U.S. patent application number 14/044656 was filed with the patent office on 2015-04-02 for drain.
The applicant listed for this patent is Norman Usher. Invention is credited to Norman Usher.
Application Number | 20150089729 14/044656 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 52738644 |
Filed Date | 2015-04-02 |
United States Patent
Application |
20150089729 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Usher; Norman |
April 2, 2015 |
DRAIN
Abstract
A grid drain for use on a sink to prevent large objects from
entering the drain. The drain includes a tube (12) and a cover (20)
that attaches to the top of the tube. The cover has a flat middle
(72) and has a peripheral portion (74) that is curved to form a
dome, with two circles of holes (46, 52).
Inventors: |
Usher; Norman; (Inglewood,
CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Usher; Norman |
Inglewood |
CA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
52738644 |
Appl. No.: |
14/044656 |
Filed: |
October 2, 2013 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
4/292 |
Current CPC
Class: |
E03C 1/264 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
4/292 |
International
Class: |
E03C 1/26 20060101
E03C001/26 |
Claims
1. A drain that allows water to pass through while blocking large
pieces of solid material, said drain including a tube (12) with a
vertical axis (14) and a tube top forming a support surface (24),
said drain including a cover (20) that covers said tube top and
that has a plurality of drain holes, wherein: said cover is
dome-shaped, with a cover periphery (30) that lies on said tube
support surface, and with a cover top (70) lying along said
vertical axis, said cover having a ring of inner holes (50) spaced
about said axis and said cover has a ring of outer holes (44)
spaced about said axis and lying further from said axis than said
inner holes; each of said inner holes has a primarily vertical hole
axis (92) and each of said outer holes has a center with an outer
hole axis (94) angled between 15.degree. and 75.degree. to said
tube vertical axis.
2. The drain described in claim 1 wherein: said cover has twice as
many of said outer holes as said inner holes, with each outer hole
lying radially halfway between two inner holes as seen in a top
view taken along said axis.
3. The drain described in claim 1 wherein: said cover has a flat
middle portion (72) lying on said axis, that forms said inner
holes; said cover has a radially outer part (74) that is radially
spaced from said vertical axis by more than half a radius of said
cover periphery, with said outer part having curved inner and outer
surfaces, that form a dome.
4. A drain that allows water to pass through while blocking solid
material, said drain including a tube with a vertical axis and an
open top, and a cover that covers said open top and that has a
plurality of holes, wherein: said cover is dome-shaped, with a
cover periphery (30) that lies on said tube top, with a cover upper
part (70) having an inner circle of holes (40), and with a cover
peripheral portion (70) having an outer circle of holes (46); said
holes of said outer circle of holes having vertical axis (92) and
said holes of said lower circle of holes have axes angled between
15.degree. and 75.degree. from the vertical.
5. The drain described in claim 4 wherein: said cover has a
periphery with top and bottom surfaces (80, 82) that each extends
in a quarter of a circle, as seen in a sectional view taken on said
vertical axis, to form said dome.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] Sinks that temporarily hold fluid such as water, commonly
have a drain through which water rapidly leaves. The drain has
holes that pass small solid objects such as hair without the hair
blocking the drain. It is desirable to construct the drain so the
holes are oriented and shaped to minimize blockage from debris.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0002] In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, a grid
drain is provided that can be constructed at low cost and that
minimizes blocking. By increasing air flow through the drain, the
drain can be used as a cleanout to service the drain. The drain
includes a vertical tube and a dome cover that is removably mounted
on the top of the tube, the cover having multiple holes. The cover
holes are arranged in two circles, including a middle circle where
the cover is flat (horizontal), and an outer circle where the cover
is curved to form a dome.
[0003] The novel features of the invention are set forth with
particularity in the appended claims. The invention will be best
understood from the following description when read in conjunction
with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0004] FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a drain of the invention,
with the cover attached to the tube.
[0005] FIG. 2 is an exploded enlarged view of a top portion of the
drain tube and of the cover.
[0006] FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3 of FIG. 5.
[0007] FIG. 4 is an isometric view of the cover of FIG. 3.
[0008] FIG. 5 is a plan view of the cover of FIG. 3.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0009] FIG. 1 shows a drain 10 of the invention, which includes a
tube 12 that extends along a vertical axis 14 and a cover 20 that
is mounted on the top of the tube. FIG. 2 shows that the tube 12
has a flange 22 at its top, that forms a support surface 24. The
cover has a periphery 30 with three downward projections 31 that
lie on the support surface. A vandal resistant screw 32 (FIG. 4)
passes through a hole 34 in the cover and screws into a threaded
hole 36 at the top of the tube, to hold the cover in place. The
screw has a pair of holes that allow it to be screwed only by a
special tool. The cover is preferably a cast metal part.
[0010] The cover 20 (FIG. 2) is symmetrical about the vertical axis
14. The cover has two rings of holes, including an inner ring 40
and an outer ring 42. As shown in FIG. 5, the outer ring 42 has
sixteen outer holes 44 that are uniformly (by 22.5.degree.) spaced
about a circle 46 centered on the axis. The inner ring 40 has eight
inner holes 50 that are uniformly (by 45.degree.) spaced about a
circle 52. As shown in FIG. 5, each inner hole lies on an imaginary
radial (to axis 14) line 54 and each outer hole lies on an
imaginary radial line 60, with lines 60 angled apart by
22.5.degree. and lines 54 angled apart by 45.degree. and lying
halfway between pair of lines 60.
[0011] FIG. 3 shows that the cover has a top part, or top plate
part 70 with a flat (horizontal) middle portion 72 and with a
curved outer part, or periphery 74. The periphery 74 extends in a
quarter circle as seen in the sectional view of FIG. 3, with the
upper surface 80 and the lower surface 82 parallel and each curved
by one-quarter circle. This results in the cover forming a dome,
with only the periphery of the cover being curved. In a cover that
applicant has constructed, the over had a diameter of 2.6 inch, and
a cover thickness of 0.1 inch. The bottom and top surfaces of the
periphery were each curved about a point 84 lying 0.7 inch below
the top plate part 70. The point 84 is spaced from the axis 14 by
an amount A that is more than half the radius of the cover and by
the height B of the cover. The cover is formed with the three
bottom projections 31 that each lies against a support surface. The
above construction results in a cover with uniformly stiff wall
holes and with the holes occupying a maximum amount of the area of
the cover.
[0012] The inner ring 40 of holes have hole axes 92 that are
vertical. This allows efficient flow because when water reaches the
inner holes 40, the water is moving close to the vertical. The
outer ring 42 of holes have hole axes 94 (FIG. 4) that are angled
about 45.degree. from the vertical and from the horizontal (i.e.
the outer hole axes 42 extend 15.degree. to 75.degree. to the
vertical and to the horizontal), which is parallel to the direction
of water flow through the cover. The top 100 (FIG. 2) of the outer
holes face upward while the bottom 102 of the outer holes face
horizontally. Solid particles, especially hair, tend to easily flow
through the cover as they flow with the movement of water.
Applicant can construct the drain in a number of ways, but prefers
to make it of cast metal.
[0013] Thus, the invention provides a drain that facilitates the
flow of water and of solid particles such as hair. The drain
includes a cover of a generally dome shape, formed by a curved
periphery and a flat (horizontal) middle. Holes in the cover
include a ring of inner holes that lie in a flat (horizontal) wall
of the cover, while a ring of outer holes lies in a curved
periphery of the cover. The inner holes have vertical hole axes.
The outer holes have axes that are angled about an eighth circle
(about 45.degree.) from the horizontal and from the vertical. The
fact that the cover 20 is held by a screw and therefore can be
easily removed from the tube 12, allows a plumber to remove the
cover and run a "snake" through the tube and pipes to clean
them.
[0014] Although particular embodiments of the invention have been
described and illustrated herein, it is recognized that
modifications and variations may readily occur to those skilled in
the art, and consequently, it is intended that the claims be
interpreted to cover such modifications and equivalents.
* * * * *