BATHTUB WITH DOOR AND DRAIN

Abstract

A bathtub comprising a tub having an enclosure defined by at least one sidewall for holding a water capacity, a doorway on the sidewall for providing access to the tub, a door mountable onto the doorway for holding at least two water levels in the tub; an actuator allowing a user to move the door between at least three positions; a mechanical drain for emptying the tub, a double reservoir for receiving water from the tub through the drain and the door drip, a control interface, door position sensors, water level detection sensors, a pressure sensor, and a controller configured to receive input controls signals from the control interface, receive input door lock position signals, receive input water detection signals, receive input pressure signals, send control signals to control a sealing valve of the door, and send control signals for operating a drain valve.

Claims

1. A bathtub (10) comprising: a tub (12) having an enclosure defined by at least one sidewall (14) for holding a water capacity; a doorway (16) on said sidewall (14) for providing access to the tub (12); a door (22) mountable onto said doorway (16) for holding at least two water levels in the tub (12); an actuator for moving the door (22) over the doorway (16) allowing a user to move the door (22) between at least three positions including a lowered, an intermediate and elevated positions; a mechanical drain for emptying the tub (12); a double reservoir (62) for receiving water from the tub (12) through the drain and a door drip (36); a control interface (92); door position sensors (86) for detecting intermediate and elevated locking positions of the door (22); water detection sensors (88) for detecting the water level in the tub (12) and reservoir (62); a pressure sensor (90) for detecting a pressure in a seal valve of the door; and a controller (92) configured to: receive input controls signals from the control interface for security control; receive input door lock position signals from the door position sensors (86); receive input water detection signals from the water detector sensor (88); receive input pressure signals from the pressure sensor (90) for sealing the door; send control signals to control a sealing valve (94) of the door (22); and send control signals for operating a drain valve (96).

2. The bathtub of claim 1, further comprising a water supply valve (98) connected to the controller (92).

3. The bathtub of claim 1, further comprising a status light (100) connected to the controller (92).

4. The bathtub of claim 1, further comprising a door push button (84) connected to the controller (92).

5. The bathtub of claim 1, further comprising a keyboard (104) connected to the controller (92).

6. The bathtub of claim 1, wherein the door drip (36) is incorporated in the double reservoir (62) and fixable under the door (22) to catch the water in a sealing strip (18) when the door (22) is in the lower position.

7. The bathtub of claim 1, wherein the door (22) has a door overflow (32), the door overflow (32) using one or more of a structural overflow pipe, flexible tubes, slidable tubes and at least one draining valve.

8. The bathtub of claim 1, wherein the mechanical drain is removably installable from an inside of the tub (12).

9. The bathtub of claim 7, wherein the mechanical drain is adapted to empty the tub (12) in less than 30 seconds.

10. The bathtub of claim 1, wherein the door (22) is movable in an elliptical and/or circular and or linear movement and or combinations thereof.

11. The bathtub of claim 1, wherein the door (22) is sealed by using a textile reinforced sealing strip (18).

12. The bathtub of claim 1, wherein the double reservoir (62) comprises a single discharge port.

13. The bathtub of claim 12, wherein the single discharge port comprises a non-return device preventing the return of water to the door drip.

14. The bathtub of claim 1, wherein the actuator is a solenoid.

15. The bathtub of claim 1, wherein the mechanical drain comprises: a drain actuator (48) for opening and closing a drain plug (44) on a drain plate (46), the drain plate (46) being fixable in draining enclosures (60) by means of a retention bracket (56), a compressed gasket (52) sealing between draining enclosures (60) and the drain plate (46).

16. The bathtub of claim 15, wherein the drain actuator (48) comprises two valves, the valves controlling the opening and closing of the drain.

17. The bathtub of claim 15, wherein the retention bracket (56) is movable up and down by tightening mounting bolts (54) and adapted to be maintained parallel by means of a guide rod (58).

18. The bathtub of claim 15, wherein the mechanical drain further comprises a drain cover (40).

19. The bathtub of claim 15, wherein the mechanical drain further comprises a hair filter (42).

20. A mechanical drain for a bathtub, comprising: a drain actuator (48) for opening and closing a drain plug (44) on a drain plate (46), the drain plate (46) being fixable in draining enclosures (60) by means of a retention bracket (56), a compressed gasket (52) sealing between draining enclosures (60) and the drain plate (46).

21. The mechanical drain of claim 20, wherein the drain actuator (48) comprises two valves, the valves controlling the opening and closing of the drain.

22. The mechanical drain of claim 20, wherein the retention bracket (56) is movable up and down by tightening mounting bolts (54) and adapted to be maintained parallel by means of a guide rod (58).

23. The mechanical drain of claim 20, further comprising a drain cover (40).

24. The mechanical drain of claim 20, further comprising a hair filter (42).

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0109] The various embodiments disclosed here in will be better understood by way of the following detailed description with reference to the appended drawings, in which:

[0110] FIG. 1 is a perspective schematic view of a bathtub according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, showing its door open;

[0111] FIG. 2 is another schematic perspective view of the bath shown in FIG. 1, showing the door closed;

[0112] FIG. 3 is another schematic perspective view of the bath shown in FIG. 1, showing the door at mid-height;

[0113] FIG. 4 is a side view schematic view of the bathtub shown in FIG. 1;

[0114] FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a drain in the closed position, used in the bath shown in FIG. 1, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0115] FIG. 6 is another schematic perspective view of the drain of FIG. 5, showing the drain in the opened position;

[0116] FIG. 7 is a top schematic view of the bathtub shown in FIG. 1;

[0117] FIG. 8 is another schematic top view of the bathtub of FIG. 7, showing the drain without its drain cover;

[0118] FIG. 9 is another schematic top view of the bathtub of FIG. 8, showing the drain without the hair filter;

[0119] FIG. 10 is another schematic top view of the bathtub of FIG. 9, showing the drain without drain valve assembly;

[0120] FIG. 11 is a front elevation view of the bathtub shown in FIG. 1;

[0121] FIG. 12 is a side schematic view of the bathtub shown in FIG. 1;

[0122] FIG. 13 is a side schematic view of the structural frame of the bathtub shown in FIG. 1;

[0123] FIG. 14 is a back perspective view of the bathtub shown in FIG. 2;

[0124] FIG. 15 is another schematic perspective view of the bathtub shown in FIG. 14;

[0125] FIG. 16 is another schematic back perspective view of the bathtub shown in FIG. 15, showing the door without finishing panel;

[0126] FIG. 17 is another schematic perspective view of the bathtub shown in FIG. 15, showing its door open;

[0127] FIG. 18 is another schematic perspective view of the bathtub shown in FIG. 16, showing the door at mid-height;

[0128] FIG. 19 is another schematic perspective view of the bathtub shown in FIG. 1, showing the bathtub with the door in an open position and finishing panels;

[0129] FIG. 20 is a front elevation view of a bathtub according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention, wherein the bathtub is empty of water and its door is in a lowered position;

[0130] FIG. 21 is a front elevation view of a bathtub according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention, wherein the bathtub is empty of water and its door is in an elevated position;

[0131] FIG. 22 is a front elevation view of a bathtub according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, wherein the bathtub is empty of water and its door is in a mid-height position;

[0132] FIG. 23 is a schematic perspective view of the sewage segregation system of the double reservoir.

[0133] FIG. 24 is a schematic perspective view of the side of the door.

[0134] FIG. 25 is a top schematic view of the double reservoir.

[0135] FIG. 26 is a schematic view of a controller of a bathtub and different elements connected to the controller, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0136] Referring to FIGS. 1 to 26, there is shown a bathtub 10 that includes a tub 12 having an enclosure defined by at least one sidewall 14 for holding a water capacity, according to different embodiments of the present invention. The bathtub 10 has a doorway 16 on the sidewall 14 for providing access to the tub 12. A sealing strip 18 is installed on the periphery of a doorway 16. A set of finishing panels 20 are positioned in the front of the bath 10, and are used to mask the sealing strip 18. A door 22 is mountable onto to the doorway 14 for holding at least one water level in the tub 12. The bathtub 10 has a unidirectional double side door lock mechanism 24 for holding the door 22 over the doorway 16 between at least two positions, preferably at least three positions such as a lowered, an intermediate and elevated positions. A receiver door drip 36 is fixed under the door 22 and incorporated to the double reservoir 62, to catch the water in the sealing strip 18 when the door 22 is in the lower position. The door 22 has a door frame 30 to support pressure of the sealing strip 18. The door frame 30 is fixed to the door arms 28, themselves fixed to the pivot axis 26. The pivot axis 26 is fixed to removable structural pivot plates 66, themselves fixed to the tub frame 64 and the gas cylinder 68. The door has a unidirectional lock actioned by the lock rod 70. The door 22 has a door overflow 32 using, for example, a structural overflow pipe. The door overflow 32 allows the door 22 to receive water therein and allows the door 22 to be maintained in any position of the door 22 as it moves up and down. The door overflow 32 function may be achieved in other different ways other than the illustrated structural pipe. Indeed, one may use a flexible tube or pipe or a slidable tube or pipe that follows the movement of the door 22 to achieve the function of the door overflow 32 to control the height of the water level in respect to door 22 heights at a desired level. Alternatively, one or more draining valves may be used to achieve the function of the door overflow 32 to control the height of the water level in respect to door 22 heights at a desired level.

[0137] The bathtub 10 also has a frame 64 to hold together the tub 12, the door 22, and the reservoir with double compartment 62. The reservoir with double compartment 62 is equipped with a sewage segregation system 72 that prevents water from the reservoir to the receiver door drip 36. In embodiments, other systems could be used, such as a mechanical trap or a check valve. The sewage segregation system 72 has a reservoir drain 74, a tail piece 76, a segregation pipe 78, and a receiver drain 80.

[0138] The bathtub 10 includes a mechanical drain, as best shown in FIG. 5, for emptying the tub 12. The bathtub 10 may have a reservoir 62 for receiving water from the tub 12 through the hole of drain 38. A tub 12 has a draining enclosure 60 and hole drain 38.

[0139] Referring to FIG. 5, the draining enclosures 60 contain the mechanical drain. The mechanical drain has a drain actuator 48 for opening and closing the drain plug 44 on the drain plate 46. The drain actuator 48 may have an integrated spring return, water activation on both sides or an external spring return, managed by the controller 92. The drain plate 46 is fixed in the draining enclosures 60 by the retention bracket 56, the compressed gasket 52 sealing between draining enclosures 60 and the drain plate 46. The retention bracket 56 is movable up and down by tightening the mounting bolts 54 and maintained parallel by the guide rod 58. The mechanical drain also has a drain cover 40 and a hair filter 42.

[0140] Referring to FIG. 26, in addition to FIGS. 1 to 25, the bathtub 10 includes a door push button 84 used by a user or bather. Also shown are door position sensors 86 for detecting the lowered, intermediate and elevated positions of the door 22. Also shown are water detection sensors 88 for detecting water level in the tub 12 and reservoir 62. Also shown is a pressure sensor 90 for detecting a pressure in the door sealing strip 18. Also shown is a controller 92 configured to: receive input controls signals from the door push button 84; receive input door position signals from the door position sensors 86; receive input water detection signals from the water detector sensor 88; receive input pressure signals from the pressure sensor 90 for sealing the door sealing strip 18; send control signals to control a sealing valve 94 of the sealing strip 18, illustratively at different levels for sealing the door 22; and send control signals for operating a drain valve 96.

[0141] The bathtub 10 may include a water supply valve 98 that is connected to the controller 92 for controlling water input into the tub 12. The bathtub 10 may include a status light 100 that is connected to the controller 92 to display a status of the different systems. A keyboard 104 may also be connected to the controller 92.

[0142] While the invention has been shown and described with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be recognized by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.