QUANTITATIVE DISPENSING DEVICE AND STORAGE APPARATUS HAVING THE SAME

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to Taiwanese Invention patent application No. 113130925, filed on Aug. 16, 2024, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.

FIELD

The disclosure relates to a dispensing device, and more particularly to a quantitative dispensing device and a storage apparatus having the same.

BACKGROUND

To resolve the issue of powders being excessively discharged from a container, the existing quantitative dispensing device is structured to have a spring-loaded pressable mechanism. When the existing quantitative dispensing device is pressed, the powders therein may be uniformly discharged in a certain quantity. However, frequent usage of the existing quantitative dispensing device may cause fatigue of the spring and cause the powders to be stuck, thereby leading to failure of the existing quantitative dispensing device. In addition, because only a container part of the existing quantitative dispensing device can be disassembled, and the spring-loaded pressable mechanism cannot be disassembled to resolve the issue of the powders being stuck in the existing quantitative dispensing device. Moreover, the existing quantitative dispensing device is only suitable for powders having fine granules, such as salt or pepper, but not washing powders having greater granules.

SUMMARY

Therefore, one object of the disclosure is to provide a quantitative dispensing device that can alleviate at least one of the drawbacks of the prior art.

According to one object of the disclosure, the quantitative dispensing device includes a guiding frame, a feeding lid, and a dispensing cap.

The guiding frame has a guide chamber that has an acceptance opening and a delivery opening opposite to the acceptance opening.

The feeding lid is connected to an end of the guiding frame, has a feed opening, and is rotatable relative to the guiding frame for aligning the feed opening with the acceptance opening so that the feed opening communicates with the acceptance opening.

The dispensing cap is connected to another end of the guiding frame that is opposite to the feeding lid, has a discharge opening, and is rotatable relative to the guiding frame for aligning the discharge opening with the delivery opening so that the discharge opening communicates with the delivery opening.

According to another object of the disclosure, a storage apparatus is provided and includes a substance container and the aforesaid quantitative dispensing device.

The substance container has a storing space.

The feeding lid of the quantitative dispensing device is removably assembled with the substance container.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent in the following detailed description of the embodiment(s) with reference to the accompanying drawings. It is noted that various features may not be drawn to scale.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a storage apparatus according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional view taken along line III-III of

FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary schematic sectional view taken along line IV-IV of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the embodiment illustrating a substance container.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the embodiment illustrating a guiding frame.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view taken from another view angle of the guiding frame of the embodiment

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the embodiment illustrating a feeding lid.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view taken from another view angle of the feeding lid of the embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a top view of the embodiment illustrating the feeding lid in a non-feeding position.

FIG. 11 is a top view of the embodiment schematically illustrating a feed opening of the feeding lid blocked by a first covering wall of the guiding frame when the feeding lid is in the non-feeding position.

FIG. 12 is a top view of the embodiment illustrating the feeding lid in a feeding position.

FIG. 13 is a top view of the embodiment schematically illustrating a feed opening of the feeding lid communicating with an acceptance opening of the guiding frame when the feeding lid is in the feeding position.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the embodiment illustrating a dispensing cap.

FIG. 15 is a top view of the embodiment illustrating the dispensing cap.

FIG. 16 is a bottom view of the embodiment illustrating the dispensing cap.

FIG. 17 is a bottom view of the embodiment schematically illustrating a discharge opening of the dispensing cap blocked by a second covering wall of the guiding frame when the dispensing cap is in a non-dispensing position.

FIG. 18 is a bottom view of the embodiment illustrating the dispensing cap in the non-dispensing position.

FIG. 19 is a bottom view of the embodiment illustrating the dispensing cap in a dispensing position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Before the disclosure is described in greater detail, it should be noted that where considered appropriate, reference numerals or terminal portions of reference numerals have been repeated among the figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements, which may optionally have similar characteristics.

It should be noted herein that for clarity of description, spatially relative terms such as “top,” “bottom,” “upper,” “lower,” “on,” “above,” “over,” “downwardly,” “upwardly” and the like may be used throughout the disclosure while making reference to the features as illustrated in the drawings. The features may be oriented differently (e.g., rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative terms used herein may be interpreted accordingly.

FIGS. 1 to 3 illustrate a storage apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the disclosure, which is adapted to store and discharge granules (now shown). The storage apparatus 100 includes a substance container 1 and a quantitative dispensing device 10.

Referring to FIG. 5, the substance container 1 is cylindrical in shape, and has a storing space 11 adapted to store granules such as washing powders or laundry scent beads. However, in other embodiments, the storing space 11 may store fine powders. In this embodiment, the substance container 1 has an outer surrounding container surface 12. The outer surrounding container surface 12 is a rough surface having a pattern of rhombuses. The outer surrounding container surface 12 provides an anti-slippery effect when a user holds the substance container 1.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the quantitative dispensing device 10 includes a guiding frame 2, a feeding lid 3, and a dispensing cap 4.

Referring to FIGS. 2 to 4, 6 and 7, the guiding frame 2 includes a first covering wall 22, a second covering wall 23, a linking tube 24, an engaging member 25, a positioning hook 26, an annular protrusion 27, and a support rod 28.

The first covering wall 22 has a lid-facing surface 221, a lid-opposite surface 222, a lid shaft hole 225, and a lid movement arcuate recess 226. The lid-facing surface 221 is oriented toward the substance container 1. The lid-opposite surface 222 is opposite to the lid-facing surface 221. The lid shaft hole 225 extends through the lid-facing surface 221 and the lid-opposite surface 222. The lid movement arcuate recess 226 extends through the lid-facing surface 221 and the lid-opposite surface 222, and has opposite ends respectively bordered by a first lid movement end surface 223 and a second lid movement end surface 224.

The second covering wall 23 is spaced apart from the first covering wall 22, and has a cap-facing surface 231, a cap-opposite surface 232, a cap shaft hole 235, and a cap movement arcuate recess 236. The cap-facing surface 231 is oriented opposite to the lid-facing surface 221 of the first covering wall 22. The cap-opposite surface 232 is opposite to the cap-facing surface 231. The cap shaft hole 235 extends through the cap-facing surface 231 and the cap-opposite surface 232. The cap movement arcuate recess 236 extends through the cap-facing surface 231 and the cap-opposite surface 232, and has opposite ends respectively bordered by a first cap movement end surface 233 and a second cap movement end surface 234.

The linking tube 24 interconnects the first covering wall 22 and the second covering wall 23. The first covering wall 22, the linking tube 24, and the second covering wall 23 cooperatively define a guide chamber 21. The guide chamber 21 has an acceptance opening 211 and a delivery opening 212 opposite to the acceptance opening 211. The first covering wall 22 is formed with the acceptance opening 211. The second covering wall 23 is formed with the delivery opening 212. A diameter of the guide chamber 21 is uniform from the acceptance opening 211 to the delivery opening 212. In this embodiment, the linking tube 24 has two retaining shoulder surfaces 241. One of the retaining shoulder surfaces 241 is adjacent to the lid-opposite surface 222 of the first covering wall 22. The other one of the retaining shoulder surfaces 241 is adjacent to the cap-opposite surface 232 of the second covering wall 23. The quantity of the granules being discharged from the storage apparatus 100 each time is limited by the quantity of the granules received in the linking tube 24. In other words, the quantity of the granules being discharged from the storage apparatus 100 each time is controlled by the volume of the linking tube 24.

The engaging member 25 is connected to the first covering wall 22, and has a plurality of retaining hooks 251. The retaining hooks 251 are disposed around an outer periphery of the first covering wall 22 and are spaced apart from each other. Each of the retaining hooks 251 has a first arcuate lip portion 252 that is disposed away from the first covering wall 22. One of each adjacent pair of the retaining hooks 251 further has a second arcuate lip portion 253 that is adjacent to the first covering wall 22.

The positioning hook 26 is formed on the second covering wall 23 and is resilient. In this embodiment, the positioning hook 26 has a hook portion 261 that is adjacent to the cap-facing surface 231 of the second covering wall 23.

The annular protrusion 27 protrudes from the cap-facing surface 231 of the second covering wall 23.

The support rod 28 interconnects the first covering wall 22 and the second covering wall 23. Specifically, two opposite ends of the support rod 28 are respectively connected to the lid-opposite surface 222 of the first covering wall 22 and the cap-opposite surface 232 of the second covering wall 23. By virtue of the linking tube 24 and the support rod 28 interconnecting the first covering wall 22 and the second covering wall 23, the first covering wall 22 and the second covering wall 23 are prevented from collapsing toward each other and causing damage to the guiding frame 2.

Referring to FIGS. 8 and 9 in combination with FIGS. 2 and 3, the feeding lid 3 is connected to an end of the guiding frame 2 in proximity to the first covering wall 22, and is removably assembled with the substance container 1 and the guiding frame 2. The feeding lid 3 has a guiding wall 31, a lid wall 32, a lid protruding plate 33, and a lid shaft 34.

The guiding wall 31 is formed with a feed opening 35.

The lid wall 32 extends from an outer periphery of and surrounds the guiding wall 31, and is rotatably connected to the guiding frame 2. The guiding wall 31 is oblique relative to the lid wall 32 so as to guide the granules (now shown) from the storing space 11 to the feed opening 35. In this embodiment, the lid wall 32 has an outer surrounding lid surface 321 and a first inner engaging recess 322. The outer surrounding lid surface 321 is a rough surface having a pattern of rhombuses, and provides an anti-slippery effect when the user holds the feeding lid 3. The first inner engaging recess 322 is annular and surrounded by the outer surrounding lid surface 321. The first arcuate lip portion 252 of each of the retaining hooks 251 is engaged with the first inner engaging recess 322 such that the first inner engaging recess 322 is rotatable relative to the first arcuate lip portions 252 of the retaining hooks 251.

The lid protruding plate 33 protrudes from the guiding wall 31, extends into the lid movement arcuate recess 226 of the first covering wall 22, and is movable along the lid movement arcuate recess 226 between the first lid movement end surface 223 and the second lid movement end surface 224. The lid protruding plate 33 is shaped in conformity to the lid movement arcuate recess 226.

The lid shaft 34 protrudes from the guiding wall 31 and is engaged with the lid shaft hole 225. In this embodiment, the lid shaft 34 extends through the lid shaft hole 225, and has a plurality of lid hooks 341 and a lid-abutting block 342. The lid hooks 341 is engaged with the lid-opposite surface 222. The lid-abutting block 342 abuts against and is rotatable relative to the retaining shoulder surface 241 adjacent to the lid-opposite surface 222.

A diameter of the feed opening 35 is not smaller than a diameter of the guide chamber 21. The feeding lid 3 is rotatable relative to the guiding frame 2 for aligning the feed opening 35 with the acceptance opening 211 so that the feed opening 35 communicates with the acceptance opening 211. Operation of the feeding lid 3 will be described in detail subsequently.

Referring to FIGS. 10 to 13, the feeding lid 3 is rotatable between a non-feeding position (as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11), where the feed opening 35 is blocked by the guiding frame 2, and a feeding position (as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13), where the feed opening 35 is aligned with and communicates with the acceptance opening 211. As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the first covering wall 22 blocks the feed opening 35 of the feeding lid 3 when the feed opening 35 is misaligned with the acceptance opening 211 by rotating the feeding lid 3 to the non-feeding position. When the feeding lid 3 is rotated to the non-feeding position, the first lid movement end surface 223 abuts against the lid protruding plate 33, thereby retaining the feeding lid 3 in the non-feeding position. As shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, when the feeding lid 3 is rotated to the feeding position, the second lid movement end surface 224 abuts against the lid protruding plate 33, thereby retaining the feeding lid 3 in the feeding position.

Referring to FIGS. 14 and 15 in combination with FIGS. 2 and 3, the dispensing cap 4 is connected to another end of the guiding frame 2 that is opposite to the feeding lid 3, and is removably assembled with the guiding frame 2. The dispensing cap 4 has an end wall 41, a cap wall 42, a cap protruding plate 43, and a cap shaft 44.

The end wall 41 rotatably abuts against the annular protrusion 27 such that the end wall 41 is prevented from direct contact with the second covering wall 23 to avoid friction with the second covering wall 23. As a result, smooth rotation of the dispensing cap 4 relative to the guiding frame 2 may be ensured. In this embodiment, the end wall 41 has a first positioning recess 411 and a second positioning recess 412 that are spaced apart from the first positioning recess 411. The first positioning recess 411 and the second positioning recess 412 are substantially circular.

The cap wall 42 extends from an outer periphery of and surrounds the end wall 41, and is rotatably connected to the guiding frame 2. The cap wall 42 has an outer surrounding cap surface 421 and a second inner engaging recess 422 surrounded by the outer surrounding cap surface 421. The outer surrounding cap surface 421 is a rough surface having a pattern of rhombuses, and provides an anti-slippery effect when the user holds the dispensing cap 4. The second arcuate lip portions 253 of one of each adjacent pair of the retaining hooks 251 is engaged with the second inner engaging recess 422 such that the second inner engaging recess 422 is rotatable relative to the second arcuate lip portions 253 of the retaining hooks 251. In this embodiment, the lid wall 32 of the feeding lid 3 and the cap wall 42 of the dispensing cap 4 are rotatably engaged with the engaging member 25 of the guiding frame 2. In other words, by virtue of the engaging member 25 of the guiding frame 2, there is no need of additional components for assembling the feeding lid 3 and the dispensing cap 4 with the guiding frame 2, so the manufacturing cost may be reduced. Furthermore, the cap wall 42 of the dispensing cap 4 is juxtaposed with the lid wall 32 of the feeding lid 3. The feeding lid 3 and the dispensing cap 4 cooperatively encase the guiding frame 2 so as to prevent the guiding frame 2 from being exposed. Accordingly, the substance container 1, the feeding lid 3, and the dispensing cap 4 may be assembled with each other to form a cylindrical body, thereby improving an aesthetic appearance of the storage apparatus 100 and providing consistency of the storage apparatus 100.

The cap protruding plate 43 protrudes from the end wall 41, extends into the cap movement arcuate recess 236, and is movable along the cap movement arcuate recess 236 between the first cap movement end surface 233 and the second cap movement end surface 234.

The cap shaft 44 protrudes from the end wall 41 and is engaged with the cap shaft hole 235. In this embodiment, the cap shaft 44 extends through the cap shaft hole 235, and has a plurality of cap hooks 441 and a cap-abutting block 442. The cap hooks 441 are engaged with the cap-opposite surface 232. The cap-abutting block 442 abuts against the retaining shoulder surface 241 and is rotatable relative to the retaining shoulder surface 241.

Specifically, the end wall 41 is formed with a discharge opening 45. A diameter of the discharge opening 45 is not smaller than the diameter of the guide chamber 21. The dispensing cap 4 is rotatable relative to the guiding frame 2 for aligning the discharge opening 45 with the delivery opening 212 so that the discharge opening 45 communicates with the delivery opening 212. Operation of the dispensing cap 4 will be described in details subsequently.

Referring to FIGS. 16 to 19, the dispensing cap 4 is rotatable between a non-dispensing position (as shown in FIGS. 16 and 17), where the discharge opening 45 is blocked by the second covering wall 23 of the guiding frame 2, and a dispensing position (as shown in FIGS. 18 and 19), where the discharge opening 45 is aligned with and communicates with the delivery opening 212. As shown in FIGS. 16 and 17, the second covering wall 23 blocks the discharge opening 45 of the dispensing cap 4 when the discharge opening 45 is misaligned with the delivery opening 212 by rotating the dispensing cap 4 to the non-dispensing position. When the dispensing cap 4 is rotated to the non-dispensing position, the first cap movement end surface 233 abuts against the cap protruding plate 43, thereby retaining the dispensing cap 4 in the non-dispensing position. When the dispensing cap 4 is rotated to the non-dispensing position, the hook portion 261 of the positioning hook 26 is removably engaged with the first positioning recess 411, thereby enhancing the dispensing cap 4 to be positioned to the non-dispensing position. As shown in FIGS. 18 and 19, when the dispensing cap 4 is rotated to the dispensing position, the second cap movement end surface 234 abuts against the cap protruding plate 43, thereby retaining the dispensing cap 4 in the dispensing position. When the dispensing cap 4 is rotated to the dispensing position, the hook portion 261 of the positioning hook 26 is removably engaged with the second positioning recess 412, thereby retaining the dispensing cap 4 to be positioned in the dispensing position.

As shown in FIGS. 10 to 13, and 16 to 19, operating of the storage apparatus 100 will be described as follows.

When the granules are stored in the storing space 11, and when the dispensing cap 4 is rotated to the non-dispensing position, the feeding lid 3 is first rotated to the feeding position, so that some of the granules in the storing space 11 are affected by the gravity and guided by the guiding wall 31 and the lid wall 32 to fall into the guide chamber 21 through the feed opening 35.

Afterwards, the feeding lid 3 is rotated to the non-feeding position, and the dispensing cap 4 is rotated to the dispensing position. Because the first covering wall 22 blocks the feed opening 35 when the feeding lid 3 is rotated to the non-feeding position, the granules in the storing space 11 are prevented from entering the guide chamber 21. Because the discharge opening 45 communicates with the delivery opening 212 when the dispensing cap 4 is rotated to the dispensing position, the granules in the guide chamber 21 are dispensed out of the storage apparatus 100 via the discharge opening 45.

As a result, the quantity of the granules dispensed out of the storage apparatus 100 each time is controlled by the capacity of the guide chamber 21. Because the feeding lid 3 is rotatable between the non-feeding position and the feeding position, and because the dispensing cap 4 is rotatable between the non-dispensing position and the dispensing position, the granules may effectively be fed into the guide chamber 21 and dispensed out of the storage apparatus 100. In addition, when the granules are stuck and cause failure of the storage apparatus 100, the guiding frame 2, the feeding lid 3, and the dispensing cap 4 may respectively be disassembled to fix the failure of the storage apparatus 100, thereby making improvements on the existing quantitative dispensing device which has to be discarded when failure occurs.

In the description above, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details have been set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiment(s). It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that one or more other embodiments may be practiced without some of these specific details. It should also be appreciated that reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” an embodiment with an indication of an ordinal number and so forth means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic may be included in the practice of the disclosure. It should be further appreciated that in the description, various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure and aiding in the understanding of various inventive aspects; such does not mean that every one of these features needs to be practiced with the presence of all the other features. In other words, in any described embodiment, when implementation of one or more features or specific details does not affect implementation of another one or more features or specific details, said one or more features may be singled out and practiced alone without said another one or more features or specific details. It should be further noted that one or more features or specific details from one embodiment may be practiced together with one or more features or specific details from another embodiment, where appropriate, in the practice of the disclosure.

While the disclosure has been described in connection with what is (are) considered the exemplary embodiment(s), it is understood that this disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiment(s) but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements.