US2190160A - Flushing mechanism for toilet tanks - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 13, 1940. J. L. MASON ET- AL 2,190,160 v FLUSHING MECHANISM FOR TOILET TANKS Filed April 8, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 QI35 a g JUL/HN LMAsON GLENN L. M hnas Zmventors Gttbrneg Feb. 13,1940. J. L. MASON ET AL 2,190,160

FLUSHING MECHANISM FOR TOILET TANKS Filed April 8, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet? 54 Q 3 57 g 52 S 44 43 Q 46 47 45 I 26 Q m 9 JUL/RN L. MASON (Ittomeg Patented Feb. 13, 1940 FLUSH'ING MECHANISM FOR TOILET TANKS Julian L. Mason and Glenn L. McNabb,

. Gastonia, N. C.

' Application April 8, 1939, Serial No. 268,783

4 Claims. (01. 4-57)' This invention relates to a flushing mechanism for water closets. More specifically it relates to an improved tripping means for the tank ball, which will insure proper setting of the flushing valve or tank ball and thus eliminate water leakage due to sticking of the tank ball occurring after a flushing operation. Heretofore, many types of tripping mechanisms have been employed the structure of which has been such that the moving parts, will become frictionally engaged with the stationary supporting member and thereby prevent the flushingvalve from becoming properly closed. This occasions much loss in water and much annoyance due to the cause or necessity of having to frequently reposition the parts in the apparatus.

" It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a tripping mechanism for a valve or tank ball in a water closet, comprising an operating shaft rotatably mounted inthe sidewall of the tank and a fiexible connection, unsupported throughout its length," disposed between said shaft and said valve whereby the valve can be.

operated from the shaft with a minimum fric tional resistance. r l

It is a further object of this invention to provide a tripping mechanism of the class described with a handle on the outer end of an operating shaft which may be rotated in either direction to trip the valve, with means associated therewith for limiting the amount of rotation which is imparted to said shaft. This limiting means prevents the shaft from making a complete revolution which, if done, would cause the flexible connection to hang and prevent thevalve from becoming properly seated after flushing.

The present invention comprises a simple and efficient method of flushing water closets. It is inexpensive to manufacture, easy to operate and very efiicient in operation, all of which constitute desirable features in the apparatus.

Some of the objects of the invention having I Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view taken along the line 2-2 in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an isometric view of the invention apart from the water closet.

Referring more specifically to the drawings,

the numeral l0 denotes a conventional toilet tank having an intake pipe ll, said intake pipe penethereto as at Ma conventional seat35 and a cover 36. r

'trating its bottom and which has secured to the upper end thereof an intake valve l2. Pivoted to this valve as atlt is an arm l5 which extends upwardly and laterally Within the tank, and has on. its free end a suitable hollow float. ball l6. "5

The lever l5 has pivoted intermediate its ends as at H, a valve piston l8, which is raised and lowered, depending upon the level of the water l9. Of course when the water level falls the ball it will likewise fall, whichyin turn, will move the piston is downwardly to allow water to now intothe tank. The above parts are conventional.

Disposed in the bottom of the tank Ill is a, discharge conduit 25 havinga valve seatlifi integral with the upper end thereof. This conduit penetrates the bottom of the tank and issecured thereto bymeans of a suitable nut 21 threadably secured on the lower end thereof. Washers 29 and 30 are placed below and above the bottom of the tank to insurethat the connection at this point will be water tight: The lower endof the conduit 25 is secured to another conduit 32which empties into a bowl 33, said bowl having pivoted The conduit 25 has a leading from the upper side thereof, a passageway iwwhich communi-- cates with the lower end of overflow pipe 39.

Also disposed around the conduit, directly be; neath the valve seat 25 and above the washer 30, is an annular ring member 40, having integral therewith an L-shaped arm Al, the upper end of which has pivoted as at 42, the intermediate'portion of a lever 43. The right-hand end of this lever has adjustably secured in the end thereof, 35

a screw it and the lower end of this screw is threadedly securedin the upper end of a tank ball 45. In order to lock the screw in fixed position relative to the lever 43, a lock nut 46 is provided. Likewise a lock nut 4'! is provided to lock the tank ball in fixed position relative to the (screw 64. This tank ball hasan inverted frustroy conical portion on the lower side thereof, which is adapted to fit upon the valve seat 26 and prevent the water from escaping downwardly through conduit 25 and into bowl 33. Y It will also be'noted that the lever 43 extends a substantial distance to the left of pivot point 42 inFigures 1 and 3. The purpose of providing this extension is to counterbalance, the weight of the tank ball 45. Also it will be noted by referring to these same figures,that the lever 4-3 is mountedin a suitable slot Na in arm 4|. The depth of this slot is such that the bottom thereof will act as a stop and prevent farther counter- 55 EM OFFICE" T I clockwise rotation of the lever 43 when it is ro- 'tated to dotted line position as shown in Figure 1.

' the upper endof link 52 penetrates a hole 53 in the lower end of a downwardly extending lever 54. Lever 54 is adapted to be fixed secured on a shaft 55 by any suitable means such as a cot- Shaft 55 extends to the exteriorof the tank and has an operating handle 51 fixed ter pin 56.

thereon which handle may be oscillated either in a clockwise or a counterclockwise manner in Fig-v ure 1, when it is desired to flush the tank [0.

piece.

The parts are shown in dotted line position in Figure 1, when the tripping mechanism has been operated.

Shaft 55 'is rotatably mounted in a suitable bushing 60, said bushing being mounted in the sidewall of .the tank. This bushing has an enlarged' head on the exterior of the tank and a threaded portion on the interior, which threaded portion has secured thereon a nut 6|. The tank I is covered by a suitable cap 63.

By providing a simple tripping mechanism as shown, it is possible to flush the tank with the greatest of ease, and without any likelihood of the parts becoming hung. Also by providing the lock nuts 46 and 41, the tank ball 45 can be properly adjusted relative to the lever 43 and seat 26 to insure that the proper seating will be effected.

The arm 4l may be cast integrally with member 25 if desired, instead of its being a separate In the drawings and specification, there has been set forth a preferred embodiment of the invention, and although specific terms have been employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for the purposes of limitation, the scope of theinvention being set forth in the appended claims.

We claim: r

1. In a tank for water closets provided with a verticallydisposed discharge pipe penetrating the bottom of the tank and having an open upper end adapted to receive a tank ball for normally closing the open upper end of the discharge pipe, a rigid stem connected to the upper surface ofthe tank ball, a lever rigidly connected at one end to the upper end of the rigid stem, a member projecting horizontally and then upwardly from said pipe, a pivotal connection between an intermediate portion of the lever and the upper end of the member projecting from said pipe, an operating handle disposed on the exterior of the sidewall of the tank and having a shaft rotatably penetrating the sidewall of the tank, a second lever rigidly mounted on the inner end of the shaft, and a flexible connection between the two levers.

2. In a water closet tank having a vertically disposed discharge pipe penetrating the bottom of the tank and having an open upper end adapted'to receive a tank ball for closing the same, a

stern rigidly secured to the tank ball and extending upwardly, a member associated with said pipe and'extending horizontally and then upwardly in the tank, a lever pivotally connected intermediate its ends to the upper end of the member, a rigid connection between the lever and the stem, an operating shaft penetrating the sidewall of the tank, and a flexible connection between the shaft and the lever member for raising the tank ball from its seat.

3. Tank ball supporting and operating means for water closets, comprising a member having one end rigidly connected to the tank ball, means for pivotally mounting the member substantially at its center of gravity, operating means extending from the exterior of the tank to the interior thereof, and a flexible connection between the operating means and the end of the member connected to the tank ball.

l, In a water closet having a tank provided with a vertically disposed discharge pipe opening into and through the bottom of the tank, an annular member surrounding the pipe and a nut threadably mounted on the pipe for securing the pipe in position and holding said annular member in position, said annular member having a horizontal portion and upwardly projecting portion, said armbeing forked at its upper end, an elongated member pivotally mounted intermediate its ends in said fork at a point which is substantially the center of gravity of said pivoted member, means for rigidly supporting a tank ball on one end 1 of the pivoted member for normally closing the upper end of the pipe, an operating shaft penetrating the sidewall of the tank and having a crank on its inner end, a jointed connection between said crank and said pivoted memberwhereby rotation of said shaft will raise the end of the pivoted member to which the tank ball is attached to allow the contents of the tank to discharge through said pipe, whereupon the tank ball will be guided by said pivoted member into the open upper end of said pipe.

JULIAN L. MASON. GLENN L. McNABB.

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