Pump dispenser and a method of assembling the pump dispenser

A method of assembling a pump dispenser comprising a cylinder including a vertical cylindrical portion, a cylinder body extending horizontally from the vertical cylindrical portion and a nozzle holder provided over the cylinder body and extending from the vertical portion in parallel with the cylinder body, a nozzle base mounted on a front end of the nozzle holder, a nozzle having a bottom portion formed with an orifice and mounted on a front end of the nozzle base, a trigger pivoted on the nozzle base and adopted to be pulled by an operator with a finger, a piston horizontally reciprocating in the cylinder body in cooperation with the movement of the trigger, a valve housing mounted on the vertical cylindrical portion of the cylinder from beneath thereof, a bottle cap for mounting the valve housing through a packing on a neck portion of a container containing a liquid to be dispensed, a primary valve for controlling the liquid from the container to the cylinder body, a secondary valve for controlling the liquid from the cylinder body to the orifice, a return spring for applying a biasing force to the trigger against a retraction of the trigger, and a hollow cover opened at a front face and a lower surface of the cover and having a generally U-shaped cross section, for covering the cylinder and the nozzle base, the method comprising:

• (a) a step of forming an inner assembly including the steps of:
• (a-1) disposing the nozzle in front of the nozzle base and disposing the trigger behind the nozzle base, mounting the nozzle on the front end of the nozzle base under a horizontal pushing force and pivotally supporting the trigger on lateral sides of the nozzle base;
• (a-2) disposing the nozzle base together with the nozzle and the trigger in front of the nozzle holder of the cylinder with the secondary valve disposed therebetween, disposing the piston in front of the cylinder body and mounting the return spring on the cylinder body so as to ride thereon, mounting the nozzle base on the nozzle holder of the cylinder with the secondary valve held thereto under a horizontal pushing force, providing the return spring between the cylinder and the trigger, pivotally mounting a front end of the piston in a rear face of the trigger;
• (a-3) disposing the valve housing under the vertical cylindrical portion of the cylinder with the primary valve disposed therebetween, and mounting the valve housing on the vertical cylindrical portion of the cylinder from beneath thereof trader a vertical pushing force with the primary valve held therein;
• and
• (a-4) disposing the bottle cap and the packing under the valve housing and mounting the bottle cap and the packing on a lower end of the valve housing so as to rest thereon,
• whereby the nozzle, the nozzle base, the trigger, the secondary valve, the piston, the return spring, the cylinder, the primary valve, the valve housing, the bottle cap and the packing are unitarily assembled together to form the inner assembly;
• and
• (b) a step of mounting the cover on the inner assembly including the steps of:
• (b-1) disposing the cover behind the inner assembly, and pushing the cover toward the inner assembly under a horizontal pushing force, and further
• (b-1-1) fitting a lower end of the cover in a space between the cylinder and the valve housing from behind the space and holding the lower end of the cover therein,
• (b-1-2) mounting an inner surface of a ceiling of the cover on an upper surface of the nozzle base from behind and resting thereon, and
• (b-1-3) finally, fitting and holding a fitting projection formed on an upper surface of the nozzle base in a fitting hole of a surface of the ceiling of the cover so as to mount the cover on the inner assembly from behind.