Pump dispensers

A pump dispenser for use with an inverted container having a downwardly-directed neck, the dispenser including a pump body to be mounted recessed into the container neck projecting into the container interior, and a plunger which is reciprocable axially relative to the pump body in a pumping stroke and has a downwardly-projecting actuating portion;

• the pump body including a cylinder body defining a liquid chamber and having at its top an inlet opening for admitting liquid into the liquid chamber, and the plunger carrying a piston which is reciprocable in the cylinder body to pump liquid in use from the liquid chamber into a discharge passage and to a discharge outlet by way of a discharge valve;
• the pump dispenser being a foam dispenser wherein, in addition to the liquid pump constituted by said cylinder body and piston, an air pump is provided constituted by an air cylinder also comprised in said pump body and an air piston operated by said plunger, an air chamber being defined between the air piston and the air cylinder and an air discharge passage leading from the air chamber to said discharge outlet, the liquid discharge passage and air discharge passage meeting on the way to the discharge outlet and the resulting combined discharge passage containing a permeable foam-regulating element;
• an intake conduit arrangement being provided connected to the cylinder body and defining an intake conduit extending down outside the cylinder body to connect between the inlet opening at the top of the cylinder body and an intake opening lower down, the intake opening communicating between the intake conduit and the container interior whereby in use liquid can be drawn up to the inlet opening and into the liquid chamber from an intake level lower than the inlet opening, and wherein the intake conduit arrangement comprises a conduit shell that fits over the cylinder body, defining the intake conduit by enclosing a path between itself and the cylinder body, in which the lower end of the conduit shell flares outwardly at a spacing from the pump body, an annular intake chamber is defined between the flared lower end and the pump body, and the intake opening opens into the intake chamber.

A pump dispenser for use with an inverted container having a downwardly-directed neck, the dispenser including a pump body to be mounted recessed into the container neck projecting into the container interior, and a plunger which is reciprocable axially relative to the pump body in a pumping stroke and has a downwardly-projecting actuating portion;

• the pump body including a cylinder body defining a liquid chamber and having at its top an inlet opening for admitting liquid into the liquid chamber, and the plunger carrying a piston which is reciprocable in the cylinder body to pump liquid in use from the liquid chamber into a discharge passage and to a discharge outlet by way of a discharge valve;
• the pump dispenser being a foam dispenser wherein, in addition to the liquid pump constituted by said cylinder body and piston, an air pump is provided constituted by an air cylinder also comprised in said pump body and an air piston operated by said plunger, an air chamber being defined between the air piston and the air cylinder and an air discharge passage leading from the air chamber to said discharge outlet, the liquid discharge passage and air discharge passage meeting on the way to the discharge outlet and the resulting combined discharge passage containing a permeable foam-regulating element;
• and
• an intake conduit arrangement being provided connected to the cylinder body and defining an intake conduit extending down outside the cylinder body to connect between the inlet opening at the top of the cylinder body and an intake opening lower down, the intake opening communicating between the intake conduit and the container interior whereby in use liquid can be drawn up to the inlet opening and into the liquid chamber from an intake level lower than the inlet opening, and wherein the intake conduit arrangement comprises a conduit shell that fits over the cylinder body, defining the intake conduit by enclosing a path between itself and the cylinder body, in which the intake conduit arrangement comprises an intermediate shell which fits onto the cylinder body between the cylinder body and the conduit shell.

A pump dispenser for use with an inverted container having a downwardly-directed neck, the dispenser including a pump body to be mounted recessed into the container neck projecting into the container interior, and a plunger which is reciprocable axially relative to the pump body in a pumping stroke and has a downwardly-projecting actuating portion;

• the pump body including a cylinder body defining a liquid chamber and having at its top an inlet opening for admitting liquid into the liquid chamber, and the plunger carrying a piston which is reciprocable in the cylinder body to pump liquid in use from the liquid chamber into a discharge passage and to a discharge outlet by way of a discharge valve;
• the pump dispenser being a foam dispenser wherein, in addition to the liquid pump constituted by said cylinder body and piston, an air pump is provided constituted by an air cylinder also comprised in said pump body and an air piston operated by said plunger, an air chamber being defined between the air piston and the air cylinder and an air discharge passage leading from the air chamber to said discharge outlet, the liquid discharge passage and air discharge passage meeting on the way to the discharge outlet and the resulting combined discharge passage containing a permeable foam-regulating element;
• an intake conduit arrangement being provided connected to the cylinder body and defining an intake conduit extending down outside the cylinder body to connect between the inlet opening at the top of the cylinder body and an intake opening lower down, the intake opening communicating between the intake conduit and the container interior whereby in use liquid can be drawn up to the inlet opening and into the liquid chamber from an intake level lower than the inlet opening, and wherein the intake conduit arrangement comprises a conduit shell that fits over the cylinder body, defining the intake conduit by enclosing a path between itself and the cylinder body;
• in which the liquid cylinder and air cylinder are respectively upper and lower coaxial portions of a one-piece integrated cylinder unit comprised in the pump body, the liquid cylinder having a smaller bore than the air cylinder;
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• in which the wall of the air cylinder has a downwardly re-entrant top portion extending around the base of the liquid cylinder to form an upwardly-open trough, and a connector of the intake conduit arrangement is seated in the trough.

A pump dispenser for use with an inverted container having a downwardly-directed neck, the dispenser including a pump body to be mounted recessed into the container neck projecting into the container interior, and a plunger which is reciprocable axially relative to the pump body in a pumping stroke and has a downwardly-projecting actuating portion;

• the pump body including a cylinder body defining a liquid chamber and having at its top an inlet opening for admitting liquid into the liquid chamber, and the plunger carrying a piston which is reciprocable in the cylinder body to pump liquid in use from the liquid chamber into a discharge passage and to a discharge outlet by way of a discharge valve;
• the pump dispenser being a foam dispenser wherein, in addition to the liquid pump constituted by said cylinder body and piston, an air pump is provided constituted by an air cylinder also comprised in said pump body and an air piston operated by said plunger, an air chamber being defined between the air piston and the air cylinder and an air discharge passage leading from the air chamber to said discharge outlet, the liquid discharge passage and air discharge passage meeting on the way to the discharge outlet and the resulting combined discharge passage containing a permeable foam-regulating element;
• and
• an intake conduit arrangement being provided connected to the cylinder body and defining an intake conduit extending down outside the cylinder body to connect between the inlet opening at the top of the cylinder body and an intake opening lower down, the intake opening communicating between the intake conduit and the container interior whereby in use liquid can be drawn up to the inlet opening and into the liquid chamber from an intake level lower than the inlet opening, and wherein the intake conduit arrangement comprises a conduit shell that fits over the cylinder body, defining the intake conduit by enclosing a path between itself and the cylinder body, in which the plunger has an outer wall enclosing an interior cavity and having an air intake vent, separate from the discharge passage, for entry of air to the air cylinder via the interior cavity of the plunger and an air inlet valve, and wherein the plunger outer wall has an air vent riser conduit whose entry is the external opening of the air intake vent and which extends up in the plunger to an exit opening raised from the bottom of the interior cavity.

An apparatus, comprising:

• an inverted foaming dispenser for dispensing foam, the dispenser including
• an air cylinder with an air piston to pump air to form the foam,
• a liquid cylinder extending from the air cylinder, the liquid cylinder having a liquid piston to pump liquid to form the foam, the liquid cylinder having an inlet opening at an end opposite the air cylinder for drawing the liquid into the liquid cylinder,
• the air cylinder having a trough around the liquid cylinder, and
• a conduit shell fitted over the liquid cylinder to define an intake conduit, the conduit shell extending along the liquid cylinder from the inlet opening to the trough for drawing the liquid from the trough to the inlet opening via the intake conduit.