Patent Application
20080235861
This Application is a Third Continuation-In-Part of application Ser. No. 11/731,862, filed on Apr. 2, 2007. The First Continuation-In-Part is application Ser. No. 11/880,383, filed on Jul. 20, 2007 and the Second Continuation-In-Part is application Ser. No. 11/903,654, filed on Sep. 24, 2007. The original Application is Ser. No. 11/648,878, filed on Dec. 26, 2006.
Not Applicable.
Not Applicable.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a bidet assembly for retrofitting toilets for the cleansing of a user's private parts.
2. Descriptions of the Prior Art
Bidet is a stand-alone unit beside a conventional toilet to provide spray of water to the underside of a user for the cleansing of the user's private parts. Because bidet requires additional floor space and is also expensive, they are not installed in most homes.
Therefore, retrofitting existing conventional toilets with a bidet assembly provides a practical solution. There is a myriad of prior art on the design of an ideal bidet assembly. All of the prior art bidet attachments, however, suffer at least one of the following deficiencies: prone to splash water out of toilet, expensive to manufacture, complex, permanent attachments, difficult to install and remove, leave mar or damage in toilet when bidet is removed, difficult to use, failure to meet sanitary requirements, and unsightly. Examples of such prior art bidet attachments are shown and described in the cited References.
A major problem that is not obvious from reading the prior art and because it was not specifically addressed nor pointed out by the prior art is the propensity of splashing water out of a toilet bowl during the application of prior art devices. As a user sits on a toilet seat, the opening in the toilet seat is practically completely covered by the user. Therefore, it can be very difficult to maneuver a hand-held device, such as a hand-held spray (U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,978.492, 6,843.432, 6,785,915, 6,704,946, 6,473,913, 5,991,937, 5,953,766, 5,809,585), into and out of a limited opening, which is behind the user and between user's buttocks and toilet seat, with water continuously of the sprayer, and preventing water from spraying outside of a toilet.
The process becomes more complicated when it also requires the manipulation of a handle, valve, knob or other controls under normal circumstances. It becomes further more complicated, and may even be confusing, when a user gets up in the middle of the night, perhaps half asleep and in the dark, goes to the toilet and attempts to use such devices. It becomes even further more difficult when such devices (U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,287,566, 5,722,097, 5,799,341) are located behind the user.
The prior art bidet device of U.S. Pat. No. 3,310,813 presented an unsanitary condition because its vertical spray nozzle is directly under the buttocks of a user. Although this problem is solved by U.S. Pat. No. 5,722,907, it requires manipulating a handle behind the user to move the bidet structure out of the way. U.S. Pat. No. 5,271,104 solved said problem using a pivotal nozzle. This is not a problem for this present invention of a bidet assembly because said bidet assembly is designed to be hidden from view and, therefore, its nozzle is not directly under a user buttocks.
The prior art bidet attachments of U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,799,341, 5,271,104, 5,142,711 are among the easier ones to install as far as the water supply source is concern, because they connect to the toilet bowl's refill water outlet as their water supply source, instead of the main water supply pipe to the toilet tank. However, these prior art bidets are still expensive (U.S. Pat. No. 5,271,104), difficult to use (U.S. Pat. No. 5,799,341), and unsightly (for all three said patents). They all require some permanent attaching means, such as adhesives, screws or bolts and nuts, to secure the spray nozzles. Furthermore, using the toilet bowl's refill water outlet nipple as a water supply source can create a problem if the outlet of the new water supply line is at and lower than the toilet tank bottom level. Such a new water supply line can leak water continuously due to a siphoning effect of water from the toilet tank and causing the tank to intermittently filling up.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,142,711 additionally specified securing spray nozzles on a toilet bowl uppermost surface. Such nozzles placement location presents two problems: First, said nozzles prevent some toilet seats from mating completely on the toilet bowl surface; Second, water shooting out from the jet spray nozzle would spray outside a toilet bowl. Therefore, its stand alone Claim 1 is not a practical and viable solution. This prior art attempted to solve said problem by diverting part of the water (Claim 3) to the overflow tube using a “T” fitting. However, this partial diversion of water is still insufficient to solve said problem. Further attempt (Claim 8) was made by this prior art to solve said problem by specifying “a means, such as an adjustable clamp, for restricting the flow of water.” A close/open clamp, as shown by this prior art, does not provide a good control for flow of water. A valve would have given better result. In any case, by adding a means of control complicates the device ease of use.
The prior art bidet attachment of U.S. Pat. No. 3,256,531 specified an integral liquid supply and nozzle tube system wherein part of the liquid supply tube having two resilient attachment means, one of said means is a C-shaped clip conforming substantially to the cross-section of a toilet bowl top rim. Said design is specific to a rim geometry and is impractical for general application as there is a myriad of sizes and shapes for a bowl top rim. Other parts of the bidet attachment are located on top and also protruding out the side of a toilet bowl and are, therefore, unsightly. This prior art is also incomplete as a complete bidet system as it only mentioned a pressurized liquid source without specifying what that source would be and it also mentioned that a valve may be necessary as a means for controlling the liquid flow.
All prior art bidet devices are unsightly because they are seen as clutter in a limited space toilet room, or can be seen as add-on on the side of a toilet or protruding out of a toilet in many places.
To avoid unsightliness, bidet assembly parts must be out-of-sight and that would require bidet parts to be located within the confines of a toilet tank and bowl. This is a stringent requirement because there are no standards in the size and shape for toilet tank and bowl. And because there are no standards—other than the bolt down holes spacing for the toilet and the hole spacing for bolting a toilet seat—there are literally a myriad of toilet sizes and shapes in the market. Making and inventorying a myriad of bidet sizes is impractical and expensive. The only standard for toilet bowl is the name for the shape of a bowl—round and elongated. The standardization, however, ended there. Within each round and elongated classification, there are again myriad of sizes and shapes. Differences in size and shape are found not only among different brands but also within a brand. For example, one company alone has 36 different models and each model's size and shape are different.
The following table shows actual measurements of toilet sizes (in inches) for one brand alone for some of its models. The letters represent parts of a toilet tank and bowl shown in
Unusual shape differences among models further contributed to the complexity. For examples: 1. Some toilets have a bulge at the front end of the toilet bowl and, therefore, have a zero value for FLD. 2. Some toilets are one piece unit, that is, the toilet tank and bowl are not separate units.
It can be concluded from this myriad of sizes and shapes that designing a one-size bidet assembly—that will fit within the confines of any toilet—presents a major challenge to innovation. This may well be the reason why all prior art bidet devices retrofit outside the confines of a toilet tank and bowl.
The uncomfortable feeling of chilly cold water on a user's skin is addressed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,843,432, 6,643,856, 6,178,568, 5,953,766, 5,809,585, 5,271,104, 4,242,764, and 4,691,391 by either mixing a hot water source with cold water or passing cold water through a special heater. Having a hot water source next to a toilet, however, is not common. Installing a special heater adds further to the expense and complexity of a bidet assembly.
In the present invention of a bidet assembly, all of the above said problems and deficiencies are successfully solved.
The present invention provides a bidet assembly for retrofitting toilets of all sizes and shapes to provide clean fine jet stream of water for the cleansing of a user's private parts while keeping water from splashing out of a toilet bowl without the use of any controlling devices. The bidet assembly of this invention comprises a nozzle, preferably connected to a multi-port fitting which is connected to a water supply tube and a non-permanent mounting means for holding said nozzle inside a toilet bowl, preferably at the bowl's lip vertical surface or under the bowl's lip horizontal surface. Said strategic placement of said nozzle keeps the jet stream of water within the bowl inner chamber (below its lip) and prevents water from splashing out. The bidet assembly of this invention is easily installed within the confines of a toilet tank and bowl, with most of its parts not visible, therefore it is not unsightly.
The bidet assembly of this invention may also have multiple nozzles by attaching one or more multi-port tube fitting to said water supply tube. There can be as many nozzles as there are available ports. For example, one “T” tube fitting, which has 3 ports, can have two connected nozzles.
Said nozzle of this present invention, preferably connected to a multi-port tube fitting, can also be rotated on a vertical plane and, thereby, its water jet angle can be adjusted to fit a myriad sizes and shapes of toilets and by the user to direct the water jet toward user's private parts. The embodiment of said adjustable nozzle obviates the need and expense for a hand held device found in many prior arts so that water can be directed to desired private parts. By being able to adjust the water jet angle, a user can also keep the water jet spray from shooting outside of a toilet. Therefore, said adjustable nozzle also obviates the need and expense of a control valve found in many prior arts to control water pressure for keeping water jet stream from shooting out of a toilet. Although said nozzle can be rotated, it is preferably tightly connected to said multi-port tube fitting and friction prevents it from loosely and freely rotating. Therefore, said nozzle can still be adjusted and set in place by a user.
One embodiment example of said multi-port tube fitting is the type that is called “instant-connect” fitting, wherein a tubing is connected to said fitting simply by pushing the tubing in to obtain water-tight seal without any nut to turn and tighten.
One embodiment example of said non-permanent mounting means is a “C” clamp that holds said water supply tube and the connected end of said nozzle on the underside of a bowl's lip. Another embodiment example of said non-permanent mounting means is a long and stiff member with a spring-back property that wedges itself and one end of said water supply tube and nozzle assembly against a toilet bowl's inside curve surface and below the bowl's lip underside. Said long and stiff member is first bent to pass through a the bowl's opening and then released. Said long and stiff member, due to its spring-back property, tends to straighten out but is restrained by the bowl inside surfaces. Therefore, the tension within said restrained long and stiff member holds the member wedged against the bowl inside surfaces.
A further embodiment of present invention is that said long and stiff member has a preferred initial pre-bent form, instead being straight, that provides said member in good contact around the toilet bowl inside surfaces.
A further embodiment of the present invention is that said water supply tube being directly connected to the bowl refill nipple on the ballcock (also called “fill valve”) so that clean water for cleansing is provided as the toilet is being flushed and the bowl is being refilled with water running through said bidet assembly of this invention.
A further embodiment of the present invention is an anti-siphoning means is attached to said water supply tube, which is directly connected to the bowl refill nipple as its water supply source.
A further preferred embodiment of the present invention is that said non-permanent mounting means, said water supply tube and said nozzle is one integral unit formed from a single tube.
A further preferred embodiment of the present invention is that said non-permanent mounting means, said water supply tube and said nozzle is one integral unit joined together by at least one fitting.
A still further preferred embodiment of the present invention is that at least one nozzle is provided through the use of multi-port fitting or jointed fittings. Therefore, if the singular word of nozzle is used in this Specification, it should not be construed that only one nozzle can be used.
A still further preferred embodiment of the present invention is that said nozzle is selected from the list of tubing, bent tubing, straight fitting, elbow fitting and 90° elbow flexible-tube fitting.
A still further preferred embodiment of the present invention is to provide fine jet stream of sprayed water in discontinuous droplets, which has the effects of a pleasurable cool sensation rather than the shock of an onslaught of uncomfortable chilly cold sensation. This is accomplished without the use of a hot water source or a heater.
An objective of the present invention is to provide a bidet assembly that is inexpensive to manufacture.
A further objective of the present invention is to provide a bidet assembly that can be manufactured using commonly available merchandise.
A further objective of the present invention is to provide a bidet assembly that is capable of retrofitting all size and shape of toilets. A one size fits all.
A still further objective of the present invention is to provide a bidet assembly that is simple, quick and easy to install and remove and without the need to remove the toilet seat during installation or removal.
A still further objective of the present invention is to provide a bidet assembly that does not mar nor damage a toilet.
A still further objective of the present invention is to provide a bidet assembly that does not cause water to splash out of a toilet bowl through the strategic placement of nozzle.
A still further objective of the present invention is to provide a bidet assembly that has no valve, handle, and control to manipulate and, therefore, is easy to use.
A still further objective of the present invention is to provide a bidet assembly that is hidden within the confines of a toilet tank, bowl and seat and, therefore, not unsightly.
A still further objective of the present invention is to provide a bidet assembly that fulfills sanitary requirements and which is not vertically under the opening of a toilet seat and, therefore, not under a user's buttock, and therefore, can not be soiled by the user.
The present invention of a bidet assembly is particularly noteworthy in providing an inexpensive bidet assembly that a user can install or remove quickly and easily, that is hidden from view, that provides cool clean water to the user for cleansing private parts by just simply flushing a toilet without manipulating any controls, that can retrofit all toilet sizes and shapes, that meets sanitary requirements, and that does not cause water to splash out of a toilet.
The various features and benefits which characterize the present invention of a bidet assembly will become apparent with those skilled in the art after reading the following description of drawings and detailed description of the present invention.
The present invention provides an inexpensive bidet assembly for retrofitting toilets of all sizes and shapes to provide clean jet stream of water for the cleansing of a user's private parts through the normal action of flushing a toilet, without any handles nor controlling devices. The bidet assembly of this invention comprises a nozzle, preferably connected to a multi-port tube fitting which is connected to a water supply tube, and a non-permanent mounting means for holding said nozzle and fitting assembly inside a toilet bowl and under the lip 1 of toilet bowl 18. Such strategic placement of said nozzle keeps jet stream of water within the bowl inner chamber (below the bowl's lip) and prevents water from spraying or splashing out. The bidet assembly of this invention meets sanitary requirements and is easily installed within the confines of a toilet tank and bowl, with most of its parts not visible, therefore it is not unsightly.
A perspective view of a conventional toilet is shown in
The toilet bowl 18 has a lip land inside surface 2. Said lip 1 comprises a top rim corner edge 3, a bottom rim corner edge 5, an underside horizontal surface 6, an underside rear corner edge 7, a vertical face 8, and a top surface 9, whose surface extends toward and under the toilet tank 4. Each of said parts, except for top surface 9, inner surface 2 and tank 4, has an elliptical shape when viewed from the top. This is shown in
The toilet tank 4 has a top rim 11. Inside tank 4 is a ballcock 12, which comprises a bowl refill nipple 13, a tank refill pipe 14, a valve control rocker arm 15 attached to a ball float 16, and an overfill pipe 17.
The said non-permanent mounting means of this present invention of a bidet assembly provides the advantages of quick and easy installation and removal, not marring nor permanently damaging a toilet, which would have happened with conventional installation means using adhesives, screws or bolts. This invention of a bidet assembly also has no moving parts, which can break down. These benefits appeal not only to homeowners but also to home renters, who can take said bidet assembly with them when they move and install it in their new home.
If a single nozzle is mentioned in some bidet assembly, it is understood that additional nozzles can be added through the use of one or more multi-port tube fittings to provide more ports for the connection of additional nozzles. Examples of said embodiment of tube fittings providing at least one nozzles are shown in
An embodiment example of said non-permanent mounting means in this present invention of a bidet assembly is a “C” clamp device that wedges the water supply tube and the connected end of a nozzle on bowl lip 1 of a toilet. Three embodiment examples of said “C” clamp device are the basic “C” clamp BC of
The basic “C” clamp in
The end portions of nozzle 35 and inverted “U” tube 37 that are connected to flexible tubing are preferably flared, shown in
The application of the threaded rod tightening-clamp TC, shown in
The spring-loaded clamp SC shown in
A further embodiment of the present invention of a bidet assembly with a non-permanent securing means of “C” clamps wherein the basic “C” clamp, water supply tube and nozzle form one integral tubing unit. Said integral bidet assembly is made of stiff and rigid tube, preferably metal, such as stainless steel and copper. The required characteristics for clamping onto a bowl's lip 1 are the same as the basic “C” clamp BC shown in
Although a single tube nozzle is shown for the “C” clamp bidet assemblies, as shown in
Another embodiment example of said non-permanent mounting means in this present invention of a bidet assembly is a long and stiff member 50 having a spring-back property, shown in
In order for said long and stiff member 50 to function as described above, said member 50 must have a length of at least 30% (see Example 1 for details) of the circumference of the underside corner edge 7 for each specific toilet plus a spring-back property of at least 11% (see Example 2 for details), measured by the method shown in
The procedure for measuring % spring-back is given as follows: take a 14 inches straight length of a long and stiff member 50, clamp two inches of one end with the 2-inch mark at the zero mark along the x-axis on a table. The free end is then bent, along the y-axis by sliding along the surface of said table, to a distance of 10 inches (H1) from the x-axis follow by releasing said free end. The final distance of said free end from the x-axis is H2. The difference between H1 and H2 divided by H1 times a 100 is the member % spring-back property. A complete recovery to a straight line has a 100% spring-back property because its H2 value is zero. The measured % spring-back value for a ¼″ OD (outside diameter) copper tube (JMF Company, Bettendorf, Iowa) is 1.2% while that for 20 gauge galvanize steel wire (Hillman, Cincinnati, Ohio) is 55%.
The shape of underside corner edge 7 is approximately an ellipse (
Where a=A/2 and b=B/2.
A further embodiment of said long and stiff member in this present invention of a bidet assembly as a means for mounting a nozzle and water supply tube is an endless loop. Said endless loop can achieve the same result of wedging and firmly holding a nozzle and water supply tube assembly against a bowl's inside wall surface under bowl lip 1 even with % spring-back value of less than 11%.
A still further embodiment of a long and stiff member as a said non-permanent securing means in this present invention of a bidet assembly is that said long and stiff member, a nozzle, and water supply tube become an integral unit fabricated from a single stiff tube.
A still further embodiment of said integral unit IC is that the water supply segment 53 comprises of the three-sections water supply assembly 39, as shown in
A still further embodiment example of a long and stiff member as a said non-permanent securing means in this present invention of a bidet assembly is that said long and stiff member comprises of two sections, joined by a multi-port tube-to-tube fitting, to form a jointed long and stiff member. With a four-port fitting, a nozzle and water supply tube are connected to the remaining 2 ports. Additional nozzles can be connected with a fitting having more than four ports or additional multi-port tube fitting can be connected.
In this preferred embodiment, the nozzles 80 have a high degree of rotation on a vertical plane thus enabling the nozzles 80 to direct jetting water even above a horizontal plane. This permits a user to direct jetting water upward toward a user's anus area. However, if the user is not sitting on the toilet seat or there is no user and the toilet cover is not down, the nozzles can shoot water outside the toilet.
The assembly comprising said short “L” shape water tube 83, said “T” tube fitting 79, and said two jet nozzles 80 is given the name “BLE assembly”.
In this preferred embodiment, the horizontal plane of “T” tube fitting 79 is butted up against the bowl's lip underside 6, thereby restricting nozzles 80 from rotating higher than a horizontal plane. This keeps the jet stream of water from shooting higher than the bowl lip underside 6, thus prevents water from spraying outside a toilet.
The preferred embodiment of a bidet assembly of
It is usually more preferable to give some degree of rotational freedom to the nozzles 80 using said long and stiff member 50 with said assembly LE. This is accomplished in
If the BLE assembly is not attached to the long and stiff member 50, the BLE assembly is not secured to the toilet bowl because the flexible tube 36 is incapable of holding it up, therefore, the BLE assembly would fall off.
One example of a preferred attachment means for the BLE assembly to the long and stiff member 50, as shown in
A different means of mounting said BLE bidet assembly to a toilet bowl is adhesive tape 85 as shown in
A further preferred embodiment of this present invention of a bidet assembly is the use of instant-connect (push-to-connect) tube fittings. Watts Company of North Andover, Mass. is one of many manufacturer of such fittings. Said instant-connect tube fittings provide two advantages: 1. Quick and easy connection between tubing and fitting, 2. Inserted tubing can be rotated within the instant tube fitting and still maintain water-tight seal. In comparison, compression tube fitting takes time turning a nut to tighten and leaks developed if nut is not fully tighten.
A still further preferred embodiment of this present invention of a bidet assembly is the use of flexible tube fittings as jet nozzles. The use of flexible tube fittings as nozzles provides three advantages: 1. Readily available merchandise, 2. The right dimensions, 3. Reduces tube fitting's diameter to a much smaller diameter that gives a finer and discontinuous water stream spray, which gives a warmer sensation even from a rather chilly cold water source. A still further preferred embodiment is that said flexible tube fittings have barbs. The barb has a larger diameter and therefore permits the use of one size smaller flexible tube fitting for corresponding instant-connect tube fitting while maintaining water-tight seal.
The use of a toilet bowl's refill water outlet nipple as a water supply source provides easy installation of a bidet assembly. However, it can create a problem if (1) the ballcock (also called “fill valve”) does not “breathe”, and (2) the outlet of the new water supply line is at or lower than the toilet tank bottom level. The problem is a continuous water leak out of the jet nozzle. This is caused by a siphoning effect of water from the toilet tank by the water supply tube of the bidet assembly.
Some type of ballcock breathes, so that after the water is automatically shut off by the toilet float mechanism, air enters the ballcock to prevent said siphoning effect.
Therefore, another preferred embodiment of this present invention of a bidet assembly is the incorporation of an anti-siphoning means. Basically, such anti-siphoning means lets air gets suck into the water supply tube after water has been shut off. There are many different ways to accomplish said anti-siphoning means for those skill in the art, and therefore, it is not the objective here to enumerate all of them here. Three such means are discussed below.
Check valve permits fluid to travel only in one direction. The use of said check valve is shown in
A simple and less costly anti-siphoning means is making at least one pinhole in the water supply line. This will work only if the pinhole's location in the water supply line is above the surface of the toilet tank's water line and preferably located inside the toilet tank. When water is running inside said water supply line, a very fine stream of water will be jetted out of the pinhole due to the pressurized water—this is reason why said pinhole should be located inside the toilet tank—and as the water is shut off, air will be sucked in through the pinhole. The size of said pinhole, preferably less than 0.025 inch in diameter, has insignificant impact on the nozzle's water jet pressure.
As previously mentioned, flexible-tube fittings are preferably used as jet nozzles. Since flexible-tube fittings have barbs to keep flexible tubing from slipping out of the fitting, a flexible-tube fitting can be inserted only into a tube fitting that is one size larger. This is because the outside diameter of the flexible-tube fitting at the barb is much larger than its specified size. For example, a 3/16″ flexible-tube fitting can be inserted into a ¼″ instant-connect tube fitting while a ¼″ flexible-tube fitting would be too large to be inserted into a ¼″ instant-connect tube fitting.
Commercially available flexible-tube fittings also do not give a tight fit to any commercially available instant-connect tube fittings. One reason is because there are widely different other dimensions for these two type of fittings, depending on their manufacturers. Another reason is that the flexible-tube fitting, being one size smaller than the tube fitting, is tight only at the barb location. As a result, 90° elbow flexible-tube fitting nozzles rotate too easily so that they can be accidentally knocked out of desired set angle during cleaning.
Therefore, a preferred embodiment of a 90° elbow plastic nozzle for the bidet assembly of this invention is a nozzle that fits very tightly in an instant-connect tube fitting of any made.
As mentioned previously, an embodiment example of said non-permanent mounting means in this present invention of a bidet assembly is a long and stiff member 50 having a spring-back property of at least 11% and whose length is at least 30% of the circumference of the rim's lip underside corner edge 7 for each specific toilet. Said long and stiff member 50 is normally installed into a toilet bowl by holding each end of said straight member with each hand and bending it by bringing both hands close enough so that it can pass through the bowl opening and then the ends are released. This is shown in
Therefore, another preferred embodiment example of a bidet assembly of this invention is a long and stiff member 50 non-permanent mounting means that makes intimate contact with the bowl's inside vertical surfaces. This ideal is shown in
A preferred embodiment example of a bending mold is the elliptical shape of a toilet bowl's corner 7. During the bending process, the whole length of said member 50 must remain in physical contact with the bending-mold and this requires using some restraining devices. Without restraining devices, the middle portion of said member 50 would be pushed away from the bending-mold. One might think that with proper restraints, said member 50 after having been forced to bend around the elliptical bending-mold would eventually make intimate contact along its whole length with bowl inside surfaces. But that is not the case, in fact, the higher the spring-back property of said member 50, the less intimate contact but the higher the spring-back wedging force. On the other hand, material with low (less than 11%) to negligible spring-back property, such as copper, such material would bend and assume close to the shape of the bending-mold but there is not enough spring-back wedging force to hold the member 50 in place. There are two factors that contribute to the above unusual behaviors. 1. The bowl's rim lip has a narrower/smaller elliptical contour than the bowl inside surfaces under the elliptical corner 7 contour. 2. The previously pre-formed member 50 has to be bent further to be able to be placed inside the bowl inside surfaces under the elliptical corner 7 contour. With a materials having a low (less than 11%) or negligible spring-back property, said pre-formed member 50, after being bent further and passing through bowl's rim lip, does not have enough spring-back property or force to wedge onto the bowl's surfaces. For a member 50 with a material having higher than 11% spring-back property, it would straighten somewhat after bending around a bending-mold and not assume the exact contour of the bending-mold. To pass through the bowl's rim lip, said member 50 is bent further but this time without a mold, so its middle section would again bend more and resulting again in a “V” shape, though not as pointed at the center.
Example 1 gives the details of an experiment that determines the minimum length required for a long and stiff member 50 with good % spring-back property to wedge and hold itself in the inside bowl surface 2 and directly below the bowl's lip underside surface 6 and rear corner edge 7. Example 2 gives the details for determining the minimum % spring-back property for a long and stiff member in a toilet bowl. Example 3 gives the details of an experiment that measures the time to install and remove a preferred embodiment in this invention of a bidet assembly.
The dimensions used for an actual sample toilet bowl are: A=17.75″, B=13.5″ (
The minimum length is calculated taking 13.6″ divided by the circumference of 45.2″ and is equaled to 30.0%.
Minimum % Spring-Back=(H1−H2)×100/H1
In this example, the preferred embodiment example of an integral long and slender member bidet assembly of this present invention shown in
The objectives of quick and easy installation in this present invention of a bidet assembly is demonstrated by timing the speed to install and to remove said fabricated bidet assembly from a toilet. A total of five trials of installation and removal were done. It is assumed that a user would first read an installation instruction prior to actual installation. Therefore, the recorded time is the actual time to install and remove, not counting the time to read the instruction.
Said fabricated bidet assembly comprises six parts: B3—the two jointed “T” fittings with nozzle 63 and short water supply tube 67 already attached, arms 61and 62, inverted rigid “U” tube 37, flexible tubes 36 and 38. The installation time also includes time to join said parts together plus removing and replacing a toilet tank cover. The result of five trials is shown in the following table.
The average time for installation is less 1.5 minutes and for removal, less than a minute. These amazing results conclusively prove that this present invention of a bidet assembly is quick and easy to install and remove.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 11731862 | Apr 2007 | US |
| Child | 11978784 | US | |
| Parent | 11880383 | Jul 2007 | US |
| Child | 11731862 | US | |
| Parent | 11903654 | Sep 2007 | US |
| Child | 11880383 | US |
