Patent attributes
A dispensing pump (10) for liquids, viscous materials, foams, gels, etc. includes a resilient plastic skirt spring (18) so that the entire pump can be more easily recycled. The dispensing pump (10) includes a base portion (12), an inlet valve (14), a piston valve (16), a polymer skirt spring (18), a spring guide structure (20) and a pump actuator (22). The skirt spring (18) comprises a plurality of concentric nesting rings (38) sequentially decreasing in diameter from a base ring (38A) to a top ring (38F) wherein adjacent rings are interconnected by spaced bridge segments (40) and the bridge segments are staggered at each sequential ring. The skirt spring (18) includes structures which interact with the piston valve (16) to open the outlet valve.
