Odorless toilet

Abstract

A toilet ventilation apparatus attachable to a toilet of conventional design. In one illustrative embodiment, the ventilation apparatus comprises a housing having an intake port and an outlet port. Flanges disposed on opposing sides of the housing are utilized to mount the apparatus on the toilet utilizing the same fasteners that secure the hinge support assemblies for the toilet lid and seat. When installed, a thin front portion of the apparatus fits in the gap formed between the toilet bowl rim and the seat bottom. Elongated holes in the flanges allow the apparatus to be adjustably position to provide optimum placement of the intake port. The ventilation apparatus may include a switch for controlling a fan or vacuum pump.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable.

BACKGROUND

1. The Field of the Invention.

The present disclosure relates generally to ventilation of toilets, and more particularly, but not necessarily entirely, to ventilation apparatuses attachable to toilets for removing noxious odors in the immediate proximity of a toilet.

2. Description of Related Art

Conventional systems for ventilating noxious odors from bathrooms include a ceiling mounted fan typically controlled by a wall-mounted switch. Deodorizers are also used to some extent in an attempt to cover the offending odors. Disadvantageously, both ceiling fans and deodorizers are not completely effective in removing the odors. In particular, ceiling fans are effective only after the odors have dissipated throughout the entire bathroom. However, once this occurs, most ceiling fans cannot then effectively evacuate the bathroom of the odor. Deodorizers, on the other hand, do not evacuate the odors at all, but attempt to mask the odor. In the case of both ceiling fans and deodorizers, unpleasant residual odors often remain, thereby causing embarrassment and discomfort to users of the bathroom.

In the past, numerous attempts have been made to overcome the drawbacks associated with ceiling mounted fans and deodorizers. U.S. Pat. No. 6,597,994 (granted May 27, 2003, to Spur et al.) discloses a ventilation system for toilets having a ducted toilet seat. Inlet ports positioned around the inner rim of the seat remove odors from in and around the toilet bowl. The odors are sucked through the ducted toilet seat through piping away from the toilet. U.S. Pat. No. 6,701,538 (granted Mar. 9, 2004, to Hunnicutt, Jr. et al.) discloses a ventilating and deodorizing toilet seat. The toilet seat includes an odor collector comprising an impeller and a filter. The noxious odors are drawn into an inlet port and through the filter by the impeller thereby removing the odors from the air.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,637,040 (granted Oct. 28, 2003, to Alba) discloses a ventilated commode comprising a ducted seat whose ducts lead to a hollow chamber which actively removes the captured odors and exhausts them into the waste water drainage network. U.S. Pat. No. 6,615,415 (granted Sep. 9, 2003, to Gurrola) discloses a toilet-ventilating device comprising a ducted toilet seat whose ducts lead to a deodorizer. The deodorizer comprises an air-permeable cartridge containing an aromatic substance.

One disadvantage to the devices discussed above is their complexity and relatively high costs associated with manufacture and deployment. Each of the above described devices requires a non-standard toilet or a non-standard toilet seat, thereby increasing the costs. In addition, some of the aforementioned devices require an internal power supply or connection to the home power system.

Attempts to overcome the aforementioned shortcomings have also been attempted. U.S. Pat. No. 6,678,900 (granted Jan. 20, 2004, to Ware) discloses a toilet bowl ventilation apparatus comprising an intake duct that either fits between the toilet seat in the closed position and the toilet bowl rim or is structurally integrated into the toilet bowl rim. In the first case, the intake duct is mounted on the side of the toilet bowl. U.S. Pat. No. 6,584,620 (granted Jul. 1, 2003, to Reutov et al.) discloses an exhaust head detachably mounted to the side of a toilet. The exhaust head is mounted to the toilet by magnets. Both of these devices, however, have their own drawbacks, including being inconveniently mounted on the side of the toilet, which creates an unsightly appearance and is likely to draw unwanted attention.

Despite the advantages of known ventilation systems and apparatuses for toilets, improvements are still being sought. For example, many of the previously available systems and apparatuses require expensive modifications to the toilets or seats. Even when modification of the toilet or toilet seat is not required, the resulting apparatus is inconveniently mounted on the side of the toilet where it can fall off or be removed by a child.

The previously available devices are thus characterized by several disadvantages that are addressed by the present disclosure. The present disclosure minimizes, and in some aspects eliminates, the above-mentioned failures, and other problems, by utilizing the methods and structural features described herein.

The features and advantages of the disclosure will be set forth in the description that follows, and in part will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by the practice of the disclosure without undue experimentation. The features and advantages of the disclosure may be realized and obtained by means of the instruments and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The features and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent from a consideration of the subsequent detailed description presented in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an apparatus made in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a top, cross-sectional view of the apparatus of FIG. 1, taken along section A-A;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 as installed on a toilet;

FIG. 6 is a side exploded view of the toilet and apparatus shown in FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a side unexploded view of the toilet and apparatus shown in FIG. 5.

FIG. 8 is a top partial view of the apparatus installed on a toilet and showing the air flow pattern.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a top partial view of the apparatus of FIG. 9 installed on a toilet.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles in accordance with the disclosure, reference will now be made to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings and specific language will be used to describe the same. It will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the disclosure is thereby intended. Any alterations and further modifications of the inventive features illustrated herein, and any additional applications of the principles of the disclosure as illustrated herein, which would normally occur to one skilled in the relevant art and having possession of this disclosure, are to be considered within the scope of the disclosure claimed.

The publications and other reference materials referred to herein to describe the background of the invention and to provide additional detail regarding its practice are hereby incorporated by reference. The references discussed herein are provided solely for their disclosure prior to the filing date of the present application. Nothing herein is to be construed as an admission that the inventors are not entitled to antedate such disclosure by virtue of prior invention.

It must be noted that, as used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In describing and claiming the present disclosure, the following terminology will be used in accordance with the definitions set out below.

As used herein, the terms “comprising,” “including,” “containing,” “characterized by,” and grammatical equivalents thereof are inclusive or open-ended terms that do not exclude additional, unrecited elements or method steps.

Applicant has discovered a useful apparatus that is able to ventilate the area immediately surrounding a toilet bowl, which usually has the highest concentration of noxious odors. The apparatus may be conveniently and securely mounted using the fasteners that secure the hinge assemblies for the toilet seat. In one embodiment, the noxious odors may be ventilated between the hinge assemblies and underneath the toilet seat. The present invention does not typically require the modification of the toilet or the toilet seat, thereby reducing installation and manufacturing costs. The present invention can be used with most conventional toilet designs and can be sold as an aftermarket attachment. Further, the present invention may include a control switch, either manually or automatically activated, to activate a fan to create the suction necessary to remove the odors.

Referring now to FIG. 1, there is shown one embodiment of a toilet ventilation apparatus 100 in accordance with the principles of the present invention. In its basic configuration, the apparatus 100 comprises a front portion 102, a middle portion 104, and a rear portion 106. The front portion 102 of the apparatus 100 has two arms 112 extending outwardly such that the front portion 102 is somewhat crescent shaped.

A frontmost portion 114 extending between the two arms 112 of the front portion 102 has a curvature to generally match the curvature of a rear portion of a typical toilet bowl rim (not shown). An intake port 116 extends substantially on the front portion 102 and resides between the two arms 112. The intake port 114 is formed between a top surface 121 and a bottom surface 122 of the apparatus 100.

The middle portion 104, disposed between the front portion 102 and rear portion 106, of the apparatus 100 is necked down such that the middle portion 104 may fit between the fasteners that secure a toilet seat to the toilet when the apparatus 100 is installed onto a toilet, as will be described in detail below. Disposed on opposing sides of the middle portion 104 are a pair of outwardly extending flanges 108. Each of the flanges 108 has an elongated hole 110 utilized for securing the apparatus 100 to a toilet.

Further, the elongated holes 110 on the flanges 108 allow the apparatus 100 to be correctly positioned such that the intake port 116 is as close to an interior portion of a toilet bowl as possible. It will be appreciated that the elongated nature of the holes 110 allows the apparatus 100 to be used on differently sized toilets. In particular, the elongated holes 110 allow the apparatus 100 to be positioned forward or rearward in relation to a toilet bowl to accommodate different toilet designs.

The front portion 102 and middle portion 104 of the apparatus 100 should be of a minimal thickness in order not to interfere with the toilet seat when the seat is closed. In one illustrative embodiment, the thickness of the front portion 102 and middle portion 104 is about one-quarter of an inch (0.635 centimeters). The thickness of the flanges 108 may be even less than the thickness of the front portion 102 and middle portion as can be best seen in FIG. 3. In one embodiment, the thickness of the flanges 108 are about one-eighth of an inch (0.3175 centimeters). This relatively small thickness of the flanges 108 allows the apparatus 100 to be installed without interfering with the normal operation of a toilet seat or lid.

The rear portion 106 of the apparatus 100 is generally rectangular shaped and comprising an extended portion 118 protruding in a lateral direction from one side of the apparatus 100. It will be appreciated that the extended portion 118 may extend from either side of the apparatus 100. As shown in FIG. 1, the rear portion 106 may be thicker than the front portion 102 and middle portion 104 of the apparatus. However, this requirement should not be viewed as limiting the rear portion 106, which may be of the same thickness as the front portion 102 and middle portion 104.

A “J” shaped outlet port 120 extends downward for a short distance from the bottom surface 122 of the extended portion 118 and then rearward. As will be explained in further detail below, the outlet port 120 may be connected to a sealed passage way leading to a fan. The “J” shaped nature of the outlet port 120 allows it to be hidden from view under the toilet tank.

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the apparatus 100. The apparatus 100 comprises bottom surface 122 that is preferably substantially flat. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the flat nature of the bottom surface 122 allows the apparatus 100 to be positioned on an upper surface 162 of a toilet bowl rim 164, which is also typically flat. Referring back to FIG. 2, the bottom surface 122 extends between the front portion 112, middle portion 104, and rear portion 106 of the apparatus. In addition, the flat bottom surface 122 may extend to the flanges 108 as well. Thus, the entire bottom surface 122 of the apparatus 100 may be flat to provide a suitable base for mounting the apparatus 100 on the toilet.

As discussed above, the apparatus 100 is relatively thin in comparison with its overall size, which can be best seen in FIG. 3, a profile view of the apparatus 100. As mentioned, the front portion 102 and the middle portion 104 may be thinner than the rear portion 106. It will be appreciated that this allows the front portion 102 and the middle portion 104 of the apparatus to reside under a toilet seat when the apparatus is installed onto a toilet (see FIGS. 5-7). Typically, there exists a gap between a toilet seat and the toilet on most conventional toilets. This gap may measure anywhere from about one-quarter of an inch to about one-half of an inch (0.635 to 1.27 centimeters) depending on the toilet manufacturer.

As can also be seen in FIG. 3 and mentioned above, the flanges 108 may be thinner than the front portion 102 and the middle portion 104 of the apparatus 100. This allows the flanges 108 to be interposed between the hinge support assemblies and the toilet bowl rim without greatly impacting the operation of the seat. Also, the rear portion 106 may be slightly thicker than the front portion 102 and middle portion 104. The front to rear width of the rear portion 106 should be such that the rear portion 106 is sized to fit with the area defined between the hinge assemblies and a toilet tank.

FIG. 4 is a top, cross-sectional view of the apparatus 100, taken along section A-A shown in FIG. 3. As can be observed, a fluid communication path 124 extends from the intake port 116 to the outlet port 120. The fluid communication path 124 passes through the front portion 102, middle portion 104, and rear portion 106 of the apparatus 100. The path 124 is wider near the front portion 102 to accommodate the entire length of the intake port 116. The fluid communication path 124 narrows to pass through the middle portion 104 of the apparatus 100. Once passed the middle portion 104, the fluid communication path 124 turns approximately ninety degrees at the rear portion 106 and travels along the interior of the extended portion 118. There, the path 124 proceeds downward through a hole 126 to the outlet port 120. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the apparatus 100 installed on a toilet 150 of conventional design. The toilet 150 comprises a seat 152 and a lid 156 attached to the toilet 150 using a pair of hinge support assemblies 154. The hinge support assemblies 154 are mounted using fasteners, such as a bolt 170 and a wing nut 172 (see FIGS. 6 and 7). The fasteners may be integrated as part of the hinge support assemblies. Further, the fasteners may be comprised of metal or plastic, as is known in the art.

As is well known in conventional toilet designs, the toilet 150 may have a pair of integrated holes (not shown) for mounting the hinge support assemblies 154. The hinge support assemblies 154 allow the seat 152 and lid 156 to be opened and closed. The spacing of the hinge support assemblies 154 from each other is standardized among many toilet manufacturers, but by allowing the holes 110 in the flanges 108 to be slightly wider than necessary, the apparatus 100 may be adjusted in a lateral direction to thereby accommodate discrepancies among different toilet designs for optimal positioning of the apparatus.

A water storage tank 158 is used as a reservoir to supply the bowl 160 with water during flushing. The upper surface 162 of the toilet bowl rim 164 extends around the bowl 160 and rearwards towards the tank 158. The upper surface 162 is typically flat. It will be appreciated, that in this embodiment, the apparatus 100 is installed using the same fasteners that secure the hinge support assemblies 154 for the seat 152.

The outlet port 120 may be coupled to a sealed passageway 159 leading to an outside exhaust port (not shown). A fan 182 (see FIG. 8) or vacuum pump may be used to create a suction. Alternatively, instead of the outside exhaust port, the odors extracted from the toilet may be removed by a filter. As discussed, the fan 182 may provide a vacuum to create a suction at the intake port 116 to thereby remove noxious odors from the area surrounding the toilet 150. The fan 182 may also be a ceiling fan found in most bathrooms in a home setting. Further, the sealed passageway 159 preferably resides in a wall of the bathroom where the toilet 150 is located or the sealed passage 159 way may reside outside of the wall.

An automatic switch 168 located on the seat 152 may be used to control the fan 182. The switch 168 may sense when the seat 152 is occupied and transmit a control signal to the fan 182. The control signal may tell the fan when to turn on and off. This may be accomplished by having the switch 168 be activated when a person is sitting on the seat 152. When the person stands up, the fan 182 may be programmed to remain on for a preset period of time to ensure complete evacuation of the noxious odors.

The switch 168 may use a radio frequency transmission to transmit the control signal to the fan 182. The switch 168 may also communicate with the fan 182 over a wire or other medium as is well known in the art. However, this is usually not preferable since it would require the installation of the wire. In other illustrative embodiments, the fan 182 may be controlled by a wall mounted switch or the like.

FIGS. 6 and 7 are side exploded and unexploded views, respectively, of the apparatus 100, toilet 150 and the toilet seat 152 showing the proper orientation for installation. The bottom surface 122 of the apparatus 100 engages by contact the upper surface 162 of the toilet bowl rim 164. The hinge assemblies 154 for the seat 152 and lid 156 also engage by contact the flanges 108 of the apparatus 100. As can be observed, the fasteners, a bolt 170 secured by the wing nut 172, secures both the hinge assemblies 154 and the apparatus 100 to the toilet 150. Further, when the apparatus 100 is installed, the outlet port 120 of the apparatus 100 passes underneath the toilet tank 158. It will be appreciated that this keeps the outlet port 120 protected and out of the way. It will be appreciated that, unlike the prior art, apparatus 100 is substantially hidden from view when installed. Further, apparatus 100 is more securely mounted to the toilet 150.

FIG. 8 illustrates the air flow through the apparatus 100 when installed on toilet 150. When fan 182 is activated, a vacuum is created at the intake port 116. Any surrounding odors are sucked into the intake port 116 and travel through the fluid communication path 124 and sealed passage way 159 to an outside exhaust port (not shown). Fresh air is also sucked into the toilet bowl 160. Alternatively, instead of an outside exhaust port, the odors may be filtered and the air returned to the bathroom.

A second illustrative embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in FIG. 9. Apparatus 200 comprises an intake port 202 connected by an internal fluid communication path (not explicitly shown but similar to that described above) to an outlet port 204. A single flange 206 located on the side of the apparatus comprises a hole 207 for mounting the apparatus 200 to a toilet using a fastener. Hole 207 may be elongated to allow the proper positioning of the intake port 202 for the most effective removal of odors.

As above, the front portion 208 of the apparatus 200 should be relatively thin such that it may be positioned under a toilet seat. FIG. 10 illustrates the proper positioning of the apparatus 200 on toilet 210. Fastener 206, preferably one of the fasteners securing a hinge assembly (not shown) for a seat (not shown), is utilized to secure apparatus 200 to the toilet 210. Outlet port 204 may be connected to a sealed passageway (not shown) leading to a fan or vacuum pump (not shown) as described above and not repeated here.

The present invention may be constructed entirely of plastic or other suitable material. For example, injection molding may be used to form the apparatus. Likewise, the apparatus may be made by cutting and piecing together pieces of material, such as plastic, using an adhesive or other suitable method as is known in the art.

In the foregoing Detailed Description, various features of the present disclosure are grouped together in a single embodiment for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed disclosure requires more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive aspects lie in less than all features of a single foregoing disclosed embodiment. Thus, the following claims are hereby incorporated into this Detailed Description by this reference, with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment of the present disclosure.

It is to be understood that the above-described arrangements are only illustrative of the application of the principles of the present disclosure. Numerous modifications and alternative arrangements may be devised by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure and the appended claims are intended to cover such modifications and arrangements. Thus, while the present disclosure has been shown in the drawings and described above with particularity and detail, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that numerous modifications, including, but not limited to, variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use may be made without departing from the principles and concepts set forth herein.

Claims

1. An apparatus for ventilating noxious odors from a toilet, the toilet having a pair of holes whereby hinge support assemblies for a seat are attached thereto by a pair of fasteners, the apparatus comprising:

a housing comprising front, middle, and rear portions, wherein the front portion comprises an intake port and a downwardly extending outlet port is disposed on the rear portion; and

a fluid communication path passing through the middle and rear portions of the housing for connecting the intake port and outlet port;

wherein the apparatus is configured such that the front, middle, and rear portions of the housing have the same thickness and at least a portion of the fluid communication path passes between the pair of fasteners securing the hinge support assemblies for the seat to the toilet when the apparatus is installed onto the toilet.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a sealed passageway, the sealed passageway leading from the outlet port to a fan or vacuum pump.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a switch, said switch sending a control signal to a fan.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising two outwardly extending flanges disposed on opposing sides of the apparatus, each of the flanges having a hole extending from a top surface of the flange to a bottom surface of the flange.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein each of the flanges is configured for being interposed between the toilet and one of the hinge assemblies when the apparatus is installed onto the toilet.

6. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein each of the holes in the flanges is elongated front-to-back, thereby allowing the intake port to be adjustably positioned in an interior portion of the toilet.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a top surface and a bottom surface, the bottom surface being substantially flat and configured for engaging an upper surface of a bowl rim when the apparatus is installed onto the toilet.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein the intake port is unobstructed and is disposed between the upper surface and the lower surface.

9. An apparatus for ventilating noxious odors from a toilet, the toilet having a pair of holes whereby hinge support assemblies for a seat are attached thereto by a pair of fasteners, the apparatus comprising:

a housing of uniform thickness, the housing comprising an unobstructed intake port and an outlet port;

a fluid communication path connecting the intake port and outlet port;

at least one hole disposed in the housing for mounting the apparatus to the toilet; and

wherein the apparatus is configured to be coupled to the toilet by at least one of the fasteners securing the hinge support assemblies when the apparatus is installed onto a toilet.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the apparatus is configured such that at least a portion of the fluid communication path passes between the pair of fasteners securing the hinge support assemblies for the seat to the toilet when the apparatus is installed onto the toilet and then downward through the outlet port.

11. The apparatus of claim 9 further comprising at least one flange, each of the at least one holes being disposed on one of the flanges.

12. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the at least one hole comprises two holes.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the holes are elongated front-to-back and are disposed on opposing sides of the apparatus.

14. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the fluid communication path does not pass between the pair of fasteners.

15. The apparatus of claim 9 further comprising a sealed passageway, the sealed passageway leading from the outlet port to a fan or vacuum pump.

16. An apparatus for ventilating noxious odors from a toilet, the toilet having a seat connected thereto by a pair of hinge support assemblies, a fastener securing each of the assemblies to the toilet, the apparatus comprising:

a housing of uniform thickness, the housing comprising an unobstructed intake port and an outlet port;

a fluid communication path connecting the intake port and outlet port; and

a pair of mounting holes disposed in the housing, wherein each of the pair of mounting holes is elongated front-to-back;

wherein the apparatus is configured to be coupled to the toilet by the fasteners securing the hinge support assemblies for the seat when the apparatus is installed onto a toilet, each of the pair of fasteners passing through one of the pair of mounting holes.

17. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein the apparatus is configured such that at least a portion of the fluid communication path passes between the pair of fasteners securing the hinge support assemblies for the seat to the toilet when the apparatus is installed onto the toilet and then downwardly through the outlet port.

18. The apparatus of claim 16 further comprising a sealed passageway disposed on the housing, the sealed passageway leading from the outlet port to a fan or vacuum pump.

19. The apparatus of claim 16 further comprising a pair of flanges disposed on the housing, each of the flanges being interposed between the toilet and one of the hinge assemblies when the apparatus is installed onto the toilet.

20. The apparatus of claim 19 wherein each of the flanges comprises a top surface, and wherein each of the hinge assemblies is positioned on the top surface of one of the flanges when the apparatus is installed onto the toilet.

21. (canceled)

22. The apparatus of claim 16 further comprising a sealed passageway disposed on the housing, the sealed passageway leading from the outlet port to a filter.

23. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a sealed passageway, the sealed passageway leading from the outlet port to a filter.

24. The apparatus of claim 9 further comprising a sealed passageway disposed on the housing, the sealed passageway leading from the outlet port to a filter.