Abstract:
A chewing gum stick dispenser includes a generally box-shaped container having a slot therein for dispensing a single stick of gum. A scissoring pair of swing arms utilizes tensioning means for urging the contained sticks of gum toward an operator wall. The operator wall retains a slidable operator having a seat adapted to engage a single stick of gum and push it partially through the dispensing slot. The container further includes a pivoted cap which can be opened to provide easy refilling of the container.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.: 60/258,968, filed Jan. 2, 2001. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention relates generally to dispensers for chewing gum or bubble gum, more particularly to personal dispensers for stick chewing gum. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Personal dispensers for chewing gum or bubble gum are known in the prior art. U.S. Pat. No. 4,465,208 to Buban et al. discloses a dispenser with a cover whose central region is cut away to afford access to a stick of gum which is urged against the cover by a spring-mounted platform. The user dispenses the gum by placing his thumb against the stick of gum and pushing it toward a slot at the end of the dispenser. The gum is susceptible to loss of freshness and to damage from moisture or foreign objects due to the exposure of the gum through the cut away region. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,056,683 to O&#39;Brien et al. discloses a cardboard dispenser with a paper sling which extends from the inside of the dispenser through the dispensing slot. As the user pulls on the sling, a stick of gum is carried by the sling through the slot. Because this container is made of cardboard, the gum contained within is more susceptible to moisture damage than it would be in a container constructed of a non-permeable material, such as plastic. Additionally, a cardboard container lacks durability. Because the dispenser contains no mechanism such as a spring and platform to urge the gum against a wall of the dispenser, the gum rests loosely within the container and can fall out of the dispensing slot when it is not intended to be dispensed. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,353,956 to Wilson discloses a dispenser with a hinged lid. The user flips open the lid, then slides an ejector with his or her thumb to expose all of the sticks of gum contained in the dispenser at once. The user must then pull the desired stick or sticks of gum away from the other sticks, tap the remaining sticks back into place if they have become dislodged by the action of pulling away the desired stick, then close the lid. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,649,642, of which I am a named inventor, discloses a gum dispenser in the form of a rectangular parallelopiped-shaped container having space for a plurality of sticks of gum between a movable platform and one of the container walls. Adjacent the wall is a slot-shaped opening through which a stick of gum can be ejected. The platform is urged in the direction of the wall by a spiral spring. The apparatus also contains a slidable operator in the vicinity of the wall which is mounted so as to engage only the single stick of gum which is in position to be ejected. Sliding the operator toward the opening propels the uppermost stick of gum in the direction of the opening and through it by a sufficient distance to permit it to be grasped and removed from the dispenser. Retracting the operator permits the platform, driven by the coil spring, to move the group of sticks of gum in the direction of the wall, thereby positioning the new uppermost stick of gum so that it can be ejected by the next forward movement of the operator. 
     The chewing gum dispenser of the present invention is an improvement on the dispenser disclosed in my prior patent. It has been found in practice that the spring-and-platform arrangement which is employed for positioning the sticks of gum stored within the dispenser for dispensing at the option of the user is not as stable as might be desired. In use, it is my experience that the dispenser jams on occasion, thus precluding the user from dispensing a stick of gum, as desired. This problem is in part associated with the construction and configuration of the operator which applies an unbalanced force on the sticks of gum within the dispenser during operation to dispense the uppermost stick. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The gum dispenser of the present invention includes a substantially box-shaped container in the general form of a rectangular parallelopiped. The container has opposed first and second side walls oriented to be parallel with the sticks of gum stored therein. Third and fourth side walls extend between the first and second walls and a pair of end walls completes the structure of the container. One of these end walls defines a slot or opening slightly exceeding the width and thickness of a stick of gum for the ready dispensing of one stick at a time through that opening. 
     The box-shaped container encompasses a pair of swing arms, each being hinged to the first wall of the container and interlocking in a scissoring fashion. A tensioning device, in the form of a spring, rubber or elastic band, extends between the swing arms and draws them together. The swing arms are constructed and configured to provide a pair of opposing ends which support the sticks of gum within the container at positions adjacent to the ends thereof, thereby providing a more balanced force in urging the sticks of gum into position for dispensing. When sticks of chewing gum are placed between the swing arms and the second wall of the container, the tensioning device draws the swing arms together and thereby urges the sticks of gum against each other and toward the second wall of the container. 
     The dispenser includes a top panel or end wall having a slot at its junction with the second wall, through which slot the sticks of gum are individually dispensed. The second wall, or operator wall, of the container slidably mounts an operator to provide association of the manual movement of the operator with the dispensing of an individual stick of chewing gum. When a user slides the operator toward the dispensing slot in the end wall, a seat engages a leading stick of gum and causes the stick of gum to partially emerge through the dispensing slot in the container. In this manner each stick of chewing gum is individually dispensed. When the operator is drawn back toward the base panel, the operator seat is repositioned to receive the next stick of chewing gum. 
     The base panel of the container is configured with a platform upon which the sticks of chewing gum rest. In its retracted position, the seat is positioned at or slightly below the height of the platform, allowing the leading stick of gum to advance and be received by the seat. 
     The dispenser is preferably constructed of plastic or other similar rigid, non-permeable, durable material. 
     Due to the fact that the only fixed opening in the dispenser is the dispensing slot, the dispenser helps to protect the gum from deterioration due to moisture or foreign objects, and the freshness of the gum is prolonged. Because the gum is securely urged against the wall of the dispenser, the gum will not fall out of the dispenser when it is undesirable for it to do so. Because the operator seat engages only the leading stick of gum, only one piece of gum is dispensed at a time. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     A better understanding of the present invention may be realized from a consideration of the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of the dispenser of the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional, plan view of the dispenser of FIG. 1 with the operator in a retracted position and the swing arms fully extended; 
     FIG. 2A is a schematic view showing the swing arms installed in the cover of the dispenser; 
     FIG. 3 is a partially disassembled view of the operative portion of the dispenser of FIG. 1 showing an alternative embodiment thereof; and 
     FIG. 4 is an exploded view of the operative portion of FIG.  3 . 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     In FIGS. 1 and 2, the dispenser of the present invention is shown comprising a container  10  having a generally rectangular box shape. A hinged first wall or cap wall  12  provides access to the contents of the dispenser. Cap  12  may be outfitted with a tab  48  to increase the ease of opening the container for refilling with sticks of gum. The container  10  has a top panel  40 , side walls  32 , second wall (or operator wall)  14  adapted to receive an operator  24 . Dispenser slot  34  is adapted to deliver a stick of gum for dispensing through slot  34  in top panel  40 , although slot  34  may be located in any desired wall of the dispenser. First wall, or cap,  12  hinges open via cap hinge  42  to enable access to the interior of the container  10  for filling or refilling with gum sticks. 
     FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the dispenser of FIG. 1, taken along the plane  2 — 2 . Container  10  has a first wall (or cap)  12  attached to a second (or operator) wall  14  and contains swing arms  16  and  16 ′. Swing arms  16  and  16 ′ are mounted at opposite ends of cap wall  12  by way of hinge pivots  22 . 
     One swing arm  16  is depicted in FIG. 2A as having a wide end portion  17  in which the hook  18  is located and a narrow portion  15 . Arm  16 ′ is identical to arm  16  but is turned over from the way arm  16  is depicted in FIG.  2 A. When the two swing arms  16 ,  16 ′ are mounted as shown in FIG. 3 the narrow portions  15  slide past each other and the wider portions  17  limit the movement of the two swing arms, relative to each other. At the base of the swing arm  16  is an axle member  19  with two end portions  21  of reduced diameter at opposite ends of the axle  19 . As indicated in FIG. 2, the axle member  19  of the swing arm  16  is rotatably mounted in the upper hinge pivot  22 . 
     The corresponding elements of the swing arm  16 ′ are designated by like reference numerals primed. The swing arms  16 ,  16 ′ are installed by positioning the axle members  19 ,  19 ′ within the hinge pivots  22 ,  22 ′, respectively. The cap wall is pivotably mounted to the container  10  by snapping the pin ends  49 ′ of swing arm  16 ′ into the holes  42  (FIG. 1) on opposite sides of the container  10 , thus permitting the cap wall  12  to rotate freely about the hinge point  42 . However, when the cap  12  is moved to the closed position, as shown in FIG. 2, the pin ends  49  of the swing arm  16  snap into the openings  48  (FIG. 1) to retain the cap  12  in the closed position. The fit of the pin ends  49  of the axle  19  of swing arm  16  are sufficiently loose that the cap  12  may readily be opened and closed with the pins  49  slipping in and out of the openings  48 . In the assembled dispenser, the swing arms as noted are mounted in the hinge pivots  22 ,  22 ′. 
     In the embodiment of FIG. 2, top panel  40  contains dispensing slot  34  for dispensing sticks of gum from the container interior. Tensioning means  20  extends between swing arms  16  and  16 ′, as shown, and may comprise a rubber band, elastic band or spring member retained by hooks  18 ,  18 ′. 
     In use, sticks of gum are positioned between second wall  14  and the ends of swing arms  16  and  16 ′. Tensioning means  20  biases the swing arms  16  and  16 ′ toward each other in a scissoring action, resulting in the urging of the gum sticks toward operator wall  14  and guide  46 . Guide  46  of operator wall  14  serves to direct a leading stick of gum toward dispensing slot  34 . Operator wall  14  contains an aperture  44  through which operator  24  extends. Operator  24  has a seat  26  adapted for receiving one end of a stick of gum for dispensing through slot  34 . Base panel  28  and top panel  40  separate first wall  12  from operator wall  14 . Base panel  28  has a platform  30  in the form of a pair of spaced apart ridges formed to serve as a guide for sticks of gum to be dispensed. When retracted, seat  26  of operator  24  rests at or below the guide surface of platform  30 . 
     FIG. 3 is a partially disassembled view of an alternative biasing arrangement for the dispenser of FIG.  1 . FIG. 4 shows an exploded view of the components of the biasing arrangement of FIG.  3 . In these figures, the swing arms  16 ,  16 ′, are mounted on a preformed mounting plate  36  which itself is mounted on the cap member  12  by means of projections  37  on the cap  12  fitting within mounting holes  39 . The mounting plate  36  may, if desired, be formed integrally with the cap  12 . Mounting plate  36  is formed with integral spring members  38 ,  38 ′ which, as shown in FIG. 3, bear against the swing arm  16 ,  16 ′ to develop a biasing force urging the outer ends of the swing arms in the direction of the sticks of gum stored within the container  10  to provide the desired support therefor. Swing arm mounting plate  36  may have hinge points  22  for pivotally attaching swing arms  16  and  16 ′. Spring members  38  and  38 ′ may be of a leaf spring or other variety. Swing arm mounting plate  36  is attached to cap  12 . In the arrangement of FIGS. 3 and 4, where axle elements  19   a  of the swing arms  16 ,  16 ′ are mounted in hinge points  22   a  which are part of the mounting plate  36 , the cap  12  is provided with pin projections  43  and  45  for insertion into holes  42  and  48 , respectively of FIG.  1 . 
     Although there have been described hereinabove various specific arrangements of a CHEWING GUM STICK DISPENSER in accordance with the invention for the purpose of illustrating the manner in which the invention may be used to advantage, it will be appreciated that the invention is not limited thereto. Accordingly, any and all modifications, variations or equivalent arrangements which may occur to those skilled in the art should be considered to be within the scope of the invention as defined in the annexed claims.