Abstract:
A toilet comprising a bowl sized to contain a fluid and a valve movable between an open position in which a liquid is delivered to the bowl and a closed position in which the liquid does not flow to the bowl. A sensor is operable to sense a liquid level within the bowl and an actuator is movable between a flush position and an idle position. A controller is operable to move the valve to the open position in response to movement of the actuator to the flush position and a liquid level within the bowl below a predetermined level.

Description:
BACKGROUND  
       [0001]     The present invention relates to a system and method for operating a flushable toilet. More particularly, the present invention relates to a system and method for operating a toilet that is electronically flushable and includes a flood inhibiting mechanism.  
         [0002]     Toilets, both private and commercial, are subject to periodic clogging or other problems that can result in water flooding out of the bowl. This flooding can cause damage to nearby structures and can be unsanitary, thus requiring expensive repair and cleanup efforts. To mitigate damages caused by these situations, some toilets are equipped with flood prevention devices. Typically, these devices are independent of the flush mechanism. They function with a second valve, typically in series with the flush valve or flush mechanism, to cut off the water supply to the toilet when a flood is occurring or is about to occur. A sensor may be employed to determine when a flood condition may exist.  
         [0003]     As just described, existing flood prevention systems typically include a flood control valve that is separate from the flush mechanism. The separate valve must be closed to prevent flooding. Unfortunately, these valves may remain idle for months or even years between a flood, thereby compromising their reliability.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0004]     The present invention provides a toilet comprising a bowl sized to contain a fluid and a normally-closed valve movable to an open position in which a liquid is delivered to the bowl and returned to a closed position in which the liquid does not flow to the bowl. A sensor is operable to sense a liquid level within the bowl and an actuator is movable between a flush position and an idle position. A controller is operable to move the valve to the open position in response to movement of the actuator to the flush position and a liquid level within the bowl below a predetermined level.  
         [0005]     The invention also provides an electrically-controlled toilet comprising a bowl sized to contain a fluid. A solenoid-operated normally-closed valve is movable to an open position in which a liquid is delivered to the bowl and returned to a closed position in which the liquid does not flow to the bowl. A liquid-level sensor is at least partially positioned within the bowl and is operable to sense a liquid level within the bowl. An actuator is movable between a flush position and an idle position and a controller is operable to move the valve to the open position in response to movement of the actuator to the flush position and a liquid level within the bowl below a predetermined level.  
         [0006]     In yet another aspect, the invention provides a method of operating a toilet. The method includes providing a bowl operable to contain a liquid and sensing a liquid level within the bowl. In addition, the method includes moving an actuator to a flush position and opening a valve to provide a flow of liquid to the bowl when the actuator is in the flush position and the liquid level within the bowl is below a predetermined value. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0007]     The description particularly refers to the accompanying figures in which:  
         [0008]      FIG. 1  is a schematic illustration of a flushable toilet of the present invention; and  
         [0009]      FIG. 2  is a sectional view of a flush valve.  
     
    
       [0010]     Before any embodiments of the invention are explained, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangements of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the following drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of “including,” “comprising,” or “having” and variations thereof is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalence thereof as well as additional items. The terms “connected,” “coupled,” and “mounted” and variations thereof are used broadly and encompass direct and indirect connections, couplings, and mountings. In addition, the terms “connected,” “coupled,” and “mounted” and variations thereof are not restricted to physical or mechanical connections or couplings.  
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0011]     With reference to  FIG. 1 , a toilet system  10  including a flood-inhibiting system and an electrically controlled flush mechanism is illustrated. The system  10  includes a bowl  15  attached to a wall  20  for support. In other constructions, the bowl  15  is supported in a more conventional manner on the floor. A drain pipe  25  extends from the bottom of the bowl  15  and forms a drain trap  30  to inhibit the unwanted entry of sewer gas. Within, or behind, the wall  20 , the drain pipe  25  connects with other pipes to provide fluid communication between the bowl  15  and a sewage system. A supply pipe  35  also connects to the bowl  15  and functions to provide water to the bowl  15  during a flush operation. The supply pipe  35  delivers water under pressure to the bowl  15 , or in other constructions to a tank or other storage device.  
         [0012]     A valve  40  is located within the supply pipe  35  to control the flow of water to the bowl  15 . The valve  40 , best illustrated in  FIG. 2 , is a solenoid-operated normally-closed valve that includes an inlet  45 , an outlet  50 , a movable diaphragm  55 , and a solenoid  60 . The inlet  45  connects to a pressurized water supply  65  capable of supplying a sufficient quantity of water to the bowl  15 . The outlet  50  of the valve  40  is in fluid communication with the bowl  15  to deliver water when a flush sequence occurs.  
         [0013]     Returning to  FIG. 1 , the system  10  also includes a sensor  70  at least partially disposed within the bowl  15 . The sensor  70  is positioned above a normal water level line  75  near a flood line  80 . It is at this flood line  80  that the bowl  15  contains, or is very near containing, its maximum volume. The sensor  70  includes a pressure sensor in the form of a pressure switch  85 , a tube  88 , and a port  89  disposed behind the wall  20  and in fluid communication with the bowl  15 . While a pressure switch  85  is described herein, many other types of pressure sensors could be used to detect when the water level within the bowl  15  exceeds a predetermined value. The tube  88  connects the pressure switch  85  to the sensor port  89  in the bowl  15 . As water rises above the sensor port  89 , it covers the end of the tube  88  and seals the air within the tube  88 . Thus, any further increase in the water level acts to increase the hydrostatic pressure within the tube  88 . At a predetermined pressure, the pressure switch  85  generates a flood signal that indicates a flood is occurring or is imminent.  
         [0014]     In most constructions, the sensor  70  generates a simple signal representing either “flood” or “no flood”. Generally, a high voltage (e.g., 5 volts) is used to indicate the flood condition, while a low voltage (approximately zero volts) is used to indicate no flood. Thus, the signal is actually a zero-voltage signal when no flooding is present and is a 5-volt signal when flooding exists. Of course, these conditions could be reversed so that the zero-voltage signal represents a flood condition if that were desired. In addition, a simple switch could be used to open or close a circuit when a flood condition exists. In still other constructions, more than two discrete signals are used. For example, an analog signal range (e.g., 4-20 mA, or 0-5 volts) can be used to represent a pressure range. A signal value above or below a predetermined level would then represent a flood condition.  
         [0015]     In another construction, the sensor  70  directly detects the presence of water at the elevated level and sends a signal indicating a flood may be in progress. For example, a simple float switch can be used to indicate the presence or absence of a flood condition. In yet another construction, an optical sensor is positioned within the bowl  15  to detect the presence of water at an elevated level. As one of ordinary skill will realize, many different sensors  70  are capable of detecting the level of water within the bowl  15 . In addition, there are many forms that the signal can take beyond those described herein. As such, the invention should not be limited to those few sensors or signals described herein.  
         [0016]     One of ordinary skill will also realize that there are many possible locations for a sensor  70  other than the one illustrated in  FIG. 1 . For example, the sensor  70  could be located below the normal water line  75  or in the drain pipe  25 . In addition, hidden chambers could be formed in the bowl  15  to hide the sensor  70  location to inhibit tampering. Therefore, the invention should not be limited to only the use of sensors  70  located as shown and described herein, as these represent but a few of the possible locations.  
         [0017]     An actuator in the form of a push button  90  is positioned adjacent the bowl  15  to allow the user to initiate a flush. The push button  90  generates a flush signal when it is moved. Like the sensor signal, the flush signal is generally one of an “on” or “flush” signal and an “off” or “idle” signal. One common flush signal would employ a 5-volt signal representing the flush signal and no voltage or power representing the idle signal. As with the sensor signal, these voltages could be reversed or other signals could be employed if desired.  
         [0018]     In other constructions, a lever or other type of actuator is used to initiate the flush sequence. In still other constructions, sensors are used to determine when a flush is needed. For example, one construction uses an optical sensor to detect the presence of a user. The sensor also detects the user&#39;s exit from the area and sends a flush signal. In yet another construction, a simple timer periodically sends a flush signal. Furthermore, multiple actuators could be used in conjunction to assure adequate flushing of the bowl. For example, a manual button  90  in combination with a timer could be used to periodically flush the bowl  15 , while still allowing a user to flush the bowl  15  whenever the button  90  is actuated. It should be understood that the particular actuator used to generate the flush signal is not important to the function of the invention so long as a flush signal is generated.  
         [0019]     A controller  95  receives the flood signal and the flush signal and uses these inputs to control the valve  40  as will be described below. One controller  95  suited to this purpose is the Time-Trol Modular Valve Controller marketed by Acorn Engineering Corporation of Industry, California. Other constructions may employ other types of electronic controls (e.g., digital, analog, PLC, microprocessor based, and the like). In still other constructions, a series of relays control the flushing operation rather than an electronic control.  
         [0020]     With reference to  FIG. 2 , the valve  40  includes a first flow path  100  between the inlet  45  and the outlet  50  and a second flow path  105  between the inlet  45  and the outlet  50 . The diaphragm  55  separates the inlet  45  from the outlet  50  in the first flow path  100  and inhibits flow when the valve  40  is closed. The diaphragm  55  rests on a seat  110  when in the closed position to inhibit flow through the valve  40 . In preferred constructions, the diaphragm  55  is made from a elastomeric material. However, other constructions may employ other suitable materials (e.g., copper, brass, tin, composite, plastic, ceramic, other metals, and the like). An aperture  115  extends through the diaphragm  55  and provides fluid communication between the inlet  45  and a first chamber  120  disposed on the side opposite the diaphragm  55  from the outlet  50 . High-pressure fluid passes through the aperture  115  and biases the diaphragm  55  into the closed position. In addition, a biasing spring  125  in contact with the diaphragm  55  further biases the diaphragm  55  in the closed position. Fluid from the first chamber  120  passes through a duct  130  into a second chamber  135  adjacent the solenoid  60 . With the valve  40  in the closed position, as illustrated in  FIG. 2 , the fluid remains trapped in the second chamber  135 . The aperture  115 , first chamber  120 , duct  130 , and second chamber  135  define a first portion  140  of the second flow path  105 .  
         [0021]     To open the valve  40 , the solenoid  60  is first energized to move a plunger  145  to an open position. Movement of the plunger  145  exposes the second chamber  135  to a second portion  150  of the second flow path  105 . The second portion  150  of the second flow path  105  is made up of a plurality of ducts  155  that facilitate flow between the second chamber  135  and the outlet  50  of the valve  40 . With the second flow path  105  open, water trapped within the first and second chambers  120 ,  135  is free to drain into the outlet  50  of the valve  40 . As the water drains, the pressure on the first chamber side of the diaphragm  55  drops to a level that allows the pressure on the diaphragm  55  adjacent the inlet  45  to lift the diaphragm  55  against the biasing spring  125 . Once lifted, high-pressure water flows into the outlet  50  of the valve  40 . The increased diaphragm surface area exposed to the high-pressure flow causes the diaphragm  55  to move to the full open position.  
         [0022]     To close the valve  40 , the solenoid  60  is deenergized, thereby allowing a biasing spring  160  to move the plunger  145  into the closed position. Once closed, the second flow path  105  is again interrupted and high-pressure water again fills the first chamber  120  and the second chamber  135 . With the first chamber  120  filled with high-pressure water, the water pressure on either side of the diaphragm  55  is approximately equal. Thus, the biasing spring  125  is able to move the diaphragm  55  into the closed position. Once the diaphragm  55  is in the closed position, the high-pressure water on the outlet side of the diaphragm  55  drains and the diaphragm is held in the closed position by the high-pressure water in the first chamber  120  and the biasing spring  125 .  
         [0023]     In operation, the controller  95  of  FIG. 1  receives a flush signal when the push button  90  is moved to a flush position. The controller  95  energizes the solenoid  60  only if no signal is received from the flood sensor  70 , or a signal is received that indicates that no flood is occurring. Once the flush sequence is initiated, the controller  95  times the duration that the valve  40  is in the open position. After a predetermined length of time, the controller  95  deenergizes the solenoid  60  and the valve  40  closes.  
         [0024]     If the controller  95  receives a flood signal, actuation of the push button  90  will not initiate a flush sequence. Thus, the single valve  40  acts to control the flush sequence, while inhibiting flooding. In addition, because the valve  40  is normally closed, any failure in the system  10  will generally result in the prevention of flow to the bowl  15 . Furthermore, valve reliability is improved as the valve  40  that is used to inhibit flooding is typically cycled on a daily basis.  
         [0025]     In many constructions, the duration that the valve  40  is open can be adjusted. In addition, some controllers  95  are capable of controlling hundreds or even thousands of valves  40  simultaneously. Furthermore, many constructions allow for remote adjustments to one or more of the valves  40 . This allows a single control station to adjust the time that one or more valves  40  remain open when actuated, or prevent the opening of one or more valves  40  if desired. In addition, the remote station can be used to remotely flush one or more bowls  15  if desired.  
         [0026]     Although the invention has been described in detail with reference to certain preferred embodiments, variations and modifications exist within the scope and spirit of the invention as described and defined in the following claims.