Single lever faucet--sliding wedge operation mechanism
AssigneeElkay Manufacturing Company
InventorsRudy Y. Bisonaya, Gerald J. Farrell
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A single lever mixing faucet is disclosed of the type generally used as a household sink faucet. The lever is operated by hand and controls individual diaphragm valves by plungers which are actuated by a cam operated by the lever, the cam having a wedge actuator connected to be moved by the lever in two orthogonally related directions and combinations thereof upon manual movement of the lever. The wedge actuator is mounted for essentially planar movement without rotation and has flat cam surfaces engaging flat ends of said plunger to move the plungers and control the rate of flow of water as well as the relative proportions of hot and cold water.
Claims13
A single lever faucet comprising a housing having inlet means for cold and hot water and a mixing chamber, outlet means, individual cold and hot water valve means for controlling water flow from said inlet means to said mixing chamber including parallel plungers slidably mounted in said housing for controlled displacement to actuate said valve means,
- lever means having one end extending from said housing mounted in said housing for pivotal movement in two orthogonally related directions and combinations thereof,
- cam means for displacing said plungers, said cam means comprising a wedge actuator connected to be moved in said two directions and combinations thereof by said lever means upon movement of said one end of said lever means extending from said housing,
- mounting means in said housing for said wedge actuator, said mounting means permitting planar sliding movement transverse to the axis of said plungers in said two directions and combinations thereof responsive to pivotal movement of said lever means, said wedge actuator having sliding movement in one direction for adjusting the volume of water flow by said valve means and in an orthogonal direction for adjusting relative proportions of water flow by said valve means, said wedge actuator being restrained against rotation,
- said wedge actuator having substantially flat cam surfaces respectively engaging the ends of said plungers,
- said respective cam surfaces being inclined in said two directions, being similarly inclined in said volume adjusting direction and oppositely inclined in said proportion adjusting direction,
- the ends of said plungers being in face-to-face contact with said cam surface.
A single lever faucet adapted to be mounted on a base, comprising:
- housing means having an inlet means for fluid and
- an outlet means for fluid,
- valve means in said housing for controlling fluid flow from said inlet means to said outlet means,
- a lever,
- means for actuating said valve means responsive to movement of said lever,
- said housing means having an upper housing section split along its longitudinal axis providing two substantially identical axis providing two substantially identical halves, each having longitudinally extending outer walls,
- means providing a pivotal support for said lever, including mating recesses in said halves forming a socket, and
- a member pivotably mounted in said socket,
- retainer means cooperating with the lower end of said upper housing section for retaining said upper section to said base,
- means for holding said housing halves in face-to-face contact, and
- means for transmitting forces from inlet fluid acting on said valve means to said outer walls of said upper housing section thereby placing said well in tension against the restraint exerted by said retainer means to retain said housing section on said base.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.