Abstract:
A fire hydrant box accommodates a hand held firefighting spay gun, a water inlet pipe with a rotary connector and a connection unit. A positioning member capable of bearing gravity is installed on the sidewall inside the box. A rotary member is movably connected with the positioning member, from which two supporting members extend to engage and support a rotary base of a firefighting hose assembly. The rotary base includes a rolling mechanism used to roll the fire hose thereon. Two rolling disks are provided to two sides of the rolling mechanism. One rolling disk is provided with a handle to roll and release the fire hose, and the other rolling disk is connected to the water inlet pipe. The connection unit can be easily rotated out of the accommodating space in order for the fireman to easily access the fire hose and the firefighting spray gun.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
       [0001]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0002]    The present invention relates to a fire hydrant box. More particularly, the present invention relates to a fire hydrant box, in which the fire hose can be easily accessed or rolled up via a connection unit including a plurality of needle bearings to engage with a rotary shaft. The firefighting hose assembly, by way of smoothly rotating the connection unit, can be easily pulled out of or restored back to the fire hydrant box. 
         [0003]    2. Description of Background Art 
         [0004]    With the development of the economy and the scientific and technologic progress, people&#39;s living standards have improved. While the living space is gradually being compressed and decreased, there are more and more high-rise buildings, industrial factories, science and technology zones built, which although providing daily work or living environment with more spacious and comfortable spaces, the fire safety becomes the high priority and has to be paid attention. In all kinds of the high-rise buildings, one or more fire hydrant boxes are installed in the stairwell or corridor wall, so that in case of fire, the fire hose contained within the fire hydrant box can be accessed and used to extinguish the fire, thus reducing accidental losses. 
         [0005]    Conventional fire hydrant box broadly used in the buildings is shown in  FIGS. 9 and 10 . The conventional fire hydrant box A includes an accommodating space A 0  to receive a fire hose A 1  which is wound into a ring shape, as shown in  FIG. 9 . Alternatively, the fire hose A 1  is convoluted on a plurality of supporting rods A 2  provided in the fire hydrant box A 0 , as shown in  FIG. 10 . In case of fire, the fire hose is pulled out of the accommodating space A 0  of the fire hydrant box A to extinguish the fire. However, the conventional fire hydrant box, during the actual operation and implementation, has many disadvantages as follows. 
         [0006]    (1) Since the fire hose A 1  is rolling up or convoluted in the fire hydrant box A, pulling the fire hose A 1  out of the fire hydrant box A for use will easily cause the fire hose to twist and be knotted, thus slowing down the fire extinguishing speed. 
         [0007]    (2) After the fire hose A 1  is taken out, the fire hose A 1  has to be re-rolled up or re-convoluted for storage inside the accommodating space A 0  of the fire hydrant box A. During restoring, it is difficult to control the length of the fire hose A 1 , and therefore it might need to repeat rolling or convoluting so as to make sure the rolled or convoluted fire hose can fit in the accommodating space A 0  of the fire hydrant box A, which causes the taking out and restoring the fire hose A 1  to be a time-consuming work needing a lot of effort. 
         [0008]    (3) After finishing the use of the fire hose A 1 , due to the long length of the fire hose A 1 , it is difficult to remove the residual water within the fire hose A 1  from the water outlet (not shown) of the fire hose. During restoring, the portion of the fire hose A 1  with the residual water therein will bulge, thus causing difficulty for the operation. 
         [0009]    Therefore, there exists a need for the existing fire hydrant box manufacturers in the industry to improve the drawbacks and provide a way to obviate the problems of the inconveniences of accessing and restoring the fire hose, and the difficulty of removing the residual water in the fire hose as noted above. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY 
       [0010]    The present invention is to provide a fire hydrant box including an accommodating space to receive a hand held firefighting spay gun, and a water inlet pipe for introducing external water supply for firefighting. A positioning member capable of bearing gravity is installed on the sidewall inside the accommodating space. A connecting mechanism includes a plurality of needle bearings configured to be passed through by a metal rotary shaft. A rotary member is movably connected with the positioning member, from which two supporting members each including a fixing mechanism at its cantilever end extend to engage and support a rotary base of a firefighting hose assembly. The rotary base includes a rolling mechanism with a plurality of rolling rods which are provided to roll the fire hose thereon. One end of the fire hose is connected to the firefighting spay gun via a hose connector. Two rolling disks are provided to two sides of the rolling mechanism correspondingly. One of the rolling disks is provided with a handle used to roll and release the fire hose, and the other one of the rolling disks is provided with a rotary connector connecting with the water supply pipe that is connected to the water inlet pipe. The connection unit including the positioning member and the rotary member can therefore make the firefighting hose assembly easily rotated out of the accommodating space in order for the fireman to easily access the fire hose and the firefighting spray gun. 
         [0011]    Another, the present invention is to provide a rotary assembly by way of a loose-leaf assembling, including the positioning member, the rotary member and the connecting mechanism provided on the corresponding sides, to be connected with each other, of the positioning member and the rotary member. The connecting mechanism includes a plurality of shaft holes, through which the metal rotary shaft passes through a plurality of needle bearings, so that the positioning member and the rotary member can smoothly rotate relative to each other. The firefighting hose assembly supported on the rotary assembly can therefore easily be pulled out or pushed back to the accommodating space of the fire hydrant box by way of rotating. 
         [0012]    Still another, the present invention is to provide a baffle and a rolling disk on each side of the rolling mechanism. By rotating the handle provided to one of the rolling disks, the rolling mechanism including a plurality of rolling rods rotates so as to roll or release the fire hose, so that the fire hose can be easily and swiftly rolled together and taken out without twisting, being knotted or being broken, thus extending the service life of the fire hose. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0013]    These and other features and advantages of the various embodiments disclosed herein will be better understood with respect to the following description and drawings, in which like numbers refer to like parts throughout, and in which: 
           [0014]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the present invention; 
           [0015]      FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the present invention; 
           [0016]      FIG. 3  is a front view of the present invention; 
           [0017]      FIG. 4  is an exploded view of the rotating assembly according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0018]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0019]      FIG. 6  is another perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0020]      FIG. 7  is still another perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0021]      FIG. 8  is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention in use; 
           [0022]      FIG. 9  is a front view of a conventional fire hydrant box; and 
           [0023]      FIG. 10  is a front view of another conventional fire hydrant box. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0024]    The present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which the same reference numerals have been used to identify the same or similar elements. 
         [0025]    Referring to  FIGS. 1-4 , the fire hydrant box according to the present invention includes a box body  1 , a connection unit  2  and a firefighting hose assembly  3 . The box body  1  is provided with an accommodating space  10 . A firefighting spray gun  11  is disposed within the accommodating space  10 . The accommodating space  10  is further provided with a water feeding pipe  12  extending to the outside of the box body  10 , and a door  13  movably to open and close. The connection unit  2  includes a rotating assembly  21  and two supporting members  22 . The rotating assembly  21  has a positioning member  211  for a loose leaf type assembly and a rotary member  212 . A connecting mechanism  213  is provided for assembly of the positioning member  211  and the rotary member  212 . The connecting mechanism  213  includes a sleeve  2131  on the corresponding side of the positioning member  211 . Inside the shaft hole  2130  of the sleeve  2131 , a plurality of needle bearings  215  are provided to the sleeve  2131 . Two gaskets  2132  are respectively provided to the two ends of the sleeve  2131 . On the corresponding side of the rotary member  212 , the connecting mechanism  213  includes two tubes  2133  facing each other formed thereon. Each of the tubes  2133  is provided with a copper bushing  2134  disposed therein. In assembling the positioning member  211 , the rotary member  212  and the connecting mechanism  213 , a rotary shaft  214  is configured to pass through one copper bushing  2134 , the plurality of needle bearings  215  via the shaft holes  2130  in sequence, and then engage and interlock with the internal threaded hole  2135  of the other copper bushing  2134  via the external screw thread  2141  provided on one side of the rotary shaft  214 , so that the positioning member  211  and the rotary member  212  can rotate and swing about the rotary shaft  214  smoothly relative to each other. The two supporting members  22  extend from one side of the rotary member  212  to form a pair of cantilever arms parallel with each other. Each of the supporting members  22  is provided with one fixing mechanism  23  at the cantilever end thereof. Each of the fixing mechanism  23  includes a recess portion  230  formed at the cantilever end of the corresponding supporting member  22  and an arc clamping element  231  corresponding to the recess portion  230 , so that each arc clamping element  231  can be installed on the corresponding recess portion  230  accordingly. 
         [0026]    The firefighting hose assembly  3  includes a rotation base  31  having a rolling mechanism  311 . The rolling mechanism  311  includes a plurality of rolling rods  3111 . A baffle  312  and a rolling disk  32  are disposed on each side of the rolling rods  3111 . A water supply pipe  321  is connected to the rolling disk  32  at one side of the rotation base  31 . One end of the water supply pipe  321  connects a rotary connector  322  which is able to freely rotate 360 degrees. The rolling disk  32  at the other side of the rotation base  31  is configured with a handle  323  which is used to drive the rolling rod  3111  of the rolling mechanism  311  to rotate. The handle  323  is rotatable to wind a fire hose  33  on the rolling rod  3111  of the rolling mechanism  311  within a receiving space  310  formed between the two baffles  312 . Furthermore, a hose connector  331  connects the end of the fire hose  33 . 
         [0027]    When assembling the fire hydrant box, the positioning member  211  is provided to install the rotating assembly  21  of the connection unit  2  on the proper high level of the interior sidewall  101 . The rotary member  212 , which is movably engaged to the positioning member  211 , and the two supporting members  22  extending from the rotary member  212 , are using the connecting mechanism  213  as an axis to rotate 90 degrees outwardly. The fixing mechanism  23  provided to the cantilever ends of the two supporting members  22  includes two grooves  230  and two arc clamping elements  231  to clamp the rotating base  31  on two axles of two rolling disks  32  at outer surfaces of the two baffles  312 , respectively, thus connecting the firefighting hose assembly  3  to the rotating assembly  21  of the connection unit  2 . Via the rotary member  212  of the rotating assembly  21  and the two supporting members  22 , the firefighting hose assembly  3  rotates to exit the accommodating space  10 , or rotates back to the accommodating space  10 . The box body  1 , connection unit  2 , and firefighting hose assembly  3  build up the fire hydrant box of present invention. 
         [0028]    The box body  1  of the fire hydrant box is assembled on the stairwell of buildings or the wall of corridors, and the door  13  being able to be opened is set to one side of the accommodating space  10 . The door  13  can be a single-plate rotary door, a single-plate horizontal pulling door, a double-plate rotary door, a double-plate horizontal pulling door, or a coiling door, etc., which is provided to be opened so that the firefighting hose assembly  3  can be taken out from the accommodating space  10  via the connection unit  2 . The box body  1  is installed to the target wall as an empty box, and then the connection unit  2  is installed to the interior sidewall  101  of the accommodating space  10  of the box body  1 . When the rotary member  212  of the rotating assembly  21  rotate 90 degrees outward from the box body  1 , the two parallel cantilever arm type supporting members  22  extending from the rotary member  212  can move to the outside of the accommodating space  10  of the box body  1 . The rotating base  31  of the firefighting hose assembly  3  is clamped in a clamping space  232  formed by the cantilever ends of the two supporting members  22 . The rotary member  212  is configured to rotate 90 degrees back after the firefighting hose assembly  3  is assembled in the clamping space  232  between the two supporting members  22 , and the accommodating space  10  can easily restore the firefighting hose assembly  3 . 
         [0029]    The rotating assembly  21  of the connection unit  2  has a good weight carrying ability, and is able to bear the weight of the firefighting hose assembly  3 . The rotating assembly  21  is assembled by the way of a loose-leaf assembling, which comprises the positioning member  211  and the rotary member  212 . The connecting mechanism  213  is provided to the corresponding sides, to be connected with each other, of the positioning member  211  and the rotary member  212 . The connecting mechanism  213  has the sleeve  2131  and two shaft tubes  2133 . The copper bushings  2134  are installed within the two shaft tubes  2133 , respectively, and a plurality of needle bearings  215  are installed in the sleeve  2131 . The connecting mechanism  213  has the shaft holes  2130 , and the metal rotary shaft  214  is configured to pass through the connecting mechanism  213  via the shaft holes  2130 . The metal rotary shaft  214  can cooperate with the sleeve  2131  of the connecting mechanism  213 , the plurality of needle bearing  215 , the two shaft tubes  2133 , and the two copper bushings  2134 , so as to form a smooth relative rotation between the positioning member  211  and the rotary member  212 , and the strength-saving effect is achieved for swinging the rotary member  212  with respect to the positioning member  211 . The positioning member  211  of the rotating assembly  21  can be fixed to the interior sidewall  101  of the box body  1  by using a plurality of screws, rivet, or by the way of welding. The rotary member  212  has the slots  2121  for assembling or locking the two supporting members  22 , and the two supporting members  22  are welded to the rotary member  212 . The rotary member  212  has two parallel, cantilever arm type supporting members  22  extended outward from the rotary member  212 . Using the connecting mechanism  213  as an axle, the supporting members  22  rotate and swing through the rotary member  212 . The fixing mechanism  23  provided to the cantilever portion of the supporting members  22  is located on the cantilever portion of the supporting member  22 , and the two cantilever portions each has the groove  230  assembled with the arc clamping element  231 . The clamping space  232  is formed between the groove  230  and the clamping element  231 . The two supporting members  22  clamp at the outside of the two baffles  312  of the rotating base  31  of the firefighting hose assembly  3 , respectively. The two clamping elements  231  can use a plurality of the screws  233  to install on the two supporting members at the grooves  230 , respectively. 
         [0030]    The rotating base  31  of the firefighting hose assembly  3  is formed with the receiving space  310  between the two baffles  312 . The rolling rod  3111  of the connecting mechanism  311  of the rotating base  31  located in the receiving space  310  can roll the fire hose  33 , or the fire hose  33  can be pulled out from the receiving space  310 . The hose connector  331  is provided at the distal end of the fire hose  33 , and the water supply connector  111  of the spray gun  11  is connected to the hose connector  331 . The rolling disk  32  is connected to the rotary connector  322 , and the rotary connector  322  is able to freely rotate in 360 degrees. The rotary connector  322  is further connected to the water supply pipe  321 , and the water supply pipe  321  is connected to the water feeding pipe  12  in the box body  1 . The water supply pipe  321  is made of soft material, such as coil, plastic tube, or fire hose, etc. The water supply pipe  321  can lead the water (or foam, chemical agent or powder, etc.), by the water feeding pipe  12 , and the water can be introduced through the water supply pipe  321 , the connecting mechanism  311 , the fire hose  33 , the spray gun  11 , in sequence, to do the fire extinguishing spraying. 
         [0031]    Referring to FIGS.  2  and  5 - 8 , when using the fire hydrant box of present invention, the firefighting hose assembly  3 , which is supported by the connection unit  2  being fixed on the interior sidewall  101  of the accommodating space  10  of the box body  1 , rotates 90 degrees outward from the accommodating space  10 . The rotating assembly  21  has good weight carrying ability. By using the connecting mechanism  213  as an axle, the rotary member  212  of the rotating assembly  21  enables the two supporting members  22  to move the firefighting hose assembly  3  to rotate 90 degrees outward from the accommodating space  10 , which means that the operation of the firefighting hose assembly  3  will not be hindered. The handle  323  is installed on the rolling disk  32  which is on one side of the rotating base  31 , and is used to rotate the plurality of the rolling rods  3111  of the rolling mechanism  311 , so that the fire hose  33  can be pulled out of the receiving space  310  formed between the two baffles  312 . The firefighting spray gun  11  stored in the accommodating space  10  of the box body  1  can be taken out from the accommodating space  10  and is connected to the hose connector  331 , which is on the distal end of the fire hose  33 , via the water supply connector  111 , so that the water (or foam, powder, or chemical agent, etc.) can be led from the water feeding pipe  12 , and then transferred from the rotary connector  322  of the water supply pipe  321  to the connecting mechanism  311 , the fire hose  33 , and finally reach the firefighting spray gun  11  connected at the end of the fire hose  33  to do the fire extinguishing operation. 
         [0032]    The fire hose  33  of the firefighting hose assembly  3  can be taken out from the receiving space  310  of the rotating base  31  easily by pulling the fire hose  33  and rotating the handle  323 . After using the spray gun  11 , the water supply connector  111  can be disconnected from the hose connector  331  of the fire hose  33 , and the firefighting spray gun  11  can be stored in the accommodating space  10  of the box body  1 . Meanwhile, the fire hose  33  can be wound up back to the receiving space  310  swiftly by the rotation of the rolling rod  3111  in an opposite direction. The fire hydrant box  10  of present invention is able to save time and efforts, preventing bending, knotting, or distortion by the time of pulling out or winding up the fire hose  33 , which keeps the fire hose  33  in the best condition, and extend the life of the fire hose. 
         [0033]    The connection unit  2  installed on the interior sidewall  101  of the accommodating space  10  of the box body  1  can move the firefighting hose assembly outside of the accommodating space  10  by the way of rotating the rotary member  212  of the rotating assembly  21  and the two supporting members  22 , such that operating the firefighting hose assembly  3  will be easier and more maneuverable, and not hindered by the box body  1 . 
         [0034]    It should be understood that the above detailed description, including preferred embodiments of the invention are given by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention. In the fire hydrant box  10  of present invention, the connection unit  2  is installed to the interior sidewall  101  of the accommodating space  10  of the interior of the box body  1 . The firefighting hose assembly  3  is supported by two supporting members  22  which extend from the rotary member  212  of the connection unit  2 . The positioning member  211  of the rotating assembly  21  and the rotary member  212  can rotate smoothly relative to each other via the connecting mechanism  213  provided with a metal rotary shaft  214 . The connecting mechanism  213  further includes a plurality of needle bearings  215  with the metal rotary shaft  214  passing therethrough, so that the purpose of swiftly taking out or restoring back the firefighting hose assembly  3  to the accommodating space  10  via the rotating assembly  21  can be achieved. The fire hose  33  can be wound up by a plurality of the rolling rods  3111  of the connecting mechanism  311  of the rotating base  31  of the firefighting hose assembly  3 . Furthermore, the handle  323  provided the rolling disk  32  at one can be used to drive the plurality of the rolling rods  3111  of the connecting mechanism  311  to rotate, so as to wind up or release the fire hose  33 . It should be noted that the above detailed description, including preferred embodiments of the invention is merely an illustration, and all the other modifications or the structure variations which have the equal function with present invention should be deem as in the scope of present invention. 
         [0035]    The present invention has the following advantages. 
         [0036]    1. The connection unit  2  installed on the interior sidewall  101  of the accommodating space  10  of the box body  1 , wherein the rotating assembly  21  of the connection unit  2  has the rotary shaft  214  passing through a plurality of needle bearings  215 , so that the firefighting hose assembly  3  can be swiftly taken out or restored back to the accommodating space  10 . Thus, quickly taking out the fire hose  33  to do the fire extinguishing becomes possible, and no time will be wasted for taking out the fire hose  33 . 
         [0037]    2. The rotating base  31  of the firefighting hose assembly  3  uses the handle  323  provided to the rolling disk  32  at one side to rotate a plurality of the rolling rods  3111  of the connecting mechanism  311 . When rotating the rolling rod  3111 , the fire hose  33  can be wound up or released, and thus the fire hose  33  can be taken out or wound up swiftly. It is a time and effort saving way to operate the fire hose  33 , thereby facilitating the fire extinguishing process, and diminishing the accidental lost. 
         [0038]    The invention being thus described, it will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modification as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the following claims.