Dispenser for horizontally dispensed centerflow sheet products

An apparatus which dispenses a static centerflow rolled sheet product. The rolled product is disposed within a housing defined by a front side, back side, and side walls. The front side includes an opening through which an end of the rolled sheet product is pulled. A protrusion is defined, for example, on the back side member and extends towards the front side within the housing. The protrusion is disposed and has a length so as to extend into the rolled sheet product center void a sufficient distance to prevent the rolled product from collapsing on itself as the sheet product is withdrawn.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
Products are available for dispensing centerflow sheet products, for 
example toilet tissue, paper towels, and the like, in a horizontal mode 
wherein an end of the sheet product is pulled out from the center of the 
roll. In other words, the roll does not contain a central core member, but 
a center space or void that increases in size as the sheet product is 
pulled from the center of the roll. 
A concern with the conventional horizontal dispensing centerflow products 
is that support must be provided to the outermost layers of the rolled 
product to prevent collapse of the roll onto itself within the dispenser, 
thereby causing the product to clump and jam in the dispenser. This 
concern has been addressed by others in the art. For example, U.S. Pat. 
No. 5,065,924 discloses a dispenser wherein the roll is retained within a 
casing or housing purportedly without risk of deformation or collapsing by 
a device associated with the casing that applies pressure to all or part 
of the sides of the roll. In one embodiment, the device for applying 
pressure is a spring loaded back plate that constantly pushes the roll 
against the forward face or door. U.S. Pat. No. 5,582,362 describes 
another type of centerflow dispenser wherein a cover engaged with the 
housing member compresses the paper roll against the base, thereby 
allegedly preventing sag of the layered paper product as the void in the 
paper product grows. 
There are distinct disadvantages noted with the conventional devices that 
support centerflow rolled products by compression. For example, the rolled 
products may vary in width to such a degree that certain roll products 
cannot be used with the dispensers. The compression device or material or 
material also tends to wear or loose its effectiveness over time. 
The present invention provides an improved centerflow rolled product 
dispenser that does not rely on a device or mechanism for compressing the 
roll within the housing. 
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
A principal object of the present invention is therefore to provide an 
improved centerflow rolled product dispenser. 
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in 
part in the following description, or may be obvious from the description, 
or may be learned through practice of the invention. 
In accordance with the invention, an apparatus is provided for dispensing a 
static centerflow rolled sheet product wherein an end of the rolled sheet 
product is withdrawn from a center space or void. As is commonly 
understood, this center space or void expands or "grows" as more of the 
rolled sheet product is withdrawn. The apparatus includes a housing having 
a front side, a back side, and a side wall disposed between the front and 
back sides. The housing defines an internal space having a size so as to 
accommodate the rolled sheet product. The internal space is preferably 
substantially cylindrical to match the shape of the rolled sheet product 
and has a width at least equal to that of the rolled sheet product so that 
the product is disposed within the housing in a non-compressed state 
between the front and back sides. 
The front side is preferably removably attached to the housing to provide 
easy access to the internal space for loading the rolled sheet product. 
An opening is disposed through the front side so that the end of the rolled 
sheet product can be withdrawn through the front side. In one preferred 
embodiment, this opening is defined by a flexible membrane with slits 
disposed therethrough that further define flexible members through which 
the sheet product is pulled. The flexible members impart a degree of 
retaining tension or friction to the sheet product that allows the sheet 
product to be easily separated at perforation lines defined in the 
product. In other words, the flexible members retain the sheet product to 
a degree necessary so that a quick pull or tug will cause the rolled 
product to separate along the perforations without pulling additional 
unwanted lengths of the rolled sheet product out of the dispenser. 
A protrusion is disposed within the internal space of the housing. For 
example, the protrusion may be defined on the back side of the housing and 
extend towards the front side within the internal space. This protrusion 
is disposed and has a length so as to extend at least about halfway into 
the rolled sheet product center void to prevent the rolled sheet product 
from collapsing on itself as the product is withdrawn and the center void 
grows. In a preferred embodiment, this protrusion has a length so as to 
extend substantially to the end or through the rolled sheet product. Thus, 
as the center void of the rolled product grows and the upper layers tend 
to fall towards the bottom layers, the protrusion prevents the upper 
layers from collapsing onto the bottom layers, thus allowing for continued 
withdrawal of the rolled product without binding or jamming of the product 
within the dispenser. 
In one preferred embodiment, the protrusion includes a recess defined along 
at least a portion of the upper surface thereof. For example, this recess 
may be defined by an upwardly disposed concave section. This recess or 
concave section provides a space for the upper layers of the roll to fall 
into as the center void grows and thus acts as a retaining device or 
structure to seat or retain the upper layers on the protrusion. In an 
alternative embodiment, this recess may also be formed by rib members that 
define, for example, an X-shaped cross-sectional profile. 
It should be appreciated that, with the dispenser according to the 
invention, the back wall or side of the dispenser may be static or fixed 
in position so that it need not apply a compressive force against the 
rolled product. In this embodiment, the length of the protrusion should be 
sufficient to prevent the rolled sheet product from collapsing on itself 
as the product is withdrawn from the dispenser. For example, it may be 
preferred that the protrusion extend from at least about halfway through 
the rolled product or further. However, it is within the scope of the 
invention that the protrusion extend less than halfway so long as the 
length of the protrusion is sufficient to prevent the upper layers of the 
roll from collapsing onto the bottom layers. 
The invention will be described in greater detail below through use of the 
figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
Reference will now be made in detail to the presently preferred embodiments 
of the invention, one or more examples of which are illustrated in the 
figures. Each example is provided by way of explanation of the invention, 
and is not meant as a limitation of the invention. For example, features 
illustrated or described as part of one embodiment can be used with 
another embodiment to yield still a further embodiment. It is intended 
that the present invention include such modifications and variations as 
come within the scope and spirit of the invention. 
Referring to FIG. 1 in general, dispensing apparatus 10 according to the 
invention is illustrated mounted on a wall. Any conventional means, such 
as adhesives, and the like, can be used to mount apparatus 10 onto any 
wall or surface structure. 
Apparatus 10 includes a housing, generally 18, that encloses a centerflow 
rolled sheet product 12. The invention is applicable to any type of 
centerflow rolled sheet product. Housing 18 can have any shape or 
configuration and defines an internal space or volume 26 for accommodating 
rolled product 12. Housing 18 is defined by a front side member 20, a back 
side member 22, and a side wall 24. Side wall 24 preferably has a width at 
least equal to that of rolled product 12 so that the rolled product is 
contained within housing 18 in a non-compressed state. It should be 
appreciated, however, that this condition is not a requirement of the 
invention, and that it is within the scope of the invention to include a 
device for applying a compressive force to rolled product 12. 
Side wall member 24 also includes ribs 48 defined along the bottom portion 
thereof. Ribs 48 serve to support the bottom outermost layers of rolled 
product 12 within housing 18. 
Front side 20 essentially defines a cover component for housing 18 and is 
attached to side wall 24 by any conventional hinge mechanism, such as 
mechanism 32 illustrated in the figures. Any conventional latch device, 
such as latch 34 illustrated in the figures, is used to secure front side 
20 relative to housing 18. Any conventional locking device, such as the 
rotatable lock 36 illustrated in the figures, may be used to lock front 
side 20 relative to housing 18. It is well within the level of skill of 
those in the art to configure any conventional hinge mechanism, latch 
mechanism, or lock device for use in the present invention. 
Front side 20 also defines an opening, generally 28, through which end 14 
of the rolled product 12 is pulled, as particularly illustrated in FIG. 1. 
In a preferred embodiment as illustrated in FIG. 1, opening 28 is defined 
in a forwardly projecting recess defined by a protrusion member 40 
disposed on the outer surface of front side 20. A flexible membrane member 
50 is disposed across the open end of protrusion member 40 and includes 
flexible members 52 defined by slits 54. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the 
rolled product is pulled through flexible members 52 wherein flexible 
members 52 impart a retaining frictional force to the rolled product. In 
this regard, the sheet product can be separated along perforation lines 
formed therein with an easy tug or pull on the end 14. Flexible members 52 
provide enough of a retaining force on the sheet product so that 
additional lengths of the product are not pulled from the dispenser when 
trying to separate or tear the product along the perforation lines. 
Flexible members 52 and membrane 50 also provide a seal to prevent foreign 
matter, moisture, etc., from entering into the apparatus. 
A protrusion, generally illustrated as 30, is disposed within volume 26 and 
may be defined on back side 22 and extend towards front side 20. 
Protrusion 30 is positioned so as to extend into center void 16 of rolled 
product 12. Protrusion 30 has an axial length so as to extend into rolled 
product 12 a sufficient distance to prevent the upper layers of rolled 
product 12 from collapsing onto the bottom layers as center space or void 
16 grows. In a preferred embodiment, protrusion 30 extends at least 
halfway through rolled product 12 and, preferably, substantially to the 
end or completely through rolled product 12. However, it is within the 
scope of the invention that protrusion 30 extend less than halfway through 
rolled product 12 so long as its axial length is sufficient to prevent the 
upper layers of the product from collapsing onto the lower layers. 
Protrusion 30 can take on any configuration or shape, including the 
substantially cylindrical shape illustrated in FIG. 2a and the X-shaped 
profile shown in FIG. 2b. 
It may be preferred that protrusion 30 also include a recessed portion, 
generally 44, disposed on the upper side thereof along at least a portion 
of the length of protrusion 30. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2a, 
recessed portion 44 is defined by a generally concave portion 42. In the 
embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2b, recessed portion 44 is defined between 
the crossed ribs 46 that further define the X-shaped profile of protrusion 
30. The recessed portion defines a space or region into which the upper 
layers of rolled product 12 fall as center void or space 16 grows with use 
of the rolled product. Recessed portion 44 tends to retain the upper 
layers on protrusion 30 in a generally flat or non-bunched manner as more 
of the rolled product 12 is pulled from the apparatus. Thus, the upper 
layers are prevented from bunching or being pulled towards front side 20 
which might lead to jamming of the rolled product or a separation of the 
rolled product within apparatus 10. 
It should be appreciated that, although the present invention is described 
and illustrated herein with a static back wall or member 22, the invention 
is just as applicable in a dispensing apparatus wherein the back wall is 
spring loaded or otherwise biased towards the front side to apply a 
compressive force to rolled product 12. In an alternative embodiment, a 
separate biasing device may also be incorporated within internal space 26. 
In other words, the present invention has application beyond a dispenser 
having a static back wall. 
It is also within the scope of the invention for protrusion 30 to be 
axially adjustable with volume 26. For example, protrusion 30 may comprise 
a telescoping structure, or other adjustable structure. 
It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various 
modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without 
departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. For example, 
protrusion 30 can take on any shape or configuration and need only have a 
length sufficient to prevent the upper layers of the rolled product from 
collapsing onto the lower layers. All such variations and modifications 
are within the scope of the invention.