Toilet seat joint and toilet seat set

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a toilet seat joint according to the preamble of patent claim 1 and a toilet seat fitting designed with such a toilet seat joint.

[0002] Such a toilet seat assembly is described, for example, in the applicant's patent EP 1 199 020 B1. Accordingly, a toilet seat and a toilet lid of a toilet seat assembly are connected to one another via two seat joint assemblies. Each seat joint assembly has a rotary damper, to which an adapter piece is assigned, which has a receptacle for attaching the seat assembly to pins on the ceramic side. This adapter piece can also be designed as a single piece with the rotary damper. The rotary damper and the adapter piece form a physical pivot axis supported on the ceramic, on which the seat assembly is directly or indirectly mounted. This pivot axis is integrated into the seat assembly, so that the space requirement is minimal. This is a significant difference from conventional solutions in which, for example, a complex damping device is housed in a housing attached to the ceramic.The seating set is then attached to the pre-assembled damping device.

[0003] According to the teaching of the aforementioned patent, a spring washer or similar device can be inserted into the peripheral wall of the mount, which engages a groove formed on the respective ceramic-side hinge pin when the seat assembly is placed on the respective hinge pin. By overcoming this locking force, the seat assembly can be easily removed from the hinge pins with minimal effort (take-off function).

[0004] The problem with such solutions is the formation of the circumferential groove required for mounting the annular spring in the circumferential wall of the holder, since this represents an undercut, which is problematic both in machining and in injection molding.

[0005] In contrast, the invention is based on the object of creating a toilet seat joint and a toilet seat fitting designed with such a toilet seat joint, in which the take-off function is ensured with minimal device-related expenditure.

[0006] This problem is solved with regard to the toilet seat joint by the features of patent claim 1 and with regard to the toilet seat fitting by the features of the independent patent claim 15.

[0007] Advantageous further developments of the invention are the subject of the subclaims.

[0008] The toilet seat hinge according to the invention is designed with a physical pivot axis on which a toilet seat or toilet lid is mounted directly or indirectly. This pivot axis is designed with a continuous or one-sidedly closed receptacle, which is designed to be placed on a ceramic-side hinge pin. A locking element is provided in this receptacle, via which the hinge pin can be locked to the pivot axis. According to the invention, this locking element is formed on a spring bushing, which is inserted into the receptacle with a force-fitting and / or positive fit, and into which the hinge pin engages.

[0009] By inserting the spring bushing with the locking element, the need for an undercut in the inner peripheral wall of the holder is eliminated. Anchoring the spring bushing is relatively simple, as this anchoring only needs to be designed to withstand the locking force that must be overcome to remove the toilet seat assembly.

[0010] As explained at the beginning, the pivot axis is essentially formed by a damping device and an adapter piece. The adapter piece can be integrally connected to the damping device or connected in a rotationally fixed manner. The mount for the hinge pin is then formed accordingly on this pivot axis.

[0011] In a preferred embodiment, the spring bushing has at least one locking projection which resiliently engages a corresponding locking groove of the hinge pin.

[0012] The locking can be further improved if several locking projection sections are formed on the spring bushing along a circumferential circle.

[0013] In a particularly preferred embodiment, the spring bushing is designed with two diametrically arranged locking projections.

[0014] A jacket end section of the spring bushing remote from the ceramic can be tapered in the radial direction, so that this taper forms a stop for the hinge pin, against which the hinge pin rests on the front side in the mounting position of the pivot axis.

[0015] In a variant of the invention, it is provided that the at least one locking projection is designed with two flat or curved flanks that are set towards one another and to which corresponding inclined surfaces on the hinge pin that influence the insertion or extraction resistance are assigned.

[0016] For example, a flank that first comes into contact with the hinge pin in the insertion direction, in operative connection with a beveled surface on the front side of the hinge pin, determines the insertion resistance. The extraction resistance is then determined by a beveled surface formed on the locking groove and the further flank of the locking projection. Accordingly, by appropriately adjusting the flanks / beveled surfaces, the extraction resistance or the insertion resistance can be easily adapted to the respective conditions.

[0017] The production of the spring bushing is particularly simple if it is made of an elastic plastic or a metal, for example spring steel.

[0018] To improve the spring effect, the spring bushing can have a continuous longitudinal slot.

[0019] The elasticity of the locking projections can be varied relatively easily by limiting them on both sides with slots so that the locking projections are cut out in an approximately tab-shaped manner on the circumference of the spring bushing.

[0020] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, barb-shaped projections are formed on the spring bushing, preferably in the region of ceramic-side end faces, which projections are designed to be force- or form-fittingly brought onto the peripheral wall of the pivot axis-side receptacle in order to fix the spring bushing in the receptacle.

[0021] The spring elasticity of these projections and the spring bushing can be adjusted by spring slots that are formed between the projections on the bushing circumference.

[0022] The immersed section of the hinge pin can be stepped back according to the wall thickness of the spring bushing, so that optimal radial guidance is ensured.

[0023] Advantageous developments of the invention are explained in more detail below with reference to schematic drawings. They show: Figure 1 a highly schematic sectional view of a toilet seat fitting according to the invention attached to a ceramic; Figure 2 a three-dimensional schematic representation of a toilet seat joint according to the invention; Figures 3, 4 and 5 Illustrations of a spring bushing of a toilet seat joint according to Figure 1 ; Figures 6, 7 Schematic diagrams to explain the function of a spring bushing according to the Figures 3 to 5 and Figures 8, 9 another embodiment of a spring bushing for a toilet seat joint according to Figure 1 .

[0024] Figure 1shows the basic structure of a toilet seat assembly 1 with a toilet lid 2 and a toilet seat 4, which are connected to a ceramic element 10 via two coaxially arranged toilet seat joints 6, 8. Two hinge pins 14, 14' are attached to a support surface of the ceramic element 10, which are each locked to one of the toilet seat joint assemblies 6, 8. In the illustrated embodiment, each toilet seat joint assembly 6, 8 has a rotation damper 16, 18, whereby in the case of the Figure 1 In the embodiment shown, the rotary damper 16 dampens the lowering movement of the cover 2 and the rotary damper 18 dampens the lowering movement of the seat 4.

[0025] The rotary dampers 16, 18 and adapter pieces 20, 22 formed integrally therewith or connected thereto in a rotationally fixed manner each form a pivot axis that is supported on the associated hinge pin 14, 14'. A receptacle 24, 26 is formed in each adapter piece 20, 22, into which the associated hinge pin 14, 14' engages upon insertion. This receptacle 24, 26 is designed as a blind hole or continuous stepped bore, with the hinge pin resting with a shoulder on a corresponding shoulder of the stepped bore or the blind hole. In principle, the hinge pin 14, 14' can also be stepped, with the annular shoulder formed by the step being supported in the stepped bore or on the outer circumference of the adapter piece. Accidental removal of the seating set 1 from the hinge pins 14, 14' is prevented by a locking mechanism, via which the respective receptacle 24, 26 is locked to the associated hinge pin 14, 14'.According to the invention, a spring bushing 28, 30 is inserted into the receptacle 24, 26 for locking, on which a locking element is formed.

[0026] The structure of the spring sleeve is described below using the Figures 2 to 5 explained.

[0027] Figure 2 shows a partially sectioned individual view of the WC seat joint 6, which has the same structure as the one in Figure 2 seat joint 8 (not shown). As explained above, the seat joint 6 has a rotary damper 16, whose cylinder housing 32 is connected in a rotationally fixed manner to the adapter piece 20. Each rotary damper 18 has a rotary piston 34 (see also Figure 1 ), which is shown in the illustration according to Figure 2 is only indicated by dashed lines.

[0028] The section plane in the representation according to Figure 2runs in the axial direction along the receptacle 24, so that the spring bushing 28 inserted into the receptacle 24 is visible. As will be explained in more detail below, the spring bushing 28 has two diametrically opposed locking projections 36, 38, of which in the illustration according to Figure 2 only one is visible. These locking projections protrude resiliently in the radial direction into the receptacle 24 and, when locked, interact with a corresponding circumferential groove of the hinge pin 14, 14' - this will be discussed further below.

[0029] The spring bushing 28 is in the Figures 3 to 5shown in several views. These figures show that the spring bushing 28 is sleeve-shaped, with the casing of the spring bushing 28 being designed with a continuous longitudinal slot 40. The gap width S and the diameter D of the spring bushing 28 are selected such that it can be inserted into the receptacle 24 with a press fit, so to speak, whereby the clear width S of the longitudinal slot 40 is then reduced and the spring bushing 28 is received in the receptacle 24 with preload. For further anchoring, four barb-shaped projections 42a, 42b, 42c, 42d are formed on the ceramic-side end face of the spring bushing 28. These projections are designed approximately triangularly or sawtooth-shaped, with the tips being bent outwards in the radial direction, so that the enveloping circle around the tips of the projections 42 has a larger diameter than the outer diameter D of the casing of the spring bushing 28.

[0030] To improve the spring action, a spring slot 44a, 44b, 44c is formed between each two adjacent projections 42a, 42b; 42b, 42c; 42c, 42d. The aforementioned longitudinal slot 40 lies between the two projections 42a, 42d and thus fulfills a dual function (determining the radial elasticity of the spring bushing 28 and improving the spring action of the projections 42). At the end portion of the spring bushing 28 remote from the projections 42, two diametrically opposed spring tabs 46a, 46b are formed, each of which is cut free by two slots 48a, 48b and 50a, 50b, respectively.

[0031] As shown by Figure 6 As will be explained in more detail, each spring tab 46a, 46b is designed with the locking projection 36, 38 projecting inwards in the radial direction.

[0032] In the illustrated embodiment, the spring bushings 28, 30 are made of spring steel, so that the shape of the spring tabs 46a, 46b and the other components can be achieved by stamping and bending. In principle, the spring bushings 28, 30 can also be made of an elastic plastic.

[0033] The jacket sections 54, 56 extending between the two diametrically arranged spring tabs 46a, 46b are approximately cylindrical in shape, so that the locking projections 36, 38 extend radially inwards from the enveloping one of these jacket sections 54, 56.

[0034] The one in the Figures 3 and 4 The upper end section of the spring bushing casing on the seat assembly side is inclined inwards in the radial direction, so that a chamfer-like casing end section 58 is produced.

[0035] Figure 5 shows a longitudinal section through the spring bushing 28 according to the Figures 3 and 4, wherein the sectional plane passes through the two diametrically arranged slots 44a, 44c and thus centrally through the opposing spring tabs 46a, 46b. In this illustration, one can see the locking projections 36, 38 formed by the two spring tabs 46a, 46b, which extend radially inwards towards each other. In the illustration according to Figure 5 Centrally between the two spring tabs 46a, 46b, the rear spring slot 44b can be seen, which opens between the two projections 42c, 42d of the ceramic-side end face of the spring bushing 28. As explained above, the spring bushing 2 is conically tapered over the jacket end section 58. The jacket sections 54, 56 located between the spring tabs 46a, 46b (only the jacket section 56 is visible in Figure 5 ) can be cylindrical or can be designed according to the approximately S-shaped curvature of the spring tabs 46a, 46b.

[0036] Figure 6shows a schematic diagram with the spring bushing 28 inserted into the receptacle 26 of the adapter piece 20, wherein the hinge pin 14 is inserted with its front end section slightly into the receptacle 26. In the schematic representation according to Figure 6 It can be seen that the hinge pin 14 has a circumferential groove 60 which has a rounded or trapezoidal cross-section. In the illustrated embodiment, the profile of the circumferential groove 60 is trapezoidal, whereby this is Figure 6 upper inclined surface 62 and a lower inclined surface 64, which open into a groove base 66.

[0037] The locking projection 38 formed on each of the two spring tabs 46a, 46b is also approximately trapezoidal in the illustrated embodiment, with a mounting flank 68 and a removal flank 70. The locking projection 36 is designed accordingly.

[0038] The end face of the hinge pin 14 is provided with a chamfer 72, the inclination of which is adapted to that of the mounting flank 68. When the toilet seat assembly 1 is placed on the two hinge pins 14, 14', the latter are inserted into the associated receptacle 24, 26 until the two mounting flanks 68 of the locking projections 36, 38 come into contact with the chamfer 72 of the hinge pin 14. When the seating arrangement 1 is further placed on the hinge pins 14, 14', the locking projection 36, 38 slides along the attachment flank 68 on the bevel 72, whereby the locking contour of the locking projections 36, 38 is elastically deformed outwards and the areas of the spring tabs 46a, 46b located above the locking projections 36, 38 are correspondingly moved inwards in the direction of the arrow.By expanding the inside diameter of the spring bushing 28 in this way, it can be pushed further onto the hinge pin 14 until the locking projection 36, 38 spring-locks into the circumferential groove 60 and the upper end sections of the spring bushing 28, 30 with the obliquely positioned jacket end section 58 spring back into contact with the circumferential wall of the receptacle 24, 26. An axial displacement of the spring bushing 28, 30 during this insertion is prevented, on the one hand, by the contact of these obliquely positioned jacket end sections 58 against a radial shoulder or the bottom 74 of the receptacle 24 and, on the other hand, by the preferably force-fitting contact of the laterally projecting hook-shaped projections 42a, 42b, 42c, 42d with the circumferential wall.

[0039] The question then arises Figure 7 shown relative position, in which the hinge pin 14 is reliably locked with the adapter piece 20 and the spring bushing 28 received therein.

[0040] As in Figure 7 As indicated, the hinge pin 14 is stepped back in the area where it enters the spring bushing 28, 30. This means that the Figure 7 The diameter SD of the hinge pin 14, 14' shown is reduced to the diameter dimension Sd in the overlap area with the spring bushing 28, 30, whereby the diameter difference is designed according to the wall thickness of the spring bushing 28, 30, so that the hinge pin 14, 14' is precisely guided in the radial direction along the axial length entering the receptacle 24, 26.

[0041] When removing the toilet seat assembly 1 from the two hinge pins 14, 14', the withdrawal resistance is initially determined by the contact of the withdrawal flanks of the locking projections 36, 38 with the upper inclined surface 62 of the circumferential groove 60 of the hinge pin 14. When a withdrawal force is applied, the clear width of the locking contour is then widened according to the above explanations by the inclined contact of the aforementioned withdrawal flank 70 on the inclined surface 62, so that the spring bushing 28 with the withdrawal flank 70 slides off the inclined surface 62. The toilet seat assembly 1 can then be removed from the hinge pins 14, 14' until the two locking projections 36, 38 with the lower attachment flanks 68 can again come into contact with the chamfer 72 of the hinge pin (see Figure 6 ) - the toilet seat can then be removed without any further effort.

[0042] During this removal, the previously described locking contour results in a tightening of contact between the inclined surfaces 62 and the removal flanks 70, with the removal force being adjustable by the angle and length of the ramps. This pressing of the locking contour against the peripheral wall of the receptacle 24 also results in increased pressing of the radially outwardly projecting triangular projections 42a, 42b, 42c, 42d against the peripheral wall of the receptacle 24, so that the increased force-locking connection reliably prevents the spring bushing 28 from being pulled out of the receptacle 40.

[0043] The solution described above has several advantages over conventional solutions. For example, the bore geometry of the receptacles 24, 26 can be designed without undercuts, significantly reducing manufacturing costs compared to the solutions described above, which all require an undercut in the receptacle.

[0044] In addition, no additional holes or cutouts are necessary in the geometries surrounding the receptacle 24, 26, so that the adapter piece or the damper housing can be designed with improved mechanical strength.

[0045] A further significant advantage is that when the toilet seat assembly 1 is placed on the two hinge pins 14, 14', a clear haptic and auditory feedback is provided by the engagement of the locking projections 36, 38.

[0046] Furthermore, the insertion and extraction force can be adjusted independently of each other via the geometry of the aforementioned inclined surfaces 62, 64 and the flanks 68, 70.

[0047] In the assembled state according to Figure 7 , that is, when the hinge pin 14, 14' is fully engaged in the receptacle 24, 26, the system is almost free of play and easy to adjust, especially with regard to lateral (radial) play. There is no system-related play in the x- and z-direction (see Figure 8 ) before.

[0048] The Figures 8 and 9show a further embodiment of a spring bushing 28, 30 according to the invention. The basic structure is essentially the same as in the previously described embodiment. Accordingly, the spring bushing 28 has a cylindrical shell, wherein two diametrically arranged spring tabs 46a, 46b are each cut free via two slots 48a, 48b, 50a, 50b. Each spring tab 46a, 46b is in turn formed with a locking contour with the previously described geometry. Accordingly, each spring tab 46a, 46b has a locking projection 36, 38 projecting radially inward, which can, for example, each have a mounting flank 68 and a removal flank 70 (see Figures 6, 7 ).

[0049] In contrast to the previously described embodiment, the variant according to the Figures 8 and 9the projection 42 which supports the wedging in the receptacle 24, 26 is designed to be circumferential, so that it also bears circumferentially against the peripheral wall of the receptacle 24, 26.

[0050] Tapered jacket end sections 58a, 58b are formed only in the area of ​​the spring tabs 46a, 46b. The intermediate jacket sections 54, 56 are formed as relatively smooth-surfaced cylinder jacket segments. The section-by-section tapering of the spring bushing 28, 30 by the inclined jacket end sections 58a, 58b is particularly well suited to Figure 9 visible, which shows a top view of the spring bushing 28 according to Figure 8 shows. Otherwise, the embodiment corresponds in structure and function to the embodiment described above, so that reference can be made to the relevant explanations to avoid repetition.

[0051] Disclosed are a toilet seat hinge and a toilet seat assembly constructed with such toilet seat hinges, in which a pivot axis with a receptacle is mounted on a hinge pin. According to the invention, a spring bushing is inserted into the receptacle and engages with the hinge pin. Reference symbol:

[0052] 1 Toilet seat assembly 2 Lid 4 Toilet seat 6 Seat joint 8 Seat joint 10 Ceramic 12 Support surface 14, 14' Hinge pin 16 Rotation damper 18 Rotation damper 20 Adapter piece 22 Adapter piece 24 Receptacle 26 Receptacle 28 Spring bushing 30 Spring bushing 32 Cylinder housing 34 Rotary piston 36 Locking projection 38 Locking projection 40 Longitudinal slot 42 Projection 44 Spring slot 46 Spring tab 48 Slot 50 Slot 54 Shell section 56 Shell section 58 Shell end section 60 Circumferential groove 62 Upper inclined surface 64 Lower inclined surface 66 Groove base 68 Mounting flank 70 Removal flank 72 Chamfer 74 Base of the receptacle

Claims

1. Toilet seat hinge, comprising a physical pivot axis on which a toilet seat (4) and / or a toilet lid (2) is mounted directly or indirectly, wherein the pivot axis comprises a receptacle (24, 26) which is designed to be placed on a ceramic-side hinge pin (14, 14'), wherein a latching element is provided in the receptacle (24, 26) via which the hinge pin (14, 14') can be latched to the pivot axis, characterized in that the latching element is formed on a spring bushing (28, 30) which is inserted into the receptacle (24, 26) in a force-fitting and / or form-fitting manner and into which the hinge pin (14, 14') enters.

2. Seat hinge according to claim 1, wherein the spring bushing (28, 30) has at least one detent projection (36, 38) which resiliently engages in a corresponding circumferential groove (60) of the hinge pin (14, 14').

3. Seat hinge according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a plurality of detent projections (36, 38) arranged on a common pitch circle are formed on the spring bushing (28, 30).

4. Seat hinge according to claim 2 or 3, wherein two diametrically arranged detent projections (36, 38) are provided.

5. Seat hinge according to one of the preceding claims, wherein a jacket end section (58) of the spring bushing (28, 30) remote from the ceramic (10) tapers in a radial direction.

6. Seat hinge according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one detent projection (36, 38) has two flat or curved flanks set at an angle to each other, to which corresponding inclined surfaces (62, 64) on the hinge pin (14, 14') determining the insertion or withdrawal resistance are assigned.

7. Seat hinge according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the spring bushing (28, 30) is made of an elastic plastic or an elastic metal.

8. Seat hinge according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the spring bushing (28, 30) has a continuous longitudinal slot (40).

9. Seat hinge according to one of claims 2 to 8, wherein the at least one detent projection (36, 38) is formed on a spring tab (46) which is cut free by two slots (48, 50) on a circumference of the spring bushing (28, 30).

10. Seat hinge according to one of the claims, wherein barb-shaped projections (42) are formed in an area of an end face, preferably of the ceramic-side end face, which are designed to fix the spring bushing (24, 26) in the receptacle (24, 26) by force-fitting and / or form-fitting contact with a peripheral wall of the receptacle (24, 26).

11. Seat hinge according to claim 10, wherein a plurality of projections (42) are distributed around the circumference.

12. Seat hinge according to claim 10 or 11, wherein spring slots (44) are formed on the spring bushing circumference, preferably between the projections (42).

13. Seat hinge according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the hinge pin (14, 14') is recessed in the area where it enters the spring bushing (28, 30) in accordance with the wall thickness of the spring bushing (28, 30).

14. Seat hinge according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the receptacle (24, 26) is formed on an adapter piece (20, 22) which is connected integrally or in a rotationally fixed manner to a damping device.

15. Toilet seat set comprising at least one toilet seat hinge according to one of the preceding claims.