Drain stopper with plunging seal
OwnerCharles E. Edwardsinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
According to an embodiment, a drain stopper with integrated plunging functionality includes a stopper body configured to fit standard drain openings, an expandable sealing element disposed within the stopper body, and an actuation mechanism for moving the stopper between open and closed positions. The expandable sealing element, which may be accordion style or cup-style, folds and expands during operation to generate suction and pressure for clearing drain obstructions. When operated, the drain stopper alternately creates upward suction and downward pressure to dislodge and remove clogs while also functioning as a conventional drain closure.
Claims20
A drain stopper comprising:
- a cap;
- a plunging seal disposed within the drain stopper;
- and
- an actuation mechanism coupled to the cap, the actuation mechanism configurable to actuate a movement of the cap between an open position and a closed position to cause the plunging seal to generate suction, pressure, or a combination thereof, within a drain housing the drain stopper.
A drain system comprising:
- a basin coupled to a drain pipe;
- and
- a drain stopper coupled to the drain pipe and the basis, the drain stopper comprising:
- a cap,
- a plunging seal disposed within the drain stopper, and
- an actuation mechanism coupled to the cap, the actuation mechanism configurable to actuate a movement of the cap between an open position and a closed position to cause the plunging seal to generate suction, pressure, or a combination thereof, within a drain housing the drain stopper.
A drain management system, comprising:
- a drain stopper, comprising:
- a cap,
- a plunging seal disposed within the drain stopper, and
- an actuation mechanism configurable to actuate;
- a sensor;
- a non-transitory memory storage comprising instructions;
- and
- a processor coupled to the non-transitory memory storage and the sensor, wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
- activate the actuation mechanism in response to detecting, by the sensor, a clog in a drain housing the drain stopper, wherein activating the actuation mechanism comprises actuating a movement of the cap between an open position and a closed position to cause the plunging seal to generate suction, pressure, or a combination thereof, within the drain.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.