Abstract:
A garbage disposal protection device prevents the entry of ferro-magnetic objects into the disposal unit while maintaining an unobstructed path for items intended for the disposal to freely pass through the entry of the disposal. The device is an annular magnetic ring which fits into the drain at the bottom of a standard household sink and captures the ferro-magnetic objects before they enter the disposal unit. An alternative embodiment utilizes a magnetic ring that is made up of multiple magnetic elements contained in a retaining member.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATION(S)  
       [0001]    This application claims benefit to U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/169,827, filed Dec. 8, 1999, entitled “Magnetic Separator Device for Disposal Unit,” by Mark E. Dailey, the entire teachings of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    Common household garbage disposals such as the In-Sink-Erator brand are attached to the bottom of the sink around the drain. Because the entry to such a garbage disposal is then at or below the drain of the sink, it is often the case that knives, forks, spoons and other common kitchen utensils enter the disposal. This is a hazard not only to a person standing at the sink, but also to both the disposal device itself and the items that are inadvertently dropped into it. If the disposal device is turned on while such objects are inside it will likely mangle those items and probably damage the disposal as well and could even cause an object to be ejected with force. Thus, it would be very beneficial to have a means for preventing these foreign objects that are not intended to go into the disposal from ever going down the drain and is, accordingly an object of this invention.  
           [0003]    There have been several attempts disclosed in the prior art to solve this problem, many of which use magnetism as a means for preventing objects from falling into the disposal. U.S. Pat. No. 4,706,818 to Zutell, titled “Magnetic Flatware Retriever,” describes such a device. The magnetic flatware retriever described in the &#39;818 patent clearly demonstrates one of the major shortcomings of the prior art. Magnetic elements that are meant to trap flatware and keep them from falling into the disposal, are positioned in or near the middle of the drain, thereby obstructing the entry to the disposal to any objects including those such as food scraps which are intended to go into the disposal. Such obstructions in the drain and entry to the disposal limit the size of food scraps and other objects that are intended for the disposal from entering the disposal.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0004]    The present invention solves the shortcomings of the prior art by providing a means for preventing the entry of unwanted objects into the garbage disposal while at the same time maintaining a clear and unobstructed pathway for food scraps and other items intended for the disposal. The device comprises magnetic means that will attract ferro-magnetic objects, the magnetic means being strong enough to engage and hold the ferro-magnetic objects and thereby prevent them from entering the disposal. “Ferromagnetic objects” are objects made of metals which are normally attracted to magnets.  
           [0005]    This protection device is shaped and positioned so that an unrestricted passageway is created in the center of the drain allowing the passage of non-ferromagnetic objects into the disposal. The basic shape of the device is a continuous annular ring. The ring is thin measuring approximately 0.125 inches (to about 0.25 inches) between the inner and outer diameters. When installed in the drain portion of the sink (i.e., about the periphery of the drain opening), the protection device reduces the inner diameter of the drain only by less than 0.5 inches. Despite its thin size, the magnet creates a magnetic field of approximately 10-20 magnetic Gauss, the magnetic fields radially crossing to create the strongest portion of the magnetic field in the center of the drain. The magnet is made from an anisotropic magnetic powder that is magnetically aligned and heated to form its proper shape. The magnet is then covered or coated with a polypropylene, epoxy resin, fiberglass, or plastic coating or covering. This covering may be colored red in the preferred embodiment of the invention.  
           [0006]    Alternatively, the device may be made of more than one magnetic element. For example, a retaining member may contain two or more magnetic elements that are arranged to form a magnetic ring.  
           [0007]    Also disclosed is a method for preventing ferro-magnetic objects from entering a disposal which comprises the steps of providing the protection device described above and positioning it at the periphery of the opening to the disposal. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0008]    The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following more particular description of preferred embodiments of the invention, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which like reference characters refer to the same parts throughout the different views. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention.  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a typical sink with a garbage disposal and a disposal protection device of the present invention aligned with the drain prior to installation.  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 2 is a side elevation of a typical kitchen sink with a garbage disposal unit and the disposal protection device aligned with the drain prior to installation.  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 3 is a side elevation of a typical kitchen sink and garbage disposal unit with the disposal protection device installed at the entry to the disposal.  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the disposal protection device.  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 5A is a schematic drawing of the bottom portion of a retaining member used in the alternative embodiment of the invention.  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 5B is a side elevation of the bottom portion of a retaining member used in the alternative embodiment of the invention partially in section.  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 6A is a schematic drawing of the corresponding top portion of the retaining member for the alternative embodiment of the invention.  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 6B is a side elevation of the top portion of the retaining member for the alternative embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0017]    A description of preferred embodiments of the invention follows.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show a perspective and profile view, respectively, of a typical kitchen sink and a garbage disposal assembly. At the bottom of the typical sink  100  is a drain  101 . The drain  101  is generally cylindrical with a body portion  107  and a flange portion  106  located on top of the body portion  107 . The flange  106  rests on the bottom of the inside of the sink  100  keeping the drain in the appropriate position. The garbage disposal unit  102  generally consists of the main disposal section  109 , a neck  108  which is attached to the bottom of the drain  101  and a waste return portion  103  which connects to the plumbing return system. The main portion of the disposal  109  contains the area in which waste food is ground up for passage into the waste return portion  103 . Typically, there is a collar  104  that helps attach the neck  108  of the disposal to the body portion  107  of the drain. The faucet fixture  105  attaches to the top flange area of the sink  100 .  
         [0019]    The present invention is intended to be easily installed by a homeowner. No disassembly of the garbage disposal unit  102 , sink  100  or drain  101  should be required. The disposal protection device  150  of the present invention is lowered in the direction of arrow A into the drain  101 . In FIG. 3, the disposal protection device  150  can be seen in its installed position in the cylindrical body portion  107  of the drain. The disposal protection device  150  is sized and shaped so that it fits snugly around the perimeter of the inside wall of the standard size household drain  101 . Thus, for installation the homeowner simply pushes the disposal protection device  150  as far down into the cylindrical body portion  107  of the drain  101  until it fits tightly. Once installed in this position, the disposal protection device  150  will attract and hold ferro-magnetic objects that fall into the drain portion  101  of the sink  100 , thereby preventing them from falling into the garbage disposal unit  102  per se. The foreign objects are thus made easily retrievable by the homeowner without having to reach down into the main disposal container  109 .  
         [0020]    The preferred embodiment of the invention consists of a single piece magnetic annular ring. FIG. 4 shows a three dimensional view of this magnetic ring and its preferred dimensions. The height is approximately 0.5 inches (1.27 cm). The inner diameter is approximately 2.875 inches (7.3025 cm) and the outer diameter approximately 3.375 inches (8.5725 cm). The difference between the outer diameter and the inner diameter therefore is approximately 0.5 inches. Thus when installed, the disposal protection device  150  only decreases the inner diameter of the drain  101  by 0.5 inches (1.27 cm). This small decrease in the inner diameter of the drain  101  allows the disposal protection device  150  to provide a relatively unencumbered pathway for objects intended for the garbage disposal to pass easily through the disposal protection device  150  into the main disposal container  109 .  
         [0021]    A single piece annular magnetic ring may be made from anisotropic magnetic powders. Such a method is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,624,503 to Yamashita (“Process for Producing Nd—Fe—B Magnet”). Once made, the magnet may be coated with a polypropylene coating. Other materials that may be used for the magnet&#39;s coating include polypropylene, epoxy resin, fiberglass, vinyls, plastics or PVCs.  
         [0022]    The magnet must be of sufficient magnetic strength to attract typical ferromagnetic objects that might fall into the disposal  109 . Such objects include knives, forks, spoons, other flatware or kitchen utensils. In the preferred embodiment, a magnet with a magnetic field strength of 10-20 Gauss (100,000-200,000 Tesla) is used.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIGS. 5A, 5B,  6 A and  6 B show parts of an alternative embodiment of the invention. Such an alternative embodiment forms an annular magnetic ring from several magnetic elements  205 . The magnetic elements  205  are enclosed in a retaining member  250 . FIGS. 5A and 5B illustrate the bottom  200  and top  220  portions of that retaining member  250 , respectively. Referring to the bottom portion  200  of the retaining member  250 , the bottom portion  200  is sectioned into eight container sections  207  that are divided by walls  203 . While the alternative embodiment shown contains eight magnetic elements  205 , similar results can be accomplished with any multiple number of magnetic elements  205 .  
         [0024]    At the bottom of each container section  207  is a drain hole  204 . Magnet elements  205  are inserted into each of the eight container sections  207 . The magnet elements  205  are shaped such that they fit snugly between the inner wall  201  and the outer wall  202  of the bottom portion  200  of the retaining member. However, a small gap  206  is left between the magnet element  205  and the divider portions  203  of the retaining member. Once all eight of the magnet elements  205  are inserted into the respective container sections  207  (e.g., snap together style) of the bottom portion  200  of the retaining member, the top portion  220  of the retaining member is then inserted on top of the bottom portion  200 . Once assembled, the disposal protection device  150  is then ready for insertion into the drain portion  101  of the sink. Preferably, the disposal protection device  150  would come assembled in its package.  
         [0025]    Optimal thickness of the inner wall  201  and outer wall  202  of the bottom portion  200  of the retaining member, as well as the inner and outer walls  222 ,  221  of the top portion  220  of the retaining member, is 0.062 inches (0.15748 cm). The width of the container sections  207  measures 0.375 inches (0.9525 cm). The depth of the container sections is 0.375 inches (0.9525 cm). The height of inner and outer walls  201 ,  202  of bottom portion  200  as well as that of top portion  220  is 0.500 inch (1.27 cm). Thus, total height of the combined bottom  200  and top  220  portions of the retaining member is 0.5 inches (1.27 cm) where the top portion  220  fits over the bottom portion  200 . The inner diameter of the top portion  220  is 2.375 inches (6.0325 cm) and the outer diameter is 3.375 inches (8.5725 cm). The outer diameter of the bottom portion  200  is about 3.374 inches (8.56996 cm). The inner diameter of bottom portion  200  is about 2.376 inches (6.03504 cm). The tolerances between the outer walls  202  and  221  of bottom and top portions  200 ,  220  and that between the inner walls  201  and  222  of these portions  200 ,  220  are sufficiently tight such that the bottom portion  200  inserted into top portion  220  is frictionally held in place.  
         [0026]    The retaining member may be formed of plastic, vinyl, PVC using molds, extrusion techniques and the like.  
         [0027]    The measurements and shapes given for the disposal protection devices described herein are applicable for the standard size drain commonly found in the sinks in the U.S. households, offices and restaurants, etc. However, the invention can easily be adapted to accommodate sinks and drains of various sizes and shapes. For drains of larger or smaller diameter, the magnetic ring of the preferred embodiment need only be resized accordingly. Should a drain be shaped differently than the common circular drains, i.e., a rectangle or triangle, a suitably shaped magnet that fits within the perimeter of those drains can easily be made by the process described herein. Such varieties of shapes and sizes are contemplated by this disclosure.  
         [0028]    While this invention has been particularly shown and described with references to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention encompassed by the appended claims.