Granted Patent B2

US 12,320,110 · App. 18/390,863 · Granted Jun 3, 2025

Inventors: Michael Luettgen (Grafton, WI); William Kuru (Plymouth, WI); Clayton Garrels (Sheboygan, WI); Peter W. Denzin (Glenbeulah, WI)

Assignee: Kohler Co.

E03D9/05A47K13/307A47K17/00C11D7/04E03D1/36E03D5/10E03D9/005E03D9/031E03D9/032E03D9/033E03D9/038G08B5/36G08B21/182C11D2111/14C11D2111/24E03D2009/024E03D2009/028

Abstract

Claims (34)

1. A toilet bowl cleaning system comprising:

a tank configured to hold water;

a flush valve within the tank, comprising:

a valve body fluidly connecting the tank and capable of fluidly connecting to a bowl of a toilet;

a float moveable relative to the valve body to open and close the flush valve; and

a guide member coupled to the valve body for guiding movement of the float,

wherein the guide member is in fluid communication with a chamber that is configured to hold a cleaning compound comprising a chemical compound and water;

wherein the cleaning compound is dispensed into the bowl through the valve body with the flush valve open.

2. The toilet bowl cleaning system of claim 1 , wherein an end of the guide member is directly coupled to the valve body and the chamber is fluidly connected to an inner chamber of the valve body.

3. The toilet bowl cleaning system of claim 1 , wherein the dispenser is configured to selectively dispense the cleaning compound toward the bowl through an inner chamber of the valve body.

4. The toilet bowl cleaning system of claim 3 , wherein the dispenser includes a body, at least one nozzle through which the cleaning compound is dispensed, and a fluid passage through the body fluidly connecting the at least one nozzle and the chamber.

5. The toilet bowl cleaning system of claim 1 , further comprising a sensor disposed in the flush valve that measures a concentration of the cleaning compound and communicates the measured concentration to a controller.

6. The toilet bowl cleaning system of claim 1 , further comprising:

a lid removably coupled to the tank for concealing contents of the tank, wherein the lid includes an aperture providing access to the chamber; and

a cover that couples to the lid to close the aperture and decouples from the lid to allow access to the chamber through the aperture so that the cleaning compound is accessible within the chamber of the guide member through the aperture in the lid.

7. The toilet bowl cleaning system of claim 1 , wherein the chemical compound is a liquid chemical compound.

8. The toilet bowl cleaning system of claim 7 , further comprising a controller for metering out the liquid chemical compound.

9. The toilet bowl cleaning system of claim 8 , wherein the flush valve further comprises:

a battery that supplies electric power to the controller; and

a housing for housing the controller and the battery.

10. A toilet comprising:

a bowl;

a tank configured to hold water;

a flush valve within the tank, comprising:

a valve body fluidly connecting the tank and capable of fluidly connecting to a bowl of a toilet;

a float moveable relative to the valve body to open and close the flush valve; and

a guide member coupled to the valve body for guiding movement of the float,

wherein the guide member includes a chamber that is configured to hold a cleaning compound comprising a chemical compound and water;

wherein the cleaning compound is dispensed into the bowl through the valve body with the flush valve open.

11. The toilet of claim 10 , further comprising a fill valve that is disposed in the tank, the fill valve comprising:

an inlet for receiving water from a source; and

a fluid conduit supplying to the flush valve.

12. The toilet of claim 11 , wherein the fluid conduit extends into the chamber of the guide member to supply the water for forming the cleaning compound directly into the chamber.

13. The toilet of claim 11 , wherein the chamber of the guide member is a longitudinal bore extending through an end of the guide member that is opposite the valve member, and wherein the fluid conduit supplies the water to a supply ring that is coupled to the end of the guide member.

Assignments (1)

Continuity (7)

References Cited (189)