STRAINER CUP FOR POP-UP DRAIN PLUG

Abstract: A conventional pop-up drain plug (10) is movable up and down by an actuator system (24) to open and close the entry open­ ing of a drain pipe (12). The plug includes a cap (16) at one end to seal the opening (14), a base (20) engagable by the actuator system (24), and an intermediate portion comprising a finned guide (28) and a stem (30). An upwardly open strainer cup (50) having a centrally aper­ tured bottom is forced over the plug base and onto the stem. The cup includes small openings (38) to pass drain water, and its rim is dimensioned to fit close to the drain pipe walls so that the cup will catch small articles passing through the drain pipe entry opening, while yet moving upwardly and downwardly with the drain plug.

Description: The present invention relates to a strainer cup which strains drain water without interfering with the normal operation of a pop-up drain plug. A pop-up drain plug is typically characterized by a cap at one end to open and close the plug seat or entry opening of the drain pipe. The base at the other end of the plug is acted upon by actuator means which move the plug up and down in the drain pipe. When the plug is up, water is free to flow from the sink, tub or the like, beneath the raised cap of the plug, and through the entry opening into the drain pipe. The water then flows past the intermediate portion of the plug. This portion includes a guide whose radially outwardly directed fins slidably engage the drain pipe walls to guide the plug in its up and down movement. The intermediate portion also includes a stem located between the guide and the plug base. Typically the stem is of a lesser cross section than the guide because there is no need for the fins to extend all the way to the base to insure alignment of the plug with the drain pipe. Also, the fins normally do not extend above the drain entry opening, even in the uppermost position of the plug. Under these circumstances, small articles such as contact lenses and jewelry items can accidentally be carried into the drain pipe with any water draining into the entry opening. The same is true of foreign substances such as hair, which can eventually clog the drain pipe. There are surface strainers in the prior art which can be placed adjacent the plug seat or entry opening, flush with the adjacent sink or tub surface, but this cannot be done until the drain plug is removed. Then, when the sink is to be filled, the strainer must be removed and the plug inserted. Emptying the filled sink so that all foreign objects are caught in the strainer is even more challenging because the strainer must be immediately positioned after the plug is removed. U.S. Patent No. 1,203,530, entitled "Combination Drainer and Stopper", issued to W. R. Gessler on October 31, 1916, show a surface strainer which can be left in the drain opening at all times. However, the strainer will not work with a pop-up type of drain plug. Each time such a pop-up plug is raised the guide fins on the plug would move up against the strainer and pop it out of the drain opening. Instead of a pop-up drain plug Gessler teaches a sink stopper which completely overlies the strainer. One feature of his strainer is that it is attached to a rod which slides through the center of the strainer. A disk-like base on the lower end of the rod engages the underside of the strainer whenever the householder wants to remove the strainer for cleaning. Otherwise, the strainer normally remains in one position, and in no event does it move with the rod. U.S. Patent No. 4,380,834 entitled "Pop-Up" Plunger", issued on April 26, 1983 to F. E. Wentz, discloses a pop-up drain plug and integral strainer which do move together. The strainer is designed to entrap small articles moving toward the drain opening with the drain water. However, such entrapment occurs before such articles pass through the drain opening. This is done by an apertured sleeve attached to and extending downwardly from the cap of the plug. The sleeve rises with the plug cap and is at all times in the path of the drain water, regardless of the height of the raised plug above the drain opening. Water can pass into the sleeve but small articles cannot. The complete length of the strainer must be precisely dimensioned to closely fit against the drain pipe walls so that small articles cannot fall between the strainer and the drain pipe in any raised position of the plug. As Wentz points out, this necessitates tolerances of two and one half to ten thousandths of an inch between the strainer and the adjacent drain pipe surface, and he indicates it may be necessary "to bore out or ream out the interior of the waste drain pipe." If close tolerances are not observed small articles, and particularly a contact lens, could slip between the strainer the the drain pipe. Needless to say, the installation procedure mentioned would be time consuming and not within the skill of most householders. According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a pop-up drain plug comprising a cap disposed at one end of the plug for sealing an entrance to a drain pipe; a base disposed at an opposite end of the plug and engagable by actuator means to reciprocate the plug within the drain pipe; an intermediate portion comprising a finned guide adjacent the cap for engagement with a wall of the drain pipe to guide the plug during its movement within the drain pipe and a stem disposed between the guide and the base, the stem having a smaller cross-section than either the guide or the base; and a strainer for catching small articles that pass through the entrance and into the drain pipe comprising an annular member capable of close fitting, freely slidable engagement with the wall of the drain pipe; characterised in that the strainer further comprises a disc shaped horizontal bottom wall having a plurality of relatively small openings that allow water to drain from the strainer without the loss of small articles caught thereby, the horizontal bottom wall being formed of a resilient material and having formed therein a plurality of inter-joined radially disposed slits that define a plurality of gripping flaps which spread apart when sliding the centre of the horizontal bottom wall over the base of the drain plug and on to the stem and are thereafter deformed downwardly to tightly and resiliently engage the stem thereby orientating the annular member during use while constraining the strainer against movement along the drain plug. Thus, small articles swept along by draining waste water are allowed to pass through the drain opening and into the drain pipe, but they are caught before they pass into or beyond the drain pipe trap. This is accomplished by a strainer cup which, although it can be made integral with the stem of a newly manufactured pop-up drain plug, is preferably retrofitted to the drain plug. According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a strainer for use with a pop-up drain plug for catching small articles that pass through an entrance to a drain pipe comprising an annular member capable of close fitting, freely slidable engagement with a wall of the drain pipe characterised in that the strainer further comprises a disc shaped horizontal bottom wall having a plurality of relatively small openings that allow water to drain from the strainer without the loss of small articles caught thereby, the horizontal bottom wall being formed of a resilient material and having formed therein a plurality of interjoined radially disposed slits that, in use, define a plurality of gripping flaps capable of tightly and resiliently engaging the drain plug. In a particular embodiment the strainer cup comprises a bottom and a peripherally continuous side wall which define an upwardly open container. The cup is provided with small openings to filter the drain water, and its bottom includes aperture means enabling the cup to be urged upwardly over the drain plug base and onto the plug stem. The material of the cup is resilient to frictionally grip the stem so that the cup moves up and down with the drain plug. At least the upper edge or rim of the side wall closely fits against but is freely slidable relative to the drain pipe walls. Consequently, if small artciles are carried into the drain pipe they are caught in the strainer cup from which they can easily be removed by lifting out the drain plug. The strainer cup can be made of either metal or plastic material and the small openings in the cup can be defined in any suitable way, including fabrication of the cup from fine mesh screen material. The aperture means in the cup bottom is preferably made so that the cup is "universal" in its ability to fit onto many different types of drain plug stems. Slits are provided which can be deformed downwardly to form mounting or gripping flaps when the cup is positioned upon the drain plug. Such flaps tend to bite into or grip the external surfaces of the plug stem to constrain the cup against movement and properly center it upon the drain plug. The bottom can also be provided with a central aperture complementally configured to fit on any particular drain plug stem. In all versions the strainer is operative without affecting the normal operation of the usual pop-up drain plug. Other aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following more detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view taken from above of the present strainer cup; FIG. 2 is a perspective view taken from below of the cup of FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is an enlarged view taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 2; FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3, illustrating an embodiment of the strainer cup in which the upper or free edge of the cup if flared or feathered radially outwardly to limit its engagement with the drain pipe wall to the free edge; FIG. 5 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 1 but illustrating an embodiment of the strainer cup made of fine mesh material; FIG. 6 is a series of partially diagrammatic bottom plan views of various embodiments of strainer cup, illustrating various configurations of central aperture systems which may be employed to enhance mounting of the strainer cups to various configurations of drain plug stem; FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the strainer cup of FIGS. 1 and 2 mounted upon a pop-up drain plug; FIG. 8 is an enlarged view taken along the line 8-8 of FIG. 7; FIG. 9 is a view taken along the line 9-9 of FIG 8; FIG. 11 is a partially diagrammatic view of the strainer cup carried by a drain plug mounted in operative position within a drain pipe and operated by an actuator system; and FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a second form of strainer mounted upon a drain and embodying the present invention. Referring now to FIG. 11 a typical or conventional pop-up drain plug 10 is illustrated as it would appear installed within the usual generally cylindrical waste drain pipe 12. The drain pipe includes a conical seat or entry opening 14 at its upper end which forms the drain from the associated sink or tub. The drain plug includes a cap 16 at its upper end which is complementally configured relative to the drain opening seat, and has a larger diameter than the seat, so that when the plug is moved from the upper position illustrated in FIG. 11 to a lower position, the cap 16 engages the seat or margins of the opening 14 and prevents waste water from draining from the sink 18 and into the drain pipe 12. The drain plug also includes a base 20 at its opposite or lower end. This is engagable by the free end of a lever 22 which forms part of an actuator system 24. An extension 26 of the lever is connected by suitable linkages (not shown) to a sink knob (not shown) which can be raised or lowered to pivot the lever 22 up and down. This lowers and raises the drain plug, respectively, to close and open the drain opening 14. The weight of the drain plug normally causes it to fall into closed position whenever the lever is down, all as is well known. The base 20 is most often rounded or bulbous to easily ride upon the free end of the lever 22. However, certain types of drain plug have an enlarged, offset base configured to partially capture a complementally configured lever arm (not shown) of the actuator system. The present invention is adapted for association with various types of drain plug, including the offset type. As best seen in FIGS. 7-9, the drain plug includes an intermediate portion comprising a guide 28 located adjacent the cap 16 and characterized by four radially directed and longitudinally extending fins. These engage the inner walls of the drain pipe at their outer extremities to properly orient and guide the drain plug during its up and down movement. Drain water can flow freely downwardly through the spaces between the fins. The intermediate portion of the drain plug also includes an elongated stem 30 located between the guide 28 and the base 20. The cross section of the stem is less than that of the guide 28, becoming gradually smaller in a downward direction until it smoothly merges or fairs into the larger cross section of the base 20. In the raised position of the drain plug an annular space exists between the plug cap 16 and the drain opening 14 which is sufficiently large for small articles such as jewelry items and contact lenses to pass with drain water into the drain pipe. Ordinarily such items end up in the usual drain trap and, since access to the trap is difficult, they are frequently abandoned, or even lost if they are not lodged in the trap. Hair and other foreign substances also pass into the drain trap in this manner, and eventually clog the drain. The cup strainer 32 of the present invention prevents this. As seen in FIGS 1-3, the strainer is attachable to the drain plug stem and comprises a generally horizontally oriented bottom 34 and a peripherally continuous side wall 36 which together define an upwardly open container. The strainer 32 is preferably made frusto-conical in configuration, with the larger diameter upper edge or rim dimensioned to fit closely adjacent and in freely slidable relation to the inner surface of the drain pipe 12. This permits up and down movement of the drain plug, but prevents the passage of small articles between the strainer and the drain pipe. Instead, the articles fall or are directed into the interior of the strainer. The strainer side wall and bottom are foraminous, including a plurality of small circular openings 38. The openings can be of any shape or distribution so long as they are small enough to catch small articles, such as jewelry items and contact lenses, but large enough to allow a free flow of drain water through the strainer. A fine mesh material can be used to fabricate the strainer, if desired, a suitable strainer 32a of this type being illustrated in FIG. 5. The mesh interstices define the small openings which permit filtered flow of waste water through the strainer. The strainer is preferably made of a flexible, resilient material such as rubber or plastic material. Such a material having a low coefficient of friction would be particularly suitable. If desired, the upper edge or rim of the side wall 36 can be flared or feathered radially outwardly, as shown at 40 in the modified side wall 36a illustrated in FIG. 4. This further insures precise engagement between the strainer and the drain wall inner surfaces. Another option to provide improved close engagement is to make the upper edge or rim of flexible resilient material which is flared or feathered radially outwardly. Such a rim may take the form of a plastic ring 40a molded to the upper edge of the side wall, as seen in FIG. 5. Regardless of the version of strainer employed, it is unnecessary for the strainer to be in close engagement with the drain pipe wall throughout its entire height. All that is required is to provide a close engagement at the upper rim of the strainer to catch small articles, as compared to the strainer of Wentz (U.S. 4,380,834). It will be recalled that the Wentz strainer must have a precise, close fitting engagement with the drain pipe in any raised position of the drain plug in order to prevent entry of small articles into the strainer, and trap them in the sink before they pass into the drain opening. As will be apparent, it is far easier to provide a close tolerance fit between only a portion of the strainer and the drain pipe. Such tolerances are more easily achieved if the strainer is made of the flexible, resilient rubber or plastic material preferred by applicant. The strainer 32 includes central aperture means which adapt it for "universal" connection to variously configured drain plug stems. As seen in FIG. 6, the strainer bottom 34 is provided with such a means in the form of a central aperture 42 communicating with four radially directed cuts or slits 44. When the strainer bottom is forced over and past the plunger base 20 and onto the stem 30, aperture 42 receives the stem, and the slits 44 spread apart and deform downwardly to define gripping flaps 46, as seen in FIGS. 8 and 11. The aperture 42 is preferably made slightly smaller than the stem so that after it is stretched to fit over the large diameter bulbous base 20 it will tightly grip the stem surfaces. This gripping, and the action of the flaps 46, provide good frictional engagement between the strainer and the drain plug stem for properly orienting the strainer and constraining it against any movement relative to the drain plug. If the strainer is made of metal, the gripping flaps 46 will have sharp edges which will dig or bite into the material of the stem and aid in constraining the strainer against relative movement. The strainer bottoms 34a-e shown in FIG. 6 are illustrative of various central aperture means which can be provided to accommodate the strainer to various drain stem configurations. Sometimes only a single central aperture is necessary, whether round, square, etc., while in other instances the use of one or more slits, alone or in combination with a central aperture, is helpful. In any event, it will be apparent that an aperture means can be selected which is best suited to the particular application at hand. The strainer cup is easily retrofitted to virtually any standard form of pop-up drain plug simply by positioning the larger open end of the strainer over the plug base until the base engages the central aperture means. The strainer is then forcibly urged upwardly until the aperture means passes over the base and onto the plug stem into firm gripping relation. Lowering the drain plug into the drain pipe with the strainer in place automatically orients the upper edge or rim of the strainer in close engagement with the inner surface of the drain pipe. Consequently, in the upper or open position of the drain plug, water draining from the sink necessarily passes into the open end of the strainer and out the strainer openings, and not between the strainer rim and the drain pipe. As a result, any small articles or foreign matter carried out of the sink by the drain water will fall into the strainer. From there the articles can easily be retrieved by pulling the drain plug out of the drain pipe and emptying the strainer cup. Referring now to FIG. 10, there is shown a flat, horizontal, perforated strainer disc 50 which may be substituted for the strainer cup 32. Disc 50 may be formed of any suitable material, as for example, a wire mesh. The disc may also be provided with a small collar (not shown) to retain foreign material on the disc as it is pulled upwardly for cleaning. The straining means could also take the form of a concave disc (not shown). A suitable strainer could also be formed from a plurality of flexible or rigid radially extending fingers radiating outwardly from the stem. This form of strainer would offer but slight resistance to vertical plug movement, since only the ends of the fingers would touch the inside of the drain pipe. It should further be noted that any of the strainers can be rigidly attached to the stem 30. From the foregoing it will be apparent that the strainer is easily fitted to various forms of pop-up drain plug to collect or catch articles which inadvertently pass out of the sink with the drain water, and the strainer does not affect the normal operation of the drain system.

Claims: A pop-up drain plug (10) comprising a cap (16) disposed at one end of the plug (10) for sealing an entrance (14) to a drain pipe (12); a base (20) disposed at an opposite end of the plug (10) and engagable by actuator means (22, 24, 26) to reciprocate the plug (10) within the drain pipe (12); an intermediate portion comprising a finned guide (28) adjacent the cap (16) for engagement with a wall of the drain pipe (12) to guide the plug (10) during its movement within the drain pipe (12) and a stem (30) disposed between the guide (28) and the base (20), the stem (30) having a smaller cross-section than either the guide (28) or the base (20); and a strainer (32) for catching small articles that pass through the entrance (14) and into the drain pipe (12) comprising an annular member (36) capable of close fitting, freely slidable engagement with the wall of the drain pipe (12); characterised in that the strainer (32) further comprises a disc shaped horizontal bottom wall (34) having a plurality of relatively small openings (38) that allow water to drain from the strainer (32) without the loss of small articles caught thereby, the horizontal bottom wall (34) being formed of a resilient material and having formed therein a plurality of interjoined radially disposed slits (44) that define a plurality of gripping flaps (46) which spread apart when sliding the centre of the horizontal bottom wall (34) over the base (20) of the drain plug (10) and on to the stem (30) and are thereafter deformed downwardly to tightly and resiliently engage the stem (30) thereby orientating the annular member (36) during use while constraining the strainer (32) against movement along the drain plug (10). A pop-up drain plug in accordance with Claim 1, wherein the horizontal bottom wall (34) is additionally formed with a central aperture (42) from which the radially disposed slits (44) extend. A pop-up drain plug in accordance with Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein the annular member (36) is cup-shaped. A pop-up drain plug in accordance with any preceding claim, wherein the annular member (36) includes a rim (40) dimensioned for precise, slidable and close fitting engagement with the wall of the drain pipe (12). A strainer (32) for use with a pop-up drain plug (10) for catching small articles that pass through an entrance (14) to a drain pipe (12) comprising an annular member (36) capable of close fitting, freely slidable engagement with a wall of the drain pipe (12) characterised in that the strainer (32) further comprises a disc shaped horizontal bottom wall (34) having a plurality of relatively small openings (38) that allow water to drain from the strainer (32) without the loss of small articles caught thereby, the horizontal bottom wall (34) being formed of a resilient material and having formed therein a plurality of interjoined radially disposed slits (44) that, in use, define a plurality of gripping flaps (46) capable of tightly and resiliently engaging the drain plug (10). A strainer in accordance with Claim 5, wherein the horizontal bottom wall (34) is additionally formed with a central aperture (42) from which the radially disposed slits (44) extend. A strainer in accordance with Claim 5 or Claim 6, wherein the annual member (36) is cup-shaped. A strainer in accordance with any of Claims 5 to 7, wherein the annular member (36) includes a rim (40) dimensioned for precise, slidable and close fitting engagement with the wall of the drain pipe (12).

Inventors: RIDGEWAY, WILLIAM V.
Applicants: RIDGEWAY, WILLIAM V.
Application year: 1990
Main classification: E03C1
IPC codes: B01D35, B01D29, A47K1, E03C1