Back to results
US 5,152,431 AGranted
Pump apparatus for dispensing a selected one of a plurality of liquids
AssigneeSterling Drug Inc.
InventorsBeth T. Gardner, Alan N. Bodker
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A single pump assembly is used to dispense liquid from a selected one of a plurality of compartments in a container vessel. The pump assembly is detachably mounted on the container vessel and rotates with respect to the container vessel to select the liquid to be pumped.
Claims10
An arrangement for dispensing liquid from a selected one of a plurality of juxtaposed compartments, the arrangement comprising:
- a pump having a housing, a chamber with an inlet and an outlet disposed within said housing, an inlet tube connected to the inlet of the chamber and an outlet nozzle connected to the outlet of the chamber, a piston in the chamber, the piston being biased by a spring to a rest position, a trigger for moving the piston against the bias of the spring to expel liquid in the chamber through the outlet nozzle, the spring returning the piston to the rest position to create a vacuum in the chamber which vacuum draws additional liquid into the chamber through the inlet tube;
- a plurality of dip tubes, each dip tube extending into a separate compartment;
- a base member having a plurality of openings each connected with a separate one of the dip tubes;
- means for securing the pump housing to the base member with the inlet tube aligned with one of the holes in the base member;
- and
- means for indexing the inlet tube from alignment with one hole in the base member to alignment with another hole in the base member, wherein the pump selectively dispenses liquid from a selected compartment upon squeezing the trigger.
3 more elements
In combination, a pump assembly and a vessel wherein the container vessel includes a plurality of compartments for containing separate liquids, the combination comprising:
- a neck on the container housing with each of the separate compartments of the container housing opening through the neck, the neck including a threaded exterior surface;
- the pump assembly including a base plate having openings therethrough and a dip tube extending from each opening for receipt in one of the compartments of the container vessel, a collar rotatably mounted on the base and having internal threads for threadably connecting with the external threads of the neck of the container vessel;
- the pump assembly further including a pump housing, a pump mechanism within the housing having a single outlet being connected by a single tube to one of the openings in the base plate at a time, the pump housing being rotatably mounted on the base plate for rotation with respect thereto to selectively connect the single tube to one of the openings in the base member.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.