Ligature-resistant folded-sheet paper towel dispenser with convoluted paper outlet path

Abstract

A ligature-resistant folded-sheet paper towel dispenser includes a rear housing with a rear mounting plane surface for securing the ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser to a wall. A front cover is rotatably coupled and lockable to the rear housing, and a paper outlet formed by the front cover, the rear housing, or a combination of the front cover and the rear housing and fed by a paper path having a serpentine segment along which the paper towels are guided and that is defined by curved projections that contact the paper towels on alternating faces as the paper towels are dispensed. The paper path terminates in an outlet slot at the bottom of the towel dispenser to dispense paper towels from a stack of folded-sheet paper towels. The paper towel dispenser also includes a locking mechanism for securing the front cover to the rear housing.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser for dispensing folded-sheet paper towels comprising:
 a rear housing having a mounting plane surface on a rear face thereof for securing the ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser to a wall;   a front cover rotatably coupled to the rear housing;   a paper outlet formed through one of the front cover, the rear housing, or a combination of the front cover and the rear housing and fed by a paper path having a serpentine segment along which the paper towels are guided and that is defined by curved projections that contact the paper towels on alternating faces as the paper towels are dispensed, wherein the paper path terminates in an outlet slot disposed at a bottom of the towel dispenser for dispensing paper towels from a stack of folded-sheet paper towels; and   a locking mechanism for securing the front cover to the rear housing.   
     
     
         2 . The ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser of  claim 1 , wherein the serpentine segment of the paper path defines a gap that is conformed to a thickness of one or two sheets of the paper towels, so that inward insertion of a ligature is prevented, while exit of single sheets of paper towels is permitted. 
     
     
         3 . The ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser of  claim 1 , wherein the paper path is inclined so that an exit of the outlet slot is directed toward the rear face of the housing to prevent attempts to insert a ligature upward from the bottom of the housing. 
     
     
         4 . The ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser of  claim 1 , wherein the rear housing has a rear shelf portion for receiving the stack of folded-sheet paper towels, and wherein the front cover includes a front shelf portion that supports a front edge of the stack of folded-sheet paper towels when the front cover is secured to the rear housing in a closed position, wherein a front edge of the rear shelf portion and a bottom inner edge of the front cover form the outlet slot, wherein a horizontal extent of the front shelf portion and the rear shelf portion share a horizontal plane, and wherein the bottom inner edge of the front cover terminates in a terminal one of the curved projections that define the serpentine paper path, and wherein the front cover overlaps and extends behind and below a front bottom edge of the rear shelf portion to direct the exit of the outlet slot toward the rear face of the housing, so that the outlet slot is not visible from the front or beneath the ligature-resistant towel dispenser. 
     
     
         5 . The ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser of  claim 4 , wherein the front shelf portion is inclined upward at a front end thereof, whereby the stack of folded-sheet paper towels is lifted along a front edge of the bottom of the stack of folded-sheet paper towels to reduce downward force of a weight of the stack of folded-sheet paper towels to ease removal of the folded-sheet paper towels through the outlet slot. 
     
     
         6 . The ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser of  claim 4 , wherein an extension of the front cover in the vicinity of the terminal projection and extending forward and upward from the terminal projection is inclined to direct the paper path rearward at an acute angle with respect to a horizontal plane perpendicular to the mounting plane surface of the rear housing. 
     
     
         7 . The ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser of  claim 1 , wherein the ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser has a top projection having an exterior that is curved or inclined downward from an apex to prevent attachment of a ligature. 
     
     
         8 . The ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser of  claim 7 , wherein the top projection is a top projection of the front cover. 
     
     
         9 . The ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser of  claim 8 , wherein the front cover is rotatably coupled to the rear housing by a hinge formed by posts formed on inner surfaces of the front cover at opposite sides thereof, and a corresponding pair of slots formed in projections extending from an inner surface of the rear housing, whereby the front cover may be rotated and slid forward with respect to the rear housing to permit access to the rear shelf portion for inserting the stack of folded-sheet paper towels. 
     
     
         10 . The ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser of  claim 1 , wherein the front cover and the rear housing join at a blind seam extending around the top and along both sides of the housing to prevent insertion of a ligature when the front cover is secured to the rear housing. 
     
     
         11 . A method of dispensing folded-sheet paper towels, while preventing formation or support of a ligature at the location of the dispensing, the method comprising:
 mounting a rear housing of a ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser to a wall by securing a mounting plane surface provided at a rear face of the rear housing;   opening a front cover rotatably attached to the rear housing;   installing a stack of folded-sheet paper towels within the ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser between the front cover and the rear housing;   securing the front cover to the rear housing and over the stack of folded-sheet paper towels with a locking mechanism; and   dispensing paper towels from the stack of folded-sheet paper towels through a paper outlet formed by one of the front cover, the rear housing, or a combination of the front cover and the rear housing by feeding the paper towels through a paper path having a serpentine segment along which the paper towels are guided and that is defined by curved projections that contact the paper towels on alternating faces as the paper towels are dispensed, wherein the paper path terminates in an outlet slot disposed at a bottom of the towel dispenser for dispensing the paper towels.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the serpentine segment of the paper path defines a gap that is conformed to a thickness of one or two sheets of the paper towels, so that inward insertion of a ligature is prevented, while exit of single sheets of paper towels is permitted. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the paper path is inclined so that an exit of the outlet slot is directed toward the rear face of the housing to prevent attempts to insert a ligature upward from the bottom of the housing. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the rear housing has a rear shelf portion for receiving the stack of folded-sheet paper towels, wherein the installing installs the stack of folded-sheet paper towels by setting the stack of folded-sheet paper towels on the rear shelf portion, wherein a front edge of the rear shelf portion and a bottom inner edge of the front cover form the outlet slot, and wherein the bottom inner edge of the front cover terminates in a terminal one of the curved projections that define the serpentine paper path, and wherein the front cover overlaps and extends behind and below a front bottom edge of the rear shelf portion to direct the exit of the outlet slot toward the rear face of the housing, so that the outlet slot is not visible from the front or beneath the ligature-resistant towel dispenser. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising reducing a downward force of the weight of the stack of folded-sheet paper towels to ease removal of the folded-sheet paper towels through the outlet slot by providing an upward incline of the front shelf portion toward a front end thereof. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein an extension of the front cover in the vicinity of the terminal projection and extending forward and upward from the terminal projection is inclined to direct the paper path rearward at an acute angle with respect to a horizontal plane perpendicular to the mounting plane surface of the rear housing. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 13 , further comprising preventing attachment of a ligature around a top of the ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser by providing the ligature-resistant paper towel dispenser with a top projection having an exterior that is curved or inclined downward from an apex to prevent attachment of a ligature. 
     
     
         18 . The method  claim 17 , wherein the top projection is a top projection of the front cover. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the front cover is rotatably coupled to the rear housing by a hinge formed by posts formed on inner surfaces of the front cover at opposite sides thereof, and a corresponding pair of slots formed in projections extending from an inner surface of the rear housing, and further comprising rotating and sliding the front cover forward with respect to the rear housing to access the shelf to install the stack of folded-sheet paper towels. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 11 , further comprising preventing insertion of a ligature between the front cover and the rear housing, by providing a blind seam extending around the top and along both sides of the housing to prevent insertion of a ligature when the front cover is secured to the rear housing.