Combination Dispenser and Receptacle

This application claims benefit of priority of the filing date of U.S. Provisional Patent Application 62/045,891, filed Sep. 4, 2014, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

The present invention generally relates to receptacles suitable for disposal of materials associated with human hygiene and, more articularly, to a receptacle that may include a dispenser for single-use products for human hygiene or health care which are discarded following use.

Awareness of the need for improved hygiene has greatly increased in recent years, particularly as severe communicable diseases have been newly recognized. Numerous communicable diseases and sources of infection are associated with contact with bodily fluids or objects that have come into contact therewith. In any case, contact with bodily fluids or items that have come in contact with them is generally very disagreeable if not dangerous. While some objects such as tampons, prophylactics and medical treatment devices such as tongue depressors and the like have been known as single-use devices that are discarded following use, other devices that have been reusable after sterilization, such as hypodermic syringes and some surgical instruments such as scalpel blades have seen a trend toward construction and dispensing as single-use devices which are intended to be discarded after a single use.

However, safe disposal of any such single-use device after use presents problems of the potential for subsequent human contact therewith since it is natural for persons to discard trash in a manner that is convenient to their immediate location and, thereafter, trash is generally collected on a more-or-less regular basis by other persons such as the janitorial staff of a building. In some environments, such as medical facilities and offices of physicians, provisions are commonly made for disposal of such devices in specially marked containers (e.g. having biohazard markings prominently marked thereon and configured to restrict access to the contents) separately from ordinary trash and which can be separately collected by persons that are aware of potential for exposure to bodily fluids and the special handling that is required.

Nevertheless, receptacles for discarded articles that have come in contact with bodily fluids leave many opportunities for contact with the discarded articles or transfer of bodily fluids from the articles to the receptacle. For example, some receptacles are nothing more than an open container lined with a disposable plastic bag and which may or may not be covered by a lid. In such receptacles, the discarded article will often come into contact with the lid and the upper portion of the plastic bag; both of which must be handled when the trash is collected. For disposal of feminine hygiene products, a covered container with a waxed paper liner are often provided but the liner is often not well-fitted to the covered container and the discarded items often are not correctly placed within the bag and must be separately removed manually from the container. In other cases such as medical care facilities, disposable containers are used and fabricated in a manner that contents cannot easily be removed. In such cases, additional expense is incurred for the specially designed and fabricated containers that may still have accessible surfaces that can come in contact with discarded items that may be contaminated.

Additionally, many items, when fabricated for being used only a single time, have been specially packaged to assure cleanliness prior to use. However, convenient availability is often very desirable for single use items and such packaging often presents some degree of inconvenience while packaging that is more convenient to open may not provide adequate protection for the single-use item. Additionally, it is often the case that obtaining the single-use item, use of the item and disposal will often be desirable within a very short distance; a convenience which has not generally been accommodated.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a combined dispenser and receptacle for single-use items.

It is another object of the invention to provide a receptacle from which potentially hazardous discarded materials can be removed for disposal without requiring movement of the receptacle or a liner thereof which can cause potential contact with discarded materials.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a receptacle for single-use items from which discarded items can be removed without the need to touch the items or the interior or liner of the receptacle.

In order to accomplish these and other objects of the invention, a receptacle for disposal of discarded articles is provided comprising a back plate, a generally rectangular container including an edge portion shaped for engaging said back plate, a slidable bottom plate for closing a bottom portion of said generally rectangular container and being opened to allow contents of said receptacle to be emptied by gravity, and a top cover that effectively fills said top opening in said generally rectangular container that can be opened by the weight of a discarded article.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a combined dispenser and receptacle for disposal of discarded articles comprising a back plate, a generally rectangular container including an edge portion shaped for engaging said back plate and having an extended front portion for receiving a dispenser box containing articles to be dispensed, a slidable bottom plate for closing a bottom portion of said generally rectangular container and being opened to allow contents of said receptacle to be emptied by gravity, and a top cover that effectively fills said top opening in said generally rectangular container and can be opened by the weight of a discarded article.

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGS. 1A and 1B, there are shown oblique views of the front and sides of the combined dispenser and receptacle 10 in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention. The receptacle 10 is a generally rectangular front and side portion 12 that is detachable from a back plate 15. Preferably, the generally flat back plate 15 is formed to be mounted on a wall and includes raised edges 17 to provide clearance at the lateral edges to be engaged by a flange 19 at the back edge of container 10, 12 such that the front and side portion 12 can essentially be hung from the wall-mounted back plate 15 as best seen in FIG. 2E. The front of container 10 is preferably formed with an extended portion 20 that is dimensioned to closely enclose dispenser packages; a preferred form of which will be discussed in greater detail below. Generally crescent-shaped openings 25, 25′ are formed in the lower and/or front surfaces of the extended portion 20 to allow single-use articles or packages containing such single-use articles to be dispensed therefrom. Extending the crescent-shaped opening 25, 25′ to the front surfaces of the extended portion of the combined dispenser and receptacle (as shown by dashed lines in FIG. 13 and FIG. 2) allows the dispensed article to be visible and facilitates grasping of a single article or package to be dispensed as well as facilitating removal and replacement of a dispenser box through a top opening 30 of the receptacle when its contents are exhausted. Additionally or alternatively, the article(s) to be dispensed can be identified by indicia 95, 95′ on the front surface 12 of the combined receptacle and dispenser 10. The shape of the openings 25, 25′, while preferred for dispensing disposal bags as will be discussed below, is not critical to the practice of the invention and other opening shapes should generally conform to the shape of packaging for single-use articles to exert a small retaining force thereon until manually extracted from the dispenser. However, crescent-shaped openings are preferred for dispensing of small plastic bags from a dispenser box containing a plurality thereof in which discarded articles can be placed and sealed. In the preferred application of the invention opaque, self-closing, sealable and bio-degradable plastic bags are used to contain absorbent materials that have been exposed to blood or other bodily fluids when placed within the receptacle 10. In any case, the openings 25, 25′ are formed sufficiently smaller than the dispenser box (but substantially congruent with the opening in the dispenser box) to securely retain both the dispenser box and single-use articles remaining in the dispenser box as the single-use articles are individually withdrawn from extended portion 20.

It should be appreciated that other arrangements for dispensing single-use articles may be provided such as a tape connecting individual containers or other packaging from which single-use items may be easily removed while the dispenser box provides additional protection such that simpler and more easily opened packaging can be employed for additional protection of the single-use items while facilitating dispensing of individual items and removing them from individual containers. If such packaging is employed for single-use items, it is preferred that the packaging be configured in a manner (e.g. a snap or screw-top vial, clam-shell container with snap closure and the like) that facilitates the single-use item to be returned to the package for disposal after use. Alternatively, a separate disposal container such as the plastic bags alluded to above can be dispensed for the purpose. Conversely, the extended portion 20 and the dispensing function can be omitted or separated therefrom as will be discussed below in connection with FIGS. 6A-6D while retaining a major feature of the invention in avoiding contact with discarded articles that may be contaminated as will now be discussed.

Specifically, to avoid a need for trash removal personnel to come into contact with discarded materials even though such materials should be enclosed in fluid-tight packaging such as the plastic bags alluded to above, the receptacle is fitted with a bottom that can be opened to allow contents of the receptacle to fall directly into another container for transport to another location or treatment or disposal facility. A sliding bottom panel 40 slidable in a slot formed by supporting tabs 42 is preferred over a hinge and latch or similar arrangement for providing such an opening, so that the sliding bottom can be securely attached to the front structure 12 of receptacle 10 (e.g. to avoid vandalism by theft), to more securely support the bottom panel against the weight of receptacle contents and to avoid interference with attaching the front structure to rear plate 15. A tab or handle 45, which is preferably recessed, as shown, to be out of view or retractable, is also preferably provided to facilitate both opening the receptacle bottom and visually confirming when the receptacle bottom is properly closed. A detent or latch (e.g. requiring a specialized but standardized simple tool to disengage), generally depicted at 41, is also preferably provided to maintain the sliding bottom 40 in a closed position other than when discarded items are being removed. This sliding bottom structure 40 is also believed to be less susceptible to being rendered non-functional due to damage and more easily repairable than other possible structures such as a hinged panel. A sliding bottom panel bearing on an inwardly extending side flanges 42 is also capable of bearing significant weight of discarded material whereas a hinged panel or the like would require that weight to be borne by the hinge and a latch where the force of the weight would be concentrated. The sliding panel is also preferable to a hinged structure in order to avoid deflecting discarded items toward trash collection personnel as the receptacle bottom is opened. Rather, if some degree of deflection of discarded items is deemed necessary in some applications (e.g. to avoid discarded items striking the rim or edge of a collection container placed below the receptacle or coming into contact with the wall or other surface on which the receptacle is mounted) a small, angled, fixed deflector 50 is preferably provided on the bottom edge of rear plate 15 where it may or may not protrude below the bottom of front portion 12 as shown in FIG. 1A or FIGS. 2A-2F, respectively. Such a structure can also be located such that sliding bottom 40 can pass below it when the receptacle bottom is closed, as shown in FIG. 2.

Also shown in FIG. 2 is the suspension arrangement for a pivoted top cover 60 that is preferred for use in embodiments of the invention; also shown in enlarged form in FIG. 3. Specifically, a top opening 30 is provided in a top surface of receptacle 10 that is set back from the front edge of extended portion 20 so that the opening does not extend over the location where dispenser boxes are placed if the extended/dispenser portion 20 is provided. The edges of the opening in receptacle 10 and the pivoting cover are preferably rolled or hemmed as shown in FIG. 3 so that smooth edge surfaces are provided and reinforcing structures 70, 70′ are provided on both the receptacle top and pivoting top cover 60 to maintain the flat or other contour of the top surfaces. In this regard, the ends of the top cover may be contoured downwardly to move the center of gravity below the axle 75 on which the top cover is pivoted so that the cover will return to a stable position closing the opening following the discarding of an article. Alternatively, weighting can be provided for the same purpose so that the cover 60, when rotated to place a discarded item in the receptacle, will return to a position substantially closing top opening 30.

As a further and preferred alternative shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the cover may be provided with flanges on the bottom side that provide some weighting while a partial perforation (e.g. a generally “U” shaped cut where some portion of the shape of the perforation remains attached to the flange) 300 may be formed in the flange adjacent the top cover surface and the flange material bent outwardly to form a flat tab or tongue 310 to interact with a rectangular (e.g. preferably square) opening 320 in the flange that serves as a pivot bearing. The interaction of the flat tab and the rectangular pivot opening thus allow the top cover to be pivoted to an open position by a very small force or weight and to return to a stable, accurately aligned position closing the top opening of the receptacle when the small force or weight is removed. All of these structures can be provided integrally with the respective parts by bending or molding the edges thereof and providing suitable openings therein.

The structures 70, 70′ are preferably of similar shapes except for relieving the ends of the structures on the pivoted top cover for clearance when the top cover is pivoted. The pivot for the top cover is preferably provided as an axle 75 through holes in the structures 70, 70′ such that the axle is confined in the desired location, as shown by the inside of the front surface of the receptacle and the back cover 15 when the receptacle 10 is assembled therewith or, alternatively, by the flat tabs alluded to above.

Alternatively, the axle can be placed parallel to the longer dimension of the top cover and top cover 60 pivoted in a direction substantially perpendicular to that shown. The top cover 60 can be formed in a single piece, as illustrated or divided along either its long or short dimension near a central portion thereof and the separate parts closed by springs. The top opening and pivoting cover are preferably approximately double the dimensions of the dispenser boxes for the items to be dispensed so that, after use, the items can be packaged and placed on the pivoting top cover which will then pivot under the weight of the item to drop the discarded, dispensed article into the receptacle. Contact with the receptacle or its contents while disposing of an article can thus be avoided.

Referring now to FIG. 4, some perfecting features of a preferred embodiment of the invention will now be discussed. Specifically, it is preferred that the bottom edge of the receptacle be formed by an inwardly projecting surface 42 forming a side flange to fully support the sides of the sliding receptacle bottom 40, when closed, as alluded to above. Stop tabs 85 or cylindrical projections riding in slots are preferably provided which cooperate with a shallow opening or recess located in but slightly less wide than the front surface of the receptacle 10 so that the sliding bottom cannot be removed when the receptacle 10 is assembled to the back plate 15. The stop tabs preferably extend to a width slightly less than the full interior width of the receptacle so that it will smoothly and freely slide between the fully open and fully closed positions.

The shallow opening or recess alluded to above is preferably formed by providing an inwardly projecting front flange 43 at the bottom of the front surface of the front portion 12 as shown in cross-section in FIG. 5 (but omitted from FIG. 4 for clarity). Such a front flange bears against the top surface of bottom plate 40 and resists the bottom panel from angling downward when opened or being pushed into a position in which it does not bear against the side flanges 42. Front flange 43 also provide some degree of cleaning action as the bottom plate 40 is being pulled forward to open the bottom of receptacle 10 and thus assist in retaining any spillage within the receptacle while assisting removal of spillage with discarded articles.

In this regard, it is also preferred to provide flanges 90 on the interior of receptacle 10 so that the stop tabs of sliding bottom 40 will be firmly engaged therewith when fully opened even if flange 43 is not provided. Flanges 90 also provide reinforcement of the bottom corners of receptacle 10 against forces from possible lateral movement of sliding bottom 40 and provide general structural reinforcement of corners of front portion 12 to join the front and side panels, preferably by spot welding. The shape of Flange 90 is not critical to the practice of the invention but the shape shown in FIG. 2F is preferred to provide continuous corners in front portion 12 below the extended dispenser portion. Such joining (whether or not continuous over the lower extent of front portion 12) is required when the extended portion 20 is provided and the front portion 12 formed by suitable bending of a single sheet of material such as metal. If the extended portion 20 and the dispensing function omitted from the receptacle, such joining will not be required since a continuous corner can then extend from the bottom to the top of front portion 12 (e.g. along dashed line 80 of FIG. 2B). In such a case, front flange 43 is particularly preferred.

Referring now to FIG. 5, a preferred form of the dispenser box and its contents and method of placement and removal from the extended portion 20 will now be discussed. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view at section line C-C of FIG. 2A through the receptacle 10 backplate 15 and extended/dispenser portion 20, if provided as part of the receptacle, as is preferred. FIG. 5 also illustrates the cooperation of all parts of the receptacle when assembled. The interior of the extended portion 20 is preferably slightly greater than twice the exterior width of the individual dispenser boxes 100 and of slightly greater vertical dimension to provide suitable clearances as the dispenser boxes are set in place. Thus, the extended portion 20 essentially provides a shelf to support two dispenser boxes side-by-side and frictionally retaining them in place. A small flange 105 may optionally be provided to also retain the dispenser boxes 100 in the desired location. The dispenser boxes 100 also preferably have perforations allowing removal of a portion of the dispenser box to form shaped openings 25′ substantially matching the shaped openings 25 in the receptacle to allow the single-use articles to be removed.

The dispenser boxes 100 alluded to above are inserted into the extended dispenser portion of the receptacle by displacing the top cover 60 and inserting the dispenser boxes 100 through top opening 30 in the direction indicated by arrow A such that the lower edge of the dispenser box crosses flange 105, if provided, or contacts the shelf formed by the extended dispenser portion 20 of the receptacle. The dispenser box 100 is then rotated into final position in the direction of arrow B. The proper locating of the dispenser boxes can be facilitated by optionally providing a flexible sheet or tape material with releasable adhesive thereon which extends beyond the dimensions of the dispenser box as shown at 110. When the dispenser box is initially inserted through top opening 30 the sheet can first be adhered to flange 105 or the interior of receptacle 10 below the extended portion 20. When the dispenser box is then rotated into final position, the remaining portion 110 can be adhered to structure 70′ or the (rolled or hemmed) edge of top opening 30. When the contents of the dispenser box 100 are exhausted, pressing on the interior of the empty dispenser box causes the sheet material to release to dispose of the dispenser box into the receptacle.

It should be noted in this regard, that the dispenser boxes 100 are preferably constructed from a fluid resistant material or have a fluid-resistant layer or coating applied thereto or embedded therein. This fluid-resistant material or layer serves to isolate the contents of the dispenser boxes from discarded materials in the receptacle. This function may be enhanced by substantially sealing the back of the extended dispenser portion 20 with optional sheet 110, alluded to above or by a hinged door or wall structure in substantially the same location and adapted for similar motion.

As also alluded to above, the combined receptacle and dispenser in accordance with the invention can be used to dispense many different types of single use devices and the dispenser boxes can be configured in many ways to accommodate the types of devices to be dispensed. The preferred application of the invention is for dispensing and disposal of containers for fluid absorbent materials in the form of small, opaque, bio-degradable plastic bags 115 having a fluid-tight seal integrally formed therewith.

To dispense these bags, the bags are preferably stacked and folded in half (possibly over an optional form 125) and placed in the dispenser boxes with the sealing arrangements 120 adjacent the front of the package having perforations where a portion of the dispenser box is to be removed to form an opening similar in shape to the shape of openings 25, 25′. When in place, the dispenser box allows an easily grasped portion of the sealing arrangement of the bags to be visible and some instruction such as “pull here” may be imprinted thereon. When a bag is grasped and pulled in the direction(s) indicated by arrow C, the bag on the outside of the folded stack will slide smoothly over the remaining bags that are retained in the dispenser box by the perimeter of opening 25′ to expose the edge of the next bag to be dispensed.

Similar arrangements such as tapes to which container can be releasably adhered for dispensing other types of articles will be apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the nature of such articles. However, it is contemplated and preferred that articles such as single use medical devices which must be sterile when dispensed but which are contaminated by use should be dispensed in a package into which the device can be reinserted and sealed for disposal after use, such as a small cylindrical container which can be easily opened and individually dispensed on a tape. In such an application, the packages in which the sterile articles are dispensed has substantially the same function as the plastic bags that are dispensed in accordance with the preferred application of the invention. Affixing such packages of single-use articles not required to be sterile to a tape or the like will assist in retaining packages within the dispensing box 100 such that only one article is displayed or dispensed at a time.

As noted above, the receptacle can be formed without the extended front dispenser portion while retaining all the advantages in regard to avoidance of contact with bodily fluids that may be present on discarded articles. In such a case, it may also be desirable to provide for dispensing of single use articles or disposal containers therefore in the vicinity of the receptacle. Similarly, it may be desirable to provide dispensing of single use articles or disposal containers in the vicinity of existing, fixed location receptacles. To meet such a possible need, a stand-alone dispenser 600 of a preferred form is illustrated in FIGS. 6A-6D.

Dispenser 600 is preferably dimensioned to contain a dispenser box 100 but of slightly greater height and depth (e.g. front to back) than the dispenser box. A portion of the front and/or bottom of dispenser 600 is removed to form a shaped opening similar to the shaped opening provided on the dispenser box 100 which may or may not be present shaped in accordance with the single-use articles to be dispensed. A further portion 615 of the bottom and/or back of dispenser 600 is also opened to allow insertion and removal of dispenser box 100. (The remaining portion of the perimeter of dispenser 600 is indicated by dashed line 620 in FIG. 6C.) Thus the remainder of dispenser 600 provides substantial protection for the articles to be dispensed or containers therefore which can then be of simplified and easily opened design as alluded to above.

A dispenser box 100 can thus be inserted into dispenser 600 through the opening indicated by 615 and the bottom of the dispenser box 100 pressed over flange 630 corresponding to flange 105 described above and the upper portion of the dispenser box pressed to the front of dispenser 600. Removal of the dispenser box 100 can be achieved by simply reversing the process by manipulating the dispenser box 100 through shaped opening 610. Additional clearance for insertion and removal of dispenser boxes 100 can be provided simply by providing a releasable or flexible mounting arrangement such as by interference fit or loop and hook (e.g. Velcro') tape, double sided foam mounting tape or the like or simply providing a mounting plate that is attachable to a wall or vertical surface and shaped to engage and edge 650 of the rear of the dispenser 600 or forming slots 660 to engage screws or hooks such that the dispenser can hang therefrom. Thus, separation of the receptacle and dispenser in accordance with the invention can be provided to accommodate any convenience or allow dispenser 600 to the retrofit to or used in conjunction with any existing receptacle. For example, as alluded to above, some receptacles are designed to avoid contact with single use or contaminated articles once placed in the receptacle but do not prevent the single-use or contaminated article from contacting the exterior or upper portion of a liner of the receptacle whereas, dispenser 600 proximate or attached to such a receptacle would allow a disposal container to be provided as well as dispensing and protecting the single-use article.

In view of the foregoing, it is clearly seen that the combined dispenser and receptacle in accordance with the invention provides for inexpensive and convenient handling and disposal of single-use articles in a safe and hygienic manner. The safety of handling of materials potentially carrying infection or otherwise being hazardous is greatly improved since the receptacle can be emptied by gravity through the slidable bottom cover without requiring any handling of the discarded materials by trash collection personnel.

The combined dispenser and receptacle or receptacle formed without the integral dispenser is compact and can be mounted on any vertical surface. The articles to be dispensed are kept clean and possibly sterile and are protected from contamination by the dispenser boxes and the protection can be enhanced by effectively sealing the extended dispenser portion from the remainder of the receptacle after the dispenser boxes are set in place. While metal is preferred for all parts of the receptacle or combined dispenser and receptacle, other materials such as plastic are suitable for any or all such parts.

While the invention has been described in terms of a single preferred embodiment, those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.