DE20022559U1 - Dispenser for the optionally atomized application of a liquid medium, in particular, from a container - Google Patents

Description

Dispenser for the optionally atomized dispensing of a medium, particularly a liquid one, from a container

FIELD OF APPLICATION AND STATE OF THE ART

The invention relates to dispensers for the optionally atomized dispensing of a medium, in particular a liquid medium, from a container.

Such a dispenser is known, for example, from EP 0 334 349 A1, in which the medium is dispensed by manually actuating an actuating element. The actuation is divided into a series of partial actuations, with a defined partial batch of the medium being dispensed with each partial actuation. In order to prevent two consecutive partial actuations from being carried out one after the other without interruption, it is also known from this publication to carry out a switching actuation between two partial actuations of the actuating element.

Such dispensers are used in particular when a medication or vaccine is to be applied to the nasal mucous membranes of a patient. The advantage of applying the medium in a nebulized form is that the active ingredient is easier for the patient to absorb. One example where the dispenser should also be suitable for use by the patient themselves is migraine medication that is to be applied to the nasal mucous membranes.

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The medium must be dispensed from the dispenser in usually two, but in any case in a small number of partial batches of defined - usually equal - size. In the interest of greater user safety, it is suggested that the actuation path of the actuating element be deliberately interrupted so that more than one partial batch is not accidentally dispensed at once in one continuous actuation of the actuating element. To ensure this, a switchover actuation is required between the partial actuations of the actuating element.
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However, carrying out such a switching operation requires the dispenser to be removed from the application site and prevents one-handed operation of the dispenser.

However, one-handed operation of such a dispenser is particularly desirable when the user needs the other hand to fix the application site - for example to fix the head of a patient, especially a child - and is therefore not available to operate the dispenser itself. Putting down the dispenser and releasing the fixation of the application site to carry out the switchover operation and then re-fixing the application site and re-attaching the dispenser would be very cumbersome.

DE 40 08 068 A1 discloses a discharge device for media with a manually operated pump that can be operated in partial strokes of two components that can be moved relative to one another and that has a locking mechanism at the end of at least one partial stroke that fixes the pump stroke in a partial actuation end position, which can then be released to carry out the second partial stroke. The switchover takes place in that a compression spring that is tensioned during the actuation stroke returns a cam guided in an unequal-sided U-shaped guide track from the shorter guide track that enables the first partial stroke to an initial position, then by manually turning two parts of the device, the cam can be guided into the second, longer guide track, whereupon a second, longer partial stroke is then enabled.

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In another embodiment, the cam is guided into a partial actuation end position by a curved design of the first part of the guide track, from which it is transferred into the second partial guide track by the action of the compression spring, which pushes the piston axially back against the actuation direction, in conjunction with an inclined surface. In both cases, the piston is retracted against its direction of action in the pump formed by the container to switch between the two partial actuations, so that air is sucked in through the discharge opening, which must first be discharged again during the next partial stroke before medium flows or is atomized.

EP 0 477 562 A2 shows a discharge device with a piston pump that sucks in from a container and has a device for recording the number of strokes, i.e. a counting device. This has sawtooth-like arranged slide tracks in the number corresponding to the number of counting steps, in which a cam, guided by corresponding inclined surfaces, switches from counting step to counting step.

TASK AND SOLUTION

The object of the invention is to improve the manufacture and function of such a dispenser with a one-handed operation, which ensures that the dispensing of more than one partial batch in one operation is reliably prevented. In particular, the switching operation between two partial operations should be simplified and designed to be reliable.
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This object is solved by the features of claim 1.

In a dispenser according to the invention for the optionally atomized dispensing of a particularly liquid medium from a container, the actuation of the

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Dispenser in a sequence of manual partial operations of an actuating element. With each partial operation of the actuating element, a defined partial batch is dispensed from the dispenser. A switching operation takes place between two partial operations of the actuating element. This switching operation takes place automatically after a partial operation has been carried out.

To carry out the switching operation, a force accumulator is provided which is pre-tensioned during the execution of a partial operation. This force accumulator serves to return the actuating element from an actuation end position, which is reached when a partial operation has been completely carried out, to an actuation starting position, whereby the subsequent partial operation can be carried out from the actuation starting position. It is particularly advantageous to carry out the switching operation when the end of the partial operation is determined by the fact that the actuation force required to carry out the partial operation no longer acts on the actuating element. A leaf spring-like spring arm serves as the force accumulator.

The container is arranged in a housing, whereby a relative movement takes place between the housing and the actuating element during each partial actuation, whereby this relative movement is determined by a guide rail. The guide rail is guided in particular by a guide rail in which a sliding block is guided. According to a preferred embodiment, a sleeve is arranged between the housing and the container, whereby the sleeve is arranged either in a fixed position relative to the housing or the container with respect to a partial actuation of the actuating element, but is relatively movable relative to it in the direction of the switching actuation. The sleeve has either the guide rail or the sliding block guided in the guide rail. Further preferred embodiments of the guide rail are listed in the further subclaims.

In addition to the subclaims, the invention is explained in more detail with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a sectional view of a first dispenser according to the invention,

in which a sleeve with a slide track is arranged in a fixed position to a housing that accommodates the container; and

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Fig. 2a, 2b side views of a sleeve for use in the embodiment according to Fig. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENT

Fig. 1 shows a cross-sectional view of a dispenser according to the invention, which is designed as a push piston. The dispenser 11 consists of a housing 12, the sleeve 13 which is rotatably held in the housing, the actuating element 14, which also serves as a holder for the ampoule 17, which serves as a container for the medium to be dispensed. The ampoule 17 is closed by the stopper 18 before the first actuation. The ampoule 17 is held in the actuating element 14 in such a way that when the actuating element is actuated it is moved along with the actuating element 14 in the direction of the housing. During the first actuation partial stroke, the stopper 18 is first pierced by the cannula 20, which forms a dispensing channel up to the nozzle 32. The stopper 18, which then acts as a piston, is then pressed into the ampoule by the piston rod 19 arranged in the housing 12, so that the volume of the ampoule available for the medium is reduced. The medium escapes via the cannula 20 and the nozzle 32 and is thus dispensed. Due to the division of the actuation path, in this case two partial actuations, the stopper 18 is only pressed into the ampoule by a predetermined amount in each of the two partial actuations, i.e. only by half of the total possible actuation path.

The housing 12 of the dispenser 11 has the nozzle 32 at its front end and the finger rest 15 at its rear end for resting at least one finger. The finger rest 15 serves to provide a force on the housing that supports the actuating force acting on the actuating element 14, so that the dispenser is held still during actuation. The sleeve 13 is arranged in the housing along the housing wall. The sleeve 13 is supported on the support edge 35 of the housing 12 in the axial actuating direction of the actuating element 14. At its rear end, the sleeve 13 has a sleeve edge 34, which is gripped by the locking edge 33 on the housing side in such a way that the sleeve 13 cannot be pulled backwards out of the housing 12. The support edge 35 and locking edge 33 thus form a bearing for the sleeve 13 in the housing, which in the actuating direction of the actuating element

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ments 14 defines a positionally fixed holder of the sleeve 13 in the housing 12. The sleeve 13 can be rotated in the housing 12 about an axis of rotation running in the actuation direction of the actuating element 14. The actuating element 14 has an actuating surface 16 at its rear end, which is used for manual actuation of the actuating element 14, in particular by means of the user's thumb. Otherwise, the actuating element 14 is essentially formed from the hollow cylindrical shaft 36. The hollow cylindrical shaft 36 has an outer diameter that essentially corresponds to the inner diameter of the sleeve 13. The shaft 36 is guided through the sleeve 13 in the housing 12. To form a guide rail, the sleeve 13 has a guide rail on each of the opposite sides, as shown in more detail in Fig. 2a, Fig. 2b. In the area of the front end of the shaft 36 of the actuating element 14, sliding blocks 21a, 21b are formed at corresponding points. The ampoule 17 with the medium stored therein is inserted into the shaft 36. The inner diameter of the shaft essentially corresponds to the outer diameter of the ampoule, so that the ampoule 17 is held in a clamping manner in the shaft 36 of the actuating element 14. The ampoule also has a cross-sectional expansion at its front end, which can come into contact with the front edge of the shaft 36 as an abutting edge 37, so that it is ensured that the ampoule 17 is carried along without play in the actuating direction of the actuating element 14 when it is actuated.

Fig. 2a, 2b show opposite side views of the sleeve 13 with the slide tracks 22a, 22b and the sliding blocks 21a, 21b guided in the slide track. The slide track 22a shown in Fig. 2a serves to generate the preload of a force accumulator for carrying out the switching operation between the two partial operations of the actuating element, while the slide track shown in Fig. 2b serves to divide the actuating path of the actuating element into two partial operations.

Both slide tracks have an insertion funnel 29 in the area of the sleeve edge 34 for easy insertion of the sliding blocks 21a, 21b into the respective slide track 22a, 22b. Furthermore, pressure point means 38 are formed in the end area of the insertion funnel 29, which prevent the sliding blocks 21a, 21b from sliding backwards out of the slide track 22a or 22b. This creates a loss protection for the actuating element 14.

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The slide track shown in Fig. 2a has a spring arm 23 that extends into the movement space of the sliding block 21a and is pressed by the latter during the first partial actuation, generating a preload, into the displacement space 39, which is free of material in the area of the sleeve. The spring arm 23 is preferably made of the same material as the sleeve itself and can be designed as a thin material web in the material-free area of the slide track 22a. The sleeve 13 is preferably made of plastic, and when the sleeve 13 is injection molded, the spring arm 23 can be produced in the same injection molding process.

The displacement of the spring arm 23 from the movement space of the sliding block 21a is necessary because the trajectory of the second guide track 22b shown in Fig. 2b, which is arranged opposite on the sleeve, runs in a straight line over the entire length of a first partial actuation. This prevents the sliding block 21a, guided by the spring arm 23, from already generating a rotary movement of the sleeve 13 in the housing 12.

Fig. 2a also shows an advantageous embodiment of the sliding block 21a. It is only rounded on its front side to prevent it from spreading in the slide track 22a. It also has at least one flank 45, which, due to its longitudinal extension parallel to the linear track sections of the slide track, ensures that the sliding block 21a is guided for a long time in the slide track 22a. The sliding block 21b shown in Fig. 2b can also have a corresponding shape with a flank 45.

As can be seen from Fig. 2b, the sliding block 21b is guided in a slide track 22b, which consists of two linear track sections that are only offset from one another by approximately the width of the slide track, the length of the two straight sections corresponding to the actuation path of a partial actuation of the actuating element 14. The two straight sections overlap in an area whose length corresponds approximately to the diameter of the sliding block 21b. If the actuating element 14, on which the sliding blocks 21a, 21b are arranged, is actuated, the sliding block 21b first runs onto the locking means 27, a thin material web protruding on one side of the slide track 22b, which is connected to the opposite edge of the slide track 22b via a predetermined breaking point 28 and, after being separated,

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the predetermined breaking point can be completely removed from the guide track. Only when an actuating force is applied to the actuating element 14, which leads to a break at the predetermined breaking point 28, is the material web forming the locking means 27 pushed out sideways from the guide track 22b. The locking means 27 with its predetermined breaking point 28 thus ensures that such an actuating force is applied to the actuating element 14 that a complete partial actuation of the actuating element is carried out in a coherent actuation sequence.

The locking means can also be designed in the form of a locking lug that protrudes into the track. The locking means 27 are designed in such a way that they can be overpressed when a minimum actuation force on the actuation element 14 is exceeded, i.e. by overcoming a minimum actuation force, a continuous, uninterrupted actuation is ensured up to the first partial actuation end position.

The sliding block 21b then slides in a linear, uninterrupted movement up to the first partial actuation end position 25 formed at the end 22c of the first linear section of the slide track 22b. In this position, the sliding block 21a shown in Fig. 2a is located at the end of the linear section corresponding to the first partial actuation and in the area of the front end of the spring arm 23, which in the example shown was pushed out to the left from the movement space of the sliding block 21a and now presses against the latter with the corresponding lever length and the force generated due to the material bending against the sliding block 21a.

The spring is designed in such a way that the spring is only pre-tensioned when the actuating element has already completed part of the partial actuation path. This reduces in particular the minimum actuation force that must be applied to ensure that each partial actuation stroke is carried out uninterruptedly as a self-contained stroke.

If the actuating element 14 itself cannot be rotated relative to the housing 12 - in this case, the inhibiting effect caused by the cannula 20 located in the stopper 18 and by the piston rod 19 of the housing 12 resting on the stopper and possibly also on the inside of the ampoule - can be too great - the sleeve 13 is rotated relative to the actuating element 14 with the

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Sliding blocks 21a, 21b are twisted due to the force generated in the spring arm 23. This is only possible in the overlapping area of the two straight sections of the slide track 22b.

As soon as the actuating surface 16 is released and thus no more actuating force acts on the actuating element 14, the switchover actuation takes place due to the preload of the spring, during which the sleeve 13 is rotated relative to the ampoule 17 about an axis of rotation that runs coaxially to the actuating direction during the partial actuations. Alternatively, if the sleeve is held in a rotationally fixed manner to the ampoule 17, the sleeve 13 together with the ampoule 17 and actuating element 14 rotates towards the housing 12 as soon as the actuating surface 16 is released.

In order to achieve a clean separation between the two partial actuations, a relief nose 31 is formed on the area of the first straight section of the slide track 22b corresponding to the first partial actuation end position 25, which prevents the sleeve 13 from twisting with respect to the sliding blocks 21a, 21b as long as the actuating element 14 has not been completely relieved of the actuating force. Only then can the relief nose be overcome, whereby the sleeve is displaced in a negligible manner in the actuating direction of the actuating element 14.

By rotating the sleeve with respect to the sliding blocks 21a, 21b and the housing 12 holding the sleeve 13, the sliding block 21b reaches the initial actuation position 30b. By actuating the actuating element 14 again, the sliding block 21b initially comes into contact with the locking means 27 with a predetermined breaking point 28, which must be overcome with a minimum actuating force on the actuating element. The movement space for the second partial actuation, formed by the second linear section of the trajectory of the slide track 22b, is then released. The slide track 21a is designed, as shown in Fig. 2a, so that both the rotary movement and the partial actuation movement by the sliding block 21a are released within the trajectory of the slide track 22a.

A return preventing the retraction of the actuating element 14 after completion of the partial actuations is provided by the trajectory of the slide track 22a shown in Fig. 2a in cooperation with the spring arm 23 and the

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The shape of the sliding block 21a is achieved in that the sliding block is moved into the dead shaft 24 by means of the spring arm 23 when the actuating element is retracted as soon as the switching operation has been carried out by the spring element 23.
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Alternatively, it is also possible to arrange the sleeve 13 in the housing 12 in a rotationally fixed manner. In this case, care must be taken to ensure that the inhibition - particularly between the stopper 18 and the channels 20 - is not so great that rotation of the ampoule 17 together with the actuating element 14 in the sleeve 13 is not prevented by the force generated by the spring arm 23. Such a design has the advantage that, particularly in the case of an actuating surface 16 that is rough, for example due to ribbing, rotation of the ampoule 17 and the actuating element 14 is only possible when the user releases the actuating element. This also reliably prevents two partial actuations from being carried out one after the other without interruption.

During the second partial actuation, the force is also transmitted from the actuating element 14 to the sleeve 13 and the ampoule 17 via the plunger 41 of the actuating element.

Claims (23)

1. Dispenser for atomized dispensing of a medium, in particular a liquid medium, from a container ( 17 ), a) wherein the medium is dispensed by a sequence of manual partial actuations of an actuating element ( 14 ) in defined partial batches, b) wherein the actuating element ( 17 ) actuates a thrust piston pump, 1. which is also a container for the medium to be issued 2. and dispenses the partial batches by axially successive partial strokes of a piston ( 18 ) guided in the container ( 17 ), c) between two partial actuations of the actuating element ( 14 ) 1. a partial actuation end position ( 25 ) of the actuating element ( 14 ) is provided, 2. in which means ( 22c ) are provided for dividing the actuation path of the actuating element and for preventing two partial actuations one after the other without interruption, 3. and a switching operation by means of rotation is provided d) with an automatically acting switching device ( 23 , 40 ) which automatically carries out the switching operation after one of the partial operations has been carried out and brings the actuating element ( 14 ) into a new actuating starting position for a further partial operation, e) wherein the switching device ( 23 , 40 ) has a spring ( 23 ) which is pre-tensioned during at least one of the partial actuations and which carries out the switching actuation after completion of this partial actuation, and 1. the spring ( 23 ) is a leaf spring-like spring arm which is arranged in the region of a guide ( 22 a, 22 b) and 2. acts in the direction of rotation. 2. Dispenser according to claim 1, characterized by an inhibition ( 31 ) which prevents the switching actuation from taking place as long as the actuating force required to carry out the partial actuation acts on the actuating element ( 14 ). 3. Dispenser according to claim 2, characterized in that the inhibition ( 31 ) is designed as a nose in the region of the partial actuation end position ( 25 ). 4. Dispenser according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the actuating element ( 14 ) and its actuating surface are designed such that the switching operation by turning only takes place after the actuating element has been released by the user. 5. Dispenser according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the container ( 17 ) is arranged in a housing ( 12 ), wherein a relative movement takes place between the housing ( 12 ) and the actuating element ( 14 ) during each partial actuation, which relative movement is guided by at least one guide. 6. Dispenser according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the spring arm ( 23 ) is a leaf spring designed as an injection-molded plastic part. 7. Dispenser according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the guide is at least one guide track ( 22 , 22a , 22b ) and has at least one sliding block ( 21 , 21a , 21b ) guided therein, preferably designed as an injection-molded projection of a plastic part. 8. Dispenser according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a sleeve ( 13 ) is arranged between the housing ( 12 ) and the container ( 17 ), has at least one guide track ( 22 , 22a , 22b ) and is arranged in a fixed position relative to the housing ( 12 ). 9. Dispenser according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a sleeve ( 13 ) is arranged between the housing ( 12 ) and the container ( 17 ), has at least one guide track ( 22 , 22a , 22b ) and is arranged in a fixed position relative to the container ( 17 ). 10. Dispenser according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a sleeve is arranged between the housing (129) and the container ( 17 ), has at least one sliding block ( 21 , 21a , 21b ) guided therein and is arranged in a fixed position either to the housing ( 12 ). 11. Dispenser according to claim 9, characterized in that the sleeve ( 13 ) is arranged in a fixed position either to the housing (129) or to the container ( 17 ) in the direction of the partial actuation and is arranged so as to be movable relative thereto in the direction of the switching actuation. 12. Dispenser according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the guide rail is formed from two guide rails ( 22 a, 22 b), each with a sliding block ( 21 a, 21 b), the first guide rail ( 21 a) having a trajectory which is stepped in the actuation direction in accordance with the partial actuations, a spring arm ( 23 ) which can be pushed out transversely from the movement path of the sliding block ( 21 a) protruding as an energy accumulator into a guide rail section corresponding to a partial actuation, wherein at the end of the partial actuation a transverse movement of the sliding block ( 21 a) takes place from the guide rail section of the partial actuation which has taken place into the guide rail section of the subsequent partial actuation. 13. Dispenser according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the spring arm ( 23 ) is designed such that it forms a retraction lock for the sliding block ( 21a ). 14. Dispenser according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the guide rail is formed from two guide rails ( 22 a, 22 b), whereby only one of the guide rails ( 21 a) has the spring arm ( 23 ). 15. Dispenser according to one of claims 9 to 14, characterized in that the sleeve ( 13 ) has at least one guide track ( 22 , 22a , 22b ). 16. Dispenser according to one of claims 9 to 15, characterized in that the sleeve ( 13 ) is arranged in a fixed position relative to the housing ( 12 ) in the actuation direction of the partial actuations of the actuating element ( 14 ) and the sliding block ( 21 , 21a , 21b ) is formed on the actuating element ( 14 ). 17. Dispenser according to one of claims 9 to 15, characterized in that the sleeve is arranged in a fixed position relative to the container ( 17 ) in the actuation direction of the partial actuations and the sliding block ( 21 , 21a , 21b ) is formed on the housing ( 12 ). 18. Dispenser according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one locking means ( 27 ) forming an actuation pressure point is provided, which prevents partial actuations of the actuating element ( 14 ) unless a minimum actuation force is applied to the actuating element ( 14 ). 19. Dispenser according to claim 18, characterized in that a separate locking means is provided for each partial actuation. 20. Dispenser according to claim 18 or 19, characterized in that the blocking means ( 27 ) is provided as a destructible nose in the guide track, preferably molded onto a component having a guide track. 21. Dispenser according to one of claims 18 or 19, characterized in that the locking means ( 27 ) is designed as a locking lug projecting into the guide track ( 21a ). 22. Dispenser according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the container is the ampoule ( 17 ) of a push piston cylinder, which is closed with a stopper ( 18 ), wherein a dispensing channel is formed on the housing, which opens into a dispensing opening ( 32 ), which ends on its side facing away from the dispensing opening in a cannula ( 20 ) which pierces the stopper ( 18 ) during the first partial actuation, wherein the stopper ( 18 ) is moved into the ampoule by a predetermined amount in the direction of the base of the ampoule ( 17 ) during each partial actuation and displaces a predetermined volume medium into the dispensing channel. 23. Dispenser according to claim 1 with a) an actuating element ( 14 ) movable into a housing ( 12 ) 1. with a finger operating surface ( 16 ) on its side facing away from the housing ( 12 ), b) a finger rest ( 15 ) provided on the housing ( 12 ) for actuation, c) a spray nozzle ( 32 ) connected to the piston pump, d) at least two guide tracks ( 22 , 22a , 22b ) designed as slots in a sleeve ( 13 ), 1. in each of which a sliding element ( 21 , 21 a, 21 b) is guided, 2. wherein a first of the slide tracks ( 22 b) has at least two essentially straight slide sections each associated with a partial actuation, 3. in each of which a molded locking lug ( 27 ) is arranged to generate an actuation pressure point in cooperation with the sliding element ( 21 b), 4. wherein in an intermediate section between the guide sections of the Z-shaped guide track a stop shoulder ( 22 c) is arranged to separate the partial actuations from each other, 5. wherein in another of the slide tracks ( 22a ) the spring arm ( 23 ) is provided, which can be pre-tensioned by the sliding element ( 30b ) during a partial actuation, and 6. wherein the slide tracks are arranged relative to one another in such a way that after the mentioned partial actuation, the sliding element ( 30 b) in the first of the slide tracks ( 22 b) is free to move the sliding element ( 30 b) in the intermediate section from the one slide section for a partial actuation into the slide track section for the next partial actuation under the action of the pre-tensioned spring arm ( 23 ), 7. thereby triggering a relative rotation of the sleeve ( 13 ) with respect to the sliding element ( 30 b).