JPH0227031A - Distributor - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improved dispensing device of the type for adding a quantity of a first flowable substance to a stream of a second flowable substance. . The invention is particularly, but not exclusively, suitable for adding small amounts of liquid to the flush water of a flush toilet bowl or urinal.

[Prior Art] A chamber is connected to a flush water pipe connecting an upper tank and a lower urinal via a float-operated valve.

This chamber is supplied with water at the beginning of the cleaning operation and drained at the final stage of the cleaning operation. Such structures are well known. A sponge filling outlet of a reservoir for liquid additives (e.g. disinfectants, perfumes, scale removers, etc.) is arranged in the chamber of the prior art dispensing device;
Each time the chamber is filled or emptied, the required amount of additive is drawn into the wash water stream.

However, in prior art devices such as those described above, the amount of additive sucked into the wash water stream is variable, and if the time intervals between successive washing operations are not constant, the amount The changes are particularly noticeable.

A technique for directly injecting a first flowable substance into a volume of wash water using an electric pump is described in EP-A-0149369.
It is also described in EP that the deflection of deformable flexible tubes can be used to pump flowable substances.
-A-0018648.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention distributes a substantially constant amount of a first flowable material into a very large amount of a second flowable material, and reduces the amount of the first flowable material. This invention relates to an improved dispensing device in which a peristaltic pump is used to measure the amount of water.

Preferably, the pump comprises a loop of flexible tubing that is spanned generally chordally between a plurality of tubular support members. The tube support members are arranged at equal intervals around the central axis of rotation. Advantageously, each of the rnJ radially extending arms of the rotatable spider is fitted with one rnJ such support member (which may be a roller). (The number "n" is a modest integer greater than or equal to 2). A means is provided for rotating the tube support relative to the tube, preferably an electric motor. Means is also provided for measuring the total rotation angle of the tube support member about the central axis of rotation inside the loop each time a dispensing operation is performed.

Conveniently, three tube supports are used, with the loops of flexible tube being wrapped around the rollers or rods two times in a generally chordal manner. These rollers or rods are each mounted at the same distance from the central axis of rotation and at intervals of 120 degrees.

The peristaltic pump is preferably driven by an electric motor (e.g. powered by battery power). The timing of the dispensing operation can also be handled by a preset time-measuring method (e.g., using a conventional timing mechanism), or if the tube support member has a reference point (e.g., located inside the loop). It is convenient to count the number of passes.

A predetermined quantity of the first flowable substance is precisely expelled from the tube by peristaltic movement of the movable tube support member. The movable tube support member forms individual "pools" of flowable material within the bores of the "spanned" tubes, and removes the required number of these "pools" from the downstream end of the tube. I'm sending it out. A fixed amount can then be dispensed into the mixing chamber and diluted with the second flowable substance. It can also be supplied directly into a second fluid material reservoir (e.g., into the flush water tank of a flush toilet system) or into a second fluid material stream (e.g., into a urinal or series of urinals). (into the wash water pipe).

The pumping cycle can be initiated using a variety of mechanisms, such as a float switch (activated by the second flowable material), a pressure switch, a timing device, a proximity sensor, or a photocell.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Several embodiments of a device according to the invention for adding environmentally friendly additives to urinal flushing water will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[Example] Refer to FIG. 1. A flush toilet toilet 10 is connected to a series of urinals 11 through a flush water pipe 12. The toilet 10 is filled with a constant amount of water flowing in from a valve-controlled supply port 13, and flush water is periodically discharged from the toilet bowl 11 by automatic siphoning. A branch pipe 14 connects the wash water line 12 to a prior art additive dispensing device 15.

The device 15 is equipped with a mixing chamber 16 . Inside this mixing chamber 16 is a bottle 1 of an inverted additive liquid (e.g. disinfectant and/or perfume and/or staining liquid and/or toilet sink removal mixture) capped with a perforated plug 18.
7 is placed.

The stop valve 19 of the branch pipe 14 is connected to the float 20 in the chamber 16.
It is connected to the.

The device shown in FIG. 1 functions as follows.

If Jistern 10 suddenly releases water, the cleaning water pipe 1
The hydraulic pressure in 2 pushes the water up into chamber 16 until it reaches a level 21 set by float 20 and the valve closes. The water in chamber 16 becomes mixed with a small amount of additive flowing out of bottle 17 and/or filling the hole in plug 18 . Chamber 16 is thus filled with a diluted solution of additive.

During the final stage of flushing, the fluid pressure in the flush water line 12 drops, but eventually the valve 19 is opened and the diluted solution in the chamber 16 is discharged from the branch pipe 14 into the toilet bowl, forming the final part of the flush water stream. It goes down to the extent that it does.

FIG. 2 shows a specific example of the prior art device 15 shown in FIG. 1, and the same reference numerals have been used for convenience in the two figures. The device 15 in FIG. 2 also includes a container 25 behind the slot cover 26. An air purifying filter (not shown) can be disposed inside the container 25, and the inflow of cleaning water (the lower part is connected to the chamber 16).
The air rejected from the casing 24 (forming a
Perfumes or deodorizers) can be released into the outside air.

FIG. 3 shows a first embodiment of the device according to the invention, partially exploded for clarity.

The apparatus of FIG. 3 is adapted for use with a distern-controlled cleaning structure of the type shown in FIG. The branch pipe 14 is also connected to a diffusion chamber 30. This diffusion chamber 30, like chamber 16, is filled with cleaning water during the initial stages of the cleaning process. Float operation switch 31 (
e.g. microswitch or magnetic reed switch)
detects that water is being delivered to the chamber 30 and energizes the motor 32 to rotate the peristaltic pump 33 and inlet pipe 35.
flexible pump tube 33a from reservoir 34 through
A liquid additive is sucked into the chamber 30 and the additive is discharged into the chamber 30 through an outlet pipe 36. The motor 32 is powered by a battery 37 (for example, 6
1 or 12). In this light detection device 38, even if the device is placed in a dark room, the microswitch 31 will not operate to operate the motor. The motor 32 is controlled to deliver the required amount (for example, 0.125 ml) each time it is activated. A rear plate 39 and a front cover 40 are attached to the device. The front cover 40 is secured to the rear plate 39 by a locking mechanism 41 that engages the flap 42 with the rear plate 39. Reservoir 3
4 is filled through a telescoping tube 43 passing through a hole 44 in the cover with a locking mechanism.

The device of FIG. 4 is similar to the device of FIG. 3, except that it includes a large capacity reservoir 34.

The apparatus of FIG. 5 does not require an adjacent distern, and the flow rate of the wash water sent to the outlet pipe 45 is controlled by a solenoid valve 46. The solenoid valve 46 is connected to a water supply pipe passing through a hole 47 in the rear plate 39. As water is flowing through the device, the motor 32 is energized by the battery 37, operating the pump 33 at the desired speed and pumping the reservoir 34.
The required amount of additive is dispensed from the chamber 50 to the chamber 50. The chamber 50 shown in FIG. 5 differs from the chamber 30 of FIGS. 3 and 4 in that it does not require a float valve and functions as the part of the apparatus in which the water and additive mixing takes place. The water valve 46 is operated by the person using the adjacent flush toilet, but this control (and setting the timing of pump operation) can also be performed using an electronic device 51 connected to the sensor 52. The sensor 52 is
It functions through the hole 53 in the base plate and the cutout 54 in the cover 40.

FIG. 6 shows a modification of the wash water distern device with a remote float switch 55 that can be placed within the distern (not shown). The outlet pipe 36 can pass through the cistern or be connected to the lower pipe 12, and a predetermined amount of additive is delivered to the wash water from the reservoir 34 each time the float switch 55 is actuated (usually at the end of the cistern water supply). .

FIG. 7 shows the diffusion chamber 30 of the apparatus of FIGS. 3 and 4 in more detail. A frustoconical valve 56 carried by tube 57 is lifted by a float 58 as water flows into the chamber from branch pipe 14 . When tube 57 is fully raised, valve 56 engages valve seat 59 to prevent water from flowing out of the open upper portion of float chamber 60. Pipe 36 communicates with the upper part of tube 57. Valve 56 is perforated to allow additive to be pumped into chamber 30 when pump 33 is operating. An alternative method for injecting the additive through the valve 56 is to insert the tube 36 into a recess 30a in the wall of the chamber 30. According to this method, the movement of the valve 56 is not obstructed by the tube 36.

FIG. 8 shows a modification of the pump 33. The pump head 61 includes a pair of discs 62 , 63 rotated by the motor 32 and a gear train 64 . disk 6
Three rollers 65 are positioned between rollers 2 and 63 at 120 degree intervals around the axis of rotation 66 of the disks 62, 63 and equally spaced from the axis 66. (Not shown in FIG. 8 but shown in FIG. 10) The flexible tube 33a is connected to the pump head 61 as it rotates to periodically pump additive from the reservoir. It has been deformed by 61.

The embodiment of FIG. 8 uses a cam actuated microswitch 67 to control the rotation of the pump.

FIG. 10 shows a preferred structure of the pump 33. The disks 62, 63 are replaced by spiders 62a, 63a, and the number of revolutions of the spiders is counted by an opto-switch 68. This opto-switch 68 counts the number of times the roller 65 passes through the opto-switch 68. The small illustration in Figure 10 is
The arrows indicate "pools" or pockets of liquid 69 that are blocked in 33a by two adjacent rollers 65, and the arrows indicate these "pools" as the spider rotates.
It shows how the water is sent along the tube 33a of the pump.

FIG. 9 shows a modified structure of the diffusion chamber.

Float switch 55 is housed within side chamber 60a of float chamber 60.

The outlet tube 36 connects into a chamber 60 (located in a recess 70 in the wall). The deflection plate 71 changes the direction of air and water flowing vertically through the valve seat 59. Branch pipe 1
4 communicates with the inside of the socket 71, and also communicates with the chamber 60.
Flow from the tube 14 to the adjustable base cap 72
The flow resistance is adjusted by This adjustable base cap 72 enters upwardly into the chamber 30 when the water pressure exceeds a desired maximum value and is effective in reducing the dimensions of the flow lower 3. If the float 58 is not raised and engaged with the valve seat 59, the valve 56 is located within the cap 2.

A magnet may be placed on the float 58 in place of the float switch 55 of FIG. 9 and used to operate a proximity reed switch (not shown) connected to the motor of the peristaltic pump 33.

At least the devices shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 can also be provided with an air purification function as shown in FIG. The air required for this is taken in from the chamber 30.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a prior art dispensing device for use in a flushing system for a urinal or flush toilet bowl. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the prior art device of FIG. 1; FIG. FIG. 3 is an exploded view showing the components of the first embodiment of the deodorizing device. 4, 5 and 6 are the same exploded views as FIG. 3 showing the second, third and fourth embodiments of the deodorizing device. FIG. 7 is an exploded view of the diffusion or mixing chamber used in the apparatus of FIGS. 3, 4, and 5. FIG. 8 is an exploded view showing an example of the structure of a pump head of a peristaltic pump used in each of the devices shown in FIGS. 3 to 6. FIG. FIG. 9 is an exploded view showing a structure of a modified example of the diffusion chamber with a part ↑5 cut away. Figures 1-0 are schematic diagrams showing a second embodiment of a peristaltic pump. 10... Flush toilet distern 11... Urinal 12... Wash water piping 14... Branch pipe 15... Additive distribution device 16... Mixing chamber 30... Diffusion chamber 31. ... Float activation switch 32 ... Motor 33 ... Peristaltic pump 33a ... Flexible tube 34 ... Reservoir 37 ... Battery 38 ... Light detection device 50 ... Chamber 61 ... pump head. Procedural amendment (method) Display of case 1999 Patent application No. Name of invention Distributing device Amendment person No. 101498 The Welcome Foundation Limited Agent amendment order date 1 sun July 25, 1999 Amendment number Koyori T Sokaro Target drawing date for correction of number of terms and conditions

Claims (9)

[Claims] (1) A dispensing device for dispensing a quantity of a first flowable substance into a quantity of a second flowable substance using a motor-driven pumping means, the pumping means being a peristaltic pump. (2) The dispensing device according to claim 1, wherein the pump has a loop of flexible tube stretched approximately chordally between a plurality of tube support members, and the tube support member has a rotation center axis within the loop. distribution device equally spaced around the (3) The distribution device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the peristaltic pump is driven by an electric motor. (4) The dispensing device according to claim 2, further comprising means for measuring the total rotation angle of the tube support member around the center of rotation inside the loop each time a dispensing operation is performed. (5) The dispensing device according to claim 3, wherein the electric motor is operated by battery power. (6) A dispensing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the dispensing device is provided with means for setting the operating time of the pump each time it is activated. (7) The distribution device according to claim 2, wherein the timing of pump operation after activation is set by counting the number of times the tube support member passes through a reference point. (8) The dispensing device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising a mixing chamber for dispensing a predetermined amount of the first flowable substance and diluting it with the second flowable substance. A distribution device. (9) The distribution device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the start of operation of the pump is activated by a second fluid substance, a float switch, a pressure switch, a timing device, a proximity sensor. and a distribution device by one of the photocells.