Down-locking dispensing pump with side-orificed, product-mixing ball

Abstract

The plunger of the pump has a hollow, depending projection at its lower end which engages the ball valve when the plunger is locked down in a fully depressed position for shipment, the projection thereby holding the ball firmly seated against the inlet to the interior of the body so as to prevent leakage should the container be laid on its side or inverted during shipment. During the down stroke of the plunger for normal operation, the product enters the tubular plunger through orifices in the ball hold-down projection, and such orifices are located on the side of the projection, separated by slender, axially extending legs so that as the product enters the projection, it is split into a plurality of turbulent streams by the legs and recombined internally of the projection, thereby imparting a mixing action to the product to aid in keeping the constituents in a homogeneous condition. One form of the projection has a closed tip at its lower end so that all product enters the plunger via the side orifices, while a second form has an opening across the tip to permit a portion of the product to enter at that location. The legs separating the side orifices are yieldably resilient so as to bow outwardly to a certain extent when the plunger is locked down against the ball valve, thereby accommodating dimensional variations that may occur in the length of the plunger and its related components during manufacturing.