EP0411425B1 - Mat for dispersing a gas in a liquid - Google Patents

Abstract

The mat consists simply of a rigid or semi-rigid sheet (12) provided with a series of nozzles (14) and surrounded by a peripheral skirt (20) forming, with the sheet of the mat, a hollow volume (18) in which there is established, during operation, a flat gas bubble below the surface of the nozzles. <IMAGE>

Description

The present invention relates to a mat for the distribution of a gas in a liquid, in particular for use in the field of whirlpools and the like, comprising a rigid or semi-rigid mat provided with a series of nozzles defining passages for the gas.

So far, essentially two different types of equipment are known. In the first type, for example described in US Pat. No. 1,830,853, more commonly known as "Whirlpool", a mixture of water and gas is injected under high pressure into the water bath and causes very strong eddies and intense.

This equipment requires powerful mechanical means (high pressure water pumps) and an installation of fixed sanitary piping integral with the bathtub or bath basin to create eddies by ejecting water into the water through sprinklers. Here, the effect is strongest near the sprinklers to decrease quickly away from it. In practice, the number of nozzles is always very small, for reasons of cost and necessary pressure.

The second type (US-A-3178730) is that of whirlpools which exploit the natural thrust of air or gas in water, thrust by which air or gas rise to the surface of the water and will put it in a more or less pronounced bubbling state. So the effect of the air leaving the "air distributor" commonly known as "carpet", "mat", "mattress", provided with closed chambers or pipes, is not limited to the place of air outlet (" sprinkler ") but on the contrary affects the entire area above each sprinkler up to the surface of the water, by the movement that the displaced air permeates into the water. Any body immersed above such nozzles, is therefore subjected to a massage effect by bubbling water. To tell the truth, the effect increases when the bubbles rise, because these, subjected to a constant thrust, accelerate and as in addition they increase in volume while rising, thus displacing more and more water.

In the second type, which is of the kind described in the preamble and illustrated, for example, in US patent 3,240,208 and DE-A2-2912006, a mat is used which is placed at the bottom of the bath and through which is injected air, also under relatively high pressure, in the water bath. To examine this kind of mat, it seems that we have always assumed that air must flow, in a forced and controlled way towards the sprinklers through pipes or individual closed and tight chambers, in order to prevent it from going up on the surface of the liquid in an uncontrolled, premature, or generally inadequate manner. Based on this prejudice, known mats generally include a series of pipes and / or chambers to circulate the air under pressure to the nozzles.

The drawbacks of such a construction are multiple, namely high manufacturing cost, questionable hygienic conditions due to deposit formations inaccessible inside the pipes and / or chambers, significant back pressure in the system depending on the number, the length, diameter, shape, layout of the pipes and chambers, with, as a consequence, the need to provide powerful, expensive compressors with a high noise level, constrained in the choice of the number and arrangement of the sprinklers imposed by the layout of the pipes and / or chambers. The most serious problem, however, is that of the difficulty of cleaning, in particular for mats used in the hotel industry, since the essential hygiene is not safeguarded by a possibility of periodic deep cleaning, but does indeed require treatment deep after each use. Currently there are two kinds of mattresses for whirlpools:
some, described in the aforementioned documents, allow access and cleaning care inside, but require a minimum of technical know-how (disassembly and reassembly) and a fairly long working time; the others do not give full access or no access at all to the interior of the mattress and therefore do not allow compliance with basic hygiene requirements for the benefit of the user.

Even the mattresses allowing cleaning thanks to the access they offer do not fulfill the sine qua non condition of hygiene: the possible control inside the mattress which should therefore be in disassembled state before each bath in clinics , hotels etc. which is unthinkable especially since baths of different people can follow each other, either in family with several members, or in public use: clinics etc.

To avoid all these drawbacks, the present invention has set itself the objective of proposing a mat of the kind described in the preamble, which is of an extremely simple construction, inexpensive and easy to produce, which offers the greatest freedom in the choice of the number and arrangement of sprinklers, while operating with a minimum need for energy and, above all, which is extremely easy to clean and guarantees maximum hygiene.

To achieve this objective, the mat proposed by the present invention has the features of claim 1.

In other words, in the simplest version ,. the mat is simply a kind of elongated flat basin, with an air intake orifice, turned over into the bottom of the bath. Its maintenance, including cleaning and sterilization are therefore extremely easy and simple.

It has in fact been found that it is not necessary to bring the pressurized air through forced passages towards the nozzles and that it is also not necessary to use a high pressure, a pressure corresponding simply to the water column being sufficient. In this way, a flat gas bubble is formed under the lower surface of the carpet which is held in place by the closed peripheral skirt and which ensures uniform sparkling through the nozzles over the entire surface of the carpet. It is therefore not necessary for the mat to have a closed bottom.

The skirt can be an integral part of the carpet or be detachable from it.

It is preferable that the edge of the skirt is not, in operation, in leaktight contact with the bottom of the bathtub in order to cause the formation and maintenance of the gas bubble between the carpet and the surface of the water. Due to the presence of the suction cups, it is even possible the lower edge of the skirt is several centimeters from the bottom of the bathtub.

According to an advantageous embodiment, the nozzles are provided in removable and interchangeable plates, mounted in suitable openings provided in the carpet. This allows quick and easy replacement of the plates which can contain nozzles of different format and arrangement.

The mat can be divided transversely into several individual compartments linked together by connection tunnels for the passage of gas from one compartment to another.

The hollow volume under the carpet can, moreover, be divided longitudinally into a compartment by parallel partitions integral with the lower surface of the carpet.

According to another embodiment, the mat comprises means for forming waves in the hollow under the carpet, these means being arranged immediately downstream of the gas inlet orifice.

These means can be constituted by rotary fins arranged transversely in the hollow volume and driven by a small turbine actuated by the penetration of gases through the inlet orifice.

These means can also be constituted by a transverse valve pivotally mounted under the lower surface of the mat and actuated by means of a float.

• la figure 1 est une vue en plan du mode de réalisation le plus simple d'une natte selon la présente invention;
• la figure 1a est une coupe transversale de la natte selon la figure 1;
• la figure 2 est une vue en plan d'une variante de la natte avec des plaques à gicleurs amovibles;
• la figure 2a est une coupe transversale de la natte de la figure 2;
• la figure 3 est une vue en plan d'une natte compartimentée;
• la figure 3a est une coupe transversale de la natte de la figure 3;
• la figure 4 une vue en plan d'une variante de la natte selon la figure 3;
• la figure 4a une coupe transversale de la natte de la figure 4;
• la figure 5 une vue d'en-dessous d'une natte avec un premier mode de réalisation de moyens de formation de vagues;
• la figure 5a une coupe transversale de la natte selon la figure 5;
• la figure 6 une variante de la natte selon la figure 5;
• la figure 6a une coupe transversale de la natte de la figure 6 et
• la figure 7 une coupe longitudinale partielle d'une natte avec un second mode de réalisation de moyens de formation de vagues.

Other particularities and characteristics will emerge from the detailed description of some preferred embodiments, presented below, by way of illustration, with reference to the appended drawings in which:

• Figure 1 is a plan view of the simplest embodiment of a mat according to the present invention;
• Figure 1a is a cross section of the mat according to Figure 1;
• Figure 2 is a plan view of a variant of the mat with removable nozzle plates;
• Figure 2a is a cross section of the mat of Figure 2;
• Figure 3 is a plan view of a compartmentalized mat;
• Figure 3a is a cross section of the mat of Figure 3;
• Figure 4 a plan view of a variant of the mat according to Figure 3;
• Figure 4a is a cross section of the mat of Figure 4;
• Figure 5 a bottom view of a mat with a first embodiment of wave forming means;
• Figure 5a a cross section of the mat according to Figure 5;
• Figure 6 a variant of the mat according to Figure 5;
• FIG. 6 has a cross section of the mat of FIG. 6 and
• Figure 7 a partial longitudinal section of a mat with a second embodiment of waveforming means.

Figure 1 shows the upper face of a mat 12 with several rows of nozzles 14 acting as gas outlet orifices, generally air. This pressurized air is introduced through an intake orifice 16 which, in the example shown, is provided at one end of the mat of the mat, or by a pipe emerging under the mat.

FIG. 1a illustrates the hollow volume 18 formed below the mat of the mat 12 by an essentially vertical peripheral skirt extending from the mat of the mat 12 downwards. This skirt 20 can be made of an elastomer of adequate rigidity and can be an integral part of the mat of the mat 12. It can also be detachable from the mat of the mat thanks to waterproof fixing means known per se. The skirt 20 can, in operation, rest by its lower edge directly on the bottom of the basin in which the mat is placed, but it preferably comprises suction cups not shown which allow the mat to be fixed on the bottom of the basin and ensure a certain distance between the edge of the skirt and the bottom of the pelvis to allow the penetration of water into the hollow volume 18. In it is established, in operation, a flat gas bubble delimited by the underside of the apron of the mat 12, the skirt 20 and the upper surface of the water .

We will realize the absence of any pipe or individual room serving as forced passage of pressurized air between the inlet 16 to each of the nozzles 14, with all the advantages already mentioned.

Figures 2 and 2a show a variant of the embodiment of Figures 1 and 2 in the sense that the nozzles 14 are no longer directly arranged in the mat of the mat 12 'itself, but in removable plates 24, placed in large suitable openings 26 of the mat 12 '. This variant therefore makes it possible to use, for a single mat 12 ′, different plates 24 provided with different nozzles from the point of view of size and arrangement.

FIG. 2a shows the possibility of a skirt 20 detachable from the mat of the mat 12 '.

Figures 3 and 3a show an embodiment in which the mat is subdivided into three separate compartments 36 each comprising an individual peripheral skirt 32. These individual compartments 36 are connected together by fittings 38 to allow the passage of air from 'one compartment to another. These fittings 38 are not pipes but small tunnels connecting the skirt 32 of a compartment to the skirt of the adjacent compartment, so also very easy to clean. The mat of FIG. 3 comprises, like the embodiment of FIG. 2, removable plates 24 provided with the nozzles 14.

Figures 4 and 4a also show a compartmentalized mat similar to that of Figure 3 with the difference that the mat of Figure 4 does not have removable plates, that is to say that each compartment 36 has a flat mat perforated with nozzles 14 and extended over the entire periphery by a vertical skirt 32.

To counteract the pushing effect caused by the air cushion or gas bubble enclosed in the hollow volume below the mat it is possible, instead of providing suction cups, to ballast the mats with additional weights or '' increase the self-weight.

The following figures show embodiments of mats provided with means for generating waves in the hollow volume below the mat. The mat 40 shown in Figures 5 and 5a is divided on its lower part into longitudinal compartments by partitions 42 extending vertically downward from the mat of the mat 40. In each of these compartments is located immediately downstream from the inlet 16 a butterfly valve 44 constituted by a rotary vane mounted on axes of rotation housed in the partitions 42 and in the peripheral skirt of the mat 40. In the passage of the inlet orifice 16 is mounted a small turbine 46 whose rotational movement is transmitted to the fins 44 by suitable means, for example pulleys and a belt 48. Each of the fins 44 is thus rotated under the effect of the rotation of the turbine 46 whose movement is generated by the penetration of pressurized air. The rotation of the fins 44 results, therefore, in successive openings and closings of each of the compartments, which causes a wave effect below the mat 40. The fins 44 can be deactivated using 'A lever 50 mounted outside of the mat 40 on the axis of rotation of the fins 44 in order to lock each of these in a semi-open position.

FIGS. 6 and 6a show an embodiment similar to that of FIG. 5 with identical means for forming a wave, except that the embodiment of FIG. 6 provides for a compartmentalized mat as in the embodiment of FIG. 4 and the different compartments of which are connected by connection tunnels 38.

FIG. 7 shows an enlarged view of part of a mat 60 whose means for forming waves consist of a valve 52 mounted on a pivot axis 54 below the mat of the mat 60 downstream of the intake port 16. A float 56 is further mounted on a pivot pin 58 which is integral with the valve 52. In other words, the float 56 can pivot relative to the valve 52 in the direction of the arrow a while the assembly formed by the valve 52 and the float 56 can pivot around the axis 54, movement simulated by the arrow b. The operation of the device is as follows. When the valve 52 occupies the position shown in FIG. 7, it obstructs the passage and propagation of the air below the mat 60. The hollow below the mat 60 is therefore filled with water which has the consequence that the float 56 first pivots around its axis 58 and then drives the valve 52 around the axis 54 to open the passage of pressurized air. This has the effect of the water being discharged under the mat 60 and the formation of the gas bubble under the jets 14. The formation of this gas bubble causes the float 56 to lose its upward effect so that the valve 52 falls back to again in the position of figure 7 so that the cycle starts again. This succession of openings and closings of the valve 52 creates a back and forth of the air bubble under the mat 60 and, consequently, above the mat, an alternative bubbling corresponding to this va back and forth. It should be noted that the mat 60 can also be compartmentalized by longitudinal partitions in the example of FIGS. 5 and 6.

Claims (10)

1. Mat for distributing a gas in a liquid intended to be placed at the bottom of a basin, especially for use in the sector of bubbling baths and the like, comprising a carpet equipped with a series of nozzles (14) defining passages for the gas and with a laterally closed peripheral skirt (20) attached to the mat and extending downwards from this so as to define with the lower surface of the carpet a hollow volume completely open downwards and intended, during operation, for maintaining a flat gas bubble underneath the carpet and a plurality of suction means for fastening it to the bottom of the basin, characterized in that the carpet and the skirt are made of rigid or semi-rigid material, in that the skirt is devoid of peripheral sealing means with the bottom of the basin, in that the suction means are provided exclusively on the peripheral skirt and are intended to maintain the lower edge of the skirt at a distance from the bottom of the basin so that the gas bubble is formed between the carpet and the subjacent water level and that the thickness of the bubble depends on the pressure of the gas.
2. Mat according to Claim 1, characterized in that the nozzles (14) are provided in removable and interchangeable plates (4) mounted in suitable orifices (26) provided in the carpet of the mat (12).
3. Mat according to Claim 1, characterized in that it is divided into individual compartments (36) connected to one another by means of connecting tunnels (38) for the passage of gas from one compartment to another.
4. Mat according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the skirt (20) is detachable from the carpet of the mat (12).
5. Mat according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the skirt (20) is an integral part of the carpet of the mat (12).
6. Mat according to any one of Claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the hollow volume (18) under the carpet of the mat is divided longitudinally into compartments by means of parallel partitions (42) fixed to the lower surface of the carpet of the mat.
7. Mat according to any one of Claims 1 to 6, characterized by wave-forming means in the hollow volume under the carpet, arranged immediately downstream of the gas intake port (16).
8. Mat according to Claim 7, characterized in that the said means consists of rotary vanes (44) arranged transversaly in the hollow volume and driven in rotation by a turbine (46) actuated as a result of the penetration of the gas through the intake port (16).
9. Mat according to Claim 7, characterized by a transverse flap (52) mounted pivotally under the lower surface of the carpet and actuated by means of a float (56).
10. Use of a mat in the sector of bubbling baths and the like for distributing gas in a liquid in accordance with claim 1.

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