Abstract:
A dual function actuator for a flush valve. The actuator contains a sensor for controlling a motor, which in response to a stimulus will move a plunger which actuates the flush valve. The actuator is also configured to allow for manual actuation of the flush valve by tilting a distal portion of the actuator in relation to the remaining portion of the actuator and flush valve, which moves the plunger actuating the flush valve.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATION  
       [0001]     This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/848,291, filed Sep. 29, 2006, herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present invention relates generally to the field of flush valves. In particular, the present invention relates to systems and method for actuating a flush valve manually or automatically.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     The use of automatic flush valves had become commonplace in most commercial restrooms. However, there is often a desire to allow for manual actuation as well as for automatic actuation. Such “multiple function” devices must provide the ease of operation of a traditional manual flush while still providing the advantages of an automatic flush.  
         [0004]     Current devices for actuation of a flush valve typically are either automatic or manual. Those devices that provide for both types of actuation require modification to a standard flush valve. In addition, such current devices often require a user to perform a unique manner of actuation, which in the commercial setting can lead to confusion and non-use.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0005]     One embodiment of the invention relates to automatic or manual activation of a flush valve. The present application describes a device which can automatically activate a flush valve or which can be manually activated in an intuitive way to actuate the flush valve.  
         [0006]     These and other objects, advantages, and features of the invention, together with the organization and manner of operation thereof, will become apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like elements have like numerals throughout the several drawings described below. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0007]     The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of various embodiments of the invention.  
         [0008]      FIG. 1  illustrates a typical prior art flush system;  
         [0009]      FIG. 2  is a side cross sectional view along the major axis of a device in accordance with the principles of the present invention engaged with a flush valve;  
         [0010]      FIG. 3  is a side view of the device of  FIG. 2 , assembled and affixed to a flush valve assembly;  
         [0011]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a plunger and bushing;  
         [0012]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a plunger and a plunger spring housing;  
         [0013]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the plunger and the plunger housing of  FIG. 5  coupled with a coupling nut;  
         [0014]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of a plunger cam positioned on the plunger of  FIG. 6   
         [0015]      FIG. 8A  is a perspective view of a mounting frame and an unattached mounting frame flange;  FIG. 8B  illustrates the components of  FIG. 8B  attached;  
         [0016]      FIG. 9A  is a perspective view of a drive housing and an unattached drive cam and limit switch;  FIG. 9B  illustrates the components of  FIG. 9A  attached;  
         [0017]      FIG. 10A  is a perspective view of the drive housing of  FIG. 9B  inserted into a handle housing;  FIG. 10B  is a perspective view of a of the structure shown in  FIG. 9B  attached to a mounting frame;  
         [0018]      FIG. 11  is a perspective view of a the interaction between a plunger cam and drive cam;  
         [0019]      FIG. 12A  is a back perspective view of a cover;  FIG. 12B  is a front perspective view of a perspective view of the device of  FIG. 12A ;  
         [0020]      FIG. 13  is a perspective view of a sensor cover;  
         [0021]      FIG. 14  is a perspective view of a device of the present invention having a sensor cover;  
         [0022]      FIG. 15  is a perspective view of a gear set of one exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and  
         [0023]      FIG. 16  is a cross sectional view along the major axis illustrating manual activation of a flush valve. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0024]      FIG. 1  illustrates a flush valve  12  of the prior art. The flush valve  12  has a body  14  which includes a water inlet  16 , a water outlet  20  and a vacuum breaker  18  beneath the outlet. A handle opening  22  in the water outlet is surrounded by a laterally-extending, annular boss  24 , typically externally threaded. Inside the valve body  14  there is either a movable diaphragm or a piston (not shown) that will control the flow of water between the inlet  16  and the outlet  20  in the conventional manner. The diaphragm or piston has associated with it the usual relief valve (not shown) whose depending stem extends away from the diaphragm to a point opposite the handle opening.  
         [0025]     In traditional flush systems, a manual actuation handle  26  is mounted to the boss  24  by a handle mounting member. In this case the handle mounting member includes a handle socket  28 . The handle socket  28  has a generally cylindrical cup  30  and an end face formed by a flange  32 . A lip on the opposite end of the cup  30  is trapped by a coupling nut  34 . The coupling nut  34  is threaded to the boss  24 . The valve handle  26  is pivotally movable about a three dimensional pivot when the handle  26  is used to cause operation of the flush valve  12 . A shank  35  inside the handle socket  28  captures the inner end of the valve handle  26 . A plunger  36  joins the shank  35  and extends into the valve body  14  where it can act on a relief valve stem (not shown). Tilting of the valve handle  26  off of the horizontal axis causes movement a handle face plate  27  against the plunger face plate  37  such that the plunger  36  trips the relief valve and begins a flushing cycle. Thus, the flush valve  12  of  FIG. 1  provides a user with the familiar upward or downward actuation of the flush system through use of tilting the handle  26 .  
         [0026]     The present invention relates to a flush system, such as, but not limited, to those using traditional flush valves as shown in  FIG. 1 , that is actuable both manually, i.e. with user intervention, and automatically, i.e. without user intervention. As best shown in  FIG. 15 , at least a portion of an actuation device  100  of the present invention is positioned where a traditional handle would be placed on a flush valve and allows a user to manually actuate the flush valve in the manner of a traditional manually operated flush system.  
         [0027]     Referring to  FIGS. 2, 3 , and  15 , the general structure of an actuation device  100  of the present invention comprises a housing  110  that is engagable with the flush valve body  14 . In one embodiment, the housing  110  is attached to the boss  24  of the flush valve body  14  rather than the traditional manual actuation handle  26 . The housing  110  includes a front housing  112  and a rear housing  114 . When positioned on a flush valve  116 , the front housing  112  is proximate the flush valve body  14  and the rear housing  114  is distal. The components, described below, that provide the functionality and structure to the actuation device  100  are generally disposed within the housing  110 .  
         [0028]     Turning first to the components generally disposed in the front housing  112 , the plunger  36  is retained within front housing  112  extending through the boss  24  into the flush valve body  14  in communication relief valve stem. The plunger  36  includes a first end  132  proximate the relief valve stem (not shown) and a second end  133 , distal the relief valve stem and adjacent rear housing  114 , and further having the plunger face plate  37  disposed between the first and second ends  132 ,  133 . The first end  132  extends from the front housing  112  into the flush valve  116  through the boss  24  when the actuation device  100  is attached to the flush valve  116 . The second end  133  is positioned opposite the relief valve, proximate the motor  120  (discussed below). Thus plunger  36  is partially disposed in the front housing  112 . The plunger  26  further includes a plunger cam  136  which is positioned operatively at the second end  133  for engaging the motor  120 .  
         [0029]      FIGS. 4-6  best illustrate the plunger bushing  150 , which is disposed within the front housing  112 . The plunger bushing  150  includes a passage therethrough (not shown) that allows the plunger  36  to slide relative to the plunger bushing  150 . The plunger bushing  150  is disposed within the boss  24 , as seen in  FIG. 2A , with the bushing being exposed to the interior of the flush valve  16 .  
         [0030]     The actuation device  100  further comprises a plunger chamber housing  152 , illustrated in  FIGS. 5-6 . The plunger chamber housing  152  includes an aperture (not shown) therethrough that allows the plunger  36  to slide relative to the plunger chamber housing  152 . As shown in  FIG. 5 , a plunger chamber housing  152  is engagable with the plunger bushing  150 , for example threadingly engagable, to form a plunger face plate chamber  154 . The plunger face plate  37  is disposed within the plunger face plate chamber  154 . The bushing aperture and the plunger spring housing aperture are sized small enough to prevent the face plate  37  of the plunger  36  from passing through the respective apertures. Thus, the face  37  plate is disposed within the plunger face plate chamber  154  and the plunger  36  is limited in its degree of movement along axis A-A by the distance the face plate  37  can move in the face plate chamber  154 .  
         [0031]     A plunger spring (not shown) is disposed within the plunger face plate chamber  154  ( FIG. 16 ) and is positioned between the face plate  27  and the plunger bushing  150 . Thus the plunger spring serves to bias the plunger  36  towards the plunger face plate chamber  154  and away from the plunger bushing  150  (i.e. away from engaging the relief stem tripping the flush valve  116 ). The bias against the plunger spring retains the plunger  36  in its most distal position along its major axis in relation to the valve body  14 , i.e. in position where the plunger  36  is not engaging the stem of the flush valve  116 . In one embodiment, the plunger  36  has between about 0.25-0.50 (preferably 0.25) inches of travel along its longitudinal axis A-A.  
         [0032]     In one embodiment, the plunger  36  is shaped such that it is not freely rotatable about its major (longitudinal) axis although it is slidable along that axis. For example, the plunger  36  may have a substantially rectangular cross section ( FIG. 16 ). Thus, the plunger  36  and the plunger cam  136  are not rotatable in relation to the housing  110 , such as by having a rectangular portion disposed within a rectangular aperture in the plunger bushing  150  or the plunger chamber housing  152 . Engagement of the plunger cam  136  results in lateral movement of the plunger  36  along its longitudinal axis A-A such that the plunger  36  is engaged and also slides along axis A-A.  
         [0033]     In one embodiment, illustrated in  FIG. 6 , a coupling nut  162  is provided for placement about the plunger chamber housing  152  such that the plunger chamber housing  152  (and the entire plunger  36 /plunger bushing  150 /housing  152  device) is rotatable with respect to the coupling ring  160 . As shown in  FIG. 7 , a coupling nut  162  may be provided for engaging the boss  24 , such as by threads, to secure the housing to the flush valve  16 .  
         [0034]      FIG. 7  illustrates an embodiment having a coupling ring  160  for assisting in coupling the above described assembly of the coupling ring  162 , plunger chamber housing  152 , and plunger bushing  150  with the mounting frame  164 , describe below. Also illustrated in  FIG. 7  is the position of the plunger cam  136  at the second end  133  of the plunger  36 .  
         [0035]     Turning the components in the rear housing  114 , in one embodiment, illustrated in  FIGS. 8A and 8B , a mounting frame  164  and a flange  166  are provided, connecting the motor  120  with the coupling ring  160 . In an exemplary embodiment, the mounting frame  164  and the flange  166  are separate components engageable with each other, such as by brazing. The mounting frame  164  is adapted to receive at a first (front) end  168 , the coupling ring  160 , such that the plunger  36  is securable to the mounting frame  168 . A second (rear) end  169  is adapted to receive the flange  166 . The flange  166  is engageable with the motor  120  to attach the motor  120  to the mounting frame  164 . In an exemplary embodiment illustrated in  FIGS. 10A and 10B , the flange  166  includes tabs  170  for engaging slots  172  on the motor  120 , the interaction of the tabs  170  and slots  172  prevents rotation of the motor  120  relative to the mounting frame  168 . Drive cam  124  and the plunger cam  136  are disposed within the mounting frame  168 . The mounting frame  164  is engagable with the coupling ring. In an exemplary embodiment, the mounting frame  164  includes threaded holes through which screws are engagable with the coupling ring.  
         [0036]     As seen in  FIG. 11 , the drive cam  124  and the plunger cam  136  have complementary cam faces, i.e. the thicknesses of the plunger cam  136  and the drive cam  124  vary along their circumference. Rotation of the drive cam  124  (via the motor  120 ) relative to the rotationally fixed plunger cam  136  results in the plunger  36  sliding along its axis as the faces of the cams  124  and  136  interact. Also illustrated best in  FIG. 11  is the interaction of the plunger bushing  150 , plunger chamber housing  152 , and coupling ring  160  (not shown in  FIG. 11 , but disposed with the mounting frame  164 ) with the mounting frame  164  and rear housing  114  components. The coupling ring  160  and the mounting frame  164  are attached, such as by screws (not shown), to secure the components in the front housing  112  to the components in the rear housing  114 .  
         [0037]     In one embodiment shown in  FIGS. 12A, 12B , and  13 , a cover  173  is provided for engaging the mounting frame  168 . An aperture  174  through the cover  173  may be provided to allow passage of wires (not shown) into and out of the actuation device  100 . The cover  173  may comprise two halves, a sensor cover portion  175  and a back cover portion  176 . The sensor cover portion  175  is adapted to allow sensor  190  to operate therethrough, such as through a sensor window  178 . The back cover portion  176  may include the aperture  174  which may engage a wiring tube  179 .  
         [0038]     The motor  120  includes a gear set  182 , for example a planetary gear set as shown in  FIG. 15 , which drives a drive shaft  122 . As best shown in  FIGS. 9A and 9B , the drive cam  124  is positioned an the output shaft  184 . The drive cam  124  is adapted to rotate as the output shaft  184  rotates. In an exemplary embodiment illustrated in  FIGS. 9A and 9B , a limit switch  186  provides feedback to the motor  120  regarding the position of the drive cam  124 . For example, the drive cam  124  may be provided with a lobe  187  which is engagable with the limit switch  186  such that the motor  120  is turned off when the drive cam  124  has rotated a predetermined amount, such as when a complete revolution has been made.  
         [0039]     The sensor  190  is adapted to detect to presence or absence of a user. One of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate that a wide variety of sensor types could be utilized in accordance with the principles of the present invention. For example, the sensor  190  may include, but is not limited to: active infra-red, capacitance detection, passive optical detection (e.g., a photo cell), thermal detection such as passive infrared or thermopiles. The sensor  190  has a zone of detection in which it is capable of detecting one or more stimuli. In one embodiment, the sensor  190  is a passive infrared (PIR) detector. Generally, in order to detect a human being, PIR detectors must be sensitive to the temperature of a human body. Humans, having a skin temperature of about 93 degrees F., radiate infrared energy with a wavelength between 9 and 10 micrometers. In an exemplary embodiment, the sensor  190  is sensitive to infrared energy having wavelengths in the range of about 8 to about 12 micrometers.  
         [0040]     In one embodiment, the zone of detection is not fixed in relation to the flush valve  116 , but can be adjusted by moving the sensor  190 . For example, the sensor  190  may be positioned remote from the housing  110  and include a wireless communication device for communicating with a wireless communication device associated with the motor  120 . In an exemplary embodiment, the sensor (shown in  FIG. 14 ) comprises a radio frequency (“RF”) transmitter with the housing  110 , including a corresponding RF receiver associated with the motor  120 . The sensor  190  transmits an RF signal when the sensor  190  detects a stimulus. The communication device may be transceivers (transmitter and receiver) or the sensor  190  may comprise a transmitter and the housing  110  includes a receiver.  
         [0041]     In an exemplary embodiment, the present invention contemplates the use of multiple RF communication devices. In one embodiment, each RF transmission is encoded with a digital ID tag or bit. The receivers) within RF range listen to the RF communication, but unless the ID is correct, no action will be taken. In another embodiment, the communication devices use the same frequency transmissions, wherein only matched frequency paired units will respond to one another.  
         [0042]     In one embodiment illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 15 , a device of the present invention is mountable to the side of the flush valve  116 . The coupling nut is engagable, such as threadably engagable, to the flush valve  116  ( FIG. 2   a ).  
         [0043]     The flush valve  116  in operative communication with the device of the present invention may be either automatically or manually actuated.  FIGS. 2A, 2B  and  16  illustrate one example device. The rear housing  114  is positioned in the mounting frame  164 , as shown in  FIG. 11 , with sufficient play that it is tiltable in relation to the front housing  112 . Tilting of the rear housing  114  results in the drive cam  124  tilting in relation to the plunger cam  136 . This results in a portion of the drive cam  124  displacing the plunger cam  136  such that the plunger  36  is driven to slide along its major axis to actuate the flush valve  116 . Thus, manual activation resembles the standard motion a user exhibits actuation a flush valve  116 , with the rear housing  114  acting as the handle  26  and the drive cam  124  acting as the handle face plate  27 , providing an intuitive means for manually actuating a urinal or water closet that also has automatic flushing ability.  
         [0044]     The foregoing description of embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present invention to the precise form disclosed, and modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of the present invention. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain the principles of the present invention and its practical application to enable one skilled in the art to utilize the present invention in various embodiments, and with various modifications, as are suited to the particular use contemplated.