Urinal Trapway Connection System for Independent Bowl Removal
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional urinals with integrated trapways face issues during uninstallation and maintenance, as the liquid in the trapway can spill, and the recesses for fasteners are difficult to clean and prone to vandalism.
Innovation Solution
A separable trapway assembly is coupled to the drain separate from the bowl assembly, allowing the bowl to be removed independently, eliminating the need for recesses for fasteners and reducing the risk of spillage and vandalism.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the trapway is integrated within the urinal, then the liquid transfer function is ensured, but the liquid may spill when the urinal is uninstalled or removed from the wall
Solution Approach 1:
The urinal is divided into separate assemblies: the bowl assembly and the trapway assembly. The trapway assembly can be independently coupled to or separated from the bowl assembly, allowing the bowl to be removed without disturbing the trapway and its liquid contents. This segmentation resolves the contradiction by enabling easy uninstallation of the bowl while maintaining liquid containment in the separately mounted trapway.
2Strength
If recesses are provided for fastener connection, then the urinal can be secured to the wall, but the recesses are difficult to clean and may serve as hand holds for vandalism
Solution Approach 1:
The fastener connection features are extracted from the bowl assembly and placed on separate mounting components. The bowl assembly itself has no recesses for fasteners; instead, mounting brackets or other fastening mechanisms are used that do not create cleanable issues on the bowl surface. This extraction eliminates the harmful effects of recesses while maintaining secure wall mounting capability.
3Ease of operation
If the trapway assembly is coupled to the drain separate from the bowl assembly, then the bowl can be removed independently, but the coupling mechanism becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The coupling mechanism uses a nested arrangement where the trapway assembly can be inserted into or coupled with the bowl assembly through integrated connection features. The coupling components are nested within the existing assembly structures, minimizing additional complexity while enabling independent removal and maintenance of the bowl assembly.
Data Source
AI summary
A urinal includes a bowl assembly and a trapway assembly. The bowl assembly includes a body. The body defines a bowl and a cavity. The cavity includes a receiver configured to receive a bracket. The trapway assembly is configured to be located in the cavity. The trapway assembly is configured to fluidly couple the bowl to a drain. The trapway assembly is configured to be coupled to the drain separate from the bowl assembly. The bowl assembly is configured to be coupled to a wall separate from the trapway assembly.