Patent Application
20250043558
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The disclosure relates to odor removal devices and more particularly pertains to a new odor removal device for reducing odors emanating from a toilet. The device includes an air pumping unit that is mountable to a toilet which includes an inlet in fluid communication with a bowl of the toilet and an outlet in fluid communication with a drain of the toilet. The air pumping unit urges air inwardly through the inlet and outwardly through the outlet when the air pumping unit is turned on. In this way the air pumping unit removes odors from the bowl and delivers them into the drain.
The prior art relates to odor removal devices including a variety of air pumping units that are structurally integrated into a toilet for removing odors from a bowl of the toilet. In no instance does the prior art disclose an air pumping unit that can be retrofitted onto an existing toilet for removing odors from a bowl of the toilet.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising an air pumping unit that is mountable to a toilet. The air pumping unit has an inlet and an outlet to urge air inwardly through the inlet and outwardly through the outlet when the air pumping unit is actuated. The inlet is in fluid communication with an interior of a bowl of the toilet to suctionally remove odors from the bowl. The outlet is in fluid communication with a drain of the toilet to release the odors into the drain thereby inhibiting the odors from permeating the bathroom in which the toilet is disposed.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
The air pumping unit 12 comprises a housing 24 that has a lower wall 26, a forward wall 28 and a lateral wall 30. The lower wall 26 rests on a top surface 32 of the bowl 20 of the toilet 14 at a point located behind a toilet seat hinge 34 on the bowl 20. The housing 24 may have attachment means 35, including but not being limited to an adhesive pad being applied to the lower wall 26 which adhesively engages the toilet 14, for retaining the housing 24 on the toilet 14. In this way the air pumping unit 12 can be retrofitted onto any existing toilet. The air pumping unit 12 includes an air pump 36 that is integrated into the housing 24. Furthermore, the air pump 36 has an intake 38 and an exhaust 40; the air pump 36 urges air inwardly through the intake 38 and outwardly through the exhaust 40 when the air pump 36 is turned on. Additionally, the air pump 36 may be an electric air pump 36 which has an operational pressure of approximately 1.0 CFM @ 5.0 psi.
The air pumping unit 12 includes an intake tube 42 that has a coupled end 44 which is fluidly coupled to the intake 38 of the air pump 36 such that the intake tube 42 defines the inlet 16 of the air pumping unit 12. In this way the air pump 36 can urge air into the intake tube 42 when the air pump 36 is turned on. Furthermore, the intake tube 42 extends outwardly through the forward wall 28 of the housing 24 and the intake tube 42 extends downwardly into the bowl 20 such that a free end 46 of the intake tube 42 is positioned within the bowl 20. In this way the intake tube 42 can suctionally remove odors within the bowl 20 when the air pump 36 is turned on. As is most clearly shown in
The air pumping unit 12 includes an exhaust tube 48 that has a coupled end 50 that is fluidly coupled to the exhaust 40 of the air pump 36 such that the exhaust tube 48 defines the outlet 18 of the air pumping unit 12. In this way the air pump 36 can urge air outwardly through the exhaust tube 48 when the air pump 36 is turned on. The exhaust tube 48 extends outwardly through the forward wall 28 of the housing 24 and the exhaust tube 48 extends downwardly into the bowl 20. Furthermore, the exhaust tube 48 follows contours of an interior surface 52 of the bowl 20 such that the exhaust tube 48 extends into the drain 22 in the toilet 14 bowl 20 such that a free end 54 of the exhaust tube 48 is positioned within the drain 22. In this way the exhaust tube 48 can direct the odors into the drain 22 thereby inhibiting the odors from permeating the bathroom in which the toilet 14 is disposed. Additionally, the free end 54 of the exhaust tube 48 is submerged in water in the bowl 20 thereby inhibiting the odors from rising upwardly out of the drain 22.
The air pumping unit 12 includes a power supply 56 that is integrated into the housing 24 and the power supply 56 is electrically coupled to the air pump 36. The power supply 56 comprises a battery 58 that is removably positioned within the housing 24 and the battery 58 is electrically coupled to the air pump 36. The power supply 56 includes a power switch 60 is movably integrated into the lateral wall 30 of the housing 24 and the power switch 60 is electrically coupled to the air pump 36. Additionally, the power switch 60 is positionable in an on position for actuating the air pump 36 or an off position for de-actuating the air pump 36. The power supply 56 might include a power cord that is electrically coupled to the air pump 36 and which can be plugged into a female electrical outlet 18.
In an alternative embodiment 62 as is most clearly shown in
In use, the housing 24 is mounted to the toilet 14 such that the housing 24 is positioned behind the toilet seat hinge 34 of the toilet 14. The intake tube 42 is routed into the bowl 20 and the exhaust tube 48 is routed to extend along the interior surface 52 of the bowl 20 and into the drain 22. The power switch 60 is manipulated into the on position to actuate the air pump 36 thereby suctionally removing odors in the bowl 20 and subsequently delivering the odors into the drain 22. In this way the odors are inhibited from permeating the bathroom in which the toilet 14 is installed. The power switch 60 is manipulated into the off position to de-actuate the air pump 36 when the air pump 36 has been actuated for a sufficient duration of time to remove the odors from the bowl 20.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
