Tub spout assembly

Abstract

An improved tub spout assembly is disclosed having a tub outlet and a side tube adapted to be attached to a hand-held spray unit. A diverter valve in the spout assembly is operable to cause water to discharge either from the tub outlet or hand spray unit. The side tube projects into a conduit within the assembly and has an inner end face shaped to deflect water flowing in the conduit over and past the inlet orifice of the side tube when the diverter valve is positioned to cause outflow through the tub outlet.

Description

This invention relates generally to an improved tub spout assembly having a tub outlet, a hand spray unit outlet and a diverter valve for selectively causing the water to flow through one or the other of said outlets.

A primary object of the present invention is to provide a tub spout assembly for use with a hand spray unit in which a single valve in the tub spout, typically in the tub outlet portion thereof, is used to select the outflow path.

Another object of the invention is to provide a tub spout assembly of the type described in which no shutoff valve is required in the hand-held spray unit, yet in which water rise in the spray unit hose is minimized during outflow through the tub outlet.

A better understanding of the invention will be had by reference to the detailed description below taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation view, partly in section, of a tub spout assembly in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-section view of the assembly of FIG. 1 as seen along the plane 2--2 transverse of the longitudinal axis of the assembly of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-section view of a portion of the assembly of FIG. 1 as seen along a plane including the longitudinal axis of the assembly; and

FIG. 4 is a cross-section view of the tub outlet portion of the spout assembly of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

U.S. Pat. No. 3,656,503 issued Apr. 18, 1972 to the inventor herein is incorporated by reference for background purposes and for its showing of a tub spout diverter valve of the type which may be utilized herein.

Turning now to the drawings, there is shown a tub spout assembly 10 adapted to be threadedly secured to an existing pipe nipple 12 projecting from the wall 14. For purposes of facilitating the description of the assembly 10 and to provide a reference, the assembly 10 may be viewed as having a longitudinal axis 16 perpendicular to the wall 14 and forming an extension of the longitudinal, central axis of the nipple 12.

The assembly 10 includes a spout housing 18 of conventional shape having an internal, transverse partition 20 defining at one end of the housing a chamber 22 having a tub discharge opening or outlet 24. The chamber 22 encloses a diverter valve 26 which may take the form of that disclosed in the aforementioned patent.

Briefly, the diverter valve 26 includes a ring member 28 secured in press fit relation to the wall of the chamber 20. The ring member 28 has an inwardly directed flange 30 defining a central aperture 32. The flange 30 functions as a diverter valve seat as will be subsequently described in greater detail.

A post 34 extends through the central aperture 32 and is fastened at one end to the spout housing by screw threads 36. Ribs 38 center the post 34 within the central aperture 32 and reduce swirling of the water stream exiting through the tub outlet 24. The lower end of the post 34 has a circumferential groove 40 retaining a flexible, washer-shaped seal 42 which may be formed of synthetic rubber such as a Nitrile compound.

The post 34 includes a vertically slidable stem 44 terminating at its upper end in an enlarged knob 46 which includes within a recess thereof a weight 48 for biasing the stem 44 downwardly. At the opposite end of the stem 44 is a bifurcated tip defined by an axial slot 50 and having about its outer surface an annular groove 52.

The post 34 further includes a cup 60 retained by the groove 52. The cup 60 includes a bottom wall 62 having drain holes 64 and a generally cylindrical side wall 66 defining on the interior surface thereof a sealing shoulder 68.

The upper circumferential margin of the cylindrical wall 66 is bent to define an inwardly directed annular lip 70 which, in the open position of the diverter valve as shown in FIG. 1, rests against the washer seal 42. In the open position, water is free to pass through the aperture 32 in the flange 30, about and between the ribs 38 and out through the tub outlet 24. In this position of the valve, as will be more fully described below, water flows solely from the tub outlet 24.

The internal partition 20 has a threaded opening 80 for receiving a plastic adapter conduit 82 which extends along the longitudinal axis 16 and includes at its rear extremity an outwardly extending flange 84 the outer diameter of which closely conforms to the inner diameter of the rear extremity of the spout housing 18. The flange 84 centers the adapter conduit 82 within the housing 18 and helps to resist bending loads applied to the spout assembly. The adapter conduit 82 defines a longitudinal bore 86 bringing into communication the pipe nipple 12 and the diverter valve chamber 22. The rear portion 88 of the wall of the adapter conduit is thickened and is internally threaded for attachment to the pipe nipple 12.

The adapter conduit 82 has internal splines 90 designed for engagement by corresponding splines on an installation tool (not shown) adapted to be inserted into the conduit 82 from the flanged end thereof.

The tub spout assembly 10 of the present invention further includes a plastic side tube 96 for coupling the spout assembly to a hand spray unit (not shown). The side tube 96 has an inner portion 98 projecting into the bore 86 generally across a diameter thereof and an outer portion 100 including means, in the form of external threads 102, for coupling the tube 96 to a hand spray unit hose fitting 104 connected to the hand spray unit hose 106. The threaded portion 102 of the side tube 96 is canted forwardly so that clearance between the spray hose 106 and the rim of the bathtub is assured.

The side tube 96 passes through an aperture 110 in the spout housing 18 and is retained by a sleeve 112 protruding from and formed integral with the adapter conduit 82. Axially directed keyways 114 formed in the inner wall of the sleeve 112 receive corresponding keys 116 projecting from the outer surface of the side tube 96 to thereby fix the orientation of the side tube relative to the adapter conduit.

To facilitate installation of the side tube 96, the male threads at the forward end of the adapter conduit 82 are designed so that when a snug, watertight fit is obtained as the adapter conduit is threaded into place, the sleeve 112 will be in alignment with the aperture 110 in the spout housing. Suitable adhesive is applied to the side tube 96 which is then inserted through the aperture 110 into the sleeve 112 and advanced until the keys 116 engage the ends of the keyways 114. This automatically insures the proper orientation of the side tube 96 relative to the adapter conduit 82 and spout housing 18 and determines the extent of its projection into the bore 86. It will also be noted, making reference especially to FIG. 2, that the side tube 96 is angularly displaced from the vertical to minimize interference between the hand spray unit hose 106 and the water discharging from the tub spout outlet 24.

The side tube 96 has an internal passageway 120 leading from an inlet orifice 122 of the side tube. The tube 96 moreover has an inlet end face 124 which is shaped so as to deflect around the inlet orifice water flowing from the pipe nipple 12 to the tube outlet 24.

More specifically, the inlet end face 124 is arched or domed and includes a sloping rear or upstream portion 126 (closest to the pipe nipple 12) which diverges from the longitudinal axis 16 in the direction of water flow. An oppositely sloping forward or downstream portion 128 of the inlet end face 124 includes substantially all of the inlet orifice and converges with the longitudinal axis 16 in the direction of water flow.

By sloping the upstream portion 126 of the side tube inlet face 124 as described, the water is deflected away from the inlet orifice 122 so that it flows past the orifice 122 and not into it. The opposite slope of the downstream portion 128 of the inlet face 124 enhances this effect. It is believed that during intermediate rates of water flow, some aspiration occurs on account of the Bernoulli effect to further aid in preventing outflow through the side tube 96 but this is believed to be incidental only and does not appear to be necessary for the proper operation of the device.

When operation of the hand spray unit is desired, the diverter valve 26 is closed by pulling up on the knob 46 thereby raising the cup 60 until the lip 70 contacts the seat 30 as best shown in FIG. 4. Water flowing into the diverter valve chamber 22 enters the cup 60 and exerts an upward force on the inside of the lip 70 which force is sufficient to hold the lip 70 against the seat 30 thereby blocking the flow of water between the cup and the seat. In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, the water pressure causes the washer-shaped seal 42 to flex downwardly into contact with the shoulder 68 to seal off the drain holes 64. Thus, no water is able to pass through the diverter valve assembly 26 to the tub outlet 24, all the water thereby being compelled to pass through the side tube 96 and out through the hand spray unit. The small amount of back pressure produced by the hand spray unit is enough to keep the diverter valve closed.

The water pressure within the diverter valve 26 is substantially reduced when the main faucets (not shown) are turned off and under this reduced pressure the washer seal 42 flexes upwardly breaking the seal and permitting water to seep between the washer seal 42 and the shoulder 68 and drain through the holes 64 in the bottom of the cup 60. When the pressure drops below a predetermined level because of the drainage of water in the manner described, the upward pressure on the lip 70 will be insufficient to overcome the weight of the cup 60, stem 44 and weight 48. At this point the cup 60 drops away from the seat 30 thereby opening the diverter valve.

It will be seen from the foregoing that the hand spray unit does not need its own shutoff valve although such valve could be present. There is a disadvantage in the latter case, however, in that two valves, namely, the hand spray unit valve and the diverter valve, would have to be manipulated in order to use the hand spray unit.

In accordance with one specific, practical example of the invention, the conduit bore 86 is slightly tapered, the smaller, forward end having a diameter of about 0.5 inch and the diameter just downstream of the internal threads at the flanged end being about 0.7 inch. The distance d (FIG. 3), that is, the gap between the peak of the domed inlet face 124 and the closest point along the wall of the bore 86, is about 0.045 inch. The outside diameter of the side tube is about 0.45 inch thereby forming a substantial constriction within the bore 86 which speeds up considerably the flow of water about the side tube 96. This is a desirable condition which aids the deflecting action of the upstream slope 126 of the inlet face 124.

For side tube outside diameters and adapter conduit bore diameters different than those mentioned, the distance d may be expected to change accordingly in order to optimize the operation of the device, that is, to minimize water rise in the hose 106 when the diverter valve 26 is in the tub spout position. It appears that in all practical cases, however, the side tube 96 will project into the bore a distance substantially greater than the bore radius.

The cross-sectional flow area in the conduit 82 defined by the bore 86 and the side tube 96, that is, the flow area at the section seen in FIG. 2, is slightly less than the area of the central aperture 32. In the absence of such flow area relationship, the back pressure created at the aperture 32, especially at higher flow rates, would tend to divert water to the hand spray unit. In other words, the deflecting action of the inlet end face 124 would tend to be defeated.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A spout assembly comprising:

a spout housing having a discharge opening;

a diverter valve mounted within the spout housing;

a conduit mounted within the spout housing for conducting water from a water supply pipe to the diverter valve, said conduit having a bore;

a tube projecting into the bore of the conduit, the tube being disposed generally transverse of the direction of flow in the conduit, the tube having an inlet end within the bore, the inlet end having an inlet orifice and being shaped to deflect water past the inlet orifice and thereby minimize entry thereof into the inlet orifice during flow of water through the diverter valve, the diverter valve being selectively operable to prevent water outflow from the discharge opening to thereby divert the water to flow out through the tube.

2. An assembly, as defined in claim 1, in which:

the inlet end of the tube is sloped in the direction of water flow to deflect the water when the diverter valve is positioned for outflow through the discharge opening.

3. An assembly, as defined in claim 1, in which:

the tube projects into the bore a distance greater than the radius of the bore.

4. An assembly, as defined in claim 1, in which:

the diverter valve includes means defining an aperture through which the water flows to the discharge opening, the flow area of the aperture being larger than the smallest flow area defined by the tube and bore.

5. A tub spout comprising:

a spout housing defining a tub outlet;

a manually operable diverter valve mounted within the spout housing adjacent the tub outlet;

a conduit mounted in the spout housing, the conduit having an inlet portion adapted to be coupled to a water supply pipe and a bore bringing into communication the inlet portion of the conduit and the diverter valve, the diverter valve being selectively operable to break communication between the inlet portion of the conduit and the tub outlet; and

a side tube attached to the conduit, said side tube having:

an inlet orifice;

an outer portion extending through an opening in the spout housing and adapted for connection to a hand spray hose; and

an inner portion projecting into the bore of the conduit a distance substantially greater than the radius of the bore, the inner portion terminating at an inlet end surface about the inlet orifice, the portion of the inlet end surface upstream of the inlet orifice being sloped to deflect water past the inlet orifice during flow of water from the inlet portion of the conduit to the tub outlet thereby minimizing the entry of water into the inlet orifice, closing of the diverter valve causing the water to flow through the side tube.

6. A tub spout, as defined in claim 5, in which:

the portion of the inlet end surface including substantially all of the inlet orifice is sloped oppositely to the slope of the upstream portion of the inlet end surface to aid in minimizing the entry of water when the diverter valve is positioned for outflow through the tub outlet.

7. A tub spout, as defined in claim 5, in which:

the outer portion of the side tube includes a threaded portion for receiving the hand spray hose, the threaded portion being canted toward the tub outlet for providing clearance between the hand spray hose and the tub.

8. A tub spout, as defined in claim 5, in which:

the side tube is angularly displaced relative to the direction of water outflow from the tub outlet to minimize interference between the hand spray hose and water flow from the tub outlet.

9. A tub spout, as defined in claim 5, in which:

the diverter valve includes means defining an aperture through which the water flows to the tub outlet, the flow area of the aperture being larger than the smallest flow area defined by the side tube and the bore of the conduit.

10. A tub spout, as defined in claim 5, in which:

the conduit includes at the inlet portion thereof an outwardly extending flange having an outer periphery closely conforming to the contour of the interior wall of the spout housing.

11. A tub spout, as defined in claim 5, in which:

the conduit is threadedly secured, at the end opposite the inlet portion, to the spout housing and the bore of the conduit includes longitudinally extending spline means adapted to be engaged to effect installation of the conduit.

12. A tub spout, as defined in claim 5, in which:

the conduit includes a radially extending sleeve for receiving the side tube, the side tube being keyed to the sleeve to affix its position relative to the conduit.