Patent Application
20150083718
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to garment storage and, more particularly, to laundry hampers and sorters for storing and pre-sorting of garments prior to laundering them.
2. General Background of the Invention Laundry hampers, and laundry sorters, comprising a garment storage hamper having two or more adjacent storage compartments within a common housing, have been known for some time. Today, such laundry sorters, in particular, often feature multiple removable laundry bags adjacently supported by a common frame. The use of removable laundry bags facilitates pre-sorting of garments by type prior to washing, such as separating white, light color, and dark color fabrics, so that each pre-sorted group of garments may be loaded directly into a washing machine. The use of removable laundry bags permits individual loads of pre-sorted laundry to be separately transported for placement within a washing machine.
Prior art laundry sorters having removable laundry bags, such as the one disclosed in U.S. Pub. No. 2006/0157358 A1, are commonly top loading in construction, meaning that removal and replacement of each supported laundry bag requires that the bag must be vertically lifted above the frame, in order to clear, among other structures, a top front horizontal bar or similar structure of the frame. Particularly during removal of the laundry bags, when they may be relatively heavily loaded with garments, vertically raising the bag above the frame may be cumbersome or difficult, particularly if the user is not physically strong, is relatively short in height, or is suffering from lower back pain or other physical ailment.
The present invention provides laundry hampers and sorters that overcome many of the shortcomings of certain prior art laundry sorters. In particular, laundry hampers and sorters are disclosed that are front loading, meaning that they permit removal and replacement of individual laundry bags without requiring the bags to be raised significantly in order to remove the laundry bags from engagement of and storage within a supporting frame.
In the hampers and laundry sorters of the present invention, removable laundry bags are supported, at least in part, by front vertical posts having cupped or saddle-shaped supports disposed atop the vertical posts. As a result, the requirement for a top front horizontal bar is eliminated, permitting the laundry bags to be removed and replaced in position using a substantially horizontal direction of movement. This, in turn, provides a significant ergonomic improvement over certain prior art top loading laundry sorters, as significantly less effort is required to both remove and replace the laundry bags.
While the present invention is susceptible of embodiment in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and will herein be described in detail, several specific embodiments, with the understanding that the present disclosure is intended as an exemplification of the principles of the present invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the embodiments illustrated.
A first embodiment of the present laundry sorter 10 is shown in
Angled side support tubes 70 each connect a respective outer front post 30 and rear post 40. Top rear horizontal tube 90 connects left and right rear posts 40. Two L-shaped support tubes 80 each connect a respective inner front post 30 to top rear horizontal tube 90 via T-coupling 130. T-couplings 130 may be constructed of a relatively rigid plastic material, and may include a cuff-shaped upper portion enabling a snap-fit engagement about top rear horizontal tube 90. T-couplings 130 may optionally include two opposing depressions or recessed regions to secure supported rear hooks 253 associated with laundry bags 200 against unwanted lateral movement.
Another form of T-couplings 120 connect two inner front posts 30 to front bottom horizontal tubes 50, and may likewise be constructed of a relatively rigid plastic material. Two bottom side tubes 60 each connect a respective outer front post 30 and rear post 40. Wire mesh surface 100 is disposed across front and rear bottom horizontal tubes 50.
Caster wheels 110 are coupled to the bottom ends of each of outer front posts 30 and rear posts 40, permitting laundry sorter 20 to be rolled about.
As best seen in
As best seen in
Fabric body 210 of laundry bag 200 further comprises four side loops 230, each extending vertically from a side surface of fabric body 210 and each disposed proximate a respective corner of top opening 220. Two hanger handles 250 are coupled to each fabric body 210 using side loops 230. Each hanger handle 250 may be constructed of a relatively rigid material such as steel or aluminum, and comprises arcuate central carrying region 251, front hook 252 and rear hook 253. Two linear regions 254 of hanger handle 250 are disposed on either side of central carrying region 251 and adjacent front hook 252 and rear hook 253. Hanger handles 250 are attached to fabric body 210 by passing front hook 252 and rear hook 253 through respective side loops 230, until each side loop 230 is disposed about an associated linear region 254.
Each laundry bag 250 is releasably attachable at a predetermined position of frame 20, with frame 20 supporting front hook 252 and rear hook 253. Specifically, rear hook 253 is disposed about a top region of rear horizontal tube 90. And may be retained in position in cooperation with T-coupling 130, as described above. Simultaneously, front hook 252 is disposed atop an associated saddle-shaped laundry bag support 150, nestled within opposing raised side surfaces of either first cupped region 151 and second cupped region 152. As shown in
As can be seen, through the use of laundry bag handle supports disposed atop vertical posts, coupled with the absence of a top horizontal tube or similar frame structure that presents an obstruction proximate the front of the frame, each laundry bag may be removed through an associated forward opening region of the frame, by raising the hanger handles only slightly, such that the front and back hooks of the hanger handles clear the saddle shaped support supporting them, thereby permitting the laundry bag to then be carried forward, towards the user and out of the interior of the laundry sorter's frame. Accordingly, each laundry bag need not be raised above the height of the frame in order to remove it from the frame, as would be required by some prior art, top loading laundry sorters.
Although the previously described embodiment discloses a laundry sorter consisting of three laundry bags 200, with a frame that includes two inner front posts 30, differently sized laundry sorters having different numbers of supported laundry bags are also contemplated by the present invention, including, but not limited to: i) a frame 20 supporting a single laundry bag 200, with no inner front posts 30, and two outer front posts, 30, each having a saddle-shaped laundry bag support 150 disposed atop the front post 30; ii) a frame 20 supporting two laundry bags 200, with a single inner front post 30 and two outer front posts 30, each having a saddle-shaped laundry bag support 150 disposed atop the front post 30; and iii) a frame 20 supporting four laundry bags 200, with three single inner front posts 30 and two outer front posts 30, each having a saddle-shaped laundry bag support 150 disposed atop the front post 30.
Many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced other than as specifically described. Various modifications, changes and variations may be made in the arrangement, operation and details of performing the various steps of the invention disclosed herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The present disclosure is intended to exemplify and not limit the invention.
This application is a continuation of U.S. nonprovisional application Ser. No. 14/036,988, filed Sep. 25, 2013, the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 14036988 | Sep 2013 | US |
| Child | 14559479 | US |
