US1981358A - Sink stopper - Google Patents

Description

m4203934. 1B, HERNANDEZ 1,981,358

SINK STOPPER A Filed May, 12, 1933 l 1"; A'I'TORNEY I INVENTQR @ffm Patented Nov. 20, '.1934

UNITED srrxrlzs Y 129811358ll SINK STOPPER Joseph B. Hernandem'New York, Y. Application May 12, 1 933, serial No. 670,737 I 4 Claims.

This invention relates to sink Stoppers, ,and more particularly toI Stoppers for relatively large drain openings such as are usually provided with a metal grille or perforate metal disk secured 5 therein. Owing to the closure of the drain opening by such metal disk or grille, the conventional solid rubber stopper, or metal and rubber stopper, with tapered side wall cannot be used, and flexible disks have been devised which in use are positioned over the metal grille or perforate disk whereupon they are held, when liquid is introduced to the sink, by pressure difference above and below the rubber disk.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a flexible waterproof sink stopper of the above mentioned disk type, which shall be reliable in use with many different types and sizes of drains and which when positioned over a drain vopening will resist lateral displacement.

Another object of the invention is to provide a reversible stopper by reason of which the useful life of the stopper is prolonged. Under ordinary service conditions there is a tendency for vthe edges of prior Stoppers of this general type to curl upward at the margin until the sealing face is so far distorted as to prevent the sealing action. With the reversible structure of the pres-v ent invention, the user will naturally apply it indiscriminately, or, if a tendency to curl is noted, the user will deliberately apply it reversely in making subsequent use of it.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a stopper having particular adaptability for` `use with widely varyingA drain opening diameters.

To this end the present stopper is produced with a plurality of circumferential zones formed by spaced concentric recesses in one or both sides of the disk, which weaken the disk therealong and allow for a diaphragm action including as many of the zones as may be directly over the drain opening area.

A further object is to provide a stopper of the general type referred to in which the suction may be conveniently broken for removal of the stopper from the sink.

In the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 is a view in plan of the improved stop- Der;

Fig. 2 is a view in cross section taken on the saline 2-2 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is View in cross section of the stopper applied to a sink drain.

The preferred embodiment of the invention which is shown in the drawing comprises a thin piece 10 of waterproof flexible material, such,

for example, as molded vulcanized rubber compound. The piece is substantially flat, except for central projections l2 and`13 from theoppdsite faces lli'and l5 thereof, respectively, a se- I ries of spaced concentric grooves 16 and 17 in 60 opposite faces, and sunken lettering or other inj dicia 18 in zones 20 between the grooves or be-L' tween the margin 21 of the -pieoe and its nearest groove. The projections 12 and 13 are prefi erab-ly homogeneously integral with the piece 10 65 and of small size to enter the perforations in the metal plate across the top of the drain.

The diameter of the stopper is preferably greater than the diameter of the largest drain area l usually encountered in ordinary kitchen or laboratory equipment so that when the stopper is positioned over a drain opening the margin 21 will overlie the sink bottom to a greater or less extent around the drain opening 22 or around the metal grille or periorate plate 23. This position of the stopper may be conveniently obtained by holding one of the central projections 12 or 13 between -the thumb and finger and manipulating the piece until the opposite projection enters v Y the drain or one of the perforations in the plate or grille 23. As soon as the margin of the piece 10 contacts with the bottom of the sink and the piece is held by thel interfitted projection against lateral displacement, such water or other liquid as may be let into the sink is to some extent f baffled and a head of liquid builds up in the sink, which presses the central area down against the drain plate and effectively prevents "the outow of liquid. The 'sealing action is facilitated by such small amount of the liquid as may primarily pass between the positioned stopper and the sink and into the drain tending to carry with it the air in the drain above the conventional trap. There is thus an initial tendency to lower the air pressure below the stopper while building up a head 95 of liquid above it.

It will be noted that the inner region of the stopper flexes as a diaphragm to conform to the usual irregularity of the sink at its outlet, the Y flexure taking place in largest measure `between juxtaposed grooves 16 and 17 at one zone or another according to the size and shape of the drain accommodated. In the drawing, Fig. 3, the drain is of a size in which the moved or flexed part includes the central zone and two surround- 'l ing rzones. If the drain were of very small diameter, the central zone alone might be so displaced downward. When the diaphragm action takes place, any curl or irregularity of the outer margin of the piece which may naturally follow 'ativelyunarrow to permit them` to enterfreely-V from the movement of the inner region is insufficient to break the seal which is only broken by outside pressure applied to the margin to lift it and allow the water to enter the drain. To effect this action conveniently at any point, without having to seek in opaque or extremely intemperate liquid for any particular point of the device, the edge 24 of the stopper is extended beyond the circumference of thevopposite faces and preferably lies ina plane midway vbetween the rplanes of the faces so that the tip or nail of the finger may be used at any point around the periphery of the stopper to lift the margim The reference herein to projections 12 and 13p as central isv not intended to mean that: they. are necessarily in the exact geometrical(l centerr of the piece 10 but rather thatv they are in a region including and proximatelytsurroundingxthe-;

exact center.

What is claimed is:

11A reversible sinknstopper, comprising-a thin d iskof flexible.k waterproof materiall having@- a-J projectioncentrally fromeach face andvspaced;

indentations in.l each., face which, increasey the flexibility of the disk, said projections beingvrelinto one` of a plurality of small outlet holes inA thvedrain plateand saidfdisc a whole being suciently flexible to substantially conform under normally developed pressure differences `to any irregularities in the sink at the drain portion.

2. A reversible and all flexible sink stopper, comprising athin disk of flexible waterproof material having a peripheral edge lying in a plane midway between the planes of the opposite faces of the disk, and central projections withouty filling the sink outlet, a peripheral edge above thefplane, of the bottom surface of the piecejan'd'indicia sunk from a surface of the piece toincreasathadegree of its flexibility.

4, kAvsink stopper, comprising a think body of `vulcanized rubber composition inl disk form having. a narrow l1:,rojection centrally..flrorneeach face and ya. peripheral edge lyingp in a, plane:` substanf. tiallyl, midw ,l'ay,` between the faces, the, projections?,

being, of a size: and shape to. freely. venter Aone.of. au. plu'rlalityu oft perforations lin 4 a;draini platey ands: being, substantially. less in. cross-area` than ,the y crossarea4j of thedrain.

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