AU641839B2

AU641839B2 - Tap handle

Info

Publication number: AU641839B2
Application number: AU10441/92A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Malcolm John Foubister
Original assignee: Centique Industries Pty Ltd
Current assignee: PARBURY BUILDING PRODUCTS Pty Ltd
Priority date: 1991-01-25
Filing date: 1992-01-24
Publication date: 1993-09-30
Anticipated expiration: 2012-01-24
Also published as: AU1044192A

Description

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act COMPLETE SPECIFICATION

(ORIGINAL)

64 183 s Int. Class Clas: Application Number: Lodged: Complete Specification Lodged: Accepted: Published: Priority Related Art: Name of Applicant: Centique Industries Pty. Ltd.

Actual Inventor(s): Malcolm John Foubister Address for Service: PHILLIPS ORMONDE FITZPATRICK Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys 367 Collins Street Melbourne 3000 AUSTRALIA e, *egg Invention Title: TAP HANDLE

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Our Ref 242599 Code: 81882/81882 e a :The following statement is a full description of this invention, including *the best method of performing it known to applicant(s): CS o

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TAP HANDLE The present invention relates generally to tap handles, and in particular relates to handles for taps which are usually used for tap fittings in bathrooms, kitchens and the like.

One type of tap handle utilizes a cap member which is generally cylindrical and is open at one end and closed at the other. The cap member includes on the inner side of the closed end a means for seating the cap on a tap fitting, and on the outer side of the closed end a means for seating an ornamental tap head thereon. Once the tap head is seated on the cap, a third member is utilized to secure the tap head to the cap. The cap member, being the component of the handle wthich is seated on the tap fitting, is then secured in a manner which will not allow relative rotation thereof, such that rotation of the handle causes rotation of the stem of the tap fitting 0to operate the tap.

This type of tap handle requires extremely 20 complex machining in order to prov de the two types of fees o seating means, both on the inside and the outside of the cap member, which is both expensive and time consuming.

ooo..: Further, a large volume of material is required in order to produce such a tap handle, and as ornamental tap handles are often made with expensive materials, such as solid brass, gold-plated materials or even solid gold, S. such an excess of material also adds significantly to the cost of manufacturing.

Further an aperture may be provided in the tap S 30 head and the tap head is seated on the tap fitting by passing the tap stem through the aperture. In order to prevent the tap head being easily removed, the tap stem 0000 can be threaded and a third member, e.g. a nut or liJ's s.o: member screwed onto the tap stem. As the diameter of the nut is larger than the diameter of the aperture, removal of the tap head is prevented.

This type of tap handle however requires that the nut be secured onto the tap stem after the tap head has been seated on the tap fitting. The nut is visible to 4 4044 a 4 *4 4 4 4 4 .4 *4 4 persons using the tap, resulting in the tap handle having an undesirable appearance. In addition, when the nut is screwed onto the tap stem, the nut may sometimes be burred and the tap handle marked by the tools used to tighten the nut, further degrading the appearance of the tap handle.

Another type of tap handle includes an ornamental tap cover for seating on the tap head, however in order to provide suitable means to seat the ornamental tap cover, complex machining is required on either or both the ornamental tap cover and the tap head. This machining is time consuming and expensive, and results in costly waste of materials.

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved tap handle which overcomes, or at least partly alleviates, the above mentioned disadvantages.

The present invention provides a two-piece tap handle suitable for engagement with the valve stem or other like part of a tap fitting, said tap handle comprising a head and a generally cylindrical skirt, 20 wherein said head has a centrally located seating means for releasably engaging said stem in a manner suitable to allow operation of the tap fitting by rotation of the head, said head also having means to engage said skirt such that said skirt is capable of extending below said head and around said stem when said tap handle is in en age nt-with aid bap fibbing.- In a pre rred form, the head has a downwardly opening bore which is circular in cross-section. In this form, the bore is defin d by an end wall and a downwardly extending peripheral side all. Preferably the side wall is threaded to provide the e aging means. Thus, at least the external surface of an uppe portion of the skirt is circular in cross-section and ay be correspondingly threaded to suitably engage with the hreaded bore of the head. In the most preferred form, the skirt is a hollow cylinder open at both ends, externally thr ded at one end thereof, and having a diameter correspo ing to the diameter of the bore. The skirt may then simply be Slscrewedi pace below th e -px.o--o sea the e 8)-

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engagement with said tap fitting, said tap handle being securable to the valve stem by a securing member which engages the free end of the valve stem.

In a preferred form, the head has a downwardly opening bore which is circular in cross-section. In this form, the bore is defined by an end wall and a downwardly extending peripheral side wall. Preferably the side wall is threaded to provide the engaging means. Thus, at least the external surface of an upper portion of the skirt is circular in cross-section and may be correspondingly threaded to suitably engage with the threaded bore of the head. In the most preferred form, the skirt is a hollow cylinder open at both ends, externally threaded at one end thereof, and having a diameter corresponding to the diameter of the bore. The skirt may then simply be screwed into place below the head prior to seating the *ee *o ;"e P b )i' 2a head on the tap fitting.

The end wall of the bore may include the seating means for engaging the stem of a tap fitting. Such seating means is preferably defined by a centrally located boss which is capable of receiving the free end of the stein of a tap fitting. The free end of the stem may be received by the boss in an opening which extends through the boss a distance suitable to receive the stem, but not so as to extend completely through the head.

Alternatively, the aperture may extend completely through the boss and the head such that the stem may engage with a securing nut or the like on the other side thereof. The shape of the opeiing is preferably of a shape complimentary to the shape of the stem. Stems are usually substantially rectangular in cross-section, although the short sides of the rectangle are generally convexly curved.

Thus, none of the components of the tap handle of the present invention require complex machining, including tthe relevant parts thereof which engage with each other or *Go: 20 with the tap fitting. Further, the tap handle may be produced as a two-piece unit thus requiring less material, oo and providing a substantial saving in cost.

•In a preferred aspect of the present invention the tap handle may be provided with a cover for location on the tap head so that the securing member is concealed.

The cover may take any convenient shape and should have S. generally greater dimensions than those of the securing b member. The cover may similarly be a solid body, or alternatively, may be a thin walled body. Any suitable 30 material may be used to form the cover, including plastic, or metals such as brass.

In one embodiment of the invention, the cover 0 00 comprises a solid body and may be produced without complex working of the material, such as by moulding or turning on a lathe.

The cover includes means for mating with at least th, projecting portion of the securing member to thereby engage said securing means. The cover may include a recess for receiving the projecting portion of the -4securing means.

The securing means and the mating recess in the cover may clip together or otherwise be pressed into engaging relationship so that the cover is retained on the tap head by the securing member.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the recess in the cover is a bore of dimensions suitable to mate with at least a projecting portion of the securing means. The bore may be of circular cross-section, but may be of other suitable cross-section. The cross-section of the bore may have a shape corresponding to that of at least a portion of the securing member, such as a hexagonal cross-section.

In another embodiment of the invention, the recess may include protrusions or other irregularities, such as a circumferential lip, to enable the cover to engage with said securing member when pressed together.

The securing member may include retaining means to grip the mating recess of the cover when the cover and see: 20 securing means are pressed together. In one embodiment of *ethe invention, the securing means may include at least one •o ~deformable, resilient member which is caused to bear •against the inner surface of the recess in the cover when the cover and securing member are pressed together. The retaining means may be located at theperiphery of the securing member, for example at the edges of a flat nut.

.o Such retaining means may comprise an O-ring located around *959 the periphery of the securing member The O-ring may be made of rubber, plastic or other like material.

30 Alternatively, the securing member may be at least partially coated in a resilient, deformable material in order that the retaining means may be located at the periphery of the securing member. .n another embodiment, the securing means may have at least one protrusion o• projecting from the periphery thereof. As will be appreciated by a skilled worker in the relevant field, many other arrangements for the provision of a retaining aeans associated with the securing means are possible.

The securing means may have at least one recess eg...

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for locating the retaining means therein. In one embodiment of the invention, the securing means is a nut and is provided with a groove running around the periphery of the nut. In this manner an O-ring or similar member may be securely located in the groove to assist in preventing dislodgement of the O-ring from the securing means during engagement and subsequent disengagement of cover and the securing means.

In this embodiment, the cover is pressed together with the securing member and 2he O-ring is caused to deform and apply retentive pressure between the securing means and inner surface of the recess, thereby resisting removal of the cover. Further, the cover may be releasably engageable with the securing member.

It is to be appreciated that other forms of engagement between the securing means and the cover are possible. The securing means, for example, may contain a recess and the cover a corresponding mating protrusion.

These and other variations will be well appreciated by a 20 skilled worker in the relevant field.

In order to assist in arriving at an understanding of the present invention, a preferred embodiment is illustrated in the attached drawings.

However, it should be understood that the following description is illustrative only and should not be taken in any way as a zestriction on the generality of the invention as described above.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a perspective view from above a head according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, Figure 2 is a perspective view from below the head illustrated in Figure 1, Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the preferred embodiment of the invention, Figure 4a is a side elevation of an embodiment of a tap handle according to the present invention including a cover, Figure 4b is a sectional view of the tap handle of Figure 4a taken through II-II; and, -6- Figure 4c is an exploded perspective view of the tap handle of Figure 4a.

Illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 is a head for a tap handle according to the present invention. The head 10 has a flat top wall 12 and downwardly extending external side-walls 14. From above, the external side-walls 14 provide the head 10 with a hexagonal shape.

The inner surface 16 of the side-walls 14 is threaded to provide engagement means in the form of a circular bore 18 which opens downwardly of the head 10, while the inner surface 20 of the top wall 12 defines the end wall of the bore 18.

Projecting centrally from the end wall of the bore 18 is a boss 22 having an opening 24 therein. The opening 24 extends through both the boss 22 and the top wall 12 of the head 10, and has the cross-sectional shape of a rectangle with the short sides thereof concavely curved. Thus, the opening is capable of snugly receiving a stem of a tap fitting which has a rectangular see: 20 cross-section with the short sides thereof convexly curved.

Figure 3 illustrates the assembly of a tap handle according to the invention, and the attachment thereof to a tap fitting. A hollow cylindrical skirt 26, having a threaded portion 28 at one end thereof, is screwed into the bore 18 to form the tap handle 30. The tap handle may then be seated on the stem 32 of a tap fitting 34.

e The stem 32 is usually circular in cross-section, but has an end portion 36 which has opposing curved portions removed. This has the effect of providing a 30 rectangular cross-section with convex end walls. The end portion 36 of stem 32 is snugly received in the opening 24 of boss 22 such that the top surface 38 of the stem 32 is Obre flush with the top wall 12 of the head 10, and the :shoulder 40 of the stem 32 abuts the leading edge 42 of the boss 22. The complementary shape of the end portion 36 of the stem 32 and the opening 24 of the boss 22 is such as to prevent relative rotation therebetween, and to allow rotation of the tap handle to rotate the stem of the tap fitting and thus operate the tap.

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Sm 4 4 5 S. The tap handle 30 may be secured to the tap fitting 34 by way of a nut 44. Nut 44 hba a threaded shaft 46 which is received in threaded bore 48 to secure the tap handle. The top surface of the nut may include an indication of whether the tap is a cold or hot water tap.

Of course, the stem 32 may be secured to the tap handle 30 without the use of a nut 44. For example, opening 24 may only extend through the boss 22 but not through the top wall 12 of the head 10. In this form, the end portion 36 preferably requires some force to be received in the opening due to an extremely close fit therebetween.

As illustrated in Figure 4a, b and c, the tap handle may further be provided with a cover or dome The dome 50 may be provided with a recess or bore 52. In the embodiment the nut 44' includes an internal threaded bore 54 which engages an external bore 56 on stem 32. The nut 44' includes a resilient O-ring 58 which engages with the inner wall of recess 52 in cover 50. An indicator 20 disc 60 may be sandwiched between the nut 44' and head It will be appreciated that any type of shape or configuration may be utilized for the head of the tap handle, or may be applied to the external surfaces of the side and top walls of the head illustrated above, to 25 provide a large variety of shapes and designs of tap handles, without altering the seating means or the engaging means. The skirt may also have any shape or size below the threaded portion. Thus, the manufacture of tap handles according to the invention is simple, provides a basic form from which great variety can be produced, requires less machining than known handles, and requires less raw material.

Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that there may be many variations and modifications of the configurations described herein which are within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A two-piece tap handle suitable for engagement with the valve stem or other like part of a tap fitting, said tap handle comprising a head and a separable skirt, wherein said head has a centrally located seating means for releasably engaging said stem in a manner suitable to allow operation of the tap fitting by rotation of the head, said head also having means to engage said skirt such that said skirt is capable of extending below said head and around said stem when said tap handle is in engagement with said tap fitting, said tap handle being securable to the valve stem by a securing member which engages the free end of the valve stem.

2. A tap handle according to claim 1, wherein said head includes a downwardly opening bore which is circular in cross-section and is defined by an end wall and a downwardly extending peripheral side wall.

3. A tap handle according to claim 2, wherein said side wall is threaded to provide the engaging means.

4. A tap handle according to claim 3, wherein at least the external surface of an upper portion of the skirt is cwrcular in cross-section and correspondingly threaded to suitably engage with the threaded bore of the head.

A tap handle according to claim 4, wherein the skirt is a hollow cylinder open at both ends, externally threaded at :25 one end thereof, and having a diameter corresponding to the diameter of the bore.

6. A tap handle according to any one of claims 2 to wherein the end wall of the bore includes the seating means for engaging the stem of a tap fitting.

7. A tap handle according to claim 6, wherein the seating means is defined by a centrally located boss which is capable of receiving the free end of the stem of a tap fitting.

8. A tap handle according to claim 7, wherein the free end of the stem is received by the boss in an opening which extends through the boss a distance suitable to receive the stem, but not so as to extend completely through the head.

9. A tap handle according to claim wherein the free end of the stem is received by the boss in an opening which 8 l i,- extends completely through the boss and the head such that the stem may engage with a securing member on the other side thereof.

A tap handle according :o claim 9, further including a cover on the tap head including a means for mating with the securing member to thereby engage and conceal said securing member.

11. A tap handle according to claim 10 wherein the cover includes a recess for receiving a projecting portion of the securing member.

12. A tap handle according to claim 11, wherein the securing member includes retaining means to grip the mating recess when the cover and securing member are pressed together.

13. A tap handle according to claim 12, wherein the securing member includes at least one deformable, resilient member which is caused to bear against the inner surface of the mating recess in the cover.

14. A tap handle substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying figures.. *fe*e S. DATED: 19th March, 1993 *go: PHILLIPS ORMONDE FITZPATRICK 0'.25 Attorneys for: Iq€ 1 CENTIQUE INDUSTRIES PTY. JTD. 0 0S50 -"530 **30 gt*. 6 a a SO 0 0 -9- ABSTRACT A two-piece tap handle suitable for engagement with the valve stem or other like part of a tap fitting, said tap handle comprising a head and a separable skirt, wherein said head has a centrally located seating means for releasably engaging said stem in a manner suitable to allow operation of the tap fitting by rotation of the head, said head also having means to engage said skirt such that said skirt is capable of extending below said head and around said stem when said tap handle is in engagement with said tap fitting. Ost *9pe 89 ee