Patent Application
20190234396
The present invention relates to an inflating device, and more particularly to an inflating device with a control device to automatically stop the inflating device.
An inflating device is applied to inflate or deflate an object, such as an inflatable bed, an inflatable cushion, an air sofa or an inflatable toy, or is applied to keep the pressure in the object at a desired level. A conventional inflating device may further comprise a control device to automatically stop the inflating device. The control device is mounted in a housing of the inflating device and comprises a thin film, a micro switch, a pushing rod, a pushing knob and a pressure spring. The pushing knob is single stage typed. That means that when the pushing knob is pushed, the pushing rod is moved upward and pushes against the thin film to turn on the micro switch. When the pushing knob is released, the pushing rod is moved to an original position with the force provided by the pressure spring. When the thin film deforms downward to contact the micro switch, the micro switch is turned off and the inflating device is stopped. However, the conventional control device has a complicated structure and is not stable and reliable in use. In addition, the conventional control device does not have an automatically air-supplying function. When the pressure in the body goes down due to leakage, the inflating device has to be manually turned on to supply air into the body. Furthermore, the conventional inflating device can only inflate an object to a pre-determined pressure level and cannot inflate the object to different pressure levels to fit with different use demands. Therefore, the conventional inflating device is not versatile and convenient in use.
To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention tends to provide an inflating device to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned problems.
The main objective of the invention is to provide an inflating device that has a simplified structure and can be operated automatically and stably.
The inflating device has a housing, a first air pump, and a first control device. The housing has a first air port, a first check valve, and a second air port. The first check valve is mounted in the first air port. The first air pump is mounted in the housing and has a third air port communicating with the first air port. The first control device is mounted in the housing and has a casing, a thin film, a pushing member, a lever, a pressing member, a rotating knob, and a micro switch. The casing has an inner space. The thin film is mounted in the inner space of the casing to divide the inner space into a first chamber and a second chamber being free from communicating with the first chamber. The second chamber communicates with the second air port. The pushing member is mounted in the first chamber and has a bottom end abutting against the thin film and a top end extending out of the casing. The lever is mounted pivotally on an inner surface of the housing and has a first end abutting on the top end of the pushing member and a second end. The pressing member is mounted rotatably on the housing and has a bottom provided with multiple positioning recesses engaged selectively with the second end of the lever. The rotating knob is mounted on and exposed from the housing. The micro switch is mounted on the housing and is electrically connected with the air pump.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
With reference to
The housing 10 has a first air port 101, a first check valve 41, and a second air port 102. The first air port 101 is defined in the housing 10 and communicates with an inside space of an inflatable object. The first check valve 41 is mounted in the first air port 101.
The first air pump 20 is mounted in the housing 10 and has a third air port 201 communicating with the first air port 101. The air pump 20 can pump air into the inflatable object to inflate the inflatable object. When the inflatable object is inflated to a desired pressure level, the first air pump 20 is stopped pumping.
The first control device 30 is mounted in the housing 10 and comprises a casing 31, a thin film 32, a pushing member 33, a lever 34, a pressing member 35, a rotating knob 36, and a micro switch. The casing 31 has an inner space. The thin film 32 is mounted in the inner space of the casing 31 to divide the inner space into a first chamber 311 and a second chamber 312 being free from communicating with the first chamber 311. The first chamber 311 communicates with a space outside the casing 31, and the second chamber 312 communicates with the second air port 102. The pushing member 33 is mounted in the first chamber 311 and has a bottom end abutting against the thin film 32 and a top end extending out of the casing 31. The lever 34 is mounted pivotally on an inner surface of the housing 10 and has a first end abutting on the top end of the pushing member 33 and a second end 341. Preferably, the housing 10 further comprises a pivotal member 42 mounted on the inner surface of the housing 10 and pivotally connected with a middle of the lever 34. The pressing member 35 is mounted rotatably on the housing 10 and has a bottom provided with multiple positioning recesses 352 engaged selectively with the second end 341 of the lever 34. The rotating knob 36 is mounted on and exposed from the housing 10. The micro switch is mounted on the housing 10 at a position adjacent to the rotating knob 36 and is electrically connected with the first air pump 20. In addition, the control device 30 further comprises a torsion spring 37 connected with the rotating knob 36. When the pressing member 35 is rotated to contact the micro switch, the first air pump 20 is switched on. When the pressing member 35 is rotated in reverse to contact the micro switch again, the first air pump 20 is switched off.
In addition, the inflating device may further comprise a second air pump 50 mounted in the housing 10. The housing 10 further has a fourth air port 103 and a second check valve 43 mounted in the fourth air port 103. The second air pump 50 has a fifth air port 501 communicating with the fourth air port 103. In addition, a second control device 60 is mounted in the housing 10 to control the second air pump 50.
In operation, when the rotating knob 36 is rotated, the pressing member 35 is rotated with the rotating knob 36. With the rotation of the pressing member 35, the micro switch is contacted by the pressing member 35 and one of the positioning recesses 352 is engaged with the second end 341 of the lever 34. With the engagement between the second end 341 of the lever 34 and the corresponding positioning recess 352, the pressing member 35 is held in place. At this time, the first air pump 20 is switched on to pump air from an outer space into an inflatable object via the first air port 101 and the first check valve 41. With the increase of the pressure in the inflatable object, the pressure in the second chamber 312 is also increasing and the thin film 32 will deform upwardly. When the pressure in the inflatable object reaches a predetermined level, the deformed thin film 32 will push the pushing member 33 to move upward. With the upward movement of the pushing member 33, the top end of the pushing member 33 will push against the first end of the lever 34 to pivot the lever 34 relative to the housing 10, Consequently, the second end 341 of the lever 34 will move downward and is disengaged from the corresponding positioning recess 352, and the pressing member 35 will rotate in reverse with the force of the torsion spring 37. With the reverse rotation of the pressing member 35, the micro switch will be contacted by the pressing member 35 again, such that the first air pimp 20 is switched off and stops pumping. At this time, the second air pump 50 can be switched on by the second control device 60 to pump air with a high pressure into the inflatable object.
With such an inflating device in accordance with the present invention, an inflatable object can be inflated to a desired pressure level by the first air pump 20, and the first air pump 20 can be automatically stopped by the first control device 30 without manual operation. Furthermore, with the arrangement of the second air pump 50, the pressure in the inflatable object can be adjusted to any desired high pressure level. Therefore, the inflating device in accordance with the present invention is convenient and versatile in use.
Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.
