Abstract:
An improved floor drain assembly ( 10 ) is provided which includes an upright inlet section ( 12 ) presenting a waste inlet ( 30 ) and an outlet section ( 14 ) terminating in a discharge end ( 16 ). The assembly ( 10 ) includes an oblique first wall ( 26   b ) below the inlet ( 30 ) for diverting waste materials towards the end ( 16 ); a second oblique wall ( 82 ) spaced from the wall ( 26   b ) and a third wall ( 28   a ) intermediate the walls ( 26   b,    82 ) complete an in-line trap ( 18 ). The inlet ( 30 ) is equipped with a grate ( 46 ) and a perforate filter ( 50 ). The wall ( 26   b ) serves to forcefully divert waste material through the assembly ( 10 ) to minimize clogging problems.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention is broadly concerned with an improved floor drain assembly of the type used in industrial plants such as meat packing houses and the like. 
     More particularly, the invention pertains to such drain assemblies which are inexpensively constructed and include, beneath the drain inlet, an obliquely inclined wall serving to forcefully divert waste towards the discharge end of the assembly to thus minimize the possibility of clogs. In addition, the assemblies hereof include a trap preferably made up of the inclined wall and an adjacent upright wall. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     Large industrial operations such as packing houses are faced with severe drainage problems. The aqueous waste from such plants contains a high percentage of particulates of various sizes which must be accommodated. The drainage problems are of two different sources. First, the heavy volume of particulate-laden waste must be handled without continuous clogging problems. Moreover, drain assemblies must be designed to prevent or at least minimize the escape of harmful microorganisms from the sewage system back into the plant. For example, many packing houses are confronted with serious problems of  Lysteria  contamination from floor drains. 
     Conventional gooseneck-type drain assemblies have proven to be troublesome in the context of industrial applications. These assemblies are prone to clogging, and studies have shown that they are susceptible to significant microorganism contamination. 
     There is accordingly a need in the art for an improved floor drain assembly especially designed for industrial applications in order to handle large volumes of particulate-laden waste streams. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention overcomes the problems outlined above, and provides an improved floor drain assembly in the form of a body defining a passageway for conveying waste materials from a floor to a subfloor drainage or sewage assembly, wherein the assembly presents an inlet adapted for location adjacent floor level and an outlet below the inlet for coupling with the drainage or sewage assembly. The assembly includes a first oblique wall below the inlet and oriented for directing the flow of waste materials towards the outlet, together with a second upright wall spaced from the first oblique wall, with the first and second walls cooperatively defining a trap therebetween. A third wall is located intermediate the first and second walls in order to close the passageway above the level of waste materials within the trap. 
     In preferred forms, the oblique first wall extends across the majority of the surface area defined by the assembly inlet, and preferably at least about 75% of inlet surface area. The first wall is oriented at an angle of from about 30-60° relative to the horizontal, so that waste material impinging upon the oblique wall is forcefully diverted toward the discharge end of the assembly. The second space wall is also preferably oblique, with the two walls being divergent to cooperatively define the trap. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a side view of the preferred floor drain assembly of the invention, shown operatively mounted at and below the level of a floor; 
     FIG. 2 is an isometric view of the floor drain assembly illustrated in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is an isometric exploded view of the floor drain assembly; 
     FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view of the floor drain assembly; and 
     FIG. 5 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view of the floor drain assembly. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Turning now to the drawings, a floor drain assembly  10  in accordance with the invention broadly includes an upright inlet section  12 , and outlet section  14  and a terminal discharge end  16 , with a waste material trap  18  located between the inlet and outlet sections  12 ,  14 . 
     In more detail, the inlet section  12  is in the form of a sheet metal body  20  including planar upright sidewalls  22 ,  24 , rear wall  26  and front wall  28 . The walls  22 - 28  cooperatively define an uppermost inlet  30 , the latter being equipped with a frame and grate assembly  32 . As best seen in FIG. 3, the assembly  32  includes respective elongated frame members  34 ,  36 ,  38 ,  40  which are interconnected and respectively secured to rear wall  26 , sidewall  24 , front wall  28  and sidewall  22 . The frame members  34  and  38  are of inverted L-shaped configuration as best seen in FIG. 4, whereas the frame members  36  and  40  are of stepped configuration and present respective horizontal stretches  42 ,  44 . A metallic grate  46  is secured to the opposed frame members  36 ,  40  by means of bolts  48  and extends across the inlet  30 . This mounting permits pivoting movement of the grate  46  between an upper, open maintenance position shown in FIG.  3  and the usual closed position shown in the remainder of the Figures. 
     A perforate screen or filter  50  is also supported by the frame members  36 ,  40  and is located below grate  46 . In particular, the filter  50  is generally V-shaped in cross-section, having obliquely oriented front and wall perforate segments  52 ,  54 , perforate sidewall segments  56 ,  58 , and laterally extending mounting flanges  60 ,  62  extending outwardly from each of the sidewalls segments  56 , 58 . As best illustrated in FIG. 5, the flanges  60 ,  62  rest atop the frame member stretches  42 ,  44 , beneath the grate  46 . 
     The rear wall  26  includes an upright upper section  26   a  as well as an obliquely and downwardly extending lower section  26   b . The section  26   b  is oriented at an angle of from about 30-60° relative to the horizontal, more preferably from about 40-50° and most preferably about 45°. The front wall  28  is essentially upright throughout its vertical extent, but is equipped with an upturned cleanout port  64  adjacent the outlet section  14 . The port  64  is equipped with a removable cap  66 . 
     The outlet section  14  includes upright sidewalls  68 ,  70 , a sloped top wall  72  extending forwardly from front wall  28  and a bottom wall  74 . The walls  68 - 74  include converging sections  76  remote from the inlet section  12 , the latter terminating in a circular discharge  78 . The bottom wall  74  includes a short, generally horizontal segment  80  extending forwardly from the lower end of oblique section  26   b , as well as an upstanding wall  82  extending upwardly from the end of segment  80  remote from section  26   b . Additionally, a downwardly extending oblique wall  84  is provided from the upper end of wall  82  downwardly to a flat, forwardly extending terminal segment  86 . The wall  82  is preferably oriented at an angle of from about 30-60° relative to the horizontal, more preferably from about 40-50°, and most preferably about 45°. Wall  84  is obliquely oriented to the wall  82  and is located essentially orthogonally relative to the latter. 
     It will thus be appreciated that the trap  18  is cooperatively defined by the wall section  26   b  and wall  82 , so that a liquid level illustrated by line  88  is maintained within the trap. Additionally, the lower section  28   a  of front wall  28  extends downwardly to a point below the liquid level  88 , thereby blocking the drain assembly above the level  88 . 
     In light of the foregoing, it will be seen that an oblique first wall (in the embodiment illustrated, wall section  26   b ) and an upright second wall (here, the wall  82 ) cooperatively define the trap  18 , with a third wall (wall section  28   a ) between the first and second walls and closing the passageway above the level  88 . Moreover, in preferred forms, the second wall is obliquely oriented with the first and second walls being divergent. 
     It has been found that the assembly  10  is capable of handling waste flows with a minimum of clogging problems. It is believed that the presence of the oblique wall section  26   b  (which extends across at least about 75% of the surface area defined by the inlet  30 , and more preferably at least about 90% thereof) effectively diverts waste entering the inlet  30  towards the discharge end  16  with sufficient force to prevent most clogs. At the same time, the provision of the trap  18  prevents passage of sewer gas or the like backwardly through the assembly  10 . In the event that a clog does occur, however, it is a simple matter to remove cap  66  and extend an auger through the port  64  for cleanout downstream of the trap  18 . 
     The provision of the removable filter  50  also prevents large particulates from passing through and potentially clogging the assembly  10 . That is, the pore size of the perforate walls making up the filter  50  permit passage of liquid and small particulates, but entrap larger materials. Of course, it is very easy to remove the filter  50  for cleaning or replacement, simply by pivoting the grate  46  upwardly and removing the filter as shown in FIG.  3 . 
     The assembly  10  can be very inexpensively produced. In preferred forms, the assembly is made almost entirely of sheet metal, save for the grate  46  and filter  50 . Similarly, installation of the assembly  10  is very simple. As shown in FIG. 1, the entire assembly is situated such that grate  46  and inlet  30  are essentially at the upper surface of floor  90 , whereas the remainder of the assembly extends downwardly and is embedded in the earth  92  below the floor  90 . Although not shown, it will be readily appreciated that the discharge  78  is adapted to be coupled with a conventional sewer line.