US3039117A - Portable sit bath - Google Patents

Description

June 19, 1962 R. A. Hof-,Kms 3,039,117

PORTABLE SIT BATH Filed Feb. 17. 1961 C ATroRN EYs.

United States Patent Oilice Bgdl'l Patented June 19, 19162 3,039,117 PQRTABLE SIT BATH Ruth Amalie Hoskins, 1616 Sumner Ave., Aberdeen, Wash. Filed Feb. 17, 1961, Ser. No. 89,961 2 Claims. (Cl. 4 6) This invention relates to a portable sit bath, and more particularly to an improved portable sit bath for therapeutic purposes.

An object of the present invention is to provide a portable sit bath which is adapted to be mounted on and supported by a conventional toilet bowl so that a person can conveniently sit in the device of the present invention and bathe or wash or treat various portions of the body in order to aid in convalescence or promote health for the person using the device.

Another object is to provide an apparatus of the character described that includes a hollow member that is provided with a comfortable and convenient seat supporting means for the patient or person using the device, and wherein 'there is provided a means for introducing water of a desired temperature into the interior of the device, and there is also provided a drain plug and overilow outlet for the device so that water can be selectively drained therefrom as desired or required.

Another object is to provide a portable sit bath which includes a means whereby water can be supplied from a conventional water faucet, and wherein the sit bath is adapted to be conveniently and securely supported on a toilet bowl so that the outlet water can be readily discharged into the drain line or drain pipe from the toilet bowl, the present invention providing a means for permitting a quick and convenient bathing or washing of various areas or portions of the body and wherein the device is especially suitable for use by people suffering from various ailments, infections or the like since the present invention will eliminate the necessity for such persons taking and sitting submerged in water in -a regular bathtub.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a portable sit bath for use with a conventional toilet bowl wherein the portable sit bath embodies a body member that is adapted to be fabricated or made of -a suitable material such as polyester plastic that can be insulated with fiber glass, and wherein a person using the present invention will be able to sit in water over the hip bone so as to provide increased therapeutic advantages or benefits over prior devices of this type.

Another object is to provide an apparatus of lthe character described that may be utilized speedily and safely by various persons, and further objects and advantages are to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof in a device of the character described 4that is economical to produce, durable in form, and conducive to the most economical use of materials Iand uniformity of members formed therefrom.

Still further objects and advantages will become apparent in the subsequent description in the specification.

In the drawings:

FIGURE l is a perspective view illustrating the portable sit bath of the present invention, and with parts broken away and in section.

FIGURE 2 is a side elevational view illustrating the portable sit bath of the present invention and showing the sit bath supported and mounted on a conventional toilet bowl similar to the view shown in FIGURE l, and with parts broken away and in section.

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating certain constructional details of the present invention.

Referring in detail to the drawings, the numeral indicates a conventional toilet which includes the usual bowl 11 as well as the seats 12 and 13, and the bowl 11 is provided with the usual inwardly directed or inwardly disposed ange 14- radjacent the upper end thereof, FIG- URE 2.

According to the present invention there is provided a portable sit bath which is indicated generally by the numeral 15, and the sit bath 15 includes a body member 16 which is hollow, and the body member 16 may be made of a suitable material such as a suitable plastic.

As shown in the drawings, the body member 16 is provided adjacent its lower rear portion with one or more lugs or clamps 17 which are adapted to engage the rear portion of the flange 14 so as to help maintain the device 15 in place on the toilet bowl 11. The body member 16 is shaped to include horizontally disposed sections 18 and 19 which are adapted to rest on the upper edge of the toilet bowl 11, and a portion such as the portion 25 adjacent the bottom of the member 16 is adapted to engage the front portion of the ange 14 in order to help anchor the device 15 in place on the toilet bowl.

As shown in the drawings the body member 16 is shaped to include a horizontally disposed bottom portion 20 which is provided with a drain opening 21, and the numeral 22 indicates a plug which is releasably mounted in the opening 21, and the plug 22. may have a chain 23 connected thereto, and the chain 23 is adapted to be anchored in place to the body member 16 as at 24.

The body member 16 further includes an inclined portion 26 which is arranged forwardly of the portion 20. It will also be noted that the body member 16 includes upstanding spaced apart front and back walls or portions '27 and 28 as well as spaced parallel side walls or portions 29. The numeral 30 indicates an inlet water hose or conduit which is adapted to be connected to a suitable source of supply of water such as a faucet in 'a bathroom or the like, and the hose 30 is adapted to be clamped in place as at 31.

The portable sit bath of the present invention further includes an internal integral supporting seat which is indicated generally by the numeral 32, and it will be seen that the seat 32 embodies a generally U-shaped rim portion 33 which embodies or comprises sloping or inclined surfaces 34 that slope downwardly from front to rear, and the surfaces 34 are joined at their rear portion by a portion 35. There is also provided generally upstanding wall surfaces or wall portions 36, 37 and 38 in the vicinity of the seat 32, as shown in the drawings.

The back portion of the portable sit bath 15 is prorvided with a hollow space 39 that denes or provides a passageway, and the lower end of this passageway or space 39 is open as at 40 so that water which enters the passageway 39 through the overflow opening 41 can be discharged down through the opening 4t) into the toilet bowl 11 whereby this water or fluid can be flushed or discharged out through the usual drain pipe system of the toilet.

The back wall 28 of the body member 16 is provided with an upwardly directed extension 42, FIGURE l, and this extension 4Z helps provide additional support for the back of the person sitting in the device of the present invention, and in addi-tion the extension 42 provides a means for helping to maintain the seats 12 and 13 in an upright position so that these seats will not accidentally move downwardly as for example from the polsition shown in FIGURES l and 2.

As shown in FIGURE 3 the body member 16 may be made of a suitable plastic 4-3 that is coated or covered with liber glass 44.

There is illustrated in FIGURE 2 by the numeral 45 a portion of a douche line which can be used in conjuncinlet water line 36, depending upon the requirements of the patient or person using the present invention.

From the foregoing, it is apparent that there has been provided a portable sit bath, and in use with the parts arranged as shown in the drawings, it will be seen that the portable sit bath of the present invention is adapted to be supported on a bowl such as the bowl 11 of the toilet 10, and the portable sit bath 15 can be readily disengaged from the toilet bowl as for example when it is not needed so that it can be conveniently stored away or transported or carried to a different location as desired or required. When the device is mounted on the toilet bowl, the lug 17 is shaped to engage beneath the rear portion o-f the flange 14 of the toilet bowl as sho-wn in FIGURE 2, and the enlarged or shouldered portion 2S is adapted to engage the front inner portion `of the flange 14 whereby with the horizontal portions 18 and 19 engaging the top of the toilet bowl, the device will be rmly held in place on the toilet bowl. The hose 30 is `adapted to be clamped as at 31 to the body member 16, and one end of the hose 30 can be connected to a suitable source of supply of water such `as the water faucet, while the other end of the hose terminates within the body member 16, so that by turning the faucet on and olf, the desired `amount of water can be permitted to enter the interior of the body member 16 in order to ll the member 16 with the desired quantity of water. The water may be adjusted to hot or cold as desired or required, and the patient or person using the device is `adapted to comfortably sit on the seat portion 32 so as to facilitate the treating of the various parts of the body of the person sitting on the seat portion 32. It is to be noted that the seat portion 32 includes the generally U-shaped rim 33 which includes the inclined side portions 34 as Well yas the rearwardly arranged connecting portion 35, and this construction is such that the person sitting thereon will be supported in a natural and comfortable position in order to facilitate the cleansing or treating of different parts of the body such as portions of the body in the vicinity of the crotch. The seat portion 32 is adapted to be molded or formed integrally with the remaining portions of the body member and for example the upstanding Wall portions 36, 37 land 38 provide a connecting means between the rim and bottom portions of the body member.

The device may be used in different manners, and for example the plug 22 may be arranged in closing relation with respect to the drain opening 21 so that water will ll the body member 16 to a particular level such as up to the overtlow aperture or opening 41, and the overflow opening 41 is arranged so that the member 16 will not accidentally overflow since when the water level reaches the opening 41, of Water from the interior oif the member 16 will flow out through the opening 41 and down through the passageway 39 and be discharged out through the opening 40 into the bowl 11 so that by selectively flushing the toilet in the usual manner, the material or lluid in the bowl 11 can be discharged or emptied when desired or required.

It is to be noted that the portion in the bottom of the member 16 is arranged at Ia lower level than the other portions of the device and there is yalso provided the inclined portion 26 and this construction is such that the fluid `or water in the member 16 will have a tendency to flow downwardly towards the portion Ztl by gravity so that it can be discharged out through the opening 21 when the plug 22 is removed from the opening 21. Under certain circumstances the plug 22 may be left in the opening 21 so that by continually bringing uid into the member 16 through the line 30, the overflow opening 41 can provide a means for the discharge therethrough of water. Or the plug 22 may be removed from the opening 21 and the water can flow in through the line 30 and out through the opening 21 into the toilet bowl.

The water within the body member 16 is entirely separate from the Water in the ybo-wl 11 so that there Will be no intermixing of these bodies of water, and for example the cold water that is usually present in the toilet bowl 11 will not affect the water in the member 16 which may be relatively warm or hot.

The parts can be made of any suitable material and in different shapes or sizes.

As shown in FIGURE 3 the sit bath of the present invention may be made of a plastic 43 such as a polyester type of plastic which can be insulated with ber glass as indicated by the numeral 44 so as to give stability to the sit bath.

An important feature or aspect of the present invention as compared to prior such devices is that with the present invention as compared to prior such devices, a person can sit in water over the hip bone whereas in the prior devices a person generally would not be submerged to any great extent in water, land this is believed to be an important therapeutic advantage.

The various parts of the device may be made of a soft plastic material which has suicient rigidity to insure that the shape thereof will be properly maintained, and the device m-ay include one or more clamps or lugs 17 which help insure that the device will not accidentally slip from its proper position on the toilet bowl. When the device is being used, the seat portion 32 is `adapted to be submerged below the water line or level of water as indicated by the numeral 46. The device is made so that there are no sharp edges and the device may have a rounded back, and the seat portion is molded into the wall of the pan or body member. Also, the device is constructed so that water will follow a path through the body member that will be most beneficial to achieve the washing or cleansing etect that is desired.

The device may be made of a suitable soft plastic and is adapted to be conveniently clamped and attached to a conventional toilet and for example may be twenty inches wide on the outside with an opening eight inches wide between the edges of the seat, yand it may be eighteen inches long and have a depth of sixteen inches, although these dimensions may be Varied as desired or required. The hose 30` may be made of a suitable material such as rubber, and the passageway 39 provides an outlet for the water from the sit bath.

The primary purpose and use yof the portable sit bath of the present invention is to provide a quick, convenient device for use by people such as those sulfering from hemorrhoids, female infection, pregnancies such as pregnancies in the last stages, as well as after birth infection and the like. The portable `sit bath will eliminate the necessity for persons sutfering from such diiculties of sitting submerged in water in 4a regular bath tub. The hose 30 is adapted to provide a continual flow of water and the temperature of the incoming Water can be regulated as desired. Thus, Where there is an infection present, the temperature of the water can be regulated to the desired degree.

Minor changes in shape, size and rearrangement of details coming Within the field `of invention claimed may be resorted to in actual practice, if desired.

What is claimed is:

1. In a portable sit bath for a toilet that includes a I bowl provided with an internal liange adjacent the upper end thereof, a body member including a horizontally disposed bottom portion provided with a drain opening therein, lan inclined portion forwardly of said bottom portion and said inclined portion merging into a horizontally disposed section, a plug detachably mounted in said opening, said body member further including spaced apart upstanding front and back walls and spaced apart side walls, a seat in said body member and `said seat including a generally U-shaped rim portion which slopes downwardly from front to rear thereof, wall portions depending front said rim portion, a iluid inlet hose clamped to the front wall of said body member, there being a hollow space 1n the back wall of said body member providing an outlet passageway which has its lower end open for providing a means of discharging fluid into the interior of the toilet bowl, there being an overflow opening in said back wiall communicating with said passageway, at least one clamp on the lower rear portion of the body member for engaging beneath the rear portion of the ange of the toilet bowl, and a thickened shoulder portion adjacent the lower front portion of the body member for engaging the inner surface of the front of the ange.

2. A portable sit bath comprising `a body member made of plastic covered with fiber glass, said body member including a horizontally disposed bottom portion having a drain opening therein, an inclined portion forwardly of said bottom portion and said inclined portion merging into a horizontally disposed section, a plug releasable in 15 said drain opening, said body member further embodying spaced apart upstand-ing front and back walls and spaced apart side walls, a seat integral with the interior of said body member and said seat embodying a generally U- shaped rim portion which slopes downwardly from front to rear thereof, wall portions depending from said portion, a uid inlet hose clamped to said body member, there being an outlet passageway in the back wall of said body member, and the lower end of the passageway being open, there being an overflow opening in said back wall communicating with said passageway.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,116,015 Ehrhardt May 3, 1938 2,947,994 Saulson et a1 Aug. 9, 1960 2,947,995 Saulson Aug. 9, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS 590,600 Germany Jan. 6, 1934

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