Toilet Deodorizing Apparatus

Abstract

A toilet deodorizing apparatus for a toilet assembly includes a main housing, a suction fan mounted in the main housing, an air suction assembly and an air discharge assembly. The main housing has an air inlet and an air outlet, wherein the air inlet is connected with an air intake port through an air suction tube. The air discharge assembly defines an air discharge passage extending from the air outlet to the sewage passage, and comprises an air discharge tube embracing the air discharge passage and extending from the air outlet to the sewage passage through the lower connecting portion of the toilet, such to that when the suction fan is actuated, air is sucked from the upper rim portion of the toilet to the sewage passage through the toilet deodorizing apparatus so as to minimize odor spreading from the toilet.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

Field of Invention

The present invention relates to a toilet apparatus, and more particularly to a toilet deodorizing apparatus comprising an air discharge assembly which is capable of guiding odor around toilet area to be discharged through an existing sewage passage.

Description of Related Arts

Odor arising from use of a conventional toilet is usually countered by fragrance released to the restroom. The restroom may also be equipped with some sorts of ventilating devices which aim to provide ventilation to the restroom space. A ventilating fan may be installed on the ceiling or a window of the restroom so as to suck air out from the restroom.

These traditional method of eliminating odor in restrooms do not generally provide satisfactory results. For example, undesirable odor may have been spread to the entire restroom space before it can be discharged. Users of the restroom may still experience the bad odor from using the toilet.

Moreover, ventilation devices which aim to discharge odor from toilet may not have an appropriate site to discharge the odor. For example, in a restroom with no window, odor can only be discharged to the attic. However, odor in the attic may enter other spaces in the same building and the odor may affect not only the restroom but also other parts of the building.

As a result, there is a need to develop a toilet deodorizing apparatus which may effectively discharge odor from the toilet without allowing the odor to be spread to the other parts of restroom or building.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

Certain variations of the present invention provide a toilet deodorizing apparatus comprising an air discharge assembly which is capable of guiding odor around toilet area to be discharged through an existing sewage passage.

Certain variations of the present invention provide a toilet deodorizing apparatus comprising an air discharge assembly which is capable of effectively discharging odor from a toilet without allowing the odor to be spread to the other parts of restroom or building.

In one aspect of the present invention, it provides a toilet deodorizing apparatus for a toilet assembly comprising a toilet having an upper rim portion and a lower connecting portion, a toilet flange connecting to a sewage passage, the toilet deodorizing apparatus comprising:

• • a main housing having an air inlet and an air outlet;
  • an air suction assembly comprising an air intake port and an air suction tube. an air intake port supported on the toilet, said air intake port communicating with said air inlet of said main housing through said air suction tube;
  • a suction fan mounted in the main housing; and
  • an air discharge assembly defining an air discharge passage extending from the air outlet to the sewage passage, the air discharge assembly comprising an air discharge tube embracing the air discharge passage and extending from the air outlet to the sewage passage through the lower connecting portion of the toilet, such that when the suction fan is actuated, air is sucked from the upper rim portion of the toilet to the sewage passage through the air discharge assembly so as to minimize odor spreading from the toilet.

This summary presented above is provided merely to introduce certain concepts and not to identify any key or essential features of the claimed subject matter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a toilet deodorizing apparatus for a toilet assembly according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is aside view of the toilet deodorizing apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective schematic diagram of the toilet deodorizing apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 a side view of an air guiding member of the toilet deodorizing apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 a sectional side view of a coupling member of the toilet deodorizing apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating an air discharge passage of the toilet deodorizing apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating that the coupling member can be omitted according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a sectional side view of the air guiding member of the toilet deodorizing apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an alternative configuration of the air guiding member according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The following detailed description of the preferred embodiment is the preferred mode of carrying out the invention. The description is not to be taken in any limiting sense. It is presented for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the present invention.

It should be appreciated that the terms “install”, “connect”, “couple”, and “mount” in the following description refer to the connecting relationship in the accompanying drawings for easy understanding of the present invention. For example, the connection can to refer to permanent connection or detachable connection. Furthermore, “connected” may also mean direct connection or indirect connection, or connection through other auxiliary components. Therefore, the above terms should not be an actual connection limitation of the elements of the present invention.

It should be appreciated that the terms “length”, “width”, “top” “bottom”, “front”, “rear”. “left”, “right”, vertical”, “horizontal”, “upper”, “lower”, “exterior”, and “interior” in the following description refer to the orientation or positioning relationship in the accompanying drawings for easy understanding of the present invention without limiting the actual location or orientation of the present invention. Therefore, the above terms should not be an actual location limitation of the elements of the present invention.

It should be appreciated that the terms “first”, “second”, “one”, “a”, and “an” in the following description refer to “at least one” or “one or more” in the embodiment. In particular, the term “a” in one embodiment may refer to “one” while in another embodiment may refer to “more than one”. Therefore, the above terms should not be an actual numerical limitation of the elements of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 to FIG. 8 of the drawings, a toilet deodorizing apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated. Broadly, the toilet deodorizing apparatus may comprise a main housing 10 having an air inlet 11 and an air outlet 12, an air intake port 40, a suction fan 20, and an air discharge assembly 30. The toilet deodorizing apparatus may be utilized for a toilet assembly 100 comprising a toilet 101 having an upper rim portion 102 and a lower connecting portion 103, a toilet flange 104 connecting to a sewage passage 300. The toilet deodorizing apparatus of the present invention may guide odor from the toilet 101 to be discharged to the sewage passage 300 so that odor will not spread to other pans of the restroom or other parts of the building in to which the restroom is located.

The suction fan 20 may be mounted in the main housing 10 and may be used to suck air from the air intake port 40.

The air discharge assembly 30 may define an air discharge passage 31 extending from the air outlet 12 to the sewage passage 300. The air discharge assembly 30 may is comprise an air discharge tube 32 embracing at least pan of the air discharge passage 31 and extending from the air outlet 12 to the sewage passage 300 through the lower connecting portion 103 of the toilet 101, such that when the suction fan 20 is actuated, air is sucked from the upper rim portion 102 of the toilet 101 to the sewage passage 300 through the air discharge assembly 30 so as to minimize odor spreading from the toilet 101.

According to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the toilet deodorizing apparatus of the present invention may be utilized for an existing toilet 101, which may be securely assembled to the sewage passage 300 by a toilet flange 104 having an opening 1041. One skilled in the art may appreciate that the toilet 101, the sewage passage 300 and the toilet flange 104 do not form part of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 of the drawings, the main housing 10 may be mounted on a water tank 105 of the toilet 101. The water tank 105 may be supported on top of the toilet 101, wherein the main housing 10 may be mounted on a side portion of the water tank 105. As alternatives, the main housing 10 may be mounted on any side of the water tank 103 or even mounted on a wall or ground of the restroom without being mounted on the water tank 105.

The suction fan 20 may be mounted in the main housing 10 for drawing air from the air intake port 40 and through the air inlet 11. The air intake port 40 may be supported on the upper rim portion 102 of the toilet 101 or built in the toilet seat 105. In this preferred embodiment, the toilet deodorizing apparatus may further comprise an air suction tube 41 extended between the air inlet 11 and the air intake port 40, wherein air in the vicinity of the upper rim portion 102 of the toilet 101 may be sucked to the main housing 10 through the air suction tube 41.

The air intake port 40 may provide an opening 401 for communicating with the air suction tube 41. As shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings, the air intake port 40 may be mounted on the upper rim portion 102 of the toilet 101. In this preferred embodiment, the air intake port 40 may comprise an elongated tubular body 41 supported on the upper rim portion 102 of the toilet 101, wherein the opening 401 may be provided in the air intake is port 40.

The toilet deodorizing apparatus may further comprise a control circuitry 50 and a power source 51 mounted in the main housing 10 and electrically connected to the suction fan 20 for controlling an operation thereof.

It is important to mention that the air discharge passage 31 of the air discharge assembly 30 mentioned above may be constituted by several channels formed by different components. When these components are connected together in a manner described below, the air discharge passage 31 may be completely defined. This configuration may be illustrated in FIG. 6 of the drawings.

Thus, the air discharge tube 32 may be connected to the air outlet 12 of the main housing 10 and may define a first passage channel 311 in the air discharge tube 32 for allowing air to pass through. The first passage channel 311 may constitute at least part of the air discharge passage 31.

The coupling member 34 may define a second passage channel 312 which may be configured as a through passage formed within the coupling member 34. As shown in FIG. 5 of the drawings, each of the longitudinal portion 341 and the transverse portion 342 may be hollow in structure wherein the second passage channel 312 may pass through the longitudinal portion 341 and the transverse portion 342. One end of the second passage channel 312 may communicate with the first passage channel 311, while the second end of the second passage channel 312 may communicate with the third passage channel 313.

Moreover, the air discharge assembly 30 may further comprise an air guiding member 33 mounted in the toilet 101 for connecting with the air discharge tube 32. The air guiding member 33 may be mounted on the toilet flange 104 of the toilet assembly 100 so as to be securely supported within the toilet 101. According to the preferred embodiment, the air guiding member 33 may be configured as having a ring-shape structure as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 of the drawings. Thus, the air guiding member 33 may have an upper annular portion 331 and a lower annular portion 332 wherein an external diameter of the upper annular portion 331 is greater than that of the lower annular portion 332. The air guiding member 33 may further define a third passage channel 313 which may be configured as a through slot formed on the upper annular portion 331 of the air guiding member 33. More specifically, the third passage channel 313 may extend from a side surface 3311 to a bottom surface 3312 of the upper annular portion 331 of the air guiding member. the air guiding member 33 may be configured such that the third passage channel 313 may communicate directly with the opening 1041 of the toilet flange 104. In this situation, air from the second passage channel 312 may pass through the third passage channel 313 and the opening 1041 and may eventually be discharged to the sewage passage 300.

Moreover, the air guiding member 33 may further define a fourth passage channel 314 which may be configured as a through central opening formed in the air guiding member 33. The fourth passage channel 314 may communicate with the sewage passage 300, preferably through a flange opening 1041 of the toilet flange 104. The third passage channel 313 may communicate with the fourth passage channel 314. Depending on the circumstances in which the present invention is utilized, only the third passage channel 313 or both the third passage channel and the fourth passage channel 314 may constitute the air discharge passage 31. In this preferred embodiment, the air discharge passage 31 may be constituted by first through third passage channels 311, 312, 313.

Moreover, the air discharge assembly 30 may further comprise a coupling member 34 connecting between the air discharge tube 32 and the air guiding member 33. As shown in FIG. 3 of the drawings, the coupling member 34 may have a longitudinal portion 341 and a transverse portion 342 transversely extended from the longitudinal portion 341. Each of the longitudinal portion 341 and the transverse portion 342 may be configured to have a tubular structure. An external surface of the longitudinal portion 341 may be threaded to allow easy fixed to the toilet assembly 100 through simple screwing mechanism.

Thus, the longitudinal portion 341 of the coupling member 34 may be connected to the air discharge tube 32 while the transverse portion 342 of the coupling member 34 is may be connected to the upper annular portion 331 of the air guiding member 33. Altogether the first through third passage channels 311, 312, 313 may be combined to constitute the air discharge passage 31 for discharging air sucked by the suction fan 20 to the sewage passage 300, and this air discharge passage 31 may form a path for air containing odor around the toilet 101 to be guided and discharged to the sewage passage 300 without returning to the restroom or other parts of the building in which the restroom is located. This configuration may be graphically illustrated in FIG. 6 of the drawings.

From the forgoing descriptions, one skilled in the art may appreciate that several alternatives may exist due to different constructions of pre-existing toilet assemblies 100, such as wall hung toilet or the toilet without toilet flange mounted.

For example, the longitudinal portion 341 of the coupling member 34 may be coupled to a mounting hole 1031 at the lower connecting portion 103 while the transverse portion 342 may be connected to the upper annular portion 331 of the air guiding member 33. In this situation, the air discharge tube 32 may be connected to an upper end 3411 of the longitudinal portion 341 of the coupling member 34. Air from the air discharge tube 32 may then be guided to pass through the second passage channel 312 and reach the third passage channel 313.

In another example, the coupling member 34 may be omitted so that the air discharge tube 32 may be arranged to penetrate through the opening of lower connecting portion 103 or the wall behind the wall hung toilet and directly connect to the upper annular portion 331 of the air guiding member 33. In this situation, the first passage channel 311 may be directly connect to the third passage channel 313 so that the air discharge passage 31 may be constituted by the first passage channel 311 and the third passage channel 313. This may be shown in FIG. 7 of the drawings.

In another example, as shown in FIG. 9 of the drawings, the air guiding member 33 may be configured such that the third passage channel 313 may communicate with the fourth passage channel 314. In this situation, air from the second passage channel 312 may pass through the third passage channel 313 and the fourth passage channel 314 and may is eventually be discharged to the sewage passage 300. Thus, the air discharge passage 31 may be constituted by the first passage channel 311, the second passage channel 312, the third passage channel 313 and the fourth passage channel 314. In particular, the third passage channel 313 may extend from the side surface 3311 to communicate with the fourth passage channel 314 which may be configured as the central opening of the air guiding member 31.

The operation of the present invention may be as follows: when suction fan 20 is actuated, air containing odor around the upper rim portion 102 of the toilet 101 may be sucked into the main housing 10 through the air suction tube 41. The air may then be guided to enter the air discharge tube 32 and pass through the air discharge passage 31 and eventually reach the sewage passage 300. Thus, the odor around the upper rim portion 102 of the toilet 101 may be eventually discharged through the sewage passage 300 and may be prevented from spreading to other parts of the restroom or the building in which the restroom is located.

It is worth mentioning that depending on the circumstances in which the present invention is utilized, the air discharge passage 31 may be constituted by different components. Some of these variations have been mentioned above. Thus, the toilet deodorizing apparatus of the present invention may fit different constructions of toilet assembly 100.

The present invention, while illustrated and described in terms of a preferred embodiment and several alternatives, is not limited to the particular description contained in this specification. Additional alternative or equivalent components could also be used to practice the present invention.

Claims

1. A toilet deodorizing apparatus, comprising: a main housing having an air inlet and an air outlet;an air suction assembly comprising an air intake port and an air suction tube. an air intake port supported on the said toilet, said air intake port communicating with said air inlet of said main housing;a suction fan mounted in said main housing; andan air discharge assembly defining an air discharge passage extending from said air outlet to a sewage passage, said air discharge assembly comprising an air discharge tube and an air guiding member, said air discharge tube extending from said air outlet of said main housing to said air guiding member, and defining a first passage channel in said air discharge tube for allowing air to pass through, said air guiding member being configured as a ring-shaped structure fitting and further defining a third passage channel configured as a through slot formed in said air guiding member, said third passage channel extending from a side surface to another side surface of said air guiding member which eventually communicates with said sewage passage, air from said first passage channel is capable of passing through said third passage channel and eventually being discharged to said sewage passage, such that when said suction fan is actuated, air is sucked from upper rim portion of said toilet to said sewage passage through said air discharge assembly so as to minimize odor spreading from said toilet.

2. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 1, said air guiding member is configured as a ring-shaped structure fitting and having an upper annular portion, wherein said air guiding member has at least one side opening formed on the outside of said upper annular portion, and at least one opening formed at a bottom side of said air guiding member, said third passage channel being configured as a radially through slot which extends radially from an outside surface of said upper annular portion to a bottom side surface of said air guiding member, said third passage channel extends with the opening of bottom side surface of said air guiding member to eventually communicate with said sewage passage which allowing air to pass through said third passage channel and directly to be discharged to said sewage passage.

3. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 2, wherein said air discharge assembly further comprise a coupling member connecting between said air discharge tube and said air guiding member, said coupling member having a longitudinal portion which extends through and coupled to a mounting hole of the lower connecting portion of said toilet, and further having a transverse portion transversely extended from said longitudinal portion, said coupling member having a hollow structure and further defining a second passage channel configured as a through passage extending through said longitudinal portion and said transverse portion within said coupling member, one end of said transverse portion being connected to the outside opening of said upper annular portion of said air guiding member, such that said second passage channel extending between said first passage channel and said third passage channel.

4. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 3, wherein said longitudinal portion of said coupling member is connected to said air discharge tube while said transverse portion of said coupling member is connected to said upper annular portion of said air guiding member, so that said air discharge passage is constituted by connecting said first passage channel to said second passage channel, and connecting said second passage channel to said third passage channel, and said air discharge passage is constituted by said first through third passage channels.

5. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 2, wherein said air discharge tube is directly connected to said upper annular portion of said air guiding member so that said air discharge passage is constituted by connecting said first passage channel directly to said third passage channel, and said air discharge passage is constituted by said first passage channel and said third passage channel.

6. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 3, said air guiding member further defining a fourth passage channel configured as a through central opening formed in said ring-shaped air guiding member, wherein said fourth passage channel is arranged to communicate with said sewage passage.

7. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 6, wherein said air discharge tube is connected to said an upper annular portion of said air guiding member so that said air discharge passage is constituted by connecting said first passage channel to said second passage channel, connecting said second passage channel to said third passage channel, and connecting said third passage channel to said fourth passage channel, and said air discharge passage is constituted by said first through fourth passage channels.

8. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 5, wherein said third passage channel of said air guiding member is arranged to communicate with said fourth passage channel of said air guiding member, so that said air discharge passage is constituted by connecting said first passage channel to said third passage channel, and connecting said third passage channel to said fourth passage channel, and said air discharge passage is constituted by said first, third and fourth passage channels.

9. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 1, further comprising an air suction tube extended between said air inlet of said main housing and said air intake port, wherein air around said upper rim portion of said toilet is arranged to be sucked to said main housing through said air suction tube.

10. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 5, further comprising an air suction tube extended between said air inlet of said main housing and said air intake port, wherein air around said upper rim portion of said toilet is arranged to be sucked to said main housing through said air suction tube.

11. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 7, further comprising an air suction tube extended between said air inlet of said main housing and said air intake port, wherein air around said upper rim portion of said toilet is arranged to be sucked to said main housing through said air suction tube.

12. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 8, further comprising an air suction tube extended between said air inlet of said main housing and said air intake port, wherein air around said upper rim portion of said toilet is arranged to be sucked to said main housing through said air suction tube.

13. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 1, said air guiding member is configured as a ring-shaped structure fitting and having an upper annular portion, said air guiding member having at least one side opening on the outside of said upper annular portion, and also having at least one opening on the inside of said air guiding member, said openings communicating with each other inside said air guiding member, said third passage channel being configured as a radially through slot which extends radially from outside surface of said upper annular portion to the inside surface of said air guiding member, said third passage channel going with the opening of inside surface of said air guiding member to eventually communicate with said sewage passage which allowing air to pass through said third passage channel and be discharged to said sewage passage.

14. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 13, said air guiding member further defining a fourth passage channel configured as a through central opening formed in said ring-shaped air guiding member, wherein said fourth passage channel is arranged to communicate with said sewage passage.

15. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 14, wherein said air discharge assembly further comprise a coupling member connecting between said air discharge tube and said air guiding member, said coupling member having a longitudinal portion which extends through and coupled to a mounting hole of the lower connecting portion of said toilet, and also having a transverse portion transversely extended from said longitudinal portion, said coupling member having a hollow structure and further defining a second passage channel configured as a through passage extending through said longitudinal portion and said transverse portion within said coupling member, said second passage channel extend between said first passage channel and said third passage channel.

16. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 15, wherein said air discharge tube is connected to said an upper annular portion of said air guiding member so that said air discharge passage is constituted by connecting said first passage channel to said second passage channel, connecting said second passage channel to said third passage channel, and connecting said third passage channel to said fourth passage channel, and said air discharge passage is constituted by said first through fourth passage channels.

17. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 14, wherein said third passage channel of said air guiding member is arranged to communicate with said fourth passage channel of said air guiding member, so that said air discharge passage is constituted by directly connecting said first passage channel to said third passage channel, and connecting said third passage channel to said fourth passage channel, and said air discharge passage is constituted by said first, third and fourth passage channels.

18. The toilet deodorizing apparatus, as recited in claim 1, wherein said air guiding member is configured as an extra part of pipe fittings and further define a third passage channel configured as a radially through slot formed in said air guiding member, said air guiding member having at least one side opening on the outside of said upper annular portion, and also having at least one opening on the inside of said air guiding member, said openings communicating with each other inside said air guiding member. Said third passage channel extend radially from a side surface to another side surface of said air guiding member, said air guiding member further defining a fourth passage channel configured as a through central opening formed in said ring-shaped air guiding member, wherein said fourth passage channel is arranged to communicate with said sewage passage, said third passage channel of said air guiding member being arranged to communicate with said fourth passage channel of said air guiding member, so that said air discharge passage is constituted by directly connecting said first passage channel to said third passage channel, and connecting said third passage channel to said fourth passage channel, and said air discharge passage is constituted by said first, third and fourth passage channels.