Portable volatile material dispenser and method of simulating a flame in same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10112203-B2
Application number	US-201313864690-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 17, 2013
Priority date	Apr 17, 2013
Publication date	Oct 30, 2018
Grant date	Oct 30, 2018

Abstract

A portable volatile material dispenser includes a housing having a top wall and at least one side wall and an opening formed within the top wall of the housing. A volatile material actuator is disposed within the housing and a manifold is in fluid communication with and extends between the volatile material actuator and the opening to move volatile material in the form of a mist from the volatile material actuator, through the manifold, and out the opening. A container holding a fluid is disposed within the housing and in fluid communication with the volatile material actuator. An air flow generator disposed within the housing and positioned to create a flow of air out of the dispenser through the opening for moving the mist from the dispenser.

First claim

We claim:

1. A portable volatile material dispenser comprising:
a housing;
an opening formed within a wall of the housing;
a volatile material actuator selected from the group consisting of a vibrating mesh piezoelectric actuator, a vibrating needle piezoelectric actuator, an aerosol, and a standing wave piezoelectric actuator, wherein the volatile material actuator is spaced from the opening and in fluid communication with a manifold having an interior and an exterior, the manifold dispensing a volatile material in the form of a mist through the interior of the manifold, to an exit channel of the manifold, and out of the opening;
a container holding a fluid containing the volatile material, wherein the container is disposed within the housing and in communication with the volatile material actuator, the container receiving a wick to transport the fluid to the volatile material actuator;
an air flow generator within the housing and creating a flow of air along the exterior of and concentric with the manifold, past the exit channel of the manifold, and out of the dispenser through the opening, to combine with and move the mist away from the dispenser; and
a plurality of light emitting diodes disposed within the housing longitudinally below and aligned with a profile of the opening and surrounding the manifold for illuminating the mist emitted from the dispenser to simulate a flame.

2. The portable dispenser of claim 1 , wherein the manifold is also in fluid communication with the air flow generator to direct the mist from the volatile material actuator, wherein the air from the air flow generator is also directed through the interior of the manifold.

3. The portable dispenser of claim 2 , wherein the manifold has a shape that is selected from the group consisting of: linear, circular, square-shaped, and a wave.

4. The portable dispenser of claim 1 , wherein emission of volatile material from the actuator is interrupted to change an effect of the simulated flame.

5. The portable dispenser of claim 1 , further including a humidity sensor for detecting a humidity of an area surrounding the dispenser.

6. The portable dispenser of claim 1 , further including a universal serial bus port for connecting a universal serial bus plug between the dispenser and a personal computer.

7. The portable dispenser of claim 1 , further including a light sensor for detecting ambient light surrounding the dispenser.

8. The portable dispenser of claim 1 , wherein light emitted by the plurality of light emitting diodes projects out of the opening between the manifold and an edge of the wall.

9. A portable volatile material dispenser comprising:
a housing defining a longitudinal axis extending along a height of the housing;
an opening formed within a wall of the housing;
a volatile material actuator selected from the group consisting of a vibrating mesh piezoelectric actuator, a vibrating needle piezoelectric actuator, an aerosol, and a standing wave piezoelectric actuator, wherein the volatile material actuator is positioned about the longitudinal axis and spaced from the opening to dispense a mist through the opening;
a container holding a fluid containing a volatile material, wherein the container is disposed within the housing and in communication with the volatile material actuator to transport the fluid to the volatile material actuator;
an air flow generator within the housing and offset from the longitudinal axis, the air flow generator having a rotational axis parallel to the longitudinal axis to create a flow of air out of the dispenser through the opening to combine with and move the volatile material in the form of the mist from the dispenser;
a manifold disposed within the housing and including an interior, an exterior, a first end proximate the volatile material actuator, and a second end that includes an exit channel disposed within and surrounded by the opening, wherein the first end is positioned to receive the mist from the volatile material actuator for transport of the mist within the interior of the manifold from the first end to the second end, wherein an edge of the wall of the housing and the second end of the manifold define a gap surrounding the second end of the manifold, and wherein the flow of air passes along the exterior of the exit channel and concentric with respect to the manifold, to move through the gap and combine with the mist to move the mist from the dispenser; and
a plurality of light emitting diodes disposed within the housing in the gap such that the light emitting diodes surround the manifold and illuminate the mist emitted from the dispenser to simulate a flame.

10. The portable dispenser of claim 9 , wherein the first end of the manifold forms an airflow entrance having a first length and a first width and a second end of the manifold forms an airflow exit having a second length and a second width, wherein the second length is greater than the first length and the second width is less than the first width.

11. The portable dispenser of claim 9 , wherein the mist is emitted out of the second end of the manifold positioned in the opening and the flow of air is emitted from the gap surrounding the second end of the manifold.

Assignees

• Johnson & Son Inc S C

Inventors

• Kubicek Chris A
• Walter Scott D
• Park Alexander S
• Patel Sajid
• Bisbikis Steven V

Classifications

• B05B7/02 Primary

  Spray pistols; Apparatus for discharge (for spraying particulate material B05B7/14; with means for heating the material to be sprayed B05B7/16; with means for supplying fluent material to a discharge device B05B7/24) · CPC title

• B05B17/0615

  spray being produced at the free surface of the liquid or other fluent material in a container and subjected to the vibrations · CPC title

• A61L2209/12

  Lighting means · CPC title

• A61L2209/111

  Sensor means, e.g. motion, brightness, scent, contaminant sensors · CPC title

• A61L9/14

  using sprayed or atomised substances {including air-liquid contact processes} · CPC title