FR3115188A1 - OUTDOOR FURNITURE RAINWATER COLLECTION - Google Patents

Abstract

OUTDOOR FURNITURE COLLECTING RAINWATER One aspect of the invention relates to garden furniture (1) comprising a rainwater tank (13) with a first inlet (3) connected to a surface (2) of said furniture constituting a first source of rainwater, characterized in that it comprises at least a second inlet (4) with a removable connection of a pipe (5) connecting the tank (13) to a second water source rain. Thus, outdoor garden or public space furniture can be connected to one or more other large rainwater harvesting surfaces, such as the roof of a building, house or shelter. garden, in particular via their gutter. Since the connection is removable, it can be disconnected which makes the furniture more aesthetic and can be placed independently of the position of the gutter. Figure to be published with abstract: Figure 1

Description

OUTDOOR FURNITURE RAINWATER COLLECTION

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The technical field of the invention is that of rainwater recovery systems and more particularly those having another function such as garden furniture, such as for example a sofa, an armchair, a table, a flower pot , intended to be installed in a garden, a terrace or a balcony or street furniture installed in the public space.

TECHNOLOGICAL BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

There are tanks on the market for collecting rainwater, installed near the gutters, allowing the storage of rainwater and intended for watering the garden, the vegetable patch, filling a swimming pool, cleaning a car, and sometimes even to the secondary water supply of the habitat such as for the washing machine, the toilets, the toilets or the cleaning of the floors.

There are two main types of rainwater collection tanks, underground tanks and aboveground (or aerial) tanks.

Buried tanks have the main advantage of not being visible, and can therefore contain large volumes of water without altering the exterior aesthetics of the house or building in which it is placed. However, they require a lot of installation work. They are therefore mainly installed during construction or during major renovation work on a home. They also require a pump system to raise the stored water to the height necessary for its use.

Above ground tanks have the advantage of being very easy to install without a large financial investment. A watering can can be installed below the water outlet tap, or a hose with a pump can be connected to this same outlet if the water flow is insufficient. However, these tanks must be installed near a gutter. A collector is fixed to said gutter and a pipe connects the tank to the collector. These tanks are, depending on their volume, bulky and rarely aesthetic.

There are outdoor, garden or urban furniture, having a relatively large clean volume, closed which are used for water storage, such as the inside of a sofa, an armchair, a pot of flower.

This solution makes it possible to integrate the recovery of rainwater and its storage in an aesthetic and functional tank (flower pot and benches), with recovery being done independently. This autonomy has the advantage of being freed from a connection to a gutter, allowing the furniture to be placed independently of its water recovery function (for example an outdoor sofa on a terrace and far from a gutter) and aesthetically (no visible pipe).

The main disadvantage of these systems is that this autonomous recovery is done only by rainwater falling on the upper surface of this furniture. These upper surfaces are generally less than 2 m ² . However, in metropolitan France, the annual average rainfall is around 700mm with significant disparities between, for example, the Jura where the average oscillates around 1,800mm and the Bouches-du-Rhône where the same annual average is often around 300mm. This means that if the upper surface of the furniture is 1m ² for a volume of 300l, it will take a little less than a year to fill up in the Bouches du Rhône.

However, according to the following source: https://www.rustica.fr/l-eau-jardin/l-eau-pluie-a-recuperer-goutte-que-goutte,15345.html, it is necessary to count to water a vegetable garden approximately 6 l/m² per day, 2.5 l for shrubs, 3 l/m ² for grass and 4 l/m ² for flowers, taking into account the sunshine, rainfall and soil of the region in question. Washing a car requires between 200 and 500 l, it takes between 6 and 12 l for a flush, and 35 to 60 l for each machine wash.

As an indication, a family of 4 with a garden of 400 m² has a storage requirement of 6,500 l, it takes 9,000 l for a garden of 800 m². A swimming pool or basin requires between 10,000 and 80,000 l depending on the size of the equipment.

The invention offers a solution to the problems mentioned above, by making it possible to fill the rainwater tank more quickly while maintaining both an aesthetic and practical aspect, the furniture being able to be placed independently of the position of the gutter.

The garden furniture according to the invention comprises a rainwater tank with a first inlet connected to a surface of said furniture constituting a first source of rainwater, it is characterized in that it comprises at least a second inlet with a removable connection of a pipe connecting the tank to a second source of rainwater. Garden furniture means any outdoor furniture whether it is placed in a garden or in a public or urban space. Thus, outdoor garden or public space furniture can be connected to one or more other large rainwater harvesting surfaces, such as the roof of a building, house or shelter. garden, in particular via their gutter. The connection being removable, it can be disconnected which makes the furniture more aesthetic and easier to move.

This removable connection can, for example, be made using a pipe whose length depends on the location of the furniture and the gutter, it can be fitted at both ends with an automatic male/female coupling system. female. The collector of the gutter and the garden furniture are also equipped with the complementary part of the automatic connection.

According to a first variant, at least one of the inlets comprises a non-return valve. When this valve is connected to the automatic connection of the removable connection, it prevents water from flowing when the connection hose is not connected. When this valve is connected to the inlet of the large surface, it prevents the water collected on the large surface from coming out through the first autonomous recovery inlet(s). This phenomenon can occur when the pressure of the second inlet is higher than the pressure of the first inlet. This non-return device is used when the tank has several water recovery inlets, with different inlet pressures and which must be managed automatically.

Advantageously, the non-return valve comprises a float with an open position when the water level is below a certain level N and a closed position when the water is above said level N. The level N is chosen below the inlet equipped with the non-return valve in order to avoid any water outflow.

This float can be a mobile hollow ball in an open receptacle, which when the water level in the furniture is low, is, by its weight in the low position and lets the water pass, and which when the water level exceeds a critical height, by its flotation rises and closes the entrance.

This float can be offset, and by a lever arm system, actuates an element blocking the entrance.

According to a second variant, the second inlet comprises a valve. This valve can be closed manually.

Advantageously, the pipe includes junctions for connecting several sources of rainwater. The tank can thus be filled more quickly.

Advantageously, the gutter connected to the pipe comprises a non-return valve. This prevents water from flowing out when the connection hose is not connected.

Advantageously, the removable connection of the second inlet is connected to a tap. One can use the same fitting attached to the tank not only for the connection to the gutter via a pipe for filling the tank, but also the attachment of a tap to fill a watering can if the water level in the tank is higher than the height of the tap, the attachment of a garden hose with or without a pump (depending on the water level in the tank and the water pressure required at the outlet) or the connection to another tank. The pump may be manual.

Advantageously, the garden furniture is a sofa or a seat.

According to a particular arrangement, the sofa or the seat comprises a seat and a backrest, the seat being inclined towards the backrest and the first inlet is arranged in a lower part of the seat. The rainwater will thus descend by gravity towards the first inlet of the tank.

The invention also relates to a set of at least two pieces of garden furniture with at least one of the preceding characteristics, it is characterized in that the garden pieces of furniture are connected together by a pipe comprising at least three junctions, one connected to a second source of rainwater and one connected to each of the garden furniture. We can thus have a greater storage capacity.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

The figures are presented for information only and in no way limit the invention.

is a perspective view of a garden sofa according to the invention;

is a detail of the sofa of the ;

is another provision of the ;

is a cut of the ;

is a first form of check valve according to the invention;

is a second form of check valve according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Unless specified otherwise, the same element appearing in different figures has a single reference.

• « haut », le haut des figures et
• « bas », le bas des figures,
• « avant », la partie avant du canapé et
• « arrière », la partie correspondant au dossier du canapé.

Throughout the description we will call:

• "top", the top of the figures and
• "bottom", the bottom of the figures,
• "front", the front part of the sofa and
• "back", the part corresponding to the back of the sofa.

Garden furniture 1 illustrated , here a sofa, comprises a seat 10 constituting an upper surface 2 for collecting rainwater, a backrest 11 and two armrests 12. The seat 10 is inclined downwards and backwards towards the backrest 11. In this example, all the elements making up the sofa are waterproof. The upper surface 2 constitutes a rainwater recovery zone, this zone is said to be autonomous because it is directly linked to the sofa, it will constitute a so-called autonomous recovery device.

Under the seat 10, there is a reservoir 13 delimited by feet 14 and the seat 10. A first inlet 3 is placed at the bottom of the seat 10 at the limit of the backrest 11. The first inlet 3 is preferably arranged at an angle so as not to disturb the user. A second inlet 4 is placed under the seat 10, it is placed near a foot 14, here, one near each of the two feet 14. The two inlets each include a check valve. Reservoir 13 extends here into backrest 11, which increases the capacity of reservoir 13. This part of reservoir 13 placed above seat 10 can only be filled by a second source of rainwater given the its position below the self-contained recovery area.

You can see at the that the second inlet 4 is connected to a pipe 5 connected to a second source of rainwater (not shown), such as a gutter. This pipe 5 is flexible and long enough to be able to place the sofa 1 where desired and not necessarily close to the second source of rainwater, it is preferably equipped with a non-return valve. As this connection is removable, hose 5 can easily be detached from sofa 1. This hose 5 can also be used to drain water from tank 13.

The second inlet 4 can also be directly connected to a tap 6 (cf. ). Depending on the position of the latter, a pump may be necessary to lift the water from the tank and allow the use of the water stored in the tank 13. The pump may be manual or electric.

You can see at the how the self-contained recovery device works. When rainwater falls on the seat 10, the upper surface 2 of the latter will direct the water e towards the first inlet 3 and fill the tank 13. An overflow system 16 is provided in order to evacuate the water if the level of the reservoir 13 reaches the level of the seat 10 or if the quantity of rainwater is too great at a given moment, for example in the event of a storm. This overflow 16 here consists of an opening 161 (here two, one on each side) placed close to the first inlet 3 (here two) and a pipe 160 connecting the opening 161 to a drain 162 which makes it possible to direct the overflow towards the outside of the tank 13. The opening 160 is placed above the first inlet 3, as seen in Figures 5 and 6.

Another overflow 110 is provided in the upper part of the backrest 11, it also serves as a vent.

Reservoir 13 includes a drain 15 arranged in the lower part of reservoir 13 and set back so as not to be seen from the outside. This drain 15 is used when you want to completely empty the tank 13, but can also be used as a water supply if you connect a hose to it.

The first form of check valve 7 of the consists of a float 70, offset with respect to the first inlet 3 connected to an axis of rotation 71 by an arm 72. This arm 72 comprises in the upper part a shutter 73.

The float 70, when there is no water and it is in the air, tends by its weight to descend, leaving the first inlet 3 open. When the water rises with the filling of the tank 13, it will find itself in contact with the float 70 and when the water level reaches the level N, the float 70, through Archimedes' thrust, will rise, and thus the shutter 73 will plug the first inlet and prevent water from entering or coming out.

The second form of check valve 8 shown , includes a ball-shaped float 80 which will itself block the first water inlet 3 when its level reaches level N.

Inspection hatches 17 are provided in the lower part of the tank 13, they allow access to the inside of the tank 13 in order to carry out the maintenance of the various parts placed inside and/or to allow cleaning by a jet. of water from inside the tank 13.

Claims (9)

Garden furniture (1) comprising a rainwater reservoir (13) with a first inlet (3) connected to a surface (2) of said furniture constituting a first source of rainwater, characterized in that it comprises at least a second inlet (4) with a removable connection of a pipe (5) connecting the tank (13) to a second source of rainwater. Garden furniture (1) according to Claim 1, characterized in that at least one of the inlets (3, 4) comprises a non-return valve (7, 8). Garden furniture (1) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the non-return valve (7, 8) comprises a float (70, 80) with an open position when the water level is below a certain level N and a closed position when the water is above said level N. Garden furniture (1) according to Claim 1, characterized in that the second inlet (3) comprises a valve. Garden furniture (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the pipe (5) comprises junctions for connection to several sources of rainwater. Garden furniture (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the removable connection of the second inlet (4) is connected to a tap (6). Garden furniture (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the garden furniture (1) is a sofa or a seat. Garden furniture (1) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the sofa or the seat comprises a seat (10) and a backrest (11), the seat (10) being inclined towards the backrest (11) and that the first inlet (3) is arranged in a lower part of the seat (10). Set of at least two pieces of garden furniture (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the pieces of garden furniture (1) are connected together by a pipe (5) comprising at least three junctions, one connected to a second source of rainwater and one connected to each of the garden furniture (1).