Electronic Dispenser for Flexible Rolled Sheet Material

A dispenser for flexible rolled sheet material, comprising:

• a dispenser housing having a support configured to hold at least one roll of sheet material, the dispenser housing including a discharge through which the sheet material is dispensed;
• a control circuit to control dispensing of the sheet material;
• a dispensing mechanism including at least one roller configured to drive the sheet material along a discharge path through the dispenser housing and to the discharge upon receiving a signal from the control circuit;
• a tear bar adjacent the discharge in a position for severance of the sheet material;
• a paper detection sensor located along the discharge path of the sheet material in a position to detect the presence or absence of the sheet material in the discharge, the dispensing mechanism being operative to dispense a next length of the sheet material in response to a signal from the paper detection sensor verifying that the absence of the dispensed length of the sheet material in the dispenser;
• and
• a static charge dissipation system comprising an antenna arranged along the dispenser housing, the antenna being electrically isolated and disposed in conductive communication with the dispensing mechanism and/or the tear bar to receive and dissipate at least a portion of a static charge generated upon operation of the dispenser via a corona discharge.

A dispenser for flexible rolled sheet material, comprising:

• a housing including a discharge chute through which the sheet material is discharged;
• a dispensing mechanism mounted within the housing and operable to drive the sheet material along a path extending through the discharge housing and to the discharge;
• a control circuit in communication with the discharging mechanism to control dispensing of the sheet material from the dispenser housing;
• a substantially stationary tear bar mounted within the dispenser housing for severance of a portion of the sheet material by a user;
• a pivotally mounted pawl member located proximate the tear bar such that movement of the sheet material into the tear bar for severance pivots the pawl member from a first position to a second position whereupon a signal is sent to the control circuit to notify the control circuit that the portion of the sheet material has been removed;
• a paper detection sensor including an emitter and a detector focused across at least a portion of the path extending through the discharge chute, wherein the paper detection sensor is activated by the control circuit to verify that the portion of the sheet material has been removed from the discharge chute, and wherein the dispensing mechanism is operative to dispense a next portion of the sheet material in response to a signal from the paper detection sensor verifying that the portion of the sheet material has been removed from the dispenser;
• and
• an antenna arranged along the housing and configured to receive and dissipate at least a portion of a static charge generated by the dispensing of the sheet material to an exterior of the dispenser housing.