Baths – closets – sinks – and spittoons – Dry closets – Urinal
Reexamination Certificate
2001-06-18
2003-04-08
Eloshway, Charles R. (Department: 3751)
Baths, closets, sinks, and spittoons
Dry closets
Urinal
Reexamination Certificate
active
06543064
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention pertains to a urination device of the type used by, for example, bedridden and/or incontinent patients.
It is generally known that male bedridden patients in particular use a urine bottle to urinate in, this bottle being nicknamed the “duck”. The bottle has a wide, relatively flat body, with a tubular neck or inlet section which extends upward at a steep angle. Aside from the fact that the rigid, wide body of the bottle is unpleasant to use in terms of temperature and hardness and forces the patient to spread his legs out quite widely, the degree to which it can be filled is not optimal, because, when the bottle is full, its contents reach all the way up into the inlet section, which means that the contents can easily spill out. Even if the bottle is only ¾ full, it must be pulled back and tipped vertically as it is being removed, because otherwise the contents will slosh out. The long projecting neck can be used as a grip so that the bottle can tipped downward and emptied.
DE 3,238,989 A1 describes a urination device which consists essentially of a relatively long urine line, to one end of which a drainless urine collecting bag is attached. A catheter or an external urine collection device such as a condom-like urine collector for men or a urine collecting funnel for women is connected to the other end. To ensure good flow through the relatively long urine line, a relatively complicated vent system is provided. So that the valveless bag can be emptied, its plug must be removed. Thus the urine which has entered the bag can escape from the device if it is improperly handled. In practice, the device can be used only in a preferably vertical position, that is, while the person is standing. Nor can the device be used more than once; it cannot, for example, be used during the night, set aside horizontally, and used again without spilling the contents.
DE 297-00,124 U1 describes a urine bottle with a hose connector for (any suitable) catheter bag and a hanger. The collecting container is a narrow cylinder, open at the top, which has at the other end a funnel-like shape leading to a hose connector in the center, to which a catheter bag is attached via a connecting hose. This known urination device can be used only while the tube is in a vertical or only slightly tilted position, that is, only while the person is standing or possibly also while sitting, but not lying down.
The “urinal” described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,121,306 consists of a relatively long, slender, funnel-shaped collecting body with a wedge-like stand for holding the collector at a slant, e.g., in bed. A long hose, which leads to a urine container, is attached to the narrow outlet end of the funnel. A sample container can also be attached between the funnel and the container. This known urinal is not suitable for independent use by a bedridden patient.
Finally, D 93-17,372.5 U1 describes a urine bottle of the “duck” type, that is, with a relatively long, steeply upward-slanting, forward-pointing neck, of the conventional, bulky design. At the bottom distal edge of the bottle, a small drain tube is attached, which is connected to a long hose, which leads to or is inserted in a large collecting container in a low position, e.g., under the bed. This urine bottle is suitable for use only by recumbent male patients with continuous incontinence, for which purpose it is equipped with a very wide bottom support surface. It is not suitable for convenient and reliable use by bedridden patients who are basically healthy but are suffering only from slight incontinence after surgery or for use by healthy individuals who are using the urine bottle during the night, for the sake of convenience, for example. Especially because of its size and the very prominently projecting neck, this bottle, too, is extremely inconvenient to handle and is also unreliable. This bottle cannot be easily carried along on trips without taking up a great deal of space, nor can it be used in a motor vehicle or by handicapped wheelchair users.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The task of the invention is therefore to provide a urination device which is simple, hygienic, and reliable in design and handling, which allows independent reuse by the user himself without intermediate emptying, and which especially can be taken along and used on trips with optimum convenience.
Accordingly, the urination device according to the invention consists of a collecting container, which is designed as an essentially cylindrical, hollow body with two end walls essentially perpendicular to its longitudinal axis. In addition, the collecting container has relatively small dimensions, preferably a diameter of approximately 70 mm and a length of approximately 150 mm. The inlet connector, furthermore, is no more than ⅓ the length of the body of the collecting container and is diagonally opposite the attachment point of the outlet connector, thus being off-center toward the top and tilted by an angle of only about 20° to the inlet-side end wall, the upper front edge of the inlet connector projecting no more than slightly in the radial direction beyond the upper edge of the body of the collecting container. As a result, a collecting container is provided which is relatively small and handy, so that it is extremely easy to manage and can be packed and taken along on trips without taking up much room.
Finally, to serve as a holding container, a flat, soft, flexible urine bag, known in and of itself, is connected in an easily attachable and detachable manner to the outlet connector of the collecting container. Thus at least a large percentage of the. urine flows immediately into the urine bag right during the urination process itself; then, by holding onto the collecting container and raising the urination device, it is possible to ensure that virtually all of the rest of the urine will flow into the urine bag, which is provided with an inlet valve. Then the entire urination device can simply be set down on a horizontal surface without fear that even a single drop of urine will spill out or otherwise escape.
It is especially advantageous to provide an easy-to-grasp, upward- projecting positioning nipple at the top edge of the inlet end of the collecting container body, that is, at the edge which is at the top when the device is being used. This has the effect of ensuring that the collecting container and thus the entire urination device are always in the correct position when used, that is, that the inlet connector will be at the top and the outlet connector at the bottom. This guarantees optimal inflow and outflow of the urine and eliminates the danger of spillage.
It is also advantageous to reduce the length of the inlet hose of the urine bag to a length of no more than 10 cm and to push this hose directly onto the outlet connector of the collecting container, this outlet connector being designed as a hose connector with an outside surface which tapers down either conically or in a series of step-like graduations.
Between the outlet connector and the urine bag (or the short inlet hose of the urine bag) it is advantageous to provide a soft, elastic connecting hose, which is itself no more than 10 cm, preferably no more than 5 cm, long. In this case, the inlet hose of the urine bag, which is usually relatively stiff, can be shortened by half again, that is, to approximately 5 cm or less; a hose adapter which is known in and of itself and which is usually one of the standard accessories that come with the bag is pushed onto its free end. The soft, elastic connecting hose attached to the other end of the adapter gives the connecting section between the collecting container and the urine bag a very high degree of flexibility. As a result, the collecting container can be tipped or pivoted slightly toward the urine bag, which is highly advantageous during use and also later, when the urination device is lifted vertically and set aside.
It is especially advantageous for the flow route between the collecting container and the urine bag to have an o
Gottsmann Gert
Petra Elke
Prall Paul
Eloshway Charles R.
Ostrolenk Faber Gerb & Soffen, LLP
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