Shower curtain

Abstract

A shower curtain which in use separates a user from a bather located in a bath or shower area comprises a curtain portion and at least one glove which is attached to or formed integrally with the curtain portion. Accordingly, the user can aid the bather through the glove while remaining separated from the bath or shower area by the curtain portion.

Description

This application is based on U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/776,896, which was filed on Feb. 27, 2006.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a shower curtain. In particular, the invention relates to a shower curtain which comprises a number of gloves through which a user positioned outside a bath or shower area can aid a bather without getting wet.

Many children and invalid adults require assistance while bathing or showering. Typical shower curtains are relatively effective in retaining bath or shower water within the bath or shower area. However, these shower curtains also separate the bather from a person desiring to aid the bather. Therefore, the person desiring to aid the bather often must enter the bath or shower area to provide assistance to the bather. Consequently, this person cannot avoid getting wet.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, these and other limitations in the prior art are overcome by providing a novel shower curtain which in use separates a user from a bather located in a bath or shower area. The shower curtain comprises a curtain portion and at least one glove which is attached to or formed integrally with the curtain portion. Accordingly, the user can aid the bather through the glove while remaining separated from the bath or shower area by the curtain portion.

In one embodiment of the invention, the shower curtain comprises at least one pair of gloves and a window portion through which the user can view the bather. Moreover, the window portion can be located above the gloves or can comprise the upper approximately one-half to two-thirds of the curtain portion.

Thus, the shower curtain of the present invention allows the user to aid a bather while being isolated from the bath or shower area by the curtain portion. Accordingly, the user will remain dry while aiding the bather.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be made apparent from the following detailed description, with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, the same reference numbers are used to denote similar components in the various embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the shower curtain of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an exemplary glove portion of the shower curtain of the present invention; and

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the shower curtain of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIG. 1, the shower curtain of the present invention, which is indicated generally by reference number 10, comprises a curtain portion 12 which separates a user (not shown) from a bath or shower area 14, at least one glove 16 which is attached to or formed integrally with the curtain portion, and an optional window portion 18 which is affixed over a corresponding opening in the curtain portion. Similar to a conventional shower curtain, the curtain portion 12 is made of a suitable plastic or waterproof cloth material, is suspended from a curtain rod 20 by suitable means, such as a number of hooks or rings 22, and is generally rectangular in shape. For example, the curtain portion 12 may be made of nylon, may be suspended from the curtain rod 20 by twelve rings 22, and may be 72″ wide by 72″ long.

Referring also to FIG. 2, each glove 16 includes a hand portion 24, an arm portion 26 and a base portion 28 which defines an opening 30 through which the user inserts his or her arm to don the glove. The hand portion 24 is ideally sized to accommodate an average large hand, and the arm portion 26 is ideally sized to cover a substantial portion of an average long arm. For example, the hand portion 24 may be sized large to extra-large, and the arm portion 26 may be between about 24″ and 36″ long. The gloves 16 are made from a suitable waterproof material, such as plastic, rubber or waterproof fabric, and each glove is optimally formed as a one-piece unit in a single manufacturing process.

As shown in FIG. 1, each glove 16 extends into the bath or shower area 14 from a corresponding aperture 32 in the curtain portion 12. In addition, the opening 30 in each glove 16 is aligned with its corresponding aperture 32 so that the user can insert his or her arms through the curtain portion 12 and into the gloves. In this manner, the user is separated from the bath or shower area 14 by the curtain portion 12, but is able to extend his or her arms into the bath or shower area via the gloves 16.

As mentioned above, each glove 16 can be attached to or formed integrally with the curtain portion 12 by any known technique. As shown in FIG. 2, for example, each glove 16 may comprise a flange 34 adjacent the base portion 28 which is glued or otherwise adhered to the curtain portion 12 around the aperture 32. In addition, in order to accommodate an average size user, the apertures are ideally centered approximately 30″ to 45″ inches from the bottom of the curtain portion.

In the event the curtain portion 12 is not made of a transparent or translucent material, the shower curtain 12 ideally also includes the window portion 18. The window portion 18 may be made of a transparent or translucent plastic material and can be attached to the curtain portion 12 by suitable means, such as by heat welding or gluing. The window portion 18 should be positioned and sized so as to allow an average size person to easily view the bather. In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the window portion 18 is about 10″ to 16″ high and about 12″ to 20″ wide and is centered above the gloves 16 approximately 40″ to 60″ from the bottom of the curtain portion 12.

Another embodiment of the shower curtain of the present invention is shown in FIG. 3. The shower curtain of this embodiment, which is indicated generally by reference number 110, is similar in many respects to the shower curtain 10 described above. In this embodiment, however, the window portion 34 comprises the upper approximately one-half to two-thirds of the curtain portion 12. In addition, the gloves 16 are lowered to a position in which the apertures 32 are centered approximately 15″ to 25″ from the bottom of the curtain portion 12. This embodiment is ideally suited for bathing small children, as well as pets.

In another embodiment of the invention which is not depicted in the drawings, the shower curtain comprises two pairs of gloves 14. One pair is positioned as shown in FIG. 1 and the other pair is positioned as shown in FIG. 3. This embodiment is ideally suited for bathing both large and small persons.

It should be recognized that, while the present invention has been described in relation to the preferred embodiments thereof, those skilled in the art may develop a wide variation of structural and operational details without departing from the principles of the invention. Therefore, the appended claims are to be construed to cover all equivalents falling within the true scope and spirit of the invention.

Claims

1. A shower curtain which in use separates a user from a bather located in a bath or shower area, the shower curtain comprising:

a curtain portion; and

at least one glove which is attached to or formed integrally with the curtain portion;

wherein the user can aid the bather through the glove while remaining separated from the bath or shower area by the curtain portion.

2. The shower curtain of claim 1, wherein the at least one glove comprises at least one pair of gloves.

3. The shower curtain of claim 2, wherein the at least one pair of gloves comprises two pairs of gloves.

4. The shower curtain of claim 1, wherein each glove comprises a hand portion, an arm portion and a base portion.

5. The shower curtain of claim 4, wherein the base portion defines an opening which is aligned with a corresponding aperture in the curtain portion.

6. The shower curtain of claim 4, wherein the aperture is centered approximately 30″ to 45″ above the bottom of the curtain portion.

7. The shower curtain of claim 4, wherein the aperture is centered approximately 15″ to 25″ above the bottom of the curtain portion.

8. The shower curtain of claim 4, wherein each glove further comprises a flange which is located adjacent the base portion.

9. The shower curtain of claim 8, wherein the flange is adhered to the curtain portion to thereby attach the glove to the curtain portion.

10. The shower curtain of claim 4, wherein the arm portion comprises a length of between about 24″ and 36″.

11. The shower curtain of claim 1, further comprising a window portion through which the user can view the bather.

12. The shower curtain of claim 11, wherein the window portion comprises the upper approximately one-half to two-thirds of the curtain portion.

13. The shower curtain of claim 6, further comprising:

a window portion through which the user can view the bather;

wherein the window portion is centered approximately 40″ to 60″ above the bottom of the curtain portion.

14. The shower curtain of claim 7, further comprising:

a window portion through which the user can view the bather;

wherein the window portion comprises the upper approximately one-half to two-thirds of the curtain portion.

15. A shower curtain which in use separates a user from a bather located in a bath or shower area, the shower curtain comprising:

a curtain portion;

at least one pair of gloves, each of which is attached to or formed integrally with the curtain portion; and

a window portion which is located above the gloves and through which the user can view the bather;

wherein the user can aid the bather through the gloves while remaining separated from the bath or shower area by the curtain portion.