Thermostatic shower valve

• US 20150331431A1
• Filed: 11/20/2014
• Published: 11/19/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Acorn Engineering Company
• Original Assignee: Acorn Engineering Company
• Inventors: Graves, James C., Quijada, Boris, O'Brien, Thomas
• Granted Patent: US 10,474,170 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/134 measuring the temperature of mixed fluid
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/1353 combined with flow controlling means

Abstract

Embodiments include thermostatic valves for showers and tubs in which the temperature is regulated by a thermostatic motor/element. Both the flow from the valve and the temperature are controlled by a rotary stem. Hot and cold water is pre-mixed by passage through the coils of a return spring into a mixing chamber and a ceramic valve at the top of the mixing chamber controls flow of mixed water from the mixing chamber into an outlet chamber where fluctuations in the water temperature are eliminated before the water is conveyed to the shower or tub.

Claims

1. A thermostatic valve comprising in combination:

a body with a wall, hot and cold water inlets,

a cartridge assembly,

a mixing chamber located within the cartridge assembly, an outlet chamber located between the cartridge assembly wall and the body wall,

a ceramic valve located at the top of the mixing chamber,

a thermostatic motor/element,

a shuttle attached to and moved by the thermostatic motor/element in a reciprocating motion, and

a return spring located at the bottom of the mixing chamber.

2. The thermostatic valve of claim 1 wherein hot and cold water flows through ports into the bottom of the mixing chamber, through the return spring, through the mixing chamber, through the ceramic valve at the top of the mixing chamber into the outlet chamber, and from the bottom of the outlet chamber into the shower outlet or into the bath outlet.

3. The thermostatic shower and bath valve of claim 1 wherein the thermostatic motor/element comprises a thermostatic motor/element body and a thermostatic motor/element stem.

4. The thermostatic valve of claim 1 further comprising check-stop valves located between the hot and cold inlets and the body wall.

5. The thermostatic valve of claim 1 wherein the ceramic valve comprises a fixed lower ceramic valve disk having an arcuate slot and a mobile upper ceramic valve disk having a hole, the mobile disk rotatable in contact with the fixed disk with the mobile disk hole above the fixed disk slot.

6. The thermostatic valve of claim 5 wherein flow from the mixing chamber is into the slot on the fixed disk, and flow through the ceramic valve is blocked when the hole on the mobile disk is not above the slot on the fixed disk, and the flow is allowed when the hole on the mobile disk is above the slot on the fixed disk.

7. The thermostatic valve of claim 1 wherein the stem comprises an external valve stem and an internal valve stem and both external and internal stems are rotated when the external stem is rotated.

8. A thermostatic valve comprising a premixing chamber containing a return spring.

9. The thermostatic valve of claim 8 wherein hot and cold water are pre-mixed in the premixing chamber.