Patent Publication Number: US-2004050422-A1

Title: Easy-to-install faucet handle assembly

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001] 1. Field of the Invention  
       [0002] The present invention relates to an easy-to-install faucet handle assembly that can be directly mounted from top of a sink.  
       [0003] 2. Description of the Related Art  
       [0004] A conventional faucet includes at least one handle assembly and a spout assembly that are mounted separately on a sink. By turning the handle, water passes through a valve means and a hose to the spout. FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings illustrate a conventional faucet handle assembly including a handle  17 , an escutcheon  11 , and a valve body  10 . The valve body  10  is inserted through a through-hole  21  of a sink  20  and then held in place by the escutcheon  11  mounted on top of the valve body  10  and a nut  12  mounted around the valve body  10  and attached to an underside of the sink  20 . Provided in a bottom of the valve body  10  is an inlet end  13  with an outer threading, and a side outlet  14  is provided in a lower portion of the valve body  10  with an outer threading for connection with a connector  23  on an end of a hose  22 . The inlet end  13  and the side outlet  14  of the valve body  10  are respectively communicated with an inlet and an outlet of a valve means  15  in the valve body  10 . A stem  16  of the valve means  15  extends upward through the escutcheon  11  for connection with the handle  17  via a bolt  18 .  
       [0005] Since the side outlet  14  is a portion protruded outward from the valve body  10  and since the use of the nut  12 , the faucet handle assembly could not be directly mounted to the sink  20  as a whole unit. Instead, as shown in FIG. 2, the user must detach the faucet handle assembly for installation through the above-mentioned procedure. Thus, the installation of the faucet handle assembly is not suitable for DIY (do it yourself), as it is troublesome, complex, time-consuming, and labor-intensive. Further, the elements of the faucet handle assembly could fall and thus damage the surface of the sink.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0006] An object of the present invention is to provide a faucet handle assembly that can be directly installed to the sink as a whole unit without the need of detachment. The faucet handle assembly is directly inserted through a through-hole of the sink from top of the sink, and a nut is mounted from an underside of the sink, thereby easily and rapidly fixing the faucet handle assembly in place. This saves labor and time and is thus suitable for DIY.  
       [0007] A faucet handle assembly in accordance with the present invention comprises a tubular valve body, a valve means, and a handle. The tubular valve body is mounted in a through-hole of a sink. An escutcheon and a locking member are respectively mounted on an upper side and an underside of the sink for clamping the sink. The tubular valve body includes an inlet end in a bottom thereof for communication with a water source. The tubular valve body further includes a side outlet in a lower portion of an outer periphery thereof for communication with a spout. The tubular valve body further includes an outer threading. The valve means is rotatably mounted in the tubular valve body and includes a stem extending through the escutcheon. The handle is securely connected to the stem, thereby allowing joint rotation of the handle and the valve means.  
       [0008] The whole valve body is inserted from top of the sink through the through-hole of the sink. The locking member having an inner threading is then threadedly engaged on the outer threading of the valve body, with a rubber washer being sandwiched between the locking member and an underside of the sink. Thus, the sink is securely held between the escutcheon and the nut. Next, a connector on the end of a hose is coupled to the inner threading of the side outlet of the valve body for communication with a spout. The whole installation procedure is simple and easy and is thus suitable for DIY  
       [0009] Other objects, advantages, and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
     [0010]FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a sink and a conventional faucet handle assembly.  
     [0011]FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the sink and the conventional faucet handle assembly in FIG. 1.  
     [0012]FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a faucet handle assembly in accordance with the present invention.  
     [0013]FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a sink and the faucet handle assembly in accordance with the present invention.  
     [0014]FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a sink and another embodiment of the faucet handle assembly in accordance with the present invention.  
     [0015]FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view illustrating installation of the faucet handle assembly in FIG. 5. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
     [0016] Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, a faucet handle assembly in accordance with the present invention generally comprises a tubular valve body  30 , a valve means  31  rotatably mounted in the valve body  30 , and a handle  80 . The valve means  31  includes a stem  32  extending upward through a central hole  41  of an escutcheon  40 . The central hole  41  of the escutcheon  40  has a threaded portion  42 . The stem  32  further extends upward into a stepped hole  81  in an end of the handle  80 , and a bolt  82  is used to connect the end of the handle  80  to the stem  32 , allowing joint rotation of the handle  80  and the stem  32 . Thus, when the handle  80  turns, the valve means  31  is turned. The threaded portion  42  of the central hole  41  of the escutcheon  40  is threadedly engaged with an upper threaded portion  37  of the valve body  30 . The valve body  30 , the valve means  31 , the escutcheon  40 , and the handle  80  are assembled together as a unit.  
     [0017] The valve body  30  includes an inlet end  33  at a bottom thereof, the inlet end  33  having an outer threading for engaging with an inlet pipe (not shown) communicated with a water source (not shown). A side outlet  34  is provided in a lower portion of an outer periphery of the valve body  30  and has an inner threading  35  for coupling with a connector  24  mounted on an end of a hose  22 . The inlet end  33  and the side outlet  34  are respectively communicated with an inlet (not shown) and an outlet (not shown) of the valve means  31  in a conventional manner. In an embodiment of the invention, the inlet end  33  is partially reduced or bent to avoid interference with an inner end of the side outlet  34 . Alternatively, the inlet end  33  is communicated with the whole interior of the valve body  30 , while the side outlet  34  is replaced with an inner tube.  
     [0018] Since the side outlet  34  is completely located in the valve body  30 , the outer threading  36  may be provided throughout an outer periphery of the valve body  30 . Thus, it is not necessary to detach the faucet handle assembly before installation to the sink  20 . Namely, the whole valve body  30  is inserted from top of the sink  20  through the through-hole  21  of the sink  20 . A locking member (e.g., a nut  50 ) having an inner threading  51  is then threadedly engaged on the outer threading  36  of the valve body  30 , with a rubber washer  70  being sandwiched between the nut  50  and an underside of the sink  20 . Thus, the sink  20  is securely held between the escutcheon  40  and the nut  50 . Next, the connector  24  on the end of the hose  22  is coupled to the inner threading  35  of the side outlet  34  of the valve body  30 . The whole installation procedure is simple and easy and is thus suitable for DIY.  
     [0019]FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate a modified embodiment of the invention, wherein a positioning washer  66  and a rubber washer  70  are mounted between the underside of the sink  20  and a locking member, e.g., a locking plate  60 . The locking plate  60  has a screw hole  61  for threadedly engaging with the outer threading  36  of the valve body  30 . A plurality of ears  62  are provided on an outer periphery of the locking plate  60  and spaced at intervals, each ear  62  having a screw hole  63  (FIG. 6). A bolt  64  with a hexagonal head or a bolt  65  with a slot or a cruciform groove in a head thereof is extended through the screw hole  63  of each ear  62  until a distal end of each bolt  64 ,  65  pressing against the positioning washer  66  and the rubber washer  70 . Thus, the sink  20  is reliably clamped. In use, water enters from the inlet end  33  (see the arrow in FIG. 5) of the valve body  30  and an inner tube (not labeled) into the valve body  30 , passes through the valve means  31 , and then outputs to the spout (not shown) through the side outlet  34  and the hose  22 .  
     [0020] In the conventional faucet handle assembly of FIG. 1, the nut  12  can only be turned by an open end of a combination wrench. This would cause inconvenience if the space for installation procedure is limited. But the nut  50  in FIG. 4 in accordance with the present invention can be turned by any wrench, including a socket wrench, which is more convenient. Further, the nut  60  in FIG. 5 or  6  can be turned by hand. In conclusion, the installation procedure for the faucet handle assembly in accordance with the present invention can be achieved in a simple, rapid, and easy manner without detaching the faucet handle assembly. Further, the user has more options in the tools for installing the faucet handle assembly in accordance with the present invention.  
     [0021] Although the invention has been explained in relation to its preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that many other possible modifications and variations can be made without departing from the scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.