Support bar for a dispenser and dispensing system

Abstract

A support bar for a material web wound onto a roll. The support bar has, on each end, a bearing journal which is arranged on the longitudinal axis thereof. At least one of the two bearing journals is provided with a fitting surface which is not designed as a rotational surface and is rotatably arranged on the support bar. The bearing journal can be inserted into a guide of a dispenser. The guide is continuous from the insertion position to the dispensing position.

Claims

1. A support bar for a material web wound to form a coreless roll, the support bar comprising: a respective bearing journal disposed at each end of the support bar, each said bearing journal lying in a longitudinal axis of the support bar; at least one of said two bearing journals comprising an axial end of the support bar and a sleeve including at least one mating surface, said at least one mating surface being formed on a groove at an end side of said sleeve, said sleeve being non rotatably fixed, and said support bar rotating relative to said sleeve; and the support bar having a central region between said two bearing journals formed with longitudinal wings projecting out from a circumference thereof, for receiving the material web in a rotationally fixed manner.

2. The support bar according to claim 1, wherein said groove is dove-tail shaped.

3. A roll, comprising a wound material web and a support bar according to claim 1.

4. A dispensing system, comprising: a dispenser for dispensing portions of a material web wound to form a coreless roll; a support bar for supporting the roll in said dispenser; said support bar having a respective bearing journal disposed at each end of the support bar, each said bearing journal lying in a longitudinal axis of the support bar, at least one of said two bearing journals comprising an axial end of the support bar and a sleeve including at least one mating surface, said at least one mating surface being formed in a groove at an end side of said sleeve, said sleeve being non rotatably fixed, and said support bar rotating relative to said sleeve; and a central region between said two bearing journals having longitudinal wings projecting out from a circumference thereof, for receiving and supporting said roll of at least one material web in a rotationally fixed manner; said dispenser having a guide formed by a projecting ridge terminating in a dispensing position, said guide having a counter surface to mate with said groove of said sleeve when pushed onto said ridge; wherein an insertion of said roll into said dispenser is possible only when said mating surface and said counter surface coincide.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

(1) FIG. 1 shows a support bar in the longitudinal section taken along the I-I in FIG. 2, carrying a roll of material in dashed lines;

(2) FIG. 2 shows an end view of the right end of the support bar in FIG. 1,

(3) FIG. 3 shows, in an enlarged manner, the right end of the support bar in FIG. 1,

(4) FIG. 3A is a similar view of an alternative embodiment of the right end of the support bar and the sidewall of the dispenser;

(5) FIG. 4 shows a schematic illustration of a guide for the support bar in a dispenser,

(6) FIG. 5 shows the guide of FIG. 4 in a plan view, and

(7) FIG. 6 shows a schematic perspective view of a dispenser equipped with a roll.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(8) Since they are cut from a strand, material webs 12, in particular of domestic roll paper or sanitary roll paper, wound to form rolls 3, in general require bearing journals 4, 5 projecting from the end sides when, after opening a lid 25, they are inserted into guides 21, 24 of a dispenser 20 (FIG. 6) and are rotatably mounted in a dispensing position 10 therein. The bearing journals 4, 5 here are provided on the ends of a support bar 1, wherein in the figures a simple bearing journal 4, having a circular-cylindrical rotation surface, which fits into a groove of a guide 24 of the dispenser 20, is drawn on the left. However, it is in principle also possible for the bearing journal 4 and the guide thereof to be likewise configured as per the possibility described in the following for the bearing journal 5, shown on the right, and the guide 21 thereof.

(9) In order to be able to insert the rolls 3 into the various guides 21, 24 of the dispenser 20 in a positionally correct manner only (i.e., in the proper orientation), such that the material web is always drawn off from the same side of the roll 3 (FIG. 5), the guide 21 is configured as a ridge 22 which projects from the wall of the dispenser 20 and onto which the correspondingly configured region of the bearing journal 5, in the insertion position 15, can be pushed. The bearing journal 5, therefore, on the free end side, has a groove 8 which is configured so as to be conversely disposed to the ridge 22 on the wall of the dispenser 20. The side walls of the groove 8 are mating surfaces 9 which, in contrast to the circumferential surface of the bearing journal 5, do not represent rotation surfaces but which are, in particular, planar, their counter surfaces 2 being provided on the ridge 22.

(10) FIG. 3A illustrated an alternative embodiment. There, the groove 8 is undercut with an trapezoid cross-section. The ridge 22 on the inside of the sidewall of the dispenser 20 has a corresponding shape that reaches into the groove 8. The ridge 22 and the groove 8 represent a dove-tail connection. The connection allows the bearing journal 5 to slide along the sidewall in a rotationally locked manner (i.e., the shaft of the support bar is rotatably supported on the bearing journal 5) and also held against the sidewall due to the positive (form) lock provided by the dovetail connection.

(11) Since the ridge 22 extends not only in the insertion position 15 on the commencement of the guide 21 but across the entire length thereof up into the dispensing position 10, the roll 3, which in the central region of the support bar 1 is held in a rotationally fixed manner by the wings 2 sticking out there from the circumference, would rotate along in a manner corresponding to the curvature of the guide 21 and remain in a non-rotatable manner in the dispensing position 10, such that the material web 12 cannot be drawn off. In order to make this nevertheless possible in the direction of the arrows 11, the bearing journal 5 is rotatably mounted on the end of the support bar 1, as can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 3. The support bar 1 is provided with a tapered axial end part 6 on which a circumferential channel is provided. To this end, the bearing journal 5 displays a sleeve 7 which is adapted thereto and which is provided with an annular bead, such that, when being attached to the end part 6, the bearing journal 5 is latched. In this manner, as can be seen from FIGS. 4 and 5 the position of the roll 3 and/or of the support bar 1, when being moved from the insertion position 15 (on the right in FIG. 5) into the dispensing position 10 (on the left in FIG. 5), remains unmodified in relation to the dispenser, despite the bearing journal 5 being forced to follow the curvature of the ridge 22, since the bearing journal, on the end part 6 of the support bar 1, can rotate about the corresponding angle. In the dispensing position 10, the support bar 1, with the roll 3, can rotate in and/or on the bearing journal 5 when the material web 12 is drawn off (arrow 11). The support bar 1 and the bearing journal 5 are preferably composed of a cost-effective plastic, wherein dynamic friction which cannot be defined in more detail arises between said support bar 1 and said bearing journal 5, on account of which an advantageous braking effect on the roll 3 is achieved when the material web is drawn off.