Overflow vent scoop for flush valve

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9915059-B2
Application number	US-201414183290-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 18, 2014
Priority date	Feb 15, 2013
Publication date	Mar 13, 2018
Grant date	Mar 13, 2018

Abstract

A vent cover is described herein which may be used with various flush valve assemblies, particularly those acceptable for high efficiency and high performance toilets, which vent cover has a wall that includes an upper portion, a lower portion configured to define a vent cover inlet opening for receiving air and/or liquid passing upwardly from within a valve body and/or from within a toilet through a toilet inlet when the vent cover is installed on a valve body, an exterior surface, and an interior surface defining a vent cover passage for air passing upwardly from the vent cover inlet opening. At least the upper portion of the vent cover wall is configured for contacting an interior surface of a valve body at a location above an inlet of an overflow or venting tube on a valve body when the vent cover is installed on a valve body and wherein the valve cover wall is configured to at least partially divert flow of fluid from entering an inlet of an overflow tube or a venting tube on a valve body when the vent cover is installed on a valve body.

First claim

We claim:

1. A vent cover for use with a flush valve assembly, comprising
a vent cover wall including:
an upper portion,
a lower portion configured to define a vent cover inlet opening for receiving air and/or fluid passing upwardly from within a valve body and/or from within a toilet through a toilet inlet when the vent cover is installed on a valve body,
an exterior surface, and
an interior surface defining a vent cover passage for air and/or fluid passing upwardly from the vent cover inlet opening, wherein at least the upper portion of the vent cover wall has an outer edge that is arcuate such that the outer edge is configured to fit flush against a curved interior surface of a valve body at a location above an inlet of an overflow tube or a venting tube on a valve body when the vent cover is installed on a valve body, and wherein the vent cover wall is configured to at least partially divert flow of fluid from entering an inlet of an overflow tube or a venting tube on a valve body when the vent cover is installed on a valve body.

2. The vent cover for use with a flush valve assembly according to claim 1 , wherein the vent cover wall is configured to allow air and/or fluid entering the vent cover from the vent cover inlet opening to pass upwardly through the vent cover passage and to exit the vent cover into an inlet of an overflow tube or a venting tube of a valve body when the vent cover is installed on a valve body.

3. The vent cover for use with a flush valve assembly according to claim 1 , wherein the vent cover comprises a polymeric material.

4. The vent cover for use with a flush valve assembly according to claim 1 , wherein when the vent cover is installed in a valve body having an overflow or venting tube with an inlet, the vent cover has a length measured longitudinally along a longitudinal axis of the vent cover from a bottom of an inlet of an overflow or venting tube to the inlet on the lower portion of the vent cover of greater than 0 to about 100 mm.

5. The vent cover for use with a flush valve assembly according to claim 4 , wherein the length is about 10 mm to about 70 mm.

6. The vent cover for use with a flush valve assembly according to claim 5 , wherein the length is about 25 mm to about 65 mm.

7. The vent cover for use with a flush valve assembly according to claim 1 , wherein the vent cover wall is curved and has a body portion below the upper portion of the vent cover wall and above the lower portion of the vent cover wall and the inlet opening, the vent cover wall has a generally semi-circular configuration in transverse cross-section and has a radius measured in a transverse direction across the vent cover such that the passage through the vent cover within the body portion of the vent cover wall also has a generally semi-circular configuration.

8. The vent cover for use with a flush valve assembly according to claim 7 , wherein the body portion of the vent cover wall is tapered to conform to a tapered valve body and the radius of the vent cover wall decreases from the upper portion to the lower portion of the vent cover wall.

9. The vent cover for use with a flush valve assembly according to claim 7 , wherein the vent cover wall has an outer edge along the upper portion and the body portion of the vent cover wall, and the upper portion of vent cover wall is arcuately curved such that the radius of the vent cover wall decreases along the upper portion of the vent cover wall from the body portion of the vent cover wall towards the edge of the upper portion of the vent cover wall.

10. The vent cover for use with a flush valve assembly according to claim 1 , wherein the vent cover is formed of a material capable of being affixed to an interior surface of a valve body of a flush valve by an adhesive, ultrasonic welding and/or polymeric heat welding.

11. The vent cover for use with a flush valve assembly according to claim 1 , wherein the vent cover is formed of a material capable of being heat molded to an interior surface of a valve body of a flush valve.

12. The vent cover for use with a flush valve assembly according to claim 1 , further comprising projections extending outwardly from the exterior surface of the vent cover wall configured for engaging a feature of a valve body and/or an interior surface of a valve body of a flush valve upon installation of the vent cover.

13. A flush valve assembly, comprising
a valve body having an upper inlet end having an inlet opening therethrough for receiving fluid into the flush valve body, a lower outlet end having an outlet opening therethrough for allowing fluid to exit the flush valve body, and a valve body wall extending between the upper inlet end and the lower outlet end and having a curved interior surface defining a flow path that extends generally longitudinally through the valve body from the inlet opening to the outlet opening,
a valve body cover capable of opening and closing over the inlet opening of the valve body,
an overflow or venting tube, having an inlet opening in communication with the flow path of the valve body and an outlet opening for releasing air and/or fluid from within the valve body,
a vent cover having a vent cover wall, wherein the vent cover wall has with an upper portion, a lower portion defining an inlet opening for receiving air passing upwardly from within the valve body flow path and/or from a toilet through a toilet inlet, an exterior surface, and an interior surface defining a vent cover passage for receiving air from the inlet opening of the vent cover, wherein at least the upper portion of the vent cover wall has an outer edge that is arcuate such that the outer edge contacts and fits flush against the curved interior surface of the valve body at a location above the inlet opening of the overflow or venting tube and the vent cover wall is configured to at least partially divert flow of fluid from entering an inlet of an overflow tube or a venting tube on a valve body when the vent cover is installed on a valve body.

14. The flush valve assembly according to claim 13 , wherein the vent cover is configured to allow air and/or fluid entering the vent cover from the vent cover inlet opening to pass upwardly through the vent cover passage and to exit the vent cover through the inlet opening of the overflow or venting tube.

15. The flush valve assembly according to claim 13 , wherein the upper inlet end of the valve body comprises a radiused inlet.

16. The flush valve assembly according to claim 15 , wherein the valve body is an elevated valve body, and the valve cover is a buoyant poppet float coaxially mounted in the valve body for reciprocating motion with respect to said valve body along a guide member.

17. The flush valve assembly according to claim 13 , wherein the valve body is an elevated valve body that has a height measured longitudinally along the valve body which is greater than a largest diameter of the valve body.

18. The flush valve assembly according to claim 13 , wherein at least a portion of the interior surface of the valve body wall is downwardly linearly tapered and has a decreasing valve body diameter as measured transversely across the valve body.

19. The flush valve assembly according to claim 18 , wherein the valve body wall comprises an upper inlet section, a base section for attaching to a toilet tank floor, and an extension section situated between the inlet section and the base section and wherein at least one of an interior surface of the base section and of the extension section is tapered so as to have a linear

Assignees

• As Ip Holdco Llc

Inventors

• Grover David
• Bucher Christophe
• Salahi Sara

Classifications

• E03D1/34 Primary

  Flushing valves for outlets; Arrangement of outlet valves · CPC title

• E03D9/04

  Special arrangement or operation of ventilating devices (ventilating rooms in general F24F) · CPC title