Water Softener

Abstract

A water softener especially adapted for cosmetic use in a water supply system wherein the entire system flow is not subjected to softening. The device is intended for attachment to a faucet and includes a fluid-tight case having an internal resin chamber and an internal regenerant chamber in fluid communication with each other. A first and a second port pass through the case, one of the ports being in fluid communication with each of the chambers in such manner that water entering one of the ports must flow through both chambers to reach the other port. A removable closure gives access to the regenerant chamber so that a packet of regenerant material can be placed therein. A pair of hoses is attached to the ports, and diverter means connects the hoses to the faucet so that water may selectively be passed directly to the user without softening or may be diverted through the softener to deliver softened water. The regenerant is packed in a package, at least a portion of the cover of which is disintegrable upon contact with water, whereby a storable package may be dropped into the regenerant chamber and its contents become available for its intended purpose by the dissolution of the portion.

Description

This invention relates to water softeners.

The water softening art, especially that of ion exchange-type devices, is broadly known, and this invention provides no improvement to the basic chemical operation of removal of undesirable ions by a resin, followed by regeneration of the resin by a regenerant such as sodium chloride.

What is heretofore missing in the prior art is a small, portable water softener which can be purchased as an attachment for a faucet which will enable a woman to wash her hair, or to wash her face, or to carry out other cosmetic application with soft water without requiring that the entire system flow be treated. It is an object of this invention to provide a relatively small water softener case of such size and proportions as may be placed on the sinkboard of a conventional toilet sink and which is provided with packaged regenerant means so that the lady herself need not handle or be concerned with the regenerant material itself, and which package can readily be whenever regeneration is required.

A water softener according to this invention includes a fluid-tight case having an internal resin chamber and a regenerant chamber in fluid communication with each other. A first and a second port enter the case, one of said ports being in fluid communication with the resin chamber and the other in fluid communication with the regenerant chamber in such manner that water entering one of the ports must flow through both chambers to reach the other port. A removable closure gives access to the regenerant chamber. A pair of hoses, one being attached to each of said ports, provides means for providing flow to and from the water softener. Diverter means connects the hoses to the faucet whereby water may selectively be passed directly to the user without being softened or may be diverted through the softener prior to return to the diverter in order to deliver softened water to the user.

This invention will be fully understood from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an axial cross-section, partly in schematic notation, showing the presently preferred embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-section taken at line 2--2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration of a portion of the system;

FIGS. 4 and 5 are schematic cross-sections showing the function of the diverter valve of FIG. 3; and

FIGS. 6 and 7 are side elevations, partly in cutaway cross-section, showing two embodiments of regenerant packages according to the invention.

A water softener device 10 according to the invention is shown in FIG. 1 which includes a fluid-tight case 11 having an internal resin chamber 12 adapted to be packed with an ion exchange resin 13. This chamber is divided from part of the internal cavity of the case by a first perforated barrier 14 which leaves a plenum chamber 15 above the resin chamber. Perforations 16 provide for fluid flow from the resin chamber to the plenum chamber.

A second perforated barrier 17 includes an outer annular imperforate region 18 and an inner perforated region 19, on one side of which is a regenerant chamber 20. The regenerant chamber 20 is formed inside a neck 21 which extends downwardly past a rib structure 22 and includes an external thread 23 to receive a cap 24. The cap has a stub 25 inside it bearing upwardly, which stub includes flow passages 26 for purposes yet to be described.

A leg portion 27, which may be tubular, extends below the ribs. This portion rests on the drainboard of the sink.

A first port 30 and a second port 31 pass through the wall of the case. A conduit 32 constitutes a continuation of the first port and passes through the central portion of the first perforated barrier so as to extend the first port into the plenum chamber.

The second port extends into an annular region 33 where it is in communication with flow channels 34 such that the second port makes fluid communication with the regenerant chamber, and the first port makes fluid communication with the resin chamber. The two ports communicate with each other only through the combination of the two chambers.

Hoses 35, 36 are provided which are preferably, but not necessarily bonded together in parallelism and joined to a diverter valve 40. This diverter valve, which is schematically shown in FIG. 3 is adapted to be attached to a faucet 41. The faucet is a source of water to be softened. The diverter is in the nature of a three-way valve whose positions are schematically shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. For example, in FIG. 4, a valve operator 42 is shown connecting a supply conduit 43 from the faucet to port 44 which in turn is connected by one of the hoses to the first port. The outlet port 45 is closed at this setting. In FIG. 5, the diverter valve setting has been changed so that there is a direct connection between supply conduit 43 and outlet port 45. In FIG. 4 the water is softened by the water softener, and in FIG. 5 it is not.

The diverter also includes a softened water outlet port 46, which comes into use when the softener itself is in operation. A classical example of a diverter valve 40 is generally known in the trade where it is applied to a faucet and is axially shifted relative to the faucet outlet in order to assume the operative positions generally shown by FIGS. 4 and 5. It can also function as a siphon-breaker.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show two examples of packages 50, 51 for regenerant 52, which may be common salt, and which may or may not be accompanied by other additives such as those to purge iron ions and the like from the resin, which package includes a cover 53 formed of a material such as pulp or cellulose which disintegrates upon contact with water. The term "disintegrate" is used to connote the change from a packaging barrier to removal as a barrier, whether by dissolution or by structure separation in the nature of separation of fibers or the like. The package will remain integral and readily handled at least until after it is placed in the softener, so that the lady of the house need not touch its contents. They are enclosed until the package is placed in the regenerant chamber. After the package is contacted by water, the cover will disintegrate, or perhaps even dissolve, so as to make the material available to be dissolved and to provide a brine flush for the resin. Preferably, the regenerant material will be provided as a fairly large crystal so as to dissolve slowly.

FIG. 7 shows the use of a cannister 55 with perforated ends 56, 57 with disintegrable seals 58, 59 at both ends, which on contact with water will disintegrate or dissolve to permit flow of fluid through the cannister.

It will be seen that the device provides a convenient means for supplying limited quantities of softened water wherein, when the resin is in condition to require regeneration, the small cannister need only be turned upside down, the closure removed and a new package of regenerant material dropped therein. Should an old cannister still be there, it may simply be removed and replaced.

The amounts of liquid involved are not particularly large, and the requirements for sensing the softness of the water are quite unsophisticated. This is because a lady, when washing her face or hair, will soon be aware whether or not the water is soft enough for her purposes, and then need only place the regenerant capsule in the chamber and run the resulting brine through the resin for a short time in order to secure for herself water softened to a degree sufficient for her purposes.

This invention thereby provides a small, convenient-to-use, and inexpensive structure for the softening water for cosmetic purposes. Its outside configuration may be made artful and pleasing to the eye and in general is a useful adjunct to any bathroom or kitchen. It is not intended for general household water supply, but instead for the limited purposes of toiletries and the like in which, for modest sums of money, it will survive for long periods of time and make available to the woman improved skin and hair care.

This invention is not to be limited by the embodiments shown in the drawings and described in the description which are given by way of example and not of limitation, but only in accordance with the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

We claim:

1. A water softener for attachment to a faucet as a source of water to be softened, comprising: a fluid-tight case having an internal resin chamber and a regenerant chamber in fluid communication with each other, and a first and a second port, one of said ports being in fluid communication with the resin chamber, and the other in fluid communication with the regenerant chamber in such manner that water entering one of said ports must flow through both chambers to reach the other port; a removable closure giving access to the regenerant chamber; a pair of hoses, one being attached to each of said ports; and diverter means for connecting the hoses to the faucet whereby water may selectively be passed directly to the user without softening, or diverted through the softener prior to return to the diverter in order to deliver softened water.

2. A water softener according to claim 1 in which resin is packed in the resin chamber, and a package is placed in the regenerant chamber, said package containing a regenerant and having a cover, at least a portion of which is disintegrable when in contact with water whereby to dissolve and expose the regenerant to water when the package is contacted by water.

3. A water softener according to claim 2 in which the entire cover is disintegrable when in contact with water.

4. A water softener according to claim 2 in which the package includes a perforated cannister, in which the perforations are covered by a material which disintegrates on contact with water.

5. A water softener according to claim 1 in which a perforated barrier separates the chambers from one another.

6. A water softener according to claim 5 in which a plenum chamber is formed in the case separated from the resin chamber by a perforated barrier, and in which one of the ports is in fluid communication with said plenum chamber.

7. A water softener according to claim 1 in which the diversion valve is a three-way valve.

8. A water softener according to claim 7 in which the hoses are joined in parallelism for a major proportion of their length.