Bimodal storage and dispensing package including self-sealing dispensing valve to provide automatic shut-off and leak-resistant inverted storage

A flexible storage and dispensing package for fluid material, said package having a first mode of operation capable of storing said fluid material without leakage when said package is subjected to unintentional external forces and a second mode of operation of dispensing said fluid material when said package is subjected to external forces intentionally applied by the user, said second mode of operation being capable of dispensing said fluid material through a discharge orifice in response to manually applied forces and of automatically ceasing the dispensing operation when said manually applied forces are removed, said package also being resistant to leakage in said second mode of operation when stored with its discharge orifice downwardly oriented intermediate dispensing cycles, said package comprising:

• (a) a resiliently deformable container for housing said fluid material, said container exhibiting a degree of flexibility sufficient to permit deformation thereof in response to manual resilience sufficient to return automatically to its underformed condition when said manually applied forces are removed therefrom, said container including said discharge orifice;
• (b) a self-sealing dispensing valve which in said second mode of operation opens at a predetermined threshold pressure which is greater than the maximum hydraulic head pressure of the fluid material in said container when said discharge orifice is downwardly oriented, said dispensing valve having a centrally located portion comprised of resilient material, said centrally located portion exhibiting a predetermined concave shape while in a substantially unstressed condition, said centrally located concave shaped portion of said valve being sealingly secured about its periphery to one end of a resilient annular side wall portion of said valve, said resilient annular side wall portion of said valve defining an internal passageway which places the interior surface of said concave shaped portion of said valve in fluid communication with the interior of said resiliently deformable container, the other end of said resilient annular side wall portion of said valve being sealingly secured about its periphery across said discharge orifice of said container, said valve being oriented relative to said discharge orifice so that said centrally located resilient portion of said valve is inwardly concave when said container is in an undeformed condition, said concave shaped resilient portion of said valve further including at least one substantially linear slit extending through its thickness from its innermost surface to its outermost surface, said valve exhibiting an ability to undergo inversion in said second mode of operation from a closed, inwardly concave, sealed and leak resistant position to an open, outwardly convex, unsealed position when said manually applied forces increase the pressure inside said container beyond the threshold opening pressure of said valve, whereby fluid material is discharged from said container in said second mode of operation through said slit in said valve as long as said manually applied forces on said container maintain an internal pressure exceeding said threshold opening pressure of said valve, said valve further exhibiting an ability to cut-off said fluid material discharge by returning to a closed, inwardly concave, sealed and leak resistant position in said second mode of operation whenever said manually applied forces are removed from said container;
• (c) said package further including valve restraining means for preventing said valve from undergoing inversion and dispensing said fluid material whenever said package is subjected to unintentional external forces in said first mode of operation, said valve restraining means comprising a first peripheral restraint means for applying a radially oriented compressive force about the periphery of said concave shaped portion of said valve, said first peripheral restraint means tending to place said concave shaped portion of said valve in a state of radial compression in said first mode of operation, said valve restraining means further including a second exterior surface restraint means substantially coinciding with at least a portion of the exterior surface of said concave shaped portion of said valve to prevent inversion of said concave shaped portion of said valve when said package is in said first mode of operation, whereby fluid pressure generated within said container and applied at the point of joinder between said concave shaped portion of said valve and said annular side wall portion of said valve is resisted by said radially oriented compressive force applied by said first peripheral restraint means at the same time said concave shaped portion of said valve is prevented form undergoing inversion by said second exterior surface valve restraint means substantially coinciding with at least a portion of its outermost surface;
• (d) said package further including annular side wall restraint means to prevent the portion of said annular side wall secured across said discharge orifice of said container from collapsing inwardly on said internal passageway in response to sudden increases in fluid pressure within said container in either said first mode of operation or said second mode of operation of said package, said annular side wall restraint means comprising an annular restraint member having an outside diameter substantially equal to the inside diameter of said internal passageway defined by said annular side wall portion of said valve, said annular side wall restraint means being secured in fixed relation to said discharge orifice in said container so that it extends through said internal passageway of said annular side wall portion of said valve at least in the area of said seal between said valve and said discharge orifice of said container, whereby fluid pressure generated within said container and applied against the interior surfaces of said concave shaped portion and said annular side wall portion of said valve is prevented from collapsing said annular side wall portion of said valve into said internal passageway in the area of said seal between said valve and said discharge orifice of said container by said annular side wall restraint means;
• and
• (e) said package further including a baffle oriented substantially perpendicular to the axis of said internal passageway of said valve, said baffle being secured to said annular side wall restraint means in fixed relation to said discharge orifice in said container in the path of fluid communication between the interior surface of said concave shaped portion of said valve and the interior of said container, said baffle being so positioned that any fluid material approaching the interior surface of said concave shaped portion of said valve from the interior of said container must strike and be redirected about said baffle before reaching the interior surface of said concave shaped portion of said valve, whereby the severity of any shock loading applied to the interior surface of said concave shaped portion of said valve due to the application of sudden external forces on said container is greatly reduced.