EP1100998A1

EP1100998A1 - Flushing device

Info

Publication number: EP1100998A1
Application number: EP99923359A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Markus Meier
Original assignee: Geberit Technik AG
Current assignee: Geberit Technik AG
Priority date: 1998-07-24
Filing date: 1999-06-09
Publication date: 2001-05-23
Anticipated expiration: 2019-06-09
Also published as: AT3589U1; AU4028399A; WO2000006842A1; DE59906694D1; ATE247751T1; DE29907588U1; EP1100998B1; US6442771B1

Abstract

The invention relates to a flushing device comprising a bowl (4) having a flushing module (5) which is arranged in the area of the bowl (4) designed to receive excreta. The flushing module (5) at an upper end has a first receiving area (12) for receiving flushing water (38) and excreta (74) as well as means with which said receiving area (12) can be emptied into a chamber (80) situated underneath it.

Description

Flushing device

The invention relates to a flushing device for a water closet having a shot. A lot and often expensive drinking water is used daily for flushing water closets. For many years, research efforts have therefore been made to reduce the water consumption for flushing water closets. A major contribution to this are cisterns with interruptible rinsing or with an optional partial rinse. In the partial rinse, much less water is used for rinsing after a small business than usual. Flushing devices are also known in which water is accelerated by means of a water nozzle during the flushing process in the siphon. Such a flushing device is disclosed, for example, in WO 95/04196 by the applicant. The minimum water consumption is also at least three liters with a comparatively high operational effort. The flush valve operates in a similar manner according to EP-A-0 352 712.

Furthermore, flushing devices are known in which water is drawn off from the siphon of the water closet by means of a vacuum pump and a suction line during a flushing. Toilets are gen in Eisenbahnwa ^¬ known which have a basin having an opening and from this a swing-away flap. Because here effective odor trap is not available and is not necessary, such toilets are not suitable for home use. Finally, toilets are known in which the excrement is burned, composted or packed. These toilets work without a flushing device and have so far only proven themselves for special applications, for example in vehicles or campsites. In the known flushing devices, not only the high water consumption, but also the noise is disadvantageous. The ideal flushing device would therefore work without water and noiselessly and would also be germ-free. The invention is based on the object of creating a flushing device of the type mentioned which comes closer to this ideal design than the previously known flushing devices.

The invention is achieved in a generic flushing device according to claim 1. In the flushing device according to the invention it is therefore provided that a flushing module is arranged in the excrement collecting area of the bowl. In principle, in the device according to the invention, it is therefore not rinsed from above as before, but from below and with a module to be attached to the bottom of the bowl. It is now essential that the previously inevitable high energy loss due to friction of the flushing water in the cistern, in the drain elbow and in the bowl is avoided. The rinsing water can be used directly in the rinsing module with little energy loss. Noise is also avoided in the cistern, in the drain pipe and in the bowl. Since the flushing takes place underneath the bowl in the module, noise generation can be insulated much more effectively than before.

An essential aspect of the invention is also seen in that the assembly can be significantly simplified. This is due to the fact that today's multiple interfaces between the water closet and the building are often only pluggable Interface are reducible. The flushing module, for example, is mounted on the building floor with a mounting plate and the toilet bowl is then attached to it.

According to a development of the invention, the rinsing module has a first collecting area at an upper end for receiving rinsing water and excrement, and means are provided with which the collecting area can be emptied into a space arranged below it. The excrements fall into this first collecting area and are subsequently emptied into a space arranged below this, for example into a collecting container. Emptying is particularly effective if this is done by turning away or tipping away. According to a further development of the invention, turning away takes place by rotating the receiving area. The emptying is thus similar to known ashtrays, in which a collecting plate is rotated when a button is pressed and the ash is flung radially away. The excrement then leaves the collecting area together with the rinsing water present in this collecting area. The emptying is particularly effective when a downward movement of the receiving area takes place simultaneously with a rotary movement. A hydraulic drive is preferably provided for both movements. In terms of design, this is particularly simple and inexpensive if the collecting area is connected to a hydraulic cylinder. The collecting area is then moved downward by moving the piston of the cylinder. With this downward movement, suitable guide means simultaneously exert a rotary movement on the collecting area.

According to a further development, it is provided that the rinsing module forms an odor trap with a part of the bowl arranged at a distance from it, an intermediate space between the rinsing module and this part being filled with water. This makes it structurally very simple and inexpensive as well as reliable an odor trap formed. If the catchment area is filled with rinsing water again after rinsing, this odor trap takes effect immediately and prevents odor from entering the bowl from inside the module. It is now essential that such an odor trap requires comparatively little water.

A particularly effective cleaning is obtained if, according to a development of the invention, nozzle openings are arranged approximately in the center in the collecting area, through which the rinsing water can be sprayed radially outwards. The emptying of the collecting area is thus supported by the rinsing water escaping through the nozzle openings. This rinsing water can be released by moving the collecting area downwards.

If, according to a development of the invention, comminution means are arranged below the collecting area in the space mentioned, with which faeces can be mechanically comminuted, for example, the excrement can be collected in a second collecting area as coarse broth. This area can preferably be cleaned with the comminution means, preferably with high-pressure or steam nozzles, and is hermetically sealed at the bottom towards the sewage system.

For assembly, the rinsing module is preferably attached as a complete device to a standard cut plate with a quick release. The drain, a pressurized water connection and preferably also a power connection are located on this plate. The toilet bowl can now be plugged into the interface without any further installation costs and is immediately ready for use.

The invention also relates to a method for rinsing a water closet. With this, the excrement is in a lower Area of a toilet bowl arranged and collected in the catchment area which is at least partially filled with water and then emptied from this area into a further area underneath. As with the device, the basic idea of the method according to the invention is that the excrement is collected in a collecting area and then rinsed here.

Further advantageous features result from the dependent patent claims, the following description and the drawings.

Exemplary embodiments of the invention are explained in more detail below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 schematically shows a partially sectioned view of a flushing device according to the invention, FIG. 2 shows a vertical section through a flushing device according to the invention, FIGS. 3 and 4 schematically show a partial section through a flushing device according to the invention, FIGS. 5 and 6 schematically show a partial section through it - Flushing device according to the invention to explain the emptying process, Figure 7 schematically shows a view of a standard interface, Figure 8 shows a section through the standard interface according to Figure 7, Figure 9 shows a partial section through the flushing device according to the invention, and

Figures 10 and 11 schematically show a partial section through a variant of the flushing device according to the invention. FIG. 1 shows a toilet facility 1, which stands on a building floor 52 and is supported on a building wall 13. It essentially consists of a basin 2, which is made of ceramic, plastic or metal, and a bowl 4 with an upper opening 67 and a flushing module 5 and a connecting plate 45. The connecting plate 45 connects the flushing module 5 to a drain line 7, which can be installed in the floor 52. The flushing module 5 is connected via a water line 6, a coupling 49 (FIG. 6) of the connection plate 45 to a supply line 48 of the house installation. A seat ring 3 is arranged on the basin 2 above the opening 67.

As FIG. 2 shows, the bowl 4 has, for example, a circular opening 10 at its lower end. Above this opening 10 there are several openings 9 arranged in a circle, which are connected to a ring line 15. This ring line 15 is connected here to the supply line 48 by a valve, not shown. When the valve is open, water flows through the openings 9 onto the inside of the bowl 4 and cleans it.

Below the opening 10 there is a comparatively flat shell 12, which forms a collecting area. The shell 12 can also be made of ceramic. However, other materials are also possible here, for example plastic or metal, these preferably being coated on their upper side 11 in order to reduce adhesion. A suitable material for reducing adhesion is, for example, tetrafluoroethylene. A vertical tube 18 is attached to the underside of the bowl 12 and is connected to a piston 23 of a water cylinder 16. With this water cylinder 16, the tray may be moved 12 to be below ^¬. The water cylinder 16 is located in a cylindrical collecting container 14, which is firmly connected at its upper edge 68 to the outside of the bowl 4. For example, a bayonet or bayonet lock is suitable for connection. The closure is gas-tight and has, for example, a sealing ring, not shown here.

In the lower area of the collecting container 14 there is a comminution device 26. This essentially consists of a propeller 84 which is attached to the tube 18. If the tube 18 is moved downward as explained above, the propeller 84 is simultaneously rotated, for example, with the rotating device 71 shown in FIG. Below the propeller 84, a sealing plate 17 is also arranged on the tube 18, which, when the bowl 12 is not lowered, rests against an inwardly directed edge 27 of the collecting container 14, as shown in FIG. 3.

The collecting container 14 is connected in a gas-tight manner at its lower edge 78 to an edge 46 (FIG. 7) of the connection plate 45. The connection is, for example, a bayonet or bayonet connection which, according to FIG. 3, has projections 43 which project laterally on the collecting container 14 and which engage in corresponding recesses 44 (FIG. 7) of the connecting plate 45. The module 5 is thus detachably and gas-tightly connected at its upper end to the bowl 4 and at its lower end to the connecting plate 45.

As FIG. 5 shows, the bowl 12 is filled with water 38. The shell 12 is designed such that its upper edge 72 lies over the edge 73 of the opening 10. The bowl 12 is then positioned such that there is an intermediate space 37 between the underside of the key 4 and the inside of the shell 12, which is at least partially filled with water. This space 37 forms an odor trap with the water, which seals the bowl 4 and the bowl 12 against each other in a gas-tight manner. Gas located in the interior of the collecting container 14 can therefore not get into the interior of the bowl 4.

In the shell 12 there is at least one spray nozzle 19 in the center and on the top, which is connected to an interior space 58 of the tube 18 according to FIG. 9. As will be explained in more detail below, water can be passed through this spray nozzle 19 into the interior of the shell 12 in order to clean it.

The mode of operation of the flushing device according to the invention is explained in more detail below with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. As already mentioned above, the shell 12 forms a collecting area. After using the toilet system 1, the excrements 74 are in the bowl 12 and thus in the water 38. To trigger a flush, the button 76 shown schematically here is actuated and thus a water valve 75 is opened. The valve 75 is located in the line 6. When the valve 75 is open, water flows under pressure into an upper pressure chamber 21 of the water cylinder 16. An inflow nozzle 77 is directed so that it is directed at a turbine 25 attached to the pipe 18. The pressure chamber 21 is thus filled with water and the piston 23 is moved with the tube 18 against the retroactive force of the spring 22 in the direction of arrow 30 downward. The shell 12 moves downwards accordingly into the position shown in the figure. At an opening 24 in the tube 18, water simultaneously flows into the tube 18 and through the spray nozzle 19 into the shell 12. Likewise, the tube 18 with the shell 12 is rotated by the action of the water on the turbine 25. The shell 12 thus moves with rotation from the position shown in FIG. 3 to the position shown in FIG. 4. If the position of the piston 23 shown in FIG. 4 has been reached, a sensor (not shown here) closes the valve 75. The tensioned spring 22 now moves the piston 23 with the tube 18 and the shell 12 back up to the position shown in FIG. 3 . The water present in the pressure chamber 21 is displaced through the opening 24 and the nozzle 19 into the shell 12 which thereby being filled again. At the same time, rinsing water flows into the bowl 4 via the ring line 15 and the openings 9 and cleans the inside thereof.

The bowl 12 is emptied by the rotation of the bowl 12, the downward movement and by the water introduced through the spray opening 19, as illustrated in FIG. 6. The shell 12 is moved somewhat downward here and rotates in the direction of the arrow 40 about the axis of the tube 18. This rotation generates a centrifugal force on the water 38 and the excrement 74 and conveys this in the direction of the arrows 42 over the edge of the shell 12 into the collecting container 14. This movement is supported by the water spraying out of the nozzle 19. The water thus thrown out of the bowl 12 and the excrements 74 fall down into a comminution chamber 28 in the collecting container 14 (FIG. 3). This falling down is indicated in FIG. 4 by the arrows 33 and 34. Arrived in the comminution space 28, the excrements 74 are broken up by the propeller 84 rotating with the tube 18. The odor plate 17 is now lifted with its sealing edge 17a from the sealing flange 27, so that the water and the dismembered excrements 74 reach further downward in the direction of arrow 35 into the collecting space 80 shown in FIG. The water and the crushed excrement form a broth.

The water and the excrement from several, for example three to five, rinses can be collected in the collecting space 80. A flush, for example, requires about a liter of water. If the collecting space 80 is filled, for example, with three to five liters of broth, a slide 53 is activated, for example, via a sensor (not shown here) that switches on a drive 54, which opens a round opening 55. The broth then passes through the opening 55 into the drain line 7. After emptying, the slide 53 closes the opening 55 again and forms an odor trap. The comminution device 26 and the collecting space 80 can be cleaned with high-pressure or steam nozzles, not shown here.

As explained, the tube 18 is rotated by the turbine 25. However, as an alternative to the turbine 25, a rotary device 71 according to FIG. 9 is also conceivable. In this case, the tube 18 has on its outside helical ribs 59 which engage in corresponding recesses 60 in a flange 57 of the cylinder housing 20. If the tube 18 is moved downward, the tube 18 inevitably rotates in the flange 57. If the tube 18 is pushed upwards again by the spring 22, the shell 12 rotates accordingly in the opposite direction. With the water flowing out of the nozzle 19, this rotary movement also produces a cleaning effect by means of which the inside 11 of the shell 12 is cleaned. The cleaning is supported by a non-adhering or insignificant inside 11 of the shell 12. Little adhering materials are, for example, ceramics in a known manner. Liability can also be reduced by using suitable plastics.

In the exemplary embodiment explained above, the bowl 12 is moved down during the rinsing process and rotated at the same time. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the shell 12 is moved down and tilted. For this purpose, a guide rod 62 attached on the underside of the shell 12 is connected to the piston 23 of the water cylinder 16 via a joint 61. At the lower end of the angled rod 62 there is a guide roller 81 which is slidably arranged in a fixed guide groove 63. If the rod 62 is moved downwards in the direction of the arrow 64, the guide roller 81 moves in the direction of the arrow 65 and tilts the rod 62 with the shell 12 clockwise around the joint 61 into the tilted position shown in FIG. The water 38 and the excrement 74 are thereby tipped out of the bowl 12 and arrive exactly like explained above in the collecting container 14 downwards and to the reduction device 26. At the same time, water can be passed into the bowl 12 via the spray nozzle 19 and thus the inside thereof cleaned. After the flushing process, the spring 22 moves the piston 23 upwards. The rod 62 is then moved back to the position shown in FIG. At the same time, the shell 12 is filled with water again via the spray nozzle 19. When the bowl 12 is filled with water, the odor trap is formed between the bowl 12 and the bowl 4, as explained above. The toilet system 1 is then immediately ready for use again.

As explained, the connection plate 45 forms a single interface between the toilet system 1 and the building. After mounting the connection plate 45, the module 5 is plugged onto the edge 46 and connected with the bayonet connection mentioned. At the same time, a water connection is established via the coupling 49. At the same time, an electrical line 50 can be connected to the module 5 via a plug 51. Sensors and valves can be supplied via this electrical line 50, for example. A supply of additional devices is also conceivable. The connection plate 45 is attached, for example, by means of a plate 47 which is provided with four holes 47 '. From these holes 47 ', the connecting plate 45 is fastened to the base 52 with bolts (not shown here). The connection of the connection plate 45 to the drain line 7 takes place, for example, via a flange 82 which is attached to the underside of the plate 47.

In the flushing device according to the invention, flushing is therefore not carried out as usual, but rather cleaning nozzles are used in a targeted manner and the water pressure is thus used. The water seal for the sewage system is achieved with a comparatively thin water layer 38. Comparatively large water masses therefore do not have to be moved during flushing. To there are essentially no more solids in the comminution. This avoids the need for a comparatively large amount of water, as was previously the case, to generate a bow wave for solid-state transport. The flushing device can essentially be reduced to a flushing module, which enables quick and easy assembly.

Claims

claims

1. Flushing device for a water closet (1) having a bowl (4), characterized by a flushing module (5) to be arranged in the excrement collecting area of the bowl (4).

2. Flushing device according to claim 1, characterized in that the flushing module (5) has at a top end a first collecting area (12) for receiving flushing water (38) and excrement (74) and that means are provided with which the collecting area ( 12) can be emptied into a space (80) arranged below it.

3. Flushing device according to claim 1, characterized in that the flushing module (5) forms an odor trap with a part (73) of the bowl (4) arranged at a distance from it, with an intermediate space (37) between the flushing module (5). and this part (73) is filled with water.

4. Flushing device according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that the collecting area (12) is designed as a shell.

5. Flushing device according to one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that means (16) are provided with which the collecting area (12) can be moved downwards for emptying.

6. Flushing device according to one of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that means (25, 71) are provided with which the collecting area (12) can be rotated for emptying.

7. Flushing device according to one of claims 2 to 6, characterized in that the collecting area (12) for emptying can be moved downwards and rotated at the same time.

8. Flushing device according to one of claims 2 to 7, characterized in that the collecting area (12) and / or the bowl (4) has means (19, 9) with which water can be introduced under pressure into the collecting area for emptying and cleaning .

9. Flushing device according to claim 8, characterized in that in the collecting area (ϊ ^* 2) nozzle openings (19) are arranged approximately in the center, through which flushing water can be sprayed radially outwards.

10. Flushing device according to one of claims 2 to 8, characterized in that a hydraulic cylinder (16) is provided with which the collecting area (12) can be moved downwards for emptying.

11. Flushing device according to claim 10, characterized in that the piston (23) of the hydraulic cylinder (16) with a rod or a tube (18, 62) is connected to the collecting area (12).

12. Flushing device according to one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that a comminution device (26) is arranged below the collecting area (12), with which the flushing water and the excrement can preferably be mechanically comminuted to a broth (56).

13. Flushing device according to claim 12, characterized in that the comminution device (26) has a rotatable part (84) similar to a propeller.

14. Flushing device according to claim 13, characterized in that the crushing device (26) with a collecting area

(12) is connected and rotates with it.

15. Flushing device according to one of claims 2 to 14, characterized in that a collecting space (80) is provided in which comminuted excrement (74) and water are collected and which after reaching a predetermined amount of a broth in a subsequent sewage pipe (7 ) is to be emptied.

16. Flushing device for a water closet (1) having a bowl (4), characterized in that it has a module (5) which is to be connected to a lower opening (10) of the bowl (4) and that to an upper one A collecting area (12) is arranged at the end of the module (5) for receiving excrement.

17. Flushing device according to claim 16, characterized in that the module (5) has connecting means (43) with which it can be fastened and connected on a mounting on the connecting plate (45).

18. Flushing device according to claim 17, characterized in that the module (5) is connected to the connecting plate (45) with a form closure.

19. Flushing device according to one of claims 16 to 18, characterized in that the module (5) to a water pipe

(48) is to be connected and that the collecting area (12) can be rinsed with the water of this line (48).

20. Flushing device according to claim 19, characterized in that with the water from the line (48) the collecting area (12) is rotatable or tiltable.

21. Flushing device according to claim 20, characterized in that the collecting area (12) can be rotated with the water from the line (48).

22. Flushing device according to claim 19, characterized in that with the water from the line (48) the collecting area (12) for emptying can be moved downwards and rotated at the same time.

23. Flushing device according to one of claims 16 to 22, characterized in that it has an essentially cylindrical housing (14) and that the collecting area (12) is arranged in an upper opening of this housing (14).