Toilet water supply device

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6502252
  • Patent Number
    6,502,252
  • Date Filed
    Thursday, September 13, 2001
    23 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, January 7, 2003
    22 years ago
  • Inventors
  • Examiners
    • Eloshway; Charles R.
    Agents
    • McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff
Abstract
Disclosed is a water supplying and draining apparatus for preventing water leakage. A feed pipe supplies water, which is introduced from an outside water source to the toilet bowl. A reservoir tank receives the washing water, the reservoir being made of an extendable and contractible material, the reservoir having a plurality of branch pipes. A valve opens an opening or shuts the branch pipes in order to provide the water, which is supplied from the outside water source through the feed pipe, to the branch pipe. An expandable protecting cover attaches to an outer surface of the reservoir tank, wherein the other ends of the branch pipes fluidly connects with the valve which is arranged at positions outside of the reservoir tank. One end of the feed pipe fluidly connects with the toilet bowl and the other end of the feed pipe communicates with the valve. One end of the exhaust pipe fluidly connects with the valve and the other end of the exhaust pipe fluidly connects with the toilet stool.
Description




TECHNICAL FIELD




The present invention relates to a water supply and drain apparatus for a toilet bowl, and more particularly, to prevent leakage of valve mechanism and noise of water supply.




BACKGROUND ART




A conventional form of toilet bowl for flush reducing is shown in

FIG. 1. A

toilet bowl comprises a toilet housing


100


, a toilet tank


200


for storing washing water, a handle part


300


supplying the washing water into the toilet housing


100


. The toilet tank


200


is connected with an introduction pipe


120


, in which the washing water is stored. A valve instrument


400


is mounted at the internal of the toilet tank


200


for blocking the supply as the washing water is sufficiently filled. The handle part


300


interlocks with the valve instrument


400


. The valve instrument


400


comprises a ball valve


420


, a refill tube


440


, a saver tube


460


, a discharge valve


480


and a flapper valve


500


. The handle part


300


comprises a handle


320


, a lever


340


raising with handspikes, and a chain


360


connecting at the lever


340


in order to open the discharge valve


480


.




The above-described conventional water supply and discharge apparatus for a toilet bowl is operated as below.




An intake pipe


120


is receives washing water through a saver tube


460


into the toilet tank


200


. A flapper valve


500


operates a ball valve


420


by flapping along the surface of water. A ball valve


420


is connected at the intake pipe


120


so as to open and close a refill tube


440


. Then, a refill tube


440


is closed by the ball valve


420


and the toilet tank


200


is sufficiently filled with the washing water.




When a handle


320


is operated by a user, the handle


320


lifts the chain


360


connecting to the discharge valve


480


which opens and closes a discharge outlet


600


which is connected between a toilet housing


100


and a toilet tank


200


. Thereby, a discharge valve


480


is opened by chain


360


and the washing water flows into a toilet housing


100


from toilet tank


200


. The washing water flushes out a waste material from a toilet housing


100


.




After the washing water is discharged from a toilet housing


100


, the discharge valve


480


closes a discharge outlet


600


. Then the flapper valve


500


dropps along to the surface of water in the toilet tank


200


and opens the refill tube


440


. The washing water is flows into the toilet tank


200


through intake pipe


120


.




In the above-described conventional water supply and discharge apparatus for a toilet bowl, the toilet tank


200


receives a washing water having an hydraulic pressure in proportion to capacity of the toilet tank


200


, thereby generating noise by high hydraulic pressure.




There are some disadvantages associated with the prior water supply and discharge apparatus for a toilet bowl given as below. That is, precision of the valve instrument


400


may cause waterproofing trouble. As a result, users have a lot of difficulty.




As a prior art to deal with the aforementioned disadvantages, U.S. Pat. No. 5,855,025, issued Jan. 5, 1999 is disclosed, which reduces generated noise and controlled a quantity of use when the washing water flows into the toilet tank, to which is supplied storage water through “T”, shaped tube and then directly poured into the flapper valve, thereby the storage water overflows and changes.




There is problem in that the prior art has reduced durability according to complex elements and requires precision in design of the elements.




DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION




It is an object of the present invention to prevent leakage of washing water by supplying water that is properly sealed.




It is a further object of the present invention to minimize noise generated by water supply and drain by supplying water to the storage.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS




This invention will be better understood and its various objects and advantages will be more fully appreciated from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:





FIG. 1

is a perspective view of a conventional water supplying and draining apparatus for a toilet bowl with parts broken away;





FIG. 2

is a schematic diagram of water supplying and draining apparatus for a toilet bowl according to the present invention;





FIG. 3A

,

FIG. 3B

shows water supply and drain apparatus for a toilet bowl of

FIG.2

in an operation condition; and





FIG. 4

is a side view of water supply and drain apparatus for a toilet bowl according to the present invention.











BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION




Hereinafter, this invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2

is a schematic diagram of water supply and drain apparatus for a toilet bowl according to the present invention. As shown in the drawing, the apparatus comprises a feed pipe


16


, a reservoir tank


20


, a valve


40


and a protecting cover


28


. The feed pipe


16


supplies washing water, which is introduced from an outside water source, to the toilet bowl. The reservoir tank


20


, which is made of an expandable and contractible material, receives the washing water. The reservoir tank


20


has a plurality of branch pipes of which one end of each of the branch pipes is in fluid connection with the reservoir tank


20


.




FIG.


3


A and

FIG. 3B

show water supply and drain apparatus for a toilet bowl of

FIG. 2

in an operational condition. As shown in

FIGS. 3



a


and


3




b,


the reservoir tank


20


includes a first chamber


22


and a second chamber


24


. The first chamber


22


has a first branch pipe


32


among the plurality of branch pipes. One end of the first branch pipe


32


is in fluid connection with the reservoir tank


20


, and thus the first branch pipe


32


can introduce the washing water into the first chamber


22


. The second chamber


24


has a second branch pipe


34


among plurality of branch pipes. One end of the second branch pipe


34


is in fluid connection with the second chamber


22


, and the second branch pipe


34


can introduce the washing water into the second chamber


24


.




The first chamber


22


and the second chamber


24


can be made of a soft rubber, which can expand due to the hydraulic pressure of water. Thus, the chambers can expand when filled with water. When water drains from the first chamber


22


or second chamber


24


, the respective chamber can then contract. Therefore, each of the first chamber


22


and the second chamber


24


is capable of repeatedly expanding and contracting.




A valve


40


opens and shuts the branch pipes


32


,


34


in order to provide the water, which is supplied from the outside water source through the feed pipe


16


, to the branch pipes


32


,


34


. The valve


40


comprises an exhaust port


48


, a feed port


46


, a first port


42


, a second port


44


, a valve membrane


52


and a valve assembly. The exhaust port


48


is in fluid connection with the exhaust pipe


18


. The feed port


46


is in fluid connection with the feed pipe


16


. The first port


42


is in fluid connection with one end of the first branch pipe


32


. The second port


44


is in fluid connection with one end of the second branch pipe


34


. The valve membrane


52


is in fluid connection with the feed port


46


, the first port


42


and the second port


44


. The valve membrane


52


can thus simultaneously open the exhaust port


48


and the feed port


16


. The valve assembly can have a flush handle


50


mounted at the valve membrane


52


.




A second end of each of the branch pipes is in fluid connection with the valve


40


arranged at positions outside of the reservoir tank


20


. A first end of the feed pipe


16


is in fluid connection with the outside water source and a second end of the feed pipe


16


is in fluid connection with the valve


40


. A first end of the exhaust pipe


18


is in fluid connection with the valve


40


and a second end of the exhaust pipe


18


is in fluid connection with the toilet stool


10


.




A protecting cover


28


is attached to an outer surface of the reservoir tank


20


. The protecting cover


28


can be made of a hard rubber capable of expanding due to hydraulic pressure of water during the filling of the reservoir tank


20


with water.




The operation and effect of a water supplying and draining apparatus for a toilet bowl having an exhaust pipe for supplying water to a toilet stool according to the present invention constructed as above will be described below. The first branch pipe


32


and the second branch pipe


34


are in fluid connection with valve


40


. Also, the feed pipe


16


and exhaust port


48


are in fluid connection with valve


40


. Washing water is supplied from an outside water source into the first chamber


22


or the second chamber through the feed pipe


16


. When water is discharged into the exhaust pipe


18


from the first chamber


22


, the washing water is supplied into the second chamber


24


. The first chamber


22


discharges the washing into the toilet stool


10


through the discharge pipe


18


, which gradually contracts by increasing volume of the washing water which is received in the second chamber


24


.




A valve assembly opens or shuts the first branch pipe


32


and second branch pipe


34


in order to provide the water to the first chamber


22


and second chamber


24


. The valve membrane


52


turns to the position indicated in

FIG. 3



a


whereupon the feed port


46


connects with the first port


42


, and the exhaust port


48


connects with the second port


44


. Washing water, which is introduced from an outside source, is only supplied into the first chamber


22


. At that time, the washing water, which is stored into the second chamber


24


, is supplied through the exhaust port


48


and exhaust pipe


18


to the toilet stool


10


.




The valve membrane


52


turns to the position indicated in

FIG. 3



b


whereupon the feed port


46


connects with the second port


44


and the exhaust port


48


connects with the first port


42


. Water, which is introduced from an outside source, is only supplied into the second chamber


24


. At that time, the washing water, which is supplied into the first chamber


22


, is discharged through the exhaust port


48


to the exhaust pipe


18


.




When the valve membrane


52


turns to the position indicated in

FIG. 3



a,


the washing water is provided to the first chamber


22


since the feed port


46


connects with the first port


42


. Then, the first chamber


22


expands while the second chamber


24


contracts.




When a user turns the flush handle


50


in the counterclockwise rotation, the valve membrane


52


rotates the same. The exhaust port


48


connects with the first port


42


while the feed port


46


connects with the second port


44


. The washing water of the first chamber


22


drains into the toilet


10


through the exhaust pipe


18


via the exhaust port


48


which connects with the first port


42


. As the washing water drains from the first chamber


22


, the first chamber


22


contracts. Water, which is supplied from the feed pipe


16


, is supplied into the second chamber


24


. As the second chamber


24


fills with water, it expands due to the hydraulic pressure of the water.




As the second chamber


24


expands, the first chamber


22


easily and quickly contracts. This easily discharges the washing water of first chamber


22


into the toilet stool


10


. When the second chamber


24


expands and closely adheres to the protecting cover


28


, the protecting cover


28


prevents expansion of the second chamber


24


. Therefore, the supply of water to reservoir tank


20


is cut off through the feed pipe


16


.




When a user turns the flush handle


50


in the clockwise rotation, the valve membrane


52


rotates in the opposite direction, as will be described below. The feed port


46


connects with the first port


42


while the exhaust port


48


connects with the second port


44


. The washing water from the first chamber


22


is discharged to the toilet stool


10


. The second chamber


24


contracts. Meanwhile, water which is introduced from an outside water source is supplied into the first chamber


22


by means of the feed pipe


16


. Therefore, the second chamber


24


contracts while the first chamber


22


expands. Accordingly as the valve


40


is selectively turned, each of the first chamber


22


and the second chamber


24


is repeatedly expands and contracts.




Water, which is supplied from outside water source, is discharged into the first chamber


22


and second chamber


24


which are contracting. When the water is supplied, noise is repressed by the meeting and collision of water, which prevents noise by extending and contracting due to closely adhering to the first chamber


22


and second chamber


24


. Because water is supplied into the first chamber


22


and second chamber


24


in the sealed state, water leakage is prevented during supplying the chambers


22


,


24


with the washing water.




Additionally, the first chamber


22


and second chamber


24


can be mounted to inner parts of the toilet stool


10


. In effect, this can minimize the space necessary for installation, and it can increase the allowable area.




While this invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to particular embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be effected therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.



Claims
  • 1. An apparatus for supplying and draining water through an exhaust pipe to and from a toilet bowl, the apparatus comprising:a feed pipe for supplying the washing water from an outside water source to the toilet bowl; a reservoir tank for receiving the water, wherein the reservoir tank is comprised of an expandable and contractible material, wherein the reservoir tank has a plurality of branch pipes of which a first end of each of the branch pipes is in fluid connection with the reservoir tank; a valve for opening and shutting the branch pipes in order to provide the branch pipes with the washing water supplied from the outside water source through the feed pipe; an expandable protecting cover attached to an outer surface of the reservoir tank, wherein the expandable protecting cover is made of a hard rubber capable of expanding due to hydraulic pressure of water during filling of the reservoir tank; and wherein a second end of each of the branch pipes operably connects with the valve arranged at positions outside of the reservoir tank, wherein a first end of the feed pipe is in fluid connection with the outside water source and a second end of the feed pipe is in fluid connection with the valve, wherein a first end of the exhaust pipe is in fluid connection with the valve, and wherein a second end of the exhaust pipe is in fluid connection with the toilet bowl.
  • 2. The water supplying and draining apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the reservoir tank comprises:a first chamber having a first branch pipe among the branch pipes, wherein the first branch pipe guides the washing water into the first chamber, and a first end of the first branch pipe is in fluid connection with the reservoir tank; a second chamber having a second branch pipe among the branch pipes, wherein the second pipe guides the washing water into the second chamber, and wherein a first end of the second branch pipe is in fluid connection with the first chamber; and wherein each of the first chamber and the second chamber is capable of repeatedly expanding and contracting in response to the hydraulic pressure.
  • 3. The water supplying and draining apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the first chamber and the second chamber are made of a soft rubber capable of expanding due to the hydraulic pressure of water during the filling of the respective chamber with water.
  • 4. The water supplying and draining apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the valve comprises:an exhaust port in fluid connection with the exhaust pipe; a feed port in fluid connection with the feed pipe; a first port in fluid connection with the first branch pipe of the first chamber; a second port in fluid connection with the second branch pipe of the second chamber; a valve membrane in fluid connection with the feed port, the first port and the second port, wherein the valve membrane can simultaneously open the exhaust port and the feed port; and a valve assembly having a flush handle which is mounted to the valve membrane.
  • 5. A water supplying and draining apparatus using an exhaust pipe to supply water for a toilet bowl, the apparatus comprising:a feed pipe for supplying washing water from an outside water source to the toilet bowl; a reservoir tank having a first chamber and a second chamber, the reservoir having a plurality of branch pipes of which a first end of the branch pipes is in fluid connection with the reservoir tank; a valve for opening or shutting the branch pipes in order to provide the water, which is supplied from the outside water source through the feed pipe, to the branch pipes; an expandable protecting cover attached to an outer surface of the first chamber and the second chamber, wherein the expandable protecting cover is made of a hard rubber capable of expanding due to hydraulic pressure of water during filling of the reservoir tank; wherein the first chamber independently expands by receiving water therein from the outside water source through the feed pipe, wherein the second chamber independently expands by receiving water therein from the outside water source through the feed pipe, wherein if water filled in the first chamber is discharged from the first chamber toward the toilet stool due to operation of the valve and thereby the first chamber is contracted, then water is introduced from the outer water source through the feed pipe to the second chamber and thereby the second chamber simultaneously expands during contracting of the first chamber; and wherein a second end of the branch pipes is in fluid connection with the valve arranged at positions outside of the reservoir tank, wherein a first end of the feed pipe is in fluid connection with the outside water source and wherein a second end of the feed pipe is in fluid connection with the valve, wherein a first end of the exhaust pipe is in fluid connection with the valve, and wherein a second end of the exhaust pipe is in fluid connection with the toilet bowl.
PCT Information
Filing Document Filing Date Country Kind
PCT/KR00/00023 WO 00
Publishing Document Publishing Date Country Kind
WO01/51719 7/19/2001 WO A
US Referenced Citations (10)
Number Name Date Kind
665887 Emery Jan 1901 A
1316715 Haas Sep 1919 A
1396400 Bresson Nov 1921 A
2182980 Bruzenak Dec 1939 A
3566416 Altieri et al. Mar 1971 A
4115883 Dauvergne Sep 1978 A
4266304 Kohrn et al. May 1981 A
4764996 Pino Aug 1988 A
5115521 Adamides May 1992 A
5406652 Hennessy Apr 1995 A
Foreign Referenced Citations (2)
Number Date Country
2 200 729 Aug 1988 GB
25440 Feb 1977 JP