Splash-guard towel
One embodiment of absorbent or repellant material (3) used to protect the wall or mirror from splashes resulting from individuals washing their face, hands, hair, shaving or brushing their teeth. Said embodiment is trapezoidal in shape and comprised of a removable wirelike apparatus (4) located along the bottom edge and contained within a stitched seam wirelike pocket (1) and (2) designed to mold along the back sink edge behind faucet fixtures. At each top corner of said embodiment is a typical eyelet/grommet apparatus (6) comprised of plastic or metal. Said typical eyelet/grommet (6) attaches to mirror onto typical suction cup hook (5) or typical cup hook. Being hung in said manner; said embodiment is conceived with the intent of preventing splashes from occurring, keeping mirror and sink areas cleaner longer.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent No. 60/828,314, filed 2006 Oct. 5, entitled “Splash-Guard Towel”.
FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCHNot Applicable
SEQUENCE LISTING OR PROGRAMNot Applicable
BACKGROUND1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to a towel specifically designed to prevent splashing of liquids.
Millions of people dread performing common household tasks, such as laundry, dishes and cleaning the surrounding area of a sink, because of the time and energy they consume. In today's fast paced society, few individuals have a great deal of leisure time and even a smaller amount of time for chores. One area of the house that people dread cleaning is the sink and surrounding area. As the sink is used by all members of the household each day for brushing teeth, washing hands, shaving, or doing ones hair and makeup, it tends to get dirty rather quickly.
2. Prior Art
A few types of splash-guard apparatuses have been introduced. Two that provide a means for protecting a bathroom sink and surrounding area fall short of practicality.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,722,103 to Kliebert (1988) shows a translucent plastic or glass splash guard that sits on countertop, behind sink & over the faucet fixtures. When certain hygienic acts are performed (brushing teeth, washing hands, shaving, etc.) and completed, the faucet and fixtures and areas to the left and right of the sink remain messy. One would have to additionally clean the translucent plastic or glass apparatus separately multiplying the household chores.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,212,708 to Mulaw (2001) discloses a faucet splash guard that consists of a free standing unit that contains a rear wall, two side walls and shelves. This structure although providing added storage space, is cumbersome and also would require cleaning after sink usage. This does not decrease the amount of household chores, however adds to it.
Other types of splash guard devises have been proposed—for example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,762,062 to Barton (1956), U.S. Pat. No. 2,635,253 to Kirvay (1953) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,564,398 to Trott (2003). Although functional in their own right, do very little to reduce the amount of splashing of liquid-like substances onto vanity, mirror and surrounding sink areas. Therefore, said inventions do little to decrease the frequency of cleanings in those areas. In addition, these devises offer few, if any, alternative uses.
SUMMARYA new invention, the Splash-Guard Towel, was created for the purpose of keeping the mirror and all surrounding sink areas cleaner for a longer period of time. The Splash-Guard Towel is secured in place behind the sink by being attached to the mirror or the wall. The Splash-Guard Towel captures and absorbs water that splashes while people are washing their hands, washing their face, washing their hair, shaving, brushing their teeth, etc. With the Splash-Guard Towel, cleaning the mirror, countertop, sink fixtures, and surrounding area will be required less frequently.
The Splash-Guard Towel would be marketed to households and businesses worldwide.
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- 1 wirelike pocket
- 2 stitched seam
- 3 absorbent or repellant material
- 4 removable wirelike apparatus
- 5 typical suction cup with hook
- 6 typical eyelet/grommet
The embodiment of the Splash-Guard Towel design as illustrated in
The Splash-Guard Towel would be constructed of the best quality materials commonly accepted and used in the manufacturing industry today.
I presently contemplate the main component of the Splash-Guard Towel in
The removable wirelike apparatus 4 (
The typical eyelet/grommet 6 (
The production process related to the use of these metals would ensure that they were produced so as to be flexible, non-corrosive, durable and strong. The selected metals should have high impact strength and be able to accept and retain coloring materials for an extended length of time.
Operation—FIGS. 1, 2, 3The Splash-Guard Towel illustrated in
The Splash-Guard Towel as illustrated in
The typical suction cup hook 5 (
Once the typical suction cup hooks are 5 (
The removable wirelike apparatus 4 (
Accordingly, the reader will see that when the Splash-Guard Towel is secured in place behind the sink and is attached to the mirror or the wall, the Splash-Guard Towel will prevent splashing of liquids onto the mirror or nearby sink area. Furthermore, the Splash-Guard Towel has these additional advantages:
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- it captures, absorbs or repels water that splashes while people are washing their hands, washing their face, washing their hair, shaving, brushing their teeth, etc.; hygienic and household
- it requires less frequent cleaning of the mirror, countertop, sink fixtures, and surrounding area;
- it can also be used as a hand towel when needed;
- it can also be used as an utility towel to clean surrounding area.
Although the description above contains much specificity, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiment but as merely providing illustrations of some of the presently preferred embodiments. For example, the Splash-Guard Towel can be manufactured in a variety of colors and materials so as to provide an assortment of aesthetically adaptable designs to consumers; the Splash-Guard Towel could also be made with several pockets that could be used for shaving supplies, toothbrushes, cosmetics, toiletries, etc.; the Splash-Guard Towel could be sold with both typical suction cups and typical wall hooks so that it may be installed wherever the consumer desires; the wirelike apparatus that is to be placed inside the stitched seem or wirelike pocket could be coated in plastic or made of a plastic type material; self-adhesive industry-standard hook & loop fastener strips could be used as an alternative to the suction cups and hooks. The versatility of the Splash-Guard Towel makes it easily adaptable for usage in other locations such as kitchen and utility sinks.
Claims
1. An article of material, comprising a flat body piece of fabric of sufficient size wherein to provide partial coverage of a standard sized bathroom mirror
- a. the material of claim 1 wherein said body of material is composed of material wherein to absorb or repel liquid type substances
- b. a plurality of eyelets or grommets of equal size positioned on said material from which article of material will hang
- c. an elongated flexible apparatus
- d. a means for containing elongated flexible apparatus
2. An article of material, comprising a flat body piece of fabric of sufficient size as claimed in claim 1, wherein to provide further coverage and splash protection of a wall area around the sink countertop or surrounding vanity area.
3. An article of material, comprising a flat body piece of fabric of sufficient size as claimed in claim 1, wherein to provide further coverage and splash protection from a typical water faucet.
Type: Application
Filed: Oct 3, 2007
Publication Date: Apr 10, 2008
Inventor: Carla Elizabeth Litwhiler (Colorado Springs, CO)
Application Number: 11/906,598
International Classification: E03C 1/186 (20060101); E03C 1/181 (20060101);