Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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ILLE Papier-Service GmbH
I ndustriestr. 25
63674 Altenstadt
Description
Toilet-paper-roll holder
The invention relates to a holder for at least two toilet-paper rolls arranged
one on top of
the other, in accordance with the preamble of claim 1.
A holder for toilet-paper rolls of the above-mentioned type is described in US
3,572,602
B. In this dispenser two paper rolls are arranged on top of each other within
a holder,
whereby when a lower paper roll has been used up, an upper, spare roll will be
supplied
via a guide. The end of a lever element, which is mounted rotatable about a
journal,
engages into the guide. The end of the lever serves to prevent the lower paper
roll from
being pushed back.
WO 03/041549 Al relates to a dispenser for material rolls in the form of a
paper web.
The dispenser comprises a withdrawal opening for the material and a space for
at least
two rolls. A first space is arranged adjacent to the withdrawal opening and is
intended for
one roll in the operational position. A second space is intended for one roll
in the reserve
position. Holding means are arranged in a manner so that in their retaining
position they
retain the second roll in a reserve position and that they are released
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once the first roll has been removed, so that the second roll is able to fall
into the
operational position.
CH 571 994 B relates to a holder with first holding means to hold a first
toilet-paper roll in
a dispensing position, in which a user may withdraw a section of the material
web, and to
move the journals from a first position, in which the roll is .full, to a
second position, in
which the roll is at least substantially used up. Further provided are second
holding
means, to releasably hold at least one second roll in the spare position above
the
dispensing position, whereby the first and the second holding means are
coupled to each
other via at least one pivotable lever, which in the first holding means
interacts with the
journals in the first roll, in order to respond to the latter's position, in
order to hold the
second roll in the spare position for as long as the journals of the first
roll are moving from
the first to the second position, and to automatically release the second roll
from the spare
position when the journals have reached the second position, and finally
provided is a
guide device, to guide the second roll from the spare position to the
dispensing position
once the lever has released the second roll. To ensure that the roll is only
inserted into
the dispensing device with a particular orientation, it is intended that the
journals possess
different diameters and that the guide channels possess different widths.
In this embodiment as well, a circumferential surface of the paper roll bears
upon a front
wall that contains the tear-off edge, so that unrolling is only possible in
one direction.
DE 2 205 186 A describes a further holder for toilet-paper rolls. The holder
consists of a
base plate, on which a hood is mounted securable and lockable. From the base
plate
originate two walls, which are arranged in parallel at some distance from each
other.
Each of the walls comprises one guide for accommodating the respective end of
a shaft
that is carrying the paper roll, or for accommodating one of the shaft
journals that can be
accepted in an opening of a sleeve.
The guide comprises an unrolling section that extends obliquely into the
direction towards
a withdrawal device, whereby the circumference of a toilet-paper roll
presently in use
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bears upon ribbons of the withdrawal device. In this embodiment known in the
art, the
withdrawal device is embodied as an automatic device for unrolling and
dispensing the
paper that is wound onto the rolls. In addition, the guide comprises a feed
section, which
accommodates a toilet-paper roll as a spare and which extends substantially
vertically
and changes into the unrolling section.
In this embodiment known in the art, the shaft is guided in slots of two
laterally mounted
metal sheets, which are attached to the base plate. The guides are open at
their upper
ends, so that the shafts with the toilet-paper rolls can be inserted from
above. A pivotable
lever is used to direct a toilet-paper roll that serves as a spare roll and is
located in the
upper area of the slots to be subsequently transferred into the oblique area
of the guides,
once the roll that that occupied this position earlier has been consumed and
the empty
sleeve has been ejected downward. The automatic device for unrolling and
dispensing
the paper wound onto rolls is susceptible to malfunctions. Furthermore, it is
necessary
to insert the toilet-paper rolls always with the same specified orientation to
facilitate an
automatic unrolling.
DE 10 2011 004 511 Al discloses a holder for toilet-paper rolls that comprises
two lateral
side elements that are connected via a front wall. In this, the front wall
also forms a lower
tear-off edge. In each of the side elements is provided a guide to accommodate
one
respective end of a shaft carrying a toilet-paper roll. The guides comprise a
main section
that extends approximately in a straight line towards the tear-off edge of the
front wall. In
order for a proper tear-off edge to be available irrespective of the diameter
of the toilet-
paper roll, biasing means are provided that shifts the toilet-paper roll in
the direction
towards the tear-off edge. The biasing means are embodied as a pivotably
mounted arm,
which due to spring-loading bears upon the ends of the shaft carrying the
toilet-paper roll.
This embodiment is structurally complicated and consequently susceptible to
malfunction.
By means of the biasing means, the circumferential surface of the toilet-paper
roll is
pressed against the inner surface of the front wall, so that it can only be
unrolled in one
direction.
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US 2011/0095127 Al relates to a holder for at least two toilet-paper rolls
arranged one
on top of the other, which consist of a paper web wound onto a shaft. Each of
the shaft
ends is supported in one of two guides, which are accommodated in opposing
walls. In
order to prevent a spare roll from sliding into the guide track, a retaining
element is
provided, which can be actuated by a sensor element. The sensor element acts
upon the
retaining element in a closed position when the diameter of the paper roll is
large, and in
an open position, when the diameter of the paper roll falls below a minimum
threshold
diameter.
WO 2008/004920 Al describes a paper roll dispenser. The paper rolls are
supported on
a shaft with shaft ends, whereby the shaft ends are guided in lateral guides
arranged in
the wall elements. Integrated in the lateral guides is a spring-biased folding
mechanism,
which in a first state, i.e. when two rolls are present in the holder, extends
in a plane
parallel to that of the lateral wall, and in a second state, i.e. when no
spare role is present
in the guide, extends from the plane spanned by the wall element at an angle
and blocks
the guide channel.
Based on this prior art background, it is the objective of the present
invention to further
develop a holder of the above-mentioned type for toilet-paper rolls in such a
way that the
holder possesses a structurally simple design, requires little maintenance,
and is
operationally reliable.
This objective is met by the invention through the characteristic features of
claim 1. The
holder comprises a locking element, which prevents the lower toilet-paper roll
that is in
use from being pushed back into the feed section. The locking element is
embodied as
a sliding element, which is mounted slideably transverse relative to the guide
in a second
guide element, namely in the unrolling section extending inclined to the
vertical, and
which, as a result of gravity, with one end bears upon an inner surface of a
first guide
element.
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This ensures that the spare toilet paper roll can be held securely in the
desired spare
section of the guide, even if the lower toilet paper roll is pushed upwards as
a result of
improper use.
The end of the sliding element protruding into the guide preferably is
embodied wedge-
shaped on the infeed side and possesses an oblique surface, so that the
sliding element
can be pushed into an open position by the shaft end or the. shaft journal
while the toilet-
paper roll passes by, and after the shaft end or shaft journal has passed will
be forced
into a closed position by either gravity or spring bias.
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Further details, advantages, and features of the invention are not only
described in the
claims and the characteristic features specified therein ¨ individually and/or
in
combination ¨ but also in the following description of a preferred embodiment
example
shown in the figures.
The figures show:
Fig. 1 shows a front view of a holder for toilet-paper rolls,
Fig. 2 shows a lateral view of the holder in a sectional view along the
section line A-A of
Fig. 1,
Fig. 3 shows a lateral view of the holder of Fig. 1,
Fig. 4 shows a front view of the holder in a sectional view along the section
line B-B of
Fig. 3,
Fig. 5 shows a front view of the holder in a sectional view along the section
line C-C of
Fig. 3,
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Fig. 6 shows a mounting for a pivotable lever in a sectional view along a
section line D-D
of Fig. 5,
Fig. 7 shows a front view of the wall with the guide for accommodating a shaft
end or a
shaft journal, and
Fig. 8 shows a front view of the opened toilet-paper roll holder with two
toilet-paper rolls
arranged on top of each other.
Fig. 1 shows in a front view a holder 10 for at least two toilet-paper rolls
12, 14. The
holder comprises a housing 16 with a rear wall 18 for mounting the holder 10
on a wall.
Pivotably mounted by means of a hinge 22 at the rear wall 18 is a domed cover
20 that
is lockable by means of a fastener 24. Provided in a front side of the domed
cover 20 is
a viewing port 26, through which the consumption of toilet paper of the toilet-
paper roll 14
in use may be assessed.
The holder 10 comprises a first posterior wall 28 which extends in parallel to
the rear wall
18 and is connected with the latter. Arranged in parallel and at some distance
to the first
posterior wall 28 is a second anterior wall 30, whereby the toilet-paper rolls
12, 14 are
disposed between the walls 28, 30 in such a manner that a rotational axis 32,
34 extends
perpendicular to the rear wall 18. As a result of this, the toilet-paper rolls
rotate in a plane
that is parallel to the rear wall 18, so that the holder 10 can be built with
a low depth when
using toilet-paper rolls of large diameter.
On the respective inner sides 36, 38 of the walls 28, 30 that are facing the
toilet-paper
rolls 12, 14 are provided respective guides 40, 42 with U-shaped cross
sections, which
accommodate and guide the shaft journals 44, 46, which protrude in the axial
direction
beyond the ends of the toilet-paper rolls 12, 14. The shaft journals 44, 46
are end sections
of a cap 48, 50, which is inserted into the respective end-face opening of a
sleeve 52, 54
of the toilet-paper roll 12, 14. But the shaft journals may also be the end
sections of a
shaft passing through the toilet-paper roll 12, 14.
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The usually unperforated paper web 56 of the toilet-paper roll 14 in use is
withdrawn from
a withdrawal opening 58 on the bottom side and can be severed at the desired
length by
means of a first and a second tear-off element 60, 62, which laterally border
the
withdrawal opening. The tear-off elements 60, 62 form lateral connecting
elements
between the first wall 28 and the second wall 30 and extend perpendicular to
the rear wall
18.
Fig. 3 shows a lateral view of the holder with the housing 16 in its closed
state.
Fig. 4 shows in a sectional view along the section line B-B of Fig. 3 a front
view of the
first, posterior wall 28 with the guide 40. The second, posterior wall with
the guide 42 is
embodied accordingly as a mirror image and consequently is not explained in
more detail.
The guide 40 is embodied on a surface of the inner side 36 of the wall 28 and
laterally is
bordered by a first guide element 64 and a second guide element 66. The guide
40
comprises several sections. Originating from the upper end 68, 70 of the
respective first
and second guide elements 64, 66 extends a V-shaped first section 40a as a
reserve
section for accommodating the toilet-paper roll 12 as a spare. The first
section 40a is
followed by an adjacent second section 40b, which extends vertically top to
bottom and
forms a feed section, to guide the toilet-paper roll 12 into a position, where
it will be
available for use by a user.
The second section 40b merges into a third section 40c, which extends
obliquely and
straight towards the second tear-off edge 62. Consequently, the third section
40c forms
an unrolling section, which serves to move the toilet-paper roll 14 in use by
means of its
own weight towards the lateral limit stop 72, whereby the circumferential
surface of the
toilet-paper roll 14 in use comes into contact with a surface 73 of the limit
stop 72.
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The third section 40c merges into a fourth section 40d, which forms a vertical
ejection
section extending from top to bottom, to eject the empty sleeve 54 when the
toilet-paper
roll 15 in use has been consumed.
The ejection section is followed by a fifth section 40e, which extends
obliquely in the
direction towards the first tear-off edge 60 and forms a discharge section,
that is embodied
to discharge the empty sleeve 54.
Finally, the guide 40 comprises a sixth section 40f, which extends obliquely
upward and
forms a removal section that allows lateral removal of the empty sleeve 54
from the guide
40.
If an empty sleeve is present at the lowest point of the discharge section
40c, then the
preferably colour-highlighted studs 48, 50 are visible from the outside, to
serve as visual
indication for service personnel to replace the empty sleeve.
The discharge section 40e is bordered in the direction towards the withdrawal
opening 58
by the second guide element 66. As upper limit is provided a third guide
element 74,
which is arranged on the surface 32 of the wall 28 at some distance above the
second
guide element 58.
The first guide element 64 is embodied as a pivotable lever, which is mounted
pivotable
around a hinge 76 arranged in the transition region between the feed section
40b and the
unrolling section 40c. The pivotable lever 64 comprises a first arm 78, which
together
with an obliquely extending lateral surface 80 forms a border of the reserve
section 40a
and together with a straight lateral surface 82 forms a lateral border of the
feed section
40b.
Provided in a transition region between the oblique lateral surface 80 and the
straight
lateral surface 82 is a projection 84, which may be positioned against a
lateral surface 86
of the second guide element 66 to block the feed section 40b.
Further, the pivotable lever 64 comprises a second arm 88, which extends from
the hinge
76 towards the vertically extending ejection section 40d, and
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ends at the level of the limit stop 72. A lateral surface 40 of the second arm
88 forms a
lateral lower limit of the unrolling section 40c, on which rests the journal
44 of the toilet-
paper roll 14 in use, so that the first arm 78 of the pivotable lever 64
together with the
projection 84 is pressed against the lateral surface 86 of the second guide
element 66, in
order to prevent the toilet-paper roll 12 that is blocked in the reserve
section 40a from
moving into the feed section 40b and consequently into the unrolling section
40c.
Fig. 5 shows a front view of the holder in a sectional view along the section
line C-C of
Fig. 3, whereby the toilet-paper roll 11 serving as the spare is blocked in
the reserve
section 40a by the projection 84 of the first arm 78, and whereby the toilet-
paper roll 14
in use with its journal 44 is situated in the unrolling section 40c, while the
toilet-paper roll
14 along its circumference is in contact with the limit stop 72, and the paper
web 56
emerges from the lower dispensing opening 58.
Because of the dead weight of the toilet-paper roll, a force acts upon the
second arm 88
of the pivotable lever 64 in such a way that the first arm 78 with the
projection 84 is pushed
against the inner surface 86 of the second guide element 66, so that the
toilet-paper roll
12 intended as the spare roll is blocked in the reserve area 40a.
Continued discharge of the toilet-paper web 56 reduces the diameter of the
toilet-paper
roll 14 in use, so that as the toilet-paper roll 14 continues to be consumed,
it keeps moving
towards the ejection section 40d.
When the toilet-paper roll 14 in use has reached a radius that substantially
corresponds
to the distance A between the end of the second arm 88 or the end of the
unrolling section
40c and a surface of the limit stop 72, the sleeve 54 falls into the
vertically extending
ejection section 40d and is guided through the discharge section 40e into the
collection
section 36f.
The limit stop 72 of the present invention possesses a convex surface 73 and
is embodied
as a bolt that extends between the first wall 28 and the second wall 30,
whereby a
distance between the end of the second arm 28 or the end of the unrolling
section 40c
and the surface 73 of the bolt 72 corresponds substantially
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to the radius of the sleeve 54 holding the toilet-paper roll, so that when the
toilet-paper
web 56 has been consumed, gravity forces the sleeve to fall into the ejection
section 40d.
Since this invention's limit stop 72 possesses a convex surface, it can be
ensured that
the toilet-paper roll 14 in use can be unrolled in both directions. Since the
toilet-paper roll
14 can be unrolled in a plane that is parallel to the rear wall, one achieves
the further
advantage that the paper web 56 can be torn off at the tear-off element 62 if.
the toilet-
paper roll unrolls to the right or at the tear-off element 60 if the toilet-
paper roll unrolls to
the left. The surface may possess a surface texture in the form of grooving
along the
transverse or longitudinal direction.
Compared to the prior art, one realizes the advantage that independently of
the diameter
of the toilet-paper rolls 12, 14, the holder 10 can be realized with a low
building depth,
whereby the toilet-paper rolls 12, 14 can be inserted independently of their
winding
direction, which facilitates a particularly simple and error-free servicing,
since service-
personnel during insertion of the toilet-paper rolls does not have to pay
attention to the
winding direction.
The holder 10 is further characterized in that the limit stop in the form of
the bolt 72 can
be arranged in different positions. Fig. 4 shows a bolt 72' in a position in
which the
distance between the bolt 72' and an end of the second arm 88 has been
reduced. This
creates the option of being able to use paper rolls with sleeves 54' of a
smaller diameter.
Embodied in the walls 28, 30 are corresponding recesses, so that depending on
the
intended use, the holder can either employ the bolt 72 for higher-diameter
sleeves 54 or
the bolt 72' for lower-diameter sleeves.
In addition to the invention's embodiment of the limit stop 72 with a convex
surface, the
construction of the holding device 12 is further characterized by a
particularly
uncomplicated mechanical design. For example, the walls 28, 30 as well as the
first,
second, and third guide element each are embodied as identical components,
which can
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be employed on either side. For mounting the first, second, and third guide
element, the
walls 28, 30 are provided with respective mirror images of studs or nubs 92
for fixing the
position of the guide elements 64, 66, 74. In this, the guide elements
comprise openings
94, which are first fitted and subsequently welded to the studs or nubs 92,
for example by
heat application.
Fig. 6 shows a sectional view of the hinge 76 that secures in position the
pivotable lever
64 in a pivotably hinged manner. The hinge 76 comprises a shaft 96 that
extends through
a recess 98 of the pivotable lever 64 and is fixed in position in a recess 100
of the wall
28.
Provided to establish a spacing between the posterior wall 28 and the anterior
wall 30 are
spacer elements 102, 104 as well as the sections 106, 108 of the tear-off
elements 60,
62, which extend substantially vertical from a marginal section of the
posterior wall 28
and can be connected, i.e. welded, to a marginal section of the anterior wall
30.
Fig. 7 shows a front view of the opened holder 10 without toilet-paper rolls
12, 14. The
guide 40 is mounted to the wall 28. As already explained with respect to Fig.
4, the guide
40 comprises several sections, namely a first section 40a as reserve section
for
accommodating the spare toilet-paper roll 12, a second, vertically extending
section 40b
that forms a feed section for delivering the toilet-paper roll into a position
where it is
available to the user, as well as a third section 40c, which extends inclined
relative to the
vertical and acts as an unrolling section, which in turn serves to use the
weight of the
toilet-paper roll 14 to guide the latter to a lateral limit stop 72, whereby
the circumference
of the toilet-paper roll 14 in use is in contact with the surface 73 of the
limit stop 72.
The guide 40 is bordered by the first guide element 64 and the second guide
element 66.
The guide elements 64, 66 are mounted to the wall 28 and form the
substantially U-
shaped guide 40.
In an embodiment with its own inventive merit, a locking element 110 is
arranged along
the extent of the guide 40 to prevent a user's manual action from pushing
upward the
lower toilet-paper roll 14
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that is currently in use, i.e. in the direction of the vertical feed sedtion
40c. The locking element
110 is arranged in the unrolling section 40c that extends inclined to the
vertical. In this, the locking
element 110 is embodied as a sliding element that is arranged in a section of
the second guide
element 66 that extends inclined to the vertical. The sliding element 110 is
mounted transversely
in the guide in the second guide element, slideable along the direction of the
arrow 112, whereby
in the closed position, one end 114 of the sliding element 110 bears upon the
first guide element
64.
The end 114 of the sliding element protruding into the guide is embodied wedge-
shaped
on its infeed side and possesses an oblique surface 114, so that the end 40 of
the shaft
or shaft journal of a toilet-paper roll moving from the feed section into the
unrolling section
causes the sliding element 110 to open.
This ensures that the sliding element will be lifted during the passage of the
shaft end or
shaft journal and will fall back into its original position, either due to
gravity or spring bias,
after the shaft end or shaft journal has passed, which prevents the toilet-
paper roll from
being pushed back.
During a motion in the opposite direction, the end of the shaft or the shaft
journal is moved
against a straight surface 118 of the sliding element 110, so that the latter
remains in the
closed position, as is illustrated in Fig. 8. This prevents that pushing back
the lower toilet-
paper roll 14 can inadvertently release the spare toilet-paper roll 12 from
its position in
the spare section 40a. The sliding element 110 preferably is supported
inclined relative
to the vertical, so it falls from its open position into the closed position
under the influence
of gravity. But it is also possible for the sliding element 100 to be mounted
slideable
under spring tension in the second guide element 66.
