U.S. patent application number 10/108433 was filed with the patent office on 2003-10-02 for sink stopper assembly.
Invention is credited to Li, Tsung-Lieh.
Application Number | 20030182721 10/108433 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 28452859 |
Filed Date | 2003-10-02 |
United States Patent
Application |
20030182721 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Li, Tsung-Lieh |
October 2, 2003 |
Sink stopper assembly
Abstract
A sink stopper assembly includes cup and basket strainers. The
cup strainer includes a bottom wall having a positioning hole, and
a shoulder portion forming a seat member. The basket strainer is
disposed in the cup strainer, and includes a receiving space, a
handle extending upwardly from a base wall, a sealing ring to be
seated against the seat member, and a retaining stem extending
downwardly from the base wall to penetrate the positioning hole.
The retaining stem includes a bent metal plate which has two
opposite elastic arms, at least one upper protrusion, at least one
lower protrusion, and a recess defined between the upper and lower
protrusions.
Inventors: |
Li, Tsung-Lieh; (Chang-Hua
City, TW) |
Correspondence
Address: |
FOLEY AND LARDNER
SUITE 500
3000 K STREET NW
WASHINGTON
DC
20007
US
|
Family ID: |
28452859 |
Appl. No.: |
10/108433 |
Filed: |
March 29, 2002 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
4/287 |
Current CPC
Class: |
E03C 1/262 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
4/287 |
International
Class: |
A47K 001/14; E03C
001/26 |
Claims
I claim:
1. A sink stopper assembly comprising: a cup strainer including a
bottom wall having a positioning hole, a tubular portion extending
upwardly from said bottomwall, a peripheral wall extending above
said tubular portion, and a shoulder portion connected between said
tubular portion and said peripheral wall, said shoulder portion
forming a seat member at a juncture of said shoulder portion and
said tubular portion; and a basket strainer disposed in said cup
strainer, said basket strainer including a base wall above said
bottom wall, a surrounding wall extending upwardly from said base
wall, a receiving space cooperatively defined by said base wall and
said surrounding wall, a handle extending upwardly from said base
wall, a sealing ring connected to said base wall and to be seated
against said seat member, and a retaining stem extending downwardly
from said base wall to penetrate said positioning hole, said
retaining stem including a bent metal plate which has two opposite
elastic arms, at least one upper protrusion projecting outwardly
from at least one of said elastic arms, at least one lower
protrusion projecting outwardly from said at least one of said
elastic arms below said upper protrusion, and a recess defined
between said upper and lower protrusions.
2. The sink stopper assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein said
bent metal plate further comprises a substantially U-shaped bottom
end part extending downwardly from and connected to said elastic
arms, a pair of diverging parts extending upwardly and respectively
from said elastic arms, and a pair of opposite top arms extending
upwardly and respectively from said diverging parts and fixed to
said base wall.
3. The sink stopper assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein said
bent metal plate includes a pair of said upper protrusions
projecting outwardly and respectively from said elastic arms, a
pair of said lower protrusions projecting outwardly and
respectively from said elastic arms below said upper protrusions,
and a pair of said recesses each defined between one of said upper
protrusions and one of said lower protrusions.
4. The sink stopper assembly as claimed in claim 2, wherein said
upper protrusion is formed below and is spaced apart from said
diverging parts.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The invention relates to a sink stopper assembly, more
particularly to a sink stopper assembly having a basket strainer
with a metal retaining stem extending downwardly from a base wall
of the basket strainer.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional sink stopper assembly 1
is shown to comprise a cup strainer 10 and a basket strainer 20
disposed in the cup strainer 10.
[0005] The cup strainer 10 is disposed in a sink 30, and includes a
tubular receiving seat 11, a peripheral flange 12 that extends
outwardly from a top end of the receiving seat 11, a pipe
connecting portion 13 extending downwardly from a bottom portion of
the receiving seat 11, and a bottom wall 14 formed in a lower
portion of the pipe connecting portion 13. The bottom wall 14 is
formed with a positioning hole 141 and a plurality of through holes
142 around the positioning hole 141. The cup strainer 10 further
has an upper blocking pad 15 disposed below the peripheral flange
12, a positioning ring 17 threadedly secured on an external thread
111 of the receiving seat 11, a lower blocking pad 16 disposed
between the sink 30 and the positioning ring 17, and a screw nut 19
threadedly secured on an external thread 131 of the pipe connecting
portion 13 so as to interconnect the pipe connecting portion 13
with a drain pipe 18.
[0006] The basket strainer 20 includes a tubular main body 21, a
sealing member 22 connected to a base wall 211 of the main body 21,
a handle 23 extending upwardly from the base wall 211, and a
positioning stem 24 that extends downwardly from the base wall 211.
The main body 21 has a plurality of spaced-apart slots 212. The
positioning stem 24 is made from a piece of metal plate which is
punched into shape. The opposite ends 241, 242 of the positioning
stem 24 are bent to overlap each other, and are riveted together
with the handle 23 to the main body 21. The positioning stem 24 has
a pair of inclined sections 243 that extend downwardly and
respectively from the opposite ends 241, 242, a pair of positioning
sections 244 that extend downwardly and respectively from the
inclined sections 243, and a tail end section 245 connecting the
positioning sections 244.
[0007] In use, the basket strainer 20 is disposed in the receiving
seat 11 of the cup strainer 10. The tail end section 245 of the
positioning stem 24 is inserted into the positioning hole 141 so
that the positioning sections 244 of the positioning stem 24 move
downwardly and engage the periphery of the positioning hole 141. At
this time, the sealing member 22 engages the receiving seat 11 in a
water-tight position, thereby preventing the draining of water in
the sink 30.
[0008] Referring to FIG. 2, to drain the water, the handle 23 is
pulled upwardly to separate the positioning sections 244 from the
positioning hole 141. At the same time, a gap 25 is formed between
the sealing member 22 of the basket strainer 20 and the receiving
seat 11 of the cup strainer 10 such that the water can be
discharged via the drain pipe 18.
[0009] However, since the positioning stem 24 is pulled completely
out of the hole 141 when the basket strainer 20 is pulled upwardly,
a large gap 25 is formed between the basket strainer 20 and the cup
strainer 10. When the water in the basket strainer 20 and the cup
strainer 10 contains food scraps, the food scraps can pass through
the gap 25 and clog the drain pipe 18. Furthermore, the basket
strainer 20 can be sucked down by the downward water pressure if
the basket strainer 20 is released from pulling so that the
positioning stem 24 will return to its original position, thereby
obstructing the drainage of water.
[0010] U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,701 discloses a sink stopper that
comprises a perforated strainer basket, a sealing member, an
upwardly extending handle, and a downwardly depending locating
stem. The locating stem, made of a plastic material, comprises a
base portion and two substantially parallel spaced-apart
co-operating legs. Since the legs are formed with notches and
sloped grate-contacting surfaces, the strainer basket can be
retained at a seated flow precluding position and a raised
straining position. In the raised straining position, the strainer
basket permits water to be drained but prevents solid, such as food
scraps, to flow downward. While this strainer basket can overcome
the drawbacks of the aforementioned sink stopper assembly 1, the
locating stem is made of plastic, and is liable to deform due to
its insufficient rigidity especially when subjected to hot water,
which can soften the plastic material. Therefore, the retaining
ability of the stem is insufficient and ineffective.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0011] Therefore, the main object of the present invention is to
provide a sink stopper assembly that is capable of overcoming the
aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art.
[0012] According to this invention, a sink stopper assembly
comprises a cup strainer and a basket strainer. The cup strainer
includes a bottom wall, a tubular portion extending upwardly from
the bottom wall, a peripheral wall extending above the tubular
portion, and a shoulder portion connected between the tubular
portion and the peripheral wall. The bottom wall has a positioning
hole. The shoulder portion forms a seat member at a juncture of the
shoulder portion and the tubular portion. The basket strainer is
disposed in the cup strainer, and includes a base wall above the
bottom wall, a surrounding wall extending upwardly from the base
wall, a receiving space cooperatively defined by the base wall and
the surrounding wall, a handle extending upwardly from the base
wall, a sealing ring connected to the base wall and to be seated
against the seat member, and a retaining stem extending downwardly
from the base wall to penetrate the positioning hole. The retaining
stem includes a bent metal plate which has two opposite elastic
arms, at least one upper protrusion projecting outwardly from at
least one of the elastic arms, at least one lower protrusion
projecting outwardly from said at least one of the elastic arms
below the upper protrusion, and a recess defined between the upper
and lower protrusions.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] Other features and advantages of the present invention will
become apparent in the following detailed description of the
preferred embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings,
of which:
[0014] FIG. 1 is an assembled sectional view of a conventional sink
stopper assembly;
[0015] FIG. 2 illustrates a draining operation of the conventional
sink stopper assembly;
[0016] FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the preferred
embodiment of a sink stopper assembly according to the present
invention;
[0017] FIG. 4 is an assembled sectional view of the preferred
embodiment; and
[0018] FIG. 5 illustrates a draining operation of the preferred
embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0019] Referring to FIGS. 3 to 5, the preferred embodiment of a
sink stopper assembly 3 according to the present invention is shown
to comprise a cup strainer 40, a basket strainer 50 mounted
removably in the cup strainer 40, and a drain pipe 60 connected to
a bottom portion of the cup strainer 40.
[0020] The cup strainer 40 is disposed in a sink 70, and includes a
bottom wall 47, a tubular portion 46 extending upwardly from the
bottom wall 47 along an axis Y, a peripheral wall 42 extending
above the tubular portion 46, a peripheral flange 41 extending
outwardly from a top end of the peripheral wall 42, a receiving
chamber 43 cooperatively defined by the bottom wall 47 and the
peripheral wall 42, and a shoulder portion 45 connected between the
tubular portion 46 and the peripheral wall 42. The bottom wall 47
has a positioning hole 471 on the axis Y, and four slots 472 formed
around the positioning hole 471. The peripheral flange 41 is
mounted on an upper side of the sink 70. The peripheral wall 42 and
the tubular portion 46 are formed with external threads 421, 461,
respectively. The shoulder portion 45 is formed with a seat member
452 at a juncture of the shoulder portion 45 and the tubular
portion 46. The cup strainer 40 further has an upper seal ring 48
disposed at a bottom side of the peripheral flange 41, an upper
lock connecting ring 482 threadedly secured on the external thread
421 of the peripheral wall 42, a lower seal ring 481 disposed
between the sink 70 and the lock connecting ring 482, and a lower
connecting ring 483 connected with the drain pipe 60 and threadedly
secured on the external thread 461 of the tubular portion 46. The
positioning hole 471 in the bottom wall 47 has a lower portion
formed with a guide portion 473 that extends downwardly and that
forms a circular guide angle.
[0021] The basket strainer 50 is disposed in the receiving chamber
43 in the cup strainer 40, and includes a base wall 58, a
surrounding wall 52 extending upwardly from the base wall 58, a
receiving space 53 cooperatively defined by the base wall 58 and
the surrounding wall 52, a peripheral edge 51 extending outwardly
from a top end of the surrounding wall 52, a handle 55 extending
upwardly from the center of the base wall 58, a sealing ring 54
connected to the base wall 58, and a retaining stem 56 extending
downwardly from the center of the base wall 58 opposite to the
handle 55 to penetrate the positioning hole 471. The base wall 58
and the surrounding wall 52 are respectively formed with a
plurality of spaced-apart through holes 581, 521. The retaining
stem 56 is made from a piece of metal plate which is punched into
shape. The opposite ends 561, 562 of the retaining stem 56 are bent
to overlap each other, and are riveted together with the handle 55
to the base wall 57. The retaining stem 56 includes two opposite
elastic arms 566, a substantially U-shaped bottom end part 570
extending downwardly from and connected to the elastic arms 566, a
pair of diverging parts 565 extending upwardly and respectively
from the elastic arms 566, a pair of opposite top arms 564
extending upwardly and respectively from the diverging parts 565
and fixed to the base wall 58, a pair of upper protrusions 567
projecting outwardly and respectively from the elastic arms 566, a
pair of lower protrusions 569 projecting outwardly and respectively
from the elastic arms 566 below the upper protrusions 567, and a
pair of recesses 568 each defined between one of the upper
protrusions 567 and one of the lower protrusions 569. The upper
protrusions 567 are formed below and are spaced apart from the
diverging parts 565.
[0022] In use, the basket strainer 50 is disposed in the receiving
chamber 43 in the cup strainer 40. At this time, the upper
protrusions 567 abut against the guide portion 473 of the
positioning hole 471, and the sealing ring 54 abuts against the
seat member 452 of the shoulder portion 45 of the cup strainer 40,
as best illustrated in FIG. 4.
[0023] During draining, the handle 55 is simply pulled upwardly so
that the sealing ring 54 is separated from the seat member 452 of
the cup strainer 40. At the same time, the upper protrusions 567 of
the retaining stem 56 are pulled out of the positioning hole 471,
the recesses 568 are registered with the positioning hole 471, and
the lower protrusions 569 abut against the guide portion 473 of the
positioning hole 471, as best illustrated in FIG. 5, thereby
retaining the basket strainer 50 within the cup strainer 40 at a
raised straining position. In this situation, a small gap 57 is
formed between the peripheral edge 51 of the basket strainer 50 and
the peripheral wall 42 of the cup strainer 40, unlike the
conventional sink stopper assembly 1 shown in FIG. 1, such that the
water is separated from the food scraps and flows out of the basket
strainer 50. The food scraps are held temporarily in the receiving
space 53 in the basket strainer 50. After the water is completely
drained, the basket strainer 50 is pulled out of the cup strainer
40, and the food scraps are discarded.
[0024] As compared to the sink stopper disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.
5,592,701, the retaining stem 56 of the basket strainer 50
according to this invention can be retained more firmly at the
raised straining position because the stem 56 is made of metal,
which is more rigid than plastic, and because the stem 56 has the
recesses 568 which are formed between the upper and lower
protrusions 567, 569 and which can engage the periphery of the
positioning hole 471 in the bottom wall 47.
[0025] While the present invention has been described in connection
with what is considered the most practical and preferred
embodiment, it is understood that this invention is not limited to
the disclosed embodiment but is intended to cover various
arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest
interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and
equivalent arrangements.
* * * * *