AU2007200291A1 - A water trap - Google Patents

Description

04/07 2014 00:12 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-BATEWAY I006/054 o A WATER TRAP 0 FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates a water trap.

_This invention relates particularly but not exclusively to a water trap that can be fitted in proximity to the outlet of a water reservoir of the type that includes hand basins, sinks, and baths. Specifically the water trap can be fitted on a drain pipe below and adjacent the outlet or drain of the water reservoir to provide a water seal between the water reservoir and a region of the pipe that is downstream of Nthe water seal. It will therefore be convenient to hereinafter describe this invention with reference to this example application. However, it is to be clearly understood that the invention is capable of broader application. For example there are many types of water traps and these can be located in a myriad of locations and this invention can be applied to any one of these applications. It is not to be limited to plumbing installations used in domestic dwellings such as houses. Further the invention is not to be limited to water traps adjacent bath, sink and basin outlets.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION A water trap or a waste trap is a contrivance that is widely used on plumbing installations in many parts of the world. In particular the water trap is widely used on plumbing installations for domestic dwellings such as houses. The water traps provide a water seal or water barrier between a drain outlet from a water reservoir such as a basin, sink or bath and a downstream region of the pipe.

A water conduit or pipe leading from a basin, a bath and the like leads into a local collection main for that dwelling which in turn leads into a sewerage main. It will readily be appreciated that there will be considerable odour in a sewerage main and that this odour has the potential to travel up the plumbing lines in a reverse direction to the water and waste and into the living space. Australian building requirements stipulate that a water trap must be positioned adjacent the drain outlet of each bath, basin and sink in addition to other water traps that are COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:12 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY Il007/054 O -2- 0 positioned elsewhere. The function of the water trap is to provide a water seal, i.e.

a body of water with some depth that acts as a barrier to odour coming up out of the drain assembly and into the living space, e.g. a bathroom or kitchen or laundry as the case may be.

oIn addition there may be a further water trap located downstream of said outlet Straps described above. In particular the further water trap may be located Sunderneath the concrete slab of the dwelling thereby being positioned in series S 10 with the outlet trap.

A known form of water trap comprises a combination of bends in a pipe located beneath a drain outlet. The combination of bends may comprise a first section of pipe that descends down, then a second section of pipe effecting a 180 degree bend in the pipe, followed by a third section of pipe extending vertically upward, followed by a fourth section of pipe that is an elbow, and then a fifth section of pipe that is a linear section that projects sideways outward away the first to fourth sections. It will readily be appreciated that a seal of water is retained in the U shaped section of pipe formed by the combination of pipe sections that sits between the lowermost point of the pipes and the lower edge of the elbow in the fourth section of pipe. A schematic drawing of such a water seal is shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings.

Australian standards specify that a water trap must be designed to yield a water seal having a depth or height of at least 75mm. This means that the dimensions of the pipe combination described above must yield a seal with a depth of 75mm in use. This height is marked in on Fig. 1 by the letter H.

A disadvantage of the type of water trap described above and shown in Fig. 1 is that it requires a large amount of vertical clearance beneath the drain outlet of the associated water reservoir to receive it. It might require a vertical clearance of about 125mm to enable it to be received beneath the drain outlet.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:13 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY 1008/054 O -3o The large amount of height that is required may be problematic in some applications. For example very often this amount of height is simply not available in beneath a drain outlet for a bath. In such a case the only options are to either omit the water seal altogether or to cut a recess in the slab within which to receive the combination of pipes In some typical applications applicant believes that it may be Snecessary to practically cut through the entire slab.

Clearly both of the options set out above are highly undesirable. One results in a 11 plumbing arrangement that is simply not in accord with building regulations. The other results in an impairment of the integrity and strength of the concrete slab.

Further in applications where the water trap is located beneath a sink or basin there may be a cabinet or cupboards beneath the basin. In such a case the water trap is received within the cupboard or cabinet. The disadvantage of the water trap in Fig. 1 in such applications is that it occupies a large amount of space because of the large amount of height that is required. Further the combination of pipes can often interfere with shelves and the like. A yet further disadvantage of these traps in this application is that they are not very pleasing from am aesthetic point of view.

Further the water traps of the type shown in Fig. I are usually knocked together by a plumber on site using a combination of pipe and elbow sections that are cut to the appropriate length and then solvent welded together. This takes time and effort by a qualified plumber. Further by virtue of the fact that the work is done on site, often in a hurry, that resultant product can be less than perfect and this can lead to leaks in the pipes and elbows.

Clearly therefore it would be advantageous if a water trap could be devised that at least ameliorated some of the disadvantages of the prior art water trap described above with reference to Fig. 1. In particular it would be advantageous if a water trap could be devised that had a shorter profile than the Fig. 1 trap and was consequently more likely of being fitted into the limited height clearance beneath a bath drain outlet.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:13 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY R009/054 O -4- 0 Yet further it would be advantageous if a water trap could be devised that was fmore aesthetically pleasing than the type of trap illustrated in Fig. 1. Yet further it would be advantageous if a water trap could be devised that was quick and easy to fit by a plumber and that consequently was cheaper to install by virtue of the less time taken to fit it.

oSUMMARY OF THE INVENTION O 10 According to one aspect of this invention there is provided a water trap comprising: an inner conduit having an upper end and a lower end and defining an inlet at or towards its upper end and an outlet at or towards its lower end; a trap container defining an interior space within which water can be received in use and enclosing the outlet of the inner conduit and at least a portion of the conduit adjacent the lower end, the trap container further including means for adjusting the height of the trap container to shorten or lengthen the height of the container; and an outlet conduit that has an inlet that is in fluid communication with the interior space in the trap container and is positioned above the outlet of the inner conduit, the outlet conduit extending outward away from the trap container to an outlet spaced away therefrom.

Thus water passes through the inner conduit and into the trap container. This water pools in the trap container and overflows into the outlet conduit from where it can be drained away from the site. The pooled water in the trap container provides a water seal between the inlet to the inner conduit and the outlet conduit.

The means to shorten the trap container enables the profile or overall height of the trap container to be reduced during installation particularly in limited clearance applications. After installation the trap container may then be lengthened out again to provide a water seal having the appropriate depth to adequately perform COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:13 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY l010/054 0 cits function and also to meet regulations. The means for adjusting the height of f the trap container enables the height to be manually adjusted, e.g. by a plumber Sduring installation.

The trap container may be a closed container and may have a floor and a circumferential wall extending up from the floor around its periphery. The trap C container may also have a lid or cover extending across an upper edge of the Operipheral wall closing off the container.

O 10 The inner conduit may have a lower open end defining said outlet that is spaced cabove the floor of the container, e.g. a short distance above the floor of the trap container.

The position of the lower end of the conduit, e.g. the vertical position, may remain in the same position or in a fixed position relative to the position of the floor of the trap container when the height of the trap container is adjusted. This ensures that the outlet will always be open and also ensures that the outlet will always define an outlet opening of the same size and flow area irrespective of the height of the trap container. This is a useful feature to ensure a suitable flow path from the outlet of the inner conduit into the trap container irrespective of the height of the container.

The upper end of the conduit may be positioned external to the container and the upper end may be configured and sized to be operatively coupled to an outlet of a water reservoir such as a basin, a sink or a bath.

The remainder of the inner conduit may be substantially fully received within the trap containe and may extend downwardly through the cover of the trap container and then extend vertically down through the container towards the floor of the trap container.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:14 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-BATEWAY [011/054 O -6- 0 Specifically the upper end of the conduit may form a grate mounting formation that Cis configured and sized to enable a grating, e.g. an outlet grating, to be operatively coupled thereto.

The grate mounting formation may comprise one or more arms extending across the conduit and also a grate mounting element for receiving a fastening element associated with a grate therein, and operatively fastening it to the conduit. In one Oform the grate mounting formation may have three or four arms extending from the wall of the conduit to the grate mounting element which is centrally positioned, and 0 S 10 the mounting element may define a bore defining an intemal screw thread within which a fastening element that is a screw can be received.

The trap container may comprise a trap body and a trap cover and the trap body and trap cover may be movable relative to each other in the direction of height of the container.

The trap body may form part of the wall of the trap container. The trap cover may form part of the wall of the trap container and also the floor of the trap container.

The trap container may also include a lid extending across an end of the trap body remote from the trap cover.

The means for adjusting the height of the trap container may include means for guiding movement of the trap body relative to the trap cover and also means for checking the position of the trap cover relative to the trap body whereby to adjust the relative positions of body and cover relative to each other in the direction of height of the trap container and to check the movement in a desired position. This enables a user to manually adjust the height of the trap container into a desired position.

The means for guiding movement of the body relative to the cover and the means for checking the position of the cover relative to the body may be formed by the same feature. However this is not essential and the means for guiding movement COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:14 FAX 81 7 38087488 IP-GATEWAY [012/054 O -7- 0 of the body relative to the cover and the means for checking the position of the cover relative to the body may also be formed by distinct separate features The trap body and the trap cover may be of complementary shape and size such that the surfaces of the trap and the cover can move relative to each other in an axial direction, e.g. with a telescopic movement, whereby to form the guide means ofor guiding movement of the trap body and trap cover relative to each other to oadjust the height of the trap container.

S 10 The trap body and the trap cover may be substantially cylindrical bodies having a circular cross sectional configuration. This enables the two components to be rotated relative to each other as well as to telescope relative to each other.

The check means for checking movement of the trap body and trap cover relative to each other may comprise a screw thread on the trap cover engaging a complementary screw thread on the trap body.

The screw threads may be formed on complementary surfaces of the cylindrical bodies'. Also the screw threads may be formed on cylindrical surfaces associated with the body and cover respectively but different from the actual body surfaces.

Instead the check means may comprise a bayonet type fitting with a longitudinal guide slot and a number of transverse check slots on one of the trap body or trap cover and a locking element on the other of the trap body or trap cover that travels in the longitudinal slot and can be received in any check slot. The type of check means with a bayonet type fitting may be mounted on the trap body and trap cover.

Further the conduit may comprise an upper conduit portion and a lower conduit portion and the upper conduit portion and lower conduit portion may be movable relative to each other in the direction of height of the container, e.g. telescopically.

This enables the height of the conduit to be moved in sympathy with an adjustment in height of the container.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:14 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY [013/054 O -8- 0 The upper and lower conduit portions may be may be of complementary shape n and size such that they slide over each other whereby to form the guide for guiding movement of the trap body and trap cover relative to each other, In one form the upper and lower conduit portions may be substantially cylindrical bodies having a 0 circular cross section.

0In yet another form the check means for checking movement of the trap body and 7 trap cover relative to each other may comprise a screw thread on the upper S 10 conduit portion engaging a complementary screw thread on the lower conduit portion. The point to bear in mind is that the check means does not need to be physically mounted on or incorporated in the trap body and trap cover.

Further this type of check means with a bayonet type fitting may be mounted on the upper and lower conduit portions.

In one form the trap body may be received within the cover, and the check means for checking the position of the trap body relative to the trap cover may comprise an external screw thread on or associated with the cover and rotating with it and a complementary internal screw thread formed on the trap body and rotating with it.

The cover may include an internal sleeve received within the wall of the cover and the external screw thread on or associated with the cover may be formed on said internal sleeve.

The trap body may be sandwiched between the radially outer trap cover and the radially inner internal sleeve. The external screw thread on the internal sleeve engages the inward facing screw thread on the trap body and the outer surface of the trap body slides over the internal surface of the trap cover.

The screw thread defined on or associated with the cover may extend a substantial axial extent of the height of the cover. In a preferred form the screw thread may extend substantially the full axial extent of the cover. This enables the COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:14 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY R014/054 O-9- Scover to be received within the trap body to a significant extent in the shortened Scondition.

The trap body may define a complementary internal screw thread for engaging the external screw thread associated with the cover, e.g. 'the internal screw thread on the sleeve. In contrast to the screw thread on the cover this screw thread may be oof limited axial extent and may comprise at least two turns of the screw thread, 0e.g. 2-4 turns of a helical spiral, to provide the screw thread engagement with the 1 necessary mechanical strength.

The trap body may further include one stop formation for stopping movement of the trap cover relative to the trap body in the fully lengthened condition and a further stop formation for stopping movement of the trap cover in the fully shortened condition.

The trap body may define an inwardly extending internal shoulder towards its lower end and the internal sleeve may define an outwardly extending shoulder towards its upper end. The inwardly extending internal shoulder may define said one stop formation and the outward shoulder on the internal sleeve may abut against said inwardly extending shoulder on the trap body to stop movement of the cover in the fully lengthened condition, The outlet conduit extending transversely away from the wall of the trap body may define the further stop formation against which the cover abuts in the fully shortened condition.

The trap may include sealing means for sealing the trap body to the trap cover so as to resist the leakage of water out of the trap container. The sealing means may be in the form of a sealing O-ring interposed between the trap body and the trap cover.

The lower conduit portion may be attached to the cover so as to move together with and in sympathy with the cover when it is moved. The lower conduit portion COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:15 FAX 61 7 38087468 IP-GATEWAY 1015/054 O A may be permanently attached to the cover, e.g. by solvent welding or by ultra sonic welding.

C Similarly the upper conduit portion may be attached directly or indirectly to the lid of the trap container so that it does not move relative to the lid and trap body of the trap container. The upper conduit portion is thus held by the lid against movement when the trap cover is moved relative to the trap body and the lid of the trap ocontainer to lengthen or shorten it and taking the inner conduit with it.

S 10 The upper conduit portion may be received within the lower conduit portion and the lower conduit portion may slide over the upper conduit portion. There may be some frictional resistance to the movement of the lower conduit portion relative to the upper conduit portion but no check means to actually resist movement of the upper and lower conduit portions relative to each other.

The trap may include sealing means for sealing the upper conduit portion to the lower conduit portion so as to resist the leakage of water out of the conduit without passing through the outlet. The sealing means may be in the form of a sealing Oring interposed between the upper and lower conduits.

The trap may further include a grate for mounting onto the grate mounting formation. The grate may have a broadly circular configuration and may be configured to complement the shape of the grate mounting formation.

The grate may further include a fastening element for passing through the grate and into the grate mounting formation. The fastening element may be a screw that is passed into the bore, e.g. a screw threaded bore defined in the grate mounting formation.

The trap may further include a seal for sealing the lining of a water reservoir such as a bath or basin to the grate and grate mounting formation around the outlet of the water reservoir. The seal may have an annular shape and be made of a resilient material, e.g. a rubber material.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:15 FAX 81 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY [a 016/054 O -11- The inlet of the outlet conduit may have a cross-sectional configuration that is elongated in a transverse direction and shortened in a vertical direction. In N particular the inlet of the outlet conduit may have a configuration that is in the form of an elongate oval or an ellipse.

SThe inlet to the outlet conduit has a highest point and a lowest point and the o configuration of the inlet described above enables the lowest point on the inlet to the outlet conduit to be positioned as high up or as close to the cover of the trap 0 S 10 container as possible.

This enables an adequate cross-sectional flow path through the inlet to be achieved with a lesser vertical extent while enabling the overall height of the trap to be kept as short as possible to enable access to sites with limited vertical clearance.

The outlet conduit may also include a step change along its length to displace the outlet conduit down below the height of the cover of the trap container and extending perpendicularly away from wall of the trap container away from the container.

The step change may include two elbow portions in sequence, the one elbow portion turning the outlet conduit portion in a downward direction and the other elbow portion turning the outlet conduit once again to a horizontally extending direction. The step change in the outlet conduit may resemble a goose neck, similar to the goose neck on a goose neck golf putter.

The step change enables some clearance to be provided above the outlet conduit downstream of the step change and particularly around the outlet to the outlet conduit to which a pipe will be connected in use.

The outlet conduit may include downstream conduit attachment means for attaching a conduit thereto.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:15 FAX 61 7 380874668 IP-BATEWAY [a017/054 O -12- 0 eThe conduit attachment means may comprise a flange or collar within which an end of a conduit may be received and attached thereto, e.g. by solvent welding or ultrasonic welding.

The conduit attachment means may also be in the form of an external screw othread on an end region of the conduit towards the outlet to which the downstream o conduit can be attached. This attachment means may also include a collar extending over the end of the downstream conduit.

The lid for the trap container may be formed integral with the upper conduit portion, e.g. in a moulding operation such as injection moulding. The lid of the trap container may be permanently attached to an upper region of the trap body, e.g.

by solvent or ultrasonic welding.

Further the lower portion of the inner conduit may be formed integrally with the internal sleeve associated with the cover, e.g. in a moulding operation such as injection moulding.

The cover may be permanently attached to the internal sleeve, e.g. by solvent or ultrasonic welding.

Further the outlet conduit may be formed integrally with the trap body e.g. in a moulding operation such as injection moulding.

Each of the components above may be made out of plastics material and may be formed by injection moulding.

The grate and fastening element, e.g. screw may be formed of a metallic material, e.g. brass.

According to another aspect of this invention there is provided a water trap comprising: COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:16 FAX 81 7 380874886 IP-GATEWAY 018/054 O -13- 0 ea inner conduit having an upper end and a lower end and defining an inlet t' at or towards its upper end and an outlet at or towards its lower end; a trap container defining an interior space within which water can be received in use and enclosing the outlet of the conduit and at least a portion of the o inner conduit, the trap container further including means for adjusting the height of Othe trap container to shorten or lengthen the height of the container; and O 10 an outlet conduit that has an inlet that is in fluid communication with the interior space in the trap container and is positioned above the outlet of the conduit received within the interior space of the container and a cross-sectional configuration that is elongated in a transverse direction and shortened in a vertical direction, the outlet conduit extending outward away from the trap container to an outlet spaced away there from.

The inlet to the outlet conduit may have a highest point and a lowermost point.

The highest point of the inlet to the outlet conduit may be positioned at substantially the same height as the cover.

Thus the inlet to the outlet conduit is elongated in a transverse direction and shortened in a vertical direction. This enables the same cross- sectional flow path to be achieved with a lesser vertical extent and this in turn enables a lowermost point on the inlet to the outlet conduit to be positioned as high up or as close to the cover of the trap container as possible. This enables part of the trap container to be received up as high as possible on the trap body which in turn keeps the overall height of the trap to be kept as short as possible.

The inlet of the outlet conduit may have a configuration that is in the form of an elongate oval or an ellipse. The inlet to the outlet conduit may have a height of mm, e.g. 20-40mm.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:18 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY [019/054 -14- The outlet conduit may have a circular cross-sectional configuration beyond a transition point spaced a certain distance from the inlet. The cross-sectional configuration of the outlet conduit may transform from an ellipse to a circular configuration in a progressive fashion in a direction away from the inlet up to said transition point.

o The outlet conduit may also include a step change along its length to displace the o outlet conduit down below the height of the cover of the trap container and 1 extending perpendicularly away from wall of the trap container away from the container.

The step change may include two elbow portions in sequence, the one elbow portion turning the outlet conduit portion in a downward direction and the other elbow portion turning the outlet conduit once again to a horizontally extending direction. The step change in the outlet conduit may resemble a goose neck, similar to the goose neck on a goose neck golf putter.

The step change enables some clearance to be provided above the outlet conduit downstream of the step change and particularly around the outlet to the outlet conduit to which a pipe will be connected in use.

The outlet conduit may include downstream conduit attachment means for attaching a conduit thereto.

The conduit attachment means may comprise a flange or collar within which an end of a conduit may be received and attached thereto, e.g. by solvent welding or ultrasonic welding.

The conduit attachment means may also be in the form of an external screw thread on an end region of the conduit towards the outlet to which the downstream conduit can be attached. This attachment means may also include a collar extending over the end of the downstream conduit.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:16 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY 1020/054 0 CThe water trap according to this aspect may include any one or more of the optional or preferred features of the water trap described according to the first apsect of the invention.

According to another aspect of this invention there is provided a water trap for fitting between an outlet of a water reservoir and a downstream pipe, the water Oi Strap comprising: 0 an inner conduit having an upper end and a lower end and defining an inlet 0 S 10 at its upper end and an outlet at its lower end, the conduit comprising an upper conduit portion and a lower conduit portion that are movable relative to each other in the direction of height of the container, the upper conduit portion forming a grate mounting formation at the upper end of the conduit that is configured and sized to enable a grating to be operatively coupled thereto; a closed trap container defining an interior space into which the outlet of the inner conduit opens, the trap container comprising a trap body defining part of the wall and the roof of the trap container, a trap cover forming part of the wall of the trap container and the floor of the trap container, and a lid extending across the top of the trap container, the trap container including means for guiding movement of the trap body and trap container relative to each other and also checking the relative position of the trap body and trap cover relative to each other in the direction of height of the container whereby to adjust the height of the trap container; and an outlet conduit defining an inlet having a cross-sectional configuration that is elongated in a transverse direction and shortened in a vertical direction and is in fluid communication with the interior space in the trap container, the inlet to the outlet conduit being positioned above the outlet of the inner conduit received within the interior space of the container and the outlet conduit extending outward away from the trap container to an outlet spaced away therefrom.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:16 FAX 81 7 38087488 IP-GATEWAY [021/054 o -16- 0 The trap body and the trap cover may be of complementary shape and size such that the trap and the cover can slide over each other whereby to form the guide Vf for guiding movement of the trap body and trap cover relative to each other.

The trap body and the trap cover may be of substantially cylindrical configuration with a circular cross-section. This enables the two components to be rotated Srelative to each other.

The check means for checking movement of the trap body and trap cover relative S 10 to each other may comprise a screw thread on the trap cover engaging a complementary screw thread on the trap body.

The cover may include an internal sleeve received within the wall of the cover and the sleeve may define an external screw thread. The internal sleeve may be spaced radially inward of the cover, e.g. by a short distance. In this form the trap body may be received within the cover and the cover may slide over the outer surface of the trap body.

The upper and lower conduit portions may move telescopically relative to each other. The upper and lower conduit portions may be may be of complementary shape and size such that they slide over each other whereby to form the guide for guiding movement of the trap body and trap cover elative to each other. In one form the upper and lower conduit portions may be cylindrical bodies having a circular cross section.

The trap cover may be held in fixed spaced relation to the lower conduit portion and the trap body being may be held in fixed spaced relation to the upper conduit portion The trap container may also have a lid or cover extending across an upper edge of the peripheral wall closing off the container.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:17 FAX 81 7 38087466 IP-SATEWAY R022/054 O -17- 0 The inlet of the outlet conduit may have a configuration that is in the form of an elongate oval or an ellipse. The inlet to the outlet conduit has a highest point and a t' lowest point and the configuration of the inlet described above enables the lowest point on the inlet to the outlet conduit to be positioned as high up or as close to the cover of the trap container as possible.

o This enables an adequate cross-sectional flow path through the inlet to be oachieved with a lesser vertical extent while enabling the overall height of the trap to be kept as short as possible to enable access to sites with limited vertical S 10 clearance.

The outlet conduit may also include a step change along its length to displace the outlet conduit down below the height of the cover of the trap container and extending perpendicularly away from wall of the trap container away from the container.

The outlet conduit may include downstream conduit attachment means for attaching a conduit thereto positioned adjacent to the outlet of the outlet conduit.

The water trap according to this aspect may include any one or more of the optional or preferred features of the water trap described according to the first aspect of the invention.

The invention also extends to a plumbing assembly including a said water trap according to any of the aspects of the invention described above.

According to another aspect of this invention there is provided a method of providing a water seal between an outlet of a water reservoir and a downstream pipe, the method comprising: fitting a water trap according to any one of the aspects of the invention as above to a conduit downstream of the outlet of the reservoir.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:17 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY [023/054 o -18- 0 The reservoir may be a bath, basin, sink or the like.

n The trap may be fitted downstream of the outlet adjacent the outlet and upstream of the downstream pipe.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION SA water trap in accordance with this invention may manifest itself in a variety of forms. It will be convenient to hereinafter describe at least one embodiment of the invention in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The purpose of providing this detailed description is to instruct persons having an interest in the subject matter of the invention how to carry the invention into practical effect.

However it is to be clearly understood that the specific nature of this detailed description does not supersede the generality of the preceding broad description.

In the drawings: Fig. 1 is a schematic front view of a water trap in accordance with the prior art operatively connected to an outlet of a hand basin; Fig. 2 is a schematic sectional side view of a water trap in accordance with the prior art connected to the outlet of a bath that is mounted to a bath support in a bathroom; Fig. 3 is a three dimensional exploded view of a water trap in accordance with one embodiment of the invention; Fig. 4 is an upper three dimensional view of the water trap of Fig. 3 shown in an assembled condition; Fig. 5 is a lower three dimensional view of the water trap of Fig. 3 shown in an assembled condition; COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:17 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY ?024/054 -19- SFig. 6 is a lower three dimensional view of a trap body and outlet conduit for c the water trap of Fig. 3, other components being omitted for clarity; Fig. 7 is a sectional front view of the water trap of Fig. 3 mounted to a bath lining shown in a fully shortened condition to reduce the height of the water trap as much as possible; o Fig. 8 is a sectional front view of the water trap of Fig. 3 shown in a fully lengthened condition to Increase the height of the trap to that required by biulding regulations; Fig. 9 is a part sectional three dimensional view of a lower portion of the inner conduit mounted on the trap cover and also showing the outlet defined in the inner conduit; Fig. 10 is a three dimensional view of the water trap connected below a bath outlet inserted into a space with limited vertical clearance shown after its installation when the trap has been returned to the lengthened condition to meet the regulations.

Figs. 1 and 2 illustrate a water trap known in the prior art. The structure of this water trap and its application in use are discussed extensively in the background to the invention. Accordingly they will not be described further in the following description which will focus instead on specific embodiments of the invention disclosed in this application.

In Figs. 3 to 9 reference numeral 1 refers generally to a water trap in accordance with the invention.

The water trap 1 comprises broadly an inner conduit 3 that has an upper end that defining an inlet 7 that can be operatively coupled to an outlet, e.g. of a bath, and a lower end 9 in the region of which an outlet 11 is defined. The trap 1 also includes a trap container 15 that circumferentially surrounds the inner conduit 3 COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:17 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY a025/054 and defines an interior space 17. The lower end 9 of the inner conduit 3 and the Soutlet 11 of the inner conduit 3 opens out into the interior space 17 of the trap container 15. The trap 1 also includes an outlet conduit 19 that has an inlet 21 C that is in fluid communication with the interior space 17 of the container 15 and extends out away from the container 15 to an outlet 23 spaced away from the trap container 15. The outlet 23 is for operative coupling to a downstream drainage S conduit (not shown).

Each of the components will now be described in more detail below.

o The trap container 15 is closed and comprises a floor 25 and a peripheral wall 27 extending up from the floor 25 around the periphery thereof. It also includes a container lid 29 extending across an upper region of the peripheral wall 27 to close off the container 15. The container 15 includes a trap body 31 which is a cylindrical body that defines part of the peripheral wall. It also includes a trap cover 33 that forms the floor of the container 15 and part of the peripheral side wall of the trap container 15. The trap cover 33 has a circular floor portion and a broadly cylindrical wall portion complementing the cylindrical shape of the trap body. The trap body 31 is sized to be received within the wall portion of the cover 33 with a small amount of clearance. The wall portion of the body 31 slides over the surface of the trap cover 33.

The trap cover 33 also includes an internal sleeve 35 spaced a short distance inside the portion of the cover 33 forming the wall. The internal sleeve 35 defines a screw thread on its external or outwardly facing surface which engages a complementary internal screw thread on the trap body 31 described in more detail below. The internal sleeve 35 also includes a floor portion that extends across the floor portion of the cover 33 radially inward of the internal sleeve 35. The floor portion of the internal sleeve 35 is permanently attached to the floor portion of the cover 33 by welding, e.g. solvent or ultrasonic welding, of the base portion of the sleeve 35 to the floor portion of the cover 33.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:18 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY a026/054 O -21-

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The trap body 31 defines a complementary internal screw thread for engaging the extemrnal screw thread on the internal sleeve 35. This screw thread is of limited V'l axial extent and comprises 2-4 turns of a helical spiral. This number of turns provides the screw thread engagement with the necessary mechanical strength.

The trap body 31 defines an inwardly extending internal shoulder 30 towards its Nlower end, e.g. adjacent to and above the screw thread thereof. The inwardly extending internal shoulder 36 defines a stop formation for stopping movement of the trap cover 33 relative to the trap body 31 in the fully lengthened condition. The 0 o 10 internal sleeve 35 defines a complementary shoulder 38 towards its upper end that abuts against the intemrnal shoulder 36 on the trap body 31 to stop movement of the cover 33 in the fully lengthened condition.

The outlet conduit 19 extending away from the trap body 31 defines a further stop formation 40 for stopping movement of the trap cover in the fully shortened condition. The stop formation 40 abuts against an upper edge of the trap cover 33 resisting its further upward movement in the fully shortened condition.

The trap body 31 also includes water sealing means in the form of an O-ring 41 interposed between the cover 33 and the trap body 31. More specifically the sealing O-ring 41 is interposed between an outer surface of the internal sleeve towards an upper edge thereof, and an internal surface of the trap body 31, towards a lower edge thereof.

The trap body 31 defines a circumferential groove or recess 37 around its upper edge. Correspondingly the lid 29 of the trap container 15 defines a circumferential skirt 39 depending downwardly around its peripheral edge. The skirt 39 is sized to be received within the groove 37 in the trap body 31 to enable the two components to be attached together. During assembly this snap fitting attachment will be enhanced by welding the two components together to permanently attach the lid to the trap body 31.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:.18 FAX 61 7 38067466 I-AEWYlj2/5 IP-GATEWAY IA027/054 o -22- The inner conduit 3 comprises an upper conduit portion 43 and a lower conduit portion 45. Each of the upper and lower conduit portions 43, 45 has a circular IC) cross-section and overall a cylindrical configuration. The upper conduit portion 43 is sized to be received within the lower conduit portion 45 with a small amount of clearance. This enables the lower conduit portion 43 to telescopically slide over the surface of the upper conduit portion 45 during use of the trap 1.

oThe upper conduit portion 43 further includes a grate mounting formation 47 for a grate 49 of the type that is mounted in the outlet of a bath or basin or to be mounted thereto. The grate mounting formation 47 is formed integrally with the upper conduit portion 43. It comprises four arms arranged in the form of a cruciformn extending inwardly from the wall of the upper conduit portion 43 across the flow path of the conduit and forming a central mounting element 46 defining a bore for receiving a fastening element such as a screw 50 therein. In the illustrated embodiment the fastening element is a screw 50 and the mounting element 46 defines a bore with screw thread that is complementary to the thread on the screw 50 and can engage the screw The trap 1 also includes an annular seal of resilient material 51 sandwiched between the grate 49 and the grate mounting formation 47. The seal 51 assists in sealing the inner conduit 3 to that portion of a bath or the like surrounding the outlet 7 so that all water discharging from the bath is directed through the water trap 1.

The lower conduit portion 45 has apertures or cut-outs 53 towards its lower end (as shown particularly in Fig 9) that enable the conduit portion 45 to define the outlet 11 of the inner conduit 3 while still supporting it vertically on the floor portion of the cover 33. In the illustrated embodiment the lower conduit portion 45 has four cut-outs and the regions of conduit intermediate these cut-outs support the lower conduit portion 46 above the floor of the cover 331 In the illustrated embodiment the lower conduit portion 45 is formed as one piece, e.g. by injection moulding, with the internal sleeve 35 and the associated floor portion. The lower COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:18 FAX 61 7 38087486 IP-GATEWAY la028/054 o -23- 0 conduit portion extends up from a radially inner edge of the floor portion and is thereby radially spaced in from the sleeve The inner conduit 3 also includes water sealing means sandwiched between the upper and lower conduit portions 43 and 45 to resist the flow of water from the upper conduit portion 43 directly into the interior space of the container 15 without o going through the outlet 11 on the inner conduit 3. The water sealing means may ocomprise a sealing O ring 55, e.g. a rubber sealing O ring sandwiched between the upper and lower conduit portions 43 and 45. In the illustrated embodiment the O ring 55 is located on the upper conduit portion 43 by means of a bush 57 that is received within the upper conduit portion 43 for this purpose. It should be noted that this could be done in other ways and the presence of a bush 57 to achieve this is not essential.

The outlet or take off conduit 19 has its inlet 21 opening into the interior space of the trap body 31 and extends outward away there from. The inlet 21 to the outlet conduit 19 is elongated in a transverse direction and shortened in a vertical or height direction and is in the form of an elongate oval or an ellipse. In the illustrated embodiment the inlet 21 to the outlet conduit 19 has a height of 10-50 mm, e.g. 20-40mm.

The inlet 21 has a lowest or lowermost point indicated by the numeral 51 in the drawing and a highest point indicated by the numeral 63 in the drawing. The highest point 63 of the inlet 21 to the outlet conduit 19 may be positioned at substantially the same height as the lid 29 of the trap container This enables the same cross-sectional flow path to be achieved with a lesser vertical extent and this in turn enables the lowest point on the inlet 21 to the outlet conduit 19 to be positioned as high up or as close to the lid 29 of the trap container 15 as possible. This in turn enables the overall height or profile of the trap 1 to be kept as short or as low as possible to enable access to sites with limited vertical clearance.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:18 FAX 81 7 38087466 IP-BATEWAY R029/054 O -24- 0 The cross-sectional configuration of the outlet conduit 19 may transform from an tellipse to a circular configuration in a progressive fashion along the outlet conduit 19 in a direction away from the inlet 21.

The outlet conduit 19 may also undergo a step change along its length to displace O the outlet conduit 19 down below the height of the lid 29 of the trap container Owhile still extending in the same general direction, namely perpendicularly away 0from wall of the trap container 15 and broadly parallel to the lid of the trap 17- container 15. In the illustrated embodiment the step change is formed by two O 10 elbow portions in sequence, the one elbow portion 64 turning the outlet conduit 19 in a downward direction and the other elbow portion 65 turning the outlet conduit 19 once again to a horizontally extending direction.

The step change in the outlet conduit 19 resembles a goose neck, similar to the goose neck on a goose neck golf putter. The step change enables some clearance to be provided above the outlet conduit 19 downstream of the step change and particularly around the outlet 23 to the outlet conduit 19 to which a pipe is operatively connected in use. In other words this feature is designed to provide clearance for the attachment of a downstream pipe to the outlet conduit 19 and also to ease the carrying out of this attachment by a plumber.

The outlet conduit 19 may include downstream conduit attachment means shown generally by numeral 71 for attaching a conduit thereto. In the illustrated embodiment the conduit attachment means comprises a fixed circumferential flange or collar 73 with a closed end within which an end of a said downstream conduit 75 may be received and attached thereto, e.g. by solvent welding or ultrasonic welding.

In another form of attachment means that has not been illustrated, the conduit attachment means is in the form of an external screw thread on an end region of the conduit 19 towards the outlet 23 to which the downstream conduit can be attached and a collar extending over the end of the downstream conduit. This COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:19 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY Ia030/054 6

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attachment means has not been illustrated but would be well known to persons skilled in the art and is therefore not described in greater detail here.

CDuring manufacturing of the water trap some of the components described above are formed integrally with each other by means of plastic injection moulding operations. By forming some of the components together as integral articles the onumber of moulding operations to form the components that make up the trap is oreduced. Further the number of assembly steps required to assemble the finished article is reduced if some components are formed integrally with each other.

The lid 29 of the trap container 15 may be formed integrally with the upper portion of the inner conduit 43. The upper portion of the inner conduit 43 projects through the lid 29 of the trap container 15 and may conveniently be moulded as a single piece with the lid 29 projecting transversely away from the upper portion around its circumference.

Further the lower portion of the conduit 45 may be formed integrally with the internal sleeve 35 forming part of the trap cover 33. This is useful because it ensures that the lower portion of the inner conduit 45 remains in the correct relative position to the trap cover 33 to preserve the outlet opening 11 of the lower portion 45 of the inner conduit when the trap container is moved to the shortened position during use.

Further the outlet conduit 19 may be formed integrally with the trap body 31 in a single moulding operation.

During assembly of the water trap 1 the internal sleeve 35 and lower conduit portion 45 is permanently attached to the floor region of the cover 33. The trap body 31 is then mounted onto the cover 33 with the internal sleeve 35 with the rubber sealing O ring 41 in place.

After that the rubber sealing O ring 55 sealing the upper and lower conduit portions to each other is mounted on the upper conduit portion 43 using a bush 57 COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:18 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY la 031/054 o -26-

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shown in the drawings. The upper portion of the inner conduit 45 with integral lid 29 is then clipped onto the trap body 31. The lid 29 is then permanently attached to the trap body 31 by welding to form a single unit containing the inner conduit 3.

Thereafter the grate 49 is placed in position on the grate support formation 47. It is removably attached to the upper portion 43 of the inner conduit by means of a Sfastening element such as a screw

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1 In use the water trap 1 is used by a plumber to attach to an outlet 7 of a water reservoir such as a basin or bath. The reservoir installation is shown generally by numeral 81. Prior to installation the trap 1 may be adjusted to its shortened configuration shown in Fig 7 with the trap cover 33 received over the trap body 31 as far as possible. This accomplished by a plumber or the like manually rotating the trap cover 33 on the trap body 31 until it is in this shortened position.

16 The trap 1 is then placed in position beneath the outlet of the bath 81 and the grate 49 is placed on top of the outlet of the bath 81 and the screw 50 is screwed into the grate mounting formation 47 of the inner conduit 3. An edge region of the lining of the bath 81 is sandwiched between the grate 49 and the annular seal 51 associated therewith and this fastens the entire trap 1 onto the bath 81 and also seals off the region of the bath 81 around the outlet 7.

It will readily be recognized that the lower portion of the inner conduit 45 has moved together with the trap cover 33 to the shortened condition so that the full flow area of the outlet 11 of the inner conduit 3 has been preserved during this shortening operation.

The trap 1 is now basically installed. The final step now involves lengthening out the trap 1 again to its lengthened condition as shown in Fig. 8. This lengthened condition provides a water seal of the prescribed height. To do this the trap cover 33 is manually rotated on the body 31 until the stop formation 36 on the lower end of the trap body 31 engages the stop formation 38 on the upper end of the internal sleeve 35 of the trap cover 33 adjacent the ring seal 41. Fig. 10 shows the water COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:20 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY la032/054 O -27-

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trap extended out in this fashion mounted on a said bath outlet and positioned in t the restricted space beneath the bath.

As shown in Fig. 10 it may be necessary for a plumber to remove some building material, e.g. timber or concrete to enable the water trap to be fully extended.

However the material that is removed need only be sufficient to receive the trap cover in its static position. It does not need to be able to receive the full lengthened height of the trap when it is displaced into its operative position. This is because the trap is shortened for the stage where it is moved into position.

o During day to day operation of the water trap 1 the container 15 fills with water up to the height of the lowest point 61 of the inlet 21 to the outlet conduit 19. As new water comes into the trap 1 it pushes a corresponding amount of water into the outlet conduit 19. This provides a water seal of the depth required by regulations.

An advantage of the water trap described above with respect to the drawings is that it is capable of being reduced to a very compact and height efficient shape when it is being installed in a plumbing installation. This is particularly so when it is being installed into a space with very limited clearance, and in particular very limited vertical clearance. It can then be expanded back into its lengthened condition after it has been installed.

A further advantage of the trap described above is that it is designed to have a very compact shape even in the fully lengthened condition which is the condition in which it is in during use. This is achieved by flattening the inlet to the outlet conduit as much as possible and positioning the outlet conduit as high up on the trap as possible. In the prior art the water traps generally required a large amount of vertical space within which to be received, often up to 125 mm. It will readily be appreciated that it will be preferable in many applications for the water trap to occupy as little space as possible.

A further advantage of the trap described above is that it is provided as a fully assembled article in which all the components bar the grate are permanently COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:20 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY 1033/054 O -28attached to each other or integral with each other and do not require assembly.

As a result the water trap can be installed very quickly and efficiently. The plumber only needs to focus on installing the trap. They do not need to even think about the assembly of the trap. In the prior art it was common for a plumber to assemble and build a water trap on site. It will readily be appreciated that it would be more cost effective use of a plumber's time if they simply had to fit a trap and not also assemble it. Further if the water trap is assembled on site there is a Sgreater risk of leakage from the trap when it is installed because there is no quality control or quality assurance in the assembly process.

o A yet further advantage of the trap described above is that it is reasonably aesthetically pleasing. At the minimum it could be said to be neutral. In the prior art the water traps like those shown in Fig 1 could be fairly said to be very ugly even if they are contained within a cupboard below as a sink or a basin. By contrast the trap illustrated above is aesthetically pleasing and is attractive to the eye.

A yet further advantage of the trap described above is that all of the trap container and inner conduit and outlet conduit components can be injection moulded from plastics material. They can thus be made fairly easily and inexpensively once die moulds have been made for the components. Further some of the components can be integrally moulded with each other thereby reducing the number of components that need to be moulded to produce the trap. Consequently the trap can be produced at a reasonable cost and can be supplied to the market at a reasonable cost.

It will of course be realized that the above has been given only by way of illustrative example of the invention and that all such modifications and variations thereto, as would be apparent to persons skilled in the art, are deemed to fall within the broad scope and ambit of the invention as is herein set forth.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25

Claims (36)

1. A water trap comprising: an inner conduit having an upper end and a lower end and defining an inlet at or towards its upper end and an outlet at or towards its lower end; 0a trap container defining an interior space within which water can be received in use and enclosing the outlet of the inner conduit and at least a portion of the conduit adjacent the lower end, the trap container further including means for adjusting the height of the trap container to shorten or lengthen the height of the container; and an outlet conduit that has an inlet that is in fluid communication with the interior space in the trap container and is positioned above the outlet of the inner conduit, the outlet conduit extending outward away from the trap container to an outlet spaced away therefrom.

2. A water trap according to claim 1, wherein the trap container is closed and has a floor and a circumferential wall extending up from the floor around its periphery, and the trap container also has a lid or cover extending across an upper edge of the peripheral wall closing off the container.

3. A water trap according to claim 2, wherein the inner conduit has an open lower end defining said outlet that is spaced above the floor of the container.

4. A water trap according to claim 3, wherein the upper end of the conduit is positioned external to the container and is configured and sized to be operatively coupled to an outlet of a water reservoir. A water trap according to claim 4, wherein the upper end of the conduit forms a grate mounting formation that is configured and sized to enable an outlet grating to be operatively coupled thereto.

COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:20 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-6ATEWAY la035/054 0-30-

6. A water trap according to claim 5, wherein the grate mounting formation comprises one or more arms extending across the conduit and a central mounting element, and the mounting element may define a bore defining an internal screw thread within which a fastening element that is a screw can be received. o

7. A water trap according to any one of claims 2 to 6, wherein the trap container comprises a trap body forming part of the wall of the trap container, and a trap cover forming part of the wall of the trap container and the floor of the trap S 10 container, and the trap body and trap cover are movable relative to each other in the direction of height of the container.

8. A water trap according to claim 7, wherein the means for adjusting the height of the trap container may include means for guiding movement of the trap body relative to the trap cover and also means for checking the position of the trap cover relative to the trap body whereby to adjust the relative positions of body and cover relative to each other in the direction of height of the trap container and then to check the movement in a desired position.

9. A water trap according to claim 7 or claim 8, wherein the trap body and the trap cover are substantially cylindrical bodies having a circular cross sectional configuration that are complementary to each other whereby to enable the two components to be rotated relative to each other.

10. A water trap according to claim 9, wherein the guiding and checking means for checking movement of the trap body and trap cover relative to each other comprises a screw thread on the trap cover engaging a complementary screw thread on the trap body.

11. A water trap according to any one of claim 1 to 10, wherein the inner conduit comprises an upper conduit portion and a lower conduit portion and the upper conduit portion and power conduit portion are movable relative to each other COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:21 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY [a036/054 O -31- O in the direction of height of the container whereby to enable the height of the inner conduit to be moved in sympathy with an adjustment in height of the container. N

12. A water trap according to claim 11, wherein the upper and lower conduit portions are substantially cylindrical bodies having a circular cross section of complementary shape and size such that they slide over each other with a N telescopic movement. O O

13. A water trap according to claim 8, wherein the check means for checking O o 10 the position of the trap body relative to the trap cover comprises an external screw thread on or associated with the cover and a complementary internal screw thread on the trap body and rotating with it.

14. A water trap according to claim 13, wherein the cover includes an internal sleeve spaced radially inward of the wall of the cover and defining the external screw thread on the cover, and wherein the trap body is sandwiched between a radially outer said trap cover and a radially inner said internal sleeve.

A water trap according to claim 14, wherein the external screw thread defined on or associated with the cover extends a substantial axial extent of the height of the cover, and the trap body defines a said complementary intemrnal screw thread of shorter axial extent comprising at least two turns of the screw thread.

16. A water trap according to claim 15, wherein the trap body further includes one stop formation for stopping movement of the trap cover relative to the trap body in the fully lengthened condition and a further stop formation for stopping movement of the trap cover in the fully shortened condition.

17. A water trap according to claim 7, wherein the trap includes a sealing O-ring for sealing the trap body to the trap cover to resist the leakage of water out of the trap container. COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:21 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-BATEWAY la037/054 O -32- O

18. A water trap according to claim 11, wherein the lower conduit portion is Sattached to the cover so as to move together with the cover when it moves.

19. A water trap according to claim 1, wherein the trap includes a sealing O-ring for sealing the upper conduit portion to the lower conduit portion so as to resist the leakage of water out of the conduit without passing through the outlet. O 0

20. A water trap according to claim 5, wherein the trap further includes a grate for mounting onto the grate mounting formation having a broadly circular S 10 configuration and configured to complement the shape of the grate mounting formation.

21. A water trap according to claim 20, wherein the grate further includes a fastening element for passing through the grate and into the grate mounting formation.

22. A water trap according to claim 20 or claim 21, wherein the trap further includes a seal for sealing the water reservoir such as a bath or basin to the grate and grate mounting formation around the outlet of the water reservoir.

23. A water trap according to any one of claims 1 to 22, wherein the inlet of the outlet conduit has a cross-sectional configuration that is elongated in a transverse direction and shortened in a vertical direction.

24. A water trap according to claim 23, wherein the inlet to the outlet conduit has a highest point and a lowest point, and the configuration of the inlet enables the lowest point on the inlet to the outlet conduit to be positioned as high up or as close to the cover of the trap container as possible.

25. A water trap according to any one of claims 1 to 24, wherein the outlet conduit also includes a step change at a point spaced downstream of the intet to the conduit to displace the outlet of the outlet conduit to a position below the height of the cover of the trap container. COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:21 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY la038/054 -33- O

26. A water trap according to any one of claims 1 to 25, wherein the outlet conduit includes downstream conduit attachment means for attaching a conduit thereto.

27. A water trap comprising: O oa inner conduit having an upper end and a lower end and defining an inlet at or towards its upper end and an outlet at or towards its lower end; o a trap container defining an interior space within which water can be received in use and enclosing the outlet of the conduit and at least a portion of the inner conduit, the trap container further including means for adjusting the height of the trap container to shorten or lengthen the height of the container; and an outlet conduit that has an inlet that is in fluid communication with the interior space in the trap container and is positioned above the outlet of the conduit received within the interior space of the container, and an outlet spaced away therefrom, the inlet having a cross-sectional configuration that is elongated in a transverse direction and shortened in a vertical direction.

28. A water trap according to claim 27, wherein the inlet to the outlet conduit has a highest point and a lowermost point, and the highest point of the inlet to the outlet conduit is positioned at substantially the same height as the cover.

29. A water trap according to claim 27 or claim 28, wherein the inlet of the outlet conduit has a configuration that is in the form of an elongate oval or an ellipse, and the inlet to the outlet conduit has a height of 10-30 mm.

30. A water trap for fitting between an outlet of a water reservoir and a downstream pipe, the water trap comprising: COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:22 FAX 81 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY l039/054 6 -34- 0 (an inner conduit having an upper end and a lower end and defining an inlet at its upper end and an outlet at its lower end, the conduit comprising an upper conduit portion and a lower conduit portion that are movable relative to each other N in the direction of height of the container, the upper conduit portion forming a grate mounting formation at the upper end of the conduit that is configured and sized to enable a grating to be operatively coupled thereto; o a closed trap container defining an interior space into which the outlet of the inner conduit opens, the trap container comprising a trap body defining part of S 10 the wall of the trap container, a trap cover forming part of the wall of the trap container and the floor of the trap container, and a lid extending across the top of the trap container, the trap container including means for guiding movement of the trap body and trap container relative to each other and also for checking the relative position of the trap body and trap cover relative to each other in the direction of height of the container whereby to adjust the height of the trap container; and an outlet conduit defining an inlet having a cross-sectional configuration that is elongated in a transverse direction and shortened in a vertical direction and is in fluid communication with the interior space in the trap container, the inlet to the outlet conduit being positioned above the outlet of the inner conduit received within the interior space of the container and the outlet conduit extending outward away from the trap container to an outlet spaced away therefrom.

31. A water trap according to claim 30, wherein the trap body and the trap cover are of substantially cylindrical configuration and of complementary shape and size whereby to enable the two components to be rotated relative to each other.

32. A water trap according to claim 30 or claim 31, wherein the guide and check means for checking movement of the trap body and trap cover relative to each other comprise a screw thread on the cylindrical trap body engaging a complementary screw thread on the circular cylindrical trap cover. COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25 04/07 2014 00:22 FAX 61 7 38087466 IP-GATEWAY Z040/054 O

33. A water trap according to any one of claims 30 to 32, wherein the upper and lower conduit portions are cylindrical bodies having a circular cross section that C< are of complementary shape and size such that they slide over each other with a telescopic movement. Ci

34, A water trap according to any one of claims 30 to 33, wherein the inlet of Sthe outlet conduit has a configuration that is in the form of an elongate oval or an ellipse. ci

35. A water trap according to any one of claims 3, wherein the outlet conduit includes a downstream conduit attachment means for attaching a conduit thereto positioned adjacent to the outlet of the outlet conduit.

36. A water trap substantially as hereinbefore described in the detailed description of the invention with reference to the drawings. COMS ID No: SBMI-06047026 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:41 Date 2007-01-25