	US 12,275,032 B2
	Shower head and method of operation to produce a suspension of water droplets in air
John Scott Shrimpton, Salisbury (GB); Samvir Thandi, Southampton (GB); Benjamin Doulis, Southampton (GB); and William Penfold, Southampton (GB)
Assigned to KELDA SHOWERS LIMITED, Eastleigh (GB)
Appl. No. 17/917,298
Filed by KELDA SHOWERS LIMITED, Eastleigh (GB)
PCT Filed Apr. 14, 2021, PCT No. PCT/GB2021/050894 § 371(c)(1), (2) Date Oct. 6, 2022, PCT Pub. No. WO2021/209749, PCT Pub. Date Oct. 21, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 2005441 (GB), filed on Apr. 14, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2023/0124727 A1, Apr. 20, 2023
Int. Cl. B05B 7/04 (2006.01); B05B 1/18 (2006.01)

CPC B05B 7/0483 (2013.01) [B05B 1/185 (2013.01)]

15 Claims

1. A shower apparatus (1) including:

an air supply means (2),

a water supply means (3), and

a shower head (10), the shower head including at least one chamber (11);

the chamber being defined by a chamber wall (12) and extending along a central chamber axis (Xc), from an air inlet (13) and a water inlet (14) at a first end of the chamber, to an outlet (16) opening at a second end of the chamber;

the air inlet (13) being arranged around the water inlet (14);

the chamber having a length Lc along the chamber axis from the water inlet (14) to the outlet opening (16);

the water supply means being arranged for connection to a supply of water having a density ρ_w, surface tension σ_wand dynamic viscosity μ_wto eject the water at a velocity u_wfrom the water inlet (14), axially centrally into the chamber along the chamber axis (Xc), as a column of water (41) with a diameter d_w;

the air supply means being arranged to supply an annular flow of air (51) at a density ρ_aand a velocity u_afrom the air inlet (13) into the chamber (11) around the water column (41);

the flow of air (51) being arranged to destabilise the water column (41) within the chamber so as to break the water column into a shower of droplets suspended in the air flowing from the outlet opening (16); wherein

an aerodynamic Weber number is defined as

We_a=(ρ_a·(u_a−u_w)²·d_w)/σ_w

and a liquid Reynolds number is defined as

Re_w=(ρ_w·u_w·d_w)/μ_w

and wherein

u_a>u_{w and}

5≤We_a≤55 and

3000≤Re_w≤10000 and

the water column (41) is contained within a dimensional envelope (61) defined as a surface of rotation about the chamber axis (Xc), and

the dimensional envelope (61) is spaced apart radially inwardly from the chamber wall (12) at all points along the length Lc of the chamber, and

the water column (41) is continuous for the length Lc of the chamber.

12. A method of operating a shower apparatus, the shower apparatus (1) including a shower head (10), the shower head including at least one chamber (11);

the chamber (11) being defined by a chamber wall (12) and extending along a central chamber axis (Xc), from an air inlet (13) and a water inlet (14) at a first end of the chamber, to an outlet opening (16) at a second end of the chamber;

the air inlet (13) being arranged around the water inlet (14);

the chamber having a length Lc along the chamber axis (Xc) from the water inlet (14) to the outlet opening (16);

the method including:

connecting the shower head to a supply of water having a density ρ_w, surface tension σ_wand dynamic viscosity μ_w;

ejecting the water at a velocity u_wfrom the water inlet (14), axially centrally into the chamber along the chamber axis (Xc), as a column of water (41) with a diameter d_w;

supplying an annular flow of air (51) at a density ρ_aand a velocity u_afrom the air inlet (13) into the chamber (11) around the water column (41) to destabilise the water column within the chamber so as to break the water column (41) into a shower of droplets suspended in the air flowing from the outlet opening (16); wherein