Shower head

• US 7,331,536 B1
• Filed: 07/14/2006
• Issued: 02/19/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Globe Union Industrial Corporation
• Original Assignee: Globe Union Industrial Corporation
• Inventors: Zhen, Bruce, Hu, Sheng-Ping
• Primary Examiner(s): Ganey; Steven J.
• Application Number:
  US11/486,218
• Publication Number:
  US 20080023577A1
• Time in Patent Office: 585 Days
• Field of Search: 239/443, 239/444, 239/446, 239/447, 239/448, 239/449, 239/556, 239/558, 239/562, 239/583, 239/586, 137/625.48, 137/867, 137/868, 137/871, 251/213, 251/230
• US Class Current: 239/449
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 1/1618 where said valve is a double-seat lift valve
• 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: Y10T 137/86879 Reciprocating valve unit

Abstract

A shower head includes a main body formed with a chamber communicating with a water inlet at the upper end. The main body has its lower end formed with central water outlets and peripheral water outlets and has its interior installed with a water-separating unit with a pivot having a sealing member fixed thereon. When the pivot together with the sealing member is moved up and down vertically in the chamber, the sealing member can carry out sealing to control the water flowing in the chamber through the central water outlets or the peripheral water outlets. The main body has one circumferential side installed with a press unit formed with two pushing slopes actuated to move horizontally and push the pivot of the water-separating unit to shift up and down vertically for controlling the shower head to send out water through the center or the periphery.

Claims

1. A shower head comprising:

a main body having one end formed with a water inlet and the other end formed with at least one central water outlet and a plurality of peripheral water outlets, said main body having its interior formed with a chamber communicating with said water inlet and said central water outlets as well as said peripheral water outlets, said chamber formed with a first wall and a second wall;

a water-separating unit installed in the interior of said main body and provided with a pivot able to be moved up and down vertically, said pivot fitted thereon with a sealing member, said sealing member actuated by an elastic member to normally push against and seal said first wall inside said chamber of said main body so that said water inlet can only communicate with said central water outlets of said main body, said pivot able to be actuated to shift vertically toward said elastic member to let said sealing member push against and seal said second wall inside said chamber of said main body so that said water inlet can only communicate with said peripheral water outlets; and

a press unit positioned in the interior of said main body and composed of a first actuating member and a second actuating member, said first and said second actuating member able to be respectively and elastically pressed to move inward horizontally, said first and said second actuating member respectively formed with a pushing slope in opposite directions, said sealing member on said pivot actuated to push against and seal up said first wall when said pushing slope of said first actuating member is moved inward horizontally to push said pivot to move upward vertically, said sealing member actuated to push against and seal up said second wall when said pushing slope of said second actuating member is moved inward horizontally to push said pivot to move downward vertically.

2. The shower head as claimed in claim 1, wherein said main body has an inner base, an outer casing mounted around said inner base, a water inflow unit assembled at the upper end of said inner base, and a water outflow unit installed at the lower end of said inner base.

3. The shower head as claimed in claim 2, wherein said inner base has its upper end formed with a recessed opening for receiving said water inflow unit and said water-separating unit, said recessed opening having its bottom wall bored with at least one center passageway, said recessed opening having its upper circumferential wall bored with at least one peripheral passageway, said inner base having the intermediate interior formed with an accommodating space, said accommodating space having its upper end formed with an insert hole communicating with said recessed opening, said pivot of said water-separating unit inserted through said insert hole and positioned in said accommodating space of said inner base, said accommodating space of said inner base having one side bored with an opening for assembling said press unit therein.

4. The shower head as claimed in claim 3, wherein said inner base has the preset wall in said accommodating space provided with two rail grooves respectively for the relative ends of said first and said second actuating member of said press unit to be inserted and guided to slide therein.

5. The shower head as claimed in claim 2, wherein said water inflow unit is composed of a spring holder received in said recessed opening at the upper end of said inner base and a pipe coupler, said spring holder having its upper end formed with a recessed groove receiving one end of said elastic member of said water-separating unit, said recessed groove of said spring holder bored with a shaft hole for said pivot to be inserted therethrough, a space defined between said recessed groove and the lower end of said pipe coupler to form an inner chamber of said main body, said spring holder having its bottom bored with least one groove slot communicating with said center passageways of said inner base, said pipe coupler formed with an accommodating groove in the upper end for receiving a one-way valve, said accommodating groove of said pipe coupler bored with a first passageway communicating with said inner chamber of said main body, said pipe coupler having its outer circumferential wall bored with a second passageway communicating with said inner chamber of said main body, said first wall of said main body formed between said first and said second flow passageway at the lower end of said pipe coupler, said sealing member of said water-separating unit actuated to push against and seal said first wall of said main body to separate said first passage way from said second passageway, letting said first passageway only able to communicate with said center passageway of said inner base through said inner cavity and said groove slots of said spring holder.

6. The shower head as claimed in claim 1, wherein said water-separating unit is provided with a coupling plate having its upper end connected with the lower end of said pivot, said coupling plate formed with a vertical slot in the center, the upper and the lower wall of said center vertical slot of said coupling plate able to be respectively pushed to move vertically by said pushing slope of said first and said second actuating member of said press unit.

7. The shower head as claimed in claim 2, wherein said press unit is composed of a base plate, two elastic members and a press cover, said base plate fixedly combined with said opening of said inner base for installing said first and said second actuating member thereon, said two elastic members positioned between said base plate and said first and said second actuating member, said press cover made of flexible material and firmly combined with and properly exposed out of said outer casing, said press cover pressed to produce inward flexible deformation to push said first and said second actuating member to move inward.

8. The shower head as claimed in claim 7, wherein said first and said second actuating member are respectively provided with a press block and an elongate actuating block, said two press blocks disposed between said base plate and said press cover, said two press blocks respectively having the center of one side secured with a stud for said elastic member to be fitted thereon, said two said studs respectively bored with an insert slot in the center, said two elongate actuating blocks respectively having one end formed with an insert portion to be inserted through said base plate and positioned in said insert slot of said press block, said two elongate actuating blocks respectively having the other end formed with a sliding portion to be slidably inserted in said rail groove of said inner base, said pushing slope of said first and said second actuating member respectively positioned at the intermediate portion of said actuating block.

9. The shower head as claimed in claim 2, wherein said water outflow unit is composed of a disc and a forming member, said disc formed with a bottom wall having its topside provided with an inner annular wall and an outer annular wall extending upward respectively, said inner and said outer annular wall of said water outflow unit closely fitted with said inner base for separating said center passageway from said peripheral passageways at the lower end of said inner base, said disc having the bottom wall within said inner annular wall bored with a through opening, said disc having the bottom wall between said inner and said outer annular wall annularly bored with lots of small holes to form said peripheral water outlets of said main body, said foaming member assembled with said through opening of said disc and bored with lots of flow passageways to form said central water outlets of said main body.

10. The shower head as claimed in claim 1, wherein said main body has its upper end transversely installed with a water-stopping valve to be pressed, said water-stopping valve normally sealing up a flow passageway between said water inlet and said chamber of said main body, said water-stopping valve able to be actuated to shift outward and open said flow passageway when said first actuating member of said press unit is pressed.