Toilet bowl cleaning and/or deodorizing device

• US 8,099,800 B2
• Filed: 05/04/2007
• Issued: 01/24/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: SC Johnson & Son Incorporated
• Original Assignee: SC Johnson & Son Incorporated
• Inventors: Sawalski, Michael M., Madore, Linda M., Ordiway, Timothy R., Crull, Jeffrey L., Gueldenzopf, Thomas D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Baker, Lori
• Application Number:
  US11/800,493
• Publication Number:
  US 20070234470A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,726 Days
• Field of Search: 4222-223, 423/1
• US Class Current: 4/223
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 83/20 operated by manual action, e.g. button-type actuator or actuator caps actuators formed as a rigid elongate spout B65D83/306
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 83/267 by a separate device actuated by repeated, e.g. human, input, e.g. by a moving wing of a door or window, a ringing doorbell, a flushing toilet
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 83/386 actuation occurring by moving the aerosol container relative to the outer shell or external container
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 83/756 comprising connectors, e.g. for tyre valves, or actuators connected to the aerosol container by a flexible tube auto-repairing or self-sealing arrangement for repairing plastic articles B29C73/16
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 83/759 Aerosol containers connected to or located in toilet-bowls or cisterns
• CPC Class Codes: E03D 9/005 Devices adding disinfecting or deodorising agents to the bowl
• CPC Class Codes: E03D 9/032 Devices connected to or dispensing into the bowl

Abstract

A device for spraying an inner surface of a toilet bowl with a cleaning and/or deodorizing chemical is disclosed. The device can include a container for the chemical, a sprayer through which the chemical can be sprayed laterally at least halfway around a perimeter of the sprayer, means for attaching the sprayer near a rim of the toilet bowl, a fluid conduit in fluid communication with the container and the sprayer, and a manually operated pump for delivering chemical from the container through the fluid conduit and to the sprayer when the pump is operated. In one version, the pump includes a pump chamber in fluid communication with the container, a discharge conduit in fluid communication with the pump chamber and in fluid communication with the fluid conduit, and a piston that reciprocates in the pump chamber for drawing fluid from the container into the pump chamber and moving fluid from the pump chamber through the discharge conduit and into the fluid conduit. The device can apply chemical around the entire circumference of the inner surface of the toilet bowl.

Claims

1. A device for spraying an inner surface of a wall of an enclosure with a fluid, the device comprising:

a container for the fluid;

a fluid sprayer through which the fluid can be sprayed laterally at least halfway around a perimeter of the fluid sprayer;

means for attaching the fluid sprayer near the inner surface of the wall of the enclosure;

a fluid conduit in fluid communication with the container and the fluid sprayer; and

a manually operated pump for delivering fluid from the container through the fluid conduit and to the fluid sprayer when the pump is operated, and

wherein the fluid sprayer comprises a rotating nozzle, and the nozzle comprises a deflection plate, a fluid inlet at an upper end of the nozzle, a passageway extending between the fluid inlet and the deflection plate, a channel in fluid communication with a lower end of the passageway, and a pair of fins flanking the channel and extending upwardly from the deflection plate, the fins being contacted by the fluid to rotate the nozzle.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the pump comprises:

a pump chamber in fluid communication with the container;

a discharge conduit in fluid communication with the pump chamber and in fluid communication with the fluid conduit; and

a piston that reciprocates in the pump chamber for drawing fluid from the container into the pump chamber and moving fluid from the pump chamber through the discharge conduit and into the fluid conduit.

3. The device of claim 2 wherein the pump further comprises:

an actuator in contact with the piston for manually reciprocating the piston in the pump chamber.

4. The device of claim 3 wherein:

the actuator comprises a pivoting trigger.

5. The device of claim 3 wherein:

the actuator comprises a horizontal member approximately transverse to the piston.

6. The device of claim 2 wherein the pump further comprises:

means for adjusting an amount of the fluid moving from the pump chamber through the discharge conduit and into the fluid conduit on a stroke of the piston in the pump chamber.

7. The device of claim 2 wherein the pump further comprises:

a check valve between the fluid conduit and the discharge conduit.

8. The device of claim 2 wherein:

the pump chamber is oriented collinear or parallel with a vertical axis of the container.

9. The device of claim 2 wherein:

the pump delivers about 5 to about 10 milliliters of fluid to the fluid sprayer on a stroke of the piston in the pump chamber.

10. The device of claim 2 wherein:

the pump can deliver about 50 or more milliliters of fluid to the fluid sprayer on a stroke of the piston in the pump chamber.

11. The device of claim 1 wherein:

the fluid sprayer is structured such that the fluid can be sprayed laterally around the entire perimeter of the fluid sprayer.

12. The device of claim 1 wherein

the deflection plate is circular.

13. The device of claim 1 wherein the means for attaching the fluid sprayer near the inner surface of the wall of the enclosure comprises:

a base;

a hook configured to support the base adjacent the wall of the enclosure; and

means for attaching the fluid sprayer to the base.

14. The device of claim 13 wherein the means for attaching the fluid sprayer to the base comprises:

an arm extending from the base.

15. The device of claim 1 wherein the enclosure is one of a tub or a shower or a toilet.

16. A device for spraying an inner surface of a toilet bowl with a chemical, the device comprising:

a container for the chemical;

a sprayer through which the chemical can be sprayed laterally at least halfway around a perimeter of the sprayer;

means for attaching the sprayer near a rim of the toilet bowl;

a fluid conduit in fluid communication with the container and the sprayer; and

a manually operated pump for delivering chemical from the container through the fluid conduit and to the sprayer when the pump is operated, and

wherein the sprayer comprises a nozzle including a fluid inlet and a deflection plate, the fluid inlet being in fluid communication with the fluid conduit and the deflection plate, the deflection plate rotating when contacted by chemical from the fluid inlet.

17. The device of claim 16 wherein the pump comprises:

a pump chamber in fluid communication with the container;

a discharge conduit in fluid communication with the pump chamber and in fluid communication with the fluid conduit; and

a piston that reciprocates in the pump chamber for drawing chemical from the container into the pump chamber and moving chemical from the pump chamber through the discharge conduit and into the fluid conduit.

18. The device of claim 17 wherein the pump further comprises:

an actuator in contact with the piston for manually reciprocating the piston in the pump chamber.

19. The device of claim 17 wherein the pump further comprises:

means for adjusting an amount of the chemical moving from the pump chamber through the discharge conduit and into the fluid conduit on a stroke of the piston in the pump chamber.

20. The device of claim 16 wherein:

the sprayer is structured such that the chemical can be sprayed laterally around the entire perimeter of the sprayer.

21. The device of claim 16 wherein the means for attaching the sprayer near the rim of the toilet bowl comprises:

a base;

a hook configured to support the base adjacent the rim of the toilet bowl; and

means for attaching the sprayer to the base.

22. The device of claim 16 wherein:

the deflection plate is circular.

23. The device of claim 16 wherein the pump is selected from vein pumps, bellows pumps, impeller driven pumps, piston pumps, peristaltic pumps and gear driven pumps.