Claims
- 1. A filter assembly for filtering water from an external source, the filter assembly including a manifold assembly mountable to an appliance and being in fluid communication with the external source and a cartridge assembly, the cartridge assembly being replaceably fluidly couplable to the manifold assembly, the filter assembly comprising:
a first and a second fluid tube, the first fluid tube being fluidly couplable to the external source being an unfiltered fluid inlet, the second fluid tube being a filtered fluid outlet, the first and the second fluid tubes each having a barbed end for coupling to the manifold assembly; and a tube retainer assembly associated with each of the first and second fluid tubes, the tube retainer assemblies each having a port being fixedly couplable to the manifold assembly, the port having a retainer bore defined therein for receiving a tube barbed end therein, a retainer ring disposable on the tube, the retainer ring compressively engaging a barbed surface of the tube barbed end and being fixedly bondable to the port for forming a fluid tight seal between the fluid tube and the retainer assembly.
- 2. The filter assembly of claim 1 wherein the retainer ring is plastic welded to the retainer.
- 3. The filter assembly of claim 2 wherein the retainer ring is sonic welded to the retainer
- 4. The filter assembly of claim 1 further including an elastomeric seal being held in compression in the retainer bore by the tube barbed end.
- 5. The filter assembly of claim 4 wherein the elastomeric seal is an O-ring.
- 6. The filter assembly of claim 4 wherein the elastomeric seal is overmolded on the tube barbed end.
- 7. The filter assembly of claim 1 wherein the retainer ring has an axial bore defined longitudinally therethrough, the axial bore having a plurality of longitudinal crush ribs formed thereon, the crush ribs compressively engaging the tube barbed end when the retainer ring is disposed in the retainer bore.
- 8. The filter assembly of claim 1 wherein the retainer ring axial bore has a flared opening for minimizing the opportunity for kinking the fluid tube proximate a point of entry of the fluid tube into the retainer ring axial bore.
- 9. The filter assembly of claim 4 wherein the tube barbed end is deformable in compression to form a primary seal between the tube barbed end and the port.
- 10. The filter assembly of claim 10 wherein the elastomeric seal is deformable in compression to form a secondary seal between the tube barbed end and the port.
- 11. A filter assembly for filtering water from an external source, the filter assembly including a manifold assembly mountable to an appliance and being in fluid communication with the external source and a cartridge assembly, the cartridge assembly being replaceably fluidly couplable to the manifold assembly, the filter assembly comprising:
a high rate of flow, hydrodynamically shaped valve, the valve being disposable in a valve well and having a fluted shaft, a plurality of flutes being defined between a plurality of spaced apart flute walls, the flutes defining flow passages around the valve, the flute walls presenting a flute wall outer margin, the outer margin bearing on the valve well for maintaining the valve in a substantially axial alignment with a valve well longitudinal axis.
- 12. The filter assembly of claim 11 further including a compressing spring, the spring acting on the valve to bias the valve in a closed disposition.
- 13. The filter assembly of claim 12 wherein fluid under pressure from the external source acts in cooperation with the compressing spring to bias the valve in the closed disposition.
- 14. The filter assembly of claim 11 wherein the fluted shaft has a distal end, the distal end defining a bearing surface, a force exerted on the bearing surface acting to shift the valve from a closed disposition to an open disposition.
- 15. The filter assembly of claim 11 further including a valve head operably coupled to the fluted shaft, the valve head having a circumferential seal for forming a sealing engagement with a valve seat defined in the valve well.
- 16. The filter assembly of claim 15 wherein the circumferential seal is formed of an elastomeric material overmolded on the valve head.
- 17. The filter assembly of claim 16 wherein the valve head tapers to the fluted shaft to define a hydrodynamically efficient flow path around the valve.
- 18. A filter assembly for filtering water from an external source, the filter assembly including a manifold assembly mountable to an appliance and being in fluid communication with the external source and a cartridge assembly, the cartridge assembly being replaceably fluidly couplable to the manifold assembly, the filter assembly comprising:
a plurality of generally arcuate kickoff ramps, the kickoff ramps being engageable by the cartridge assembly during rotational disengagement of the cartridge assembly from the manifold assembly for effecting gradual disengagement against friction between the cartridge assembly and the manifold assembly generated by at least one seal interposed therebetween.
- 19. The filter assembly of claim 18 further including a plurality of generally arcuate lugs formed on the manifold assembly, each of the lugs presenting a bearing surface and an opposed non-bearing surface, a respective kickoff ramp sloping to intersect the non-bearing surface.
- 20. The filter assembly of claim 19 further including a cooperative shoulder formed on the cartridge assembly corresponding to each of the lugs for engagement therewith, the shoulder being engageable with the kickoff ramp of an adjacent lug during disengagement of the cartridge assembly from the manifold assembly.
- 21. The filter assembly of claim 20 wherein disengagement of a lug with the respective shoulder is timed during rotational disengagement of the cartridge assembly from the manifold assembly to occur substantially simultaneously with engagement of the shoulder with the kickoff ramp of the adjacent lug.
- 22. The filter assembly of claim 21 wherein rotational disengagement of the cartridge assembly from the manifold assembly acts sequentially to close a valve on a fluid inlet, disengage the shoulder from the lug and substantially simultaneously engage the shoulder with the kickoff ramp, and break the at least one sealing engagement between the cartridge assembly and the manifold assembly.
- 23. A cartridge assembly for filtering water from an external source and being useable with a filter assembly, the filter assembly including a manifold assembly mountable to an appliance and being in fluid communication with the external source and a cartridge assembly, the cartridge assembly being replaceably fluidly couplable to the manifold assembly, the cartridge assembly comprising:
a carbon filter having an outer margin and an inner margin, the inner margin defining a bore; a filter sleeve being removably disposed on the carbon filter substantially coextensive with the carbon filter outer margin.
- 24. The cartridge assembly of claim 23 further including a top adhesive dam and a bottom adhesive dam, the top adhesive dam being bonded to a carbon filter top margin and a filter sleeve top margin and the bottom adhesive dam being bonded to a carbon filter bottom margin and a filter sleeve bottom margin, the top and bottom adhesive dams fluidly sealing the respective carbon filter top margin and filter sleeve top margin and the carbon filter bottom margin and the filter sleeve bottom margin.
- 25. The cartridge assembly of claim 24 wherein the filter sleeve prefilters fluid prior to filtration of the fluid by the carbon filter, thereby extending the life of the carbon filter.
- 26. The cartridge assembly of claim 24 wherein the carbon filter is of sufficiently small porosity to filter out oocysts, including Ghirardia.
- 27. The cartridge assembly of claim 24 wherein the filter sleeve is formed of a material selected form a list consisting of
polypropylene; borosilicate glass; Teflon; polyester; melt blown polypropylene sheet captured in netting; reticulated foam; cation and anion exchange fibrous media; and iodinated cation and anion exchange fibrous media.
- 28. A cartridge assembly for filtering water from an external source and being useable with a filter assembly, the filter assembly including a manifold assembly mountable to an appliance and being in fluid communication with the external source and a cartridge assembly, the cartridge assembly being replaceably fluidly couplable to the manifold assembly, the cartridge assembly comprising:
a carbon filter having an outer margin and an inner margin, the inner margin defining a bore; and a housing assembly substantially enclosing the carbon filter, the housing assembly having a barrel having a closed first end and an opening being defined in a second end, an end cap being disposed in the opening and being fixedly coupled to the barrel by plastic welding techniques.
- 29. The cartridge assembly of claim 28 wherein the end cap is sonically welded to the barrel.
- 30. The cartridge assembly of claim 28 further including a bottom adhesive dam, the bottom adhesive dam being bonded to a bottom margin of the carbon filter, the bottom adhesive dam presenting an outer margin, the dam outer margin being spaced apart from a barrel inner surface to define a fluid passage extending substantially between the dam outer margin and the barrel inner surface.
- 31. The cartridge assembly of claim 28 further including graphics alignment means acting to align the end cap with the barrel in a desired orientation prior to fixedly coupling the end cap to the barrel.
- 32. The cartridge assembly of claim 31 wherein the graphics alignment means comprise at least one tongue and at least one cooperative groove formed at the intersection of the end cap and the opening of the barrel
- 33. In a filter assembly, a method of disengaging a cartridge assembly from a manifold, comprising:
rotating the cartridge assembly relative to the manifold assembly; said rotation acting in sequence to,
a. close a valve on a fluid inlet; b. disengage a manifold assembly shoulder from a cartridge assembly lug; c. substantially simultaneously engage the shoulder with a kickoff ramp, and d. break an at least one sealing engagement between the cartridge assembly and the manifold assembly.
RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/191,259 filed Mar. 22, 2000, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.
Provisional Applications (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60191259 |
Mar 2000 |
US |
Continuations (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09618686 |
Jul 2000 |
US |
Child |
09929920 |
Aug 2001 |
US |