US 2004/0016767 A1Published application

Precision adaptive powder dispenser

AssigneeSchering Corporation

InventorsAnnaniy Berenshteyn, Rajesh K. Maheshwari

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Abstract

A powder dispenser includes: a dispenser housing having including a hopper for holding a powder; an outlet tube; a slider slidably mounted with respect to the dispenser housing between a feed position and a dispense position, the slider including a holding member for receiving powder supplied through a dispensing opening of the hopper in the feed position, the holding member having pores which permit gas passage therethrough but which prevent powder passage therethrough, and a vacuum passage for removing gas trapped by the powder in the holding member, through the holding member wall; an angled bore for supplying a pressurized gas at an angle to the hopper to provide a swirling effect; and a gas supply bore in the dispenser housing for supplying a pressurized gas to the receptacle portion in the dispense position to force the powder from the receptacle portion to the outlet tube.

Claims18

Dependent claims

A powder dispenser comprising:

a dispenser housing including a cavity for holding a supply of a powder, the cavity having a dispensing opening;
an outlet supply tube fixed relative to the dispenser housing and in fluid communication with said gas supply bore;
a slider slidably mounted with respect to said dispenser housing between a feed position and a dispense position, said slider including:
a receptacle portion for receiving the powder supplied from said cavity through said dispensing opening when said slider is in said feed position and for supplying the received powder to said outlet supply tube when said slider is in said dispense position, said receptacle portion including a holding member having pores which permit passage of a gas therethrough but which prevent passage of the powder therethrough;
and
a vacuum passage in fluid communication with an outer wall of said holding member to remove gas trapped by said powder through said holding member;
an arrangement for supplying a pressurized gas to said cavity;
and
a gas supply bore in said dispenser housing for supplying a pressurized gas to the receptacle portion when said slider is in said dispense position so as to force the powder from said receptacle portion to said outlet supply tube.

6 more elements

A method for dispensing predetermined amounts of powder from a powder dispenser, said method comprising the steps of:

providing powder to be dispensed in a cavity of a dispenser housing which has a dispensing opening for the cavity;
moving a slider to a feed position relative to the dispenser housing such that a holding member of the slider which has pores that permit passage of a gas therethrough but which prevent passage of the powder therethrough is supplied with powder from said dispensing opening for said cavity to said holding member;
providing the following cycle of steps at least once until the holding member is precisely filled with a predetermined amount of the powder:
supplying a pressurized gas to said cavity to aid in delivery of the powder from said cavity to said holding member;
stopping the supply of the pressurized gas to said cavity;
applying a vacuum through a vacuum passage in fluid communication with an outer wall of said holding member to remove gas trapped by said powder through said holding member;
moving the slider to a dispense position relative to the dispenser housing such that the holding member of the slider is positioned over an outlet supply tube fixed relative to the dispenser housing;
and
supplying a pressurized gas to the receptacle portion through a gas supply bore in said dispenser housing so as to force the powder from said receptacle portion to said outlet supply tube.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.