The disclosure relates to a floor drain.
A floor drain is a plumbing fixture installed in the floor of a structure, and mainly designed to remove water near it. Known floor drains are sealed mechanically or by water, and the former includes a drain body including a cavity, a reset member, and a sealing base. The drain body is fixed on the floor and sealed via the sealing base. The cavity collects the water flowing from the floor and the reset member controls the opening and closing of the drain body to drain the water out of the cavity.
The disclosure provides a floor drain comprising a drain base, a drain body comprising a cavity, a drain cup disposed in the cavity, a supporting frame, and a reset member.
The drain base is secured to the floor of a structure. The drain body is integrated with the drain base, or is detachably connected to the drain base. The cavity of the drain body is a part of water passage, and the lower end of the drain body and the base of the drain cup defines a water drain valve.
The drain cup is disposed in the cavity of the drain body. The drain cup comprises a cup body, a stem, and a base. The cup body comprises a lower end provided with a through hole, and two ends of the stem are connected to the cup body and the base, respectively. The base functions as a bottom seal. When the floor drain is closed, the upper surface of the base is in a sealed connection to the lower end of the drain body. When the floor drain is opened, a gap occurs between the upper surface of the base and the lower end of the drain body, and the water in a floor is drained out of the drain body from the gap. The reset member is connected to the drain cup and is movable with respect to the drain cup to open and close the floor drain.
The stem disposed between the cup body and the base to support the cup body can be an independent part, or a part attached to the cup body or the base. The height of the stem determines the size of the gap between the upper surface of the base and the lower end of the cup body.
The supporting frame connects the drain body and the reset member connecting to the drain cup, and thus the drain cup is indirectly supported by the supporting frame.
The reset member is a driving mechanism controlling the opening and closing of the drain body. The reset member comprises a spring or a magnet or a combination thereof. The driving force of the reset member can be an elastic force of the spring, or a magnetic force of the magnet.
The supporting frame can comprise a guide plate or a grooved guide plate. The supporting frame can be integrated with the drain body. The drain body and the cup body of the drain cup can be round or other shapes.
The vertical projected area of the cup body is greater than the vertical projected area of the base, so that the weight of the storage water in the cup body is greater than the upward force acting on the base, thereby increasing the downward force exerting on the drain cup, improving the stability of the water flow and the drainage capacity of the floor drain.
The inner surface of the drain body and the outer surface of the drain cup form an annular channel. When the floor drain is opened, the gap between the upper surface of the base and the lower end of the drain body is a drainage outlet of the floor drain, and the flow area of the drainage outlet is larger than that of the annular channel, thereby increasing the downward force exerting on the base of the drain cup, improving the stability of the drainage outlet and the drainage capacity of the floor drain.
The cup body comprises a straight part and a contraction part disposed between the straight part and the stem. The diameter of the lower part of the drain body and the diameter of the contraction part of the cup body gradually decrease from the cup body to the base, thereby reducing the resistance to the water flow, and improving the drainage capacity of the floor drain.
In certain embodiments, no device is disposed above the annular channel formed by the inner surface of the drain body and the outer surface of the drain cup. The water directly falls into the annular channel.
In certain embodiments, the guide plate is disposed above the annular channel formed by the inner surface of the drain body and the outer surface of the drain cup, so that the water cannot fall into the annular channel and is guided into the cup body of the drain cup. Thus, the weight of the water in the cup body can overcome the upward force exerting on the base by the drainage pipe connecting to the floor drain, thus improving the drainage capacity of the floor drain.
The grooved guide plate is disposed above the cup body and comprises an annular water collector and a guide channel disposed on the annular water collector. The guide channel comprises a first flange and the annular water collector comprises a second flange. The first flange of the guide channel comprises a plurality of openings. The guide channel is disposed above the annular channel formed by the inner surface of the drain body and the outer surface of the drain cup, so that the water cannot fall into the annular channel and is guided into the cup body of the drain cup via the openings of the guide channel.
The reset member comprises a driving shaft. The supporting frame comprises a cantilever. The driving shaft passes through the axis of the drain cup and is fixed on the cantilever.
The driving shaft comprises a first shaft provided with a female fastener and a second shaft provided with a male fastener. When the male fastener is locked in the female fastener, the first shaft is integrated with the second shaft.
The drain cup comprises a sleeve surrounding the female fastener of the first shaft. A second spring is wrapped around the second shaft. The second spring can drive the second shaft to secure to the first shaft. When the first shaft is integrated with the second shaft, the sleeve is wrapped around the female fastener, ensuring the stability of the drain cup.
The supporting frame comprises a plurality of circumferentially disposed hanging hooks. The cup body can be secured to the supporting frame via the plurality of circumferentially disposed hanging hooks.
The drain base comprises a plurality of circumferentially disposed lugs, and the drain body comprises a plurality of circumferentially disposed slots. The plurality of circumferentially disposed lugs is respectively disposed in the plurality of circumferentially disposed slots, thereby fixing the drain body on the drain base.
The drain body comprises an outer edge provided with a pressure plate. One end of the pressure plate is provided with a sealing ring. The sealing ring is in a sealed connection to the drain base.
In the drawings, the following reference numbers are used: 1. Drain body; 1-1. Slot; 1-2. Mounting hole; 1-3. Pressure plate; 1-4. Sealing ring; 2. Drain cup; 2-1. Cup body; 2-1-0. Sleeve; 2-2. Through hole; 2-3. Stem; 2-4. Base; 3. Supporting frame; 3-1. Supporting ring; 3-2. Cantilever; 3-3. Spring seat; 3-4. Guide plate; 3-5. Annular water collector; 3-6. Guide channel; 3-7. Hanging hook. 4. Sealing cover; 5. Grate; 6. Drain base; 6-1. Lug; 7. Sealing rubber ring; 8. Reset member; 8-1. First spring; 8-2. First shaft; 8-2-1. Clamping portion; 8-2-2. Counterbore portion; 8-2-3. Narrow groove; 8-3. Second shaft; 8-3-1. Connection rod; 8-3-2. Connector; 8-4. Second spring.
To further illustrate the disclosure, embodiments detailing a floor drain are described below. It should be noted that the following embodiments are intended to describe and not to limit the disclosure.
Referring to
The reset member 8 is connected to the drain cup 2 and controls the opening and closing of the drain body. The reset member 8 comprises a first spring 8-1, a first shaft 8-2, a second shaft 8-3, and a second spring 8-4. The first spring 8-1 is wrapped around one end of the first shaft 8-2, and the other end is connected to the second shaft 8-3. The second shaft 8-3 is fixed on the lower end of the drain cup 2. The drain cup 2 is supported by the spring seat 3-3.
When the water in the floor of a structure enters the floor drain via a grate 5, the water is guided by the guide plate 3-4 and enters the cup body 2-1. Thus, the cup body 2-1 is filled with water. The maximum water volume in the cup body 2-1 is constant, so that the weight of the storage water overcomes the upward force of the first spring 8-1, and presses the drain cup 2 down to the lowest point of the first spring 8-1. Thus, the flow area of the drainage outlet of the floor drain, that is, the gap between the upper surface of the base 2-4 and the lower end of the drain body 1, reaches the maximum.
When no water exists on the floor, the water flows out of the cup body 2-1 via the through hole 2-2 to an annular channel comprising a water inlet and a water outlet; the water outlet is a drainage outlet disposed on the lower end of the drain body. The water volume of the cup body gradually decreases, so that the drain cup 2 moves upward under the elastic force of the first spring 8-1. When no water remains in the cup body 2-1, the upper surface of the base 2-4 directly contacts the lower end of the drain body 1 to form a bottom seal. The elastic force of the first spring 8-1 is exerted to the bottom seal, ensuring the sealing of the floor drain.
The drain body 1 is disposed on the drain base 6, and the inner surface of the drain body 1 and the outer surface of the drain cup 2 form the annular channel. The drainage outlet refers to the gap between the upper surface of the base 2-4 and the lower end of the drain body 1. When the water continually flows into the floor drain, the drain cup 2 moves to its lowest point. The height of the stem 2-3 determines the size of the gap between the upper surface of the base 2-4 and the lower end of the cup body 2-1. Specifically, the first section of the gap is an end part of the annular channel, and the second section of the gap is the drainage outlet of the floor drain. In the drainage process, the water first enters the floor drain via the grate 5, flows along the guide plate 3-4 and the annular channel, and drains out from the drainage outlet.
In the drainage state, the water flows through the annular channel between the drain body 1 and the cup body 2-1, and drains out from the gap formed by the lower end of the drain body 1 and the upper surface of the base 2-4. When the water flows in the annular channel, a vortex is generated on the bottom surface of body 2-1, thereby forming a low-pressure area. The pressure P acting on the cup body 2-1 is calculated as follows:
P=(pt−pb)×A
where pt is the pressure acting on the upper surface, and pb is the pressure acting on the lower surface, and A is the vertical projected area of the cup body 2-1. The pressure P acting on the cup body 2-1 is proportional to the vertical projected area A of the cup body 2-1.
According to the Law of Conservation of Momentum, the impact force F acting on the base 2-4 is calculated using the formula: F=M×U, where M is the mass of water, and U is the flow speed of the water. The mass M of the water is calculated using the formula: M=Q×ρ, where Q is the volume of the water, and ρ is the density of the water. The flow speed U of the water is calculated using the formula: U=Q/S, where S is the area of the drainage outlet at the lower end of the drain body 1. Therefore, F=Q2ρ/S. At the same water volume, the area S of the drainage outlet is inversely proportional to the impact force F acting on the base 2-4. The smaller area S of the drainage outlet also leads to a smaller surface area of the base 2-4, so when the drainage pipe exerts a reacting force to the base in the drainage process, because the base has a relatively small surface area, the upward force exerting on the base 2-4 is relatively small.
In certain embodiments of the disclosure, the vertical projected area of the cup body 2-1 is much greater than the vertical projected area S of the base 2-4, thereby effectively increasing the downward force exerting on the drain cup 2, and facilitating the opening of the floor drain and improving the drainage capacity of the floor drain.
In certain embodiments of the disclosure, as shown in
As needed, a guide plate 3-4 is disposed on the supporting frame 3 to guide the water into the cup body. The water accumulated in the cup body can exert a downward force on the drain cup and offset the pressure from the drainage pipe.
In certain embodiments of the disclosure, the guide plate can be replaced with a grooved guide plate as shown in
The drain base 6 is fixedly disposed on the ground and supports the entire floor drain. The water enters the grate 5, flows through the drain base 6, the supporting ring 3-1 of the supporting frame 3 and the guide plate 3-4, and into the cup body 2-1. When the cup body 2-1 is filled with water, the excess water overpasses the cup body wall and flows through the annular water collector, and drains out from the drainage outlet. In certain embodiments, the floor drain has a relatively large-sized water inlet, so that the water flow is large, and the base of the drain cup 2 receives a downward impact force resulting from the flowing of the water, thereby increasing the flow area of the channel and improving the drainage capacity of the floor drain.
Referring to
The first shaft 8-2 is connected to the second shaft 8-3 using a buckle structure as shown in
Referring to
Optionally, referring to
In certain embodiments of the disclosure, the supporting frame 3 is integrated with the drain body 1 to form an integrated structure. The integrated structure is rotatably removably fixed on the drain base 6, thus facilitating the cleaning of the supporting frame and the drain body.
Referring to
Optionally, referring to
In certain embodiments of the disclosure, as shown in
The water inlet is not provided with a guide plate, so the water from the ground directly vertically falls into the annular channel, thus reducing the flow resistance of the water.
When the floor drain is closed, the water flows into the water storage tank, accumulates in the water storage tank, and enters the cup body 2-1 via the through hole 2-2. When the water storage tank is filled with water up to a certain height, the reset member is pressed to open the drainage outlet. A relatively small-sized through hole 2-2 keep adequate quantity of water in the cup body 2-1. For a floor drain comprising a cup body with a small opening, the drainage capacity is subject to the area of the water inlet and the flow resistance. Thus, the arrangement of the through hole can maintain the opening state of the floor drain, and increases the drainage capacity of floor drain.
The flow area of the drainage outlet is larger than that of the inlet of the annular channel. The flow area, as shown in
Referring to
The reset member 8 comprises a spring mechanism, and the supporting frame 3 is supported via the cantilever. A sealing rubber ring 7 is disposed between the drain body and the drain base 6 to prevent the leakage of odor in the drainage pipe.
It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made, and therefore, the aim in the appended claims is to cover all such changes and modifications.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
201711315113.0 | Dec 2017 | CN | national |
201721718369.1 | Dec 2017 | CN | national |
This application is a continuation-in-part of International Patent Application No. PCT/CN2018/120328 with an international filing date of Dec. 11, 2018, designating the United States, now pending, and further claims foreign priority benefits to Chinese Patent Application No. 201711315113.0 filed Dec. 12, 2017, and to Chinese Patent Application No. 201721718369.1 filed Dec. 12, 2017. The contents of all of the aforementioned applications, including any intervening amendments thereto, are incorporated herein by reference. Inquiries from the public to applicants or assignees concerning this document or the related applications should be directed to: Matthias Scholl P.C., Attn.: Dr. Matthias Scholl Esq., 245 First Street, 18th Floor, Cambridge, Mass. 02142.
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2758664 | Koenig | Aug 1956 | A |
3107687 | Howe | Oct 1963 | A |
6626201 | Kim | Sep 2003 | B1 |
6719004 | Huber | Apr 2004 | B2 |
20080072967 | Wen | Mar 2008 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
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2278372 | Nov 1994 | GB |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20200308818 A1 | Oct 2020 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | PCT/CN2018/120328 | Dec 2018 | US |
Child | 16899621 | US |