U.S. patent number 3,658,091 [Application Number 05/021,683] was granted by the patent office on 1972-04-25 for device for the admixture of additive fluids mixed with water used in washing machines, dishwashers and the like.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Messrs. Hans Grohe K. G.. Invention is credited to Gunther Buzzi.
United States Patent |
3,658,091 |
Buzzi |
April 25, 1972 |
DEVICE FOR THE ADMIXTURE OF ADDITIVE FLUIDS MIXED WITH WATER USED
IN WASHING MACHINES, DISHWASHERS AND THE LIKE
Abstract
A device is provided for supplying a flow of an additive fluid
to a primary fluid stream wherein the two fluids are admixed. A
venturi type constriction may be formed in a conduit carrying the
primary fluid stream and a suction conduit may connect an additive
fluid container with the venturi constriction. A check valve may be
disposed at a discharge end of the suction conduit and a manually
operated regulating valve may be disposed at an intake end of the
suction conduit. The conduit carrying the primary fluid may be
formed in a head portion of the overall device and the container
may be connected to the head portion by a bayonet latch. A
secondary air inlet may be provided between the additive fluid
container and the discharge end of the suction conduit upstream
from the check valve. The manually operated regulating valve may be
mounted at a bottom portion of the overall device.
Inventors: |
Buzzi; Gunther (Schiltach
Baden, DT) |
Assignee: |
Messrs. Hans Grohe K. G.
(Schiltach Baden, DT)
|
Family
ID: |
6600861 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/021,683 |
Filed: |
March 23, 1970 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
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Apr 25, 1969 [DT] |
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G 69 12 025 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
137/889;
137/533.11; 239/311; 239/335; 137/893; 137/895; 239/318;
239/354 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B01F
5/0496 (20130101); E03C 1/046 (20130101); B01F
5/0413 (20130101); Y10T 137/87627 (20150401); Y10T
137/87595 (20150401); Y10T 137/791 (20150401); Y10T
137/87643 (20150401) |
Current International
Class: |
E03C
1/04 (20060101); E03C 1/046 (20060101); B01F
5/04 (20060101); F16k 019/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;239/310,311,316,317,318,335,340,354,369 ;137/604 ;251/364 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Nilson; Robert G.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A device for the admixture of additive fluids to a stream of
water for use in washing machines, dishwashers and the like
comprising:
a. an additive fluid storage container;
b. a head portion;
c. a suction pipe connecting between said storage container and the
stream of water;
d. a downwardly directed flange formed on said head portion for
removably connecting said head portion to said storage container;
and
e. bayonet-locking means disposed between said storage container
and said downwardly directed flange on said head portion,
said bayonet-locking means including a pressure plate; and said
pressure plate being elastically urged against an upper edge of
said storage container while permitting air to pass between said
pressure plate and said upper edge of said storage container.
2. A device according to claim 1 wherein said upper edge of said
storage container is formed with notched cam means;
and wherein said pressure plate is formed with notched recess
means; and
said notched cam means and said notched recess means being
engageable to hold said head portion and said storage container
against relative rotational movement.
3. A device according to claim 1 wherein said pressure plate
comprises an elastic plastic material formed with a hollow
periphery.
4. A device for the admixture of additive fluids to a stream of
water for use in washing machines, dishwashers and the like
comprising:
a. a head portion;
b. a conduit for carrying the stream of water formed in said head
portion;
c. an injector nozzle formed in said head portion;
d. an additive fluid storage container connected to said head
portion;
e. a suction pipe communicating between said storage container and
the stream of water;
f. a check valve disposed in said suction pipe;
g. a secondary air duct formed into said suction pipe upstream of
said check valve; and
h. an adjustable nozzle means disposed in said secondary air duct
for adjusting the flow of air therethrough.
5. A device according to claim 4 wherein the center line of said
secondary air duct intercepts an additive fluid passageway formed
by said suction pipe;
said secondary air duct being formed with a variable diameter along
the length thereof;
said variable diameter of said secondary air duct comprising a
conical transition;
threading being formed in a wide portion of said secondary air
duct;
said secondary air duct connecting said suction pipe with an upper
most space in said storage container;
a regulating screw being inserted within said secondary air duct
and engaging said threading thereof;
said regulating screw having a longitudinally aligned notched
slot;
said regulating screw having a configuration corresponding to the
conical configuration of said secondary air duct; and
said secondary air duct comprising a drill hole.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a device for the admixture of additive
fluids from a storage container into the water of a showerhead,
into bathtub water, or into fresh water used in washing machines
and dishwashers or the like. The device can be used as an
independent fixture between the discharge fixture and its fixed
water connection and an injector pump, which moves the additive
fluid from the storage container and which has a regulating valve
with a suction pipe duct for the regulation of the suction volume.
A head part of the fixture contains the water passage duct and the
injector nozzle and has, coaxially with respect to the suction
pipe, a downward pointing connection flange for the removable
attachment of the storage container.
Such devices are used mostly for admixing a soap or aromatic
substances and the like. The known devices of this kind however
have a disadvantage in that the regulation of the suction volume of
the additive fluid can be accomplished only in a very incomplete
manner. Also, the additive fluid may be suctioned in excessively
large quantities, so that, on the one hand, the consumption of this
additive fluid is very great, whereas, on the other hand, it is
also no longer possible to have, for example, a pleasant shower. It
is then mostly necessary to dilute the additive fluid in the
storage container very heavily in order to keep its concentration
in the emerging water jet sufficiently low. But this, again,
entails the disadvantage that the quantity, contained in the
storage container, will suffice only for a small number of uses of
the subsequently connected device. Besides, the known devices
entail the further disadvantage that the adjusting valve, with
which the additive fluid volume is regulated, is above the storage
container; in other words, it is -- particularly in fixed shower
installations -- relatively difficult to reach and it is
particularly hard to reach for short people.
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of this invention to create a device of
the type described above which will reveal an accurate, sensitive,
and easily operated regulating device.
It is another object of this invention that the regulating valve
should be so designed that it can be easily cleaned because the
additive fluids frequently tend toward clogging or
incrustation.
It is still another object of the present invention to create a
device of the above-mentioned kind with a regulating valve which
will facilitate a control of the valve position at all times.
It is yet another object of the present invention to create a
device of the kind described, with which we can reliably prevent a
situation in which water can penetrate into the storage container
through the suction duct.
It is a further object of the present invention to fashion the
above-mentioned device in such a manner that the storage container
can be simply removed and so that it can be properly cleaned,
without -- in accordance with another objective of the invention --
the storage container being loosened in an unwanted manner during
the activation of the regulating valve.
These and other objectives of the invention are accomplished by
providing a device of the above-mentioned kind in which a suction
pipe end is designed in the form of a valve seat and in which there
is located in a container bottom, coaxially with respect to a
connecting flange, a vertically movable valve body which cooperates
with a valve seat at the suction pipe end. An adjusting member for
the valve body may be provided at the underside of the container
for using a device in sprinkler installations, so that the
regulation can be easily performed also by short persons, when the
overhead sprinklers are suspended high and to obviate any left-hand
or right-hand operation.
A regulating valve according to this invention is so designed that
one part of it, the valve seat, is attached to the free suction
pipe end, while the closing part, the valve body, is attached in
the container bottom. Every time the storage container is open, the
valve is taken apart and the valve seat is exposed, so that the
latter is particularly readily accessible for cleaning. The valve
body, located on the bottom of the storage container, can also be
easily cleaned and it can be liberated of any possibly adhering
remnants of the additive fluid which might influence the
functioning of the valve. This always facilitates good and accurate
regulation of in-suctioning volume of admixture fluid.
In order to be able to use the device also in connection with
discharge fixtures, in which we get a considerable pressure head,
such as in strongly adjustable showerheads on in machines which
completely interrupt the water through-flow, such as washing
machines and dishwashers, a check valve may be provided in the
suction pipe duct.
The connection between the connecting flange and the storage
container may comprise a bayonet latch which is properly secured
against the unwanted separation of the container from a head part
by means of corresponding measures, so that the storage container
cannot be separated from the head part, perhaps during handling and
during the adjustment of the regulating valve.
The storage container may consist of a transparent, injectable
plastic material in order to have control over the content of the
additive fluid in the container at all times.
In another feature of the invention, a secondary air duct may be
provided and adjusted by means of an adjustable nozzle. The
secondary air duct may run into the injector suction duct between
the suction pipe end and the check valve. This secondary air duct
may comprise a staggered drill-hole, which connects the suction
duct with the uppermost space of the storage container. The
drill-hole may have a conical transition and thread in the wide
drill-hole section into which there is inserted a regulating screw
which has a longitudinal notch slit and a corresponding conical
point. Such a secondary air duct provides air admixture to the
incoming additive fluid and thereby provides air to the water on
the discharge side of the device. The quantity of the admixture
fluid is thereby adjustable and can thus also be fully turned off,
so that a water jet can be obtained on the discharge side of the
device. Such a design may be used for bathing and sprinkling
devices, in which air admixture is particularly desirable for
reasons of oxygen enrichment and for massage reasons. The air
admixture also offers the advantage that the shower water, which is
displaced perhaps with a liquid soap, will foam particularly
strongly. In other words, a small admixture volume of soap will
readily generate a strong foam development and will thus offer a
good cleaning effect.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention is described below in detail with the help of an
example shown in the drawing.
The only illustration here shows the device according to the
invention in a longitudinal cross-section, whereby the bayonet
latching device between the storage container and the head part is
shown in a simplified manner.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The essential components of the device are the head part 11, the
storage container 12, and the turning knob 13 which activates the
regulating valve on the underside of the storage container.
The head part 11 is provided with a water through-flow duct whose
direction of flow is indicated with an arrow. The through-flow duct
consists of a wide inflow part, provided with a connecting thread
14 for a pipeline, a wide outflow part 17, which is provided with a
connecting thread 16 for the connection of the subsequently
connected discharge fixture, and a narrow part 18, which is in
between, through which the water must flow at high speed, thus
producing a low pressure in an injector suction duct 19 which runs
into this narrow part 18.
Along its lower edge, the head part has a connecting flange 20
which points downward, when the water inflow and outflow duct 15,
18, 17 is horizontal. This connecting flange is used to provide
connection with the storage container 12, for which we can use any
kind of suitable connection which, in our case here, is designed as
a bayonet latching device 21, illustrated in a simplified
manner.
Coaxially with respect to the connecting flange 20, a suction pipe
22 is inserted into the head part 11. When the storage container 12
is in place, this suction pipe 22 extends almost to the storage
container's bottom 23.
The suction pipe, which has been designated generally as 22, is in
our case made up of three parts. It consists of a pipe piece 24,
which, at its upper end, for purposes of connection to the head
part 11, has a valve head piece 25 and, on the lower end, a valve
seat 36. The valve head piece 25 is provided, on the place of
connection with the injector suction duct 19 of the head part, with
a ball-check-valve 26, whereby the center line of the injector
suction duct 19 in the head part 11 and of the check valve ball
drill-hole are off center from each other, so that the ball 26
cannot close off the injector suction duct 19 during suction
operations.
Furthermore, valve head piece 25 is provided with a secondary air
duct 27 which connects the suction duct of the suction pipe 22 with
the upper most storage space of the container. This secondary air
duct is an off center drill-hole with a wide external and a narrow
internal cross section and a conical transition between these two
cross sections. The wide drill-hole cross section has an interior
thread and in this drill-hole section there is inserted a
regulating screw 28 which is provided with a corresponding conical
point and which has a longitudinal notch slit that extends into the
screw core.
As a result of the low pressure in the suction duct 29 of the
suction pipe 22, secondary air duct 22 suctions in air, in addition
to the container fluid and the volume of this air can be determined
by adjusting the regulating screw 28. In this way the discharged
water can be displaced with air bubbles so that, for example, we
obtain a good massage effect during showering, and that the water,
provided with the admixture fluid, will furthermore foam well.
The connection of the storage container 12 to the connecting flange
20 with the bayonet latching device 21 is so loose that sufficient
air can penetrate through the crack; this air is needed, on the one
hand, in order to be able to suction out the container fluid and,
on the other hand, in order to be able to suction air in through
the secondary air duct 27.
Inserted into the bottom 23 of the container 12 we have an axially
movable regulating valve body 30 which is axially shifted in the
known manner by means of turning knob 13. A packing 31 provides for
the tight sealing in the container bottom 23. Since suction pipe 22
and valve bottom 30 are coaxial with respect to each other and with
a valve seat piece 36 placed on top of the lower end of the suction
pipe piece 24, we can change the width of the entry opening into
the suction pipe duct by moving the valve body 30 with respect to
the valve seat piece 36. The left half and the right half of the
illustration represent two different adjustments, whereby the one
on the left shows the completely closed condition of the valve
while the one on the right shows the opened condition.
When storage container 12 is taken off, we can easily reach the
valve seat, so that it can be thoroughly cleaned and so that we can
thus make sure that it will not become clogged or so that it will
not stick. When the device is open, the valve body on the bottom 23
of storage container 12 is likewise easily accessible.
In the device illustrated here, both the valve seat piece 36 and
the valve body 30 consist of metal; it is therefore a good idea to
punch a groove into the valve seat piece 36 and to insert an O-ring
35 which will then cooperate with the valve body 30. If other
materials are selected for the valve seat piece 36 and/or the valve
body, this may then be superfluous.
Markers may be displayed on the turning knob 13 and the container
12 in order to give the user a guide for the regulation of the
valve opening width. The storage container 12 is also
advantageously made of a transparent plastic material so that we
can always see how much it contains.
Since the regulating valve is adjusted with the help of the turning
knob on the valve's underside, it is important to make sure that
the connection between the fixed head part 11 and the removable
container 12 is secured by means of a locking device so that the
container will not be inadvertently loosened during the regulation
of the through-flow volume. In the example shown here, this is done
by means of a pressure plate 32 which may be formed with a
polygonal middle cut-out 32a, with which it may be mated with a
corresponding polygonal placement part 33, on the head part 11, so
that it cannot be rotated. Furthermore, the edge zones of the
pressure plate 32 are hollow as at 37 and the plate, at least
partly on its underside along the circumference thereof, is
equipped with notches 34 which engage corresponding notches on the
upper edge of the storage container 12. Here the dimensions in the
axial direction of the device have been so selected that the edges
of the pressure plate will be elastically bent upward during the
insertion and turning of the storage container into the bayonet
locking device, while the notches jump over each other. Other
locking devices may be used in lieu of the locking device of the
preferred embodiment.
* * * * *