US 7,455,248 B2 · Powder delivery device

a powdered material reservoir defining an internal volume adapted to receive and store a quantity of powdered material, said reservoir including an elongate body, said body having a reservoir longitudinal axis, a closed outer end and an open inner end;

and

a substantially pistol-shaped housing, said housing including a handle portion, a barrel portion and a connecting portion between said handle portion and said barrel portion;

said handle portion including a generally elliptical, hollow bulb formed of a resilient material mounted in a support structure;

said bulb comprising in aligned relation along a bulb longitudinal axis a first end portion and a second end portion connected by a hollow, thin-walled portion;

said first end portion having a first length, a first peripheral cross-section perpendicular to said first length and defining an open ended first passageway centered on said bulb longitudinal axis;

said second end portion having a second length longer than said first length, a second peripheral cross-section of similar maximum diameter to said first peripheral cross-section, and defining a second passageway centered along said bulb longitudinal axis containing a one-way valve so oriented as to allow passage through said second passageway only in an axial direction toward said first passageway in said first end portion;

and

said thin-walled portion defining a symmetrical cavity centered on said bulb longitudinal axis having a substantially truncated elliptical cross-section measured in a plane containing said bulb longitudinal axis, and

said support structure comprising a rear wall connecting said connecting portion to a pocket at an outer end of said rear wall adapted to receive and hold said second end portion of said bulb with said second passageway in said second end portion aligned with an opening formed at the base of said pocket, and walls extending from a side of said connecting portion opposite said receptacle adapted to receive an hold at least a front part of said first portion of said bulb such that said first passageway therein is in communication with said internal conduit means in said connecting portion;

whereby said thin-walled portion of said bulb defines front, left and right sides of said handle portion such that said symmetrical cavity of said bulb can be collapsed by a user's hand grasping said handle portion of said device forcing a content of said symmetrical cavity of said bulb into said reservoir through said connecting portion, and

whereby after collapse, said bulb is selectively restored to its non-collapsed configuration upon the release of said force by the resilience of said resilient material in combination with a content input into said thin-walled portion selectively received through said second passageway;

said barrel portion defining an open ended, elongate, hollow shaft centered on a barrel longitudinal axis, said shaft opening to the atmosphere at said open end thereof and opening into said connecting portion at the other end thereof;

and

said connecting portion including:

(i) a receptacle adapted to securely, sealingly and removably receive said open end of said reservoir and to hold said reservoir with its reservoir longitudinal axis disposed at a rearwardly extending upward angle relative to said barrel longitudinal axis of said barrel portion opposite to said handle portion, said receptacle including;

(a) an outer cavity having a sidewall including a lower edge, an annular base extending radially inwardly from said lower edge of said sidewall, and an inner wall portion extending axially outwardly from an inner edge of said annular base substantially parallel to, but a distance shorter than the smallest axial dimension of, said sidewall such that an axially outwardly facing open groove is located adjacent to said base in said connecting portion of said housing, said sidewall of said cavity defines a substantially circular cross-sectional area, and said outer cavity is adapted to receive said open end of said reservoir in said groove and to support said reservoir in said connecting portion of said housing such that said reservoir longitudinal axis is disposed at about 45° to said barrel longitudinal axis, and

(b) an inner cavity extending axially inwardly from an inner periphery of said base of said outer cavity, said inner cavity having a radially inwardly curved sidewall connecting said inner periphery of said base to a substantially flat bottom portion, wherein said second inlet enters said receptacle through said bottom portion of said inner cavity and said second outlet exits said inner cavity through said curved sidewall at a position located substantially vertically upwardly relative to said second inlet opposite said handle portion of said housing;

(ii) internal conduit means joining said first outlet of said handle portion to a second inlet located in said receptacle;

and

(iii) an elongate, hollow element extending through a second outlet in said receptacle so as to open at one end into an end of a passageway in said connecting portion that opens at its other end into said shaft of said barrel portion, and also extending outwardly from said second outlet at substantially the same angle to said barrel longitudinal axis as said reservoir longitudinal axis when said reservoir is mounted in said receptacle to an open end, said outwardly extending portion of said elongate, hollow member further defining a plurality of opposed longitudinal slots at spaced intervals along its length;

whereby, when said internal volume of said reservoir contains a quantity of powdered material and said reservoir is mounted in said receptacle, a collapse of said bulb causes a content of said bulb to be forced into said internal volume of said reservoir in the form of a pulse so as to aerosolize a portion said powdered material stored in said reservoir and to cause at least some of said aerosolized powdered material to be discharged from said open end of said barrel portion via said open end and said longitudinal slots in said elongate, hollow member, said internal passageway of said connecting portion and said shaft of said barrel portion.

Powder delivery device

Life of this patent

Powder delivery device

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims23