Patent Application
20230233035
The present invention relates to the field of washing devices. Devices exist in said art that comprise a handle portion and a sponge portion. In many of said devices, the handle portion and sponge portion are permanently attached, which means that the entire device must be discarded when a new sponge portion is needed. Since sponge portions of washing devices inherently become soiled overtime, disposing of said devices is inevitable if the sponge portion is permanently attached to the handle portion.
Some devices in the art exist with sponge portions that are removably attached to the handle portion. However, the methods of attaching these sponge portions are often not secure and lead to the sponge portions being unwantedly detached form the handle portions.
The present invention is a modular washing device comprising a handle and a loofah. The loofah may be removably connected to the handle by means of a rope and a tensioning member. The tensioning member may be rotatably connected to the handle by means of a pivot.
The loofah of the washing device may exist as a sponge portion connected to the rope. The rope may comprise a first end and a second end that are both connected to the sponge portion of the loofah to create a closed loop. The sponge portion of the loofah may be quasi-circular in shape and may have a diameter. The diameter of the sponge portion, which is also referred to the diameter of the loofah herein, may be the diameter of a circle that best fits the quasi-circular shape of the sponge portion of the loofah. The diameter of the loofah may be at least 3 inches. The diameter of the loofah may further be at least 5 inches. The diameter of the loofah may further be at least 7 inches. Loofahs with smaller diameters are lighter when saturated with liquid and/or soap and fit better into smaller crevices. Loofahs with larger diameters cover a greater area when used for washing.
The sponge portion of the loofah may be any material or configuration of material that when assembled to form the sponge portion, is capable of absorbing liquids. In preferred embodiments of the invention, the loofah is a common string loofah that is well known in the art of washing devices. In such embodiments, the sponge portion of the loofah may be made of the materials used to make common string loofahs, such as but not limited to nylon or natural luffa. In other embodiments, the sponge portion of the loofah may be made of a sponge material, which is a material used to make sponges common to the art of washing devices. Sponge materials include but are not limited to natural sponge, polyester, polyurethane, or vegetal cellulose.
The handle of the washing device may have a length of at least 12 inches. The handle may further have a length of at least 16 inches. The handle may further have a length of at least 20 inches. Handles with shorter lengths are lighter and more easily maneuverable. Handles with longer lengths are more effective at reaching difficult-to-reach areas of one's body when washing, such as the middle of one's back.
The length of the handle may extend from a handle end to a washing end. The handle end may be grasped by a user when the user uses the washing device to wash themselves. A loofah plate may be configured at the washing end of the handle. The loofah plate may be circular or quasi-circular in shape to mimic the basic form of the sponge portion of the loofah. The loofah plate may have a diameter, that may be less than or equal to the diameter of the loofah. The diameter of the loofah plate may be referred to as the “washing end diameter” herein. In some embodiments, the washing end diameter may be greater than the diameter of the loofah. In some embodiments, the washing end diameter may be greater than or equal to 3 inches, but not more than 6 inches. The diameter of the loofah does not affect the length of the handle. That is to say that any diameter of loofah may be used with any length of handle.
A slot may be cut out of the loofah plate. The slot may extend from the edge of the loofah plate to a point near the center of the loofah plate. The slot may be rectangular in shape. The slot may have sharp corners. Alternatively, the slot may have rounded corners. The slot may have a length and a width. The width of the slot may be great enough to accept the closed loop of the rope.
The handle may have a top surface into which a groove may be cut. The groove may have a length and a width. The length of the groove may be parallel to the direction of the length of the handle. The width of the groove may be perpendicular to the direction of the length of the groove. The tensioning member may be rotatably connected to the handle by rotatably connecting the tensioning member to the inside walls of the groove by means of the pivot. The pivot may be located at a pivot end of the tensioning member. The tensioning member may have a length that extends from the pivot end to a locking end of the tensioning member. The length of the tensioning member may be less than or equal to the length of the groove. The tensioning member may also have a width that extends perpendicular to the direction of the length of the tensioning member. The width of the tensioning member may be less than or equal to the width of the groove.
The locking end of the tensioning member may comprise a portion of a lock. The end of the groove that is closest to the locking end of the tensioning member when the tensioning member rests within the groove may comprise another portion of said lock. The lock may be used to secure the tensioning member in place when the tensioning member rests within the groove. The lock may be released so that the tensioning member can rotate freely relative to the handle.
The tensioning member may have at least two opposite faces: a first face and a second face. The first face of the tensioning member may be flush with the top surface of the handle when the tensioning member rests within the groove. The second face of the tensioning member may be the face of the tensioning member that is closest to the bottom of the groove when the tensioning member rests within the groove. A plurality of capture features may extend from the second face of the tensioning member. The closed loop formed by the rope of the loofah may be configured around one of the capture features.
The number of capture features may be at least 3. The number of capture features may further be at least 5. The number of capture features may further be at least 7. A smaller number of capture features increases the manufacturability of the tensioning member, decreases the cost to manufacture the tensioning member, and may increase the strength of each capture feature. A larger number of capture features increases the usability of the washing device by allowing for a greater number of tension options for the rope of the loofah when the rope of the loofah is configured around one of the capture features.
The capture features may be tooth-shaped. “Tooth-shaped” is defined as a quasi-triangular shape that comprises three corners connected by straight lines and/or curves. The corners of tooth-shaped objects may be rounded. The capture features may each have one rounded corner that makes up the end of the capture features that is located furthest from the second face of the tensioning member. The capture features may each have two other corners that are blended into the second face of the tensioning member. A convex curve and a concave curve may extend from the rounded corner of each capture feature towards the second face of the tensioning member. The concave curve of each capture feature may form a surface on which the rope of the loofah may rest when the loofah is removably attached to the handle.
The loofah may be removably attached to the handle by first placing the sponge portion of the loofah against the loofah plate. The closed loop made by the rope of the loofah may then be threaded through the slot of the loofah plate. The closed loop may then be configured around one of the capture features of the tensioning member. Configuring the closed loop around one of the capture features may comprise resting a portion of the rope against the surface formed by the concave curve of one of the capture features.
The capture features may be exposed by rotating the tensioning member away from the handle and therefore out of the groove. Once the closed loop is configured around one of the capture features, the tensioning member may then be rotated towards the handle so that it once again rests in the groove, thus securing the loofah in place. Rotating the tensioning member towards the handle when the closed loop is configured around one of the capture features may create tension in the rope which helps to secure the loofah in place. The tensioning member may further be secured in place by use of the lock at the locking end of the tensioning member and corresponding end of the groove.
Once the loofah is attached to the handle, the washing device may be used to wash oneself. Soap may be added to the sponge portion of the loofah for washing. The soap added to the loofah may be any liquid soap used to wash one's body, such as liquid body wash or liquid shampoo. The soap added to the loofah may further be suds generated from solid soap such as solid bar soap. Solid soap may be rubbed against the sponge portion of the loofah to generate suds, which are deposed on the sponge portion of the loofah and may be used to wash oneself. The handle portion of the handle may be grasped in order to use the washing device to wash oneself. The handle may further be grasped at any located of the handle depending on the user's preference.
The description provided herein describes example embodiments of the present invention and is not intended to limit the invention to any particular embodiment, feature, use, size, shape, or any other property. Furthermore, the figures provided herein are for means of example, and are not intended to limit the invention to any particular embodiment, feature, use, size, shape, or any other property. The claimed invention is best understood by the appended claims.
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A groove 32 is cut into a top surface 30 of the handle 20. The groove 32 has a length 32. A tensioning member 40 is configured within the groove 32. The tensioning member 40 is an elongated member with a length 41 that extends from a locking end 48 to a pivot end 46. The length 41 of the tensioning member 40 is less than or equal to the length 33 of the groove 32. The pivot end 46 of the tensioning member 40 connects to the walls of the groove 32 by means of a pivot 47, such that the tensioning member 40 is rotatably connected to the groove 32, and therefore rotatably connected to the handle 20. The locking end 48 of the tensioning member 40 may connect to the groove via a lock (not shown). A plurality of capture features 41, 41′, 41″, 41′″, 41″″, 41′″″, and 41″″″ are configured on a surface of the tensioning member 40 that is opposite to the surface of the tensioning member 40 that is flush with the top surface 30 of the handle 20.
The loofah has a diameter 53 that extends across a sponge portion 52 of the loofah. A rope 54 is connected to the sponge portion 52 of the loofah 50. The rope 54 comprises a first end and a second end, which are both connected to the sponge portion 52 to form a closed loop.
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