 shut and
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provide additional insurance against unintentional discharge. In one
embodiment, a shipping cap
not shown is connected to nozzle 526 to prevent unintentional discharge during
shipping.
[00301 In one embodiment, valves 530, 532 cause fluid to accelerate as it
passes through the
valves 530, 532 to cause the two fluids to violently collide inside the mixing
chamber 524. In
one embodiment, the fluid inlets to mixing chamber 524 are positioned so that
the fluid streams
converge with each other in mixing chamber 524.
[00311 While the present invention has been illustrated by the description of
embodiments
thereof and while the embodiments have been described in considerable detail,
it is not the
intention of the applicants to restrict or in any way limit the scope of the
appended claims to such
detail. Additional advantages and modifications will readily appear to those
skilled in the art.
For example, an air pump may be added to the system to force air into the
mixing chamber to
ftirther enhance the foam. In one embodiment, first chamber 112 and/or second
chamber 114
may be configured with a second one-way inlet valve (not shown) allowing the
first chamber 112
and/or second chamber 114 to draw in fluids from two or more sources that are
mixed together in
the first or second chambers 112, 114 before traveling to the mixing chamber
144. Moreover,
elements described with one embodiment may be readily adapted for use with
other
embodiments. Therefore, the invention, in its broader aspects, is not limited
to the specific
details, the representative apparatus and illustrative examples shown and
described.
Accordingly, departures may be made from such details without departing from
the spirit or
scope of the applicants' general inventive concept.
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