US951604A - Closet. - Google Patents

Description

A. D. FULLER.

` oLosET.

APPLICIA'JIIONl FILED SEPT. 6, 1908.

Patented Mar.8,1910. F 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

A. D. FULLER.

cLosET.` APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 6, 1906.

`Patented Mar. 8, 1910.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNITED sTATEsgFENT OFFICE.

'f n. FULLER, or wxnrrnnn, Massnenusnr'rs.

GLOSET.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it knownthat I, ANDREW 1)..FULLER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Wakefield, in the county'of yMiddlesex and State of Massachusetts, have inevented an Improvement in Closets, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanylng drawings, is :a specification, like numerals on the drawings representing like parts. l

This invention relates to water closets and to urinals and with regard to the former it more particularly relates to` that type thereof in which the user assumes a snuatting or stooping position. Such type o closet, however, 1s extremely objectionable without the provision of iiushing or draining means therefor, which it is one of the aims of my invention to provide.

rin object'of lthat part of my invention relating to urinals, is toprovide means for rendering the same clean and sanitary as .by the provision of an effective flushing or .drainage system which may be rendered thorough by including the flushing or drainage of the standing surface for the user or portions adjacent thereto.

In 'the type or embodiment of ,my invention herein resented Figure 1 is a horizontal sectiona view 4u en the dotted line- 3-3 .of Fi `3, of a c oset having my invention app ied thereto; Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional vlew upon the dotted line 2-2 of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the closet upon the dotted line 1-1 of Fi 1, and for convenience of illustra tion s owing in the same figure a urinal having one type of my invention applied thereto.

Having reference to thattype 4or embodiv ment of my invention herein presented to ldisclose the principles of my invention, the base or feces receiving surface is represented at 1, it bein of any suitable material, but preferab y formed of an im.

-pervious material such, for example, as vitrified china, porcelain, slate, enameled iron, etc. The said base is preferably integrally cast and is herein shown as having a depending lower ede 2, whereby it may be received upon the oorng or other 'sup port 3, and suitably communicatin with the plumbing system, to which en it is harem shown as having therein an opening for the discharge. casting 4 of the closet Speciucation of Letters Patent. I

Application led September 6, 1906. Serial No. 333,413.

communicatiugin any preferred manner as by the outlet 5 preferably with a plumbing system, s uch casting 4-bem of any suitable material such, for examp e, as enameled iron. Anyjpreferred manner of uniting the feces receiving base with the discharge castin may be employed. In the present embo iment of t e invention the two are Patented M3128, 1910 shown as having a dovetailed connection 6.

I vcontemplate the employment'of means for flushing the feces receiving surface and -to that end may employ any suitable arrangement of devices whereby the same may be flushed eithero durin the use of the closet or at any proper perio before' or thereafter. As a preferred means to iushl the said surface I have, in this embodimentof the invention, shown the feces receiving casting 1 as provided at a suitable point with a fiushing rim 7, having therein a` encirclin water su ply passage 8 provide at suitab e interva s with discharge openings 9 and communicating with a source of water or iiushi'ng medium supply which is shown in Fi 2 as located beneath the liooringat 10 an communicati'ng by suitable pipeswith the flushing rim. The liushingl rim, if this type of flushing means be emp oyed, may if desired bein open communication with the source 'of water supply or a valve may be provided to be operated either automatically, or otherwlse.- y

In order that the closet may be used by vone when assuming a squatting or erouching erence to the feces receiving surface that the body of the -user when crouched upon the said sup ort or supports may be. properly resented) with regard to the saidsurface.

n the present type of the invention I have shown separated foot supports 11 and 12, as clearly shown in Fig. 1, the user1 assuming theproper position thereon preferably with his face to the right viewing Fig. 1. While a single foot support may be used, I preferably employ two, as shown, and Whlle the same may be located in any proper position relative to the feces receiving surface to permit the described operation of the closet, I preferably locate the said support or supports within the boundary of t e ilushed or casting 1 but they may be otherwise formed and secured in an vdesired manner. They are also preferab y, as shown in Fig. 2, raised from the face of the said surface, which is herein shown as sloping downward from all sides to the discharge outlet or outlets. The upper surface of the foot support or supports may be fashioned in any desired manner but are herein shown as corru ated or roughened to provide a firmer foot old. If desired, and as here shown, the said foot supports may have u standing surroundin rims preferablv per orated and be face with some pre erably rough material, such as rubber, waxed fiber, or the like, to secure easier and firmer footing, and may be provided with de ending gulding rims as shown. The upturned) perforated rims protect the foot-rests against the splashing of Water while the perforations permit them to be flushed and drained when desired and thereby kept clean and sanitary. The location of the foot-rests so as to be entirely surrounded by the flushed and drained area keeps them and adjacent surfaces clean and free from all foulness. If desired, removable foot pieces, impervious or otherwise, may be provided for the foot receiving surfaces.

In order to drain or flush the feces receiving surface water or other iiushing medium may be supplied in any desired manner to any suitable form of flushing device. To render the closet thoroughly sanita I preferably em loy means whereby the c oset may be fiushe while in use, either by a constantly flowing stream of flushing medium or by automatlc or other means for flushing during use of the closet. When a flushing rim is employed, as herein shown, I referably provlde automatic means for ushing the surface, though it is obvious that a constantly flowing stream may be emlployed, and as a type of such iushin means ave herein shown a valve 13, pre erably located in a suitable valve casing 14;, preferably connected with the water entrance ipe 10, the valve stem being shown as exten ed upward and receiving upon the upper and prefer- 50' ably enlarged end 15 thereof the vertically movable valve operating member 16 whic may be provided at any suitable or convenient point, but which I have herein shown as located upon one of the foot supports, as having a de ending flan e 17 an as normally space above the oot support by a suitable coiled spring 18, surroundin the valve stem and normally acting to hol the valve in a closed ositlon. I ma employ any desired type o valve and may ocate the same at any suitable or desired point. In the described construction the iiushing will continue so long as the user maintains his position upon the foot su ports but if desired any other form of ius mg device, whether automatic or otherwise, may be employed and to that end in Fig. 3 is represented as a single ty ethereof,a iiushing tank 19, havnig a depen ing chain or other operating means 20 b which the iushing medium may be supp ied to the iushing rim 7 or in any other siutable manner to the feces receiving surface or any desired portion thereof. While the flushing medium may be applied to only a limited portion of the feces receiving surface yet I preferably supply the entire area of said surface therewith in order to kee the closet in a sanitary condition and to thls end the flushing rim is shown in Fig. 1 as entirely encircling thereceiving surface.

If desired, the water closet may be used also as a ,urinal and to that end any suitable urinary apparatus may be provided, but in this embodiment of the invention I contemplate the use of one wall of the closet for urinary purposes and (Figs. 2 and 3) have shown the wall 21 as adapted for that purpose, the same being preferably and as herein shown opposite the door 22 of the closet so that the user stands upon foot supports l1 and 12 and facing in an opposite 'dlrection to that assumed when using the closet as such. In order to facilitate the use of the device as a urinal when the latter is located as herein shown, the foot su ports 11 and 12 may be placed in pai-alle position instead of slightly diverglng as shown so as to adapt the same for convenient use for either purpose.

It is apparent that a urinal of the type shown or of any other desired type may be used independently of the closet, that is, that it is capable of general use as a urinal. In that type of urinal wherein a vertical wall is employed, as well as in that type of urinal known as the attached wall urinal, whereinabowl is suitably secured to a wall, it is a common practice to iiush or drain the wall or the bowl or attached wall type of urinal as by a horizontally dis osed pipe placed a suitable distance above t e lower edge of the wall or above the receiving surface of the bowl or attached wall type of urinal, from which water constantly flows down its urine receiving surface. Thls type of urinal is obj ectionable for 011e reason in that the iooring in the vicinity of the urinal becomes 'foul and unsanitary in spite of the iushinfr -referred to, the water employed for which is generally conducted off by a narrow trough at the base thereof. Again, urinals of every type are liable to become foul and unsanitary at the base thereof because of the lack of adequate liushing means. But especially and in order" that a urinal of the bowl or attached wall t pe, or any other suitable type, may be t oroughly sanitary it is highly desirable that the surface thereof may e` wet with a flushing medium when used and that the urine be not received upon a dry surface. The after flushing of the used surface does not result in a sanitary `urmal. `and other ob `|ect1ons, and in order to render '10 overcome the above enumerated the urinal thoroughly sanitary, I herein not only flush the standing surface for the user of a urinal, or parts adjacent thereto, but I also flush the receiving surfaces of the urinal, of whatsoever type employed, in such a manner that the said surface is' wet with a flushing medium when the urine is received thereon, in contra-distinction to permittmg the urine to be received upon an otherwise dry surface which is afterward flushed. lIn the present embodiment of the invention I contemplate accomplishing this object by automatically flushlng the receiving surface of the urinal as the same is used. Thus in applyin my invention either to a urinal of the bow or attached wall type or to the type of urinal herein shown, I preferably not only Hush the urine receiving surface as the urinal is used, and preferably automatically through the foot of the user, but I preferably tlnsh the base or standing portlon for the user in the vicinity of the wall serving as a urinal or whereon the urinal is attached, preferably providing in the flushed area of the base or closely adjacent thereto suitable and preferably non-Hushed foot supports. By this arrangement the urinal and its surroundings are kept in a sanitary condition. In flushing adjacent surfaces, I Amay employ a constantly flowing stream of flushing medium, or may employ automatic or other means for flushing such surface or surfaces at intervals, but I have herein shown means for automatically iushing the same during use.

In the illustrated embodiment of my invention, the automatically controlled flushing pipe (Fig. 2)' leading to the flushing rim 9 has an upwardly leading extension having suitable connection with the horizontal perforated pipe 25 located at the front o the urine-receiving wall 21 so that the automatic iiushing of this surface at the time of its use is secured. It will be seen that, while this provides for the sanitary flushing of the urine-receiving wall while it is in use, the water is automatically shut olf at all times when the urinal is out of use.

If desired, the constant supplyA of flushing water referred to may be applied to the wall 21. through the tank supply pipe which latter is provided with a downturned portion (Fig. 3) connected to the perforated pipe 25 through the valve 23 by which it may be shut otl' or turned on as desired.

The closet is ireferably provided with four inclosing walls, as shown in Fig. 1, one of which is herein desi ed as a urinal, the wall 21 adapted for this purpose having an overlapping rim 24 either at its lower edge only or upon the sides also, to alord a sanitary connection between the same and the receiving portion thereof which in the presy Having thus described one type of embodiment of myinvention and the principles of use thereof, I wish it to be understood that although I have described the same specifically yet the descriptive terms are used in their generic sense and not as a matter of limitatlon and that the invention is set forth in the following claims.

Claims:

1. A water closet having an outlet, a feces receiving receptacle communicating therewith, a oot support located within said receptacle to permit use of the closet in a squatting position, and 'automatic means for flushing said receptacle dependent for its operation on the use of said closet.

2. A water closet having an outlet, a feces receiving receptacle communicating therewith, a foot support for the user located within the limits of said surface, and means operatively connected with said foot supporit for automatically liushing said receptac e.

3. A water closet having an outlet, a feces receiving surface communicating therewith, means for supplying a flushing medium to said surface, a foot support located with relation to said surface to permit the use thereof in a squatting position, a valve for controlling the discharge of said Hushing medium, a normally elevated late mounted upon said foot support and a apted to be depressed by the user to open said valve. l

4. A combined water closet and urinal having an'outlet, a feces receiving surface communicating therewith, means for draining said surface, a foot support within the limit-s thereof and an upright urinary surface also in communication with said outlet.

5. A urinal having a draining area, footsupporting means within the draining area, iushing means for the drained area and means controlled by the foot-supporting means for operating said flushing means whereby the said area is flushed during the use of the Same. i

6. A urinal having a draining area, footsupporting means within said area,` a urinereceivin surface and flushing means both for the raining area and-said urine-receiving surface automatically operated by said foot-supportin means.

7. A urinal av' a drainable area, footsupporting means t ereon, and means for automatically flushing the said area about said foot-supports during the time that the latter are occupied.

8. A urinal having a foot-su port, means said drainable area and automatic ushing upon which the same is mounte for sliding means connected to be operated by said footmovement to an elevated or depressed pos1- su porting means. tion, said support having a close2 sliding. fit n testimony whereof, I have signed my f. upon said means for the exclusion of forname to this specification, in the presence of 15 eign matter and automatic ushing means two subscribing witnesses.

connected to be operated by said slidable ANDREW D. FULLER. foot-support. y Witnesses 9. A urinal having a drainable area, foot- THOMAS B. BOOTH;

l 10 supporting means entirely surrounded by ARTHUR E. CARSON.

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