Granted Patent B2

US 12,441,044 · App. 17/908,402 · Granted Oct 14, 2025

Inventors: Thomas Q. Chastek (St. Paul, MN); Garth V. Antila (Hudson, WI); Ilya A. Salnikov (Inver Grove Heights, MN); Richard P. Lovelien (Baldwin, WI); Gibson L. Batch (St. Paul, MN)

Assignee: 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY

B29C48/51B29C48/252B29C48/397

Abstract

Claims (47)

1. An apparatus for dispensing a composition, the apparatus comprising:

a barrel having an inlet and an outlet;

a screw received in the barrel, the screw having a distal end and a shank end spaced along a longitudinal axis, and a shaft having a single helical flight disposed thereon, the shaft becoming progressively larger in diameter from the shank end to the distal end; and

a drive mechanism operatively coupled to the shank end and capable of rotating the screw within the barrel,

wherein the screw is hollow and includes one or more interior surfaces and one or more exterior surfaces, the one or more interior surfaces defining a cavity adjacent to the outlet, and wherein the screw further includes a plurality of apertures through which the cavity and the one or more exterior surfaces of the screw communicate with each other, the plurality of apertures located along a perforated portion of the cavity, and the perforated portion having a transverse dimension that increases with distance from the shank end, wherein the plurality of apertures are located on the helical flight,

wherein the perforated portion defines a hole area, representing a total cross-sectional area of the apertures per unit area of the one or more exterior surfaces, that increases with the diameter of the shaft along the longitudinal axis and the distance from the shank end.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the screw comprises the helical flight extending around the shaft, the helical flight including a raised flight section and one or more lowered flight sections adjacent to the raised flight section, each of the one or more lowered flight sections located distal to the raised flight section and adjacent to an exposed surface of the shaft, and further wherein the plurality of apertures are at least partially located on the one or more lowered flight sections.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the one or more lowered flight sections are discontinuously spread along the helical flight.

4. The apparatus of claim 2 ,

wherein a portion of the helical flight in a distal direction of each of the plurality of apertures does not have a height greater than that of the respective lowered flight section in the portion.

5. A method of dispensing a composition using the apparatus of claim 1 , the method comprising:

feeding the composition into the inlet of the barrel;

rotating the screw to convey the composition toward the distal end of the screw, and generating sufficient pressure to urge the composition through the plurality of apertures and into the cavity; and

expelling the composition from the cavity through the outlet of the barrel.

6. An apparatus for dispensing a composition, the apparatus comprising:

a barrel having an inlet and an outlet;

a screw received in the barrel, the screw having a distal end and a shank end spaced along a longitudinal axis, and a shaft having a single helical flight disposed thereon, the shaft becoming progressively larger in diameter from the shank end to the distal end; and

a drive mechanism operatively coupled to the shank end and capable of rotating the screw within the barrel,

wherein the screw is hollow and includes one or more interior surfaces and one or more exterior surfaces, the one or more interior surfaces defining a cavity adjacent to the outlet, and wherein the screw further includes a plurality of apertures through which the cavity and the one or more exterior surfaces of the screw communicate with each other, and

wherein the the single helical flight extend around the shaft, the helical flight including a raised flight section and one or more lowered flight sections adjacent to the raised flight section, and each of the one or more lowered flight sections located distal to the raised flight section and adjacent to an exposed surface of the shaft, and

wherein the plurality of apertures are at least partially located on the one or more lowered flight sections, wherein the plurality of apertures are located on the helical flight,

wherein the perforated portion defines a hole area, representing a total cross-sectional area of the apertures per unit area of the one or more exterior surfaces, that increases with the diameter of the shaft along the longitudinal axis and distance from the shank end.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the plurality of apertures are located along a perforated portion of the cavity, the perforated portion having a transverse dimension that increases with the distance from the shank end.

8. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the one or more lowered flight sections are discontinuously spread along the helical flight.

9. The apparatus of claim 6 ,

wherein a portion of the helical flight in a distal direction of each of the plurality of apertures does not have a height greater than that of the respective lowered flight section in the portion.

10. A method of dispensing a composition using the apparatus of claim 6 , the method comprising:

feeding the composition into the inlet of the barrel;

rotating the screw to convey the composition toward the distal end of the screw, and generating sufficient pressure to urge the composition through the plurality of apertures and into the cavity; and

expelling the composition from the cavity through the outlet of the barrel.

11. An apparatus for dispensing a composition, the apparatus comprising:

a barrel having an inlet and an outlet;

a screw received in the barrel, the screw having a distal end and a shank end spaced along a longitudinal axis, the screw comprising a shaft having a single helical flight extending around the shaft, the shaft becoming progressively larger in diameter from the shank end to the distal end; and

a drive mechanism operatively coupled to the shank end and capable of rotating the screw within the barrel,

wherein the screw is hollow and includes one or more interior surfaces and one or more exterior surfaces, the one or more interior surfaces defining a cavity adjacent to the outlet, and wherein

the screw further includes a plurality of apertures through which the cavity and the one or more exterior surfaces communicate with each other, and

wherein the plurality of apertures are located along a perforated portion on the helical flight,

wherein the perforated portion defines a hole area, representing a total cross-sectional area of the apertures per unit area of the one or more exterior surfaces, that increases with the diameter of the shaft along the longitudinal axis and the distance from the shank end.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the perforated portion has a transverse dimension that increases with the distance from the shank end.

13. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the helical flight includes a raised flight section and one or more lowered flight sections adjacent to the raised flight section, and each of the one or more lowered flight sections located distal to the raised flight section and adjacent to an exposed surface of the shaft, and further wherein the plurality of apertures are at least partially located on the one or more lowered flight sections.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 , the one or more lowered flight sections are discontinuously spread along the helical flight.

15. The apparatus of claim 13 ,

wherein a portion of the helical flight in a distal direction of each of the plurality of apertures does not have a height greater than that of the respective lowered flight section in the portion.

16. A method of dispensing a composition using the apparatus of claim 11 , the method comprising:

feeding the composition into the inlet of the barrel;

rotating the screw to convey the composition toward the distal end of the screw, and generating sufficient pressure to urge the composition through the plurality of apertures and into the cavity; and

expelling the composition from the cavity through the outlet of the barrel.

Assignments (1)

Continuity (2)

References Cited (20)