Patent Application
20160183745
The disclosure relates to reusable sanitary toilet seat cover devices and more particularly pertains to a new reusable sanitary toilet seat cover device for allowing a person to cover and sit on a public toilet seat.
SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a panel including a central section with a first arm and a second arm each attached to and extending away from a front edge of the central section. The first and second arms are spaced from each other and each has a distal end with respect to the central section. The panel has a top side and a bottom side and the bottom side is substantially planar. The central section has a break therein extending through the front edge and a rear edge of the central section to define a pair of central ends. A central hinge is attached to the central section and hingedly couples together the central ends. The central hinge is positioned on the bottom side of the panel.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
The central section 14 has a break 34 therein extending through the front edge 20 and a rear edge 36 of the central section 14 to define a pair of central ends 38 where they meet. A central hinge 40 is attached to the central section 14 and hingedly couples together the central ends 38. The central hinge 40 is positioned on the bottom side 26 of the panel 12. This allows the central section 14 to be folded onto itself in a stored position such that the bottom sides 26 of portions formed by the break 34 in the central section 14 abut each other.
Each of the first 16 and second 18 arms may each have a break 42 therein also which extends through an outer edge 44 and the inner edge 30 of an associated one of the first 16 and second 18 arms to define a pair of arm ends 46 in each of the first 16 and second 18 arms. A pair of arm hinges 48 is provided and each of the first 16 and second 48 arms has one of the arm hinges 48 coupled thereto. The arm hinges 48 hingedly couple together an associated pair of the arm ends 46. Each of the arm hinges 48 is positioned on the bottom side 26. As with the central section 14, the first 16 and second 18 arms are foldable into a stored position such that arm portions formed by the breaks 42 have there bottom sides 26 abutting each other. It should be understood that the assembly 10 may only include one break in the central section 14 or a pair of breaks, one each of the first 16 and second 18 arms.
A plurality of toilet seat engaging members 50 is attached to the bottom side 26.
Each of the first 16 and second 18 arms has at least one of the toilet seat engaging members 50 attached thereto. However, a total of at least four engaging members 50 are preferred to stabilize the assembly 10 during usage. The toilet seat engaging members 50 are configured to frictionally engage a toilet seat 32 to prevent panel 12 movement during usage. Each of the toilet seat engaging members 50 may comprise a foamed elastomeric material.
A satchel 52 may be provided that has a size and shape configured for receiving the panel 12 when each of the central section 14 and the first 16 and second 18 arms are folded into a stored position. The satchel 52 may specifically be sized if one, two or three breaks 34, 42 are utilized. A strap 54 is attached to the satchel 52 for carrying.
In use, the assembly 10 is typically brought with a person while traveling and taken into public restrooms when a public toilet is to be used. The user places the assembly 10 on the toilet seat 32 so that it overlaps the toilet seat 32 and then sits upon the assembly 10. Thus, the user need not sit directly on the toilet seat 32. The assembly 10 may be folded for easy storage when not in usage and cleaned between usages as needed.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
