Baths – closets – sinks – and spittoons – Disinfection – Dispensing to overflow of flush tank
Reexamination Certificate
2000-05-22
2001-11-27
Phillips, Charles E. (Department: 3751)
Baths, closets, sinks, and spittoons
Disinfection
Dispensing to overflow of flush tank
Reexamination Certificate
active
06321392
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an automatic cleaning assembly for a toilet bowl or a urinal receptacle. More particularly, the present invention relates to a cleaning assembly attached to an inside wall of a toilet water holding tank or a urinal receptacle for discharging a certain amount of cleaning agent in the cleaning assembly through an overflow pipe, so as to conserve the cleaning agent.
2. Description of Related Art
Generally, a cleaning agent is disposed in the flushing water in a toilet water holding tank. Under some circumstances, a cleaning agent in a net pocket is placed into the flushing water in the toilet water holding tank. Upon flushing, a flapper valve opens and simultaneously the flushing water containing the cleaning agent dissolved therein is supplied to the toilet bowl. At this time, the cleaning water flushes the interior of the toilet bowl for only about 2-3 seconds, since the water within the toilet bowl as well as the water flowing through the flapper valve drains out of the toilet bowl to the sewer. Furthermore, once the flapper valve is closed, clean water from the overflow pipe of the toilet flows over the inside of the toilet bowl to fill the toilet bowl. The clean water washes away any cleaning agent that may remain on the inside of the toilet bowl and dilutes the cleaning agent within the toilet bowl. Accordingly, the interior of the toilet bowl is not cleaned perfectly.
In view of this, it is often necessary to use strong cleaning agents in order to keep the toilet bowl sufficiently clean. This causes excessive use of water and environmental problems because of the extra flushing when cleaning and the amount of chemicals that must be used.
Furthermore, the cleaning agent tablet is always submerged within the flushing water in the toilet water holding tank. Therefore, the cleaning agent dissolves in the flushing water very quickly, so that the usable life of the cleaning agent is a maximum of approximately 3 months. Accordingly, it is necessary to replace the cleaning agent tablet very frequently, resulting in an increased cost to keep the toilet clean. It is necessary in the related art to keep the cleaning agent tablet submerged at all times, since if the cleaning agent tablet is allowed to remain out of the water, the air within the holding tank of the toilet will be filled with gaseous cleaning agent. The gaseous cleaning agent can be harmful to the plumbing equipment as well as a user.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic cleaning assembly for a toilet bowl which eliminates the above problems encountered with conventional cleaning assemblies for a toilet bowl.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved cleaning assembly for a toilet bowl, which is simple in structure, inexpensive to manufacture, and can clean the toilet bowl thoroughly. Furthermore, it is an object of the present invention to extend the usable life of the cleaning agent when compared with the Related Art.
It is a further object of the present invention to completely clean a toilet bowl with each flush, such that the necessity of scrubbing and use of chemicals to clean the toilet bowl is substantially reduced or eliminated entirely. A reduction in the amount of scrubbing with chemicals is advantageous, since water is conserved and the environment is protected.
It is yet another object of the present invention to allow the cleaning agent to remain out of the water to prevent excessive dissolving of the cleaning agent and to prevent gaseous cleaning agent from harming the plumbing equipment or a user.
The above objects of the present invention have been accomplished by providing an automatic cleaning assembly for a toilet bowl which includes a body member, said body member including an interior cavity therein for receiving a cleaning agent; an engagement attached to said body member and attachable to a wall of a toilet water holding tank for supporting said body member thereon; an inlet in communication with an interior of said body member and connectable to a ball cock through a refill tube; and an outlet in communication with an interior of said body member and connectable to an overflow pipe through a connecting hose; and a cap attached to said body member, said cap being free from apertures therethrough and sealed to said body member to form a sealed space at an upper portion of an interior of said body member, wherein said sealed space ensures that a level of water within said interior cavity of said body member remains at a bottom of the cleaning agent to slowly dissolve the cleaning agent.
Further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4312082 (1982-01-01), Murphy et al.
patent: 5042095 (1991-08-01), Schoepe et al.
patent: 5815850 (1998-10-01), Shon
patent: 6151722 (2000-11-01), Lubrano
Phillips Charles E.
Xitec Systems
LandOfFree
Automatic cleaning assembly for a toilet bowl does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Automatic cleaning assembly for a toilet bowl, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Automatic cleaning assembly for a toilet bowl will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2588969