Cup-shaped Fluidic Circuit with Alignment Tabs, Nozzle Assembly and Method

摘要

An automatically alignable conformal, cup-shaped fluidic nozzle engineered to generate an oscillating spray is configured as a cylindrical cup having a substantially open proximal end and a substantially closed distal end wall with a centrally located power nozzle defined therein and between first and second distally projecting alignment tabs or wall segments. Optionally, the fluidic circuit's oscillation inducing geometry is molded directly into the sealing post's distal surface and a one-piece cup provides the discharge orifice.

主权项

1. A nozzle assembly or spray head including a lumen or duct for dispensing or spraying a pumped or pressurized liquid product or fluid from a valve, pump or actuator assembly drawing from a transportable container to generate an exhaust flow in the form of an oscillating spray of fluid droplets, comprising;
(a) an actuator body having a distally projecting sealing post having a post peripheral wall terminating at a distal or outer face, said actuator body including a fluid passage communicating with said lumen; (b) a cup-shaped fluidic circuit mounted in said actuator body member having a peripheral wall extending proximally into a bore in said actuator body radially outwardly of said sealing post and having a distal radial wall comprising an inner face opposing said sealing post's distal or outer face to define a fluid channel including a chamber having an interaction region between said body's sealing post and said cup-shaped fluidic circuit's peripheral wall and distal wall; (c) said chamber being in fluid communication with said actuator body's fluid passage to define a fluidic circuit oscillator inlet so said pressurized fluid may enter said fluid channel's chamber and interaction region; (d) said cup-shaped fluidic circuit distal wall's inner face being configured to define within said chamber a first power nozzle and second power nozzle, wherein said first power nozzle is configured to accelerate the movement of passing pressurized fluid flowing through said first nozzle to form a first jet of fluid flowing into said chamber's interaction region, and said second power nozzle is configured to accelerate the movement of passing pressurized fluid flowing through said second nozzle to form a second jet of fluid flowing into said chamber's interaction region, and wherein said first and second jets impinge upon one another at a selected inter-jet impingement angle and generate oscillating flow vortices within said fluid channel's interaction region; (e) wherein said chamber's interaction region is in fluid communication with a discharge orifice or power nozzle defined in said fluidic circuit's distal wall, and said oscillating flow vortices exhaust from said discharge orifice as an oscillating spray of substantially uniform fluid droplets in a selected spray pattern having a selected spray width and a selected spray thickness, and (f) wherein said cup-shaped fluidic circuit's distal end wall's power nozzle is defined between first and second distally projecting substantially parallel elongated alignment tabs or orientation ribs.