PERSONAL HYGIENE DEVICE FOR USERS WITH LIMITED MOBILITY
A personal hygiene device for use by users with limited mobility comprises a shaft and a clamp. The clamp holds a piece of wiping material and the wiping material folds over and is structurally supported by a portion of the shaft. The device, with the wiping material held in place by the clamp, is used to perform bodily care functions such as wiping, bathing, or applying ointments or liquids. The wiping material comprises a piece of cloth-like absorbent material with a flap attached to the back of the material, wherein the flap extends outwardly perpendicular to the back of the material.
This application claims priority to U.S. Application No. 60/834,991, filed Aug. 2, 2006.
TECHNICAL FIELDThe invention relates generally to personal hygiene devices and, more particularly, to a personal hygiene device for use by those with limited mobility.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONPeople may suffer from limited mobility for many reasons, such as arthritis, old age, handicap, obesity, injury, or surgery. Those with limited mobility often suffer from physical and psychological pain and cannot do all of the activities they are used to doing. Perhaps one of the most emotionally frustrating results of limited mobility is the loss of, or increased difficulty in, the ability to provide basic care to oneself, such as by bathing, wiping the perineal region after going to the bathroom, or applying medication to one's body. A person may be limited in his ability to care for himself because his hands are too weak or deformed to allow him to grasp a wiping material or because his arms, shoulders, trunk, or other body parts do not allow for proper movement needed to perform the required task.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention provides an apparatus to aid a user in caring for his body. The apparatus comprises a shaft connected to a clamp that is capable of holding a piece of wiping material or a cloth-like material. The material may be of any shape, including rectangular or circular, and in some embodiments is absorbent. The material may also be disposable, for example, flushable in a toilet. In some embodiments, the material has a length of between about three and eight inches, a width of about two and five inches, and a thickness of between about one to five millimeters. The material has a flap attached to the material for the clamp to grip, and the flap extends perpendicularly outward from the back of the wiping pad. The flap may be attached in the middle of the pad or toward one of the edges and may have a region of increased thickness on its free end.
The shaft of the apparatus has three regions—a proximal region nearest to the user's hand, an intermediate region, and a distal region farthest from the user's hand. The distal region has a central axis defined by the length or width, whichever is greater. The clamp is attached to the distal shaft region and is oriented parallel to the central axis of the distal shaft region. The clamp and shaft are arranged such that when the clamp holds the wiping material, the material covers the portion of the shaft near the clamp to provide a surface for wiping or performing other self-care functions. This arrangement is advantageous because the distal portion of the shaft, having few or no moving parts, is better suited than the clamp to bear the forces associated with wiping.
In some embodiments, the distal shaft portion is rotatable with respect to the rest of the shaft. In some embodiments, the distal shaft portion has a length greater than its width, while in other embodiments, the reverse is true. The distal shaft portion may have any shape that facilitates wiping or other bodily care functions; such as, but not limited to, having a top side with a rounded edge of narrowed width and a bottom edge of greater width. In some embodiments, one or more of the proximal, intermediate, and distal shaft regions may be removed from the remaining portions. In such embodiments alternate shaft portions of varying shape may be substituted for any corresponding removed shaft portion. For example, a generally straight intermediate shaft portion may be removed and replaced with a curved intermediate shaft portion, or a distal shaft portion having a length greater than its width may be removed and replaced with a distal shaft portion have a width greater than its length. In some embodiments, the proximal shaft portion comprises a handle, which may comprise a hollow loop.
In some embodiments, the distal shaft portion is at least partially hollow and covers at least a portion of the clamp. Whether or not a portion of the clamp is covered by the distal shaft portion, the exposed portion of the clamp should not extend very far outwardly from the distal shaft portion. In some embodiments, the tip of the clamp extends less than about an inch away from the distal shaft portion, while in other embodiments it extends less than about a centimeter. The clamp comprises two jaw members, at least one of which is biased closed. The clamp may be opened by a clamp-opening mechanism, which may comprise a button, sliding switch, or lever, among other things. In some embodiments, one of the two clamping jaws is stationary, and the non-stationary clamping jaw is biased closed, such as by a spring biased mechanism. The jaw need only open to a size large enough to grip the wiping material, and in some embodiments, the jaw members open to a maximum spacing of about 3 to 5 millimeters. The clamp-opening mechanism in some embodiments is located on the distal shaft portion; however, in other embodiments, the clamp-opening mechanism is located on the proximal or intermediate shaft portions.
The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technical advantages of the present invention in order that the detailed description of the invention that follows may be better understood. Additional features and advantages of the invention will be described hereinafter which form the subject of the claims of the invention. It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the conception and specific embodiment disclosed may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention. It should also be realized by those skilled in the art that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims. The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the invention, both as to its organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying figures. It is to be expressly understood, however, that each of the figures is provided for the purpose of illustration and description only and is not intended as a definition of the limits of the present invention.
For a more complete understanding of the present invention, reference is now made to the following descriptions taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:
As used herein, the use of the word “a” or “an” when used in conjunction with the term “comprising” in the claims and/or the specification may mean “one,” but it is also consistent with the meaning of “one or more,” “at least one,” and “one or more than one.”
Referring to
In some embodiments, material 50 comprises flap 51 fixably attached to material 50 on surface 52 to allow clamp 14 a convenient place to grasp material 50. Flap 51 may be of any material, such as, but not limited to, cloth, cotton, paper, cellulose, synthetic fibers, polyacrylate, polymers, nonwoven fabric, or any combination of such materials, and may be attached to material 50 by any means, such as stitching, glue, thermal bonding and the like as long as the bond provides adequate support for stresses involved with wiping and other bodily care functions. Flap 51 may be attached at any position on surface 52, including the center (
Referring to
Clamp 14 may be of various configurations as long as clamp 14 is generally parallel to central axis 15 of distal shaft portion 13 as shown in
Top side 18 and bottom side 19 may have different shapes, widths, and curvatures, each providing advantageous wiping dynamics. A broad width and flat surface will provide a large surface area for wiping, whereas a narrow width and partially raised surface will aid in more localized applications. For example, referring to
While distal shaft portion 13 may be of any shape; however, it is preferable that it has rounded edges so as to provide smooth surfaces for contact with the body. Variations in the distal shaft portion's length and width allow different angles of use, one of which may be more beneficial to a particular user with a particular limitation. By way of non-limiting examples, distal shaft portion 13 may have a length greater than its width, a width greater than its length, or a flared shape, referring to
In some embodiments, distal shaft portion 13, intermediate shaft portion 12, and proximal shaft portion 11 may be disengageable with respect to the other shaft portions. The shaft portions may engage by any means, such as by snapping on, twisting or screwing on, or frictional engagement. In some embodiments, one shaft portion may be disengaged and replaced with an alternately-shaped portion to allow various configurations adapted for different needs. For instance, a plurality of intermediate shaft portions 12 may comprise various curvatures. In one embodiment, intermediate shaft portion 12 is generally straight, while in other embodiments, such as that shown in
In some embodiments, proximal shaft portion 11 comprises handle 16. Referring to
Shaft 10 and clamp 14 may be made from any suitable material, such as, but not limited to, rigid plastic material that is light-weight yet strong enough to support wiping. In some embodiments, shaft 10 and clamp 14 are made of material that is easily cleaned.
Although the present invention and its advantages have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Moreover, the scope of the present application is not intended to be limited to the particular embodiments of the process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, means, methods and steps described in the specification. As one of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate from the disclosure of the present invention, processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps, presently existing or later to be developed that perform substantially the same function or achieve substantially the same result as the corresponding embodiments described herein may be utilized according to the present invention. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to include within their scope such processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps.
Claims
1. A personal hygiene device, comprising:
- a shaft having a proximal portion, an intermediate portion, and a distal portion; and
- a clamp associated with the distal portion of the shaft that is oriented parallel to the central axis of the distal portion of the shaft.
2. The device of claim 1, wherein the distal portion of the shaft is rotatable with respect to the intermediate portion of the shaft.
3. The device of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of said distal portion of the shaft is adapted to provide rigid support for a wiping material.
4. The device of claim 3, wherein the distal portion of the shaft comprises a rounded top edge of narrowed width and a bottom edge of greater width than the width of the top edge.
5. The device of claim 4, wherein the distal portion of the shaft has a length greater than its width.
6. The device of claim 4, wherein the distal portion of the shaft has a width greater than its length
7. The device of claim 1, wherein one or more of the proximal, intermediate, and distal portion of the shafts are releasably attached to one another.
8. The device of claim 1, wherein the intermediate shaft portion is curved.
9. The device of claim 1, wherein the proximal shaft portion comprises a handle.
10. The device of claim 9, wherein the handle comprises a hollow loop.
11. The device of claim 1, wherein the distal portion of the shaft is at least partially hollow and covers at least a portion of the clamp.
12. The device of claim 1, wherein the clamp comprises two jaw members at least one of which is biased closed and may be opened by a means for opening the clamp.
13. The device of claim 12, wherein the clamp extends less than about one inch from the distal portion of the shaft.
14. The device of claim 12, wherein the clamp extends less than about one centimeter from the distal portion of the shaft.
15. The device of claim 12, wherein one of the jaw members is stationary.
16. The device of claim 12, wherein the two jaw members open to a maximum spacing between about 3 to 5 millimeters.
17. The device of claim 12, wherein the means for opening the clamp comprises a button, a sliding member, or a lever.
18. The device of claim 12 wherein the means for opening the clamp is located on the distal portion of the shaft, the proximal shaft portion, or the intermediate shaft portion.
19. A personal hygiene device, comprising:
- a shaft having a proximal portion, an intermediate portion, and a distal portion; and
- a clamp associated with the distal portion of the shaft that is oriented parallel to the central axis of the distal portion of the shaft; wherein at least a portion of said distal portion of the shaft is adapted to provide rigid support for a wiping material when the wiping material is held by the clamp.
20. A disposable material adapted for use on a personal hygiene device, comprising:
- a piece of absorbent material comprising a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface; and
- a flap attached to the first surface, wherein the flap extends outwardly perpendicular to the first surface.
21. The material of claim 20 wherein the flap is attached at or near the center of the first surface.
22. The material of claim 20 wherein the flap comprises a region of increased thickness on its free end.
23. The material of claim 20 wherein the flap is attached at or near an end of the first surface.
24. The material of claim 20 wherein the material is rectangular shaped.
25. The material of claim 20 wherein the material is circular shaped.
26. The material of claim 20 wherein the material is flushable in a toilet.
27. The material of claim 20 wherein the material is between about one to five millimeters thick.
28. The material of claim 20 wherein the first surface has a length between about three and eight inches.
29. The material of claim 20 wherein the flap is rectangular shaped.
30. The material of claim 20 wherein the material is biodegradable.
31. The material of claim 20 wherein the material is selected from the group consisting of
- cotton,
- paper,
- cellulose,
- synthetic fibers,
- polyacrylate,
- polymers,
- nonwoven fabric,
- and any combination thereof.
Type: Application
Filed: Jul 13, 2007
Publication Date: Feb 7, 2008
Inventor: Daniel E. Klaes (Houston, TX)
Application Number: 11/777,595
International Classification: A46B 5/02 (20060101); A47K 7/00 (20060101);