PERSONAL, PORTABLE, FOLDING TOILET SEAT

Abstract

A personal, portable, folding toilet seat is provided. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat includes a plurality of support sections and a plurality of hinges. Each of the hinges is configured to connected adjacent support sections together. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat is configured for a first, deployed orientation and a second, stowed orientation. In the second, stowed orientated, the plurality of support sections are stacked upon each other.

Description

FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to toilet seats, and more particularly, to toilet seats configured for use with toilet bowls commonly found in penal institutions.

Introduction

This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.

In the United States, there are approximately three million people incarcerated in prisons at any given time. Over the years, toilet seats have been phased out for various reasons, including use as a weapon, destruction and costs to repair. In lieu of toilet seats, prisons use stainless steel toilets that do not have a separate toilet seat.

Inmates commonly use other objects, such as the non-limiting examples of flip-flops and shower shoes, positioned between the inmate and the stainless steel toilet to provide a barrier between the inmate and the upper surface of the stainless steel toilet.

It would be advantageous if using a stainless steel toilet could be made more sanitary.

SUMMARY

It should be appreciated that this Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form, the concepts being further described below in the Detailed Description. This Summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of this disclosure, nor is it intended to limit the scope of the personal, portable, folding toilet seat.

The above objects as well as other objects not specifically enumerated are achieved by a personal, portable, folding toilet seat. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat includes a plurality of support sections and a plurality of hinges. Each of the hinges is configured to connected adjacent support sections together. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat is configured for a first, deployed orientation and a second, stowed orientation. In the second, stowed orientated, the plurality of support sections are stacked upon each other.

The above objects as well as other objects not specifically enumerated are also achieved by a method of using a personal, portable, folding toilet seat. The method includes the steps of connecting a plurality of adjacent support sections together with a plurality of hinges, orientating the plurality of adjacent support sections in a first deployed arrangement, folding the plurality of adjacent support sections into a second, stowed orientation, wherein in the second, stowed orientated, the plurality of support sections are stacked upon each other.

Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein. The description and specific examples in this summary are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

DRAWINGS

The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected embodiments and not all possible implementations, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a left side perspective view of a conventional seatless toilet.

FIG. 2A is a top perspective view of a personal, portable, folding toilet seat in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 2B is a front perspective view of the personal, portable, folding toilet seat of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 3A is a perspective view of the conventional seatless toilet of FIG. 1 prior to installation of the personal, portable, folding toilet seat of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 3B is a left side perspective view of the seatless toilet of FIG. 1 illustrated with the personal, portable, folding toilet seat of FIGS. 2A and 2B in an installed orientation.

FIG. 4A is a left side perspective view of the personal, portable, folding toilet seat of FIGS. 2A and 2B shown in a first, deployed orientation.

FIG. 4B is a plan perspective view of the personal, portable, folding toilet seat of FIG. 4A shown in a partially folded orientation.

FIG. 4C is a plan perspective view of the personal, portable, folding toilet seat of FIG. 4B shown in a second, stowed orientation.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following description of technology is merely exemplary in nature of the subject matter, manufacture and use of one or more inventions, and is not intended to limit the scope, application, or uses of any specific invention claimed in this application or in such other applications as may be filed claiming priority to this application, or patents issuing therefrom. Regarding methods disclosed, the order of the steps presented is exemplary in nature, and thus, the order of the steps can be different in various embodiments, including where certain steps can be simultaneously performed, unless expressly stated otherwise. “A” and “an” as used herein indicate “at least one” of the item is present; a plurality of such items may be present, when possible. Except where otherwise expressly indicated, all numerical quantities in this description are to be understood as modified by the word “about” and all geometric and spatial descriptors are to be understood as modified by the word “substantially” in describing the broadest scope of the technology. “About” when applied to numerical values indicates that the calculation or the measurement allows some slight imprecision in the value (with some approach to exactness in the value; approximately or reasonably close to the value; nearly). If, for some reason, the imprecision provided by “about” and/or “substantially” is not otherwise understood in the art with this ordinary meaning, then “about” and/or “substantially” as used herein indicates at least variations that may arise from ordinary methods of measuring or using such parameters.

Although the open-ended term “comprising,” as a synonym of non-restrictive terms such as including, containing, or having, is used herein to describe and claim embodiments of the present technology, embodiments may alternatively be described using more limiting terms such as “consisting of” or “consisting essentially of” Thus, for any given embodiment reciting materials, components, or process steps, the present technology also specifically includes embodiments consisting of, or consisting essentially of, such materials, components, or process steps excluding additional materials, components or processes (for consisting of) and excluding additional materials, components or processes affecting the significant properties of the embodiment (for consisting essentially of), even though such additional materials, components or processes are not explicitly recited in this application. For example, recitation of a composition or process reciting elements A, B and C specifically envisions embodiments consisting of, and consisting essentially of, A, B and C, excluding an element D that may be recited in the art, even though element D is not explicitly described as being excluded herein.

As referred to herein, disclosures of ranges are, unless specified otherwise, inclusive of endpoints and include all distinct values and further divided ranges within the entire range. Thus, for example, a range of “from A to B” or “from about A to about B” is inclusive of A and of B. Disclosure of values and ranges of values for specific parameters (such as amounts, weight percentages, etc.) are not exclusive of other values and ranges of values useful herein. It is envisioned that two or more specific exemplified values for a given parameter may define endpoints for a range of values that may be claimed for the parameter. For example, if Parameter X is exemplified herein to have value A and also exemplified to have value Z, it is envisioned that Parameter X may have a range of values from about A to about Z. Similarly, it is envisioned that disclosure of two or more ranges of values for a parameter (whether such ranges are nested, overlapping or distinct) subsume all possible combination of ranges for the value that might be claimed using endpoints of the disclosed ranges. For example, if Parameter X is exemplified herein to have values in the range of 1-10, or 2-9, or 3-8, it is also envisioned that Parameter X may have other ranges of values including 1-9, 1-8, 1-3, 1-2, 2-10, 2-8, 2-3, 3-10, 3-9, and so on.

When an element or layer is referred to as being “on,” “engaged to,” “connected to,” or “coupled to” another element or layer, it may be directly on, engaged, connected or coupled to the other element or layer, or intervening elements or layers may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly on,” “directly engaged to,” “directly connected to” or “directly coupled to” another element or layer, there may be no intervening elements or layers present. Other words used to describe the relationship between elements should be interpreted in a like fashion (e.g., “between” versus “directly between,” “adjacent” versus “directly adjacent,” etc.). As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

Although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections, these elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms may be only used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section from another region, layer or section. Terms such as “first,” “second,” and other numerical terms when used herein do not imply a sequence or order unless clearly indicated by the context. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer or section discussed below could be termed a second element, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachings of the example embodiments.

Spatially relative terms, such as “inner,” “outer,” “beneath,” “below,” “lower,” “above,” “upper,” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. Spatially relative terms may be intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “above” the other elements or features. Thus, the example term “below” can encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.

The personal, portable, folding toilet seat will now be described with occasional reference to specific embodiments. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat may, however, be embodied in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the personal, portable, folding toilet seat to those skilled in the art.

The description and figures disclose a personal, portable, folding toilet seat. Generally, the personal, portable, folding toilet seat is configured for use with a toilet limited to a bowl and absent a separate seat and bowl lid. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat is configured to provide a sanitary, temporary seat that can be positioned on a seatless toilet for temporary use and is further configured to be removed from the seatless toilet, cleaned and folded for portability and storage when not in use.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a conventional seatless toilet is illustrated at 10. The seatless toilet 10 can be commonly found in penal institutions and/or institutions of high security. The conventional seatless toilet 10 is known in the art and will only be briefly described herein. The seatless toilet 10 includes a toilet bowl 12 forming an upper surface 14. The upper surface 14 defines an opening 16 which is in fluid communication within an internal cavity 18 formed within the toilet bowl 12. The toilet bowl 12 is connected to conventional toilet related plumbing components, positioned typically within an enclosure 20, as is known in the art. The toilet bowl 12 is supported by a floor mounted base 22.

Referring again to the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the upper surface 14 of the toilet bowl 12 has an elongated ovular shape. However, in other embodiments, the upper surface 14 of the toilet bowl 12 can have other shapes.

Referring again to FIG. 1, the elongated ovular shape of the upper surface 14 of the toilet bowl 12 includes an arcuate front section 24, an arcuate rear section 26, an arcuate right section 28 connecting the arcuate front section 24 to the arcuate rear section 26 and an arcuate left section 30, also connecting the arcuate front section 24 to the arcuate rear section 26.

Referring again to FIG. 1, in certain instances the conventional seatless toilet 10 can be similar to conventional toilets found in residences or other facilities with the exception that the conventional seatless toilet 10 typically does not have a seat and a lid as may be found in other conventional toilets. As will be explained in more detail below, the novel personal, portable, folding toilet seat is configured for use with the conventional seatless toilet 10 without modifications to the conventional seatless toilet 10.

Referring now to FIGS. 2A and 2B, a novel personal, portable, folding toilet seat is illustrated generally at 40. The novel personal, portable, folding toilet seat (hereafter “toilet seat”) 40 is configured for a first, deployed orientation, as illustrated in FIGS. 2A and 2B, and a second, stowed orientation, as illustrated in FIG. 6. The toilet seat 40 includes a first support section 42a, a second support section 42b, a third support section 42c, a fourth support section 42d, a fifth support section 42e and a sixth support section 42f. Each of the support sections 42a-42f has a generally arcuate shape that approximates a corresponding shape of the upper surface 14 of the conventional seatless toilet 10. In the first, deployed orientation, the support sections 42a-42f cooperate to define an opening 50, extending therethrough.

While the toilet seat 40 is shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B as having a quantity of six (6) support sections 42a-42f and a quantity of five (5) hinges 60a-60e, it should be appreciated that in other embodiments more or less than a quantity of six (6) support sections can be used along with sufficient hinges to facilitate folding of adjacent support sections.

Referring again to FIGS. 2A and 2B, in the first, deployed orientation, the toilet seat 40 forms an elongated ovular shape that generally approximates the elongated ovular shape of the upper surface 14 of the conventional seatless toilet 10. It is contemplated that in the event the upper surface 14 of the conventional seatless toilet 10 has a non-elongated ovular shape, then the toilet seat 40 can be configured with a shape that corresponds to the non-elongated ovular shape.

Referring again to FIGS. 2A and 2B, the first support section 42a and the second support section 42b are connected together at a first hinge 60a. The second support section 42b and the third support section 42c are connected together at a second hinge 60b and the third support section 42c and the fourth support section 42d are connected together at a third hinge 60c. The fourth support section 42d and the fifth support section 42e are connected together at a fourth hinge 60d and the fifth support section 42e and the sixth support section 42f are connected together at a fifth hinge 60e.

As will be discussed in more detail below, the first, second, third, fourth and fifth hinges 60a-60e are configured to connect adjacent support sections and are further configured to facilitate folding of the support sections 42a-42f.

Referring again to FIGS. 2A and 2B, each of the first, second, third, fourth and fifth hinges 60a-60e has the form of a line of weakness in the material forming the toilet seat 40. In the illustrated embodiment, the lines of weakness have the form of a crimped line. However in other embodiments, the line of weakness can have other forms, including the non-limiting examples of creases, of one or more lines of perforations, one or more scores, one or more mat cuts, one or more reduced sections and the like.

Referring again to the embodiment of the toilet seat 40 illustrated in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the support sections 42a-42f are formed as a unitary, one-piece structure and are formed from polymeric materials, such as the non-limiting example of ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), also known as polyethylene vinyl acetate (PEVA). However, it is contemplated that in other embodiments, the support sections 42a-42f can be formed as separate and discrete sections that are assembled together. The use of the polymeric material advantageously provides comfort to the user and facilitates effective cleaning and sanitizing of the support sections 42a-42f following use. Additionally, the use of the polymeric material provides a substantially non-slip surface relative to the upper surface 14 of the toilet seat 10. It is also contemplated that in other embodiments the support sections 42a-42f can be formed from other materials, including the non-limiting examples of other polymeric materials, natural and synthetic rubber-based materials, cork, wood-based materials, plant-based materials, recycled polymers such as for example polyester, foamular materials, layered materials and the like, sufficient for the functions described herein.

Referring again to FIGS. 2A and 2B, each of the support sections 42a-42f have a uniform thickness T. The thickness T is configured for several functions. First, the thickness Tis configured to provide structural support to the toilet seat 40 during use of the toilet seat 40. Second, the thickness Tis configured to provide comfort to the user when in use. Finally, the thickness Tis configured to provide the toilet seat 40 with sufficient structural integrity to withstand repeated unfoldings to the first, deployed orientation and withstand repeated foldings to the second, stowed orientation. In the illustrated embodiment, the thickness Tis in a range of from about 0.125 inches to about 0.750 inches. However, in alternate embodiments, the thickness T can be less than about 0.125 inches or more than about 0.750 inches, sufficient to provide structural support and comfort to the user when in use and withstand repeated foldings and unfoldings.

While the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrates each of the support sections 42a-42f as having the same uniform thickness T, it should be appreciated that in alternate embodiments, each of the supports sections 42a-42f can have a different thickness T and the thickness T need not be uniform across the support sections 42a-42f.

Referring now to FIG. 3A, installation of the toilet seat 40 on the conventional seatless toilet 10 requires positioning of the toilet seat 40 on the upper surface 14 of the conventional seatless toilet 10 in a manner such that the opening 50 of the toilet seat 40 aligns with the opening 16 of the seatless toilet 10, as shown in FIG. 3B. It should be appreciated that no further installation steps are necessary for successful use of the toilet seat 40.

Referring now to FIGS. 4A-4C, the operation of folding the toilet seat 40 from the first, deployed orientation to the second, stowed orientation will now be described. Referring first to FIG. 4A, the toilet seat 40 is shown in the first, deployed orientation. As described above, the toilet seat 40 includes the support sections 42a-42f and the hinges 60a-60e. The hinges 60a-60e are configured to facilitate folding of the support sections 42a-42f in an alternating pattern, such as the non-limiting example of accordion folds. In a first step, the first support section 42a is rotated about the first hinge 60a, as shown by direction arrow A, until the first section 42a seats upon the second section 42b. In subsequent similar steps, the support sections 42b-42f rotated about the hinge 60b-60e, as shown by direction arrows B-F, until the support sections 42a-42f are arranged in a stacked orientation as shown in FIG. 4C. In the stacked orientation, the toilet seat 40 is in the second, stowed orientation. Advantageously, in the second, stowed orientation, the toilet seat 40 is portable and configured for convenient storage when not in use.

While the toilet seat 40 is shown in FIG. 4B as folding in an accordion style, it should be appreciated that in other embodiments, the toilet seat 40 can be folded in other manners to achieve the second, stowed orientation.

While the toilet seat 40 is shown and described above in connection with a seatless toilet 10, it is contemplated that in other embodiments, the toilet seat 40 can be used with a conventional toilet, such as that having a conventional seat and lid. In such instances, the personal, portable, folding toilet seat 40 is configured to provide a sanitary, temporary seat for temporary use and is further configured to be cleaned and folded for portability and storage when not in use.

Example embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough, and will fully convey the scope to those who are skilled in the art. Numerous specific details are set forth such as examples of specific components, devices, and methods, to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that specific details need not be employed, that example embodiments may be embodied in many different forms, and that neither should be construed to limit the scope of the disclosure. In some example embodiments, well-known processes, well-known device structures, and well-known technologies are not described in detail. Equivalent changes, modifications and variations of some embodiments, materials, compositions and methods can be made within the scope of the present technology, with substantially similar results.

Claims

1. A personal, portable, folding toilet seat comprising: a plurality of support sections; anda plurality of hinges, each of the hinges configured to connected adjacent support sections together;wherein the personal, portable, folding toilet seat is configured for a first, deployed orientation and a second, stowed orientation, wherein in the second, stowed orientated, the plurality of support sections are stacked upon each other.

2. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat of claim 1, wherein the plurality of support sections include a first support section, a second support section, a third support section, a fourth support section, a fifth support section and a sixth support section.

3. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat of claim 2, wherein the first support section is rotatably connected to the second support section with a first hinge.

4. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat of claim 2, wherein the second support section is rotatably connected to the third support section with a second hinge.

5. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat of claim 2, wherein the third support section is rotatably connected to the fourth support section with a third hinge.

6. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat of claim 1, wherein the personal, portable, folding toilet seat is formed as a unitary, one-piece structure.

7. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat of claim 1, wherein the personal, portable, folding toilet seat is formed from ethylene vinyl acetate material.

8. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat of claim 7, wherein each of the plurality of hinges has the form of a line of weakness in the ethylene vinyl acetate material.

9. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat of claim 1, wherein the personal, portable, folding toilet seat is configured for placement on an upper surface of a bowl of a conventional seatless toilet.

10. The personal, portable, folding toilet seat of claim 9, wherein the plurality of support sections cooperate to define an opening that aligns with an opening in the bowl of the conventional seatless toilet.

11. A method of using a personal, portable, folding toilet seat comprising the steps of: connecting a plurality of adjacent support sections together with a plurality of hinges;orientating the plurality of adjacent support sections in a first deployed arrangement; andfolding the plurality of adjacent support sections into a second, stowed orientation, wherein in the second, stowed orientated, the plurality of support sections are stacked upon each other.

12. The method of claim 11, including the step of forming a first support section, a second support section, a third support section, a fourth support section, a fifth support section and a sixth support section.

13. The method of claim 12, including the step of connecting the first support section to the second support section with a rotatable first hinge.

14. The method of claim 12, including the step of connecting the second support section to the third support section with a rotatable second hinge.

15. The method of claim 12, including the step of connecting the third support section to the fourth support section with a rotatable third hinge.

16. The method of claim 11, including the step of forming the personal, portable, folding toilet seat is formed as a unitary, one-piece structure.

17. The method of claim 11, including the step of forming the personal, portable, folding toilet seat from ethylene vinyl acetate material.

18. The method of claim 17, including the step of forming each of the plurality of hinges as a line of weakness in the ethylene vinyl acetate material.

19. The method of claim 11, including the step positioning the personal, portable, folding toilet seat on an upper surface of a bowl of a conventional seatless toilet.

20. The method of claim 19, including the step of arranging the plurality of support sections to define an opening that aligns with an opening in the bowl of the conventional seatless toilet.