FILTER CARTRIDGE CONNECTING STRUCTURE FOR WATER PURIFIER

Abstract

Disclosed is a filter cartridge connecting structure for a water purifier, including: a plurality of connectors; and a plurality of filter cartridges each having a mounting part and a groove formed on the mounting part, wherein each connector includes: an upper body having a water inlet port, a water inlet pipe, a filter cartridge insertion pipe, a water outlet port, and a finishing cap; a lower body having a tunnel-shaped guide part, an operating hole, operating grooves, and slant projections; and a detachable member having a front surface guided to the guide part of the lower body and one side movable forward and backward on the operating hole in such a manner as to supportedly lock the groove of the mounting part of the filter cartridge guided under the lower body thereonto.

Claims

1. A filter cartridge connecting structure for a water purifier, comprising: a plurality of connectors (100) connected in series to one another by means of connection sockets (1); and a plurality of filter cartridges (200) detachably mounted onto the connectors (100) and thus exchanged with new ones, each filter cartridge (200) having a mounting part (201) and a groove (202) formed on the mounting part (201), wherein each connector (100) comprises: an upper body (110) having a water inlet port (111) for introducing water into the corresponding filter cartridge (200), a water inlet pipe (112) for inducing the water passing through the water inlet port (111) to the interior of the filter cartridge (200), a filter cartridge insertion pipe (113) inserted into the filter cartridge (200), a water outlet port (114) for discharging the water passing through the filter cartridge insertion pipe (113), and a finishing cap (115) coupled coveredly to top thereof; a lower body (120) having a cylindrical body whose top periphery is attachedly coupled to the underside periphery of the upper body (110) in such a manner as to accommodate the water inlet pipe (112) of the upper body (110) therein and to pass the filter cartridge insertion pipe (113) therethrough, the lower body (120) comprising a tunnel-shaped guide part (121) protruding from one side thereof, an operating hole (122) formed transversely on the lower portion of the inner side of the guide part (121), operating grooves (123) formed on both sides of the operating hole (122), and slant projections (124) formed above the operating hole (122) in such a manner as to be protrudingly connected to the upper portion of the inner side of the guide part (121); and a detachable member (130) having a front surface guided to the guide part (121) of the lower body (120) and one side movable forward and backward on the operating hole (122) in such a manner as to supportedly lock the groove (202) of the mounting part (201) of the filter cartridge (200) guided under the lower body (120) thereonto.

2. The filter cartridge connecting structure according to claim 1, wherein the detachable member (130) comprises: a pressing part (131) guided to the guide part (121); a slide part (132) extended perpendicularly from the underside of the pressing part (131) and having cut portions (132a) guided to the operating hole (122), a first inner diameter portion (132b) formed extendedly from the cut portions (132a) to guide the outer periphery of the mounting part (201) of the filter cartridge (200), a second inner diameter portion (132c) for lockedly supporting the groove (202) of the mounting part (201) of the filter cartridge (200), and escape prevention projections (132d) formed on both side surfaces thereof in such a manner as to be guided to the operating grooves (123), while being prevented from the escape from the operating grooves (123); and an elastic piece (133) protruding vertically from the top of the slide part (132) in such a manner as to allow one side thereof to come into contact with the slant projections (124) of the lower body (120) upon the forward movement of the detachable member (130) to provide elasticity in forward and backward directions of the detachable member (130).

3. The filter cartridge connecting structure according to claim 2, wherein a thickness of the elastic piece (133) becomes small toward the upper portion thereof.

4. The filter cartridge connecting structure according to claim 1, wherein the water inlet pipe (112) is configured to allow a check valve (10) and a spring (S) to be guidedly disposed therein.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0035] The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0036] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state where a filter cartridge is mounted on a connector in a filter cartridge connecting structure for a water purifier according to the present invention;

[0037] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a process where the filter cartridge is mounted on the connector in the filter cartridge connecting structure according to the present invention;

[0038] FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing an upper body of the connector in the filter cartridge connecting structure according to the present invention;

[0039] FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a lower body of the connector in the filter cartridge connecting structure according to the present invention;

[0040] FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a detachable member coupled to the lower body of the connector in the filter cartridge connecting structure according to the present invention;

[0041] FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing the state where the filter cartridge is mounted on the connector in the filter cartridge connecting structure according to the present invention;

[0042] FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view showing a state where the detachable member is coupled to the lower body of the connector in the filter cartridge connecting structure according to the present invention;

[0043] FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing a process wherein the filter cartridge is mounted on the connector in the filter cartridge connecting structure according to the present invention;

[0044] FIG. 9 is a cross sectional view showing a state where a groove of the filter cartridge is supported against the detachable member in FIG. 8; and

[0045] FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing a state where various filter cartridges are mounted on the connectors in the filter cartridge connecting structure according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0046] Hereinafter, the present invention is in detail disclosed with reference to the attached drawings.

[0047] All terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, unless otherwise defined, have the same meanings which are typically understood by those having ordinary skill in the art. The terms, such as ones defined in common dictionaries, should be interpreted as having the same meanings as terms in the context of pertinent technology, and should not be interpreted as having ideal or excessively formal meanings unless clearly defined in the specification.

[0048] Before the present invention is disclosed and described, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which can be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one of ordinary skill in the art to variously employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed structure.

[0049] The present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 10.

[0050] A filter cartridge connecting structure for a water purifier according to the present invention is configured to allow grooves 202 of mounting parts 201 of a plurality of filter cartridges 200 to be supported against a plurality of connectors 100 connected in series to one another by means of connection sockets 1, so that the filter cartridges 200 are detachably mounted onto the connectors 100 and thus exchanged with new ones.

[0051] Each connector 100 includes an upper body 110, a lower body 120, and a detachable member 130 and is adapted to detachably mount the corresponding filter cartridge 200 thereonto.

[0052] The upper body 110 includes a water inlet port 111 for introducing water into the filter cartridge 200, a water inlet pipe 112 for inducing the water passing through the water inlet port 111 to the interior of the filter cartridge 200, a check valve 10 and a spring S guidedly disposed in the water inlet pipe 112, a filter cartridge insertion pipe 113 inserted into the filter cartridge 200, a water outlet port 114 for discharging the water passing through the filter cartridge insertion pipe 113, and a finishing cap 115 coupled coveredly to top thereof after the check valve 10 is disposed in the water inlet pipe 112.

[0053] The lower body 120 has a cylindrical body whose top periphery is attachedly coupled to the underside periphery of the upper body 110 in such a manner as to accommodate the water inlet pipe 112 of the upper body 110 therein and to pass the filter cartridge insertion pipe 113 therethrough and includes a tunnel-shaped guide part 121 protruding from one side thereof, an operating hole 122 formed transversely on the lower portion of the inner side of the guide part 121, operating grooves 123 formed on both sides of the operating hole 122, and slant projections 124 formed above the operating hole 122 in such a manner as to be protrudingly connected to the upper portion of the inner side of the guide part 121.

[0054] The detachable member 130 includes a front surface guided to the guide part 121 of the lower body 120 and one side movable forward and backward on the operating hole 122 in such a manner as to supportedly lock the groove 202 of the mounting part 201 of the filter cartridge 200 guided under the lower body 120 thereonto.

[0055] In more detail, as shown in FIG. 5, the detachable member 130 includes: a pressing part 131 guided to the guide part 121; a slide part 132 extended perpendicularly from the underside of the pressing part 131 and having cut portions 132a guided to the operating hole 122, a first inner diameter portion 132b formed extendedly from the cut portions 132a to guide the outer periphery of the mounting part 201 of the filter cartridge 200, a second inner diameter portion 132c for lockedly supporting the groove 202 of the mounting part 201 of the filter cartridge 200, and escape prevention projections 132d formed on both side surfaces thereof in such a manner as to be guided to the operating grooves 123, while being prevented from the escape from the operating grooves 123; and an elastic piece 133 protruding vertically from the top of the slide part 132 in such a manner as to allow one side thereof to come into contact with the slant projections 124 of the lower body 120 upon the forward movement of the detachable member 130 to provide elasticity in forward and backward directions of the detachable member 130.

[0056] The elastic piece 133 has given width and thickness so that the top end portion thereof may be gently bent or easily returned to its original shape when comes into close contact with the slant projections 124, and desirably, the thickness of the elastic piece 133 becomes small toward the upper portion thereof.

[0057] A reference numeral 203, which is not explained yet, denotes a water inlet hole, and a reference numeral 204 denotes a water drain hole for inserting the filter cartridge insertion pipe 113 thereinto.

[0058] In the drawings, a reference numeral of an O-ring mounted on each part so as to prevent water leakage will be not indicated.

[0059] Under the above-mentioned configuration, now, an explanation on an operation of the filter cartridge connecting structure according to the present invention will be given.

[0060] The connectors 100 generally disposed in a body (not shown in the drawings) of the water purifier are fixedly extended from one another by means of the connection sockets 1 according to the number of filter cartridges 200 provided in one way.

[0061] The filter cartridges 200 are mounted in the order of the sediment filter, the pre carbon filter, the hollow fiber filter, and the post carbon filter from the left side of FIG. 10 at which raw water is fed from tap water, and if the filter cartridges 200 have to be exchanged, they are just detached and then exchanged with new ones.

[0062] Each filter cartridge 200 is exchanged with new one in the state where the pressing part 131 of the detachable member 130 disposed on the guide part 121 of the lower body 120 of the connector 100 is pressed.

[0063] So as to mount the filter cartridge 200 onto the connector 100, as shown in FIG. 2, the mounting part 201 of the filter cartridge 200 is located vertically under the connector 100, and next, the filter cartridge insertion pipe 113 protruding downward from the upper body 110 after penetrated into the lower body 120 is inserted into the water drain hole 204 of the mounting part 201.

[0064] At this time, if the pressing part 131 of the detachable member 130 is pressurized, as shown in FIG. 8, the slide part 132 of the detachable member 130 moves backward through the operating hole 122 of the lower body 120, and accordingly, the outer periphery of the mounting part 201 of the filter cartridge 200 is inserted into the first inner diameter portion 132b and the second inner diameter portion 132c of the slide part 132 (See FIG. 9).

[0065] If the mounting part 201 of the filter cartridge 200 is pushed upward, in this state, the filter cartridge insertion pipe 113 is completely inserted into the filter cartridge 200, and at the same time, the groove 202 of the mounting part 201 of the filter cartridge 200 is positioned in parallel with the positions of the first inner diameter portion 132b and the second inner diameter portion 132c. If the pressurized force against the detachable member 130 is removed, at this time, the detachable member 130 is returned to its initial state, and as shown in

[0066] FIG. 9, a portion of the second inner diameter portion 132c is fastendedly guided to the groove 202, thereby supportingly mounting the filter cartridge 200 thereon.

[0067] At the time when the detachable member 130 is initially inserted into the operating hole 122 of the lower body 120, as shown in FIG. 7, the cut portions 132a of the slide part 132 become close to each other so that the escape prevention projections 132d formed on both sides of the detachable member 130 are guided correspondingly to the operating grooves 123 formed on both sides of the operating hole 122. Like this, at the time when the detachable member 130 is pressurized or released from the pressed state, the detachable member 130 can horizontally move forward and backward, without any escape from the operating hole 122.

[0068] In the state where the pressing part 131 of the detachable member 130 is pressurized by a user's hand, on the other hand, the elastic piece 133 located behind the pressing part 131 comes into close contact with the slant projections 124 formed on the lower body 120, and at the same time, is bent along the slant projections 124 by the forward movement of the detachable member 130 pressurized, thereby providing the given elasticity. If the pressing part 131 is released from the user's pressurizing force, at this time, the detachable member 130 is returned to its initial state by means of the repulsive force of the elastic piece 133.

[0069] Only through the operations for pressurizing the detachable member 130, pushing the mounting part 201 of the filter cartridge 200 upward, and releasing the user's pressurizing force, the filter cartridge 200 can be easily detachably mounted on the connector 100.

[0070] If the operation for mounting the filter cartridge 200 is finished, the check valve 10 guidedly disposed in the water inlet pipe 112 branched from the water inlet port 111 of the upper body 110 comes into close contact with the top end periphery of the filter cartridge 200 on the underside end periphery thereof, and at the same time, the check valve 10 pressurizes the spring S disposed in the water inlet pipe 112 in such a manner as to be retreated upward, so that a path through which the water passes becomes open. From this time, the water passing around the check valve 10 is introduced into the water inlet holes 203 of the mounting part 201 of the filter cartridge 200 and is then purified through a filter within the filter cartridge 200. At the time when the filter cartridge 200 is exchanged with new one, on the other hand, the spring S pressurizes the check valve 10 downward to allow the path to become closed, thereby blocking the introduction of the raw water.

[0071] As mentioned above, the water passing through the filter built in the filter cartridge 200 is discharged through the water outlet port 114 of the upper body 110 from the filter cartridge insertion pipe 113 and is then passed through the filter cartridge 200 mounted onto the adjacent connector 100.

[0072] As the detachable member movable forward and backward on the lower body is simply pressurized or released from the pressurizing force, the filter cartridge can be detachably mounted onto the connector, the detachable member can be easily coupled to the connector having the lower body fastened to the upper body, and after the use, the filter cartridge can be conveniently exchanged with new one by means of one touch.

[0073] As described above, the filter cartridge connecting structure for the water purifier according to the present invention is simply configured to stably mount the filter cartridge onto the connector and to fixedly dispose the connector in the water purifier, without any rotation, thereby advantageously preventing water leakage occurring on a connection portion due to the rotation of the connector in the existing conventional practice.

[0074] In addition, the filter cartridge connecting structure for the water purifier according to the present invention is configured to have the detachable member pressurized through the elastic piece, without any separate spring, thereby reducing the whole manufacturing cost of the connector and providing a mold with a simple design, without any complication.

[0075] The foregoing description of the embodiments of the invention has been presented for the purpose of illustration; it is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Persons skilled in the relevant art can appreciate that many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings.

[0076] It is therefore intended that the scope of the invention be limited not by this detailed description, but rather by the claims appended hereto.