Improvements in Apparatus for Drying, Sterilizing, and Disinfecting Bottles and other Receptacles.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 18th Nov., 1896
Complete Specification Loft 10th Aug 4907 Accented
19th Mar
4007
Improvements in Apparatus for Drying, Sterilizing, and Disinfecting
Bottles and other Receptacles.
I, HENRY HILL of 30 Herne Hill in the County of Surrey Brewer do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The object of this invention is to provide apparatus for drying sterilizing and
disinfecting bottles and other receptacles in an efficient and expeditious manner
by means of air, cold or hot and sterilized or medicated or not, or by means of
suitable disinfecting gases. The air or gas is caused to circulate in the bottles
and by preference by a partial vacuum I provide a pipe, pipes or a nest or nests
of pipes connected to a fan, pump or other pneumatic appliance for creating a
partial vacuum or powerful suction or plenum. On the pipes I fix nozzles of a
size to receive thereon the necks of the bottles to be treated. In one form of
apparatus the nozzle has a small central pipe which reaches to within a short
distance of the bottom of the bottle and in the other direction passes through the
opposite side of the main pipe. A rubber washer or the like is placed under the
rim of the neck to make joint. Air forced from the main pipe into the nozzle
passes into the bottle by small holes in the nozzle and after traversing the interior
of the bottle passes out through the small central pipe carrying with it the mois-
ture which it has absorbed. Or by a reverse action the air is drawn in through
the small pipe enters the bottle and passes out through the nozzle and by the
main pipe to the fan.
In another form the nozzle is grooved outside and the joint washer is omitted,
and the small pipe is mounted on the apex of the nozzle so that air forced into the
nozzle enters the bottle by the small pipe and passes out between the nozzle and
the rim of the neck which rests upon a grooved washer. Or by a reverse action
the air is drawn in through the grooves at the latter place and having traversed the
bottle passes by the small pipe into the nozzle and away to the fun.
In yet another form I provide the main pipe with a somewhat smaller interior
pipe on which is fixed a small pipe passing up through the centre of the nozzle
which latter is not grooved. The rim of the neck of the bottle rests on a joint
washer. Air is drawm or forced from the outer or main pipe through holes in
the nozzle into the interior of the bottle whence it passes out by the small central
pipe into the inner pipe leading to the fan. Or by a reverse action air is drawn
or forced from the inner pipe and fiually passes by the holes in the nozzle into
the outer pipe.
Suitable taps or dampers are provided for regulating and shutting off the air
supply.

page_text: Improvements in Apparatus for Drying, Sterilizing, and Disinfecting
Bottles and other Receptacles.
I, HENRY HILL. of 30 Herne Hill, in the County of Surrey, Brewer, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement.
The object of this invention is to provide apparatus for drying sterilizing and
disinfecting bottles and other receptacles in an efficient and expeditious manner
by means of air, cold or hot and sterilized or medicated or not, or by means of
suitable disinfecting gases. The air or gas is caused to circulate in the bottles
in the manner to be described and either by pressure or by a partial vacuum.
The air which employ may he dried by passing over or through chloride of
calcium or its solution or over or through other suitable hygroscopic material:
the air after having been first dried or not may be sterilized by passing through
layers of cotton wool or other suitable absorbent filtering material for absorbing
floating germs and dust. The air may be heated by passing it over or through
hot pipes or other hot surfaces. If the air be desired to exert a disinfecting in-
fluence I may mingle it with vapours or gases such as carbolic acid, sulphurous
acid, formaldehyde or carbonic acid gas or essential oils or their solutions; or
the disinfecting may be used as a final treatment after the drying process.
Figs. 1 to 4 of the drawings are vertical sectional views illustrating various
forms of my improved apparatus, and Figs. 1 and 2 are plan views of details.
In Fig. 1 the air or other medium for drying or otherwise treating the interior
of the bottle is supplied to a pipe or chamber A of any suitable form by a fan or
air pump with or without an intermediate vessel for maintaining a steady pressure.
Into this pipe A are screwed any convenient number of nozzles or nipples B of
a size to take the necks of the bottles but with a small clearance in places all
round; this will be understood from Fig. 1 that shows the section of the nozzle
which is formed with vertical grooves all round so that the air issuing through
the holes may be compelled to come in close contact all round with the interior sur-
face of the bottle and especially in the neck where the greatest amount of moisture
would accumulate when the bottle is put in the inverted position shown; by this
means the process is accelerated and the amount of air employed reduced to a
minimum. C is a pipe mounted centrally in the nozzle B for the air laden with
the moisture and impurities to return by; this pipe passes down through the
pipe or chamber A and issues into the open air. The pipe C may in the interior
of the bottle be made larger in order to cause the air to strike closer against the
interior surface sides of the bottle or it may have a mantle as shown at C¹ for the
purpose. D is a rubber washer or the like for making joint between the rim of
the bottle neck and the pipe or chamber A. Or by a reverse arrangement the
air drawn in through the small pipe C enters the bottle and passes out through
the small holes B' in the nozzle B and then by the main pipe A to a suction fan,
or pump or exhauster.
In another form shown in Fig. 2 the nozzle B is grooved outside as in Fig. 1
and the joint washer D is omitted. The small pipe C is mounted on the apex
of the nozzle B so that air forced into the nozzle enters the bottle by the small
pipe C and passes out between the nozzle and the rim of the bottle neck which
rests on a washer F provided with grooves F shown in plan in Fig. 2. Or by a
reverse action the air is drawn in through the grooves in the washer F and having
traversed the bottle passes by the small pipe C into the nozzle B and pipe A away
to the suction fan, pump or exhaustor.

page_text: In yet another form Figure 3 I provide the main pipe or chamber A with a
somewhat smaller interior pipe G on which is fixed a small pipe C passing up
through the centre of the nozzle B the rim of the bottle neck rests on a joint
washer D. Air is drawn into the outer or main pipe A and passes through the
holes B' into the interior of the bottle whence it passes out by the central pipe C
into the inner pipe leading to the fau. Or the air is forced from the outer
pipe A through the holes B into the bottle and thence by the pipe C into the
inner pipe G. Or the air is drawn or forced from the inner pipe G and finally
passes by the holes B into the outer pipe A.
Fig. 4 shews a modification as regards the joint with the bottle neck. This
joint is formed by a rubber washer D fixed to a cup F which is screwed on to the
pipe C and provided with small holes 1 for entry or exit of the air.
Suitable taps or dampers are provided in the pipe or pipes A. and G for regula-
ting and shutting off the air supply.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is:
1. In apparatus for drying sterilizing or disinfecting bottles and other recep-
tacles the application and use in connection with an air pressure or vacuum pipe
of a nozzle or nipple such as B with holes B' in combination with a pipe C and a
joint washer substantially as described with reference to Figs. 1 and 1.
2. In apparatus for drying sterilizing or disinfecting bottles the application or
use in connection with an air pressure or vacuum pipe of a nozzle or nipple such
as B in combination with a pipe C and a grooved washer For the like substan-
tially as described with reference to Figs. 2 and 24.
3. In apparatus for drying sterilizing or disinfecting bottles and other recep-
tacles the application and use in connection with an air pressure pipe and vacuum
pipe of a nozzle or nipple such as B with holes B' in combination with a pipe C
and a joint washer substantially as described with reference to l'ig. 3.
4. In apparatus for drying sterilizing or disinfecting bottles the application and
use in connection with an air pressure and a vacuum pipe of a cup such as I'
with holes For the like substantially as described with reference to Fig. 4.
Dated this Eighteenth day of August 1897.
JENSEN & SON,
77 Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agents.