Abstract:
A fragrance dispenser mountable to a fan includes a dispenser housing which retains a pair of removable air fragrance packs. The dispenser housing includes a plurality of air vent openings through a rear panel which promotes air flow through the interior of the dispenser housing and over the removable fragrance packs. A sliding door allows a user to selectively block and expose varying portions of the dispenser interior and thus corresponding fragrance packs. The dispenser also includes a pair of clips located along a rear surface which engage a grill of a fan or similar air distribution device. When the fan is activated, air flow caused by the fan circulates through the dispenser housing and over the fragrance pack dispensing a scent or air freshener to the surrounding area.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     Not Applicable. 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to air fresheners, and in particular, to an air freshener and fragrance dispenser which is mountable to an air distribution device. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Keeping a room clean and fresh smelling is a never-ending battle in many homes and offices. Stale odors, poor circulation, tobacco smoke, food odors, and the like all combine to assault the olfactory senses of anyone entering a room. Various ways to combat these odors are known. They include the use of aerosol sprays, solid room deodorizers, and electric room deodorizers; all of which discharge some type of air freshening material into a room. 
     A common problem with all of these systems is that the freshening smell is overpowering at first and then the aroma quickly diminishes over time. Another problem area is that the freshening aroma is not evenly distributed around the room and is only concentrated in the area where it was released. Furthermore with all of these methods, a user is required to place and replace them on a consistent and regular basis in order to for them to be effective. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The inventor has recognized the aforementioned inherent problems and lack in the art and observed that there is a need for a mountable device for distributing air fragrances in an automatic and unattended manner. 
     Accordingly, it is an object of the present embodiments of the invention to solve at least one of these problems. The inventor has addressed this need by developing a mountable fragrance dispenser that provides effective control and masking of odors in a room in a manner which is quick, easy, and effective. The inventor has thus realized the advantages and benefits of providing a dispenser housing having a rear panel, a pair of side panels, a bottom panel, and a top panel defining a hollow interior with an open front. A plurality of fragrance packs is also provided. Each fragrance pack includes an open tray with an air freshening mechanism disposed within the tray for deodorizing or supplying a fragrance to a room. The top panel includes a pair of slots. Each slot is suitably sized for insertably receiving one (1) of the plurality of fragrance packs. A divider is provided that protrudes from an interior surface of the rear panel and extends centrally along a longitudinal axis thereof for separating the dispenser housing hollow interior into two (2) halves. The two (2) halves are aligned with the pair of slots for retaining the pair of fragrance packs. A plurality of openings is disposed traversly through the rear panel for providing an air flow into the hollow interior and over the air freshening mechanism of the fragrance packs. A door is slidably attached to the dispenser housing for selectably covering a portion of the open front between a first position and a second position. A rear extension protrudes from an upper exterior surface of the rear panel for providing a standoff distance between the fragrance packs and an air distribution device. At least one (1) spring clip is affixed to the rear extension for removably mounting the dispenser housing to the air distribution device. In use, when the door is in the first position, a first fragrance pack is uncovered and when the door is in the second position, a second fragrance pack is uncovered. 
     Furthermore, the described features and advantages of the disclosure may be combined in various manners and embodiments as one skilled in the relevant art will recognize. The disclosure can be practiced without one (1) or more of the features and advantages described in a particular embodiment. 
     Further advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent from a consideration of the drawings and ensuing description. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The advantages and features of the present disclosure will become better understood with reference to the following more detailed description and claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like elements are identified with like symbols, and in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a mountable fragrance dispenser shown in an in use condition, in accordance with the invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a front perspective view of the dispenser housing shown with a door in a first position; 
         FIG. 3  is a front perspective view of the dispenser housing shown with the door in a second position; 
         FIG. 4  is a rear perspective view of the dispenser housing; and, 
         FIG. 5  is a section view of the dispenser housing taken along line A-A of  FIG. 3 . 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTIVE KEY 
     
         
         
           
               10  mountable fragrance dispenser 
               11  air flow 
               15  fragrance insertion pack 
               16  tray 
               17  air freshening mechanism 
               18  tab 
               20  dispenser housing 
               21  side panel 
               22  bottom panel 
               23  rear panel 
               24  first slot 
               25  second slot 
               26  divider 
               27  opening 
               28  rear extension 
               29  clip 
               30  front opening 
               31  door 
               32  handle 
               33  upper channel 
               34  lower channel 
               35  top panel 
           
         
       
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     In accordance with the invention, the best mode is presented in terms of a preferred embodiment, herein depicted within  FIGS. 1 through 5 . However, the disclosure is not limited to a single described embodiment and a person skilled in the art will appreciate that many other embodiments are possible without deviating from the basic concept of the disclosure and that any such work around will also fall under its scope. It is envisioned that other styles and configurations can be easily incorporated into the teachings of the present disclosure, and only one particular configuration may be shown and described for purposes of clarity and disclosure and not by way of limitation of scope. 
     The terms “a” and “an” herein do not denote a limitation of quantity, but rather denote the presence of at least one of the referenced items. 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 1 through 4 , depicting a mountable fragrance dispenser (herein described as an “apparatus”)  10 , where like reference numerals represent similar or like parts. In accordance with the invention, the present disclosure describes a dispensing apparatus  10  for providing an aromatic fragrance throughout an area to neutralize odors in an automatic and unattended manner. 
       FIG. 1  shows an in-use perspective view of the apparatus  10 . The apparatus  10  includes a pair of fragrance insertion packs  11  and a dispenser housing  20 . Each fragrance insertion pack  11  is insertable into the dispenser housing  20  and emits a pleasing scent throughout the area as air passes over the insertion pack  11 . Each fragrance insertion pack  11  includes a tray  16  and an air freshening mechanism  17 . In certain embodiments the air freshening mechanism  17  is an evaporative scented gel or similar material, as used in GLADE® PLUGINS®. The tray  16  is a shallow tray having enclosed sides, top and bottom and an open front and rear for retaining the air freshening mechanism  17 . The tray  16  also includes a thin tab extending upwardly from the top for providing a graspable surface for insertion and removal of the fragrance insertion pack  11 . 
     The air freshening mechanism  17  is preferably an impregnated gel which releases a fragrant aroma as it evaporates, however it can be appreciated that other air freshening mechanisms, such as packaged fragrance oils, can be utilized without limiting the scope of the apparatus  10 . In various embodiments the air freshening mechanism  17  is fabricated having various different fragrances such as, but not limited to: sweet pea, vanilla, linen, and the like. Each fragrance insertion pack  11  is expected to last for weeks or months depending on usage and volume of air flow and is replaceable as needed. The air freshening mechanism  17  is purchased as a replaceable component of apparatus  10  separate from the dispenser housing  20 . The dispenser housing  20  is adapted to attach to an electric fan, ceiling fan, HVAC register, or the like which allows the air freshening mechanism  17  to evaporate and emit a pleasing scent into the desired area. 
       FIG. 2  shows a front perspective view of the dispenser housing  20 ,  FIG. 3  shows another front perspective view of the dispenser housing  20 ,  FIG. 4  shows a rear perspective view of the dispenser housing  20 , and  FIG. 5  shows a section view of the dispenser housing  20  taken along line A-A of  FIG. 3 . The dispenser housing  20  retains a pair of fragrance insertion packs  15  and is attachable to a selected air dispersal device, such as a fan. Attachment of the apparatus  10  to the fan allows the air freshening mechanism  17  to be dispersed throughout the desired area as an air flow  11  passes over. The dispenser housing  20  has a generally rectangular shape which includes a pair of side panels  21 , a bottom panel  22 , a rear panel  23 , a front opening  30 , a top panel  35 , and an interior panel  27  which are integrally molded from plastic, yet other materials can be utilized without limiting the scope of the apparatus  10 . 
     The top panel  35  includes a first slot  24  and a second slot  25 , each of which are adapted to receive a fragrance insertion pack  15  which is removably inserted into a hollow interior of the dispenser housing  20 . The slots  24 ,  25  have dimensions slightly larger than the dimensions of the fragrance insertion packs  15 . Once a fragrance insertion pack  15  is inserted into a selected slot  24 ,  25  it is retained within the side panel  21 , the bottom panel  22 , the rear panel  23 , and a divider  26 . The divider  26  extends longitudinally between the rear panel  23  and the open front and separates the interior into halves defining fragrance insertion pack retaining areas and bisects the front opening  30 . The pair of fragrance insertion packs  15  is individually separated by the divider  26 . The divider  26  is integrally molded to an inner surface of the bottom panel  22  and the rear panel  23  and spans the length of the rear panel  23  and the width of the bottom panel  22 . The front opening  30  exposes the air freshening mechanism  17  to the area to be scented. 
     The dispenser housing  20  also includes an upper channel  33  and a lower channel  34  which retain and guide a door  31  which his slid to a desired position in order to expose a selected fragrance insertion pack  15 . The lower channel  34  spans the length of the bottom panel  22  adjacent to a forward edge. The upper channel  33  spans the length of the top panel  35  adjacent to a forward edge. The door  31  includes a handle  32  which provides a grip for a user to manually move the door  31  within the channels  33 ,  34  to a first position or a second position, thereby exposing the selected fragrance insertion pack  15 . The door  31  obstructs a corresponding half of the front opening  30  and respective subjacent unselected fragrance insertion pack  15  and exposes an opposing half of the front opening  30  and respective selected fragrance insertion pack  15 . 
     The rear panel  23  includes a plurality of elongated openings  27  which allow air flow  11  to pass through the dispenser housing  20  and over the air freshening mechanism  17 . The air flow  11  is provided by the electric fan, ceiling fan, HVAC register, or similar air dispersal device. The air flow  11  passed into the dispenser housing  20  and passes over the fragrance insertion pack  15  to disperse the scent throughout the desired area. The openings  27  are rectangular cut-outs oriented widthwise along the rear panel  23 . It can be appreciated that other shapes and styles of openings can be utilized without limiting the scope of the apparatus  10 . 
     An upper portion of the rear panel  23  also includes a rear extension  28  which provides a standoff gap between the dispenser housing  20  and the source of the air flow  11 . A pair of clips  29  is affixed to an exterior of the rear extension  28 . The clips  29  provide for the dispenser housing  20  to be attached to the source of the air flow  11 . The clips  29  are fabricated from plastic or spring steel and preferably engage a grate or cover of the air dispersing device in order to suspend the apparatus  10  directly in front of the air flow  11 . 
     It can be appreciated by one skilled in the art that other styles and configurations of the invention can be easily incorporated into the teachings of the present disclosure and only one particular configuration has been shown and described for purposes of clarity and disclosure and not by way of limitation of scope. 
     In accordance with the invention, the preferred embodiment can be utilized by the user in a simple and effortless manner with little or no training. After initial purchase or acquisition of the apparatus  10 , it is installed and utilized as indicated in  FIGS. 1 through 5 . 
     The method of installing and utilizing the apparatus  10  can be achieved by performing a series of steps. It can be appreciated that the steps described can be performed in alternative order and as such should not be viewed as a limiting factor. Acquiring the apparatus  10  and suspending the dispenser housing  20  by the clips  29  from a desired device. Inserting a pair of fragrance insertion packs  15  into the slots  24 ,  25 . Sliding the door  31  within the channels  33 ,  34  to a selected position to expose a selected air freshening mechanism  17  and obstruct the opposing air freshening mechanism  17 . Providing the air flow  11  to disperse from the air dispersal device into the dispenser housing  20 , over the fragrance insertion pack  15  and into the room area. Utilizing the apparatus  10  to effectively control and mask odors in a room. 
     The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention and method of use to the precise forms disclosed. Various modifications and variations can be appreciated by one skilled in the art in light of the above teachings. The embodiments have been chosen and described in order to best explain the principles and practical application in accordance with the invention to enable those skilled in the art to best utilize the various embodiments with expected modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. It is understood that various omissions or substitutions of equivalents are contemplated as circumstance may suggest or render expedient, but is intended to cover the application or implementation without departing from the spirit or scope of the claims of the invention.