CH680683A5 - - Google Patents

Abstract

A cartridge for a mixing faucet having a control lever (30) mounted to a pivot ball (27) in which the compressive sealing force between the water conduits of the cartridge (9) and the corresponding water conduits of the body (1) of the faucet is provided by tubes (33) made from resilient material forming the seal and being positioned in counterbores (14, 15) of passages (11, 12) of water through the base (10) of the cartridge, and opens toward the external surface of the cartridge base. The tubes (33) protrude from the counterbores of the cartridge to abut against the end (3) of cavity (2) in faucet body (1). The counterbore (14, 15) also mountes a spring means (36) to provide the compressive force for the seals and cartridge. In addition, hydraulic pressure in the counterbores exerts a certain amount of force with respect to the bottom of the cartridge against the faucet body.

Description

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Description

Technical area

The present invention relates to a cartridge for a mixer tap having a control lever moving around a single pivot point, in which the force to ensure the seal between the water lines of the cartridge and the lines of The corresponding water from the tap body is supplied by tubular elements which are provided with an elastic spring element.

Invention background

In conventional single-handle taps with cartridges housed in the body cavity, the hot and cold water inlet passages through the metal base of the tap form an elongated cylindrical housing for the passage of the water to the cavity in which the cartridge is housed. An elastomeric tubular sealing element and a compressed spring are inserted into the housing. The ring can be elongated and resemble a tube. The tube exerts a radial force on the walls of the housing in which it is located and the spring presses on it so that it projects from the housing above the surface of the wall of the base of the body cavity. With this arrangement, when the cartridge containing the valve mechanism for controlling the flow rate is inserted into the cavity of the valve body, the elastomeric tubes projecting from the respective housings in the base of the body are held in place by a front stop surface of the base of the cartridge around the inlets of this cartridge. The amount of displacement allowed by the rubber tubes on which the spring is pressed is sufficient to compensate for foreseeable variations in the distance between the base of the cartridge and the base of the valve body, resulting either from manufacturing tolerances or from changes in dimensions of the components caused by thermal expansion.

Mixing valves made in the conventional manner have some drawbacks. First, the valve requires that the housings in the base of the body to receive the rubber tubes on which the cartridge is placed are precisely formed. While the formation of the outline of the base is not difficult, the cylindrical walls of the housings must be finished in a very precise manner to ensure the radial sealing of the rubber tubes. Accurately finishing the housing can be technically difficult and costly. Then, the assembly of the rubber tubes and the respective springs in the housings is a delicate and difficult operation, because the housings are located at the base of the valve body cavity and therefore the access is difficult to easily position the springs and rubber tubes. Later, repair and replacement of rubber tubes is also difficult.

The need is felt to have a mixing valve having a cartridge which eliminates the need for difficult and expensive work, as well as the difficulties of assembly, disassembly and inspection of the sealing elements of conventional cartridge mixing valves.

Statement of the invention

The subject of the invention is a cartridge for a mixer tap according to claim 1.

The base of the cavity formed by the metal body of the valve for housing the cartridge requires only a smoothing operation which is easy to perform. The tubular sealing element contained in the housing at the base of the cartridge abuts directly against the smooth surface of the base of the valve body, when the cartridge is inserted in the preformed cavity in the valve body. The work carried out on the housings for the tubes provided at the base of the cartridge presents no difficulty, because of the easy access to these housings. In addition, an additional working step is generally not necessary, because the cartridge is made of a plastic material and can be molded in one piece with the necessary housings. The housings are easy to access at the end of the cartridge when it is outside the cavity, which then makes all the operations of insertion or disassembly of the elastomeric tubular sealing elements extremely easy. Also, each time the cartridge is removed from the valve body, the tubular elements protrude from the housings and can easily be inspected even without removing them from the housings.

For the implementation of this invention, tubular elastomeric sealing elements commonly used in mixing valves can be used. The elastomeric sealing elements have a tubular body with a constricted end which defines a shoulder on which abuts the end of a helical spring inserted inside the tubular body. It is also possible to use a tubular elastomeric body which provides a sufficient own pressing force to provide the elasticity which allows compression. In this case, the spring which presses against the seals is constituted by the seals themselves. In addition, it is possible to form the elastomeric sealing elements so that the pressure of the circulating water tends to deform them and press them against the body of the valve with sufficient force to have a seal. effective.

Also, a tubular sealing element can be made of a substantially rigid material and it can also be provided with deformable sealing O-rings to ensure radial sealing with the housing in the cartridge and to abut head-on against the base. from the valve body cavity. The elastic pressure element for pressing the sealing element can be a helical spring or it can consist of an elastic elastomeric coupling. In the latter case, the coupling can be carried out so that the

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internal water pressure tends to deform it, which advantageously increases the pressure applied to the sealing element and provides the frontal compressive force against the end of the cavity, ensuring sealing.

Brief description of the drawings

We will now refer to the attached drawings in which:

fig. 1 is a sectional view of a valve body housing a cartridge according to an embodiment of the invention;

fig. 2 is a side view of an elastomeric seal shown in FIG. 1;

fig. 3 is a top view of the fixed plate shown in FIG. 1;

fig. 4 is a partial view in section of the lower part of the valve body representing a second embodiment of the invention:

fig. 5 is a partial view in section of the lower part of the valve body representing a third embodiment of the invention;

fig. 6 is a partial view in section of the lower part of the valve body, representing a fourth embodiment of the invention; and fig. 7 is a partial view in section of the lower part of the valve body representing a fifth embodiment of the invention.

Detailed description of the preferred embodiment

As shown in fig. 1, the valve has a metal body 1, the interior of which is formed in a cavity or chamber 2 for housing a cartridge. Supply lines 4 and 5 for hot water and for cold water are formed in the body 1 and they open on the base 3 of the chamber 2. An annular chamber 6 is designed to receive the mixed water from the cartridge and guide it towards the tap spout (not shown) in the conventional manner. The body 1 is closed by a screwed cover 8 which comes onto the body 1, the seal being ensured by an elastic O-ring 7.

The cartridge comprises a housing 9 with a base 10 comprising the passages 11 and 12 for the entry of hot water and cold water. The passage 13 serves as an outlet for the water mixed from the casing 9 of the cartridge into the annular chamber 6 of the body 1. A fixed plate 16 made of a hard material such as rigid plastic or ceramic is mounted on the inside the base 10 of the cartridge and it is fixed by means of the screw 21. A seal 22 is located under the plate in compression. The passages 17 and 19 for the entry of cold and hot water from the fixed plate 16 are aligned with the passages 11 and 12 of the base 10. In the upper part, the passages 17 and 19 lead respectively to cavities 18 and 20 for the distribution of water in cooperation with a movable plate 23 made of a hard metal. The plate 23 is positioned above the fixed plate 16 and can be moved by translation and by rotation by means of a guide 24 in a rotary drive ring 25 between certain limits defined by the housing 9. A lower half of bearing 26 connected to the housing 9 bears against the cover 8 of the body 1 of the valve and forms a seat half for a pivoting sphere 27. An internal arm 28 starts from the sphere 27 to move the sliding element 24 and an arm external 29 is connected to the control lever 30. The seat of the pivoting sphere is completed by an upper half of the bearing 31 mounted in the cover 8 of the valve body and which exerts a compressive force by means of a gasket 32 pressing against the lower half of bearing 26 and the pivot sphere 27.

The bidirectional control lever 30 makes it possible to move the guide 24 which displaces by translation and rotation the movable plate 23 which selectively opens the cavities 18 and 20 of the fixed plate 16 in different proportions, thus allowing the passage of different quantities and proportions of hot and cold water which are then mixed before leaving the tap. In this way you can adjust the flow of mixed water and the proportion in which hot and cold water are mixed.

The structure of the valve and of the cartridge described and illustrated should be considered only as constituting an explanation of the implementation of the invention, this being in no way limited to the shape of the valve and of the cartridge described . On the contrary, the invention can be applied in general to any cartridge of a mixing valve of the type where the compressive closing force in the passage of the water pipes from the cartridge to the corresponding pipes of the body of the tap is ensured by sealing elements and a spring pressure means.

For the implementation of the invention, the housings 14 and 15 are arranged in the base 10 of the housing 9 of the cartridge to correspond to the inlet passages 11 and 12 of hot water and cold water when the cartridge is inserted into the cavity 2 of the valve body 1 above the supply passages 4 and 5 of the body 1. In the housings 14 and 15, a sealing element 33 is associated with a metal helical spring 36. L element 33 is made of an elastomeric material and it has a tubular shape which constricts at the lower end by forming a shoulder. The spring 36 is compressed between the shoulder 34 of the element 33 and the upper base of the housings 14 and 15, and therefore presses the element 33 towards the surface of the cavity 3. The housings 14 and 15, the spring 36 and the element 33 are dimensioned so that at rest, the lower shoulder 34 of the sealing element 33 protrudes axially relative to the base 10 of the cartridge. As shown in fig. 2, the element 33 has a ring-shaped relief 35 which once mounted as shown in FIG. 1, becomes imperceptible when it is pressed against the wall of the housing 10, 11. The ring-shaped relief 35 comes to press with friction on the side walls of the housing 14 and 15, in order to seal it.

When the cartridge 9-26 is inserted into the cavity 2 of the body 1 of the valve, the lower shoulder end 34 of the element 33 presses

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against the lower end surface 3 of the cavity 2 in alignment around the passages 4 and 5, under the effect of the respective springs 36. In this way, the passage 4 of the body 1 is connected to the passage 11 of the base 10 of the cartridge and the passage 5 of the body 1 is connected to the passage 12 of the base 10 of the cartridge to allow the flow of fluid, the sealing elements 33 preventing lateral leaks out of the passages 4, 5 and 10, 11. At the same time, the force of the spring 36, added to the hydraulic pressure exerted on the base 10 of the housings 14 and 15, presses the entire cartridge against the cover 8, maintaining a compression pressure on its components, in particular the fixed plate 16 and the movable plate 23.

It should be noted that it is not necessary for the spring 36 to exert a significant force, but simply that it must provide an adequate compression force for the sealing elements 33 in the absence of pressure against the lower surface 3 of the cavity 2. When the water comes under pressure, it acts on the sealing elements 33 precisely on a surface equal to the difference between the maximum surface of the cross section of the sealing element and the surface of the opening through the shoulder 34. The resulting force is added to the compression force exerted by the spring, so that the compression force increases on the end of the base 3 of the cavity 2 in parallel with the increase of pressure and this results in a net total force which is sufficient at all times.

Examination of fig. 1 immediately shows that the new construction provides an answer to the problem mentioned in the prior art. In fact, the end of the base 3 of the chamber 2 of the body 1 of the tap does not require anything other than a simple smoothing operation. The housings 14 and 15 are easily formed and they are immediately accessible when the cartridge is not inserted in the valve cavity. The assembly and disassembly of the seals 33 and the springs 34 in the housings 14 and 15 of the base 10 of the cartridge is extremely easy when the cartridge is removed from the body 1 of the valve. In addition, the shoulder closure sections 34 of the elements 33 can be inspected when the cartridge is removed from the cavity 2 and these elements can easily be replaced in the respective housings 14 and 15, when necessary.

Fig. 4 describes a sealing element 37 designed to eliminate the need for the spring 36 associated with the tube 33 and shown in FIG. 1. The element 37 is made of an elastic material and it extends to the end of the respective housing arranged in the base 10 of the cartridge. Its elasticity is sufficient to produce the pressing force necessary for frontal compression against the base end 3 of the cavity 2 containing the cartridge. The elastic element 37 extends to the end of the housing in the base of the cartridge and when under compression, it provides a seal not only front against the base of the housing, but also radial against the cylindrical walls of this one.

Fig. 4 illustrates how it is possible to ensure that the sealing element 37 penetrates into cavities formed in the base 3 of the chamber 2 to prevent accidental rotation of the cartridge. The housing in the base end 3 does not increase the cost significantly because the housing in the base 3 for receiving the element 37 does not require precision in measuring its diameter or its interfaces, and it does not require measurement accuracy on its peripheral walls: it is sufficient that it is smooth on its front base. In the event that the rigidity of the material of the elastic elements is not sufficient to prevent the cartridge from rotating, it is possible to form an extension on the cartridge from the collars surrounding the elements 37 to come partly into the housings of the base 3 from cavity 2.

According to fig. 5, the elastic elements 38 act in principle like those of FIG. 4, with the additional characteristic that their walls are curved inwards. The hydraulic pressure which stabilizes inside the elements 38 pushes the curved portions of their walls radially, producing a force which tends to increase the distance between the base 10 of the cartridge and the base 3 of the cavity 2 of the body 1 tap. In this way, the elastic force is advantageously increased to stabilize the frontal compression force between the elements 37, the base 10 and the base end 3 of the body 1.

Fig. 6 shows how the elastic elements 33 of FIG. 1 can be replaced by tubes 43 of substantially rigid material provided with O-ring seals made with an elastic elastomeric material. An O-ring 44 is placed at the front to stabilize the tension with the base 3 of the chamber 2 containing the cartridge and a gasket 45 is placed on the periphery to seal with the cylindrical walls of the housings 14 and 15. The the force exerted on the tube 43 is supplied by a metal helical spring 36, as shown in FIG. 1.

Cases such as those described where the tubular sealing elements are made of substantially rigid materials are particularly suitable for preventing accidental rotation of the cartridge, by entering a housing at the base end 3 of the chamber 2, as shown in fig. 4.

The helical metal spring 36 of FIG. 6 can be replaced by a tube made of an elastic elastomeric material which functions from the point of view of its elasticity, in a manner similar to that of the element 37 of FIG. 4. The tube may have its walls curved inward, as shown at 46 in FIG. 7 and the hydraulic pressure which acts on the inside of the tubes 46 radially presses the portion of wall curved towards the outside, which produces a force which tends to push the base 10 of the cartridge to move it away from the base 3 of the cavity 2 of the valve body. In this way, the elastic force is advantageously increased to provide the frontal compressive force on the

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tube acting against the cartridge and ensuring an appropriate seal.

It has been mentioned that the hydraulic pressure applied to the device according to the invention exerts a useful thrust on the cartridge to keep the internal parts of the cartridge in contact under an appropriate pressure. Unlike other embodiments which use this principle, my invention achieves the same effect without requiring costly finishing work on the cavity in the body.

Although in the embodiments shown, provision has been made for two passages for the entry of hot and cold water into the base 10 of the cartridge and into the base end 3 of the valve body , and that the mixed water leaves without returning to the base 10 and to the end of the cavity 3, it is understood that the invention also applies to the case where the base also has one or more return passages for the outlet mixed water. In addition, in the case where the tubular sealing elements are designed to exert a frontal pressure force either on the body of the valve or on the cartridge (like those represented in FIGS. 4 and 5), the housings formed in the base of the cartridge by the sealing elements can extend to the fixed plate and the sealing elements can then be made to push directly against the lower surface of the fixed plate, which avoids having to insert a gasket between the fixed plate and the base of the cartridge.

Variations and modifications of the invention are contemplated which are consistent with the spirit of the invention, as defined in the appended claims.

The form of performance for which ownership or exploitation rights are claimed is defined as follows:

Claims (7)

Claims 1. Cartridge for a mixer tap having a control lever moving around a pivot point where the passages for water in the cartridge and the corresponding passages for water in the body of the tap are aligned and joined together respectively by sealed tubular connection elements on which elastic means are pressed, characterized in that: said passages for water in the base of the cartridge have a housing which opens up to the external surface of the base of the cartridge and in that the housings contain a tubular connection element reinforced by elastic means so to protrude somewhat from the cartridge and which abuts head-on against a surface of the body. 2. The cartridge defined in claim 1, further characterized in that: said tubular element is made of an elastic elastomeric material and it constitutes a tubular coips with a tight end which defines a shoulder against which abuts a helical spring inserting inside the tubular body to provide the elastic means pressing the element tubular against said surface of the body. 3. Cartridge as defined in the claim 1, further characterized in that: said tubular element is made of an elastic elastomeric material extending to the base of the respective housings and itself having sufficient elasticity to ensure an elastic force allowing a compression effect to be obtained, thus constituting an elastic means for press the tubular element. 4. Cartridge as defined in claim 3, further characterized in that: said elastic tubular element is formed by walls curved inwards so that the pressure of the circulating water pushes the walls radially outwards and increases the elastic force between the cartridge and the body of the mixing valve. 5. Cartridge as defined in the claim 2, further characterized in that: said tubular element is made of a substantially rigid material with an elastomeric ring disposed radially between said element and the housing and a second elastomeric ring at the protruding end of the tube, mounted so as to press against said surface of said body ensuring the sealing. 6. Cartridge as defined in claim 1, further characterized in that: said tubular element is made of a substantially rigid material with an elastomeric ring disposed radially between said element and the housing and a second elastomeric ring at the projecting end of the tube, mounted so as to come to press sealingly against said surface of said body. 7. Cartridge as defined in claim 6, further characterized in that: said elastic means comprises a sleeve made of an elastomeric material, disposed axially between an internal end of the tube and the internal end of the housing. 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 5