Patent Application
20240130578
A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever. 37 CFR 1.71(d).
This invention relates generally to toilet seats, and more specifically to toilet seats pivotally attached to a toilet bowl.
Prior art toilet seats are usually manipulated by hand from a closed horizontal position to an open vertical position and vice versa. The problem is that proper hygiene is limited since most toilet seats acquire an amount of human waste and germs on their surfaces adjacent a toilet bowl which are then transferred to a person's hand when moving the seat. Some attempts to overcome this problem include mechanisms that are designed to provide a handle spaced from the seat and connected via a series of linkages. These are bulky, unsightly, and require a lot of assembly. Other attempts have been to provide a handle or tab adapted to be attached to the seat via screws, bolts, or clamps. These also require assembly and become loose over time creating problems.
Accordingly, the present invention overcomes the disadvantages associated with the prior art by providing a toilet seat including an integral finger tab formed unitarily along with the toilet seat as one unitary member, such that a person can manipulate the toilet seat from a closed horizontal position to an open vertical position and vice versa without the problems associated with the prior art.
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of toilet seats or the like in the prior art, the present invention provides an improved toilet seat including an integral finger tab formed unitarily along with the toilet seat as one unitary member, such that a person can manipulate the toilet seat from a closed horizontal position to an open vertical position and vice versa without having to contact the main area of the toilet seat that surrounds a toilet bowl, with all the advantages of the prior art and none of the disadvantages.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention 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.
Numerous objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon a reading of the following detailed description of presently preferred, but nonetheless illustrative, embodiments of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of descriptions and should not be regarded as limiting.
The figures which accompany the written portion of this specification illustrate embodiments according to the teachings of the present invention.
The various embodiments of the present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings.
The embodiments of the present disclosure described below are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise forms disclosed in the following detailed description. Rather, the embodiments are chosen and described so that others skilled in the art may appreciate and understand the principles and practices of the present disclosure.
The following embodiments and the accompanying drawings, which are incorporated into and form part of this disclosure, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, certain illustrative aspects of the invention are described herein in connection with the following description and the annexed drawings. These aspects are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of the invention can be employed and the subject invention is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. Other advantages and novel features of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the drawings.
Turning now descriptively to drawing, referring to
In order to increase friction between the tab 180 and a user and reduce the chance of the seat slipping from the user and slamming upon a toilet bowl, the top surface and the bottom surface of the tab 180 are formed having a curve cross-section, as shown in
The main body and the opening of the toilet seat may be are formed having an oval shape, however other shapes, such as circular may be chosen and used.
The improved toilet further includes a cover 200 including a top surface, a bottom surface, an outer edge including a front section, a back section; and two opposite side portions respectively located between said front portion and said back portion, wherein the back section is pivotally connected to the back section of the outer edge of the main body via the hinge 140, and wherein the outer edge has a size and shape substantially equal to the outer edge of the main body, such that the cover is adapted to substantially and removably cover the top surface of the main body.
The method of making the improved toilet seat may vary, however in a preferred embodiment, the main body and cover are injection molded and then pivotally connected together. Another method of making that may be chosen is casting. The advantage of molding and casting is that the tab is integrally formed with the main body and therefore will never loosen. Furthermore, there is no need to buy extra equipment and avoid numerous installation steps. Even further, by integrally forming the tab with the main body of the toilet seat there are no spaces to accumulate germs and waste, thereby providing a more secure and sterile toilet environment.
Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that any arrangement, which is calculated to achieve the same purpose, may be substituted for the specific embodiment shown. This application is intended to cover any adaptations or variations of the present invention.
Although the invention has been explained in relation to its preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that many other possible modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
