Patent ID: 7325991

Claim:
A cosmetic dispenser for producing an axial movement of a volume of cosmetic between an extended dispositon and a retracted disposition, the cosmetic dispenser comprising: an elevator member with a cosmetic retaining portion; an innerbody with a proximal portion, a distal portion, an inner wall surface, an outer wall surface, and an open inner volume for receiving at least a portion of the elevator member; a spiral member with a proximal portion, a distal portion, an inner wall surface, an outer wall surface, and an open inner volume for receiving a portion of the innerbody in a relatively rotatable, mating relationship wherein the spiral member has an annular flexible wall segment with a nonbiased inner radius wherein the flexible wall segment of the spiral member comprises a continuous skirt with a substantially consistent inner radius wherein the skirt comprises the proximal portion of the spiral member and wherein the spiral member has a body portion that comprises the distal portion of the spiral member; at least one protuberance disposed on the outer wall surface of the innerbody in axial alignment with the flexible wall segment of the spiral member wherein the at least one protuberance establishes an effective radius of the innerbody including the frictional protuberance that is greater than the nonbiased inner radius of the flexible wall segment whereby a deformation of the flexible wall segment of the spiral member and a frictional drag between the innerbody and the spiral member will tend to be produced; wherein the innerbody has a body portion for being received within the body portion of the spiral member, a shoulder portion for being received within the skirt of the spiral member, and a knob portion disposed proximally to the shoulder portion, wherein the at least one protuberance projects from the shoulder portion, wherein the at least one protuberance and the shoulder portion are substantially inflexible, wherein the shoulder portion is substantially consistent in outer radius and smaller therealong in outer radius without the at least one protuberance than the axially aligned inner radius of the skirt of the spiral member but greater therealong in outer radius than the inner radius of the body portion of the spiral member,wherein the shoulder portion has an axial length substantially equal to an axial length of the skirt of the spiral member, and wherein the wherein the knob portion has an outer diameter greater than an outer diameter of the flexible wall segment of the spiral member whereby the knob portion forms a proximal portion of the cosmetic dispenser; and a means for producing an axial movement of the elevator member in response to a rotation of the innerbody relative to the spiral member.