Title: Potty protector urine shield with centered targets
Abstract: A flexible protector urine shield when flat is rectangular-shaped with rounded corners at the top. A handle on the protector shield provides easy of use when placing and removing shield. It mounts with front and back support rods, which lie on top of the rim. The front rod allows for targets to be placed in the center of the toilet to train boys to aim more efficiently.
Patent Number: 7,017,198 Issued on 03/28/2006 to Conn, et al.
| Inventors:
|
Conn; Donna Fair (20306 Seabrook Dr., Montgomery Village, MD 20886);
Conn; William Edward (20306 Seabrook Dr., Montgomery Village, MD 20886)
|
| Appl. No.:
|
074537 |
| Filed:
|
March 8, 2005 |
| Current U.S. Class: |
4/300.3; 4/DIG.5; 4/661 |
| Current Intern'l Class: |
E03D 9/00 (20060101) |
| Field of Search: |
4/3003,DIG.5,661
|
References Cited [Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
| 2801424 | Aug., 1957 | Mercer.
| |
| 4044405 | Aug., 1977 | Kreiss.
| |
| 5117512 | Jun., 1992 | Bressler.
| |
| 5165694 | Nov., 1992 | Kraushaar.
| |
| D369856 | May., 1996 | Lucido et al.
| |
| 5671485 | Sep., 1997 | Middlestead.
| |
| 6068488 | May., 2000 | Sinsheimer et al.
| |
| 6357055 | Mar., 2002 | Gambla et al.
| |
| 6385785 | May., 2002 | Linden.
| |
| 6550075 | Apr., 2003 | Brannon, III.
| |
| 2005/0077682 | Apr., 2005 | Trecartin.
| |
Primary Examiner: Huynh; Khoa D.
Parent Case Text
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims benefit of 60/521,226 Mar. 15, 2004
Claims
The invention claimed is:
1. A potty protector urine shield for use with a toilet bowl, said toilet bowl
having a curved top rim, a curved interior rim with a back, front, and sides, water,
and a toilet seat that can be raised and lowered, the improvement comprising
(a) a flexible shield that conformingly bends along the back and sides of the
interior rim, said flexible shield having a top boundary, a bottom boundary, and
two side boundaries, a vertical plane, a horizontal plane, a front face and a back
face, said vertical plane extending from below the curved interior rim of the toilet
bowl to a distance above the curved interior rim of the toilet bowl, and said horizontal
plane of the flexible shield curving along the back and sides of the interior rim
of the toilet bowl;
(b) at least one aperture near the top boundary of the flexible shield, said
at least one aperture forming a handle for placement and removal of the flexible
shield from said curved top rim of the toilet bowl;
(c) a first and second pair of apertures being located on the flexible shield
in the same vertical plane, said first pair of apertures having an outer distance
there between being of greater distance than an inner distance of said second pair
of apertures;
(d) a removable front support rod, being inserted through said first pair of
apertures having said outer distance there between, traversing the front face of
the flexible shield, wherein said removable front support rod passing through said
first pair of apertures extends a distance away from the front face of the flexible
shield that curves along the back and sides of the interior rim of the toilet maintaining
an arcuate shape of the flexible shield and said removable front support rod having
first opposite ends extending from the back face of the flexible shield through
said first pair of apertures contacting the curved top rim to support the flexible shield;
(e) a removable back support rod, being inserted through said second pair of
apertures having said inner distance there between, traversing the front face of
the flexible shield, wherein said removable back support rod being malleable and
having second opposite ends pass through the second pair of apertures and said
second opposite ends extend away from the back face of the flexible shield forming
a U-shape with the back face of the flexible shield being a base of the U-shape
and said second opposite ends of said removable back support rod interfaces with
the curved top rim; and
(f) a removable target device being attached to the front support rod.
2. A protector urine shield according to claim 1, comprising a mounting system
for the flexible shield to the toilet bowl, said toilet bowl having a pair of hinges
at the rear of the toilet bowl connecting the toilet seat to the curved top rim,
wherein the first opposite ends of the front support rod extend through the first
pair of apertures from the back face of the flexible shield to rest on opposite
sides of the curved top rim of the toilet bowl and the second opposite ends of
the back support rod being inserted between the pair of hinges and under the raised
toilet seat located at the rear of the toilet bowl thereby positioning the flexible
shield with the bottom boundary below the curved top rim and the top boundary above
the curved top rim.
3. A protector urine shield according to claim 1, wherein the target device is
positioned centrally along the front support rod and centrally to the sides of
the curved interior rim of the toilet bowl, below the curved interior rim of the
toilet bowl, and above a water level contained in the toilet bowl.
4. A protector urine shield according to claim 2, wherein the target device is
a rotatable paddle wheel.
5. A protector urine shield according to claim 2, wherein the target device is
a ring.
6. A protector urine shield according to claim 1, wherein the target device is
used to provide a target to direct aim of the urine stream.
Description
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
Not Applicable
REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT
DISC APPENDIX
Not Applicable
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The potty protector is a device used to shield urine from getting outside the
toilet when in use and provides a centered target to train boys. There have been
a myriad of devices attempting to resolve this issue, but fall short in one or
more of the following areas: ease of use, simplified mounting, support for both
the back and front of the shield, safe rounded corners, centered and creative targets,
and the ability to clean device easily.
With regards to ease of use, the device should be easy to handle, install, remove
and clean. Often boys need to urgently use the toilet, so it is important to install
the device quickly to avoid an even bigger mess. The following prior art does not
provide this handling functionality: U.S. Pat. No. 6,385,785 issued to Linden on
May 14, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 5,983,410 issued to Webster on Nov. 16, 1999; U.S.
Pat. No. 5,117,512 issued to Bressler on Jun. 2, 1992; U.S. Pat. No. 3,071,778
issued to Renshaw in January 1963 and U.S. Pat. No. 2,583,718 issue to Walls in
January 1952.
Prior art strategies are restrictive requiring exact positioning, complicated
mounting, and the use of such devices as clamps, clips, hooks, flanges and suctions
cups that make installation of a device very cumbersome. The following patents
use clamps: U.S. Pat. No. 2,583,718 issued to Walls in January 1952 and U.S. Pat.
No. 4,060,859 issued to Anderson in December 1977. Clamps require exact positioning
and a lot of handling to install. The following patents use clips or hooks: U.S.
Pat. No. 3,931,649 issued to Jankowski in January 1976, U.S. Pat. No. 5,117,512
issued to Bressler on Jun. 2, 1992; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,385,785 issued to Linden
on May 14, 2002 discloses a toilet shield mounted with a back clip, which requires
the raised toilet seat to be at a particular angle to hook onto. Not all raised
toilet seats are at the same vertical angle with respect to the horizontal plane
of the curve top rim of a standard toilet, therefore the back clip on shield may
not accommodate the various toilet designs. Also the weight of the toilet seat
plus the weight of the clip on toilet shield may cause the seat to fall down. The
flange technique is used in the following patents: U.S. Pat. No. D394900 issued
to Tae Cho Kang on Jun. 2, 1998 and U.S. Pat. No D405,168 issued to Henry on Feb.
2, 1999.
The prior art only offers one support in one of the two areas. Only providing
one area of support will cause the device to sag in the other area. The following
patent provides only one area of support: U.S. Pat. No. 6,385,785 issued to Linden
on May 14, 2002.
The following patents have sharp corners, which could prove harmful to users:
U.S. Pat. No. 6,385,785 issued to Linden on May 14, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 5,983,410
issued to Webster on Nov. 16, 1999; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,373,589 issued to Rego
et al in December 1994.
Other art either does not provide a target or the position of the target is
not in the center of the toilet. The following patents position targets ineffectively:
U.S. Pat. No. 6,385,785 issued to Linden on May 14, 2002 positions it target at
the back and high on the toilet. U.S. Pat. No. 5,117,512 issued to Bressler on
Jun. 2, 1992 positions his targets high on his shield, so when the shield is eventually
removed they have been trained to aim at the raised toilet seat.
The apparatus should be easy to clean. Other arts use accordion material, which
will be extremely difficult to keep clean and sanitary. The following patents would
be difficult to keep clean: U.S. Pat. No. 5,373,589 issued to Rego et al in December
1994 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,276,925 issued to Blaha in January 1994.
It is desirable that the installation or mounting of the device be user friendly.
The installation of the device should be quick and secure to ensure urine will
not spray outside of the toilet bowl.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The potty protector invention is a user-friendly flexible shield, which prevents
urine from going outside of the toilet and provides centered targets for toilet
training boys. Advantages are the present invention include that it is easy to
handle and can be installed quickly. It is a portable solution so those individuals
in a family or group not requiring the device can easily remove it and set it aside.
It shields urine from splashing on to the floor and around the outside of the toilet.
It provides a centralized target for training boy to improve their aim. The targets
make the potty training experience fun or game like, thereby encouraging boys to
improve their aim while urinating into the toilet. The shield is easy to clean
and it can be conveniently stored on a holder next to the toilet for easy access.
The holder will support the shield and collect any drippings from the shield after
use to help keep the toilet area clean and sanitary.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1. is a perspective view from the side and front, showing how the front
support rod mounts the protector urine shield on the toilet rim.
FIG. 2. is a back view of the protector urine shield, showing the back face
of the shield and the back and front support rods.
FIG. 3. is a front view of the protector urine shield, showing the handle at
the top, the back and front support rods, and a centered ring target.
FIG. 4. is a front view of the stand-alone rod, showing the inside fasteners,
along with a centered ring target.
FIG. 5. is a side view of the paddle wheel target and the double hook system
used to attach to the front support rod or a stand-alone rod.
FIG. 6. is a frontal view of the ring target and the single hook system used
to attach to the front support rod or a stand-alone rod.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring to the drawings, FIGS. 1 though
6, FIG. 1 shows the potty
protector urine shield
1 inside a conventional toilet bowl. The potty protector
urine shield
1 is made of smooth plastic, which ensures its flexible to
fit inside of the toilet rim
14. The potty protector urine shield
1
has a convenient handle
2 located at the top to aid in the placement and
removal of the urine shield. The flexible shield also has a first and second pair
of apertures being located on the flexible shield in the same vertical plane, the
first pair of apertures having an outer distance there between being of greater
distance than an inner distance of the second pair of apertures.
FIG. 2 shows the backside of the potty protector urine shield
1. Two
circular rods mount the potty protector urine shield
1. The front support
rod
3 extends across the front of the urine shield through the first pair
of apertures, traversing the front face of the flexible shield, and lies on top
of the rim of the toilet
14. It does not require exact positioning. The
use of a circular rod ensures urine will roll off easily. The back support rod
4 mounts the back portion of the potty protector urine shield
1.
The back support rod
4 is being inserted through the second pair of aperture,
traversing the front surface of the flexible shield, lies on top of the rim and
it can be placed between the hinges or outside a center hinge, wherein the removable
back support rod being malleable and having second opposite ends pass through the
second pair of apertures. The second opposite ends extend away from the back face
of the flexible shield forming a U-shape with the back face of the shield. Because
the potty protector urine shield
1 provides support for both the front and
the back of the protector shield, the device is very stable. The present invention
is very reliable and is easy to mount, which is necessary when it is time to use
the device. This mounting strategy allows the potty protector urine shield
1
flexibility to fit the various toilet designs more efficiently.
FIG. 3. shows the front view of the potty protector urine shield with a ring
target
6. The potty protector urine shield
1 covers a wide area in
front of the raised toilet seat
15. The front support rod
3 supports
the front section of the urine shield by lying on top of the toilet rim
14.
Clips, screws, etc. do not confine the front support rod
3. There are safe
rounded corners
13 on the shield. These rounded corners
13, as opposed
to sharp corners, provide a safer device, which will be used, in large part by children.
FIG. 4 shows a stand-alone rod
3 with a ring target
6. Older males
who need target practice would use the stand-alone rod. The stand-alone rod
3
lies across the toilet rim
14. It is secured in places with flexible fasteners
7 inside the toilet rim
14.
The present invention is a device to train boys to use the toilet/potty correctly.
The front support rod
3 positions the target in an optimal location, the
center of the toilet and above the water in the toilet. Currently, the present
invention has a paddle wheel target and a ring target.
FIG. 5 is the paddle wheel target, which is comprised of a double hook attachment
10 for the front support rod
3, a circular tube
11, and flaps
12. The paddle wheel target spins when a steady stream of urine hits it.
FIG. 6 is the ring target, which comes in a variety colors. This target has
an aperture in the center
9 of the ring target
6 in which urine is
to go through. There is a smaller aperture at the top
8 of the circular
target
6 to accommodate the single hook
5. The single hook
5
is attached to the front support rod
3.
The potty protector urine shield
1 is produced from a very smooth material.
This allows the device to be cleaned easily by spraying with a disinfectant and
simply wiping clean.
The potty protector urine shield
1 can be easily installed, removed, cleaned
and conveniently stored beside the toilet or under the sink in the bathroom.
While this invention has been described in conjunction with a specific embodiment
thereof, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications, and variations will
be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended to embrace
all such alternatives, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit
and broad scope of the appended claims.
*
