Patent Grant
6959723
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to sealed odor traps for waterless urinals, anti-evaporation floor drain traps and, more particularly, to improvements in the internal structure of oil-sealed odor traps for prolonging sealant retention and for protection against high pressure water flushing.
2. Description of Related Art and Other Considerations
With increasing emphasis on water conservation, there is continuing interest in toilets and urinals designed to minimize the amount of water consumed in flushing, to mitigate excessive demands on both water supplies and wastewater disposal systems, both of which have tended to become overloaded with increasing populations.
Sanitation codes require urinals to provide an odor seal to contain gasses and odors which develop in the drain system; this function is conventionally performed by the well known P-trap or S-trap in which the seal is formed by a residual portion of the flushing water. This seal effectively provides a barrier to sewer odors from passing from the drainpipe beyond the trap. However, the upward-facing liquid surface communicates freely with the user environment and, therefore, the trap must be kept free of residual urine by copious flushing to prevent unacceptable odor levels from the liquid in the trap. As a result, a large amount of water is consumed in flushing these conventional urinals. Especially in the United States over many years when water was cheap and plentiful, conventional flushing type urinals and water-wasteful toilets held an unchallenged monopoly. However, more recently, threatened and real water shortages have aroused new environmental concerns and heightened conservation awareness as evidenced by the introduction of low flush toilets.
As the cost of water increases and budgets tighten, the prospect of a viable waterless urinal system becomes extremely attractive to a wide range of public agencies, cities, states, penal institutions, defense establishments, recreational and parks departments and the like. Waterless urinals utilizing oil-sealed odor traps are becoming viable. However, the present inventor has discovered that a key factor in their potential is the attainment of low maintenance, and that this is largely dependent on the longevity of the liquid sealant which, in turn, is related to the internal structure of the odor trap. Thus, the present inventor has recognized that improvements are desirable both in the rate of depletion under normal service conditions and in protection against catastrophic sealant loss due to high pressure water flushing which, though not required, can occur inadvertently.
Known prior art is listed, as follows.
Statement of the Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 303,822 (D'Heureuse) discloses a wastewater pipe S-trap into which a disinfectant or deodorizer is introduced.
The use of an oil as a recirculated flushing medium in a toilet system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,829,909 (Rod, et al.).
The use of oil in toilets to form an odor trap is disclosed in German Patent No. 121356 (Beck, et al.) and in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,050,290 (Posson) and 4,028,747 (Newton).
Bell traps, essentially a coaxial form of S-trap, have been known for over a century; a popular form is exemplified in German Patent No. 318264 (Zeigler). A multiple baffle structure is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,026,317 (Ekstrom). Center-entry coaxial trap configurations are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,045,346 (Swaskey) and 5,203,369 (Hwang).
Beetz introduced an oily liquid layer floating in the trap as an odor barrier through which urine and water can permeate downward. Beetz makes the oil mixture have disinfectant properties and to have “innate adhesion power to attach itself to the odor lock parts so that the latter cannot be attacked by urine”. The Beetz disclosure includes daily maintenance, including cleaning, and coating the cast iron parts of the urinal, including the housing of the odor trap, with the oil mixture that “the oil has the property that said parts absorb so much of it that the oil film somehow repels the urine”. Beetz' requirement for daily cleaning and maintenance dictates an easily-disassembled-three piece structure with a leakage-prone bottom interface joint, and this requirement for the sealant to also act as a disinfectant is now believed to have caused excessive depletion of the sealant.
Other examples of oil-sealed traps are found in German Patent No. 2816597.1, and Swiss Patent No. 606,646 (Ernst), practiced under the trademark SYSTEM-ERNST.
The foregoing examples of traps found limited use in Europe. Typically, they are utilized in a “low flush” rather than a “waterless” manner, e.g. the Beetz patent was classified under water pipe lines, and the specification thereof refers to “water and urine”. The odor trap is mounted beneath the floor level and set in a concrete swale, functioning as an occasionally-flushed trough type or stall urinal of a type which is no longer recognized in United States building and sanitation codes.
A flushless urinal disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,244,061 (Webster, et al.) uses no oil, but instead relies on a small “plug flow” entrance opening associated with a P-trap, and is based on the premise that “the urine in the trap during normal use will be fresh and therefore without unpleasant odor.”
A unitized cylindrical cartridge odor seal for a waterless urinal is disclosed by the present inventor as a joint inventor in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/052,668 filed 27 Apr. 1993 and in a continuation-in-part thereof Ser. No. 08/512,453 filed 8 Aug. 1995, in the category of an oil-sealed coaxial edge-entry trap having a cap part with an attached downward-extending tubular vertical partition.
A key parameter of oil-sealed odor traps for waterless urinals is the amount of sealant depletion that takes place under normal service conditions over periods of time and frequency of usage. Related to this is the possible partial or complete loss of sealant due to the abnormal condition of unnecessary but unavoidable high pressure flushing with water. While some modern oil-sealed odor traps are considerably improved over early versions, there remains an unfulfilled need for further improvements in the above-described aspects of sealant preservation; such improvements are provided by the present invention.
These and other problems are successfully addressed and overcome by the present invention, which comprises a unitized oil-sealed odor trap that departs from conventional practice of predominantly vertical liquid flow through the trap. Instead, the trap is constructed and arranged in a special manner to provide minimum turbulence on the oil sealant.
Preferably, minimization of turbulence is effected by a design in which a substantial portion of the total flow path is directed in a generally horizontal path and stray droplets of sealant, due to buoyancy, are encouraged to migrate upwardly back to the main body of the sealant, either directly or as guided by a sloping baffle configuration. Turbulence may be further discouraged by preventing direct contact of waste liquid from impinging directly on the sealant. In addition, an air vent in a shelter region above the sealant acts as a safety outlet against unusually high pressures exerted upon the sealant. Thus, escaping of sealant down the drain is largely prevented.
The odor trap is configured such that it can be economically made, for example, from two molded plastic parts, i.e., a main compartment part and a cap/baffle part, that can be molded from plastic and joined by thermal bonding into a unit configured as a replaceable cylindrical cartridge that can be charged with sealant and sealed with a sticker for shipment so that, upon installation, it is necessary only to install the cartridge and remove the sticker.
In service, required maintenance, i.e., sealant checking and replenishment, if and when needed, can be easily performed with the unit in place.
The cartridge is shaped to be easily pushed into place by hand and held frictionally in a mating recess provided by a casing that can be installed as part of the host plumbing, either in a urinal or in a floor drain. For drain cleaning or replacement purposes, the odor trap can be removed with a special simple hand tool.
However, should it be desired, the odor trap may be integrated into a urinal or similar device.
The shape of the entry compartment provides a sheltered region to which sealant tends to be temporarily displaced in the event of high pressure water flushing, thus avoiding catastrophic sealant loss.
Several advantages are derived from this arrangement. The usual objectives of eliminating the need for a P-trap in the drain line are met, while complying with United States sanitation standards. Turbulence in the sealant layer is at least minimized, if not essentially eliminated. Manufacturing and installation is economical and easy. Performance is reliable and efficient, with low maintenance requirements. Particularly with regard to depletion of oily liquid sealant, any stray droplets of sealant drift buoyantly in the flow path and return to the main sealant body. The odor trap configuration is such as to enable easy installation and removal from a permanent drain terminal plumbing fixture. Loss of sealant in the event of high pressure flushing with water is minimized, if not prevented
Other aims and advantages, as well as a more complete understanding of the present invention, will appear from the following explanation of exemplary embodiments and the accompanying drawings thereof.
Odor trap 10A has a main liquid container 14 extending from an outer wall to an inner wall that forms a drain stand pipe 14A which defines, at its upper edge, the overflow level of liquid in the container 14. An overhead cap portion 16 is formed to provide a vertical baffle 16A which extends down into container 14 and divides it into an inner discharge compartment and a surrounding entry compartment. A body of residual urine 18 extends up to the overflow level at the top of stand pipe 14A and, in conjunction with the overhead plenum region formed by the cap portion 16, the residual body of urine 18 serves to trap sewer gasses from the external drain line in accordance with plumbing codes.
A body of oily liquid sealant 20, lighter than water or urine, floats in the entry compartment on top of the trapped body of urine 18, and serves to trap urine odors from escaping from trap 10A.
In operation of the urinal, urine from above, near the outer edge, separates into droplets that permeate through the layer of sealant 20 and then joins the main body of urine 18. As additional urine enters the body of urine 18, it overflows stand pipe 14A and the overflow portion gravitates down the drain.
Known oil-sealed odor traps are configured as in
The present invention, operating on a modified form of the basic principle described above and teaching novel internal structure, can be implemented with the same general cylindrical exterior shape as that of the odor trap shown in
Component x labelled in the figures is an approximate average of the horizontal vector components x of the wastewater flow, extending from the middle of the entry opening (e.g. the point of average entry of the wastewater into the sealant) to a furthest point along the flow path (e.g. around the baffle) in which sealant recovery can occur. Although the invention contemplates a value x based on the approximate average, preferably, generally all of the wastewater will follow a flow math having a component x, e.g., any wastewater not following such a flow path would be insubstantial enough to effect the proper functioning of the invention, such as if extraneous openings were provided to allow a minimal volume flow rate therethrough.
A vertical vector component y of the flow path may be approximately defined as the vertical distance from the top of stand pipe 14A to the bottom of baffle 16A. Accordingly, an alternative feature may be based on a ratio x/y, for use in estimating an effective slope of the flow path, e.g., x/y<1 to indicate a predominantly vertical flow path and x/y>1 to indicate a predominantly horizontal flow path.
This category of odor trap is vulnerable to total loss of sealant if subjected to water-flushing at high pressure, due to the relatively narrow width of the outer compartment and absence of any sizeable shelter compartment around the entry region to which sealant can be displaced temporarily by the flushing water instead of being forced down the drain.
The baffle in
From an entry opening 16D at the left, the flow is to the right. The liquid flow path has two recovery portions 22A and 22B. In portion 22A, starting at the entry inlet, the flow is horizontal, passing under the main body of sealant 20. Then, in portion 22B, the flow path slopes downward but remains predominantly horizontal as directed by sloping baffle portion 16B. The flow path turns abruptly upward at the plane of vertical baffle portion 16A, to overflow riser 14A and then exits down the drain in the same manner as in
It is evident that, in both flow path portions 22A and 22B, the flow path is predominantly horizontal, in distinction from the predominantly vertical flow paths in
In
The cross-section of
As a further alternative, the cross-section of
A coaxial structure based directly on
The above stated principles may also be understood with reference to a specific odor trap, such as that depicted in FIG. 3. Here, an odor trap 30, like odor trap 10B of
To mitigate against such force and to provide sufficient time, the extent of the passage of the wastewater atop portion 16B must be controlled. Such control is effected by sufficiently lengthening the passage e.g., by distance x or the like, so that the effect of the wastewater to cause sealant turbulence will be adequately dissipated and so that the sealant likewise will have adequate opportunity to become sufficiently quiescent.
Odor trap 30 also incorporates an additional feature by which turbulence in the oil sealant is minimized. A shield or barrier 40 is positioned between openings 38 and sealant layer 20 to prevent the wastewater from directly striking or otherwise impinging or impacting upon the sealant. Thus, excessive force against and resultant turbulence of the sealant is minimized, if not altogether avoided. Shield 40 is secured to inlet cover 36 by any suitable means, such as by a connector 42. The shield is further oriented with respect to portion 16B so that the shield opens at its terminus 44 towards baffle or baffle portion 16A, and in a direction opposite from terminus 46 of portion 16B. As a result, the distance by which the wastewater passes from openings 38 to terminus 46 of portion 16B is accordingly increased while, at the same time, the wastewater will contact sealant layer 20 with minimum force. The outcome is minimization, if not elimination of sealant droplets passing underneath portion 16B.
The principles and advantages in sealant retention illustrated in
In
Thus, stray sealant in the portion 22B will tend to get swept along to the right and escape to the drain along with the effluent. Horizontal recovery dimension x will be as indicated, derived from upper flow path portion 22A.
In
The enclosure can be, for example, dimensioned about 4½ inches (11.4 cm) in diameter and 2¾ inches (7.0 cm) in height. As noted, due to existing industry limitations, the size of the trap is to be limited. For example, the diameter of the trap is preferably between about 2 to 2½ inches. It is preferably molded from polyethylene, or from another suitable plastic material such as polypropylene, ABS or polystyrene, to provide a smooth stain-resistant surface. The material can also include a fiberglass reinforced polyester. Other suitable materials can also be utilized. Typically, main container 14 and cap/partition part 16 are molded as separate parts and then bonded together to form an integral enclosure, since access to the interior is not normally required. The entry configuration of trap 10I makes it feasible to seal entry opening 16D (with the bottom exit opening, not visible in
It is seen that the cross-sections of
The relative sealant recovery effectiveness of the above configurations as approximated by the recovery-effective length of the horizontal flow paths x relative to container radius R can be compared in the following estimated table. The following Table I lists examples of estimated values which can be achieved for x/R in the illustrated embodiments, the illustrated embodiments not being limited thereto:
Alternatively, the relative sealant recovery effectiveness of the above configurations, as a few examples, can be expressed as a function of the flow path slope x/y. The following Table 2 lists estimated examples of values which can be achieved for x/y in the illustrated embodiments, the illustrated embodiments not being limited thereto.
According to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, the inlet and outlet locations and the baffle configuration, etc., result in a predominantly horizontal flow. For example, in some preferred embodiments, the present invention yields preferred values of x/R>30%, as distinguished, for example, from predominantly vertical flow of known art in the above table. As seen in Table 1, the present invention can even yield values greater than 50%, allowing for a wide margin above the 15% estimated for the noted prior art. As another example, the present invention can yield preferred values of x/y of greater than 1.0, while the above-noted estimate of the noted prior art achieves a value substantially less than 1.0. Although clearly less preferred, it is contemplated that values less than the preferred examples of x/R and/or x/y can, in some cases, be used according to principles of the invention.
It is recognized that a one-dimensional parameter, such as x/R, is merely a first approximation of effectiveness; a more refined two-dimensional parameter would take into account the effective horizontal recovery area located above the flow path. An even more refined three-dimensional parameter would take into account fluid viscosities, width, depth and length and resulting flow velocities at various incremental points in the flow paths.
The relative effectiveness indicated by the above tables apply to normal operation and does not necessarily include the additional improvement provided by the present invention in protection against catastrophic loss of sealant under the condition of high pressure water flushing as described above. In this regard, according to another aspect of the invention, a shelter region is provided for the sealant, and can be provided in any of the embodiments of the invention. The configurations of the embodiments of, for example,
Middle member 160 includes a perimeter wall 161 and a baffle having a generally vertical portion 165 and an upwardly inclined portion 166. Portion 166 has a generally straight upper edge 167 providing a fluid passage 168 around the baffle.
Bottom member 170 includes a perimeter wall 171, a bottom wall 172, and a upwardly extending drain stand 173. The drain stand preferably is a cylindrical tube extending above wall 171 with an upper opening 175 and a lower opening 176. The lower edge of the bottom member can, for example, as shown include a tapered wall 174.
The device is assembled with the middle member fitted such that perimeter wall 161 snugly fits within perimeter wall 151 and baffle portion 165 snugly fits between ridges 155. Wall 151 only extends down over part of the height of wall 161. Lower member 170 fits with drain stand 173 within the area to the right of baffle portion 165 and the lower portion of cylindrical wall 161 snugly fitted within cylindrical wall 171. As a result, a sealed container can be constructed having separately isolated entry and discharge compartments.
Sealant 20 is preferably a biodegradable oily liquid. A preferred composition of liquid 20 comprises an aliphatic alcohol containing 9-11 carbons in the chemical chain, wherein the specific gravity is 0.84 at 68° Fahrenheit. Since the operation of the urinal is based on the differential between the specific gravity of the oily liquid and that of urine, typically near 1.0, the specific gravity of the oily liquid should be made as low as possible, preferably not exceeding 0.9 and, preferably, well under 0.9. Sealant 20 preferably is chosen to have a very low affinity to water so that the sealant and the urine strongly repel each other physically and so that there is no chemical or other interaction apart from a purely physical separation which allows urine/water from above to divide finely and permeate downwardly through the sealant layer. Sealant 20 is preferably colored, e.g., blue, for maintenance and identification purposes.
Although the invention has been described with respect to particular embodiments thereof, it should be realized that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
The present application is a continuation of Ser. No. 09/855,735 filed 14 May 2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,245,411 patented 30 Jul. 2002 entitled “Oil Sealant-Preserving Drain Odor Trap,” in turn a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 09/515,870 filed 29 Feb. 2000 abandoned, in turn a continuation-in-part of both U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/548,281 filed 25 Oct. 1995, now abandoned, and PCT Application No. PCT/US95/16064 filed 11 Dec. 1995, abandoned all entitled “Horizontal-Flow Oil-Sealant-Preserving Drain Odor Trap.”
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
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| 303430 | Griffin | Aug 1884 | A |
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| 2603304 | Carrier | Jul 1952 | A |
| 3829909 | Rod et al. | Aug 1974 | A |
| 4026317 | Ekstrom | May 1977 | A |
| 4028747 | Newton | Jun 1977 | A |
| 4043354 | Brown | Aug 1977 | A |
| 4045346 | Swaskey | Aug 1977 | A |
| 4244061 | Webster et al. | Jan 1981 | A |
| 4263934 | Redden et al. | Apr 1981 | A |
| 4275760 | Kessel | Jun 1981 | A |
| 4411286 | Ball | Oct 1983 | A |
| 4432384 | Guiboro | Feb 1984 | A |
| 4773441 | Biba | Sep 1988 | A |
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| 5159724 | Vosper | Nov 1992 | A |
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| 5711037 | Reichardt et al. | Jan 1998 | A |
| 6425411 | Gorges | Jul 2002 | B1 |
| Number | Date | Country |
|---|---|---|
| 241369 | Jul 1946 | CN |
| 72361 | Jan 1894 | DE |
| 121356 | Jun 1901 | DE |
| 318264 | Jun 1918 | DE |
| 2816597 | May 1980 | DE |
| 663749 | Aug 1929 | FR |
| 1413819 | Aug 1965 | FR |
| 01002 | Mar 1868 | GB |
| 2078813 | Jan 1992 | GB |
| 9425693 | Nov 1994 | WO |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20030089397 A1 | May 2003 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 09855735 | May 2001 | US |
| Child | 10207664 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 09515870 | Feb 2000 | US |
| Child | 09855735 | US | |
| Parent | PCT/US95/16064 | Dec 1995 | US |
| Child | 09515870 | US | |
| Parent | 08548281 | Oct 1995 | US |
| Child | PCT/US95/16064 | US |
