Quick release motor pump assembly for electric marine toilet

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12397883-B2
Application number	US-202017026584-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 21, 2020
Priority date	Sep 19, 2019
Publication date	Aug 26, 2025
Grant date	Aug 26, 2025

Abstract

Apparatus featuring a toilet base having a wall forming a chamber for receiving waste, the wall having a toilet base coupling portion; a pump/motor assembly having a pump inlet configured to receive the waste pumped from the chamber, the pump inlet having a pump inlet coupling portion arranged inside the toilet base coupling portion when the pump/motor assembly and the toilet base are coupled together; and a quick release coupling mechanism having a clip receiving portion and a clip configured to slide within the clip receiving portion from a disengage position to an engage position to engage the pump inlet coupling portion and couple the toilet base and the pump/motor assembly together, and also configured to slide from the engage position to the disengage position to disengage the pump inlet coupling portion and decouple the pump/motor assembly from the toilet base.

First claim

What we claim is:

1. An electric toilet comprising:
a toilet base having a wall forming a chamber for receiving waste, the wall having a toilet base coupling portion;
a pump/motor assembly having a pump inlet with a longitudinal axis and configured to receive the waste pumped from the chamber, the pump inlet having a pump inlet coupling portion arranged inside the toilet base coupling portion when the pump/motor assembly and the toilet base are coupled together, the pump/motor assembly having a pump outlet configured to receive a discharge fitting and provide the waste from the pump/motor assembly;
a quick release coupling mechanism having a clip receiving portion and a clip configured to slide within the clip receiving portion from a disengage position to an engage position to engage the pump inlet coupling portion and couple the toilet base and the pump/motor assembly together, configured to slide from the engage position to the disengage position to disengage the pump inlet coupling portion and decouple the pump/motor assembly from the toilet base, the clip configured to engage the clip receiving portion and allow the pump outlet and discharge fitting to rotate between 0°-180° in relation to and about the longitudinal axis of the pump inlet to orient the discharge fitting in opposite directions as needed depending on an application.

2. The electric toilet according to claim 1 , wherein the quick release coupling mechanism is mounted on the toilet base, including mounted on the wall of the toilet base or to the toilet base coupling portion of the toilet base.

3. The electric toilet according to claim 1 , wherein
the clip receiving portion has a slot configured or formed therein to receive the clip; and
the clip is configured to slide within the slot of the clip receiving portion.

4. The electric toilet according to claim 1 , wherein
the clip receiving portion has an opening configured or formed therein;
the pump inlet coupling portion has a rim configured to pass through the opening formed in the clip receiving portion and into the toilet base coupling portion of the toilet base; and
the clip is configured to slide within the clip receiving portion from the disengage position to the engage position to engage the rim to couple together the toilet base and the pump/motor assembly.

5. The electric toilet according to claim 1 , wherein the quick release coupling mechanism comprises a spring configured to expand when the clip slides from the disengage position to the engage position to push and hold the clip in the engage position, and also configured to compress when the clip slides from the engage position to the disengage position to urge the spring towards the engage position.

6. The electric toilet according to claim 4 , wherein the clip comprises a clip engaging portion configured to engage the rim when the clip slides from the disengage position to the engage position, and also configured to disengage the rim when the clip slides from the engage position to the disengage position.

7. The electric toilet according to claim 6 , wherein the clip comprises a clip release portion having an opening configured to allow the pump inlet coupling portion to pass thru when the clip slides into the disengage position for releasing the pump/motor assembly from the toilet base, and also for positioning the pump inlet coupling portion for engagement.

8. The electric toilet according to claim 1 , wherein
the pump outlet has a corresponding longitudinal axis and includes a pump outlet coupling portion; and
the discharge fitting includes a quick release discharge fitting coupling mechanism with a discharge fitting clip receiving portion and a discharge fitting clip,
the discharge fitting clip configured to slide within the discharge fitting clip receiving portion from a discharge fitting disengage position to a discharge fitting engage position to engage the pump outlet coupling portion and couple the discharge fitting and the pump/motor assembly together, and also from the discharge fitting engage position to the discharge fitting disengage position to disengage the pump outlet coupling portion and decouple the discharge fitting from the pump/motor assembly, the discharge fitting clip configured to engage the discharge fitting clip receiving portion and allow the discharge fitting to rotate 360° in relation to and about the corresponding longitudinal axis of the pump outlet to swivel the discharge fitting as needed depending on the application.

9. The electric toilet according to claim 8 , wherein
the discharge fitting clip receiving portion has a discharge fitting slot configured or formed therein to receive the discharge fitting clip; and
the discharge fitting clip is configured to slide within the discharge fitting slot.

10. The electric toilet according to claim 8 , wherein
the discharge fitting clip receiving portion has an opening configured or formed therein;
the pump outlet coupling portion includes a pump outlet rim configured to pass through the opening formed in the discharge fitting clip receiving portion and into the discharge fitting; and
the discharge fitting clip is configured to slide within the discharge fitting clip receiving portion from the discharge fitting disengage position to the discharge fitting engage position to engage the pump outlet rim to couple together the pump/motor assembly and the discharge fitting.

11. The electric toilet according to claim 8 , wherein the quick release discharge fitting coupling mechanism comprises a discharge fitting spring that is configured to expand when the discharge fitting clip slides from the discharge fitting disengage position to the discharge fitting engage position to push and hold the discharge fitting clip in the discharge fitting engage position, and also configured to compress when the discharge fitting clip slides from the discharge fitting engage position to the discharge fitting disengage position to urge the discharge fitting spring towards the discharge fitting engage position.

12. The electric toilet according to claim 10 , wherein the discharge fitting clip comprises a discharge fitting clip engaging portion configured to engage the pump outlet rim when the discharge fitting clip slides from the discharge fitting disengage position to the discharge fitting engage position, and also configured to disengage the pump outlet rim when the discharge fitting clip slides from the discharge fitting engage position to the discharge fitting disengage position.

13. The electric toilet according to claim 8 , wherein the discharge fitting clip comprises a discharge fitting release portion having an opening configured to allow the pump outlet coupling portion to pass thru when the discharge fitting clip slides into the discharge fitting disengage position for releasing the discharge fitting from the pump/motor assembly, and for also positioning the pump outlet coupling portion for engagement.

14. The electric toilet according to claim 7 , wherein the electric toilet is a marine electric toilet or an RV electric toilet.

15. The electric toilet according to claim 1 , wherein the electric toilet comprises one or more O-rings configured to seal the pump inlet coupling portion of the pump inlet in relation to the toilet base coupling portion of the toilet base.

16. The electric toilet according to claim 1 , wherein the pump outlet has a corresponding longitudinal axis that is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the pump inlet.

17. The electric toilet according to claim 8 , wherein the electric toilet comprises one or

Assignees

• Flow Control LLC

Inventors

• Meza Humberto V
• Edmond Matthew

Classifications

• E03D5/01

  using flushing pumps · CPC title

• B63B29/14 Primary

  Closet or like flushing arrangements; Washing or bathing facilities peculiar to ships · CPC title

• E03D11/16 Primary

  Means for connecting the bowl to the floor, e.g. to a floor outlet · CPC title