PAINT CUP WITH VENTILATION VALVE

Abstract

A paint cup for a paint spray gun includes a paint container which has a container wall and a base. The base is made of a natural fibrous material, in particular a cellulose-based fibrous material, so as to be pierceable and has a piercing point or region in order to ventilate the paint cup. In a method for using the paint cup with a base which is made of a natural fibrous material, the base is pierced in order to form a ventilation valve.

Claims

1-16. (canceled)

17. A paint cup for a paint spray gun, the paint cup comprising a paint container which has a vessel wall and a base, wherein the base is made of a natural fibrous material so as to be pierceable and has a piercing point or region in order to ventilate the paint cup.

18. The paint cup as claimed in claim 17, wherein the piercing point or region is of identical design to the rest of the base, the piercing point or region has a weakening, or the base has a reinforcement around the piercing point or region.

19. The paint cup as claimed in claim 17, wherein the piercing point or region is indicated optically and/or haptically.

20. The paint cup as claimed in claim 17, wherein the paint cup comprises a piercing spike, wherein the piercing spike is embodied in such a way that a ventilation valve for producing pressure compensation is formed by penetration of the base at the piercing point or region.

21. The paint cup as claimed in claim 20, wherein the piercing spike is embodied in such a way that at least one closable ventilation channel is formed by penetration of the base at the piercing point or region, wherein the ventilation channel is passed at least one of on the outer circumference of the piercing spike and axially through the piercing spike.

22. The paint cup as claimed in claim 20, wherein the piercing spike is designed to have two or more stages with stepped diameters and the piercing point or region can be penetrated by the piercing spike in two or more stages, wherein the piercing spike penetrates in a non-sealing manner in one stage in order to produce pressure compensation and in a sealing manner in a further stage.

23. The paint cup as claimed in claim 20, wherein the piercing spike has retaining means for fixing the piercing spike on the paint container in at least one stage.

24. The paint cup as claimed in claim 20, wherein the piercing spike has at least four axially successive stages, wherein the first stage forms a penetration tip, the second stage forms a ventilation dome, the third stage forms a sealing dome, and the fourth stage forms an actuating cap.

25. The paint cup as claimed in claim 24, wherein the piercing spike has one or more axially extending ventilation channels.

26. The paint cup as claimed in claim 24, wherein the piercing spike has one or more axially extending ventilation channels, which continue into one or more radially extending ventilation channels on an end face of the piercing spike.

27. The paint cup as claimed in claim 17, wherein the vessel wall is made of a natural fibrous material.

28. The paint cup as claimed in claim 17, wherein at least one of the vessel wall and the base is made of cardboard with a weight per square meter over 200 g/m.sup.2.

29. The paint cup as claimed in claim 17, wherein at least one of the vessel wall and the base is provided, at least on the inside, with a liquid-resistant coating.

30. The paint cup as claimed in claim 17, wherein at least one of the vessel wall and the base is single-ply, two-ply or three-ply cardboard.

31. The paint cup as claimed in claim 17, wherein an end of the paint cup facing the paint spray gun has an outlet opening for connection to the paint spray gun or for connection to an adapter for connection to the paint spray gun.

32. The paint cup as claimed in claim 17, wherein the natural fibrous material is a cellulose-based fibrous material.

33. The paint cup as claimed in claim 23, wherein the retaining means is designed as a circumferential fixing groove.

34. The paint cup as claimed in claim 25, wherein the one or more axially extending ventilation channels are in the form of one or more axially extending grooves arranged on the circumference of the ventilation dome.

35. The paint cup as claimed in claim 29, wherein the liquid-resistant coating includes at least one of plastic and aluminum.

36. A method for using the paint cup as claimed in claim 17, the method comprising piercing the base to form a ventilation valve.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0040] Advantageous embodiments and further features of the invention will be found in the figures and the following description of the figures. Here, identical or at least comparable features are denoted by the same reference signs.

[0041] More specifically:

[0042] FIGS. 1 to 3 show a paint cup according to the invention for a paint spray gun in a side, a front and a sectional view with an opening closed by a lid comprising a pierceable base,

[0043] FIGS. 4 to 6 show detail views of the lid system from FIGS. 1 to 3 in a side, a front and a sectional view in an exploded illustration,

[0044] FIG. 7 shows a detail view of the lid system in the state connected to the paint container,

[0045] FIG. 8 shows a detail illustration of a piercing spike in a first state,

[0046] FIGS. 9a and 9b show a detail illustration of a piercing spike in a first and a second state,

[0047] FIGS. 10 to 11 show a paint cup according to the invention in an embodiment as an upside-down variant in a front and a sectional view, and

[0048] FIGS. 12 to 14 show a further variant embodiment of a paint cup according to the invention as an upside-down variant in a front and a sectional view.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0049] According to the exemplary embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 7, a paint container 3 for receiving paint is illustrated with a paint cup 1 having a base 5 and a piercing spike 7, which penetrates the base 5. In this case, the paint container 3 comprises an outer, here circular-cylindrical, vessel wall 4, adjoining the underside of which is a funnel-shaped extension with an outlet opening 20 for paint. The outlet opening 20 is detachably connected to the paint spray gun 2 via a corresponding connection. Due to gravity, paint in the paint container 3 flows into the paint spray gun 2 and remains there until it is taken along and atomized by a compressed air flow provided by the paint spray gun 2.

[0050] On the upper side, for example on the side facing away from the paint spray gun 2, the paint cup 1 has an opening 30 configured as a refill opening, which is closed by means of a lid system 9. Paint can be replenished at any time via the opening 30 with the lid system 9 removed, even when the paint cup 1 is mounted on the paint spray gun 2. The refill opening 30 is formed by the end 4′ of the vessel wall 4. The opening 30 is closed by means of the lid system 9 comprising the lid 10 and the counter-ring 14.

[0051] The lid 10 comprises a base 5 with a piercing region 6, which is pierced by a piercing spike 7 in a first, non-sealing (ventilating) penetration state in the depictions in FIGS. 1 to 3. The piercing region 6 is made optically identifiable, e.g. by a printed-on circular ring.

[0052] The piercing spike 7 produces an atmospheric connection between the interior of the container of the paint cup 1 and the environment via a ventilation channel 8, which is not illustrated here. Further details regarding the piercing spike 7 and the base 5 are discussed in the explanations of FIGS. 8 and 9a to 9b.

[0053] The lid system 9, portions of which are shown in an exploded illustration in FIGS. 4 to 6 and which is shown in the assembled state in FIG. 7, is constructed as follows:

[0054] The lid 10 comprises a U-shaped hollow collar 15 with an inner and an outer cylindrical collar 16 and 17, respectively, in which the counter-ring 14 and an end section 4′ of the vessel wall 4 are accommodated under stress. The counter-ring 14 and the hollow collar 15 are detachably connected via corresponding threads 18 and 19, respectively, which are situated on the outer circumference of the end of the vessel wall 4 and on the inner circumference of the outer cylindrical collar 17. The inner cylindrical collar 16 is of wedge-shaped design, with the result that a tapering gap is formed between the inner and outer cylindrical collars 16 and 17, respectively, into which gap the counter-ring 14 and the end section 4′ of the vessel wall 4 are radially clamped or braced with increasing screw fastening.

[0055] The base 5, which extends in the form of a circular disk over the area enclosed by the hollow collar 15, is formed on the hollow collar 15. The base 5 is integrally formed on the hollow collar 15 or formed with the hollow collar 15. Like the hollow collar 15 itself, it consists of a natural fibrous material such as, for example, paper or cardboard.

[0056] The lid 10 can consist, for example, of a mixture of cell particles pressed together. The mixture of cell particles can expediently be enriched with reinforcing binders or fillers such as, for example, a resin-based adhesive or the like (similar to a composite chipboard).

[0057] This increases the strength and makes it possible, for example, to introduce a strong thread into the outer collar 17 of the hollow collar 15 of the lid 10.

[0058] In alternative embodiments, which are not shown in the figures, the hollow collar 15 and the base 5 are produced in two or more parts. For example, the hollow collar 15 can be produced as an injection molding from a suitable plastic, to which the base 5, produced from natural fibrous material, is laminated on the upper side (side facing away from the paint spray gun 2) or the lower side (side facing the paint spray gun 2) of the hollow collar 15. A base 5 made of natural fibrous material attached in this way has greater stability than, for example, a similarly attached base 5 made of a plastic film.

[0059] Although natural fibrous materials must prima facie always be opaque, the base 5 can also be produced in opaque or translucent or transparent form. Materials suitable for this purpose made of cellulose or plant-based materials and binders which connect these materials appropriately, such as, for example, resin-based adhesives, are known to a person skilled in the art.

[0060] The stability of the base 5 permits the use of a piercing spike 7, with which the piercing point or region 6 of the base 5 can be pierced. Here, the piercing point or region 6 is arranged centrally or radially centrally on the base 5 and could be identified, for example, by a colored marking. However, it could also be arranged off-center and in particular close to the edge in order to reduce the flexibility of the base 5 and to increase the resistance of the base 5 during penetration. As an alternative or in addition, the region of the base 5 could also be reinforced in some region or regions around the piercing point or region 6, e.g. by means of a laminated-on second, annular layer. This makes it possible to prevent or at least reduce the risk of the base 5 being torn open during penetration.

[0061] In order to put the paint cup 1 or the paint spray gun 2 into operation, the base 5 is pierced in a non-sealing manner (first penetration state) in the piercing point or region 6 using the piercing spike 7: as can be seen, for example, from FIG. 8, the piercing spike 7, which is of substantially rotationally symmetrical design, is constructed along its longitudinal axis from the penetration tip 21, a ventilation dome 22 having a first diameter d1, a sealing dome 23 having a second diameter d2, and a gripping region having the gripping disk 25 (actuating cap). Four ventilation channels 8, each in the form of an axial groove, extend along the ventilation dome 22. Ventilation channels 8′, which are designed as radial grooves, are formed on the sealing dome 23, which can be of slightly spherical design, and continue the axial ventilation channels 8, with the result that the ventilation channels 8 are fluidically connected to the atmosphere. The piercing spike 7 is held in the first penetration state in that the base 5 is caught in a fixing groove 26.

[0062] In order to take the paint cup 1 or the paint spray gun 2 out of operation, the piercing spike 7 is moved from the non-sealing position into a sealing position (second penetration state): for this purpose, the sealing dome 23 of the piercing spike 7 is pushed further into or through the base 5 of the lid 10 until the lateral surface of the sealing dome 23 comes into sealing contact with the outer edge of the piercing region 6. The fluidic connection of the ventilation channels 8 to the atmosphere is thereby prevented. The lateral surface of the sealing dome 23 seals the piercing region 6. The piercing spike 7 is held in the second penetration state in that the base 5 is caught in a fixing groove 27.

[0063] In order to put the paint cup 1 or the paint spray gun 2 into operation again, the piercing spike 7 can be reset from the second penetration state into the first penetration state. It goes without saying, however, that there is certainly the risk that the piercing spike 7 will not remain in the first penetration state in a comparably stable manner on account of the widening of the hole in the base 5.

[0064] In order to prevent the piercing spike 7 from accidentally being removed or falling out of the base 5, the piercing spike 7 could also have one or more barbs or barb-like shaped elements arranged, for example, on the lateral surface of the first stage 22.

[0065] FIGS. 9a (first penetration state) and 9b (second penetration state) show a second embodiment of the piercing spike 7, in which the piercing spike 7, in addition to the ventilation dome 22 and the sealing dome 23, also has a third dome 24 within the grip 25, with a third diameter d3, where d1 <d2<d3 applies to the diameter ratios. In contrast to the piercing spike 7 described in FIG. 8, the base 5 of the lid 10 in the piercing spike 7 of FIG. 9b in the second penetration state is sealed not only by the sealing contact of the lateral surface of the sealing dome 23 but additionally by the end face of the third dome 24 facing the base 5 or piercing region 6. As a result of the third dome 24, a higher sealing performance is thus possible. The end face of the third dome 24 could comprise further sealing means, e.g. a sealing ring made of an elastomeric material inserted in an annular groove.

[0066] Finally, FIGS. 10 to 11 and 12 to 14 show two further exemplary embodiments in upside-down variants. Upside-down means that the opening 4 of the paint container 3 is provided on the side facing the paint spray gun 2, wherein the opening 4 is closed or can be closed by a lid 10′ having an outlet opening 20 for connection to the paint spray gun 2. The lid systems 9 of these exemplary embodiments are designed as clip lids with fastening elements 11 (FIGS. 10 and 11), which are attached in an articulated manner to the lid 10′ by hinges and engage around a sealing bead 12 of the paint container 3, or, comparably to the lid system 9 of the first exemplary embodiment according to FIGS. 1 to 7, as a lid 10′ with a counter-ring 14 (FIGS. 12 to 14). In a manner analogous to the previous exemplary embodiments, the base 5 of the paint cup 1 can be penetrated by the piercing spike 7, although the bases 5 here are not detachable but are formed integrally with the vessel wall 4 of the paint container 3. In this case, the vessel wall 4 is produced from the same material as the base 5.

[0067] Advantageously, the paint container 3 can be constructed on the base side with a standing collar 13, cf. FIG. 11, which makes it possible for the paint container 3 to be placed on its base 5 even with the penetrating piercing spike 7.

[0068] It is self-evident that components which are described in the description of the figures as cylinders or cylindrical can also have a shape which deviates (slightly) therefrom, such as, for example, conical, frustoconical, spherical, etc.