US2974324A

US2974324A - Strainer unit for toilets

Info

Publication number: US2974324A
Application number: US806913A
Authority: US
Inventors: Lundelius Charles
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1959-04-16
Filing date: 1959-04-16
Publication date: 1961-03-14
Anticipated expiration: 1978-03-14

Description

March 14, 1961 c. LUNDELIUS 2,974,324

STRAINER UNIT FOR TOILETS Filed April 16, 1959 INVENTOR. (Aides flzmaez'izzs BY wwww 2,974,524 STRAINER? UNIT FOR ToiLE'Ts- Charles tu nelin 7609 Twip paksAve y Citrus Heights, Califn Filed Apr. 16,1959, Set: No'; 806313 461m 21.- 4-257 invention relates to, and itis amajon object to 2,974,324 I Patented ICE eludes, at itslower end, atrarisverse-foot of very heavy material, such. aslead; the lower edge ofsuch. footgbeing V curved to seat in substantially mtaching relation on the bottom 6 of the bowl 2 immediately in frontof theiwaste outlet opening 9.

- In additionto the tr ansversefoot 13 the ffame12 includes an upstanding;- irivertedigenerally horse shoe shaped wire or rod 14 which is continuous andwhose lowerend's' areembedded inithe eorrspondin g end porprovide, a novel strainer. unit adapted=for-- use in smilet bowl for the purpose of permitting diapers or 'thelike to be rinsed-=in said bowl-free offeealxmattenorother waste without possibility of thediapers entering the waste outlet passageof the toilet and plugging it or the disposal line to which the toilet delivers.

Another important object of the invention .--isto provide a strainer unit, as above, which is arranged so that after initial rinsing of the diapers in the bowl, the toilet can be flushed to carry away the waste material.- while at thesame time preventing, the diapers-which their re mainin said -bowl-fr'om being flushed away.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a strainer unit, for the purposedes'cribed,.twhieli is normally detached from the toilet, but which. unit can be readily and conveniently removably'enga ed in the toilet bowl in covering relation. to the waste joutlet opening; there being novel means included in the strainer-unit to maintain the same in place in said bowl;

It is also an object of the invention to provide=-a strainer unit for toilets which is designed for ease and economy of manufacture.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a practical, reliable, and durable strainer unit for toilets, and one which will be exceedingly eifective for the purpose for which it is designed.

These objects are accomplished by means of such structure and relative arrangement of parts as will fully appear by a perusal of the following specification and claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a vertical front to rear sectional elevation of a toilet showing the strainer unit in side elevation and in place in the toilet bowl.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged front elevation of the strainer unit as in place; the view including a fragmentary showing of the bowl, partly in section.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the strainer unit detached, and taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, and to the characters of reference marked thereon, the strainer unit, indicated at 1, is adapted for use in a conventional toilet which includes a bowl 2 and a water tank 3 having a valve 4 which controls water flow from tank 3 to the water inlet passage 5 of said bowl.

The bowl 2, as usual, embodies a bottom 6, sides 7, a back Wall 8, and a circular waste outlet opening 9 in back wall 8 immediately adjacent the bottom 6. The lower portions of sides 7 have reduced transverse spacing to form, in eifect, a trough directly ahead of said waste outlet opening 9. The waste outlet opening 9 communicates with a waste outlet passage 10 of gooseneck or trap form, which passage 10 connects, through the. base of the toilet, with the disposal line 11.

The strainer unit 1, which embodies the present invention, is a relatively small, portable device comprised of a frame, indicated generally at 12 which frame in tioneof the transversefodt'il-St Within-the confines-:tliereof,.the frame 1 2 is fitted with a screen l5 having a: relatively large: mesh; such screen, at its lower end, being embedded-int the t'ransversefoot 1 3, and the'reab'ovesuch: screen is. secured at its edge-in any suita-bl'e manner -toltherod 14;.

The assembly of frame 12 and screen 15 is vertically concavo-convexo with the concave side rearmost.

A-spring' finger 16 projects reatwardly from. substantially centrally of the screen 15; said spring finger 16 including, at its inner end, a down-turned attachment ear 17 which is fixed to the screen: 15. At its outer end the spring finger 16 has: a down-turned lip 18.

A relatively long, ball-link chain-19 isconnected at one end. to the outside of the screen1'5 immediately opposite the attachment-ear 17; suclt ch'ain191 being of a length. to extendfrom within the bowl 2, .ata point adj'acentthe waste. opening 9; to a point exterior ly' of the bowl after passingIover the rim 20$ 1 ,When it: is desired to use the above, described strainer unit 1,.the bowl I is firstuflushedi and. filled with clean water; and thereafter said unit" is.-.-placed-in the bowl 2 in:the-po"sition= illustrated inFig. l;-'i.e'.,,upstandinglfrom the bowl bottonr6 in front of, andfextendin'g above, the waste outlet opening 9, and at a slight upward and rearward i incline; .Withthe strainer unit: 1 1 so disposed in the bowl 2, the transverse foot 13 rests in substantially the edge of the back wall 8 at the top of said opening, as at 21. The down-turned lip 18 of spring finger '16 serves to cam said finger into its holding position, as above described. I

In addition to the action of said spring finger 16 in holding the strainer unit 1 in place in the bowl for use, the foot 13of lead-also has a stabilizing effect because of its weight. 7

When the strainer unit 1 is in place in the bowl 2, the chain 19 extends out of said bowl, over the rim 20, and depends from the latter.

. With the strainer unit I mounted in its position of use, such unit effectively covers the waste outlet opening 9. Diapers can then be initially rinsed in the water 22 in bowl 2, and thereafter such water, and the waste material carried therein, can be flushed from the toilet through the opening 9 and passage 10 without the possiv bility of the diapers entering and plugging said opening or passage, yet without restricting the flushing-away of the waste material'with the water, and which materialpasses freely through the large mesh of screen 15.

After several additional flushings of the 'toilet- -and which further rinses the diapers in thebowl 2such diapers are manuallly removed from the bowl.

Thereafter, by the simple expedient of pulling onjthe chain 19, the strainer unit 9 can be detached and removed from the bowl, so that the toilet then remains unobstructed for normal use.

While the strainer unit 1 is here shown and described as used in a toilet having the waste outlet opening 9 in the rear'ofthe bowl, such unit is equally adaptable to a toilet of the type wherein said opening is in the front of the bowl. v

From the foregoing description it will be readily seen that there has been produced such a device as will substantially fulfill the objects of the invention, as set forth herein. I

While the specification sets forth in detail the present and preferred constructionofthe device, still in practice such deviations from such detail may be resorted to as do not form a departure from the spirit of the invention, asdefined by the appended claims. 1 r Having thus described the invention, the followingis claimed as new and useful, and upon which Letters Patent are-desired:

I claim: 1. A. strainer unit for a toilet, such toilet including a bowl having a bottom and an upstanding wall thereabout, and the bowl having a waste outlet opening the upper edge of which is in said wall above the bottom; the strainer unit comprising an endless rigid frame shaped to fit in the bowl in a plane transversely parallel tothe outlet opening and to then engage'said bowl bottom and the upstanding .wall in clearance relation to and about the opening, a large-meshscreen secured to and surrounded by the frame, and means on the unit adapted to engage the bowl in releasable holding relation to retain the frame in place; said means comprising a spring finger secured to. and .projecting from the unitintermediate the upper andlower edges thereof and adapted to extend throughthe outlet opening. and frictionally engage the bowl wall within and'at the upper edge of said opening. V

2. A unit, as in claim 1, with a flexible pull (element connected at one end to the front of the screen adjacent the point of connection of the finger therewith; said element being of a length such as to enable it to extend, when slack, from said one end thereof to and over the rim of the bowl at one side thereof and to then hang down a material distance from said rim.

3. A strainer unit for a toilet, such toilet including a bowl having a bottom and an upstanding wall thereabout, and the bowl having a waste outlet opening the upper edgeof which is in said wall above the bottom; the strainer unit comprising an endless rigid frame shaped to fit in the bowl in a plane transversely parallel to the outlet opening and to then engage said bowl bottom and T the upstanding wall in clearance relation to and about the opening, a large-meshscreen secured to and surrounded by the frame, and means on the unit adapted to engage the bowl in releasable holding relation to retain the frame in place; the frame including a trans versely extending weighted foot along its lower edge shaped to follow the contour of and engage the bottom of the bowl.

4. In combination, a toilet bowl having a bottom and an upstanding wall thereabout, the bowl having a waste outlet opening the upper edge of which is in said wall above the bottom, a strainer unit comprising an endless rigid frame of larger area than said opening supported on the bottom of the bowl and upstanding about the opening and engaging said upstanding wall above the opening, and a large-mesh screen secured to and surrounded by the frame; and an element on said unit releasably engaging the bowl and retaining the unit in place.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 634,953 Mueller Oct. 17; 1899 755,967 Thiele Mar. 29, 1904 2,211,970 Fischer Aug. 20, 1940 2,718,013 Rajnicek Sept. 20, 1955