SHEET PRODUCT DISPENSER

- SCA HYGIENE PRODUCTS AB

A dispenser having a base extension manoeuvrable between a retracted position and an extended position is provided. In the retracted position, the base extension is contained within a foot print of the dispenser when the dispenser is viewed from above. In the extended position, the base extension projects from the footprint formed by the rest of the dispenser when the dispenser is viewed in plan. The base extension is manoeuvrable into the extended position in a sliding motion akin to opening a drawer. The dispenser includes a removable face piece that has a bulging top portion, a recessed medial portion and a toe portion projecting as compared to the recessed portion. Between the bulging top portion and the projecting toe portion, the recess provides a finger receiving space for grasping a tissue in a dispensing opening and dispensing it from the dispenser.

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Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO PRIOR APPLICATION

This application is a §371 National Stage application of PCT International Application No. PCT/EP2012/051764 filed on Feb. 2, 2012, which is incorporated herein in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure is concerned with a dispenser for sheet products. The dispenser is of a gravity feed kind that can be placed on a counter surface or other such surface to stand on a foot portion of the dispenser. Sheet products in the dispenser are gravity fed to a dispensing opening at a bottom of a dispenser housing when the dispenser is stood on the counter surface on its foot portion.

BACKGROUND

WO 2005/034702 A1 discloses a dispenser for folded absorbent sheet products having a stand and a main body portion positioned atop the stand. The stand is removable from the main body portion. The dispenser includes two types of face plates that are interchangeably mountable to the main body portion. The folded sheet products are dispensable from being contained in the main body portion through a dispensing opening in the face plate. The main body portion includes recessed openings that permit the main body portion to be fastened to a vertical support surface, while the stand permits the dispenser to be place on a horizontal surface.

The dispenser of WO 2005/034702 A1 is thus positionable on a horizontal surface by using the stand or mounted on a vertical surface without the stand. Accordingly, the dispenser can be used with the stand for indoor countertop use and outdoors without the stand, fixed to a vertical wall of a drive thru lane. One of the face plates is designed for one-by-one sheet product dispensing and is more suited for use in combination with the stand in an indoor countertop environment. The other face plate is designed for dispensing a group of sheet products at one time and is more suited to use without the stand in a drive thru environment.

It is considered a desirable objective to reduce a footprint of such a dispenser. In this context, the foot print is considered to be the overall vertical projection of the dispenser onto a counter surface or other such surface. That is, when the dispenser is stood on the counter surface or other such surface, the footprint is the total area of the counter surface taken up by the dispenser when the dispenser is viewed in plan. One way to reduce the footprint of the dispenser is to make the dispenser so that the stack is more vertically oriented, thereby allowing the body portion to be more vertically oriented. Such a step will, however, serve to raise the centre of gravity of the dispenser, thereby making it more liable to tipping over. Also, it may be desired to increase a capacity of a dispenser. In a laid back design, the footprint increases yet further. In a more vertical design, the footprint does not increase as much, but the stability of the dispenser may be compromised. The present disclosure offers, in one respect, a solution to the tipping problem.

In WO 2005/034702 A1, conversion from counter mounted to wall mounted is a two step process, namely changing the face plates and removing the stand. It would be desirable to make it easier to convert the dispenser between a wall mounted use and placement of the dispenser on a counter surface. The present disclosure offers, in one respect, a solution to the problem of easing conversion.

SUMMARY

In a first aspect, there is provided a dispenser comprising:

a dispensing opening through which sheet products are dispensable from within the dispenser;

a base;

the dispenser arranged to be stood on its base on a counter surface or other such surface so that the sheet products are fed to the dispensing opening by gravity; and

a base extension that is manoeuvrable into a deployed position to extend the base to increase the dispenser's resistance to being tipped over.

The base extension allows tipping resistance of the dispenser to be increased when necessary by moving it into the deployed position. The manoeuvrability of the base extension means that a more compact configuration for the base is also possible when the base extension is in an undeployed position, which may be desirable in certain uses, such as during delivery and in certain dispenser placements where compactness is of greater relevance than increased stability. The deployability may be useful as to allow the base extension not to be deployed when a base extension is not required, such as when the dispenser is placed on a counter surface on its base and located against an upright wall, thereby at least ameliorating the tipping issue.

The base extension may be manoeuvrable from an undeployed position within a footprint of the dispenser to a position extending from that footprint, wherein the footprint is an area of the counter surface or other surface taken up by the dispenser when the dispenser is viewed in plan. A smaller footprint dispenser is thus offered.

The base extension may be attached to the dispenser and manoeuvrable from an undeployed position to the deployed position.

The base extension may, in the deployed position, extend from a back side of the dispenser, wherein the dispensing opening is disposed at a front side of the dispenser. The base extension can be concealed from the user when deployed from the back side. The base may have a larger dimension in a front to back direction than in a left side to right side direction.

The base extension may have a retracted position relative to the base and an extended position relative to the base corresponding to the deployed position.

The base extension may be manoeuvrable from the retracted position to the extended position in the manner of a drawer, which is to say by sliding.

The dispenser may include a component for fixing the dispenser to an upright wall. In this way, the dispenser can be used by standing it on the base on a counter surface such as in an indoor environment or by fixing it to an upright or vertical wall such as in a drive-thru environment, perhaps with the base suspended. The component may include at least one hole for receiving screws or other such fasteners. The component may include at least one planar surface for flush placement against the wall. The component may extend from a back side of the dispenser so that the back side of the dispenser is spaced from the wall when the dispenser is fixed to the wall.

The wall fixing component may be provided on a back side of the dispenser, whereas the dispensing opening is provided on a front side of the dispenser, and the base extension is manoeuvrable from the deployed position extending from a rear side of the dispenser to an undeployed position. In a non-retractable implementation of the base extension (which would simply be an extended base), the base extension could get in the way of mounting the dispenser to the wall. This would mean that there would either be a limit to how far the base extension could extend, which would reduce its impact on improved stability, or the dispenser would have to be of a type that is not also wall mountable. The base extension is retractable or undeployable, thereby allowing it to be suitably sized for appropriately improving stability, yet it can be retracted so that it does not hinder or prevent proper wall mounting.

More specifically, the base extension has a deployed position extending beyond the wall fixing component in which mounting of the wall fixing component to the wall would be impeded by the base extension and is manoeuvrable to an undeployed position in which the mounting of the wall fixing component to the wall is no longer impeded. Put another way, the base extension extends beyond the wall fixing component in a rearward direction in the deployed position and is manoeuvrable into a position retracted relative to the wall fixing component in an undeployed position.

The base extension may include a mechanism for locking the undeployed or retracted position of the base extension and/or a mechanism for locking the extended or deployed position of the base extension. A button or other user activatable means may be provided for unlocking the mechanism for locking the deployed position and/or a button or other user activatable means may be provided for unlocking the mechanism for locking the deployed position. The base extension and the base of the dispenser may include a mechanism including a detent and first and second spaces for receiving the detent, the first space located for locking a deployed or extended position of the base extension when the detent is engaged therein and the second space for locking an undeployed or retracted position of the base extension when the detent is engaged therein. The detent may form or include a button so that the detent can be taken out of receipt in the space to allow the base extension to be moved between the deployed and undepolyed positions. The first and second spaced may be first and second slots.

The base extension and base may include a guide slot or recess and a guide follower for guiding movement of the base extension between the retraced and extended positions.

The dispenser may include a chute surface for supporting a stack of sheet products in the dispenser and for guiding the sheet products to the dispensing opening. The chute surface may be curved along at least a part of the chute surface to guide the sheet products to the dispensing opening. The curved surface may form a cavity in a rear side of the dispenser, whereas the dispensing opening is in a front side of the dispenser. The base extension may be extendable into the deployed position from a retracted position within the cavity. Thus, the base extension can be concealed in the cavity in the dispenser, so as to keep the dispenser compact.

The chute surface may include a less steep portion for supporting part of the stack adjacent the dispensing opening and a steeper portion for supporting part of the stack further away from the dispensing opening. The steeper portion may be for supporting a larger part of the stack than the less steep portion. The steeper portion may support a majority of the stack. The steeper portion may be angled relative to a horizontal surface upon which the dispenser is placed by the base of the dispenser at an angle of at least 65°, 70°, 75°, or even 80°. The angle may be between 70° and 85° or 75° and 80°. Such angles are steeper than implemented in some prior art designs, which means that the centre of gravity of the dispenser will be raised, thereby making the dispenser more liable to tipping than before. The base extension means that this tipping problem can be combated in a selectable way depending upon desired end use.

The less steep portion may be angled relative to a horizontal surface upon which the dispenser is placed by its base by at least 20°, 25°, 30°, 35° or even 40°. Such angles are greater than some prior art designs to allow a reduced footprint of the dispenser objective to be achieved. The less steep portion may define an angle relative to a horizontal surface upon which the dispenser is placed on its base of between 20° and 70°, 30° and 60°, or 40° and 50°. Such angles are desirably steep, but not so steep as to impede dispensing feel from a front facing dispensing opening. These angles allow the dispensing opening to be relatively forward facing. In particular, an inside face of face piece of the dispenser including the dispensing opening is angled relative to the horizontal by between 110° and 160°, 120° and 150°, or 130° and 140°, which means that a leading face of the stack of sheet products is similarly angled and the dispensing opening will also be so angled, to ensure that relatively forward dispensing is achieved. Downward dispensing would occur at 180° to the horizontal.

The less steep portion of the chute surface may be curved (and in which case, the angle is taken as the tangent of that curve). The curved chute surface may follow a circular path or may be a composite curve. The angle is taken from a tangent of the curved surface at an end of the curved surface adjacent the dispensing opening. The less steep portion provides a more gradual ramp into the dispensing opening in order to improve dispensing success. Further, the less steep portion provides a turn in the dispensing path so that the dispensing opening can face relatively forwards. Such a structure eases dispensing for the user as removing sheet products downwardly is a less natural motion.

The base may include a toe portion protruding in a frontward direction relative to a vertical line passing through a centre of the dispensing opening when the dispenser is stood on the base on a horizontal surface, wherein the dispensing opening is located on a front side of the dispenser. The base extension may provide a heel portion relative to the toe portion of the base. The dispenser is thus stabilised from tipping in a forward direction and a rearward direction by the toe and heel portions.

The dispenser may include a front dispensing surface including an upper portion sloping backwards and a lower portion sloping frontwards to define a finger receiving recess therebetween, wherein the dispensing opening is located in the upper portion so that a user is to reach in to the recess to dispense sheet products from the dispensing opening. The recess offers intuitive dispensing by making it immediately clear from a first viewing that a user is to reach into the recess to dispense a sheet product. The lower portion may slope frontwards to lead in to the toe portion. Thus, the dispensing opening is located immediately adjacent the base, to thereby reduce vertical space taken up by the dispenser. Further, this will help bring the centre of gravity down as the stack will be located closer to a countertop surface, which serves to improve dispenser stability.

In a second aspect, there is provided a dispenser, including:

a face piece including a dispensing opening through which sheet products stored as a stack in the dispenser are dispensable;

a stand upon which the dispenser is to be stood on a counter surface or other such surface so that the sheet products are fed by gravity to the dispensing opening;

wherein the face piece forms at least part of the stand;

wherein the face piece is configured to be removable;

at least one component for fixing the dispenser to an upright wall;

wherein the dispenser is adapted to be stood on the counter surface or other such surface on the stand including the face piece and is adapted to be mounted to the upright wall with the face piece removed.

According to the second aspect of the invention, when the face piece is removed, at least part of the stand is also removed, thereby allowing a one step process for converting from a countertop dispenser to a wall mounted dispenser.

The face piece and the mating part of the dispenser include interacting components for push on and pull off mounting of the face piece for respectively securing the face piece to the dispenser and removing the face piece from the dispenser. The face piece may include a mechanism such as a clip mechanism or resilient clip mechanism that moves optionally under resilient bias into engagement with a mating component on the dispenser when the face piece is pushed on to the dispenser. These ways of mounting the face piece to the dispenser and removing it from the dispenser ensure that the dispenser can be converted without the use of a tool.

The face piece may form a front side toe portion of the stand. The face piece may be shaped so that when the dispenser is placed on the stand including the face piece on a horizontal surface, the toe portion will extend to or beyond a vertical line passing through a centre of the dispensing opening. The face piece may be shaped to have an upper portion and a lower portion defining a finger receiving recess therebetween for grasping a sheet product through the dispensing opening, wherein the lower portion forms the toe portion and the dispensing opening is located in the upper portion. The upper portion extends rearwardly and the lower portion extends frontwardly with respect to a downward direction when the dispenser is stood on a horizontal surface on the stand. The upper portion and the lower portion may be curved.

The dispenser may be part of a dispenser system that further includes a second face piece including a dispensing opening, wherein the second face piece is of a different kind from the first face piece. In particular, the dispensing opening of the first face piece may be of a different kind from the dispensing opening of the second face piece. The dispensing opening of the first face piece may be adapted for one at a time dispensing of the sheet products, while the dispensing opening of the second face piece may be adapted for dispensing a plurality of sheet products at a time. In particular, the first face piece is arranged so that the dispensing opening reveals a bottom face of the stack of sheet products, whereas the second face piece is arranged so that the dispensing opening reveals edges of a plurality of the sheet products at the bottom of the stack. The second face piece and a mating part of the dispenser may include interacting components for push on and pull off connection to the dispenser. The second face piece may mount to the dispenser in the same way as the first face piece so that the same component on the dispenser is used for mounting both the first face piece and the second face piece.

In the various aspects, the dispenser includes a housing defining an interior for receiving the stack of sheet products. A door may be mounted to the housing so as to be openable relative to the housing to loading the interior with a stack of sheet products.

The sheet products may be napkins. The sheet products may be interfolded. The sheet products may be folded.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

These and other aspects will now be described in more detail, with reference to the appended drawings showing embodiment(s) of the invention, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a backside view of a dispenser according to a first embodiment;

FIG. 2 shows another backside view of the dispenser of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows a front side view of the dispenser of FIG. 1 with a dispenser door in an open position;

FIG. 4 shows another front side view of the dispenser of FIG. 1 with the door in an open condition;

FIG. 5 shows a side view of the dispenser of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 shows a bottom view of the dispenser of FIG. 1 with the base extension in a retracted position; and

FIG. 7 shows a bottom view of the dispenser of FIG. 1 with the base extension in an extended position.

 DETAIL DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 shows a backside view of a dispenser in which there can be seen mounting brackets for mounting the dispenser to an upright wall and a base extension in a retracted position. In the retracted position, the base extension is contained within a foot print of the dispenser when the dispenser is viewed from above. The retracted base extension is located in a space provided in the backside of the dispenser formed by curvature of a chute for guiding napkins contained in the dispenser as the chute turns toward a dispensing opening in a front side of the dispenser.

FIG. 2 shows a similar view of the backside of the dispenser of FIG. 1, but the base extension has been moved into an extended position in which it projects from a footprint formed by the rest of the dispenser when the dispenser is viewed in plan. The base extension is manoeuvrable into the extended position in a sliding motion akin to opening a drawer. The base has thus been extended in a rearward direction as compared to FIG. 1, to thereby increase the dispenser's resistance to tipping in the rearward direction.

FIG. 3 shows a view of a front side of the dispenser, with a dispenser door in an open position to reveal a stack of napkins contained in the dispenser. FIG. 3 shows a face piece in a mounted condition so that the napkins can be dispensed through the dispensing opening contained in the face piece. The face piece has a bulging top portion, a recessed medial portion and a toe portion projecting as compared to the recessed portion. Between the bulging top portion and the projecting toe portion, the recess defined therebetween provides a finger receiving space for grasping a tissue in the dispensing opening and dispensing it from the dispenser. The toe portion forms part of a base of the dispenser. The face piece is removable for when the dispenser is to be mounted to an upright wall, and thus the projecting portion of the base provided by the toe portion is not required.

FIG. 4 shows a view of the front side of the dispenser with the door of the dispenser in an open condition. The face piece has been removed and is replaceable with a face piece of an alternative kind more suited to dispensing when the dispenser is mounted to an upright wall. The view of FIG. 4 also shows the chute surface for guiding and supporting the stack of napkins. The chute surface has a steeper portion and a curved portion turning towards the dispensing opening, where the curved portion is less steeply inclined. A chute member forming the chute surface is mounted in a rear housing member of the dispenser.

FIG. 5 shows a side view of the dispenser, which illustrates the relative angles of the chute surface at the steeper portion and the less steep portion turning into the dispensing opening.

FIG. 6 shows a view of an underside of a base of the dispenser with the base extension in a retracted position. In the retracted position, a button engages in a slot to lock the retracted position. The base extension includes at least one fin riding in at least one slot and the fin has an enlarged end to prevent the fin from removal from the slot. The fin and slot mechanism guides movement of the base extension between the extended and retracted positions.

FIG. 7 shows a view of an underside of a base of the dispenser with the base extension in an extended position and the button engaged in a slot for locking the extended position.

FIG. 1 shows a dispenser 1 from a backside of the dispenser 1. The dispenser 1 includes a rear housing member 2 and a front housing member 3 that respectively define rear and front housing cavities for containing a stack of napkins 11 therebetween (FIG. 3). Referring to FIG. 3, the front housing member 3 is provided in the form of a door that is openable relative to the rear housing member 2 by way of first and second hinges 12 located on one side of the housing 2, 3. The front housing member 3 is openable so as to allow the dispenser 1 to be filled with a stack of napkins 11. The rear housing member 2 includes two parts, a back part and a medial part.

The dispenser 1 includes a face piece 6 that defines a dispensing opening 13 through which napkins contained in the dispenser 1 are dispensable. The face piece 6 is removable as shown in FIG. 4 for reasons that will described in more detail below.

The dispenser 1 further includes a chute member 4 that is mounted to the rear housing member 2 and defines a chute surface 14 (FIG. 4) upon which the stack of napkins is supported and guided to the dispensing opening 13. The chute member 4 defines the chute surface 14 on a front side thereof and includes first and second brackets 7 for interfacing with a surface of an upright wall. The brackets 7 include screw receiving holes 10 having an enlarged head through which the screw can be passed and a narrower tail portion having sides against which the head of the screw is to fasten to secure the dispenser 1 to the upright wall. Referring to FIG. 5, it can be seen that the brackets 7 project from a rear side of the dispenser 1 so that the rear housing member 2 is spaced from the upright wall when planar interfacing surfaces of the brackets 7 are fixed against the wall.

The dispenser 1 is wall mountable through the brackets 7 as described above and also includes a base 5 for standing the dispenser 1 on a counter surface or other such surface. The base 5 is formed in part by a base of the rear housing member 2 and in part by the base of a toe portion 15 of the removable face plate 6. The rear housing member 2 includes first and second rear facing legs 16 forming a part of the base 5 upon which the dispenser 1 stands on the counter surface or other such surface.

Extendable from a rear side of the dispenser 1 is a base extension 8 shown in the retracted position in FIG. 1. The base extension 8 is located between the legs 16 of the rear housing member 2. The chute surface 14 turns toward the dispensing opening 13 in order to guide the stack of napkins to the dispensing opening 13 and this curved shape is reflected on the rear side of the dispenser 1 to define a cavity 9 in the rear housing member 2. The base extension 8 is, in the retracted position, contained in this cavity 9 so that the base extension 8 is contained within a footprint of the dispenser 1 when the dispenser 1 is viewed in plan.

Referring to FIG. 2, the base extension 8 is able to be extended so as to extend the base 5, to thereby reduce the tendency of the dispenser 1 to be toppled in a rearward direction. The base extension 8 is provided in the form of a drawer that is extendible and retractable in a sliding motion. The base extension 8 has predefined retracted and extended positions as shown respectively in FIGS. 1 and 2 in which at least one component of the base extension 8 engages at least one component of the rear housing member 2, where these components must first be disengaged before the base extension 8 is movable out of the predefined retracted and extended positions. The components for locking extended and retracted positions are described further below with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. Base extension 8 may have a plurality of defined extended positions. The base extension 8 is, in the deployed position, further protruding than the wall brackets 7 on the rear side, as required to produce a good anti-toppling effect (see also FIG. 7). The base extension 8 would, if it were not retractable, thus impede mounting of the dispenser 1 via the brackets 7 to an upright wall. In the retracted position, the base extension 8 is confined within a footprint of the dispenser 1 as shown in FIG. 6.

The dispenser 1 is more upright than dispensers known from the prior art, as will be described with reference to FIG. 5. The chute surface 14 defined by the chute member 4 includes a relatively steep portion 17 and a less steep portion 18 for respectively supporting an upper part of the stack of napkins 11 and a lower part of the stack of napkins 11. The relatively steep portion 17 forms a major part of the chute surface 14. The less steep portion 18 defines a turn in the chute surface 14 toward the dispensing opening 13. The angles formed by the relatively steep portion 17 and the less steep portion 18 are indicated respectively by reference signs α and β in FIG. 5. In the given embodiment, α is about 79° and β is about 45°. The relatively steep portions 17 of the chute surface 14 is planar or substantially planar, making determination of the angle α straightforward. The less steep portion 18 of the chute surface 14 is curved, so that the angle β is taken from a tangent of the curve at the dispensing opening end of the chute surface 14. FIG. 5 also shows a desirable angle θ for an inside surface of the face piece 6 against which rests a leading face of the stack 11, so that the face pieces provides for relatively forward dispensing. The angle θ is, in this embodiment, 135° (other possible angles are described above, which provides an angle from a front side of the dispenser 1, of 45° relative to horizontal.

The angles α and β given for this specific embodiment (broader ranges of angles could be effectively used as described above) are steeper than in some prior art countertop dispenser designs, which will raise the centre of gravity, thereby increasing the tendency of the dispenser 1 to topple as compared to prior art designs. The base extension 8 counterbalances such an increased tipping tendency in the rearward direction.

The profile of the face plate 6 can be seen in FIG. 5. The face plate 6 extends away from a front side of the dispenser 1 at an upper portion and extends back toward the front side to form the toe portion 15 in a direction from a top of the face piece 6 to a bottom of the face piece 6. A recess 19 is defined between the upper portion and the toe portion 15 that is able to receive a protruding portion of a bottom tissue of the stack (namely a leading edge of a leading napkin in the stack 11) and a user is able to reach into the recess 19 to grasp the protruding part of a bottom napkin in the stack 11. The dispensing opening 13 is located in the upper portion of the face piece 6 so that a bottom lip of the dispensing opening 13 is set back from an upper lip of the dispensing opening 13 as a result of the slanted profile of the face piece 6. When the dispenser 1 is stood on the base 5 on a horizontal surface, a vertical line passing through a centre of the dispensing opening 13 will also pass through the toe portion 15, which is indicative of the toe portion 15 projecting to provide tipping stabilisation to the dispenser 1. The toe portion 15 extends at least to a forward most edge of the dispensing opening 13 with respect to a vertical line passing through the forward most edge.

The face piece 6 is removable by unclipping it from engagement with at least one resilient tab 20 as shown in FIG. 4. Removing the face piece 6 also removes part of the base 5 provided by the toe portion 15 of the face piece 6. The face piece may be interchanged with a face piece of a different kind, which does not have the toe portion 15 and thus is more readily accessible from below, which can be useful when the dispenser 1 is mounted to an upright wall, or having a different kind of dispensing opening. For example, the face piece 6 shown in the embodiment may be suitable for one at a time dispensing of the napkins in the stack 11, and may be interchanged with a face piece that reveals folded edges of a plurality of napkins in the stack 11 for dispensing of a plurality of napkins at a time. The alternative face piece is also mountable by pushing it onto the at least one tab 20. Alternative designs for face pieces are disclosed in WO 2005/034702 A1.

Referring to FIG. 6, the base extension 8 includes first and second stems (not shown) that ride in first and second guide slots 40 in the base 5 of the dispenser. The guide slots 40 guide movement of the base extension 8 between the retracted position shown in FIG. 6 and the extended position shown in FIG. 7. At an end of the stems are enlarged heads 41, which do not fit through the guide slots 40 and thus ensure the stems remain in a riding position in the guide slots 40. The guide slots include an enlarged slot portion 44 that allows the enlarged heads 41 to pass through when the base extension 5 is manipulated in a certain way to allow loading (and perhaps also) removal of the base extension 8, such as during manufacturing.

The base 5 of the dispenser 1 further includes first and second slots 42 into which a button 43 of the base extension is engageable in order to lock the extended and retracted positions. The button 43 must be depressed (e.g. by a user) in order to disengage it from the slot 44 to allow the base extension 8 to be moved between the retracted and extended positions. The button 43 also serves to maintain the base extension 8 in the selected extended or retracted position.

The base 5 of the dispenser 1 includes a plurality of soft feet 46, as does the base extension 8 include soft feet 45. The soft feet 45, 46 engage the countertop surface when the base extension 8 is in the retracted and the extended position.

A use of the dispenser 1 on a countertop surface will now be described. The dispenser 1 is loaded with a stack of napkins 11 by opening the door-like front housing member 3 about the hinges 12 and placing the stack of napkins 11 in the space defined by the front and rear housing members 2, 3. A bottom face of the stack of napkins 11 is positioned against the face piece 6 and is partly revealed by the dispenser opening 13. The stack of napkins 11 may be interfolded so that as each napkin is removed from the dispensing opening 13, part of a subsequent napkin is pulled through the dispensing opening 13 so as to rest in the recess 19 formed by the profile of the face piece 6. The stack of napkins 11 is fed by the chute surface 14 so as to be supported by the steeper portion 17 and so as to be turned forwardly toward the dispensing opening 13 by the less steep portion 18. The turn 18 ensures that a bottom face of the stack of napkins 11 is relatively forward facing for forward, rather than downward dispensing through the dispensing opening 13.

The dispenser 1 may be mounted on a counter surface or other such horizontal surface by placing the base 5 on the surface. The toe portion 15 of the face piece 6 forms part of the base 5 and serves to stabilise the dispenser 1 from forward tipping, while the legs 16 of the rear housing member 2 interface with the horizontal surface to further form part of the base 5. The dispenser 1 may be located against an upright wall, as well as positioned on the horizontal surface, which means that the base extension 8 is not necessary for securing against rearward tipping of the dispenser 1. It may, however, be the case that the dispenser 1 is not to be positioned against an upright wall, in which case stabilisation against rearward tipping of the dispenser 1 would be desirable. In such a case, the base extension 8 is manoeuvred from a retracted position within the foot print of the dispenser 1 as shown in FIG. 1 to an extended position as shown in FIG. 2, to thereby extend the base 5 in the rearward direction. The base extension 8 may be unlocked from its retracted position, by pressing the button 43 and the button 43 could also be used for unlocking the extended position. Instead of a button, a particular movement, such as an upward movement could be used to disengage interfacing surfaces of the base extension 8 and the rear housing member 2 to release the retracted and extended positions.

It may be desirable to hang the dispenser from an upright wall so that the weight of the dispenser is borne by the upright wall. In such a use, fasteners will be screwed into the wall, using the holes 10 in the bracket 7 to thereby fix the dispenser 1 to the upright wall. The bracket 7 protrudes rearwardly so that the rear housing member 2 and a rear side of the dispenser 1 is spaced from the upright wall. It may be that the wall mounted dispenser 1 will suitably use the face piece style of the face piece 6 shown in the figures. Alternatively, a different style face piece may be desirable, in which case the face piece 6 is removed by disengaging the at least one tab 20 from the face piece 6. This will remove the toe portion 15, which is not required for extending the base 5 as the dispenser 1 is mounted to a wall, rather than being stood on a horizontal surface by the base 5. An alternative type of face piece 6 can then be mounted to the dispenser 1 using the at least one tab 20. By having the toe portion 15 as part of the base 6, it is not necessary to separately remove a forwardly extending stand portion separately from removing a face piece. Instead, the toe portion 15 and the face piece 6 are removed in a one step process.

The skilled person will appreciate that alternatives can be provided to the above embodiment without departing from the scope of the claims. For example, the base extension 8 is shown as being manoeuvred from a retracted position to an extended position in a drawer-like fashion. Other implementations can be envisaged. The base extension 8 may be pivotable from a retracted position to an extended position about a hinge. Alternatively, the base extension 6 may include at least one component and the rear housing member 2 may include at least one component allowing the base extension 8 to be removably mounted to the rear housing member 2 at an appropriate location to provide tipping resistance. Ideally, the base extension 8 is designed such that manoeuvring it from a retracted position to an extended position is tool free.

In the shown embodiment, the base extension extends rearwardly, and this is the preferred arrangement for the advantageous reasons already described previously. It can, however, be imagined that sideways tipping is a problem in such a sheet product dispenser, or even forward tipping, and in such instances, a sideways extension member, i.e. left and/or right sides, or a frontward extension member for the base for the dispenser could be provided.

Claims

1. A dispenser comprising:

a dispensing opening through which sheet products are dispensable from within the dispenser;
a base;
the dispenser arranged to be stood on its base on a counter surface or other such surface so that the sheet products are fed to the dispensing opening by gravity; and
a base extension that is manoeuvrable into a deployed position to extend the base to increase the dispenser's resistance to being tipped over.

2. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the base extension is manoeuvrable from an undeployed position within a footprint of the dispenser to a position extending from that footprint, wherein the footprint is an area of the counter surface or other surface taken up by the dispenser when the dispenser is viewed in plan.

3. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the base extension is attached to the dispenser and is manoeuvrable from an undeployed position to the deployed position.

4. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the base extension, in the deployed position, extends from a back side of the dispenser, wherein the dispensing opening is disposed at a front side of the dispenser.

5. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the base extension has a retracted position relative to the base and an extended position relative to the base, wherein the extended position corresponds to the deployed position.

6. The dispenser of claim 5, wherein the base extension is manoeuvrable from the retracted position to the extended position in the manner of a drawer.

7. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the base extension is arranged to contact the counter surface or other such surface in an undeployed position and in the deployed position.

8. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the dispenser includes a component for fixing the dispenser to an upright wall so that the dispenser can be used by standing it on the base on the counter or other such surface and by fixing the dispenser to an upright or vertical surface with the base suspended.

9. The dispenser of claim 8, wherein the wall fixing component is provided on a back side of the dispenser, whereas the dispensing opening is provided on a front side of the dispenser, and the base extension is manoeuvrable from the deployed position extending from a rear side of the dispenser to an undeployed position in which the base extension extends less far from the rear side of the dispenser as compared to the deployed position or in which the base extension is retracted within the rear side of the dispenser.

10. The dispenser of claim 8, wherein the base extension has a deployed position extending beyond the wall fixing component in which vertical mounting of the wall fixing component to the wall would be impeded by the base extension and is manoeuvrable to an undeployed position in which the mounting of the wall fixing component to the wall is no longer impeded.

11. The dispenser of claim 1, comprising a chute surface for supporting a stack of sheet products in the dispenser and for guiding the sheet products to the dispensing opening, wherein the chute surface is curved along at least part of the chute surface to guide the napkins to the dispensing opening.

12. The dispenser of claim 11, wherein the curved surface forms a cavity in a rear side of the dispenser, whereas the dispensing opening is in a front side of the dispenser, and wherein the base extension is extendable into the deployed position from a retracted position within the cavity.

13. The dispenser of claim 1, comprising a chute surface comprising a less steep portion for supporting part of a stack of sheet products adjacent the dispensing opening and a steeper portion for supporting part of the stack further away from the dispensing opening, wherein the steeper portion is for supporting a larger part of the stack than the less steep portion.

14. The dispenser of claim 13, wherein the steeper portion is angled relative to a horizontal surface upon which the dispenser is placed by the base of the dispenser at an angle of at least 65°.

15. The dispenser of claim 13, wherein the angle of the steeper portion relative to a horizontal surface upon which the dispenser is placed on its base is between 65° and 85°.

16. The dispenser of claim 13, wherein the less steep portion is angled relative to a horizontal surface upon which the dispenser is placed by its base by at least 20°.

17. The dispenser of claim 13, wherein the less steep portion defines an angle relative to a horizontal surface upon which the dispenser is placed on its base of between 20° and 70°.

18. The dispenser of claim 13, wherein the less steep portion of the chute surface is curved.

19. The dispenser of claim 1, comprising a chute surface defining a turn in the dispensing path so that the dispensing opening faces more forwards than downwards.

20. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the base comprises a toe portion protruding in a frontward direction relative to a vertical line passing through a centre of the dispensing opening when the dispenser is stood on the base on a horizontal surface, wherein the dispensing opening is located on a front side of the dispenser.

21. The dispenser of claim 1, including a front dispensing surface including an upper portion sloping backwards and a lower portion sloping frontwards to define a finger receiving recess therebetween with respect to a downward direction, wherein the dispensing opening is located in the upper portion so that a user is to reach in to the recess to dispense sheet products from the dispensing opening.

22. The dispenser of claim 21, wherein the base comprises a toe portion protruding in a frontward direction relative to a vertical line passing through a centre of the dispensing opening when the dispenser is stood on the base on a horizontal surface, wherein the dispensing opening is located on a front side of the dispenser, wherein the lower portion slopes frontwards to lead in to the toe portion.

23. The dispenser of claim 1, comprising means for locking the base extension in the deployed position and in an undeployed position.

24. The dispenser of claim 23, comprising user activatable means for unlocking the means for locking.

25. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the base extension is moveable between a retracted position and an extended position corresponding to the deployed position and wherein the dispenser comprises a guide slot and a guide follower to guide movement of the base extension between the extended and retracted positions.

26. A dispenser, comprising:

a face piece comprising a dispensing opening through which sheet products stored as a stack in the dispenser are dispensable;
a stand upon which the dispenser is to be stood on a counter surface or other such surface so that the sheet products are fed by gravity to the dispensing opening;
at least one component for fixing the dispenser to an upright wall;
wherein the face piece forms at least part of the stand;
wherein the face piece is configured to be removable;
wherein the dispenser is adapted to be stood on the counter surface or other such surface on the stand including the face piece and is adapted to be mounted to the upright wall with the face piece removed.

27. The dispenser of claim 26, the face piece and the mating part of the dispenser include interacting components for push on and pull off mounting of the face piece for respectively securing the face piece to the dispenser and removing the face piece from the dispenser.

28. The dispenser of claim 26, wherein the face piece includes a portion that moves into engagement with a mating portion of the dispenser when the face piece is mounted to the dispenser.

29. The dispenser of claim 26, wherein the dispensing opening of the first face piece may be adapted for one at a time dispensing of the sheet products.

30. The dispenser of claim 26, wherein the first face piece is arranged so that the dispensing opening reveals a bottommost surface of the stack of sheet products.

31. The dispenser of claim 26, wherein the face piece forms a front side toe portion of the stand.

32. The dispenser of claim 26, wherein the face piece is shaped to have an upper portion and a lower portion defining a finger receiving recess therebetween for grasping a sheet product through the dispensing opening, wherein the lower portion forms the toe portion and the dispensing opening is located in the upper portion.

33. The dispenser of claim 32, wherein the upper portion and the lower portion form a curved shape to define the recess between opposed parts of the curve.

34. The dispenser of claim 26, wherein the dispenser is part of a dispenser system that further comprises a second face piece including a dispensing opening, wherein the dispensing opening of the first face piece is adapted for one at a time dispensing of the sheet products, whereas the dispensing opening of the second face piece is adapted for dispensing a plurality of sheet products at a time, wherein the first face piece is arranged so that the dispensing opening reveals a bottommost surface of the stack of sheet products, whereas the second face piece is arranged so that the dispensing opening reveals edges of a plurality of the sheet products at the bottom of the stack.

Patent History
Publication number: 20150014348
Type: Application
Filed: Feb 2, 2012
Publication Date: Jan 15, 2015
Applicant: SCA HYGIENE PRODUCTS AB (Goteborg)
Inventors: Daniele S. Tedesco (Philadelphia, PA), John S. Formon (Oxford, PA), Joseph Wieser (Downingtown, PA)
Application Number: 14/375,973
Classifications
Current U.S. Class: With Casing Or Support (221/282)
International Classification: A47K 10/42 (20060101);