A SPLASH REDUCING DEVICE FOR A SANITARY WARE VESSEL

The present invention relates to a splash reducing device for a sanitary ware vessel such as a urinal, sink or basin for example. If a stream of fluid is directed into a sanitary ware vessel such as a urinal, sink or basin, at least a portion of the fluid will rebound as splash. This splash is likely to rebound onto the user and the surrounding area. This is particularly undesirable for urinals where the splash is unhygienic, can lead to washroom odours, can damage the floor and wall panels and is unpleasant for the user. It is an aim of the present invention to reduce the amount of splash produced when a stream of fluid is directed into a sanitary ware vessel.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a sanitary ware vessel including a fin or ridge with one or more concave side surfaces against which a stream of fluid may be directed. In use at least a portion of the side surface is preferably at less than 90° or at a relatively shallow angle to the stream of fluid such that splashing is significantly reduced. It has been found that any splashing will occur at a similarly shallow angle away from the direction of flow and the user and that the fluid will cling to the side surface of the fin or ridge against which it is directed due to surface tension. Thus splashing is significantly reduced when compared to fluid directed substantially perpendicularly against a surface as in conventional sanitary ware vessels such as urinals, sinks and basins for example.

At least a portion of the side surface of the fin or ridge is preferably arranged such that a stream of fluid may be directed towards it at an angle of less than 80°, less than 70°, less than 60°, less than 50°, less than 40°, less than 30°, less than 20° or less than 10° between the side surface and the stream of fluid.

Aspects of the invention extend to a sanitary ware vessel which is a sink or urinal and also to a toilet bowl or WC or a waste outlet cover incorporating the essential features of the invention. The urinal preferably has the longitudinal length of the fin or ridge arranged in a substantially vertical plane. The longitudinal length of the fin or ridge may be substantially centrally positioned between the two sides of the urinal.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a urinal with a central raised fin or ridge and a standard waste outlet; Fig. 2 shows a plan of a section through the urinal shown in Fig. 1 ;

Fig. 3 diagrammatically shows a stream of fluid directed onto a side surface of a fin or ridge;

Fig. 4 shows a perspective view of an alternative waste outlet in which the ridge feature extends into the waste aperture; Fig. 5 shows a plan view of the waste outlet shown in Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 shows a perspective view of a urinal with a substantially centrally positioned raised ridge and an asymmetrically positioned waste outlet;

Fig. 7 shows a perspective view of a conventional urinal bowl with a ridged waste outlet cover; Fig. 8 shows a perspective view of the waste outlet cover shown in Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 shows a perspective view of the rear of the waste outlet cover shown in Fig. 8;

Fig. 10 shows a perspective view of a urinal with a central raised ridge with a waste outlet cover which forms a portion of the ridge; Fig. 1 1 shows a perspective view of the waste outlet cover shown in Fig. 10;

Fig. 12 shows a perspective view of a sink with a central raised ridge and a waste outlet positioned behind the ridge;

Fig. 13 shows a plan view of the sink shown in Fig. 12 with arrows showing the run-off path for water; Fig. 14 shows a side view section through the sink shown in Figs. 12 and 13;

Fig. 15 shows splashing resulting from dropping fluid onto a flat surface and; Fig. 16 shows splashing resulting from dropping fluid onto a fin or ridge. As shown in Figure 1 , a ridge or fin 10 is provided in a sanitary ware vessel, in this example a urinal 20. The sanitary ware vessel, in this example the urinal 20, has a peripheral edge 21 within which the fin or ridge 10 is provided. The fin 10 is also clearly seen in the sectional view of Figure 2. In this example the front edge of the fin 10 is provided within a vertical plane with the side surfaces 1 1 , 12 of the fin curving to

meet the rear surface 22 of the urinal. However, the side surfaces 11, 12 of the fin 10 need not curve but could be flat and meet the rear surface 22 of the urinal at a corner (not shown).

In use, a stream of fluid 13 is directed onto one or both sides 11, 12 of the fin 10 as diagrammatically shown in Figure 3. By directing the stream of fluid 13 on to the sides 11, 12 of the fin 10, the stream of fluid encounters the side surface 11, 12 with a relatively shallow or small angle θ of less than 90° between the stream and side surface and splashing is significantly reduced. As explained above, this is because any splashing will occur at a similarly shallow angle away from the direction of flow and the user and because fluid will cling to the side surface 11, 12 due to surface tension.

A waste outlet 30 is shown in the urinal 20. In the example shown in Figures 1 and 2 the waste outlet 30 has a circular cross-section. However, as shown in Figures 4 and 5, the fin 10 could extend into a waste outlet 31. This enables the front, lower end of the fin 10 to extend further towards the front of the urinal so that it can act on a stream of fluid which does not extend far into the urinal, whilst still providing a waste outlet 31 of adequate size.

In Figures 1 and 2 the waste outlet 30 is shown positioned substantially centrally between the two sides of the urinal. However, as shown in Figure 6, a waste outlet 32 could be provided to one side of the fin 10. This also enables the front, lower end of the fin to extend further towards the front of the urinal so that it can act on a stream of fluid which does not extend far into the urinal, whilst still providing a waste outlet of adequate size. Positioning the waste outlet 32 further from the front of the urinal as shown in Figure 6 may provide advantages when connecting plumbing to the waste outlet 30. It may be advantageous to provide a raised area on the other side of the fin 10 from that in which the waste outlet 32 is provided with a gradient to enable fluid to run down by gravity from that side to the side with the waste outlet 32. This change in level or gradient will allow fluid to flow due to gravity to the outlet 32.

Figure 7 shows a conventional urinal bowl 20 with a waste outlet cover 40 including a ridge or fin 41. The provision of a waste outlet cover 40 with a ridge or fin 41 is a cost-effective way of providing a fin with its associated advantages in a conventional sanitary ware vessel such as a urinal. Although not shown, such a waste

outlet cover 40 could be provided in any sanitary ware vessel such as a sink or basin. The waste outlet cover 40 could, for example, be a plug for a sanitary ware vessel.

Figure 8 shows an enlarged perspective view of the waste outlet cover 40 shown in Figure 7. The waste outlet cover 40 may be arranged such that when it is fitted to a sanitary ware vessel such as a urinal there is a clearance or gap below the waste outlet cover 40 or around the edge of the waste outlet cover 40 or both to enable fluid to pass to the waste outlet. The clearance or gap would be provided by the appropriate arrangement of a mount for the waste outlet cover 40 to be fitted to the waste outlet as is well known by those skilled in the art. Alternatively or additionally an opening 42 may be provided at the rear of the waste outlet cover 40 as shown in figure 9 to enable fluid to pass through the waste outlet cover 40 to the waste outlet.

Alternatively or additionally, one or more outlets 43 may be provided in the waste outlet cover 40 as shown in Figure 11 to enable waste fluid to pass through the waste outlet cover 40 to the waste outlet. In this example the outlets 43 are in the form of holes.

Figure 10 shows a urinal including a fin wherein a portion of the fin is provided by a fin 10 integral with the urinal and a portion of the fin is provided by a fin 41 provided by a waste outlet cover 40. In this example the fin 10 integral with the urinal extends both above and below the fin 41 provided by the waste outlet cover 40. However, the fin 10 integral with the urinal could just be provided on one side of the fin 41 provided by the waste outlet cover. The fin provided by both the waste outlet cover 40 and one or more projections integral with the urinal forms a continuous fin or ridge. Such a fin is able to extend towards the front of the urinal so that it can act on a stream of fluid which does not extend far into the urinal, whilst still providing a waste outlet of adequate size which can be positioned at a suitable distance into the urinal for straightforward plumbing. The waste outlet cover 40 may be arranged such that fluids may pass to the waste outlet underneath the waste outlet cover 40 by the provision of a clearance, in use, underneath the waste outlet cover 40 or by a gap between the edge of the waste outlet cover 40 and the neighbouring integral projection 10 or by a gap at the side of the waste outlet cover 40 or by two or more of these. The clearance or gap would be provided by the appropriate arrangement of a mount for the waste outlet cover 40 to be fitted to the waste outlet as is well known by those skilled in the art.

Alternatively or additionally an opening 42 may be provided at the rear of the waste outlet cover 40 as shown in figure 9 to enable fluid to pass through the waste outlet cover 40 to the waste outlet. Alternatively or additionally, one or more outlets 43 may be provided in the waste outlet cover 40 as shown in Figure 11 to enable waste fluid to pass through the waste outlet cover 40 to the waste outlet. In this example the outlets 43 are in the form of holes.

The urinal shown in the Figures described above is made from slip-cast vitreous china and the fin shown in Figures 1 to 6 and 10 is also made from slip-cast vitreous china. However, the urinal or fin or both could be made from any suitable material such as plastics, slip-cast vitreous china, metal or any combination thereof for example. The waste outlet cover 40 shown in Figures 7 to 11 may be made from any suitable material such as a plastics material, a metal, slip-cast vitreous china or a combination of materials.

Instead of being integral with the sanitary ware vessel, a ridge or fin with one or more side surfaces against which a stream of fluid may be directed may be retro fitted to a sanitary ware vessel. The ridge or fin may be retro fitted to a sanitary ware vessel in any suitable way well known to those skilled in the art such as by using an adhesive or by fitting the ridge or fin to a structure on the sanitary ware vessel such as a flushing outlet or a drilled hole. A ridge or fin may be retro-fitted to a urinal, sink or basin for example.

Figures 12 to 14 show a sink with the splash reducing feature of the present invention.

As shown in Figure 12, the sink 50 may be attached to a wall (not shown) at its rear side 51 and a tap (not shown) may be provided to direct a fluid, generally water, into the sink 50 from above. A projection, fin or ridge 52 is provided in the sink 50.

The fin 52 has side surfaces 53, 54 against at least one of which a stream of water is directed, in use, from the tap. As the stream of water is directed onto the side surfaces

53, 54 with a relatively shallow or small angle between the stream and side surface, splashing is significantly reduced. As explained above, this is because any splashing will occur at a similarly shallow angle away from the direction of flow and the user and because fluid will cling to the side surfaces 53, 54 due to surface tension. This is

in contrast to conventional sinks in which fluid from a tap directs water substantially perpendicularly against the lower surface of the sink.

Fluid is preferably directed to side surface 54 of fin 52 facing away from the user to further reduce the likelihood of splashing onto the user or surrounding areas. Figure 13 is a plan view of the sink shown in Figure 12 and includes arrows showing the run off path for water received in the sink towards waste outlet 55. As shown in Figure 13, the sink 50 is arranged such that, in use, the height of the surface of the sink reduces towards the waste outlet 55 to allow the free flow of water.

The fin 52 shown in Figures 12 to 14 is curved along its length and so may be used with a tap which is pivoted such that whatever position the pivoted tap is moved to, the stream of water will engage a side surface 53, 54 of the fin 52 and reduce splashing. The dimensions of the curve of the fin 52 are preferably selected to correspond to the positions into which a tap may be pivoted. The curve of the fin is generally an arc of a circle. As with the urinal described above, although the sink 50 shown in Figures 12 to 14 is made from slip-cast vitreous china, the sink could be made from any suitable material such as metal for example or a combination of materials. If desired the fin 52 could be retro fitted to the sink.

In order to illustrate the efficacy of the ridge or fin described above in reducing splashing, a demonstration was prepared which is described below. First, in order to demonstrate splashing from a conventional sanitary ware vessel, a flat surface was provided and a sheet of blotting paper was provided in a circular manner around its periphery. A predetermined quantity of diluted black ink was then dropped from a predetermined height above onto the flat surface at a predetermined rate. Splashes were recorded by the diluted black ink rebounding from the flat surface and marking the blotting paper. Figure 15 shows the resultant blotting paper after being tested with a flat surface representing a conventional sanitary ware vessel such as a urinal or sink. The demonstration was then repeated using a ridge with a cross-section equivalent to that of the fin shown in Figure 3 with the same quantity of diluted black ink dropped onto a side surface of the fin from the same height and at the same rate as before. Figure 16 shows the resultant blotting paper after being tested with a fin. As can be clearly seen, the amount of splashing is significantly reduced by use of the fin.

The terms fin, ridge and projection may be used interchangeably in the examples described above.

Many variations may be made to the examples described above whilst still falling within the scope of the present invention. For example the fin or waste outlet cover described above may be applied to any suitable sanitary ware vessel such as a urinal, sink, basin or WC.