Baths – closets – sinks – and spittoons – Shower – Particular construction
Reexamination Certificate
2001-12-03
2003-06-03
Eloshway, Charles R. (Department: 3751)
Baths, closets, sinks, and spittoons
Shower
Particular construction
C052S034000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06571406
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a supporting body which is part of a shower tub made from stone, tiles or the like.
A shower tub designates the element which constitutes the directly visible portion of the lower part of a shower bath or, in other words, that portion that comes into direct contact with the water.
The present invention is directed to providing a supporting body for the shower tub on one side and the shower tub itself on the other, the supporting body constituting the substructure thereof.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The most various kinds of shower tubs or shower baths have been previously proposed. In particular shower tubs made from synthetic material or glassed steel have become known. Such shower tubs can either be inserted at ground level, i.e., be flush with the surface of the lime floor or they can be mounted onto the lime floor, i.e., the shower bath is mounted onto the lime floor by means of standards for example, still another possibility consisting in providing a so-called medium-high installation in which the shower bath is at least partially sunken in the floor.
The British Patent 1 590 791 discloses a shower tub with a raised ribbed floor.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,551,918 describes a similar construction in which the gutter is merely deeper than in the British Patent 1 590 791.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,718,008 describes a shower tub with a floor provided with individual gutters that discharge into a channel that is partially covered by the floor.
The German Patent DE 298 081 29 U1 discloses a frame with a surrounding gutter. The shower tub rests on the frame. The shower tub is drained by a drain arranged in the shower tub. The gutter formed by the frame lets off both the water impinging laterally onto the tiled floor adjacent the shower tub and the water leaking through the joints underneath the tiles onto the insulation.
The German Patent DE 242 30 083 C2 discloses a support for a shower tub, the support being designed in such a manner that it is capable of receiving shower tubs with differential mounting depths. This is more specifically achieved in placing little blocks underneath when the support is not high enough or in removing material from the base of the support when it is not deep enough.
The French Patent No. 2 562 409 A1 discloses the structure of a shower tub that is provided with an annular gutter serving as a supporting body, a floor tile resting on the upper side of the inner wall of the gutter. Another plate, whose dimensions correspond to the inner free space defined by the gutter, is arranged underneath the floor tile in order to prevent the floor tile from being shifted. Between the floor tile and the outer wall of the gutter there is provided a spacing in order to permit the water to flow from the floor tile into the gutter.
The disadvantage thereof is that, in the center of the construction, the floor tile rests on a hollow space. If the floor tile were not reinforced in this area by the underlying plate, it would be prone to break when provided with a corresponding horizontal extension and submitted to a corresponding load. Another drawback is that, due to the spacing between the floor tile and the external wall of the gutter, said gutter and the dirt it carries are visible from the top.
The post-published WO 01/49157 (U.S. Pat. No. 6,240,578) discloses a widening gutter, a floor tile resting on the inner brims of said gutter. The bottom of the gutter is inclined inward but has no gradient oriented toward the drain. Accordingly, residual water always remains in the gutter, which in the end leads to an unpleasant odor and nuisance to the user. Another disadvantage is that the gutter is very wide, the floor plate overhanging largely on its borders as a result thereof. This involves the risk that the floor tile cants when a person comes to stand on its edge. Still another drawback is that the surrounding gutter as such does not constitute a supporting body stable enough to be capable of standing on its own; the stability of the gutter is only achieved by the fact that it is set in concrete.
The British Patent 2 108 382 discloses a shower tub in the form of a surrounding gutter whose bottom is designed as a removable cover that permits to reach the drain provided in the bottom. Again, this construction is only stable when the shower tub is set in concrete.
In high-quality baths and showers in particular, shower tubs made from stone, more specifically from natural stone or tiles, have additionally become known. They usually have a floor drain in their center. In order to make sure that the shower water reaches the drain, the paving stones or tiles have to be placed in such a manner that on each side a slope toward the drain is provided. With a quadrangular shower tub or shower bath that has a total of four paving stones directed toward the drain, any and all paving stones have another gradient. The manufacturing of such shower tubs requires considerable manual skill. As opposed to the prefabricated shower baths or shower tubs made from glassed steel or synthetic material, such shower tubs of stone, natural stone or tiles are never absolutely watertight on account of the joints. It is therefore absolutely necessary to provide an isolation underneath the shower tub, said isolation being also connected to the drain in such a manner that water passing through the joints can reach the drain on the isolation.
In hotels, in particular where there are suspended ceilings, there is not provided one isolation only, but for safety reasons, two isolations are arranged above each other in order to prevent water from passing through the ceiling when one isolation is damaged. The connection of the isolation to the drain in particular is quite a problem and demands more care from the skilled worker.
It has furthermore been known from the state of the art to use so-called supporting elements made of high-resistance foam which are milled from blocks. These elements, when they are quadrangular in shape, are inclined on all the four sides toward the drain in the center. The disadvantage thereof is that on one side it is complicated to cover such a supporting element with paving stones or tiles, since the paving stones or the tiles respectively have to be cut to size in a very accurate manner in order to obtain a neatly designed shower tub. Another problem is the installation. A such type supporting element of high-resistance foam needs to be bedded accordingly, so that the shower tub as a whole be accommodated solidly. For this purpose, there is provided that such a supporting element made of high-resistance foam be first placed upon bases in order to align the supporting element, said supporting element being bedded with mortar or high-resistance foam in a second stage.
With all the prior art shower tubs, mounting is very complicated, which is true to the same extent for dismantling, and all of them are not substantially tight on account of the pattern of the joints.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefor the object of the invention to provide a shower tub of the type mentioned herein above, more specifically for natural stone, artificial stone, tiles and the like, that allows easy mounting and dismantling, is perfectly tight and that furthermore permits its installation above ground, at floor level and partially sunken alike.
According to the invention the solution to this object is to provide the supporting body for the shower tub with at least one landing which is surrounded by a margin, a channel being provided that discharges into the drain. The supporting body is designed as a self-standing structure; accordingly, it is not necessary to line the supporting body with concrete in order for the latter to be capable of adopting a stable position as it is the case with the prior art devices. Thanks to the edge that stands on the ground and the landing in particular the supporting body constitutes an inherently stable structure.
The channel, which is set off the upper side of the landing in downward direction, const
Eloshway Charles R.
Vigil Thomas R.
Welsh & Katz Ltd.
LandOfFree
Supporting body for a shower tub does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Supporting body for a shower tub, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Supporting body for a shower tub will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3122940