MXPA97010145A - Inod cup portable fan - Google Patents

Abstract

A portable fan apparatus (20) is provided for venting a toilet bowl by forced ventilation, wherein the air from the bowl is extracted by a fan (30) by means of a tube (40) extending through a water trap formed in a drain portion (27) of the toilet, towards a drain line (16). The apparatus includes a support bracket (40) that allows it to be suspended from the fan inside the cup, and removed for its portability.

Description

PORTABLE VENTILATOR OF TOILET CUP INTRODUCTION This invention relates to the control of offensive odors from a toilet bowl by ventilation. More specifically, ventilation is provided by a battery-powered fan apparatus that vents odors through a tube that traverses the water trap in the toilet, to vent odors to the sewer ventilation pipe. Accordingly, the apparatus of this invention can be inserted in any siphon type toilet, does not require technical installation, and can be removed to be taken to another toilet.

BACKGROUND Numerous inventors have provided ventilation for a toilet bowl. These inventions have been incorporated into the body of the toilet bowl, toilet seat and lid, and as accessories to the rim of the toilet bowl. Many of these prior inventions rely on an adsorbent medium, such as activated carbon, to remove offensive odors from the air directed from the toilet bowl. Other of these prior inventions ventilate the air containing the offending odors directly outwards or through the wall of the room where the toilet installation is located. Some of these prior art devices even ventilate the air containing offensive odors into the tube. sewer ventilation (often referred to as the "battery"), required by building codes in all sanitary sewer installations. All devices of the prior art, of which the applicant is aware, require special modifications to the toilet or its environments. Special seats or special covers. Special water tanks or lids for them. Special toilets that have integrated ventilation lines. Ventilation holes in the walls. All are permanent installations applied to a particular toilet. None that can be transported for use with more than one toilet has been seen. Accordingly, it is seen that there is a need for a portable device that can be used in any of a plurality of toilets, and that does not require a permanent installation, and that can be easily inserted into any toilet to be used. This device could be carried by an individual to be used in any siphon toilet facility that the individual may visit.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an apparatus for ventilating a toilet bowl, using forced ventilation, wherein the air extracted therefrom is discharged through a tube through the water trap, to extract the air to the drainage line in this way. It is a further object of this invention to provide this ventilation apparatus that is portable, such that it can be moved from one toilet to another. It is another object of this invention to provide forced ventilation that is by means of a fan. It is another object of this invention to provide forced ventilation that is by means of an electrically energized fan. It is another object of this invention to provide forced ventilation that is by means of a battery-powered fan.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 shows a cross-sectional drawing of a siphon toilet with the invention installed therein. Figure 2 shows a perspective drawing of the invention, with a one-way valve at its outlet. Figure 3 shows a view of the one-way valve as seen along line 3-3. Figure 4 shows a view of the invention, wherein a battery housing is suspended outside the toilet bowl. Figure 5 shows a view of the invention, wherein a battery housing is suspended inside the toilet bowl.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION This invention will be more readily understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein the parts are identified by reference numbers consistent with the following description. In each view, the same part carries the same reference number. Figure 1 illustrates a siphon toilet 11 of the type in common use, and shows the present invention 20 installed therein. This type of toilet is often called a flushing toilet. The mechanism by means of which this type of toilet operates, is to maintain a level of water in the bottom of the bowl 12 and in a drainage portion of recurva directed upwards 27 of the toilet with which the bowl 12 is in direct communication, thus forming a gas barrier in the sanitary sewer line 16 which communicates with a sewer or a septic tank, the gases of which could otherwise enter the rooms where the toilet is installed. In this normal or resting condition, two surfaces are present: one is inside the recurve drainage portion 27 of the toilet, and the other is inside the toilet bowl 12. When the cup 12 is rapidly filled with an amount of water from a discharge tank or a discharge valve, the water level in the cup 12 and in the recurve drain portion 27 is raised until the level in the portion of drainage overflows into drainage line 16, upon which, it causes a siphoning effect to more rapidly empty cup 12 and its waste and water content. When the water supplied to the cup 12 is slowed, the water level in the cup falls to a sufficiently low level that the air can be directed towards the recurve portion of the drain, thus breaking the siphon effect, and allowing the water to again fill the cup 12 to substantially the original level, thus again forming a very effective seal against the sewer gases. It is well known that unpleasant odors can come from the toilet, especially when in use.

The prior inventors have long recognized the desirability of eliminating these odors where they are most concentrated, and before they are dispersed in the air of the room. Some of these researchers have chosen to ventilate the foul-smelling air towards the drainage lines of the building where the toilet is installed. However, previous investigators did not anticipate the desirability of a traveler carrying equipment with him to the toilet, to be installed and removed easily. In the past, modern motors and portable power supplies have not been available in the form of batteries, or a safe adaptation of electric current from the home to the bathroom that offers security and convenience. In addition, individuals are now more aware of the desirability of not allowing bad odors to permeate their homes, even in the toilet areas. The present invention adapts what is known about the removal of odor from the toilet bowl, and makes it portable and easy to install, or more correctly, to insert. From Figure 1, it is clear that the air space 25 is in communication by means of the drain line 16, with the air in a ventilation pipe 15, which is open towards the atmosphere to vent the gases from the plumbing of drainage 13 of the building where the plumbing is installed. The invention comprises a fan for forcing air from the toilet bowl 12 into the air space 25, and from there to the ventilation tube 15 to thereby prevent the odors from being dispersed from the toilet to the environment of the toilet. Figure 2 shows a detailed view of the invention 20 in one embodiment, which comprises: a fan 30 having a fan housing 32 having an inlet opening 34 and an extraction opening 36; a flexible tube 40 connected to the extraction opening 36, for carrying the extraction from the fan 30; and a support bracket 44 attached to the housing of the fan 32, and adapted to engage with the toilet rim in a removable manner, to thereby suspend the fan below the rim inside the bowl in a removable manner. In use, the tube 40 extends through both water surfaces, while the inlet opening of the fan 34 is inside the cup 12, to thereby direct, by forced convection, the air from the cup 12, and extracting that air towards the sanitary drainage system 13. Clearly, the tube 40 must be flexible enough to bend inside the curvature of the water trap, and yet, it must not be so weak as to be unable to be pushed to the proper position. Many plastic materials are suitable for this tube. Any expert in this field could select an appropriate material. The energy for the fan shown in Figure 2 is finally electricity from a house outlet, although the voltage can be reduced through an isolation transformer (not shown) for safety. At the end of the tube 40, Figure 2 shows a single-way valve 48 that only allows outward flow of the tube. This valve prevents water from entering the tube 40 as the tube is inserted into the water in the toilet bowl 12. The valve 48 shown is of a type commonly used to allow the condensate to drain from the air lines that they operate below atmospheric pressure, just like in a car's air conditioner. The valve is made of a soft plastic or rubber material, and is configured to fit over a round tube at its upper end 50, and is flattened at its lower end 52, leaving only one slot as an opening. Any return flow is prevented by closing the groove, this being caused by the reverse pressure that would create this return flow. In Figure 3 a side view of the valve 48 is shown. Figure 4 shows the invention in another embodiment, which includes the housing of the fan 32, a fan motor 33, a bracket 44 adapted to rest on the rim of a toilet bowl, and a housing 56 for a battery suspended outside of the cup 12. The wires are present for carrying electric power from the battery inside the battery housing 56 and the fan motor 33, but they are not shown. Figure 5 shows the invention in yet another embodiment, including the housing of the fan 32, a fan motor 33, a clamp 44 adapted to rest on the rim of a toilet bowl, and a housing 56 for a battery supported inside of the cup 12. In this example, the housing 56 and the housing 32 are attached, or contiguous. This need not be the case, since the housing 56 and the housing 32 are clearly not contiguous in Figure 4. The wires are present to carry electrical power from the battery inside the battery housing 56 and the fan motor 33, but they are not shown Having described this invention, which includes the citation of the specific functional examples thereof, the applicant wishes to include within the scope of his invention, those improvements that would be immediately obvious to an expert in this field, and some, although not all of these improvements may have been referred to in the present. The applicant wishes that the scope of his invention be limited only by the scope of the claims appended hereto.

Claims (10)

NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION Having described the above invention, it is considered as a novelty, and therefore, the content of the following is claimed as property: CLAIMS

1. An apparatus for forced ventilation of a siphon-type toilet bowl, this toilet bowl comprising a substantially horizontally oriented flange surrounding an upper opening, a concave cup portion positioned below and contiguous with the rim, an outlet at the lowest point of the bowl, a recurve drainage portion adapted to connect the outlet with a sanitary sewer, whose drainage portion curves upward before reaching the sanitary sewer, thus forming a lower portion of the bowl, a water trap, which prevents the return flow of gases from the sanitary sewer, this water having a first surface completely inside the bowl, and a second surface completely separated inside a portion directed towards above the drainage portion, this apparatus comprising for forced ventilation: (a) a fan having a fan housing having an opening entrance ura and an extraction opening; (b) a flexible tube connected to the extraction opening, for carrying the extraction from the ventilator, - and (c) a support bracket attached to the fan housing, and adapted to engage with the flange in a removable manner, to suspend in this way the fan under the rim inside the cup in a removable manner; whereby, in use, the tube extends through both surfaces of water, while the opening of the fan inlet is inside the cup, to thereby direct, by forced convection, the air, from the cup of the toilet, and extract this air to the sanitary sewer.

The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the flexible tube is also adapted with a one-way valve, which allows flow only from the ventilator.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the fan is operated by electricity supplied from the house wiring.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the fan is operated by electricity supplied from a battery.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4, characterized in that it also comprises a second housing adapted to receive the battery.

The apparatus according to claim 5, characterized in that the second housing is substantially waterproof.

The apparatus according to claim 5, characterized in that the second housing and the fan housing are contiguous.

The apparatus according to claim 5, characterized in that the second housing and the fan housing are not contiguous.

The apparatus according to claim 5, characterized in that the second housing is suspended by the support bracket outside the toilet bowl, while the ventilator housing is suspended by the support bracket inside this toilet bowl. .

10. An apparatus for forced ventilation of a siphon-type toilet bowl, this toilet bowl comprising a substantially horizontally oriented flange surrounding an upper opening, a concave cup portion positioned below and contiguous with the container. flange, an outlet at the lowest point of the bowl, a recurve drainage portion adapted to connect the outlet with a sanitary drain, whose drainage portion curves upward before reaching the sanitary drain, thus forming a a lower portion of the bowl, a water trap, which prevents the return flow of gases from the sanitary sewer, this water having a first surface completely inside the bowl, and a second surface completely separated inside a directed portion upwards of the drain portion, this apparatus comprising for forced ventilation: (a) a battery-powered fan having a vent housing lador, an entrance opening, and an extraction opening; (b) a second housing adapted to receive the batteries and deliver electricity therefrom to this fan; (c) a flexible tube having a one-way valve, and connected to the extraction opening, for carrying the extraction from the ventilator; and (d) a support bracket attached to the fan housing, and adapted to engage with the rim in a removable manner, to thereby suspend the fan below the rim inside the cup, and also to suspend the second housing, being both suspensions in a removable way; whereby, in use, this tube extends through both water surfaces, while the fan inlet opening is inside the cup, to thereby direct by forced convection, the air from the toilet bowl , and extract this air towards the sanitary drain.