Patent Description:
The existing multifunctional control valve comprises a housing, a temperature adjusting knob, a switch assembly and a center pin. The housing comprises a body and a water passage. The temperature adjusting knob is movably connected to the body, and the water passage comprises a hot water inlet and a cold water inlet, and a mixed water passage is defined in the water passage; the center pin is disposed in the housing, a reset spring is disposed between the center pin and the body, the center pin is disposed with an adjusting wall corresponding to the hot water inlet, the adjusting wall is used to control inflow of water from the hot water inlet; the center pin comprises a joint, a disk and a piston portion, and the switch assembly drives the central pin to axially move due to the joint, and the temperature adjustment knob is connected to the disk to drive the central pin to rotate. The multifunctional control valve only integrates two functions of temperature adjustment and water outflow, while waterway switching function cannot be achieved. Therefore, further improvement is needed. A conventional multifunctional control valve according to the preamble of claim <NUM> is known from <CIT>.

The present disclosure provides a multifunctional control valve and a shower to solve the deficiencies of the multifunctional control valve in the background.

In order to solve the technical problems, a first solution of the present disclosure is as follows. Multifunctional control valve, which comprises:.

In an embodiment, the valve body comprises a fixed piece, the fixed piece comprises two first through holes, and the two water inflowing passages respectively comprise one of the two first through holes; the main control valve core comprises a moving piece and a main control driving mechanism; an end surface of the moving piece is concave to define a mixed water groove, and the mixed water passage comprises the mixed water groove; the end surface of the moving piece hermetically abuts an end surface of the fixed piece, and a groove opening of the mixed water groove cooperates with the two first through holes; the main control driving mechanism is operatively connected to the moving piece to drive the moving piece to slide and rotate; the moving piece slides to control the on-off operation and the flow rate of the mixed water passage, and the moving piece rotates to control the water temperature of the mixed water passage.

In an embodiment, the main control driving mechanism comprises a rotating base and a swinging rod, the rotating base is rotatably connected to an inner side of the valve body, and a middle portion of the swinging rod is pivotally connected to the rotating base, an inner end of the swinging rod is operatively connected to the moving piece, and the swinging rod swings to drive the moving piece to slide, and the swinging rod rotates to drive the rotating base and the moving piece to rotate; the rotating base comprises the sliding groove.

In an embodiment, an outer end of the swinging rod extends out of the rotating base.

In an embodiment, the main control driving mechanism further comprises a connector base, the connector base and the moving piece are connected together to move synchronously; an end surface of the connector base is concave to define an insert groove, an inner end of the swinging rod is disposed in the insert groove, so that the swinging rod swings to drive the connector base and the moving piece to slide together and the swinging rod rotates to drive the rotating base, the connector base and the moving piece to rotate together.

In an embodiment, the main control driving mechanism further comprises an interlocking base and a handle rod, an outer end of the swinging rod extends out of the rotating base, the interlocking base comprises a matching groove, the outer end of the swinging rod cooperates with and is disposed in the matching groove, and the handle rod is fixedly connected to the interlocking base.

In an embodiment, the switch mechanism comprises a switch shaft, the switch shaft is slidably connected to an inner side of the valve body, and the switch shaft slides to control the two water dividing passages to be switched to be in communication with the mixed water passage; the switch driving mechanism comprises an automatic ballpoint pen mechanism, the sliding rod defines a pressing rod of the automatic ballpoint pen mechanism, and the switch shaft defines a ballpoint refill of the automatic ballpoint pen mechanism.

In an embodiment, the valve body comprises a fixed piece, the main control valve core comprises a moving piece and a main control driving mechanism, an end surface of the moving piece is concave to define a mixed water groove, and the mixed water passage comprises the mixed water groove; the end surface of the moving piece hermetically abuts an end surface of the fixed piece, the main control driving mechanism is operatively connected to the moving piece to drive the moving piece to slide and rotate, the moving piece slides to control the on-off operation and the flow rate of the mixed water passage, and the moving piece rotates to control the water temperature of the mixed water passage; the valve body comprises a base member, the base member comprises two second through holes and the two water dividing passages, and the two water inflowing passages respectively comprise one of the two second through holes; the base member cooperates with the fixed piece and comprises a control groove in communication with the mixed water groove, and the switch shaft is at least partially disposed in the control groove.

In an embodiment, a bottom surface of the switch shaft is concave to define a water groove, the switch shaft comprises a water hole penetrating an inner side and an outer side of the water groove, and the water hole is in communication with the water groove and the control groove and/or the water groove and the mixed water groove; the water groove is in communication with one of the two water dividing passages, the control groove is in communication with another one of the two water dividing passages, a first sealing ring is fixedly disposed on an outer side of the switch shaft, the first sealing ring cooperates with the base member, so that the switch shaft slides to control an on-off operation of the control groove to achieve the switching for the two water dividing passages due to the first sealing ring.

In an embodiment, the two water dividing passages comprises a first water dividing passage and a second water dividing passage; the first water dividing passage is disposed with a sealing piston configured to slide relative to the first water dividing passage and a water-closing spring configured to abut the sealing piston, the first water dividing passage is divided into a front water passage and a rear water passage due to the sealing piston, and the water groove is in communication with the rear water passage; the control groove comprises a control port, the first sealing ring cooperates with the control port to control the on-off operation of the control groove due to the first sealing ring , and the control port is in communication with the second water dividing passage and the front water passage.

In an embodiment, the base member comprises a bottom base, a middle base and a fixed base hermetically and fixedly connected together in sequence; the fixed base comprises the control port, the middle base comprises a middle through groove and two first side through grooves, the bottom base comprises two second side through grooves and a lower groove extending inward from a top surface; the two water dividing passages respectively comprises one of the two first side through grooves and one of the two second side through grooves that are in communication; the sealing piston is slidably connected to one of the two first side through grooves, the water-closing spring is disposed in the one of the two first side through grooves and abuts the sealing piston and the fixed base; a gap is defined between the middle through groove and the fixed base, the gap is in communication with upper ends of the two first side through grooves; the middle through groove is in communication with the lower groove, the switch shaft is hermetically connected to the middle through groove due to a second sealing ring, and the control groove is in communication with a lower end of the one of the two first side through grooves; the control groove comprises the control port, the middle through groove and the lower groove.

In an embodiment, a clearance in communication with the rear water passage is defined between the lower groove and the middle through groove.

In an embodiment,a middle portion of the fixed piece comprises a third through hole, and the control groove further comprises the third through hole.

In an embodiment, the switch driving mechanism further comprises a button, the button abuts and is connected to the sliding rod, and an elastic body abuts the switch shaft.

In order to solve the technical problems, a second solution of the present disclosure is as follows.

A shower, which comprises the multifunctional control valve.

In an embodiment, the shower further comprises a faucet body, two water inflowing joints and two water outflowing passages, the two water inflowing joints are disposed on a left side and a right side of a rear surface of the faucet body and are respectively in communication the two water inflowing passages, a middle of a front surface of the faucet body comprises a mounting groove, the multifunctional control valve is disposed in the mounting groove, and the two water outflowing passages are respectively in communication with the two water dividing passages.

Compared with the existing techniques, the technical solution has the following advantages.

The multifunctional control valve of the present disclosure integrates an on-off operation, flow rate adjustment, water temperature adjustment and waterway switching, the structure is compact , the assembly is convenient, and the operation is convenient.

The switch shaft slides to control the two water dividing passages to be switched to be in communication with the mixed water passage. The switch driving mechanism comprises the automatic ballpoint pen mechanism, the sliding rod defines the pressing rod of the automatic ballpoint pen mechanism, and the switch shaft defines the ballpoint refill of the automatic ballpoint pen mechanism. The operation is convenient and easy.

The present disclosure will be further described in combination with the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

References: valve body <NUM>, main control valve core <NUM>, switch mechanism <NUM>, and switch driving mechanism <NUM>;.

Referring to <FIG>, a multifunctional control valve comprises a valve body <NUM>, a main control valve core <NUM>, a switch mechanism <NUM> and a switch driving mechanism <NUM>.

The valve body <NUM> comprises a housing <NUM>, a fixed piece <NUM>, and a base member <NUM>, and the valve body <NUM> comprises two water inflowing passages <NUM>, a mixed water passage <NUM> and two water dividing passages <NUM> and <NUM>. The fixed piece <NUM> comprises two first through holes <NUM>, the base member <NUM> comprises the two water inflowing passages <NUM> and the two water dividing passages <NUM> and <NUM>, the base member <NUM> further comprises two second through holes <NUM>, and the two water inflowing passages <NUM> respectively comprise one of the two first through holes <NUM> and one of the two second through hole <NUM> that are in communication. The fixed piece <NUM> cooperates with the base member <NUM> and comprises a control groove <NUM>.

The main control valve core <NUM> is disposed in the valve body <NUM> and cooperates with the two water inflowing passages <NUM> and the mixed water passage <NUM> to enable the main control valve core <NUM> to control water temperature, an on-off operation and a flow rate of the mixed water passage <NUM>. The main control valve core <NUM> comprises a moving piece <NUM> and a main control driving mechanism <NUM>; An end surface of the moving piece <NUM> is concave to define a mixed water groove <NUM>, the mixed water passage <NUM> comprises the mixed water groove <NUM>, and the mixed water groove <NUM> is in communication with the control groove <NUM>; The end surface of the moving piece <NUM> hermetically abuts an end surface of the fixed piece <NUM>, a groove opening of the mixed water groove <NUM> cooperates with the two first through holes <NUM>, and the main control driving mechanism <NUM> is operatively connected to the moving piece <NUM> to drive the moving piece <NUM> to slide and rotate. A detailed structure is as follows: <NUM>. The moving piece <NUM> horizontally (e.g., in a plane) slides to control the on-off operation and the flow rate of the mixed water passage <NUM>, referring to <FIG>, the moving piece <NUM> horizontally slides forward and rearward to control whether an intersection between a front end of the mixed water groove <NUM> and the two first through holes <NUM> occurs or not, when the intersection occurs, water is open, and when the intersection does not occur, the water is closed. Further, an area of the intersection controls the flow rate, when the intersection is larger, the flow rate is greater, and when the intersection is smaller, the flow rate is smaller; <NUM>. The moving piece <NUM> rotates to control the water temperature of the mixed water passage <NUM>, referring to <FIG>, the moving piece <NUM> horizontally rotates to control a ratio of an intersection between the mixed water groove <NUM> and the two first through holes <NUM>, when an intersection between the mixed water groove <NUM> and one of the two first through holes <NUM> for cold water is more, the water temperature is cooled down, otherwise the water temperature is heated up. The moving piece <NUM> and the fixed piece <NUM> are, for example, both ceramic pieces.

The main control driving mechanism <NUM> comprises a rotating base <NUM>, two swinging rods <NUM> and a connector base <NUM>; an end surface of the connector base <NUM> is concave to define an insert groove, and the connector base <NUM> and the moving piece <NUM> are connected together to define an entity to move synchronously, for example, to slide and rotate together; the rotating base <NUM> is rotatably connected to an inner side of the housing <NUM> of the valve body <NUM>, the two swinging rods <NUM> are disposed on two sides of the rotating base <NUM>, and pivot shafts pass through middle portions of the two swinging rods and are connected to the rotating base <NUM>, so that the two swinging rods <NUM> are pivotally connected to the rotating base <NUM>. Outer ends of the two swinging rods <NUM> extend out of the rotating base <NUM>, and inner ends of the two swinging rods <NUM> are disposed in the insert groove of the connector base <NUM>. Therefore, the two swinging rods <NUM> swing to drive the connector base <NUM> and the moving piece <NUM> to slide together, the two swinging rods <NUM> rotate to drive the rotating base <NUM>, the connector base <NUM> and the moving piece <NUM> to rotate together, and the swinging rods control the moving piece to slide and rotate. The structure is compact and the operation is convenient.

In this embodiment, the main control driving mechanism <NUM> further comprises an interlocking base <NUM> and a handle rod <NUM>, the interlocking base <NUM> comprises a matching groove, the outer ends of the two swinging rods <NUM> cooperate with and are disposed in the matching groove of the interlocking base <NUM>, and the handle rod <NUM> is fixedly connected to the interlocking base <NUM>, the handle rod <NUM> is operated to move upward and downward to control the moving piece to swing, the handle rod <NUM> swings leftward and rightward to control the moving piece to rotate, and operational convenience for the user is further improved.

The switch mechanism <NUM> is disposed in the valve body <NUM> and cooperates with the mixed water passage <NUM> and the two water dividing passages <NUM> and <NUM> to enable the switch mechanism <NUM> to switch the two water dividing passages <NUM> and <NUM> to be in communication with the mixed water passage <NUM>. The switch driving mechanism <NUM> comprises a sliding rod <NUM>, the rotating base <NUM> comprises a sliding groove <NUM> penetrating up and down, the sliding rod <NUM> is slidably connected to the sliding groove <NUM>, and the sliding rod <NUM> is operatively connected to the switch mechanism <NUM> to drive the switch mechanism <NUM> to achieve the switching.

The switch mechanism <NUM> comprises a switch shaft <NUM>, the switch shaft <NUM> is slidably connected to an inner side of the valve body <NUM>. The switch shaft <NUM> slides to control the two water dividing passages <NUM> and <NUM> to be switched to be in communication with the mixed water passage <NUM>. The switch shaft <NUM> is at least partially disposed in the control groove <NUM>.

A bottom surface of the switch shaft <NUM> is concave to define a water groove <NUM>, and the switch shaft <NUM> comprises two water holes <NUM> separately disposed along an axis and penetrating an inner side and an outer side of the water groove <NUM>. The two water holes <NUM> are in communication with the water groove <NUM> and the control groove <NUM> and/or in communication the water groove <NUM> and the mixed water groove <NUM>, so that the mixed water passage is always in communication with the water groove <NUM>; the water groove <NUM> is in communication with one of the two water dividing passages <NUM>, and the control groove <NUM> is in communication with another one of the two water dividing passages <NUM>. A first sealing ring <NUM> and a second sealing ring <NUM> are fixedly disposed on an outer side of the switch shaft <NUM>. The first sealing ring <NUM> cooperates with the base member, and the switch shaft <NUM> slides to enable the first sealing ring <NUM> to control an on-off operation of the control groove <NUM> to achieve a switching operation of the two water dividing passages. In a detailed structure, the two water dividing passages <NUM> and <NUM> are respectively a first water dividing passage <NUM> and a second water dividing passage <NUM>; the first water dividing passage <NUM> is disposed with a sealing piston <NUM> configured to slide relative to the first water dividing passage and a water-closing spring <NUM> configured to abut the sealing piston, the first water dividing passage <NUM> is divided into a front water passage <NUM> and a rear water passage <NUM> due to the sealing piston <NUM>. The water groove <NUM> is in communication with the rear water passage <NUM>; the control groove <NUM> comprises a control port <NUM>, and the first sealing ring <NUM> cooperates with the control port <NUM> to enable the first sealing ring <NUM> to control the on-off operation of the control groove <NUM>, and the control port <NUM> is in communication with the second water dividing passage <NUM> and the front water passage <NUM>. In a further detailed structure, the base member <NUM> comprises a bottom base <NUM>, a middle base <NUM> and a fixed base <NUM> that are hermetically and fixedly connected together in sequence; the control port <NUM> is disposed on the fixed base <NUM>, and the middle base <NUM> comprises a middle through groove and two first side through grooves, the bottom base <NUM> comprises two second side through grooves and a lower groove extending inward from a top surface; each of the two water dividing passages <NUM> and <NUM> comprises one of the two first side through grooves and one of the two second side through grooves that are in communication; the sealing piston <NUM> is slidably connected to one of the two first side through grooves, the water-closing spring <NUM> is disposed on the one of the two first side through grooves and abuts the sealing piston <NUM> and the fixed base <NUM>, a part of the one of the two first side through grooves disposed above the water-closing spring <NUM> defines the front water passage <NUM>, and a part of the one of the two first side through grooves disposed below the water-closing spring <NUM> and the one of the two second side through grooves define the rear water passage <NUM>; a gap <NUM> is defined between an upper end surface of the middle through groove and the fixed base, and the gap is in communication with upper ports of the two first side through grooves; the middle through groove is in communication with the lower groove, the switch shaft <NUM> is hermetically connected to the middle through groove due to the second sealing ring <NUM>, and the control groove <NUM> is in communication the one of the two first side through groove. In detail, a clearance <NUM> in communication with a lower port (the rear water passage) of the one of the two first side through grooves is defined between the lower groove and the middle through groove. A middle portion of the fixed piece <NUM> comprises a third through hole <NUM>, and the control groove <NUM> comprises the control port, the middle through groove, the lower groove and the third through hole. The aforementioned switching structure is used to achieve the switching due to a cooperation the on-off operation of water passages and water pressure, the structure is compact and labor-saving, and the switching is stable and reliable.

The switch driving mechanism <NUM> comprises an automatic ballpoint pen mechanism and a button <NUM>, the sliding rod defines a pressing rod of the automatic ballpoint pen mechanism, the switch shaft <NUM> defines a ballpoint refill of the automatic ballpoint pen mechanism, and an elastic body <NUM> abuts the switch shaft <NUM>. The elastic body <NUM> defines a reset spring of the automatic ballpoint pen mechanism; the rotating base <NUM> defines a ratchet wheel base of the automatic ballpoint pen mechanism, and the button abuts and is connected to the sliding rod. The automatic ballpoint pen mechanism is used to cooperate with the water pressure to achieve the switching, the operation is convenient and labor-saving.

In a state that the water flows out of the first water dividing passage <NUM>, the button is pressed to drive the switch shaft <NUM> to move downward, the first sealing ring <NUM> of the switch shaft <NUM> blocks the control port <NUM>, and the second water dividing passage <NUM> is closed; at this time, no water flows through the front water passage <NUM> that is in front of the sealing piston <NUM>, and an upper side of the sealing piston <NUM> is not subjected to water pressure, mixed water passes through the mixed water groove <NUM>/a part of control groove <NUM> disposed above the control port <NUM>-the two water holes <NUM>-the water groove <NUM>-the lower groove-the clearance <NUM>-the lower port of the one of the first side through grooves (the rear water passage <NUM>), a lower side of the sealing piston is subjected the water pressure to be lifted upward due to overcoming an elastic force of the water-closing spring, a lower sealing surface of the sealing piston is separated from a protruding platform of a passage of the base member, the first water dividing passage <NUM> is opened, and the water flows out of the first water dividing passage <NUM>. In a state that the water flows out of the second water dividing passage <NUM>, the button is pressed, the switch shaft <NUM> moves upward due to the reset spring, the first sealing ring <NUM> of the switch shaft is separated from the control port <NUM>, the control port <NUM> is opened, the mixed water passes through the mixed water groove <NUM>-the control port <NUM>- the gap <NUM>-the two first side through grooves, one of the two first side through grooves and one of the two second side through grooves of the second water dividing passage are in communication, the water flows out of the second water dividing passage <NUM>, the water flows through an upper port of the first side through groove of the first water dividing passage (the front water passage), the sealing piston moves downward to block the protruding platform of the passage of the base member due to the water pressure and the water-closing spring, and the first water dividing passage <NUM> is closed.

A shower comprising the multifunctional control valve comprises a faucet body <NUM>, two water inflowing joints <NUM> and two water outflowing passages <NUM>. The two water inflowing joints are disposed on a left side and a right side of a rear surface of the faucet body and are respectively in communication with the two water inflowing passages. A middle of a front surface of the faucet body comprises a mounting groove <NUM>, and the multifunctional control valve is disposed in the mounting groove. The two water outflowing passages are respectively in communication with the two water dividing passages. A front side of the faucet body <NUM> is fixedly connected to a fixed sleeve <NUM> aligned with the mounting groove, the button is slidingly connected to the fixed sleeve, and the handle rod extends out of the fixed sleeve. The layout of the shower is reasonable, the structure is compact, and the operation is convenient.

The invention may be summarized as follows: The present disclosure discloses a multifunctional control valve and a shower. The multifunctional control valve comprises a valve body, a main control valve core, a switch mechanism and a switch driving mechanism. The main control valve core is disposed in the valve body and cooperates with the two water inflowing passages and the mixed water passage to enable the main control valve core to control a water temperature, an on-off operation and a flow rate of the mixed water passage. The switch mechanism is disposed in the valve body and cooperates with the mixed water passage and the two water dividing passages to enable the switch mechanism to switch the two water dividing passages to be in communication with the mixed water passage. The switch driving mechanism comprises a sliding rod, the sliding rod is slidably connected to the main control valve core, and the sliding rod is operatively connected to the switch mechanism to drive the switch mechanism to achieve the switching. It integrates an on-off operation, flow rate adjustment, water temperature adjustment and waterway switching, the structure is compact , the assembly is convenient, and the operation is convenient.

Claim 1:
Multifunctional control valve, which comprises:
a valve body (<NUM>), wherein the valve body (<NUM>) comprises two water inflowing passages (<NUM>), a mixed water passage (<NUM>) and two water dividing passages (<NUM>, <NUM>);
a main control valve core (<NUM>), wherein the main control valve core (<NUM>) is disposed in the valve body (<NUM>) and cooperates with the two water inflowing passages (<NUM>) and the mixed water passage (<NUM>) to enable the main control valve core (<NUM>) to control a water temperature, an on-off operation and a flow rate of the mixed water passage (<NUM>);
a switch mechanism (<NUM>), wherein the switch mechanism (<NUM>) is disposed in the valve body (<NUM>) and cooperates with the mixed water passage (<NUM>) and the two water dividing passages (<NUM>, <NUM>) to enable the switch mechanism (<NUM>) to switch the two water dividing passages (<NUM>, <NUM>) to be in communication with the mixed water passage (<NUM>), the multifunctional control valve being characterized in that an end surface of the main control valve core (<NUM>) is concave to define a sliding groove (<NUM>) and in that the multifunctional control valve further comprises
a switch driving mechanism (<NUM>), wherein the switch driving mechanism (<NUM>) comprises a sliding rod (<NUM>), the sliding rod (<NUM>) is slidably connected to the sliding groove (<NUM>), and the sliding rod (<NUM>) is operatively connected to the switch mechanism (<NUM>) to drive the switch mechanism (<NUM>) to achieve the switching.