Combination prophylactic package and dispenser

A package housing a condom and dispenser for holding the peripheral wall of the condom folded into a tubular accordion stack and operable upon application of a predetermined force to the closed end of the condom to meter the folds in progression.

BACKGROUND

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to condoms and packaging for therefore

2. Description of the Prior Art

Amongst the many purposes served by condoms is limitations on the transmission of diseases. In recent years there has been a significant increase in the incidence and spread of sexually transmitted diseases which has driven the public to utilize condoms as a prophylactic measure to reduce the risk of infection and transmission. The advantage of avoiding contact to the condom by a partner with an unknown sexual history are apparent.

One of the causes for the increase in incidents and rate of transmission of sexually transmitted diseases are the development of increasingly antibiotic-resistant strains of disease-causing organisms such as those responsible for syphilis and gonorrhea. Another factor has been the absence of any effective cure for the acquired immunodeficiency.

Factors bearing on the partner's election to make use of condoms is the delay necessary for donning of the condom and the fact that an improperly applied condom will detract from the comfort of the users. Many efforts have been made to provide condoms that do not counter the prevailing mood and which are easily positionable as by the utilization of a split ring holder. It has been proposed to provide an annular C-shaped condom holder for receipt of a rolled or folded condom. A device of this type is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,738,357 to Martin et al. Other efforts have lead to a proposal that condoms be housed in a U-shaped package in a rolled or folded configuration as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,437,286 to Stratton. Deficiency in devices of this type is that the rolls or folds may be dispensed in a relatively disorganized manner which may result in wrinkles along the length of the condom or incomplete application which may detract from the comfort and pleasure of the partner as well as the prophylactic effectiveness.

Other efforts to improve the construction of condoms to facilitate the rapid and convenient donning has lead to the proposal that the packaging be split so it may be separated and the parts of the package drawn laterally apart to stretch the open end of the condom. It has been proposed to provide condom packaging which includes an annular ridge or hook attachment means for holding the end of the hand ring of the condom while the condom is being donned. A device of this type is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,170,887 to Potts et al. Other condom devices include split packaging facilitate spreading of the open end of the condom. See U.S. Pat. No. 5,549,120 to Persson et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 6,913,018 to Van Rensburg. Thus, prior to the present invention, users have been faced with the dilemma of utilizing condoms which provide certain challenges to donning thereof and which risk incomplete or improper application, thus detracting from the enjoyment of the partners.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention includes a package and condom apparatus including a dispenser for releasably holding the peripheral wall of the condom in a pack of organized accordion folds.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring toFIGS. 1,5and6, the combination condom and packaging apparatus30of the present invention includes, generally, a condom31packaged in a package33to hold a series of accordion folds defining a stack35held releasably in place by a dispenser37. The package33is openable to form apertures41and43on the respective back and front sides thereof for axial displacement of the closed end of the condom in the direction of the directional arrow45to provide progressive dispensing of the folds from the end of the stack proximate the closed end of the condom.

Condoms are typically constructed of thin walled, highly flexible thermoplastic polyethylene material to form a cylindrical shape having a closed end39an open end51. In one preferred embodiment the condom is formed at the opposite sides of its open end with diametrically outwardly flared ears52and54.

As is well-known in the art, condoms may be constructed by blow-extrusion forming to provide a tubular film or may be formed in a film over a male mold. For the purposes of this invention, the sheath forming the condom may be formed by any well-known specific structure or molding. Materials particularly useful for forming the condom articles of this invention include elastomeric materials, as well as flexible non-elastomeric materials such as nylons, polyethylene terephthalate, and olefinic homopolymers and co-polymers; e.g., ultra low density polyethylene.

The combination condom package depicted will typically be housed an external package or envelope which is openable to expose the subject internal package33. For the purposes of illustration, the package33is depicted constructed of conventional packaging material and formed with elliptical back and front walls55and57, respectively.

The front wall57is sealed parametrically to the back wall55and, as manufactured, the walls are formed with weakened transverse, spaced apart lines61which may define circular discs63on the back and front walls,55and57, respectively and joined around the front and back sides by narrow straps65and67to cooperate in forming a releasable seal. In the preferred embodiment, the seal is formed with a pull tab71which may be pulled to remove the discs and straps65and67along the weakened lines to leave the package formed with the apertures41and43in the back and front walls, respectively, as depicted inFIGS. 4,5and6while also separating the package into opposite halves46and48.

The walls55and57provide sufficient body to hold the folds of the stack35organized under the bias of the upwardly acting force on the rim79of the side wall37to thus maintain the folds slightly compressed in their stacked relationship until such time as a penis81is entered through the aperture41and pressed against the closed end39with sufficient force to commence dispensing of the folds. The folds will typically be drawn distally unfolding from the stack in progression from the location proximate the closed end39to thus allow the penis81to be progressively sheathed by the deployed condom as depicted inFIGS. 8 and 9.

It will be appreciated in some embodiments that the wall55is constructed of foil with sufficient resiliency to cause the rim79to be biased upwardly as viewed inFIG. 6to thus maintain a bias on the stack35as the folds are dispensed in an orderly fashion.

Disposed on the radially interior sides of the diametrically opposite sides of the stack35are semi-circular ring-like female and male distenders59and60to cooperate at their respective distal edges with the respective rims79to define respective narrow slots62. The ears52and54flare generally diametrically outwardly from the respective distenders59and60. The opposite ends of the male distender60telescope into the respective open ends of the male distender59to be drawn therefrom as the package halves46and48are drawn apart.

As will be appreciated, that in use, once the seal straps65and67are removed, the opposite sides of the package are separated laterally so that the user might grasp those sides individually squeezing down on the ears52and54sandwiched between the front and back walls55and57to spread the package sides diametrically apart to thus facilitate the opening of the open end of the condom.

It will be appreciated that the user will access the exterior envelope in which the package33is contained The opening tab71may than be grasped and peeled back to separate the back wall disk63, straps65and67and corresponding front disk63to thus separate the package halves46and48and open the respective apertures41and43(FIG. 6). The user may then grasp the opposite halves of the package and draw those halves apart causing the ears52and54to draw the respective distenders diametrically outwardly to stretch the condom to open condition.

Then, as the package33is drawn over the penis81, as shown inFIG. 7, a sufficient force will be applied to the closed end39to drive that end distally and draw the condom wall out the slots62to unfold the folds of the stack35progressively from the dispenser against the modest retaining pressure afforded by the rim79against the distal edges of the distenders59and60acting as a pusher wall to push radially outwardly toward the respective rims79to progressively sheath the penis in a smooth and rapid manner. Once donning of the condom has been completed, the opposite halves of the package33may be discarded.

Referring back toFIGS. 10-13, in one embodiment of the present invention, a pair of semi-circular female and male holders defining distenders, generally designated141and143, are formed integral with a condom, generally designated144, and are telescoped together at their confronting ends and lay at the radial interior of the diametrical opposite sides of the stack35. The female distender141is generally channel shaped to define a tube to terminate in respective open female ends151and153for slidable receipt of the male ends of the distender143. The distenders141and143, while being resilient, have sufficient body and memory to generally cooperate and maintain a generally circular in-plan-view configuration for stacks.

For these embodiments, a package, generally designated146, envelopes the condom and in some embodiments is constructed to be opened to expose apertures on the front and back sides for access by the penis in the direction of the directional arrow45to push the end wall148distally and withdraw the folds. Referring toFIGS. 11 and 12, the distenders may be constructed to lay along the radially inner sides of the diametrical opposite sides of the stack35or may be partially incorporated in the open extremity of the condom.

As shown, the wall of the condom on one diametrical half may feed off the stack35at147to lay axially along the radially interior side thereof and turn radially inwardly to then turn axially upwardly as viewed inFIG. 11and to the turn outwardly and back down to cooperate in forming a generally rectangular-in-longitudinal cross section stack. The open end of the condom is formed in one diametrical with rectangular in cross section hollow tube153open at its circumferential end155to telescopically receive a tab161defining one circumferential end of the male distender143. The radially outer walls156of the package cooperate with the respective distenders141and143to form an annular dispenser cavity157. The proximate and distal extremities of the radial walls155turn radially to define, respectively, a retainer flange160and retainer fringes161to cooperate in releasably holding the respective stacks.

In operation, it will be appreciated that the seal may be opened to expose front and back apertures and the penis may be entered in the direction of the directional arrow45to press the wall148distally as the ears52and54are drawn diametrically outwardly to draw the distenders141and143to fully open the mouth of the condom. As will be appreciated the package may be separable at168so the ears52and54can be drawn diametrically outwardly. The peripheral wall of the condom will thus be drawn progressively distally outwardly from the annular dispenser cavity157to meter folds out through the respective stacks163.

Referring toFIG. 14, in a further embodiment of the present invention, a package, generally designated91, includes a back wall93openable to form an aperture94. On the back wall is a mounted resilient channel section, generally designated95, which includes a planar mounting tab97turned upwardly on its radially inner extremity to form a semi cylindrically shaped channel section101formed at its distal extremity with an inwardly resilient turned retainer lip103. The section of the back walls are turned back on themselves to sandwich therebetween respective tabs98which project radially inwardly and turn axially distally to form a cooperating channel section109which cooperates with the channel section101to form a semicircularly shaped dispenser channel111cooperating to releasably retain the fold stack35formed by the peripheral wall of the condom. The channel section109extends proximally and turns radially outwardly to form an annular resilient retainer flange113cooperating with the lip103to form an annular slot opening having a radial width slightly greater than the thickness of the condom wall to thereby cooperate in forming a dispenser to progressively dispense the folds of the stack35.

Thus, in this embodiment, when the penis encounters the closed end39of the condom with sufficient force to slightly flex the retainer flange113and continues progression, the folds of the stack35will be drawn progressively from the stack to thus sheath the penis in a smooth and progressive manner.

The embodiment of the present invention shown inFIGS. 15 and 16, includes, a pair of semicircular-in-plan view combination distenders and dispensers, generally designated121and123.

As shown inFIG. 16, the combination distenders and dispensers121and123include respective distally opening dispenser channels125formed with respective concentric, annular flanges127and129cooperating to form a respective semicircular storage compartments131for receipt of the condom bead132and condom folds in a stack35. The interior flange127is generally cylindrically shaped. The exterior flange129projects distally and turns radially inwardly to form a resilient retainer finger135cooperating with the distal tip of the flange127to form an annular slot137for progressively and controllably dispensing the folds of the stack35as the penis moves distally relative thereto. The channel131is thus reduced in radial cross section in the distal direction to house the folds of the search progressively diminishing in radial width in the distal direction.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that the combination packaging and condom of the present invention provides an economical and practical means for housing and dispensing of the condom in an orderly and rapid fashion for convenience of donning and assurance of proper sheathing.