Axial-movement type springless valve

Claim 1

A valve construction for an aerosol dispenser, comprising in combination: a. a valve housing having a chamber for receiving liquid from a container, said chamber having an annular inner wall surface, and having an unyielding transverse wall including a solid portion defining one side of said chamber, b. a resilient, apertured valve seat constituting an opposite side of said chamber, c. a valve part having a hollow shank portion extending through the aperture of the valve seat, d. said valve part having an annular valve shoulder disposed in the liquid-receiving chamber of the housing and engageable with the resilient valve seat to close the aperture thereof, e. said valve part being elongate, having a longitudinal axis and having a side passage disposed adjacent the valve shoulder and communicating with the hollow of the shank portion, said part further having a plurality of sloped, yieldable, integral fingers, each of which lies substantially along a helical path, said fingers having rounded end portions which are engageable with and slidable on the transverse wall of the valve housing when the valve part is shifted axially with respect to the housing, said fingers being elongate and lying substantially along a constant radius with respect to the axis of the valve part, and being closely confined by the aNnular wall surface of the chamber, to be guided thereby, f. the shifting of the valve part in one direction flexing said elongate fingers and unseating the shoulder of the part from the valve seat whereby liquid from the chamber can flow into the hollow shank portion through the said side passage, g. said fingers of the valve part normally supporting the part on the transverse wall of the valve housing with the valve shoulder engaged with said resilient valve seat.