Patent ID: 7429146

Claim:
A marking sphere dispensing apparatus comprising: a frame having a valve seat defining an opening between a marking sphere receptacle and an expulsion duct; a plunger having a plunger head at one end and moveable in a longitudinal direction within the frame between i) a first position at which the plunger head is seated against the valve seat to close the opening, and ii) a second position at which the plunger head is axially offset from the valve seat to define a marking sphere inlet gap across the opening, wherein the plunger defines an internal fluid passage extending along the length of the plunger for providing a fluid flow and having an outlet at the plunger head, wherein when the plunger is at the second position and the plunger head is axially offset from the marking sphere receptacle valve seat, the fluid flow expelled from the fluid outlet of the plunger head combines with the marking spheres to form a marking sphere fluid flow mixture which is expelled from the marking sphere receptacle into the expulsion duct in a flow path substantially along a longitudinal axis of the dispensing apparatus; a flow diverter in fluid communication with the expulsion duct and pivotable between a first and second position, wherein the first position is 105° from the longitudinal axis of the dispensing apparatus and the second position is 60° from the longitudinal axis of the dispensing apparatus.