Patent ID: 6109482
Filing Date: 2000-08-29
Classification: B67D

Abstract:
A soda dispenser system comprising, in combination:a plurality of dispensing assemblies each including:a base with a rectilinear configuration having a planar square top face, a planar square bottom face and a thin periphery formed of four side walls for defining an interior space, the top face of the base having a threaded recess formed therein with a tapering spigot having a top end coupled to a bottom of the threaded recess and extending downwardly and outwardly so as to exit the interior space of the base via a bottom edge of one of the side walls thereof and terminate in an open end, the bottom face of the base having four legs each mounted on one of four corners of the bottom face and extending downwardly therefrom,a valve mechanism including a bore formed in the side wall from which the spigot exits, a cylinder mounted at a central extent thereof to an end of the spigot, an upper annular flange mounted to an inner surface of the cylinder adjacent to and spaced from a top end of the cylinder and extending inwardly therefrom, and a lower annular flange mounted to the inner surface of the cylinder adjacent to and spaced from a bottom end of the cylinder and extending inwardly therefrom, and a vertically oriented plunger including a planar circular top plate, a rod connected to the top plate and extending through the cylinder, and a bulbous bottom plug mounted to a bottom of the rod, wherein the plunger has a lowered orientation for allowing the egress of fluid from the cylinder and a raised orientation for precluding the egress of fluid, the valve mechanism further including a coil spring positioned about the rod between the upper annular flange and the top plate for urging the plunger into the raised orientation; anda frame including four elongated stanchions each mounted on one of four corners of the top face of the base and extending upwardly therefrom and four interconnect rods connected between top ends of the stanchions to define a square, wherein two of the stanchions have a vertically oriented clamp mounted on a central extent thereof with a C-shaped cross-section along a length thereof and another two of the stanchions have a vertically oriented cylindrical post mounted on a central extent thereof;wherein the dispensing assemblies are removably coupled in a side-by-side relationship with the spigots thereof extending in a similar direction.