Concealed sanitary valve unit

• US 4,572,232 A
• Filed: 07/31/1984
• Issued: 02/25/1986
• Est. Priority Date: 08/02/1983
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hansa Metallwerke AG (Paasikivi Family)
• Original Assignee: Hansa Metallwerke AG (Paasikivi Family)
• Inventors: Gruber, Walter F.
• Primary Examiner(s): CHAMBERS, A MICHAEL
• Application Number:
  US06/636,311
• Time in Patent Office: 574 Days
• Field of Search: 137/359, 137/360, 137/315, 137/316, 4/191, 4/192, 251/367
• US Class Current: 137/360
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 27/12 Covers for housings
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/6977 Escutcheon type support
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/698 Wall

Abstract

In a concealed sanitary valve unit the valve body received in a concealed outer housing is made from plastic material. In order not to exert excessive mechanical loads, particularly torsional and tensional loads onto the valve body improved clamping means are provided which will exert onto the valve body only small compressive loads. Connection of the valve body to the feed and work lines extending through the wall is achieved without making use of threadings, since connecting nuts are fixed to the feed viz. work lines having plane end faces adapted to sealingly engage plane connecting faces of the valve body.

Claims

1. A concealed valve unit comprising in combination

(a) a housing adapted to be inserted into a wall opening for flush mounting therein, said housing having openings therein that are sized to accomodate two water supply lines and two output water lines,

(b) a valve body arranged within said housing, said valve body including control elements and passageways that are adapted to control the flow of water through the valve body,

(c) operating members operatively associated with said valve body and extending through a mounting window located in said housing,

(d) said valve body having two spaced apart outer connecting faces, said connecting faces containing openings that communicate with said passageways in said valve body that are adapted to control the flow of water through said valve body,

(e) connecting nuts that are adapted to be threaded onto the ends of said water supply lines and onto the ends of said output water lines, each of said connecting nuts having a planar end face that is adapted to sealingly engage with the portions of said connecting faces of the valve body that contain openings,

(f) spaced apart clamping means mounted within said housing for engaging said end connecting nuts so that when said clamping menas are brought together they will clamp the planar end faces of said connecting nuts in sealing engagement with said openings in the connecting faces of the valve body, thereby establishing controlled communication from said water supply lines, through said valve body and out through said output water lines.

2. The valve unit as set forth in claim 1 wherein said clamping means comprises two metallic clamping plates and two threaded clamping spindles interconnecting said metallic clamping plates for relative mutual movement.

3. The valve unit as set forth in claim 2 wherein each of said threaded clamping spindles includes opposing end portions having oppositely formed threadings thereon and engaging with corresponding threadings formed in said metallic clamping plates so that rotation of the clamping spindle in one direction will result in a decrease of the distance defined between said metallic clamping plate, while rotation of said clamping spindle in the opposite direciton will result in an increase of said distance.

4. The valve unit as set forth in claim 3 wherein each of said clamping spindles has a central portion that contains drive faces adapted to cooperate with a spanner.

5. The valve unit as set forth in claim 1 wherein the mounting means for said clamping means include flat parallel mounting tabs arranged in a rectangular pattern, said mounting tabs being supported from a wall of said housing and each includes a cut-out, each of said clamping spindles extending through aligned cut-outs of two opposing mounting tabs.

6. The valve unit as set forth in claim 5 wherein said mounting tabs are formed integral with said case.

7. The valve unit as set forth in claim 5 wherein the cut-out is U-shaped.

8. The valve unit as set forth in claim 1 wherein the valve body is formed by a plurality of valve body segments each having a plane connecting face and the valve body segments are positively clamped together by said clamping means to interengage said plane connecting faces of the valve body segments, and have sealing means interposed therebetween.

9. The valve unit as set forth in claim 2 wherein the metallic plates include thru-openings adapted to receive a connecting nut, and the end portions of the connecting nuts include flange portions each having a diameter which exceeds the diameter of said thru-openings of said metallic plates so that the flange portions of the connecting nuts are forcefully urged against the corresponding connecting face of the valve body when the distance defined between said metallic plates is diminished.

10. The valve unit as set forth in claim 9 wherein o-seal means are carried by the end face of the flange portions of the connecting nuts.

11. The valve unit as set forth in claim 1 wherein the valve body includes at least one valve bore merging into the one surface of the valve body and is accessible through said mounting window, said valve bore being adapted to receive an associated valve control assembly, and a metallic cover overlies said one surface of the valve body and is fixedly connected thereto by screws extending into the valve body.

12. The valve unit as set forth in claim 1 wherein the valve body is made from plastic material.

13. A concealed valve unit comprising in combination

(a) a housing adapted to be inserted into a wall opening for flush mounting therein, said housing having openings therein that are sized to accomodate at least one water supply line and at least one output water line,

(b) a valve body arranged within said housing, said valve body including control elements and passageways that are adapted to control the flow of water through the valve body,

(c) operating members operatively associated with said valve body and extending through a mounting window located in said housing,

(d) said valve body having two spaced apart outer connecting faces, said connecting faces containing openings that communicate with said passageways in said valve body that are adapted to control the flow of water through said valve body,

(e) connecting nuts that are adapted to be threaded onto the ends of each of said water supply lines and onto the ends of each of said output water lines, each of said connecting nuts having a planar end face that is adapted to sealingly engage with the portion of said connecting faces of the valve body that contain openings,

(f) spaced apart clammping means mounted within said housing for engaging said planar end faces of said connecting nuts so that when said clamping means are brought together they will clamp the planar end faces of said connecting nuts in sealing engagement with said openings in the connecting faces of the valve body, thereby establishing controlled communication from each water supply line, through said valve body and out through each output water lines.

14. A water flow unit comprising in combination

(a) a housing adapted to be inserted into a wall opening for flush mounting therein, said housing having openings therein that are sized to accomodate two water supply lines and two output water lines,

(b) two bridging tubes arranged within said housing, said bridging tubes each interconnecting one water supply line with one output water line, said bridging tubes being located between support tabs located on the interior of the housing,

(c) connecting nuts that are adapted to be threaded onto the ends of said water supply lines and onto the ends of said output water lines, each of said connecting nuts having a planar end face that is adapted to sealingly engage with an end portion of a bridging tube,

(d) spaced apart clamping means mounted within said housing for engaging said planar end faces of said connecting nuts so that when said clamping means are brought together they will clamp the planar end faces of said connecting nuts in sealing engagement with the openings in said bridging tubes, thereby establishing controlled communication from said water supply lines, through said bridging tubes and out through said output water lines.