AU761184B2 - A mixing jet assembly for a spa bath or pool - Google Patents

Description

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AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT *o o o: o Applicants: DESMOND JOHN BERRY and ROBERT KENNETH MCNAB Invention Title: A MIXING JET ASSEMBLY FOR A SPA BATH OR POOL The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me/us: 2 Title A Mixing Jet Assembly for a Spa Bath or Pool Field of the Invention This invention relates to mixing jet assemblies for spa baths and pools, the components of which are manufactured of injection moulded plastics.

Background of the Invention In spas and pools, the mixing jet assembly mixes water under pressure with air to provide the aerated jets of water that are a characteristic of such products. The assemblies usually comprise a housing that is coupled to a supply of water and air at the exterior of the spa bath or pool. A jet tube is located within the housing by means of a retaining nut that threadedly engages an internal bore of the housing. The jet tube includes a receptor and decorative outer flange with a central aperture that houses an eyeball that can pivot about its central axis relative to the flange to vary the direction of the jet of aerated water exiting the assembly. The decorative flange is mounted against the internal wall of the bath or pool and the decorative nature of the flange covers the hole in the wall through which the jet of water passes. The arrangement is such that the flange can be turned to rotate the jet tube and change the characteristics of the exeunt air and water mixture.

An assembly of this kind is disclosed in Australian Patents 622351. The mixing jet assembly described above uses the outer flange of the receptorretaining nut to hold the assembly against the wall of the bath or pool so that the jet receptor and housing on one side with the wall of the jet or spa being clamped between the housing and an inner face of the end of the receptor- \\MELBO1\homeS\akhoo\Keep\Penm\P39708.doc 27/09/00 3 retaining nut. In this manner, the decorative outer flange and jet tube is axially rotatable relative to the housing.

The jet tube is provided with an arcuate cut-out at its inner end so that axial rotation of the assembly varies the output of the aerated water.

Summary of the Invention According to the present invention there is provided a mixing jet assembly for use in spas and pools, the jet assembly comprising a housing adapted to accommodate a jet receptor, the jet receptor including an elongate air/water jet, the receptor being adapted to be a snap fit within an externally threaded nut that is in turn threadedly engagable with an internal threading of the housing, whereby the nut and housing clamp against the opposite faces of the wall of the spa bath or pool, a face plate adapted to be a snap fit on the receptor and being keyed to the receptor so that axial rotation of the face 20 plate imparts axial rotation to the jet receptor, an a eyeball adapted to be held within the centre of the receptor by the snap fit engagement of the face plate on S-the receptor, the eyeball having an axial throughway and being mounted within the receptor to be swivable about its axis through finger adjustment.

Preferably the jet receptor has at least a pair of tongues that are adapted to slide past an inclined ramp on the interior surface of the receptor nut to cause the oo 30 receptor to be a snap fit within the nut, the ramp facilitating removal of the receptor by a pull on front face of the assembly. In a preferred embodiment the face plate has a hollow annular centre portion that is adapted to be a snug fit over the exterior of the eyeball, the centre portion having an external annular rib that locates in a groove in the interior surface of the receptor.

H:\MCooper\Keep\Speci\62429.00.doc 20/03/03 4 Description of the Drawings An embodiment of the present invention is now described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is cross-sectional view of a mixing jet assembly, Figure 2 is a perspective view of the rear of a face ring that forms part of the assembly, Figure 3 is a perspective view of a jet tube that forms part of the assembly, Figure 4 is another perspective view of the jet tube, S"Figure 5 is a perspective view illustrating attachment of the face ring to the jet tube, S°Figure 6 is a cut-away perspective view of the housing of the assembly.

Description of the Preferred Embodiment *The mixing jet assembly 10 illustrated in the accompanying drawings is essentially composed of five components that are injection moulded in plastics. The five components comprise a housing 5, a receptor-retaining nut 20, a jet receptor 30, a decorative face plate 60 and an eyeball 50. The components are designed so that they can be readily assembled to provide the characteristics required by a mixing jet assembly whilst at the same time facilitate attachment of the assembly to the wall of a spa bath or pool. The assembly is also designed to provide an appropriate degree of disassembly without the need for complicated tools.

As shown in Figure 1, the assembly 10 includes a housing 5 shown in detail in Figure 6 that includes an internally threaded bore 9 in which is screwed a receptorretaining nut 20. The housing 5 terminates at one end in \\MELBOI \homeS\akhoo\Keep\Perm\P3 9708.doc 27/09/00 5 an annular outer flange 6 which is adapted to abut the exterior surface (not shown) of the wall of the spa or pool, and the assembly is clamped to the wall through abutment of an annular flange 21 that is provided on the radial extremity of the receptor-retaining nut 20. Thus, the receptor-retaining nut 20 is externally threaded at one end 22 so that it can be screwed into the threaded bore 9 of the housing 5 to clamp the wall of the spa or pool between the flanges 6 and 21. The other end of the housing 5 includes an outer sleeve 4 that houses the jet receptor As shown in Figure 6 the housing 5 has integrally formed therein a transversely extending pipe coupling 3 which is adapted to be coupled to pipework (not shown) that supplies the source of water. The pipe coupling 3 sits on o oo top of the rearwardly extending sleeve 4 of the housing that houses the jet receptor 30. The base of the pipe coupling 3 includes an oval aperture 2 that communicates directly with the jet receptor 30. The oval aperture 2 is covered in either end by an arcuate shroud 7 that improves the flow of water into the jet receptor. It has been discovered that when the pipework is glued into the oe o connector 3 there is a danger of glue running down the pipe and into the oval aperture 2 to contaminate the jet receptor 30. To prevent glue flowing into the jet receptor, a small lip 8 of approximately mm in height is positioned around the periphery of the aperture 2. The lip 8 acts as a dam against which glue can collect and solidify and ensures that the glue does not flow into the sensitive area of the jet receptor The receptor-retaining nut 20 has a radially extending outer flange that defines the mounting shoulder 21 with a stepped outer shoulder 22 that merges with a forwardly projecting annular boss 23 that has a joining lands (not shown) that facilitate axial rotation of the nut so that it can be tightened within the threaded bore 9 of the housing 5. The nut 20 has a substantially \\MELBO\ho$eS\akhoo\Keep\rn\P3 9708.doc 27/09/00 6 cylindrical internal bore 24 that tapers inwardly near the inner end to an annular rib 25 with a axially outwardly tapering end face 26, which then merges with a larger cylindrical end portion 27 of the bore 24. The end face 26 is tapered by an angle of, for example, about 150 to the vertical.

As shown in Figure 3 the jet receptor 30 is moulded to be integrally formed with a jet tube 31. The jet tube 31 is positioned centrally of the receptor 30 and is of substantially cylindrical configuration with an arcuate semi-cylindrical cut-out 32 at one end. The jet tube 31 has an internal tapered venturi 33 and is formed with a cylindrical receptor member 34 that terminates with an annular flange 35 at the front of the receptor. The external profile of the jet receptor 30 is stepped from the annular flange 35 down to two cylindrical portions 36, 37 through a tapered shoulder 38 to a slightly tapered end portion 39. The end portion 39 has four axially extending cut-outs 41 that define a pair of diametrically opposed locking tongues 42, 43. Each tongue ends in an upstanding arcuate rib 49 as shown in Figures 3 and 4. The diameter of the arcuate ribs 49 is slightly greater than the inner o. diameter of the annular rib 25 of the retaining nut 20 and the jet receptor 30 is arranged to be a snap fit within the bore of the retaining nut by pushing the receptor 30 into the retaining nut 20 and causing the ribs 49 on the two tongues 42, 43 to deflect radially inwardly as they ride up the inclined ramp on the internal bore of the nut 20 to snap into engagement behind the inclined surface 26 of the ribs 25 as shown in Figure 1. Thus, the jet receptor can be snap-fitted into engagement with the retaining nut thus preventing axial displacement of the receptor relative to the nut with the receptor free to axially rotate relative to the nut 20. The receptor 30 has an internal bore 44 that defines the jet tube 31 outside a converging diverging nozzle assembly 33 that constitutes \\MELBO1\home$\akhoo\Keep\Pelim\P39708 .doc 27/09/00 7 the venturi. The forward end of the bore 44 also terminates in a part spherical recess 45 which is profiled to accommodate a similarly spherically curved surface 51 of the eyeball 50. The eyeball 50 has a spherically curved outer surface 51 that reduces in diameter to terminate in a cylindrical forward portion 52. The eyeball 50 has an internal bore 53 that tapers inwardly from the front to the rear to join an enlarged end bore 54 that fits closely with the extremities of the internal bore 44 of the receptor.

The eyeball 50 is held in position within the receptor bore by means of the decorative face ring 60 that has an inner portion that is adapted to be a snap fit within the front face of the bore 44 of the jet receptor 30. Finger adjustment causes the eyeball 50 to swivel thereby altering 15 the output direction of the air/water jet.

As shown in Figure 2, the face ring 60 has a knurled or grooved peripheral outer surface 61. The inner surface 62 is provided with an annular ring of four ribs 63 of rectangular cross-section with a smaller inner ring 64 that defines the central aperture 65 of the face ring. The DiD inner ring 64 has a raised radial rib 66 on its exterior surface and an annular groove 48 is provided in the front of the bore 44 the receptor 30 so that if the face ring is placed over the forward portion of the eyeball 50 that portion extends through the central bore 65 of the ring and the ring can be snap fitted into the groove 48 on the internal bore 44 of the receptor 30. The face ring 60 can easily be snap fitted into the bore of the receptor when it is not attached to the retaining nut 20. However, in the assembled situation shown in Figure 1 where the receptor has been fitted to the receptor-retaining nut 20, it should be noted that the abutting contact between the external periphery of the receptor 30 and the internal bore 44 of the retaining nut prevents radial expansion of the retaining nut and thus effectively prevents disassembly of the face plate 60 from its snap fitted location within the \\MELBO1\home$\akhoo\Keep\rel-m\P39708 .doc 27/09/00 8 receptor 30. As shown in Figure 3, the front face 35 of the receptor 30 is provided with four radially extending keys 40 which are arranged to aligned with the four cutouts 67 between the arcuate ribs 63 on the interior face of the face ring 60. The location of the keys 40 in the gaps between the ribs 63 in the face ring means that rotation of the face ring 60 imparts rotation to the receptor 30 which in turn causes rotation of the jet pipe 31 and changes the output characteristics of the water/air mixture. The assembly of the face ring 60 to the receptor 30 is also illustrated in Figure •The fact that the eyeball 50 is located within a S- recess in the receptor 30 allows an eyeball of longer 15 dimensions to be utilised than would be the case of an eyeball that is a snap fit within the aperture in the face ring. An eyeball 50 having a longer axial dimension improves the venturi effect of the assembly and increases the flows of the jet stream.

The 152 taper on the end face 26 of the rib 25 of the receptor nut 20 and its association with the diametrically opposed tongues 42, 43 allows the receptor to be removed from the receptor nut 20 by simply pulling on the front face of the face ring 60 which pulls the rib 44 down the end face 26 and forward past the rib 25 of the nut There is no need for an additional tool or access from the rear of the assembly. By pulling the receptor 30 out of the receptor nut 20, ready access is provided to clean the jet assembly and/or eyeball 50 without having to dismantle the connection of the housing with the wall of the spa or bath.

The face ring 60 may be moulded to have an ornate external appearance or alternatively it is understood that gold or silver plate may be positioned over the exterior of the face ring to further improve the aesthetic appearance \\MELBO1 \home$\akhoo\Keep\ Penr\P39708.doc 27/09/00 9of the face ring which Bits in abutting contact against the inner surface of the spa or pool.

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Claims (3)

1. 2. The mixing jet assembly according to Claim 1 wherein the jet receptor has at least one projection that is adapted to slide past an inclined ramp on a rib on the interior surface of the receptor nut to cause the receptor to be a snap fit within the nut, the rib having an inclined outerface facilitating removal of the receptor by a pull on front surface of the assembly causing the projection to ride up the inclined surface and past the rib.
2. 3. The mixing jet assembly according to Claim 2 V, 0 30 wherein the face plate has a hollow annular centre portion that is adapted to be a snug fit over the exterior of the ••go Do eyeball, the centre portion having an external annular rib •go• that locates in a groove in the interior surface of the receptor.
3. 4. The mixing jet assembly according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the housing has a rearwardly H:\MCooper\Keep\Speci\62429.00.doc 20/03/03 11 extending sleeve in which the jet receptor is located, the housing having a pipe connector in fluid communication with the sleeve via an aperture in the connector, the aperture is surrounded by an upstanding lip. The mixing jet assembly substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Dated this 2nd day of October 2000. 0* DESMOND JOHN BERRY and ROBERT KENNETH MCNAB -15 By their Patent Attorneys GRIFFITH HACK Fellows Institute of Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys of Australia *00S 0 00 o \\MELBO1\homeS\akhoo\Keep\Peri\P397O8.doc 27/09/00