Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to ventilating apparatus and more particularly to
apparatus for
venting noxious odours from within the bowl of a toilet.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Noxious odours from a toilet are usually removed by means of a exhaust fan
mounted in
the ceiling or wall of a bathroom. The fan directs the malodorous air into a
duct where the air
flows to an opening in an exterior wall and discharges into the atmosphere.
Such fans commonly
activate when a door is opened or a light in the bathroom is turned on.
A shortcoming of an exhaust fan for this purpose is that the malodorous air
must leave
the toilet bowl and enter the bathroom before it can be removed by the fan.
Thus the fan only
exhausts odours from the room and not directly from the toilet. If the toilet
is only occasionally
used, an exhaust fan is usually suitable for ridding a bathroom of unpleasant
odours but if the
toilet is in constant use, the fan may be only marginally effective in doing
so.
Another shortcoming of an exhaust fan is that it tends to be become
increasingly noisy as
it ages. Such fans tend to be left running for long periods of time and are
particularly bothersome
to persons who occupy rooms adjacent to the bathroom where the fan is running.
Examples of various means for removing noxious odours from a toilet are to be
found in
the following U.S. patents: no. 6,983,491; 5,715,543; 6,823,532; 3,735,429;
6,588,025;
6,795,980; and 6,701,538,
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SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
I have invented an apparatus for removing noxious odours from a toilet that
has few, if
any, of the shortcomings of many known odour-eliminating devices. My apparatus
removes the
odours within the toilet and before the odours can foul the air surrounding
the toilet. Further-
more, the apparatus of my invention makes little or no noise in the vicinity
of the toilet. Any
noise occurs at a location remote from the toilet such as in a cellar where
the noise is not
bothersome to persons who are near the bathroom where the toilet is located.
Briefly, the apparatus of my invention includes a duct which extends from the
overflow
pipe of a conventional toilet to a location remote from the toilet. A control
valve controls the
flow of air from the overflow pipe to the duct. The control valve opens when
the level of water
within the water closet of the toilet is above a predetermined value and
closes when the level is
below that value. The apparatus includes means for causing air within the duct
to flow with
resulting evacuation of air from within the toilet bowl and discharge thereof
at the remote
location. Means is also provided for preventing the air from flowing within
the duct at times
when the toilet bowl is being flushed.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS & PHOTOGRAPHS
The ventilating apparatus of the invention is described with reference to the
accompanying drawings and photographs in which:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a conventional toilet;
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Figure 2 is a perspective view of the upper rim of a conventional toilet bowl;
Figure 3 is a perspective view of a water closet of a conventional toilet;
Figure 4 is a perspective view of the water closet and ventilating apparatus
of the
invention;
Figures 5 and 6 are other perspective views of the water closet and venting
apparatus;
Figure 7 is a perspective view of a compartment for the venting apparatus
together with a
conventional toilet; and
Figure 8 is a schematic illustration of the interior of the control valve.
Like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the description of
the drawings
and photographs.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION
Figure 1 illustrates a conventional toilet which has a bowl 10 and a water
closet 12. Water
within the water closet is used to flush the bowl as is conventional. In
Figure 2 the bowl has a
rim 14 which bounds an upwardly opening mouth 16. A tubular passageway 18 is
formed in the
rim for receipt of water from the water closet. Water in the passageway
discharges into the bowl
through a number of downwardly opening nozzles 20 which are spaced along the
length of the
passageway.
With reference to Figure 3 a flush valve assembly 30 is actuated by a handle
32 on the
outer wall of the water closet. Actuation of the assembly opens a stopper plug
34 over a
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discharge tube 36 thereby allowing water to flow from the water closet to
passageway 18 (Figure
2).
Fresh water enters the water closet through pipe 40. The flow of the water is
controlled by
an inlet valve 42. The valve in turn is controlled by a float 44 which causes
the water to fill the
water closet. When the water closet is filled to a predetermined level, the
float prevents further
water from flowing into the water closet. An overflow tube 46 bypasses the
flush assembly and
empties any excess water into the toilet bowl if the inlet valve fails to shut
off. A refill tube 48
serves to provide a passage for water to flow into the toilet bowl for a
period after flushing to
maintain a waterlock in the drain trap so that sewer gas cannot enter the
toilet.
With reference to Figures 4 - 6 and 8, a control valve, generally 50, is
mounted within a
housing 51 and the housing is seated on the top of the overflow tube 46. As
illustrated in Figure
8, the housing is composed of two compartments, an upper compartment 50a and a
lower
compartment 50b. The two compartments are separated by a partition 52. The
lower
compartment is air-tight except for the openings described below.
There is an opening 53a at the top of the upper compartment, a second opening
53b at the
bottom of the lower compartment and a third opening 53c in the side wall of
the lower compart-
ment. There is also an opening 54 in the partition and a ball float 55 is
seated in that opening.
Tabs 55a allow the float to move freely vertically up and down but not
sideways.
The float normally prevents the passage of water and air through the opening
unless there
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is excess water in the water closet resulting from the failure of the inlet
valve to shut off. In such
event, the excess water in the water enters the upper compartment through
opening 53a and lifts
the float. There is then an open passage for the excess water to flow into the
lower compartment
and to discharge through the lower opening 53b.
The lower opening opens into a downwardly extending conduit 56 into which the
upper
portion of overflow tube 46 extends. Accordingly, excess water in the water
closet flows into the
housing and exits through conduit 56 and the overflow tube.
Opening 53c on the side wall of the housing is in registry with the opening of
a duct 60.
The duct extends to a conventional vacuum cleaner 62 such as a central vacuum
cleaner in the
building in which the toilet is located.
The operation of the ventilating apparatus of the invention is as follows:
When the toilet
is not in use, ball float 55 of the control valve is seated on the opening in
partition 52 of the
control valve. Should the inlet valve malfunction, excess water in the water
closet will lift float
55 so that excess water will flow into the upper compartment, through the
lower compartment
and discharge into the overflow tube.
When the toilet is in use, the vacuum cleaner can be activated by throwing a
switch 64.
The switch is located in the vicinity of the toilet for ready access by the
user of the toilet. At this
time, air, contaminated by noxious odours in the toilet bowl, will be sucked
out of the bowl, will
flow upwardly through the overflow tube, through the lower opening 53b of the
control
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valve and into the lower compartment. From there, the air will flow into the
duct and will flow
through the duct and be released into the atmosphere far from the vicinity of
the toilet. Float 55
will be sucked downward and will firmly close opening 54 and thereby prevent
the air from
flowing into the upper compartment.
Before the toilet is flushed, the vacuum cleaner must be turned off because if
it does
operate at this time, water from the toilet, and not air, will be sucked
through duct 60 by the
vacuum cleaner. This is obviously undesirable.
Activation of the vacuum cleaner can occur automatically by various means. A
sensor
may be used to detect the flow of water from the water closet to the bowl of
the toilet. When the
toilet is flushed, the sensor detects the flow of water and opens a switch
thereby de-activating the
vacuum cleaner. Later, when the sensor detects no further movement of water,
it causes the
switch to close and thereby re-activates the vacuum cleaner. Other means for
the automatic
activation of the vacuum cleaner will readily occur to those familiar with
electrical apparatus.
A fan can be used instead of a vacuum cleaner to cause the air to move. The
fan is
mounted within the duct and causes the air within the duct to move in the same
way as the
vacuum cleaner does.
With reference to Figure 7, a box 70 is interposed between the water closet 72
and the lid
74 of the toilet. The duct enters the water closet through an opening in the
box and not through
the water closet or the lid. The box can be used where the venting apparatus
of the subject
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invention is to used in conjunction with an existing toilet. Where the box is
used, no modificat-
ions need be made in either the water closet or the lid of the toilet.
Installation of the venting
apparatus involves simply removing the lid of the toilet, inserting box 70 and
attaching the
control valve within the box to the overflow tube of the existing toilet, then
placing the lid over
the box.
It will be understood that modifications can be made in the structure of the
ventilating
apparatus of the subject invention without departing from the scope of the
invention as defined
by the appended claims.
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