System for the connection of a loaded cartridge to a cartridge holder

Abstract

A cartridge for holding and dispensing streaking applicators for an automated streaking apparatus having a cartridge holder, the cartridge including: a case with a dispensing end, a longitudinal axis and an elongate slot generally parallel to the longitudinal axis, the dispensing end including an applicator dispensing position where one applicator can be at least partially accessible from outside the case; and an applicator support member constrained within the case for longitudinal movement therein and being able to carry a stack of applicators;
the elongate slot being capable of operatively receiving a biasing member when the cartridge is in the cartridge holder to urge the support member towards the dispensing end and an applicator into the dispensing position.

Claims

1. A system for the connection of a loaded cartridge to a cartridge holder of an automated streaking apparatus, the loaded cartridge being for the holding and dispensing of streaking applicators, the system including: a cartridge holder having a biasing member; a loaded cartridge having a case with a dispensing end, a bottom wall at a lower end, a longitudinal axis, and an elongate slot, the dispensing end opposing the lower end and including an applicator dispensing position where one applicator can be at least partially accessible from outside the case, the cartridge also including an applicator support member carrying a stack of applicators, the support member being constrained within the case for longitudinal movement therein; and a cartridge lock that releasably engages the cartridge when the cartridge is in the cartridge holder to restrict movement of the cartridge against the biasing member, wherein the elongate slot extends longitudinally and into the bottom wall of the case, and operatively receives the biasing member when the loaded cartridge is in the cartridge holder, the biasing member positioned at least partially outside of the case and adapted to engage and urge the support member towards the dispensing end and an applicator supported thereon into the dispensing position.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein the cartridge holder includes a housing configured and sized so as to receive a cartridge within its interior, to slidably receive the cartridge in a close fit therein.

3. A system according to claim 2, wherein the housing includes either therewithin or as a part thereof, the biasing member.

4. A system according to claim 2, wherein the cartridge housing is configured and oriented such that, when the cartridge is housed therein, the applicator dispensing position of the cartridge can be accessed by a streaking device of the streaking apparatus.

5. A system according to claim 2, wherein the housing is provided by an upright frame made up of four corner posts defining therewithin the cartridge receiving interior.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) Having briefly described the general concepts involved with the present invention, a preferred embodiment will now be described that is in accordance with the present invention. However, it is to be understood that the following description is not to limit the generality of the above description.

(2) In the drawings:

(3) FIG. 1 is a perspective view from one side and from above of a cartridge in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

(4) FIGS. 2a and 2b are perspective views from two other sides (and from below) of the cartridge of FIG. 1;

(5) FIG. 3a is a schematic side view of the cartridge of FIG. 1, showing the interior and a streaking applicator support member, and FIG. 3b is the same view together with some loaded streaking applicators;

(6) FIGS. 4a and 4b are perspective views of a cartridge holder, in different stages of operation, for use with the cartridge of FIG. 1 (but not showing the cartridge):

(7) FIG. 5 is a schematic side view, in perspective, of a streaking device removing a streaking applicator from the cartridge of FIG. 1 loaded with streaking applicators and within a cartridge holder; and

(8) FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a series of cartridge holders in an automated streaking apparatus, two of the cartridge holders having the cartridge of FIG. 1 therein.

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

(9) Illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2a and 2b is a cartridge 10 for holding and dispensing streaking applicators (not shown in those figures, but identified in FIG. 3b by reference numeral 12) for an automated streaking apparatus (not shown) having a cartridge holder 28 (described later in relation to FIGS. 4a, 4b, 5 and 6). With further reference to FIG. 3b, the preferred type of streaking applicator 12 has a generally flat rectangular form, with two major inclined portions that together form a very shallow inverted v-shaped body. An upper portion of the body provides a mounting portion 12a and a lower portion 12b of the body provides the line of space apart contact su aces towards the bottom of a resilient and flexible support member.

(10) Returning to a description of FIGS. 1, 2a and 2b, in this embodiment the cartridge 10 includes a case 14 with a dispensing end A and a lower end B. The case 14 has a longitudinal axis Y and an elongate slot 15 therealong that is generally parallel to the longitudinal axis Y. The case 14 is generally cylindrical with a rectangular cross-section, thereby having four side walls (14a, 14b, 14c and 14d), a bottom wall 14e at the lower end B of the case 14, and a top wall 14f. This preferred orientation illustrates that the cartridge 10 is ideally elongate and is used in a generally upright orientation. In this respect, although the case 14 illustrated herein is shown as being cylindrical with a rectangular cross-section, other shapes of case are envisaged.

(11) As shown in FIG. 1, the top wall 14f only partially covers the dispensing end A, there being one opening in the top wall 14f to provide a streaking device (identified in FIG. 5 by reference numeral 60) with gripping access to an applicator 12 in an applicator dispensing position, and at least one other opening through which the applicator 12 may pass to be removed from the cartridge 10 by the streaking device 60. The top wall 14f thus includes an upper applicator-gripping opening 16 and a side applicator-dispensing opening 18, the gripping opening 16 being sized to reveal the mounting portion 12a of an applicator 12 in the dispensing position, and the dispensing opening 18 being sized to permit that applicator 12 to be slid sideways from a stack of applicators 12 from under the top wall 14f (the position occupied by the applicator marked as X in FIG. 3b) out of the cartridge 10.

(12) As can be seen, at least the underside of the top wall 14f is configured to conform to the shape of an applicator 12 such that the uppermost applicator X in the stack (being the applicator in the dispensing position) neatly abuts against the underside of the top wall 14f, as will be explained below, in which position the mounting portion 128 of that applicator X is accessible through the gripping opening 16 and the applicator X itself is removable via the dispensing opening 18. Thus, the uppermost applicator X in the stack of applicators is said to be operatively accessible from outside the case 14 of the cartridge 10.

(13) The cartridge 10 also includes an applicator support member 20 that is constrained within the case 14 for longitudinal movement therein in the direction of arrow Z (shown in FIG. 3a) and is able to carry the stack of applicators. The support member 20 is also rectangular in cross-section and is sized for sliding movement within the case 14. The support member 20 is shown having ratchet-type resiliently biased engaging members 22 on two of the opposed sides 24 thereof (only one being visible in FIGS. 3a and 3b), capable of engaging with a series of corresponding abutments 26 along opposed interior surfaces 28 (only one being visible in FIGS. 3a and 3b) of two of the side walls (14b, 14d) of the case 14, in a manner that only permits one way movement of the support member 20 towards the dispensing end A of the case 14.

(14) The elongate slot 15 is capable of operatively receiving a biasing member 30 when the cartridge 10 is in a cartridge holder 28 (shown in FIGS. 4a, 4b, 5 and 6) to urge the support member 20 towards the dispensing end A, forcing the uppermost applicator X against the underside of the top wall 14f and into the dispensing position.

(15) The biasing member 30 is a biased abutment 32 configured at least partially within the housing 34 of the cartridge holder 28, the abutment 32 being sized and located so as to fit within, and be received by, the elongate slot 15 of the cartridge 10. The biasing for the biased abutment 32 is provided by a spring, such as by a torsion spring 36 arranged to urge the biasing member 30 upwards along a guide-rail 38, FIG. 4a shows the biasing member 30 in its lowermost position (which is the position it would take if a fully loaded cartridge 10 where located within the cartridge holder 28), whereas FIG. 4b shows the biasing member 30 in a position part way towards the dispensing end A of a cartridge 10 that would be within the cartridge holder 28, when half of the applicators 12 therein had been dispensed.

(16) The elongate slot 15 is shown arranged longitudinally along one of the side walls 14b of the case 14, extending into the bottom wall 14e of the case 14 at its lower end B to allow inserting access of the abutment 32 into the slot 15 from below when the cartridge 10 is slid into the housing 28.

(17) The cartridge holder 28 would normally form a part of the streaking apparatus generally described above, and forms a part of the overall system for the connection of a loaded cartridge 10 to a cartridge holder of an automated streaking apparatus. Indeed, FIG. 6 illustrates a part of such a streaking apparatus that includes multiple cartridge holders 28 (some of which, such as cartridge holders 28a, are shown without of a cartridge 10 therein) in order to be able to hold multiple cartridges 10 (as seen in cartridge holders 28b) and thus store, ready for dispensing, a very large number of streaking applicators 12, in a manner such that the streaking device 60 mentioned above is able to selectively access any one of the cartridges 10 to obtain a streaking applicator 12 therefrom, such as is shown in the schematic representation of FIG. 5.

(18) Each cartridge holder 28 includes a housing 34 configured and sized so as to receive a cartridge 10 within its interior, ideally to slidably receive the cartridge 10 in a close fit therein. The housing 34 is thus shown including therewithin, the biasing member 30 mentioned above that operatively interacts with the elongate slot 15 of the casing 14 and the applicator support member 20.

(19) The housing 34 also includes a cartridge lock 40 that releasably engages with the cartridge 10 when in the cartridge holder 28 to secure the cartridge 10 in place. Also, the biasing member 30 includes a spring 31 to assist the release of the cartridge 10 when the cartridge lock 40 is released.

(20) Each housing 34 is shown configured and oriented such that, when a cartridge 10 is housed therein, the applicator dispensing position of the cartridge 10 (which is at the upper, dispensing end A of the cartridge 10) can be operatively accessed by the streaking device 60 of the streaking apparatus. In this respect, the housing need not be a fully enclosed housing, in that it includes complete side walls or the like, although as is evident in FIG. 5, side was 62 can be incorporated.

(21) Therefore, in use (and with reference to all of the figures), when a loaded cartridge 10, loaded with a stack of applicators 12 supported within the case 14 upon the support member 20, is slid into the housing 34, the abutment 32 enters the slot 15 and engages with the underside of the support member 20. The biasing of the abutment 32 is then such as to continuously urge the support member 20 towards the dispensing end A of the case 14 so that the uppermost applicator X in the stack is always urged into, and held in, the dispensing position.

(22) The removal (or dispensing) of this uppermost applicator X (in the manner described above) by a streaking device 60 will then result in the next applicator (now becoming the uppermost applicator) in the stack again being urged by the biasing member 30 into the dispensing position. This can then continue until the last applicator 12 in the stack is dispensed and the cartridge 10 is empty.

(23) Upon emptying of the cartridge 10, it may be removed from the automated streaking apparatus and either disposed of, or returned to a supplier for recharging. Alternatively, it may be re-filled on-site with a new stack of applicators 12. With this in mind, the case 14 of the cartridge 10 in this embodiment is formed such that one of the four walls is detachably removable to provide easy access to the interior thereof such that the cartridge 10 can be re-loaded if required. In FIGS. 3a and 3b the removable wall is the side wall 14d opposite the side wall 14b that includes the elongate slot 15.

(24) In conclusion, it must be appreciated that there may be other variations and modifications to the configurations described herein which are also within the scope of the present invention.