Patent ID: 6895848

Claim:
A dispenser for dispensing segments of a paper strip unwound from a paper roll, said dispenser comprising: a base which defines a rear wall; a bottom wall; a roll support surface located forwardly of the rear wall, said roll support surface including a downwardly extending rear portion, a forwardly-extending trough portion, and a reversed-curved forward edge portion, said reverse-curved forward edge portion having a radius of curvature of between 2 and 20 mm; and a drive roller located beneath and forwardly of the reverse-curved forward edge portion, and a lid which is pivotally connected to said base so as to be pivotable between a upper position wherein a paper roll can be placed on the roll support surface of said base and a lower position wherein the roll support surface with paper roll thereon is covered, said lid including a counter roller and a cutting means, said counter roller and said cutting means being attached to said lid such that, when said lid is pivoted to said lower position, said counter roller is pressed against said drive roller and said cutting means is located beneath said counter roller, said counter roller having a diameter that is smaller than a diameter of said drive roller and said cutting means being positioned a distance from said counter roller which is essentially equal to said diameter of said counter roller, a paper strip unwound from a paper roll on said roll support surface passing over said reverse-curved forward edge portion, downwardly through a nip between said drive roller and said counter roller, and past said cutting means for cutting into segments.