Cotton dispenser

A cotton dispenser for dispensing portions taken from an elongate strand of cotton, comprising:

• a housing having a main portion and a discharge chute downstream from said main portion, said housing having a floor, at least one side wall extending upwardly from said floor, and a lid removably coupled to an upper edge of said at least one side wall, said lid being movable between a closed configuration preventing access to said spool and an open configuration providing access to said spool;
• wherein said floor and said at least one side wall define an interior space, wherein said housing main portion and said discharge chute are in operative communication;
• a spool having a generally cylindrical configuration so as to receive said elongate strand of cotton wound thereabout, said spool being configured to rotate axially when said strand of cotton is unwound therefrom;
• a feed assembly situated downstream from said spool that is configured to receive said strand of cotton, said feed assembly causing said strand of cotton to unwind from said spool when actuated;
• wherein said feed assembly includes a pair of counter-rotating rollers that sandwich said strand of cotton therebetween and pull said strand of cotton away from said spool when actuated;
• a cutting assembly downstream from said feed assembly and configured to receive said strand of cotton after passing through said feed assembly, said cutting assembly having a blade movable between a retracted configuration not in contact with said strand of cotton and an activated configuration that severs said strand of cotton;
• a power source;
• a solenoid electrically connected to said power source and operatively connected to said blade for moving said blade from said retracted configuration to said activated configuration when energized;
• wherein said discharge chute defines a first end in communication with a downstream portion of said feed assembly and a second end displaced from said first end, said second end defining an open bottom through which cotton portions are dispensed after being severed from said strand of cotton;
• a base rotatably mounted to said floor of said housing, said spool being removably coupled to said base such that said spool and said base revolve relative to said housing floor when said strand of cotton is unwound from said spool and such that said spool is selectively removable from said base;
• wherein said base includes a plurality of spaced apart rollers positioned along a peripheral edge of said base and configured to bear against an interior surface of said at least one sidewall of said housing such that said base rotates with minimal friction when said feed assembly unwinds said cotton from said spool;
• a motor electrically connected to said feed assembly and to said power source;
• a first input button electrically connected to said power source, said motor, said feed assembly, and said cutting assembly, said first input button being configured to energize said motor to actuate said feed assembly when said first input button is depressed and to energize said means for activating said blade when said first input button is released.