# US 10,479,587 B2 · Cartridge for viscous-material dispenser > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,479,587 B2 - Document ID: US10479587B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/504,720 - Filed: 2015-08-21 - Published: 2017-09-28 - Granted: 2019-11-19 - Earliest claimed: 2014-08-25 - Assignees: Kaga Works Co., Ltd. - Applicants: Kaga Works Co., Ltd. - Inventors: Osamu Mizoguchi; Hitoshi Tsujikawa; Kyota Imai; Akira Kanazawa - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10479587B2 ## CPC - B65D 83/76: for dispensing fluent contents by means of a piston - B05C 17/00516: {Shape or geometry of the outlet orifice or the outlet element} - B05C 17/00579: {comprising means for allowing entrapped air to escape to the atmosphere} - B05C 17/015: with pneumatically {or hydraulically} actuated piston or the like {(B05C17/00543 takes precedence)} - B65B 3/12: mechanically, e.g. by pistons or pumps - B65B 43/54: Means for supporting containers or receptacles during the filling operation - B65D 83/425: {Delivery valves permitting filling or charging} - B65D: CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES - B05C: APPARATUS FOR APPLYING FLUENT MATERIALS TO SURFACES, IN GENERAL (spraying apparatus, atomising apparatus, nozzles B05B; plant for applying liquids or other fluent materials to objects by electrostatic spraying B05B5/08) - B65B: MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING (bundling and pressing devices for cigars A24C1/44; devices for tensioning and securing binders adapted to be supported by the article or articles to be bound B25B25/00; applying closure members to bottles, jars or similar containers B67B1/00-B67B6/00; concurrent cleaning, filling and closing of bottles B67C7/00; emptying bottles, jars, cans, casks, barrels or similar containers B67C9/00) ## Abstract A cartridge (12) for a viscous-material dispenser includes a plunger (10) that is slidable within a cylinder (18). A seal body (104) forms between an outer circumferential surface (82) of the plunger and an inner circumferential surface (84) of the cylinder when a viscous material flows into a radial tubular clearance (106) that continuously extends both axially and circumferentially between the outer circumferential surface and the inner circumferential surface. Ridges (100) may be formed on the outer circumferential surface of the plunger to guide the inflowing viscous material and facilitate the formation of the seal body. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A cartridge comprising: a cylinder of a pneumatic dispenser that employs pressurized air to discharge a viscous material, the cylinder having a circular-shaped inner circumferential surface, a first end and a second end, and a discharge port at the first end configured to discharge the viscous material from the cylinder, and a plunger disposed within the cylinder and configured to divide an inner chamber of the cylinder into a filling chamber between the plunger and the first end, into which the viscous material is filled from the outside through the discharge port, and a pressurizing chamber between the plunger and the second end, into which the pressurized air is charged from the outside, the plunger comprising a substantially cylindrical main body portion that extends in an axial direction and has an outer circumferential surface; wherein the outer circumferential surface of the plunger is shaped such that a radial tubular clearance is defined in a circumferential direction between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder, and such that the radial tubular clearance continuously extends between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder both in the axial and circumferential directions, the outer circumferential surface of the plunger is also shaped such that, when the viscous material is filled into the filling chamber from the outside through the discharge port, the continuous radial tubular clearance is filled with a portion of the viscous material, thereby forming a seal body made of said portion of the viscous material between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder, said seal body blocking further viscous material from leaking from the filling chamber into the pressurizing chamber, the outer circumferential surface of the plunger includes multiple ridges that each have a component that extends in the axial direction of the plunger, the multiple ridges being spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction of the plunger, and each of the ridges is radially elastically deformable such that, when a tip end of the ridge is pressed against the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder, the tip end elastically deforms radially inwardly to prevent the ridge from strongly contacting the inner circumferential surface. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the outer circumferential surface of the plunger is also shaped such that the dimensions of the radial tubular clearance vary between a lower limit, which is necessary to allow the plunger to be fitted into the cylinder in an axially slidable manner without play, and an upper limit, which is necessary, in a substantially final stage of a discharging phase in which the viscous material is discharged from the filling chamber to the outside, to allow the continuous radial tubular clearance to be filled with a portion of the viscous material both in the circumferential and axial directions of the continuous radial tubular clearance. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the outer circumferential surface of the plunger is further shaped such that: in a filling phase in which the viscous material is filled into the filling chamber from the outside, a portion of the viscous material travels from the filling chamber into the continuous radial tubular clearance, thereby filling the continuous radial tubular clearance with said portion of the viscous material that serves as a fill viscous-material, in a filled state, the fluidity of the fill viscous-material within the continuous radial tubular clearance varies such that the fluidity is higher in the axial direction than in the circumferential direction, and the fill viscous-material is allowed to flow between a ridge region on the outer circumferential surface that is defined by the ridges, and a groove region on the outer circumferential surface that is not defined by the ridges, thereby facilitating the filling of the continuous radial tubular clearance with the fill viscous-material both in the axial and circumferential directions, in a fully-filled state in which the continuous radial tubular clearance is fully filled with the fill viscous-material, the fill viscous-material itself blocks the rest of the viscous material from leaking into the pressuring chamber, in a pre-fully-filled state prior to the fully-filled state, gasses existing in the filling chamber are allowed to vent, via a portion of the continuous radial tubular clearance that has not yet filled with the fill viscous-material, into the pressurizing chamber, and in a discharging phase in which, in the fully-filled state, the pressurized gas is introduced into the pressurizing chamber to discharge the viscous material from the filling chamber, the fill viscous-material blocks the pressurizing gas from leaking from the pressurizing chamber into the filling chamber. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein each of the ridges has a width dimension in the circumferential direction that is narrower than a width dimension in the circumferential direction of a groove that is located on the outer circumferential surface between two adjacent ones of the ridges. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the ridges extends at least substantially along the entire axial length of the plunger. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the ridges has a width dimension in the circumferential direction that increases in the axial direction from the filling chamber to the pressurizing chamber. ### Claim 7 A cartridge comprising: a cylinder of a pneumatic dispenser that employs pressurized air to discharge a viscous material, the cylinder having a circular-shaped inner circumferential surface, a first end and a second end, and a discharge port at the first end configured to discharge the viscous material from the cylinder; and a plunger disposed within the cylinder and configured to divide an inner chamber of the cylinder into a filling chamber between the plunger and the first end, into which the viscous material is filled from the outside through the discharge port, and a pressurizing chamber between the plunger and the second end, into which the pressurized air is charged from the outside, the plunger comprising a substantially cylindrical main body portion that extends in an axial direction and has an outer circumferential surface; wherein the outer circumferential surface of the plunger is shaped such that a radial tubular clearance is defined in a circumferential direction between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder, and such that the radial tubular clearance continuously extends between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder both in the axial and circumferential directions, the outer circumferential surface of the plunger is also shaped such that, when the viscous material is filled into the filling chamber from the outside through the discharge port, the continuous radial tubular clearance is filled with a portion of the viscous material, thereby forming a seal body made of said portion of the viscous material between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder, said seal body blocking further viscous material from leaking from the filling chamber into the pressurizing chamber, the outer circumferential surface of the plunger includes multiple ridges that each have a component that extends in the axial direction of the plunger, the multiple ridges being spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction of the plunger, and at least one of the ridges has a height dimension that increases in the axial direction from the filling chamber to the pressurizing chamber. ### Claim 8 A cartridge comprising: a cylinder of a pneumatic dispenser that employs pressurized air to discharge a viscous material, the cylinder having a circular-shaped inner circumferential surface, a first end and a second end, and a discharge port at the first end configured to discharge the viscous material from the cylinder; and a plunger disposed within the cylinder and configured to divide an inner chamber of the cylinder into a filling chamber between the plunger and the first end, into which the viscous material is filled from the outside through the discharge port, and a pressurizing chamber between the plunger and the second end, into which the pressurized air is charged from the outside, the plunger comprising a substantially cylindrical main body portion that extends in an axial direction and has an outer circumferential surface; wherein the outer circumferential surface of the plunger is shaped such that a radial tubular clearance is defined in a circumferential direction between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder, and such that the radial tubular clearance continuously extends between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder both in the axial and circumferential directions, wherein the outer circumferential surface of the plunger is also shaped such that, when the viscous material is filled into the filling chamber from the outside through the discharge port, the continuous radial tubular clearance is filled with a portion of the viscous material, thereby forming a seal body made of said portion of the viscous material between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder, said seal body blocking further viscous material from leaking from the filling chamber into the pressurizing chamber, wherein the outer circumferential surface of the plunger includes multiple ridges that each have a component that extends in the axial direction of the plunger, the multiple ridges being spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction of the plunger, and wherein at least one of the ridges is configured as multiple discrete ridge segments that are aligned in the axial direction and are spaced apart from each other in the axial direction. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the outer circumferential surface of the plunger is a smooth surface that substantially does not have any unevenness, or is an uneven surface. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the axial length of the plunger is greater than its diameter. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the inner outline of the shape, which represents the cross section of the inner circumferential surface, is a circle, and the outer outline of the shape, which represents the cross section of the outer circumferential surface, is a non-circular endless line that circumscribes a smaller circle than said circle. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The cartridge according to claim 11, wherein, the non-circular endless line has a shape selected from the group consisting of an ellipse, an oval and a polygon. ### Claim 13 A cartridge comprising: a cylinder of a pneumatic dispenser that employs pressurized air to discharge a viscous material, the cylinder having a circular-shaped inner circumferential surface, a first end and a second end, and a discharge port at the first end configured to discharge the viscous material from the cylinder; and a plunger disposed within the cylinder and configured to divide an inner chamber of the cylinder into a filling chamber between the plunger and the first end, into which the viscous material is filled from the outside through the discharge port, and a pressurizing chamber between the plunger and the second end, into which the pressurized air is charged from the outside, the plunger comprising a substantially cylindrical main body portion that extends in an axial direction and has an outer circumferential surface; wherein: the outer circumferential surface of the plunger is shaped such that a radial tubular clearance is defined in a circumferential direction between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder, and such that the radial tubular clearance continuously extends between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder both in the axial and circumferential directions; the outer circumferential surface of the plunger is also shaped such that, when the viscous material is filled into the filling chamber from the outside through the discharge port, the continuous radial tubular clearance is filled with a portion of the viscous material, thereby forming a seal body made of said portion of the viscous material between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder, said seal body blocking further viscous material from leaking from the filling chamber into the pressurizing chamber; the outer circumferential surface of the plunger includes multiple ridges that each have a component that extends in the axial direction of the plunger, the multiple ridges being spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction of the plunger; each of the ridges has a height dimension in a radial direction of the plunger that increases in the axial direction from the filling chamber to the pressurizing chamber such that tip ends of the ridges are disposed more closely to the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder near the pressurizing chamber than near the filling chamber; and each of the ridges extends at least substantially along the entire axial length of the plunger. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The cartridge according to claim 13, wherein the tip ends of the ridges are radially elastically deformable such that, when the tip ends are pressed against the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder, the tip ends elastically deform radially inwardly. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The cartridge according to claim 14, wherein the cylinder has a discharge nozzle detachably attached to a narrow tubular portion located at a distal tip end of the cylinder that forms a part of the filling chamber, said narrow tubular portion of the cylinder having a diameter that is less than the diameter of the portion of the cylinder surrounding the plunger. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The cartridge according to claim 15, wherein the cylinder and plunger are configured to both fill the cylinder with the viscous material and extrude the viscous material via the narrow tubular portion. ### Claim 17 (depends on 15) A method of using the cartridge of claim 15, comprising: filling the cylinder with viscous material via the narrow tubular portion; and then extruding from the cylinder via the narrow tubular portion. ### Claim 18 A cartridge comprising: a cylinder of a dispenser configured to discharge a viscous material, the cylinder having a circular-shaped inner circumferential surface, a first end and a second end, and a discharge port disposed at the first end configured to discharge the viscous material from the cylinder, and a plunger disposed within the cylinder and configured to divide an inner chamber of the cylinder into an anterior chamber between the plunger and the first end, into which the viscous material is filled from the outside through the discharge port, and a posterior chamber opposite the anterior chamber between the plunger and the second end, the plunger comprising a substantially cylindrical main body portion that extends in an axial direction and has an outer circumferential surface; wherein the outer circumferential surface of the plunger is shaped such that a radial tubular clearance is defined in a circumferential direction between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder, and such that the radial tubular clearance continuously extends between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder both in the axial and circumferential directions, the outer circumferential surface of the plunger is also shaped such that, when the viscous material is filled into the anterior chamber from the outside through the discharge port, the radial tubular clearance is filled with a portion of the viscous material, thereby forming a seal body made of said portion of the viscous material between the outer circumferential surface of the plunger and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder, said seal body blocking further viscous material from leaking from the anterior chamber into the posterior chamber, wherein the outer circumferential surface of the plunger includes multiple ridges that each extend in a direction at least having at least a direction extending in parallel in the axial direction of the plunger and that are spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction of the plunger, and wherein each of the ridges is radially elastically deformable such that, when a tip end of the ridge is pressed against the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder, the tip end elastically deforms radially inwardly to prevent the ridge from strongly contacting the inner circumferential surface.