GB2407036A

GB2407036A - Shower curtain

Info

Publication number: GB2407036A
Application number: GB0324318A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Olive Alexandra Norton
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2003-10-17
Filing date: 2003-10-17
Publication date: 2005-04-20
Also published as: GB0324318D0

Abstract

A shower curtain comprises a curtain 10 capable of being hung from a rail 16 by a hanging means, the shower curtain further comprising a plurality of elongate members 18 capable of being vertically hung by the same hanging means as the curtain, the elongate members reducing the likelihood of the curtain contacting a person's body when in use. Each member may comprise a rigid or flexible tube or rod 26' and may carry a plurality of beads 30.

Description

1 2407036

DESCRIPTION

SHOWER CURTAIN ASSEMBLY

The present invention relates to a shower curtain assembly which is prevented from contacting a person within the shower during use.

There are a number of problems associated with conventional shower curtains, the main one being that when the shower is in use the shower curtain often contacts and clings to the body of the person using the shower. The wet environment, the convection currents and the steam produced by the shower tend to further encourage the movement of the shower curtain towards the user. This clinging contact with the shower curtain can annoy the person using the shower and it can also increase the time it takes for the shower to be completed as the person has to repeatedly move the shower curtain away from his/her body.

Furthermore, due to the wet environment that shower curtains are used in, they can become dirty relatively easily and often contain mould or mildew. It is therefore it is unhygienic to allow such a shower curtain to contact a persons body as the dirt or mould may be transferred.

A number of shower curtains have been proposed which seek to address the problem of the curtain contacting the persons body when in use although these too have associated disadvantages.

US 6, 154,894 discloses a relatively expensive shower curtain closure system for keeping a shower curtain fully extended across opposite walls of a bath tub area wherein the shower curtain has a pair of side edges containing elongate angle rods which can be coupled to opposing wall surfaces adjacent to a bathtub.

This shower curtain system is only useful for shower curtains which are disposed between two opposing walls and therefore not suitable for curtains which are used in a circular enclosure and furthermore, should the elongate angle rods or portions of the curtain which contains the rods become damaged, it would be necessary to replace the whole curtain.

US 6,041,454 discloses a shower curtain system comprising a generally rectangular shower curtain sheet having a number of straps on the upper edge to hang the curtain from a rod and a number of detachable weights on the lower edge of the curtain in order to apply tension to the curtain and therefore reduce the likelihood of the curtain contacting the user's body. The use of curtain straps and weights may damage the curtain over time and therefore necessitate the purchase of a new shower curtain. Furthermore, the use of weights which are clamped to the lower edge of the shower curtain puts an undue strain on these parts of the shower curtain and can lead to deformation of the shower curtain. The use of detachable weights may also be dangerous should the shower be used by children as they may interfere with the weights or the weight may hurt them if played with.

FR-A-281052 discloses a shower curtain made from a flexible material which has vertical rods spaced along its width with flexible zones between them.

The curtain is attached to a horizontal rail by a plurality of hooks. The vertical rods are disposed within the curtain material thus rendering the curtain expensive to produce and liable to be damaged easily due to the different materials being used to produce the shower curtain. Furthermore, the rods put an additional strain on the shower curtain at locations remote from the hooks, therefore further predisposing the shower curtain to damage in use.

US 2002/0108724 discloses a tube-like weight comprising a receptacle or sheath having an open end and an opposed sealed end and which is either integral with the inside face of a shower curtain or is formed separately and having suitable means for suspending the tube in a vertical position adjacent to the shower curtain. Whilst the use of a liquid contained within the tube would provide a weight in order to reduce the likelihood of the curtain contacting a persons body when in use, it will be evident that the extra weight of a tube filled with water on a shower rail or curtain (which is often a fragile structure) may result in damage to the shower curtain and/or the shower curtain if the tube is disposed thereon. Furthermore, whilst using a liquid to act as a ballast for the shower curtain, the liquid will become stagnant and open to micro-organisms and dirt and therefore the liquid will become discoloured (with Algae or dirt for example) and may ultimately pose a health risk. The interior of the tube would also be difficult to clean and therefore would necessitate frequent renewal of the shower curtain and/or the tube-like receptacle.

DE 10013251 discloses a shower curtain arrangement wherein the top of a shower curtain is secured by eyelets and rings to a curtain rail and has a number of rods hanging downwards from the curtain, the rods having attachments such as magnets or suction cups and the like in order to hold them against the shower tray or bath. The use of such magnets or suction cups increases the costs of producing the shower curtain and/or the rods and these may become less effective over time and indeed will be expensive to produce.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to overcome or mitigate at least some of the problems associated with the prior art devices. Furthermore, it is also an object of the present invention to provide a shower curtain which can assist in reducing the likelihood of the curtain contacting a persons body when in use, whilst being inexpensive to produce. It will also be desirable, to provide a means for adapting existing shower curtains so as to reduce the likelihood of the curtain from contacting a persons body when in use.

In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a shower system for a shower, comprising a flexible curtain, a hanging means for enabling the curtain to be suspended from a horizontal rail or similar structure, and a plurality of elongate members adapted to be suspended from said rail or similar structure independently of the curtain, the elongate members having an inherent structure and weight such that they will hang vertically in use between the curtain and a shower user to prevent the curtain from contacting the shower user's body, without requiring any additional weighting or any attachment means at their lower ends.

The present shower assembly can be produced inexpensively as essentially it comprises three components, namely the curtain, the hanging means and the elongate members. It will be evident, that the curtain will usually comprise a number of eyelets or hooks disposed on the upper edge of the curtain which allows a hook or similar hanging means to be placed through the eyelet and the hook attached to the curtain pole or rail or similar structure. There are of course other attachment means for different shower curtain/hanging means, and the elongate member may be adapted in order to have the same hanging means as the curtain.

The hanging means preferably comprises a hook disposed on or attached to the curtain or elongate member. The elongate member may be flexible or alternatively maybe rigid. The elongate member may be substantially flat or may have a substantially circular or semi-circular cross section. It will be evident to one skilled in the art that a number of configurations for the elongate member are possible in order to achieve the same goal. For example, the elongate member may comprise a number of individual beads or individual cylindrical sections joined by a central linking member. The central linking member maybe flexible or alternatively may be rigid. Should the central linking member be flexible, the elongate member will be capable of moving at the junction between individual beads or individual cylindrical sections. The central linking member may comprise string or a similar material or may comprise wire. The exact material used for the central linking member will usually be dictated by the size of the shower curtain and the flexibility of the elongate member as required.

Furthermore, the elongate member may be longer, shorter or of the same height as the curtain. Preferably, the elongate member is about 30mm wide, and between about 1 30mm to 1 80mm long.

The elongate member may be produced from a number of materials but is preferably produced from a plastics or rubber based material. Preferably, the elongate member is produced from a PVC material. The elongate member may be transparent or of a similar colour to that of the curtain in order to help disguise the presence of the elongate member. Alternatively, the elongate member may be produced from a contrasting colour to that of the curtain in order to produce an aesthetically pleasing shower curtain.

The elongate member as described herein above, may also be used for retro fitting to an existing shower curtain and/or shower curtain rail or similar structure in order to adapt an existing shower curtain to substantially prevent the curtain from contacting a persons body.

A specific embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of shower curtain with an elongate member in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of another embodiment of an elongate member in accordance with the present invention; Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of an alternative embodiment of an elongate member in accordance with the present invention; and Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a yet another embodiment of an elongate member in accordance with the present invention.

With reference to Fig. 1, there is provided a shower curtain comprising a curtain 10 having a number of apertures 12 adjacent a top edge which are capable of receiving respective hooks 14 in order to attach the curtain 10 to a horizontal curtain rail 16. An elongate member 18 lies adjacent to the curtain 10 and is also attached to the curtain rail 16 by means of a respective one of the hooks 14 which engages through the aperture 20 of the elongate member 18. The elongate member 18 in this embodiment is substantially flat and formed from a flexible plastics or rubber based material.

With reference to Fig. 2, there is provided an elongate member 18 with a substantially circular cross section which tapers to a flat portion 22 at its upper end which has an aperture 20' disposed thereon for receiving a hook 14.

With reference to Fig. 3, there is provided an elongate member 18 comprising a number of cylindrical sections 24 joined together by means of a string 26, the string terminating in a loop 28 which is capable of receiving a hook 14.

Fig. 4 provides a similar elongate member 18 to that illustrated in Fig. 3, wherein in place of the cylindrical sections 24, a number of beads 30 are disposed along the string 26', the string 26' terminating in a loop 28' for receiving a hook 14. Both of the embodiments shown in Figs. 3 and 4 provide elongate members which are flexible to allow relative movement between the individual cylinder sections or individual beads.

In use, the shower curtain will have a number of elongate members 18 which are disposed along the length of the curtain 10 and which may be placed adjacent to every aperture 12 on the curtain 10 or at intervals predetermined by either the user or the manufacturer of the curtain. The elongate members shown in either Fig. I or Fig. 2 may be produced in such a fashion that the members are substantially rigid, but in most cases they will allow a degree of flexibility. The elongate members 18 hang substantially vertically by gravity and require no fixing or further weighting means in order to reduce lateral movement. The elongate members shown in Figs. 3 and 4 provide effective elongate members to keep the curtain 10 away from the body of a person whilst producing an aesthetically pleasing appearance when used in conjunction with the curtain 10. The elongate members 18 are either transparent or of a similar colour to that of the curtain 10 in order to disguise their presence. Alternatively, the elongate members can be coloured in contrasting colours to that of the curtain 10 in order to produce a different aesthetic appearance.

The elongate members 18 may also be utilized on any shower curtain, provided that it has the same means for attaching the curtain 10 to the shower curtain rail 16 (for example eyelets 12 or hooks 14), but may additionally have an adaptor element (not shown) in order to adapt the elongate member to enable it to be attached to the shower curtain rail 16 by a different means. Furthermore the elongate members 18 may be used to retro-fit existing shower curtains in order to reduce the likelihood of curtain contacting a persons body when in use.

Wherein the embodiments shown in Figs. 2 and 3 are of essentially circular section, this is not essential and the section could ho of any other shape. :

Claims

1. A shower curtain system for a shower, comprising a flexible curtain, a hanging means for enabling the curtain to be suspended from a horizontal rail or similar structure, and a plurality of elongate members adapted to be suspended from said rail or similar structure independently of the curtain, the elongate members having an inherent structure and weight such that they will hang vertically in use between the curtain and a shower user to prevent the curtain from contacting the shower user's body, without requiring any additional weighting or any attachment means at their lower ends.

2. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the hanging means comprises a plurality of hooks coupled or adapted to be coupled to the rail as similar structure and to the curtain.

3. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein one end of the hooks are adapted to engage over the rail or similar structure and the other ends engage respective apertures adjacent the upper edge of the curtain.

4. A system as claimed in either claim 2 or 3, wherein one end of each elongate member has an aperture which is adapted to engage over said other end of a respective one of the hooks to enable that elongate member to be suspended from the rail or similar structure.

5. A system as claimed in claim 2 or 3, wherein the elongate members are suspended from the rail or similar structure by respective further hooks not associated directly with the curtain. l

6. A shower curtain system as claimed in any of claims 1 to 5, wherein the elongate members are flexible.

7. A shower curtain system as claimed in any of claims 1 to 5, wherein the elongate members are rigid.

8. A shower curtain system as claimed in claim 6 or 7, wherein the elongate members are substantially flat.

9. A shower curtain system as claimed in any of claims I to 5, wherein the elongate members are substantially circular or oval in cross section.

10. A shower curtain system as claimed in any of claims 1 to 5, wherein the elongate members comprise a plurality of individual beads or individual cylindrical sections commonly carried by a central linking member.

1 1. A shower curtain system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the central linking member is flexible.

12. A shower curtain system as claimed in claim 1 1, wherein the central linking member comprises string, wire or cable.

13. A shower curtain system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the central linking member is a rigid rod.

14. A shower curtain system as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the elongate members are made from a plastics or rubber based material, or metal.

15. A shower curtain system as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the elongate members are transparent.

16. A shower curtain system as claimed in any of claims 1 to 14, wherein the elongate members are of a similar colour to that of the curtain.

17. An elongate member for a shower curtain system as claimed in any of claims 1 to 14, adapted for retro-fitting to an existing curtain and/or shower curtain rail or similar structure.

18. A shower curtain system or elongate member for retro-fitting to an existing curtain substantially as herein described, with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.