GB2150117A

GB2150117A - Dose-distributor for delivering granular or powdered products

Info

Publication number: GB2150117A
Application number: GB08415576A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Loris Meliconi
Original assignee: MELICONI Srl
Current assignee: MELICONI Srl
Priority date: 1983-11-08
Filing date: 1984-06-19
Publication date: 1985-06-26
Also published as: GB8415576D0; ES280154U; ES280154Y; IT8305052V0; DE3422486A1; FR2554419A1

Abstract

A dose-distributor for granular or powdered products, particularly sugar, comprises a container (2) for the product provided, at its upper part, with a removable closing cover (3) and, at its lower part, with a bottom (6) having an opening (5). Underneath said container there is a dosing device comprising a slider (7) operable transversely from the surrounding atmosphere against the action of spring (12) and provided with a vertical through hole, said dosing device being closed at the bottom by a flat base (10) provided with an outlet mouth (11) for letting the product come out, the axis of which is offset with respect to the axis of said opening (5). <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Dose-distributor for delivering granular or powdered products The present invention pertains to a dosedistributor for granular or powdered products, particularly for sugar and the like.

Among dose-distributors normally used, the most common ones consist of a bottle-shaped container closed at one end by a cover, which is provided in the middle with a tubular portion the upper free end of which projects from said cover and the lower end of which extends inside the bottle almost up to the bottom of the same.

These dose-distributors are practical as they are simple but they have a drawback: they do not allow a constant dosage of the preselected amount of product, as said amount varies in a remarkable manner depending upon the filling degree of the bottle.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to obviate the above mentioned drawback by providing a dose-distributor for granular products which may allow a constant dosage of the product at each individual operation on the part of the user.

This and still further objects which will become apparent in the following description are attained by the dose-distributor according to the invention for delivering granular or powdered product, comprising a container for the product equipped at its upper part with a closing cover and at its lower part with a bottom provided in turn with an opening allowing the product to come out, characterized in that a dose-distributor is disposed underneath said container, said dose-distributor comprising a slider operable from the surrounding atmosphere, which has a vertical through hole and which is placed inside a chamber defined at the top by the bottom of said container and at the bottom by a flat base provided with an outlet mouth for the product, the axis of which is offset with respect to the axis of said opening, said slider being movable transversely from one steady non-operative end position in which said hole is disposed in register with said bottom opening of the container to a second unsteady operative position in which the hole of said slider is in register with said outlet mouth and in which the upper wall of the slider closes said opening.

The dose-distributor thus constructed is very efficient as it allows a constant dosage of the pre-selected amount of product independently of the filling degree of the dose-distributor itself.

Further features and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the dose-distributor given hereinafter by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a side sectional view of the dose-distributor being the subject of the invention, the slider being in its non-operative position; Figure 2 is similar to Fig. 1 but the slider is in its operative position.

Referring to the drawings, it has been indicated at 1 a dose-distributor for delivering granular or powdered products, which consists of a real container 2 for the product 4 and of a slide chamber 9 for a slider 7.

At its upper part the container envelope 2 is equipped with a removable cover 3 while it is equipped at its lower part with a bottom 6 provided with an opening 5 for allowing the product 4 to come out.

Bottom 6, as seen in cross-section, has its walls 6a and 6b sloping towards the opening 5 so that the product is obliged to go towards the same.

Underneath the container 2 is located a slider 7, operable from the surrounding atmosphere, provided with a vertical through hole 8 disposed according to the longitudinal axis of said container 2; said slider is housed inside a chamber 9 defined at its upper part by the bottom 6 of said envelope 2 and at its lower part by a flat base 10, provided with an outlet mouth 11 for the dosed product 4, which preferably has the shape of a frustoconical spout.

Slider 7 is movable transversely to said envelope from one steady non-operative end position A, as shown in Fig. 1, in which the hole 8 is disposed in register with the opening 5, so as to receive the product 4, to a second unsteady working position L (as seen in Fig.

2) in which the hole is instead in register with the outlet mouth 11 for the product 4.

In this situation, referring now to Fig. 2 it is possible to see that the upper surface 7a of slider 7 closes the opening 5 of bottom 6, as will be explained in more detail below.

Said slider 7 is provided, at one end 7b thereof, with a projection 7c protruding sideways from said chamber and operable by hand from the surrounding atmosphere according to the direction of arrow F.

At its opposite side with respect to said projection 7c, said slider 7 is also provided with a spring 1 2 engaged at one end 1 2a thereof in a housing 1 3 obtained in slider 7 and acting at the other end 1 2b thereof in contrast with the wall of said chamber 9 so that slider 7 may be returned to its first steady position, upon cessation of the force F.

Said container 2 is provided at its lower part with a projection 20 of greater height than spout 11 allowing the dose-distributor to be set upright when it is not used.

It should be observed that in use, during the return travel of slider 7, some grains of the product 4 could penetrate between the lower surface 6c of bottom 6 and the upper surface 7a of slider 7 thus preventing or hindering the free sliding of the slider itself.

For the purpose, said opening 5 is provided, at least along one side thereof, with a sharp edge 5a adjacent the upper surface 7a of slider 7 and in contrast therewith, which is disposed opposite the spout 11 with respect to the hole 8. so as to form a scraping and smoothing element for the product.

Advantageously said slider 7 is provided at its lower part with a further sharp edge 70 having the same task as said sharp edge 5a; holes 1 0a could also be envisaged on said wall 10 for letting out the scraped product which could be gathered on a further lower closing cover 30 as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1.

It must be understood, referring also to Fig.

1, that it is of fundamental importance that said opening 5 and said mouth 11 be offset with respect to each other a greater distance than the diameter of hole 8, so that a small shifting of said hole may immediately discharge the product contained in hole 8 in a predetermined amount.

Said dose-distributor 1 could also take a circular or a square configuration or others.

Obviously the invention herein described may be embodied in other specific forms and modifications can be carried out without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention itself. Practically, the materials used, as well as the shape and sizes can be whatever according to the requirements.

Claims

1. A dose-distributor for delivering granular or powdered products comprising a container for the same product equipped at its upper part with a closing cover and at its lower part with a bottom provided in turn with an opening allowing the product to come out, characterized in that a dose-distributor is disposed underneath said container, said dosedistributor comprising a slider operable from the surrounding atmosphere, which has a vertical through hole and which is placed inside a chamber defined at the top by the bottom of said container and at the bottom by a flat base provided with an outlet mouth for the product, the axis of which is offset with respect to the axis of said opening, said slider being movable transversely from one steady non-operative end position in which said hole is disposed in register with said bottom opening of the container to a second unsteady operative position in which the hole of said slider is in register with said outlet mouth and in which the upper wall of the slider closes said opening.

2. A dose distributor according to claim 1, characterized in that said slider is provided, at one end thereof, with a projection protruding from the side surface of said chamber and operable from the surrounding atmosphere.

3. A dose distributor according to claim 1, characterized in that said slider is subjected to the action of spring means acting on the same and suitable to keep it in said steady nonoperative end position.

4. A dose-distributor according to claims 2 and 3, characterized in that said spring means consists of a coil spring, acting, on the one hand, upon the end of said slider opposed to said projection and, on the other hand, upon the wall of said chamber.

5. A dose-distributor according to claim 1, characterized in that said opening is provided, on the side opposed to said outlet with respect to the vertical axis of the opening itself, with a sharp edge adjacent the upper surface of said slider and in contrast therewith.

6. A dose-distributor according to claim 1, characterized in that said slider, when in its first non-operative position, closes said mouth with its lower wall.

7. A dose-distributor according to claim 1, characterized in that said outlet mouth is in the form of a frusto-conical spout.

8. A dose distributor according to claim 1, characterized in that said chamber is provided, at the bottom, below said lower wall, with projections defining a resting base for said distributor.

9. A dose-distributor according to claims 7 and 8, characterized in that said projections are of greater height than said spout.

10. A dose distributor according to claim 1, characterized in that the closing bottom of said container has centrally-sloping walls so that they form a sort of hopper.

11. A dose-distributor according to claim 1, characterized in that said chamber is provided, at the bottom, with a further closing cover.