Patent Application
20150257959
The present invention relates to an abdominal support apparatus to be used by persons needing abdominal support when engaging in certain activities.
At times, it may become necessary for a person to employ an abdominal support. Illnesses and medical procedures can cause a person's abdominal area to be weakened or strained. Certain activities may provide additional stress, strain, or pressure on the abdominal area of a person. Two such activities are defecation and urination. As such, it may be necessary or helpful to provide abdominal support through a device.
A typical device may provide abdominal support through a band, a strap, or a belt that can be fastened around a person's waist or abdominal area. Another typical device may be a type of diaper that may provide abdominal support through a band, a strap, or a belt around a person's waist or abdominal area. Many, if not all, abdominal support devices are designed to be worn by the user and are not designed to provide abdominal support to a person while defecating or urinating.
European Patent Application No. 88121799.6 by Kimberly-Clark Corporation discloses an anatomically form-fitting, generally self-adjusting disposable diaper that comprises an absorbent structure and an outer cover for positioning the absorbent structure against the body to absorb and contain body wastes. An abdominal support zone which corresponds to the lower abdominal area of the wearer spaced longitudinally away from the waist opening and extending across at least the central portion of the front panel, imparts a tensile stress thereto which is greater than that of the remaining front panel and waist opening. The device described in the '799.6 Kimberly-Clark Corporation patent application is more directed toward a diaper-like device than an abdominal support device and it applies a small amount of force to the abdominal area of a person which is not adequate to provide the necessary abdominal support for some persons. Additionally, the device provides little, if any, adjustability to the amount of force imposed upon the person's abdominal area.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,491,352 to Fong discloses a single piece garment for those having a distended abdomen, said garment extending upwards from the groin to beneath the breasts. The device described in the '352 patent comprises layers of elastomeric fabrics that provide abdominal support. The device, however, does not allow a person to defecate or urinate while it is employed. The device provides only a small amount of force to the abdominal area of a person which is not adequate to provide the necessary abdominal support for some persons. Additionally, the device provides little, if any, adjustability to the amount of force imposed upon the person's abdominal area.
This background information is provided to reveal information believed by the applicant to be of possible relevance to the present invention. No admission is necessarily intended, nor should be construed, that any of the preceding information constitutes prior art against the present invention.
With the above in mind, embodiments of the present invention are related to an abdominal support apparatus that advantageously allows for evacuation of waste from the human body while minimizing the pressure and stress to a user's abdominal area. The abdominal support apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention may also advantageously provide support for the user's abdominal area and may provide negative pressure to a user's abdominal area (may provide pressure from an external source, the abdominal support apparatus, to negate the internal pressure created during defecation, urination, or other similar actions).
The embodiments of the present invention may advantageously permit a user to have leveraged and dynamic control of the volume of the abdominal cavity while simultaneously preventing pathological migration of abdominal and pelvic structures, such as tissue, during, for instance, evacuation of the bowels. In addition, the embodiments of the present invention may provide other benefits such as, for example, enhancing pressurization of the pelvic floor, rectum, and colon, reducing the frequency and amplitude of Valsalva straining efforts, reducing the risks of defecation syncope, shortening a defecation cycle, inhibiting “guarding reflexes” and signaling abdominal and/or pelvic muscles into a coordinated defecatory activity, awakening a “lazy” bowel due to jogging or gently jogging of the device, preventing and/or mitigating hernias, hemorrhoids, and constipation, fostering a sense of control in a user, acting as a source of bio-feedback which may be useful in bowel training exercises, and negating the need of elderly, infirm, and/or inflexible users to assume unachievable defecatory (“squat”) postures.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention are provided by an abdominal support apparatus that may be adapted to engage a portion of a toilet seat, a toilet bowl, or other object or device. The abdominal support apparatus may include a wall member, a first lever member that may extend outwardly from the wall member, a lever handle member that may connect to the first lever member, a second lever member that may connect to and may extend outwardly from the lever handle member, and an interior member that may connect to and may extend downwardly from the second lever member. The wall member, the first lever member, the lever handle member, the second lever member, and the interior member may be integrally formed as a monolithic unit.
The abdominal support apparatus may include an angle between the first lever member and the second lever member extending outwardly from the lever handle member between at least 1° and 30°. The wall member may be generally square, rectangular, trapezoidal, circular, ovular, or polygonal. The wall member may include a top portion, a bottom portion, and opposing side portions. The bottom portion may be generally concave in the direction of the top portion. The wall member may further include a rounded edge and first and second opposing faces. The first lever member may be adjacent to the first opposing face and the second opposing face may include a projection. The projection may be a convex shape, a concentric shape, or a shape generally conforming to the contours of a human external abdominal area.
The lever handle member may be configured to function as a counterweight to the wall member. The interior member may include a first portion that may connect to the second lever member, a second portion that may connect to and may extend downwardly from the first portion, and a third portion that may connect to the second portion and may extend inwardly therefrom so that the third portion of the interior member may extend in a direction towards the lever handle member. The interior member may be configured to contact an interior portion of the toilet seat, an interior portion of the toilet bowl, or a portion of another object or device. Any of the first, second, and third portions may be curved.
The wall member may be positioned within a range from about 0° to about 45° away from a second axis defined as a vertical axis perpendicular to a first axis defined as a longitudinal axis of the first lever member. The lever handle member may include a passageway that may be formed through a body portion thereof and the passageway may be adapted to receive a handle member that may extend therethrough. The handle member may be formed of a metal, a wood, a fabric, a leather, a plastic, or a foam. The abdominal support apparatus may include a main lever member that may extend outwardly from the lever handle member and the first and second lever members may extend outwardly from the main lever member.
The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Those of ordinary skill in the art realize that the following descriptions of the embodiments of the present invention are illustrative and are not intended to be limiting in any way. Other embodiments of the present invention will readily suggest themselves to such skilled persons having the benefit of this disclosure. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout, and prime notation is used to denote similar elements in alternative embodiments of the invention.
Although the following detailed description contains many specifics for the purposes of illustration, anyone of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that many variations and alterations to the following details are within the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the following embodiments of the invention are set forth without any loss of generality to, and without imposing limitations upon, the claimed invention.
In this detailed description of the present invention, a person skilled in the art should note that directional terms, such as “front,” “back,” “above,” “below,” “upper,” “lower,” and other like terms are used for the convenience of the reader in reference to the drawings. Also, a person skilled in the art should notice this description may contain other terminology to convey position, orientation, and direction without departing from the principles of the present invention.
Furthermore, in this detailed description, a person skilled in the art should note that quantitative qualifying terms such as “generally,” “substantially,” “mostly,” and other terms are used, in general, to mean that the referred to object, characteristic, or quality constitutes a majority of the subject of the reference. The meaning of any of these terms is dependent upon the context within which it is used, and the meaning may be expressly modified.
Furthermore, in this detailed description, a person skilled in the art should note that quantitative qualifying terms such as “about” or “nearly” and other terms are used, in general, to mean that the referred to object, characteristic, or quality is close to the subject of the reference. More specifically, the term “about 180 degrees” is used, in general, to mean that the referred to amount of rotation or angle of rotation is nearly, close to, or mostly 180 degrees depending on the context, but could vary by less than one, one, or multiple degrees. Other similar terms may also be used in similar contexts, for example, and without limitation, “about 0 degrees.” The meaning of any of these terms is dependent upon the context within which it is used, and the meaning may be expressly modified.
In this detailed description of the present invention, a person skilled in the art should note that the term “torso” and phrase “abdominal area” and other like terms or phrases are used for the convenience of the reader in reference to the invention. The term “torso” and phrase “abdominal area” and other like terms or phrases are used in the broadest sense possible without losing the meaning intended herein. For example, and without limitation, the torso or abdominal area of a user would generally include the internal and external components of a user's lower upper body, including, but not limited to, the stomach, duodenum, gallbladder, liver, large and small intestines, external and internal abdominal oblique, rectus abdominis, tendinous inscriptions, transverse abdominis, and pubic symphysis.
An embodiment of the invention, as shown and described by the various figures and accompanying text, provides an abdominal support apparatus that may provide support for a user's abdominal area during evacuation of the user's bowels or bladder. The abdominal support apparatus may relieve stress, strain, or pressure on the user's abdominal area, provide support for the user's abdominal area, or provide negative pressure to a user's abdominal area (provide pressure from an external source to negate the internal pressure created during defecation, urination, or other similar actions) during these waste removing activities or other similar actions. The abdominal support apparatus may provide pressure on the abdominal area of a user in an inward, downward, and/or upward basis. The femoral canal may be sealed by the user folding his or her thighs against the wall member.
Referring to
According to an embodiment of the present invention, as depicted, for example, in
For example, and without limitation, any combination of the wall member 110 and the first lever member 120, the first lever member 120 and the lever handle member 140, the lever handle member 140 and the second lever member 121, the second lever member 121 and the interior member, and all other components of the abdominal support apparatus 100 may be connected or attached by glue, adhesives, fasteners, screws, bolts, welding, or any other means or method known in the art. In addition, the connection for any components may be provided by a pivot joint, a ball and socket joint, a rotational joint, a knuckle joint, a turnbuckle, a pin joint, and/or any joint known in the art. The components connected by a joint system may pivot or rotate in numerous directions and at numerous angles and allow the abdominal support apparatus 100 to be adjustable and in numerous configurations.
The abdominal support apparatus 100 may include an angle between the first lever member 120 and the second lever member 121 extending outwardly from the lever handle member 140 between at least 1° and 30°. The wall member 110 may be circular, ovular, or polygonal, including, but not limited to, generally square, rectangular, and trapezoidal. The wall member 110 may include a top portion 111, a bottom portion 112, and opposing side portions 113. In some embodiments, the bottom portion 112 may be generally concave in the direction of the top portion 111. The wall member 110 may further include first and second opposing faces 114, 115 and a rounded edge 116. Furthermore, the first lever member 120 may be adjacent to the first opposing face 114. The second opposing face 115 may include one or more projections 117. The projections 117 may be configured in a variety of shapes, including, but not limited to, a convex shape, a concentric shape, or a shape generally conforming to the contours of a human external abdominal area. For example, and without limitation, the base of the projections 117 may be a tear drop shape and may rise away from the second opposing face 115 in a rounded and decreasing fashion. Those skilled in the art will further appreciate that the angle between the first lever member 120 and the second lever member 121 may be any angle at least greater than 0° and less than 180°. For example, and without limitation, the angle may be 10°.
Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the shape of the wall member 110, including, but not limited to, the top portion 111, the bottom portion 112, the opposing side portions 113, the first opposing face 114, the second opposing face 115, the rounded edge 116, and the projections 117, may be configured to optimally aid a user. For example, and without limitation, the rounded edge 116 may be configured to hinder or prevent pinching or squeezing of adipose tissue. Also for example, and without limitation, the bottom portion 112 may be straight, generally concave, generally convex, or a combination thereof to accommodate the lower body, including the legs and genitalia, of a user. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the wall member 110 may include any number of rounded edges 116 and/or projections 117 which may be located in any number of locations on or around the wall member 110. For example, and not by means of limitation, the present embodiment of the invention in
The wall member 110 may also be a bladder or bladder-like device that may be pneumatic. The wall member 110 may be filled with a gas, including, but not limited, to air or compressed air, and may be electronically operated through a nearby electrical outlet connection, a battery or batteries, or another power source (not shown). The wall member 110 may girdle or partially girdle the user's abdominal area or genitalia area.
For example, and without limitation, the design of the wall member 110 may express or reverse errant (reducible) tissue from the inguinal region of a user, hinder entry of migrating intestine, or stabilize a user's abdominal wall. The wall member 110 may accommodate various torso and abdominal area sizes.
As perhaps best illustrated in
For example, and without limitation, the first, second, and third portions 131, 132, 133 may be circular, ovular, or polygonal, including, but not limited to, generally square, rectangular, and trapezoidal. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that any number of portions of the interior member 130 may be configured to contact the interior portion of the toilet seat 150, the interior portion of the toilet bowl 151, or a portion of another object or device. For example, and without limitation,
Referring to
The wall member 110 may be positioned within a range from about 0° to about 45° away from a second axis 161 defined as an axis perpendicular to a first axis 160 defined as a longitudinal axis of the first lever member 120. Those skilled in the art will further appreciate that the wall member 110 may be further positioned any angular distance away from the second axis 161, i.e., any angle between 0° and 360° angularly away from the second axis. For example, and without limitation, the wall member 110 may be positioned within a range from about 0° to about 10° away from the second axis 161, which is positioned substantially perpendicular to the first axis 160 of the first lever member 120. As another example, and also without limitation, the wall member 110 may be angularly positioned about 0° away from the second axis 161, which is positioned substantially perpendicular to the first axis 160 of the first lever member 120. As another example, and further without limitation, the wall member 110 may be positioned about 10° away from the second axis 161, which is positioned substantially perpendicular to the first axis 160 of the first lever member 120.
Referring now to
The wall member 110′ may include a top portion 111′, a bottom portion 112′, opposing side sections 113′, a first opposing face 114′, a second opposing face 115′, at least one rounded edge 116′, and one or more projections 117′.
The lever handle member 140′ may include a passageway 141′ that may be formed through a body portion thereof and the passageway 141′ may be adapted to receive a handle member 142′ that may extend therethrough. The handle member 142′ may be formed of a metal, a wood, a fabric, a leather, a plastic, or a foam. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the handle member 142′ may be formed of any other material suitable for providing support that may be necessary for a user to grasp the handle. The abdominal support apparatus 100′ may include a surface material that may be attached to the lever handle member 140′ and may be more malleable than the surface of the lever handle member 140′. The surface material may provide more friction than the surface of the lever handle member 140′.
As further illustrated in
For example, and also without limitation, any combination of the main lever member 122′ and the lever handle member 140′ and the main lever member 122′ and the first and second lever members 120′, 121′ of the abdominal support apparatus 100′ may be connected or attached by glue, adhesives, fasteners, screws, bolts, welding, or any other means known in the art. In addition, the connection for any components may be provided by a pivot joint, a ball and socket joint, a rotational joint, a knuckle joint, a turnbuckle, a pin joint, and/or any joint known in the art. The components connected by a joint system may pivot or rotate in numerous directions and at numerous angles and allow the abdominal support apparatus 100′ to be adjustable and in numerous configurations.
The interior member 130′ may include a first portion 131′ connected to and extending outwardly from the second lever member 121′, a second portion 132′ connected to and extending from the first portion 161′, and a third portion 133′ connected to and extending inward from the second portion 132′.
As also depicted, for example, in
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
The abdominal support apparatus 100, 100′ may also employ a gear and lever arm device that would allow a user or other individual to engage or disengage the wall member 110, 110′ thereby increasing or decreasing the amount of pressure applied to the user's abdominal area. For example, a user or other individual may rotate a crank or handle attached to the gear which may cause the wall member 110, 110′ to be directed towards or away from the user's abdominal area.
Referring to
Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the various embodiments of an abdominal support apparatus 100, 100′ and the individual components of the abdominal support apparatus 100, 100′ may be any number of sizes, for example, small, medium, or large. The abdominal support apparatus 100, 100′ may portable or may be stationary and may be attached or fastened to a toilet seat 150, toilet bowl 151, or other object or device. The components of the abdominal support apparatus 100 may be removable and may be interchangeable with replacement or upgraded parts. The abdominal support apparatus 100, 100′ or components thereof may include a surface coating. The surface coating may include, without limitation, metals, metal alloys, carbon allotropes, ceramics, polymers, plastics, and composite materials. The abdominal support apparatus 100, 100′ or components thereof may be washable and/or sanitized so that excrement and waste may be removed from the abdominal support apparatus 100.
Some of the illustrative aspects of the present invention may be advantageous in solving the problems herein described and other problems not discussed which are discoverable by a skilled artisan.
While the above description contains much specificity, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of any embodiment, but as exemplifications of the presented embodiments thereof. Many other ramifications and variations are possible within the teachings of the various embodiments. While the invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the essential scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best or only mode contemplated for carrying out this invention, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims. Also, in the drawings and the description, there have been disclosed exemplary embodiments of the invention and, although specific terms may have been employed, they are unless otherwise stated used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention therefore not being so limited. Moreover, the use of the terms first, second, etc. do not denote any order or importance, but rather the terms first, second, etc. are used to distinguish one element from another. Furthermore, the use of the terms a, an, etc. do not denote a limitation of quantity, but rather denote the presence of at least one of the referenced item.
Thus the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, and not by the examples given.
