Fluid handling – With casing – support – protector or static constructional... – With hose storage or retrieval means
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-01
2001-05-01
Chambers, A. Michael (Department: 3753)
Fluid handling
With casing, support, protector or static constructional...
With hose storage or retrieval means
C137S899000, C138S106000, C138S110000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06223767
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to special receptacles and supports for mounting such receptacles. More specifically the present invention relates to a receptacle for storing a recreational vehicle's compressible waste drain hose, and supports for mounting the receptacle on the outside of the vehicle.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
To enhance the comfort and convenience of recreational vehicles (RVs) such as motor homes, campers, and travel trailers; sinks, showers, and toilets have been installed on many RVs. Further, to promote the independence of RVs from continuous connection to a waste disposal facility, these RVs are equipped with holding tanks for storing waste water, sewage, and other fluids deposited into the sinks, showers, or toilets. A drain hose is used to transfer the stored wastes from the holding tank into suitable disposal facilities. Typically, the waste drain hose utilized for this purpose is flexible and of an accordion-like construction, which allows the hose to be collapsed along its length.
The waste drain hoses become fouled with the waste materials passed through them, and can become unpleasant to handle and store. Even when means are provided to flush the drain hose after use with fresh water, it is important to try to remove the excess moisture from the drain hose before storing. Removing the excess moisture from the drain hose can aid in reducing the unpleasantness of handling the drain hose when next used.
Various attempts have been made to provide devices for storing compressible waste drain hoses and can be found in the following patents. Leech, U.S. Pat. No. 5,904,183, May 18, 1999 discloses a hand-portable waste dispensing device having a waste drain hose inside of a drainer sheath. When not in use the Leech device is sealable to prevent escape of odors and liquid. Leech teaches a device that is integrated with the drain hose, and a drain sheath that is not mounted to a vehicle.
Johnson, U.S. Pat. No. 5,897,083, Apr. 27, 1999, discloses a retainer device for holding a typical flexible recreational vehicle waste hose in a compressed configuration. In Johnson '083 a waste drain hose is external to the retainer/storage device and thus does not contain the waste hose in an interior space.
Bornhoffer, U.S. Pat. No. 3,924,661, Dec. 9, 1975 teaches a container for storing a flexible waste drain hose for a recreational vehicle. The device disclosed in Bornhoffer '661 includes a semi-rigid, open-ended cylinder having a flexible drain hose protruding from each end of the cylinder, and a fiction engaging inner surface means. Therefore the cylinder of Bornhoffer '661 is slidable along the length of the extended drain hose to prevent bends or loops in the hose.
Foreman, U.S. Pat. No. 4,854,349, Aug. 8, 1989 teaches a waste dispensing device that integrates a housing and a waste drain hose into a single unit mounted on the chassis of a vehicle and connected to a waste drain port. The housing and drain hoses are integrated together at one of their ends by a coupling element that also connects the device to the drain port of a vehicle. A single cap mutually closes the other ends of the housing and the drain hose. The device disclosed in Foreman '349 is mounted to a vehicle in connection with the vehicle's waste drain port. The free end of the hose is stored compressed within the tubular housing and retained there by means of a dual closure cap. For draining, the cap is disengaged from the housing and the hose is extended with the cap in place. At the waste disposal system the cap is fully removed. After use, the drain hose is compressed back into the housing and sealed in place with the dual closure cap.
Larkin, U.S. Pat. No. 4,180,102, Dec. 25, 1979, discloses a two part housing enclosing a flexible waste drain hose for a recreational vehicle. The device disclosed in Larkin '102 includes a standard flexible waste drain hose, a two piece cylindrical housing made of two identical half cylinders, foam rubber strips at the open ends of the cylindrical housing, and removable slip rings for holding the housing halves in close engagement with the drain hose contained therein. Larkin '102 however, does not teach or disclose a device for stowage of the hose/housing combination, or a manner of mounting the device to a vehicle. Knutsen, U.S. Pat. No. 4,231,595, Nov. 4, 1980, discloses a waste dispensing device having an exterior housing and an extensible hose. The housing and the hose are connected together at one end. The device disclosed in Knutsen '595 includes a flexible tubular housing, a compressible waste drain hose contained within the housing, and a coupling joining the housing and the hose together at one of their ends with the hose inside of the housing. In practice, the Knutsen '595 device is left in place on the vehicle with the coupling connected to the waste drain port of a recreational vehicle. In use, the free end of the drain hose is drawn from the interior of the housing structure for insertion into a waste disposal system. For storage, the drain hose is compressed back into the housing. The free end of the flexible housing may then be releasably hung on a bracket attached to the vehicle. The Knutsen '595 device may then travel attached to the vehicle by the drain port coupling at one end and the bracket at the other end.
It is therefore desirable to develop a simple, alternative device for stowing a waste drain hose between uses outside the RV, where the storage receptacle provides for drainage and evaporation of moisture from the drain hose during storage.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is receptacle mounted on the outside of a recreational vehicle (RV) useful as a stowage container for the vehicle's compressible waste drain hose. The stowage receptacle comprises a housing for receiving an RV's compressible waste drain hose, and storing the hose in a compressed configuration, and supports for mounting the housing to the outside of the vehicle. The stowage receptacle is mounted to the vehicle, in a location where excess moisture can drain from apertures in the receptacle, and where airflow from the vehicle's movement can pass through the apertures and facilitate drying any residual moisture left in the receptacle or drain hose. Typically, the housing is mounted under the vehicle to an appropriate frame or chassis member, proximate the drain port for the vehicle's waste holding tank(s). When needed, the drain hose may be released and removed from the stowage receptacle.
The receptacle's housing is an elongated tubular sleeve having inner and outer surfaces, and a lumen defined by the inner surface for receiving the waste drain hose. The tubular sleeve has two ends. A first end of the tube is open to the lumen and is flared to facilitate inserting the drain hose into the lumen of the stowage receptacle. The second end of the sleeve is at least partially closed so as to retain the drain hose in the lumen of the sleeve as it is being loaded into the stowage receptacle. The elongated tubular sleeve is comprised of single piece lengths of tubing (unibodies). A unibody has a length of at least about three feet. The housing has a length sufficient to contain the waste drain hose in a compressed condition. The length of the housing may be adjusted by combining a plurality of unibody sections in series to provide a desired length. The housing has a cross-sectional configuration complementary to the waste drain hose. Typically, the housing has a cross-sectional configuration that is substantially circular, with an inside diameter of at least about three inches. However, diameters of up to about eight inched are practicable.
The tubular sleeve may comprise a solid-surfaced material, like PVC piping or similar tubing, or it may be made of a screen-like or mesh material, such as a cylinder formed from a sheet of expanded metal. If the tubular sleeve otherwise has solid surfaces, then vent apertures are formed through the inner and outer surfaces of tu
Chambers A. Michael
Pernia Sherman D.
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