US2899113A - forster etal - Google Patents

Description

Aug. 11, 1.959

Filed June 27, 1956 J. FORSTER ETAL AUTOMATIC DELAY-ACTION DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 lmentovs Hen Forster Aug. 11, 1959 J. FORSTER ETAL AUTOMATIC DELAY-ACTION DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 27, 1956 JoSCFh Ellen United States Patent AUTOMATIC DELAY-ACTION DEVICE Joseph Forster and Ellen Forster (nee Dixon), Felling-.on-Tyne, England Application June 27,1956, Serial No. 594,316

5 Claims. (Cl. 222-336) An object of this invention is an automatic delayaction device comprising a plate, a bore in the plate, a shaft slidably displaceable in said bore, and a resilient, compressible bell member mounted on the shaft, the rim of said bell member being engageable with said plate, and said bell member then co-acting with said plate as a compressible air chamber when said shaft is displaced in one direction in said bore, a restricted vent enabling egress of air from said chamber while being compressed, and said vent retarding entry of air into said chamber during automatic resilient de-compression thereof to constitute a delay-action device.

Another object of the invention is an automatic delayaction device as aforesaid wherein the displacement of the shaft is greater than the extent of axial compressibility of said chamber, such device further comprising in combination resilient means associated with said shaft, operative against displacement thereof prior to engagement of the rim of the bell member with said plate, and operative after decompression of said chamber to displace said rim from said plate.

A particular object of the invention is an automatically operated disinfectant spray which is especially suitable for application to lavatories.

A spraying device in accordance with our invention is operated by the movement of a tubular member into a liquid reservoir against the resistance of a spring, said tubular member having a non-return valve and sliding overa fixed piston whereby it becomes charged within said reservoir, said device being characterised in that the automatic return movement of said tubular member by said spring to discharge said member is retarded by a compressible air chamber co-acting therewith, air being ejected from the interior of said chamber by the charging movement of the tubular member and the re-entry of air into the air chamber being restricted.

Another particular object of our invention is a variant of said spraying device for blowing powder disinfectant or other powder, comprising in further combination a cylinder, a piston on one end of said shaft displaceable in said cylinder, automatic non-return inlet means in said cylinder, the space around'said shaft enclosed between said cylinder and piston being an air pump chamber, a discharge duct from said cylinder, a non-return valve in said duct, a powder reservoir and a restricted outlet nozzle from said reservoir traversed by said duct.

In the accompanying drawings, which show by way of example only various embodiments of our invention,

Figure 1 is an axial section of a spraying device for liquid disinfectant, and

Figure 2 isa similar axial section of a powder blower.

Referring to Figure 1 of the drawings, in the example therein illustrated, our device comprises a cylindrical casing a in which is housed a container b charged with a suitable disinfectant liquid. The container is provided with a valved air h'ole'b and is fitted with a bush b and with a screw-on closure 0. A sleeve d can reciprocate vertically through said bush and extends into the container, being closed at its lower end and provided with a non-return valve d The sleeve is supported by a spring e bearing between a boss at on the sleeve and the closure 0. The sleeve slides on a stationary tube 1 which is bent at right angles above the boss d and passes through the wall of the cylinder a and is continued as required, terminating in a spraying nozzle f When a pumping reciprocation is set up in the sleeve d, a small quantity of the liquid from the container b is ejected through the nozzle F. A tubular member g bears on the boss at of the sleeve, said member being slotted at g to clear the tube'f and attached at its upper end to a rod h which passes through a plate a fixed within the cylindrical housing a and is firmly attached by a head ,1 to the top of a rubber dome k coacting with the plate a An air hole i of fine bore is provided through the head j.

The component parts of our device are normally in the relative positions shown in full lines in the drawing, downward movement of the dome k and rod It being resisted by the spring e. When however downward pressure on the head j overcomes the spring, the rim k of the dome makes close contact with the surface of the plate a and the air contained in the dome is forced out, the dome being flattened into substantially the position indicated in dot-and-dash lines. The downward movement of the head j is transferred by the rod h and member g to the boss d and sleeve d causing the latter to slide downwards on the stationary tube into the position indicated by dot-and-dash lines. On the removal of the downward pressure on the head j and dome k, the return upward movement of the parts is retarded due to the suction efiect of the dome k on the plate a and the admission of air into the dome being restricted by the air hole j Consequently the upward travel of the sleeve d under the impulse of the spring e and the ejection of liquid disinfectant from the spraying nozzle f is delayed. It will therefore be seen that, by arranging that the pressing down of a flushing lever or the like is caused to apply downward pressure to the head j and dome k, the flush operated by said lever will be completed before disinfectant is ejected into the lavatory pan by the nozzle f Our device as described may be used with a lavatory pan having a flushing cistern immediately behind it actuated by a pivoted press-down lever or where the cistern is above said pan, and the movement of the flush lever or the like may be caused in any convenient manner to apply downward pressure to the head j and dome k. Our device may be arranged in any convenient position and its spray tube 1 led to the lavatory pan so that its nozzle sprays thereinto; for example, the outer end of the tube may be led over the rim of the pan between the rubber stops which support the seat from the pan. If desired, our device may be located within the cistern, and the tube 1 led out through a sealed orifice in the wall thereof.

By our invention we provide simple and inexpensive means for automatically spraying disinfectant into a closet pan each time the flush lever is operated, and it will be understood that our device can be readily adapted for operation by other forms of flush lever than that herein referred to by way of example.

Referring now to Figure 2 of the drawing, wherein equivalent elements have the same reference letters, the shaft h extends downwards into the cylindrical container b and has secured to its lower end a piston l, the space around the lower end of the shaft and enclosed by the piston and the container b acting as an air pumping cylinder. An eccentrically frusto-conical partition m is located in the intermediate portion of the casing a, the space above the partition m and below the plate a Patented Aug. 11, 1959.

3 serving as a powder reservoir n which is fillable by removal of a screwed plug 0. At the base of the partition m is a restricted outlet nozzle p opening into an air discharge duct f which has a non-return valve q at its connection to the cylinder b. Powder in the reservoir I normally is blocked in the horizontal part F of the duct f where it traverses said nozzle, until during a delay-action decompression of the air chamber between the bell k and the plate a and when the rim.

k separates from the plate a and the spring e further expends without hindrance, a current of air is expelled from the pumping chamber by the piston l, and entrains. with it a quantity of powder from the reservoir n.

We claim:

1. A dispensing device comprising a plate, a shaft slidably displaceable on its axis, said axis being normal to said plate, a resilient compressible bell member mountedon said shaft facing said plate, the rim of said bell member being free, said shaft being movable to bring said rim into and out of contact with said plate, a spring on said shaft urging said shaft to move said bell member away from said plate and operable after said bell member has moved free of said plate, said shaft being movable against the action of said spring to bring said bell member into contact with said plate and said bell member then co-operating with said plate as a compressible air chamber when said shaft is displaced towards. said plate to expel air between said rim and said plate, and a restricted vent for retarding entry of air into said chamber during automatic resilient decompression thereof to constitute a delay action device, a reservoir, a non-return inlet valve for admitting air to said reservoir, fluid displacing means axially movable by said shaft in said reservoir, a non-return valve permitting discharge of fluid from said reservoir by said fluid displacing means, and a discharge duct for conveying fluid displaced through said discharge valve.

2. A dispensing device for automatically spraying liquid comprising a plate, a bore in the plate, a shaft slidably displaceable in said bore, a resilient compress.- ible bell member mounted on said shaft, the rim of said bell member being free of said plate but being displaceable with said shaft to be engageable with said plate, and said bell member then co-operating with said plate as a compressible air chamber when said shaft is displaced in one direction in said bore to expel air between said rim. and said plate, and a restricted vent for retarding entry of air into said chamber during automatic resilient decompression thereof to constitute a delay action device, in combination with compression spring means associated with said shaft, operative against dis placement of'said shaft prior to engagement of the rim of the bell member with said plate, and operative after decompression of said chamber to displace said rim from said. plate, a liquid reservoir, a non-return inlet valve. for admitting air to said reservoir, a tubular member connected with said shaft for displacement axially within said reservoir, a non-return valve in said tubular member permitting discharge of fluid from said reservoir into the interior of said tubular member, and a discharge duct in communication with the interior of said tubular member, said duct having an axial portion over which said tubular member is slidable to increase and decrease alternately the volume of the interior of said tubular member.

3. A dispensing device for automatically spraying liquid comprising a plate, a bore in the plate, a shaft slidablydisplaceable in said bore, a resilient compressible bell member mounted on said shaft, the rim of said bell member being free of said plate but being displaceable with said shaft to be engageable with said plate, and said bell member then co-operating with said plate as a compressible air chamber when said shaft is displaced in one direction in said bore to expel air between said rim and said plate, and a restricted vent for retarding entry of air into said chamber during automatic resilient decompression thereof to constitute a delay action device, in combination with compression spring means associated with said shaft, operative against displacement of said shaft prior to engagement of the rim of the bell member with said plate, and operative after decompression of said chamber to displace said rim from said plate, a reservoir for. liquid, a discharge duct, a portion of said duct being co-axial with said shaft, means securing said reservoir and said duct in fixed relation to said plate, a non-return air inlet valve to said reservoir, a sealing gland in said reservoir, a tubular member surrounding said co-axial duct portion and slidable in said gland into said reservoir, a non-return inlet valveconnecting the interior of said tubular member with said reservoir, andmeans connecting said shaft to said tubular member for joint longitudinal displacement, said spring means being disposed to urge said tubular member outwardly of said reservoir.

4. A dispensing device for powder comprising a plate, a bore in: the plate, a shaft slidably displaceable in said bore, a. resilient compressible bell member mounted on said shaft, the. rim of said bellmember being free of said: platebut being displaceable with said shaft to be engageable with said plate, and said. bell member then. co-operating with said. plate as a compressible air chamber when said shaft is displaced in one direction in said bore to expel air between. said rim and said plate, and a restricted vent for retarding entry of air into said chamber during automatic resilient decompression thereof to constitute a' delay action device, in combination with compression spring means associated with said shaft, operative against displacement of said shaft prior to engagement of the rim of. the bell member with said' plate,, and operative after decompression of said chamber to displace said rim from said. plate, a cylindrical air reservoir, a non-return inlet valve for admitting air to said reservoir, a piston on the end of said shaft axially displaceable within said reservoir, a non-return valve disposed to permit discharge of displaced from said' reservoir by said piston during delayed decompression. of said bell member, a discharge duct for air displaced. by said piston',,apowder hopper,. and a restricted outlet nozzleat the base of said hopper and opening into said discharge duct.

5. A dispensing device for powder as claimed in claim 4, comprising in further combination a cylindrical cas-- ing co-axial with said shaft, said cylindrical reservoir being disposed co-axial'ly within said casing and remotely from said delay action device,'an eccentric frusto-conical partition in an. intermediate part of said casing, the

space above said partition and below said. platev serving as said powder hopper and said outlet'nozzle being at the base of said: partition, and said. spring 'means being operative during and after decompression of said chamber. to aid discharge-of. air fromsaid. cylinder.

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