US2013715A - Liquid dispenser - Google Patents

Description

Patented Sept. 10, 1935 LQUID DISPENSER Application August 15, 1933, Serial No. 685,211

1 Claim.

This invention relates to a liquid dispenser by which liquid may be atomized or shaken out by drops, or which can be used as an atomizer.

It is an object of the invention to provide a .-5 container for liquids which is compact in structure, easy to pack for shipment, and which is useful in any of the three ways mentioned.

According to the invention, a flask or other suitable container is provided, having a cap removably mounted on the neck thereof. This cap is provided with a tube which extends down into the ask, the bore of the tube extending through the cap for dispensing the liquid contents of the flask. The cap may also have an upwardly projecting hollow boss aligned with the tube. The boss is preferably threaded to receive an auxiliary cap for the purpose of closing the container tightly so that no liquid can escape therefrom when the auxiliary cap is in position. A suitable air vent is provided to facilitate the escape of liquid from the flask either by atomization or by shaking of the ask. The cap having the tube projecting downwardly therefrom is readily removable from the neck of the container so that it can be used,

with its tube, as an applicator. A suitable aspirating spray device is also provided, this device being detachably secured to the cap when it is desired to atomize the liquid contents of the flask.

For a more complete understanding of the invention, reference may be had to the description of certain embodiments thereof which follows, and to the drawing of which Figure 1 is a partial section of an embodiment of the invention.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary portion of Figure 1, showing an auxiliary cap in position.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary section of a modified form of the invention.

Figure 4 is a further modified form of the invention.

Figure 5 shows the structure illustrated in Figure 4, with an auxiliary cap in place of a spray device. n

The invention may be embodied in a suitable flask I0 of any convenient size or shape, this flask having a neck Il which is provided with a screw thread l2. As shown, the thread elements are integrally molded on the exterior surface of the neck, but it is understood that, if preferred, a threaded ferrule may be cemented or otherwise secured to the neck. A cap I5 having an internally threaded skirt I6 is mounted on the neck of the flask, a suitable washer il being employed Y at the mouth of the ilask to make a fluid-tight joint. From the cap I5 a tube 2l) project-s downwardly into the flask, preferably to a point adjacent to the bottom of the flask. The tube opens through the top of the cap to provide a passage for the discharge of liquid from the flask. If 5 desired, a hollow boss 2| may be provided to projectV upwardly from the cap, thisV boss being externally threaded as at 22. A suitable closure element, such as a plug or auxiliary cap, may be provided to render the cap I5 tight when desired. l0 As shown in Figure 2, an auxiliary cap 23 is screwed on the threaded boss 2l for this purpose. The boss 2l and the tube 2E have a continuous bore 25 therethrough, an air vent 26 being provided through the wall of the tube. The cap l5 l5 is interiorly threaded as at 2l within the bore 25 at a point below the orifice of the air vent 25. The threaded portion 21 of the bore is slightly constricted with respect to the portion of the bore thereabove. This upper portion of the bore is 20 adapted to receive the hollow stem 3Q of an aspirating spray device 3l, the stem being of smaller diameter than the bore to provide a clearance around the stem. The lower end portion 32 of the stem is threaded for threaded engagement 25 with the internal thread 2l in the bore 25. The air vent 26 thus communicates with the clearance between the stem 30 and the wall of the upper portion of the bore 25. The spray device may include a suitable bulb 33, the aspirating 30 nozzle within the device being of well known construction and not shown on the drawing. The nozzle within the spray device 3i operates to draw liquid upwardly through the bore 25 and to discharge it in an atomized spray through an 35 opening 35 opposite the nozzle. Since the air vent 26 extends from the interior of the flask to the bore 25, it is evident that an auxiliary cap 23, when mounted on the boss 2l, will completely close the flask so as to prevent the escape of any 40 of its contents. If the auxiliary 4cap 23 is removed, the flask may be inverted and shaken to shake out drops of the liquid contents. If desired, the cap l 5 with the tube 2U may be readily unscrewed from the neck of the flask and removed 45 therefrom. The hollow tube will ordinarily retain several drops of the liquid by capillarity. The tube can then be used as an applicator.

Any suitable materials can be employed for the Various parts illustrated. For example, the 50 cap l5 may be made of some suitable molded plastic material such as a phenolic condensation product. A bushing 4l! may be cemented or otherwise secured centrally in the cap l5, this bushing preferably including the upwardly pro- 55 jecting boss 2l and a downwardly projecting boss 4i into which the tube 20 may be cemented, as shown in Figure 1. If preferred, the tube 20 may be provided with a ferrule 42 adapted to be screwed into the boss 4|, as shown in Figure 3. The boss 4I and the tube 20 virtually constitute a single tube projecting downwardly from the cap. It is evident that the member 4B and the tube 20 may, if desired, be molded integrally with the cap.

A modified form of the invention is illustrated in Figures 4 and 5. As therein shown, the cap l5 is provided with a central member to which is permanently secured a tube 20 projecting downwardly into the flask. The member 50 is provided with an upwardly projecting boss 5| which is externally screw-threaded to receive either a spray device 52 or a cap 53. The member 5D is preferably provided with an air vent opening into the interior of the flask and outwardly to the atmosphere. The spray device is provided with a suction chamber which is enlarged at its lower end as at 56, this lower end portion being internally threaded for engagement on the boss 5|. As shown in Figure 4, this lower end portion does not obstruct the air vent 55, so

that when the spray device is in use, the air vent operates to prevent suction on the surface of the liquid in the flask. As shown in Figure 5, the auxiliary cap 53 is sufciently wide at its bottom to extend over the outer orifice of the air vent 55. Thus, when the cap 53 is in place, it seals the air vent and thus completely closes the flask so that no liquid can escape therefrom.

I claim:

An atomizer comprising a container having a neck, a molded cap removably mounted on said neck, said cap having a central aperture, a bushing extending through and secured in said aperture, said bushing having an elongated cylindrical bore therethrough, a lateral vent below thc cap, and a flange engaging the top face of said molded cap, a tube secured to the lower end of said bushing to extend downwardly in said container and communicating with said bore, and an aspirating device including an elongated tube extending into the upper portion of said bore from beyond the upper end of the bushing and fitting loosely in said bore, the lower end portion of the tube being in threaded engagement with the interior of said bushing below said vent.

FREDERICK W. H. LOI-ISE.

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