Personal hygiene device

Abstract

The invention described as the personal cleansing device is designed to provide means for both external and internal personal cleansing in a way that is effective, safe, easy to manufacture, low in cost, and comfortable to use. The device consists in its most basic form of a water supply adapter which would fit inline with standard water connections, a flexible hose, a variable flow trigger, and a curved rigid end from which the water emerges. It is designed for use by men, women, and children and has several different embodiments which make it safer and more comfortable.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This invention is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/904,873 filed the 5th of Mar. 2007; Ser. No. 60/995,078 filed the 25th of Sep. 2007; Ser. No. 61/004,524 filed the 28th of Nov. 2007; and Ser. No. 61/008,030 filed the 18th of Dec. 2007.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT DISK APPENDIX

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to the field of personal hygiene, particularly that of a device used for personal cleansing (exterior and/or interior), which can be easily connected to standard plumbing connections.

2. Background

In the United States, the most common method of personal cleaning after urination or defecation is the use of toilet paper, whereas, in many other countries, the bidet has become a standard bathroom fixture. However, the disuse of the bidet in most American households leads to a problem for those interested in installing one. Typical homes do not have the plumbing necessary to accommodate a bidet and require extensive work in order to do so. In addition, most Americans are not accustomed to using one and this can be embarrassing and, potentially, messy for the user. The fixed bidet does not offer much flexibility for each individual to wash according to his liking.

With the creation of disposable personal hygiene wipes, more people have realized the advantages to using water or other cleansing liquids versus a dry paper. Also, this is much more convenient than installing a highly complicated bathroom fixture. The inconvenience arises when one has to dispose of the wipes or store them until time for proper disposal. Oftentimes, the improper flushing of materials such as the wet wipes or overuse of toilet paper leads to clogged toilets and other potential plumbing disasters.

It is generally an accepted fact that the use of water to clean with is much more hygiene than the use of dry paper. The paper does not always remove all remnants of waste and often leaves remnants of its own material behind. However, for all of the above reasons, the prior mechanisms of personal cleansing have failed to perform quite up to the standard of hygiene that many of us have come to prefer. Previous art also has failed to perform ideally for personal cleansing. There are many handheld bidet options both on the market and within the patent archives and the invention detailed in the following paragraphs seeks to provide a complete personal cleansing solution where others have not.

The practice of colon cleansing involves irrigating the bowels with water in order to loosen and remove fecal matter for hygienic purposes. It is a practice that is normally only seen in upscale spas and health resorts. Though typically done with some consideration for the person whose colon is being cleansed, there is a factor of embarrassment and a lack of comfort involved in doing such an intimate activity in a public location.

The home colon cleansing devices that are currently on the market are either very expensive or are difficult to use. Typically, they are self contained units that use the water supply from one's home plumbing. The require water connections with which many homeowners are not familiar and are also usually difficult to store due to the size of the machine.

There are also devices for colon cleansing that do not hook up to home water connections but are even more self contained. Of these, there are quite a few that are fed by gravity. They employ a container of solution that is situated higher than the person to be cleansed. The water is then allowed to flow at its own pace into the bowels for irrigation. There are, however, disadvantages to this system. For instance, if one desires more cleansing than the one bag can hold, then it must be refilled. This can be quite uncomfortable if one must reinsert the cleansing device several times. In summary, the general problems with colon cleansing devices are that they are expensive, privacy can be an issue, and they tend to be bulky and difficult to use and store.

Aside from personal colonics, many women prefer to clean out the vagina, especially during times of menstruation. This typically requires either purchasing a disposable douche or using a gravity fed device. Both of these use a vinegar water solution which, if used too often, is known to kill the healthy bacteria inside of the vagina while it rinses it clean. In addition, many of these disposable and regular douche kits are inconvenient and often embarrassing to purchase. Many stores have resorted to placing items such as the douche out of the reach of regular customers and one must speak with an attendant to purchase them. This is highly inconvenient and uncomfortable for the purchaser.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The device presented here is a personal cleansing device for exterior hygiene that is also designed for interior cleansing of the vagina and the colon. As much of the prior art for personal cleansing devices, douches, and enemas are embarrassing to purchase, difficult to use, or too bulky to use and store, the goal of this invention is to provide a more streamlined personal cleansing tool that can handle both exterior and interior cleansing of the genital and anal regions. In its simplest form, the invention is a douche, enema, and personal cleansing device which is low in cost, simple to manufacture, user friendly, and can be used in one's own home with standard water connections. It is designed for men and women, adults and children.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1. is one preferred embodiment of the device in one of its simplest forms. It shows one possible form of the curved rigid tube (1) which serves as the outlet for the cleansing fluid. The variable flow trigger (2) is depicted as being situated at one end of the handle (3). There is then a flexible hose (4) which runs inline with the rest of the device. The flexible hose (4) connects to an inline filter (6) which then connects to the water supply line adapter (5), depicted in this embodiment as having a single inlet and two outlets. The adapter is placed inline with a user's water supply (7, not a part of the device), typically immediately after a shut off valve (8, not a part of the invention), such that is splits the path of the water supply into two separate branches.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In its most basic form, the device consists of four parts: inline water supply adapter, flexible hose, variable flow trigger, and curved rigid tube. The water supply adapter has one inlet and two outlets and, in one embodiment, the adapter could be similar to the shape of the letter, ‘t.’ The inlet and one outlet are connected inline with a water supply such that the water from the water supply is split and it flows through the inlet and then out both outlets. The flexible hose connects to the outlet which is not connected to the water supply such that, when the path of the water is split, part of the water flows through the existing water supply and part flows through the flexible hose. At the end of the hose not connected to the water supply adapter is a variable flow trigger which may be incorporated into a handle section of the device. The variable flow trigger permits a varying flow rate, dependant on the amount of pressure put on it by the user. At one point, there is no flow permitted such that this is the effective means of turning the device on or off. From the adapter to the variable flow trigger, the water is freely permitted to flow yet is stopped when the trigger is not pressed and the valve is closed. After the variable flow trigger is a curved rigid tube. There are multiple embodiments possible of this tube, though the ultimate intention is for it to be curved nearly 180 degrees such that the flow of the water out of the tube is directly opposite the flow going into the tube. In alternate embodiments, it is possible to include other shapes instead of a simple arc, however, the primary goal is to permit the user to press the trigger and aim at the genital or anal regions of the body and squirt water upwards while remaining in a seated position on the toilet. Thus, the user does not have to locate his hands near the water coming out or the water that hits the surface of the body and flows back down into the toilet. The end piece of the curved rigid tube can be simply terminated with an open end or can be tapered down for easy insertion into the rectum.

One of the primary advantages of this invention over prior art is the shape of the handle and its particular flow pattern. Most personal cleansing devices currently on the market and in previous inventions have the handle located much too close to the end where the water comes out. This makes it possible for one to be cleaning and possibly get residue on the hands, which defeats the purpose of the cleansing device. The flow pattern of this invention is a steady and clear stream of water, as opposed to an aerated spray. As the particular areas of exterior washing are fairly small in surface area, the concentrated stream of water aids in rinsing. In addition, if the water were aerated or made as a spray, it would not be suitable for insertion into the vagina or rectum for douching or colon cleansing. This ease of use is just one aspect of what makes the invention much more versatile than prior art.

There are many alternate embodiments of this device and many accessories, as well. One would be to incorporate more than the two basic outlets on the water supply adapter. Then, one could connect multiple devices to the same water supply. This would permit one to be used only for a particular type of cleansing or even for separate people if they both shared the same bathroom. For much the same purpose, or even more so if the invention were used in a hospital or institutional setting, there could also be disposable and interchangeable end pieces, much like disposable contact lenses. This would permit one to quickly and easily change only the end piece without worrying about sanitizing the curved end, only changing them out after use. These could be made of a cheaper and/or more disposable material, whereas the permanent end piece would ideally be made of a stainless and non-corrosive metal. For colon cleansing or douching, another embodiment could include end pieces that fit over the end of the curved rigid tube such that it would permit easier and more comfortable douching, enemas, or colon cleansing. These end pieces could be tapered or made longer with holes along the length, or even include a bulb section which would help to hold the device inside the rectum for colon cleansing. These many different end pieces, both disposable and permanent, would improve the sanitary nature of the device.

Another variation on the basic device would be to coat the curved rigid tube at the end with an antibacterial coating. Currently, there are several on the market which would inhibit bacterial growth on the surface of the tube. As it would be exposed to bacteria such as fecal coliforms, which can cause sickness or even potentially be fatal, the exposed areas could cause problems with small children who put things into their mouth, people who fail to wash their hands after cleansing, and many others. Constantly cleaning the device with an antibacterial cleaner would be one way to prevent this but it would be very time consuming and require extra supplies. If the end were coated with antibacterial material, there would be no need for it and only a rinse would remove all traces of harmful material. Primarily with douching and use of the enema taken into consideration, another embodiment of the device could include a filter inline with the rest of the device so as to remove chemicals or sediment from the water. This would prevent foreign materials from entering the inside of the body. In addition, some claim that chlorine in the body could kill beneficial bacteria. As chlorine is widely present in treated water, this embodiment would protect those using the device from such non-beneficial chemicals.

For storage purposes, there are a few variations on the embodiments of the device which would permit not only easier storage but the ability to remove and reinstall the device quickly and easily. One embodiment would be to use a coiled hose which would automatically retract for easier storage yet be easy enough to pull and work with that all one would have to do is pull it and use it like normal. This would keep the loose hose from being spread out in the bathroom where the device is being used. Another embodiment might employ quick connect fittings to be used in between different pieces of the invention. For instance, in an embodiment with the filter and the quick connect fittings, placement of the fittings on both ends of the filter would permit easy changing of the filter with little problems. The quick connect fitting could also be used between the adapter and the hose such that nearly the entire device would be removed. This could be useful for instances where one is traveling and would like to take the personal cleanser along.

Further embodiments would help to make the personal cleansing device much safer to use for a wider variety of people. Another possible embodiment could include a pressure and volume gauge to be used in a personal colonic in order to tell how much liquid has been taken into the colon. It also would be helpful in safeguarding that too much pressure is not put on the insides of the colon. Another embodiment would include a discrete flow control in addition to the variable flow trigger. The discrete flow control could be inline with the rest of the device and would have distinct flow settings. One could choose the setting with the highest flow that would be desired then use the variable flow control to fine tune the flow of the water.

One major factor that has been left out in much of the prior art is that the temperature of the water is not accounted for. In one possible embodiment of this device, it is possible to include one of the following to make the water temperature more comfortable. One method is to include a means of heating the water online. This would heat the water on demand and work much like a standard “on demand” water heater for a home's water supply. It could work either by standard electrical connections or have a solar panel that would be placed outside to power it. An alternative would be to provide a small holding tank which would be situated inline with the device, most likely between the water supply adapter and the flexible hose, though it may have a separate hose between it and the adapter. This would permit the water to sit within the house when not in use, as opposed to in the pipes on the outdoors. Therefore, the water would be able to come to room temperature, be it higher or lower than outdoors. The existing water pressure from the water supply would push the water from the holding tank and through the rest of the invention as already described. Another alternative method would be to employ two adapters, one of which would connect to the hot water line (such as the connection beneath the sink) and the other would connect to the cold water line. From the outlet of each of these adapters would come a short hose which would then both attach to a t-shaped fitting with two inlets and one outlets. From that outlet, the flexible hose would attach and the rest of the device would be as previously described in the basic embodiment. This would be the simplest method of heating the water, to use the existing hot water supply, though it would typically only be useful in homes with easy access to a hot and cold water supply, such as underneath a pedestal sink situated next to the toilet.

For medical purposes, it is sometimes advantageous to put medications either directly into the vagina or the rectum. Sometimes, one might also wish to use some other chemical for better cleansing or other purposes, internally or externally. One possible embodiment of this invention would include an aspirator inline with the rest of the device. There would be a reservoir connected to the aspirator which could contain the solution, either for internal or external uses. When the invention is in use and the water is flowing through the length of it, the aspirator would suck the liquid from the reservoir and mix it in with the water flowing through. One could then clean or squirt the water internally as needed.

For personal cleansing, the use of the device is very simple and straightforward. One would lower the curved rigid tube portion of the device into the open region of the toilet while in a seated position. He or she would then aim the flow of the water at the anal or genital regions—wherever one desired cleansing. A simple squeeze of the variable flow trigger would squirt water at these regions. Then, one would simply rinse until clean. The primary advantages would include not getting the user's hands wet and keeping them clean, as well as the single stream of water fully cleansing the surfaces better than an aerated spray would. In addition, not only is this advantageous to men and women, but also for children. The benefits of washing a child that is still in diapers is amazing to a parent who has ever dealt with an incurable case of diaper rash. It reduces need for diaper wipes, as well.

Use of the device for a personal colonic or enema is also fairly straightforward. While seated comfortably on the toilet, one would either insert the tip of the device into the rectum or merely press it against the outer sphincter without actually inserting it. The method of merely pressing the tip of the device would be helpful for those with hemorrhoids or other medical problems with the anal area which might cause pain upon insertion. The user would then press the variable flow trigger and let the water flow at a comfortable pressure until happy with the amount of water taken in. One could use only small amounts, such as for an enema, or one could let greater amounts of water be taken in for a colonic cleansing.

It is also possible to use the invention as a douche. A woman would insert the end of the curved tube into the vaginal area and use the flow of the water to cleanse herself within. This could permit douching with much more liquid than is typically in a disposable douche and it also would only contain water, as opposed to the typical vinegar water mix used in most disposable douches.

Claims

1. A personal cleansing device which consists of the following parts:

a water supply adapter with one inlet and two outlets which is connected at one of the outlets to one end of a hose fabricated from a flexible and non-porous material

whereby the inlet and one outlet are designed to connect inline with a water supply and the other outlet diverts some of the water to flow through it

at the opposite length of the hose, a valve with one inlet and one outlet that it capable of being opened to varying degrees to permit the flow of liquid at varying flow rates and permits the flow to be completely cut off at a particular position of the valve

whereby, connected at the outlet of the valve, which would also be the end not connected to the hose is a shaft which consists of straight and curved sections, somewhat in a hook shape, and is made of a rigid and non-porous material

whereby the shaft is open through the center such that liquid is contained within the outer walls but is able to flow freely from one end of the shaft to the other

whereby the end of the shaft opposite from where it connects to the valve is slightly tapered but open such that liquid can flow freely in a single stream from the inlet of the connector through the hose, through the valve when it is open sufficiently, through the shaft, and out of the distal end of the shaft.

2. A personal cleansing device which consists of the following parts:

a water supply adapter with one inlet and at least three outlets, whereby one inlet and one outlet are designed to connect inline with a water supply and the other outlets divert some of the water to flow through them

whereby, connected to each of the other outlets is the end of a hose fabricated from a flexible and non-porous material

whereby at the opposite length of each hose is a valve with one inlet and one outlet that is capable of being opened to varying degrees to permit the flow of liquid at varying flow rates and permits the flow to be completely cut off at a particular position of the valve

whereby, connected at the outlet of each valve, which would also be the ends not connected to the hoses is a shaft which consists of straight and curved sections, somewhat in a hook shape

whereby each shaft is open through the center such that liquid is contained within the outer walls but is able to flow freely from one end of the shaft to the other

whereby the end of each shaft opposite from where it connects to the valve is tapered but open such that liquid can flow freely in a single stream from the inlet of the connector through the hose, through the valve when it is open sufficiently, through the shaft, and out of the distal end of the shaft

whereby one would effectively have multiple devices connected to the same water supply adapter.

3. The device according to claim 1 whereby there is a pressure and volume gauge incorporated inline with the device such that it reads the pressure and volume of the water that has flowed past it.

4. The device according to claim 1 whereby there is a separate discrete flow control situated between the flexible hose and the variable flow trigger such that one can adjust the flow in discrete increments, as well as adjust the flow variably with the variable flow trigger.

5. The device according to claim 1 whereby at least one connection between the separate pieces of the device incorporate quick connect fittings which enable easy removal and reattachment.

6. The device according to claim 1 whereby a filter is included inline with the device such that the water passing from the water supply adapter to the curved rigid shaft is filtered in order to clean the water prior to its emerging from the end.

7. The device according to claim 1 whereby a means of heating the water is included inline with the device such that water passing from the water supply adapter to the curved rigid shaft is heated.

8. The device according to claim 1 whereby there is a container of a size larger than the flexible hose included inline with the device and having one inlet and one outlet such that it permits water to flow freely from the water supply adapter to the curved rigid shaft when the variable flow trigger is set to an open position.

9. The device according to claim 1 whereby, in some location between the water supply adapter and the variable flow trigger, there is a flexible hose of a longer length which leads to a series of infrared absorbing tubes, which then connects via a flexible hose to the rest of the device such that the infrared absorbing tubes can be set where they may be exposed to the sun and heat the water within.

10. The device according to claim 1 whereby the curved rigid shaft, not including the variable flow trigger, is made to be disposable and easily interchangeable.

11. The device according to claim 1 whereby there is also included end pieces of different sizes and shapes for different types of insertion and cleaning, as well as a means of attaching the end pieces to the open end of the curved rigid shaft.

12. The device according to claim 1 whereby the hose of flexible and non-porous material is made such that it is coiled when under no tension but, when tension is applied, can be easily pulled to a nearly straight position.

13. The device according to claim 1 whereby portions of the device are coated with a temporary or permanent antibacterial coating.

14. A personal cleansing device which consists of the following parts:

two water supply adapters, each with one inlet and two outlets, each of which is connected at one of the outlets to one end of a hose fabricated from a flexible and non-porous material

whereby, on each water supply adapter, one inlet and one outlet are designed to connect inline with either the hot or cold side of a water supply and the other outlet diverts some of the water to flow through it

a fitting with two inlets and one outlet whereby the other end of each flexible hose is connected to an inlet and water can flow from the water supply adapters through the hoses and be mixed prior to emerging from the outlet of the fitting

a hose fabricated from some flexible and non-porous material which is connected at one end to the outlet of the fitting

at the opposite length of the hose, a valve with one inlet and one outlet that it capable of being opened to varying degrees to permit the flow of liquid at varying flow rates and permits the flow to be completely cut off at a particular position of the valve

whereby, connected at the outlet of the valve, which would also be the end not connected to the hose is a shaft which consists of straight and curved sections, somewhat in a hook shape, and is made of a rigid and non-porous material

whereby the shaft is open through the center such that liquid is contained within the outer walls but is able to flow freely from one end of the shaft to the other

whereby the end of the shaft opposite from where it connects to the valve is slightly tapered but open such that liquid can flow freely in a single stream from the inlet of the connector through the hose, through the valve when it is open sufficiently, through the shaft, and out of the distal end of the shaft.

15. The device according to claim 1 whereby there is included inline with the rest of the device an aspirator device which, when the variable flow trigger is pressed to an open position and water flows through the device, would provide suction where it is connected to a reservoir, thereby pulling liquid from the reservoir into the flow of the water through the device.