Patent ID: 8651323

Claim:
A hand protection barrier dispenser for dispensing hand protection barriers from a stack of such hand protection barriers each having an opening therein near a top end thereof, said hand protection barrier dispenser comprising: a housing including a receptacle in which the stack of hand protection barriers may be installed for dispensing; a source of pressurized gas located in the housing; a valve which is located in the housing and is connected to the source of pressurized gas, the valve allowing the passage of the pressurized gas therethrough when the valve is in an open position and preventing the passage of the pressurized gas therethrough when it is in a closed position; at least one nozzle mounted in the hand protection barrier dispenser and connected to the valve to receive pressurized gas from the valve when the valve is in the open position and direct the pressurized gas toward the opening in a top one of the hand protection barriers in the stack of hand protection barriers in a manner that opens the top hand protection barrier to facilitate a user inserting the user's hand through the opening in the top hand protection barrier to don the top hand protection barrier; and an electronic system for operating the hand protection barrier dispenser to open the hand protection barrier, wherein the electronic system comprises: an electronic system board; one or more batteries located in the housing and electrically connected to the electronic system board; a solenoid for operating the valve, the solenoid being electrically connected to the electronic system board; and a system sensor for detecting the proximity of a user's hand at a location adjacent to the opening of the top hand protection barrier in the stack of hand protection barriers; wherein the top hand protection barrier donned by a user may be removed from the stack of hand protection barriers by pulling the top hand protection barrier in which the user's hand is located away from the remainder of the stack of hand protection barriers.