AU2023200632A1

AU2023200632A1 - A shower rail and a shower assembly including the shower rail

Info

Publication number: AU2023200632A1
Application number: AU2023200632A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Mark Davis
Original assignee: Austworld Commodities Pty Ltd
Current assignee: Austworld Commodities Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2022-02-07
Filing date: 2023-02-07
Publication date: 2023-08-24

Abstract

: A shower assembly is disclosed comprising a rail member, first and second rail mountings at each end of the rail member, the first and second rail mountings and the rail member defining a rail conduit therethrough, and first and second pipe fittings 5 mounted on the support, wherein the first and second rail mountings are coupled to the first and second pipe fittings respectively to place the rail conduit in fluid communication with the first and second pipe fittings and also to mount the shower rail on the support. The rail member may be mounted on a wall forming a wall cavity and the first and second pipe fittings may be received in the wall cavity and project out through the wall to the first 10 and second rail mountings respectively. Figure 4 4/6 50 56 66 22 24 10 57 20 19 61 Figure 4

Description

4/6

56 66

22

24

10 57

20

19

61

Figure 4

A SHOWER RAIL AND A SHOWER ASSEMBLY INCLUDING THE SHOWER RAIL FIELD

This invention relates to a shower rail and to a shower assembly including the shower rail. It also extends to a set of components for forming a shower assembly.

This invention relates particularly to a shower rail for a shower having a fixed shower head and also a hand held shower, and it will be convenient to hereinafter describe this invention with reference to this example shower assembly. However, it should be clearly understood that the invention is capable of broader application. For example, it could also apply to a shower assembly that diverts water between a bath and a shower.

DEFINITION

In this specification, the term 'comprising' is intended to denote the inclusion of a stated integer or integers, but not necessarily the exclusion of any other integer, depending on the context in which that term is used. This applies also to variants of that term such as 'comprise' or'comprises'.

BACKGROUND

A shower is a bathroom amenity in which a shower user bathes under a stream of typically warm or hot water. The shower broadly comprises a nozzle discharging water over a shower user in a shower zone, e.g. formed by a shower cubicle, and a drain for draining grey water out of the shower. Most showers mix hot and cold water to provide water of a desired temperature. Typically, this might be done by a mixer having a single control or handle for enabling the shower user to vary the proportion of hot and cold water in the water stream discharged from the nozzle and thereby provide the desired water temperature.

Simple showers have a shower nozzle in a fixed position above the shower zone and directed down towards the shower user. Other showers have a flexible hose connected to a shower head which is stored on a mounting bracket between uses (hereinafter referred to as a 'hand held shower') in addition to or instead of a fixed position shower nozzle.

A hand held shower enables a user to hold the shower head in their hand and direct the water over different parts of their body. Showering is common in Western culture due to the efficiency of water use compared with that in a bathtub. The shower is also very hygienic and effective at cleaning a human body.

One popular type of shower has both a fixed shower head mounted in a position high up on a wall or ceiling above the shower zone, and also a separate hand held shower head that can be manually held by a shower user during use. To achieve this functionality, in addition to a mixer for mixing hot and cold water being supplied to the shower, it also requires a diverter for enabling a shower user to selectively divert the mixed water between the fixed shower head and the hand held shower.

One example bathroom fitting that is a combination mixer and diverter (mixer/diverter) suitable for use in a shower is shown in Figure 1.

The mixer in Figure 1 has hot and cold water inlets merging into a single outlet producing a mixed stream. The mixer has a valve allowing a user to manually vary the relative amounts of hot and cold water passing through the mixer so that the mixed stream has a desired temperature.

The bathroom fitting in Figure 1 includes a water diverter that is positioned above the mixer. The diverter has a single water inlet and two water outlets, and a valve that selectively diverts water between the two water outlets. The diverter is manually operable by means of a handle to select the outlet through which the water is to be directed. The diverter projects out beyond the wall but is operatively connected to water pipes behind the wall inside the wall cavity.

This mixer/diverter has a mixer body that is received within a wall cavity behind a finished wall and projects out through the wall to a cover plate that has manual controls for operating the mixer and diverter thereon. As the mixer and diverter need to be spaced apart from each other to function properly, the mixer/diverter requires a large cover plate and a correspondingly large cut out in the finished wall to receive the mixer body. The large cover plate is positioned outside the finished wall extending across the cut out and so the finished wall needs to be tiled around the mixer body.

These combination mixers and diverters have some shortcomings.

The mixer body is received in the wall cavity behind the wall and is connected to two water supply pipes within the wall cavity. Consequently, if there is a leak in the coupling of the body to the pipes, water will leak inside the wall cavity. If such leaking occurs, some tiles from an outer tile layer on the wall will typically need to be removed to gain access to the wall cavity which is both expensive and time consuming. Water leakage is easier to manage and repair if the mixer/diverter is operatively coupled to the pipework outside of the wall cavity, i.e. outward of the tile layer.

Another shortcoming of these mixers/diverters is that they are not aesthetically pleasing. They present a large chunky plate on the wall surface that detracts from a clean simple design that is in vogue for bathroom and shower design.

Figure 2 illustrates a remote diverter that is known in the prior art. The diverter in Figure 2 is manually operable by means of a handle to select which of the outlets the water is directed through. The diverter projects out beyond the wall but is operatively connected to water pipes behind the wall inside the wall cavity.

This diverter has similar limitations to the diverter shown in Figure 1. That is, the fitting is operatively coupled to the water pipes behind the tile layer and once again this creates a risk of water leakage into the wall cavity behind the finished wall. If this occurs, some tiling typically needs to be removed which is time consuming and expensive to fix.

Any reference to prior art in the background above is not and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that the referenced prior art forms part of the common general knowledge in Australia or in any other country.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

Applicant recognises that the current range of prior art mixers and/or diverters for showers has its limitations. This is particularly the case where a diverter is used to selectively direct water to one of two water outlets, e.g. to direct water between a fixed shower and a hand held shower, or between a hand held shower and a bath.

According to one aspect of the invention there is provided a shower rail for a shower assembly, the shower rail comprising: a rail member, first and second rail mountings on the rail member for mounting the shower rail against a wall, the first and second rail mountings and the rail member defining a rail conduit therethrough, wherein at least the first rail mounting is configured for coupling to a first pipe fitting to place the rail conduit in fluid communication therewith and mount the first rail mounting to a support.

The first and second rail mountings may be amounted at or towards each end of the rail member.

The second rail mounting may be configured for coupling to a second pipe fitting to place the rail conduit in fluid communication therewith and mount the second rail mounting to the support.

The first rail mounting may include a first water outlet that is in fluid communication with the rail conduit and the first rail mounting.

The first water outlet may face in an opposite direction to the rail member and the rail conduit.

The shower rail may include a water diverter for selectively diverting water through the rail conduit to one bathroom fitting or through the first water outlet to another bathroom fitting.

The water diverter may be mounted on the first rail mounting of the shower rail.

The shower rail may further include a first delivery pipe operatively coupled to said first water outlet.

The delivery pipe may be flexible and comprise a hand held shower head on an end thereof that is suitable for use as a hand held shower.

The delivery pipe and handheld shower head may be removably mounted on the rail member by means of a slide and the slide may be slidably displaceable along the rail member.

The pipe coupling formation on each rail mounting may comprise a female formation for receiving a male formation on a pipe fitting therein.

The female formation may include an internal screw thread for engaging a complementary external screw thread on a said male formation on a pipe fitting. In one example form, the female formation may comprise a bore having an internal screw thread formed thereon.

The rail member may be of adjustable length for enabling the overall length the distance between the first and second rail mountings to be adjusted.

The rail member may comprise two telescoping rail sections that can be axially displaced relative to each other to adjust the overall length of the rail member.

The rail member may include any one or more of the components, or combination of components defined in a rail member is any other aspect of the invention.

According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a shower assembly comprising: a support, a rail member, first and second rail mountings on the rail member, the first and second rail mountings and the rail member defining a rail conduit therethrough, and a first pipe fitting mounted on the support that is operatively coupled to the first rail mounting to place the rail conduit in fluid communication therewith and mount the first rail mounting to the support.

The first and second rail mountings may be amounted at, or towards, each end of the rail member.

The shower assembly may further include a second pipe fitting operatively coupled to the second rail mounting to place the rail conduit in fluid communication therewith and mount the second rail mounting to the support.

The support may comprise a wall forming a wall cavity.

The first and second pipe fittings may project out through the wall to the first and second rail mountings respectively to which they are coupled outside of the wall.

The shower rail may further include a first delivery pipe, e.g. a flexible pipe, operatively coupled to said first water outlet.

The shower rail may also include a hand held shower head on an end of the first delivery pipe that is suitable for use as a hand held shower.

The shower assembly may include a second delivery pipe operatively coupled to the second pipe fitting downstream of the rail member.

The second delivery pipe may run along the wall within the wall cavity to a bathroom fitting.

The second delivery pipe may have a fixed shower head mounted on a remote end thereof.

The shower assembly may further include a water feed pipe operatively coupled to the first pipe fitting upstream of the rail member.

The water feed pipe may run along the wall received inside the wall cavity.

The shower assembly may include any one or more of the features, or combinations of features, of the shower rail or shower assembly defined in any other aspect of the invention.

According to yet another aspect of the invention there is provided a shower rail for a shower assembly, the shower rail comprising: a rail member defining a rail conduit therethrough, first and second rail mountings at or towards each end of the rail member, the first and second rail mountings being in fluid communication with the rail conduit, a diverter on the first rail mounting for selectively diverting water entering the first rail mounting through the rail conduit and/or through another passage, wherein at least the first rail mounting is configured for coupling to a first pipe fitting to mount the shower rail to a wall, and also to place the rail conduit in fluid communication with the first pipe fitting.

The second rail mounting may also be configured for coupling to a second pipe fitting to place the rail conduit in fluid communication therewith and assist in mounting the shower rail to the wall.

The first rail mounting may include a first water outlet, e.g. in the form of an opening, that is in fluid communication with the diverter and the rail conduit, the first water outlet being downstream of the diverter.

Thus, the diverter is incorporated into the shower rail and is positioned outside of a wall and an associated tile covering so it cannot leak water into an associated wall cavity. Further, the shower rail is mounted on the wall by operatively coupling the rail mountings to pipe elbows. Thus, by coupling the plumbing formations to each other a physical mounting of the shower rail on the wall is also provided and thus no fasteners are required to be driven into the wall to mount the shower rail.

The diverter may selectively divert water between the rail conduit and the first water outlet.

The shower rail may further include a first delivery pipe that is a flexible pipe operatively coupled to said first water outlet.

The first water outlet may be configured for operatively coupling the first rail mounting to the flexible pipe such that water can flow through the water outlet into the flexible pipe.

The shower rail may further include a hand held shower head or hand held shower rose at an end of the flexible pipe that is suitable for use as a hand held shower.

The shower rail may yet further include a slide that is slidably mounted on the rail member.

The slide may further include a retaining formation for releasably holding the hand held shower rose on the rail between uses.

The first and second rail mountings may each be configured for coupling to a pipe fitting that is a pipe elbow.

At least one of the rail mountings may comprise a female formation for receiving a male formation of the pipe elbow therein.

The female formation may include an internal screw thread for engaging a complementary external screw thread on the male formation of the pipe elbow.

Conveniently, the pipe elbow may comprise a wall plated elbow having a flange that can bear up against a support so that pressure can be applied to the elbow during installation.

In use on a shower assembly, the pipe elbow may project out through the wall so that the first and second rail mountings are operatively coupled to their associated pipe elbow outside of the finished wall.

The first and second rail mountings may further include mounting plates for bearing up against the wall surface on which the shower rail is mountable.

The rail member may include a length adjusting arrangement.

The length adjusting arrangement may comprise two telescoping rail sections that are slidable relative to each other to some extent to enable some adjustment of the length of the rail member. This allows for some adjustment of the length of the rail member between the first and second rail mountings on installation.

This allows for some error in the measuring process when installing the shower rail. This is advantageous because the pipe fittings, e.g. pipe elbows, to which the rail mountings are coupled are fixed in position during initial installation of the plumbing pipes (called 'roughing in' in the plumbing art and cannot be axially adjusted once installed in position.

According to yet another aspect of the invention there is provided a shower assembly, comprising: a shower rail comprising: a rail member defining a rail conduit therethrough, a diverter on the first rail mounting for selectively diverting water entering the first rail mounting through the rail conduit or another passage; a first rail mounting at or towards one end of the rail member and a second rail mounting at a second end of the rail member for mounting at or towards the other end of the rail member, the first and second rail mountings being in fluid communication with the rail conduit, and a first pipe fitting operatively coupled to the first rail mounting such that the rail conduit is in fluid communication with the first pipe fitting.

The shower assembly may include a second pipe fitting operatively coupled to the second rail mounting such that the rail conduit is in fluid communication with the second pipe fitting.

The shower assembly may include a support and the support may comprise a wall forming a wall cavity and the first and second pipe fittings may be received in the wall cavity and project out through the wall to the first and second rail mountings respectively.

The first rail mounting may have a pipe coupling formation, and the pipe coupling formation may be operatively coupled to the first pipe fitting.

Each pipe fitting may be in the form of a pipe elbow having a male coupling formation, and each rail mounting may have a female pipe coupling formation engaged with said male formation. Conveniently, each wall elbow may be in the form of a wall plated elbow.

The shower assembly may include a first water outlet on the first rail mounting that is in fluid communication with the rail conduit and the pipe fitting.

The shower assembly may include a diverter operatively coupled in line with the first rail mounting for selectively diverting water between the rail conduit and the first water outlet.

The shower assembly may include a flexible first delivery pipe operatively coupled to the first water outlet for receiving water that is directed through the first water outlet by the diverter.

The shower assembly may further include a hand held shower head at an end of the flexible first delivery pipe.

The hand rail may include a slide mounted on the rail conduit that can slide up and down the rail conduit and a retaining formation for releasably holding the hand held shower on the slide.

The pipe elbows may project out through the wall and be operatively connected to the rail mountings outside of the wall cavity. Thus, if water leaks between the rail mountings and the elbows, the water will leak outside the wall cavity.

The shower assembly may include a water feed or supply pipe operatively coupled to the first pipe fitting.

In one form, the water supply pipe may conveniently be received in the wall cavity behind the wall. Instead, in another form, the water supply pipe may extend along the wall outside of the wall cavity.

The shower assembly may include a second water delivery pipe or bathroom fitting water pipe, e.g. that is operatively coupled to the second pipe fitting at the second rail mounting at one end and a fixed shower head at another end.

The second water delivery pipe may be positioned behind the wall where it is received within the wall cavity. That is, the second water delivery pipe may be operatively coupled to the second pipe fitting in the wall cavity behind the wall and this pipe may travel from the shower rail to the fixed shower head behind the wall.

Instead, the second water delivery pipe may be positioned outside of the wall and travel along the wall outside of the wall. In this case, the second water delivery pipe may extend linearly away from the second rail mounting in alignment with the rail member.

The second water delivery pipe, in turn, may be operatively coupled to a fixed shower head that is mounted on a wall or other external support.

Further, instead in a yet further different form, the shower assembly may include a bath water pipe that is operatively coupled to the pipe fitting at the second rail mounting.

The bath water pipe may direct water through an outlet into a bath to fill the bath with bath water.

In this form, the shower assembly selectively diverts water between a hand held shower and a bath instead of between a hand held shower and a fixed shower.

The shower assembly may further include a water mixer for mixing hot and cold water coupled in line with the water feed pipe upstream of the shower rail.

The water mixer may be mounted on the wall of the shower assembly and may include a manually operable valve for selectively adjusting the proportion of hot and cold water in the water feed pipe downstream of the mixer.

The shower assembly may include any one or more of the features, or combination of features, of a shower rail or a shower assembly defined in any other aspect of the invention.

The invention also extends to a set of components forming a shower assembly.

The set may include any one or more of the components of the shower assembly defined in a preceding aspect of the invention.

Finally, the invention also extends to a method of forming a shower assembly comprising providing a shower rail as defined in any other aspect of the invention and installing it on a support.

The shower rail and the support any further include any of the features, or combination of features, described above in any preceding aspect of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A shower rail and a shower assembly including the shower rail in accordance with the invention may manifest itself in a variety of forms. It will be convenient to hereinafter describe in detail several embodiments of the invention with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic 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 summary section. In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a schematic set of drawings of a combination of mixer and diverter that is known in the prior art, the section being taken through I-I in the front view;

Figure 2 is a schematic set of drawings showing a diverter of the type that is known in the prior art, the section being taken through 11-11 of the front view;

Figure 3 is a schematic front view of a shower assembly in accordance with one embodiment of the invention having a shower rail mounted on a wall;

Figure 4 is a sectional side view of the shower assembly of Figure 3 showing detail of the plumbing behind the wall of the shower assembly, the section being taken through IV-IV of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a sectional side view showing more detail of the plumbing arrangements on the rail mountings at each end of the shower rail in Figure 4, the region indicated by E being shown at the top and the section indicated by C being shown at the bottom;

Figure 6 is a schematic three-dimensional view of a shower assembly having a shower rail mounted on a wall in accordance with another embodiment of the invention; and

Figure 7 is a perspective view showing detail of one end of the shower rail of Figure 6 which shower rail in use is mounted directly on the finished wall.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Figures 1 and 2 illustrate two prior art arrangements of combination mixers/diverters and diverters that are known in the prior art. Their features have been described above in the background section of the specification.

Figures 3 to 5 illustrate a shower rail in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

The shower rail which is indicated broadly by reference numeral 10 comprises a rail member 12 defining a rail conduit 13 therethrough, and first and second rail mountings 14 and 16 at each end of the rail member 12 for mounting the shower rail 10 against a wall. The first and second rail mountings 14 and 16 also have the rail conduit 13 extending therethrough.

The rail mountings 14, 16 are configured for coupling to a pipe fitting so that each rail mounting 14, 16 is in fluid communication its associated pipe fitting. The first rail mounting 14 includes a first water outlet 18, e.g. in the form of a further opening, facing in an opposite direction to the rail member 12 and the rail conduit 13. The first water outlet 18 is in fluid communication with the rail conduit 13.

The shower rail 10 includes a manually operable diverter 19 operatively mounted on the first rail mounting 14 that is coupled in line with the rail mounting 14 and the rail conduit 13 for selectively diverting water between the rail conduit 13 and the first water outlet 18. As the structure and operation of a diverter would be known to persons killed in the art and does not form part of the invention, it will not be described in greater detail in this specific description.

The shower rail 10 includes a flexible water pipe or first delivery pipe 20 operatively coupled to said water outlet 18 and a delivery conduit that is a hand held shower head or hand held shower rose 22 at an end of the flexible water pipe 20. The shower rail 10 also includes a slide 24 that is slidably mounted on the rail member 12 having a retaining formation in the form of a clip 26 for detachably mounting the hand held shower head 22 thereto. The slide 24 can be displaced along the rail member 12 to enable a user to adjust the height of the hand held shower rose 22 in use.

In Figures 3 to 5, the shower rail 10 forms part of a shower assembly that is indicated generally by reference numeral 50. The shower assembly 50 comprises the shower rail 10 mounted on a support that is a finished wall 56 having a wall cavity 57 and further includes a plurality of water pipes operatively coupled to the shower rail 10 which will be described in more detail below.

The first and second rail mountings 14 and 16 have coupling formations that are configured for coupling to pipe fittings that are pipe elbows (that are indicated in the drawings by numerals 52 and 54 projecting out from the wall 56. Conveniently, each pipe elbow 52, 54 projects out through the wall 56 so that the associated rail mounting 14, 16 is operatively coupled thereto outside of the finished wall 56. As shown in the drawings, each pipe elbow 52, 54 may conveniently be a wall plated elbow having a flange 58 that can bear up against a support. This enables a force to be applied to the elbow during installation, e.g. when the female formation of the rail mountings are mounted on the elbows 52, 54.

In the illustrated embodiment, the coupling formations on the first and second rail mountings 14, 16 comprise female formations for receiving male formations on the pipe elbows 52, 54 therein. Each female formation may include an internal screw thread and the male formation may include an external screw thread for screw threadedly engaging the internal screw thread on the female formation. Thread tape may be wound onto the male formation to assist with sealing as is known in the art.

The shower assembly 50 includes a water feed or supply pipe 61 operatively coupled to the first rail mounting 14 via the first pipe elbow 52. The water feed or supply pipe 61 has an upstream end that is operatively coupled to a water supply for the shower assembly 50 and extends from this water supply to the shower rail 10. The downstream end of the water feed or supply pipe is operatively coupled to an upstream end of the first pipe elbow 52. The water feed or supply pipe 61 travels through the wall cavity 57 behind the wall 56 along its length to the first pipe elbow 52.

The shower assembly 50 further includes a water mixer (not shown) for mixing hot and cold water operatively coupled in line with the water supply pipe 61 upstream of the first elbow 52. The water mixer includes a cold water inlet and a hot water inlet and a single outlet discharging mixed water of selected temperature into the water supply pipe 61. The water mixer typically has a manually operable valve for selectively adjusting the proportion of hot and cold water fed into the single outlet. As the structure and function of water mixers would be known to person skilled in the art and does not form part of this invention, it will not be described in further detail in this specific description. The water mixer (not shown) is typically mounted on the wall 56 of the shower assembly 50 and is operatively connected to the water feed or supply pipe 61 within the wall cavity 57.

The shower assembly 50 also includes a fixed shower water pipe or second water delivery pipe 66 operatively coupled to the second pipe elbow 54. The pipe coupling formation of the second rail mounting 16 is operatively coupled to the second pipe elbow 54 which, in turn, is operatively coupled to the second water delivery pipe which is a fixed shower water pipe 66. The second water delivery pipe 66 has a distal end remote from the second rail mounting 16 that has a fixed shower head 68 mounted thereon. The second water delivery pipe 66 travels to the fixed shower head 68 received within the wall cavity 57 behind the wall 56 in the illustrated embodiment.

The first and second rail mountings 14 and 16 also have wall plates 30 and 32 that bear up against the wall 56 in use when the rail mountings 14 and 16 are connected to the first and second pipe elbows 52 and 54.

The rail member 12 also includes a length adjusting arrangement indicated generally by numeral 40 for enabling the axial distance between the first and second rail mountings 14 and 16 to be adjusted at least to some extent. The length adjusting arrangement may comprise two telescoping sections 12A and 12B shown in Figure 5 that are slidable relative to each other to some extent and are biased by a spring (not shown) to an extended position. This allows an installer to make some adjustment of the length of the rail member 12 on installation to make it fit between the first and second pipe elbows 52 and 54 on which it is to be mounted. This allows for some error in the measuring process when installing the shower rail 10. This is advantageous because the pipe elbows 52, 54 are fixed in position during initial installation of the plumbing pipes (known as 'roughing in' in the plumbing arts, and it cannot be axially adjusted once the plumbing installation has been done.

In use, the shower assembly shown in Figures 3 to 5 can be used to provide a shower having both a hand held shower head and a fixed shower head for use by a user. Thus a shower user is able to selectively direct water to either the hand held shower head 22 or the fixed shower head 68 by means of the manually operable diverter 19. When the diverter 19 is moved to one position, feed water supplied by the water feed or supply pipe 61 is directed through the water outlet 18 and then through the flexible first water feed pipe 20 to the hand held shower head 22. If the diverter 19 is moved to its other position, the feed water is partly or fully directed down the rail conduit 13 and out through the second rail mounting 16. From there, it passes into the second water feed pipe 66 in the wall cavity 57 behind the wall 56 and from there to the fixed shower head 68.

If a water leak develops in the operative connection of the first or second rail mountings 14 and 16 to their associated pipe elbows 52 and 54, it will be appreciated that the water leak occurs outward of the wall 56 because the coupling is physically outward of the wall 56. Thus, there can be no water leakage into the wall cavity 57 or wall frame behind the tiles. The water leak can be repaired by removing the first and second rail mountings 14 and 16 from their respective pipe elbows 52 and 54 and then re-connecting the rail mountings 14 and 16 to the elbows 52 and 54 with a new sealing. Typically, this might involve applying thread tape or thread retaining compound over the engaging threads prior to their engagement and then screwing the rail mounting 14 or 16 back onto the thread of the associated pipe elbow 52 or 54 until it contacts the wall 56. Thus, there is no need to penetrate the wall 56 to gain access to the wall cavity 57 when fixing a water leak. This is a significant step forward in the design and maintenance of shower assemblies.

During installation, pipework including the water supply pipe 61 and the fixed shower water pipe 66, and the first and second pipe elbows 52 and 54, can be 'roughed in' so that the male formation on each pipe elbow 52, 54 projects out through the wall 56. After the wall 56 is tiled, the shower rail 10 can be mounted on the pipe elbows 52, 54 projecting out of the wall. As described above, the rail member 12 is formed of two rail sections 12A and 12B that are telescopically adjustable to shorten the length of the rail member 12, if required, to fit the distance between the installed pipe elbows 52, 54 which have already been installed and are fixed in position.

In the finished shower assembly 50, the shower rail 10 is directly mounted on the pipe elbows 52, 54 sticking out of the wall 56 and the diverter 19 does not have any pipe couplings that are positioned inside the wall cavity 57 behind the wall 56. Further, the shower rail 10 with its simple lines presents a neat and elegant appearance.

Figures 6 and 7 illustrate a shower assembly in accordance with a second embodiment of the invention. The shower assembly in these drawings has many similarities to the shower assembly in Figures 3 to 5 and accordingly, unless otherwise indicated, the same reference numerals will be used to refer to the same components.

In Figures 6 and 7, the shower rail 10 is similar to the rail in Figures 3 to 5. However, the arrangement of the second water delivery pipe or fixed shower water pipe 66 and the way in which it is operatively coupled to the second rail mounting 16 is different to that in the first embodiment in Figures 3 to 5.

Firstly, in the second embodiment, the second water delivery pipe or fixed shower water pipe 66 forms a linear extension of the rail member 12 extending upward from the shower rail 10 and then curves up and over a shower space to a fixed shower head 68 spaced beneath a ceiling. Thus, the second water delivery pipe in this embodiment is outside of the finished wall 56 and, in fact, is spaced away from the finished wall 56.

It will be appreciated that, in this embodiment, the second rail mounting 16 is fixed to the wall by means of fasteners because there is no pipe elbow projecting out through the wall in this embodiment to mount it to the wall at this second rail mounting. Thus, the fasteners typically need to be drilled through tiles on the wall to mount the rail mounting on the wall. Figure 7 shows a wall socket with mounting slots 69 that is used to mount the rail mounting 16 to the wall.

A characteristic of a shower assembly with a shower rail in accordance with at least one illustrated embodiment is that the mixer is mounted on a shower rail (outside of the wall) and has two delivery conduits that are mounted outside the wall. One delivery conduit that leads to a fixed shower head passes from the shower rail back into the wall through the rail mounting, and then travels behind the wall (within the wall cavity) to the shower head. The other delivery conduit leads to the hand held shower head.

Applicant recognises it would be beneficial if a diverter was positioned outside of the wall cavity to avoid water leaking out the pipes inside a wall cavity. Applicant also recognises it would be beneficial if the diverters did not require fasteners to be inserted through tiles on a wall for mounting the diverter to the wall.

An advantage of the shower assembly with a shower rail in accordance with at least one illustrated embodiment is that it mounts a mixer on the wall using pipe elbows for the pipe conducting water through the shower assembly.

The shower assembly avoids the need for fasteners that are passed through the tiles. It also forms plumbing connections for the shower assembly that are outward of the wall surface and not received within the wall cavity. Thus, if there are any leaks, they form outside of the wall cavity and are easier and do not cause damage to the wall.

It is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative only and not limiting. 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 set forth herein. Changes in detail or structure may be made without departing from the basic elements of the invention as defined in the following claims.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A shower rail for a shower assembly, the shower rail comprising: a rail member, first and second rail mountings on the rail member for mounting the shower rail against a wall, the first and second rail mountings and the rail member defining a rail conduit therethrough, wherein at least the first rail mounting is configured for coupling to a first pipe fitting to place the rail conduit in fluid communication therewith and mount the first rail mounting to a support.

2. A shower rail for a shower assembly according to claim 1, wherein the second rail mounting is configured for coupling to a second pipe fitting to place the rail conduit in fluid communication therewith and mount the second rail mounting to the support.

3. A shower rail for a shower assembly according to claim 2, wherein the first rail mounting includes a first water outlet that is in fluid communication with the rail conduit and the first rail mounting.

4. A shower rail for a shower assembly according to claim 3, wherein the first water outlet faces in an opposite direction to the rail member and the rail conduit.

5. A shower rail for a shower assembly according to claim 3 or claim 4, wherein the shower rail includes a water diverterfor selectively diverting water through the rail conduit to one bathroom fitting or through the first water outlet to another bathroom fitting.

6. A shower rail for a shower assembly according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the pipe coupling formation on each rail mounting comprises a female formation for receiving a male formation on a pipe fitting therein.

7. A shower rail for a shower assembly according to claim 6, wherein the female formation includes an internal screw thread for engaging a complementary external screw thread on a said male formation on a pipe fitting.

8. A shower rail for a shower assembly according to any one of claims 3 to 7, wherein the shower rail further includes a delivery pipe operatively coupled to said first water outlet, and the delivery pipe is flexible and comprises a hand held shower head on an end thereof that is suitable for use as a hand held shower.

9. A shower rail for a shower assembly according to claim 8, wherein the delivery pipe and handheld shower head are removably mounted on the rail member by means of a slide, and the slide is slidably displaceable along the rail member.

10. A shower rail for a shower assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the rail member comprises two telescoping rail sections that can be axially displaced relative to each other to adjust the overall length of the rail member whereby to enable the overall length the distance between the first and second rail mountings to be adjusted.

11. A shower assembly comprising: support, a rail member, first and second rail mountings on the rail member, the first and second rail mountings and the rail member defining a rail conduit therethrough, and a first pipe fitting mounted on the support that is operatively coupled to the first rail mounting to place the rail conduit in fluid communication therewith and mount the first rail mounting to a support.

12. A shower assembly according to claim 11, further including a second pipe fitting operatively coupled to the second rail mounting to place the rail conduit in fluid communication therewith and mount the second rail mounting to the support.

13. A shower assembly according to claim 12, wherein the support comprises a wall forming a wall cavity, and the first and second pipe fittings project out through the wall to the first and second rail mountings respectively to which they are coupled outside of the wall.

14. A shower assembly according to claim 13, wherein the first rail mounting includes a first water outlet that is in fluid communication with the rail conduit and the first rail mounting, and the shower rail further includes a first delivery pipe operatively coupled to said first water outlet.

15. A shower assembly according to claim 14, wherein the first delivery pipe is flexible and includes a hand held shower head on an end thereof.

16. A shower assembly according to claim 14 or claim 15, wherein the shower rail includes a water diverter for selectively diverting water through the rail conduit to one bathroom fitting or through the first delivery pipe.

17. A shower assembly according to any one of claims 13 to 16, further including a second delivery pipe operatively coupled to the second pipe fitting downstream of the rail member.

18. A shower assembly according to claim 17, wherein the second delivery pipe runs along the wall within the wall cavity.

19. A shower assembly according to claim 17 or claim 18, wherein the second delivery pipe has a fixed shower head mounted on a remote end thereof.

20. A shower assembly according to any one of claim 13 to 19, further including a water feed pipe running along the wall received inside the wall cavity, and the water feed pipe is operatively coupled to the first pipe fitting upstream of the rail member.