Patent Application
20230148825
The present disclosure generally relates to a washing and cleaning system that receives fluid from a fluid delivery system, possibly regulated to a low-flow delivery rate.
Washing or cleaning systems often utilized a sponge. The sponge can be used to sop up or lift a fluid, such as water or a combination of water with a cleaning or washing additive. A sponge used to absorb or lift a liquid or fluid can be made from a porous material having a substantial number of closed pores within the body of the sponge. The pores absorb the fluid by lifting the fluid into the sponge body when washing a surface. The lifted fluid is typically a washing concentrate that has been previously applied but must later be absorbed or lifted from the cleaned surface.
Another application of a sponge is to apply fluid into the sponge body as the sponge is wiped across a relatively dry surface. In this application, the fluid is applied as the sponge is scrubbed across the surface. The sponge primary purpose is therefore not to sop up fluid but to apply fluid to the surface as the sponge undergoes a scrubbing action.
Depending upon whether the fluid is applied to the surface prior or during sponge application, the sponge can have different shapes and sizes. Moreover, depending on the surface on which the sponge is applied, the sponge can also have different compositions. Unique problems occur when using the sponge in a portable washing or cleaning system. For example, such systems often are coupled to a fluid delivery system that delivers fluid under reduced pressure at relatively low flow rate. Portable washing and cleaning systems coupled to low-flow delivery systems often cannot apply enough fluid to a washing or cleaning sponge to properly clean the targeted surface. A need therefore exists in providing either an at-home washing and cleaning sponge capable of receiving a residential flow rates and pressure, or a portable washing and cleaning sponge that receives fluid from a gravity bag, pump or regulated fluid delivery system and can nonetheless properly clean without receiving relatively large amounts of fluid pressure or flow therefrom. There is further need for a sponge that can receive lesser quantities of fluid pressure or flow into the sponge itself as the sponge is scrubbed across a target surface. A need also exists in securing a tube coupler into the scrub itself in an easy, cost effective, releasable and re-usable fashion.
In one embodiment disclosed herein, a scrub body is provided. The scrub body is that of a sponge for receiving a fluid, or liquid, as the scrub body is applied to a target surface in a scrubbing motion. Accordingly, the scrub body is not used to mop up or lift away fluid, but instead is used to contain fluid delivered to the scrub body and then from the scrub body to the surface. The scrub body preferably comprises two portions of material separated at an opening along a sidewall surface of the scrub body.
The opening can be a slit that extends only partially between the two portions. The two portions can be formed together of the same material, and of unibody construction, with the slit opening formed between two major opposed planar faces of the scrub body. Alternatively, the two portions can be two layers of the same or dissimilar material secured together around an entire perimeter of the scrub body except at the opening. For example, the slit can extend between two layers of similar material of similar roughness and texture, with a third layer secured to one of the two similar layers around the perimeter of the scrub body except at the opening. The third layer can be dissimilar in roughness and texture than the layer on which it is secured with different roughness and texture than either of the two layers of similar material surrounding the slit. Likewise, if the slit exists between two layers of dissimilar material, the roughness and texture of those two dissimilar layer is different.
An anchoring pocket extends into the scrub body between the two portions. The anchoring pocket extends from the opening at the sidewall of the scrub body and into the scrub body. The anchoring pocket comprises lateral sidewall surfaces. The lateral sidewall surfaces extend from the opening laterally outward from a pocket central axis and then inward toward the pocket central axis. The anchoring pocket therefore comprises opposed concave sidewall surfaces separated with the opening at one end of the opposed concave sidewall surfaces. The opening can be of variable opening distance as measured perpendicular to two major planar faces depending on an amount of force applied parallel to the two major planar faces. For example, the opening can start as a slit opening of relatively small opening distance as measured perpendicular to the two opposed planar faces. However, when force is applied parallel to the two opposed planar faces, the slit becomes more oval shaped that becomes almost circular shaped when maximum force is applied between the two opposed planar faces.
In another embodiment, a scrub anchoring system is provided. The scrub anchoring system comprises a scrub body of two portions of material separated at the opening, with an anchoring pocket extending partially between the two portions from that opening and between the two opposed concave sidewall surfaces. The scrub anchoring system also comprises a tube coupler that includes a hollow coupler body terminating at opposed male couplers. The male couplers can include one or more barbs that extend radially outward from a central axis of each male coupler. The tube coupler also includes a pair of continuous, seamlessly coupled unibody wings arranged on a midpoint of the coupler body equidistant from the opposed male coupler, or barbs, and comprising an aperture at a central axis of the wings aligned co-linear with the opposed male barbs. The wings are configured to flex in an arcuate pattern while the distal ends abut against the opposed concave sidewall surfaces as the tube coupler is placed inside the anchoring pocket. The distal ends of the wings therefore flex away from the central axis of the wings and against the opposed concave sidewall surfaces when the tube coupler is placed inside the anchoring pocket.
The distal ends of the wings comprise wing apertures configured to receive a string that, when pulled, flexes the distal ends of the wings toward the central axis of the wings and away from the opposed concave sidewall surfaces. Bending the distal ends of the wings away from the sidewall surfaces allows the tube coupler to be released from the anchoring pocket. The pair of wings can be coupled between a pair of tube stops that radially extend from the coupler body. Each tube stop is dimensioned to stop a distal end of a tube inserted onto the tube coupler and specifically onto the corresponding male coupler or barb. Alternatively, the pair of wings can be molded around and within a mold securement aperture extending through the coupler body equidistant from the opposed male barbs.
The opposed male coupler, which can be barbs, are dimensioned to securely receive a pair of fluid delivery tubes. One of the pair of fluid delivery tubes can extend from the scrub body when the tube coupler is placed inside the anchoring pocket, and the other one of the pair of fluid delivery tubes extends further into the scrub body when a tube coupler is placed inside the anchoring pocket. The fluid delivery tubes are dimensioned to provide up to 3.0 gallons per minute (gpm). However, performance of the present system is sufficiently efficient to ensure a 0.2 to 0.5 gpm is all that is needed to qualify as a low-flow delivery system into a low-flow scrub device. Preferably, the fluid delivery tubes inserted over the opposed male barbs and into the scrub are dimensioned with an inside diameter less than approximately 20 mm for residential, at-home shower wand plumbing systems regulated downward in flow to meet a low flow delivery. Alternatively, the inside diameter can be less than 10 mm for portable water delivery systems such as non-home gravity bags, pumps and pressurized water chambers.
According to yet another embodiment, a method is provided for securing and releasing a tube coupler into and from a scrub body. The method includes aligning the tube coupler with an anchoring pocket opening within the scrub body. The tube coupler can then be inserted through the opening and into the anchoring pocket. Flexible wings of the tube coupler are expanded against sidewall surfaces of the anchoring pocket as the tube coupler is inserted. Because the sidewall surfaces are opposed concave surfaces, once the distal ends of the wings reach the apex of the concave, the wings become more difficult to further insert into the anchoring pocket and the securement is then complete. The distal ends of the flexible wings of the tube coupler can be grasped to cause bending of the flexible wings away from the sidewall surfaces of the anchoring pocket. The tube coupler can then be drawn from the opening to complete the releasing of the tube coupler from the scrub body.
According to one exemplary embodiment, expanding the flexible wings comprises frictionally pressing the flexible wings in a more arcuate position as the distal ends of the flexible wings slide along sidewall surfaces of the anchoring pocket. The sidewall surfaces therefore cause the flexible wings to bend further as they slide along those sidewall surfaces. Conversely, when removing the tube coupler, a string coupled to each of the distal ends of the wings can be pulled while holding the tube coupler within the anchoring pocket. Pulling of the string coupled to the distal ends while holding the tube coupler will cause the wings to reshape into a more arcuate curvature away from the sidewall surfaces of the anchoring pocket to thereby allow release of the tube coupler and drawing of the tube coupler from the anchoring pocket and thus from the scrub body.
Embodiments described herein comprise a combination of features and characteristics included to address various shortcomings, including shortcomings of cleaning or scrubbing a surface with a low-flow scrub device. The anchoring pocket feature within a scrub body allows for a tube coupler to be easily inserted and thereafter easily released so that the tube coupler can be re-used in another scrub body having the same anchoring pocket system. This allows for the fairly inexpensive scrub body to be quickly and easily separated from a more expensive tube body, and the used scrub body to be readily discarded after its useful life has expired. The tube coupler allows an end user to secure a tube within an inexpensive, replaceable sponge. After use, the tube is easily removed from the used, or expired, sponge so that the user can add a new and inexpensive sponge body with the present anchoring pocket system. The inexpensive manufacturing steps needed to produce this scrub body coupled with the easily and securely fixed tube coupler system overcomes many disadvantages of conventional low-flow washing and cleaning systems.
For a detailed description of various exemplary embodiments, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings in which:
The following discussion is directed to various exemplary embodiments. However, one of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the examples disclosed herein have broad application, and that the discussion of any embodiment is meant only to be exemplary of that embodiment, and not intended to suggest that the scope of the disclosure, including the claims, is limited to that embodiment.
The drawing figures are not necessarily to scale. Certain features and components herein may be shown exaggerated in scale or in somewhat schematic form and some details of conventional elements may not be shown in interest of clarity and conciseness.
In the following discussion and in the claims, the terms “including” and “comprising” are used in an open-ended fashion, and thus should be interpreted to mean “including, but not limited to . . . .” Also, the term “couple” or “couples” is intended to mean either an indirect or direct connection. Thus, if a first device couples to a second device, that connection may be through a direct connection of the two devices, or through an indirect connection that is established via other devices, components, nodes, and connections. In addition, as used herein, the terms “axial” and “axially” generally mean along or parallel to a given axis (e.g., x, y or z direction or central axis of a body, outlet or port), while the terms “radial” and “radially” generally mean perpendicular to the given axis. For instance, an axial distance refers to a distance measured along or parallel to the axis, and a radial distance means a distance measured perpendicular to the axis.
As used herein, the terms “about,” “approximately,” substantially,” “generally,” and the like mean plus or minus 10% of the stated value or range. In addition, as used herein, a low-flow device refers to a cleaning or washing device, such as sponge, that receives low pressures and flow rates from a fluid delivery source that preferably delivers fluid at a low-flow, low-pressure to a tube coupler releasably attached to a scrub body. The low-flow amount of the liquid or fluid delivered to the low-flow device or scrub, arrives from a residential or portable fluid source that delivers fluid at a flow rate preferably less than approximately 0.5 gallons per minute (gpm), and preferably at a pressure less than 100 psi, and more preferably less than 60 psi. The low-flow pump delivers fluid into a relatively small conduit or flexible hose. The flexible hose can be made with any pliable material, such as rubber or the like, having a relatively small inner diameter. According to one example, the cross-sectional inner diameter of the tube can range anywhere from 2 to 20 mm, and preferably is less than 6 mm depending on whether the scrub anchoring system deliver fluid in a residential or portable environment. The flexible tube can be placed into a flexible low-flow device, such as scrub body, or alternatively into a flexible rag, pouf, dressing, brushes, or into any scrub device that can receive fluid as it is moved or scrubbed across a surface, such as a user's body.
A scrub body that can be made of a single, unibody construction of the same material. According to an alternative embodiment shown in
b illustrates an anchoring pocket 16 extending between the layers from opening 14 and inward into the scrub body 10. The opening 14 is a primary opening, and primary opening 14 exists only partially along a sidewall surface of scrub body 10. The sidewall surface is perpendicular to the opposed major planar faces of each layer. A secondary opening 18 exists at another end of anchoring pocket 16 opposite the primary opening 14.
The anchoring pocket 16 extends between layers from opening 14 laterally outward from anchoring pocket central axis 20 along coupling line 12 and then inward toward the pocket central axis 20 along line 12. Anchoring pocket 16 therefore has a sidewall surface defined by the coupling of layers along line 12 that faces pocket 16 symmetrical about pocket central axis 20 and between primary and secondary openings 14 and 18. Thus, the coupling of the two or more layers along line 12 but inside of the perimeter coupling location forms the sidewall surface of anchoring pocket 16. Those sidewall surfaces are shown with reference numeral 22 as being concave sidewall surfaces separated with the opening 14 at one end and the opposed secondary opening 18 at the other end. The primary opening is needed for insertion of a tube coupler into the scrub body 10, and the secondary opening 18 is needed for insertion of a tube distal end, previously coupled to and extending from the tube coupler, to further extend into the scrub body 10.
Referring back to
Turning now to
Turning now to
As shown in
Although
Turning now to
In addition to aperture 54 arranged around a central axis of wings 36, additional apertures 56a and 56b can be placed through the entire distal ends of wings 36. According to one example, apertures 54 and 56a, 56b can be molded within wings 36 possibly at the same time in which wings 36 are molded about the midpoint of tube coupler 30. Alternatively, apertures 54 and 56a, 56b can be molded within wings 36, and wings 36 can thereafter be coupled onto the midpoint of tube coupler 30. Thus, wings 36, along with their apertures can be coupled to the hollow coupler body 32, or molded around and into the hollow coupler body 32 as will be illustrated in further detail in
Turning now to
Use of a drawstring 60, and the method steps of pulling drawstring 60 while first securing tube 44a and thereafter releasing tube 44a provides an easy way in which to replace only the worn out scrub body 10 and not the reusable, more expensive tube coupler. Coupler 30 can be used for as many times as needed, however, scrub body 10 is designed to wear out. Due to its inexpensive cost to manufacture, scrub body 10 can be readily and easily replaced and thereafter secured or anchored with the reused tube coupler 30 with drawstring 60 attached. It is desirable that any grasping member, such as a drawstring 60, be secured to the distal ends of wings 36, to force the wings 36 to flex backward in a more arcuate position. The coupling therefore must be at the distal ends in order to effectuate that backward flexure of wings 36.
According to one embodiment, wings 36 can be coupled onto a midpoint of the hollow coupler body 32 via the perpendicular openings or apertures 68. Alternatively the wings 36 can be molded into apertures 68. The wings 36, coupled or molded, extend between tube stops 70a and 70b that radially extend from the central axis 70 from coupler body 32. If molded onto the midpoint between tube stops 70a and 70b, a portion of the mold which forms wings 36 extend into one or more apertures 68 to secure wings 36. If coupled, a securement member such as a screw can be placed through wings 36 and into apertures 68 after wings 36 are placed around the midpoint of the hollow coupler body 32. The coupler body 32 is preferably one piece, either including wings 36, or the wings 36 can be molded or coupled after the body 32 is formed. The wings 36, in either instance, are arranged onto the midpoint of the single, one piece coupler body 32 having opposed male barbs 34a, 34b. Alternatively, coupler body 32 can be two pieces secured together about wings 36 by snap fit or by coupling within apertures 68 a screw that holds the two pieces of coupler body 32 together and within wings 36.
While exemplary embodiments have been shown and described, modifications thereof can be made by one skilled in the art without departing from the scope or teachings herein. The embodiments described herein are exemplary only and are not limiting. Many variations and modifications of the systems, apparatus, and processes described herein are possible and are within the scope of the disclosure. For example, the slit that forms into a larger slit/opening exists between two or more portions of similar or dissimilar material, and wherein the portions can comprise similar or dissimilar unibody formed material or separately formed layers coupled together. If layers, at least two layers can comprise compressed cellulose. The compressed cellulose is designed to expand after fluid is delivered therein. The compressed cellulose can be more easily bonded together since it is stiffer than uncompressed cellulose, is of smaller package size for a less costly shipment footprint. Accordingly, the scope of protection is not limited to the embodiments described herein, but is only limited by the claims that follow, the scope of which shall include all equivalents of the subject matter of the claims. Unless expressly stated otherwise, the steps in a method claim may be performed in any order. The recitation of identifiers such as (a), (b), (c) or (1), (2), (3) before steps in a method claim are not intended to and do not specify a particular order to the steps, but rather are used to simplify subsequent reference to such steps.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 63/361,002 filed on Nov. 18, 2021, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63361002 | Nov 2021 | US |
