Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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SANITARYWARE
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
THIS INVENTION relates to sanitaryware.
BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION
In prisons and other places where men and woman are incarcerated,
there is a substantial problem with sanitaryware. The prisoners break
porcelain and
the chips which break off can be used as weapons. Stainless steel is used to
overcome this problem, but it is expensive.
Few toilets or bidets in prisons have seats as these can be torn off and
used as weapons.
Furthermore, some religions, and more specifically the Moslem
religion, require the anal area of the toilet-user to be sprayed with water
after using
the toilet. Applicant is aware of devices which are built onto toilet bowls
and which
include spray nozzles and a tap for initiating a supply of water to the spray
nozzle.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a
method of manufacturing an article of sanitaryware, the method comprising
moulding
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a one piece ring-like seat, moulding a toilet bowl and adhering the underside
of the
seat to the top surface of the toilet bowl to form said article of
sanitaryware.
The bowl is preferably moulded in a number of sections and the
sections are adhered together to fabricate the toilet bowl.
The seat and bowl are preferably moulded in polymer concrete.
According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provided
an article of sanitaryware comprising a ring-like seat moulded in one piece, a
moulded toilet bowl having an inner surface and outer surface, said seat being
adhered to the top surface of the toilet bowl in such manner that it extends
inwardly
of the inner surface of the bowl to form an inner overhang and outwardly of
the outer
surface of the bowl to form an outer overhang.
The toilet bowl preferably comprises a number of moulded pieces
which are adhered together.
Said seat is preferably generally oval in plan view, the top surface of
the seat, when viewed in section, being rounded so that the inner and outer
peripheries of said top surface of the seat are below the part of said seat
which is
between said peripheries.
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The part of the seat which forms the outer overhang can have a bull-
nosed shape. To form a flush ring the seat can have a flange extending
downwardly
from the part of the seat which forms the inner overhang, the flange being
spaced
inwardly of said inner surface of the bowl.
To provide a wasting facility there can be a water inlet passage which
passes through said seat and a spray nozzle to which said passage leads.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
For a better understanding of the present invention, and to show how
the same may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of
example,
to the accompanying drawings in which:-
Figure 1 is a side elevation of a first embodiment of sanitaryware in the form
of a toilet bowl with an integral seat;
Figure 2 is a rear elevation of the toilet bowl and seat;
Figure 3 is a top plan view of the sanitaryware with inlet and outlet pipes
omitted;
Figure 4 is a top plan view of the bowl with the seat omitted;
Figure 5 is an underneath plan view of the seat;
Figure 6 is a section on the line IV-IV of Figure 5;
Figure 7 is a section, to a larger scale and showing the junction between the
seat and bowl;
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Figure 8 illustrates, to a larger scale, a portion of the toilet bowl and seat
and
shows water spraying means, and
Figure 9 illustrates part of the spraying means of Figure 8 to a still larger
scale.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The sanitaryware illustrated in Figures 1 to 7 is generally designated
and in the illustrated embodiment is constituted by a bowl 12 and a seat 14.
The bowl 12 can be moulded in a number of sections using a polymer
concrete. The reason for making the bowl 12 in sections is merely to
facilitate the
10 moulding procedure. In the preferred form, the bowl 12 is constructed using
two
moulded sections as will be described in more detail hereinafter.
The seat 14 is moulded in one piece. It has a protruding lip 16 around
most of its periphery. The seat 14 is thick compared to the plastic seats and
to the
wooden seats that are currently extensively used. The seat 14 is bonded to the
bowl 12 by adhesive. It is possible to obtain a bond that even a strong man
pulling
upwardly on the seat 14 cannot break. The seat 14 is thus, for all practical
purposes, integral with the bowl 12.
The configuration in longitudinal cross section is shown in Figure 6.
The water inlet is shown at 18 and the waste outlet at 20. The pipes leading
to and
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from the inlet and outlet are shown at 22 and 24 in Figure 1 but have been
omitted
from Figure 3.
The moulded sections constituting the bowl 12 are mirror images of
one another and are adhered to one another along the plane represented by the
line
5 A-A in Figure 2.
The moulding constituting the seat 14 (see Figure 3) has, in plan, the
form of a ring of generally oval shape and comprises a top surface which is
rounded
when viewed in section (see Figure 7). The rounded top surface is the one on
which
the user of the sanitaryware sits. Around the inner periphery of the hole in
the seat
moulding there is a depending flange 26. The underside of the seat moulding is
stepped at 28 and 30 thereby to define a groove 32 which extends most of the
way
around the seat (see Figure 5).
The upper edge of the bowl has a configuration such as to provide a
rib 34 which extends around most of the bowl. The upper edge of the bowl and
the
lower face of the seat co-operate as shown in Figure 7. More specifically the
rib 34
enters the groove 32, the inner vertical face 36 of the flange 26 and the
inner face
38 of the bowl defining a groove 40 which constitutes the flush ring of the
sanitaryware. It will be noted from Figure 6 that the inlet 18 communicates
with the
flush ring.
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The material used is preferably polymer concrete. The material known
as "solid surface" is also suitable. This latter material emerges from the
mould with
a rough surFace and can be polished to a high gloss.
An additional inlet pipe is shown at 42 and this is connected to the
bowl 12 via a shut-off valve 44 (Figure 8). A handle 46 is attached to the
valve 44
for manually opening and closing the valve 44.
The inlet pipe 42 extends through the seat 14 and into a recess 48
(Figure 9). The section of the pipe 42 that extends into the recess 48 has a
number
of holes 50 in the wall thereof to allow water in the pipe 42 to enter the
recess 48.
Within the recess 48, a disc 52 is fitted so that the disc 52 is flush with
the surface of
the seat. The disc 52 has upwardly-sloping bores 54 extending therethrough.
The
disc and bores form a spray nozzle.
Manual operation of the handle 46 opens the valve and allows water to
flow through the pipe 42. The water flows, via the holes 50, into the recess
48 and
is then directed upwardly towards the anal area of the toilet-user by means of
the
upwardly-sloping bores 54.
The pipe 42 is connected to the mains supply upstream of the cistern
(not shown) to which the pipe 24 is connected.
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A flow restrictor (not shown) can be provided in the pipe 42 to limit the
pressure in the recess 48 and thereby prevent water spraying too far.
As will be seen particularly in the sectional view, the top surface of the
seat is rounded so that the inner and outer peripheries of said top surface of
the seat
are below the part of the seat which is between the peripheries of the seat.
The shape of the outer overhang can be categorised as bull-nosed.
