WO2009002062A2

WO2009002062A2 - Toilet stool having supporting water tank for preventing overflowing

Info

Publication number: WO2009002062A2
Application number: PCT/KR2008/003561
Authority: WO
Inventors: Woo-Seung Shin; Bong-Suk Kim; Hong-Suk Lee; Dong-Hyun Suh
Original assignee: Isooin Co., Ltd.
Priority date: 2007-06-25
Filing date: 2008-06-23
Publication date: 2008-12-31
Also published as: JP5180295B2; CN101688389B; CN101688389A; JP2010531399A; KR100814681B1; WO2009002062A3

Abstract

Provided is a toilet stool having a supporting water tank for preventing wash water from continuously overflowing a wash bowl. The toilet stool includes: a tank containing a predetermined amount of wash water using a bowl tap for allowing or cutting off the flow of water according to a water level; a wash bowl including a rim water pipe to which water is supplied from the bowl tap and a rim discharge port disposed on an inner circumferential surface of a rim, the wash bowl connected to the tank through a lateral water pipe; a flapper for opening or closing an exhaust port of the lateral water pipe and disposed under the tank; a jet pump interposed between the bowl tap and the rim water pipe and for supplying a mixture of supplied water and stored wash water to the rim water pipe; and a supporting water tank disposed in the tank and including a jet pump and a check valve for allowing wash water to flow out from the supporting water tank in one way, the supporting water tank having a wall higher than a normal water level of the tank. The toilet stool includes the supporting water tank for preventing overflowing so that when the toilet stool is clogged with human excreta or dirt, wash water can be prevented from overflowing the wash bowl.

Description

TOILET STOOL HAVING SUPPORTING WATER TANK FOR

PREVENTING OVERFLOWING

Technical Field

[1] The present invention relates to a toilet stool having a supporting water tank for preventing overflowing, and more particularly, to a toilet stool having a supporting water tank for preventing wash water from continuously overflowing a wash bowl when a one-piece toilet stool is clogged with human excreta. Background Art

[2] In general, a toilet stool is comprised of a tank, which contains wash water supplied through a bowl tap, and a body, which is disposed below the tank. The toilet stool is structured such that when a water flapper is opened with the operation of an operating lever installed at the tank, the wash water is discharged toward the body and exhausted along with human excreta out of the toilet stool. Toilet stools may be categorized into a two-piece type in which a tank is separated from a body and a one-piece type in which a tank and a body are integrally formed and the tank is at a lower normal water level than the body. Owing to a recent increase in deluxe houses, one-piece toilets, which are luxurious in terms of design, are in widespread.

[3] FIG. 1 is a cross sectional view of a conventional one-piece toilet stool, and FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of the one-piece toilet stool shown in FIG. 1 when the one-piece toilet stool stands ready to wash away human excreta.

[4] Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a toilet body 19 includes a wash bowl 18, which is integrally formed with a tank 9. The tank 9 and the wash bowl 19 are connected to a lateral water pipe 29.

[5] In the toilet stool, since the tank 9 is at a lower normal water level WL than the wash bowl 18, a bowl tap 17 is provided to swithch the flow of water to a rim side or the tank 9 in order to wash a wall of the wash bowl 19. The bowl tap 17 receives water from a water pipe 7 included in the tank 9, allows or stops the supply of the water, and switches the flow of water to a rim side or the tank 9. The bowl tap 17 is connected to a rim water pipe 22 of the toilet body 19 through a rim connection conduit 21 of the rim side. A water flapper 13 is disposed under the tank 9 to open or close off the lateral water pipe 29. The water flapper 13 is connected to a hand lever link 15 through a connection string 14. The hand lever link 15 is connected to a handle 12 outside the tank 9 and operated by a user to open or close off the water flapper 13.

[6] A rim discharge port 25 is installed in an upper lateral surface of the wash bowl 18 and connected to the rim water pipe 22, and an exhaust port 30 for discharging human excreta is installed in a lower portion of the wash bowl 18. The rim discharge port 25 jets water supplied from the bowl tap 17 through the rim water pipe 22 to the wall of the wash bowl 18. A jet port 27 is disposed opposite the exhaust port 30 and connected to the lateral water pipe 29. The jet port 27 strongly pushes the human excreta using a head difference between a ground level and the water level WL of wash water stored in the tank 9, sucks water stored in the wash bowl 18, and exhausts the human excreta out of the toilet body 19. A toilet stool that washes off dirt in the above-described manner is referred to as a jet-siphon-type toilet stool.

[7] When a predetermined amount of wash water is discharged out of the tank 9 from the water level WL to a ground level DL through the lateral water pipe 29, the water flapper 13 is closed off and the lateral water pipe 29 is blocked. In this case, the bowl tap 17 switches the flow of water from the rim water pipe 22 to a tank water supply conduit 31 using a switch unit 16 and supplies the water to the tank 9 until the tank 9 is filled with the water. When wash water is filled in the tank 9 to the water level WL, the bowl tap 17 blocks the supply of water using a water-level sensing device connected to the bowl tap 17 and stands ready for the next operation. A toilet stool having the above-described structure is disclosed in Korean Utility Model Application No. 1996-2280, and a switch bowl tap is disclosed in Korean Utility Model Application No. 1998-2801.

[8] However, in the above-described one-piece toilet stool, when an exhaust trap 42 and a front portion of the jet port 27 are clogged with dirt, wash water may continuously overflow the wash bowl 18.

[9] FIGS. 2 through 9 are cross-sectional views for explaining the overflowing of the conventional one-piece toilet stool shown in FIG. 1.

[10] Referring to FIG. 2, when dirt is contained in the wash bowl 18, before a user enters into a wash operation, the tank 9 is maintained at a normal water level WL. In other words, the tank 9 is filled with wash water. When the tank 9 is at a ground level DL, wash water is completely drained out from the tank 9, the water flapper 13 is closed off, and the bowl tap 17 switches the flow of water to the tank. The wash bowl 18 is maintained at a normal bowl water level BWL.

[11] Referring to FIG. 3, when the user operates the handle 12 to wash off the dirt, the flapper 13 connected to the handle 12 rotates upward to open the lateral water pipe 29 of the tank 9. Thereafter, the handle 12 is restored to its original state, but the flapper 13 remains open due to its own buoyancy. Thus, the wash water stored in the tank 9 is exhausted through the lateral water pipe 29 via the jet port 27 of the wash bowl 18 so that the dirt and water contained in the wash bowl 18 move toward the exhaust port 30 of the toilet body 19. As soon as a water level of the tank 9 descends to a water opening level "hr" of the bowl tap 17, the bowl tap 17 starts supplying water to the rim side. The water is supplied through the rim connection conduit 21 and the rim water pipe 22 and jetted via the rim discharge port 25, thereby cleaning the wall of the wash bowl 18. While the dirt and wash water are drifting into the exhaust trap 42 due to siphonage, the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 18 is lowered. In this case, the exhaust trap 42 may be clogged with the dirt.

[12] Referring to FIG. 4, when the exhaust trap 42 is clogged with the dirt, while water supplied from the bowl tap 17 to the rim side is continuously flowing to the wash bowl 18, only a small amount of water is exhausted. As a result, the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 18 continuously rises. Thus, when the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 18 becomes higher than a tank water level TWL of the tank 9, water contained in the wash bowl 18 flows backward through the jet port 27 and the lateral water pipe 29 to the tank 9. In this case, part of the dirt, with which the exhaust trap 42 is not clogged, may flow backward to the jet port 27 and be caught in the jet port 27. Due to the part of dirt caught in the jet port 27, the amount of water flowing backward from the wash bowl 18 to the tank 9 is reduced. Here, there is a head difference "h" between the bowl water level BWL and the tank water level TWL.

[13] Referring to FIG. 5, the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 18 rises continuously, while the tank water level TWL of the tank 9 rises gradually. Thus, the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 18 rises over the top of the toilet body 19 and overflows. Meanwhile, water is continuously supplied from the bowl tap 17 to the rim side through the rim water pipe 22 and the rim discharge port 25 so that the overflowing of water is continued.

[14] Referring to FIG. 6, when the tank water level TWL of the tank 9 gradually rises up to the normal water level WL, the bowl tap 17 stops supplying water. Thus, the overflowing of water is interrupted. Since a small amount of water is exhausted through the exhaust trap 42, the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 18 gradually drops.

[15] Referring to FIG. 7, when the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 18 becomes lower than the tank water level TWL of the tank 9, contaminated wash water contained in the tank 9 gradually flows to the wash bowl 18 through the lateral water pipe 29 and the jet port 27. In this case, since only a small amount of wash water flows from the tank 9 due to the dirt caught in the jet port 28, it is insufficient to push the dirt. While the wash water is flowing from the tank 9, the tank water level TWL of the tank 9 is gradually lowered.

[16] Referring to FIG. 8, when the tank water level TWL of the tank 9 drops to the water opening level "hr" of the bowl tap 17, the bowl tap 17 starts supplying water to the rim side. The water is supplied through the rim connection conduit 21 and the rim water pipe 22, jetted via the rim discharge port 25, and supplied to the wash bowl 18, so that the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 18 rises again.

[17] Referring to FIG. 9, the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 18 continuously rises and overflows the top of the toilet body 19 again. A small amount of water flows backward through the lateral water pipe 29 due to the head difference "h" between the bowl water level BWL and the tank water level TWL. Thus, the tank water level TWL of the tank 9 gradually rises and reaches the normal water level WL so that the overflowing is continued until the bowl tap 17 stops supplying water. That is, when the tank water level TWL of the tank 9 reaches the normal water level WL, the bowl tap 17 stops supplying water in the same manner as described with reference to FIG. 6. Thereafter, the overflowing is periodically repeated as described with reference to FIGS. 6 through 9.

[18] The overflowing occurs because when the tank water level TWL of the tank 9 is not lowered to the ground level DL, the bowl tap 17 cannot switch the flow of water to the tank 9. Thus, the bowl tap 17 repetitively supplies water to the rim side. When the overflowing occurs periodically, the flapper 13 remains open due to buoyancy. The flapper 13 may be closed off when the tank water level TWL of the tank 9 drops to the ground level DL. However, the tank water level TWL of the tank 9 cannot drop to the ground level DL due to the periodical overflowing.

[19] In order to improve the cleaning efficiency of a rim of the above-described one-piece toilet stool, the present inventor has proposed one-piece toilet stools having jet pumps, wherein the jet pump is interposed between a bowl tap and a rim water pipe so that a mixture of water supplied from a water supply conduit and wash water contained in a tank is supplied to a rim water pipe, in Korean Patent Registration No. 10-483510 and No. 10-555834. Also, Korean Utility Model Application No. 2004-36347 discloses a toilet stool having a jet pump.

[20] FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional one-piece toilet stool having a jet pump.

[21] Referring to FIG. 10, a jet pump 50 is interposed between a bowl tap 60 and a rim water pipe 22. The bowl tap 60 simply allows or cuts off the supply of water according to a water level of a tank, and the jet pump 50 switches the flow of water to the tank or a rim side.

[22] FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of another conventional one-piece toilet stool having a jet pump.

[23] Referring to FIG. 11, a jet pump 51 is interposed between a bowl tap 17 and a rim water pipe 22. The bowl tap 17 is a switch bowl tap that not only allows or cuts off the supply of water according to a water level of a tank but also has a switch unit 16 that switches the flow of water to the tank or a rim side. Disclosure of Invention

Technical Problem

[24] The overflowing occurs because when the tank water level TWL of the tank is not lowered to the ground level DL, the bowl tap cannot switch the flow of water to the tank. Thus, the bowl tap repetitively supplies water to the rim side. When the overflowing occurs periodically, the flapper remains open due to buoyancy. The flapper may be closed off when the tank water level TWL of the tank drops to the ground level DL. However, the tank water level TWL of the tank cannot drop to the ground level DL due to the periodical overflowing.

[25] The above-described toilet stools having jet pumps shown in FIGS. 10 and 11 also suffer from periodical overflowing. This is because even the toilet stools having the jet pumps cannot switch the flow of water to the tank or rim side until the water level of the tank reaches a ground level DL. Technical Solution

[26] The present invention provides a one-piece toilet stool having a supporting water tank for preventing overflowing, which can prevent wash water from overflowing a wash bowl when the one-piece toilet stool is clogged with dirt.

[27] According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a toilet stool including: a tank containing a predetermined amount of wash water using a bowl tap for allowing or cutting off the flow of water according to a water level; a wash bowl including a rim water pipe to which water is supplied from the bowl tap and a rim discharge port disposed on an inner circumferential surface of a rim, the wash bowl connected to the tank through a lateral water pipe; a flapper for opening or closing an exhaust port of the lateral water pipe and disposed under the tank; a jet pump interposed between the bowl tap and the rim water pipe and for supplying a mixture of supplied water and stored wash water to the rim water pipe; and a supporting water tank disposed in the tank and including the jet pump and a check valve for allowing wash water to flow out from the supporting water tank in one way, the supporting water tank having a wall higher than a normal water level of the tank.

[28] A ball guide conduit in which a ball is inserted may extend to a predetermined length between a jet nozzle and a throat in the jet pump so that the flow of water supplied from the bowl tap is switched to the supporting water tank or the rim according to a water level of the eater tank.

[29] The bowl tap may include a switch portion for switching the flow of water to the tank or the rim. In this case, the tank water supply conduit of bowl tap and the water-level sensing device may be disposed in the supporting water tank.

[30] The toilet stool may further include a hydraulic pressure controller to control the amount of supplied water, which branches from a connection hose that connects the bowl tap and the jet nozzle of the jet pump.

Advantageous Effects

[31] A one-piece toilet stool according to the present invention includes a supporting water tank for preventing overflowing so that when the toilet stool is clogged with human excreta or dirt, water can be prevented from overflowing a wash bowl. Brief Description of the Drawings

[32] FIG. 1 is a plan view of a conventional one-piece toilet stool.

[33] FIGS. 2 through 9 are cross-sectional views for explaining the overflowing of the conventional one-piece toilet stool shown in FIG. 1.

[34] FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of a first example of a conventional one-piece toilet stool using a jet pump.

[35] FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a second example of a conventional one-piece toilet stool using a jet pump.

[36] FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a supporting water tank for preventing overflowing according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[37] FIG. 13 is a plan view of a water tank in which the supporting water tank for preventing overflowing shown in FIG. 12 is installed.

[38] FIGS. 14 through 20 are cross-sectional views for explaining the overflowing of a one-piece toilet stool according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[39] FIGS. 21 and 22 are a plan view and cross-sectional view, respectively, of a water tank in which a supporting water tank for preventing overflowing according to another embodiment of the present invention is installed. Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[40] The present invention will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which exemplary embodiments of the invention are shown. According to the present invention, a supporting water tank is installed in a tank of a one-piece toilet stool having a jet pump so that even if the one-piece toilet stool is clogged with dirt, a water level of the tank can be lowered to a ground level. Embodiments of the present invention can be applied not to the one-piece toilet stool shown in FIG. 1, which does not adopt a jet pump, but only to one-piece toilet stools having jet pump.

[41] Embodiment 1

[42] FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a supporting water tank 170 for preventing overflowing according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[43] Referring to FIG. 12, the supporting water tank 170 for preventing overflowing is installed in a tank of a toilet stool and includes a jet pump 150. Also, the supporting water tank 170 includes an opening 171 via which the supporting water tank 170 is connected to the outside and a plate-type check value 172, which allows water to flow out through the opening 171 in one way. The supporting water tank 170 is higher than a normal water level of the tank, and water is allowed to flow from the supporting tank 170 to the tank in one way. Specifically, when the supporting water tank 170 has a higher water level than the tank, the opening 171 is opened to supply water from the supporting water tank 170 to the tank; while when the supporting water tank 170 has a lower water level than the tank, the opening 171 is closed off to block the flow of water from the tank to the supporting water tank 170. During normal operation of the toilet stool, the supporting water tank 170 is filled with water earlier than the tank, and wash water is then stored in the tank through the opening 171 and the plate-type check value 172. An opening 173 is used to insert a water inlet conduit in the jet pump 150, and an opening 174 is used to insert a water outlet conduit in a rim side. Also, a fixing bolt 175 is used to install the supporting water tank 170 in the tank.

[44] Hereinafter, operating principles of the supporting water tank 170 will be described with reference to FIGS. 13 through 20.

[45] FIGS. 13 and 14 are a plan view and cross-sectional view, respectively, of a tank 109 in which the supporting water tank 170 for preventing overflowing shown in FIG. 12 is installed. For simple explanation, FIG. 14 schematically illustrates spread-out components.

[46] Referring to FIGS. 13 and 14, a toilet body 119 includes a wash bowl 118 for a wash space, which is integrally formed with the tank 109. The tank 109 and the wash bowl 118 are connected to a lateral water pipe 129. A simple bowl tap 160 is installed in the tank 109. The simple bowl tap 160 receives water from a water supply conduit 107 and allows or cuts off the supply of water according to a water level of the tank 109. The jet pump 150 is interposed between the bowl tap 160 and a rim water pipe 122. The jet pump 150 functions to switch the flow of water to the tank 109 or a rim side. An outlet of the jet pump 150 is connected to the rim water pipe 122. In this case, the supporting water tank 170 having the jet pump 150 is installed in the tank 109. A hydraulic pressure controller 159 may branch from a connection hose 161, which connects the bowl tap 160 and a jet nozzle 152 of the jet pump 150, and be used to supply a predetermined amount of water. Since an example of the hydraulic pressure controller 159 is disclosed in Korean Patent Registration No. 555834, a description thereof will be omitted.

[47] A flapper 113 for opening or closing off the lateral water pipe 129 is disposed under the tank 109 and connected to a hand lever link 115 through a connection string 114. The hand lever link 115 is connected to a handle 112 disposed outside the tank 109 and operated by a user to open or close off the flapper 113. [48] A rim discharge port 125 is formed in an upper lateral surface of the wash bowl 118 and connected to the rim water pipe 122, and an exhaust port 130 for discharging human excreta is installed in a lower portion of the wash bowl 118. The rim discharge port 125 jets water, which is supplied to the jet pump 150, through the rim water pipe 122 to the wall of the wash bowl 118. A jet port 127 is disposed opposite the exhaust port 130 and connected to the lateral water pipe 129. The jet port 127 strongly pushes the human excreta, sucks water stored in the wash bowl 118, and exhausts the human excreta out of the toilet body 119.

[49] FIGS. 14 through 20 are cross-sectional views for explaining the overflowing of the conventional one-piece toilet stool shown in FIG. 13.

[50] Referring to FIG. 14, when dirt is contained in the wash bowl 118, before a user enters into a wash operation, the tank 9 is maintained at a normal water level WL, namely, filled with wash water, and the bowl tap 118 cuts off water. The supporting water tank 170 includes the jet pump 150, and a ball 151 for the jet pump 150, which is used to switch the flow of water, is confined in a ball guide conduit 153 and floats on water at the normal water level WL. The check valve 172 of the supporting water tank 170 remains closed off due to its weight. When the tank 109 is at a ground level DL, wash water is completely drained out from the tank 109 and the flow of water is switched to the tank 9 so that the flapper 113 is closed off. The wash bowl 118 is maintained at a normal bowl water level BWL.

[51] Referring to FIG. 15, when the user operates the handle 112 to wash off the dirt, the flapper 113 connected to the handle 112 rotates upward to open the lateral water pipe 129 of the tank 109. Thereafter, the handle 112 is restored to its original state, but the flapper 113 remains open due to its own buoyancy. Thus, the wash water stored in the tank 109 is exhausted through the lateral water pipe 129 via the jet port 127 of the wash bowl 118 so that the dirt and water contained in the wash bowl 118 move toward the exhaust port 130 of the toilet body 119. As soon as a water level of the tank 109 descends to a water opening level "hr" of the bowl tap 160, the bowl tap 160 starts supplying water. In this case, since an internal water level IWL of the supporting water tank 170 becomes higher by a head difference "ht" than a tank water level of TWL of the tank 109, the check valve 172 is opened so that water is drained out from the supporting water tank 170 to the tank 109 until the supporting water tank 170 is at the same water level with the tank 109. Water is supplied from the bowl tap 160 through the connection hose 161 and jetted via the jet nozzle 152 of the jet pump 150 of the supporting water tank 170. While the water is being jetted via the jet nozzle 152, the jet pump 150 sucks adjacent water contained in the supporting water tank 170 so that rim wash water is supplied through a throat 155 and a diffuser 156 to the rim water pipe 122 of the toilet body 119. The rim wash water is supplied through the rim water pipe 122 and jetted through the rim discharge port 125, thereby cleaning the wall of the wash bowl 118. While the dirt and wash water are drifting into an exhaust trap 142 due to siphonage, the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 118 is lowered. In this case, the exhaust trap 142 may be clogged with the dirt.

[52] Referring to FIG. 16, when the exhaust trap 142 is clogged with the dirt, water contained in the supporting water tank 170 is sucked by the jet pump 150 and continuously supplied to the wash bowl 118. A small amount of water is exhausted through the exhaust trap 142. As a result, the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 118 continuously rises. Thus, when the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 118 becomes higher by a head difference "h" than a tank water level TWL of the tank 109, water contained in the wash bowl 118 flows backward through the jet port 127 and the lateral water pipe 129 to the tank 109. In this case, part of the dirt, with which the exhaust trap 142 is not clogged, may flow backward to the jet port 127 and be caught in the jet port 127. Due to the part of dirt caught in the jet port 127, the amount of water flowing backward from the wash bowl 118 to the tank 109 is reduced.

[53] Meanwhile, the internal water level IWL of the supporting water tank 170 drops continuously because water contained in the supporting water tank 170 is continuously sucked by the jet pump 150 and drained to the rim side. In this case, when the internal water level IWL of the supporting water tank 170 becomes lower by a head difference "ht" than the tank water level TWL of the tank 109, the check value 172 of the supporting water tank 170 is closed off. That is, the water contained in the supporting water tank 170 flows out due to jet pump 150 and no water flows into the supporting water tank 170, so that the internal water level IWL of the supporting water tank 170 drops continuously.

[54] Referring to FIG. 17, the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 118 rises continuously, while the internal water level IWL of the supporting water tank 170 drops continuously. When the internal water level IWL of the supporting water tank 170 reaches a ground level DL, the ball 151 is sucked and inserted in a front end of the jet nozzle 152, thereby preventing the flow of water jetted via the jet nozzle 152. Thus, the ball 151 stops the jet pump 150 from pumping and switches the flow of water to the inside of the supporting water tank 170 to store wash water in the supporting water tank 170. As a result, the supply of water to the rim side is prevented so that the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 118 does not rise any longer and water does not overflow the toilet body 119. In this case, since the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 118 is higher by a head difference "h" than the tank water level TWL of the tank 109, water continuously flows backward to the tank 109 and thus, the tank water level TWL of the tank 109 rises gradually.

[55] Referring to FIG. 18, as a small amount of water flows backward to the tank 109 and a small amount of water is exhausted through the exhaust trap 142, the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 118 drops gradually. Also, the tank water level TWL of the tank 109 rises gradually due to the backward flow. As soon as the tank water level TWL of the tank 109 reaches the normal water level WL, the bowl tap 160 stops supplying water. Thus, when the internal water level IWL of the supporting water tank 170 remains elevated to some extent due to water supplied from the bowl tap 160, the bowl tap 160 stops the supply of water so that the ball 151 is released, moves along the ball guide conduit 153, and floats on water due to buoyancy.

[56] Referring to FIG. 19, the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 118 drops continuously due to a small amount of water exhausted to the exhaust trap 142 until the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 118 becomes lower than the tank water level TWL. Thus, since the flapper 113 remains open, water contained in the tank 109 is gradually drained out through the lateral water pipe 129 so that the tank water level TWL of the tank 109 drops gradually.

[57] Referring to FIG. 20, when the tank water level TWL of the tank 109 drops to the water opening level "hr" of the bowl tap 160, the bowl tap 160 starts supplying water to the jet pump 150. The water is supplied from the bowl tap 160 through the connection hose 161 and jetted through the jet nozzle 152 of the jet pump 150 of the supporting water tank 170. While the water is being jetted via the jet nozzle 152, the jet pump 150 sucks adjacent water contained in the supporting water tank 170 so that rim wash water is supplied through the throat 155 and the diffuser 156 to the rim water pipe 122 of the toilet body 119. The rim wash water is supplied through the rim water pipe 122 and jetted through the rim discharge port 125, thereby elevating the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 118. On the other hand, the internal water level IWL of the supporting water tank 170 drops continuously due to the suction function of the jet pump 150.

[58] The subsequent operations are the same as described above with reference to FIG.

17.

[59] Referring again to FIG. 17, the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 118 rises continuously, while the internal water level IWL of the supporting water tank 170 drops continuously. When the internal water level IWL of the supporting water tank 170 reaches the ground level DL, the ball 151 is sucked and inserted in a front end of the jet nozzle 152, thereby preventing the flow of water jetted via the jet nozzle 152. Thus, the ball 151 stops the jet pump 150 from pumping and switches the flow of water to the inside of the supporting water tank 170 to store wash water in the supporting water tank 170. As a result, the supply of water to the rim side is prevented so that the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 118 does not rise any longer and water does not overflow the toilet body 119. In this case, since the bowl water level BWL of the wash bowl 118 is higher by the head difference "h" than the tank water level TWL of the tank 109, water continuously flows backward to the tank 109 and thus, the tank water level TWL of the tank 109 rises gradually.

[60] Thereafter, operations described with reference to FIGS. 17 through 20 are repeated.

However, wash water does not overflow the toilet body 119 during the repeated operations.

[61] As described above, the internal water level IWL of the supporting water tank 170 is lowered to the ground level DL due to the suction function of the jet pump 150, so that the flow of water is switched from the rim side to the supporting water tank 170, thereby preventing the water from overflowing the toilet body 119.

[62] Embodiment 2

[63] In a toilet stool according to the present embodiment, a jet pump is interposed between a bowl tap and a rim water pipe. The bowl tap is a switch bowl tap, which not only allows or cuts off the supply of water according to a water level of a tank but also switches the flow of water to the tank or a rim side. However, the jet pump does not function to switch the flow of water unlike in the previous embodiment.

[64] FIGS. 21 and 22 are a plan view and cross-sectional view, respectively, of a water tank in which a supporting water tank for preventing overflowing according to another embodiment of the present invention is installed. For simple explanation, FIG. 22 schematically illustrates spread-out components.

[65] Referring to FIGS. 21 and 22, a switch bowl tap 180 is disposed in a tank 109. The switch bowl tap 180 receives water from a water supply pipe 107, allows or closes off the supply of water according to a water level of the tank 109, and switches the flow of water to the tank 109 or a rim side. A jet pump 195 is interposed between the bowl tap 180 and a rim water pipe 122. An outlet of the jet pump 195 is connected to the rim water pipe 122.

[66] A supporting water tank 190 for preventing overflowing is installed in the tank 109 of a toilet stool and includes a jet pump 195. Also, the supporting water tank 190 includes an opening via which the supporting water tank 190 is connected to the outside and a plate-type check value 192, which allows water to flow out through the opening in one way. The supporting water tank 190 is higher than a normal water level of the tank 109, and water is allowed to flow from the supporting tank 190 to the tank 109 in one way. Specifically, when the supporting water tank 190 has a higher water level than the tank 109, the check value 192 is opened to supply water from the supporting water tank 190 to the tank 109; while when the supporting water tank 190 has a lower water level than the tank 109, the check value 192 is closed off to block the flow of water from the tank to the supporting water tank 190. The water-level sensing device 184 and the tank water supply conduit 183 of bowl tap 180 are installed in the supporting water tank 190.

[67] As in the previous embodiment, when a water level of the supporting water tank 190 is lowered to a ground level due to a suction function of the jet pump 195, the water- level sensing device 184 senses the ground level of the supporting water tank 190 so that the switch bowl tap 180 switches the supply of water from the rim side to the tank water supply conduit 183 that is disposed in the supporting water tank 190, thereby preventing water from overflowing the toilet body. Since the above-described operation is substantially the same as in the previous embodiment, a detailed description thereof will be omitted. However, unlike in the previous embodiment, the toilet stool includes the switch bowl tap 180 that functions to switch the flow of water to the rim side or the tank 109, and a rim supply pipe 182 and the tank water supply conduit 183 branch from a switch portion 181 of the switch bowl tap 180 so that the switch bowl tap 180 switches the flow of water to the rim side or the tank 109.

[68] Furthermore, unlike in the previous embodiment, the supporting water tank 190 for preventing overflowing includes not only the jet pump 195 but also the water-level sensing device 184 capable of sensing the water level of the switch bowl tap 180 and the tank water supply conduit 183.

[69] As described above, a one-piece toilet stool according to embodiments of the present invention includes a supporting water tank for preventing overflowing so that when the toilet stool is clogged with human excreta or dirt, water can be prevented from overflowing a wash bowl.

[70] While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the following claims. Industrial Applicability

[71] A one-piece toilet stool according to embodiments of the present invention includes a supporting water tank for preventing overflowing so that when the toilet stool is clogged with human excreta or dirt, water can be prevented from overflowing a wash bowl.

Claims

[1] A toilet stool comprising: a tank containing a predetermined amount of wash water using a bowl tap for allowing or cutting off the flow of water according to a water level; a wash bowl including a rim water pipe to which water is supplied from the bowl tap and a rim discharge port disposed on an inner circumferential surface of a rim, the wash bowl connected to the tank through a lateral water pipe; a flapper for opening or closing an exhaust port of the lateral water pipe and disposed under the tank; a jet pump interposed between the bowl tap and the rim water pipe and for supplying a mixture of supplied water and stored wash water to the rim water pipe; and a supporting water tank disposed in the tank and including a jet pump and a check valve for allowing wash water to flow out from the supporting water tank in one way, the supporting water tank having a wall higher than a normal water level of the tank.

[2] The toilet stool according to claim 1, wherein a ball guide conduit in which a ball is inserted extends to a predetermined length between a jet nozzle and a throat in the jet pump so that the flow of water supplied from the bowl tap is switched to the supporting water tank or the rim according to a water level of the water tank.

[3] The toilet stool according to claim 1, wherein the bowl tap includes a switch portion for switching the flow of water to the tank or the rim, and the tank water supply conduit and the water-level sensing device of the bowl tap are disposed in the supporting water tank.