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(11) | EP 2 730 529 A2 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | Hose support and watering accessories. |
| (57) A support (100) for hose (99) and watering accessories comprising a winding drum
(3) with end flanges (1, 2) for the containment of the hose, in which one (1) of the
two flanges (1, 2) is provided with a pair of upper lateral fins (18), symmetrically
protruding one on one side and the other on the other side of said flange (1), provided
with hollow seats (19) for housing respective fittings (20) intended for connecting
the hose (99) to a water outlet (22) and to an end dispenser (24). Said seats (19)
of the fittings are made so as to allow the positioning of seated-like fittings. The
front surface of said flange (1) is provided with means (6-8, 10) for attaching and
supporting a dispensing gun (24). A retractable lifting handle (16) is provided which
can be extracted from the area of the two flanges (1, 2) by partial vertical extraction
from a seat (14) formed in said flange (1).
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[0002] Static supports for watering hoses are known, which comprise a winding drum with terminal flanges for hose containment, also used for resting the support on the ground or for hanging it on the wall. Supports of the above type are also in use wherein one of the two flanges is provided with a pair of upper lateral fins, symmetrically projecting one on one side and the other on the other side of the flange, provided with hollow seats in which the fittings intended to connect the hose to the water supply and to the end dispenser are pluggable snap-wise, in a non-use condition of the hose.
[0003] The object of the present invention is to provide a hose support of the above type, which has some innovative features that improve the simplicity and the use capacity thereof.
[0004] To this end, the fitting according to the present invention is characterized in that the seats of the fittings are made so as to allow for the seated-like attachment of fittings rather than snap-wise plugging. The attachment of the fittings is thus simplified, as well as their extraction from the seats for the next use.
[0005] Another innovative feature of the support according to the present invention is that the outer surface of the rear flange is provided with means for attaching and supporting dispensing guns of various types, from those usually considered as basic to multifunction ones.
[0006] Yet another innovative feature is to provide a retractable handle which is removable by partial vertical extraction from a receiving seat provided within one of the two flanges of the support.
[0007] Further features, in addition to those mentioned above, will be apparent from the accompanying exemplary drawings, in which:
figure 1 shows a rear view of the bare structure of a support according to the invention, still without hose and accessories;
figure 2 shows the support viewed from the front;
figure 3 shows the support still viewed from the front with highlighting of the state of the handle in the condition inserted in the relevant seat in one of the flanges;
figure 4 shows a similar front view of the support with handle extracted;
figure 5 shows a vertical sectional view of the support according to line V-V in figure 1;
figure 6 shows an enlarged detail of the coupling between the central drum and one of the side flanges;
figure 7 shows the support viewed laterally from the right with respect to figure 1;
figure 8 shows the support viewed from the top with respect to figure 1;
figure 9 shows a partial sectional view of the support according to line IX-IX in figure 8;
figure 10 shows a rear view of the same support completed with a hose, two female fittings, a tap connector and a dispensing gun with multi-function shower;
figure 11 shows the support in figure 10 seen from the front;
figure 12 shows the same support viewed laterally from the right with respect to figure 10;
figure 13 shows the support viewed from the top with respect to figure 6;
figure 14 shows a partial sectional view of the support according to line XIV-XIV in figure 13;
figure 15 shows an exploded perspective view of the support without hose but with accessories designed to be coupled to the support;
figure 16 shows a typical condition of preparation of the support ready for use.
Figures 1-9 show the structure of a support 100 intended to support, at rest, a watering hose 99 and related accessories, such as female fittings 20, a male fitting 13 for the water outlet and a watering gun 24, both of the basic and of the multi-function type.
[0008] The support comprises two flanges 1 and 2 arranged at the two ends of a cylindrical drum 3 whereon a hose 99 can be wound, as shown in particular in figures 12 and 13.
[0009] Flange 1 form a single piece with drum 3, while flange 2 is fixed thereto by means of male 4-female 5 snap-wise couplings, one of which is shown in figures 5 and 6.
[0010] Flange 1 or rear flange has front attachments 6, 7 and 8 for anchoring body 9 of a watering gun, a central hole 10 for inserting the dispensing end 11 of the gun and a hole 12 for inserting a male fitting 13 for the water outlet. The way in which body 9, the dispensing end 11 and the male fitting 13 are anchored to the rear flange 1 is shown in figure 10.
[0011] The front face of the rear flange 1 has a seat 14 (visible in figures 1, 5, 10 and 15, in which a tang 15 is housed vertically sliding which protrudes downward from a lifting handle 16 which, by virtue of the sliding allowed to tang 15, can be moved from the retracted rest position in figures 2 and 3 to the extracted position in figure 4. In this latter position, two hooked lower ends 17 abut against the lower ends of the sliding seat 14 to allow the support to be lifted.
[0012] Two symmetrical fins 18 extend laterally from the top of the rear flange 1, at the ends whereof seated-like housings 19 are formed (figures 7-9 and 10-14) for respective female fittings 20 of the type that can be fixed by pressure through a ring nut to an end of the hose and further connectable snap-wise to the protruding tang from a male fitting.
[0014] Figure 15 schematically shows how the various accessories or parts thereof can be coupled to the rear flange 1.
[0015] Finally, figure 16 shows the set in figure 10 in a condition of use with hose 99 having respective ends fixed to respective fittings 20, one of which is coupled snap-wise to the male fitting 13 screwed to a water outlet 22, while the other fitting, still inserted in its housing 19, is coupled snap-wise to the water inlet end 23 of the dispensing gun 24, now released from the rear flange 1 of support 100.