Water Saving Clog Resistant Toilet

Abstract

A toilet to save water and reduce clogs. One embodiment uses two traps and a Pressure Assisted Device (PAD) that applies both negative and/or positive pressurized air between an upper trapway and middle trapway with a pressure connection tube with a means for allowing air to move to or from the top of the PAD to the upper arch between the upper and lower traps. A second embodiment includes a clog-resistant toilet that has no sudden transitions in the pipe to reduce the likelihood of clogging.

Description

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

Field of the Invention

This invention relates to water efficient toilets and clog resistant toilets.

Description of the Prior Art

Gravity fed flush toilets have been in use for over a century. The use of gravity powered suction devices in toilets goes back to U.S. Pat. No. 260,232, which issued on Jun. 27, 1882, which talks about using two traps and in combination with a flushing-valve” and means for “operating the same to flush the closet, and means for drawing air from the space between the two traps. While this and multiple devices since then, such as U.S. Pat. No. 380,854 by Boyle, which issued on Apr. 10, 1888, also mention using a negative pressure device for suction. U.S. Pat. No. 7,159,251, which issued on Jul. 22, 2004, explicitly mentions the water savings used by applying positive pressure between the two traps.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,503,081 claims to be a “clog-free” toilet, using multiple blowers. And Chinese patent 201120051336, entitled “Blocking proof toilet,” uses a stirring device to mince the contents. But both of these prior art implementations use electricity and would be very loud.

In view of such prior art, an improved toilet is still needed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One embodiment of the present invention provides a toilet that uses less water by having two traps and using a larger lower trapway and which allows more air pressure to be applied between the area between the two traps. This also provides the unexpected benefit that when a partial vacuum is applied, the water from the second trap and middle trapway can be combined with the water from the first trap and upper trapway to create a stronger siphon, which increases the flushing power and saves water. In this embodiment, more air can be injected before water goes over the lower arch which allows the “water spot,” which is defined as the top of the pool of water in the bowl, to be larger and/or higher.

A typical problem occurs when there is a clog at or downstream of the pressure transfer pipe, and a plunger is used. When this occurs the water and contents of the water will typically be forced through the pressure transfer pipe and will backup into the water tank. A second embodiment of the invention provides a clog resistant toilet that does not use hairpin turns (by definition herein a hairpin turn is defined to be where the outer circumference of a pipe is bent more than 250 degrees within a length of the pipe that is less than 1.5 times the outer diameter of the pipe). A third embodiment of the invention provides a toilet with a reduced likelihood of a clog at, or downstream from the pressure transfer pipe. A fourth embodiment of the invention provides a toilet that prevents water from getting to the top of the pressure transfer pipe, and also prevents the water and contents from getting into the water tank.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Non-limiting and non-exhaustive embodiments of the invention are described with reference to the following figures and drawings.

FIG. 1 illustrates a side view of a 1882 toilet with two traps, in accordance with one embodiment of the prior art.

FIG. 2 illustrates a more modern implementation of a toilet with two traps, in accordance with one embodiment of the prior art.

FIG. 3 illustrates another implementation of a toilet with two traps, in accordance with one embodiment of the prior art.

FIG. 4 illustrates a typical current toilet with likely locations of clogs, in accordance with one embodiment of the prior art.

FIG. 5 illustrates an infinity configuration for a water saving toilet with the PAD and two traps in the resting state, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates a folded configuration in the resting state, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention

FIG. 7 illustrates an infinity configuration in a flushing state, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 8 illustrates the toilet when the siphon is starting to break, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates a clog resistant toilet with one trap, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 10 illustrates a clog resistant toilet with two traps, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 11 illustrates a toilet that is clog resistant after the pressure transfer pipe, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention

FIG. 12 illustrates a valve that stops water in one direction in its normal state, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 13 illustrates a valve that stops water in one direction in its stopped state, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 14 illustrates a toilet in its normal state with a valve on a lower pipe, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 15 illustrates a toilet in its stopped state with a valve on the upper pipe, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 16 illustrates a water restriction valve with a solids preventer, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 17 illustrates a normal state with the stopper not engaged, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 18 illustrates a stopped state with the stopper engaged, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

In the embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 5, 6, 7 and 8, a bowl 10 is coupled to the upper trap 20 which is coupled to the upper trapway 25 (e.g., see FIG. 7 element 25) This is coupled to the upper arch 70, which is coupled to the middle trapway 75 and lower trap 30, which is coupled to the lower trapway 35, then coupled to the lower arch 80, which is coupled to the lower pipe 85 and the wide section 90 which is finally coupled to the exit pipe 100 The tank 40 has a pressure assisted device (PAD) 50 with a tube or other connecting shape 60 with a means for moving air into or from the top of the PAD to the upper arch 70 supplying positively or negatively pressurized air to the upper arch 70 and the upper trapway 25 and middle trapway 75 (e.g., see FIG. 7). In this embodiment of the invention, the lower trapway 35 in FIGS. 5 and 6 is much larger than in prior art inventions (see element 35 in prior art FIGS. 1-3). In U.S. Pat. No. 260,232, illustrated in FIG. 1, the lower trapway 35 volume is about one-seventh of the volume of the middle trapway 75. In U.S. Pat. No. 7,159,251, illustrated in FIG. 2, the lower trapway 35 volume is about one-fifth the volume of the middle trapway 75. In FIG. 3, the lower trapway 35 is about one-fourth the volume of the middle trapway 75. In the embodiments of the present invention illustrated in FIG. 5 and FIG. 8, the water in the middle trapway 75 and lower trap 30 can be used to create a siphon, which is not possible with the previous prior art toilets, since once the water from the lower trapway 35 has been moved to the middle trapway 75, any further vacuum will be sucking-up only air, not water. The larger lower trapway 35 (e.g., see FIG. 7) saves more water in operation compared to prior art toilets. In one embodiment a single flush uses 0.66 gallons of water compared to 0.8 gallons of water used by a single flush of the most water efficient prior art toilets, and 1.28 gallons of water used by a single flush for most other prior art toilets.

To illustrate the use of one embodiment of the invention, FIG. 5 illustrates the resting state of the toilet, where the water in the lower trap 35 is used to hold the pressure in the middle trapway 75. This pressure is counterbalanced by the pressure in the PAD 50 and the water in the toilet bowl 10 and upper trap 20. When the pressure is increased in the PAD 50, due to the tank 40 filling with water, this will push up the water in the middle trapway 75 and lower trapway 35, and also push on the upper trapway 25 (see FIG. 6) pushing up the water into the bowl enabling a larger water spot. The volume of the water displaced in the middle trapway 75 and lower trapway 35 will be equivalent to the water volume increase in the bowl 10

When the toilet is flushed and the water lever in the tank 40 is lowered, this will create a partial vacuum in the PAD 50, which in turn creates a partial vacuum in the pressure transfer pipe 60 which in turn creates a partial vacuum in the upper arch 70, bringing the water from the lower trapway 35 into the middle trapway 75, while the water from the upper trapway 25 is also sucked towards the upper trap 70 When the water from the two sides combine (see FIG. 7) in the upper arch 70, the water create a strong siphon. The siphon will lower the water level in the bowl 10 until the water is lowered to the level of the wide section 90 of the pipe or until the siphon is broken as shown in FIG. 8, where the water in the tank 40 is at a lower level 52 than the bottom of the PAD 50. At this point, air will be sucked into the upper arch 70 and the water in the upper trapway 25 (see FIG. 7) will lower until it is even with the water in the bowl. When the water rises to the bottom of the PAD 50 it will start pressurizing the air, pushing on the water in the upper trapway 25 which will raise the water level in the bowl 10. Note that when the toilet tank 40 is filling up and reaches the bottom of the PAD 50 (see FIG. 8), the pressure will be close to the outside air pressure; but as the water level rises in the tank 40 and PAD 50, the air pressure inside the PAD 50 will quickly rise as the air starts pushing on the water in the upper trapway 25 and middle trapway 75

FIG. 4 illustrates a typical prior art toilet having multiple locations for clogging. If the bottom of the bowl 300 has a sudden transition between the bowl and the trap, then a relatively long object may get stuck, versus having a gradual transition.

FIG. 9 illustrates a clog resistant toilet with one trap 20 shows a gradual transition 450 from the bowl 10 to the trap 20 Sudden transitions 310, 320, and 330 can cause cavitation and unpredictable flows, which are common causes of clogs. There is an inner diameter 435 and an outer diameter 425 and has no hairpin turns in any of the pipes, wherein a hairpin turn is defined to be where the outer circumference of a pipe is bent more than 250 degrees within a length of the pipe that is less than 1.5 times the outer diameter of the pipe. Using gradual changes 400 and 410 to will greatly reduce the likelihood of clogging. FIG. 10 illustrates a clog resistant toilet with two traps 20 and 30 shows a gradual transition from the bowl 10 to the first trap 20. Similarly the toilet with two traps also has gradual transitions 400, 420 and 430 with no hairpin turns.

FIG. 11 illustrates an embodiment where the upper trapway 25 and the upper arch 1 upstream of the pressure transfer pipe 70 has a smaller cross sectional area compared to the upper arch 70 after the pressure transfer pipe 2 and the sections downstream from the pressure transfer pipes 75, 30 and 80. For example, if the pipe 1 is cylindrical, then the diameter of the pipe section 1 would be smaller than the diameter of pipe section 2 and the section downstream. The pipe is also curved more in the upper trapway 3 and the upper arch 70 before the pressure transfer pipe 1 with a curvature shown by pipe 3 than the downstream pipes 75, 30 and 80 show with the curvature shown by 4 and 5. If there is a clog after the pressure transfer pipe 5, then if the toilet is plunged the effluent can go into the tank 40, which is highly undesirable. These enhancements decrease the likelihood of a clog happening after or downstream of the upstream of the pressure transfer pipe 50.

The pressure transfer pipe can also have a valve that restricts the flow of the water. One example is a water restriction valve 22 (e.g., see FIGS. 12-15) which allows air to go through but not water. In this embodiment there is a sphere or other object, hereafter know as the blocking object 13, that fits inside the water restriction valve 22. The blocking object 13 allows air to flow from the PAD 50 to the upper arch 70 by having guide wires 12 that prevent the blocking object 13 from lowering and restricting the flow of air from the PAD 50 to the upper arch 70. The blocking object 13 is heavy enough that when PAD 50 creates a partial vacuum the blocking object 13 will not move to the top of the water restriction valve 22 and restrict the airflow from the upper arch to the PAD 50. When there is a clog and the toilet is plunged, water will be forced from the bowl 10 through the lower trap 20 past the upper trapway 25. If the clog is after the pressure transfer pipe 60 then water and the effluent will enter the pressure transfer pipe 60 When the water reaches the blocking object 13 in the valve 60, it will float on top of the water and form a seal with the upper section of the valve 14.

FIG. 13 illustrates valve 14, stopping the flow of the water through the pipe 60. FIG. 12 illustrates the valve in the normal state at the top of the pressure transfer pipe. FIG. 15 illustrates the toilet when there is a clog 24 after the pressure transfer pipe 60. This illustrates the valve in the blocking state when the toilet is being plunged. FIG. 14 illustrates the valve in the lower section of the pressure transfer pipe, while FIG. 15 illustrates the valve in the upper section of the pressure transfer pipe. A small rod 100 parallel to the flow of the air can also be installed at the bottom of the valve 13.

The water restriction valve 22 can be placed anywhere in the pressure transfer tube 60 to only allow water to flow in one direction. FIG. 14 illustrates the water restriction valve 22 in the normal state and FIG. 13 illustrates the water restriction valve 22 in the water blocking state, with the water restriction valve 22 towards the top of the pressure transfer pipe 60. FIG. 15 illustrates the water restriction valve 12 in the water blocking state with the water restriction valve near the bottom of the pressure transfer valve. FIG. 16 illustrates a small rod parallel 100 to the flow of the air which will help prevent solids such as toilet paper and other solid effluent from entering the water restriction valve 12 before liquids have a chance to fill the chamber of the water restriction valve 12 and allowing the float 13 to seal off the flow of the water.

An alternative means of stopping the flow of the water is by temporarily sealing the pressure transfer pipe 60 so that neither air nor water can move through the pipe. One example is illustrated in FIG. 17 and FIG. 18. FIG. 17 illustrates the pressure transfer pipe 60 in the normal state, with the stopper 54 not engaged with the pressure transfer pipe and allowing air (and water) to flow unrestricted through the pressure transfer pipe 60. FIG. 18 illustrates the stopper 54 engaged with pressure transfer pipe 60 and not allowing the flow of air or water through the pressure transfer pipe 60 The switch for the stopper 55 could just be manually held down while a plunger (not shown) is being used. In another embodiment, the stopper 55 has a toggle like a click pen where there is an up state and a down state.

The exemplary embodiments described herein are for purposes of illustration and not intended to be limiting. Therefore, those skilled in the art will recognize that other embodiments could be practiced without departing from the scope and spirit of the claims set forth below.

Claims

1. A toilet comprising: a tank to store water or other liquid,a pressure assist device (PAD) inside the tank,a bowl coupled to the tank, wherein the bowl holds water or other liquid and any contents in the liquid,an upper trap, which is coupled to the bowl,an upper trapway, which is coupled to the upper trap.an upper arch, which is coupled to the upper trapway,a middle trapway, which is coupled to the upper arch,a lower trap, which is coupled to the middle trapway,a lower trapway, which is coupled to the lower trap, wherein the volume of the lower trapway is between one-third to one and a half times the volume of the middle trapway,a tube or other connecting shape, which extends from the location between the upper and lower traps to the PAD, that can move air into or from the top of the PAD to the upper arch to supply positively or negatively pressurized air to the upper arch and the lower trapway and middle trapway,a lower arch, which is coupled to the lower trapway,a lower pipe, which is coupled to the lower arch,a wide section, which is coupled to the lower pipe, andan exit pipe, which is coupled to the wide section.

2. The toilet of claim 1 wherein the PAD is non-rectilinear so that the pressure profile for the pressure pipe is not proportional to the level of the water in the tank, wherein the volume of the lower trapway is between one-third to one and a half time the volume of the middle trapway.

3. The toilet of claim 1 wherein the high part of the lower arch is higher than the bottom of the upper arch.

4. The toilet of claim 1 wherein there is a wide section after the lower arch, but before the exit pipe, wherein the wide section is larger than the lower trapway to provide a means to break the siphon at the wide section to provide a means to minimize water loss.

5. The toilet of claim 1 wherein low part of the lower trap is higher than the low part of the upper trap.

6. The toilet of claim 1 wherein the air pressure within the PAD and the pressure pipe will be reduced when the toilet is flushed, creating a partial vacuum that will suck air and possibly water in the upper arch to an extent that the water that was in the lower trap will combine with the water that was in the upper trap to create a siphon that extends from the bowl to the lower trap.

7. The toilet of claim 1 wherein the section from the upper trap, the upper arch the lower trap, lower arch and exit pipe substantially forms a sideways FIG. 8 and the upper trapway and lower trapway are in different planes.

8. The toilet of claim 1 wherein the upper trap and the upper arch form a first plane and the lower trap and the lower arch form a second plane, and the first plane and the second plane are within one pipe diameter in separation.

9. A toilet comprising: a tank to store water or other liquid,a bowl coupled to the tank, wherein the bowl holds water or other liquid and any contents in the liquid,one or more traps, in which one trap is coupled to the bowl,one or more pipes, wherein each pipe has an inner circumference and an inner diameter and an outer circumference and an outer diameter, in which one pipe is coupled to the bowl, wherein there are no hairpin turns in the one or more pipes, wherein a hairpin turn is defined to be where the outer circumference of a pipe is bent more than 250 degrees within a length of the pipe that is less than 1.5 times the outer diameter of the pipe, and the toilet is therefore more resistant to clogging compared to prior art toilets.

10. The toilet of claim 9 wherein there are no sudden transitions in any of the toilet pipes that can cause cavitation, other than the exit pipe.

11. The toilet of claim 9 wherein the transition from the bowl to the trap has a transition without any turns to allow a longer item to flow from the bowl into the trap, instead of the longer items getting stuck at the bottom of the bowl.

12. A toilet comprising: a tank to store water or other liquid,a pressure assist device (PAD) inside the tank,a bowl coupled to the tank, wherein the bowl holds water or other liquid and any contents in the liquid,an upper trap, which is coupled to the bowl,an upper trapway, which is coupled to the upper trap.an upper arch, which is coupled to the upper trapway,a middle trapway, which is coupled to the upper arch,a lower trap, which is coupled to the middle trapway,a lower trapway, which is coupled to the lower trap,a tube or other connecting shape, which extends from the location between the upper and lower traps to the PAD, that can move air into or from the top of the PAD to the upper arch to supply positively or negatively pressurized air to the upper arch and the lower trapway and middle trapway, wherein the PAD has a pressure transfer pipe where there is less resistance to the water and the contents in the water after the pressure transfer pipe compared to before the pressure transfer pipe, so that any clogs are more likely to occur before the pressure transfer pipe than after the pressure transfer pipe,a lower arch, which is coupled to the lower trapway,a lower pipe, which is coupled to the lower arch,a wide section, which is coupled to the lower pipe, andan exit pipe, which is coupled to the wide section.

13. The toilet of claim 12 wherein the upper trapway has a cross sectional area and each of one or more pipes after the pressure transfer pipe have a cross sectional area, and each pipe after the pressure transfer pipe has a larger cross sectional area than the cross sectional area of the upper trapway.

14. The toilet of claim 12 wherein one or more pipes have a radius of curvature and after the pressure transfer pipe the one or more pipes have a larger radius of curvature than the radius of curvature of the one or more pipes before the pressure transfer pipe.

15. A toilet comprising: a tank to store water or other liquid,a pressure assist device (PAD) inside the tank,a bowl coupled to the tank, wherein the bowl holds water or other liquid and any contents in the liquid,an upper trap, which is coupled to the bowl,an upper trapway, which is coupled to the upper trap.an upper arch, which is coupled to the upper trapway,a middle trapway, which is coupled to the upper arch,a lower trap, which is coupled to the middle trapway,a lower trapway, which is coupled to the lower trap,a tube or other connecting shape, which extends from the location between the upper and lower traps to the PAD, that can move air into or from the top of the PAD to the upper arch to supply positively or negatively pressurized air to the upper arch and the lower trapway and middle trapway, wherein the PAD has a pressure transfer pipe wherein if there is a clog after the pressure transfer pipe, the water will be prevented from going into the tank,a lower arch, which is coupled to the lower trapway,a lower pipe, which is coupled to the lower arch,a wide section, which is coupled to the lower pipe, andan exit pipe, which is coupled to the wide section.

16. The toilet of claim 15 wherein the water is prevented from going into the tank by means of a valve that allows air to flow through the pipe but water is prevented from going into the tank.

17. The toilet of claim 16 wherein the valve consists of a float that is heavier than air, but lighter than water, and includes a chamber that is shaped so that when water enters the chamber, the float will go to the top and seal of the chamber to prevent water exiting the top of the valve.

18. The toilet of claim 16 wherein there is a straight bar at the bottom of the valve, and the straight bar is parallel to the direction of the flow of air to lessen the likelihood of solids entering the valve.

19. The toilet of claim 16 wherein a stopper is inside the PAD, and the stopper is applied to the top of the pipe between the tank and the upper archway to restrict the flow of air and water and its contents to prevent the water and its contents from going into the tank.

20. The toilet of claim 15 wherein the air pressure within the PAD and the pressure pipe will be reduced when the toilet is flushed, creating a partial vacuum that will suck air and possibly water in the upper arch to an extent that the water that was in the lower trap will combine with the water that was in the upper trap to create a siphon that extends from the bowl to the lower trap.