Patent Abstract:
A manual and automatic flusher includes an infrared sensor added to a conventional manual flusher, and the infrared sensor consists of an electronic eye and an electromagnetic valve. The electro-magnetic valve has an iron core moved in and out for controlling opening and shutting of a block, and a communicating tube connected between a flow hole of the block and the upper end of a valve body to enable a hand rod and the infrared sensor separately operated by means of the flexibility of the communicating tube, not interfering with each other. Then the flusher can be used by a manual operation or by automatic operation, with a simple structure for manufacturing.

Full Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0002]    This invention relates to a manual and automatic flusher, particularly to one operable manually and automatically and having a simple structure to be easily made so as to lower its cost.  
           [0003]    2. Description of Prior Art  
           [0004]    Nowadays a flusher used for a toilet is quite indispensable both in personal houses and public buildings. And a conventional manual flusher was disclosed in a U.S. Pat. No. 4,327,891, which includes a hand rod for forcing a valve to incline to cause a pressure releasing passageway to let water to flow and permitting a film so far pressed down to recover its position and move up to let water to flow in a large volume out of an outlet passageway for flushing a toilet. This manual flusher can operate by gripping directly the hand rod, so the hand rod may become dirty, and should a user forget or not press the hand rod, the toilet may produce bad odor and pollute the environment.  
           [0005]    Further, a conventional automatic flush e r was disclosed in a U.S. Pat. No. 4,793,588, which includes an infrared sensor in an upper portion, and an electric-magnetic valve provided in the infrared sensor having a iron core to be moved out and in so that a pressure releasing passageway may be controlled to open and close so that a pressure-adding room storing water may be reduced in its pressure to let a film to move up for water to flow out of an outlet passageway, obtaining automatic flushing effect.  
           [0006]    However, the conventional automatic flusher has the following disadvantages.  
           [0007]    1. It depends on the infrared sensor and the electromagnetic valve to operate flushing, and if these electronic components get out of order, the flusher has to be repaired before it can be used to flush water, needing a period of waiting time required in its repair, very embarrassing.  
           [0008]    2. It needs an electric power of DC or AC, so no matter which is its power, if the AC power happens outage or the DC of a battery is used up, the flusher has to wait until its power is recovered, not convenient.  
           [0009]    3. It depends on the infrared sensor for flushing water, it cannot continue to let water flushed as the manual flusher for continuously keep water flushed out by keeping pressing the hand rod.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0010]    The purpose of the invention is to offer a manual and automatic flusher, possible to be used normally by the automatic mode and to be used manually in case of the automatic mode gets out of order, without need of waiting the automatic structure repaired. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS  
       [0011]    This invention will be better understood by referring to the accompanying drawings, wherein:  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a manual and automatic flusher in the present invention;  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 2 is a side cross-sectional view of the automatic flusher in the present invention;  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 3 is the side cross-sectional view of the manual and automatic flusher in the present invention, showing it filled with water;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 4 is a side cross-sectional view of the manual and automatic flusher in the present invention, showing manual flushing;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 5 is a side cross-sectional view of the manual and automatic flusher in the present invention showing automatic flushing;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a second embodiment of a communicating tube in the present invention;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of a third embodiment of a communicating tube in the present invention; and,  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a fourth embodiment of a communicating tube in the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0020]    The preferred embodiment of a manual and automatic flusher in the present invention, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and  3 , includes a cup member  10 , a base tube  20 , a film  30 , a pressure cap  40 , a valve body  50 , a hand rod  60 , an upper cap  70 , a communicating tube  80  and an infrared sensor  90  as main components combined together.  
         [0021]    The cup member  10  is provided with an inlet  11 , a combine hole  12 , an outlet  13 , and a chamber  14 . A tubular base  15  extends upright on the bottom of the chamber  14 ,  
         [0022]    The base tube  20  is firmly fixed inside the tubular base  15 , having a close groove  21  formed in the upper portion for an upper disc member  51  of the valve body  50  to press thereon. The film  30  with a through hole  31  is fixed on the upper end of the base tube  20 , having its circumference pressed by the lower annular edge of the pressure cap  40 . Thus the upper cap  40 , the film  30 , the base tube  20  and the upper disc member  51  define a pressure-adding room (a), which communicates with the inlet  11  via the through hole  31  of the film  30 , the space between the circumference of the base tube  20  and the cup member  10 . The valve body  50  has a pillar member  52  and an upper disc member  51  fixed with the pillar member  52 , and an insert head  53  is inserted in the center of the disc member  51 , and a flow passageway  54  formed in the center of the pillar member  52  under t h e insert head  53  to communicate with the outlet  13  of the cup member  10 . The hand rod  60  is fixed with the opening outlet  12  of the cup member  10 , possible to be pressed down to force its end push against the end of the pillar member  52  so that a gap may formed between the close groove  21  of the base tube  20  and the disc member  51  of the valve body  50 , permitting the pressure-adding room (a) communicate with the outlet  13  of the cup member  10  via the interior of the base tube  20 . The upper cap  70  is closed on the cup member  10 .  
         [0023]    Therefore, when the hand rod  60  is pressed down, the water normally stored in the pressure-adding room (a) can flow through the gap formed in the valve body  50  and the close groove  21  and then through the base tube  20 . Then the water pressure in the pressure-adding room  9  (a) may decrease, and the pressure under the film  30  will increase more than that in the pressure-adding room (a), forcing the film  30  move upward to form a flowing gap (b) between the film  30  and the tubular base  15  and the space between the base tube  20  and the annular base  15 , permitting a large quantity of water flow in through the inlet  11  and then out of the outlet  13  for flushing a toilet. The flushing action may continue until the film  30  moves down to the original position, with the pressure-adding room  9  (a) filled with water. However, this kind of operational function is the same as the conventional flusher. The special feature of the invention is to be described below.  
         [0024]    The valve body  50  has an insert head  53  inserted in the center of the upper disc member  51  and a flow passage way  54  formed in the pillar member  51  to communicate with the outlet  13  of the cup member  13 .  
         [0025]    The pressure cap  40  has an annular wall  41  of a small diameter formed in an upper portion, and a position groove  42  inside the annular wall  41 , a block  43  contained in the position groove  42 , a sealing gasket  44  closing the opening of the position groove  42  to seal the block  43  therein. Further, the pressure cap  40  has a through hole  431  to correspond to a through hole  54  formed in the pressure cap  40  to communicate with the pressure-adding room (a), and a flowing hole  432  in the center to communicate indirectly with the through hole  431  via the sealed space of the position groove  42 .  
         [0026]    The communicating tube  80  is a bellows-shaped flexible tube, having one end connected to the bottom of the flowing hole  432  and the other end fitting firmly around the upper end of the flow passageway  50  of the insert head  53 , letting the pressure-adding room (a) indirectly connected with the outlet  13  via the communicating tube  80 .  
         [0027]    The infrared sensor  90  consists of a fixing frame  91  fixed between the upper cap  70  and the pressure cap  40 , an electronic eye  92  fixed on the fixing frame  91 , an electromagnetic valve  93  fixed in the center of the fixing frame  91 , and a power device  94  fixed on the opposite side of the electronic eye  92 . The iron core of the electro-magnetic valve  93  penetrates through the seal gasket  44  downward, possible to be moved up and down by sensing of the electronic eye  92  to press in due time the block  43  on the flow hole  432  to control the pressure-releasing passageway of the pressure-adding room (a) so as to control flushing action  
         [0028]    Next, it is to be specially mentioned that the communicating tube  80  can be a bellows-shaped flexible tube, but also can be a helical flexible tube as shown in FIG. 6, or a straight flexible tube as shown in FIG. 7. And if the straight flexible tube is used, it is necessary to leave a spare space  433  to correspond to the block  43  for the communicating tube  80  to move up. The communicating tube  80  can also be a rigid tube as shown in FIG. 8, having a spherical member  81  formed in the lower end to fit in a spherical groove  531  formed in an upper portion of the insert head  53 , and a threaded cap  53  to engage with the insert head  53  to keep the spherical member  81  connected with the insert head  53 . Then in conjunction with the spare space  433  of the block  43 , the valve body  50  can incline with the lower end of the rigid communicating tube  80 .  
         [0029]    Next, the manual function and the automatic function of flushing with the invention will be described below.  
         [0030]    AS for the manual function, when a user presses down the hand rod  60 , the hand rod  60  will touch and move the pillar member  52  of the valve body  50  to incline for a preset angle to just form a gap between the disc member  51  of the valve body  50  and the close groove  21  at the upper end of the base tube  20  to produce pressure releasing effect, with the film  30  moving to cause a gap for a large quantity of water flowing through the inlet  11  in the interior of the cup member  10  and out of the outlet  13  into a toilet. So far the flushing action just mentioned is the same as the conventional flusher, and it has to be noticed that the communicating tube  80  has a flexible specialty, not affecting the inclining action and up-and-down movement of the valve body  50 , ensuring manual operation of flushing smoothly carried out.  
         [0031]    As for the automatic function, when a user comes near to the flusher to trigger the infrared sensor  90 , the electro-magnetic valve  93  is started to generate magnetism, with the iron core  931  attracted to move inward. At this moment, the flow hole  432  of the block  43  in the pressure cap  40  becomes open to force the water in the pressure-adding room (a) flow through the through hole  45  of the pressure cap  40 , the through hole  431  of the block  43 , the flow hole  432  of the block  43 , the communicating tube  80  and the passageway  54  of the valve body  50 , producing pressure releasing action, just as the action of the conventional flusher, that is, with the film  30  moved to form a flowing gap (b) for a large quantity of water coming from the inlet  11  flowing out of the outlet  13  for flushing a toilet, as described above.  
         [0032]    Further, it is worthy to say that if the hand rod  60  is released or the source of sense disappears out of the sensing scope of the electric eye  92  of the infrared sensor  90 , the leaking passageway between the valve body  50  and the base tube  20  or that between the iron core  931  and the block  43  will recover at once closing condition, forcing water to flow into the pressure-adding room (a) to be gradually filled with water, with the film  30  moved down to stop flushing immediately, keeping correct function of flushing without fail.  
         [0033]    The invention has the following advantages, as can be seen from the foresaid description.  
         [0034]    1. The manual mode of flushing can be used, in case the automatic mode cannot function owing to the infrared sensor getting out of order, not necessary to wait until the infrared sensor is repaired.  
         [0035]    2. The hand rod can be kept under pressed condition to let water continue to flush out into a toilet to use as much water as wanted, for convenience of washing the toilet, removing the inconvenience of impossibility of controlling the conventional flusher.  
         [0036]    3. It can use many components of the conventional manual flusher and the conventional automatic flusher, with appliance of the communication tube used in the invention, and very profitable in manufacturing.  
         [0037]    While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been described above, it will be recognized and understood that various modifications may be made therein and the appended claims are intended to cover all modifications that may fall within the spirit and scope of the invention.

Technology Classification (CPC): 8