CA2423831C

CA2423831C - Bathtub blanket

Info

Publication number: CA2423831C
Application number: CA002423831A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Maya Sinclaire
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2003-04-02
Filing date: 2003-04-02
Publication date: 2009-05-12
Anticipated expiration: 2023-04-02
Also published as: CA2423831A1

Abstract

Bathtub blanket that keeps the bather warm and prevents the rapid loss of the bathtub water heat.

Description

TITLE OF THE INVENTION
BATHTUB BLANKET

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to means of preventing the water in the bathtub and the body of the bather from rapid cooling.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

Many inventors have come up with a design for keeping the steam and the heat from escaping the bathtub by enclosing the bathtub opening with some kind of a cover.
The bather sits in the tub with his/her head outside of the enclosure, while the rest of his/her body is under the cover. This design is shown in US Patents Numbers:

2,541,029;

3,119,122; 3,375,534; 3,611,448; 3,837,014 and 4,166,294. The problem with this design is that these enclosures are quite cumbersome to install. There is, also, quite a considerable cost in producing these enclosures.

The further described invention solves these shortcomings of the prior art.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention enables the user to enjoy prolonged bath without a rapid water temperature loss with the minimal cost and set up required.

After the bather positions himself/herself in the bathtub, they can cover themselves with the bathtub blanket to keep warm. As the water starts filling the bathtub, the bathtub blanket starts floating on its surface creating a barrier, thus reducing the water heat loss.
The bathtub blanket is very useful for people who liike to read while sitting in the bathtub.
In addition to keeping the bathtub water from a rapid cooling, it also can keep the parts of the bathers body that are out of the water warm by covering them. It can, also, prevent the reading material from getting accidentally wet.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The preferred embodiments of the invention will be described by reference to the drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a top view of the bathtub blanket.

Fig. 2 is a top view of another embodiment of the bathtub blanket.

Fig. 3 is a cross section view of the bubble plastic material from which the bathtub blanket is made of.

Fig. 4 is a cross section view of the different example of a bubble plastic material from which the bathtub blanket is made of.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Figure 1 shows a top view of the preferred embodiment of the bathtub blanket 1.
Although there are other suitable materials that are floatable and waterproof, in this case the bathtub blanket is made of a sheet of polyethylene comprising a multiplicity of individual cell compartments that permanently entrap air. These pockets of air function as an insulator and therefore prevent the bathtub water from cooling down rapidly. In this case the bathtub blanket is cut out into the shape of the bathtub in such a way that it completely covers the surface of the water when the bathtub is filled up.

At the side at which the user has his/her head (or head and torso) coming out of the water are, in this case three separate parts: two parts 2 and one 3. These parts bend in the area 4 at which they are attached to the rest of the bathtub blanket. The user can adjust the area that is covered by the blanket by either flipping out of the way these small parts or keeping them covering hini/her and the water. If for example the user is sitting upright and reading, the portion 3 can be resting on his/her chest, while the two portions 2 are still on the water, bellow the person's arms in which he/she holds the reading material.
The part 3 can have a cut out as shown to accommodate person's neck.

Figure 2 shows that the bathtub blanket can be of different shapes, in this case it is a rectangular. User can wrap himself/herself while sitting in the tub to keep warm while he/she spreads the rest of the blanket over the surface of the water to prevent it from cooling.

Figure 3 is a cross section of the bathtub blanket to show construction of the bathtub blanket material. It is comprised of two polyethylene sheets 6 with cell compartments 5 in between them. The centre 7, in this case, is elevated to allow for water to slide off the blanket and not to accumulate on top of it.

Figure 4 is also a cross section of the bathtub blanket to show a different construction of the bathtub blanket material. In this case it is comprised of one polyethylene sheet 6 with cell compartments forming bubbles 5 on one side of it.

As will be apparent to those skilled in the art in the light of the foregoing disclosure, many alterations and modifications are possible in the practice of this invention without departing from the spirit or scope thereof. For example, the present system is described as being manufactured out of a polyethylene, while there may be many other materials that could be used to construct this invention with the same results. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is to be construed in accordance with the substance defined by the following claims.

Claims

What I claim as my invention is:

1. A bath blanket for slowing the rate of heat loss from a tub of heated water, the blanket comprising a buoyant flexible sheet of thermal insulating material such that the blanket lays on the surface of the water and covers substantially the entire surface area of the water in the tub.

2. The bath blanket of claim 1 wherein the sheet of thermal insulating material is impervious to water.

3. The bath blanket of claim 2 where said sheet of thermal insulating material further includes one or more openings along a margin through which a user's neck may protrude such that the user's torso is situated below the blanket while the user's head is above said blanket.

4. The bath blanket of claim 3 wherein the sheet of thermal insulating material further includes second and third openings along said margin, each opening being situated to a respective side of the first opening for accommodating each arm of the user such that the user may rest one or both arms on the blanket.

5. The bath blanket of claim 3 wherein the sheet of thermal insulating material further includes a pair of foldable flaps along said margin, each flap being situated to a respective side of the first opening, wherein said flaps define second and third openings along said margin when the flaps are folded open for accommodating an arm of the user such that the user may rest one or both arms on the blanket.

6. The bath blanket of claim 2 wherein the sheet of thermal insulating material further includes at least one crease for folding a portion of the sheet upon itself thereby enabling the user to adjust the amount of covered surface area of water.