Abstract:
A closure mechanism for a wipe dispenser including a generally circular body having a plurality of tabs located on an exterior diameter of the body and configured to be removably coupled to a wipe dispenser. The body also has at least one opening located on an interior portion of the body. The at least one opening is configured to receive a wipe. A lid is hingedly coupled to the body. Wherein the closure mechanism is configured to be easily removed from the wipe dispenser to provide access to the wipe.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
       [0001]    Disposable towels or wipes may be used in a variety of applications including, but not limited to, personal care for cleaning or wiping a portion of a person, medical applications such as in a hospital, testing or care facility, and agricultural applications such as in the farming industry. The towels or wipes may be either moistened or dry and may be used on the body of a person, on an animal, or on a surface. 
         [0002]    Disposable towels or wipes are often formed as a continuous strip of material that is adapted to be separated into individual wipes by perforations extending laterally across the strip. Such traditional wipes are generally provided in a cylindrical roll and are dispensed by pulling the wipes from the inside or center of the roll. The roll is typically housed in a cylindrical container such as a 5-gallon plastic bucket. The container typically has an opening on one end through which the wipes are pulled. As the perforations clear the opening, the individual wipes can be separated from the strip by tearing the roll along the perforation. 
         [0003]    However, there are several problems with such wipes and wipe dispensers. For instance, when a wipe is pulled from the container and separates from the roll at the perforation, the next wipe in the roll may not remain exposed through the opening in the container and instead may fall back into the container. This causes a user to have to open the container (e.g., by removing the lid from the plastic bucket) to retrieve the free end of the roll and thread it back through the opening in the container. It can often be difficult and time consuming to open the container and rethread the wipes through the cover. Additionally, the roll of wipes are often used repeatedly throughout the day; having to rethread the roll of wipes can represent a substantial amount of lost time for a worker and frustration. It would be advantageous to provide a wipe dispenser that addresses one or more of the problems described above. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0004]    One embodiment relates to a closure mechanism for a wipe dispenser including a generally circular body having a plurality of tabs located on an exterior diameter of the body and configured to be removably coupled to a wipe dispenser. The body also has at least one opening located on an interior portion of the body. The at least one opening is configured to receive a wipe. A lid is hingedly coupled to the body and the closure mechanism is configured to be easily removed from the wipe dispenser to provide access to the roll of wipes. 
         [0005]    Another embodiment relates to a cover for a wipe dispenser including a cover configured to be removably coupled to a wipe dispenser. A closure mechanism is removably coupled to the cover. The closure mechanism includes a generally circular body having at least one opening located on an interior portion of the body. The at least one opening is configured to receive a wipe. A lid is hingedly coupled to the body. The closure mechanism has a plurality of tabs provided on an exterior diameter of the body that are received within an opening in the cover. The closure mechanism can be easily removed from the cover to provide access to the interior of the wipe dispenser. 
         [0006]    Another embodiment relates to a wipe dispenser having a closure mechanism including a bucket. A cover is removably coupled to the bucket and closure mechanism is removably coupled to the cover. The closure mechanism includes a generally circular body having at least one opening located on an interior portion of the body. The at least one opening is configured to receive a wipe. A lid is hingedly coupled to the body and the closure mechanism has a plurality of tabs that are received within an opening in the cover. The closure mechanism can be easily removed from the cover to provide access to the interior of the bucket. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0007]      FIG. 1  is a an isometric view of a container for a roll of wipes including a closure mechanism according to an exemplary embodiment. 
           [0008]      FIG. 2  is an exploded view of a portion of the container of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0009]      FIG. 3  is an isometric view of the closure mechanism of  FIG. 1  in a closed configuration. 
           [0010]      FIG. 4  is an isometric view of the closure mechanism of  FIG. 1  in an open configuration showing a wipe being dispensed through the closure mechanism. 
           [0011]      FIG. 5  is a cross-section of the closure mechanism of  FIG. 3  taken along line  5 - 5  of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0012]      FIGS. 6A-6C  are sequential isometric views showing the closure mechanism of  FIG. 3  being coupled to a container for holding a roll of wipes according to an exemplary embodiment. 
           [0013]      FIG. 7  is a top view of a body of the closure mechanism of  FIG. 3  showing an opening for dispensing wipes according to an exemplary embodiment. 
           [0014]      FIG. 8  is a top view of a body of the closure mechanism of  FIG. 3  showing an opening for dispensing wipes according to an alternative exemplary embodiment. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0015]    Referring to  FIGS. 1-8 , a wipe dispenser  10  is shown according to an exemplary embodiment. The wipe dispenser  10  is configured to hold and dispense a roll  20  of disposable wipes. The dispenser  10  comprises a housing shown as a bucket  12 , a cover  14 , and a closure mechanism  30 . The bucket  12  and cover  14  are configured to contain the roll therein. The disposable wipes may be either moistened or dry. According to an exemplary embodiment, the wipe dispenser  10  dispenses moistened, sterilizing wipes. 
         [0016]    According to various exemplary embodiments, the wipe dispenser  10  may include wipes for a wide variety of applications, such as, for example, medical applications, industrial applications, institutional applications, or household applications. For example, the wipe dispenser  10  could be used in dispensing wipes used for cleaning and sanitizing portions of a person in a hospital, a food service facility, a medical testing facility, a nursing home facility and the like. Additionally, the wipe dispenser  10  could be used for dispensing wipes used in cleaning and sanitizing objects in a hospital such as medical equipment, examination rooms, patient treatment rooms and the like. Furthermore, the wipe dispenser  10  may be used in cleaning or sanitizing operations for hotels, public bathrooms or industrial manufacturing operations. 
         [0017]    Still other applications for the dispenser  10  could include grocery store applications, such as, for example, the dispenser  10  could be provided adjacent to the source of available shopping carts so shoppers could clean and/or sanitize the shopping cart before use. The dispenser  10  could also be mounted in a home adjacent to a diaper changing table for a baby to provide easy access to suitable wipes to be used in cleaning a baby or the surfaces in and around the baby changing table. The applications for a dispenser  10  according the invention are near limitless: the dispenser  10  can be mounted or used anywhere ready access to a dry or moistened wipe would be beneficial. 
         [0018]    The size of the wipe dispenser may vary depending on the intended application. For example, a wipe dispenser for a household use may be configured with twenty wipes per roll while a wipe dispenser for an industrial application, such as dairy farming, may be configured with 700 wipes per roll. According to an exemplary embodiment, the bucket  12  is configured to receive a roll of between 250-700 wipes. 
         [0019]    Referring to  FIG. 4 , the roll  20  is a continuous strip of material separated into a multitude of individual wipes  22  by a series of perforations  24 . According to an exemplary embodiment, wipes  22  are formed from a non-woven material. The roll  20  has a hollow center  26 . Wipes  22  are typically dispensed from the center  26  of the roll  20  through the closure mechanism  30  that is removably coupled to the cover  14 . According to other exemplary embodiments, the wipes  22  may dispensed from the outside of the roll  20  instead of from the center  26 . 
         [0020]    As shown in  FIG. 2 , the roll  20  is received in the bucket  12  (e.g., pail, tub, housing, container, etc.). According to an exemplary embodiment, the bucket  12  is an open container formed from an injection molded polymer. According to another exemplary embodiment, the bucket  12  is a 5-gallon pail. According to other exemplary embodiments, the bucket  12  may be formed from sheet metal or any other suitable rigid material. 
         [0021]    The top of the bucket  12  is preferably closed by a cover  14  (e.g., cap, closure, lid, etc.). Cover  14  is complementary in shape to the bucket  12  and is removably coupled to the open end of the bucket  12 . To create a generally air-tight seal, a sealing member such as a gasket or o-ring may be included between the cover  14  and the bucket  12 . The sealing member may be provided as a separate element, or may be molded as a single integral body with either the cover  14  and/or the bucket  12 . According to an alternative embodiment, the sealing member may be a coating applied to the cover  14  and/or the bucket  12 . According to an exemplary embodiment, the cover  14  is semi-permanently coupled to the bucket  12  and may be difficult to remove. For example, such covers for plastic buckets are often removed by prying up on the edge of the cover with a tool such as a screwdriver. 
         [0022]    Referring to  FIGS. 2-4 , individual wipes  22  from the roll  20  are extracted from the bucket  12  through an opening  16  in the cover  14 . A closure mechanism  30  is removably coupled to the cover  14  and is configured to allow a user to selectively remove single wipes  22  from the roll  20 . The closure mechanism  30  includes a lid  34  (e.g., closure, cover, cap, etc.) that is coupled to a body or base  32  with a hinge  36 . According to an exemplary embodiment, the hinge  36  is a living hinge molded or formed as a single integral body with the lid  34  and the base  32 . The lid  34  is configured to be movable between a closed position (see  FIG. 3 ) and an open position (see  FIG. 4 ). In the closed position, the lid  34  maintains the substantially airtight condition of the bucket  12  and cover  14 . In the open position, an opening  40  in the base  32  is exposed, allowing a wipe  22  to be pulled from the inside of the bucket  12 . According to an exemplary embodiment, the closure mechanism  30  has an external diameter of about 3 inches. 
         [0023]    The lid  34  of the closure mechanism  30  is retained in the closed position with a coupling mechanism. As shown best in  FIGS. 4-5 , the coupling mechanism includes an inclined skirt or wall  50  that extends downward from the lid  34 . The diameter of a free end  51  of the skirt  50  is smaller than the diameter of the fixed end of the skirt  50  coupled to the lid  34 , causing the skirt  50  to be inclined inward, towards the center of the lid  34 . The skirt  50  is received by a corresponding circular slot, groove, or recession  52  in the base  32 . The skirt  50  engages an inclined wall  54  extending upward from the base  32  and defines part of the groove  52 . The diameter of a free end  55  of the wall  54  is larger than the diameter of the fixed end of the wall  54  coupled to the base  32 , causing the wall  54  to be inclined outward, towards the outer edge of the base  32 . As the lid  34  is moved to the closed position, the free end  51  of the skirt  50  is forced over the free end  55  of the wall  54  and engages or snaps into place to retain the lid  34  in the closed position. 
         [0024]    It should be understood that the coupling mechanism for closing the closure mechanism  30  shown here is illustrative of one embodiment only. According to other exemplary embodiments, the cover  34  may engage the base  32  with a wide variety of mechanisms or devices. For example, the cover  34  may have a protrusion that engages a recess in the base  32  or the base  32  and the cover  34  may have opposing protrusions that engage each other, or other suitable arrangement. 
         [0025]    Referring to  FIGS. 3-4 , a tab  56  (e.g., protrusion, flap, lip, edge, etc.) extends outward from the lid  34  opposite of the hinge  36  and is aligned with an indentation  58  on the base  32 . The tab  56  provides a surface or an edge for a user to pull upwardly to disengage the lid  34  from the base  32  and move the lid  34  to the open position. 
         [0026]    Referring to FIGS.  3  and  6 A- 6 B, a rim or lip with upper tabs  60  and lower tabs  62  extends radially outwardly from an external diameter of the base  32 . The rim is configured to engage the cover  14  to removably couple the closure mechanism  30  to the cover  14 . The upper tabs  60  and lower tabs  62  are provided in an alternating pattern about the edge of the base  32  such that lower tabs  62  cooperate with recesses or cutouts  18  around the circumference of the opening  16  in the cover  14 . The lower tabs  62  are coupled to the upper tabs  60  on one end with generally vertical walls  64  that provide rotational stops. The upper tabs  60  and lower tabs  62  are offset vertically from one another by a distance approximately as large as the thickness of the cover  14 . 
         [0027]    Referring now to  FIGS. 6A-6C , the closure mechanism  30  is removably coupled to the cover  14 . The closure mechanism  30  is aligned with the opening  16  so that the lower tabs  62  are aligned with the cutouts  18  of the cover  14  (see  FIG. 6A ). The closure mechanism  30  is lowered into the opening  16  from an open to a closed position until the upper tabs  60  rest on the upper surface  70  of the cover  14  (see  FIG. 6B ) and the lower tabs  62  are positioned adjacent the lower surface  72  of the cover  14  (the lower surface being opposite the upper surface  70 ). The closure mechanism is then rotated so that the lower tabs  62  contact the lower surface  72  of the cover  14 . With the closure mechanism  30  rotated to the closed position (see  FIG. 6C ), the cover  14  proximate to the opening  16  is trapped between the upper tabs  60  and the lower tabs  62 , effectively locking the closure mechanism  30  to the cover  14 . Walls  64  contact the edges of cutouts  18  to limit the amount that closure mechanism  30  may be rotated relative to cover  14 . The closure mechanism  30  may further include locking features (e.g., detents, projections, bumps, etc.) on the upper tabs  60  and/or the lower rim portions that resist rotation of the closure mechanism  30  relative to the cover  14  to reduce inadvertent rotation and/or decoupling of the closure mechanism  30 . 
         [0028]    In operation, a user opens the lid  34  and pulls on the wipe away from the bucket cover  14 . As the perforation  24  of the wipe passes through the opening  40 , the roll  20  of wipes begins to tear. Once the perforation  24  is fully through the opening  40 , the wipe will preferably be completely separate from the roll  20  and a portion of the next wipe will be protruding through the opening  40  for the user to grasp when another wipe is desired. If a user pulls a wipe  22  protruding from the opening  40  in the closure mechanism  30 , and the wipe  22  that is grasped separates prematurely from the rest of the roll  20 , the next wipe  22  on the roll  20  may not be pulled through the opening  40  and may instead fall back into the interior of the bucket  12 . To retrieve the next wipe  22  from the container  12 , the user may simply uncouple the closure mechanism  30  from the cover  14 . The closure mechanism  30  is uncoupled from the cover  14  by rotating the closure mechanism  30  so that the lower tabs  62  are aligned with the cutouts  18  and then pulling the closure mechanism  30  upward and out of the opening  16  in the cover  14 . The user may then reach into to the interior of the bucket  12  through the opening  16  to pull the end of the wipe  22  on the end of the roll  20  through the opening  16 . The wipe may then be threaded through the opening  40  in the closure mechanism  30  before the closure mechanism  30  is again coupled to the cover  14 . Removing the closure mechanism  30  from the cover  14  is substantially quicker and easier than removing the cover  14  from the bucket  12 . 
         [0029]    According to one exemplary embodiment, the opening  40  in the closure mechanism  30  is an X-shaped opening that comprises two intersecting slots or slits. The opening  40  may be generally centered on the base  32  as shown in  FIGS. 4 and 7 , or may be off-center, as shown in  FIG. 8 . While the opening  40  is shown as being X-shaped, according to other exemplary embodiments, the opening  40  may be star-shaped, circular, or any other shape that allows a wipe  22  to be pulled from the interior of the bucket  12 . The size of the opening may be configured relative to the amount of perforation of the roll to ensure proper dispensing of wipes. 
         [0030]    As shown in  FIG. 8 , the base  32  may include a second opening  72  according to an exemplary embodiment. The second opening  72  is larger than the first opening  40  and allows a user to reach into the bucket  12  to retrieve a wipe  22  without removing the closure mechanism  30  from the lid  14 . The second opening  42  is connected to the first opening  40  so that the wipe  22  may be drawn through the second opening  42 , then pulled into the first opening  40  to retain the edge of the roll  20  once the wipe has been removed. According to other exemplary embodiments, the second opening  42  may not be large enough to reach through, but may still be provided to allow a user to more easily rethread a wipe  22  into the first opening  40 . 
         [0031]    According to an exemplary embodiment, the closure mechanism  30  may be used with wipe dispensers  10  that are stacked upon one another. The closure mechanism  30  is configured to have a relatively low profile to facilitate the stacking of multiple dispensers  10  and reduce the chance of any interference between the closure mechanism  30  on a first dispenser  10  and the bottom of the bucket  12  of a second dispenser  10  stacked on top of the first dispenser  10 . 
         [0032]    According to an exemplary embodiment, the closure mechanism  30  may include a sealing element (such as an o-ring or a gasket) provided on the body  32  of the closure mechanism  30 . The sealing element may be provided between the closure mechanism  30  and the cover  14  to seal the wipe dispenser  10  so that the moistened wipes  22  do not dry out. 
         [0033]    It is also important to note that the arrangement of the wipe dispenser, as shown, is illustrative only. Although only a few embodiments of the present disclosure have been described in detail, those skilled in the art who review this disclosure will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible (e.g., variations in sizes, dimensions, structures, shapes and proportions of the various elements, values of parameters, mounting arrangements, materials, colors, orientations, etc.) without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of the subject matter recited herein. Many modifications are possible without departing from the scope of the invention unless specifically recited in the claims. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the present disclosure as described herein. The order or sequence of any process or method steps may be varied or re-sequenced according to alternative embodiments. Other substitutions, modifications, changes, and/or omissions may be made in the design, operating conditions and arrangement of the preferred and other exemplary embodiments without departing from the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure as expressed herein.