Background of the Invention The Applicant is aware of a flushing apparatus for a urinal which is activated manually by a user. More recently, the Applicant has become aware of an electronic flushing apparatus which is activated after sensing a presence of a user proximate the urinal. However, when the electric supply (whether by battery or mains) to the electronic flushing apparatus is interrupted, activation thereof becomes impossible.

Summary of the Invention According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a flushing apparatus, for a toilet or urinal, which includes a flushing mechanism; manual activation means for activating the flushing mechanism; a sensor for sensing, in use, a presence of a user proximate the toilet or urinal ; and sensed activation means, activatable by the sensor, for activating the flushing mechanism.

The sensed activation means may be activated immediately after the presence of the user is sensed. The sensed activation means may be activated immediately after the presence of the user is sensed and then no

longer sensed i. e. the sensor senses the presence of the user and then senses that the user is no longer present before activating the sensed activation means.

The sensor may be a conventional beam sensor which emits a beam and senses when the beam has been interrupted by the user. The beam may be an infrared beam. The sensor may be connectable to a power source.

The sensed activation means may be conventional sensed activation means which includes a solenoid for activating the flushing mechanism. The sensed activation means may be connectable to a power source.

The flushing apparatus may include a power source for the sensor and the sensed activation means. The power source may be an electro-chemical cell eg. a battery.

The flushing mechanism may be a conventional flushing valve which in use is connectable to a mains water supply such that it prevents water from passing through it in a normally closed orientation and allows water to pass through it to facilitate flushing when activated and thus opened.

The flushing mechanism may include a pressure chamber depressuriseable by the manual activation means and the sensed activation means in order to activate the flushing mechanism.

The manual activation means may be conventional manual activation means which includes a push button which is pushable by a user in order to activate the flushing mechanism. The manual activation means may be conventional manual activation means which includes a handle urgeable by a user into a flushing position in order to activate the flushing mechanism.

According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a kit for retrofitting a flushing apparatus having manual activation means, for a toilet or urinal, the kit including a sensor for sensing, in use, a presence of a user proximate the toilet or urinal ; sensed activation means activatable by the sensor for activating an existing flushing mechanism of the flushing apparatus; and a housing for the sensed activation means with an adaptor for fitting the sensed activation means to the flushing apparatus while retaining the manual activation means.

The kit may include an instruction manual for retrofitting the flushing apparatus.

The kit may include a power source for the sensor and the sensed activation means. The power source may be an electro-chemical cell eg. a battery.

Detailed Description of the invention The invention will now be described, by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the following diagrammatic drawing, in which Figure 1 shows, in side view, a flushing apparatus for a urinal, in accordance with the invention.

With reference to Figure 1, reference numeral 100 shows a flushing apparatus for a urinal in a normally closed position. The flushing apparatus 100 includes a flushing mechanism in the form of a conventional flushing valve 2 which is connected to a mains water supply via an inlet 31 of the flushing apparatus 100. The valve 2 prevents water from the mains water supply from passing through the valve 2 in a normally closed orientation and allows water from the mains water supply to pass through the valve 2, when activated and

thus opened, to facilitate flushing of the urinal. The valve 2 includes a valve housing 26.

The flushing apparatus 100 includes conventional manual activation means 4 having a push button 9 and a spindle 16 for activating the valve 2.

When the button 9 is pushed in, the spindle 16 is in turn pushed longitudinally inwards towards a telescopic pin 28 of the valve 2 until the spindle 16 pushes the pin 28, at a point proximate a lower end of the pin 28, radially with respect to the pin 28 causing the pin 28 to tilt within the valve 2. The pin 28 is movable longitudinally within a plunger 17 of the valve 2 such that tilting of the pin 28 causes tilting of the plunger 17 within the valve 2.

The plunger 17 has a plug formation on top of an elongate body, the plug portion sealing a pressure chamber 29 of the valve 2 in an untilted position of the plunger 17 by resting on top of a seal 35 of the valve 2. Tilting of the plunger 17 unseals the pressure chamber 29 allowing water in the pressure chamber 29 to be released longitudinally downwards through a piston 32 of the valve 2 into an outlet 30 of the flushing apparatus 100 and into a urine catchment portion of the urinal.

As the pressure chamber 29 empties, the pressure within the pressure chamber 29 is reduced becoming less than the pressure within the inlet 31. A pressure seal 34 separates the pressure chamber 29 from the inlet 31. The pressure differential between the pressure chamber 29 and the inlet 31 causes the piston 32 to move upwards into the pressure chamber 29. As the piston 32 seals the outlet 30 from the inlet 31 when the piston 32 is in a rest position on top of a sealing rim 13 of an upper aperture of the outlet 30, this upwards motion of the piston 32 in effect opens the valve 2 thereby allowing water from the inlet 31 to flow through the upper aperture of the outlet 30 into the outlet 30.

The water then flows through a lower aperture of the outlet 30 and into the urine catchment portion of the urinal thereby flushing the urinal.

While the valve 2 is open, water from the inlet 31 slowly enters the pressure chamber 29 through a small bypass aperture 27 of the valve 2.

However, if the plunger 17 is still in a tilted position, water exits the pressure chamber 29 past the plunger 17 quicker than water enters the pressure chamber 29 through the bypass aperture 27. When the plunger 17 returns to an untilted position (see below for how this occurs) water slowly fills the pressure chamber 29 through the bypass aperture 27, the pressure within the pressure chamber 29 increases thereby moving the piston 32 downwards until it reaches the rest position on top of the sealing rim 13 of the upper aperture of the outlet 30. When this rest position is reached the valve 2 is in effect closed, the pressure within the pressure chamber 29 is the same as the pressure within the inlet 31 and water no longer enters the pressure chamber 29 through the bypass aperture 27. The length of time the valve is open for is the length of time it takes to fill up the pressure chamber 29 which in turn is related to the size of the bypass aperture 27 (and the length of time the plunger remains in a tilted position). The length of time the valve is open for constitutes a flushing cycle.

The length of time the plunger 17 remains in a tilted position is related to the length of time the button 9 is held in for and/or the length of the pin 28 protruding below the spindle 16 when the pin 28 is in a rest position and therefore the lower end of the pin 28 in its lowest position. If the button 9 is continuously held in, the piston 32 pulls the pin 28 upwardly when the piston 32 moves upwardly into the pressure chamber 29. At a point of the upward motion of the pin 28, the lower end of the pin 28 rises above the spindle 16 thereby returning the pin 28 to an untilted position. Accordingly, the plunger 17 returns to an untilted position thereby sealing the pressure chamber 29 causing the pressure chamber to be filled through the bypass aperture 27 which in turn causes the piston 32 to move downwardly until the valve 2 is closed. As the piston 32 moves downwards it causes the pin 28 to move downwards. If the

button 9 is still held in, then the lower end of the pin 28 makes contact with a top of the spindle and further downwards motion of the piston 32 causes the pin to contract telescopically along its length.

In order to flush the apparatus 100 again, the button 9 is released, allowing the pin 28 to release telescopically and the lower end of the pin 28 to protrude, in its rest position, below the spindle 16. In this manner the flushing apparatus 100 only performs one flushing cycle regardless of whether the button 9 is released or held in. Furthermore, the length of time of a flushing cycle is limited by the above operation thereby limiting water wastage.

If the button 9 is released before the lower end of the pin 28 rises above the spindle 16 thereby returning the pin 28 and the plunger 17 to an untilted position, then the release of the button 9 causes the pin 28 and plunger 17 to return to an untilted position immediately. This causes the pressure chamber 29 to start filling up through the bypass aperture 27 which in turn causes the piston 32 to move downwards until the valve 2 is closed.

The flushing apparatus 100, further includes an infrared sensor 41 for sensing a presence of a user proximate the urinal. The flushing apparatus also includes sensed activation means in the form of a solenoid valve 45, activatable by the sensor 41, for activating the flushing valve 2.

The solenoid valve 45 is housed within a first housing 52 which is adapted to fit onto a conventional cover 12 which houses the flushing valve 2, the conventional cover 12 also having being adapted to receive the first housing 52. The first housing 52 and the conventional cover 12 are housed by a second housing in the form of an aesthetic cover 46 which is fitted onto the flushing apparatus 100 once the solenoid valve 45 and the first housing 52 have been fitted to the flushing valve 2. The sensor 41 is also housed by the aesthetic cover 46.

The flushing apparatus 100 includes a power source, in the form of a battery 40, for the sensor 41 and the solenoid valve 45.

The solenoid valve 45 operates on a similar basis to the flushing valve 2.

The solenoid valve 45 includes a pressure compartment 39 which separated, by means of a diaphragm 37 and a diaphragm seal 47, from the pressure chamber 29 of the flushing valve 2. The pressure compartment 39 and pressure chamber 29 interact, when activated by the sensor, on a similar basis to the interaction between the pressure chamber 29 and the inlet 31, when activated by the manual activation means. The solenoid valve includes a solenoid valve plunger 36 and a seal 48 attached to a lower end of the plunger 36, the seal 48 for sealing the pressure compartment 39 from a center flow path 54 of the diaphragm 37 when the seal 48 is in a rest position on top of an upper opening of the center flow path 54.

The sensor 41 emits an infrared beam, to detect the presence of a user, to a position which will be occupied by a user when using the urinal. When a user interrupts the beam, the sensor 41 activates an electric current from the battery 40 to the solenoid valve 45 thereby activating the solenoid valve 45 for a short period of time.

The electric current causes an electromagnetic field within the solenoid valve 45 which forces the solenoid valve plunger 36 upwardly and hence the seal 48 upwardly away from the top of the upper opening of the tube 42. This causes water in the pressure compartment 39 to be expelled through the center flow path 54 of the diaphragm 37 downwardly into an upper end of a flexible tube 42. The solenoid valve 45 is only activated for a short period of time corresponding to the time required to allow most of the water in the pressure compartment 39 to be expelled. When the short period of time is over, a spring 44 returns the plunger 36 and the seal 48 to a rest position.

The upper end of the tube 42 is fitted through a center hole of a disc- shaped seat 49 of the solenoid valve 45 such that the upper end of the tube 42 is flush with the top of the seat 49 and located directly below a lower end of the center flow path 54 of the diaphragm 37. A lower end of the tube 42 is fitted into the telescopic pin 28 and the water therefore flows downwardly through the tube 42 into the outlet 30 and into a urine catchment portion of the urinal.

The diaphragm 37 and the diaphragm seal 47 sit, in a rest position, on top of the seat 49 such that the diaphragm seal 47 sits on top of an annular passageway 56 through the seat 49, a bottom end of the passageway 56 opening into the pressure chamber 29. As the water is expelled from the pressure compartment 39, the pressure within the pressure compartment 39 decreases below the pressure within the pressure chamber 29 such that the diaphragm 37 and the diaphragm seal 47 are lifted off the seat 49 into the pressure compartment 39. This causes water from the pressure chamber 29 to be forced under pressure upwardly through the passageway 56 into the space vacated by the diaphragm 37 and the diaphragm seal 47 and into the tube 42 through the upper opening of the tube 42. The water then flows downwardly through the tube 42 into the outlet 30 and into a urine catchment portion of the urinal.

Emptying of the pressure chamber 29 effectively constitutes activation of the flushing valve 2. As the pressure chamber 29 empties, just as when manually activated, the pressure within the pressure chamber 29 is reduced becoming less than the pressure within the inlet 31. The pressure differential between the pressure chamber 29 and the inlet 31 causes the piston 32 to move upwards into the pressure chamber 29. As the piston 32 seals the outlet 30 from the inlet 31 when the piston 32 is in a rest position on top of a sealing rim 13 of an upper aperture of the outlet 30, this upwards motion of the piston 32 in effect opens the valve 2 thereby allowing water from the inlet 31 to flow

through the upper aperture of the outlet 30 into the outlet 30. The water then flows through a lower aperture of the outlet 30 and into the urine catchment portion of the urinal thereby flushing the urinal.

While the diaphragm 37 and diaphragm seal 47 are in a lifted position, water from the pressure chamber 29 slowly enters the pressure compartment 39 through a small bypass valve 38 inside the diaphragm 37. As the pressure compartment 39 fills with water, the pressure within the pressure compartment 39 increases thereby moving the diaphragm 37 and diaphragm seal 47 downwards until the rest position on top of the seat 49 is reached. The size of the bypass valve 38 controls the length of time required to fill the pressure compartment 39 with water. Therefore, the size of the bypass valve 38 is selected to allow just enough time to pass to sufficiently decrease the pressure within the pressure chamber 29 in order to facilitate a proper flush.

The Applicant regards it as an advantage that a flushing mechanism of a urinal is activatable by a user using manual means aswell as automatically by sensed activation means in response to the presence of the user being sensed.