WO1990006815A1

WO1990006815A1 - Container nozzle guide

Info

Publication number: WO1990006815A1
Application number: PCT/AU1989/000546
Authority: WO
Inventors: John Oldfield; Frederick Wesley Osborne
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1988-12-22
Filing date: 1989-12-21
Publication date: 1990-06-28
Anticipated expiration: 1991-06-22

Abstract

A nozzle for delivery of fluid materials which includes a nozzle tip and having a position spaced from the nozzle tip a protuberance (7) which provides an abutment surface a means of which the position of the tip relative to the working surface can be controlled.

Description

CONTAINER NOZZLE GUIDE

This invention relates to collapsible container outlet nozzles.

The term "collapsible" as used herein with reference to a container means that the volume of the container may be deliberately reduced, whether by deformation of the container walls, movement of a moveable wall or end plunger or otherwise, so as to express the contents of the container through the container's nozzle.

It is common nowadays for adhesives, sealants and similar viscious fluent materials to be sold in collapsible containers furnished with, or adapted to be furnished with, elongated nozzles, to facilitate the directing of the material expressed from the container to a desired location. Typically the container is used in conjunction with a so-called gun which grips the container while it is collapsed by the manual squeezing of a lever or "trigger" on the gun.

A commonly occuring necessity is the laying down of an elongate bead or strip of the material, requiring the user to move the container, or the gun, if such is being used, steadily along a required path while steadily collapsing the container. That necessity arises, for example, when applying adhesive to the edge of a panel or board or when applying sealant to the junction of a window pane and its surrounding frame. Many people, especially the so-called "home handyman" who, while he may be reasonably dextrous and competent in the use of tools, is not called upon to perform this particular operation frequently, find difficulty in co-ordinating or harmonising the separate simultaneous movements involved. As a result a misplaced or uneven bead is laid down leading to an unsatisfactory result or the excessive use of material, or both.

An object of the present invention is to facilitate operations of the kind referred to.

That object is achieved by providing a nozzle for a collapsible container having a guide formation able to slide upon a workpiece to assist in the tracking of the nozzle of the nozzle along the workpiece.

The invention consists in a nozzle of the kind comprising a tubular body secured, or securable, at one end to the mouth of a collapsible container and terminating at its other end in a nozzle tip, characterised in that there is an external protuberance on the nozzle body providing an abutment surface spaced from the tip of the nozzle. In preferred embodiments the protuberance is formed as a fin and the abutment surf ace is that of a substantially radially extending front edge of the fin. - 7 -

By way of example, an embodiment of the invention is described hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-

Frgure 1 is a perspective view of the nozzle of the invention;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the nozzle showing the container in broken line;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of an attachment for a nozzle; and

Figure 4 is a view showing a side elevation of the attachment of Figure 3, a nozzle and, in chain-line the attachment attached to the nozzle.

The nozzle illustarated in Figures 1 and 2 comprises a tubular body 3, which mav be internally threaded at its rear end -ϊ to enable the nozzle to be screwed to an externally threaded outlet of a collapsible container 5, shown in ghost -outline.

Rather than being internally threaded, in other embodiments the nozzle is securable to the container by other conventional means, for example by frictional engagement over a tapered spout on the container, or it could be an integral part of the container.

The body 3 tapers to a small diameter, tip 6 which is initially closed.

The nozzle is preferably a plastics moulding. The plastics material, whilst being such as to produce a rigid, self-supporting nozzle, is nevertheless relatively soft. This enables the user, as is well known in the art, to cut off a part of the tip to provide a tip opening of a size and shape to suit the job in hand.

In accordance with the invention, the nozzle is furnished with an external protuberance presenting a substantially radially extending abutment surface spaced from the tip 6. In this instance the protuberance is in the form of an integral, triangular fin 7, the junction 12 of the surface 11 its front or leading edge face 8 constitutes the abutment surface.

It is within the invention that the protuberance be differently shaped; it mav, for example, be a generally cylindrical mound or boss. The relatively thin and extensive fin formation as illustrated is preferred as this enables the user to trim the protuberance 7, if need be, to produce an abutment surface 12 positioned and shaped to suit the exigencies of the work. However, as a general rule such trimming is not required and the nozzle may be applied to a panel or other workpiece with the abutment surface 12 in contact with an edge or surface of the workpiece and the nozzle tip angled to the position on which it is desired to lay down a bead of material. The nozzle is then readily slid along the workpiece under firm manual pressure requiring no delicate control by the user, leaving him free to concentrate on the task of steadily expressing the contents of the container. It has been found in tests leading to the present invention that this materially facilitates the application of a precisely positioned and uniformly sized bead.

In the embodiment of Figures 3 and -. there is a sleeve which constitutes a body 9 which is adapted to pass over and be received bv the tapered end 6 of the nozzle and the protuberance 10 is connected to this.

The engagement achieved can preferably be a frictional engagement although the components could be formed so as to form a positive interlock.

It will be seen, from the left portion of Figure that when the sleeve 9 is fitted over the end portion 6 of the nozzle then the nozzle presents an appearance which is substantially similar to that of the earlier embodiment and the operation is identical thereto.

In this case, of course, the protuberance can be removed from the nozzle and reused on another nozzle.

Claims

I claim:

1. A nozzle comprising a tubular body securable^" or secured to the mouth of a collapsible container and terminating at its other end in a nozzle tip, characterized that there is an external protuberance on the nozzle body and spaced from the nozzle tip which protuberance provides an abutment surface whereby the position of the tip can be supported.

2. A nozzle as claimed in claim 1 wherein the protuberance is in the form of a triangular fin extending outwardly from the nozzle body.

3. A nozzle as claimed in claim 2 wherein the fin is relatively thin.

4. a nozzle as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3 wherein the fin is formed integrally with the nozzle body.

5. A nozzle as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3 wheein the fin is formed together with a sleeve which is adapted to pass over the firmly located on the nozzle body.

6. A nozzle as claimed in any one of the claims 2 to 5 wherein the protuberance is formed of a synthetic plastics material.

7. For attachment to a nozzle comprising a tubular body securable or secured to the mouth of a collapsible container and terminating at its other end in a nozzle tip, a sleeve adapted to pass over and bve firmly located on the nozzle body and a protuberance extending outwardly from the sleeve.

8. A sleeve as claimed in claim 7 wherein the protuberance is in the form of a triangular fin extending outwardly from the sleeve.

9. A nozzle substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figs 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings.

10. A sleeve substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figs 3 and 4* of the accompanying drawings.