Innova Pure Water Inc.

Other

John E Nohren

Gerald Larsen

Henry C Reid

Joseph H Nohren

Brad Mierau

Donald G Huggins, Jr

John T Smith

Bradley D Mierau

Rose C Smith

A pitcher or carafe housing is provided that has a raw water reservoir. A high performance filter receives raw water from a lower portion of the reservoir. The water is preferably received at or travels through a water entry tube to the back and bottom of the filter. In about 1-3 minutes the water percolates through the filter element, until it reaches a water exit port. A pouring chamber may be provided at the side of the pitcher for receiving the water from the water exit port, so that the water will continue to be treated and flow up into the pouring chamber until the water level equalizes in height in the reservoir and the pouring chamber. The filter and its housing may be placed into and removed from the inside of the raw water reservoir, or the filer housing may be side loaded. The filter media may be a polyester non-woven mat with a weight of 4-7 oz./yd. impregnated with carbon or zeolite and subject to compression between about 25-75% (e.g. about 50%).

Static filter pitcher

A bottle mountable filtration system typically includes a plurality of different filter elements or filtering and treatment elements having a substantially common central axis that are mounted to extend into a bottle from a cap with a manual valve. Mounting structures may be provided, by screw threads, or by an interference fit, and connect the filter treating elements to the cap. An outer filter treating element may comprise a chlorine removal primarily radial flow outer filter, and an inner treatment element comprising a flavoring, vitamin, mineral, or medication adding component including a mixing chamber which provides an axial flow chamber radially surrounded by the flavoring, etc., adding component. Conversely, the inner treatment element may be a radial flow carbon composite filter used independently or in conjunction with one of several independent outer water treatment elements which may be radial or axial flow in design for the removal of a variety of biological, organic, or inorganic contaminants.

Personal water filter bottle system

A simple yet effective method and apparatus produce a web suitable for treatment of water as a static filtration media, e.g. to remove chlorine and lead from water in contact with the media. A web is coated with a coating composition that facilitates treatment of water and includes a binder, and the web is compressed in one dimension about 25-75% (e.g. 40-60%) so as to make the void size distribution substantially more uniform. The compression is substantially maintained until the binder substantially cures so that the coated final web produced has a second void size distribution more uniform than the first void size distribution, e.g. the coated final web having void volumes with a mean value of about 6-7&times;10 liters and/or an RDV/BV ratio of at least 0.4, and a porosity of greater than 90%. Compression may be at least primarily practiced by substantially immediately after coating passing the web through a series of staggered rollers; or by tightly winding the web prior to cure of the binder; or by compressing the web while in a curing tunnel using upper and lower compression belt roller assemblies. Coating may be practiced using a non-woven web having a weight of about 4-7 ounces/sq. ft., and by applying a coating equal to about 100-200% of the uncoated weight of the fabric comprising about 10-20% binder, about 60-90% activated carbon, and about 0-25% zeolite.

Method for manufacture of static filtration media

A water treatment system including a bottle with a neck, a tube for disposition within the bottle and having water treatment material (such as activated carbon for removing a significant portion of the chlorine in tap water) associated with it, and a cap. The bottle is filled by causing water to flow through the tube, through the water treatment material, into the bottle. When filled, the bottle neck is closed off by screwing the cap into contact with the neck, the cap closing off the tube so that water does not flow through the tube out of the bottle, but rather exteriorly of the tube through openings in a cap first element and between the tube and the neck. A second element of the cap releasably closes off the water flow openings. In order to prevent leakage of water from the bottle even when tilted or dropped, the cap second element may be twisted with respect to the first element to lock the elements together in the closed position, and this&mdash;combined with the substantially elastomeric material sealing ring between the cap first element and the bottle&mdash;substantially prevents water from flowing out of the neck of the bottle. The water treatment material may easily be changed by removing a canister from an end of the tube and inserting a new canister into contact with the tube.

Pour through and locking spill proof cap

Flavoring, dietary minerals, vitamins, other nutritional supplements, or medicines may be dispensed in a filter assembly designed to cap a neck or open end of a bottle. A cap has a manual valve extending from the top thereof and operatively connected to the bottom thereof is an activated carbon block tubular filter having a porosity of between about 8-120 microns. Disposed within the tubular carbon block is a soluble solid porous element, having a porosity greater than that of the carbon block, and having a solubility between about one quarter and one-one hundredth of sucrose. The soluble element is at least in part a flavoring, vitamin, dietary mineral, nutritional supplement, or medicine. It also may be tubular, and substantially lining the soluble porous element may be a hydrophobic membrane which allows passage of water therethrough under pressure, but not under static pressure conditions.

Dispensing and filtering

A filter assembly for use with a bottle having a substantially circular cross-section neck or open end includes a cap for closing the bottle neck or open end including an upper surface, and a manual valve associated with an outer substantially liquid impermeable housing may be operatively connected to the cap at an upper end of the housing and has a number of substantially radially extending openings adjacent the upper end portion to allow liquid to flow into a substantially annular open cavity within the housing. The cavity substantially radially surrounds an inner at least primarily radial flow filter element, such as a carbon/plastic matrix which removes chlorine from drinking water. A treating element is positioned so that water flowing through the openings and into the cavity is treated, either by removing contaminants from the water, or by chilling it. The treating element may comprise an axial flow liquid porous treating media such as granules of ion exchange resin, or may be a micro-porous filter element through which liquid flows radially into the open cavity, or may be a water chilling element that chills water in the open cavity.

Bottle specialty water filters

A ceramic filter assembly is provided for use in a bottle for filtering water exiting the bottle so as to remove substantially all protozoa and bacteria from the water. The assembly includes a self-supporting ceramic filtering material element having a pore size of about 0.55 microns or less (e.g. about 0.45 microns) yet having a large open volume (e.g. between 40-85%, preferably between 51-80%), so that water may pass through it at a rate of 2 milliliters per second or more (e.g. 3-6 milliliters per second) with an initial head pressure of no more than 24 inches of water, so that the water may readily be passed through the filter by inverting and/or squeezing the plastic bottle containing the filter. A second, non-ceramic, filter element (such as a carbon block filter for reducing chlorine) may be mounted within the ceramic filter element, and a positively charged coating may be provided on the external surface of the ceramic filter element capable of attracting and holding negatively charged viruses. Water can be removed from the bottle by attaching the filter assembly to a straw, or the filter assembly may be mounted to a cap having a manual valve.

Sub-micron sport bottle with ceramic filtering element

A filter assembly, particularly for use with a plastic bottle having an open neck with an inside diameter of about 50 mm or less (e.g. about 25 mm), includes a tube of filtering material connected to one surface of a cap while a valve extends from an opposite surface of the cap. The tube is preferably of filtering material such as activated carbon with plastic binder, having a substantially continuous liquid-porous sidewall, a hollow interior, a first closed end, and a second open end. The tube is operatively connected to the cap second surface at the tube second open end by sonic welding, a mechanical connection, or adhesively. The cap has a fitting portion for cooperating with the bottle neck, such as internal screw threads or a snap portion. The valve may be a reciprocating valve, a baby bottle nipple, or a spray device. A biocidal medium may be disposed within the hollow interior of the filter tube, and the tube may be wrapped with a filter material having a pore size of about 1-4 microns. The filtering material is capable of reducing the level of chlorine and water passing through it by at least 50% at a flow rate of about 5 ml/second.

Bottle filter cap

A filter assembly for use with a bottle having a circular cross-section neck or open end includes a fine filtration media having a mean pore size of about 1-3 microns and capable of removing contaminants of 3-4 micron size and larger, and an inner filtration media disposed radially inward of the fine filtration media. The inner filtration media includes activated carbon, preferably a porous activated carbon/plastic matrix having a porosity of between about 10-150 microns. The outer housing contains the fine filtration media and the inner filtration media, and is dimensioned to pass through the neck or open end of the bottle. The fine filtration media preferably comprises sheets on opposite faces of a microfiber filter media formed of glass microfibers of varying cross-sectional diameters, with the fine filtration media in a pleated or accordion configuration. A filter assembly may also be provided having a spring pressed straw. The filter assembly may also include a generally tubular plastic housing with a number of ribs each having an inner surface and an outer surface at least 50% larger than the inner surface. The filter element may also be provided comprising a porous rigid matrix of at least 35% activated carbon, styrene, and metal removing polymer bound to the styrene. Also the filter assembly may have a filter element housing extending upwardly from and operatively connected to a cap and having a maximum cross-sectional area at least 20% larger than the cap top area, for example in the form of a disc or a sphere. The filter may be formed by mating hemispherical portions, and the housing may have a novelty configuration.

Enhanced in-bottle filtration mechanism and techniques

A container includes a gable top fiberboard or cardboard carton having a top and a bottom, and may be substantially filled with drinking water. An activated carbon-containing integral mass of material (e.g. which may be present in various forms and quantities to suit the intended purpose, such as in accordion pleated sheet form, floating at or near the surface of the water, in a porous containing element, etc.) is disposed within the carton and is capable of removing more than 90% of the chlorine, lead or other taste and odor contaminants from the water in its optimized configuration. The carton top typically has a pour opening and the carbon containing mass may be fixed so that the water only comes into significant contact with the mass when the water is being (or about to be) poured through the opening. A biocidal media may also be disposed in the carton positively separated from the carbon containing mass by separator plates and/or ion exchange media. A fill port may also be provided on the carton top with a fill tube extending from the fill port to just above the bottom of the carton. Both the fill and pour openings may be capped by readily removable and replaceable caps. When the carbon containing material is a low density web it most desirably has a surface area of between about 1.25-2.75 square feet per half gallon capacity of the carton. In a tube configuration the carbon is about 5-60% resin and about 95-30% granular or powdered carbon.

Liquid purification low density packing especially for fiberboard

A system capable of accommodating variations in individual work station operation, and a method of achieving and maintaining a desired predetermined manufacturing system rate utilizing integrated work station and dual conveyors. First and second conveyors are provided adapted to transport pallets thereon, and the conveyors are mounted so that they are generally parallel to and spaced from each other permitting the integration of automatic work stations between the independent conveyor. The conveyors are powered to run in the same direction, pallets being transported by the first conveyor being transported generally parallel to pallets being transported by the second conveyor. Workpiece acting stations are disposed between and extend between the first and second conveyors for acting upon workpieces brought into an dpositioned therein and retained generally in a static mode for the duration of the operation. Structures are provided for moving pallets independently from the first conveyor to a work station and then to the second conveyor or vice-versa. After completion of the desired activity upon each workpiece at a station, the respective pallet is moved from the station unto the opposite conveyor, and the series of activities is repeated for each station set until all desired operations have been completed for each pallet-fixtured workpiece.

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Clearwater, FL, United States of America

John E Nohren