Patent Application
20160000280
The present invention relates to toilet seat covers, and more particularly to disposable sanitary toilet seat covers.
Public restrooms and toilets are not always maintained in satisfactory sanitary conditions. The toilet seats may contain disease-causing bacteria and viruses. That's why it's important to provide sanitary measures for protecting people who use such facilities.
Some restrooms are supplied with toilet seat covers that may be placed on the toilet seat. Examples of patented toilet seat covers can be found in the following U.S. Pat. Nos.: 3,967,325; 4,806,406; 4,920,584; 4,979,237; 5,172,431; 5,437,906; 5,557,809; 6,968,578; 7,254,845; 7,328,465; 7,356,855; 7,707,661; 8,656,523; 8,621,675; etc.
For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 7,707,661 teaches: “The present invention discloses a sanitary paper that is designed to be appropriate for dual functions: (1) as a tissue paper for wiping and cleaning by a user, and (2) as a toilet seat-cover. The sanitary paper is a folded continuous sanitary paper strip comprising detachable sections of tissue paper, where some sections are toilet seat-covers which are defined by appropriate transverse seat-cover perforation lines. Various embodiments are described regarding the folding of the sanitary paper strip. A precut bowl flap, in each of the detachable seat-covers, is provided as well. The sanitary paper strip can be made of a single or multi-ply paper. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the sanitary paper is made of a duplex paper, where each surface best serves the intended function of that surface. Additionally, the sanitary paper strip can be impregnated with various chemicals.”
Another U.S. Pat. No. 4,920,584 teaches: “A sanitary toilet seat cover is formed of a nonporous, nondisintegratable material, such as plastic sheet material, for protecting a user from disease-causing micro-organisms. The toilet seat cover of the present invention has integrally formed therewith a protective flap portion which ensures against contact by any part of the anatomy of the user with the inside of the front of either the commode or the toilet seat itself. In accordance with a manufacturing method aspect of the invention, a plurality of toilet seat covers are produced from a continuous sleeve of the nonporous material. After perforation lines are made in the sleeve to facilitate separation of the individual toilet seat covers, as well as removing a blank central portion and producing the protective flap, the continuous sleeve may be folded so that, after rolling, it can be accommodated on the axle of a dispenser having the dimensions of conventional bathroom tissue.”
Though the related art contains numerous designs of toilet seat covers, many of them possess certain disadvantages, such as being complicated and expensive in manufacturing, having difficulties in mounting, having unsatisfactory convenience for the user, etc. The authors of the instant invention have identified another problem related to the use of such toilet seat covers: a limited possibility of adjustment to real dimensions of the user's body correspondingly to typical sizes of the toilet seats. An important object of the instant invention is to find design solutions to the aforementioned problem.
According to a first embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a toilet seat cover for preventing a user from a direct contact with a toilet seat; the toilet seat includes:—an external edge, and—an internal edge defining an opening of the toilet seat; the internal edge defines a rear portion and a front portion thereof; the toilet seat cover is manufactured of an essentially transparent elastic material; the toilet seat cover is capable of being placed by the user on the toilet seat; the toilet seat cover comprises:—a first mark line predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover and capable of being aligned by the user such that the first mark line outwardly encircles the rear portion of the internal edge with a rear gap;—a third mark line predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover and capable of being aligned by the user such that the third mark line outwardly encircles the front portion of the internal edge with a front gap predetermined by the user; and—an elongated aperture provided in a central region of the toilet seat cover; wherein the elongated aperture is located within the opening of the toilet seat as a result of providing the rear gap and the front gap.
According to a second embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a toilet seat cover for preventing a user from a direct contact with a toilet seat; the toilet seat includes:—an external edge, and—an internal edge defining an opening of the toilet seat; the internal edge defines a rear portion and a front portion thereof; the toilet seat cover is manufactured of an essentially transparent elastic material; the toilet seat cover is capable of being placed by the user on the toilet seat; the toilet seat cover comprises:—a first mark line predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover and capable of being aligned by the user such that the first mark line outwardly encircles the rear portion of the internal edge with a rear gap;—a second mark line predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover and capable of being aligned by the user such that the second mark line is located inwardly to the front portion of the internal edge;—a third mark line predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover and capable of being aligned by the user such that the mark line outwardly encircles the front portion of the internal edge with a front gap predetermined by the user;—an elongated aperture provided in a central region of the toilet seat cover, wherein the elongated aperture is located within the opening of the toilet seat as a result of providing the rear gap and the front gap; the elongated aperture further includes two lateral edges and a frontal portion; the toilet seat cover further comprises a flap located in front of the frontal portion of the elongated aperture; wherein: the flap is formed by two lateral perforated lines connecting the flap to corresponding parts of the toilet seat cover before the user starts using the toilet seat cover; the two lateral perforated lines are extensions of the two lateral edges of the elongated aperture, such that when the user places the toilet seat cover on the toilet seat, tears the two lateral perforated lines, and moves the flap forward at a desirable length and downward or upward, the elongated aperture is effectively extended, providing an additional convenience to the user.
According to a third embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a method for using a toilet seat cover for preventing a user from a direct contact with a toilet seat; wherein: the toilet seat includes: an external edge, and an internal edge defining an opening of the toilet seat; the internal edge defines a rear portion and a front portion thereof; the toilet seat cover is manufactured of an essentially transparent elastic material; the toilet seat cover includes: a first mark line predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover; a second mark line predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover; a third mark line predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover; and an elongated aperture provided in a central region of the toilet seat cover; the elongated aperture includes two lateral edges and a frontal portion; and a flap located in front of the frontal portion of the elongated aperture; wherein the flap is formed by two lateral perforated lines connecting the flap to corresponding parts of the toilet seat cover before the user starts using the toilet seat cover; and the two lateral perforated lines are extensions of the two lateral edges of the elongated aperture; the method comprises the steps of:—placing by the user of the toilet seat cover on the toilet seat;—aligning by the user of the first mark line outwardly to the rear portion of the internal edge with a rear gap;—aligning by the user of the second mark line inwardly to the front portion of the internal edge;—aligning by the user of the third mark line outwardly to the front portion of the internal edge with a front gap predetermined by the user;—placing by the user of the elongated aperture within the opening of the toilet seat as a result of providing the rear gap and the front gap;—tearing by the user of the two lateral perforated lines; and—moving by the user of the flap forward at a desirable length and downward or upward, extending the elongated aperture, and thereby providing an additional convenience to the user.
According to a fourth preferred embodiment, the toilet seat covers of the first embodiment or of the second embodiment can be compactly arranged in a roll comprising a plurality of such toilet seat covers, wherein each neighboring pair of the toilet seat covers is coupled, for instance, by perforated lines or otherwise. The roll can be put on an axle inserted into a stationary housing, which housing might be mounted on a wall of the restroom or in another convenient place.
While the invention may be susceptible to embodiment in different forms, there is shown in the drawings, and will be described in detail herein, specific embodiments of the present invention, with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered an exemplification of the principles of the invention, and is not intended to limit the invention to that as illustrated and described herein.
A first preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated on
According to a first embodiment of the present invention (
The toilet seat cover (2) comprises:—a mark line (M1) predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover (2) and capable of being aligned by the user such that the mark line (M1) outwardly encircles the rear portion of the internal edge (3I) with a rear gap;—a mark line (M3) predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover (2) and capable of being aligned by the user such that the mark line (M3) outwardly encircles the front portion of the internal edge (3I) with a front gap predetermined by the user; and—an elongated aperture (4) provided in a central region of the toilet seat cover (2). The elongated aperture (4) is located within the opening of the toilet seat (3) as a result of providing the rear gap and the front gap.
According to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention (
The toilet seat cover (2) comprises:—a mark line (M1) predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover (2) and capable of being aligned by the user such that the mark line (M1) outwardly encircles the rear portion of said internal edge (3I) with a rear gap;—a mark line (M2) predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover (2) and capable of being aligned by the user such that the mark line (M2) is located inwardly to the front portion of the internal edge (3I);—a mark line (M3) predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover (2) and capable of being aligned by the user such that the mark line (M3) outwardly encircles the front portion of the internal edge (3I) with a front gap predetermined by the user; and—an elongated aperture (4) provided in a central region of the toilet seat cover (2). The elongated aperture (4) is located within the opening of the toilet seat (3) as a result of providing the rear gap and said front gap.
Furthermore, according to the second embodiment of the present invention (
According to a third embodiment of the present invention (
The toilet seat cover (2) is manufactured of an essentially transparent elastic material. The toilet seat cover (2) includes: a mark line (M1) predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover (2); a mark line (M2) predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover (2); a mark line (M3) predeterminedly drawn on the toilet seat cover (2); and an elongated aperture (4) provided in a central region of the toilet seat cover (2). The elongated aperture (4) includes two lateral edges and a frontal portion. The toilet seat cover (2) includes a flap (5) located in front of the frontal portion of the elongated aperture (4). The flap (5) is formed by two lateral perforated lines connecting the flap (5) to corresponding parts of the toilet seat cover (2) before the user starts using the toilet seat cover (2). The two lateral perforated lines are extensions of the two lateral edges of the elongated aperture (4).
According to a third embodiment of the present invention, a method for using a toilet seat cover comprises the steps of:—placing by the user of the toilet seat cover (2) on the toilet seat (3);—aligning by the user of the mark line (M1) outwardly to the rear portion of the internal edge (3I) with a rear gap;—aligning by the user of the mark line (M2) inwardly to the front portion of the internal edge (3I);—aligning by the user of the mark line (M3) outwardly to the front portion of the internal edge (3I) with a front gap predetermined by the user;—placing by the user of the elongated aperture (4) within the opening of the toilet seat (3) as a result of providing the rear gap and the front gap;—tearing by the user of the two lateral perforated lines; and—moving by the user of the flap (5) forward at a desirable length and downward, or forward at a desirable length and upward, extending the elongated aperture (4), and thereby providing an additional convenience to the user.
According to a fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention, the toilet seat covers of the first embodiment or of the second embodiment can be compactly arranged in a roll (shown in
Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures and methods for carrying out several purposes of the present invention. It is therefore important that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention. As opposed to the claims, the abstract is neither intended to define the invention of the instant application, which is measured by the claims, nor is it intended to be limiting as to the scope of the invention in any way.
