GB2266901A

GB2266901A - Lavatory seat ventilator

Info

Publication number: GB2266901A
Application number: GB9210305A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Enzo Casale
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1992-05-14
Filing date: 1992-05-14
Publication date: 1993-11-17
Anticipated expiration: 2012-05-14
Also published as: GB2266901B; GB9210305D0

Abstract

A lavatory seat ventilator comprises a seat member 12 of conventional shape adapted in a lowered position to cooperate with the rim of the lavatory pan and mounted to the pan by means of a hinging arrangement 16 at the back of the pan so that said seat member can be lifted, wherein the seat member 12 has an internal passage communicating firstly with one or more inlet apertures at the inside periphery of said seat member and which are open to the interior of the pan when the seat member is lowered and secondly with an outlet aperture at the back of the seat member at its outside periphery, and the hinging arrangement includes a mounting block 16 fixing to the pan and which has firstly a front aperture 30 for mating with the outlet aperture 24 of the lowered seat member and secondly a rear aperture for communicating with a vent pipe 32 through which air can be drawn by means of a fan. <IMAGE>

Description

Lavatory Seat Ventilator This invention relates to a lavatory seat ventilator and has for its object to provide a lavatory seat equipped with means for venting odours from the interior of a lavatory pan direct to the atmosphere outside the room in which the lavatory is sited.

According to the invention, there is provided a lavatory seat comprising a seat member of conventional shape adapted in a lowered position to cooperate with the rim of the lavatory pan and mounted to the pan by means of a hinging arrangement at the back of the pan so that said seat member can be lifted, wherein the seat member has an internal passage communicating firstly with one or more inlet apertures at the inside periphery of said seat member and which are open to the interior of the pan when the seat member is lowered and secondly with an outlet aperture at the back of the seat member at its outside periphery, and the hinging arrangement includes a mounting block fixing to the pan and which has firstly a front aperture for mating with the outlet aperture of the lowered seat member and secondly a rear aperture for communicating with a vent pipe through which air can be drawn by means of a fan.

Preferably the outlet aperture at the back of the seat is an elongate slot situated at the centre of the seat block, and the hinging arrangement includes a central mounting block having a front aperture in the form of a corresponding elongate slot.

The seat preferably has spaced lugs on opposite sides of its outlet slot, said lugs hingAewdly connecting to the central mounting block at opposite ends thereof.

The internal passage in the seat member preferably extends around the major part of the generally annular shape of said seat member, and communicates with a plurality of inlet apertures distributed around the inside periphery of said member.

The inlet member may be formed in upper and lower parts fixed together to define the internal passage between them.

Fixing may be by means of quick-release fastening to enable the two parts of the seat member to be readily separated for cleaning purposes.

The mounting block to which the seat is hinged may incorporate a shutter means for closing the front aperture in said block when the seat member is raised. This shutter may be spring loaded, and automatically opened, as by means of a cam projecting from the back of the seat member, when said seat member is lowered.

Operation of the fan may be controlled by switching means which automatically brings the fan into operation when the seat member is lowered, or at least when said seat member is sat upon. The switching means may comprise or include a microswitch or an air pressure switch; the circuit may include a switch which is closed when the aforesaid cam on the seat engages the shutter. Closure of the lastmentioned switch may either prepare the circuit for completion by a second switch, i.e. a pressure switch, or it may in itself complete the circuit.

The seat member and/or mounting block may incorporate sealing means which seal engagement between the lowered seat member and the mounting block around the mating apertures therein.

The lavatory seat ventilator in accordance with the invention is now described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of the seat ventilator arrangement with the seat raised; Figure 2 is a perspective view of the arrangement with the seat lowered; Figure 3 is a plan view with the seat lowered; Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view through the seat; Figure 5 is a partial plan view of the seat; Figure 6 is a transverse cross-sectional view on Figure 5; Figure 7 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view on Figure 5; and Figures 8 and 9 show details of a shutter device, respectively with the seat raised and with the seat lowered.

Referring to the drawings, a lavatory pan 10 has a seat 12 and cover 14 hinged to the back of the pan by a hinging arrangement generally referenced 16.

The seat comprises a complete upper part 18 and a horseshoeshaped lower part 20 formed to define an air channel between them which extends around a major part of the circumference of the seat. Air inlets 22 communicating with said air channel open downwardly through the lower part 20 of the seat at its inner periphery. A rearwardly open air outlet slot 24 at the back edge of the seat also communicates with the internal air channel.

The hinging arrangement 16 comprises a mounting member which fixes to the back of the pan in a generally conventional manner, this member having an upstanding central block 28 containing a forwardly open slot 30 which communicates through the block with a vent at the back to which an air extraction pipe 32 is connected. The extraction pipe 32 leads to a fan 34 through which air is exhausted, for example to the outside atmosphere.

When the seat is lowered, the slot in the back of the seat mates with the slot 30 in the mounting block so that air can be drawn, by the fan 34, from the inside of the pan through the inlets 22, the interior air channel, the mating slots and the extraction pipe 32, to be exhausted to the outside.

From Figures 1, 2,3 and 5 it will also be observed that the seat 12 and the cover 14 have lugs, respectively 36 and 38, which enable said seat and cover to be hinged to the mounting member 26 on opposite sides of the central block 28.

Figures 6 and 7 show that a sealing element 36, preferably carried by the mounting block 28, defines a seal around the mating slots when the seat is lowered.

Figures 8 and 9 show details of a shutter 38, contained within the mounting block 28, which is urged about its pivot 40 by a spring 42 to close the slot 30 when the seat 12 is raised. A cam 43 on the back edge of the seat pushes the shutter 38 open when the seat is lowered.

The shutter 38 and the cam 42 may carry respective electrical contact strips 44, 46 which prepare a fan power circuit for completion when the seat is lowered. Actual completion of the circuit may be achieved by means of a pressure operated microswitch, housed in the lower part of the seat near the front thereof, this switch being closed when the seat is sat upon. An air pressure switch may be employed instead of the aforementioned electrical switches, if preferred.

Various modifications of the above-described and illustrated arrangement are possible within the scope of the invention hereinbefore defined.

Claims

1. A lavatory seat comprising a seat member of conventional shape adapted in a lowered position to cooperate with the rim of the lavatory pan and mounted to the pan by means of a hinging arrangement at the back of the pan so that said seat member can be lifted, wherein the seat member has an internal passage communicating firstly with one or more inlet apertures at the inside periphery of said seat member and which are open to the interior of the pan when the seat member is lowered and secondly with an outlet aperture at the back of the seat member at its outside periphery, and the hinging arrangement includes a mounting block fixing to the pan and which has firstly a front aperture for mating with the outlet aperture of the lowered seat member and secondly a rear aperture for communicating with a vent pipe through which air can be drawn by means of a fan.

2. A lavatory seat according to claim 1, wherein the outlet aperture at the back of the seat is an elongate slot situated at the centre of the seat block, and the hinging arrangement includes a central mounting block having a front aperture in the form of a corresponding elongate slot.

3. A lavatory seat according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the seat has spaced lugs on opposite sides of its outlet slot, said lugs hingedly connecting to the central mounting block at opposite ends thereof.

4. A lavatory seat according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the internal passage in the seat member extends around the major part of the generally annular shape of said seat member, and communicates with a plurality of inlet apertures distributed around the inside periphery of said member.

5. A lavatory seat according to any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the inlet member may be formed in upper and lower parts fixed together to define the internal passage between them.

6. A lavatory seat according to claim 5, wherein fixing is effected by means of quick-release fastenings to enable the two parts of the seat member to be readily separated for cleaning purposes.

7. A lavatory seat according to any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the mounting block to which the seat is hinged incorporates a shutter means for closing the front aperture in said block when the seat member is raised.

8. A lavatory seat according to claim 7, wherein the shutter is spring loaded and automatically opened, by means of a cam projecting from the back of the seat member, when said seat member is lowered.

9. A lavatory seat according to any of claims 1 to 8, wherein operation of the fan is controlled by switching means which automatically brings the fan into operation when the seat member is lowered, or at least when said seat member is sat upon.

10. A lavatory seat according to claim 9, wherein the switching means comprises a microswitch or an air pressure switch.

11. A lavatory seat according to claim 10, wherein the circuit includes a switch which is closed when the aforesaid cam on the seat engages the shutter.

12. A lavatory seat according to claim 11, wherein closure of the last-mentioned switch may either prepare the circuit for completion by a second switch such as a pressure switch, or it may in itself complete the circuit.

13. A lavatory seat according to any of claims 1 to 12, wherein the seat member and/or mounting block incorporate sealing means which seal engagement between the lowered seat member and the mounting block around the mating apertures therein.

14. A lavatory seat substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.