Dispenser for rod-like glue

Abstract: To make full use of a rod-like glue contained in a cylindrical dispenser main body of a glue dispenser to its final portion, a spiral member (10)of a rotary operator element (9) of the glue dispenser has a spiral outer diameter which is set to be equal to or larger than 30 % and equal to or smaller than 80 % of the outer diameter of rod-like glue, and a spiral pitch which is set to be equal to or larger than 50 % and equal to or smaller than 300 % of the spiral outer diameter. The spiral member is directly screwed to the rod-like glue integrally attached to a slider (6) coupled with a bottom portion (5) of the glue (4) by elastic retaining pieces (7) by which it is not necessary to form a top face of the slider in a recessed shape. The rod-like glue can be extracted and retracted from and to a dispenser main body by moving up and down the glue by rotating the rotary operator element. The elastic retaining pieces fold down by strongly pressing the rod-like glue onto a coating face when the rod-like glue is decreased to a length close to the elastic retaining pieces. The rod-like glue therefore can be fully used up to its lowermost portion.

Description: The present invention relates to a dispenser for rod-like glue for extracting and retracting rod-like glue contained in a dispenser main body according to the preamble of claim 1. Conventionally, in a dispenser capable of extracting and retracting rod-like glue contained in a cylindrical dispenser main body, the rod-like glue is held by being molded integrally with a slider having a recessed shape and screwed to a spiral member projecting into the dispenser main body and attached to a rotary operator element connected integrally with a bottom portion of the dispenser main body. By moving up and down the slider screwed integrally with the spiral member of the rotary operator element by rotating the rotary operator element attached integrally with the bottom portion of the dispenser main body, the rod-like glue is extracted and retracted from and to a front end opening portion of the dispenser main body. In dispensers for lip-sticks and the like it is known (US-A-3 917 417)to screw a spiral member into the lip-stick contained in a main body for moving it up and down. A non-rotating slider is provided in the dispenser main body for travelling upwardly on the spiral member. The main purpose of the slider while it may come in contact with a bottom portion of the lip-stick, is for preventing a counter-rotation of the spiral member when it reaches a bottom end position along the spiral member. There is also known (EP-A-803 447)a dispenser for rod-like glue in which the glue is held without a slider thereby, however, the glue lacks of any bottom-side support. In conventional glue dispensers having a supporting slider which is preferred, whereby the slider is integrally attached to the bottom portion of the glue, when the lenght of the rod-like glue decreases during use, an end portion of the glue stick held by the slider becomes useless since an end edge of the slider within which the glue stick is held comes into contact with a coating face and prevents the glue stick from any further use. Further, the structure conventional glue stick dispensers of the type in question is often complicated, in that the number of parts they consist of is increased thereby the assembly steps become complicated which means increased assembly costs. Hence, it is an object of the present invention to overcome the disadvantages of conventional dispensers. In particular it is an object of the invention to provide a dispenser of the above-mentioned type which permits a full use of the rod-like glue contained in a dispenser main body to its final end. Still a further object is to provide a dispenser of the above-mentioned type having a less complicated structure. The above-mentioned objects are achieved in accordance with the present invention by the features of claim 1. According to the invention, risable and foldable-down elastic retaining pieces are provided at a top face of the slider for bonding the glue stick with the slider, thereby the glue can be moved up and down in reliable manner without a necessity to provide a recessed structure of the slider. In respect of the spiral member extending through the slider, when the spiral outer diameter of the spiral member would be less than 30 % of the outer diameter of the rod-like glue, an area of contact between the spiral member and the rod-like glue would become insufficient resulting in an idling rotation of the spiral member. Further, when spiral outer diameter would be larger than 80 %, the rod-like glue would be collapsed when rotating the spiral member and cannot be extracted and retracted. Accordingly, the spiral outer diameter should be equal to or larger than 30 % and equal to or smaller than 80 % of the outer diameter of the rod-like glue. Further, when the spiral pitch of the spiral member would be less than 50 % of the spiral outer diameter, a volume portion of the rod-like glue which bites in the intermediaries of the spiral pitches becomes too small, thereby the screw connection between the spiral member and the rod-like glue would not be sufficient, resulting in that the glue cannot be moved up and down smoothly in the cylindrical dispenser main body. Further, when the spiral pitch would be larger than 300 %, the rod-like glue would be collapsed, thereby the glue cannot be extracted and retracted. Accordingly, by setting the spiral pitch to be equal to or larger than 50 % and equal to or smaller than 300 % of the spiral outer diameter, the glue bites in the intermediaries of the spiral member with certainty without deteriorating the strength of the rod-like glue by which the rod-like glue and the spiral member are screwed together with certainty. Therefore, even when the rod-like glue repeatedly is extracted and retracted from and to the front end opening portion of the dispenser main body in a cylindrical shape by rotating the rotary operator element, breakage of the glue or malfunction of the extraction and retraction operation is not caused. The slider which is bonded with the bottom portion of the rod-like glue by means of the elastic retaining pieces, is loosely fitted to a guide wall projecting in the extracting and retracting direction at an inner wall at the inside of the cylindrical dispenser main body. In filling and solidifying the glue melted in the cylindrical dispenser main body, the slider prevents the glue from leaking to the outside and prevents the glue from detaching from the spiral member of the rotary operator element when the length of the rod-like glue is decreased during use. Accordingly, it is not necessary to form the top face of the slider in a recessed shape for holding the rod-like glue as in the conventional dispenser. Further, the elastic retaining pieces used in bonding with the rod-like glue are foldable-down and accordingly, the elastic retaining pieces easily fold when strongly pushing the rod-like glue to a coating face thereby the rod-like glue can be used up to its final or lowermost portion. A further explanation of the invention will be given with reference to the drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a front view of a glue dispenser according to an embodiment of the invention; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the essential parts of a dispenser main body of the glue dispenser according to the embodiment of the invention; Fig. 3 is a front view viewed from above of the dispenser main body; and Fig. 4 is a partially sectioned view showing the operation of elastic retaining pieces in using the glue dispenser according to the embodiment of the invention. Numeral 1 designates a glue dispenser according to an embodiment of the invention. The glue dispenser 1 according to the embodiment of the invention comprises a cylindrical dispenser main body 2 for extractably and retractably accomodating a rod-like glue 4 bonded at a bottom portion 5 thereof to a slider 6 by means of a number of foldable-down elastic retaining pieces 7 integrally formed to the slider 6 and protruding therefrom. To a front end opening portion 8 of the dispenser is mounted a lid for maintaining airtightness. A rotary operator element 9 for a spiral member 10 is rotatably attached to a bottom portion 3 of the dispenser main body 2 for extracting and retracting the rod-like glue 4. The spiral member 10 projects into the dispenser main body 2. Further, the outer diameter of the spiral member 10 is set to be equal to or larger than 30 % and equal to or smaller than 80 % of the outer diameter of the rod-like glue 4 while the spiral pitch of the spiral member 10 is set to be equal to or larger than 50 % and equal to or smaller than 300 % of the spiral outer diameter. Further in the cylindrical dispenser main body 2, the spiral member 10 of the rotary operator element 9 is screwed directly to the rod-like glue 4 and extends through the slider 6 and the glue is integrally bonded at the bottom portion 5 thereof to the slider without the necessity of forming the slider 6 in a recessed shape having a peripheral edge projecting therefrom. In the glue dispenser 1 according to the embodiment of the invention having with the above-described structure, by rotating the rotary operator element 9 which is rotatably attached to the bottom portion 3 of the cylindrical dispenser main body 2, the rod-like glue 4 directly screwed with the spiral member 10 integral with the rotary operator element 9, is moved up and down along with the slider 6 bonded to the bottom portion 5 of the glue by the foldable-down elastic retaining pieces 7 as necessary and can be extracted and retracted from and to the front end opening portion 8 of the cylindrical dispenser main body 2. The spiral member 10 of the rotary operator element 9 directly screwed to the rod-like glue 4 bonded with the slider 6 by the foldable-down elastic retaining pieces 7 integrally formed with the slider 6 at a bottom portion 5, has a spiral outer diameter which is set to be equal to 30 % or larger and equal to 80 % or smaller of the outer diameter of the rod-like glue 4 and a spiral pitch which is set to be equal to or larger than 50 % and equal to or smaller than 300 % of the spiral outer diameter thereby portions of the rod-like glue 4 bite into intermediaries of the spiral member 10 with certainty without deteriorating the strength of the rod-like glue 4, the rod-like glue 4 and the spiral member 10 of the rotary operator element 9 are screwed together with certainty and accordingly, the rod-like glue 4 can be moved up and down at inside of the cylindrical dispenser main body 2 by rotating the rotary operator element 9. Even when the rod-like glue 4 is repeatedly extracted and retracted from and to the front end opening portion of the cylindrical dispenser main body by rotating the rotary operator element 9, breakage of the glue and malfunction of extraction and retraction are not caused. Further, at the bottom portion 5 of the rod-like glue 4, the slider 6 is only bonded with the rod-like glue 4 by the foldable-down elastic retaining pieces 7 and is not screwed with the spiral member 10 of the rotary operator element 9. Further, the slider is only loosely fitted to a guide wall 12 projected in the extracting and retracting direction of the rod-like glue 4 at an inner wall 11 of the cylindrical dispenser main body 2. The slider 6 prevents the molten glue from leaking to the outside in filling and solidifying the molten glue at the inside of the cylindrical dispenser main body 2. The slider is for preventing the glue from detaching from the spiral member 10 of the rotary operator element 9 by stresses caused in using it when the rod-like glue 4 is decreased by using it. Therefore, a top face 13 of the slider 6 needs not to be formed in a recessed shape for holding the rod-like glue 4 as in the conventional case. Further, the elastic retaining pieces 7 used for bonding the rod-like glue 4 are foldable-down. Therefore, by strongly pressing the rod-like glue 4 to a coating face, the elastic retaining pieces 7 easily can fold down and accordingly, the rod-like glue 4 can be used up to its final portion. The invention is constituted as described above and accordingly, the rod-like glue contained in the cylindrical dispenser main body can be extracted and retracted from and to the front end opening portion of the dispenser main body as necessary by a simple structure of the dispenser and the rod-like glue can be used up to its final portion and accordingly, there is provided an excellent effect capable of achieving resources conservation and at the same time, a reduction in assembly cost.

Claims: A dispenser for rod-like glue including: a cylindrical dispenser main body (2) accommodating a rod-like glue (4) having an outer diameter; a slider (6) provided in said dispenser main body; and a rotary operator element (9) having a spiral member (10) projecting into the dispenser main body and having a spiral outer diameter and a spiral pitch, said rotary operator element being rotatably attached to a bottom portion (3) of the dispenser main body for extracting and retracting the rod-like glue from and into an front end opening portion of the dispenser main body, said spiral member being screwed directly to the rod-like glue in the cylindrical dispenser main body, characterized by foldable-down elastic retaining pieces (7) integrally with and protruding from said slider (6) for bonding a bottom portion (5) of the rod-like glue (4) with the slider, said spiral outer diameter being equal to or larger than 30% and equal to or smaller than 80% of the outer diameter of the rod-like glue (4), and said spiral pitch being equal to or larger than 50% and equal to or smaller than 300% of the spiral outer diameter. The dispenser for rod-like glue according to claim 1, in which a lid (8) is mounted to a front end portion of the dispenser main body (2) for maintaining airtightness of the interior thereof. The dispenser for rod-like glue according to claim 1, in which said spiral member (10) extends through said slider (6) without a screwed engagement therewith.

Inventors: SHIMAKAGE HUMIO, SUMITA YOSHIO, SHIMAKAGE, HUMIO, SUMITA, YOSHIO
Applicants: TOMBOW PENCIL, TOMBOW PENCIL CO., LTD.
Application year: 1999
Main classification: A45D40
IPC codes: A45D40, B43M11