Divided box for valve controller

• US 5,555,907 A
• Filed: 06/02/1995
• Issued: 09/17/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 06/02/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Harald Philipp
• Original Assignee: Harald Philipp
• Inventors: Philipp, Harald
• Primary Examiner(s): Walton, George L.
• Application Number:
  US08/458,429
• Time in Patent Office: 473 Days
• Field of Search: 137/312, 137/356, 137/357, 137/359, 137/360, 137/364, 137/377, 137/381, 137/382, 4/670, 4/251.1, 4/630, 312/223.1, 312/229
• US Class Current: 137/312
• CPC Class Codes: E03C 1/02 Plumbing installations for fresh water
• CPC Class Codes: E03C 1/05 Arrangements of devices on wash-basins, baths, sinks, or the like for remote control of taps remote control of taps or the like per se F16K
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/5762 With leakage or drip collecting
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/698 Wall
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/7062 Valve guards

Abstract

An enclosure containing valves, batteries and electronic circuitry controlling the operation of an automatically actuated faucet includes a dividing wall slanted from the horizontal and separating an upper compartment, containing the valves, from a lower compartment containing the control electronics. Water from leaks in the top compartment (or water that runs down a pipe into the top of the box) runs down the slanted dividing shelf and drains from the box without contacting the electronic components. All the associated plumbing fittings are adjacent a top surface of the box so as to ease installation of the controller.

Claims

1. An enclosure for an electrically powered valve controller and an electrically operated valve, the valve and the valve controller connected by electrical wires, the enclosure comprising a box, a lid and a clamping means clamping the lid to the box, the box comprising a vertically oriented back exterior wall, a top exterior wall, a bottom exterior wall, two side exterior walls and an internal dividing wall having at least a pair of ends and attached to one of the exterior walls, the internal dividing wall positioned between two of the exterior walls in a slanted manner, the dividing wall dividing the box into an upper chamber containing the electrically operated valve and a lower chamber containing the electrically powered valve controller, an opening in the dividing wall allowing passage of the wires between the upper and lower chambers, the box further comprising drainage means adjacent a lower end of the slanted dividing wall, the drainage means draining water leaking from the valve into the upper chamber, the drainage means conveying the water from the upper chamber along the slanted dividing wall and through a throughhole in one of the exterior walls to the outside of the box under the influence of gravity, the box further comprising throughholes adjacent the top wall for water inlet and outlet fittings.

2. The enclosure of claim 1 further comprising a resilient sealing means intermediate the box and the lid.

3. The enclosure of claim 1 wherein the dividing wall comprises a vertically oriented portion.

4. The enclosure of claim 1 wherein the drainage means comprises a throughhole in a side wall of the box adjacent the upper chamber thereof.

5. The enclosure of claim 1 wherein the drainage means comprises a throughhole in the bottom of the box.

6. The enclosure of claim 1 wherein the electric wires interconnecting the valve and valve controller pass through a gap intermediate the dividing wall and one of the exterior walls.