WO2007050039A1

WO2007050039A1 - Improved dispensing device for a tissue container

Info

Publication number: WO2007050039A1
Application number: PCT/SG2005/000370
Authority: WO
Inventors: Siew Neo Tai
Original assignee: Dyna Inno Pte. Ltd
Priority date: 2005-10-27
Filing date: 2005-10-27
Publication date: 2007-05-03

Abstract

The present invention relates to an improved dispensing device for a tissue container wherein said container (10) comprises of a base (12), four upstanding sidewalls (14A, 14B, 14C, 14D) and a lid (16) and wherein the lid is further provided with an opening (30). The improvements comprises of the lid (16) being hinge join at one of the upstanding sidewall to allow the lid to flip open or close onto the container (10), and wherein a locking mechanism (28) is provided at another side of the lid (16) and with its corresponding upstanding sidewall, and wherein a plurality of elongated shaft (18) with coiled springs (20) are introduced in the inside of the container (10) in which one end of the elongated shafts (18) are secured to the base (12) while the other ends are free ends, and wherein a flat foundation (22) is further provided onto the free ends of the elongated shafts (18) and is secured therein with a stopper (24).

Description

IMPROVED DISPENSING DEVICE FOR A TISSUE CONTAINER

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to a dispensing device for a tissue container. More particularly the present invention relates to an improved dispensing device for a tissue container for allowing progressive removal of tissue sheets from said container.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A far prior art of the present invention would be the conventional tissue boxes available and widely used in the market. When each tissue is pulled out from the box, the next tissue would be partly pulled out simultaneously due to the manner each tissue is interconnected to one another. However, said interconnecting tissues sometimes do not perform the task as required and it becomes difficult as the number of tissue sheets in the box reduces.

To overcome the above disadvantage, numerous method and devices have been introduced and hereinafter are recent prior arts in relation to the present invention. Some of the prior art utilizes coil springs, which are attached to a bottom of a base inside the tissue box whilst other uses flexible materials to create similar properties (pushing mechanism) such as the coil springs. Some examples of prior art is discussed below. US patent 5,065,936 teaches a variable size cardboard box with a continuous perforated line located in the internal sidewalls and extending around the entire perimeter of the said box and spaced from the bottom wall. This patent describes a collapsible type of box in which as the number of tissues reduces, the sidewall of the box can be folded along the perforated lines to reduce the height of the box.

US patent 6,257,443 teaches a holder for napkins within a housing with two opening positioned opposite each other and a biasing means disposed between two plates. Further to this, a number of napkins are position between each plate and their corresponding openings. Each time the number of tissues reduce the biasing means would push the plate towards the opening. This patent also suggests a guide plate and a freely position biasing means.

US patent 4,838,454 teaches a complicated napkin dispenser which includes a drawer which slides in and out of a housing and a push plate which also slides in the housing and is spring biased to push the napkins forward. It also includes a lock mechanism and a biasing means for pushing and pivoting the drawer when in use.

US patents 4,706,844; 4,838,454 and 4,094,442 teaches another napkin dispenser which consist of a housing member in which a plate is disposed therein. A biasing means is provided below the plate to push the plate towards an opening of the housing through which napkins are removed.

The disadvantage of such prior arts are that the pushing mechanism whether using coil springs or springs or flexible materials, are more centered pushing mechanism wherein the force of pushing the tissues are provided in the center region at the bottom of the tissues. Another disadvantage is that the pushing mechanisms in the prior art devices are not guided completely or partly but are allowed to freely compress and decompress in the box. This would sometime create imbalance elevation of the tissues when in use. In other words, the pushing mechanism used is not guided accordingly.

Therefore, it is an objective of the present invention to overcome the above-mentioned disadvantages by providing an improved dispensing device for a tissue container which comprises of a means of guiding both the biasing means and the plate holding the tissue simultaneously.

Any discussion of documents, devices, acts or knowledge in this specification is included to explain the context of the invention. It should not be taken as an admission that any of the material forms a part of the prior art base or the common general knowledge in the relevant art in Singapore or elsewhere on or before the priority date of the disclosure and claims herein. All statements as to the date or representation as to the contents of these documents is based on the information available to the applicant and does not constitute any admission as to the correctness of the dates or contents of these documents.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an improved dispensing device for a tissue container wherein said container comprises of a base, four upstanding sidewalls and a lid, and wherein the lid is further provided with an opening. The improvements comprises of the lid being hinge join at one of the upstanding sidewall to allow the lid to flip open or close onto the container. A locking mechanism is provided at another side of the lid and with its corresponding upstanding sidewall, and wherein a plurality of elongated shaft with coiled springs are introduced in the inside of the container in which one end of the elongated shafts are secured to the base while the other ends are free ends, and wherein a flat foundation is further provided onto the free ends of the elongated shafts and is secured therein with a stopper.

According to the present invention the flat foundation further includes at least two spaced apart holes. Further to this there are at least two elongated shafts positioned spaced apart from each other and secured onto the base.

A dispensing mechanism according to the present invention and in a first position, the lid is flipped open, exposing the interior components in the container, and wherein the coiled springs at each elongated shaft are fully extended resulting in the flat foundation to be approximate to the stopper and wherein further movement of the flat foundation is restricted by the stoppers.

In a second position, a plurality of tissues are placed onto the flat foundation and resulting in the height of the tissues to preferably extend above the edges of the upstanding sidewalls of the container, and wherein the lid is flipped onto the container to cover the container, and wherein the tissues would be pressed towards the base as the lid descend and approaches the edges of the upstanding sidewalls and wherein the coiled springs would also be compressed at the same time as the flat foundation moves towards the base of the container, and wherein once the lid is completely closed, said lid is securely locked in its position by the locking mechanism. As the number of tissues inside the container depletes, the compressed coiled springs would decompress and thereafter pushing the flat foundation towards the stopper. The process is repeated each time the container is refilled and each time the tissues are pulled out from the container via the opening when in use. The container according to the present invention could optionally include decorative features to produce aesthetic appearance. The coiled spring according to the present invention are designed to be sufficiently strong in order to push the tissues upward and at the same time ensuring not to exert too much pressure between the lid and the tissues to prevent easy retrieval. Other aspects and preferred aspects are disclosed in the specification and / or defined in the appended claims, forming a part of the description of the invention.

Further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.

BRIEF DECRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further disclosure, objects, advantages and aspects of the present application may be better understood by those skilled in the relevant art by reference to the following description of preferred embodiments taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which are given by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and in which:

Figure 1 shows a plan view of the container according to the present invention; Figure 2 shows a front view of the container according to the present invention;

Figure 3 shows a rear view of the container according to the present invention;

Figure 4 shows a side view of the container according to the present invention;

Figure 5 is a A-A cross-sectional view as shown in Figure 1 ;

Figure 6 is a B-B cross-sectional view as shown in Figure 1 ; and

Figure 7 is a C-C cross-sectional view as shown in Figure 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawings generally comprises of a container like structure hereinafter referred as a container (10). Said container (10) is generally a rectangular shape like member. However, other geometrical shape like structures may also be utilized herein. According to the present invention as shown in Figures 1 to 4, the container (10) further comprises of a base (12), four upstanding sidewalls (14A, 14B₁ 14C and 14D), and a lid (16).

Referring now to Figures 5 to 7, it is shown therein cross-sections view of the present invention. These figures show a dispensing mechanism, which consists of a plurality of elongated shafts (18), a plurality of coiled springs (20) and a flat foundation (22). The said elongated shafts (18) are positioned spaced apart from each other and approximate at each edge of the container (10). One end of the said elongated shafts (18) is mounted to the base (12) of the container (10) while the other ends are free ends. At the terminal ends of each of the free ends of the elongated shafts (18), a stopper (24) is provided therein. The purpose of providing said stopper (24) would be described later in the description.

Referring to Figure 7, the flat foundation (22) further includes a plurality of holes (26) (not illustrated). The said holes (26) are provided at each edges of the said flat foundation (22) and are positioned spaced apart from one another. It would be preferred that the number of holes (26) provided on the flat foundation (22) should correspond to the number of elongated shafts (18) therein. Said holes (26) are designed with a marginally greater internal diameter than the external diameter of the elongated shafts (18).

The manner the present invention is assembled together and other features not described earlier would be described in detail now with reference made to any of the accompanying drawings.

The said container (10) is first assembled with all its components described earlier and with the lid (16) attached onto thereafter. One edge of the lid (16) is connected to one edge of the upstanding sidewall (14) of the container (10). The connection is such that it creates a hinge like connections, which allows the lid to be flipped open and/or close over the said container (10). A locking mechanism (28) is provided at another edge of the lid (16). The locking mechanism (28) is a flap like member, which is constructed in such a manner that it could be flipped and snap fastened onto the corresponding edge of the container (10). It should be noted that the locking mechanism (28) could be configured vice versa. It should also be noted that the lid further includes an opening (30) to allow the content to be retrieved when in use.

Each of the said elongated shafts (18) is positioned and mounted in their predetermined positions as described earlier with the coil spring (20) pre- mounted therein. The flat foundation (22) is also introduced onto the elongated shaft (18) via the holes (26) so that the flat foundation (22) would practically rest onto the coil spring (20). The stoppers (24) provided on each of the elongated shaft (18) will ensure that the flat foundation (22) is not elevated out of the elongated shaft (18) due to the forces applied by the coil springs (20). In the present invention the stoppers (24) are half ball shaped like members plugged onto one of the ends of the elongated shafts (18). However, other types of stopper known in the art may also be used herein.

Now the working mechanism of the present invention would be described in detail. In a first position of the present invention, the coil springs (20) are fully extended and the flat foundation (22) is positioned approximate to the stoppers (24) and the lid (16) is closed and snap-fastened therein.

In a second position of the present invention, the lid (16) is opened upon its hinge point and revealing the flat foundation (22) held therein. A stack of tissues is then introduced onto the flat foundation (22). It would be preferred that a barrier (31) is provided onto the flat foundation as shown in the accompanied figures to ensure that the tissues are properly stacked onto the flat foundation (22) and said tissues do not obstruct the movements of the flat foundation (22) when in operation. When the required numbers of tissues are stacked therein, the lid (16) is then closed and locked thereafter. When the tissues are stacked therein, the height of the tissues would exceed the edges of the upstanding sidewalls (14A, 14B, 14C and 14D) of the container (10). When the lid (16) is closed, the inner surface of the lid will exert downward force onto the tissues and resulting in the flat foundation (22) to move away from the stoppers (24) and towards the base (12) of the container (10). During this second position, the coil springs (20) would be compressed.

As the number of tissues depletes, the level of the flat foundation (22) would increase, as it would be pushed towards the stoppers (24) by the decompressing coil springs (20). This will ensure that the tissues remain very close to the opening (30) and are always available for easy retrievals. The above operation is repeated each time a new stack of tissues is introduced therein.

In the present embodiment, the coil springs (20) are preferably made of steel materials. Also, the material used to construct the container (10) and the flat foundation (22) could be selected for any type of rigid materials such as plastics, metal and the like.

The construction and configuration of the locking mechanism (28) and the hinge joint for the lid (16) used in the present invention could be changed to any other known mechanism without departing from the sprit of the present invention.

In the present invention, at least four holes (26) and four elongated shafts (18) are provided therein. However, the present invention would still work with only two or six or eight or any even numbers of holes (26) and elongated shafts (18).

The invention as described herein could further includes decorative features known in the art to create more appealing and aesthetic containers (10) for commercial purpose without departing from the spirit of the invention.

While this invention has been described in connection with specific embodiments thereof, it will be understood that it is capable of further modification(s). This application is intended to cover any variations uses or adaptations of the invention following in general, the principles of the invention and including such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice within the art to which the invention pertains and as may be applied to the essential features hereinbefore set forth.

As the present invention may be embodied in several forms without departing from the spirit of the essential characteristics of the invention, it should be understood that the above described embodiments are not to limit the present invention unless otherwise specified, but rather should be construed broadly within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims. Various modifications and equivalent arrangements are intended to be included within the spirit and scope of the invention and appended claims. Therefore, the specific embodiments are to be understood to be illustrative of the many ways in which the principles of the present invention may be practiced. In the following claims, means-plus-function clauses are intended to cover structures as performing the defined function and not only structural equivalents, but also equivalent structures. For example, although a nail and a screw may not be structural equivalents in that a nail employs a cylindrical surface to secure wooden parts together, whereas a screw employs a helical surface to secure wooden parts together, in the environment of fastening wooden parts, a nail and a screw are equivalent structures. "Comprises/comprising" when used in this specification is taken to specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps or components but does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, components or groups thereof."

Claims

1. An improved dispensing device for a tissue container wherein said container (10) comprises of a base (12), four upstanding sidewalls (14A, 14B, 14C, 14D) and a lid (16) and wherein the lid is further provided with an opening (30) characterized in that wherein the improvements comprises of the lid (16) being hinge join at one of the upstanding sidewall to allow the lid to flip open or close onto the container (10), and wherein a locking mechanism (28) is provided at another side of the lid (16) and with its corresponding upstanding sidewall, and wherein a plurality of elongated shaft (18) with coiled springs (20) are introduced in the inside of the container (10) in which one end of the elongated shafts (18) are secured to the base (12) while the other ends are free ends, and wherein a flat foundation (22) is further provided onto the free ends of the elongated shafts (18) and is secured therein with a stopper (24).

2. An improved dispensing device as claim in Claim 1 wherein the flat foundation (22) further includes at least two spaced apart holes (26).

3. An improved dispensing device as claim in Claim 1 wherein there are at least two elongated shafts (18) positioned spaced apart from each other and secured onto the base (12).

4. A dispensing mechanism according to the invention as claimed in Claims 1 to 3 characterized in that in a first position, the lid (16) is flipped open exposing the interior components in the container (10), and wherein the coiled springs (20) at each elongated shaft (18) are fully extended resulting in the flat foundation (22) to be approximate to the stopper (24) and wherein further movement of the flat foundation (22) is restricted by the stoppers (24).

5. A dispensing mechanism as claimed in Claim 4 wherein, in a second position, a plurality of tissues are placed onto the flat foundation (22) and resulting in the height of the tissues to preferably extend above the edges of the upstanding sidewalls (14A, 14B, 14C and 14D) of the container (10), and wherein the lid (16) is flipped onto the container (10) to cover the container (10), and wherein the tissues would be pressed towards the base (12) as the lid (16) descend and approaches the edges of the upstanding sidewalls (14A, 14B, 14C and 14D) and wherein the coiled springs (20) would also be compressed at the same time as the flat foundation (22) moves towards the base (12) of the container (10, and wherein once the lid (16) is completely closed, said lid (16) is securely locked in its position by the locking mechanism (28).

6. A dispensing mechanism as claimed in Claim 4 wherein as the number of tissues inside the container (10) depletes, the compressed coiled springs (20) would decompress and thereafter pushing the flat foundation (22) towards the stopper (24).

7. A dispensing mechanism as claimed in Claims 4 to 6 wherein the process is repeated each time the container (10) is refilled and each time the tissues are pulled out from the container (10) via the opening (30) when in use.

8. A dispensing device for dispensing tissues from a container as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein the container (10) could optionally include decorative features to produce aesthetic appearance.

9. A dispensing device for dispensing tissues from a container as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein the coiled spring (20) are designed to be sufficiently strong in order to push the tissues upward and at the same time ensuring not to exert too much pressure between the lid (16) and the tissues to prevent easy retrieval.