Patent Application
20130066287
The claimed invention relates to female urination device, and more particularly, to female urination devices which allow a female to urinate from a standing position.
Public restrooms for women are very often unclean and unsanitary. The toilet seats in public restrooms are often dirty or otherwise in an unsanitary condition. Because of this, women often squat above the toilet seat when using the public restroom to avoid touching the toilet seat. This can be difficult and unpleasant way for a woman to urinate, especially for a young girl. Similarly, women may have no choice but to squat while holding her clothing out of the way in order to urinate when no restroom is available while traveling, hiking or camping.
In prior art, various types of female urination devices have been proposed. However, many of these devices are complicated and cumbersome to use. Also, none of these devices provide a splash guard to protect the user from accidental leaking or spillage during use and a cushioned reared opening to alleviate any discomfort or irritation to the user's body during use. Further, none of these devices provide a rough outer surface, e.g., gripping surface, to prevent the device from slipping from the user's hand during use. This is a particular problem because many of these devices are constructed bio-degradable paper that can be flushed in a toilet, see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,480,703.
Additionally U.S. Pat. No. 5, 966,748 requires the user to wrap a flat sheet of material to form a funnel shaped device and the sanitary pad is susceptible to contamination during use because of its proximity to the anal area.
Further U.S. Pat. No. 4,681,573 requires two hands to prepare the collapsible device for use. One hand to hold the device while using the other hand to push the top portion of the device upward and the bottom portion of the device downward, or alternatively, one hand to push the top portion of the device upward and the other hand to push the bottom portion of the device downward. Also, U.S. Pat. No. 2,878,486 requires two hands to open the device for use from its unfolded position. The device is held in an opened hand with thumb and fingers and the handle portions are pulled in an upward direction with the fingers of the other hand until opened. It is preferable that only one hand is required to use and operate device.
Therefore, it is an object of the claimed invention to solve the aforementioned problems with the conventional female urination device.
Another object of the claimed invention is to provide a female urination device which is simple, easy to use and convenient to carry.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention, the female urination device for assisting a female in urinating from a standing position and for directing the urine a suitable distance from the female, comprises a first end having an opening for discharging urine, a second end having an opening for receiving the urine and being larger than the opening in the first end, and a splash guard extending downward from an upper portion of the second end. The splash guard covers a portion of the opening in the second end to provide a sealed perimeter at the second end to contain the urine within the device and prevent leakage of the urine.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention, the female urination device as aforesaid further comprises a rolling part to provide a smooth second end to eliminate sharp edges.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention, the female urination device as aforesaid further comprises a gripping portion on the exterior surface of the device.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention as aforesaid further comprises a sanitary wipe removably attached to an exterior surface of the device.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention, he splash guard is located at an upper portion of the second end and a rolling part is located at a lower portion of the second end to eliminate sharp edges.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention as aforesaid, the lower portion of the second end is concave in shape to provide a tight contoured fit.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention as aforesaid further comprises a second splash guard extending upwardly from the second end to contain the urine within the device and prevent leakage of the urine.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention as aforesaid, the female urination device is made from a biodegradable and water-resistant material.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention as aforesaid, the interior surfaces of the device are coated with water-resistant coating, epoxy or synthetic resin.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention as aforesaid, the device is funnel shaped in an open useable configuration.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention, a disposable device for assisting a female in urinating from a standing position and for directing the urine a suitable distance from the female comprises a first end having an opening for discharging urine, a second end having an opening for receiving the urine and being larger than the opening in the first end, and a rolling part at the second end to provide a smooth second end to eliminate sharp edges. Preferably, the device further comprises a splash guard extending downward from an upper portion of the second end and covering a portion of the opening in the second end to provide a sealed perimeter at the second end to contain the urine with the device and prevent leakage of the urine.
Various other objects, advantages and features of the claimed invention will become readily apparent from the ensuing detailed description. Novel features will be emphatically pointed out in the appended claims.
The claimed invention is further explained in the description which follows with reference to the drawings, illustrations illustrating, by way of non-limiting examples, various embodiments of the invention, with like reference numerals representing similar parts throughout the several views, and wherein:
As illustrated in
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention, the device 1000 comprises two opposing upper panels 1100 and two opposing lower panels 1200. The upper panel 1100 is defined by an upper longitudinal crease 1110 and a side longitudinal crease 1120. The lower panel 1200 is defined by a lower longitudinal crease 1210 and a side longitudinal crease 1120. These panels 1100, 1200 can be made of any suitable, water-resistant, pliable material, such as paper, cardboard, plastic and the like. Alternatively, the interior surfaces or both interior and exterior surfaces of the panels 1100, 1200 can be coated with a thin, water-resistant coating, epoxy or synthetic resin to prevent the urine passing through the device 1000 from leaking through the panels 1100, 1200.
Although many of the prior urination device is made from a biodegradable material that can be flushed downed the toilet after use, such devices are too flimsy and not sturdy enough to provide adequate protection during use. Accordingly, the claimed device 1000 is preferably made of sturdy biodegradable material that can be disposed of in any conventional manner, e.g., a waste receptacle, without any adverse environmental effect.
The device 1000 is preferably constructed from a blank, not shown, wherein longitudinal creases 1110, 1120, 1210 are scored on the blank. The device 1000 is preferably packaged in a closed or a flat configuration as shown in
Each of the two opposing lower panels 1200 has a first end 1220 and a second end 1230. Preferably, the second end 1230 is concave to provide a tight contoured fit around the woman's vulva when the device is held in place during use. In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention, the second end 1230 comprises a rolling part 1240 to provide a smooth curved second end 1230, thereby eliminating any sharp edges touching the user and alleviating any potential discomfort or irritation to the user's body during use.
Each of the two opposing upper panels 1100 has a first end 1130 and a second end 1140. In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention, the second end 1140 of the upper panels 1100 comprises a splash guard 1300 to protect the user from accidental leakage or spillage during use. The splash guard 1300 and the rolling part 1240 of the second end 1230 provide a comfortable, sealed perimeter around the vulva to protect the user from accidental leakage or spillage during use. Also, the splash guard 1300 insures that urine is directed towards the interior channel 1420 of the device 1000 and does not splash out of the device 1000. Preferably, the upper panels 1100 additionally comprises a second splash guard 1310 (as shown in
The user applies pressure to both the lower longitudinal crease 1210 and the upper longitudinal crease 1100 of the device 1000 in a closed configuration (see, e.g.,
In the opened/useable configuration, the second ends 1140 of the opposing upper panels 1100, the second ends 1230 of the opposing lower panels 1200 and the splash guard 1300 form a second opening 1410. The second opening 1410 of the device 1000 is placed around the woman's vulva to permit the woman to urinate from a standing position. Preferably, the device 1000 is used such that the splash guard 1300 is at the top of the device 1000 and the opposing lower panels 1200 is at the bottom of the device 1000 to direct the urine to the first opening 1400 and to provide a comfortable, tight contoured fit around the vulva by the rolling part 1240 of the concave second end 1230.
In the opened/useable configuration, the device 1000 resembles a funnel with the first ends 1130 of the opposing upper panels 1100 and the first ends 1220 of the opposing lower panels 1200 forming a first opening 1400. The urine travels down the interior channel 1420 of the device 1000 and exits the device 1000 away from the user through the first opening 1400. Preferably, the first opening is angled such that the opposing upper panels 1100 extends beyond the lower panels 1200 to prevent the exiting urine from splashing upward.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the claimed invention, as shown in
In accordance embodiment of the claimed invention, as shown in
Although the claimed invention and its advantages have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Moreover, the scope of the present application is not intended to be limited to the particular embodiments of the claimed invention described in the specification.
