AU2008201706A1

AU2008201706A1 - A hand operable control device

Info

Publication number: AU2008201706A1
Application number: AU2008201706A
Authority: AU
Inventors: John Hoogendoorn
Original assignee: Phoenix Industries Pty Ltd
Current assignee: Phoenix Industries Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2007-04-17
Filing date: 2008-04-17
Publication date: 2008-11-06

Description

P/00o/01 Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Invention Title: A hand operable control device The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us: 005112925 oo 2 SA hand operable control device Field of the invention This invention relates generally to hand-operable control devices but has particularly advantageous application to taps, especially domestic taps. The invention rwill be particularly described herein by reference to domestic taps but it will be c appreciated that the concepts of the invention have broader application to hand- 00 (oo operable control devices generally.

Background of the invention A tap is a functional item for controlling the flow of a fluid, often water. In a domestic context, especially in the bathroom, taps are considered to be a significant component of room design and are an important architectural fashion accessory.

Suppliers of bathroom fittings expend considerable effort in conceiving and producing novel and appealing tap designs. It is an object of the present invention to contribute to that effort.

Summary of the invention The present invention focuses on a necessary aspect of hand-operable control devices i.e. the presence of one or more indicia concerning or related to the device. In the case of domestic taps, common such indicia inform the user whether the tap is a cold water tap or a hot water tap, or, where the tap is a mixer lever, directions of movement of the lever that will produce warmer or colder water. Conventional indicia for this purpose include the letters C or H, or blue or red markers atop or at the side of the tap knob or lever.

The invention entails the realisation that an aesthetically pleasing and/or interesting result can be obtained by placing the indicia out of normal direct view and providing for a user to have an indirect view of the indicia.

The invention accordingly provides a control device, including: 005112925 00 3 Ca control member manipulable by hand to operate the device; one or more indicia concerning or related to the control device, which indicia are disposed on said device but are obscured from the direct view of a person disposed at a normal location for manipulating the control member to operate the device; and means on the control device positioned to afford an indirect view of said indicia to c a person disposed at said normal location.

00 N The means on the control device positioned to afford an indirect view of the indicia is conveniently a reflective surface, e.g. a polished metal or metal-like surface.

Conveniently, the indicia may be obscured as above described by the control member. In an embodiment, the indicia may be obscured as above described by being positioned on a surface of the control member facing away from the person disposed at the normal location, e.g. an underneath or rear surface.

In an advantageous application of the invention, the control device is a tap assembly, e.g. a tap assembly for use in a domestic plumbing installation such as a vanity or other wash basin, or a shower recess or bath. Where the tap assembly is a combination tap and spout assembly, the aforementioned reflective surface may be provided by a surface of the spout: this arrangement is especially suitable where the control member or tap itself is a lever.

In a case where the tap assembly does not include a spout, the aforementioned reflective surface may be provided by a mounting or backing plate or the like.

Brief description of the drawings The invention will now be further described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a tap assembly according to a first embodiment of the invention in which the assembly includes a water delivery spout;

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005112925 00 4 Figures 2A and 2B are other views of the assembly of Figure 1, as seen from C below; Figure 3 is a side view of the assembly of Figures 1 and 2; and NFigure 4 is a front perspective view of a second embodiment of tap assembly according to the invention designed for mounting on a wall.

00 oo Description of embodiments of the invention The tap assembly 10 illustrated in Figures 1 to 3 is of a type suitable for installation on a generally horizontal surface at the side of a basin, trough or bath. The assembly includes both a control member in the form of a tap 20, in this case a lever handle, and a water delivery spout 30. In this particular case, the tap assembly is intended to deliver either hot or cold water from spout 30 with the flow controlled by either rotating or rocking lever handle 20, but it will be appreciated that the design is also suitable for a mixer device in which lever handle 20 can be moved left or right to adjust the proportions of hot and cold.

It will be seen that the spout 30 and lever handle 20 are of similar geometrical form, both comprising a generally rectangular, relatively thin plate-like body 22, 32 projecting from an integral, depending pedestal portion 24, 34 that is of broadly square profile with rounded rear corners. The rear and side faces of the pedestal portions 24, 34 are flush with, and merge into, the corresponding faces 24a, 34a of body 22, 32 respectively. Lever handle 20 is moveably mounted atop spout 30, with operative connection via coupling 28 (Figure 3) to a tap mechanism below (not shown). The tap mechanism controls water flow to a delivery nozzle 38 on the underside of spout The two components have an outer envelope formed in a polished metal material, e.g. polished stainless steel or chrome plated metal, or a material of similar appearance, so that their external surfaces are significantly reflective. Moreover, the top faces 23, 33 of lever handle 20 and spout 30 are substantially flat surfaces. Because of the polished, flat form of tap surface 33 of spout 30, the underneath surface 25 of lever handle 20 in front of pedestal portion 24 can be seen as an indirect view or reflection 005112925 00

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in surface 33 by a person standing generally in front of or to the side of the spout, e.g. at the position from which the view in Figure 1 is depicted. This reflection 25', which includes the outline 26' of the lever handle, is depicted in Figure 1.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, the indirect view 25' includes O 5 the reflection 50' of a linear blue or red mark 50 that forms an indicium concerning the status of the tap assembly 10 as a cold water tap or a hot water tap respectively. Where 0 N the tap is a mixer, the indicium 50 may grade from blue to red, left to right or vice-versa.

00 A person disposed at a normal location for manipulating lever handle 20 to operate the tap assembly, e.g. standing in a position generally in front of the basin or trough at which the assembly 10 is installed, cannot directly see indicium 50 because it is obscured from direct view by lever handle 20. Nevertheless, the person can clearly see that the tap is a cold or hot water tap, or see the required movement directions for cold or hot water, by the indirect view 50' of the indicium Figure 4 is a front view of a second embodiment of tap assembly 110 according to the invention designed to be mounted on a vertical wall, e.g. in a shower recess or above a bath. Like parts are indicated by like reference numerals proceeded by In this case, the lever handle 120 is of similar general form to the lever handle 20 but there is no built-in spout and instead the assembly includes a generally rectangular flat mounting plate 60 with a reflective front surface 133 which provides an indirect reflected view 125' of the rear surface 125 of lever handle 120, including a reflected indirect view 150' of the cold/hot indicium. Mounting plate 60 has an outstanding pedestal 64 with an oblique front face 65 that matches and complements pedestal portion 124 of lever handle 120, and on which the lever handle is mounted. Again, because the indicium is on the rear or undersurface 125 of the lever handle 120, it is obscured by the lever handle from the direct view of a person disposed at a normal location for manipulating lever handle 120 to operate the tap assembly.

It will be understood that the invention disclosed and defined in this specification extends to all alternative combinations of two or more of the individual features mentioned or evident from the text or drawings. All of these different combinations constitute various alternative aspects of the invention.

005112925 00 6

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It will also be understood that the term "comprises" (or its grammatical variants) Sas used in this specification is equivalent to the term "includes" and should not be taken as excluding the presence of other elements or features.

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Claims

1. A control device, including: a control member manipulable by hand to operate the device; one or more indicia concerning or related to the control device, which indicia are 00 disposed on said device but are obscured from the direct view of a person disposed at a normal location for manipulating the control member to operate the device; and means on the control device positioned to afford an indirect view of said indicia to a person disposed at said normal location.

2. A control device according to claim 1, wherein the means on the control device o0 positioned to afford an indirect view of the indicia is a reflective surface.

3. A control device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the indicia is obscured by the control member.

4. A control device according to any preceding claim, wherein the indicia is obscured by being positioned on a surface of the control member facing away from the person disposed at the normal location.

A control device according to any preceding claim, wherein the control device is a tap assembly.

6. A control device according to claim 5, wherein the tap assembly is a combination tap and spout assembly, and the reflective surface is provided by a surface of the spout.

7. A control device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the reflective surface is provided by a mounting or backing plate or the like.