Shower tray and method of manufacturing thereof

Abstract

Shower tray (1) comprising a shower base body (2) of polymeric-base material and a drainage area defined at least partially by the polymeric base material of the shower base body (2), characterized in that the drainage area includes an insert (3), wherein one or more joining parts (4) and / or joining surfaces of the insert (3) are integrated, adhered and / or chemically bonded to the polymeric-base material of the shower base body (2), said insert (3) comprising a drain hole (5) and an outer insert surface (6), wherein said outer insert surface (6) is arranged on the contour of the drain hole (5) to at least partially form a step in the drain area adapted to receive a drain assembly (7). The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing the claimed shower tray by means of an open mould.

Description

Field of the invention

[0001] The present invention relates to a shower tray which is of the low thickness flat type, which is manufactured by casting of polymeric base material in an open mould.

[0002] The present invention also relates to a method of manufacturing this shower tray by means of an open mould.Background of the invention

[0003] Shower trays with a predominantly flat design are well known in the state of the art. These shower trays, mainly composed of a resin-type polymeric base material, have consolidated their position as a more resistant, ergonomic and preferred alternative to ceramic shower trays. These ceramic shower trays described a support base with slopes to collect water and with higher edges to contain the shower water, having a base with a greater possibility of sliding, as well as a greater fragility to the impacts of elements such as the shower head itself.

[0004] The flat shower trays with a mainly flat configuration have an upper surface to support the user with slopes towards the drainage system installed in its drainage hole on the lower surface of the tray.

[0005] These flat shower trays, mainly made of resin, must include these drainage slopes, as well as means for receiving the drainage system, which means that the shower base body must have a thickness that entails a certain amount of resin and, therefore, a considerable weight as they have considerably larger dimensions than conventional ceramic trays.

[0006] The drainage system is installed as a clamp on the shower tray around the drainage hole of the shower tray. A first part of the drainage system is installed on a step or surface on the top side of the shower tray body around the drainage hole. A second part of the drainage system is attached to said first part of the drainage system, at the lower side of the shower tray body together with the rest of the drainage system, such as the siphon and the connection to the drainage line of the water collection system. This known configuration makes it necessary for the shower tray body to have a specific thickness associated with the step or mounting surface of this drainage system, which is added to the thickness intended for the drainage slopes of the top side of the shower tray body.

[0007] Regarding the manufacture of these resin shower trays with a flat configuration, they are conventionally manufactured by an open mould casting process. This process is based on placing a mould defining the desired shape of the upper support surface of the shower tray on the lower base of the mould, on which the polymeric composition is poured, usually of resin main composition. The shape of the lower base of the mould comprises at least the geometry of the upper support base of the shower tray body including its slopes towards the drainage hole, as well as the shape of the installation step of the drainage system and of an element acting as the positive part of the mould that will form the drainage hole itself. The configuration of the shower tray body geometry entails filling the mould with polymeric material up to a certain thickness that allows all these elements to be included.

[0008] Thus, it is necessary to configure a shower tray and its manufacturing method in an open mould to reduce the thickness of the shower tray and to reduce the material used in its manufacture and, consequently, to reduce the total weight of the shower tray for a specific dimension of the same with respect to what is known in the state of the art, solving the drawbacks described.Description of the invention

[0009] The aim of the present invention is to solve the aforementioned drawbacks by providing a shower tray and a method of manufacturing thereof with the advantages that will be described below.

[0010] To that end, according to a first aspect, the present invention provides a shower tray which comprises a shower base body of polymeric-base material and a drainage area defined at least partially by the polymeric base material of the shower base body. Advantageously, the drainage area includes an insert, wherein one or more joining parts and / or joining surfaces of the insert are integrated, adhered and / or chemically bonded to the polymeric-base material of the shower base body, said insert comprising a drain hole and an outer insert surface, wherein said outer insert surface is arranged on the contour of the drain hole to at least partially form a step in the drainage area adapted to receive a drain assembly.

[0011] By virtues of these features, the shower tray obtained by the present invention has a shower base body that is thinner than the shower trays included in the prior art, since the insert that is integrated, adhered and / or chemically bonded to the polymeric-base material of the shower base body acts as the mounting step of the drain assembly. The insert is directly integrated, adhered and / or chemically bonded to the polymeric-base material of the shower base body with the necessary thickness so that only the drainage slopes are required, and the drain assembly is fixed to the upper surface of said insert.

[0012] Therefore, it is not necessary to fix the drain assembly as a clamp on a specific step in the shower base body, as is performed in the state of art, which means that this specific thickness can be avoided, reducing the minimum necessary thickness of the shower base body.

[0013] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the polymeric-base material is a thermostable resin-based material. This allows the use of this type of material in an open mould casting process, resulting in a stable shower base body with the properties of a resin body.

[0014] In an also preferred embodiment of the invention, the shower base body includes a shower base body thickness extending between an upper side and lower side of the shower base body, wherein said lower shower base body side is obtained by filling a mould to a maximum filling level inside the mould, said maximum filling level being a minimum level predetermined to integrate, adhere and / or to chemically bond said one or more joining parts and / or joining surfaces to the polymeric base material.

[0015] This configuration allows to create a shower base body whose thickness only depends on the desired geometry of its upper side, without the need to increase the thickness of the shower base body in order to have a step to install the drain assembly. With this, the maximum thickness of the shower tray, in order to achieve the maximum advantages of the present invention, is the minimum thickness necessary to fix the insert in the shower base body in the drainage area. The insert is included in the thickness determined by the geometry of the upper side to be able to perform its support function and with the drainage slopes, without adding thickness in the shower base body for the fixing of the drainage assembly, as has been mentioned.

[0016] According to a possible embodiment of the invention, the insert comprises said one or more joining parts integrated or adhered to the polymeric base material on the lower side of the shower base body or on a lateral wall of the drainage area defined at least partially by the polymeric base material of the shower base body.

[0017] This embodiment uses parts of the insert as fixing points, elements or zones to the shower base body, which can be adhered to the polymeric material forming the shower base body or integrated inside the shower base body itself, allowing an effective and secure fixing of the assembly formed by the shower base body and the insert.

[0018] In addition, or as an alternative to the above-mentioned embodiment, the insert comprises said one or more joining surfaces of the insert chemically bonded to the polymeric base material of the shower base body.

[0019] The one or more insert joining surfaces for chemical bonding allow a secure joining through chemically compatible compounds that perform in the moulding process a kind of fusion or welding between surfaces of the shower base body and the insert. In fact, the chemically bonded of the joining surfaces is a method of fixing the insert to the shower base body that can be used as the sole method of attachment between the two parts or it can be used in combination with the use of the one or more joining parts that are integrated or adhered to the shower base body.

[0020] According to a possible embodiment related to the insert configuration, the insert is joined to the polymeric base material such that a depth of the drain hole of the insert is arranged outside the shower base body of polymeric base material. This embodiment, although preferred, can be modified in an alternative way by configuring the drain hole of the insert at least partially inside of the drain hole of the drainage area of the shower base body.

[0021] According to another preferred embodiment of the invention and in a complementary manner to any of the above embodiments, the shower tray is obtained by a process comprising the steps of; a. providing an open mould that copies on at least one of its inner sides the upper side of the shower base body, b. positioning the insert in correspondence with the drain area, c. filling the open mould with polymeric base material until said material acquires a maximum predetermined filling level inside the mould, said maximum filling level being a minimum level predeterminate to integrate, adhere and / or to chemically bond said one or more joining parts and / or joining surfaces of the insert on the polymeric base material, and d. solidifying or curing the polymeric base material, wherein said maximum filling level conforms the lower side of the shower base body.

[0022] The shower tray obtained by this process comprises all advantageous features and effects indicated for all previous embodiments and allows to obtain a shower tray with a minimum thickness to include the essential functional parts of the shower tray, minimising thickness, weight and cost of the shower tray.

[0023] Optionally, step d) comprises solidifying the polymeric base material such that the depth of the drain hole of the insert is arranged on the outside of the shower base body. As indicated in a previous embodiment, it can be modified in an alternative way by configuring the drain hole of the insert at least partially inside of the drain hole of the drainage area of the shower base body.

[0024] According to another optional embodiment of the invention, the one or more joining parts of the insert comprise one or more embedded protrusions arranged on an insert part, wherein a face of said insert part defines the maximum filling level inside the mould conforming the lower side of the shower base body inside the mould.

[0025] This specific embodiment related to the fixation of the insert to the shower base body by the one or more joining parts, allows a fixation by passing the polymeric base material between the geometries of the protrusions creating an effective fixation. Moreover, it is the geometry of these protrusions that determine the minimum thickness of the tray, taking into account the minimum thickness necessary to include the geometry of the upper side to be able to perform its support function and the drainage slopes.

[0026] As a preferred option of the invention, at least the joining surfaces of the insert comprise a chemical compatible material with the base polymeric material of the shower base body to allow a chemical bonding between these joining surfaces of the insert and the shower base body.

[0027] According to one possible embodiment of the insert configuration, the outer insert surface is arranged in a substantially horizontal plane to form the step in the drain area adapted to receive a drain assembly. Alternatively, said outer insert surface is arranged in an inclined plane to form the step at least partially in the drain area adapted to receive a drain assembly. These alternatives embodiments allow different means of fixation of the drain assembly.

[0028] As a possible embodiment of the invention and in a non-limiting manner to other alternative compositions, preferably the thermoplastic resin-based material is selected among at least one of ABS plastic (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene), PC (Polycarbonates) and / or PMMA (Polymethyl Methacrylate).

[0029] The present invention also relates, in a second aspect, to a method for obtaining a shower tray according to the previous first aspect of the invention, comprising the steps of: a. providing an open mould that copies on at least one of its inner sides the upper side of the shower base body, b. positioning the insert in correspondence with the drain area, c. filling the open mould with polymeric base material, preferably, a resin-based material, until said material acquires a maximum predetermined filling level inside the mould, said maximum filling level being a minimum filling level inside the mould predeterminate to integrate, adhere and / or chemically bonding said one or more joining parts and / or joining surfaces of the insert on the polymeric base material, and d. solidifying or curing the polymeric base material, wherein said maximum filling level (h1) forms the lower side of the shower base body.

[0030] The shower tray obtained by this method allows to obtain a shower tray with a minimum thickness to include the essential functional parts of the shower tray, minimising thickness, weight and cost of the shower tray, comprising all advantageous features and effects indicated for all previous embodiments of the first aspect of the invention.

[0031] Optionally, step d) comprises solidifying the polymeric base material such that the depth of the drain hole of the insert is arranged on the outside of the shower base body. As indicated in a previous embodiment, it can be modified in an alternative way by configuring the drain hole of the insert at least partially inside of the drain hole of the drainage area of the shower base body.Brief description of the drawings

[0032] The previous and other advantages and features will be better understood from the following detailed description of embodiments, with reference to the attached drawings, which must be considered in an illustrative and non-limiting manner, in which: Figure 1 shows a schematic view of a shower tray with a drain assembly coupled, as is known in the state of art. Figure 2 shows a schematic view of an open mould where the manufacturing process of a shower tray as the one of the present invention is executed, with the coupling of the insert prior to the filling of the mould with polymeric material. Figure 3 shows a schematic view of an insert coupled to the mould before the polymeric material has been poured into the mould, wherein the insert has joining parts in the form of embedded protrusions. Figure 4 shows a schematic view of an insert coupled to the mould before the polymeric material has been poured into the mould, wherein the insert has joining surfaces. Figure 5 shows a schematic view of the open mould where the manufacturing process of a shower tray as the one of the present invention is executed, at the time of pouring of the polymeric material. Figure 6 shows a schematic view of a part of the open mould where the manufacturing process of a shower tray as the one of the present invention has been executed, at the time of completion of the curing / cooling process. Figure 7 shows a schematic view of a shower tray of the present invention. Figure 8 shows a schematic upper section view of the detail of the drainage area of a shower tray of the present invention. Figure 9 shows a schematic lower section view of the detail of the drainage area of a shower tray of the present invention. Figure 10 shows a schematic view of a shower tray of the present invention with the drain assembly installed. Figure 11 shows a schematic section view of the detail of the drainage area of a shower tray of the present invention with the outer insert surface arranged in an inclined plane. Detailed description of several embodiments

[0033] Shower trays (1') of flat configuration and resin-based material known in the state of the art, as shown in figure 1, comprise a shower base body (2') with an upper side (2b') for a user support with a geometry that includes slopes on this upper side (2b') to direct the shower water towards the drainage area hole.

[0034] In said drainage area the drain assembly (7') is installed as a clamp on the shower tray (1) around the drainage hole of the shower tray (1'). A first part (7.1') of the drain assembly (7') is installed over a step (6') on the upper side (2b') of the shower tray body around the drainage hole. A second part (7.2') of the drain assembly (7') is attached to said first part (7.1') of the drain assembly (7'), said second part being installed in the lower side (2a') of the shower tray body together with the rest of the drain assembly (7'), carrying out a fixation that leaves the step (6') of polymeric material of the shower tray in the middle of the first (7.1') and the second part (7.2') of the drain assembly.

[0035] This configuration of the shower tray (1') known in the state of the art makes it necessary that the shower tray body has a specific thickness associated with the step (6') of this drain assembly (7'), which is added to the thickness intended for the drainage slopes, not shown on the figures, of the upper side (2b') of the shower tray body.

[0036] The shower tray (1) corresponding to the present invention, as shown in figures 6 to 10, comprises a shower base body (2) which is composed of a polymeric material which is mainly based on thermostable resin-based material.

[0037] The shower base body (2) comprises an upper side (2b) configured for the support of the user of the shower tray (1), wherein this upper side (2b) comprises corresponding drainage slopes towards the drainage area, and a conventional step (8) for the placement of a grid, not shown in the figures, to protect the drainage hole. In this drainage area, the shower base body (2) comprises the corresponding drainage hole, where an insert (3) is installed with its coincident drain hole (5).

[0038] In the present embodiment, as could be seen in figures 3, 6, 8 and 9, the insert (3) includes joining parts (4) which are integrated to the polymeric base material. Specifically, the insert (3) is fixed to the body of the shower base (2) in its drainage area by means of protrusions arranged on an insert part (3a) forming these joining parts (4), which are embedded on the lower side (2a) of the body of the shower base (2) in its drainage area, or alternatively, embedded on a lateral wall of the hole of said drainage area. The insert (3) is joined to the polymeric base material such that a depth (d1) of the drain hole (5) of the insert (3) is arranged outside the shower base body (2) of polymeric base material. This configuration can be modified in an alternative way by configuring the drain hole (5) of the insert (3) at least partially inside of the drain hole of the drainage area of the shower base body (2).

[0039] Said insert (3) also comprises an outer insert surface (6) which is arranged on the contour of the drain hole (5) to at least partially form a step in the drain area adapted to receive a drain assembly (7). In this embodiment the outer insert surface (6) is arranged in a substantially horizontal plane to form the step in the drain area adapted to receive a drain assembly (7). Alternatively, as is shown in figure 11, the outer insert surface (6) is arranged in an inclined plane to form the step at least partially in the drain area adapted to receive a drain assembly (7).

[0040] Alternatively, the insert (3) can include other types of joining parts adhered to the polymeric base material. Also alternatively, the insert (3) includes joining surfaces (4a), as is shown in the figure 4, chemically bonding these joining surfaces to the polymeric-base material of the shower base body (2). This chemical bonding between the shower base body (2) and the insert (3) takes place during the manufacturing stages of the shower tray (1) in the mould (M), thanks to the chemical compatibility between the two elements. Finally, the joining surfaces can be used together with the joining parts as an alternative embodiment of the invention.

[0041] Regarding the compatibility between the shower base body (2) and the insert (3), preferably but not limited to, the thermoplastic resin-based material is selected among at least one of ABS plastic (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene), PC (Polycarbonates) and / or PMMA (Polymethyl Methacrylate). By the other hand, the insert (3) comprises acrylic compounds, at least in these joining surfaces.

[0042] This configuration allows to create a shower base body (2) whose thickness (A) only depends on the desired geometry of its upper side (2b), without the need to increase the thickness of the shower base body (2) in order to have in said shower base body (2) a step to install the drain assembly, minimising thickness, weight and cost of the shower tray (1). With this, the maximum thickness of the shower tray (1), in order to achieve the maximum advantages of the present invention, is the minimum thickness necessary to fix the insert (3) in the shower base body (3) in the drainage area (5). The insert (3) is included in the thickness determined by the geometry of the upper side (2b) to be able to perform its support function and with the drainage slopes, without adding thickness in the shower base body (2) for the fixing of the drainage assembly (7), as has been mentioned.

[0043] Thus, the shower base body (2) includes a shower base body thickness (A) extending between an upper side (2b) and lower side (2a) of the shower base body (2), wherein said lower shower base body side (2a) is obtained by filling an open mould to a maximum filling level (h1) inside the mould (M). This maximum filling level (h1) being a minimum level predetermined to integrate, adhere and / or to chemically bond said one or more joining parts (4) and / or joining surfaces to the polymeric base material. In one preferred embodiment wherein the insert is joined to the shower base body (2) by joining parts, the face of said insert part (3a) defines the maximum filling level (h1) inside the mould (M) and conforms the lower side (2a) of the shower base body (2) inside the mould (M).

[0044] In order to achieve the previous configurations, as is schematically shown in figures 2 and 5, the shower tray (1) is obtained by a method comprising the steps of; a. providing an open mould (M) that copies on at least one of its inner sides the upper side (2b) of the shower base body (2), b. positioning the insert (3) in correspondence with the drain area, c. filling the open mould (M) with polymeric base material until said material acquires a maximum predetermined filling level (h1) inside the mould (M), said maximum filling level (h1) being a minimum level predeterminate to integrate, adhere and / or to chemically bond said one or more joining parts (4) and / or joining surfaces (4a) of the insert (3) on the polymeric base material, and d. solidifying or curing the polymeric base material, wherein said maximum filling level (h1) conforms the lower side (2a) of the shower base body (2).

[0045] This method allows to obtain a shower tray with a minimum thickness including the essential functional parts of the shower tray, minimising thickness, weight and cost of the shower tray.

[0046] A person skilled in the art could introduce changes and modifications in the embodiments described without departing from the scope of the invention as it is defined in the attached claims.

Claims

1. Shower tray (1) comprising a shower base body (2) of polymeric-base material and a drainage area defined at least partially by the polymeric base material of the shower base body (2), characterized in that the drainage area includes an insert (3), wherein one or more joining parts (4) and / or joining surfaces of the insert (3) are integrated, adhered and / or chemically bonded to the polymeric-base material of the shower base body (2), said insert (3) comprising a drain hole (5) and an outer insert surface (6), wherein said outer insert surface (6) is arranged on the contour of the drain hole (5) to at least partially form a step in the drain area adapted to receive a drain assembly (7).

2. Shower tray (1) according to claim 1, wherein the polymeric-base material is a thermostable resin-based material.

3. Shower tray (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein the shower base body (2) includes a shower base body thickness (A) extending between an upper side (2b) and lower side (2a) of the shower base body (2), wherein said lower shower base body side (2a) is obtained by mould filling a mould to a maximum filling level (h1) inside the mould (M), said maximum filling level (h1) being a minimum level predetermined to integrate, adhere and / or to chemically bond said one or more joining parts (4) and / or joining surfaces to the polymeric base material.

4. Shower tray (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the insert (3) comprises said one or more joining parts (4) integrated or adhered to the polymeric base material on the lower side (2a) of the shower base body (2) or on a lateral wall of the drainage area defined at least partially by the polymeric base material of the shower base body (2).

5. Shower tray (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the insert (3) comprises said one or more joining surfaces of the insert (3) chemically bonded to the polymeric base material of the shower base body (2).

6. Shower tray (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein said insert (3) is joined to the polymeric base material such that a depth (d1) of the drain hole (5) of the insert (3) is arranged outside the shower base body (2) of polymeric base material.

7. Shower tray (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein said shower tray (1) is obtained by a process comprising the steps of; a. providing an open mould (M) that copies on at least one of its inner sides the upper side (2b) of the shower base body (2), b. positioning the insert (3) in correspondence with the drain area, c. filling the open mould (M) with polymeric base material until said material acquires a maximum predetermined filling level (h1) inside the mould (M), said maximum filling level (h1) being a minimum level predeterminate to integrate, adhere and / or to chemically bond said one or more joining parts (4) and / or joining surfaces of the insert (3) on the polymeric base material, and d. solidifying or curing the polymeric base material, wherein said maximum filling level (h1) conforms the lower side (2a) of the shower base body (2).

8. Shower tray according to claim 7, wherein step d) comprises solidifying the polymeric base material such that the depth (d1) of the drain hole (5) of the insert (3) is arranged on the outside of the shower base body (2).

9. Shower tray (1) according to any of claims 1 to 8, wherein said one or more joining parts (4) of the insert (3) comprise one or more embedded protrusions arranged on an insert part (3a), wherein a face of said insert part (3a) defines the maximum filling level (h1) inside the mould (M) conforming the lower side (2a) of the shower base body (2) inside the mould (M).

10. Shower tray (1) according to any of claims 1 to 9, wherein at least the joining surfaces of the insert (3) comprise a chemical compatible material with the base polymeric material of the shower base body to allow a chemical bonding between these joining surfaces of the insert and the shower base body.

11. Shower tray (1) according to any of claims 1 to 10, wherein said outer insert surface (6) is arranged in a substantially horizontal plane to form the step in the drain area adapted to receive a drain assembly (7).

12. Shower tray (1) according to any of claims 1 to 10, wherein said outer insert surface (6) is arranged in an inclined plane to form the step at least partially in the drain area adapted to receive a drain assembly (7).

13. Shower tray (1) according to claim 2, wherein the thermoplastic resin-based material is selected among at least one of ABS plastic (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene), PC (Polycarbonates) and / or PMMA (Polymethyl Methacrylate)14. Method for obtaining a shower tray (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 12, comprising the steps of; a. providing an open mould (M) that copies on at least one of its inner sides the upper side (2b) of the shower base body (2), b. positioning the insert (3) in correspondence with the drain area, c. filling the open mould (M) with polymeric base material, preferably, a resin-based material, until said material acquires a maximum predetermined filling level (h1) inside the mould (M), said maximum filling level (h1) being a minimum filling level inside the mould (M) predeterminate to integrate, adhere and / or chemically bonding said one or more joining parts (4) and / or joining surfaces of the insert (3) on the polymeric base material, and d. solidifying or curing the polymeric base material, wherein said maximum filling level (h1) forms the lower side (2a) of the shower base body (2).

15. Method for obtaining a shower tray (1) according to claim 13, wherein step d) comprises solidifying the polymeric base material such that the depth (d1) of the drain hole (5) of the insert (3) is arranged on the outside of the shower base body (2).

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