Patent Abstract:
A sprayer seating assembly is disclosed for more securely docking a sprayer head to an escutcheon positioned on a countertop or the like. The escutcheon has a bore extending there through and a recess adjacent the bore. A sprayer head is linked to a supply hose and has a recess adjacent a base portion of the sprayer head. A flexible snap member is mounted in one of the recesses such that it can flex at least partially into the other of the recesses when the recesses are aligned. The escutcheon forms a rest seat for the sprayer head and the flexible snap member assists in removably retaining the sprayer head against the rest seat.

Full Description:
CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    Not Applicable. 
       STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH 
       [0002]    Not Applicable. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    The present invention relates to sprayer heads associated with plumbing fittings such as faucets. More particularly it relates to assemblies for more securely docking a sprayer head between uses. 
         [0004]    It is very common to associate a sprayer with a faucet used adjacent a kitchen sink. Most often, the sprayer is mounted separately from the faucet along a back mounting ledge of the sink or along a counter top behind or at a side of the sink. When the sprayer is not directly incorporated into the faucet it is sometimes referred to as a “side spray”. 
         [0005]    Of course, even such side sprays are typically linked to a faucet via various supply lines under the counter, often via a diversion system that operates such that triggering the side spray will automatically divert water from a faucet outlet to the sprayer head. 
         [0006]    In other arrangements, the sprayer is of the pull-out type and is mounted on a part of the faucet itself. See e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 6,220,297. In this type of arrangement, the sprayer can be mounted on a horizontal portion of the faucet. However, in other designs it can be docked to a more vertical part of the faucet. See e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 5,934,325. 
         [0007]    Regardless of whether the sprayer is docked between uses on a horizontal, partially vertical, or completely vertical surface, it is desirable that the sprayer appear to be properly positioned between uses. To facilitate this many sprayers have a weighted hose which tends to automatically drag the sprayer back to its seat when the sprayer is not held out from the seat. However, such a system can be defeated if too many boxes and bottles (e.g. dishwashing detergent and counter top cleaner) are stored under the sink and stop the weight from properly performing. Even when that is not the case, the sprayer head, as it docks, can sometimes catch in a position where it appears tilted. 
         [0008]    In one approach to address these types of issues, a magnet was associated with the seat to use magnetic force to help properly seat the sprayer during docking. However, that placed some constraints on the materials which were used, and the effectiveness of this technique is somewhat limited if the spray head is accidentally bumped. 
         [0009]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,758,690 described the use of a spring loaded ball to help facilitate positioning of a spout part. However, such a system is somewhat complicated to install, and in any event could suffer from maintenance and/or reliability concerns. 
         [0010]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,381,770 disclosed the use of flex tabs on a spray head to facilitate mounting of a spray head through side walls of a mounting base. However, this significantly affected the aesthetics of the design. 
         [0011]    Accordingly, there exists a need for improving the manner in which sprayers are docked to their seating areas between uses, without incurring these other types of concerns. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0012]    In one aspect the invention provides a sprayer seating assembly. The sprayer seating assembly includes an escutcheon suitable for positioning on a surface of a support. The escutcheon has a bore extending there through and a recess adjacent the bore. A sprayer head is linked to a supply hose and has a recess adjacent a base portion of the sprayer head. 
         [0013]    The sprayer head and supply hose are positioned so that the supply hose extends out of a first end of the bore, and so that the sprayer head can at the same time extend beyond a second end of the bore. A flexible snap member is mounted in one of the recesses such that it can flex at least partially into the other of the recesses when the recesses are aligned. When the sprayer head is not in use, the escutcheon forms a rest seat for the sprayer head and the flexible snap member assists in removably retaining the sprayer head against the rest seat. 
         [0014]    In one form the sprayer seating assembly is mounted to a support selected from the group consisting of essentially horizontal counter tops, essentially horizontal plumbing fixture walls, and essentially horizontal plumbing fitting walls. The escutcheon may be threaded to a supply tube. A clamping nut may be mounted to the supply tube such that the escutcheon and the clamping nut sandwich the support. 
         [0015]    In another form the escutcheon may have a tapered portion along the bore to accommodate in docking fashion a tapered portion of the base portion of the sprayer head. 
         [0016]    In yet another form the base portion of the sprayer head may be connected to the supply hose via a ball and socket connection. A filter may be positioned downstream of the ball and socket connection in the sprayer head. 
         [0017]    In still yet another form, a plastic washer is positioned in the bore upstream of the sprayer head. 
         [0018]    In other forms the flexible snap member may be a snap ring mounted in an annular recess in the escutcheon. The recesses in the escutcheon and on the sprayer head could both be essentially annular. The flexible snap member may be made of a plastic. The flexible snap member may have a radially inward edge that is pointed. 
         [0019]    It should therefore be understood that the present invention provides a sprayer head assembly incorporating a flexible snap member to improve the docking of a sprayer head into an escutcheon. When docked, the flexible snap member helps to maintain the sprayer head in an upright position in the escutcheon. Without the flexible snap member, the sprayer head would have a greater tendency not to dock properly when inserted into the escutcheon. 
         [0020]    Moreover, the flexible snap member will provide an improved tactile/assurance experience during the docking and undocking operations. When a user inserts or removes the sprayer head from the escutcheon, there is a defined moment at which the user feels a change in resistance. This change in resistance is an indication that the docking operation has worked and provides a sense of quality. 
         [0021]    These modifications to a standard sprayer docking system can be achieved at low cost. Further, they can operate in a reliable manner long term. 
         [0022]    The foregoing and other advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description. In that description reference will be made to the accompanying drawings which form a part thereof, and in which there is shown by way of illustration an example embodiment of the invention. However, the example embodiment is not intended as a representation of the full scope of the invention. Rather, the claims should be looked to for that purpose. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0023]      FIG. 1  is a left frontal perspective view of a sprayer head assembly embodying the present invention, positioned adjacent a faucet on a counter top; 
           [0024]      FIG. 2  is an enlarged partially exploded perspective view of the sprayer head; 
           [0025]      FIG. 3  is a partial cross-sectional view taken along line  3 - 3  of  FIG. 1 ; and 
           [0026]      FIG. 4  is a view similar to  FIG. 3 , but with the sprayer head shown in a use position.  3 , but in which the sprayer head is removed from the escutcheon. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0027]    Referring first to  FIG. 1 , a faucet  10  and a sprayer head  12  are shown on an upper surface of a counter top, support  14 . The support  14  could alternatively be the rear edge of a kitchen sink, or could even be a portion of a faucet base. 
         [0028]    The faucet  10  may have a conventional base  16  with a valve control handle  18  that extends out a side. In a well known manner, rotating the handle will control both volume and temperature. The faucet in this embodiment has a swing type J spout  20  which terminates in a conventional aerated outlet  22 . When the spray is not being used, and the user turns the handle  18 , water will flow from underneath the support  14 , through the base  16 , past a valve (not shown), to the spout  20 , and then out the outlet  22 . 
         [0029]    In a conventional manner, and via a diverter associated with faucet  10 , when the sprayer head  12  is triggered this will divert water from the operating faucet  10  to the sprayer head. When the triggering stops, water will restart through the spout  20 , until the handle  18  turns the faucet off. 
         [0030]    Between uses the sprayer head  12  is docked in a decorative escutcheon  24  at a position to the side of the faucet  10 . As depicted in  FIG. 4 , by pulling up on the sprayer head  12  with sufficient force the sprayer head will undock from the escutcheon head, and extra supply hose  36  will allow the sprayer head  12  to be optimally positioned and aimed. Although not required, a weight (not shown) on the supply hose  36  can be used to bias the sprayer head  12  back towards the docked position and reduce the difficulty of returning the supply hose  36  below the support  14 . 
         [0031]    The sprayer head  12  has a generally cylindrical main body  26  with a base portion  28 , and a top portion  30  that has a plurality of nozzles  32 . The sprayer head  12  includes a trigger  34  located on the side of the body  26 . 
         [0032]    The internal operation of the sprayer head  12  can be of a conventional well known type. For example, the trigger  34  can be outwardly biased to an off position in which no water flows from the nozzles  32 . When the faucet  10  is on and the trigger  34  is squeezed, water will flow out of the nozzles  32  of the sprayer head  12 . In another form, the sprayer head  12  may operate independently of the faucet  10 . In this form, squeezing the trigger  34  will initiate spraying from the nozzles  32  whether or not the faucet  10  was initially running. 
         [0033]    Referring next to  FIGS. 2 and 3 , it can be seen that the escutcheon  24  has an axial bore  38  extending there through, and a radially extending recess  40  adjacent to the bore  38 . The bore  38  is shaped to receive the base portion  28  of the sprayer head  12 . Along the base portion  28  of the sprayer head  12  there is a recess  42 . 
         [0034]    In  FIG. 2  the supply hose  36  can be seen extending from the bottom of the base portion  28 . The supply hose  36  is intended to extend down into the bore  38  and through the support  14  when the sprayer head is being used. The supply hose  36  also extends down out of a bottom end of the bore  38  while, at the same time, the sprayer head  12  extends beyond the top end of the bore  38 . 
         [0035]    Perhaps more importantly, a flexible snap member  44  is mounted and retained in the recess  40  in the escutcheon  24 . Most preferably, the flexible snap member  44  is a snap C-ring. Alternatively, it can be other types of generally ring-shaped members, with an arcuate segment removed. 
         [0036]    It should be appreciated that during the mounting of the flexible snap member  44  into the recess  40  of the escutcheon  24 , the flexible snap member  44  is temporarily radially compressed and inserted into the bore  38 , where it then returns to its original unstressed shape. The flexible snap member  44  has a radially inward edge  46  that is particularly shaped to engage the recess  42  of the sprayer head  12 . The flexible snap member  44  may be made of plastic or any other material that is sufficiently elastic to withstand the deformation necessary to compress or expand during mounting and the docking operation. 
         [0037]    The recess  40  of the escutcheon  24  and the recess  42  of the sprayer head  12  are both preferably annular. However, other shapes and types of recesses could be used to accommodate for other types of flexible snap members. 
         [0038]    Although the flexible snap member  44  is shown as being mounted in a recess  40  of the escutcheon  24 , that a flexible snap member could also be mounted in the recess  42  of the sprayer head  12 . Thus, one of the recesses will have the flexible snap member initially mounted in it, while the other of the recesses will be used to receive the flexible snap member for retention purposes when the recesses are vertically aligned during docking. However, it is preferable to place the snap member in the escutcheon  24  initially as initially placing it on the base of the sprayer head leaves it somewhat more visible. 
         [0039]    Referring now primarily to  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the escutcheon  24  is mounted over and somewhat in a hole  47  in the support  14 . A sleeve  48  is threaded to the bottom of the bore  38  of the escutcheon  24  until the sleeve  48  abuts a stop that restricts the further rotation of the sleeve  48 . During installation, the escutcheon  24  and sleeve  48  are extended through the hole  47 , and a clamping nut  50  is threaded onto the sleeve  48 , thereby creating a sandwich construction which tightly holds these parts in place. 
         [0040]    Alternatively, escutcheon  24  may be integrally formed with the sleeve  48 . In this form, the clamping nut  50  could be directly threaded to a portion of the escutcheon  24 . 
         [0041]    As a refinement, to minimize damage to the support  14 , and to inhibit leakage past the escutcheon, an o-ring  52  may be placed in a channel along the underside of the escutcheon  24  to contact the top side of the support  14 . Also, a spacer  54  may be placed between the clamping nut  50  and bottom side of the support  14 . 
         [0042]    Referring now specifically mostly to  FIG. 4 , the sprayer head  12  is connected to the supply hose  36  via a ball and socket type joint. A connecting piece  56  has a first end with a multiple barb tube fitting  58 , a second end with a ball joint portion  60 , and a channel  62  placing the hose  36  in fluid communication with the sprayer head  12 . 
         [0043]    At one end, the supply hose  36  is fitted over the multiple barb tube fitting  58 . At the other end, the ball joint portion  60  is placed in a socket joint portion  64  of the sprayer head  12 . An o-ring  66  forms a seal between the ball joint portion  60  and the socket joint portion  64 , so that any water is directed through a filter  68  placed downstream of the ball and socket joint and through the sprayer head  12 . 
         [0044]    This ball and socket joint allows the sprayer head  12  to rotate and pivot somewhat freely relative to the hose  36 . If the sprayer head  12  was more rigidly connected to the supply hose  36 , then certain types of movement may be difficult without twisting the supply hose  36 . 
         [0045]    Importantly,  FIGS. 3 and 4  show details of the docking process and, in particular, how the flexible snap member  44  and tapered walls of the bore  38  and the base portion  28  assist in the docking process. In this regard, when the base portion  28  is docked in the bore  38  of the escutcheon  24 , the flexible snap member  44  is expanded radially to grip around the recess  42  on the sprayer head  12 . 
         [0046]    When the base portion  28  of the sprayer head  12  is inserted into the bore  38 , the flexible snap member  44  is expanded until it suddenly snaps to engage or snag the recess  42  of the base portion  28  when the recesses  40  and  42  align. In this position, the flexible snap member  44  occupies at least a portion of each of the recesses  40  and  42  to help retain the sprayer head  12  in the upright position. 
         [0047]    In some forms, even when the flexible snap member  44  occupies at least part of both recesses  40  and  42 , the flexible snap member  44  is still elastically flexed and would like to return to its original shape (e.g., the shape of the flexible snap member  44  in  FIG. 4 ). The force that the flexible snap member  44  exerts in an attempt to return to the original shape helps to retain the sprayer head  12  in the rest seat of the escutcheon  24 . 
         [0048]    To promote smooth docking, both the base portion  28  of the sprayer head  12  and the bore  38  of the escutcheon  24  may have tapered walls as shown. In this way, during the docking a smaller part of the base portion  28  of the sprayer head  12  first enters the larger part of the bore  38  of the escutcheon  24 . This decreases the likelihood of the edges of the components prematurely snagging on one another. Moreover, as the base portion  28  is fully seated in the bore  38  of the escutcheon  24 , the sprayer head  12  is directed into a centered upright position. 
         [0049]    Further, the combination of the tapered walls and the flexible snap member provide additional advantages. For example, in comparison to essentially vertical parallel walls, the tapered walls decrease the response time of the flexible snap member  44 . 
         [0050]    There may also be a protective washer  70  placed on the bottom of the bore  38  to prevent metal-on-metal contact between bottom of the base portion  28  and the bottom of the bore  38 . The protective washer  70  may be made of a polymeric material. 
         [0051]    Thus, the sprayer seating assembly of the present invention achieves a variety of important advantages. It helps secure the sprayer head in a proper docking position, and maintain the sprayer head in that position if accidentally bumped. Further, it helps inform the consumer when a proper docking position has been reached. Also, when the concept is used on a support that is not completely horizontal, it reduces the likelihood of sprayer head droop between uses. 
         [0052]    What has been described thus far is merely a preferred embodiment of the invention. It should be appreciated that various other modifications could be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, the flexible snap member could be mounted to the base portion of the sprayer head instead of in the bore of the escutcheon. Thus, the claims should be looked to in order to judge the full scope of the invention. 
       INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY 
       [0053]    The present invention provides improved sprayer seating assembly for docking and undocking a sprayer head from a seating area.

Technology Classification (CPC): 8