Multiple discharge shower head with revolving nozzle

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6719218
  • Patent Number
    6,719,218
  • Date Filed
    Monday, June 25, 2001
    23 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, April 13, 2004
    20 years ago
Abstract
A shower head has a housing with a water inlet and a control valve which connects to the housing inlet and has a plurality of water outlets. The control valve regulates the flow of water to a plurality of circumferentially arranged spray openings and to a nozzle which is located within the periphery of the spray openings. The nozzle has the ability to turn or spin, thus providing a soft spray which may be independent of or concurrent with the discharge of water from the spray openings. The nozzle may also wobble, which movement may be described as nutational, or the slow movement of the axis of the nozzle about another axis. Wobbling movement provides a somewhat more concentrated spray than that provided when the nozzle only spins. The shower head further has an auxiliary port which may be utilized with other spray devices such as fixed sprays or hand-held shower heads.
Description




THE FIELD OF THE INVENTION




The present invention relates to a shower head and more specifically to a shower head which may provide multiple different water spray patterns. The shower head may provide a conventional spray pattern essentially circumferential in configuration; it may provide a soft, partially focused spray resulting from a spinning nozzle; or it may provide a more focused direct spray, somewhat harder than that from the spinning nozzle, which is the result of a wobbling or nutational movement of the nozzle. The shower head may also provide a combination of the conventional spray pattern and partially focused spray, and a combination of the spinning and wobbling spray patterns.




U.S. Pat. No. 6,092,739, owned by Moen Incorporated of North Olmsted, Ohio, the assignee of the present application, describes and claims a spray head or shower head in which there is a turbine which creates a wobbling motion for the spray nozzle. The present invention advances the technology of the '739 patent to provide not only a wobbling or nutational movement of the shower head nozzle, but also a variable speed spinning movement of the spray nozzle, as well as a mixture of these two motions. The shower head further has an auxiliary port which may be normally closed, but which is adaptable for use with a separate hand-held shower head or to provide water for fixed sprays located around a shower enclosure.




The shower head includes a control valve which is effective to direct water from the shower head inlet through different water passages so as to provide the multiple spray patterns described above. In one position, all of the water is directed through the circumferentially arranged halo spray outlets. In a second position, the water is directed to a spin inducing member which is connected to the nozzle and which will cause the nozzle to spin with the resultant soft spray. The control valve permits mixing of these two spray patterns. In a third position, the control valve will direct water to a turbine, which will create a wobbling or nutational movement of the nozzle, providing a somewhat harder and more focused spray pattern. It is possible to mix the hard and soft spray patterns by permitting a degree of spinning movement as the nozzle wobbles.




The wobble inducing member and the spin inducing member are coaxially positioned within the shower head and each has separate water passages to direct incoming water into the chambers in which these elements move. Both are connected to the nozzle and both are effective to cause movement of the nozzle.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




The present invention relates to a shower head having multiple spray patterns and in particular to such a shower head in which the spray pattern may result from a conventional fixed halo of spray outlets, from a spinning nozzle which provides a soft focused spray, or from a wobbling nozzle which provides a somewhat harder and more focused spray.




Another purpose of the invention is a shower head as described in which there is an auxiliary port which may be used to provide water to a hand-held shower or other additional shower spray devices fixed in a shower enclosure.




Another purpose of the invention is to provide a simply constructed, reliable shower head which can provide, at the user's control, multiple and different spray patterns.




Another purpose of the invention is to provide a shower head which creates different visual and sensorial shower experiences by providing control over a range of the water force, frequency and coverage.




Another purpose of the invention is to provide a shower head in which there may be a fixed spray pattern, or adjustable spray patterns, which may vary within certain parameters.




Another purpose of the invention is to provide a shower head having a spray pattern with varying force providing a massage-like feeling.




Another purpose of the invention is to provide a shower head in which the user, through simple hand operation, may vary the type of spray pattern provided by the shower head.




Another purpose is to provide a shower head which may have a soft rainlike high frequency spinning spray pattern or a spray pattern with increasing force which provides a kneading massage.




Another purpose is a shower head of the type described which may provide combinations of the described spray patterns.




Other purposes will appear in the ensuing specification, drawings and claims.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS




The invention is illustrated diagrammatically in the following drawings wherein:





FIG. 1

is a side view of the shower head of the present invention;





FIG. 2

is a front view of the shower head;





FIG. 3

is an exploded side view showing the components of the shower head;





FIG. 4

is a section along plane


4





4


of

FIG. 2

;





FIG. 5

is a partial front view showing the extent of shower head control knob movement;





FIG. 6

is a partial front view showing the control knob in a full halo position;





FIG. 7

is a partial front view with a portion of the cover removed and illustrating valve position and water flow at the full halo position;





FIG. 8

is an enlarged partial front view with the cover removed showing the control valve in full halo position;





FIG. 9

is a partial front view showing the control knob in a halo/spin position;





FIG. 10

is a partial front view with a portion of the cover removed, similar to

FIG. 7

, illustrating valve position and water flow at a halo/spin position;





FIG. 11

is a partial front view showing the control knob in a spin position;





FIG. 12

is a partial front view with a portion of the cover removed, similar to

FIGS. 7 and 10

, illustrating valve position and water flow at the spin position;





FIG. 13

is a partial front view showing the control knob in a spin/wobble position;





FIG. 14

is a partial front view, with a portion of the cover removed, similar to

FIGS. 7

,


10


and


12


, illustrating valve position and water flow at a spin/wobble position;





FIG. 15

is a partial front view showing the control knob in a wobble position;





FIG. 15A

is a partial front view, with a portion of the cover removed, illustrating valve position and water flow at a wobble position;





FIG. 16

is a side view of the control knob linkage;





FIG. 17

is a section along plane


17





17


of

FIG. 16

;





FIG. 18

is an axial section through the control knob linkage;





FIG. 19

is a rear view of the control knob;





FIG. 20

is a section along plane


20





20


of

FIG. 19

;





FIG. 21

is a diagrammatic illustration of the control valve and its inlet and outlet port water flow in a halo/spin position;





FIG. 22

is a view similar to

FIG. 21

, showing the control valve and its inlet and outlet port water flow in a spin position;





FIG. 23

is a view similar to

FIGS. 21 and 22

, showing the control valve and its inlet and outlet port water flow in a spin/wobble position;





FIG. 24

is a view similar to

FIGS. 21-23

, showing the control knob and its inlet and outlet port water flow in a wobble position;





FIG. 25

is a front view of the control valve housing;





FIG. 26

is a section along plane


26





26


of

FIG. 25

;





FIG. 27

is a section along plane


27





27


of

FIG. 25

;





FIG. 28

is a top view of the control valve housing;





FIG. 29

is a section along plane


29





29


of

FIG. 28

;





FIG. 30

is a section along plane


30





30


of

FIG. 25

;





FIG. 31

is an exploded view of the control valve;





FIG. 32

is a front view of the control valve rotating sleeve;





FIG. 33

is a section along plane


33





33


of

FIG. 32

;





FIG. 34

is a side view of the rotating sleeve;





FIG. 35

is a side view of the control valve stem;





FIG. 36

is a rear view of the control valve stem;





FIG. 37

is a front view of the control valve stem;





FIG. 38

is a rear view of the seal support sleeve;





FIG. 39

is a side view of the seal support sleeve;





FIG. 40

is a front view of the control valve weld plate;





FIG. 41

is a section along plane


41





41


of

FIG. 40

;





FIG. 42

is a front view of the valve stem linkage;





FIG. 43

is a section along plane


43





43


of

FIG. 42

;





FIG. 44

is a rear view of the valve stem linkage;





FIG. 45

is a side view of the spray face plate;





FIG. 46

is a rear view of the spray face plate;





FIG. 47

is an enlarged partial section of one of the spray face plate inner row openings;





FIG. 48

is an enlarged partial section of one of the outer row spray face plate openings;





FIG. 49

is a side view of the engine housing;





FIG. 50

is a section along plane


50





50


of

FIG. 49

;





FIG. 51

is a front view of the engine housing;





FIG. 52

is a top view of the engine housing;





FIG. 53

is a rear view of the engine housing;





FIG. 54

is a section along plane


54





54


of

FIG. 53

;





FIG. 55

is a section along plane


55





55


of

FIG. 53

;





FIG. 56

is a section along plane


56





56


of

FIG. 53

;





FIG. 57

is a bottom view of the engine housing;





FIG. 58

is a side view of the end cap;





FIG. 59

is a section along plane


59





59


of

FIG. 58

;





FIG. 60

is a front view of the end cap;





FIG. 61

is a section along plane


61





61


of

FIG. 60

;





FIG. 62

is a side view of the turbine;





FIG. 63

is a rear view of the turbine;





FIG. 64

is a section along plane


64





64


of

FIG. 63

;





FIG. 65

is an enlarged section showing the turbine, cage and nozzle in a spin mode;





FIG. 66

is a side view of the cage;





FIG. 67

is a front view of the cage;





FIG. 68

is a section along plane


68





68


of

FIG. 66

;





FIG. 69

is a side view of the spray head;





FIG. 70

is a front view of the diverging cone; and





FIG. 71

is a rear view of the diverging cone.











DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT




The present invention relates to a shower head which may provide multiple different spray patterns. There may be what is termed a “halo” spray pattern which derives from a plurality of circumferentially arranged spray openings, as in a conventional shower head. There is a spray nozzle which may spin, and which is located within the periphery of the spray openings and when it does spin, provides an adjustable, medium to wide, soft spray pattern. The nozzle may also wobble, in which case the nozzle spray is more focused and somewhat harder than that provided by pure spin movement of the nozzle. The control which provides the shower user with the ability to select the desired spray pattern also allows the user to combine the spray patterns from halo and spin and from spin and wobble.




The wobbling motion of the spray nozzle, which may also be termed “nutational movement,” in which the axis of the nozzle itself moves slowly about another axis, is described in more detail in U.S. Pat. No. 6,092,739, owned by Moen Incorporated of North Olmsted, Ohio, the assignee of the present application, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference. Whereas, the '739 patent discloses and claims wobbling movement of a nozzle, the present application combines the spray pattern resulting from such movement with other types of water spray patterns enabling the shower head user to enjoy several different showering sensations. The shower head also has an auxiliary port which may be utilized to connect a hand-held shower or to direct water to one or more fixed sprays located around the shower enclosure.





FIGS. 1 and 2

illustrate the exterior of the shower head. There is a front cover


10


and a back cover


12


. There is an engine cowling extending out from the front cover


10


and indicated at


14


. An access cover


16


provides an opening into the back cover


12


.





FIG. 3

is an exploded view of all of the shower head components. Starting at the far left side, a nut


18


is used to attach the back cover to a ball


20


mounting a filter screen


22


, with the ball


20


attaching to the conventional water pipe extending out from a shower enclosure wall. There is a seal


24


, which is symmetrical in shape, and is shown in position in

FIG. 4

, which seals the inward end of the ball to the engine housing


26


.

FIG. 3

is best understood in combination with the section of

FIG. 4. A

flow regulator


28


is positioned at the inlet of the engine housing, which regulator controls the volume of water flowing into the engine housing and thus to the control valve described hereinafter.




There is an auxiliary plug


30


holding a seal


32


which closes an auxiliary port


34


in the engine housing


26


, as particularly shown in FIG.


4


.




Within the engine housing there is located an end cap


36


which mounts a basket


40


. A turbine


38


is positioned within the basket and there is basket O-ring


42


and a pivot ball


44


forming a part of the turbine mounting within the basket


40


.




A spray head


46


includes a tube


48


which extends within the end cap


36


and is coaxial with a U-cup


50


and washers


52


. A divergence cone


54


is mounted to the end of the spray head.




The spray face plate is indicated at


56


and the engine cowling


14


will be positioned within it. The spray face plate


56


will be covered by the front cover


10


when the shower head is fully assembled.




Focusing on the control valve, there is a valve housing


58


, with the valve including a stem seal


60


, a rotating sleeve


62


, a stem


64


and a seal support sleeve


66


. A weld plate


68


covers one end of the valve and there is a stem linkage


70


mounted thereto. The stem linkage


70


is connected by link


72


to knob linkage


76


and through front cover


10


to control knob


74


.




The engine housing


26


is detailed in

FIGS. 49 through 57

and is shown in position within the covers in FIG.


4


. The inward end of the engine housing


26


is threaded, as at


78


, for attachment to the nut


18


. The flow regulator


28


is mounted within a small chamber


80


directly in the path of water flow from the screen


22


. The passage to the auxiliary port


34


is indicated at


82


and this passage bypasses the flow regulator


28


. Thus, water may flow directly from the shower head inlet to the auxiliary port which, unless an auxiliary device is connected thereto, is normally closed by the plug


30


. The water inlet into the engine housing, downstream of the flow regulator


28


, is shown at


84


in

FIGS. 55 and 57

, with this inlet being connected to the valve housing


58


. The engine housing has a wobble chamber


86


into which water flows from a wobble inlet


88


, which is connected by a passage


90


to the control valve housing


58


. The outer surface of the passage


90


is curved, as at


92


, with the inner surface being similarly curved through the use of an insert


94


to thus provide a less turbulent flow path for water which must charge direction approximately 90°. By having this flow path bounded by curved surfaces there is less turbulence, and hence less noise, from the shower head.




There is a spin chamber


96


within the engine housing and water flows into this chamber from the control valve through a spin inlet


98


. The outward end of the engine housing has a circumferential trough


100


which will receive water directed to the halo spray openings to be described. As was true of water directed to the wobble chamber and the spin chamber, the flow of water to the trough


100


is regulated by the control valve.




The end cap


36


, which is positioned within the engine housing


26


, is detailed in

FIGS. 58-61

. The end cap includes an inwardly extending flange


102


which is received within a peripheral groove


104


at the junction between the engine housing wobble chamber and spin chamber (FIG.


54


). Water flowing into the spin chamber from inlet


98


is directed through a pair of opposed and somewhat tangential spin inlet ports


106


, illustrated in

FIG. 59

, from which water will flow into the interior of the end cap. The basket


40


is positioned within the end cap. The outer end of the end cap


36


includes a bore


108


having spaced shoulders


110


which support a bumper


112


. Directly adjacent the shoulder


110


is a second shoulder


114


which supports the U-cup


50


which seals against the exterior of the tube


48


forming a part of the spray nozzle. There is a third shoulder


116


which supports the washer


52


illustrated in FIG.


3


.




The end cap may be attached to the engine housing so that these two elements are permanently attached together in assembly of the shower head. The end cap extends through an opening


118


in the engine cowling, with the spray nozzle, consisting of the tube


48


, the spray head


46


and the divergence cone


54


, extending outwardly from the end cap and being surrounded by the engine cowling


14


as particularly shown in FIG.


4


.




The basket


40


which is positioned within the end cap is shown in

FIGS. 66-68

and is shown in position within the end cap and the engine housing in

FIGS. 4 and 65

. The basket


40


includes a sleeve


120


, a bumper


42


in a groove


124


which is at a location in which movement of the basket forces the bumper into contact with wall


126


of the end cap. This wall functions as a track which limits the wobbling movement of the basket and nozzle. The exterior of sleeve


120


has a plurality of non-radial concave curved blades


128


, shown particularly in

FIG. 67

, with the curvature of the blades enabling the water flowing in through the end cap ports


106


to impart a rotary or spinning movement to the basket. By using blades which in effect catch the incoming water, the rotary force imparted to the basket is increased.




Directly downstream from the blades


128


the basket has a plurality of windows


130


, each of which is separated by a post


132


. As shown particularly in

FIG. 67

, the posts


132


have a curvature which is effective to direct water flowing towards the cage to move inwardly through the windows to the tube


48


of the nozzle. The upper end of the space between the adjacent blades


132


has a downwardly facing curve


134


which provides a slight lift to the basket as it rotates within the end cap to reduce friction. The blades


128


are the driving blades which cause the basket to turn and the curved posts


132


function as pumping blades directing water inwardly toward the tube which carries the water to the nozzle.




The interior of the sleeve


120


encloses the pivot ball


44


, with the pivot ball, at its center, having an inwardly-directed convex curved projection


136


which supports the turbine


38


. The turbine


38


is shown in detail in

FIGS. 62-64

and has a socket


138


at its outward end which is seated upon the convex projection


136


. The turbine wobbles about the pivot ball. It is advantageous to have a downwardly facing socket at the outer end of the turbine so that water may be flushed from this connection to reduce the possibility of sediment in the water being caught in this joint and causing wear to the turbine.




The turbine


38


has a plurality of concave grooves


140


which face the wobble inlet


88


, with these grooves being non-radial in configuration, as particularly shown in FIG.


63


. The grooves form concave blades


142


which function in the same manner as the concave blades on the cage. Water is directed axially toward the turbine, but the concave non-radial shape of the blades


142


causes the water to turn at approximate 90° towards the wall of the wobble chamber. The effect of this turning motion of the water is to move the turbine toward the inside surface


144


of the basket


40


, which surface limits the degree of wobble movement of the turbine. In effect, the incoming water is caught by the turbine blades and thrown outwardly, and as a result, the turbine moves at an angle 90° to water direction. Also, since the grooves that form the blades are non-radial, the water will impart a turning moment to the turbine which causes it to rotate. There are three movement components caused by the water striking the turbine: a rotary movement, a wobbling movement, and a downward movement which assists in creating the wobbling movement. Although the downward movement is to be minimized, it is necessary to keep the turbine on the convex projection


136


.




Wobbling movement is described in more detail in the above-referenced '739 patent, but it may be considered to be a nutational movement in which the axis of the turbine moves slowly about another axis other than the axis of the turbine itself. This wobbling movement of the turbine is imparted to the basket, which in turn imparts this movement to the nozzle to which the basket is fixed. The space between the inner end of the turbine and the opposing surface of the wobble chamber having the wobble inlet


88


is less than the depth of the concave recess in the turbine so there is no possibility of the turbine being inadvertently moved to a non-functional position.




The nozzle assembly is illustrated in

FIGS. 69-71

and includes the spray head


46


having a tube


48


with an interior


150


, which tube extends into and is fixed to the basket


40


, as particularly shown in

FIGS. 4 and 65

. The tube


48


, which is outwardly flared as at


152


, extends into the spray head which has a conical chamber


154


at its outward end within which is positioned the divergence cone


54


. The cone


54


, as particularly shown in

FIG. 71

, has a plurality of slots, in this case five, indicated at


156


, and a center passage


158


, the combination of these passages forming the water conduits to the spray nozzle openings


160


. The cross sectional area of the passages


156


and


158


are each equal and the total cross sectional area of these combined slots and openings is greater than the cross sectional area of the tube


48


so there is no back pressure on the water flowing outwardly through the nozzle. The divergence cone has an annular groove


162


which receives an annular projection


164


of the spray head to connect those elements into a unitary spray nozzle.




As illustrated particularly in

FIG. 4

, which shows the shower head in a wobble mode, wobble movement of the basket and nozzle is limited at two locations. First, by the contact of bumper


42


against the wall


126


at the inner end of the combined nozzle and basket, and second, by the contact of the exterior of tube


48


and bumper


112


at or near the outer end of the nozzle. The diameter ratio between bumper


42


and the wall


126


upon which it turns is the same ratio as that between the exterior of tube


48


and the interior of bumper


112


. Essentially, the combined basket and nozzle wobble about a pivot between these points of limiting movement. This dampens noise from the wobbling motion and maximizes the life of the bumpers because there is no side-to-side movement of the tube or the basket at the points of contact.




The spray openings in the nozzle are somewhat close together, but the net effect of these openings, and particularly when the shower head is in a wobble mode, is to create a substantially solid body of water that strikes the user with a strong impact. In the spin mode, even though these openings are close together, the net effect is somewhat softer because the spin movement of the connected basket and nozzle causes the water flowing out of the nozzle openings to be broken up into small droplets providing a substantially softer feel to the user.




Details of the halo spray openings are shown in

FIGS. 45-48

which illustrate the spray face plate


56


. Water passing from this plate flows through the openings


170


, shown in

FIG. 1

, of the front cover. The spray plate face


56


is partially circumferential, as particularly shown in

FIG. 46

, and includes an inner row of spray openings


172


and an outer row of spray openings


174


.

FIG. 45

is a side view of the spray face plate.

FIGS. 47 and 48

illustrate details of the inner and outer row spray face plate openings.

FIG. 47

shows the inner row and each opening includes a generally cylindrical passage


176


which terminates in a symmetrical cone


178


, at the end of which is the opening


180


. Because the walls of the tapered portion


178


are symmetrical, water flowing into and through the described passages will exit the opening


180


in a direction along the axis of the passage. Thus, the inner row of openings


172


will provide a spray pattern in which the individual water paths from each opening are generally in a direction axial with the face plate of the shower head.





FIG. 48

shows the outer row of openings


174


. In this instance there is again a cylindrical passage


182


, but the cone at the end of the passage


182


, indicated at


184


, is asymmetrical and its inner wall


186


will cause the water flowing through the opening


188


at the end of the passage to be directed outwardly of, or away from, the axis of passage


182


. Thus, water flowing from the outer row of spray openings diverges outwardly from the face plate of the shower head. The end result of water flow from the described two rows of halo openings is a spray pattern which is wider then the face plate through which the water passes. The spray pattern diverges and is of a greater width than the width of the shower head at the point where the water passes through it.




The face plate


56


has an interior trough


190


which faces the trough


100


in the engine housing. When these two elements are connected together, the combined troughs provide a channel for water to flow circumferentially about the spray head and to the described spray openings.




Turning to

FIG. 4

, the ball


20


has an interior thread


194


which will be used to attach the shower head to a water pipe extending outwardly from a shower enclosure wall. The filter screen


22


is coaxially positioned within the ball


20


and removes sediment from water flowing into the shower head. This removal is particularly important in a shower head of the design shown herein because of the multiple moving parts and the possibility of damage if sediment within the water should become lodged between a pair of moving elements.




The nut


18


may have a reinforcing ferrule


196


to reinforce the bearing surface between the ball


20


and the nut


18


. As described earlier, the nut


18


threadedly engages and mounts the engine housing


26


. Water flowing through the ball


20


passes through its opening


198


and from there into the described passages to the flow regulator


28


and to the auxiliary port.




The control valve housing is indicated at


58


and the illustration of water flow into and out of this housing is shown in

FIGS. 21-24

. The housing itself is detailed in

FIGS. 25-30

. The inlet into the control valve housing


58


is shown at


200


and water passes from this inlet into the valve chamber


202


through an opening


204


. The halo outlet from valve housing


58


is indicated at


206


, the wobble outlet is indicated at


208


, and the spin outlet is indicated at


210


. As particularly shown in

FIG. 29

, the inlet opening


204


is elongated with curved ends, but has a raised boss


212


upon which a portion of the valve moves as described hereinafter. A seal ring


214


may seal the wobble outlet, as particularly shown in FIG.


29


.




The elements of the control valve are shown in the exploded view of FIG.


31


. The rotating sleeve


62


has a bottom inlet


216


, a side outlet


218


, and a recessed area


220


which functions to permit water to flow outwardly from the rotating sleeve. Similarly, the sleeve has a bottom outlet


222


, shown in FIG.


32


.




The rotating sleeve


62


is positioned within and rotates relative to the seal support sleeve


66


. The stem


64


has a stem extension


224


which mounts a quad seal


60


, with the extension extending through a boss


228


on the seal support sleeve


66


. The stem


64


will pass through a central opening


230


in the weld plate


68


where it engages the stem linkage


70


.




The stem


64


has a groove


234


within which extends a projection


236


on the rotating sleeve


62


to interlock these two elements for concurrent rotation. The seal support sleeve


66


, which is detailed in

FIGS. 38 and 39

, serves as the enclosing body for the rotating sleeve


62


and itself is located within the chamber


202


of the valve housing


58


. The sleeve


66


has a pair of side outlets


238


and


240


, with outlet


238


functioning as the halo outlet and outlet


240


as the spin outlet. The wobble outlet is opening


222


in the rotating sleeve


62


. Each of the outlets


238


and


240


will have suitable seal rings


239


and


241


(FIG.


3


), respectively, positioned therein, with the seal rings bearing against the interior of the valve housing chamber


202


.




As indicated above, the stem linkage


70


is attached to and will cause rotation of the stem


64


and the rotating sleeve


62


. The stem linkage is detailed in

FIGS. 42-44

and has an arm


242


with an opening


244


at the end thereof. This arm will receive one end of the link


72


shown in FIG.


15


A. The link


72


may be a rigid wire and will transfer motion from the control knob


74


to the stem linkage


70


, the stem


64


, and the rotating sleeve


62


to effect a change in the spray pattern from the shower head.




The linkage knob


76


is shown in

FIGS. 16

,


17


, and


18


and includes a stem portion


250


which extends into a control knob opening


252


so that turning movement of the control knob


74


will move the linkage knob


76


. The linkage knob


76


has an opening


254


which will receive one end of the link


72


. The result of the interconnection between the control knob


74


and the control valve is that rotation of the control knob will turn the rotating sleeve


62


of the control valve. However, there is a degree of lost motion in this connection, as 150° of rotation of the control knob will provide 95° of rotation of the rotating sleeve. What is important is that the shower user have the ability, from a readily accessible location, to operate the control knob, to change the spray pattern.




Following is a description of the operation of the shower head and its several modes of differing spray patterns.

FIG. 6

illustrates the maximum extent of control knob movement. As shown in this figure, the control knob


74


is in a halo position as it points to the symbol on the front cover that represents regular streams of water. Counterclockwise movement will cause the rotating sleeve of the valve member to change the valve housing discharge from the full halo position of

FIG. 6

to the mixed halo/spin position of FIG.


9


. Further counterclockwise movement will result in the spin position of

FIG. 11

, and continuing counterclockwise movement will place the control knob in the spin/wobble position of FIG.


13


. Yet further counterclockwise movement will cause the control knob to reach the full wobble position of FIG.


15


.





FIGS. 7 and 8

illustrate the valve and the control knob linkage in a full halo position. Water flows into the valve housing


58


through the passage


200


, illustrated by the arrow in FIG.


7


. Water flows out from the halo outlet


206


into inlet


207


of the engine housing illustrated in

FIGS. 8

,


51


and


57


. To reach the engine housing and face plate troughs which pass water to the halo outlets, and focusing on

FIG. 4

, water flows into a circumferential recess


100


on the outside of the engine housing and from this recess it reaches the described troughs which feed the halo openings in the spray face plate


56


.





FIGS. 9

,


10


and


21


illustrate the positions of the control knob and valve in a halo/spin mixed discharge position.

FIG. 9

shows the position of the control knob and

FIG. 10

shows the inlet and outlet water flow paths to both the spin and halo openings.

FIG. 21

illustrates water flow through the valve itself. Water enters the center of the rotating sleeve


62


through the opening


204


and the inlet


216


and exits through sleeve outlet


218


and the side openings


238


and


240


of the seal support sleeve. Water will exit the valve housing


58


through outlets


206


and


210


and flow in the described halo path and will flow into the spin chamber, as illustrated by the water flow arrows in FIG.


65


.





FIGS. 11

,


12


and


22


illustrate the path of water flow in a pure spin position. Note the position of the control knob in

FIG. 11

where it has moved further counterclockwise than shown in FIG.


9


.

FIG. 22

shows water flowing into the valve housing and water flowing out of the side outlet


240


in the seal support sleeve.

FIG. 22

shows the path of water flow through the valve, from the valve housing inlet


200


, to the valve housing opening


204


, to the inlet


216


of the rotating sleeve


62


, out the rotating sleeve outlet


218


and to the side outlet


240


of the seal support sleeve


66


and then to the valve housing outlet


210


.





FIGS. 13

,


14


and


23


similarly show the path of water flow in a mixed spin/wobble position. Note the position of the control knob


74


in FIG.


13


and the position of the valve in

FIG. 14

with the arrows indicating the incoming flow of water into the valve housing and the outflow of water through the spin and wobble outlet water passages


210


and


208


, respectively, of the valve housing. In

FIG. 23

, there is a similar illustration of water flow through the valve itself, including an indication that water flows out of the rotating sleeve


62


through both its side outlet


218


(to spin outlet


210


) and its bottom outlet


222


(to the wobble outlet


208


).




In like manner,

FIGS. 15

,


15


A and


24


illustrate the path of water flow in the position of the control knob and valve when all water is directed to the wobble chamber. Again, water flow follows the directional arrows shown which are self explanatory.




Focusing now on movement of the turbine and basket and nozzle during the described positions of the control knob and control valve, attention should be directed to

FIGS. 4 and 65

.

FIG. 4

illustrates the water flow pattern in a maximum wobble position. Water flows through the wobble outlet


208


into engine housing inlet


90


and through the wobble inlet


88


into the wobble chamber


86


and impinges upon the turbine


38


. The turbine will wobble or have a nutating movement, as described above. Movement of the turbine is limited by contact between that element and the interior wall of the basket. The wobbling movement is imparted to the basket which is fixed to the nozzle with the result that the nozzle will have a wobbling type of motion. As such it will have a focused and somewhat hard massaging or kneading spray pattern with the water following the direction of the arrows in FIG.


4


. Water is thrown outwardly by the wobbling motion of the turbine and will flow outside of a portion of the basket, through the window openings in the basket, and then down through the center of the tube to the nozzle openings in the divergence cone. This type of motion of the nozzle is described in the '739 patent referenced above.




Spin motion is illustrated in FIG.


65


. In this instance, water does not contact the turbine and cause it to wobble, but rather flows directly against the basket


40


. Note the arrows in FIG.


65


. Water flows from the spin outlet


210


of the valve housing


58


to the spin inlet


98


of the engine housing


26


and from there into the spin chamber


96


and through the spin inlet ports


106


of the end cap


36


. Water impinging against the blades of the basket cause it to spin or rotate as described above. This spinning motion is essentially coaxial with the axis of the basket and the nozzle and there is no wobble motion. Because the nozzle is spinning faster, the water droplets flowing out of the openings


160


will tend to be broken up and there will be a softer, less focused spray pattern from the nozzle.




As described above, there may be a combination of wobble and spin motions, depending upon the position of the control knob. When moving the knob in a counterclockwise direction, the shower user may first be in a full spin mode with further movement in a counterclockwise direction providing a mixed wobble/spin spray discharge. In this instance, water flows into both the wobble chamber and the spin chamber and the nozzle will both wobble and spin, but the extent of wobbling movement is less than when the control knob is in a full wobble position.




The direction of rotation of the basket and nozzle when in the spin mode is the same direction of rotation which is imparted to these elements when the shower head is in a full wobble mode. It could be otherwise, but greater control is provided to the shower user by having concurrent directions of rotation of these two elements when they are operating simultaneously.




The shower head described and disclosed herein provides for three different spray patterns, plus combinations of these patterns. In a pure halo mode, the spray pattern is much like that of a conventional shower head. In a pure spin mode, there is a soft somewhat focused spray having a rainlike feeling. The wobble movement of the nozzle provides deceasing coverage of the spray pattern, but increasing force or a more focused spray which gives a kneading massage feeling to the shower user.




The provision of an auxiliary port allows the shower head to be used with other showering devices, such as a hand-held shower or fixed shower sprays, which may be set in varying directions within a shower enclosure.




The shower head user is offered a full range of shower sensations by variation of a readily accessible control knob. There is a continuous range of adjustment of force, frequency and coverage for the shower user.




Whereas the preferred form of the invention has been shown and described herein, it should be realized that there may be many modifications, substitutions and alterations thereto.



Claims
  • 1. A shower head including a housing, a water inlet in said housing, a control valve in said housing having a water inlet and a plurality of water outlets, a water passage between said housing inlet and said control valve inlet,a plurality of peripherally arranged spray openings in said housing, a spray opening water passage between one of said control valve outlets and said spray openings, a spray nozzle on said housing having a plurality of outlets and a water conduit connected thereto, a wobble inducing member in said housing and associated with said nozzle to impart a wobbling motion thereto, a wobble water passage between another one of said valve outlets and said wobble inducing member whereby water passing from said control valve to said wobble inducing member causes it to wobble and to induce wobble in said nozzle, said wobble water passage communicating with said nozzle conduit to supply water to said nozzle outlets, a spin inducing member in said housing and associated with said nozzle to impart a spin motion thereto, a spin water passage between yet another one of said valve outlets and said spin inducing member, whereby water passing from said control valve to said spin inducing member causes it to spin and to induce spin in said nozzle, said spin water passage communicating with said nozzle conduit to supply water to said nozzle outlets, said control valve being movable between positions to direct water from said control valve inlet to said control valve outlets.
  • 2. The shower head of claim 1 wherein said control valve is movable between positions to direct water from said control valve inlet to each control valve outlet, and to direct water simultaneously to more than one control valve outlet.
  • 3. The shower head of claim 2 wherein said control valve is formed and adapted to simultaneously direct water to said spray opening water passage and to said spin water passage, and to said spin water passage and said wobble water passage.
  • 4. The shower head of claim 1 wherein said control valve includes a seal support sleeve having outlet ports therein and a rotating sleeve positioned within said seal support sleeve and having an inlet port therein.
  • 5. The shower head of claim 4 wherein said rotating sleeve further includes an outlet port therein.
  • 6. The shower head of claim 4 further including a stem attached to said rotating sleeve, a control member, located on said housing remote from said control valve, and a linkage connected between said control member and said stem.
  • 7. The shower head of claim 1 wherein said wobble inducing member includes a turbine having a plurality of blades, said turbine and said turbine blades being in alignment with and facing said wobble water passage.
  • 8. The shower head of claim 7 wherein said housing includes a turbine chamber, with said turbine being positioned within said chamber, said wobble water passage opening into said turbine chamber.
  • 9. The shower head of claim 8 wherein said turbine blades are non-radial.
  • 10. The shower head of claim 9 wherein said turbine blades have a concave shape with the result that water directed onto said blades from said wobble water passage is turned by said blades approximately 90°, with the result that the turbine is moved by water from said wobble water passage in a direction approximately 90° to the wobble water passage.
  • 11. The shower head of claim 10 wherein water directed at said non-radial blades cause said turbine to rotate.
  • 12. The shower head of claim 7 wherein said nozzle includes a post, said turbine being movably positioned on said post.
  • 13. The shower head of claim 12 wherein said turbine includes a concave socket, with said nozzle post extending into said socket to thereby support said turbine for wobbling and spinning movement.
  • 14. The shower head of claim 7 wherein said turbine extends into and is movable relative to said spin inducing member.
  • 15. The shower head of claim 14 wherein said spin inducing member limits the range of wobble of said turbine.
  • 16. The shower head of claim 15 wherein said nozzle includes a post, said post extending into said spin inducing member and supporting said turbine.
  • 17. The shower head of claim 16 wherein said nozzle water conduit extends through said post.
  • 18. The shower head of claim 17 wherein said nozzle, spin inducing member, and turbine are coaxially positioned, one to another.
  • 19. The shower head of claim 1 wherein said housing includes a spin chamber, said spin inducing member being located therein, said spin water passage including a plurality of partial tangential openings into said spin chamber.
  • 20. The shower head of claim 19 wherein said spin inducing member includes a plurality of outwardly extending blades positioned to receive water from said openings.
  • 21. The shower head of claim 20 wherein said spin inducing member blades are concave and positioned to catch water from said partial tangential openings to cause said spin inducing member to rotate.
  • 22. The shower head of claim 21 wherein said spin inducing member blades are non-radial.
  • 23. The shower head of claim 20 wherein said spin inducing member includes a plurality of windows wherein water from said partial tangential openings, after contacting said blades, passes through said windows and into said nozzle conduit.
  • 24. The shower head of claim 23 wherein said blades are curved at the upper end thereof.
  • 25. The shower head of claim 23 wherein said windows are separated by posts, said posts having a curvature directing the water inwardly towards the nozzle conduit.
  • 26. The shower head of claim 25 wherein said nozzle includes a post, said nozzle post extending into said spin inducing number, with said nozzle conduit being located within said nozzle post.
  • 27. The shower head of claim 1 further including an auxiliary port in said housing, and a passage between said housing inlet and said auxiliary port.
  • 28. The shower head of claim 1 wherein said nozzle includes a diverging cone having a plurality of water openings, and a tube forming said conduit and connected to said diverging cone.
  • 29. The shower head of claim 28 wherein the combined cross sectional area of said diverging cone plurality of water openings is greater than the cross sectional area of said conduit.
  • 30. The shower head of claim 29 wherein said plurality of diverging cone water openings include a single center opening and peripheral openings arranged thereabout.
  • 31. The shower head of claim 30 wherein said peripherally arranged openings diverge outwardly from said center opening.
  • 32. The shower head of claim 28 wherein said tube extends into said spin inducing member, and said wobble inducing member extends within said spin inducing member.
  • 33. The shower head of claim 28 wherein said tube is fixed to said spin inducing member, with said wobble inducing member causing wobble movement in both said spin inducing member and said nozzle, means on said housing for limiting wobble movement of said spin inducing member and for limiting wobble movement of said nozzle.
  • 34. The shower head of claim 33 wherein the ratio of the means limiting wobble movement of said spin inducing member to the exterior of said spin inducing member is the same as the ratio of the means limiting wobble movement of said tube to the exterior of said tube.
  • 35. The shower head of claim 1 wherein said spray openings are radially outside of said nozzle.
  • 36. The shower head of claim 35 wherein said spray openings extend partially circumferentially about said housing.
  • 37. The shower head of claim 36 wherein said spray openings are located in two circumferential rows, an inner row and an outer row.
  • 38. The shower head of claim 37 wherein each spray opening has an axis, with the spray openings in the inner row having a tapered cone-shaped wall, with water passing through said inner row openings along the axis of said cone.
  • 39. The shower head of claim 37 wherein the outer row spray openings each has an asymmetrical tapered wall which directs the spray therefrom outwardly of the spray opening axis.
  • 40. The shower head of claim 35 wherein said spray opening water passage includes a peripherally extending trough in communication with said spray openings.
  • 41. The shower head of claim 1 wherein said housing inlet includes a filter.
  • 42. The shower head of claim 41 wherein said housing inlet includes a flow restrictor downstream of said filter.
  • 43. The shower head of claim 42 wherein said housing includes an auxiliary port, said auxiliary port being upstream of said flow restrictor and downstream of said filter.
  • 44. A shower head including a housing, a water inlet in said housing, a plurality of peripherally arranged spray openings in said housing, a spray opening water passage between said housing water inlet and said spray openings,a spray nozzle on said housing having a plurality of outlets and a water conduit connected thereto, a wobble inducing member in said housing and associated with said nozzle to impart a wobbling motion thereto, a wobble water passage between said housing water inlet and said wobble inducing member whereby water flowing to said wobble inducing member causes it to wobble and to induce wobble in said nozzle, said wobble water passage communicating with said nozzle conduit to supply water to said nozzle outlets, and a spin inducing member in said housing and associated with said nozzle to impart a spin motion thereto, a spin water passage between said housing water inlet and said spin inducing member whereby water flowing to said spin inducing member causes it to spin and to induce spin in said nozzle, said spin water passage communicating with said nozzle conduit to supply water to said nozzle outlets.
  • 45. The shower head of claim 44 further including valve means in said housing controlling the flow of water from said housing inlet to said water passages to provide for selective use of said spray openings, wobble inducing member and spin inducing member.
  • 46. The shower head of claim 45 wherein said valve means provides for the flow of water to said water passages for simultaneous water flow to said openings and to said nozzle.
  • 47. The shower head of claim 45 further including a manual selection member located on the exterior of said housing, and a linkage between said manual selection member and said valve means.
  • 48. The shower head of claim 44 wherein said nozzle is fixed to said spin inducing member, and said wobble inducing member is supported on said spin inducing member.
  • 49. A shower head including a housing, a water inlet in said housing, a control valve in said housing having a water inlet and a plurality of water outlets, a water passage between said housing inlet and said control valve inlet,a plurality of peripherally arranged spray openings in said housing, a spray opening water passage between one of said control valve outlets and said spray openings, a spray nozzle on said housing having a plurality of outlets and a water conduit connected thereto, a wobble inducing member in said housing and associated with said nozzle to impart a wobbling motion thereto, a wobble water passage between another one of said valve outlets and said wobble inducing member whereby water passing from said control valve to said wobble inducing member causes it to wobble and to induce wobble in said nozzle, said wobble water passage being connected to said nozzle conduit to supply water to said nozzle outlets, said control valve being movable between positions to direct water from said control valve inlet to said control valve outlets.
  • 50. The shower head of claim 49 further including a spin inducing member in said housing and associated with said nozzle to impart a spin motion thereto, a spin water passage between yet another one of said valve outlets and said spin inducing member whereby water passing from said control valve to said spin inducing member causes it to spin and to induce spin in said nozzle, said spin water passage being connected to said nozzle conduit to supply water to said nozzle outlets, said wobble inducing member being supported in said housing on said spin inducing member.
  • 51. A shower head including a housing, a water inlet in said housing, a control valve in said housing having a water inlet and a plurality of water outlets, a water passage between said housing inlet and said control valve inlet,a plurality of stationary, peripherally arranged spray openings in said housing, a spray opening water passage between one of said control valve outlets and said spray openings, a nozzle on said housing having a plurality of outlets and a water conduit connected thereto, a spin inducing member in said housing and associated with said nozzle to impart a spin motion thereto, a spin water passage between another one of said valve outlets and said spin inducing member whereby water passing from said control valve to said spin inducing member causes it to spin and to induce spin in said nozzle, said spin water passage being connected to said nozzle conduit to supply water to said nozzle outlets, said control valve being movable between positions to direct water from said control valve inlet to said control valve outlets.
  • 52. The shower head of claim 51 further including a wobble inducing member in said housing and associated with said nozzle to impart a wobbling motion thereto, a wobble water passage between yet another one of said valve outlets and said wobble inducing member whereby water passing from said control valve to said wobble inducing member causes it to wobble and to induce wobble in said nozzle, said wobble water passage being connected to said nozzle conduit to supply water to said nozzle outlets.
  • 53. The shower head of claim 52 wherein said wobble inducing member has a plurality of blades, positioned to receive water from said wobble water passage whereby the water directed to said blades causes said wobble inducing member to wobble.
  • 54. The shower head of claim 51 wherein said spin inducing member has a plurality of curved blades positioned to catch water from said spin water passage to cause rotation of said spin inducing member.
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5588595 Sweet et al. Dec 1996 A
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5704547 Golan et al. Jan 1998 A
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