WO2006101324A1

WO2006101324A1 - A drain valve having a safety cap

Info

Publication number: WO2006101324A1
Application number: PCT/KR2006/001002
Authority: WO
Inventors: Joo-Cheol Oh; In-Tak Lee
Original assignee: Woongjin Coway Co., Ltd.
Priority date: 2005-03-21
Filing date: 2006-03-20
Publication date: 2006-09-28
Also published as: KR200386834Y1

Abstract

A drain valve includes a valve body having a back end connected to a water container or a water pipe; and a stopper provided at a front end of the valve body for blocking an inner flow path of the drain valve. The stopper has a cap for blocking the inner flow path of the valve body, a plurality of hooks each having a protrusion protruded resiliency from a side of the cap to be hooked into a neck of the valve body that forms a drain, and a handgrip integral with the cap, protruded in an opposite direction to the hook and used for unhooking the protrusion of the hook from the neck of the valve body. The stopper of the invention prevents easy opening of the drain by a child or a mentally ill person playing pranks to preclude water leakage and sudden burn accidents by hot water.

Description

A DRAIN VALVE HAVINGA SAFETY CAP

Technical Field

[1] The invention relates to a drain valve for draining water from a water container or a water pipe. More particularly, the invention relates to a drain valve in which a stopper is hooked onto a drainage to prevent easy opening of the drainage by a child or a mentally ill person, thereby precluding water leakage and accidents.

[2]

Background Art

[3] In general, a drain valve is a mechanical element for draining water from a water container or a water pipe. Such a drain valve is applied to a water purifier to drain out residue from a water container containing cold water or warm water.

[4]

[5] Such an application example is illustrated in FIGS. 4 to 6.

[6] In a conventional water purifier 100, a plurality of drain valves 110 are installed on a front surface or a side surface thereof. The drain valves 110 are disposed in a recess so as to retain the exterior of the water purifier 100, and the recess is opened or closed by a door 112.

[7] As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the conventional drain valve 110 used in the water purifier 100 has its body 120 fixed to the water purifier 100. The valve body 120 has a back end connected to a cold water container (not shown) or a warm water container (not shown) through a hose 122, and a plug 140 is plugged into the drainage 135 of the drain valve 110.

[8] In addition, the conventional drain valve 110 has a check valve 150 inside thereof to drain either cold water or warm water through a drainage 135 according to the intention of the user. In the drain valve 110, a packing member 152 for enabling the function of the check valve is fitted around a rib 156 and propped up by a spring 160 against a projection 154 so that the packing member 152 is closely adhered to the projection 154 that forms the inner flow path of the drain valve 110. Also, a push bar 162, which is for pushing the packing member 152 away from the projection 154 to separate them, is extended in a predetermined length toward the drain 135 of the drain valve 110.

[9] The push bar 162 is fixedly pressed against a shaft 162a protruded toward the center to be integral with the shaft 162a.

[10] To drain warm water or cold water from the inner flow path of the above drain valve 110, first, the plug 140 is removed from the drainage 135 of the drain valve 110, and a drain hose 170 is inserted into the drainage 135.

[H]

[12] Then, as the drain hose 170 is inserted into the drainage 135, the front end of the drain hose 170 pushes the push bar 162, and thereby the packing member 152 is separated from the projection 154 to open the inner flow path, and water is drained through the drain hose 170.

[13] The above described configuration allows normal operation of the conventional drain valve 110. In the meantime, when there is no need to drain water, the drain hose 170 is pulled out of the drainage 135, and thereby the packing member 152 is tightly adhered to the projection 154 to close the inner flow path of the drain valve 110. The user plugs the plug 140 made of rubber or silicone into the drainage 135 to prevent foreign material from getting inside the drainage 135.

[14]

[15] However, in case where the inner flow path of the conventional drain valve 110 is connected to a warm water container of the water purifier 100, and a child or a mentally ill person accidentally removes the plug 140 and presses the push bar 162 of the check valve 150 with fingers, etc., the drain valve 110 becomes opened and hot water is drained. In that case, the person may get burned in the fingers and hands that pushed inside the drain 135.

[16] In addition, in case of being connected to a cold water container, removal of the plug 140 causes unnecessary water leakage, contaminating the surroundings.

[17]

Disclosure of Invention Technical Problem

[18] The present invention has been made to solve the foregoing problems of the prior art and it is therefore an object of certain embodiments of the present invention to provide a drain valve ensuring safety capping which prevents easy opening of a drainage by a child or a mentally ill person to preclude water leakage and sudden accidents.

[19]

Technical Solution

[20] According to an aspect of the invention for realizing the object, there is provided a drain valve ensuring safety capping comprising: a valve body having a back end connected to a water container or a water pipe; and a stopper provided at a front end of the valve body for blocking an inner flow path of the drain valve, wherein the stopper has a cap for blocking the inner flow path of the valve body, a plurality of hooks each having a protrusion protruded resiliency from a side of the cap to be hooked into a neck of the valve body that forms a drain, and a handgrip integral with the cap, protruded in an opposite direction to the hook and used for unhooking the protrusion of the hook from the neck of the valve body, wherein the hook is released from the valve body through the operation of the handgrip.

Advantageous Effects

[21] Using a safety cap according to the present invention to block a drainage prevents easy opening of the drainage by a child or a mentally ill person to preclude water leakage through the drainage as well as burn accidents by hot water.

[22]

Brief Description of the Drawings

[23] FlG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a drain valve ensuring safety capping according to the present invention;

[24] FlG. 2 is a view illustrating the operation of the drain valve ensuring safety capping according to the present invention;

[25] FlG. 3 is a sectional view illustrating the operation of the drain valve ensuring safety capping according to the present invention;

[26] FlG. 4 is a perspective view of the exterior of a water purifier with a conventional drain valve disposed therein;

[27] FlG. 5 is a view illustrating the exterior of the conventional drain valve; and

[28] FlG. 6 is a sectional view illustrating the operation of the conventional drain valve.

[29]

Mode for the Invention

[30] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[31] As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, in the drain valve 1 ensuring safety capping according to the present invention, a valve body 5 has a back end 5a connected to a cold/warm water container or a water pipe, and a stopper 10 provided at a front end for blocking an inner flow path therein.

[32] The drain valve 1 according to the present invention has a stopper 10 comprising a cap 15 closely adhered to a drainage 12 of the valve body 5 to block the inner flow path. The cap 15 has a circumference the same as an outer circumference of the valve body forming the drain 12. The cap 15 has a flange 15a protruded from the circumference of the cap to wrap around a circumferential edge of the valve body 5 forming the drainage 12.

[33]

[34] The flange 15a allows the cap 15 to be precisely placed on and closely adhered to the outer circumference of the valve body 5 that forms the drainage 12. [35] The cap 15 has a plurality of hooks 17 that protrude from a side thereof. Each of the hooks 17 has a protrusion 17a with an end portion shaped to be hooked into a neck 25 of an outer side of the valve body 5 that forms the drainage 12.

[36] Each of the hooks 17 is integral with the cap 15, and extends integrally from the cap 15, forming a protrusion 17a at an end thereof. Each of the protrusions 17a is re- siliently deformable in a radial direction of the cap 15 by external force.

[37] Each pair of the plurality of hooks 17 are positioned symmetrically in 180 degrees about the cap 15 in an embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to such.

[38]

[39] Further, in the drain valve 1 of the present invention, handgrips 20 are connected integrally with the cap 15, each protruding in opposite direction from the corresponding hook 17.

[40] Each of the handgrips 20 is integral with each of the hooks 17 and the cap 15, and is protruded in opposite direction from the extension direction of the hook 17.

[41] The handgrip 20 is a means for releasing the protrusions 17a of the hooks 17 from the neck 25 of the valve body 5. As shown in FIG. 2, as the user presses all of the handgrips 20 closer to each other, portions of the cap 15 where each of the handgrips 20 and hooks 17 are connected to the cap 15 are resiliency bent, thereby releasing the protrusions 17a of the hooks 17 from the neck of the valve body 5.

[42]

[43] In the meantime, the cap 15 has cutout parts 30 that are opposed to each other across the handgrip 20 in the portion of the cap 15 where the handgrip 20 and the hook 17 are connected to the cap 15 so that the hook is easily and resiliency deformed through the operation of the handgrip 20.

[44] For the drain valve 1 having the stopper 10 of the present invention, the cap 15, the hook 17 and the handgrip 20 constituting the cap 15 are made from a single mold, and preferably, made of resilient material such as plastic material, silicone or rubber, thus enabling resilient deformation of the portions of the cap 15 connected to the hooks 17 and the handgrips 20.

[45]

[46] The above described drain valve 1 according to the present invention is effective as applied to the water purifier 100. That is, when connected to a warm water or cold water container through a hose 122, the check valve 150 installed therein is operated to block water from draining to the outside.

[47] In order for this, the stopper 10 is closed on the drainage 12 of the drain valve 1.

When closing the stopper 10 on the drainage 12 of the drain valve 1, the user presses the stopper 10 toward the drainage 12, and the protrusions 17a of the hooks 17 are re- siliently expanded against the outer periphery of the drainage 12 of the drain valve 1, as shown in dotted lines in FlG. 3. Then, as the protrusions 17a are pushed over the outer periphery of the drainage 12, they are resiliency restored to have their ends fixedly hooked into the neck 25 as shown in solid lines.

[48] Once installed as described above, the cap 15 is not easily unhooked from the drainage 12 of the drain valve 1.

[49]

[50] If desired to drain water through the drain valve 1 of the present invention, as shown in FlG. 1, the user presses the handgrips 20 closer to each other, and the protrusions 17a at the end of the hooks 17 are resiliently expanded and split about the portion of the cap 15 connected to the hook 17, thereby releasing the protrusions 17a from the drain 12 of the drain valve 1.

[51] In such a process, the degree of power for pressing the handgrips 20 to remove the cap 15 from the drain 12 of the drain valve 1 by unhooking the hooks 17 should be set greater than that of power exerted by an unreasonable person such as a child or a mentally ill person playing pranks.

[52] That is, resilience should be set in advance in such a degree that the hooks 17 are unhooked only when a normal adult intentionally presses the handgrips 20 to unhook the hooks 17.

[53] Through the above described configuration, a normal user is able to detach the stopper 10 from the drainage 12 of the drain valve 1.

[54]

[55] When the stopper 10 is removed from the drainage 12 as described above, the drain hose 170 is inserted into the drainage 12. As the drain hose 170 is inserted into the drain 12, the front end thereof pushes the push bar 162 of the check valve 150, pushing the packing member 152 of the check valve 150 away from the projection 154 to open the inner flow path of the drain valve 1, thereby draining water through the drain hose 170.

[56] After water is drained through the drainage 12 as described above, the stopper 10 is closed back on the drainage 12 in order to prevent a child or a mentally ill person from pressing the push bar 162 of the check valve 150 to unexpectedly drain water through the drainage 12.

[57] The present invention is exemplified by two hooks formed on the cap 15, which however does not limit the present invention. Depending on the size of the drain valve 1, there may be three or four hooks 17.

[58]

[59] The present invention has been described with reference to preferred embodiments, but may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. While the present invention has been shown and described in connection with the preferred embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

[1] A drain valve ensuring safety capping comprising: a valve body having a back end connected to a water container or a water pipe; and a stopper provided at a front end of the valve body for blocking an inner flow path of the drain valve, wherein the stopper has a cap for blocking the inner flow path of the valve body, a plurality of hooks each having a protrusion protruded resiliently from a side of the cap to be hooked into a neck of the valve body that forms a drain, and a handgrip integral with the cap, protruded in an opposite direction from the hook and used for unhooking the protrusion of the hook from the neck of the valve body, wherein the hook is released from the valve body through the operation of the handgrip.

[2] The drain valve according to claim 1, wherein the cap has a circumference the same as an outer circumference of the valve body forming the drainage, and further has a flange protruded from the circumference of the cap to wrap around a circumferential edge of the valve body forming the drainage.

[3] The drain valve according to claim 1, wherein the handgrip, the hook and the cap are all integral with one another, and the cap has cutout parts that are formed on a portion where the handgrip and the hook are connected to the cap, the cutout parts opposed to each other across the handgrip so that the hook is easily and resiliently transformed.