Baths – closets – sinks – and spittoons – Shower – Convenience accessories
Reexamination Certificate
2001-04-11
2003-01-28
Huson, Gregory (Department: 3751)
Baths, closets, sinks, and spittoons
Shower
Convenience accessories
C004S608000, C160S349100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06510566
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a shower curtain closure for closing off one or both generally vertical side edges of the curtain against a wall of a shower stall, tub enclosure or the like. Such closure is provided along one or both shower curtain edges, depending on the dimensions and other characteristics of the shower unit for which the closure is designed. In a preferred embodiment, the shower closure comprises a length of plastic tubing that can be cut to a preferred length, a tube support ring, and an elongate vertically oriented wall receptacle into which the tube matingly fits. The tube is passed through a sleeve along the side of the curtain and is suspended from the curtain support rod by the ring connected to the upper end of the tubing and passing over the shower curtain rod. The wall receptacle is adhesively mounted on a wall of the shower enclosure at the location of the intended shower curtain closure. The receptacle is shaped to releasably secure the shower curtain sleeve with the tube therein. The curtain may be slipped off the tube to permit the curtain to be laundered or replaced without having to replace the tube. The receptacle retains the shower curtain in place and impedes water from splashing between the edges of the shower curtain and the shower walls onto the bathroom floor.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Conventionally, shower curtains hang freely from a horizontal rod or bar with no side connection to vertical walls of the shower stalls or shower/bath units. Consequently, water can easily escape between the sides of the curtain and the walls and splash outside of the shower unit, risking damage to the bathroom walls and floor and increasing the risk of injury from slipping on a wet floor surface. Various attempts have been made to solve this problem.
The majority of the prior solutions to the problem require the use of diverse strips or bars that adhere to a wall and are designed to receive a connecting component holding the shower curtain in place, therefore forming an impermeable seal. Many of the previous solutions, however, are complicated and costly or require too many changes in the design of ordinary curtains to be commercially appealing to curtain manufacturers. Such relatively complicated solutions are proposed for example in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,765,001 granted to Smith and U.S. Pat. No. 4,361,915 granted to Siewert.
White in his U.S. Pat. No. 3,639,919 designed a permanent attachment of an elongated connecting flexible rod to the edge of a shower curtain. A similar solution is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,77,517 granted to Bonanno, who also proposes a permanent attachment of a specific connecting component to the edges of the curtain. These solutions are relatively simple, but do not offer the possibility of laundering curtains by standard laundry equipment, as demanded by a large portion of the current shower-curtain market, especially by the hospitality industry. In addition, in the case of Bonanno's invention, connecting devices fastened to the outside edge of the shower curtain could possibly tear the curtain material if pulled hard or accidentally caught by a moving object.
Another previously proposed solution is to engage the curtain by a loose connecting bar that is placed into and supported by a wall attachment component having the form of a channel. This solution does not require any modification of the shower curtain. However, to combine all components of the invention into a waterproof system that best serves its purpose requires skill and patience, considering the fact that the engaging bar is not attached to the shower curtain. Examples of this type of shower curtain closure are found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,879,806 granted to Armstrong and U.S. Pat. No. 3,205,547 granted to Riekse.
The majority of the previously described solutions are not functionally designed to have adequate versatility that would enable customers or installers to easily adapt and mount the sealing system in shower areas of different heights with differently situated shower rods, and to use more or less standard curtain design with the possibility of ready removal and replacement of curtains for laundering. There is an unsatisfied demand for an inexpensive, uncomplicated and effective solution to the side closure problem, for use with ordinary shower curtains, that would offer the possibility of ready removal of the curtain for laundering or cleaning by conventional methods.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide a shower curtain side closure that is economical, effective and easily adaptable for manufacture and use, and can make use of shower curtains substantially as currently manufactured, or requiring at most a minor modification of the side hem or hems of the curtain.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a shower curtain side closure that is easily detachable and completely removable from the shower curtain, thereby affording the possibility of laundering or cleaning the shower curtain by conventional methods without special equipment.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a shower curtain closure that is simple to install, maintain and use in a shower stall or the like of a wide range of sizes.
In accordance with the foregoing objectives, there is provided an improved shower curtain closure for use with a shower curtain having a sleeve along at least one side of the curtain. The closure comprises an insertable tube (or equivalent) for insertion into the sleeve, and a wall-mountable receptacle having a channel for releasably securing the sleeve of the curtain with the tube inserted. For convenience and brevity of description, herein only “tube” will appear rather than a more elaborate phrase such as “tube or rod or equivalent”. The term “tube” used herein, is intended to refer to a relatively stiff insertable elongate element that is not necessarily of circular cylindrical shape and not necessarily hollow. When the tube is inside the sleeve, the tube will readily engage the channel of the receptacle so that the receptacle channel flanges can grip the sleeve with the tube inserted therein, providing a relatively secure engagement, yet an engagement that the person taking the shower can readily disrupt simply by pulling on the side of the shower curtain, thereby to release the sleeve and tube from the channel of the elongate receptacle.
For purposes of reduction of manufacturing expense and reduction of weight, the tube is preferably hollow, generally cylindrical, and preferably made of plastics material; however, it could instead be a solid cylindrical dowel or rod or have polygonal cross-section. Design compromises may have to be made in the choice of tube shape, dimensions and material. Softer, more flexible materials are less likely to do any damage to the shower curtain during the step of insertion of the tube into the shower curtain sleeve. Stiffer, harder materials, however, may be somewhat easier to insert into the receptacle channel over the entire length of the channel. While light weight is advantageous, if the tube is too flimsy, the tube may be irreversibly bent or damaged. Different choices of materials and dimensions of the tube may be made depending upon whether the shower curtain material is expected to be woven fabric on the one hand, or is expected to be sheet plastics material on the other hand.
In a preferred embodiment, the insertable tube should be resilient, inexpensive, and adequately strong to meet the repetitive securing/releasing demands of the user. Conveniently the insertable tube may be provided at one end (the upper end in use) with a hole or hook or ring connector through which a conventional shower curtain support ring may be inserted, whereby the tube may be suspended from the shower curtain support rod at one end of the shower enclosure (or closures of this type may be provided at both ends of the enclosure, if the user so wishes). In another embodiment of the invention, the insertable tube may be provided at one end (the upper end in
Barrigar Robert H.
Huson Gregory
Prunner Kathleen J.
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