Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
FAUCET CONNECTING STRUCTURE
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a faucet connecting structure.
Description of the Prior Art
An outlet pipe and a body of a conventional facet are fitted with each
other and then welded together, however a welding connection will generate
weld craters to be ground and polished further, have poor appearance and high
production cost.
To solve above-mentioned defects, an improved connecting method is
developed to control a working precision of a connection of the outlet pipe
and
the body of the conventional facet Nevertheless, such an improved connecting
method of the outlet pipe and the body has to be kept at a certain connecting
precision so as to connect the outlet pipe and the body well, having high
production cost.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the
afore-described disadvantages.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a faucet connecting structure which is
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
capable of overcoming the shortcomings of the conventional faucet connecting
structure.
The present invention provides a faucet connecting structure in which
the engaging member is used to connect the body and the outlet pipe together
without using a welding method so as to enhance aesthetics appearance and to
facilitate disassembly.
Further, the present invention provides a faucet connecting structure in
which the engaging member is forced to deform flexibly so as to eliminate a
slit
between the body and the outlet pipe and to connect the body and the outlet
pipe
tightly, therefore a working precision of related components for matching with
the body and the outlet pipe are lowered to decrease production cost.
The present invention further provides a faucet connecting structure in
which the retaining means serves to retain the outlet pipe on the engaging
member so that the outlet pipe do not vibrate and is prevented from moving and
rotating axially relative to the body, thus connecting the outlet pipe and the
body
together securely..
To obtain this, a faucet connecting structure provided by the present
invention comprises
a body including a chamber, and the chamber including a receiving
2
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
trench disposed on a top end thereof, the receiving trench including an
opening
mounted on a top end thereof;
an outlet pipe including an inlet end to input water and an outlet end to
output water, and the inlet end including a connector to be inserted into the
receiving trench from the opening of the body, the connector including a first
recess formed thereon;
an engaging member made of flexible material and including a
peripheral fringe, an inner surface formed on an inner side of the peripheral
fringe, an outer surface arranged on an outer side of the peripheral fringe, a
first
and a second ends disposed on two ends of the peripheral fringe respectively,
a
slot axially extending from the first end to the second end and allowing to be
expanded resiliently and then recovery its original shape, the inner and the
outer
surfaces including at least one first deformable area and at least one second
deformable area respectively to generate a radial-direction deformation when
being forced in a radial direction so as to act against a radial-direction
engaging
force resulting from connecting the first engaging member and body together;
a retaining means to retain the engaging member and the body together
so that the outlet pipe is limited to move and rotate axially relative to the
body.
According to an aspect of the invention, there is provided a faucet
connecting structure comprising: a body including a chamber, and the chamber
including a receiving trench disposed on a top end thereof, the receiving
trench
3
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
including an opening mounted on a top end thereof; an outlet pipe including an
inlet end to input water and an outlet end to output water, and the inlet end
including a connector to be inserted into the receiving trench from the
opening
of the body, the connector including a first recess formed thereon; an
engaging
4
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
to swing inward as being forced and to engage with the body by using the post.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing the assembly of an engaging
member of a faucet connecting structure according to a first embodiment of the
present invention;
Fig. 2 is a top plan view showing the assembly of the engaging member
of the faucet connecting structure according to the first embodiment of the
present invention;
Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the exploded components of the
faucet connecting structure according to the first embodiment of the present
invention;
Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view showing a part of the assembly of the
engaging member of the faucet connecting structure according to the first
embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 5 is another cross sectional view showing a part of the assembly of
the engaging member of the faucet connecting structure according to the first
embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 6 is another cross sectional view showing a part of the assembly of
the engaging member of the faucet connecting structure according to the first
5
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 7 is a plan view showing first and second deformable areas of the
engaging member being forced to deform according to the first embodiment of
the present invention;
Fig. 8 is a perspective view showing the assembly of the faucet
connecting structure according to the first embodiment of the present
invention;
Fig. 9 is a perspective view showing the assembly of an engaging
member of a faucet connecting structure according to a second embodiment of
the present invention;
Fig. 10 is a top plan view showing the assembly of the engaging
member of the faucet connecting structure according to the second embodiment
of the present invention;
Fig. 11 is a perspective view showing the exploded components of the
faucet connecting structure according to the second embodiment of the present
invention;
Fig. 12 is a cross sectional view showing a part of the assembly of the
engaging member of the faucet connecting structure according to the second
embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 13 is another cross sectional view showing a part of the assembly
6
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
of the engaging member of the faucet connecting structure according to the
second embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 14 is a plan view showing first and second deformable areas of the
engaging member being forced to deform according to the second embodiment
of the present invention;
Fig. 15 is a perspective view showing the assembly of the faucet
connecting structure according to the second embodiment of the present
invention;
Fig. 16 is a perspective view showing the assembly of an engaging
member of a faucet connecting structure according to a third embodiment of the
present invention;
Fig. 17 is a top plan view showing the assembly of the engaging
member of the faucet connecting structure according to the third embodiment of
the present invention;
Fig. 18 is a cross sectional view showing a part of the assembly of the
engaging member of the faucet connecting structure according to the third
embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 19 is another cross sectional view showing a part of the assembly
of the engaging member of the faucet connecting structure according to the
third
7
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 20 is a plan view showing first and second deformable areas of the
engaging member being forced to deform according to the third embodiment of
the present invention;
Fig. 21 is a perspective view showing the assembly of an engaging
member of a faucet connecting structure according to a fourth embodiment of
the present invention;
Fig. 22 is a cross sectional view showing the assembly of the engaging
member of the faucet connecting structure according to the fourth embodiment
of the present invention;
Fig. 23 is a cross sectional view showing a part of the assembly of the
engaging member of the faucet connecting structure according to the fourth
embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 24 is a cross sectional view showing first and second defonnable
areas of the engaging member being forced to deform according to the fourth
embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
The present invention will be clearer from the following description
when viewed together with the accompanying drawings, which show, for
8
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
purpose of illustrations only, the preferred embodiment in accordance with the
present invention.
Referring to Figs. 1-3 and 8, a faucet connecting structure according to
a first embodiment of the present invention comprises an engaging member 10,
a body 20, and an outlet pipe 30, wherein the engaging member 10 is made of
flexible material, and the flexible material is selected from rubber and
plastics,
and the engaging member 10 includes a peripheral fringe 101, an inner surface
11 formed on an inner side of the peripheral fringe 101, an outer surface 12
arranged on an outer side of the peripheral fringe 101, a first and a second
ends
13, 14 disposed on two ends of the peripheral fringe 101 respectively, a slot
15
axially extending from the first end 13 to the second end 14 and allowing to
be
expanded resiliently and then recovery its original shape. The inner and the
outer
surfaces 11, 12 include at least one first deformable area and at least one
second
deformable area respectively to generate a deformation when being forced in a
radial direction. As shown in Fig. 7, a dotted portion represents a profile
before
the inner and the outer surfaces 11, 12 are forced, and a solid portion
denotes a
profile after the inner and the outer surfaces 11, 12 are forced. As
illustrated in
Fig. 7, the first and the second deformable areas generate a radial-direction
deformation to act against a radial-direction engaging force resulting from
9
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
connecting the engaging member 10 and body 20 together.
The hmer surface 11 of the engaging member 10 includes a plurality of
first raised sections 111 spaced apart from each other and a number of first
recessed sections 112 spaced apart from each other, and the first raised
section
111 is connected with the first recessed section 112, wherein there are ten
first
raised sections 111 and ten first recessed sections 112 provided in this
embodiment.
The outer surface 12 of the engaging member 10 includes a plurality of
second raised sections 121 spaced apart from each other and a number of second
recessed sections 122 spaced apart from each other, and the second raised
section 121 is connected with the second recessed section 122, wherein there
are
ten second raised sections 121 and ten second recessed sections 122 provided
in
this embodiment.
The first raised section 111 is in response to the second recessed section
122, and the first recessed section 112 corresponds to the second raised
section
121, wherein the first raised sections 111 are formed the first deformable
area of
the inner surface 11, and the second raised sections 121 are formed the second
deformable area of the outer surface 12.
The first raised sections 111, the first recessed sections 112, the second
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
raised sections 121, and the second recessed sections 122 of the engaging
member 10 axially extend from the first end 13 to the second end 14.
One of the second raised sections 121 of the engaging member 10
adjacent to the second end 14 includes a post 123 radially extending thereon,
and includes a U-shaped cutouts 124 arranged on two sides thereof individually
to swing inward as being forced and to engage with the body 20 by using the
post 123, hence when the post 123 is pressed, the first recessed section 112
in
response to the second raised section 121 which includes the post 123 swings
inward so that the engaging member 10 connects with the body 20 easily as
shown in Fig. 4.
The slot 15 is capable of being arranged on a middle section of one of
the second raised sections 121 as well or on one of the second recessed
sections
122.
As illustrated in Fig. 2, the first raised sections 111 are formed in a
convex arc shape, the first recessed sections 112 are formed in a concave arc
shape, and the first raised sections 111 are connected with the first recessed
sections 112 to form a regular wave profile. Also, the second raised sections
121
are formed in a convex arc shape, the second recessed sections 122 are formed
in a concave arc shape, and the second raised sections 121 are connected with
11
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
the second raised sections 121 to form a regular wave profile.
It is to be noted that each first raised section 111 is capable of forming
the first deformable area by using the second recessed section 122 to provide
a
deforming space so that when each first raised section 111 is forced by an
internally radial force, it deforms flexibly and generates an inward
radial-direction engaging force to act against a deformation. Likewise, each
second raised section 121 is capable of forming the second deformable area by
using the first recessed section 112 to provide another deforming space as
shown
in Figs. 6 and 7 such that when each second raised section 121 is forced by an
externally radial force, it deforms flexibly and generates an outward
radial-direction engaging force to act against the deformation. Thereby, the
inward and the outward radial-direction engaging forces to act against the
deformations are applied to force an outer wall of the outlet pipe 30 and an
inner
wall of the body 20 as illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4.
With reference to Figs. 9-11 and 15, a difference of a faucet connecting
structure of a second embodiment from that of the first embodiment of the
present invention includes an engaging member 10a, and the engaging member
10a includes a plurality of first raised sections 111 in response to a number
of
second raised sections 121, and includes a plurality of first recessed
sections 112
12
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
in response to a number of second recessed sections 122.
Besides, the engaging member 10a includes a peripheral fringe 101
having a plurality of first deforming cavities 16 defined between the second
raised sections 121 and the first raised sections 111, and each first
deforming
cavity 16 is a circular hole formed between a first end 13 of the peripheral
fringe
101 and a second end 14 of the peripheral fringe 101 so that when the second
raised sections 121 and the first raised sections 111 are forced by an outward
and
an inward radial forces individually, an enough deforming space is provided as
illustrated in Figs. 13 and 14, wherein a dotted portion represents a profile
before the first raised sections 111 and the second raised sections 121 are
forced,
and a solid portion denotes a profile after the first raised sections 111 and
the
second raised sections 121 are forced, hence the first raised sections 111 are
formed the first deformable area of the inner surface 11, and the second
raised
sections 121 are formed the second deformable area of an outer surface 12 to
generate an inward and an outward radial-direction engaging forces to act
against the deformations.
The outer surface 12 of the peripheral fringe 101 includes a positioning
aperture 17 disposed between one of the second recessed sections 122 and one
of the first recessed sections 112 to connect the engaging member 10a and a
13
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
body 20 together.
Referring Figs. 16 and 17, a difference of a faucet connecting structure
of a third embodiment from that of the second embodiment of the present
invention includes an engaging member 10b, and the engaging member 10b
includes an internally circular fence 102 and an external circular fence 103
integrally connected together by using a number of ribs 104, and among any two
ribs 104, the internally circular fence 102, and the external circular fence
103 is
defined a second deforming cavity 18, wherein the second deforming cavity 18
is rectangular and extends obliquely from a first segment 13 to a second
segment
14, and the rib 104 extends axially from the first segment 13 to the second
segment 14.
As illustrated in Fig. 17, an inner surface 11 is comprised of an inner
side of the internally circular fence 102, and an outer surface 12 is
comprised of
an outer side of the external circular fence 103.
A peripheral fringe 101 of the faucet connecting structure of the third
embodiment includes the internally circular fence 102 and the external
circular
fence 103, and the internally circular fence 102 and the external circular
fence
103 include an inner gap 151 and an outer gap 152 respectively to form. the
slot
15 of the first embodiment. It is preferable that the inner gap 151 and the
outer
14
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
gap 152 allow to be fixed between two ribs 104 without passing through the rib
104, or there is no rib 104 provided between the inner gap 151 and the outer
gap152.
A positioning aperture 17 of the third embodiment is mounted on a
suitable position of the external circular fence 103, such as a predetermined
position of the external circular fence 103 where radially passes through two
of
the ribs 104.
Because the inner surface 11 and the outer surface 12 are flat, they are
capable of serving as a first deforinable area. In other words, when the inner
surface 11 and the outer surface 12 are forced by an internally radial force
and
an externally radial force individually, they deform flexibly. As shown in
Figs.
19 and 20, a dotted portion represents a profile before the inner and the
outer
surfaces 11, 12 are forced, and a solid portion denotes a profile after the
inner
and the outer suffices 11, 12 are forced. The first and the second deformable
areas generate a radial-direction deformation to act against a radial-
direction
engaging force.
Referring Figs. 21, 22, and 24, a difference of a faucet connecting
structure of a fourth embodiment from that of the first embodiment of the
present invention includes an engaging member 10c, and the engaging member
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
10c includes at least one second raised section 121 and at least one second
recessed section 122, wherein the second raised section 121 and the second
recessed section 122 are axially arranged on an outer surface 12, and the
engaging member 10c also includes at least one first raised section 111 in
response to the second recessed section 122 and at least one first recessed
section 112 in response to the second raised section 121, wherein the first
raised
section 111 and the first recessed section 112 are axially arranged on the
inner
surface 11. Because only one of the second raised sections 121 and the first
raised sections 111 is capable of being provided in this embodiment, the
second
raised section 121 is solely used to form the outer surface 12, and the first
raised
section 111 is solely used to form the inner surface 11.
The second raised section 121, the second recessed section 122, the first
raised section 111, and the first recessed section 112 extend from one side of
the
slot 15 to another side of the slot 15 along a circumferential direction.
As illustrated in Figs. 3, 11, 18, and 23, the engaging members 10, 10a,
10b, 10c are connected with the body 20 and the outlet pipe 30, wherein
the body 20, as shown in Figs. 3 and 5, includes a chamber 21, and the
chamber 21 includes a receiving trench 211 disposed on a top end thereof, the
receiving trench 211 includes an opening 212 mounted on a top end thereof.
16
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
The outlet pipe 30 includes an inlet end 31 to input water and an outlet
end 32 to output water, and the inlet end 31 includes a connector 33 to be
inserted into the receiving trench 211 from the opening 212 of the body 20.
The engaging members 10, 10a, 10b, 10c are fitted, limited in a first
recess 331 of the connector 33 of the body 20 by using the slot 15 and
inserted
in a second recess 211 of the body 20 as shown in Figs. 4 and 5. Thereafter,
the
first and the second defonnable areas of the inner surfaces 11 and the outer
surfaces 12 of the engaging members 10, 10a, 10b, 10c are pressed by radial
forces of the first recess 331 and the second recess 211 to cause a
deformation so
that the radial-direction engaging force generates to act against the
deformation,
hence the first recess 331 of the outlet pipe 30 and the second recess 211 of
the
body 20 contact with each other tightly along the radial direction as shown in
Figs. 6, 13, 19, and 23. Thereby, the outlet pipe 30 is fixed securely to
prevent
from a vibration in relative to the body 20 when a user touches the outlet
pipe
30.
It is to be noted that diameters of the first and the second deformable
areas are larger than an inner diameter of the second recess 211 so that the
radial-direction engaging force and the deformation generate effectively to
connect the outlet pipe 30 with the body 20 tightly. On connecting corners of
the
17
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
second ends 14 of the engaging members 10, 10a, 10b, 10c and the outer surface
12 is provided a tilted or an actuate guiding surface 141 respectively, and
the
opening 212 of the receiving trench 211 includes a circularly beveled face 213
formed therein so as to guide the engaging members 10, 10a, 10b, 10c into the
receiving trench 211.
Due to the engaging members 10, 10a, 10b, 10c are limited in the first
recesses 331 of the outlet pipes 30 securely, only one retaining means 40 is
applied to retain the engaging members 10, 10a, 10b, 10c and the bodies 20
together, thus limiting the outlet pipes 30 to move and rotate axially
relative to
the bodies 20.
To limit the outlet pipes 30 to move and rotate axially relative to the
bodies 20, the engaging members 10, I0a, 10b, 10c include the retaining means
40 as flows.
The retaining means 40 of the engaging member 10 of the first
embodiment includes a locking orifice 22 mounted on the body 20 relative to
the
receiving trench 211, and includes the post 123 fixed on the engaging member
10 as illustrated in Fig. 5. The post 123 is flexible to swing inward without
stopping the engaging member 10 to be placed in the receiving trench 211 of
the
body 20 when it is pressed, and the post 123 aligns with the locking orifice
22
18
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
and returns its original position to further retain in the locking orifice 22,
such
that the engaging members 10 retains with the body 20 to limit the outlet
pipes
30 to move and rotate axially relative to the bodies 20.
The retaining means 40 of the engaging member 10a of the second
embodiment includes the positioning aperture 17, and a bore 23 secured on the
body 20 relative to the receiving trench 211, and a fixing bolt 41 as
illustrated in
Figs. 12 and 15. While the engaging member 10a inserts in the receiving trench
211 of the body 20 with the connector 33, the fixing bolt 41 screws with the
bore
23 of the body 20 so that its distal end inserts into the positioning aperture
17 of
the engaging member 10a, and the engaging member 10a retains with the body
20.
The retaining means 40 of the engaging member 10b of the third
embodiment includes the positioning aperture 17, a bore 23 secured on the body
relative to the receiving trench 211, and a fixing bolt 41 to retain with the
15 positioning aperture 17 as illustrated in Figs. 18.
The retaining means 40 of the engaging member 10e of the fourth
embodiment includes the positioning aperture 17, and a bore 23 secured on the
body 20 relative to the receiving trench 211, and a fixing bolt 41 to screw
with
the bore 23 and to retain with the positioning aperture 17 as illustrated in
Fig.
19
CA 02709836 2012-12-06
23.
Thereby, the engaging members 10, 10a, 10b, 10c are forced to deform
flexibly so as to eliminate a slit between the body 20 and the outlet pipe 30
and
to connect the body 20 and the outlet pipe 30 tightly, therefore a working
precision of related components for matching with the body 20 and the outlet
pipe 30 are lowered to decrease production cost.
The engaging members 10, 10a, 10b, 10c are used to connect the body
20 and the outlet pipe 30 together without using a welding method so as to
enhance aesthetics appearance and to facilitate disassembly.
The retaining means 40 serves to retain the outlet pipes 30 on the
engaging members 10, 10a, 10b, 10c so that the outlet pipes 30 do not vibrate
and are prevented from moving and rotating axially relative to the bodies 20,
thus connecting the outlet pipes 30 and the body 20 together securely.
