Drying and gas or vapor contact with solids – Apparatus – Sheet – web – or strand
Reexamination Certificate
2002-03-18
2004-06-08
Lazarus, Ira S. (Department: 3749)
Drying and gas or vapor contact with solids
Apparatus
Sheet, web, or strand
C034S218000, C034S235000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06745496
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to the field of drying devices and, in particular, to a device and method for drying and de-wrinkling articles of clothing utilizing a flow of air.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The inventor conceived of the present invention in response to a need that surfaced in his automobile and truck restoration business. At the time, he had seven shops and eighty-six employees. An accountant brought the business' exorbitant cleaning expenses to the attention of the inventor, who was always looking for creative ways to ensure quality and control costs. Full-time mechanics needed sharp-looking uniforms to be cleaned quickly and without ironing in machines that could be operated by unskilled, part-time employees. Thousands of rags and chamois required rapid cleaning.
Despite this need, conventional cleaning and drying equipment failed to provide an effective solution. For example, conventional dry cleaning equipment is large, expensive, requires the use of harmful chemicals, and requires trained operators in order to effect satisfactory results. Because of these factors, such equipment is not readily available or desirable to individuals or small businesses.
Conventional wet washing and tumble-drying machines are effective at cleaning and drying clothing, and are readily available, and affordable, to individuals and small businesses. However, conventional tumble-drying typically results in dried clothes that are wrinkled and, therefore, not suitable for wear without de-wrinkling via ironing, steaming, or other art recognized means.
A number of non-tumble type dryers have been developed and patented. However, each of these fails to solve the problems encountered by the inventor of the present invention. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,555,640, titled “Household Drying Center”, discloses a multipurpose household drying center in which a blower and heating chamber are disposed on the top portion of a cabinet to generate forced and heated air downward into a drying chamber in the cabinet below the heating chamber. There are horizontally disposed heat diffusion plates under the heating chamber and vertically disposed air ducts on the side walls of the cabinet to enable heated air to be evenly distributed and filled in the drying chamber for uniform drying of the goods held therein. A support stand having a horizontal and rectangular frame secured on the top ends of a pair of spaced and vertical telescopically structured tubes is disposed within the drying chamber for hanging clothes, and can support a wire basket for holding delicate or odd shape goods for drying. There are side rods on the sidewalls for hanging articles, and a base grid is provided above the bottom wall to hold heavy or odd shape goods for drying.
The above referenced patent states “clothes and goods are dried without tumbling, thus avoiding fraying or wrinkles.” However, this is not the case as the drying center fails to monitor and adjust the air for temperature and humidity, which are the primary factors in reducing wrinkles. Further, it requires that that same hot air be utilized for drying, creating a risk of damage to the clothing being dried and the risk of burns to users. Accordingly, although a distinct improvement over conventional tumble dryers, this drying center does not produce the level of sharp, wrinkle free clothing required to meet the needs of the inventor nor does it provide any safeguards against damage to clothing or injury.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,682,424, titled “Clothes Drying Apparatus”, describes yet another non-tumble style drying apparatus that includes a hanger rod mounted above a drip pan element, that may be slidably removed from a drying cabinet so that wet clothing articles may be easily mounted on the hanger rod. The patent discloses a system that is similar to that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,555,640, and further includes an automatic control so that the drying cycle may be pre-selected so as to achieve the most efficient drying of the clothing articles. However, this apparatus also has distinct drawbacks that make it unsuited to satisfactorily solving the problems solved by the present invention. For example, like the dryer of U.S. Pat. No. 5,555,640, this apparatus fails to monitor and adjust the air for temperature and humidity, which are the primary factors in reducing wrinkles. Further, it likewise requires that that same hot air be utilized for drying, creating a risk of damage to the clothing being dried and the risk of burns to users.
Another non-tumble dryer is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,815,961, titled “Clothes Treating Cabinet with Inflatable Hanger”. This patent discloses a clothes treating apparatus having a cabinet that defines an interior region for receiving clothes. The interior region has opposed inner side surfaces and a door is connected to the cabinet for closing the interior region. An inflatable hanger for supporting shirt-like clothes items is disposed within the interior region and is in communication with a blower that selectively inflates the inflatable hanger for pressing the shirt-like clothes item against the cabinet inner side surfaces. A steam generation means is provided for introducing moist air into the cabinet for humidifying the clothes item disposed therein. A heater and fan supply heated air into the interior region for drying the shirt-like clothes items disposed therein. During the de-wrinkling cycle, steam is introduced into the interior region while the inflatable hanger assembly is periodically inflated. Following the steaming period, the inflatable hanger is inflated while the clothes are subject to warm air such that the clothes wrinkles are pressed out and the clothes are partially dried, setting the clothes in a smooth appearance. Heated air is then delivered into the interior region to completely dry the clothes item.
This system claims to be effective at de-wrinkling already dried clothes, but has inherent drawbacks. The first, and foremost, of these drawbacks is the need to carefully arrange the clothing and inflatable hanger to avoid any unwanted creasing of the garment. If the hanger and clothing are not properly arranged, the inflation of the hanger will cause the garment to fold upon itself and cause a crease or wrinkle in an unwanted area. Another drawback is that the inflation of the hanger is unsuited for garments, such as pants or skirts, that require creases to be formed in the material. Another drawback is the increased cost involved in manufacturing an inflatable hanger and the need for hangers of many sizes to accommodate the many sizes of garments. Finally, the need to generate a separate flow of steam over the garment is undesirable due to the safety hazard attendant to live steam, the need to pipe in a source of water, or continually refill a water reservoir, and the increased cost in providing means for heating and distributing the steam. Accordingly, the system described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,815,961 is not effective at solving the problem of the present invention.
A drying apparatus and method that allows clothes to be cleaned quickly and without ironing or use of another appliance, that may be operated by unskilled, part-time employees, that does not require a large initial investment, a large space or the use of hazardous chemicals or live steam, that effectively removes wrinkles while drying, that does not risk the creation of additional wrinkles, that may be mounted anywhere within a home, and that does not require piping or constant filling of a water reservoir, is not known in the art.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is a drying apparatus and method that overcomes the drawbacks inherent in the prior art by removing wrinkles from clothes and drying them in a single appliance using a controlled flow of air through a small space without a conventional tumble drum.
The drying apparatus of the present invention utilizes forced air to dry clothes without tumbling them. A wind-tunnel effect, combined with the process of drying fabric from the top down create a new w
Lawson & Persson P.C.
Lazarus Ira S.
Persson Michael J.
Ragonese Andrea M.
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