Shower jet generating device having an overpressure valve

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11014102-B2
Application number	US-201916256984-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 24, 2019
Priority date	Jan 25, 2018
Publication date	May 25, 2021
Grant date	May 25, 2021

Abstract

A shower jet generating device for a shower head, illustratively for a sanitary shower head, including a shower jet disk delimiting a fluid chamber on an outlet side and including at least one jet outlet opening leading out of the fluid chamber and at least one overpressure valve opening, and comprising at least one overpressure valve disposed on the overpressure valve opening. The overpressure valve illustratively includes an overpressure outlet opening leading out of the fluid chamber, an immobile valve seat and a valve body capable of movement controlled by a fluid pressure in the fluid chamber and interacting with the valve seat, which valve body, in a normal pressure position, rests against the valve seat, thereby closing the overpressure outlet opening, and, in an overpressure position, is lifted off the valve seat, thereby exposing the overpressure outlet opening.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A shower jet generating device for a shower head comprising:
a shower jet disk delimiting a fluid chamber on an outlet side and including at least one jet outlet opening leading out of the fluid chamber and at least one overpressure valve opening; and
at least one overpressure valve disposed on the overpressure valve opening, the at least one overpressure valve including an overpressure outlet opening leading out of the fluid chamber, an immobile valve seat and a valve body capable of movement controlled by a fluid pressure in the fluid chamber and interacting with the valve seat, the valve body, in a normal pressure position, resting against the valve seat, thereby closing the overpressure outlet opening, and, in an overpressure position, is lifted off the valve seat, thereby exposing the overpressure outlet opening;
wherein the valve body is formed as a valve membrane body made of an elastic material, which valve membrane body comprises a cylindrical central portion extending into the overpressure valve opening and a deformably flap-movable boundary portion surrounding the central portion, wherein the valve membrane body moves with its central portion within the overpressure valve opening between the normal pressure position and the overpressure position by the deforming flap movement of the boundary portion, with a main directional component perpendicular to the shower jet disk.

2. The shower jet generating device according to claim 1 , wherein the fluid chamber, on its side facing away from the shower jet disk, is delimited by a chamber bottom plate including the valve seat.

3. The shower jet generating device according to claim 1 , wherein the central portion of the valve membrane body is hollow and cylindrical and comprises the overpressure outlet opening, and the overpressure outlet opening leads out of the valve membrane body on its side facing away from the valve seat.

4. The shower jet generating device according to claim 1 , wherein the central portion of the valve membrane body is hollow and cylindrical and comprises the overpressure outlet opening, and the overpressure outlet opening leads into the valve membrane body on its side facing towards the valve seat.

5. The shower jet generating device according to claim 4 , wherein the valve seat comprises a shut-off contour engaging in an input region of the overpressure outlet opening in the valve membrane body, in the normal pressure position of the valve membrane body.

6. The shower jet generating device according to claim 4 , wherein an input region of the overpressure outlet opening in the valve membrane body comprises a frustoconical outer contour, in the normal pressure position of the valve membrane body, and the valve seat comprises a corresponding frustoconical inner contour.

7. The shower jet generating device according to claim 5 , wherein the shut-off contour is formed by a hemispherical or conical shut-off projection.

8. The shower jet generating device according to claim 1 , wherein the valve seat comprises the overpressure outlet opening, and the overpressure outlet opening leads into the valve seat on its side facing towards the valve membrane body.

9. The shower jet generating device according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one jet outlet opening is formed by a jet outlet nipple which is formed from the elastic material integral with the valve membrane body.

10. The shower jet generating device according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one jet outlet opening is formed by a jet outlet nipple made of an elastic material, which nipple has a hollow cylindrical central portion extending into a nipple outlet opening of the jet disk and a deformably flap-movable boundary portion surrounding the central portion, wherein the jet outlet nipple moves with its central portion within the nipple outlet opening between a zero pressure position and a normal pressure position by the deforming flap movement of its boundary portion, with a main directional component perpendicular to the shower jet disk.

11. The shower jet generating device according to claim 1 , wherein the shower jet disk comprises at least two overpressure valve openings, each provided with a respective overpressure valve, wherein the overpressure valves respond to different overpressure values of the fluid pressure in the fluid chamber.

12. The shower jet generating device according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one overpressure valve is capable of multilevel response to at least two different overpressure values of the fluid pressure in the fluid chamber, wherein the valve membrane body moves, at a first overpressure value, to a first overpressure position partially exposing the overpressure outlet opening with a first opening cross-section and, at a second overpressure value that is greater than the first overpressure value, to a second overpressure position exposing the overpressure outlet opening with a second opening cross-section that is greater than the first one.

Assignees

• Hansgrohe Se

Inventors

• Butzke Klaus
• Kalmbach Marc
• Kinle Ulrich

Classifications

• A47K3/286

  Emergency showers · CPC title

• B05B1/185

  characterised by their outlet element; Mounting arrangements therefor · CPC title

• E03C1/0408

  Water installations especially for showers (E03C1/06 takes precedence; shower heads B05B1/18) · CPC title

• B05B1/3006

  the controlling element being actuated by the pressure of the fluid to be sprayed (B05B1/323 takes precedence; single-unit outlet valves actuated by the pressure of the fluid to be sprayed B05B11/0062) · CPC title

• E03C2201/70

  Reducing or removing limescale at spout outlet · CPC title