Baths – closets – sinks – and spittoons – Flush closet – Bowl
Reexamination Certificate
2001-01-23
2001-12-18
Douglas, Steven O. (Department: 3751)
Baths, closets, sinks, and spittoons
Flush closet
Bowl
C004S316000, C004S321000, C004S432000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06330725
ABSTRACT:
The present invention relates to a vacuum toilet system for a vehicle, and in particular for a passenger aircraft, comprising a plurality of toilets, a collecting tank, a conduit system, which connects the toilets with the collecting tank via one flush valve per toilet, a vacuum generator in fluid communication with the collecting tank, a flush water tank, and a flush water system connecting each one of the toilets via a corresponding flush water valve and/or via a flush water pump with the flush water tank. The invention provides a flush water control system, which acts on the flush valve and the flush water valve or flush water pump of the individual toilets and can be actuated by means of an actuating device associated with the corresponding toilet, and in which a standard flush program is stored.
Vacuum toilet systems of the above-mentioned type are known in various embodiments. They are disclosed, for example, in French patent publication FR-A-2,286,922, European patent publication EP-A-0,530,859 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,995,328. When vacuum toilet systems of this type are in operation in aircraft, a vacuum is generated in the collecting tank and in the conduit system when the aircraft is at cruising altitude, while the collecting tank remains open to the surrounding area by means of a vacuum break. When the aircraft is on the ground, or at lower flying altitudes (under 6,000 m), the vacuum generator ensures that the required vacuum is generated in the collecting tank and the conduit system for each single flush.
Vacuum toilet systems of this type usually entail unwelcome higher maintenance costs for the care and maintenance of the system. In this respect, two aspects are of particular significance. One the one hand, the diameter of the ducts in the conduit system may not exceed a specified dimension, in order to ensure adequate transportation of the material to be conveyed. On the other hand, deposits which have formed in correspondingly small cross sections of the interior walls of the ducts have a harmful effect on the transportation behavior. At the same time, it is also significant here that the specific material to be conveyed shows a marked tendency to cling to the interior walls of the ducts. Furthermore, it is in practice also important that, in the case of parked aircraft, the temperature frequently drops below the freezing point, which leads to the formation of ice in the conduit system.
Given the aforementioned disadvantages of the prior art, the invention is guided by the objective to develop a vacuum toilet system of the above-mentioned type which exhibits a high degree of reliability and operating safety at a comparably low maintenance cost.
In accordance with the invention, this objective is achieved by providing a centralized empty-flush control system controlling the vacuum generator, as well as the flush valves and flush water valves and flush water pumps of all toilets. When actuated, this empty-flush control system allows an empty-flush program, comprising all toilets, to flow through the conduit system with at least one empty-flush cycle per toilet. In accordance with the invention, the vacuum toilet system thus distinguishes itself from the prior art by a centralized empty-flush control which complements the flush control that acts on the individual toilets and after use allows a standard flush program to operate in these. In accordance with the invention, the centralized empty-flush program allows at least one empty-flush cycle to flow into all toilets of the vacuum toilet system, thus rendering possible a dramatic improvement in the discharge from the conduit system as against the prior art, with the result that there is a dramatic reduction in the formation of deposits in the conduit system and, in addition, in the case of parked aircraft, the risk of residual matter freezing in the conduit system is significantly reduced. In this connection, the vacuum toilet system offers the particular advantage that the empty-flush cycle can be distinguished from the standard flush program with regard to its distinctive flushing characteristics, and that, in addition, the empty-flush cycles that flow into the individual toilets and the location of the toilets concerned can be all be synchronized. Both of these aspects entail a further improvement of the desired result: this will be discussed in greater detail below.
The following description will discuss the invention in the context of flush water systems in which the flush water inflow is actuated in the standard flush program and in the empty-flush cycle or in the empty-flush systems by a flush water valve, which in each case is opened for a specified time. This does not entail any restriction by the invention on the operation of flush water systems of this type. Rather, the flush water inflow can be actuated as an alternative or in addition to a flush water pump allocated to each toilet, which in each individual case is operated for a specified time-period.
In accordance with the invention, the vacuum toilet system can be particularly advantageously used when at least some of the toilets have been designed to be flush mounted, in which the conduit system is at least partially configured at a higher level than the toilets. Since, in the case of flush-mounted toilets of this type, the conduit system is composed of central ducts in which, after the end of a standard flush program, a back flow takes place, with the result that that flush water and the material to be conveyed accumulate in significant amounts at the deepest point of the ascending pipeline, which can in turn lead to the formation of deposits and/or frozen residual matter (see above). In accordance with the invention, the empty-flush cycles, which are possible in the operation of the vacuum toilets system, and whose distinctive flushing characteristic is directed towards discharging as much matter as possible from the ascending pipelines, render it possible for the first time to operate low maintenance flush-mounted toilets. On the other hand, this is an essential economic aspect; for in this way the transportation capacity of passenger aircraft is significantly increased.
In connection with the invention, the data for the empty-flush systems to be implemented at the individual toilets can be stored in a centralized control unit. At the same time, it is possible to store an empty-flush unit in the centralized control unit which is synchronized for all toilets. Similarly, depending on the building specifications (floor-mounted or flush-mounted configuration; longer or shorter ascending ducts), it is possible to store different empty-flush cycles in the centralized control unit for the various toilets. In particular, when the empty-flush cycles of the individual toilets are different, the data of the respective empty-flush systems can also be stored in local control units. In such a case, the centralized empty-flush control is given priority over the local control units; it checks whether the necessary pre-conditions for the actuation (see below) have been met in each particular case and actuates the individual local control units in a pre-specified order, so as to initiate the empty-flush cycles in sequence.
A further preferred embodiment of the invention is characterized in that the empty-flush program per toilet comprises at least one empty-flush cycle, in which the ratio between the open period of the flush water valve and that of the flush valve is greater than in the standard flush program. This distinctive feature of the empty-flush program serves to optimize its efficiency at discharging the residual matter clinging to the interior walls of the ducts. This is especially the case if the vacuum toilet system comprises flush-mounted toilets communicating with ascending ducts.
Again, another preferred embodiment of the invention is characterized by the empty-flush program per toilet comprising a different distinctive flush feature. In this sense, it can especially be provided that the ratio between the open period of the flush water valve and that
Karlsson Kent
Kechele Karl
AOA Apparatebau Gauting GmbH
Douglas Steven O.
Nguyen Tuan
Rosenman & Colin LLP
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