AU2009200975A1 - Adjustable shower head assembly - Google Patents

Description

P/00/011 Regulation 3.2 AUSTRALIA Patents Act 1990 ORIGINAL COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Invention Title: "ADJUSTABLE SHOWER HEAD ASSEMBLY" The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us: 1 TITLE ADJUSTABLE SHOWER HEAD ASSEMBLY Field of the Invention 5 The invention relates to an adjustable shower head assembly which allows adjustment of the position and angle of the shower head. Background to the Invention 10 Many commonly used shower heads can be adjusted due to the frictional forces between the channel provided on the shower base attachment and the shower head holder positioned within the channel. The holder can be rotated axially within the channel by means of outer forces and it can be fixed at a 15 desired position due to the interference fit between the holder and the channel, or by means of frictional forces caused by the seal material between the shower wall and the shower base attachment. The shower arm can be connected either to the holder or the support body connected to the holder. Adjustment of the holder allows the position of the shower head to be changed. The connection between 20 the shower arm and the support body enables the position and angle of the shower head to be easily changed. The problem of the connection lies in the wearing between the shower wall and the shower holder as well as the wearing between the shower arm and 2 the support body. Thus, extended use of the product may decrease the frictional forces between the components over time, making it difficult to adjust the positioning of the shower head. 5 Object of the Invention It is a preferred object of the present invention to provide an adjustable shower head assembly that addresses or at least ameliorates one or more of the aforementioned problems of the prior art. 10 It is a further preferred object of the present invention to provide an adjustable shower head assembly which allows the position and angle of the shower head to be changed between a first position and a second position and be securely held in the desired position. 15 Summary of the Invention In one form, although it need not be the only or indeed the broadest form, the invention resides in an adjustable shower head assembly 20 comprising: a shower head having a shower arm; a shower base for attachment of the assembly to a shower wall; a support body having a first end connected to the shower arm and a second end connected to the shower base; and 3 at least one swivel joint comprising a male pipe member having a recess hole with a plurality of internal gears engageable with a plurality of external gears provided on a female pipe member to allow adjustment of the position and angle of the shower head between a first position and a second position. 5 Preferably, a first swivel joint has a male pipe connected to the support body and a female pipe connected to the shower arm. Preferably, there is a recess hole on the male pipe through which the 10 female pipe is inserted and the internal gears provided on the inner side of the recess hole on the male pipe are engageable with the external gears provided on the outer side of the female pipe. Preferably, the engagement between the gears on both the male and the 15 female pipes enables the pipes to be positioned in a manner which allows rotation and also solves the problem of losing of frictional forces due to the wearing of the metal. Once the gears are disengaged, the angle between the male pipe and female pipe can be changed. Thus, the angle and the position of the shower head can be adjusted. 20 Preferably, there is an elastic means within the said recess hole on the male pipe. One end of the elastic means sets against the bottom of the said recess hole, the other end sets against the bottom face of the female pipe. With the help of the elastic means, the user can push the female pipe into the male 4 pipe to disengage the gears at first, and after the user achieves the desired angle through rotation of the female pipe, they can release the female pipe, which will then return to its original position with the help of the elastic means. The elastic means can be a spring or any suitable elastic body that is commonly available. 5 Preferably, there is a vent on the male pipe, through which a locking device is inserted and sets the position of the female pipe. The function of the said locking device is to axially position the male and the female pipes. There is a groove provided on the outside of the female pipe and the locking device is set 10 against the groove of the female pipe. Preferably, the said positioning by means of setting the locking device into the groove on the outside of the female pipe is better than the way of setting the locking device directly against the inner side of the female pipe because the 15 former reduces the wearing between the locking device and the female pipe. Most important of all, the user can axially position the male pipe and the female pipe without touching the locking device. A second swivel joint of the invention can also be set between the 20 support body and the shower base. By adjusting the angle between the support body and the shower base, the user can also adjust the shower head. Preferably, the second swivel joint has a male pipe connected to the support body and a female pipe connected to the shower base. There is a recess 5 hole on the male pipe through which the female pipe is inserted, and the internal gears provided on the inner side of the recess hole on the male pipe are engageable with the external gears provided on the outer side of the female pipe. 5 Preferably, there is an elastic means within the said recess hole on the male pipe. One end of the elastic means set against the bottom of the said recess hole, the other end sets against the bottom face of the female pipe. Preferably, there is a vent on the male pipe, through which a locking 10 device is inserted and sets against the female pipe. There is a groove on the outside of the female pipe and the locking device is set between the groove of the female pipe. Suitably, a swivel joint can be installed between the shower arm and the 15 shower base without the support body of the adjustable shower head assembly. The benefit of the invention lies in the fact that the user can simply push the female pipe or the male pipe, the gears will become disengaged, and the angle and the position of the shower head can be adjusted. When the user 20 adjusts well the desired angle, he or she can simply loosen the male or the female pipe and the gears will be engaged and the male and female pipes will be located to their desired position. The strong engagement of the gears enables the invention to be used even as a hanger temporarily.

6 Brief Description of the Drawings A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the following drawings: Figure 1 shows a top cross-sectional view of an adjustable shower head 5 assembly; Figure 2 shows an enlarged view of the breaking of the male pipe and female pipe of the adjustable shower head assembly shown in Figure 1; and Figure 3 shows a side view of the adjustable shower head assembly 10 shown in Figure 1. Description of an Embodiment of the Invention Figures 1, 2 and 3 illustrate an embodiment of an adjustable shower 15 head assembly. As described above, the present invention is directed towards an adjustable shower head assembly including a shower head 100, a shower arm 200, a support body 300 and a shower base 400. 20 The assembly comprises at least one swivel joint. A first swivel joint 1 is connected to the support body 300 at one end and to the shower arm 200 at the other end. The first swivel joint 1 has a male pipe 3, connected to the support body 300 and a female pipe 2, connected to the shower arm 200. A 7 recess hole 30 is provided on the male pipe 3 into which the female pipe 2 is inserted. A plurality of internal gears 31 are provided on an inner side of the recess hole 30 on the male pipe 3 which are engageable with a plurality of external gears 21 provided on an outer side of the female pipe 2. An elastic 5 means 4 is provided within the recess hole 30, wherein one end contacts a bottom of the recess hole 30 and the other end contacts a bottom face of the female pipe 2. A groove 22 is provided on the outside of the female pipe 2, and a vent 32 is provided on the male pipe 3. A locking device 5 is inserted into the vent 32 and passed through the recess hole 30 until it is received within the 10 groove 22 provided on the female pipe 2. Preferably, the vent 32 is in the form of a screw hole and the locking device 5 is in the form of a screw on the vent 32. The connection between the locking device 5 and the groove 22 prevents any axial movement between the male pipe 3 and the female pipe 2. 15 A second swivel joint 1' is connected to the support body 300 at one end and to the shower base 400 at the other end. The second swivel joint 1' has a male pipe 3' connected to the support body 300 and a female pipe 2' connected to the shower base 400. A recess hole 30' is provided on the male pipe 3' into which the female pipe 2' is inserted. A plurality of internal gears 31' 20 is provided on an inner side of the recess hole 30' on the male pipe 3' which is engageable with a plurality of external gears 21' provided on the outer side of the female pipe 2'. A spring 4' is provided within the recess hole 30' on the male pipe 3'. One end of the spring 4' rests against the bottom of the said recess hole 30' and the other end contacts the bottom face of the female pipe 8 2'. A groove 22' is provided on the outside of the female pipe 2' and a vent 32' is provided on the male pipe 3'. A locking device 5' is inserted into the vent 32', passing through the recess hole 30' until it is received within the groove 22' provided on the female pipe 2'. The vent 32' is in the form of a screw hole and 5 the locking device 5' is in the form of a screw on the vent 32'. The connection between the locking device 5' and the groove 22' prevents movement between the male pipe 3' and the female pipe 2' in an axial direction. Figure 2 shows how the first swivel joint 1 works. When the user 10 pushes the female pipe 2, the plurality of external gears 21 and the plurality of internal gears 31 are disengaged, allowing the female pipe to be rotated to a second position following direction A, as illustrated in Figure 2 and Figure 3, to allow the angle and position of the shower head 100 to be changed. The spring 4 is compressed at this time. When the adjustment is completed, the spring 4 15 will return to its first position as shown in Figure 1, and the engagement between the external gears 21 and internal gears 31 will secure the position and angle of the shower head 100. The swivel joint 1' can also be adjusted in a similar manner so that the shower head 100 can be adjusted to direction A' as shown in Figure 3. 20

Claims (10)

1. An adjustable shower head assembly comprising: a shower head having a shower arm; a shower base for attachment of the assembly to a shower wall; 5 a support body having a first end connected to the shower arm and a second end connected to the shower base; and at least one swivel joint comprising a male pipe member having a recess hole with a plurality of internal gears engageable with a plurality of external gears provided on a female pipe member to allow adjustment of the position 10 and angle of the shower head between a first position and a second position.

2. An adjustable shower head assembly as claimed in claim 1 wherein a first swivel joint has a male pipe connected to the support body and a female pipe connected to the shower arm. 15

3. An adjustable shower head assembly as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the plurality of internal gears is provided on the inner side of the recess hole into which the female pipe can be inserted. 20

4. An adjustable shower head assembly as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the plurality of external gears is provided on the outer side of the female pipe.

5. An adjustable shower head assembly as claimed in claim 1 wherein an 10 elastic means, in the form of a spring or other suitable elastic body, is provided at the bottom of the recess hole of the male pipe to contact the bottom face of the female pipe when it is inserted within the recess hole. 5

6. An adjustable shower head assembly as claimed in claim 1 wherein the male pipe comprises a vent in the form of a screw hole for receiving a locking device in the form of a screw.

7. An adjustable shower head assembly as claimed in claim 6 wherein the 10 female pipe comprises a groove on its outer side for receiving the locking device to prevent movement between the female pipe and the male pipe in an axial direction.

8. An adjustable shower head assembly as claimed in claim 1 wherein the 15 second swivel joint has a male pipe connected to the support body and a female pipe connected to the shower arm.

9. An adjustable shower head assembly as claimed in claim 1 where the female pipe member or male pipe member is depressed to disengage the 20 external gears and the internal gears and allow rotation of the respective pipe member.

10. An adjustable shower head assembly as substantially described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.