Plastic Closet Carrier Fitting with Overmolded Metal Nuts
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing water closet carrier assemblies for wall-mounted toilets are heavy, bulky, and expensive, making them difficult to transport and install, and they lack vertical adjustability and stability under load.
Innovation Solution
A water closet carrier assembly featuring a plastic drain body fitting with overmolded metal nuts, elastomeric seals, and adjustable legs with interchangeable feet for secure anchoring to the floor, allowing for vertical and horizontal stability and easy installation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a cast iron water closet carrier assembly is used, then strength and stability are improved, but weight and bulk increase making it difficult to transport and install
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses composite materials by combining plastic (for the carrier assembly body) with metal inserts (for structural reinforcement and anchoring). This allows the assembly to achieve the strength of metal while maintaining the lightweight and ease-of-installation advantages of plastic, directly resolving the contradiction between strength and weight.
2Reliability
If a cast iron water closet carrier assembly is used, then durability is improved, but cost and installation complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The carrier assembly is segmented into modular components including the plastic carrier body, separate metal reinforcement inserts, and detachable anchoring elements. This segmentation allows for simplified manufacturing, easier transportation, and straightforward installation by assembling components on-site, thereby reducing installation complexity while maintaining durability through the robust plastic and metal construction.
3Ease of manufacture
If the drain line fitting height is fixed relative to the water closet carrier assembly, then manufacturing is simplified, but vertical adjustability is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates adjustable height mechanisms that allow the drain line fitting to be dynamically repositioned vertically relative to the carrier assembly during installation. This dynamic adjustability feature enables the system to adapt to different installation requirements while the base manufacturing remains standardized, resolving the contradiction between manufacturing simplicity and vertical adaptability.
Data Source
AI summary
A water closet carrier assembly is used for supporting a wall-mounted toilet and flow connecting the wall-mounted toilet to a waste drain line. The water closet carrier assembly includes a faceplate having a front face with a drain opening that sealingly joins to a distal end of a closet carrier nipple. A second distal end of the closet carrier nipple sealingly joins to a wall-mounted toilet. The faceplate is adjustably joined to an anchoring system that replaces traditional systems connected to the drain body fitting. Opposingly directed from the front face of the faceplate, a rear face aligns and sealingly joins the drain opening to an ovate inlet of a drain body fitting molded from plastic. The drain body fitting sealingly joins and directs effluent to the waste drain line.