Claims
- 1. A water purifier for killing bacteria in water located in a confined area, comprising:
- a housing;
- a water inlet on said housing that permits the water to enter the water purifier;
- a water outlet on said housing that permits water to exit from the water purifier;
- a purification unit that kills bacteria in the water;
- a first fluid path located between said water inlet and said water outlet so that water flowing along said first fluid path flows from the water inlet to the water outlet without flowing through said purification unit, said first fluid path including a constricted region having a cross sectional area that is smaller than a cross sectional area of said water inlet;
- a second fluid path located between said water inlet and said Water outlet, and including said purification unit so that water flowing along said second fluid path flows through said purification unit; and
- a self-adjusting flow regulator positioned within said constricted region to automatically modify the cross sectional area of said constricted region to maintain a rate of flow along said second fluid path within a predetermined range as water flows from said water inlet to said water outlet at a variable rate,
- wherein said self-adjusting flow regulator comprises a material that flexes under pressure.
- 2. The water purifier of claim 1, further comprising:
- a housing that includes said water inlet and said water outlet and
- a cover attached to said housing,
- wherein said cover and said housing enclose said purification unit.
- 3. The water purifier of claim 2, wherein said cover is removable for replacement of said purification unit.
- 4. The water purifier of claim 3, wherein said purification unit comprises a cartridge containing a silver catalyst.
- 5. The water purifier of claim 3, further comprising an indicator in contact with water flowing along said second fluid path for indicating the rate at which water is flowing through the purification unit.
- 6. The water purifier of claim 5, wherein the cover includes a transparent top and the indicator includes one or more movable objects positioned beneath the transparent top, the movable objects being moved by water flowing through the purification unit.
- 7. The water purifier of claim 2, wherein the housing further comprises a shutoff valve that is configured to shut off flow through the second fluid path without reducing flow through the first fluid path.
- 8. The water purifier of claim 7, wherein the shutoff valve comprises:
- an inner sleeve having a first opening through which water enters the second fluid path and a second opening through which water exits the second fluid path and
- an outer sleeve positioned around the inner sleeve and rotatable relative to the inner sleeve,
- wherein rotation of the outer sleeve relative to the inner sleeve shuts off flow along the second fluid path.
- 9. The water purifier of claim 1, wherein said purification unit comprises a cartridge having:
- a first end having a hole therein through which water exits the cartridge,
- a second end having a hole therein through which water exits the cartridge,
- a central chamber between the first and second ends,
- a diffuser positioned between the hole in the first end and the central chamber, and
- a silver catalyst positioned in the central chamber so that water flowing through the cartridge flows through the silver catalyst as the water passes from the first end to the second end,
- wherein the diffuser reduces the velocity of the water entering the cartridge.
- 10. The water purifier of claim 2, wherein the housing includes a pair of keying mechanisms and the purification unit comprises a cartridge that includes a pair of sockets configured to interlock with the keying mechanisms.
- 11. The water purifier of claim 1, wherein said self-adjusting flow regulator positioned within said constricted region automatically modifies the cross sectional area of said constricted region to maintain a rate of flow along said second fluid path within the predetermined range from about 10 to 20 gallons per minute.
- 12. The water purifier of claim 11, wherein said self-adjusting flow regulator positioned within said constricted region automatically modifies the cross sectional area of said constricted region to maintain a rate of flow along said second fluid path within a predetermined range as water flows from said water inlet to said water outlet at a variable rate between about 25 to 55 gallons per minute.
- 13. A water purifier for killing bacteria in water located in a confined area, comprising:
- a housing having a water inlet that permits the water to enter the water purifier and a water outlet that permits water to exit from the water purifier;
- a cover that is removably attachable to said housing;
- a purification unit removably positioned between said cover and said housing;
- a first fluid path located between said water inlet and said water outlet so that water flowing along said first fluid path flows from the water inlet to the water outlet without flowing through said purification unit, said first fluid path including a constricted region having a cross sectional area that is smaller than a cross sectional area of said water inlet;
- a second fluid path located between said water inlet and said water outlet, and including said purification unit so that water flowing along said second fluid path flows through said purification unit;
- an indicator for indicating the level at which water is flowing through the purification unit;
- a shutoff valve that is configured to shut off flow through the second fluid path without reducing flow through the first fluid path; and
- a self-adjusting flow regulator positioned within said constricted region, said self-adjusting flow regulator automatically modifying the cross sectional area of said constricted region to maintain a rate of flow along said second fluid path within a predetermined range as water flows from said water inlet to said water outlet at a variable rate,
- wherein said self-adjusting flow regulator comprises a material that flexes under pressure.
- 14. The water purifier of claim 1, wherein said self-adjusting flow regulator is a circular piece comprising a flexible material that includes an opening that is defined by six wedges that bend under pressure.
- 15. The water purifier of claim 13, wherein said self-adjusting flow regulator is a circular piece comprising a flexible material that includes an opening that is defined by six wedges that bend under pressure.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/334,062, filed Nov. 4, 1994, now abandoned, which in turn is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/255,178, filed on Jun. 7, 1994, now abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (35)
Continuation in Parts (2)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
334062 |
Nov 1994 |
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Parent |
255178 |
Jun 1994 |
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