Patent ID: 7357335

Claim:
A pump-action nozzle device configured to enable fluid to be dispensed from a container, said nozzle having a body which defines an internal chamber having an inlet through which fluid may be drawn into said chamber and an outlet through which fluid present in the chamber may be expelled from the nozzle, said inlet comprising an inlet valve adapted to only permit fluid to flow into the chamber through the inlet when the pressure within the chamber falls below the pressure within the interior of the container to which the device is attached by at least a predetermined minimum threshold amount and said outlet comprising an outlet valve configured to only permit fluid to flow out of the chamber and be expelled from the nozzle when the pressure within the chamber exceeds the external pressure at the outlet by at least a predetermined threshold amount, wherein at least a portion of the body which defines said chamber is configured to: (a) resiliently deform from an initial resiliently biased configuration to a distended or deformed configuration in response to the application of a pressure, whereby the volume of said chamber defined by said portion of the body is reduced as said portion of the body is deformed from said initial configuration to said distended or deformed configuration, said reduction in volume causing the pressure within the chamber to increase and fluid to be ejected through the outlet valve; and (b) subsequently return to its initial resiliently biased configuration when the applied pressure is removed, thereby causing the volume of the chamber to increase and the pressure therein to fall such that fluid is drawn into the chamber through the inlet valve; characterized in that said nozzle device is formed separately from and is adapted to be mounted to said container, and the device further comprises an actuator member in the form of an end cap or cover that extends over at least a portion of the resiliently deformable portion of the body to form a surface which can be depressed by an operator to cause said portion of the body to deform and thereby actuate the dispensing of fluid from the chamber of the device.