DISPENSING SYSTEM AND METHOD, AND INJECTOR THEREFOR
The disclosed dispensing system, and method may be used in combination with a faucet in communication with a water supply via a water line, and includes a liquid dispensing device adapted to create a liquid such as liquid soap, and water mixture in the water line. The dispensing device may include an injector, and a soap container for the liquid soap or other. The system may provide for storage of liquid soap or other, and may also have the injector in line with the faucet water line. The injector may create strong vortices that effectively commingle the liquid soap or other liquid with water into a thoroughly mixed solution that is discharged at the faucet outlet.
Latest Patents:
This application is a continuation-in-part application of U.S. Utility patent application Ser. No. 11/280,577, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. Nos. 60/993,878; 611069,443; 61/070,986; 61/134,328; and 61/135,259, which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to dispensing devices. It more particularly relates to a dispensing device which may be utilized to mix two fluids.
2. Background Art
There is no admission that the background art disclosed in this section legally constitutes prior art.
There have been a variety of techniques and devices to facilitate the washing of a person's hands. For example, reference may be made to U.S. patents and published applications as follows: U.S. Pat. No. 5,199,118; U.S. Pat. No. 6,236,953; U.S. Pat. No. 6,426,701; and U.S. patent application 2007/0157978.
There have been a variety of concerns or problems associated with the mixing or dispensing of two fluids, such as a liquid soap and water. For example, where there is a conventional hand cleaning basin, including those in rest rooms and kitchens, whether at home, restaurant, retail store, hotel, hospital rooms, and others, there are common problems in dispensing, handling, storing and cleaning up liquid hand soap.
Conventionally, many commercial establishments have installed infrared detector activated no-touch water faucets and no-touch liquid soap dispensing systems as well. This helps alleviate many aesthetic and sanitary problems for both customers and rest room cleanup crews. But there are still major drawbacks for some applications.
In washing their hands, users oftentimes reach to operate a liquid soap dispenser for soap. There are many different and inconsistent ways of pressing, pulling up or down to eject liquid soap. If the dispenser is wall mounted to the side of the sink, excess soap may dribble down to the floor or into a wastebasket. There are often problems, especially with the manual systems, of obtaining a sufficient amount but not too much, liquid soap.
If the dispenser is on the wall opposite to or adjacent to the sink, the excess liquid soap may spill onto the sink or the counter, and create an unwanted unsightly mess. The dispenser may be positioned on the counter and the excess soap may pool thereon in an undesirable way. In any case, in many applications the inadvertent spilling or accumulation of excess soap can be unsightly and a source of constant clean-up and irritation.
As far as soap to be used for hand washing, concentrated liquid soaps, such as Basic H (Shaklee Corp., Pleasanton, Calif.), are much more efficient to use and less contaminating to the environment. The overall cost is less expensive because of the greatly reduced volume and weight affecting manufacturing, shipping, and storage. Use of concentrated liquid soap results in a great savings of water and time, because they mix quicker with water, lather up more easily, and rinse off much more quickly.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the correct way to wash hands thoroughly is to first wet them, and then to apply soap. Next, the hands are rubbed together to mix soap and water, scrubbing all surfaces to dislodge germs. Finally, the hands are rinsed well to remove soap and germs, and then dry the hands.
Many people wash their hands “incorrectly.” They first apply soap onto the hands, and then turn on the water, which immediately rinses much of the soap off before washing can even begin. In either case, the water and soap come from separate sources, are applied sequentially, and are mixed by rubbing the hands.
At best, the prevailing correct procedure has a number of draw backs in certain circumstances associated with it. Water, being applied first, may wet most of the hand surfaces, including under the fingernails, making it difficult for the soap to penetrate these hard-to-reach crevices, because surface tension of the water can prevent or at least greatly inhibit the liquid soap from entering the cracks and crevices, as did the water. Standardized testing methods used in the United States to determine the efficacy of surgical hand scrubs focus on the survival of bacteria on exposed skin surfaces. Fingernail crevices are excluded from testing by careful nail clipping and cleaning. Studies seem to suggest that subungual areas of the hand harbor high concentrations of bacteria. The water passage in the faucet can become contaminated under certain circumstances by pathogens, which can persist there undetected, to be spread to users during rinsing. Microbes harbored inside the faucet often may survive rigorous external cleanings.
Much of the volume of most or many hand washing solutions may be filler added to the soap composition to make it easier for users to control the amount of soap dispensed and as an aid in spreading or distributing it about their hands. There also may be a psychological aspect in that concentrated soaps may not give users the feeling that they are applying sufficient solution to properly perform the cleaning function. Filler, which adds to the bulk, weight and viscosity, also adds to the cost of manufacture, transportation, and storage. Filler also may make mixing the solution on the hands more difficult and takes longer. Because some of the solution may never really become well mixed, rinsing also may take longer, resulting in wasting of water The excess soap and water may then flow into our waste water systems and is not ecologically desirable. The longer it takes to complete the whole hand washing process, the more likely the washing of one's hands may be performed inadequately and quickly, or may be skipped entirely. Even healthcare workers in hospitals may skip hand washing due to the time consuming nature of the process. Hence the CDC promotes the supplemental use of antiseptic gels because they may be more convenient than washbasin washing. However, regular hand washing may still be necessary to remove dirt and viruses.
In an attempt to facilitate hand washing, several systems to dispense soap and liquids into the water stream have been proposed. U.S. Pat. No. 6,471,847 B2, titled Household Liquid Dispensing System, describes a system for dispensing a household liquid through an outlet of a household water system. It can be utilized for showers, bathtubs, laundry tubs and sinks. It has an exterior storage unit of considerable size and complexity with controls to affect both the rate and time fluid or soap is added to the water flow.
The focus of the system is on the dispensing of soap and requires conscious monitoring of the procedure. The system utilizes either a venturi or gravity feed system to add the liquid to the water. In either case, the water pressure and flow rate have a strong effect on the mixture ratio of fluid to water, and are dependent upon a fairly high speed of water through the system. The soap is not mixed with the water before exiting the outlet, such as a spray head. So both the quantity of soap introduced and degree of mixing with water may be variable for at least some applications.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,961,049, titled Shower Spray with Admixture of Ingredients and Air, accomplishes much the same function as the above cited patent, but is limited by describing the venturi method only. The system has very small liquid storage chambers; however, it can also add air to the mix.
A more common approach, in which the soap and water are not mixed together, but discharged in proximity is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,114,048, titled Faucet Assembly Having Integral Liquid Product Dispenser. As stated in the patent, the dispenser discharges the liquid products adjacent to the flow of water from the faucet assembly. An advantage to this system appears to be that the soap discharge is over the washbasin.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,031,258, titled Wash Station and Method of Operation, discloses a system for automating substantially the entire water/soap discharge operation in an effort to streamline hand washing. It too discharges soap and water selectively from separate outlets at the end of a faucet. Hence it has the same limited advantage over current practice of entirely separate water and soap dispensers as the previously cited patent.
Chemical Injector systems are used to inject fluid chemicals directly into water stream products. Examples are devices sold by Hammonds Technical Services, Inc., Houston Tex. These fluid-powered motor additive injection systems are for relatively large flow rates, starting with 7 gallons per minute. Using a motor driven by the fluid stream, the amount of additive will always match the existing flow rate, maintaining a constant proportion. It is interesting to note that since the injection point of these systems is disposed upstream of the fluid motor, thorough blending of product and additive may be achieved.
A system for injecting or controllably metering detergent in a dishwashing system, is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,218,988, titled Liquid Feed System, which describes the use of a peristaltic pump to meter a chemical at the injector port.
Numerous systems that inject one fluid into the moving stream of a second fluid, such as garden sprayers, rely solely upon a pressure drop in the injector to draw or suck, fluid into the mainstream. This pressure drop may be so reduced at the flow rates, that it may not be a reliable injection mechanism for some applications.
The features of this invention and the manner of attaining them will become apparent, and the invention itself will be best understood by reference to the following description of certain embodiments of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
It will be readily understood that the components of the embodiments as generally described and illustrated in the drawings herein, could be arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations. Thus, the following more detailed description of the embodiments of the system, components and method of the present invention, as represented in the drawings, is not intended to limit the scope of the invention, as claimed, but is merely representative of the embodiments of the invention.
A method and system are disclosed for integrated water and soap dispensing. According to an embodiment of the invention, the disclosed dispensing system may include or be combined with a faucet in communication with a water supply via a water line and a dispensing device adapted to create a mixture of a liquid such as soap with water in the water line. The soap dispensing device may include an injector, and a liquid container for storing a liquid such as a liquid soap or other.
In accordance with another disclosed embodiment of the invention, there is provided a user programmable faucet. The programmable faucet may include a spout for dispensing fluid, a manual handle for controlling rate and temperature of fluid dispensed via the spout, a first switch for controlling the introduction of soap into the dispensed fluid, a second switch for selecting the type of soap introduced into the dispensed fluid, a programming button for programming the operation modes for at least one of the first and second switches, and a programming display for displaying the programming status.
According to another aspect of a disclosed embodiment of the invention, there is provided an injector for mixing fluids. The injector may include a first side and a second side. The first side of the injector may include a fluid inlet, a constricted portion, and a first vortex generating portion. The second side of the injector may mate with the first side of the injector and include a constricted portion and a vortex generating portion. The constricted portions of each side create a constrictor and the vortex generating portions of each side may be located opposite each other when the first and second sides are assembled.
In accordance with still another disclosed embodiment of the invention, there is provided a hand washing system, which may include a faucet having a spout for dispensing fluids, a soap injector disposed within the spout, and a soap dispensing device adapted to provide soap to the soap injector, the soap dispensing device including a soap pump and a soap container. The soap injector may be adapted to create a soap and water mixture within the spout of the faucet.
In accordance with yet another disclosed embodiment of the invention, there is provided a hand washing system. The hand washing system may include a faucet in communication with a water supply via a water line, a no-touch soap sensor disposed on the faucet, and a soap dispensing device adapted to be activated by the no-touch soap sensor and create a soap and water mixture in the water line. The soap dispensing device may include an injector, a soap pump, and a soap container.
According to yet another aspect of the disclosed embodiment of the invention, there is provided a hand washing retrofit kit for converting an existing faucet in communication with a water supply via a water line into a hand washing system. The kit may include a control panel adapted to be mounted adjacent the faucet and a soap dispensing device adapted to introduce soap into the water line and activated by the control panel. The soap dispensing device may include an injector, a soap pump, a microcontroller, and a soap container.
In accordance with the invention, the soapy mess common to washbasins may be eliminated. Hand washing may be quick and easy: Press a button and soapy water comes out of the faucet. To rinse, hold your hands under the same faucet for an automatic flow of water. It may also improve sanitation and hygiene (public health) by making washing quicker, easier, more effective, and therefore more often actually done.
The present invention may effectively deal with most of the problems associated with current hand washing practice;
-
- (1) The water/soap mixture may be applied to dry hands, easily and quickly wetting all surfaces and is drawn by surface tension into cracks in the skin and under the nails. It may flow very easily, being of low viscosity and in abundant supply. Disinfectant action may be much more complete and effective. Virtually no time may be wasted, because mixing and spreading of the solution takes but moments.
- (2) Antiseptic hand wash solutions, if used, may tend to disinfect the water passage in the faucet.
- (3) Concentrated soap may be used without need for any fillers. The generous volume of water/soap mixture may be psychologically satisfying by itself. Reduced bulk of soaps used in commercial, public and home situations may lead to significant economies in manufacture, transportation and storage. Because of more the efficient application, less soap may be used. Reduced hand rubbing time necessary to mix, clean and rinse may results in water savings, too.
- (4) The whole hand washing process may be shortened and made much more convenient and pleasant, so it may be done more effectively and skipped much less often. This may improve our sanitation and hygiene with consequent health benefits.
The present invention may lend itself to applications in addition to those illustrated here, but be easily understood in light of the flexibility and power of the system. Much of this adaptability and usefulness may derive from the use of electronics and imbedded microprocessors that facilitate sophisticated behavior to accommodate a wide range of anticipated and unanticipated uses. For instance, the separate retrofit control 314, shown in
Some of the design features shown in the various embodiments of the present invention may find useful application to systems that do not dispense soap. An example may be the no-touch faucet system shown in
The gasket design as described above may work in consort with the unique property of the present invention to control pathogens that often contaminate the various external and internal surfaces of most faucets often surviving rigorous external cleanings. The soap solution as it is regularly discharged from the faucet, may tend to act upon pathogens in the faucet water passage, greatly reducing the spreading to users during rinsing.
It may be important that soap dispensing systems have a method to instantly terminate the soap dispensing function. For safety reasons, such as the need for water to cool a burn or flush poison out an eye, there may need to be a “kill” button, or some other intuitive way to instantly terminate the soap mode. Placing a finger on the soap sensor for several seconds may work. Another way may be moving the hand into and out of the sensing area of the soap sensor. A quick succession of two or more taps on the soap switch may accomplish the same thing, depending upon the user interface provided.
Feedback is important to soap dispensing systems, so that the user knows what is actually happening—if the faucet is actually delivering a soap mixture or water only. Of course, if the soap is a type that generates a lot of bubbles when the user is soaping up, then the bubbles may be an indication of soap. In addition to bubbles, there may be other ways to make the dispensing of soap more obvious. Dye may be added to the concentrated soap, so that the water may be slightly colored when the soap solution is coming out of the faucet. The color may be more apparent when seen in against a white basin with some depth of water in it. The soap bubbles may also carry the color of the soap. If more than one kind of soap is available from the faucet, each may have a distinctive color, for instance yellow for hand soap and green for produce soap. There may be downsides from using dye—in order to make it obvious enough to even the casual observer, quite a bit of dye may be used, adding to the volume of the concentrated soap. Dye may be considered objectionable or disturbing to users, and may even dye something exposed to the soap solution that is highly water absorbent and of a very light color. Of course the dye may normally go down the drain into the wastewater as a contaminant. Another way to color the water, but without using dye may be to have a colored light source, such as an LED installed in the end of the faucet, conducting light into the water flow. There may a number of novelty products on the market sold for fun and entertainment that do just that, turning running water from a faucet a bright color, such as blue. Some products may be controlled by the water temperature, blue indicating cold and red hot water. Aside from coloring the water itself, a flashing light proximate to the soap activating control may indicate that soap is in the process of being dispensed.
The soap dispensing system may be added to bidets, so that the cleaning or washing process proceeds with more efficacy than possible with water-only as conventionally done. The additive concentrate should be selected so that it is non-irritating to sensitive tissues. Various solutions may be made available for different situations and differing aesthetic tastes, since bidets are very personal devices.
Referring to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring again to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now also to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Operation of the testbed confirmed several sequencing related elements of special import to effective operation of the present invention:
Faucet precharging occurs by providing a short burst of soap solution immediately after the user initiates a soap request. The purpose of this short burst of soap solution is to fill the faucet volume between the injector and the outlet end of the faucet with the soap mixture, so that when the user places their hands under the faucet, the proper soap mixture may be all they receive. If this was not done, the volume between injector and outlet would normally be filled with water only, so if the user placed hands under the faucet to soap up, they might first receive some water before the soap solution arrived, so that some of the initial wetting of the hands could be with water only, which may adversely affect the hand washing process.
The faucet precharging may occur in response to the user activating the soap button. After activation of the soap button, soap may be immediately provided to the soap injector and the water valve may be controlled to allow a flow of water through the soap injector to create a soap and water mixture for a predetermined period of time. During this predetermined period of time, the water only filled in the volume between the soap injector and the outlet end of faucet may be forced out of the faucet and replaced by the soap and water mixture. At the end of the predetermined period of time, the flow of soap to the soap injector and flow of water through the in soap injector may be stopped. Once the user initiates washing their hands, the soap and water mixture may immediately flow from the faucet.
Faucet flushing occurs at the end of the faucet soaping sequence and may normally not be noticed by the user, and may have minimal effect on the cleaning process. The purpose of this action is comparable to Faucet Precharging, but with the purpose of filling the volume between injector and outlet with water only, so that the next time the faucet discharges fluid, it may be water only, which is appropriate for the next discharge, which is Faucet Watering.
During the faucet soaping sequence, soap may be provided to the soap injector and the water valve may be controlled to allow water to flow through the soap injector for a first predetermined period of time to provide the soap and water mixture out the faucet to facilitate the user washing their hands. At the end of the faucet soaping sequence, the flow of soap to the soap injector may be stopped while the flow of water through the soap injector may continue for a second period of time. During this second period of time, the soap and water mixture may be purged from the soap injector and the volume between the soap injector and the outlet end of the faucet and replaced with water only to insure that water only flows from the faucet during the next flow of fluid from the faucet.
It is to be noted that both faucet precharging and faucet flushing may require less water if the volume of the faucet water passageway from the injector to the outlet end of the faucet is at a minimum. A smaller diameter and shorter water passageway may thus be desirable. In this regard, the faucet illustrated in
Referring to
Referring now to
Finally, referring to
The display on the right side of the faucet base may have three areas: the left display area/soap switch 692 relating to the soap switch 690; the middle display area/selector dial 1 694 relating to the selector dial 1 686; and the right display area/selector dial 2 696 relating to the selector dial 2 688. An initial press on the soap switch 190 may be programmed to turn on the faucet, with subsequent single presses selecting the chosen type of soap as selected by selector dial 1 686, as indicated in the display area/selector dial 1 694—as shown here, PRODUCE. Two or more quick presses may turn off the soap so that the faucet delivers water only. Turning selector dial 2 688 through 3 detent positions from left to right may select the mode; MANUAL, AUTOMATIC (as shown here), or SENSOR.
Referring to
When the soap refill container 808 is unscrewed from the system box with injector 802, the soap intake tube 812 may be exposed. This tube may draw soap from the container to feed the soap pump 846. But it may also function as a sensor to determine when the level of soap lowers to a point when the event is signaled to the microcontroller 888. The non-conductive plastic soap intake tube may have two conductive strips on either side separated by several millimeters. These strips may run the length of the tube, each connecting inside the soap refill container 808 to electronic circuitry that determines if there is current flow between the two strips. The electronics may detect an open or closed circuit with the water in the soap acting as a conductor bridging the two strips. Actually, the conductors may be in two segments, an upper part of conductor 814 and a lower part of conductor 818, separated by a conductor cut 816 that electrically isolates the two parts of the conductors. The cut in the strips may determine the critical soap level Once the soap drips below the conductor cut 816, the circuit may be open without any current flow between the strips. (The continuation of the conductive strips below the cut may purely be for convenience in manufacture. It may be easier to mechanically remove a small section of the strips in a simple and quick machining operation than removing the entire conductor below the cut.)
Referring to
Conventional check valves have a spring pressing on the ball to force it against a metal or hard plastic bore hole. Check valves, often double check valves, are backflow prevention devices designed to protect water supplies from contamination. Such valves are commonly required at the building level, and lacking such, residential installations of soap dispensing systems, as in the present invention, in which soap and water delivery systems are connected, will likely be required by plumbing codes to have a check valve device associated with them.
We may take advantage of the flow meter 970 to modulate the rate of soap pumping to adjust the flow of soap up or down with the water flow rate, maintaining a constant soap concentration at all flow rates above some preset minimum.
Water flowing through the bleed water line may enter the attached container with soap bag 1046, displacing soap from the container. A soap valve 1050 may turns the soap flow on or off, so that the delivery of soap may occur only when desired for correct system operation. A soap flow restrictor 1048 may be used to meter the soap flow rate in relation to the water flow rate. There may be various size fixed or interchangeable restrictors with variously sized orifices, as appropriate for the viscosity and type of soap and purpose of the soap to control the flow rate. A needle valve may be appropriate for this purpose to precisely regulate relatively small flow rates. The soap dial 1006 may allow the user to set the soap concentration.
After attachment, the user may press the purge button, which may causes the system to operate as if dispensing soap for an extended interval, such as 15 seconds, to fill the space above the soap bag 856 with water from bleed water line 878. In normal use, the consumption of soap leads to the situation shown in
The soap may be physically separated from the gas by a piston barrier or contained within a flexible bag (bag-in-can) similar to the arrangement of
The system is designed with standard rates of water and soap flow when dispensing a soap/water mixture. If desired, water only flow rates may be user controlled.
From the description above, a number of features of the present invention may be present in the disclosed and other embodiments of the present invention. One or more of these features include, but are not limited to the following for the integrated soap dispensing system:
-
- (a) The operation of the system by users may be as simple, as quick and as effective as possible. This is important because most users do not consider hand washing a pleasant experience to be indulged in for pleasure, like showering. The system may minimally obtrude on the appearance of the wash station which also makes it more attractive to users and those who must maintain it too.
- (b) The system may be unique in its precision in metering and thoroughly mixing soap and water, something that becomes more important when sanitation and hygiene are considered. The mixing of soap and water in other systems is haphazard and may be very poorly accomplished.
- (c) The system may also be unique in that the soap dispensing side of the system interacts with and may override the water only side of the system, so that the soap dispensing mode may be initiated at any time by the user, even when water is already flowing from the faucet, and so that there may be an interval after soap dispensing is completed, during which time the water only flow cannot be initiated by the user.
- (d) The faucet, or the discharge tube or nozzle of the faucet may be repeatedly washed by the water/soap solution, and if the soap is a disinfectant, providing disinfectant action internally in the faucet, tending to keep the faucet free of contaminants.
While particular embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed, it is to be understood that various different embodiments are possible and are contemplated within the true spirit and scope of the appended claims. There is no intention, therefore, of limitations to the exact abstract or disclosure herein presented.
Claims
1. An injector for mixing fluids, comprising
- a first side of the injector including a fluid inlet, a constricted portion, and a first vortex generating portion; and
- a second side of the injector for mating with the first side of the injector and including a constricted portion and a vortex generating portion,
- wherein the constricted portions of each side create a constrictor and the vortex generating portions of each side are located opposite each other when the first and second sides are assembled.
2. The injector of claim 1, wherein the vortex generating portions of each side each include a shelf with a slot disposed upstream from the constricted portion.
3. The injector of claim 1, wherein each side of the injector further includes a second vortex generating portion.
4. The injector of claim 3, wherein the vortex generating portions of each side each include a first vane disposed upstream from the constricted portion, and the second vortex generating portions of each side each include a second vane disposed downstream from the constricted portion.
5. The injector of claim 4, wherein the first vanes are adapted to create turbulence in a first direction and the second vanes are adapted to create turbulence rotating in a second direction, wherein the second direction is the opposite of the first direction.
6. The injector of claim 1 further including an integrated check valve disposed downstream the constricted portion, the check valve including a check valve ball, a check valve cage, and a check valve channel.
7. The injector of claim 6 further including a proximity sensor adapted to detect the check valve ball.
8. The injector of claim 1, wherein the first side and the second side of the injector include a plurality of corresponding alignment bumps and alignment recesses for correctly aligning the first side and the second side during bonding.
9. The injector of claim 1, wherein the fluid inlet includes a seep blocker to prevent passage of a first fluid when no pressure is applied to the first fluid.
10. The injector of claim 9, wherein the seep blocker includes an X-shaped cut.
11. The injector of claim 9, wherein the seep blocker includes an I-shaped cut.
12. The injector of claim 1, wherein the second side of the injector includes a third fluid inlet.
13. A user programmable faucet, comprising:
- a spout for dispensing fluid;
- a manual handle for controlling rate and temperature of fluid dispensed via the spout;
- a first switch for controlling the introduction of soap into the dispensed fluid;
- a second switch for selecting the type of soap introduced into the dispensed fluid;
- a programming button for programming the operation modes for at least one of the first and second switches; and
- a programming display for displaying the programming status.
14. The user programmable faucet of claim 13 further comprising a third switch for selecting the operating mode of the faucet.
15. The user programmable faucet of claim 13, wherein the operating modes of the faucet include manual, automatic, and sensor mode.
16. The user programmable faucet of claim 13 further comprising a sensor adapted for activating fluid flow through the spout.
17. The user programmable faucet of claim 13 further comprising at least one display associated with one of the switches.
18. A hand washing system, comprising:
- a faucet having a spout for dispensing fluids;
- a soap injector disposed within the spout; and
- a soap dispensing device adapted to provide soap to the soap injector, the soap dispensing device including a soap pump and a soap container,
- wherein the soap injector is adapted to create a soap and water mixture within the spout of the faucet.
19. The hand washing system of claim 18, wherein the faucet includes at least one handle to control water flow.
20. The hand washing system of claim 18, wherein the faucet includes at least one sensor to control water flow.
21. The hand washing system of claim 18, wherein the soap dispensing device includes an activator adapted to control the soap pump.
22. The hand washing system of claim 18, wherein the soap dispensing device further includes a second soap pump and a second soap container.
23. A hand washing system, comprising:
- a faucet in communication with a water supply via a water line;
- a no-touch soap sensor disposed on the faucet; and
- a soap dispensing device adapted to be activated by the no-touch soap sensor and create a soap and water mixture in the water line, the soap dispensing device including an injector, a soap pump, and a soap container.
24. The hand washing system of claim 23, further comprising
- an automatic button adapted to transition the operation of the faucet between normal operation and no-touch operation; and
- a no-touch sensor adapted to automatically dispense fluid from the faucet during no-touch operation of the faucet.
25. A hand washing retrofit kit for converting an existing faucet in communication with a water supply via a water line into a hand washing system, comprising:
- a control panel adapted to be mounted adjacent the faucet;
- a soap dispensing device adapted to introduce soap into the water line and activated by the control panel, the soap dispensing device including an injector, a soap pump, a microcontroller, and a soap container.
26. The hand washing retrofit kit of claim 25, wherein the control panel communicates wirelessly with the soap dispensing device.
27. The hand washing retrofit kit of claim 25, wherein the control panel includes a soap switch.
28. The hand washing retrofit kit of claim 25, wherein the control panel includes an ON/OFF switch, a soap switch, a hot water dial, and a cold water dial.
29. The hand washing retrofit kit of claim 25, wherein the soap dispensing device includes connectors for attaching to both a hot water line and a cold water line of the water line.
30. The hand washing retrofit kit of claim 25, wherein the control panel includes a second soap switch, and the soap dispensing device includes a second soap pump and a second soap container.
31. A hand washing system for a faucet in communication with a water supply via a water line, comprising:
- a soap injector disposed within the water line;
- a soap dispensing device adapted to provide soap to the soap injector, the soap dispensing device including a soap valve and a soap container; and
- wherein the soap is expelled from the soap container using a propellant.
32. The hand washing system of claim 31, wherein the propellant is a liquid.
33. The hand washing system of claim 31, wherein the propellant is a gas.
34. The hand washing system of claim 31, wherein the system is used with a second faucet, and further comprising a second soap injector in communication with the soap dispensing device.
35. The hand washing system of claim 31, further comprising a no-touch soap sensor.
36. The hand washing system of claim 31, wherein the propellant is water from a bleed water line of the water line.
37. The hand washing system of claim 36 further including a soap flow restrictor to meter the soap flow rate to the soap injector in relation to the water flow rate.
38. A method of dispensing fluids from a hand washing system having a soap injector and a faucet with an outlet end, comprising:
- receiving a soap request from a user to initiate a faucet soaping sequence; and
- precharging the faucet by filling the faucet volume between the soap injector and the outlet end of the faucet with a soap and water mixture prior to the user placing their hands in a position to begin washing their hands.
39. The method of claim 38 further comprising the step of flushing the faucet by filling the faucet volume between the soap injector and the outlet end of the faucet with water at the end of the faucet soaping sequence.
Type: Application
Filed: Sep 10, 2008
Publication Date: Jan 1, 2009
Applicant:
Inventors: William Michael Louis (Encinitas, CA), Constance Mae Louis (Encinitas, CA)
Application Number: 12/208,274
International Classification: E03C 1/04 (20060101);