COMPRESSION CARTRIDGE

CARTOUCHE DE COMPRESSION

English Abstract

A means for mounting a valve assembly in a plastic faucet cover plate and for securing said plate to a deck of a sink. The means
comprise an annular seat (75) formed inside of a flange (74) in the cover plate (70) in which the valve is disposed, a plastic split annular
retaining washer (60) adapted to be seated on said annular seat, and an annular flange (32) having an abutting surface on the bonnet (14)
of said valve assembly (11) adapted to abut against the top of the retaining washer and press it against the seat when the valve assembly
is inserted into the flange of the cover plate. The bonnet (14) also has improved sealing means comprised of an annular flange (21) having
an undercut in its bottom into which is inserted a sealing member such as an O-ring (24). The sealing member is encapsulated on three
sides by the material forming the bonnet.

French Abstract

L'invention concerne un moyen pour monter un ensemble obturateur dans une plaque de recouvrement en plastique d'un robinet et pour fixer ladite plaque sur le dessus d'un évier. Le moyen présenté comporte un siège annulaire (75) formé à l'intérieur d'une bride (74) de la plaque de recouvrement (70) dans laquelle on place l'obturateur, une rondelle de retenue annulaire fendue en plastique (60), formée pour venir reposer sur ledit siège annulaire, et un rebord annulaire (32) ayant une surface d'appui sur le chapeau (14) dudit ensemble obturateur (11) agencée pour venir en appui contre le haut de la rondelle de retenue et la presser contre le siège lorsque l'ensemble obturateur est inséré dans le rebord de la plaque de recouvrement. Le chapeau (14) comporte également un moyen d'étanchéité amélioré constitué d'un rebord annulaire (21) ayant une partie découpée et en creux dans sa face inférieure. Un élément d'étanchéité tel qu'un joint torique (24) vient se placer dans cette partie en creux. L'élément d'étanchéité est tenu sur trois côtés par le matériau formant le chapeau.

Claims

CLAIMS
1. An improved valve and cover plate construction comprising:
an underbody having an axial bore,
a top edge,
a valve seat below said top annular edge, and
a valve assembly comprising a hollow bonnet and a stem
movably disposed in said bonnet,
a valve disc disposed at the bottom of said stem adapted to
cooperate with said valve seat to regulate the fluid flow through
said valve seat,
said bonnet being fixedly disposed in said axial bore and
said stem axially movable in said bonnet,
the improvement comprising said bonnet having an annular
flange extending circumferentially therearound, said flange
having an undercut therein and a sealing element disposed in said
undercut, said undercut being generally U-shaped and forming a
downwardly extending outer rim having an undersurface on the
radially outer edge of said flange adapted to sealingly engage
at least a portion of said top annular edge of said underbody,
and said cover plate having at least one flange having an opening
therethrough adapted to receive said valve assembly, said flange
having an annular seat circumscribing said opening and adapted
to seat a retaining ring.
2. The construction of claim 1 wherein said sealing element is
an O-ring.
3. The construction of claim 1 wherein said cover plate is
comprised of plastic.
4. The construction of claim 1 wherein said retaining ring is
split.
5. The construction of claim 4 wherein said bonnet has a second
annular flange having an abutment surface on the bottom thereof.

6. The construction of claim 5 wherein said retaining ring is
pressed against said annular seat by said abutment surface.
7. The construction of claim 6 wherein said second flange has
an inclined outer surface to facilitate said retaining ring being
pushed downwardly over said second flange.

Description

~ WO95/259]18 2 i ~ 3~ 3 1 ~ PCT~Sg4/03200
COMPRESSION CARTRIDGE
Field of the Invention
This invention relates to valve assemblies for faucets and
the like and to means for mounting said assemblies to cover
plates or escutcheons, particularly those made of plastic.
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
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.
The present invention provides a means of mounting valve
assemblies to plastic cover plates without the production of
excessive stresses and strains of conventional mounting systems.
Furthermore, the instant invention also permits the snap fit
assembly of the underbodies, cover plate, and retAining washer
after the underbody assembly has been suitably tested for
leakage.
Summary of the Invention
The instant invention provides a valve assembly comprised
of a bonnet and stem having sealing means comprised of a
circumferentially extending flange on the bonnet. The flange has
an undercut providing a generally U-shaped space into which is
inserted a sealing member such as an o-ring. The sealing member
is encapsulated in this U-shaped space and is surrounded on three
sides by the metal of the flange.
The instant invention further provides an improved means for
mounting the valve assembly to a plastic cover plate and
simultaneously securing the cover plate to the deck of a faucet

' ' " PCT1~594/03200 ~
or the like. The improved means comprises an annular split
retaining washer which is dispose~d in an annular seat in the
interior of a valve assembly re~e~iying flange in the cover plate.
The ret~i ni ng washer is forced against the seat by a shoulder
formed on the underside of a flange in the bonnet. The cover
plate is thus secured to the deck of a sink or the like.
Brief DescriPtion of the Drawings
Figure 1 is a rear elevational view partially in section of
the assembled valve assembly and cover plate;
Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view of the valve
assembly, retaining ring, and part of the cover plate;
Figure 3 is a side elevational view in section of the valve
assembly comprised of the bonnet and stem; and
Figure 4 is a partial side elevational view in section of
the valve assembly mounted in the cover plate.
Description of the Preferred Embodiment
Referring to Fig. 1 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 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 communicate with waterway 90.
Underbodies 80, 82 also have valve seats 88 disposed in
passageway 84.
The valve assembly 11 includes a hollow bonnet 14 having a
central bore 15 which has an internally threaded portion 16
adjacent its top end 17. The bore 15 has a relatively smooth
portion 18 beneath the threaded portion 16 for reception of an
O-ring 42.

'~'1 '6323"1
WO95/25918 ~PCT~S91~'~32~
~ 5
The bonnet 14 has external threads 19 adjacent its bottom
end. These external threads~engage internally threaded portion
85 of underbody 80 to threadea~ly secure bonnet 14 in underbody
80. A flange 20 extends circ~mferentially around the exterior
of bonnet 14. The flange 20 contains an undercut 21 which forms
downwardly ext~n~ing outer rim 22 of the flange having an
undersurface 23. A flexible sealing element 24 such as an 0-ring
is disposed in undercut 21. This sealing element 24 is thus
encapsulated on the top and both sides.
When the bonnet 14 is fully screwed into the underbody 80
the sealing element 24 forms a seal with the top annular edge 89
of underbody 80. Furthermore, as best seen in Fig. 4, the
undersurface 23 of rim 22 abuts tightly against the top annular
edge 89 thereby also forming a seal with top annular edge 89.
The bonnet 14 also has an annular raised section 30 having
a larger outer diameter than the diameter of the relatively
smooth section 31 immediately below raised section 30. A
circumferentially ext~n~;ng 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 on the bonnet 14. The
shoulder 33, as more fully described infra, abuts against
retaining washer 60 to keep cover 70 secured to the deck of a
sink or the like.
A 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 internally threaded portion 16 of bore 15

WO95/~5~18 PCT~$94/03200
2 1 6 3 2 3 ~
of the bonnet 14. An O-ring 42 is disposed in an annular recess
45 formed by two axially spaced apart annular ridges 46 and 47.
The ridges 46, 47 are located intermediate valve disc housing 48
and threaded portion 44. .~
In assembly of the valve assembl ~ ~ the o-ring 42 is placed
on stem 40 and the bonnet 14 is then s h pped over splined end 43.
The bonnet 14 and stem 4 0 are assembled by engagement of the
threads of the externally threaded portion 44 of stem 40 with the
threads of the internally threaded portion 16 of bonnet 14.
Axial movement of stem 4 0 in the bonnet 14 is accomplished by
rotation of the stem 40. Axially downward movement of stem 40
results in valve disc 41 sealing engaging valve seat 88 thereby
shutting off the flow of water. Axially upward movement of stem
40 in bonnet 14 and in underbody 80 disengages valve disc 41 from
valve seat 88 thereby allowing the flow of water through valve
seat 88. Figure 1 illustrates the valve in the closed position
with the stem 40 in the fully extended down position while Figure
4 illustrates the valve in the open position with the stem 41 in
a fully up or retracted position.
The escutcheon or cover plate 70, preferably made of
plastic, comprises a top wall 71 and slde walls 72. A snap-in
bottom closure member 73, preferably made of plastic, is
provided. To receive an individual valve assembly 11 the cover
70 has upstanding flanges 74 having an internal annular seat 75
adapted to receive split retaining washer 60. Annular seat 75
circumscribes opening 76.
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 enable removal and
installation onto the bonnet 14. In the installation of the
valve assembly 11 in cover plate 70 washer 60 is slipped over the
top of bonnet 14 and over flange 32. The valve assembly 11 with
the washer thereon is inserted through the opening 76 in flange
74 with the bonnet 14 being screwed into underbody 80 which is
attached, such as by snap or interference fit, to cover 70. As
the bonnet is screwed into underbody 80 shoulder 33 of flange 32

~ WO95/25918 2 1 6 323 t PCT~594/03200
abuts washer 60 which is seated in seat 75 and forces it against
seat 75. This locks or secures the cover plate 70 to the deck.
. ~ .
,.., ,: . _
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Representative Drawing