Patent Application
20130219608
The present invention relates generally to hair washing sinks, and more particularly relates to a sink shaped to accommodate people with long hair.
Each year, billions of dollars are spent on cosmetically-related products and services. Many of these products, for example, razors, tweezers, shampoos, conditioners, etc., are applied and used by the purchaser in the privacy of their home. However, one aspect of personal grooming —head-hair growth—cannot be easily and properly dealt with without help.
To maintain a well-groomed appearance, people usually present themselves to salons and other hair-cutting businesses. In order for the hair-cutting professional to work with the hair in the best condition, the person's hair should be washed and free of dirt, oils, and products. For that reason, all hair salons have sinks for cleaning the client's hair prior to cutting or other treatments, e.g., dyeing. Most known sinks generally used for washing hair in these salons are attached to and extend from a wall. To wash a person's hair, the person is placed in a chair with an angled back, which allows the person to place the back of his or her head/neck area on a front/lip portion of the sink. Unfortunately, due to the shallow bowl of standard sinks, those with longer hair find that their hair simply lies at the bottom of sink bowl and collects around and covers the drain area.
The shape/dimensions of these presently known sinks make it impossible or very difficult to extend and properly clean longer hair. Most known sinks provide no option for the operator, usually an employee at a hair salon, for example, other than leaving the person's hair at the bottom of the sinks causing the hair to be bunched together in order to be washed. As the hair is often in contact with the draining area at the lower portion of the sink during and after the cleaning process, the recently cleaned hair may become compromised by any debris or dirt that was previously removed and has accumulated. Further, when the hair accumulates at the draining area of the sink it often causes a build-up of water.
Some prior-art sinks have attempted to incorporate deeper openings to accommodate longer hair. As these known sinks are fixedly connected to and supported by wall, many operators find it difficult, if not impossible, to reach down and wash the person's hair effectively and efficiently. Some known systems that allow a person's hair to extend include using a funnel-type apparatus that extends from the head/neck area of the person down to the standard-sized sink opening. These apparatuses generally extend from a distance away from the standard-sized sink to accomplish the hair extension. These systems used for washing a person with longer hair, however, disadvantageously take up a significant amount of space, as the person must be a distance away from the sink. Those apparatuses used in connection with sinks also are generally cumbersome and require storage when not washing a person with longer hair. Moreover, these apparatuses generally require use in combination with a separate and distinct sink. In addition, many of these known hair washing apparatuses further require the person's hair to be pulled through an aperture in the funnel-type apparatus thereby securing the apparatus to the top of the user's head, instead of the standard head/neck area resting on a portion of the sink. Those aforementioned systems are undesirable and uncomfortable for the person having their hair washed as he or she is supporting the weight of the funnel-type apparatus. Further, these systems are also undesirable as the aperture that fits on the person's head is susceptible to leaking when confronted with water around the edges of the aperture.
Some known sinks try to circumvent these issues by integrating an automated hair washing system for washing a person's hair. These known systems incorporate knobs, pulleys, and other devices for holding and directing the person's hair. These systems, however, are generally not effective or applicable for persons with long hair and often cost a significant amount of money to purchase and/or to maintain. Moreover, these automated systems require more time to set up the person having his or her hair washed, which is cost and time intensive. These systems also often cause discomfort to the person being washed as those aforementioned devices for holding and directing the person's hair also tug and pull on it.
Furthermore, with most known sinks being attached to a wall of a building, the operator can generally only access the hair from two sides of the sink body in order to clean and wash the hair. For those known sinks that have a deeper opening than most standard-sized sinks, it is difficult, if not impossible, for the operator to thoroughly access and clean a person with long hair without bending or twisting the operator's body in uncomfortable positions. This is often undesirable for many operators.
It is also generally known when washing a person's hair that hair follicles sometimes become dislodged from their roots, subsequently becoming tangled or lodged in the drain area of a sink. For businesses that intake a medium to high volume of clients, a hair washing sink that provides a client with quick, efficient, and quality cleaning is desired. It is further desired to have a hair washing sink that is relatively easy to maintain and provides quick clean-up resulting from any debris generated from the hair washing process. As most of those known sinks have the drain located above the floor of a building structure, the operator is often required to physically remove any debris or in some cases, dislodge hair follicles from the drain. This is often done by using the operator's hands, or a towel or cloth, which is not desired and in some cases, not sanitary. Those known sinks for washing hair generally do not provide an effective and efficient way to clean the area where any debris or residue might build up by the drain, or an associated drain screen. As discussed, those known sinks for washing hair are generally attached to the side wall of a building and the draining area is above the ground surface of the building. As such, an operator generally cannot effectively use traditional cleaning tools, such as a mop or broom, to remove any dislodged hair or other debris generated from the cleaning process.
In addition, many of those known systems for washing hair often require the user, or the chair in which the user is sitting, to be adjusted to the appropriate height of the sink. Most known sinks do not have the ability to adjust themselves to the user without incorporating a separate device independent of the sink structure. This is often desirable for situations where the functional limitations of bending the chair, or user, have been reached. Again, as those known sinks generally extend from the side wall of the building from which they are attached, the operator is limited to placing the sinks along the side wall. This limits the sink placement locations for the operator in situations where the operator desires to have the side walls occupied by other objects, such as furniture and salon equipment, for example, or to have the side walls unobstructed entirely.
Therefore, a need exists to overcome the problems with the prior art as discussed above.
The invention provides a standalone hair washing sink that overcomes the hereinaforementioned disadvantages of the heretofore-known devices and methods of this general type and that facilitates the hair washing process, particularly for those persons with tong hair, and the clean-up process thereafter.
With the foregoing and other objects in view, there is provided, in accordance with the invention, a hair washing sink that is suited for long hair with the sink have a body that is coupled a ground surface of a building and extending upwardly from the ground surface to define a water channel extending between an upper portion of the body and a lower portion of the body at the ground surface and sized to accommodate and provide access to long hair during a hair washing process and defining an opening that extends upwardly from the lower portion toward the upper portion and exposes a tower portion of the water channel. The sink also has a receiving area at the upper portion of the body shaped to receive and support a head/neck area of a user.
In accordance with another feature of the present invention, the body is supported by the ground surface only and does not rely on a wall for physical support.
In accordance with a further feature, an embodiment of the present invention includes an elongated discontinuous gap in the body.
In accordance with a yet another feature, an embodiment of the present invention also includes the discontinuous gap in the body extending from the ground surface to the upper portion of the body.
In accordance with a further feature, an embodiment of the present invention includes the elongated gap in the body sized to allow a bristle portion of a standard-sized broom to pass through.
In accordance with an additional feature of the present inventions, the body has a front interior surface below the receiving area that has at least portion at a non-perpendicular angle to the ground surface.
In accordance with one more feature, an additional embodiment of the present invention includes a base at the lower portion of the body that provides physical support to the sink and having a drain screen accessible through the opening.
In with yet another feature of the present invention, the body is formed at least partially around a drain.
In accordance with another feature, an embodiment of the present invention includes a sink body positioned over a floor drain with the body defining a base coupled to the floor surface and at least partially surrounding the floor drain, an upper edge that has a head receiving area opposite the base and shaped to receiving a head/neck of a user, and a discontinuous gap that extends from the base toward the upper edge.
In accordance yet another feature, an embodiment of the present invention also includes the discontinuous gap defining a continuous opening between the base and the upper edge.
In accordance one more feature, an embodiment of the present invention includes the base providing the only physically support for the sink.
In accordance with yet another feature of the present invention, one embodiment includes the base having a drain screen.
In accordance with yet another feature, an embodiment of the present invention includes a body coupled to a ground surface of a building and having a discontinuous side wall, the discontinuous side wall extending upwardly from the ground surface toward an upper edge of the body, defining a water channel with a lower portion substantially at the floor surface and sized to accommodate and provide access to long hair during a hair washing process, and defining a discontinuous gap extending upwardly from the ground surface toward the upper, sufficiently sized to allow a cleaning portion of a standard-sized broom to enter the lower portion of the water channel. The body also has a drain in fluid communication with the water channel and a head/neck support. shaped to substantially contour a head/neck area of a user.
In accordance with yet another feature, an embodiment of the present invention includes the base extending outwardly in a direction away from the lower portion of the water channel and coupled to the discontinuous side wall.
In accordance with yet another feature, an embodiment of the present invention includes a portion of the base that is adjacent to the discontinuous gap and substantially co-planar with the lower portion of the water channel.
In accordance with another feature, an embodiment of the present invention also includes the head/neck area support in the shape of a half circle.
In accordance with one more feature, an embodiment of the present invention also includes a water faucet assembly coupled to the body.
In accordance yet another feature, an embodiment of the present invention further includes the body extending upwardly from the ground surface a height greater than 1.5 feet.
Although the invention is illustrated and described herein as embodied as a standalone hair washing sink, it is, nevertheless, not intended to be limited to the details shown because various modifications and structural changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims. Additionally, well-known elements of exemplary embodiments of the invention will not be described in detail or will be omitted so as not to obscure the relevant details of the invention.
Other features that are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in the appended claims. As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which can be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one of ordinary skill in the art to variously employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed structure. Further, the terms and phrases used herein are not intended to be limiting; but rather, to provide an understandable description of the invention. While the specification concludes with claims defining the features of the invention that are regarded as novel, it is believed that the invention will be better understood from a consideration of the following description in conjunction with the drawing figures, in which like reference numerals are carried forward. The figures of the drawings are not drawn to scale.
Before the present invention is disclosed and described, it is to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting. The terms “a” or “an,” as used herein, are defined as one or more than one. The term “plurality,” as used herein, is defined as two or more than two, The term “another,” as used herein, is defined as at least a second or more, The terms “including” and/or “having,” as used herein, are defined as comprising (i.e., open language). The term “coupled,” as used herein, is defined as connected, although not necessarily directly, and not necessarily mechanically.
As used herein, the terms “about” or “approximately” apply to all numeric values, whether or not explicitly indicated. These terms generally refer to a range of numbers that one of skill in the art would consider equivalent to the recited values (i.e., having the same function or result). In many instances these terms may include numbers that are rounded to the nearest significant figure. In this document, the term “longitudinal” should be understood to mean in a direction corresponding to an elongated direction of the sink extending from the floor of a building structure to the receiving area of the sink.
The accompanying figures, where like reference numerals refer to identical or functionally similar elements throughout the separate views and which together with the detailed description below are incorporated in and form part of the specification, serve to further illustrate various embodiments and explain various principles and advantages all in accordance with the present invention.
While the specification concludes with claims defining the features of the invention that are regarded as novel, it is believed that the invention will be better understood from a consideration of the following description in conjunction with the drawing figures, in which like reference numerals are carried forward. It is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which can be embodied in various forms.
The present invention provides a novel hair washing sink with an elongated body to facilitate the easy and sanitary cleaning of long hair. Instead of being attached to and extending from the wall, as are traditional sinks, in accordance with one embodiment, the presently-inventive sink is freestanding. Due to the elongated bowl and lack of dependence on a wall for physical support, an operator of the sink advantageously now has the ability to maneuver around all sides of the sink and access the fully-extended hair of the person whose hair is being washed. The invention further provides the operator the ability to quickly and efficiently clean from the drain any residue generated from washing a person's hair. In addition, because the sink does not necessarily need to be supported by a side wall of the building, the present invention provides the operator with more locations to place the sink.
Referring now to
The lower portion 104 of the body 102 is formed at least partially around a drain 110 and the body 102 extends upwardly from the drain 110 to an upper portion 112. The body 102 can also be seen defining an opening 114 that extends upwardly from the lower portion 104 of the body 102 toward the upper portion 112 of the body 102, thereby exposing the drain 110 as well as substantially an entire interior 108 of the body 102. A receiving area 116 is also shown located at the upper portion 112 of the body 102.
The shape of the body 102 defines a water channel 118 hat extends from the upper portion 112 to the ground surface 106, which may or may not include the drain 110. As the sink 100 is generally suited for those users with long hair, the water channel 118 is an opening that contains the hair when placed therein and advantageously allows the operator to fully extend the user's hair along the path of the channel 118. The elongated water channel 118 obviates the problem with prior-art sinks, where longer hair is bunched at the base of the sink, sits in dirty water, and covers the drain hole. The presently-inventive sink allows the operator to thoroughly rinse and clean the hair in its elongated state and further allows the hair to dry faster (i.e., excess water can be squeezed out of it) than it would, had it been bunched up together or collecting at the drain area of the prior-art sinks. Although the sink 100 is suited for longer hair, those persons skilled in the art will still appreciate how the novel features of the present invention apply to those users with shorter hair and the operators of the sink 100.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the body 102 extends to a height 120 ranging approximately from 1.5 feet to approximately 3.5 feet. In other embodiments, it is, more specifically, the receiving area 116 which extends the total maximum height 120. Further, the assembly may vary to a maximum height, indicated by reference number 120 in
In one embodiment, the lower portion 104 of the body 102 is attached to the ground surface 106 with bolts, screws, or other attachment mechanisms. In other embodiments, the lower portion 104 is coupled to the floor surface 106 using the concrete in the foundation of the building, by the weight of the body 102, or by other coupling mechanisms. In the embodiment shown in the drawing figures, the body 102 is supported by the ground 106 and does not rely on a side wall 122 of the building for physical support. As the sink 100 relies generally only on the ground surface 106 for physical support, this uniquely gives the sink 100 the ability to be placed in various locations within the building and not just on the side wall 122. The various installation location choices advantageously give the operator placement options not generally available with prior-art sinks. Of course, the water supply will be run through the floor to the inventive sink. The placement options of the sink also allow the user to access and clean the hair, and the drain, from behind the sink body 102. In other embodiments, the body 102 may have portions that that are supported by the wall 122, but the opening 114 would still generally be unobstructed by the side wall 122 and advantageously continue to provide the operator with access to the lower portion 121.
When the person's hair is placed within the water channel 118 the operator carries out the rinsing and washing process. In one embodiment, the body 102 is formed at least partially around the drain 110, such that the runoff of water and other residue from the cleaning process is removed. In other embodiments, the drain 110 is completely surrounded by the body 102, as shown in
The opening 114 is illustrated as extending upwardly from the lower portion 104 toward the upper portion 112, such that it exposes the drain 110, An operator may now, advantageously, clean or access the drain 110 area of the sink 100 to clean any residue or dislodged hair follicles with traditional cleaning tools, such as a broom or mop. This is beneficial as it does not require the operator to remove any debris manually with his or her hands or any towels.
Now referring to
Also shown in
In one embodiment, shown in
In further embodiments, the discontinuous gap 202 is further sized to allow a cleaning tool 203, such as a standard-sized broom (shown in
In one embodiment, the gap 202 would be sufficiently sized such that some, or all, of the cleaning portion 207 of the broom 203 or any other cleaning tool is able to fit through the gap 202 in order have access to the lower portion 121 of the water channel 118. This provides the operator quick and efficient access to clean and remove debris from the drain 110 and/or drain screen 201. In other embodiments, the cleaning portion 207 of the broom 203 enters at the upper portion 112 of the body 102 and is able to access the drain 110 or drain screen 201 and force any debris through the gap 202 or up and out through the upper portion 112 of the body 102. in one embodiment, the drain screen 201 pulls up and out, for example, by pulling a cord or handle, for cleaning.
In other embodiments, the elongated gap 202 has one or more portions 210 that prevent it from extending continually to the upper edge 205. As such, the body 102 completely surrounds the water channel 118 at those portions 210 along the height 120 of the body 102. As exemplified by the section 210 in
In one embodiment, the gap 202 increases in width as the body increases in height 120. In other embodiments, the gap 202 width may be a constant width, e.g., 6 inches, which extends upwardly from the drain 110 to a gap height that equals the body height 120. In other embodiments, the length of the gap 202 may be less than a total height 120 of the body 102. In such embodiments, however, the width and height of the gap 202 are typically sized sufficiently to allow access to the lower portion 121 of the water channel 118, while simultaneously preventing a substantial amount of the water, used in the rinsing/washing process, from escaping outside the side wall 124.
Referring now to
In other embodiments, the portion 300 of the base 200, as shown in
In one embodiment, the receiving area 116 is formed the general shape of a half circle such that it substantially contours a head/neck area of the user. The receiving area 116 may also have a polymer, foam, or other similar material that is coupled to the receiving area 116. This provides superior comfort and support to the user's head/neck area when placed in the receiving area 116. In other embodiments, the receiving area 116 is formed in alternative shapes or may be a designated portion of the upper edge that has no shape. In order to effectively allow runoff from the hair rinsing and cleaning process, the receiving area 116 is opposite to the base 200 or drain 110. In other embodiments, the receiving area 116 may be located above or below the upper edge of the body 102. As such, the user's hair is not required to be pulled through an open aperture, such as those built into the prior-art tunnel-like apparatuses, nor is the hair required to rest and collect at the drain area of the sink bowl.
Now referring to
The hose or pipe delivering water to the faucet 702 may run through the base 710, the body 703, or the ground 106 and extends upwardly toward the faucet 702, which is generally located around the upper portion of the body 703. In other embodiments, the hose or the faucet 702 may be located at, or coupled to, different locations along the body 703 and may be extendable and retractable. When the hose is retractable, the operator can maneuver the faucet 702 in various locations to effectively and efficiently clean and wash the user's hair while extended in the water channel 712. In other embodiments, the body 703 may not have the water assembly 701 attached thereto, such that the operator will use water generated from another sink having a faucet or other water source within the building. The base 710 may also have an access panel 708 located on it such that an operator can check the drain 712 area or access the hose for the water assembly 701. In other embodiments, the sink 700 may not have the access panel 708 or the panel 708 may be located on other areas of the body 703.
Referring now to both
Further, one embodiment provides that each or at least two of the stations 800a-n include one or more water assemblies 806, such as water assembly 701, which was described above. As such, the user would be supported in a chair that is titled backward such that the head/neck area of the user would be supported by one of the plurality of receiving areas 802a-n. The operator(s) may then clean and wash numerous users' hair at once. This hair washing station would also allow the operator to clean the water collection area 900, including multiple drain areas, from any residue produced from the cleaning process, at one time.
A hair washing sink has been disclosed that facilitating easy and sanitary cleaning of a long hair with significant benefits over the presently available hair-washing sinks. A person with long hair can completely extend their hair within the sink body without the hair accumulating by the drain area of the sink or coming in contact with dirty water. The body also defines an opening that exposes the drain, which allows an operator to clean any accrued dirt or debris from the drain or drain screen by using traditional cleaning tools. This sink also advantageously provides the operator with quick and efficient access to the hair while placed in the water channel.
