Patent Grant
9051719
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fixing structure of a faucet.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A conventional device for a top mounting of a faucet disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,535,776 contains a fitting seat inserted into an opening of a support plate used in a kitchen equipped with a water tank, and the fitting seat includes a column with screws extending downward to the support plate and used to receive a body of the faucet, the column of the fitting seat includes a plastic pad, a spaced ring, and a metal retaining loop fitted thereon and screwed with a nut. A user applies a torque wrench to insert a screwing element into an orifice of a vertical wall of the fitting seat via a casing of the faucet to limit a relative movement between the faucet and the fitting seat, thus assembling the faucet.
However, many related components of such a conventional device for the top mounting of the faucet have to be installed below the water tank, limiting installing space and having a complicate installation.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages.
The primary object of the present invention is to provide a fixing structure of a faucet and an operating method thereof that is capable of overcoming the shortcomings of the conventional fixing structure of a faucet.
To obtain the above objectives, a fixing structure of a faucet is mounted on a sink countertop with an opening and contains, a base, a locking assembly, a faucet, and a fastening bolt.
The base includes a supporting portion and an inserting portion connecting with the supporting portion;
the supporting portion has an annular fence and an annular shoulder coupling with an inner wall of the annular fence; the annular fence has a retaining recess defined on an outer wall thereof; the annular shoulder has two longitudinally through holes formed therein and an opening defined around an inner wall thereof;
the inserting portion has a cylindrical fence extending downwardly along an inner wall of the opening from a bottom end of the inner wall thereof and having two stopping rods connecting with an outer wall of the cylindrical fence, and the cylindrical fence has a longitudinal channel defined therein and communicating with the opening; the annular shoulder has an annular abutting area arranged on a bottom end thereof and around an upper end of the outer wall of the cylindrical fence, such that after the inserting portion of the base inserts into the opening of the sink countertop, the annular abutting area abuts against a top peripheral surface of the opening of the sink countertop so that the supporting portion of the base is supported and fixed on the sink countertop, wherein the two longitudinally through holes are formed adjacent to and spaced apart from an inner peripheral side of the annular abutting area.
The locking assembly includes two positioning screws rotatably inserting through the two longitudinally through holes of the base; and two clamping blocks are screwed with the two positioning screws, and when the two positioning screws are rotated, the two clamping blocks are rotated by the two stopping rods to move upwardly and then to retain a bottom peripheral surface of the opening of the sink countertop, thus fixing the base on the sink countertop.
The faucet includes a fitting tube; a sheath is connected with the fitting tube and has a groove defined therein and fitted on the base, the sheath also has a peripheral fence arranged around the groove and a threaded orifice defined on the peripheral fence; a controlling valve assembly mounted on a top end of the fitting tube and having bottom end connected with a water pipe set which pass through the fitting tube and the longitudinal channel of the base downwardly.
The fastening bolt is screwed with the threaded orifice of the sheath so as to retain with the retaining recess of the base, thus fixing the faucet on the base.
Thereby, the fixing structure of the faucet is fixed on and removed from the sink countertop easily and quickly.
Furthermore, the base and the faucet are coupled together quickly by means of the fixing protrusion of the base and the trench of the groove. In other words, after the sheath is fitted on the base, the fastening bolt is aligned with the retaining recess of the base precisely so as to further screw with the retaining recess rapidly.
The tilted bottom face of the retaining recess is applied to force the sheath to move downwardly so as to produce the longitudinal force when the distal end of the fastening bolt abuts against the tilted bottom face, and then the sheath forces the top peripheral surface of the sink countertop tightly, thus preventing water from leakage and fixing the sheath securely. In addition, the seal gasket is mounted on the bottom rim of the sheath and abuts against the top peripheral surface of the sink countertop closely, thereby increasing sealing effect.
The annular fence of the base has the biasing portion formed thereon and abutting against the receiving portion, wherein the biasing portion and the receiving portion have any one of a conical face and a tilted face so that when the fastening bolt abuts against the tilted bottom face, the sheath is forced to move downwardly by the longitudinal force, and then the sheath forces the top peripheral surface of the sink countertop tightly, thereby preventing water from leakage. Also, the tilted bottom face facilitates a sealing tightness between the sheath and the sink countertop.
It is to be noted that the first tunnel and the second tunnel are spaced apart so as to isolate the static water pipe set apart from the dynamic water pipe, such that when the hose is moved, the spray head is pulled and putted back to the original smoothly.
The fixing structure of the present invention is served to fix the faucet or the pull-out faucet on the sink countertop easily without interfering operation of the housing and the spray head.
The sheath is clamped between the fitting tube and the threaded sleeve easily by ways of the peripheral rib, the two defining notches, the peripheral bottom fringe, the two limiting blocks, and the threaded sleeve.
The sheath is connected with the fitting tube quickly and fixedly by using the annularly raised flange, the at least one first vertical slot, the at least one second vertical slot, the at least one engaging indention, the at least one sliding member, and the at least one resilient member without providing the threaded sleeve, thereby decreasing components and production coat.
Referring to
The fixing structure of the faucet comprises a base 10, a locking assembly 20, a faucet 30, and a fastening bolt 40.
With reference to
As shown in
The inserting portion 10b has a cylindrical fence 13 extending downwardly along an inner wall of the opening 122 from a bottom end of the inner wall thereof and has two stopping rods 14 connecting with an outer wall of the cylindrical fence 13, and the cylindrical fence 13 has a longitudinal channel 15 defined therein and communicating with the opening 122.
The annular shoulder 12 has an annular abutting area 123 arranged on a bottom end thereof and around an upper end of the outer wall of the cylindrical fence 13, such that after the inserting portion 10b of the base 10 inserts into the opening 1a of the sink countertop 1, the annular abutting area 123 abuts against a top peripheral surface 1b of the opening 1a of the sink countertop 1 so that the supporting portion 10a of the base 10 is supported and fixed on the sink countertop 1. It is to be noted that the two longitudinally through holes 121 are formed adjacent to and spaced apart from an inner peripheral side of the annular abutting area 123.
The locking assembly 20, as shown in
The two positioning screws 21 rotatably insert through the two longitudinally through holes 121 of the base 10. Since the two longitudinally through holes 121 are formed adjacent to and spaced apart from the inner peripheral side of the annular abutting area 123, the two positioning screws 21 insert through the two longitudinally through holes 121 smoothly and do not interfere with the opening 1a of the sink countertop 1.
The two clamping blocks 22 are screwed with the two positioning screws 21, and when the two positioning screws 21 are rotated, the two clamping blocks 22 are rotated by the two stopping rods 14 to move upwardly and then retain a bottom peripheral surface 1c of the opening 1a of the sink countertop 1, thus fixing the base 10 on the sink countertop 1.
Each positioning screw 21 has a bottom end for screwing a positioning sleeve 23, such that each clamping block 22 is stopped moving downwardly and removing from each positioning screw 21.
The faucet 30, as illustrated in
As shown in
Referring further to
The controlling valve assembly 34 is mounted on a top end of the fitting tube 31 and has a bottom end connected with a water pipe set. The water pipe set has a cold-water inlet pipe 341, a hot-water inlet pipe 342, and a mixing outlet pipe 343 which pass through the fitting tube 31, the threaded sleeve 32, the opening 122 and the longitudinal channel 15 of the base 10 downwardly.
The cap 35 is fitted on the top end of the fitting tube 31.
The housing 36 is rotatably fitted on an outer wall of the fitting tube 31 and is limited between the cap 35 and the sheath 33.
The spray head 37 is positioned on the housing 36 and has a hose 371 passing through the longitudinal channel 15 of the base 10 so as to couple with the mixing outlet pipe 343, the spray head 37 is pulled outwardly and putted back to an original position.
With reference to
With reference to
The fastening bolt 40, as shown in
The cylindrical fence 13 of the base 10 has an isolation cliff 131 defined proximate to a lower side of an inner wall thereof as illustrated in
The retaining recess 111 of the base 10 has a tilted bottom face 113 as shown in
With reference to
Referring to
The biasing portion 114 has a conical face, and the receiving portion 338 has an arcuate guiding face, such that as screwing the fastening bolt 40, the distal end of the fastening bolt 40 is biased against the tilted bottom face 113 and generates a longitudinal force so as to move the sheath 33 downwardly, hence the bottom rim of the sheath 33 contacts with the top peripheral surface 1b of the sink countertop 1 as illustrated in
It is to be noted that the biasing portion 114 can be also a tilted face, and the receiving portion 338 can be also a conical face or a tilted face so that when the biasing portion 114 and the receiving portion 338 abut against each other, the sheath 33 is forced to move downwardly, thereby preventing water from leakage.
As shown in
An operating method of the fixing structure of the faucet includes steps of:
a. Fixing the base 10 on the sink countertop 1. Before fixing the base 10 on the sink countertop 1, the locking assembly 20 is positioned on the base 10, and each clamping block 22 is adjusted in an angle in a direction so that the annular shoulder 12 of the base 10, the two clamping blocks 22, and the two positioning screws 21 are inserted to a lower side of the sink countertop 1 from the opening 1a of the sink countertop 1. Thereafter, a tool is used to rotate each positioning screw 21 so that each clamping block 22 is limited by each stopping rod 14 to rotate upwardly and then retains around the opening 1a of the sink countertop 1, hence the base 10 is fixed on the sink countertop 1 by means of the locking assembly 20.
b. Mounting the faucet 30 on the base 10. Before mounting the faucet 30 on the base 10, the threaded sleeve 32 and the fitting tube 31 are screwed together so that the cold-water inlet pipe 341, the hot-water inlet pipe 342, the mixing outlet pipe 343, and the hose 371 are extended out of the first tunnel 15a and the second tunnel 15b of the base 10. Then, the groove 331 of the sheath 33 is aligned with the annular fence 11 of the base 10, the trench 334 of the groove 331 is aligned and retained with the fixing protrusion 112 of the annular fence 11. The fastening bolt 40 is screwed tightly so as to abut against the retaining recess 111 of the base 10. Finally, the hose 371 is connected with the mixing outlet pipe 343, and the hammer 50 is adjusted, thus mounting the faucet 30 on the base 10. As removing the faucet 30, the mixing outlet pipe 343 is removed from the hose 371, and the fastening bolt 40 is unscrewed so as to remove the faucet 30 from the base 10.
In this embodiment, the faucet is a pull-out faucet. It is to be noted that the faucet can be also a non pull-out faucet which does not include the spray head, the hose, and the hammer of the pull-out faucet. And a controlling valve assembly of the non pull-out faucet only includes the cold-water inlet pipe and the hot-water inlet pipe of the pull-out faucet. In addition, the mixing outlet pipe is disposed in the housing 36 and is coupled with an outlet of the housing 36.
With reference to
For example, as shown in
In this embodiment, each of the at least one resilient member 315 has an elastic wing portion 31a and a pillar 31b extending outwardly from an outer wall of the elastic wing portion 31a so as to be fixed in each of the at least one engaging indention 33d.
Preferably, the sheath 33 has two symmetrical first vertical slots 33b, two symmetrical second vertical slots 33c, and two engaging indentions 33d. The fitting tube 31 has two sliding members 314 and two resilient members 315, and the at least one sliding member 314 has a longitudinal cliff 31c formed thereon and retaining with one of the at least one first vertical slot 33b as the fitting tube 31 rotates toward a predetermined direction, such that each resilient member 315 engages with each engaging indention 33d.
Thereby, the fixing structure of the faucet is fixed on and removed from the sink countertop 1 easily and quickly.
Furthermore, the base 10 and the faucet 30 are coupled together quickly by means of the fixing protrusion 112 of the base 10 and the trench 334 of the groove 331. In other words, after the sheath 33 is fitted on the base 10, the fastening bolt 40 is aligned with the retaining recess 111 of the base 10 precisely so as to further screw with the retaining recess 111 rapidly.
The tilted bottom face 113 of the retaining recess 111 is applied to force the sheath 33 to move downwardly so as to produce the longitudinal force when the distal end of the fastening bolt 40 abuts against the tilted bottom face 113, and then the sheath 33 forces the top peripheral surface 1b of the sink countertop 1 tightly, thus preventing water from leakage and fixing the sheath 33 securely. In addition, the seal gasket 337 is mounted on the bottom rim of the sheath 33 and abuts against the top peripheral surface 1b of the sink countertop 1 closely, thereby increasing sealing effect.
The annular fence 11 of the base 10 has the biasing portion 114 formed thereon and abutting against the receiving portion 338, wherein the biasing portion 114 and the receiving portion 338 have any one of a conical face and a tilted face so that when the fastening bolt 40 abuts against the tilted bottom face 113, the sheath 33 is forced to move downwardly by the longitudinal force, and then the sheath 33 forces the top peripheral surface 1b of the sink countertop 1 tightly, thereby preventing water from leakage. Also, the tilted bottom face 113 facilitates a sealing tightness between the sheath 33 and the sink countertop 1.
It is to be noted that the first tunnel 15a and the second tunnel 15b are spaced apart so as to isolate the static water pipe set apart from the dynamic water pipe, such that when the hose 371 is moved, the spray head 37 is pulled and putted back to the original smoothly.
The fixing structure of the present invention is served to fix the faucet 30 or the pull-out faucet 30 on the sink countertop 1 easily without interfering operation of the housing 36 and the spray head 37.
The sheath 33 is clamped between the fitting tube 31 and the threaded sleeve 32 easily by ways of the peripheral rib 335, the two defining notches 336, the peripheral bottom fringe 311, the two limiting blocks 312, and the threaded sleeve 32.
The sheath 33 is connected with the fitting tube 31 quickly and fixedly by using the annularly raised flange 33a, the at least one first vertical slot 33b, the at least one second vertical slot 33c, the at least one engaging indention 33d, the at least one sliding member 314, and the at least one resilient member 315 without providing the threaded sleeve 32, thereby decreasing components and production coat.
While we have shown and described various embodiments in accordance with the present invention, it is clear to those skilled in the art that further embodiments may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.
This application is a Continuation-in-Part of application Ser. No. 12/958,114, filed on Dec. 1, 2010.
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5535776 | Kingman | Jul 1996 | A |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20130333109 A1 | Dec 2013 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 12958114 | Dec 2010 | US |
| Child | 13960978 | US |
