US20160177547A1

US20160177547A1 - Water fountain

Info

Publication number: US20160177547A1
Application number: US14/795,158
Authority: US
Inventors: Travis R. McPeek
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2014-12-22
Filing date: 2015-07-09
Publication date: 2016-06-23

Abstract

A water fountain is provided that condenses water from moist air to fill a reservoir contained within a housing of the fountain. The housing has a top and bottom portion and a continuous sidewall that forms a hollow interior. The reservoir is positioned within the interior along with a power system and a compressor to cool water in the reservoir. A spout extends out of the top portion of the housing to allow individuals to drink the water from the reservoir.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/124,504, filed Dec. 22, 2014.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention is related to a water fountain. More specifically, this invention relates to a water fountain having condensers that procures water from the air to supply a reservoir of water for consumption.
Water fountains are old and well known in the art. Water fountains are generally found indoors at schools, offices, shopping centers, as well as outdoors at places like amusement parks, community parks, city centers and pools, among countless other places. Conventional water fountains are integrated into most modernized areas to ensure that drinking water is available for individuals to consume when needed.
Despite the advances and prevalence of drinking fountains, problems remain. In particular, the installation of a drinking fountain requires preplanning and installation of the requisite plumbing needed to ensure that a supply of water is available to feed the water fountain. In addition, conventional drinking fountains require a source of power to energize a refrigeration unit that cools the water so that it is optimally refreshing. Further, a conventional drinking fountain cannot be easily installed in areas that do not have a readily-available plumbing system and power system to tap into, such as remote areas found in parks, construction zones and developing areas. Further still, some areas do not have fresh water that is generally available, let alone made available for easily-accessible consumption.
At present time, the only current alternative available in the art is to provide a stand-alone water dispenser that must be manually refilled by routine deliveries of water. While effective, this solution, fails to address the availability of water to remote areas and to those areas where fresh water is generally unavailable. In addition, developing areas often lack a power grid capable of supporting the electrical needs of stand-alone units. These systems also suffer the deficiency of being more costly and inefficient given their reliance on an external power source and water deliveries to operate.
Thus it is a primary objective of this invention to provide a water fountain that improves upon the art.
Another objective of this invention is to provide a water fountain that is self-sustainable.
Yet another objective of this invention is to provide a water fountain that is functional in remote areas.
Another objective of this invention is to provide a water fountain that is functional without integration into a preexisting water infrastructure.
Yet another objective of this invention is to provide a water fountain that is functional in developing areas where fresh water and power is not readily available.
Another objective of this invention is to provide a water fountain that provides clean water.
Yet another objective of this invention is to provide a water fountain that is easy to install and use.
Another objective of this invention is to provide a water fountain that is cost-effective.
Yet another objective of this invention is to provide a water fountain that is efficient.
Another objective of this invention is to provide a water fountain that is functional without integration into a preexisting electrical infrastructure.
These and other objectives, features, and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the specification and claims.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A water fountain is provided that condenses water from moist air to fill a reservoir contained within a housing of the fountain. The housing has a top and bottom portion, and a continuous sidewall, that forms a hollow interior. The reservoir is positioned within the interior along with a power system and a compressor to cool water in the reservoir. A spout extends out of the top portion of the housing to allow individuals to drink the water from the reservoir.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a water fountain;

FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of a water fountain;

FIG. 3A is a cut-out side elevation view of a water fountain; and

FIG. 3B is a cut-out side elevation view of a water fountain.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

With reference to the figures a water fountain 10 is show having an outer housing 12 that includes a top portion 14, a bottom portion 16, and a continuous sidewall 18 positioned there between that forms a hollow interior 20. In one embodiment, the sidewall 18 of the housing 12 slopes inwards in a concave fashion from the top portion 14 and bottom portion 16 thereby providing an hour glass shape to the housing 12. The housing 12 can be made of any suitable material, such as plastic, fiber glass, cement, metal, wood, or any other structurally rigid and durable material.
One or a pair of condensers 22 are mounted within openings 24 in the sidewall 18. The condensers 22 can be positioned anywhere on or in housing 12, but in one embodiment are positioned near the top portion 14. In one embodiment, the condensers 22 are in communication with a compressor 26 via a first set of tubes 28, which cools a coolant 30, such as Freon or the like, to facilitate the condensers 22 collection of moisture. In one arrangement, compressor 26 is positioned near the bottom portion 16 within the hollow interior 20 of water fountain 10. The first set of tubes 28 are made of any suitable material, such as copper or the like which serves to quickly and easily conduct heat and therefore serves to efficiently condense water vapor thereon. In one arrangement, a fan 32 is positioned in front of the condensers 22 to draw in moist air from the environment which is blown over the tubes 28.
The condensers 22 are connected at one end of a second set of tubes 34 that connects at its other end to a filtration system 36. The filtration system 36 is connected to a reservoir 38 of any suitable shape and size that is made of any suitable material, such as plastic.
Connected to the exterior surface of the reservoir 38 is a hollow coil 40 that is bent in a stacked coiled fashion as to cover at least one side the reservoir's 38 surface area. Alternatively, the coil 40 is wrapped around the exterior surface of the reservoir 38. The coil 40 is in closed-circuit communication with the compressor 26 to pump coolant 30 through the coil 40 to cool the reservoir 28 and any water held therein. The coil 40, in one arrangement, is made of copper or the like, but can be made of any suitable material that serves to quickly and easily conduct heat.
A third set of tubes 42 run from within the reservoir 38 to a spout 44 that protrudes through a top surface 46 of the top portion 14. The third set of tubes 42 is attached to a pump 48 positioned within the hollow interior 20 at a position between the reservoir 38 and the spout 44 to draw water from the reservoir 38 and force it upward and out spout 44 or consumption. The pump 48 is in communication with a button 50 positioned on the exterior of the housing 12 adjacent the top portion 12 or directly on the spout 44 to activate the pump 48 to deliver water.
A fourth set of tubes 52 is connected to a bottom 54 of the reservoir 38. The fourth set of tubes 52 is in communication with a pet bowl 56 that protrudes perpendicularly from the bottom portion 16 of the housing 12. In one embodiment, the pet bowl 56 is formed by a bottom arcuate surface 57 that extends from the bottom of the housing 12 in an outward manner. In this embodiment, a raised lip 58 extends upwards from the bottom arcuate surface 57 to hold water. Connected to the fourth set of tubes 52, within the hollow interior 12 and between the pet bowl 56 and reservoir 38, is a sub-pump or levelling unit 60 that controls the amount of water in the pet bowl 56 so that the pet bowl 56 does not over fill. In an alternative arrangement, pet bowl 56 is fed by a drain tube that drains the unconsumed water from spout 44 into pet bowl 56 thereby recycling the unconsumed water for pet consumption. In this arrangement, and overflow spout is in communication to vent excess water when pet bowl 56 is full.
A power system 62 is positioned within the hollow interior 20 of the housing. The power system 62 includes a neodymium sprocket 64 electrically connected with an alternator 66 that is connected to a generator 68. The generator 66 is electrically connected to the compressor 26, fan 32, pump 48, and sub-pump 60 to provide electricity to these items.
Alternatively, the power system 62 includes a power cord 70 that extends through the housing 12 to be plugged into or connected to a conventional power source 72 (not shown). In another embodiment, a plurality of solar cells 74 are connected to the exterior surface of the housing 12 to collect energy from the sun and convert it to electricity that is dispersed to the electrical components of the water fountain 10. These solar cells 74 can be positioned on any exterior surface of the housing 12 including upward facing surfaces adjacent the spout 44, the interior surface of the bowl that catches the water that is not consumed, and/or all or a portion of the exterior surface of the continuous sidewall 18.
A display 76 is embedded into the sidewall 18 of the housing 12 near the top portion 14. The display 76, in one embodiment, has an LED touchscreen 78 that includes a series of buttons 80 such as an up button and a down button to set the temperature of the water to be dispensed out the spout 44. Additionally, the display 74 displays indicia 82 that indicates the current temperature of the water being dispensed, the current temperature, the level of water present in the reservoir 38, and any other relevant information to the conditions of the environment and/or the water fountain 10.
In one arrangement, a dispenser 86 is inset within the sidewall 18 of the housing 12. The dispenser 86 has a downward extending spout 88. The spout 88 is in communication with the third set of tubes 34 to deliver water through the spout 88. A switch 90 is positioned near the dispenser 86 on the exterior of the sidewall 18 to activate the pump 48. In one embodiment, the dispenser 86 includes a cup ejector 92 that provides a cup 94 when the switch 90 is activated.
In operation, the water fountain 10 is placed in a desired location and connected to a power source 72 if needed (that is in the arrangement where solar cells 74, alternator 66 and/or generator 68 are not present. The compressor 26 pumps coolant 30 through the first set of tubes 28 and into the pair of condensers 22 positioned within the openings in the housing 12. As moist air enters, with or without the assistance of the fan 32, the condensers 22 cool the air and water condenses on the condensers 22. The condensed water travels down the second set of tubes 34 until it reaches the filtration system 36 within the interior 20 of the housing 12. The filtration system 36 cleans any contaminants that are present prior to the water entering into the reservoir 38 where it is stored.
The water in the reservoir 38 is kept cool by coolant 30 that travels through the coil 40 positioned next to or around the reservoir 38. The compressor 26 that pumps the coolant 30 is powered by the power system 62, which can be run off the power grid by way of a neodymium sprocket 64 or solar cells 74.
When an individual wants to obtain water to drink, the individual presses the button 50 that activates the pump 48 to draw cold water from the reservoir 38. Alternatively, the individual can eject a cup 94 and place it in the dispenser 86 and activate the switch 90 to dispense water from the dispenser's spout 88. If the individual has a pet, the pet can drink water that is in the pet bowl 56 located at the bottom portion 16 of the water fountain 10.
Before getting water, the individual can also check the display 76 to see the current temperature outside and the temperature of the water in the reservoir 38. The individual can adjust the temperature of the water using buttons 80 on the display. Additionally, the individual can check the current level of water in the reservoir 38 to ensure that water is available.
Therefore, a water fountain has been provided that is self-sustainable, functional in remote areas, functional without integration into a preexisting water infrastructure, functional in developing areas where fresh water and power is not readily available, provides clean water, is easy to install and use, is cost effective, is efficient, and improves upon the art.
From the above discussion and accompanying figures and claims it will be appreciated that the water fountain 10 offers many advantages over the prior art. It will also be appreciated by those skilled in the art that other modifications could be made without parting from the spirit and scope of the invention and fall within the scope of the claims and are intended to be covered thereby.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A water fountain comprising:

a housing having a top portion and a bottom portion, and continuous sidewall there between, to form a hollow interior;

at least one condenser positioned within an opening in the housing;

a reservoir positioned within the hollow interior that is connected to the condenser such that condensed water on the condenser is received within the reservoir; and

a spout extending through the top portion that is in fluid communication with the reservoir.

2. The water fountain of claim 1 wherein the housing has an hour-glass shape.

3. The water fountain of claim 1 further comprising a power system having a neodymium sprocket, an alternator, and a generator.

4. The water fountain of claim 1 further comprising a pet bowl positioned to the bottom portion and exterior the housing.

5. The water fountain of claim 1 further comprising a display connected to the housing, wherein the display displays the current temperature of water in the reservoir.

6. The water fountain of claim 1 further comprising a compressor connected to a coil connected to the reservoir such that the compressor delivers coolant through the coil to cool water in the reservoir.

7. The water fountain of claim 1 further comprising a filtration system positioned between the at least one condenser and the reservoir such that condensed water is filtered prior to entering the reservoir.