Inverted bonnet hair dryer

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6266893
  • Patent Number
    6,266,893
  • Date Filed
    Monday, September 18, 2000
    23 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, July 31, 2001
    22 years ago
Abstract
The inverted bonnet hair dryer is comprised of a bowl with a closed end and an open end. The bowl is pivotally supported on a stand and is rotatable to a position with its open end facing upward. The bowl is comprised of a hemispherical concave inner wall which is generally spaced from an outer wall. The perimeter of the inner wall is connected to the outer wall to define a space between the walls. A hollow tube is attached to the outer wall. An aperture at an outer end of the tube is in communication with the space within the bowl. The aperture is adapted to receive the head of a conventional hand-held electric blow dryer. When the open end is facing upward, the bowl is adapted to be positioned under the head of a person. The head is inverted to hang the hair under the head. The inner wall of the bowl is adapted to evenly support the hair. When the blow dryer is activated, hot air is forced into the space between the walls and released through holes on the inner wall to dry the hair. Greater volume in the hair is produced by drying it in a hanging position under an inverted head. In a second embodiment, an electric blow dryer is integrally attached to the bowl.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




1. Field of the Invention




This invention relates generally to hair dryers.




2. Prior Art




One of the most desirable attributes of all hair styles is volume, but it is not easy to produce. Since wet hair is heavy, it tends to hang straight down from the top of the scalp when the head is upright. If the hair is dried in such a position, it will be flat and lifeless. To produce volume, the hair must be lifted perpendicularly away from the scalp while it is drying. The conventional technique for creating volume is to dry the hair with a hand-held blow dryer in one-hand, and scrunch the hair with the other hand. Because only a small tuff of hair can scrunched at a time and only temporarily, while the rest of the hair is hanging flat against the scalp, little volume can be produced with this technique. It is also slow and tiring since typical drying time is about 15 minutes.




Bonnet hair dryers are available for drying the entire head of hair simultaneously and hands-free. A typical bonnet hair dryer is comprised of a bowl hinged to a stand. The bowl is positioned with its open end facing down and over the head of a person. An electric blow dryer is attached to the closed end of the bowl for drying the hair. However, since the hair is dried while it is hanging straight down from the scalp, the hair is dried flat and lifeless.




Other types of bonnet hair dryers are known among the prior art. Some of them are comprised of bowls with an open end positioned on the side for receiving a reclining head. Because the hair at the front half of the head is still hung flat against the scalp, such bonnet dryers still dry the hair without any volume. None of the prior art bonnet hair dryers can be positioned with the open end of the bowl facing upward.




OBJECTIVES OF THE INVENTION




Accordingly, the objectives of the present inverted bonnet hair dryer are:




to dry hair with greater volume;




to dry hair hands-free;




to dry hair more quickly; and




to be adjustable to different positions.




Further objectives of the present invention will become apparent from a consideration of the drawings and ensuing description.




BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




The present inverted bonnet hair dryer is comprised of a bowl with a closed end and an open end. The bowl is pivotally supported on a stand and is rotatable to a position with its open end facing upward. The bowl is comprised of a hemispherical concave inner wall which is generally spaced from an outer wall. The perimeter of the inner wall is connected to the outer wall to define a space between the walls. A hollow tube is attached to the outer wall. An aperture at an outer end of the tube is in communication with the space within the bowl. The aperture is adapted to receive the head of a conventional hand-held electric blow dryer. When the open end is facing upward, the bowl is adapted to be positioned under the head of a person. The head is inverted to hang the hair under the head. The inner wall of the bowl is adapted to evenly support the hair. When the blow dryer is activated, hot air is forced into the space between the walls and released through holes on the inner wall to dry the hair. Greater volume in the hair is produced by drying it in a hanging position under an inverted head. In a second embodiment, an electric blow dryer is integrally attached to the bowl.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING





FIG. 1

is a perspective view of the present inverted bonnet hair dryer.





FIG. 2

is a perspective view thereof rotated to show the aperture for receiving a conventional hand-held blow dryer.





FIG. 3

is a perspective view thereof with a conventional hand-held blow dryer attached.





FIG. 4

is a perspective view thereof in use.





FIG. 5

is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment thereof.















DRAWING REFERENCE NUMERALS


























10. Bowl




11. Closed End







12. Open End




13. U-Shaped Frame







14. Stand




15. Inner Wall







16. Outer Wall




17. Space







18. Holes




19. Tube







20. Aperture




21. Funnel







22. Retainers




23. Seal







24. Head




25. Blow Dryer







26. Handle




27. Blow Dryer






















DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION




FIG.


1


:




A first embodiment of the present inverted bonnet hair dryer is shown in a perspective view in FIG.


1


. It is comprised of a bowl


10


with a closed end


11


and an open end


12


. Bowl


10


is pivotally supported in a U-shaped frame


13


which is part of a stand


14


. Bowl


10


is preferably rotatable 360 degrees about the horizontal axis in frame


13


, and frame


13


is rotatable 360 degrees about the vertical axis on stand


14


. Alternatively, the stand may be eliminated, and bowl


10


may be provided with feet adjacent closed end


11


for standing on a table or counter.




Bowl


10


is comprised of a hemispherical concave inner wall


15


which is generally spaced from an outer wall


16


. The perimeter of inner wall


15


is connected to outer wall


16


to define a space


17


between the walls. Holes


18


are arranged throughout the surface of inner wall


15


.




A hollow tube


19


is attached to outer wall


16


. An aperture


20


at an outer end of tube


19


is in communication with space


17


within bowl


10


. A funnel


21


is attached around aperture


20


, and retainers


22


are attached to funnel


21


. Retainers


22


are preferably hook-and-loop straps, but other types of retainers may be used. Also, retainers


22


may be attached directly to outer wall


16


of bowl


10


. Tube


19


may be eliminated and aperture


20


may be provided directly on outer wall


16


.




FIG.


2


:




In

FIG. 2

, bowl


10


is rotated within frame


13


to move aperture


20


to more accessible position. An annular elastic seal


23


is positioned across aperture


20


.




FIG.


3


:




In

FIG. 3

, a head


24


of a conventional hand-held blow dryer


25


is inserted into aperture


20


. The insertion of blow dryer


25


is aided by funnel


21


. Blow dryer


25


is secured in position by retainers


22


which are strapped around a handle


26


on blow dryer


25


. The gap between aperture


20


and head


24


of blow dryer


25


is generally closed by seal


23


to prevent air leaks.




FIG.


4


:




In

FIG. 4

, the bonnet hair dryer is shown in use. Bowl


10


is rotated to a position in which open end


12


is facing substantially upward. Bowl


10


is adapted to be positioned under the head of a person, who can be standing or sitting. The head is inverted to hang the hair under the head. The hemispherical concave inner wall of bowl


10


is adapted to evenly support all of the hair. When blow dryer


25


is activated, hot air is forced into the space between the walls and released through the holes on the inner wall to dry all the hair simultaneously and hands-free. Much greater volume in the hair is produced by drying it in a hanging position under an inverted head. Drying time is also substantially improved over that of conventional bonnet hair dryers, because hair hanging from an inverted head is looser and has more space between them for air circulation.




FIG.


5


:




In a second embodiment shown in

FIG. 5

, an integral electric blow dryer


27


is attached to bowl


10


for directing hot air into space


17


between inner wall


15


and outer wall


16


, and out the holes on the inner wall.




SUMMARY AND SCOPE




Accordingly, the present inverted bonnet hair dryer dries hair with greater volume. It dries hair hands-free. It dries hair more quickly. It is also adjustable to different positions.




Although the above description is specific, it should not be considered as a limitation on the scope of the invention, but only as an example of the preferred embodiment. Many variations are possible within the teachings of the invention. For example, different attachment methods, fasteners, materials, dimensions, etc. can be used unless specifically indicated otherwise. The relative positions of the elements can vary, and the shapes of the elements can vary. Therefore, the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, not by the examples given.



Claims
  • 1. A bonnet hair dryer, comprising:a bowl with a closed end and an open end, wherein said open end is positionable to be generally horizontal and face substantially upward to receive a fully inverted head of a user, said bowl is free of any obstruction that can prevent said fully inverted head from being positioned in said bowl, said bowl is comprised of: a hemispherical concave inner wall with a plurality of air holes distributed thereon, wherein said inner wall is adapted to evenly support wet hair hanging from said fully inverted head; and an outer wall spaced from said inner wall, wherein a perimeter of said inner wall is connected to said outer wall to define an enclosed space between said inner wall and said outer wall, wherein said space is adapted to receive hot air from a blow dryer; wherein said air holes on said inner wall are adapted to release and direct said hot air all around said wet hair; wherein since said wet hair is hanging from said fully inverted head, said wet hair is dried with more volume and in less time; and wherein said inner wall is generally hemispherical for closely supporting said wet hair for greater heating and faster drying.
  • 2. The bonnet hair dryer of claim 1, wherein said bowl is pivotally supported on a stand about a horizontal axis for being adjustable to different positions.
  • 3. The bonnet hair dryer of claim 1, wherein said bowl is pivotally supported within a U-shaped frame about a horizontal axis for being adjustable to different positions.
  • 4. The bonnet hair dryer of claim 1, further including an electric blow dryer attached to said bowl in communication with said space between said inner wall and said outer wall.
  • 5. A bonnet hair dryer, comprising:a bowl with a closed end and an open end, wherein said open end is positionable to be generally horizontal and face substantially upward to receive a fully inverted head of a user, said bowl is free of any obstruction that can prevent said fully inverted head from being positioned in said bowl, said bowl is comprised of: a hemispherical concave inner wall with a plurality of air holes distributed thereon, wherein said inner wall is adapted to evenly support wet hair hanging from said fully inverted head; and an outer wall spaced from said inner wall, wherein a perimeter of said inner wall is connected to said outer wall to define an enclosed space between said inner wall and said outer wall; an aperture on said outer wall in communication with said space between said inner wall and said outer wall, wherein said aperture is adapted to receive a head of a conventional hand-held electric blow dryer and direct hot air into said space between said inner wall and said outer wall; wherein said air holes on said inner wall are adapted to release and direct said hot air all around said wet hair; wherein since said wet hair is hanging from said fully inverted head, said wet hair is dried with more volume and in less time; and wherein said inner wall is generally hemispherical for closely supporting said wet hair for greater heating and faster drying.
  • 6. The bonnet hair dryer of claim 5, wherein said bowl is pivotally supported on a stand about a horizontal axis for being adjustable to different positions.
  • 7. The bonnet hair dryer of claim 5, wherein said bowl is pivotally supported within a U-shaped frame about a horizontal axis for being adjustable to different positions.
  • 8. The bonnet hair dryer of claim 5, further including a funnel around said aperture for guiding said blow dryer into said aperture.
  • 9. The bonnet hair dryer of claim 5, further including an elastic seal around said aperture for sealing a gap between said blow dryer and said aperture and preventing air leaks.
  • 10. The bonnet hair dryer of claim 5, further including a retainer connected to said bowl for retaining said blow dryer in said aperture.
  • 11. The bonnet hair dryer of claim 5, further including a strap connected to said bowl adjacent said aperture for retaining said blow dryer in said aperture.
  • 12. A bonnet hair dryer, comprising:a bowl with a closed end and an open end, wherein said open end is positionable to be generally horizontal and face substantially upward to receive a fully inverted head of a user, said bowl is free of any obstruction that can prevent said fully inverted head from being positioned in said bowl, said bowl is comprised of: a hemispherical concave inner wall with a plurality of air holes distributed thereon, wherein said inner wall is adapted to evenly support wet hair hanging from said fully inverted head; and an outer wall spaced from said inner wall, wherein a perimeter of said inner wall is connected to said outer wall to define an enclosed space between said inner wall and said outer wall; a hollow tube attached to said outer wall in communication with said space between said inner wall and said outer wall; and an aperture at an outer end of said hollow tube adapted to receive a head of a conventional hand-held electric blow dryer; an elastic seal around said aperture for sealing a gap between said blow dryer and said aperture and preventing air leaks; a strap connected to said bowl adjacent said aperture for retaining said blow dryer in said aperture; wherein said air holes on said inner wall are adapted to release and direct said hot air all around said wet hair; wherein since said wet hair is hanging from said fully inverted head, said wet hair is dried with more volume and in less time; and wherein said inner wall is generally hemispherical for closely supporting said wet hair for greater heating and faster drying.
  • 13. The bonnet hair dryer of claim 12, wherein said bowl is pivotally supported on a stand about a horizontal axis for being adjustable to different positions.
  • 14. The bonnet hair dryer of claim 12, wherein said bowl is pivotally supported within a U-shaped frame about a horizontal axis for being adjustable to different positions.
  • 15. The bonnet hair dryer of claim 12, further including a funnel around said aperture for guiding said blow dryer into said aperture.
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2073401 Crowley Mar 1937
2632960 Bucknell et al. Mar 1953
2663090 Flaxman Dec 1953
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4692594 Martin Sep 1987
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5671321 Bagnuolo Sep 1997