Patent Publication Number: US-7913933-B2

Title: Essential oil atomiser

Description:
AREA OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to the area of equipment for use with oils both fragrant and essential and in particular to an atomizer which is able to be used to spray these oils into the air. 
     BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION 
     While the invention relates to an atomizer for use with both essential and fragrant oils it will be discussed here for convenience&#39;s sake in terms of its application to essential oil dispersion. 
     Essential oil dispersion in air has become a popular method of eliminating unwanted odours in the ambient environment and opposing air borne microbes or bacteria, viruses and moulds among other things. Among the other attributes of essential oil dissemination in the atmosphere is that it is believed to promote a healthy pleasant and positive environment. 
     It is believed that each essential oil has its own unique properties that are therapeutic in the human body in a holistic way and that they provide benefit both physically by inhaling droplets and psychologically via the sense of smell. The theory is that the aroma of an essential oil can induce a number of intricate responses including sensory stimulation, relaxation and a sense of well being. 
     Many essential oil dispersion means involve heating the oil until it vaporises and diffuses through a room. A problem with this approach is the fact that open flames can be a fire hazard and also it is considered by many that cold air diffusion is the only method which preserves the full integrity of the properties of the essential oil. 
     OUTLINE OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of this invention to provide a means whereby essential and fragrant oils are able to be disseminated in droplet form without the application of heat to the oil. 
     The invention is an oil atomiser system for essential and fragrant oils having at least one atomiser which is adapted to engage with a container of said oil, said atomiser having a body with a generally hollow interior and having a mixer housing associated with one surface thereof from which housing an oil feeder tube extends through a surface of the body to the container, the mixer housing having also a compressed air inlet with a first diameter which is larger than a second diameter of the inlet which passes to a diffusion chamber in the mixer housing having a passage to the body of the container such that application of compressed air to the inlet causes the oil to be dispersed to air in fine droplet form through at least one aperture in the body. 
     It is preferred that the mixer housing is located inside the body and is integral with an upper surface thereof. 
     It is further preferred that the body have a vertical height which is such that a single plume of oil droplets is formed as an air/oil mix exits the mixer housing to the atomizer body. 
     It is preferred that the compressed air be provided by an air compressor associated with the system. 
     It is further preferred that the application of the compressed air cause essential oil to be drawn into the mixer housing and passed through a diffusion chamber to leave the system as an essential oil/air micromist mixture. 
     It is preferred also that a plurality of atomisers may be provided in a given housing. It is further preferred that a plurality of atomisers in a housing may be programmed to function at different times of day either by timing means or programmable means. 
     In order that the invention may be more readily understood we will describe by way of non limiting example a specific embodiment of the invention. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES 
         FIG. 1  Shows a perspective view of the atomizer of the invention; 
         FIG. 2  Shows a sectional view through the atomizer; 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF AN EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION 
     Although the concept of the invention can applied to many different styles of essential or fragrant oil atomizer a particular embodiment of the atomizer system will be described here in terms of its application to essential oil dispersion. It is of course to be understood that variations in physical design, manufacturing materials and size can still lie within the scope of the invention. 
     In this particular embodiment of the invention, an essential oil atomizer  10  is provided, which is provided with engagement means, in this case a screw threaded portion  20  of body portion  30 , to engage with the neck of an open bottle of essential oil  25 , which is shown in phantom. 
     Above this engagement means the atomizer system is provided with a generally cylindrical housing or body  30  for its component parts which may be of stainless steel or any other preferred material. The interior of this housing holds a mixer housing  40  having a diffusion chamber  45 . 
     The arrangement is such that an external compressed air supply passes through an compressed air inlet  50  into the mixer housing  40  thereby causing essential oil to be drawn through a tube  70  passing from the essential oil bottle and terminating in the mixer housing  40 . 
     The compressed air inlet  50  has an initially wider bore  51 , the air then passes through a smaller bore  52  to the diffusion chamber  45  where the oil is broken down into small droplets which pass through a narrow aperture  48  into the interior of the atomizer body  30 . 
     The resultant mixture then passes through at least one oil mist outlet  60  in an upper surface of the system housing  30  to be dispersed as an essential oil/air mixture as a micromist. 
     This ability to successfully break an essential oil up into a fine droplet distribution which is capable of remaining airborne is achieved without the use of heat to either vaporise the oil or vaporise water droplets carrying the oil. 
     The effect is achieved by the compressed air supply passing from the initial air supply jet into a finer tube at a terminal end of the first jet or tube. By this means the resulting jet enhances the essential oil atomisation into small droplets capable of being effectively dispersed to the environmental air. 
     In this embodiment of the invention the system housing includes a top cap  31  and a bottom cap  32  which engage with its central body  30  in sealing engagement with the provision of appropriate O rings. The system housing is maintained in its assembled configuration by screw means. 
     While this is the arrangement preferred in this embodiment of the invention it is envisaged that any interconnection means of the component parts could be used and that the actual system housing components could vary both in their arrangement and in their appearance. The fundamental means whereby the essential oil was able to be atomised and dispersed would of course be common to all models of the atomizer. 
     While we have described herein one specific embodiment of the invention it is envisaged that other embodiments of the invention will exhibit any number of and any combination of the features of those previously described and it is to be understood that variations and modifications in this can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.