This relates generally to sinks, and, in an embodiment, to a sink that includes a concealed drain that can be concealed by a door that allows access to the drain.
A drain can be employed in a sink to quickly evacuate water from the floor of the sink. While drains can allow for water to be evacuated from the sink quickly, they can be aesthetically unappealing.
Efforts to obscure the trench drain can create new issues in the design of a sink. As an example, in some instances, a user of the sink may need access to the trench drain to allow larger objects to drain or be disposed of in a garbage disposal attached to the drain. However, if the drain is visually obscured (for instance by a cover), larger items may not have access to the drain portion of the trench drain.
As explained above, covers that allow for water to flow into the drain while visually obscuring the drain can allow for the sink to maintain a desired visual aesthetic. As also explained above, the cover can provide a small slit or opening between the cover and the sink to allow water to flow into the trench drain. In this way, the trench drain can be visually obscured while at the same time maintaining a path for water to flow from the basin of the sink into the trench drain. However, employing a cover to a trench drain can be problematic in instances of use in which objects that are larger than the provided opening or slit require access to the trench drain. As an example, if the user of the sink wishes to clean the trench drain, or if the user wants to put solid objects such as food waste within the drain (i.e., when the drain is connected to a garbage disposal), a small slit or opening would be insufficient to allow for the desired access.
Accordingly, there is a need to not only cover or obscure the trench drain but to also provide a cover that is adjustable so as to provide access to the trench drain for instances of use in which the slit or opening created by the cover are inadequate. Disclosed herein are various embodiments of sinks with “hidden” trench drains that address this need. As explained herein, a trench drain may be hidden or obscured by a cover that is configured to visually obscure the trench drain while simultaneously providing a small opening or slit between the door and a basin of the sink so as to allow water to flow through the opening and into the trench drain. In one or more examples, the cover can be configured to be opened or adjusted so as to increase the size of the opening thereby allowing for access to the trench drain for objects that may not fit in the opening/slit when the cover is closed.
In one or more examples, the cover may be removable by a user. In another example, the cover may be adjustable so that a user can place the cover in a first position when seeking access to the trench drain, and can put the cover in a second position when seeking to simply obscure the trench drain while allowing water to flow from the basin of the sink into the trench drain. The cover can be configured with one or more of a hinge, a torsion spring and a detent so as to enable the user to fix the cover into either a first position or a second position. In one example, the cover can be configured such that when a user pushes the cover a first time the position of the cover changes to provide wider access to the trench drain, and when the user pushes the cover a second time, the cover returns to its original position thereby obscuring the trench drain while providing an opening to allow water to flow into the trench drain from the sink basin.
These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the disclosure will be apparent from a reading of the following detailed description together with the accompanying drawings, which are briefly described below. The invention includes any combination of two, three, four, or more of the disclosed embodiments as well as combinations of any two, three, four, or more features or elements set forth in this disclosure, regardless of whether such features or elements are expressly combined in a specific embodiment description herein. This disclosure is intended to be read such that any separable features or elements of the disclosed invention, in any of its various aspects and embodiments, should be viewed as intended to be combinable unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Other aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following.
The disclosure described herein is illustrated by way of example and not by way of limitation in the accompanying figures. For simplicity and clarity of illustration, features illustrated in the figures are not necessarily drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some features may be exaggerated relative to other features for clarity. Further, where considered appropriate, reference labels have been repeated among the figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements.
In the following description of the disclosure and embodiments, reference is made to the accompanying drawings in which are shown, by way of illustration, specific embodiments that can be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments and examples can be practiced, and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the disclosure.
In addition, it is also to be understood that the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” used in the following description are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It is also to be understood that the term “and/or” as used herein refers to and encompasses any and all possible combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. It is further to be understood that the terms “includes,” “including,” “comprises,” and/or “comprising,” when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or units, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, units, and/or groups thereof.
While the specification discusses the use of a trench drain, the disclosure should not be seen as being limited to sinks that have trench drains. The door can be used to obscure any type of sink drain known to those in the art. In one or more examples the sink can have a conventional drain, and the drain can be positioned at the same level as the basin portion.
As discussed above, a trench drain as illustrated in
In one or more embodiments, in order to visually obscure the trench drain from sight, a door can be employed that obscures the trench drain while simultaneously maintaining a path for water to flow from the basin portion of the sink into the trench drain. In this way, the trench drain can be visually obscured while at the same time allowing for the benefits of the trench train (i.e., rapid water draining) to be realized.
Sink 200 of
In one or more embodiments of the disclosure, the gap 212 created between the door 206 and the basin portion 202 can be large enough to allow water received by the basin portion to flow through the gap 212 into the trench drain 204. In an embodiment, the gap 212 can be large enough to allow water to flow through it freely without any surface tension of the water causing a blockage in flow. In other words, the gap 212 between the door 206 and the trench drain 204 can be large enough such that the surface tension of the liquid flowing through does not get “stuck” in the gap thereby reducing the rate of flow of the liquid from the basin portion 202 to the trench drain 204. If the gap 212 between the door 206 and the trench drain 204 is too small, the surface tension of the liquid flowing through the gap may cause the water to become trapped against the surface of the door and the trench drain thereby reducing the flow of the water thereby potentially obviating the benefits realized through the use of trench drain.
While the door 206 can allow for the trench drain 204 to be obscured from sight, in some use instances, the door may act as an impediment to functionality. As an example, if a user wanted to place food waste in the trench drain 204, or some other object that may not fit through the gap 212, then the door 206 could impede the functionality of the sink 200. In another example, the presence of door 206 could make cleaning of the trench drain difficult because a human hand or a cleaning tool may not be able to be inserted through the gap 212 so as to get access to the trench drain 204 for cleaning.
One way the above problem can be overcome is to allow door 206 to be adjustable so that the gap 212 created between door 206 and basin portion 212 can be enlarged or decreased based on the user's desire. In one or more embodiments, a door 206 of sink 208 can include a door adjustment mechanism 208. Door adjustment mechanism 208 can be configured to enable the door 206 to move such that the door can be opened and closed. By enabling the door 206 to open and close using the door adjustment mechanism 208, the user can gain access to the trench drain 204 when they desire.
In one or more embodiments, the door adjustment mechanism can include a resilient member and a detent. The resilient member can be configured to resist a user's force when the user is opening the door 206 and then can “spring back” to its original form when the user ceases to apply a force to the door causing the door to close again. In this way, the door 206 can be opened by the user to access the trench drain 204. In one or more embodiments of the disclosure, the resilient member can include a compression spring, a tension spring, or a torsion spring. Alternatively, rather than employing a spring, the resilient member of the door adjustment mechanism can include any material that can deform and absorb energy in the presence of a force and revert back to its original form once the force is removed.
In one or more embodiments of the disclosure, the user may wish to hold the door 206 in the open position after pushing it open. In this way, the user would not be required to apply a constant force to the door 206 to keep it ajar and can rather push the door to the open position and have the door be held there until the user is ready for the door to be closed. Thus, in one or more embodiments, a door adjustment mechanism, in addition to a resilient member as described above can also include a detent. A detent can refer to any device that is used to mechanically resist or arrest motion of an object until the detent is released. In the example of door adjustment mechanism 208, a detent can act to mechanically resist and arrest the motion of the resilient member that is trying to spring back thereby closing the door. Instead, the detent can resist the motion of the resilient member thereby keeping the door open without requiring the user to hold the door open.
In one or more embodiments, the user can close the door by pushing on the door so as to release the detent which then can allow the resilient member to return the door back to its closed position. In this way, the user can control the position of the door and keep it either open or closed based on their desired use. While the door adjustment mechanism 208 is described above as comprising a resilient member and a detent, the disclosure should not be seen as limited to that embodiment. A person of skill in the art will appreciate that a door adjustment mechanism 208 that allows for a user to open the door 206 and keep the door open, and then close the user door when the user desires as described above can be implemented in numerous ways.
The door 206 and the basin portion 202 can be made from the same materials. In one example both the door 206 and the basin portion 202 can be made from stainless steel. In another example, both the door 206 and the basin portion 202 can be made from a polymer or ceramic.
In the embodiments described above with respect to
Similar to the embodiments of
In one or more examples, the door 406 may not include a door adjustment mechanism 408. Instead, the door 406 may act as a cover for the drain 404, wherein the cover can be elevated from the drain with projection to allow water to flow beneath the projection.
Although the disclosure and examples have been fully described with reference to the accompanying figures, it is to be noted that various changes and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications are to be understood as being included within the scope of the disclosure and examples as defined by the claims. Finally, the entire disclosure of the patents and publications referred to in this application are hereby incorporated herein by reference.
The foregoing description, for purpose of explanation, has been described with reference to specific embodiments. However, the illustrative discussions above are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in view of the above teachings. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the techniques and their practical applications. Others skilled in the art are thereby enabled to best utilize the techniques and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.
Although the disclosure and examples have been fully described with reference to the accompanying figures, it is to be noted that various changes and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications are to be understood as being included within the scope of the disclosure and examples as defined by the claims.
This application discloses several numerical ranges in the text and figures. The numerical ranges disclosed inherently support any range or value within the disclosed numerical ranges, including the endpoints, even though a precise range limitation is not stated verbatim in the specification because this disclosure can be practiced throughout the disclosed numerical ranges.
Following are some embodiments of the invention.
In a first embodiment, disclosed is a sink comprising: a basin portion for receiving water dispensed by the faucet; a drain for receiving water from the basin portion; and a door to visually obscure the drain in a closed position wherein the door is positioned relative to the basin such that a gap is formed between an edge of the door and the basin when the door is in the closed position so as to allow water from the basin into the drain, and wherein the door can be opened to allow a user to access the drain.
In a second embodiment, disclosed is a sink of the first embodiment, wherein the drain is a trench drain, in some embodiments a position of the trench drain relative to the basin portion is such that gravity causes water to flow from the basin into the trench drain.
In a third embodiment, disclosed is a sink according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein a size of the gap between the edge of the door and the basin is large enough to allow for water from the basin to flow into the drain unimpeded. In a fourth embodiment, disclosed is a sink according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the door includes a door adjustment mechanism that is configured to keep the door open without the user's intervention once the door is opened. In a fifth embodiment, disclosed is a sink according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the door adjustment mechanism includes a resilient member configured to resist a user's force when the user is opening the door.
In a sixth embodiment, disclosed is a sink according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the resilient member is a spring; in some embodiments a compression spring. In a seventh embodiment, disclosed is a sink according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the door adjustment mechanism includes a detent, and wherein the detent and the resilient member are configured to keep the door open without the user's intervention once the door is opened.
In an eighth embodiment, disclosed is a sink of any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the door is perpendicular to the basin. In a ninth embodiment, disclosed is a sink of any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the door is parallel to the basin, for example when the drain is a trench drain.
In a tenth embodiment, disclosed is a sink according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the basin portion and the door are made from a same material. In some embodiments, a material comprises stainless steel, in other embodiments, a material comprises a polymer, for example a synthetic polymer.
In an eleventh embodiment, disclosed is a sink according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the drain is configured to be connected to a garbage disposal system. In a twelfth embodiment, disclosed is a sink according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the door is configured to be opened during use of the sink to allow food waste that is too large to fit in the gap to be disposed of in a garbage disposal.
In a thirteenth embodiment, disclosed is a sink according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the door is configured to be opened for cleaning of the drain.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/US2018/063975 | 12/5/2018 | WO |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
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WO2019/113151 | 6/13/2019 | WO | A |
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3566418 | Carlson | Mar 1971 | A |
4777676 | Ericson | Oct 1988 | A |
8172297 | Rhee | May 2012 | B2 |
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20140366263 | Thompson | Dec 2014 | A1 |
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102008044637 | Oct 2009 | DE |
202012103906 | Nov 2012 | DE |
202014004016 | Aug 2014 | DE |
2017110427 | Jun 2017 | JP |
Entry |
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Machine Translation of DE202014004016. Espacenet. (Year: 2021). |
International Search Report dated Feb. 21, 2019 in corresponding International Application No. PCT/US2018/063975 (3 pages). |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20200385969 A1 | Dec 2020 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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62595890 | Dec 2017 | US |