Showerhead

• US 5,316,216 A
• Filed: 12/09/1992
• Issued: 05/31/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Water Pik Incorporated (Church & Dwight Company Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Teledyne Industries Incorporated (Teledyne Technologies Incorporated), Teledyne Water Pik
• Inventors: Koliha, Michael W., Smith, David W., Cammack, Michael A.
• Primary Examiner(s): YOUNG, KAREN MERRITT
• Application Number:
  US07/988,434
• Time in Patent Office: 538 Days
• Field of Search: 239/436-449, 239/381, 239/553.5, 239/71, 239/600, 239/553.3, 239/554, 239/553
• US Class Current: 239/71
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 1/1636 by relative rotative movement of the valve elements B05B1/1672 takes precedence
• 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 1/185 characterised by their outlet element; Mounting arrangements therefor
• 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 showerhead is either wall mounted or provided with a handle connected through a flexible hose to an incoming water outlet. The showerhead has a turbine which may cause the delivery of pulses of circumferentially distributed groups of pulses of water so as to provide either fast or slow massage action. Also included is a pause mode in which flow is reduced without complete shutoff and a center spray mode which provides a concentrated spray pattern. Other modes possible are a needle spray, a combination pulse and needle spray, a combination needle spray with a body spray, just a body spray, and an oval shape spray pattern. Various water paths are defined from a flow selector through the unit to different ones of front-facing orifices as defined for the different modes. Selection is achieved by a combination of a flow director and a control plate. User access for mode selection is by way of an external circumferential control ring operatively coupled to the control plate through a control arm. A component is removable by the user to enable easy cleaning of an array of the outlet orifices.

Claims

1. In a showerhead including a housing having a water inlet and a water outlet spaced from said inlet along a water flow path with said outlet being defined by a circular array of orifices spaced in succession one after another, said outlet comprising:

a cylindrical body having a radially outward exterior surface;

an annular member having a radially inward interior wall;

a ring disposed within and captivated by said annular member with said ring having a radially inward interior surface;

a circular array of grooves oriented to lie in an axial direction and formed into one of said surfaces;

a cylindrical lip projecting in the axial direction from the other of said surfaces to cover said grooves in definition of said orifices;

a first thread formed on said exterior surface;

and a second thread formed on said interior wall and matable with said first thread to removably mount said member and said ring on said body with said lip covering said grooves.

2. A showerhead as defined in claim 1 in which said grooves are formed in said interior surface and said lip projects from said exterior surface.

3. A showerhead as defined in claim 1 in which said body, said lip and said member all are molded from an acetal copolymer.

4. In a showerhead including a water inlet and a water outlet spaced from said inlet along a water flow path with said outlet being defined by a circumferentially-spaced plurality of orifices, a distributor in said flow path comprising:

a turbine rotatable about an axis in said flow path and defining a gap delivering water to successive ones of said orifices as said turbine rotates;

at least one first nozzle in said path and through which water flows in development of a force urging said turbine to rotate with said first nozzle being spaced radially outward a first distance from said axis;

at least one second nozzle in said path and through which water flows in development of a force urging said turbine to rotate with said second nozzle being spaced radially outward from said axis a second distance greater than said first distance;

and an adjustable director assembly in said flow path upstream from said nozzles to direct said water selectively as between said first and second nozzles.

5. In a showerhead including a housing having a water inlet and a water outlet spaced along a water flow path from said inlet with said outlet being defined by at least two different radially-spaced orifice groups, a group selector comprising:

a flow director in said housing through which water flows into a selected one of respective subpaths individually continuing to a corresponding one of said orifice groups;

a control plate in said housing rotatable to select between said subpaths;

a control arm in said housing secured at one end to said control plate to rotate said control plate upon swinging movement of the other end of said arm about said one end;

and a control ring mounted around the exterior of said housing for rotation and coupled to said other end of said control arm to swing said other end as said control ring is rotated.

6. A showerhead as defined in claim 5 which further includes:

a display ring mounted on the exterior of said housing adjacent to said control ring and having a circumferentially-spaced plurality of graphic symbols corresponding to respective ones of said orifice groups;

and an indicator located on said control ring adjacent to said display ring and movable thereby into alignment with different ones of said symbols in correspondence with the selection among said subpaths.

7. A showerhead as defined in claim 5 in which the radially inward surface of said control ring has a plurality of circumferentially-spaced axially-oriented grooves and which further includes a resilient detent ring secured to said flow director and having a series of outwardly-facing circumferentially-spaced nubs detentable in different ones of said grooves in correspondence with selection of different ones of said subpaths.

8. In a showerhead including a housing having a water inlet and a water outlet spaced from said inlet along a water flow path, said outlet comprising:

a cylindrical body disposed centrally within said housing;

a cylindrical first lip projecting in the axial direction from the outer periphery of said body;

a ring having inner and outer surfaces disposed coaxially around said first lip;

a circular first array of grooves oriented to lie in the axial direction and formed into said inner surface in a position to be covered by said first lip in definition of a first circular array of orifices spaced in succession one after another;

a circular second array of grooves oriented to lie in the axial direction and formed into said outer surface of said ring;

a collar disposed beyond said ring;

a cylindrical second lip projecting in the axial direction from the inner periphery of said collar in a position to cover said second array of grooves in definition of a second circular array of orifices spaced in succession one after another;

and an intergroove spacing in said second array generally decreasing from a diametrically-opposed pair of reference points in each direction progressively for a circular quarter of the array circumference and the individual angular inclination relative to the axial direction of the grooves in said second array generally increasing from said reference points over said quarters as to define a spray pattern of oval shape at a predetermined distance in front of said showerhead.

9. In a showerhead including a housing having a water inlet and a water outlet spaced from said inlet along a water flow path with said outlet being defined by a circular array of orifices spaced in succession one after another, said outlet comprising:

a cylindrical body having a radially outward exterior surface;

an annular element having a radially inward interior surface;

a circular array of grooves oriented to lie in an axial direction and formed into one of said surfaces;

a cylindrical lip projecting in the axial direction from the other of said surfaces to cover said grooves in definition of said orifices;

and an intergroove spacing in said array generally decreasing from a diametrically-opposed pair of reference points in each direction progressively for a circular quarter of the array circumference and the individual angular inclination relative to the axial direction of said grooves in said array generally increasing from said reference point over said quarters as to define a spray pattern of oval shape at a predetermined distance in front of said showerhead.

10. In a showerhead including a housing having a water inlet and a water outlet spaced from said inlet along a water flow path with said outlet being defined by a circular array of orifices spaced in succession one after another, said outlet comprising:

a circular array of channels in definition of said orifices with an interchannel spacing in said array generally decreasing from a diametrically-opposed pair of reference points in each direction progressively for a circular quarter of the array circumference and the individual angles of inclination relative to the axial direction of said channels generally increasing from said reference points over said quarters as to define a spray pattern of oval shape at a predetermined distance in front of said showerhead.

11. In a showerhead including a housing having a water inlet and a water outlet spaced from said inlet along a water flow path, said outlet comprising:

a cylindrical body having a radially outward exterior surface;

a ring disposed around said body with said ring having a radially inward interior surface and a radially outward exterior wall;

a circular array of grooves oriented to lie in an axial direction and formed into one of said surfaces;

a first cylindrical lip projecting in the axial direction from the other of said surfaces to cover said grooves in definition of a first group of orifices;

a collar disposed around said ring and having a radially inward interior wall;

a circular array of channels oriented to lie in an axial direction and formed into one of said walls;

a second cylindrical lip projecting in the axial direction from the other of said walls to cover said channels in definition of a second group of orifices;

a first thread formed on said exterior surface;

and a second thread formed on said interior wall and matable with said first thread to removably mount said collar on said body with said lips covering respective ones of said grooves and said channels.

12. In a showerhead including a housing having a water inlet and a water outlet spaced from said inlet along a water flow path, said outlet comprising:

a cylindrical body having a radially outward exterior surface;

a ring disposed around said body with said ring having a radially inward interior surface and a radially outward exterior wall;

a circular array of grooves oriented to lie in an axial direction and formed into one of said surfaces;

a first cylindrical lip projecting in the axial direction from the other of said surfaces to cover said grooves in definition of a first group of orifices;

a collar disposed around said ring and having a radially inward interior wall;

a circular array of channels oriented to lie in an axial direction and formed into one of said walls;

a second cylindrical lip projecting in the axial direction from the other of said walls to cover said channels in definition of a second group of orifices;

a flow director in said housing through which water flows into a selected one of respective subpaths individually continuing to a corresponding one of said orifice groups;

a control plate in said housing rotatable to select between said subpaths;

a control arm in said housing secured at one end to said control plate to rotate said control plate upon swinging movement of the other end of said arm about said one end;

and a control ring mounted around the exterior of said housing for rotation and coupled to said other end of said control arm to swing said other end as said control ring is rotated.

13. A showerhead as defined in claim 12 which still further includes:

a display ring mounted on the exterior of said housing adjacent to said control ring and having a circumferentially-spaced plurality of graphic symbols corresponding to respective ones of said orifice groups;

and an indicator located on said control ring adjacent to said display ring and movable thereby into alignment with different ones of said symbols in correspondence with the selection among said subpaths.