US1297563A - Automatic self-closing flush-valve for toilets. - Google Patents

Description

H. L. HARDY. AUTOMATIC SELF CLOSING FLUSH VALVE FOR TOILETS. APPLICATION FILED JULY 2,1911.

1,297,563. Patented Mar. 18,1919.

BY 6 M /1,/ g ATTORNEYS.

HOMER L. HARDY, OF SPOKANE, WASHINGTON, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO H. G. 'DUEBFELDT, OF SPOKANE, WASHINGTON.

AUTOMATIC SELF-CLOSING FLUSH-VALVE FOR TOILETS.

Application filed July 2, 1917.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HOMER L. HARDY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Spokane, in the county of Spokane and State of Washington, have invented new and I useful Improvements in Automatic Self- Glosing Flush-Valves for Toilets, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in automatically closing flush valves which are specially designed for toilets.

My invention includes a valve mechanism having a valve closure which is manually operable against water pressure from the main in order to permit of ingress of the water to said mechanism,'means being provided for positively retaining the valve closure in a full open position during the period of flush adjustment of the valve mechanism.

A further feature consists in providing a timing reservoir in'which a piston is controlled by water pressurefor releasing the valve closure after a predetermined period of flushing, whereby the-water pressure it'- self will close and seat said closure.

A. further novel feature consists in automatically acting means for draining the timing reservoir after the valve closure has been seated, and in the preferred form, this automatic draining means is positively actuated upon movementof the valve closure to a seated position.

My invention includes a valve body which has a discharge opening delivering to the bowl of the toilet which is very greatly restricted with respect to the area of the inlet to said body from the pressure main. Thus during the flushing inflow, aconsiderable pressure of water will be maintained in the valve body and I utilize this pressure for discharge of a portion thereof into the timing reservoir to actuate the timing mechanism at the termination of a 'pre-determined period of flushing.

My invention has other objects and features which will be more fully described in connection with the accompanying drawing, and which will be more particularly.

pointed out in and by the appended claims.

In the drawing Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of one form of the device of my invention showing the valve structure in a closed posi-* tion. a l a V Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Mar. 18., 1919.

Serial No. 178,257.

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 showing the parts in an open position.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on line 33 of Fig. 1.

Like characters of reference designate similar parts throughout the different figures of the drawing. v

As illustrated, 1 designates a hollow valve body which is adapted for direct connection with a pipe of a water main by means of extension 2. A fitting 3 is turned into said extension 2 and is provided with a yoke 4 which constitutes a bearing for a closure stem 5 whereby the latter will be held to a linear path of movement. Said body .1 has a partition 6 forming a valve chamber 7 through which the inflow passes under pressure toward and into said body 1. Said partition 6 is provided with a closure seat 8, as shown. A valve closure 9is shown formed integral with said stem 5 and said closure 9 is adapted to be manually operated or moved out of engagement with its seat 8, andtoward and against the incoming pressure into an open position, as shown in Fig. 2. Thus water pressure will always act to seat said closure. However, I have shown a spring 10 interposed between said closure and the bearing 4:, which spring normally acts to supplement the water pressure, in seating said closure, this spring being especially important when the mechanism is operated in connection with such a low pressure water system as four pounds to the square inch. On a higher pressure, this spring is not so important, as will hereinafter more fully app-ear. Extending from the closure 9 is a bifurcated stem portion 11, the latter terminating in a cylindrical stem portion 12. The cylindrical stem portion 12 is slidable through a packing gland, indicated as a whole at 13 and is provided on its outer end with a push button 14 whereby the entire closure structure may be'manually opened from the position shown in Fig. 1 to the position shown in Fig. 2, against the action 'of spring 10 and the water pressure. The

valve body 1 has a discharge opening 15 adapted to deliver to the bowl 16, of the toilet, and the terminal end may be suitably equipped with any suitable form of nozzlelike device for rendering the discharge into the bowl as noiseless as possible, this feature not being a specific part of my invention. However, a fan shapedterminal end might be arranged to spread the flow against the interior wall of the bowl above the siphon level of the water.

It will now be seen that the valve seat 8 permits of inflow to the body '1 greatly in excess of the capacity of outlet to dis charge the water from said bowl the latter discharging aginst no resistance greater than atmospheric pressure. Thus there willbe.

10 some considerable pressure in the valve body 1 during the flushing operation.

I will-next describe my improved automatically acting timing mechanism which I is preferably operated by this pressure in- 15. the valve body 1 to performfthe function of terminating the flushing action at the end of a pre-determined period.

-=The upper end of the valve body 1 is open, as .7 at '17, and is interiorly threaded. A shoulder 18 is formed adjacent the top of saidbody. A cylindrical timing reservoir 19 has threaded connection-with the valve.

body 1 and there is interposed between the reservoircasing 19 and the shoulder 18, a diaphragm 20, which is rigid, and which divides-the reservoir chamber from the hol- .low valve body 1. It will be understood that this timing reservoir is not designed to. take the place of a flush tank and that it doesfnot'function'to hold a body of water 'forfiushing the tank. On the other hand the water that enters this reservoir is merely for the purpose of operating mechanism which I am now about to. describe in detail. A gasket 21 is interposed between the shoulder. l8 and the reservoir 19. Said diaphragm20 is providedwith an opening 22' whereby. the reservoir will constantly be in restricted timing communication with the valve-body 'for timing flow from the latter into the former. The upper end of said reservoir is provided with openings 23 to prevent air'from pocketing in said reservoir and. also to prevent vacuum interference 4 witha'pi'ston which I am about to describe. I havezshown ap-iston 24 provided with a disk gasket 25,-the margin 26 of which engages-the interior of the reservoir 19 to provide for awater'tight engagement. The

- .;pistonl24: is provided with a hub sleeve 27.

-. which is externally threaded. A nut 28 is -DlOVlClt-ffl on said sleeve to hold the gasket :firmly, in position against the piston 24, the

latter resting against the head 29, of said, L'sleeve. 1 Furthermore, 7 said sleeve nut is threaded on a: piston rod 29 which has a bearing at-30, in, the top of the reservoir 19 -and which also has a bearing 31, formed- .,-1ntegral with the'diaphragm 20. Thebearing31 isprovidecl. with a suitable packing gland 32: toprevent leakage around the pistontro-dfrom the valve body-into the reser .QVOH'. Asp ring-33 is interposed between said piston and the top ofsaidjreservoir to 5.;resist.p1'essure..1novement.of the piston in be. re ulated byiadjustment ofithe piston 24' the direction of the arrow shown in Fig. 2. Adjustment regarding the spring tension desired, may be effected by adjusting the piston on the threaded piston rod. The lower; end of the piston rod 29 projects into i. the valve body and rests upon the top of i the, looped or bifurcated stem portion 11, as

shown in Fig. 3, the terminal of said stem spanning the'slot in said portion and being held down in position by spring 33. A re taining trip device is provided-which may consist of abell crank lever 34: which is pivoted. at 35 inthe slottediportion lland ,,wl1ic-h;has one arma3 6 which is adapted to project. above the 1ste111.;Tl1e terminal end 37 is adapted to, rest, against the,p-iston.rod 29, whenin, the position shown in .Fig. 2,

to retain the closure structure inten -open ..position. A stop 381limits movementof said 5 trip device undertheiaction of .a;leaf spring a the \water to pass. up=through opening 22 into reservoir 19 until-the risingwaterlevel reaches the piston 24. Continued pressure \vil.l ;.o. erc9ine' thespring 33 .andwill actuate-the piston so as. to elevate the piston rod out; of engagement. with .the retaining. end 37. This will free the closure structurefor closing action by water pressure -against.

V. the closure v9, ,inaddition to spring-10 and termi ate flushing .action. ;.Thef.perio.d of flushing may not only be regulatedby the size of .opening 22; but itmay additionally 1 to ;eitherincrease or; decrease the gtension of i ri a3 I willnextdescribe the novelimanner in ,.Z\,vhich the controlling or timing reservoir inechaiiism; is drained subsequent to .each

flushing ,operation as otherwise the, device would not be opc ative. v

TfTllG diaphragm 20,-.is provided with a valve ,seat 4:2 for establishing. communi ca-.

tion betweengthe valve body and the. r eser-.- .voir. [Nd-rain} va1ve closurel3 is movable against the pressure, i body .1 to close. A

.- .U frame-i is mounted upon; the diaPhragin 120 andtthe-,:closure L3isiprgwided-v with a t stem 45 which isislidable; through said: frame} 1 2 5 14.. A spring d6 is inter-posedtbetween said frame .andithe closure-4i3 and normally acts :to ,seat the latter; -The.:lower,;end -47. of .said stem. ex ends-in o body '1 in -.t .e. p

of engagement of one arm 48 of a be ll erank:

' tion 11 of the closure structure.

to a hanger 50 and the remaining arm 51 be ing' forked and straddling the slotted por- The forked portion is provided with bifurcated limbs adapted to engage trunnions 53, projecting laterally from-the slotted portion 11.

It will now be clear that when the closure.

' i is released and water pressure or the spring 10, or both, force the closure structure into the position shown in Fig. l, the mechanism inst described will open the drain valve or closure 43 at a time when pressure in the body 1 willhave diminished so that the contents of the timing reservoir may empty or drain by gravity into the chamber 1, and thence into the bowl 16. The arrow 1n Fig. 1 indicates the lower end waterlevel lnthe reservoir responsive to the draining action of the valve 43.

It will be noted that the drain valve is always open when the closure 9 is seated and therefore the reservoir will always be completely and quickly drained after each flushing operation so that there will be no danger I of freezing or interfering with a next and quickly following operation ofthe valve 9.

The spring applied to the closure structure will either bestronger than the spring applied to the drain valve or there will be sufiicient leverage to enable the combined pressure of the water and the closure spring to overcome the drain valve spring. VVhereby the closure structure will be positively closed andthe quick drain valve positively opened. 1 On low water pressure, the closure spring'is usually desirable but on high water pressure, this spring can be eliminated.

It is believed that the novelty and utility of my invention will be clearly understood from the foregoing description, and while I have herein shown and described one specific form of my invention, I do not Wish to be limited thereto except for such limitations the claims may import.

I claim 1. In an automatic self-closing valve for toilets, a valve body for connection with a pressure main and including a valve seat and a manually operable main valve closure structure for said seat, said valve body having a toilet flush outlet for discharge into the toilet bowl, timing reservoir having restricted timing and direct communication with said body for timing pressure inflow into said reservoir from said body, a spring controlled piston in said reservoir actuated by reservoir pressure and being operatively connected with said closure structure to hold the same open after it is manually opened and releasing said closure structure upon actuation of said piston by timing pressure in said reservoir, an independently movable drain valve delivering directly from said reservoir into said body independently of .said drain valve against the action of said spring to drain, the contents of saidreservoir-directly-into said body, substantially as described. I I p p 2. In an automatic self-closing flushva'lve for toilets, a valve body .for. connection with a pressure main and including a valve seat and a manually operable main valve closure structure for said seat, said valve body having atoilet flush outlet fordischarge into said bowl, a timing reservoir having direct. restricted communication with said body for tuning pressure inflow into said reservoir from said body, a spring controlled piston in said reservoir actuatedby reservoir pressure against the said spring and being opera-.:

,tively connectedwith said closure structure means automatically and quickly draining said reservoir directly. intosaid-body independently of said restricted timing communication with said body attersaidclosure structure has been seated, substantially as; described.

3. In an automatic self closingflush valve for toilets, a valve body forc'onnection with a pressure main and includinga valve seat and a manually operable valve closure struc-.; ture for said seat, said valve body having a toilet flush outlet for free discharge into a toilet bowl under substantiallyatmospheric pressure, a timing reservoir having restricted communication with said body for timing pressure inflow into said reservoir from said body, a spring controlled piston in said reservoir adapted to be actuated by reservoir pressure and being operatively connected with said closure structure to hold the'same open after it has been manually opened and to release said structure upon actuation of said piston by timing pressure in said reservoir, and means automatically and quickly draining said reservoir directly into said body independently of said restricted timing communication and after said closure structure is seated, substantially as described.

water inflow from said body to release said valve, a quick draining valve means spring controlled to close against Water pressure in said valve body and delivering to said body directly independently of said restricted

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