The present invention relates generally to a faucet, and more particularly to a faucet with an ultrasonic generator.
In order to increase the cleaning effect of the residual dirt on the surface of the cleaned items and avoid wasting too much water resources during the cleaning process, ultrasonic cleaning is used to improve the cleaning effect currently, and also because ultrasonic cleaning does not require a large amount of water flow, more water saving.
The principle of ultrasonic cleaning is to provide an ultrasonic generator in a receiving groove. When the ultrasonic generator is activated, the liquid in the receiving groove will produce a pressure difference, which produces many tiny bubbles in the liquid. When the tiny bubbles touched the object to be cleaned, an impact will be generated on the surface of the object to be cleaned, in this way, the dirt will leave the surface of the object along with the liquid to achieve the effect of cleaning.
The ultrasonic cleaning can be found in all walks of life. For example, the medical industry cleans medical equipment by ultrasonic cleaning to avoid virus residue; the manufacturing industry removes rust and oil on the surface of metal workpieces by ultrasonic cleaning; or, the ultrasonic generator can be also used when cleaning the dirt on glasses, vegetables, or dinner plates, which not only increases the effect of cleaning, but also reduce the use of detergent. However, if the user needs to use the ultrasonic cleaning, the user must purchase an ultrasonic generator by themselves, but there is no specific space for receiving the ultrasonic generator, which causes inconvenience in access or placement. The aforementioned problems are necessary to be solved.
In view of the above, the primary objective of the present invention is to provide a faucet with an ultrasonic generator, wherein the ultrasonic generator is detachably engaged with a base of the faucet, increasing the convenience of access and makes the operation faster.
The present invention provides a faucet including a base, an outlet pipe, and an ultrasonic generator. The base has a receiving groove, wherein the receiving groove has an opening formed on an outer surface of the base. The outlet pipe is engaged with the base, wherein the outlet pipe has an inlet end and an outlet end. The ultrasonic generator is detachably disposed in the receiving groove via the opening.
With the aforementioned design, the ultrasonic generator is detachably engaged with the base of the faucet, which facilitates the storage of the ultrasonic generator, and could increase the convenience of taking and placing and make the operation faster.
The present invention will be best understood by referring to the following detailed description of some illustrative embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which
A faucet 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in
As shown in
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The locking unit 44 of the fixing mechanism 40 includes a second spring 442 and a locking member 444, wherein an end of the second spring 442 fits around the projection 132 at the bottom surface of the second receiving groove 13, and another end of the second spring 442 is connected to the locking member 444. The locking member 444 has a through hole 444a and a protrusion 444b, wherein the through hole 444a is formed along the first axial direction A1, and the protrusion 444b protrudes in a direction away from the second spring 442 along the second axial direction A2. The pressing unit 42 passes through the through hole 444a, and the abutting section 424a of the pressing member 424 abuts against a hole wall of the through hole 444a. The hole wall of the through hole 444a has a second abutting surface 444c corresponding to the first abutting surface 424b of the abutting section 424a. When the pressing unit 42 moves from the third position P3 to the fourth position P4, the locking unit 44 is driven from a first position P1 to a second position P2. When the locking unit 44 is located at the first position P1, the first abutting surface 424b of the pressing member 424 abuts against the second abutting surface 444c of the locking member 444, and the locking member 444 protrudes out of the second receiving groove 13. When the locking unit 44 is located at the second position P2, the locking member 444 is located in the second receiving groove 13, and the second spring 442 is compressed.
The positioning groove 15 of the base 10 is recessed into a bottom surface of the receiving groove 11 along the first axial direction A1, wherein a projection 152 protrudes from a bottom surface of the positioning groove 15. The base 10 has a disengaging unit 16 configured corresponding to the positioning groove 15, wherein the disengaging unit 16 includes a spring 162 and a disengaging member 164. An end of the spring 162 of the disengaging unit 16 fits around the projection 152 of the positioning groove 15, and another end of the spring 162 of the disengaging unit 16 is connected to the disengaging member 164. When the disengaging member 164 is pushed toward the bottom surface of the positioning groove 15 by an external force, the disengaging member 164 drives the spring 162 to compress, thereby the disengaging member 164 is located in the positioning groove 15. When the external force exerted on the disengaging member 164 is released, the spring 162 restores to its natural length and pushes the disengaging member 164 outward to make the disengaging member 164 protrudes from the positioning groove 15. The disengaging unit 16 is not limited by the aforementioned design. In other embodiments, the disengaging unit 16 could be, but not limited to, an elastic plate.
The outlet pipe 20 penetrates the base 10 and has an inlet end 20a and an outlet end 20b, wherein the inlet end 20a is adapted to be connected to an external water source (not shown), so that water flows through the inlet end 20a and flows out from the outlet end 20b.
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A power switch 50 is disposed on the base 10 of the faucet 100 and is electrically connected between the ultrasonic generator 30 and an external power (not shown) by a wire. The power switch 50 has an operating portion 52 disposed on the outer surface of the base 10. The user could turn on or off the power from the external power to the ultrasonic generator 30 by operating the operating portion 52. In the current embodiment, the operating portion 52 is, but not limited to, a button. In other embodiments, the operating portion could be a touch panel.
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When the pressing unit 42 is located at the fourth position P4 and the locking unit 44 is located at the second position P2, the protrusion 444b of the locking member 444 is located in the second receiving groove 13 and does not abut against the projection 32b of the ultrasonic generator 30. In this way, a top end of the ultrasonic generator 30 facing the fixing mechanism 40 in the second axial direction A2 is not restricted, and the spring 162 of the disengaging unit 16 restores to its natural length and pushes the ultrasonic generator 30 toward the opening of the receiving groove 11 to make the ultrasonic generator 30 protrudes from the outer surface of the base 10, and the disengaging unit 16 also protrudes from the bottom surface of the receiving groove 11 due to the spring 162 restores to its natural length. At the same time, the ultrasonic generator 30 could be taken out from the opening of the receiving groove 11 by slightly pulling the ultrasonic generator 30.
More specifically, when the user no longer applies the external force to the pressing member 424, the first spring 422 pushes the pressing member 424 from the fourth position P4 back to the third position P3. In addition, after the projection 32b of the ultrasonic generator 30 leaves the protrusion 444b of the locking member 444, the second spring 162 restores to its natural length and pushes the locking member 444 to move toward the recess 32a of the ultrasonic generator 30 in the second axial direction A2, thereby pushing the locking member 444 from the second position P2 back to the first position P1 (i.e., returns to the state that the protrusion 444b of the locking member 444 protrudes out of the second receiving groove 13).
After taking out the ultrasonic generator 30 with the aforementioned way, the ultrasonic generator 30 could be placed in a sink. The ultrasonic waves generated when the ultrasonic vibrating element 34 in the ultrasonic generator 30 is activated and makes the dirt on the dishes remove easier and improve the effect of cleaning.
In addition, when there is no need to use the ultrasonic generator 30, the ultrasonic generator 30 could be placed back by putting a bottom of the ultrasonic generator 30 having the block 32c into the receiving groove 11 first, and the block 32c of the ultrasonic generator 30 could be abutted against the notch 14 to form a supporting point, and the ultrasonic generator 30 is pushed into the receiving groove 11 by an external force. During a process of pushing the ultrasonic generator 30 into the receiving groove 11, the pressing member 424 could be pressed to drive the locking member 444 to move to the second position P2, so that the locking member 444 would not hinder the ultrasonic generator 30 from entering the receiving groove 11. Alternatively, the protrusion 444b of the locking member 444 could be move to the second position P2 by being pushed by the ultrasonic generator 30, and the protrusion 444b of the locking member 444 would move to the first position P1 when the recess 32a of the ultrasonic generator 30 corresponds to the protrusion 444b of the locking member 444, thereby restricting the ultrasonic generator 30 in the receiving groove 11.
In summary, the structural design of the ultrasonic generator engaged with the faucet allows the ultrasonic generator to be conveniently received in the receiving groove of the faucet, and the process of taking and placing the ultrasonic generator could be also convenient for the user.
It must be pointed out that the embodiments described above are only some preferred embodiments of the present invention. All equivalent structures which employ the concepts disclosed in this specification and the appended claims should fall within the scope of the present invention.