Patent Application
20060079416
This invention relates to a system and method for a mesh cleansing device, commonly referred to as a pouf, and more specifically, to a pouf that encases an internal tulle pouch that in turn encases a soap cleansing product.
For centuries, people have used washcloths and soaps for cleaning their body to effectuate basic, general hygiene. Traditionally, a soap bar was used with a washcloth, wherein a person laboriously massaged the soap bar with the washcloth to generate soap lather. The soap lather was then applied to the body with the washcloth and rubbed about with the washcloth. The washcloth was used in this fashion to distribute the soap about the body, providing a mild skin exfoliation and upon rinsing the soap from the body, body cleaning was complete.
With the introduction of liquid soaps, soap lather became easier to generate, but a typical washcloth still tended to “push” the lather around instead of working the lather in the desired area. Moreover, a typical washcloth was often difficult to manipulate. The washcloth often had to be “bunched up” to provide proper holding for a proper cleansing.
With the advent of synthetic polymers, many newer cleansing devices have been developed. For example, most recently, gathered synthetic mesh cleansing devices, commonly known in the art as “poufs” have been developed. They are popular because they are easy to manipulate, are efficient in generating soap lather, exfoliate in a superior manner, and effectuate an easy way to distribute lathered soap about the body. In other words, poufs are advantageous over a typical washcloth that is often difficult to handle, tends to “push” around a generated soap lather, and then, only after a person expends significant effort generating lather from the soap by excessive massaging of the soap bar with the washcloth.
With the introduction of liquid soaps, used in combination with a mesh cleansing device such as a pouf, personal hygiene has evolved. While the pouf and liquid soap combination effectuates a more efficient cleansing device, the combination still requires the operation of a pouf and a separate soap product. In an effort to provide an even more consumer friendly product, there is a need for a mesh cleansing device, a pouf, that comprises a soap product within it. This allows a user to manipulate only one product. Moreover, to effectuate an even greater cleaning by the device, what is needed is a pouf that has an elongated body with a generally flat upper and lower region, i.e., “pumpkin” shaped. This shape provides a greater surface area for cleaning, as opposed to a mere tangential pouf-body relationship with a traditionally, “round” pouf.
As set forth in the detailed description and the accompanying figures, the present invention includes, in various exemplary embodiments, a mesh cleansing device with an internal, encased soap product. In accordance with an exemplary embodiment, the mesh cleansing device comprises a synthetic mesh, gathered and bound to form what is commonly referred to as a pouf. The pouf comprises an inner fine mesh pouch (tulle pouch), which further encases the soap product. The soap product comprises generally a soluble cleansing composition such as a fatty acid soap, synthetic detergent, combination soap/synthetic, or solid syndet. In a preferred embodiment, the combination of soap and synthetic components are present in a range of about 80:20 to about 20:80 fatty acid soap to synthetic. More preferably, the combination of soap and synthetic components are present in a range of about 40:20 to about 20:40 fatty acid soap to synthetic.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment, it has been found that by enclosing pieces of the soap product within a tulle pouch and then placing this within the interior of the pouf, the life of the soap is extended. The tulle pouch, a fine mesh bag, is held within the pouf by a lanyard, and the lanyard also acts as a means to handle the pouf, as well as a means for hanging the pouf during non-use. The lanyard is further configured to bind the mesh into the gathered, or pouf shape. In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the pouf shape instead of being traditionally round, is configured to comprise a round elongated body with a generally flat upper and lower region, similar to a, “pumpkin” shape. A secondary string opposite the lanyard is also used to maintain the gathering of the synthetic mesh into the, “pumpkin” shape.
Further, in accordance with and exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a personal cleansing device comprises, a gathered mesh body having an elongated body about a horizontal plane, a tulle pouch configured to reside within the interior of the mesh body, a pelletized soap encased by the tulle pouch, a lanyard configured to affix the tulle pouch within the interior of the mesh body and secure the gathering of the mesh body, and a secondary string configured to secure the gathering of the mesh body at its lower region.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a method for producing a mesh cleansing device comprises, cutting a length of tubular mesh, placing substantially parallel rods through the tubular mesh, placing a soap filled tulle pouch within the tubular mesh, gathering the tubular mesh, securing the gathering of the tubular mesh and the soap filled tulle pouch within the tubular mesh with a lanyard, securing the gathering of the tubular mesh on the opposite side of the lanyard with a secondary string, and removing the rods.
Additional embodiments of the invention will become evident upon reviewing the non-limiting embodiments described in the specification and the claims, in conjunction with the accompanying figures, wherein:
The detailed description of various exemplary embodiments of the invention herein makes reference to the accompanying figures. While these exemplary embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, it should be understood that other embodiments may be realized and that logical and mechanical changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, the detailed description herein is presented for purposes of illustration only and not of limitation. In accordance with an exemplary embodiment, other configurations may be used. For example, it may be determined that a mesh cleansing device having multiple tulle pouches is beneficial, or tulle pouches having various sizes and shapes even further extend a soap life.
In various exemplary embodiments of the invention, a pouf is described as a personal cleansing device for effectuating personal hygiene. It should be noted, however, that the pouf may be suitably configured to be used as a cleaning device for any number of applications, for example, household use, appliances, vehicles, pets, outdoor use, and any application wherein cleaning procedures are conducted.
For the sake of brevity, the components of the device which may be known to one skilled in the art may not necessarily be described in great detail herein. Furthermore, the connecting lines illustrated in the various figures contained herein are intended to represent exemplary functional relationships and/or physical couplings between the various elements. It should be noted that many alternative or additional functional relationships or physical connections may be present in a practical system or method.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention, a pouf is used as a personal cleansing device. A user handles the pouf by grasping the body of the pouf or, alternatively, by it's lanyard. Upon bathing, the user immerses the pouf amid water, wherein the water flows through body mesh openings and interacts with an inner tulle pouch. The inner tulle pouch, which encases pelletized soap, is configured with mesh openings to allow the water to interact with the encased pelletized soap. The pelletized soap is configured to be water soluble, dissolving upon contact with the water. The interaction among the foregoing elements allows the user to generate a soap lather that the user may work throughout their body, thereby effectuating cleansing of the user's body.
In accordance with various embodiments of the present invention, elements of the pouf may vary depending on the needs and tastes of the user. For example, the pouf may be configured to accommodate different users, i.e., children may require a smaller pouf, while adults may desire a larger pouf. In another example, the pouf may comprise various colors to accommodate the various decorative tastes among consumers. Additionally, the pouf, comprising pelletized soap, may comprise various characteristics, such as, variable fragrances, skin conditioners, and the like.
That said, various exemplary embodiments of the present invention, a personal cleansing device, referred to herein as a pouf, are considered. The pouf comprises, in general, a pouf body, a tulle pouch, and soap. The pouf comprises a generally synthetic mesh material and is used to facilitate working up of soap lather, as well as, distribute the soap lather about the body of a user. It should be noted that natural or organic materials may also be used to formulate the pouf. The synthetic mesh material is gathered into a roughly round, “pumpkin,” shape, thereby creating the pouf body, but other configurations may be used, such as an elongated shape. Moreover, the pouf may comprise various geometric configurations, like a torus shape. In its gathered state, the pouf body is easily held by a user, allowing a user during bathing to execute cleaning and a superior exfoliation.
As noted above, in various embodiments, the pouf includes an inner tulle pouch. The tulle pouch comprises a generally fine mesh material, wherein the material is configured into a pouch form to encase a soap composition. The tulle pouch comprises mesh openings that are large enough to allow water to readily pass through, but small enough to prevent the encased soap from escaping. Described in greater detail below, the tulle pouch may comprise of various configurations and material. In one example, the pouf comprises a single soap encasing tulle pouch, however, it should be noted that multiple tulle pouches may be used, or a single tulle pouch having multiple compartments.
As noted above, in various embodiments, the pelletized soap comprises a generally water soluble composition. The soap is configured to maintain a solid form such that it readily resides within the tulle pouch, however, it is soluble to the extent that upon use of the pouf device, an appropriate amount of soap dissolves in the water and allows a user to generate soap lather. In one example, the soap is described in a pelletized form, however, it should be realized that any type of soap composition that may be readily contained within a tulle pouch, yet dissolve within water to the extent that the pouf device can be properly used, may be considered. For example, soap paste, soap chips, bars, and the like may be used.
With reference to
As noted above, pouf 100 is configured to enclose a tulle pouch 130. For example, with reference to
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention, mesh body 110 is formed from an elongated tubular netting mesh such as illustrated in
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention and with continued reference to
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention and illustrated by
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention, generally illustrated in
In accordance with the presently described exemplary embodiment, tulle pouch 130 comprises tulle pouch mesh openings 135. Tulle pouch openings 135 comprise openings small enough to prevent pelletized soap 120 from falling out, but large enough to allow water to easily reach pelletized soap 120 and readily dissolve it. In this embodiment, openings 135 comprise about 60 to about 120 openings per square centimeter. Similar to mesh body 110, it should be noted that other configurations of openings 135 may be used. For example, a greater or lower density of openings per square centimeters may be used. Also, instead of having uniform size openings, openings 135 may comprise random sizes. In addition, openings 135 may comprise regular configurations such as square, rectangular, triangular, hexagonal, and the like, or openings 135 may comprise irregular configurations too. In accordance with an aspect of the invention, the tulle-pouf opening ratio comprises the ratio of the number of openings per square centimeter in the tulle pouch to the number of openings per square centimeter in the pouf. In accordance with a preferred embodiment, the tulle-pouf opening ratio is about 50:1 to about 1:1. In a more preferred embodiment, the tulle-pouf opening ratio is about 4:1 to about 1:1. In a most preferred embodiment, the tulle-pouf opening ration is about 3:1.
In accordance with the present descriptive embodiment of the invention, pelletized soap 120 is of a high water content soap formula. As used herein the term “soap” comprises a water soluble cleansing composition for personal use such as a fatty acid soap or a synthetic detergent or a combination of such a fatty acid soap and synthetic detergent, or solid syndet. In a preferred embodiment, the combination of soap and synthetic components are present in a range of 80:20 to 20:80 fatty acid soap to synthetic. More preferably, the combination of soap and synthetic components are present in a range of 40:20 to 20:40 fatty acid soap to synthetic. As such, water content in the soap is higher than “conventional” soaps. Soap 120 is manufactured by any conventional means now known or as yet known.
For example, approximately 10 to about 90 grams of pelletized soap is encased by tulle pouch 130. In a more preferred example, about 40 to about 60 grams of pelletized soap is used. Soap pellet composition comprises about 2% to about 25% by weight of moisture. In another preferred example, soap pellet composition comprises about 8% to about 25% by weight of moisture. In a most preferred example, soap pellet composition comprises about 10% to about 22% by weight.
The amount of soap in the pellets comprises about 50% to about 100% by weight. In another preferred example, the amount of soap in the pellets comprises about 84% to about 95% by weight. In a most preferred example, the amount of soap in the pellets comprises about 90% to about 95%. Pelletized soap 120 may be configured to comprise about 86% by weight of sodium soap, that is, sodium salt of fatty acids such as sodium tallowate and cocoate.
Pelletized soap 120 may also comprise about 0% to about 7.5% by weight of glycerin, about 2% to about 25% by weight of moisture, and about 0.8% of sodium chloride. In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention, lathering and skin qualities of pelletized soap 120 may be achieved by having moisture level of the soap increased from about 8% to about 25% by weight.
In another exemplary embodiment, lathering and skin qualities of pelletized soap 120 may be achieved by having moisture level of the soap increased from about 18% to about 22% by weight. The preferred level of glycerin in the soap composition is from about 0.4% to about 2% by weight. The most preferred level of glycerin in the soap composition is from about 1% to about 2% by weight. Pelletized soap may be configured to include skin conditioning agent comprising about 0 to about 10% by weight. In another preferred example, the level of skin conditioning agent comprises about 0.05% to about 5% by weight. In a most preferred example, the level of skin conditioning agent comprises about 2.5% to about 3.5% by weight. To improve the lathering of the product, about 0% to about 15% by weight of a synthetic surfactant may be added. In a preferred example, about 1% to about 8% by weight may be added. In a most preferred example, about 3.5% to about 5.0% by weight may be added.
In accordance with another exemplary embodiment of the invention, a mild anionic synthetic foaming surfactant such as sodium laureth sulfate or disodium laureth sulfosuccinate may be used. A nonionic surfactant such as an alkyl glucoside or alkyl polyglucoside may also be used. Furthermore, an amphoteric lathering surfactant such as the higher alkyl betaines may be used, for example, such an amphoteric comprises cocoamidopropyl betaine. PEG-8 at a level of about 1% may be used, wherein the PEG-8 may serve as an emollient, emulsifier and surfactant. Soap composition may further incorporate antibacterial agents such as Triclosan or other well known antibacterials into the product.
Tulle pouch 130 may be made from any materials that function to retain pelletized soap 120 within tulle pouch 130. Moreover, tulle pouch 130 may include materials similarly used to manufacture mesh body 110. For example, tulle pouch 130 comprises a fine net of rayon or nylon or polypropylene. However, other combinations of synthetic materials now known or as yet unknown that function as noted above may likewise be used.
As noted above, tulle pouch 130 prevents pelletized soap 120 from falling out of pouf 100; however, in various embodiments it has also been discovered that by placing pelletized soap 120 within tulle pouch 130, the life of pelletized soap 120 is extended almost three times as long as comparable pieces of soap that are placed merely within mesh body 110, but not within an inner tulle pouch.
For instance, in an exemplary experiment, device 100, containing soap of the dimensions listed in Table 1, was tested using a Tergotometer Model 7243ES comprising six pots and six agitator shafts. The bath of the Tergotometer was heated to 95° F. and held there for the duration of the study. Each of the pots was filled three quarters full with 1,200 milliliters of water. Each pouf device 100 used in the test was submerged in the water of the pot prior to starting the washing machine agitation in each pot. The above washing action of the Tergotometer was conducted for about 12 minutes, devices 100 removed, and placed on hangers for five minutes to allow water to drain and then weigh each device. Devices 100 were placed back in the pots and further agitated for about 12 minutes. Following the period of agitation, devices 100 were again removed from the pots, drained for 5 minutes and weighed.
This cycle continued until all pelletized soap 120 within tulle pouch 130 of each device 100 was expended. Pelletized soap 120 comprises the following dimensions (inches):
Also, several solid pieces of water soluble fatty acid type soap (not pelletized) (weighing approximately 25 and 80 grams, respectively) were tested. The soap pellets placed in tulle pouch 130 weighed 25 grams per tulle pouch. The soap pieces not placed in tulle pouch 130 weighed 80 grams. Surprisingly, pouf device 100 having tulle pouch 130 that contained 25 grams of soap, displayed an average life of 91% of the life of the 80 gram soap in device 100 without use of tulle pouch 130 inner bag.
As briefly mentioned above, in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention, and generally illustrated by
As also briefly mentioned above and in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention, as generally illustrated by
As illustrated in
Next, as illustrated in
Next, as illustrated in
Finally, as depicted in
Benefits, other advantages, and solutions to problems have been described herein with regard to specific embodiments. However, the benefits, advantages, solutions to problems, and any element(s) that may cause any benefit, advantage, or solution to occur or become more pronounced are not to be construed as critical, required, or essential features or elements of any or all the claims or the invention. The scope of the invention is accordingly to be limited by nothing other than the appended claims, in which reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean “one and only one” unless explicitly so stated, but rather “one or more.” All structural, chemical, and functional equivalents to the elements of the above-described exemplary embodiments that are known to those of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed by the present claims.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application, Ser. No. 60/701,669 entitled “System and Method for a Mesh Cleansing Device” filed on Jul. 21, 2005, and U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/613,884 entitled “Mesh Bathing Device” filed on Sep. 28, 2004, and U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/684,841 entitled “Mesh Bathing Device” filed on May 24, 2005.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60684841 | May 2005 | US | |
| 60701669 | Jul 2005 | US | |
| 60613884 | Sep 2004 | US |
