CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED PROVISIONAL APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/882,960, filed on September 26, 2013, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to faucets and touch- free soap dispensers. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Conventional soap dispensers include fixed, counter-top integrated units with replaceable soap receptacles and portable units, such as bottles with soap-dispensing spouts. One conspicuous disadvantage of such soap dispensers is that they require a person to touch a part of the dispenser that may harbor the very types of germs the person wishes to eliminate. Touch-free soap dispensers that use proximity sensors to determine when to dispense soap are currently available. However, such units, like their typical counterparts, are separate products that stand on the countertop or have to be mounted separately through the deck of the countertop. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Generally speaking, it is an object of the present invention to provide a touch-free soap dispensing system integrated with a faucet.

The faucet-integrated touch-free soap dispensing system embodiments disclosed herein can include an above- deck sensing mechanism and a soap dispensing (outlet) nozzle that can be fully or partially integrated with the faucet body. A dispensing unit that houses a soap reservoir, power source, and pumping mechanism can be mounted below the deck (e.g., countertop or tub deck) and can be fluidly connected to the soap dispensing nozzle via a soap tube. In other implementations, one or more of the components of the dispensing unit may be mounted above-deck.

Still other objects and advantages of the present invention will in part be obvious and will in part be apparent from the specification.

The present invention accordingly comprises the features of construction, combinations of elements, and arrangements of parts, all as exemplified in the constructions herein set forth, and the scope of the invention will be indicated in the claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a fuller understanding of the inventive embodiments, reference is had to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of a faucet-integrated touch- free soap dispensing system in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention!

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of a lavatory faucet with an integrated touch-free soap dispensing system in accordance with some embodiments!

FIG. 3 shows a kitchen faucet with an integrated touch-free soap dispensing system in accordance with some embodiments!

FIGs. 4A and 4B show perspective views of a faucet- integrated touch-free soap dispensing system, in accordance with some embodiments!

FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectional view of a spray head, in accordance with some embodiments!

FIG. 6 shows a schematic view of a portion of a faucet- integrated touch-free soap dispensing system, in accordance with some embodiments! FIG. 7 shows an exemplary water filtration system that can be incorporated in embodiments of the inventive faucet-integrated touch- free soap dispensing system! and

FIG. 8 shows an exemplary 2-in-l aerator that can be incorporated in embodiments of the inventive faucet-integrated touch-free soap dispensing system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now to the drawing figures, FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of a faucet-integrated touch-free soap dispensing

system 100 in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention. System 100 can include a faucet 102 that includes a soap dispensing nozzle 104, a sensor 106, and an on/off switch 108. System 100 can further include a dispensing unit 110 that houses a soap reservoir 112, a

pump 114, a controller 116, and a power source (e.g., battery) 118.

Sensor 106 can sense when a hand (or other object, such as, for example, a dirty dish) is placed in the area below the spout of faucet 102 and can trigger automatic touch-free dispensing of soap via soap dispensing nozzle 104.

As depicted in FIG. 1, faucet 102 may be a single handle kitchen faucet; however, it should be understood that faucet 102 can be any suitable type of faucet, such as, for example, a mechanically operated dual control or single control faucet, a pull-out faucet, a pull- down faucet, or a hands-free, electronic sensor faucet for the kitchen or the lavatory (i.e., wash basin, or tub/shower).

Faucet 102 can include a faucet body 102b that extends from a mounting deck (e.g., countertop) 101 as well as a spout 102a for dispensing water. Faucet 102 can be mounted to countertop 101 using any suitable mounting hardware, depicted in Fig. 1 as mounting hardware 103. Manual water control 102c may be mechanically coupled to a mixing valve for adjusting water temperature and controlling the flow of water through faucet 102.

Soap can be dispensed via soap dispensing nozzle 104, which, as depicted in Fig. 1, may be integrated into the spout of faucet 102.

Integrating soap dispensing nozzle 104 into the spout of faucet 102 can be particularly advantageous as soap can be dispensed automatically when the user places his or her hands in range of sensor 106 in the area beneath the spout. In other embodiments, however, soap dispenser 104 can be located at any other convenient location of faucet 102 (e.g., at the side of the main body of the faucet as described below with respect to FIG. 3 or in the spout as described below with respect to FIG. 5).

Sensor 106 may be any suitable sensor that can sense the presence of an object in close proximity, such as, for example, a capacitive sensor, an inductive sensor, a laser rangefinder, a magnetic sensor, or an infrared sensor. Sensor 106 may be placed in a suitable location on or near faucet 102 (e.g., the main body of faucet 102) such that soap is dispensed via soap dispensing nozzle 104 when the user's hands come within a preselected distance (e.g., 6") of sensor 106. For example, when soap dispensing nozzle 104 is integrated into the spout of faucet 102, sensor 106 may be located on the main body of faucet 102.

On/off switch 108 may be included within system 100 in order to toggle on and off the touch-free soap dispensing feature. To that end, on/off switch 108 may be communicatively coupled to one or more elements of dispensing unit 110 (e.g., controller 116 and/or battery 118) via a communications line 120, which may be realized using electrical wiring with suitable connectors and/or a wireless connection. In some

embodiments, on/off switch 108 may be provided on the main body of faucet 102. However, on/off switch may be placed in any other convenient location, including on the spout of faucet 102, on countertop 101, or on dispensing unit 110.

According to some embodiments, dispensing unit 110 can be mounted below deck 101 in order to maximize deck space. In other embodiments, however, one or more elements of dispensing unit 110 may be disposed above or partially above deck 101. Dispensing unit 110 can be configured for easy attachment to the faucet shank or to a wall or other suitable structure. A soap tube 122 of sufficient length fluidly coupled between dispensing unit 110 and faucet 102 can accommodate a variety of mounting locations.

Soap reservoir 112 of dispensing unit 110 may be a fixed bottle or other receptacle that can be refilled with liquid soap, such as via an aperture formed near the top of soap reservoir 112, for example. In other embodiments, dispensing unit 110 may accept pre-filled soap bottles via a suitable docking mechanism, such as a threaded coupling, one or more clips, or a receptacle designed to hold soap reservoir 112 with the assistance of gravity. When sensor 106 senses the presence of an object within a preselected distance, pump 114 can pump the liquid soap from soap reservoir 112 and out of soap dispensing nozzle 104 via soap tube 122. Pump 114 may be a conventional hydraulic pump or a piezo-hydraulic pump, for example.

Controller 116 can receive signals from various elements of system 100 to determine if and when to dispense soap. For example, controller 116 can receive signals from sensor 106 that indicate whether or not an object is within the preselected distance from sensor 106 that triggers dispensing of soap. When controller 116 receives such a signal, it can transmit a signal instructing pump 114 to begin pumping soap from soap reservoir 112 out of soap dispensing nozzle 104. Controller 116 may also receive signals from on/off switch 108, and, in response, toggle on and off power to sensor 106 and/or power to pump 114. Alternatively or additionally, on/off switch 108 may toggle on and off power to

controller 116.

Electrical power for operating elements of system 100, including sensor 106, pump 114, and controller 116, may come from any suitable source or combination of sources. For example, power may be supplied by battery 118, which may be located within dispensing unit 110, and/or from an AC or DC power source. Communications line 120, for relaying electrical power and/or signals between sensor 106, on/off switch 108, and dispensing unit 110, can be run to faucet 102 alongside soap tube 122, hot water supply line 125, and cold water supply line 126.

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of a lavatory faucet with integrated touch-free soap dispensing system 200 in accordance with some embodiments. System 200 can include faucet 202 with an integrated soap dispenser nozzle 204 and a sensor 206. A dispensing unit 210, which can include a soap reservoir, a pump, a controller, and a battery, and which can be connected to the faucet via a soap tube and electrical wiring with connectors, can be mounted to the underside of a deck 201. Mounting hardware 203 can be provided to mount faucet 202 to the top side of deck 201.

FIG. 3 shows a kitchen faucet-integrated touch-free soap dispensing system 300 in accordance with some embodiments. System 300 may include kitchen faucet 302, with both electronic water control 330 and manual water control 302c, and electronic soap dispenser 340. System 300 may be mounted on a countertop and may be coupled to a dispensing unit mounted under the countertop (e.g., dispensing unit 110 of Fig. l).

Electronic soap dispenser 340 may incorporate a sensor 342 and a soap dispensing nozzle 344, which may correspond to sensor 106 and soap dispensing nozzle 104 of FIG. 1, respectively. Electronic soap dispenser 340 can project out of a side of the main body of faucet 302 to provide a conveniently placed integrated, touch-free soap dispensing unit. In some embodiments, the housing of electronic soap dispenser 340 may be rotatably coupled to faucet 302 to allow a user to reposition sensor 342 and nozzle 344 as desired.

Electronic water control 330 can be communicatively coupled to a controller, which can adjust an electronically controllable mixing valve of faucet 302 in order to control the temperature of the water dispensed from the spout. The controller may be the controller of the dispensing unit that also controls operation of electronic soap dispenser 340 (e.g., controller 116 of FIG. l) or a separate controller provided for controlling the electrically controllable mixing valve. Alternatively, the electronic water control can be used to control the flow of mixed water that has already passed through the manual mixing valve 302c, in which case, only on/off control is provided electronically and temperature is determined by manual adjustment of the mixing valve. In some embodiments, electronic water control 330 may employ one or more distance sensors that can sense the position of a user's hand in proximity to faucet 302. The one or more distance sensors may permit the user to adjust the temperature of water by detecting the position of the user's hand (or other suitable object) relative to cold-side indicator 332 and hot-side indicator 334. Temperature indicator 336, which can be embodied as a digital display or mechanical indicator (e.g., a thermometer), can give the user an indication of the selected water temperature. In some embodiments, proximity sensor 338 can be provided (e.g., on the underside of faucet body 302 near spout 302a) that can sense the presence of a user's hands under the faucet and initiate the dispensing of water from spout 302a.

In embodiments in which the faucet is provided with an electronic water control and an electronic soap dispenser, such as the embodiment depicted in FIG. 3, the controller (e.g., controller 116 of FIG. l) may be programmed to dispense soap and water in one or more choreographed patterns. For example, in one pattern, the controller may instruct the pump and electrically controllable mixing valve to dispense only water for a first interval (e.g., two seconds), only soap for a second interval (e.g., one second), and only water for a third interval (e.g., ten seconds or until the user's hand is no longer sensed in proximity to the sensor). In a second example, the controller may instruct the pump and electrically controllable mixing valve to dispense water and soap together for a first interval (e.g., two seconds) and only water for a second interval (e.g., ten seconds or until the user's hand is no longer sensed in proximity to the sensor). In some embodiments, a user may be permitted to choose from a number of predefined patterns or to define a custom pattern for dispensing the water and soap.

In embodiments in which an electronically controllable mixing valve is not provided, the controller may control the dose of soap to be provided. For example, when a user's hand is detected in proximity to the sensor, the controller may instruct the pump to dispense soap for a predefined interval (e.g., two seconds). At any time, the user may manually dispense water from the faucet using a manual water control mechanism, such as manual water controller 302c, which may be provided to manually adjust the mixing valve of faucet 302.

FIGs. 4A and 4B show perspective views of yet another faucet-integrated touch-free soap dispensing system 400, in accordance with some embodiments. In particular, FIGs. 4A and 4B show soap reservoir 412 fluidly mounted on faucet 402 above countertop 401. Soap reservoir 412 may be removably coupled to faucet 402 using docking mechanism 413, which may include a threaded coupling, one or more clips, or a receptacle designed to hold soap reservoir 412 with the assistance of gravity. Above- deck mounting of soap reservoir 412 may simplify changing and refilling the soap for system 400.

A water filtration system can also be provided in faucet 402 in similar fashion (see, e.g., FIG. 7).

In some embodiments, soap may be dispensed from a soap dispenser located in spray head 450 of faucet 402. Accordingly, faucet 402 may be configured to dispense soap and water as illustrated in FIG. 5, which shows a cross- sectional view of spray head 450, in accordance with some embodiments. Spray head 450 can include internal conduits 452 and 454 for respectively conveying water and soap out of outlets 452a and 454a. Internal conduits 452 and 454 may be fluidly coupled, respectively, to water line 425, which may convey water from a mixing valve to spray head 450, and soap tube 422, which may convey liquid soap from the soap reservoir to spray head 450. In some embodiments, water line 425 and soap tube 422 may be run together through the faucet body in hose 427. In other embodiments, water line 425 and soap tube 422 may be run separately through the faucet body without being confined in a hose.

Outlets 452a and 454a may be apertures located at the end of spout 450 for dispensing water and soap from faucet 402 and may be arranged in any suitable layout. As depicted in FIG. 5, outlet 452a can annularly surround outlet 454a! however, other layouts, such as a side-by- side arrangement, for example, are explicitly contemplated. In some embodiments, outlets 452a and 454a direct water and soap into a 2-in-l aerator 456 (see, e.g., FIG. 8), which may be disposed at the end of spray head 450. In various embodiments, 2-in-l aerator 456 may be a separate component coupled to spray head 450 (e.g., with a press- fit or a threaded coupling) or 2-in-l aerator 456 may be integrally formed with spray head 450. 2-in-l aerator 456 may provide a number of useful functions for spray head 450.

In some embodiments, 2-in-l aerator 456 can include a leadthrough that can allow soap to be dispensed directly from outlet 454a without allowing the soap to mix with water being dispensed from outlet 452a. In these embodiments, a screen of the aerator, which may be a wire mesh screen disposed at an outlet end of 2-in-l aerator 456 may include an aperture corresponding to outlet 454a to allow soap to flow from outlet 454a without interacting with the mesh screen. In other

embodiments, 2-in-l aerator 456 can include a mixing chamber between outlets 452a and 454a and the screen. In these embodiments, soap and water may be mixed in the mixing chamber before being dispensed from spray head 450.

In some embodiments, faucet 402 can be a pull-out type faucet that permits spray head 450 to be pulled away from the faucet body.

Hose 427 can be slack when spray head 450 is in its docked position relative to faucet 402. This slack length can allow spray head 450 to be pulled away from faucet 402 in its extended position. It should be understood, however, that water line 425 and soap tube 422 may be routed through hose 427 regardless of whether faucet 402 is configured as a pull- out faucet or a standard fixed faucet.

FIG. 6 shows a schematic view of a portion of a faucet- integrated touch-free soap dispensing system 400, in accordance with some embodiments. In particular, FIG. 6 depicts how water line 425 and soap tube 422 can be routed through hose 427 of a pull-out style or fixed faucet. Pump 414 (e.g., a piezoelectric micro pump) may be coupled to an aperture of soap reservoir 412 to pump soap through soap tube 422 when instructed by controller 416 communicatively coupled thereto. Battery 418 or another suitable power source can provide the necessary power for controller 416 and pump 414.

Soap tube 422 can include first section 422a, coupling 422b, and third section 422c. First section 422a may be fluidly coupled at a first end to pump 414 and at a second end to third section 422c via

coupling 422b. The couplings of the various sections of soap tube 422 may be made using one or more frictional couplings, threaded couplings, or clamps, for example. Similarly, water line 425 can include first

section 425a, coupling 425b, and third section 425c. First section 425a may be fluidly coupled at a first end to a mixing valve of faucet 402 and at a second end to third section 425c via coupling 425b. Accordingly, the inventive embodiments eliminate the need for a separate mechanical or touch-free soap dispenser. Integrating the soap dispenser with a faucet simplifies everyday tasks by eliminating manual pumping and providing soap at the location where it is needed most— in close proximity to the water outlet. Not only do the inventive embodiments save water, energy and time, they also free up valuable kitchen and bath countertop and deck real estate.

Although the disclosed embodiments can operate mechanically, without the use of electricity, embodiments of the present invention can be implemented in the form of control logic in software or hardware or a combination of both. For example, particular embodiments can be implemented by using application specific integrated circuits or programmed logic circuits. In general, the functions of particular embodiments can be achieved by any suitable means as is known in the art. Communication or transfer of data or instructions may be wired, wireless, or by any other suitable means. Also, elements of the inventive embodiments can be enabled or disabled as is useful in accordance with a particular application.

Furthermore, it should be understood that the aspects, features and advantages made apparent from the foregoing are efficiently attained and, since certain changes may be made in the disclosed inventive embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained herein shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described, and all statements of the scope of the invention that, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.