Patent Application
20130067654
The invention relates to a pool water treatment device with simplified hydraulic priming. The invention extends to a pool, especially a swimming pool, equipped with such a device.
Some water treatment devices comprise a dedicated pumping device which allows them to circulate water in treatment units. After addition of such a treatment device to a pool, the problem arises of priming the hydraulic circuit with water. It is a question, in particular, of avoiding cavitation of a pump of the hydraulic circuit of such a device, which can be the source of premature ageing or of breakdown of the pump as soon as the device is started. That operation is generally carried out once and for all by the professional in charge of the installation.
However, it is desirable to provide a simple solution for the installation and especially the priming with water of the hydraulic circuit, in order to permit installation by a user without specific knowledge in the field of swimming pool filtration circuits.
However, the addition of a device for treating (filtering, chlorinating, heating, etc.) the water of a pool, especially a swimming pool, is generally complex and expensive. In fact, the addition of an additional treatment device in most cases requires the involvement of a specialist, whether the pool already has a filtration circuit or not. In particular, such an addition generally requires considerable large-scale work on the swimming pool and/or major intervention in the plant room, necessitating the involvement of a professional. In all cases, the problem of priming the circuit with water arises for a user without either specific knowledge or tools in this field.
A fortiori in the case of such a device which is removable from the pool, the hydraulic circuit is emptied each time it is taken out of the water of the pool and must therefore be re-primed each time it is re-installed (for example each spring). However, for such a removable device, certain elements of the hydraulic circuit can be more or less level with the water in the pool, according to the ground on which it is installed.
The invention aims, therefore, to remedy those disadvantages by proposing a novel pool water treatment device.
The invention aims in particular to propose such a device which can be added simply to an existing pool and therefore without major modification of the pool, in particular without the necessity of modifying the walls of the pool or a pre-existing hydraulic circuit.
The invention aims especially to propose such a device which can be fixed (or installed) and uninstalled without emptying the swimming pool, or even during bathing.
The invention aims also to propose such a device which can be primed with water under all installation conditions.
The invention aims also to propose such a device which is simple and quick to install and start up.
Throughout the text, the tem “water” is used for any liquid aqueous composition. The water of a pool can contain dissolved salts, chemical elements, microorganisms, etc.
Likewise, throughout the text, the term “treatment” is used generically for any type of conditioning, on its own or in combination, of pool water: chlorination, filtration, salivation, UV treatment, heating, cooling, oxygenation, colouring, etc.
To that end, the invention relates to a treatment device for treating pool water, comprising:
a water pumping device interposed in a hydraulic circuit in order to generate therein a flow of water between at least one suction port for the water of the pool and at least one return port for the water of the pool,
a water treatment unit interposed in the hydraulic circuit for conditioning water circulating therein,
wherein
at least one suction port of said hydraulic circuit having a passage cross-section in the suction direction has, in the return direction, a non-zero passage cross-section smaller than the passage cross-section in the suction direction,
the hydraulic circuit further comprises a coupling, called a priming coupling, which forms a water inlet into the hydraulic circuit and is configured to allow the hydraulic circuit to be primed with water.
A device according to the invention can be installed by a user of the pool without particular knowledge.
The invention for the first time makes it possible to propose a water treatment device for fitting to swimming pools which cannot include such a device, especially for fitting to swimming pools which do not have an integrated hydraulic filtration and/or heating circuit, for example above-ground or dismantleable swimming pools.
The inventors have found that reducing the passage cross-section of the suction port in the return direction cleverly allows a pressure drop to be created in the return direction through said suction port. That pressure drop allows the whole of the hydraulic circuit of the treatment device to be filled easily. In particular, that pressure drop allows any pressure drops formed by the pumping device and the treatment unit(s) when they are stopped to be equalized.
By contrast, they have found, against all expectations, that it is necessary to retain a non-zero passage cross-section in the return direction, that is to say to form a controlled leak, in order to allow a reflux of fluid through the suction port. The reflux is certainly limited as compared with the suction which takes place through a larger passage cross-section, but it is not zero. That passage cross-section in the return direction through the suction port especially allows air trapped in the hydraulic circuit to be evacuated.
A user of the pool can accordingly easily prime the hydraulic circuit of a device according to the invention by filling it with water. In fact, the dual function of pressure drop and permitting a reflux of air allows the hydraulic circuit to be filled in a simple manner (provided, however, that none of the water treatment units has a closed valve or major pressure drops when they are stopped).
Accordingly, when water is injected through a priming coupling—which constitutes a point for filling the hydraulic circuit with water—at a sufficient pressure, the injected water pushes the air of the hydraulic circuit through a return port for the portion of the hydraulic circuit situated downstream of the priming coupling, and through the suction port for the portion of the hydraulic circuit situated upstream of the priming coupling.
The water injected into the hydraulic circuit displaces the air from the hydraulic circuit at least through a suction port having a non-zero passage cross-section in a return direction through the suction port. If the passage cross-section prevented any reflux of air from the circuit through the suction port, it would not be possible to prime the circuit with water: the air trapped between the suction port and the priming coupling would be compressed at the pressure of the injected water but would remain blocked between the suction port and the priming coupling.
Allowing the reflux of air in the return direction through the suction port avoids having to equip the hydraulic circuit with a pressure equalization port close to the suction port for evacuation of the air trapped in the hydraulic circuit.
Accordingly, an upstream portion of the hydraulic circuit situated between the suction port and a pumping device fills with water until the water reaches the reduced passage cross-section. When the water reaches that reduced cross-section, it creates a considerable pressure drop, which limits the return of water through the suction port. The water injected through the priming coupling then ceases filling the remainder of the hydraulic circuit, especially downstream of the priming coupling.
Advantageously, the priming water injected at a point of filling of the hydraulic circuit is injected at a pressure greater at least than atmospheric pressure. Advantageously, it is injected at a pressure strictly greater than the pressure prevailing in the region of the suction port and of the return port when the water treatment device is installed in a pool.
A priming coupling according to the invention allows the hydraulic circuit to be connected easily to a source of pressurized water, for example such as a water supply tap supplied by a water tower, or alternatively pressurized water supplied by a pump, etc.
Such a coupling is an additional water inlet which is not a suction port or a return port of the treatment device and which allows at least a portion of the hydraulic circuit to be primed, that is to say filled with water, before the pumping device is put into operation. Such a coupling is configured for connection to a source of pressurized water other than the pump of the hydraulic circuit of the treatment device according to the invention.
Advantageously, such a coupling allows at least the pumping device and any pipe of the hydraulic circuit situated upstream of the pumping device to be filled with water.
Such a coupling also facilitates the connection of the hydraulic circuit to an external water supply, for example to a standard tap.
The invention proposes a treatment device which is simple to prime whatever the conditions in which it is installed. In fact, when the priming coupling is connected to a pressurized water supply, the whole of the hydraulic circuit can be filled with water even if some portions of the circuit are situated higher than the surface of the pool.
The invention relates very particularly to removable treatment devices, which therefore comprise simple fixings with which a device according to the invention can quickly be fitted to and removed from a pool by a user without special knowledge. Because they are removable, the suction and return ports of a device according to the invention are regularly taken out of the water (for example at the end of each season, in the autumn, or in order to return the pool to its original appearance). However, when the ports are taken out of the water, the water of the hydraulic circuit is evacuated so that it is necessary to re-prime the hydraulic circuit each time the device is installed again. Simple re-priming is therefore particularly advantageous in this case.
Advantageously and according to the invention, at least one suction port is provided with a flap configured for reducing the passage cross-section of said suction port in the return direction without blocking it.
In particular, advantageously and according to the invention, at least one suction port is provided with a non-return flap provided with a reflux orifice having a passage cross-section that is smaller than the passage cross-section of the suction port in the suction direction.
Such a flap allows water to pass in the suction direction through the suction port and reduces the return of water through the suction port.
Such a flap can be of different types and can be rigid, movably mounted, or resiliently deformable, etc. Such a flap is advantageously based on the principle of a non-return flap, but which does not limit completely the return of fluid. In particular, a flap according to the invention can be produced by forming a reflux orifice in a non-return flap.
The reflux orifice makes it possible to allow a reflux of fluid, and especially of air, in the return direction through the suction port. The dimensions of the orifice are chosen to be sufficiently smaller than the dimension of the flap, in order to form a considerable pressure drop in the return direction of water through the suction port when the circuit is filled with water (and therefore primed).
Because air is much less viscous than water (under normal atmospheric conditions), the pressure drop formed by a flap pierced with a reflux orifice is much smaller for air than for water. For that reason, the evacuation of air pushed by water through the reflux orifice is easy, and the return of water through the reflux orifice is less so.
Accordingly, such a flap does not wholly prevent the passage of fluid in the return direction through the suction port.
Accordingly, advantageously and according to the invention, the reflux orifice has a passage cross-section in the return direction of between one tenth and one thirtieth of the passage cross-section in the suction direction of the suction port.
The size of the passage (or opening) cross-section formed by the reflux orifice is such that it allows air from the hydraulic circuit to escape easily when the air is pushed back by the water injected under pressure into the hydraulic circuit.
However, the reflux orifice has a passage cross-section configured for limiting the flow of water in the return direction through the suction port. In particular, the reflux orifice creates a pressure drop which prevents pressure equalization between the water injected under pressure into the hydraulic circuit through a priming coupling and the water in the pool at the level of the suction port, when the pressure in the hydraulic circuit is greater than the pressure in the pool.
The inventors have found that a ratio between the passage cross-section in the return direction and the passage cross-section in the suction direction of between one tenth and one thirtieth is particularly advantageous, especially a ratio of about one twentieth.
The flap is flexible and is able to deform in order to permit the passage of pool water sucked into the hydraulic circuit by the pumping device.
The flap is advantageously fixed to at least one point of the suction port, especially at a peripheral point thereof.
In addition, the suction port advantageously forms a stop (by means of a shoulder, a collar or the like) with which the flap comes into abutment under the effect of a fluid circulating counter-currently (from downstream to upstream) in the hydraulic circuit, that is to say returning through the suction port. Any bending of the flap in the direction of a return of the water from the hydraulic circuit towards the pool is thus at least limited, if not prohibited.
The flap is advantageously made of an elastomeric material such as, for example: ethylene-propylene-diene monomer (EPDM), natural rubber, polyisobutylene (PIB) or the like. It is in particular made of a flexible material which is resistant to the conditions of the pool: for example, it is resistant to chlorine, salts, ultraviolet, etc.
In addition, advantageously and according to the invention, the flap is close to an inlet surface of the suction port, on the inside of that surface.
Such an inlet surface is defined by a surface starting from which the water is in the suction port and therefore in the hydraulic circuit. It is easily represented by a plane in contact with at least three points of the inlet edges of the suction port.
In addition, advantageously and according to the invention, the priming coupling is configured so that it can be be connected to a standard domestic tap.
A priming coupling according to the invention is advantageously standard, so that it is easy for a user of a removable treatment device according to the invention to prime the hydraulic circuit thereof, whatever the conditions in which said device is installed.
The priming coupling can in fact be located at any point of the hydraulic circuit. However, the hydraulic circuit may include considerable differences in height depending on the terrain close to the pool on which it is disposed, so that it has high points and low points.
However, by virtue of the invention, even if the pumping device is situated at a high point of the hydraulic circuit, priming is simple and quick.
In particular, a user who owns a private swimming pool must be able to simply connect the priming coupling to a tap in his house which complies with normal standards or conventions in terms of dimensions, pressure, water delivered, etc.
Accordingly, advantageously and according to the invention, the priming coupling is mounted on an upstream pipe of the hydraulic circuit extending between a suction port of reduced passage cross-section in the return direction and the pumping device.
The pumping device of a treatment device according to the invention is generally situated upstream of the water treatment units. For that reason, it is important that the upstream portion of the hydraulic circuit, that is to say the portion situated between the suction port and the pumping device at least, is full of water when the pumping device is started in order to avoid cavitation of the pump. Arranging the priming coupling in that portion of the circuit makes it possible to ensure that said upstream pipe is filled first and that the pumping device will not encounter bubbles during the first moments of its operation.
Ideally, the whole of the hydraulic circuit is primed with water when the pump is started.
Alternatively or in combination, advantageously and according to the invention, the hydraulic circuit is further equipped with at least one manual filling port in order to enable the hydraulic circuit to be primed with water manually.
Accordingly, a user of the treatment device according to the invention is able to fill the hydraulic circuit with water without having a source of pressurized water close by. Such a manual filling port is advantageously in the form of a funnel prolonged by a water column connected at its lower end to the hydraulic circuit, so as to supply sufficient pressure to fill the hydraulic circuit.
Because filling of the upstream portion of the circuit (between the suction port and the pumping device) is essential, the manual filling port is advantageously arranged close to the pumping device.
The invention relates also to a pool water treatment device characterized in combination by all or some of the features mentioned hereinabove or hereinbelow.
The invention relates also to a method for filling a pool water treatment device according to the invention, in which the priming coupling is connected to a supply of water at a pressure configured for filling with water at least a pump of the pumping device and an upstream pipe of the hydraulic circuit.
The invention relates also to a method for filling a pool water treatment device characterized in combination by all or some of the features mentioned hereinabove or hereinbelow.
The invention can extend to an improvement kit for priming a pool water treatment device according to the invention, comprising:
a suction port front configured so that it can be mounted on a suction port of said treatment device and reduce the passage cross-section of said suction port in the return direction without blocking it,
a priming coupling configured so that it can be mounted at a point of the hydraulic circuit, and configured to form a water inlet into the hydraulic circuit so as to allow the hydraulic circuit to be primed with water.
The invention relates also to a pool equipped with at least one treatment device according to the invention.
In particular, advantageously and according to the invention, such a pool further comprises a main filtration circuit comprising:
a main water pumping device interposed in a main hydraulic circuit in order to generate therein a flow of water between at least one pool water recovery port and at least one pool water return port,
at least one main water filtration unit interposed in the main hydraulic circuit for treating the water circulating therein,
wherein it comprises at least one treatment device according to the invention, and:
the main hydraulic circuit of the main filtration circuit is separate from the hydraulic circuit of each treatment device,
each recovery port of the main filtration circuit is separate from each suction port of each treatment device, and each return port of the main filtration circuit is separate from each return port of each treatment device,
the main pumping device of the main filtration circuit is separate from the pumping device of each treatment device,
the main filtration unit of the main filtration circuit is separate from the treatment unit of each treatment device.
The pool in question, especially a swimming pool, is therefore already equipped with a hydraulic treatment circuit, called the main filtration circuit, which generally effects at least water filtration, and to which there is added a second treatment device according to the invention, which is wholly independent of the main filtration circuit because it comprises its own hydraulic circuit, its own suction and return ports, and its own water treatment (for example heating) unit(s).
Accordingly, a treatment device according to the invention allows a pool to be improved after it has been brought into service, whether or not it is already equipped with a main water filtration circuit. Such a treatment device allows water treatment functionalities, such as heating by means of a heat pump or by means of solar panels, for example, to be added easily.
The invention relates also to a pool characterized in combination by all or some of the features mentioned hereinabove or hereinbelow.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the following description of an embodiment of the invention, which is given by way of example and which refers to the accompanying figures, in which:
A pool water treatment device according to the invention in the embodiment shown in
The pumping device 4 is configured so that, when it is supplied with power and the circuit is primed with water, it can create a circulation of swimming pool water from the suction port to the return port. The terms “upstream” and “downstream” in the hydraulic circuit 1 are defined in relation to this water circulation direction.
The suction and return ports 7, 8 are disposed in the pool water. The suction port is advantageously covered with a grate 15 in order to prevent submerged bodies which may damage and/or clog the hydraulic circuit 1 and its active elements (pump, heat pump, etc.) from being sucked in.
A pipe, called the upstream pipe 12, of the hydraulic circuit 1 connects the suction port 7 to the pumping device 4. The upstream pipe 12 is shown cut away in
The upstream pipe 12 has a priming coupling 10 configured so that it can be connected hydraulically to a water supply 11, which does not form part of the invention. In particular, said priming coupling 10 has at least one end which is configured so that it can be connected to a water supply. For example, the priming coupling can be configured so that it can be connected to a tap of a dwelling, for example the threading of which corresponds to a current plumbing standard. Advantageously, in the embodiment shown in
Advantageously, as is shown in
Accordingly, when a tap (or a valve) of the water supply 11 is opened, the water flows into the hydraulic circuit and in particular into the upstream pipe 12, upstream and downstream of the priming coupling 10. Consequently, as is shown in
In particular, the upstream water front 16 and the downstream water front 17 push back the air located in the hydraulic circuit upstream and downstream, respectively, of the priming coupling 10, so that the air in the hydraulic circuit is discharged through the suction port 7 and through the return port 8, respectively.
The suction port is equipped with a flap 6 shown in
As is shown in
To that end, the flap is advantageously flexible and/or articulated at least in the direction of water suction. In particular, the flap is advantageously made of ethylene-propylene-diene monomer (EPDM). It is therefore flexible and is fixed at a fixing point 18 of the suction port.
The flap 6 is fixed to the fixing point 18 of the pipe of the suction port 7, and it is deformable in the direction upstream of the suction port so as to leave a passage for the water 3 from the pool 2 sucked towards the hydraulic circuit by virtue of the suction created by the pump 14 of the pumping device 4.
If, on the other hand, water is circulating in the opposite direction in the hydraulic circuit 1, as is shown in
However, advantageously and according to the invention, the flap 6 has a reflux orifice 9 of passage cross-section Sr, which allows the upstream water front 16—when it flows into the upstream pipe—to dispel the air located between it and the suction port. In fact, if the flap were perfectly hermetic, the injection of water through the priming coupling 10 would create an overpressure in the upstream portion of the upstream pipe 12, and the air located therein would not be able to return through the suction port. That air trapped between the priming coupling and the suction port would result in drainage of the pump 14 shortly after being put into operation.
Accordingly, in
As soon as the upstream water front 16 meets the flap 6, the flow of water passing through the reflux orifice 9 is reduced because water is more viscous than air and flows less easily through the reduced passage cross-section Sr. Accordingly, an overpressure forms in the region of the flap, which limits the flow of water in that portion of the pipe as soon as it is filled with water.
In addition to limiting the loss of priming water in the pool, the flap allows the remainder of the hydraulic circuit to be filled as soon as the upstream portion of the upstream pipe 12 is filled with water. In fact, the overpressure which forms between the inside and the outside of the hydraulic circuit in the region of said flap 6 forces the water injected through the priming coupling to move downstream of the hydraulic circuit: it is the downstream water front 17 which pushes back the air of the hydraulic circuit downstream of the priming coupling, the air being evacuated through the return port 8.
A device according to the invention may also comprise a detector for detecting a variation in the pressure or flow in the upstream pipe, which makes it possible to know the moment at which the upstream portion of the upstream pipe is filled with water by detecting the sudden overpressure (the reduction in flow) which forms at the moment when the upstream water front 16 meets the flap.
Accordingly, the reflux orifice 9 permits the evacuation of the air in the upstream pipe 12 and minimises the loss of water in the return direction through the suction port.
Its combination with a priming coupling arranged on the upstream pipe permits simple filling of the upstream pipe to be proposed.
Filling of the upstream pipe with water in that manner is necessary for the correct operation of the pumping device as soon as it is started, especially in order to avoid cavitation of the pump 14. For that reason, advantageously in a method according to the invention, a user must also ensure that a downstream portion of the upstream pipe (situated between the priming coupling 10 and the pump 14) is also filled with water at the moment the pumping device is started.
That downstream portion of the upstream pipe 12 is filled with water by a downstream water front 17 which displaces the air located therein through the return port, which is not equipped with a flap in either direction.
Advantageously, the pipe of the priming coupling 10 is equipped with a valve 20 in order to enable the hydraulic circuit 1 to be closed when the device according to the invention is in operation. Advantageously, the valve 20 is opened by the user in order to prime the hydraulic circuit and closed by the user as soon as the hydraulic circuit is primed sufficiently.
Furthermore, a device according to the invention also comprises a manual filling port 13 in order to propose an alternative means for filling the upstream pipe. Accordingly, a user is able to prime the hydraulic circuit manually by adding water through the manual filling port 13.
Accordingly, the manual filling port 13 is advantageously formed in the casing of the pumping device according to the invention in order to ensure that:
at least the portion of the hydraulic circuit that is situated close to the pump 14 will be primed at the moment the pumping device is put into operation,
the manual filling port 13 is oriented upwards in order to:
allow the user to supply it easily without having to hold it,
create an overpressure of the water supplied through that port relative to the remainder of the circuit by virtue of the column of water between the high opening of the port and its opening into the hydraulic circuit.
In particular, the height of the manual filling port 13 is chosen to be such that the overpressure that is created is greater than the water pressure prevailing in the region of the suction and return ports 7, 8.
Advantageously, the manual filling port 13 is in the form of a funnel and forms a column of water that opens into the hydraulic circuit 1. Accordingly, the manual filling port 13 advantageously has a column of water of about 50 cm.
Advantageously, a device according to the invention as shown in
The suction port 7 is substantially circular and has a passage cross-section Sa of about 80 cm2. Likewise, the flap 6 has a surface area of about 80 cm2 so that it is able to close off the passage cross-section Sa of the suction port while having a reflux orifice 9 having a passage cross-section Sr of about 0.8 cm2.
The invention can be the subject of numerous other variant embodiments which are not shown.
Accordingly, a plurality of priming couplings can be provided in order to fill the whole of the circuit more quickly.
Advantageously, the suction port and the return port can be arranged close to one another. In particular, they can be formed from the same piece that is immersed in the water from the edge of the pool.
The invention can advantageously be implemented for all types of water treatment device. It is particularly advantageous for devices added to a pool after its construction, and in all cases arranged outside the pool.
The invention can advantageously be a kit comprising a priming coupling which is to be mounted on the hydraulic circuit, and a suction port equipped with a flap having a reflux orifice, which can be mounted on an existing suction port.
Furthermore, there is no reason not to provide a rigid flap which is articulated by a pivot-type connection at a point of the suction port in order to allow it to be opened in the downstream direction, and which comes into abutment against a shoulder or a stop of the suction port on the upstream side. Numerous other embodiments of a flap can be envisaged with an identical function.
Nor is there any reason not to provide different means for restricting the passage cross-section of the suction port in the return direction: for example, a controlled dynamic closure member, etc.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1102777 | Sep 2011 | FR | national |
This application claims the benefit of French Patent Application No. 11.02777 filed on Sep. 14, 2011 and claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/556,919 filed on Nov. 8, 2011, the contents of both of which are incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61556919 | Nov 2011 | US |
