Patent Application
20240085109
The present invention relates to hair dryers and, more particularly, to a weave, wig, and hair extension dryer.
Hand dryers take time to dry weaves, wigs, and hair extensions and someone must physically attend to them, taking time away from working with customers and adding to a stylist's workload.
As can be seen, there is a need for an efficient, unattended, weave, wig, and hair extension dryer.
In one aspect of the present invention, a drying cabinet comprises a housing having a top surface with a top surface aperture, a base, a front wall with a loading aperture, a rear wall, and two sidewalls, forming an inner chamber; a door hingedly mounted to the front wall, operative to close the loading aperture; a first carousel drying rack rotatably mounted within the housing, configured as a ring having an upper surface, a lower surface, a perimeter, and suspension appendages extending from the lower surface; a heat protecting cap having a handle, removably mounted within the top surface aperture; a heating element mounted to the inner chamber; a blower mounted to the inner chamber in a diagonal configuration, said blower adapted to output air at a predetermined angle; and a controller, having a user interface, mounted within one of the two sidewalls, configured to selectively operate at least one of the heating element and the blower.
In another aspect of the present invention, a drying cabinet comprises a housing having a top surface, a base, a front wall with a loading aperture, a rear wall, and two sidewalls, forming an inner chamber; a door hingedly mounted to the front wall, operative to close the loading aperture; a first shelf slidably mounted within the inner chamber; a second shelf slidably mounted within the inner chamber spaced from the first shelf; a first drying compartment coupled to the first shelf having a first aperture in a first upper surface thereof; a first carousel drying rack rotatably mounted within the first drying compartment, having a first lower surface, a first perimeter, and suspension appendages extending from the first lower surface; a first heat protecting cap having a first handle, removably mounted within the first aperture; a first blower mounted to the first drying compartment in a diagonal configuration, said first blower adapted to output air at a first predetermined angle; a second drying compartment coupled to the second shelf having a second aperture in a second upper surface thereof; a second carousel drying rack rotatably mounted within the second drying compartment, having a second lower surface, a second perimeter, and suspension appendages extending from the second lower surface; a second heat protecting cap having a second handle, removably mounted within the second aperture; second blower mounted diagonally to the second drying compartment, said second blower adapted to output air at a second predetermined angle; and a controller, having a user interface, mounted within one of the two sidewalls, configured to selectively operate at least one of the first blower and the second blower.
These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description, and claims.
The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplated modes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of the invention. The description is not to be taken in a limiting sense but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention, since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims.
Broadly, one embodiment of the present invention is a weave, wig, and hair extension dryer that rotatably suspends the hair within a cabinet while blowing it dry.
The inventive dryer is sometimes referred to herein as the “AIR DRYER”. It is a self-contained unit comprising blowers that spin the hair while drying it efficiently in a fraction of the time taken with a prior art hand dryer. The dryer is advantageous to hair stylists as it may save time for their customers, increase their efficiency, and lessen their workload.
The drying cabinet is accessible via a door and houses a carousel drying rack (which may be referred to as a spindle), at least one heating element, and blowers (i.e., blow dryers) configured to cause a vortex. The diagonal configuration spins the hair suspended from the carousel drying rack in the heated cabinet to provide a drying system that is faster than using a commercially available handheld hair blow dryer. The dryer has a controller with a user interface and a timer, enabling use of the dryer unattended.
The inventive dryer may be manufactured by producing a cabinet with a door and installing two blowers diagonally—one at a top left, one at a bottom right. The blowers are adapted to output air at a predetermined angle. An oscillating or rotating carousel drying rack has a perimeter and a lower surface with suspension appendages such as clips, hooks, or the like to secure hair. The carousel drying rack may be installed at the top of the cabinet. A door of the cabinet keeps the contents contained and keeps the heat in. A controller having a timed switch may be electrically connected to, and may selectively operate (e.g., start and shut down), a heating element and the two blowers. The timer is operative to shut down the unit after a preselected time. An electrical cord may be electrically connected to the controller to provide power.
To use the dryer, a user may plug in the electrical cord, open the door to access a loading aperture, and attach wet hair or hair-like filament to the clips on the carousel drying rack. The user may close the door, turn the unit on, and set the timer. The blowers spin and dry the hair. When the timer shuts the dryer off, i.e., automatically disengages operation of the heating element(s), the blower(s), or both, the user may open the door, remove the dried hair or remove the carousel drying rack with the dried hair, close the door, and turn the unit off.
Referring to
A dryer 40 according to a third embodiment of the present invention is shown in
It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates to exemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.
