Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47K—SANITARY EQUIPMENT NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; TOILET ACCESSORIES
  • A47K13/00—Seats or covers for all kinds of closets
  • A47K13/24—Parts or details not covered in, or of interest apart from, groups A47K13/02 - A47K13/22, e.g. devices imparting a swinging or vibrating motion to the seats
  • A47K13/30—Seats having provisions for heating, deodorising or the like, e.g. ventilating, noise-damping or cleaning devices
• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E03—WATER SUPPLY; SEWERAGE
  • E03D—WATER-CLOSETS OR URINALS WITH FLUSHING DEVICES; FLUSHING VALVES THEREFOR
  • E03D11/00—Other component parts of water-closets, e.g. noise-reducing means in the flushing system, flushing pipes mounted in the bowl, seals for the bowl outlet, devices preventing overflow of the bowl contents; devices forming a water seal in the bowl after flushing, devices eliminating obstructions in the bowl outlet or preventing backflow of water and excrements from the waterpipe
  • E03D11/02—Water-closet bowls ; Bowls with a double odour seal optionally with provisions for a good siphonic action; siphons as part of the bowl
  • E03D11/10—Bowls with closure elements provided between bottom or outlet and the outlet pipe; Bowls with pivotally supported inserts
• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E03—WATER SUPPLY; SEWERAGE
  • E03D—WATER-CLOSETS OR URINALS WITH FLUSHING DEVICES; FLUSHING VALVES THEREFOR
  • E03D3/00—Flushing devices operated by pressure of the water supply system flushing valves not connected to the water-supply main, also if air is blown in the water seal for a quick flushing
  • E03D3/10—Flushing devices with pressure-operated reservoir, e.g. air chamber
• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E03—WATER SUPPLY; SEWERAGE
  • E03D—WATER-CLOSETS OR URINALS WITH FLUSHING DEVICES; FLUSHING VALVES THEREFOR
  • E03D5/00—Special constructions of flushing devices, e.g. closed flushing system
  • E03D5/012—Special constructions of flushing devices, e.g. closed flushing system combined with movable closure elements in the bowl outlet

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a water savable flush toilet, and more particularly, to a water savable flush toilet that can discharge filth and wash a toilet bowl using a small amount of water by supplying a large amount of air into a sealed water tank to increase air pressure therein, and to thereby maintain a high water pressure until the water is completely exhausted.
• flush toilets have become widely used in houses and other buildings. A flushing operation of such flush toilets will be described hereinafter.
• the flush toilet includes a water tank having a volume of about 13-2, and it is covered with a lid and blocked by a water plug.
• a toilet bowl of the flush toilet also contains a predetermined amount of water.
• the water plug is opened so that the water contained in the water tank is directed to the toilet bowl and is then discharged together with the filth through an exhaust pipe.
• the discharge is realized by a siphon action.
• a pressure difference between the toilet bowl and the discharge pipe at the highest level of a reversed U-shaped pipe i.e., a siphon trap) allows the water with the filth to be exhausted at one time.
• the water filling the reversed U-shaped pipe prevents odors or bugs from coming into the toilet bowl .
• an additional object such as a brick and a bottle filled with water is. often disposed in the water tank to reduce the consumption of the water. However, this is not enough to save a significant amount of water, and it sometimes causes the water with the filth not to be completely discharged. Therefore, one more flushing is required, increasing the consumption of the water.
• the water saving devices have a water saving effect limited to only 6-1 ⁇ , and they increase the manufacturing costs.
• the present invention is directed to a water savable flush toilet that substantially obviates one or more problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.
• a first object of the present invention is to provide a water savable flush toilet that can save water by reducing the discharging water by eliminating a reversed U- shaped pipe .
• a second object of the present invention is to provide a water savable flush toilet that can save water by forming air pressure in a sealed water tank to increase water pressure .
• a third object of the present invention is to provide a water savable flush toilet having a water tank that can be employed to a conventional toilet bowl associated with a reversed U-shaped pipe.
• a water savable flush toilet including a sealed water tank provided with a water discharge hole opened and closed by a ball- shaped closure disposed therein, a portion of the water tank being connected to a water supply tube and the water discharge hole being formed in a funnel shape; an opening device for opening the water discharge hole by moving the ball-shaped closure, the opening device being disposed in a water discharge tube connected to the water discharge hole, a toilet bowl connected to the water discharge tube to receive the water and provided at a bottom with a water/filth discharge hole on which a magnet is installed, and a bowl closure connected to the opening means by a wire supported on a roller to be opened to discharge water/filth through the water/filth discharge hole and to be closed by the magnet.
• FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a water savable flush toilet according to a first embodiment of the present invention, illustrating a state before it is flushed;
• FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a water savable flush toilet depicted in FIG. 1, illustrating a state after it is flushed;
• FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a modified example of a discharge hole depicted in FIG. 1;
• FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a water tank according to another embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 5 is a schematic view illustrating an air pressure controller depicted in FIG. 4;
• FIGs. 6 to 8 are schematic views of a water savable flush toilet where a water tank depicted in FIG. 4 is employed according to a second embodiment of the present invention, illustrating operating states of the flush toilet;
• FIG. 9 is a schematic view of a toilet bowl seat according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
• FIGs. 1 and 2 show a water savable flush toilet according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
• the inventive flush toilet comprises a sealed water tank 110 provided with a water discharge hole 140 opened and closed by a ball-shaped closure 120 disposed therein, a portion of the water tank 110 being connected to a water supply tube 150 and the water discharge hole 140 being formed in a funnel shape; opening means for opening the water discharge hole 140 by moving the ball-shaped closure 120, the opening means being disposed in a water discharge tube 240 connected to the water discharge hole 140; a toilet bowl 310 connected to the water discharge tube 140 to receive the water and provided at a bottom with a water/filth discharge hole 320 on which a magnet 420 is installed; and a bowl closure 410 connected to the opening means by a wire supported on a roller 430 to be opened to discharge water/filth through the water/filth discharge hole 320 and to be closed by the magnet 420.
• the opening means comprise a pinion gear 210 on which an operating lever (flush lever) is installed; a rack gear 220 engaged with the pinion gear 210 and designed to ascend by the opening operation of the operating lever 211 to move the ball-shaped closure 120; and an elastic spring 230 compressed by the ascending of the rack gear 220 and expanding by the closing operation of the operating lever 211 to return the operating lever 211 to an initial position.
• the pinion gear 210, the rack gear 220, and the elastic spring 230 are disposed on a central portion of the water discharge tube, and a water discharge passage 250 is defined around the central portion.
• the water tank 110 is tightly sealed to prevent air from leaking when the water is supplied through the water supply tube 150, thereby forming air pressure as the air is compressed. This allows the toilet bowl 310 to be cleaned by a small amount of water, about 1-1.5-2.
• the toilet bowl 310 is integrally connected to a surplus water passage 330 to uniformly maintain a predetermined level in the toilet bowl 310 by discharging surplus water/filth when the water/filth is excessively supplied to the toilet bowl 310. That is, the surplus water passage 330 is provided to maintain a balance between an amount of supply water and an amount of discharge water/filth.
• the bowl closure 410 installed on the water/filth discharge hole 320 of the toilet bowl 310 is designed to pivot by a hinge 450 to open and close the water/filth discharge hole 320.
• a torsion spring is further installed on the hinge 450 to provide a returning force in addition to the magnetic force of the magnet 420.
• the wire connected to the bottom of the rack gear 220 is pulled by the rotation of the roller, thereby opening the closure 410.
• the ball-shaped closure 120 is separated from the water discharge hole 140, the water contained in the water tank 110 is discharged to the water discharge passage with a high pressure from the internal air/water pressure, and is then applied to the water stored in the toilet bowl 310.
• the closure 410 is opened, the water in the toilet bowl 310 is discharged with filth by dropping force.
• the bowl closure 410 closed by the magnet 420 is opened by the operating lever 211 operated by the user, thereby quickly discharging the water/filth using only dropping force. Even when the user releases force applied to the operating lever 211, the bowl closure 410 maintains the opened state to continuously discharge the water/filth. That is, the high water pressure discharged from the water tank 110 and applied to the toilet bowl 310 is greater than the magnetic force of the magnet 420, so the bowl closure 410 can maintain the opened state.
• the water pressure from the water tank is reduced to be lower than the magnetic force, after which the bowl closure 410 is closed and the wire is pulled to release the operating lever 211 secured by the elastic spring 230, and at the same time, the rack gear 220 moves downwards to return the operating lever 211 to the initial position.
• the ball-shaped closure 120 in the water tank 110 moves downward by gravity to block the water discharge hole 140.
• FIG. 3 shows a modified example of the water/filth discharge hole.
• a water/filth discharge hole of this example is extended from a central bottom of the toilet bowl 510 and bent in a direction so that water/filth pressure cannot be directly transmitted to the bowl closure 410.
• the reference numeral 520 in FIG. 3 indicates a surplus water passage.
• FIG. 4 shows a water tank according to another embodiment of the present invention.
• a water tank 1 of this embodiment is tightly sealed.
• a rubber packing 18 is installed on a water discharge hole 5 formed on a bottom of the water tank 1.
• an open/close device 3 with a closure part 2 is installed on the water tank 1.
• a weight 2a is installed on an inner-lower portion of the open/close device 3 so that the weight of the open/close device 3 can be directed downwards.
• a plurality of guides 4 for guiding a vertical movement of the open/close device 3 is vertically disposed on an outer wall of the open/close device 3.
• a water supply hole 14 formed spaced away from the water discharge hole 5 is connected to a water supply tube 15 to which a water supply valve 17 for controlling an amount of supply water and an air intake valve 16 for supplying air are connected.
• the water discharge hole 5 is connected to a water discharge tube 24, and an air pressure controller 6 is installed on an inner-upper portion of the water tank 1.
• the air pressure controller 6 comprises a cylindrical body with a hole 6a formed on a lower-sidewall of the body and an air discharge plate 7 formed on a middle portion of the body; a floating member 8 for opening and closing the air discharge plate 7, the floating member 8 being disposed below the air discharge plate 7 and provided with a plurality of grooves 8a and projections 8b; a shielding plate 9 disposed above the air discharge plate 7 with a spring 10 disposed on the shielding plate 9 and a depressing plate 11 disposed above the spring 10; and an adjusting screw 13 installed on a nut portion 12 fixed above the depressing plate 11 and provided with an air hole 12a for adjusting internal air pressure.
• a top of the air pressure controller 6 is covered by a cover 19 provided with an air hole 19a.
• the water tank 1 is connected to the toilet bowl 310 that is described above with reference to FIGs. 1 to 3.
• Opening means of this embodiment are identical to that described with reference to FIGs. 1 to 3.
• the open/close device 3 is designed such that the closure portion 2 can be oriented downwards by the weight 2a to close the water discharge hole by seating on the rubber packing 18 by water/air pressure as well as gravity.
• the water supply valve 17 for controlling an amount of water supplied to the water tank 1 and the air intake valve 16 are installed on the water supply tube 15 so as to uniformly maintain the water level and air pressure.
• an inverse-flow- preventing valve 14a Disposed on the water supply hole 14 is an inverse-flow- preventing valve 14a for preventing the water from inversely flowing to the water supply tube 15 even when the internal pressure of the water tank is increased to a predetermined level.
• a toilet seat 50 on which a user can sit is installed on the toilet bowl 31 by a hinge 54.
• An elastic tube 52 is installed on a bottom of the seat 50.
• the elastic tube 52 is formed of a rubber or silicon material so that the internal hollow portion thereof can be easily recovered even when it is compressed.
• the elastic tube 52 is designed to function as an air pump.
• the elastic tube 52 is divided into two halves along a shape of the seat 50.
• First check valves 55 are installed on distal ends of the two halves of the elastic tube 52.
• the two halves of the tube 52 are joined as a single tube behind the hinge 54.
• the single tube 52 is connected to an air injection pipe 52a by a second check valve 56.
• the air injection pipe 52a extends in the water tank such that a distal end thereof is disposed at a portion that is slightly higher than the low level B.
• a third check valve is installed on the distal end of the air injection pipe 52a.
• the elastic tube 52 When the user sits on the toilet seat 50, the elastic tube 52 is compressed to direct air to the air injection pipe 58a such that pressure in the air injection pipe 58a becomes higher than the internal air pressure of the water tank 1. As a result, air is injected from the air injection pipe 58a into the water tank 1 to increase the internal air pressure of the water tank 1. When the air is excessively supplied into the water tank 1, the amount of supply water may be reduced. In this case, the air pressure controller 6 is operated to maintain the internal air pressure to a predetermined level.
• Rubber packings 180, 260, and 460 are installed between the water discharge hole 5 and the closure portion 2, between the rack gear 220 and the water discharge passage 250, between the magnet 420 and the closure 410, and between the air injection pipe 52a and the water tank 1 so as to prevent water leakage.
• the open/close device 3 When the open/close device 3 is ascended by the opening means, .the water is discharged through the water discharge tube 24 to remove the water/filth in the toilet bowl. When the water/filth in the toilet bowl is removed, the open/close device is closed by the weight 2a and water is supplied to the water tank 1 through the water supply hole 16 while forming air pressure in the water tank 1.
• the shielding plate 9 blocks the air discharge plate 7 by the elastic force of the spring 10. That is, when the internal air pressure is greater than a predetermined level, when the water is discharged to the low level B, the shielding plate 9 is quickly pushed upwards to open the air discharge plate 7, thereby maintaining the air pressure at the predetermined level.
• the predetermined level of the internal air pressure can be adjusted by the adjusting screw 13 to vary the amount of supply/discharge water.
• the water savable flush toilet of the present invention requires 1-1.5-6 of water at the most for each use, while the conventional one requires 13-2 of water.
• the actual water saving effect is remarkably improved.
• the inventive water savable flush toilet can save water by reducing the discharging water by eliminating a reversed U-shaped pipe and by forming air pressure in a sealed water tank to increase water pressure.
• the water savable flush toilet has a water tank that can be employed to a conventional toilet bowl associated with a reversed U-shaped pipe.

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• Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Public Health (AREA)
• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Hydrology & Water Resources (AREA)
• Water Supply & Treatment (AREA)
• Aviation & Aerospace Engineering (AREA)
• Sanitary Device For Flush Toilet (AREA)
• Toilet Supplies (AREA)

Priority Applications (3)

Applications Claiming Priority (6)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=32045751

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (5)

Cited By (8)

Families Citing this family (12)

Citations (4)

• 2003
  • 2003-09-22 EP EP03798578A patent/EP1554440A1/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 2003-09-22 JP JP2005501955A patent/JP2006500496A/ja active Pending
  • 2003-09-22 AU AU2003263645A patent/AU2003263645A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2003-09-22 CN CN 03822792 patent/CN1685115A/zh active Pending
  • 2003-09-22 WO PCT/KR2003/001933 patent/WO2004029373A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation

Patent Citations (4)

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