Pulsating water jet massage shower head construction

• US 4,141,502 A
• Filed: 02/18/1977
• Issued: 02/27/1979
• Est. Priority Date: 02/18/1976
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: HANS Grohe KG
• Original Assignee: HANS Grohe KG
• Inventors: Grohe, Klaus
• Primary Examiner(s): Saifer, Robert W.
• Application Number:
  US05/770,011
• Time in Patent Office: 739 Days
• Field of Search: 239/101, 239/102, 239/380-383, 239/558, 239/562, 239/563
• US Class Current: 239/381
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 1/18 Roses; Shower heads with means for adding soap or the like E03C1/046; jet regulators E03C1/08
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 3/04 driven by the liquid or other fluent material discharged, e.g. the liquid actuating a motor before passing to the outlet B05B3/023 takes precedence

Abstract

A pulsating water jet massage shower head comprises a shower head housing which has an interior chamber which opens outwardly. A nozzle member comprising a flat plate nozzle portion in a cylindrical fitted portion is fitted into the chamber of the housing and it is provided with a plurality of nozzle bores which extend through hollow cylindrical pin portions which extend upwardly from the interior surface of the plate portion. A cover member is arranged in the housing chamber spaced inwardly from the nozzle member and it has a segmental closing disk portion which acts to deflect water which is delivered through connecting conduits in the housing so as to cause rotation of a valve rotor positioned between the cover member and the nozzle member. The deflection and the rotation of the valve rotor produce rotating water jets through the nozzle bores. The valve rotor is mounted so that it floats between the cover member and the nozzle member and a pressure chamber is defined between the bottom of the nozzle plate and the valve member.

Claims

1. A massage shower head comprising a housing having a water chamber therein, a mechanism in said water chamber for producing pulsating water jets including a nozzle plate enclosing said water chamber, a valve rotor which is mounted in said water chamber for free rotation and axial play directly above said nozzle plate, said nozzle plate having a bottom with an interior surface, a plurality of nozzle bore portions extending inwardly toward said valve rotor from said interior surface of said nozzle plate bottom each having at least one jet forming nozzle bore therethrough and through said bottom, said valve rotor being provided with at least one radial wall element as well as with a segmental closing disk portion, water conveying channel means connected into said water chamber directed so as to produce a rotary water motion in said water chamber in the space accommodating said rotor, said water chamber having a pressure cavity between the plane of rotation of said closing disk portion of said valve rotor and said nozzle plate which is open toward said nozzle plate, said jet forming nozzle bore projecting into approximately the plane of rotation of said closing disk, whereby a water cushion is formed between said rotor and said nozzle bore portions by water flowing into said pressure cavity.

2. A massage shower head according to claim 1, wherein said nozzle plate includes a central journal pin having an annular shoulder extending inwardly from the interior surface of said bottom, said valve rotor being rotatably guided on said journal and said shoulder.

3. A massage shower head according to claim 1, wherein said valve rotor includes three radial wall elements angularly equidistantly spaced from each other, a ring wall surrounding said wall elements and having axial lengths approximately equal to the axial length of said wall elements, said closing disk extending over the areas between at least two adjacent radial wall elements.

4. A massage shower head according to claim 1, wherein said housing includes an annular channel, a cylindrical pin member defined in said housing within said channel coaxial of the axis of rotation of said rotor, said water conveying channel means including the supply channel terminating in said annular channel, said annular channel having a bottom which extends at least partly obliquely relative to the axis of symmetry toward the plane of rotation of said valve rotor.

5. A massage shower head according to claim 4, wherein the radial width of said channel is smaller than the radial extension of said wall element of said valve rotor and wherein said annular channel and said wall elements have mean radii which are approximately equal.

6. A massage shower head according to claim 5, wherein said supply channel terminates in an annular channel which has a cross-section which is flat in the axial direction and wide in the circumferential direction.

7. A massage shower head according to claim 6, wherein said annular channel begins in a zone where the supply channel terminates therein and extends to an angle of approximately 357°

up to an end zone in which the bottom of said channel is provided with a guide surface, said guide surface being provided on said bottom and having an inclination of about 45°

relative to the plane of rotation of said valve rotor.

8. A massage shower head according to claim 1, wherein said housing includes a cylindrical blind bore having an annular channel defined at the interior thereof, a segmental shaped disk cover covering said channel, said cover having an annular spacer ring therearound, said nozzle plate including a bottom wall, and an annular wall threaded into said housing and being adjustably threadably positioned in order to vary the pressure space.

9. A shower head according to claim 8, wherein said cover disk includes a pin portion, said housing having a central bore into which said pin portion projects, said pin forming an inner limiting surface of said annular channel.

10. A shower head according to claim 9, wherein said cover disk extends through a sector angle of about 90°

.

11. A shower head according to claim 1, wherein said nozzle plate has bores arranged in three groups which are distributed over the inner annular surface of said nozzle plate at equal mean angular distances on three nozzle bore portions.

12. A shower head according to claim 1, wherein said water conveying channel means comprises at least one water channel extending radially obliquely in respect to the plane of rotation of said valve rotor, said valve rotor comprising wall elements which are formed on the upper side of a closing disk which comprises a semicircular ring segment, said ring segment defining radial limiting edges around the closing disk provided with tongues which project perpendicularly therefrom.

13. A shower head according to claim 1, including a valve rotor comprising a closing disk of the shape of a semi-circular ring segment, said nozzle bore portions comprising bore field segments of a width approximately equal to the radial width of said ring segment of the closing disks, each bore field segment being limited by a front face adjacent said valve rotor which slopes obliquely from the plane of rotation of said closing disk.

14. A pulsating water jet massage shower head, comprising a shower head housing having an interior chamber opened at one end, a nozzle member closing the one end of said housing chamber and having a bottom with an interior and exterior surface, said bottom including a plurality of nozzle bore portions extending inwardly from said interior surface with at least one nozzle bore through each of said nozzle bore portions forming spray nozzle discharges through said bottom, a cover member in said housing member spaced inwardly from said nozzle bore portions, a valve rotor rotatably positioned between said cover member and said nozzle bore portions and being free for axial movement therebetween and having a plurality of radial wall portions and a closing disk portion, a portion of said housing chamber between said valve rotor and said nozzle bottom defining a pressure cavity, water conveying channel means defined in said housing for conveying a water stream upstream of said cover member into said pressure cavity, said cover member and the manner in which the water is conveyed by said conveying channel producing pulsating water jets through said nozzle bores, said nozzle bores through said nozzle bore portion of said bottom extending up to approximately the plane of rotation of said valve rotor closing disk portion, said valve rotor being floatable in rotary motion in said water stream whereby a water cushion is formed by the water stream between said valve rotor and said nozzle member.

15. A pulsating water jet massage shower head according to claim 14, wherein said shower head housing includes a handle portion, a head portion rotatable in respect to said handle portion, said head portion carrying said nozzle member, and detent means for anchoring said head portion relative to said handle portion at a selected position.

16. A pulsating water jet massage shower head according to claim 14, wherein said nozzle bore portions comprise a plurality of hollow cylindrical pin portions extending inwardly from the interior surface of said bottom defining the bores forming the spray nozzle discharge.

17. A massage shower head according to claim 14, wherein the bores forming the spray nozzle discharges are located in groups distributed around said nozzle plate, the interior surface of said nozzle bore portions being sloped inwardly toward said valve rotor into the pressure chamber from the periphery toward the center thereof.

18. A pulsating water jet massage shower head according to claim 14, wherein said housing includes an interior portion defining the cover member receiving bore, said cover member having a hub portion engageable in said bore, said cover member including a flat disk portion around said hub portion and an annular ring portion connected to the periphery of said disk portion, said valve rotor including radially extending ribs comprising said radial wall portions, said closing disk portion extending between some of said ribs and leaving at least one segmental portion open.