PRESS FOR ASSEMBLING A FAUCET ASSEMBLY

PRESSE POUR ASSEMBLER UN ROBINET MELANGEUR

English Abstract

A press (100) for assembling a
faucet assembly (10) which comprises a
valve assembly (11, 12) having a flange
(32) with an abutment shoulder on its un-
derside, an underbody (80, 82) adapted
to threadedly receive the valve assembly,
faucet cover plate (70) having a flange
(74) with a central bore (76) adapted to
receive the valve assembly, the flange
having an annular seat (75) circumscrib-
ing the bore adjacent its open top end
and a rim, and a retainer washer (60)
adapted to be seated on the seat and
maintained in position on the seat by
the abutment shoulder of the valve as-
sembly. The press comprises a platen
(210) operatively connected to a spring
loaded pressure plate (200), and an inter-
nal cylinder (110, 130) and an external
cylinder (150, 170). The external cylin-
der has an axially extending central bore
(151) in which is disposed the internal
cylinder. The internal cylinder has an
axial bore (116) adapted to receive the
valve assembly. The internal cylinder
has a rim (114) and an annular retainer
washer abutment flange (153) on the rim.

French Abstract

L'invention concerne une presse (100) pour assembler un robinet mélangeur (10) comprenant une vanne (11, 12) ayant une bride (32) avec un épaulement d'appui sur son côté inférieur, des pièces inférieures (80, 82) agencées pour recevoir par vissage le robinet mélangeur, une plaque couvrante (70) de robinet ayant une bride (74) avec une ouverture centrale (76) agencée pour recevoir la vanne, la bride ayant un siège annulaire (75) entourant l'ouverture près de son extrémité supérieure ouverte et un bord, et une rondelle de retenue (60) agencée pour venir se placer sur le siège et être maintenue en position sur le siège par l'épaulement d'appui de la vanne. La presse comprend un plateau (210) relié physiquement à une plaque de pression (200) sollicitée par un ressort, un cylindre interne (110, 130) et un cylindre externe (150, 170). Le cylindre externe a un alésage axial et central (151) dans lequel est placé le cylindre interne. Le cylindre interne a un alésage axial (116) agencé pour recevoir la vanne. Le cylindre interne a un bord (114) et une bride d'appui (153) sur le bord pour la rondelle de retenue.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:
1. An improved press for assembling a faucet assembly
comprising a valve assembly including abutment means, underbody
adapted to threadedly receive one end of said valve assembly,
faucet cover plate having a flange with a bore therethrough
adapted to receive at least the other end of said valve assembly,
said flange having an annular seat circumscribing said bore
adjacent its top end and a rim, and a retainer washer adapted to
be seated on said seat and maintained in position on said seat
by said abutment means, said press comprising a platen
operatively connected to a spring loaded pressure plate, the
improvement comprising:
at least one internal cylinder having a bore extending
axially therethrough adapted to receive at least said other end
of said valve assembly, a rim, and retainer washer abutment means
on said rim; and
at least one hollow external cylinder having a central bore
disposed over said internal cylinder, said external cylinder
having abutment means adapted to abut against the rim of said
flange, said external cylinder being vertically movable relative
to said internal cylinder.
2. The press of claim 1 wherein said internal cylinder is fixed
against vertical movement.
3. The press of claim 1 wherein said external cylinder is
biased vertically upwardly by upwardly biasing means.
4. The press of claim 3 wherein said biasing means comprise
spring means.
5. The press of claim 3 wherein said internal cylinder contains
means for limiting the upward movement of the external cylinder.

6. The press of claim 5 wherein said means for limiting upward
movement of the external cylinder comprise an external shoulder
on said internal cylinder cooperating with an internal shoulder
in the central bore of said external cylinder.
7. The press of claim 1 wherein said retainer washer abutment
means comprises an annular flange.
8. The press of claim 7 wherein said annular flange has a
triangular shape.

Description

CA 02163127 1998-10-28
PRESS FOR ASSEMBLING A FAUCET ASSEMBLY
Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a tool, particularly a press, for
mounting a valve assembly in a faucet cover plate.
Background of the Invention
Valve assemblies comprised of bonnets and stems and their
use with plastic cover plates or escutcheons are known and are
disclosed, for example, in U.S. Patent No. 3,789,870. However,
the conventional means for mounting these valve assemblies to
plastic cover plates are generally unsatisfactory because they
produce excessive strains and stresses on the cover plate. These
l0 stresses and strains sometimes result in cracking of the cover
plate. Furthermore, the conventional means for mounting these
valve assemblies are inefficient in production as they require
the use of threaded hold down rings which require special
attention to reduce cross threading. Eliminating these rings
traditionally would have meant either a loose escutcheon or
excessive stresses and strains which could lead to cracking of
the cover.
A new means of mounting valve assemblies to plastic cover
plates without producing the excessive stress and strain of
20 conventional mounting systems is disclosed in PCT application
entitled "Compression Cartridge" filed March 25, 1994. The
instant invention is directed to a tool, specifically a press,
for assembling the valve assemblies and the faucet cover plate.
Summary of the Invention
The instant invention provides a tool, specifically a press,
for assembling a compression cartridge or valve assembly to a
plastic faucet cover plate. The press is specifically adapted to
mount an annular split retaining washer in an annular seat in the
interior of a valve assembly receiving flange in the cover plate.
30 When assembled the retaining washer is forced against the seat by
a shoulder formed on the underside of a flange in the bonnet of
68432-213

CA 02163127 1998-10-28
1a
the valve assembly. The press includes an internal piston or
ring insertion punch and an external piston or ring containment
shroud surrounding the internal piston. The split
68432-213

WO 95/268f7 . ~.- : '. . f j j '~ PCT/US94/03506
2
retaining ring is placed on the internal piston and is retained
in position by the external piston. The top of the valve
assembly which is inserted in and extends through the valve
assembly receiving flange in the cover plate, is brought into
contact with the retaining ring. The retaining ring.,is flexed, '
forced over the top of the valve assembly, particularly the
bonnet, and is seated in the annular seat in the interior of the
valve assembly receiving flange in the cover plate:
grief Description of the Drawincts .-
Figure 1 is an exploded bottom perspective view showing the
main component parts of a faucet which is assembled in accordance
with the present invention;
Figure 2 is a partial rear perspective view showing the
valve assembly assembled with the faucet cover plate and the
retaining washer ready to be installed;
Figure 3 is a front elevational view of the press of the
present invention used to assemble the faucets;
Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along lines 4-4 of Figure
3;
Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 3 except that the
faucet is mounted in the press and the press is in the down
position;
Figure 6 is a sectional view taken along lines 6-6 of Figure
5;
Figure 7 is a partial side elevational view in section of
the valve assembly mounted in the cover plate; and
Figure 8 is a rear elevational view partially in section of
the assembled faucet.
Description of the Preferred Embodiments
Referring to Figs. 1 and 8 there is illustrated a mixing
faucet assembly 10 having a pair of spaced apart valve assemblies ,
11 and 12. Valve assemblies 11 and 12 are generally identical.
Since both valve assemblies are generally identical only one will
be described in detail. One valve assembly is disposed in
underbody 80 while the other valve assembly is disposed in
underbody 82. One valve assembly controls the flow of hot water
while the other controls the flow of cold water. Each underbody
80, 82 has a central passageway 84 extending therethrough and is

WO 95/26857 ~ 1 x:3.12 <<7: ~ PCT/US94/03506
3
provided with an externally threaded portion 86. Central
passageway 84 has an internally threaded portion 85 adjacent its
top end. A waterway 94 connects the two underbodies. A spout
tube 95 is connected to waterway 94. The underbodies 80, 82 have
port means 87 comprising an aperture which communicates with
waterway 90. Underbodies 80, 82 also have valve seats 88
disposed in passageway 84.
The valve assemblies 11 and 12 are inserted through openings
76 in flanges 74 in plastic faucet cover plate 70 and are fixed
therein by snap or interference fit. The cover plate 70
comprises a top wall 71 and side wall 72. A snap-in bottom
closure member 73, also made of plastic, is provided. The cover
plate 70 has upstanding flanges 74 adapted to receive the valve
assemblies. Flanges 74 have internal annular seats 75 and rims
79. Annular seats 75 circumscribe openings 76 in flanges 74
through which the valve assemblies 11, 12 are inserted. Annular
seats 75 are adapted to receive split retaining washer 60.
Washer 60 is comprised of a suitable plastic material, preferably
an engineering resin or resin blend such as Celcon. The washer
60 is designed to flex slightly thereby relieving the load on the
cover 70 insofar as the washer is placed in shear. Washer 60 has
a radially extending slit 62 to facilitate installation over the
bonnet 14.
The valve assemblies 11, 12 comprise a hollow bonnet 14
having a central bore in which is axially movably disposed a stem
40. The bonnet is externally threaded adjacent its bottom edge.
These external threads engage internally threaded portion 85 of
underbody 80 to threadably secure bonnet 14 to underbody 80.
The bonnet 14 has an annular raised section 30 having a
larger outer diameter than the diameter of the relatively smooth
section 3.1 immediately below raised section 30. A
circumferentially extending abutment means or flange 32 is
provided immediately above raised section 30. The flange 32 has
a shoulder 33 formed in the lower surface thereof. The outer
surface of flange 32 is beveled from top toward bottom having a
smaller outer diameter at the top and a larger outer diameter at
the bottom. This outer shape, of flange 32 facilitates the
mounting of the retaining washer 60 over the bonnet 14. The

WO 95!26857
PCT/US94/03506
4
shoulder 33, as best illustrated in Fig. 7, abuts against
retaining washer 60, sandwiching it between seat 75, and shoulder
33, to keep cover 70 secured to the deck of a sink.or the like. '
Stem 40 has a valve disc 41 at the lower end thereof and a
handle receiving means, such as a spline 43, at the upper end '
thereof . The valve disc 41 is preferably comprised of a flexible
sealing material such as rubber and is disposed in a valve disc
housing 48. The valve disc 41 is brought into sealing engagement
with valve seat 88 in underbody 80.
A handle is conventionally received on spline 43 of stem 40
by engagement of its cylindrical hub with the spline and is
retained thereon with the aid of a screw 52.
The stem 40 also has a threaded portion 44 below the spline
43 adapted to engage an internally threaded portion in the bore
of the bonnet 14. Rotation of the stem 40 in bonnet 14 moves the
stem axially (up or down depending upon the direction of
rotation) in bonnet 14.
In the assembled state the valve bodies and underbodies are
secured to the cover plate 70 by snap or interference fit and the
bottom closure member 73 is snap fit to the bottom of the cover
plate 70. The retaining washer 60 is disposed intermediate the
annular seat 75 in the upstanding flange 74 and the shoulder 33
of flange 32. Shoulder 33 abuts washer 60 and forces it against
seat 75. This locks or secures the cover plate 70 to a deck of
a faucet or the like.
The press 100 is, with the exception of the internal pistons
110, 130 and external pistons 150, 170, of conventional and well
known construction. It includes a spring 220 loaded pressure
plate 200 having a pair of grooves 201, 202 adapted to receive
the underbodies 80, 82 as illustrated in Fig. 5, and a platen
210. Plate 200 and platen 210 are vertically movable. ,
The external pistons 150, 170 are biased upwardly by spring
means 180 and move vertically with respect to internal pistons
110, 130 which are fixed against movement in the vertical
direction. External pistons 150, 170 and internal pistons 110,
130 are identical and, therefore, only one of each will be
described in detail.

PCT/US94/03506
WO 95/26857 216 312 7
4 f-.
t .", r. ; (_'
External piston 150 has a central bore 151 extending axially
therethrough. Bore 151 has shoulder 152 adapted to engage the
underside of abutment surface or external shoulder 112 of
internal cylinder ll0 in order to limit the vertically upward
movement of external piston 150. The bore 151 has an area of
greater internal diameter 153 forming second shoulder 154 at the
top end. H~etween shoulder l52 and shoulder 155 is an area 154
of intermediate internal diameter. This area 153, as illustrated
in Fig. 4, is adapted to receive washer 60 and retain it in place
over the mounting flange 115 on the top rim 114 of internal
piston 110.
Internal piston 110 has a central bore 116 adapted to
receive, as best illustrated in Fig. 6, top sections of stem 40
and bonnet 14.
To assemble the faucet the valve assemblies 11 and 12 are
first threadedly secured to the underbodies 80, 82. The valve
assemblies il, 12 are then inserted into the openings 76 in
flange 74 and snap fit thereto. The assembled valve assemblies
11, 12, underbodies 80, 81, faucet cover plate 70 and bottom
closure member 73 are placed upside down in the press 100, as
best illustrated in Fig. 5. The underbodies 80, 82 are disposed
in grooves 201, 202. The retaining washers 60 are placed on the
annular washer mounting flanges 115 on the rims 114 of internal
pistons 110. The annular washer mounting flanges 115 are beveled
toward the top to form an inverted V-shape or a triangular shape.
The washers 60 are restrained against lateral movement by washer
containment area 153 in external pistons 150. The valve
assemblies 11, 12, as best illustrated in Fig. 6, are inserted
into bore 116 of internal piston 110. With the valve assembly
11 inserted into bore 116 the rims 79 of flanges 74 abut against
shoulder 154 of external piston 150. Upon downward movement of
platen 210 the rims 79 of flanges 74 are forced downwardly
against the shoulder 154 thereby forcing external piston in a
downward direction, indicated by the arrows in Fig. 6.
The dawnward movement of external piston 150 and of the
valve assembly 11 results in flexing of washer 60, as illustrated
in Fig. 6. This flexing allows washer 60 to slip over flange 32
of bonnet 14, and to be seated in seat 75. With washer 60

WO 95!26857 ~ . PCT/US94/03506
s
6
sandwiched between seat 75 and the underside of flange 32 the
valve assembly 11 is locked to the faucet cover plate 70.
Upon downward movement of platen 210 the pressure plate 200,
which is connected to platen 210, also moves downwaraly.
Pressure plate 200 presses upon bottom closure member 73 and
forces it into the bottom of faucet cover ~~:plate 70 thereby
securing it, via interference fit, to the faucet cover plate 70.
Internal piston 130 is mounted on mounting 190 and can be
moved laterally to ensure that the valve assemblies 11, 12 are
properly centered in bores 116.

Representative Drawing