Inert gas dispenser for propane tanks
OwnerDennis Blonginventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system for dispensing a plurality of pressurized tanks. The system includes a plurality of compartments each having a door that is releasably opened by a fluid operated lock connected to a pressurized line. The pressurized line is connected via a fluid operated control at a location remote from the lockers. A door sensor associated with each locker senses whether the door is in an open or closed position and a floor sensor sense whether a tank is absent from the particular locker or whether a filled or unfilled tank is present.
Claims16
A dispenser of tanks, said tanks have top dispensing ends, comprising:
- a cabinet with multiple storage compartments to store and dispense filled tanks and to receive and store empty tanks, said compartments each being sized to receive a single tank;
- a plurality of doors hingedly mounted to said cabinet and movable to and from open positions allowing access to said compartments and closed positions limiting access to said compartments;
- a plurality of fluid operated locks associated with said doors and said cabinet releasably locking said doors in said closed positions;
- and,
- a fluid control apparatus located remotely from said cabinet and connected to said locks to unlock via fluid said fluid operated locks allowing said doors to move to said open positions.
The combination of:
- a plurality of tanks with top ends with outlets;
- a frame forming a plurality of individual lockers each for holding one of said tanks;
- a plurality of doors mounted to said frame adjacent each of said lockers and having closed positions limiting access to said lockers and open positions allowing access to said lockers;
- fluid operated locks mounted to said frame and engageable with said doors to lock said doors in said closed positions;
- fluid operated sensors mounted to said frame for each of said lockers to detect the absence of tanks positioned within said lockers;
- a source of pressurized fluid;
- a plurality of fluid lines extending from said locks and said sensors to said source of pressurized fluid;
- and,
- a control apparatus upon command to control fluid flow to said locks for activation thereof and to receive data from said fluid operated sensors for determination of the presence of a filled tank, presence of an empty tank, and absence of a tank within a locker.
A method of dispensing tanks having top ends comprising the steps of:
- providing a plurality of lockers to hold a plurality of tanks, each of said lockers having a door, a fluid operated door lock, a fluid operated tank sensor, and a fluid operated door position sensor;
- providing a control apparatus remotely from said lockers, said control apparatus having fluid lines connected to said door lock, said tank sensor and said door position sensor for said lockers;
- inserting a plurality of filled tanks, one each, into said plurality of lockers;
- closing said door for each of said plurality of lockers;
- pressurizing a fluid line extending from said control apparatus to said door lock, said tank sensor, and said door position sensor corresponding to a particular locker;
- sending an unlocking command via said fluid line from said control apparatus to said fluid operated lock on a door associated with said particular locker to open the door;
- removing a tank from said particular locker;
- and,
- sending data to said control apparatus via said fluid line connected to fluid operated tank sensor of said particular locker corresponding to whether a tank is absent from said particular locker or an unfilled tank is present in said particular locker.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.