Valve and related structure for vacuum operated liquid-fill bottles

Claim 2

In a vacuum-operated liquid-fill bottle having a vacuum connection port and a liquid receiving port, said vacuum connection port having a lower extremity, an improvement comprising a molded unitary valve housing having an upper tubular mount secured directly to said lower extremity, a lower valve cage integral with and meeting at a unitarily molded common juncture partition with and at the Bottom of said upper tubular mount and depending therebeneath, said common juncture partition being configured to define a downwardly facing apertured valve seat disposed within said valve housing at the bottom of said tubular mount, an upwardly convex, interiorly hollow float-valve member, having a transverse, cylindrical cross-section, disposed within said lower valve cage and constructed for seating against said valve seat when said float-valve member is carried upwardly by a rising liquid level within said bottle, said lower valve cage including plural, mutually spaced apertures, disposed about the periphery of said valve cage.

Claim 3

The structure of claim 1 wherein said valve cage is provided with a solid shield portion disposed part way about the periphery of said valve cage, said valve cage including aperture means above said valve shield as part of said plural apertures, the remainder of said plural apertures depending beneath said aperture means.

Claim 4

In a vacuum-operated liquid-fill bottle having a vacuum connection port and a liquid receiving port, said vacuum connection port having a lower extremity, an improvement comprising a unitary valve housing having an upper tubular mount secured to said lower extremity, a lower valve cage integral with and meeting at a common juncture partition with said upper tubular mount, at the bottom thereof, and depending therebeneath, said common juncture partition being configured to define a downwardly facing apertured valve seat which is disposed within said valve housing, an upwardly convex hollow float-valve member, having a transverse, cylindrical cross-section, disposed within said lower valve cage and constructed for seating against said valve seat when said float-valve member is carried upwardly by a rising liquid level within said bottle, said lower valve cage including plural, mutually spaced apertures disposed about the periphery of said valve cage, and wherein said common juncture partition is inclined relative to the longitudinal axis of said tubular mount.

Claim 5

In a vacuum-operated liquid-fill bottle having a vacuum connection port and a liquid receiving port, said vacuum connection port having a lower extremity, an improvement comprising a unitary valve housing having an upper tubular mount secured to said lower extremity, a lower valve cage integral with and meeting at a common juncture partition with said upper tubular mount, at the bottom thereof, and depending therebeneath, said common juncture partition being configured to define a downwardly facing apertured valve seat which is disposed within said valve housing, an upwardly convex hollow float-valve member, having a transverse, cylindrical cross-section, disposed within said lower valve cage and constructed for seating against said valve seat when said float-valve member is carried upwardly by a rising liquid level within said bottle, said lower valve cage including plural, mutually spaced apertures disposed about the periphery of said valve cage, and wherein said common juncture partition is inclined relative to the longitudinal axis of said tubular mount.

Claim 6

Structure according to claim 3 wherein said valve cage is laterally offset relative to said tubular mount.

Claim 7

Structure according to claim 1 wherein said valve member comprises a valve cup having a closed interior and an outwardly convex valve seating element seated within said valve cup to close said interior.

Claim 8

Structure according to claim 1 wherein a portion of said plural apertures is elevated relative to the remainder of said apertures, said valve cage including a valve shield disposed beneath said elevated apertures.

Claim 9

A float-valve construction including, in combination, a unitary valve housing having an upper tubular mount and constructed for direct connection to a depending vacuum port, a valve cage integral with, depending from, and integrally molded with said upper tubular mount, the common juncture structure between said tubular mount and said valve cage being configured to define a downwardly facing valve seat, a hollow float-valve member disposed within said valve cage and constructed for seating against said valve seat when said float-valve member is carried upwardly by a rise in liquid level, said valve cage including plural, mutually spaced apertures disposed in the aggregate completely about the periphery of said valve cage.

Claim 10

A float-valve construction including, in combination, a unitary valve housing having an upper tubular mount and constructed for direct connection to a depending vacuum port, a valve cage integral with, depending from, and integrally molded with said upper tubular mount, the common juncture structure between said tubular mount and said valve cage being configured to define a downwardly facing valve seat, a hollow float-valve member disposed within said valve cage and constructed for seating against said valve seat when said float-valve member is carried upwardly by a rise in liquid level, said valve cage including plural, mutually spaced apertures disposed in the aggregate completely about the periphery of said valve cage.

Claim 11

Structure according to claim 1 wherein said float-valve member includes laterally extending guide ears slideably registering with selected ones of said apertures.

Claim 12

In a vacuum-operated liquid-fill bottle having a fluid inlet port and a vacuum port: an improvement comprising a valve housing having an upper mounting portion directly secured to said vacuum port and a lower valve guide portion integral with said upper mounting portion, and interiorly hollow valve means operably disposed within said lower valve guide portion for terminating air-flow through said vacuum port, said valve means comprising a lower, interiorly hollow valve cup, and an upper sealing valve element sealingly secured to said valve cup, said valve housing being provided with wall aperture means for permitting air-flow there-through, said valve housing and said valve means having mutually engageable reaction structure for retaining said valve means for operation within said valve housing.

Claim 13

In a vacuum-operated liquid-fill bottle having a fluid inlet port and a vacuum port: an improvement comprising a valve housing having an upper mounting portion directly secured to said vacuum port and a lower valve guide portion integral with said upper mounting portion, and interiorly hollow valve means operably disposed within said lower valve guide portion for terminating air-flow through said vacuum port, said valve means comprising a lower, interiorly hollow valve cup, and an upper sealing valve element sealingly secured to said valve cup, said valve housing being provided with wall aperture means for permitting air-flow there-through, said valve housing and said valve means having mutually engageable reaction structure for retaining said valve means for operation within said valve housing.

Claim 14

In a vacuum-operated liquid-fill bottle having a fluid inlet port and a vacuum port: an improvement comprising a valve housing having an upper mounting portion secured to said vacuum port and a lower valve guide portion integral with said upper mounting portion, and interiorly hollow valve means operably disposed within said lower valve guide portion for terminating air-flow through said vacuum port, said valve means comprising a lower, interiorly hollow valve cup, and an upper sealing valve element sealingly secured to said valve cup, said valve housing being provided with wall aperture means for permitting air-flow there-through, said valve housing and said valve means having mutually engageable reaction structure for retaining said valve means for operation within said valve housing, and wherein said aperture means comprise essentially vertically oriented, mutually spaced, lowerly closed-ended slots, said valve means including outwardly extending tab means, constituting in part said reaction structure, positioned in selected slots for engaging the lower ends thereof.

Claim 15

In a vacuum-operated liquid-fill bottle having a fluid inlet port and a vacuum port: an improvement comprising a valve housing having an upper mounting portion secured to said vacuum port and a lower valve guide portion integral with said upper mounting portion, and interiorly hollow valve means operably disposed within said lower valve guide portion for terminating air-flow through said vacuum port, said valve means comprising a lower, interiorly hollow valve cup, and an upper sealing valve element sealingly secured to said valve cup, said valve housing being provided with wall aperture means for permitting air-flow there-through, said valve housing and said valve means having mutually engageable reaction structure for retaining said valve means for operation within said valve housing, and wherein said aperture means comprise essentially vertically oriented, mutually spaced, lowerly closed-ended slots, said valve means including outwardly extending tab means, constituting in part said reaction structure, positioned in selected slots for engaging the lower ends thereof.

Claim 16

Structure according to claim 9 wherein said valve element is upwardly convex and upstanding from said cup.

Claim 17

Structure according to claim 9 wherein said valve housing is provided with an apertured transverse partition disposed at the bottom of said upper mounting portion and constructed as a valve seat cooperable with said valve means.