MECHANISM FOR DOUBLING SOAP DISPENSING AMOUNT OF AUTOMATIC SOAP DISPENSER

Abstract

A mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount of an automatic soap dispenser includes: a speed reducer disposed inside a soap dispenser, driven by a motor and coupled with a pushing element; a resisting element provided on an inner surface of the soap dispenser that is on a forward moving side of the pushing element; and a soap container connected with a discharge tube located between the pushing element and the resisting element. A pad is coupled to a side of the resisting element facing the pushing element so as to be adjacent to an outer surface of the discharge tube, thereby increasing the time the discharge tube is jointly compressed by the pushing element and the resisting element. Thus, the soap dispensing amount can be doubled without having to modify an existing soap dispensing mechanism of the soap dispenser and a moving cycle of the pushing element.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Technical Field

The present invention relates to a soap dispensing mechanism of an automatic soap dispenser, and more particularly, to a mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount.

2. Description of Related Art

Automatic soap dispensers, mostly sensor-actuated, are widely used at homes as well as in public places for dispensing liquid soap in a sanitary way as there is no need to contact the liquid soap dispensing devices.

Soap is dispensed from an automatic soap dispenser by an electrically driven compression mechanism pushing or compressing a soap container loaded with liquid soap or a discharge tube. The course or time of compression can be set so as to discharge a constant amount of liquid soap. However, the dispensing of liquid soap at a constant amount cannot satisfy all user needs. For instance, some believe that only with a large amount of liquid soap can a good cleaning effect be achieved in a filthy environment; others desire a large dispensing amount simply because they think the liquid soap is too thin. These are only some of the reasons why a constant soap dispensing amount may be considered insufficient. Besides, thick liquid soap may be dispensed at a larger amount than thin liquid soap under the action of the same soap dispensing mechanism because thin liquid soap is more likely to flow back upwards. Although the difference of soap dispensing amounts between thick liquid soap and thin liquid soap is insignificant, users sometimes have the illusion of a marked difference.

Mass-produced soap dispensers do not provide models that feature specific dispensing amounts to suit different users or circumstances; they are available only in models that deliver the most popular or minimum soap dispensing amount. Therefore, for users who desire more soap to be dispensed, all they can do is repeat the soap dispensing operation until they are satisfied. However, the users may not be aware that such repeated operations may consume more power, shorten the service life of the dispenser and waste a lot of time.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In order to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art, the present invention provides a mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount of an automatic soap dispenser, so that the soap dispensing amount can be flexibly or constantly increased to suit different user needs.

The aforesaid mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount of an automatic soap dispenser comprises: a driving device disposed in a soap dispenser and including a motor and a speed reducer having an output end coupled with a pushing element; a resisting element disposed on an inner surface of a casing of the soap dispenser, wherein the inner surface is on a forward moving side of the pushing element; and a soap container having a bottom connected with a discharge tube located between the pushing element and the resisting element. The mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount is characterized in that a pad is coupled to a side of the resisting element facing the pushing element so as to be adjacent to an outer surface of a middle rubber section of the discharge tube. Since the resisting element is extended in the presence of the pad so as to get closer to the outer surface of the middle rubber section of the discharge tube than without the pad, or even come in contact with said outer surface, liquid soap will be dispensed as soon as the pushing element is moved towards the resisting element until the pushing element completes a moving cycle. Hence, without having to modify an existing soap dispensing mechanism of the soap dispenser and the moving cycle of the pushing element, the soap dispending amount of the existing soap dispensing mechanism can be doubled by the present invention. For example, the present invention can increase the soap dispensing amount of the existing soap dispensing mechanism from 1 cc to 2 cc.

In the aforesaid mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount of an automatic soap dispenser, the pad is preferably coupled to the resisting element in a detachable manner, for example by being engaged with or fastened to the resisting element, so that a user can determine whether it is necessary to increase the soap dispensing amount according to such factors as the desired amount of liquid soap to be used and viscosity of the liquid soap. When it is desired to increase the soap dispending amount, the pad can be conveniently and rapidly coupled to the resisting element; otherwise, the pad need not be installed or can be removed from the resisting element.

According to the aforementioned way of increasing a soap dispensing amount, the pad may also be fixedly coupled to the resisting element. Alternatively, the resisting element may be formed with an increased width towards the discharge tube so as to double the soap dispensing amount. However, the latter approach does not allow the soap dispensing amount to return to a normal level, as can be achieved with the detachable pad mentioned above.

In the aforesaid mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount of an automatic soap dispenser, the middle rubber section of the discharge tube connected to the soap container preferably has a hardness of HS50 to HS55 (Shore Hardness), so that the discharge tube produces a relatively small resistance and deforms to a larger extent when compressed jointly by the pushing element, the resisting element and the pad, thereby doubling the soap dispending amount.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The structural features and effects of the present invention can be best understood by referring to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a right-hand cross-sectional view of a soap dispensing mechanism for use in an automatic soap dispenser according to the present invention;

FIGS. 2 and 3 are partial structural drawings of the soap dispensing mechanism for use in an automatic soap dispenser according to the present invention, wherein FIG. 2 is a schematic drawing showing engagement of a pad with a resisting element and FIG. 3 shows another mode of engagement between the pad and the resisting element;

FIGS. 4 and 5 show soap dispensing operations of a prior art soap dispensing mechanism for use in an automatic soap dispenser and the soap dispensing mechanism according to the present invention, respectively, wherein the soap dispensing mechanism of the present invention depicted in FIG. 5 comprises a pad coupled to a side of the resisting element.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIG. 1, according to a preferred embodiment of a mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount of a soap dispenser of the present invention, a soap dispenser 10 comprises a driving device disposed therein, wherein the driving device includes a motor 11 and a speed reducer 12 having an output end coupled with a pushing element 13. The mechanism further comprises a resisting element 14 provided on an inner surface of a casing 15 of the soap dispenser 10, wherein the inner surface is on a forward moving side of the pushing element 13; a soap container 20 having a bottom connected with a discharge tube 21 located between the pushing element 13 and the resisting element 14; and a pad 30, in the form of a plate or a block, coupled to a side of the resisting element 14 facing the pushing element 13 so as to be adjacent to an outer surface of the discharge tube 21.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the pad 30 is preferably coupled to the resisting element 14 in a detachable manner. As shown in FIG. 2, in order to achieve detachable coupling, the resisting element 14 has a side facing the pushing element 13 and provided with an engaging structure, such as engaging recesses 141, while the pad 30 has a side provided with a corresponding engaging structure, such as engaging blocks 31, to be engaged with the engaging recesses 141. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 3, a pad 40 has a side facing the resisting element 14 and formed with an engaging recess 41 which can be coupled to and thereby cover a side 142 of the resisting element 14, wherein the side 142 faces the pushing element 13.

Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5, a comparison of soap dispensing amounts is made between a first implementation mode (FIG. 5), in which the pad 30 is present and is disposed on the resisting element 14, and a second implantation mode (FIG. 4), in which the pad 30 is absent, under the condition that an existing soap dispensing mechanism of the soap dispenser 10 and an output moving cycle of the pushing element 13 are not modified. In FIG. 4 as well as in FIG. 5, a side of the pushing element 13 facing the resisting element 14 is in contact with the outer surface of the discharge tube 21 and causes a slight depression thereon. As shown in FIG. 5, when the pad 30 is installed on the resisting element 14, the resisting element 14 is extended by 1.5 to 2 mm towards the outer surface of the discharge tube 21. In other words, an outer surface of a middle rubber section 211 of the discharge tube 21 is closer to, or even in contact with, a surface of the pad 30. Therefore, as soon as the pushing element 13 is moved towards the resisting element 14, liquid soap 50 is discharged until the pushing element 13 completes its moving cycle. In contrast, in the second implementation mode, an initial part of the moving cycle of the pushing element 13 towards the resisting element 14 only serves to move the discharge tube 21 towards the resisting element 14. The liquid soap will not be discharged until a side of the discharge tube 21 abuts against the resisting element 14. Then, the liquid soap is dispensed until the pushing element 13 completes its moving cycle. Compared with the second implementation mode, wherein the initial part of the moving cycle of the pushing element 13 is dedicated only to moving the discharge tube 21 but not dispensing the liquid soap, the first implementation mode apparently dispenses more soap because the liquid soap is dispensed during the entire moving cycle of the pushing element 13. According to tests conducted by the inventor of the present invention using the same soap dispensing mechanism and different types of liquid soap having the same viscosity, the soap dispensing amount in the first implementation mode is approximately twice that in the second implementation mode.

The present invention has been described with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof and it is understood that the embodiment is not intended to limit the structural features of the present invention. Changes or modifications readily conceivable by a person of ordinary skill in the art based on the technical contents disclosed herein are anticipated. The technical features of the present invention are defined only by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount of an automatic soap dispenser, comprising: a driving device disposed inside a soap dispenser and comprising a motor and a speed reducer having an output end coupled with a pushing element; a resisting element provided on an inner surface of a casing of the soap dispenser, the inner surface being on a forward moving side of the pushing element; and a soap container having a bottom connected with a discharge tube located between the pushing element and the resisting element; the mechanism being characterized by:

a pad coupled to a side of the resisting element facing the pushing element, so that the resisting element is extended to be adjacent to an outer surface of a middle rubber section of the discharge tube.

2. The mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount as claimed in claim 1, wherein, after the pad is coupled to the side of the resisting element, the resisting element is extended by 1.5 to 2 mm towards the outer surface of the middle rubber section of the discharge tube.

3. The mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount as claimed in claim 1, wherein the pad is detachably coupled to the resisting element.

4. The mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount as claimed in claim 3, wherein the pad has a side facing the resisting element and having an engaging structure for detachably engaging with the resisting element.

5. The mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount as claimed in claim 1, wherein the pad is fixedly coupled to the resisting element.

6. The mechanism for doubling a soap dispensing amount as claimed in claim 1, wherein the middle rubber section of the discharge tube connected to the soap container has a hardness of HS50 to HS55.