US20050155146A1 - Bathing enclosure sliding door panels having complementary visual characteristics - Google Patents
Bathing enclosure sliding door panels having complementary visual characteristics Download PDFInfo
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- US20050155146A1 US20050155146A1 US10/757,951 US75795104A US2005155146A1 US 20050155146 A1 US20050155146 A1 US 20050155146A1 US 75795104 A US75795104 A US 75795104A US 2005155146 A1 US2005155146 A1 US 2005155146A1
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- Prior art keywords
- door
- image feature
- panels
- doors
- bathing enclosure
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- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
- A47K—SANITARY EQUIPMENT NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; TOILET ACCESSORIES
- A47K3/00—Baths; Douches; Appurtenances therefor
- A47K3/28—Showers or bathing douches
- A47K3/30—Screens or collapsible cabinets for showers or baths
- A47K3/34—Slidable screens
Definitions
- the present invention relates to bathing enclosures such as shower enclosures and shower/bath enclosures. More particularly it relates to door assemblies useful therewith having decorative attributes that are apparent regardless of whether the doors are overlapped or not.
- Contemporary bathing enclosures for showers and bathtubs commonly have door assemblies that allow for entry into and egress from the enclosures, and can be moved to close off the entry when the enclosure is in use.
- Two or three doors are employed in such assemblies in a sliding/bypass configuration with respect one another. In this type of configuration, the entry is opened when at least two of the doors are made to essentially completely overlap, and the entry is closed by minimizing the degree of overlapping of the doors.
- doors are made of transparent or translucent materials (particularly plastics or glass) to improve the amount of light entering the enclosure. It is also known in the art to include various imagery on such panels, such as floral patterns.
- imagery may be for largely decorative purposes, but may also be informational in some situations.
- Such doors are positioned in overlapping configuration the imagery tends to become “muddied”, particularly if the front panel is transparent.
- the imagery tends to become “muddied”, particularly if the front panel is transparent.
- both transparent sliding doors of a bathing enclosure include floral images, and the doors are moved so that they overlap, the overall appearance of the overlapping doors can ornamentally become unrecognizable.
- the present invention provides a door assembly for a bathing enclosure. It has a first door suitable to slide along an entry of the bathing enclosure, the first door having a transparent or translucent portion and a portion with a first imagery. There is also a second door suitable to slide along the entry of the bathing enclosure into and out of an overlapping relationship to the first door, the second door having a portion with a second imagery.
- the first imagery and second imagery are complementary in appearance so that when the first and second doors overlap each other to a specified extent the first and second imagery combine to form an overall image feature that is a representation of a real object and is visible from a front side of the first door.
- the overall image feature comprises a target having a bull's eye, such as where there are at least two linear components extending outward away from the target in two different directions.
- the overall image feature comprises a keyboard.
- Both the first and second doors can have a transparent or translucent portion, preferably both being transparent apart from the imagery and the outer rim.
- the invention provides such a door assembly mounted on a bathing enclosure.
- the invention is advantageous because it creates doors that have ornamental designs that present a decorative appearance regardless of whether the doors are overlapped or not. This can be achieved at relatively low cost, and can create interesting and unique ornamental effects.
- FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary bathing enclosure having two sliding doors
- FIG. 2 is an elevation view of the panels of FIG. 1 , in a non-overlapped position corresponding to a fully-closed position of the sliding doors;
- FIG. 3 is an elevation view of the pair of panels of FIG. 2 , in which the panels are in a position corresponding to a fully-open, overlapped positioning of the sliding doors;
- FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 2 , but of alternative panels.
- FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 3 of the FIG. 4 embodiment.
- an exemplary bathing enclosure which in this case is a shower bathing enclosure 10 and in alternate embodiments could be an enclosure for a bathtub, a hot tub or whirlpool, or another type of bathing enclosure.
- the bathing enclosure 10 includes a floor 20 with a drain 30 , a ceiling 40 , first, second and third side walls 50 , 60 and 70 , respectively, and a shower head 80 mounted on the first side wall. Additionally, positioned along a further outer side entry 90 of the bathing enclosure 10 are first and second sliding doors 100 and 110 , respectively.
- the sliding doors 100 , 110 each are mounted on upper and lower guiding rails 120 and 130 , respectively, in the usual manner, such that both of the sliding doors is slidably movable relative to the other of the sliding doors in a by-pass relationship.
- a fully-opened position of the sliding doors one of the two doors is positioned entirely (or almost entirely) in front of the other, such that the two doors overlap.
- a fully-closed position which is shown in FIG. 1 , the doors are slid apart from one another so that the doors only overlap, if at all, along a junction 140 between the two doors.
- the first sliding door 100 is positioned on the rails 120 , 130 such that the first sliding door tends to slide in front of the second sliding door 110 , along the outside of the bathing enclosure 10 , while the second sliding door tends to slide in back of the first sliding door, along the inside of the bathing enclosure.
- the orientations of the two sliding doors 100 , 110 could be reversed.
- the bathing enclosure only has a single sliding door (e.g., the first sliding door 100 ), which is capable of sliding in front of or in back of a fixed wall, which could take the place of the second sliding door 110 .
- the bathing enclosure could employ more than two sliding doors, a sliding door that is capable of sliding in front of or in back of two or more fixed walls, or two or more sliding doors capable of sliding in front of or in back of one or more fixed walls.
- the sliding doors 100 , 110 of FIG. 1 as well as the aforementioned side walls 50 , 60 and 70 and additional fixed walls of alternate embodiments are shown or suggested to be planar, this need not be the case in all embodiments.
- the overall bathing enclosure could be cylindrical in shape and employ sliding doors and/or wall portions that were portions of cylinders.
- the first and second sliding doors 100 , 110 of FIG. 1 include first and second panels 150 and 160 , respectively, that are supported within first and second rectangular support structures 170 and 180 , respectively.
- the rectangular support structures 170 and 180 not only provide structural support for the panels 150 , 160 but also have, along their upper and lower edges, mechanisms (not shown) that allow the sliding doors 100 , 110 to properly interface and slide along the rails 120 , 130 .
- These mechanisms can include, for example, complementary rails/slots for sliding in relation to the rails 120 , 130 , as well as roller bearings and other components that are known to those of ordinary skill in the art.
- the rails 120 , 130 can also be substituted with slots or other mechanisms that allow for sliding operation of the sliding doors 100 , 110 .
- Each of the first and second panels 150 , 160 is made from a plastic, acrylic, glass or other similar material that is fully, or at least largely, transparent or translucent. Thus, substantial light that exists outside the bathing enclosure 10 is transmitted into the enclosure, and at least some light existing within the bathing enclosure is transmitted to outside of the enclosure. Depending upon the material that is used for the panels 150 , 160 , a certain proportion of light incident upon the panels may also be reflected.
- first and second panels 150 , 160 are largely or fully transparent or translucent
- the panels additionally include first and second image features or patterns 190 and 200 , respectively.
- the image features 190 , 200 can take on a variety of shapes, sizes, colors, and other characteristics.
- the image features 190 , 200 can also be transparent, translucent or reflective (or absorptive of light), albeit at least some portions of the image features will have characteristics different from the general characteristics of the panels 150 , 160 to differentiate the features from the rest of the panels.
- first and second image features 190 , 200 can take on a variety of forms
- the first and second image features are complementary with one another. That is, the first and second image features 190 , 200 are related to one another in a manner such that, when the sliding doors 100 , 110 are moved to an open position where the doors overlap one another entirely (or, depending upon the embodiment, overlap one another to a particular degree) the first and second image features are combined to form an overall image feature or pattern depicting a real item.
- all image feature is not intended to encompass every graphical image and, in particular, is not intended to encompass a disordered amalgam of image features that merely happens to arise as a result of superimposing the first and second image features. Rather, the term “overall image feature” is intended to encompass graphical images that have an independent, recognizable meaning or order representational of a real item that is different from, and not provided by, either the first image feature or the second image feature by themselves. In terms of its meaning, the overall image feature is often greater than the sum of its image feature parts.
- a fragmentary first image feature is overlapped with a fragmentary second image feature when the sliding doors 100 , 110 are overlapped such that, due to the overlapping relationship, the overall image feature is formed.
- the overlapping of the two image features produces the overall image feature.
- first and second image features do not, by themselves, constitute the overall image feature, it is possible that, in some embodiments, one or both of these image features will represent one or more recognizable or real items. In such case, the recognizable or real item(s) represented by the first or second image feature(s) necessarily would be different than the recognizable or real item shown by the overall image feature. Nevertheless, in other embodiments, one or both of the first and second image features will not represent any particular recognizable or real items, even though the overlapping of the first and second image features results in the overall feature that is a recognizable or real item.
- FIGS. 2 and 3 a first exemplary embodiment of the first and second image features 190 , 200 employed on the first and second panels 150 , 160 is shown as first and second image features 210 and 220 , respectively.
- FIG. 2 shows the panels 150 , 160 to be non-overlapping, as they would generally appear when the sliding doors 100 , 110 were in a closed position. Consequently, each of the first and second image features 210 , 220 is visible independently from the other image feature.
- the first image feature 210 encompasses a ring 230 , a plurality of dots 240 extending horizontally away from the ring, and a vertical line component 250 extending downward away from the ring.
- the vertical line component 250 and the ring 230 each have a thickness that is identical to, or approximately identical to, the diameter of each of the dots 240 .
- the second image feature 220 includes an additional dot 260 and a horizontal line component 270 extending away from the additional dot to the right.
- the horizontal line component 270 has a thickness that is about the same as the diameter of the additional dot 260 , which is somewhat larger than the diameter of the dots 240 but less than the inner diameter of the ring 230 .
- FIG. 3 shows the first and second panels 150 , 160 to be completely overlapping one another, as they would appear when the sliding doors 100 , 110 are positioned in a fully-opened position.
- the first and second image features 210 , 220 are superimposed and combine to form an overall image feature 280 .
- the overall image feature 280 includes a target formation 290 having a bull's eye and accompanied by a horizontal line component 300 and a vertical line component 305 .
- the horizontal line component 300 in particular is formed by the superimposition of the horizontal line component 270 and the plurality of dots 240 , which only remain slightly visible (if at all) due to the presence of the horizontal line component 270 .
- the overall image feature 280 has a recognizable form that is substantially different than that of either of the first and second image features 210 , 220 .
- the target formation 290 in particular is an aspect of the overall image feature 280 that is greater than the sum of the parts supplied by the first and second image features 210 , 220 (namely, the ring 230 and the additional dot 260 ) insofar as a target with a bull's eye has a meaning that is entirely different than the meanings of a ring and a dot.
- first and second image features 210 , 220 not only make it possible to arrive at the overall image feature 280 when the panels 120 , 130 are completely overlapping, but also provide a meaningful, progressive image that changes as the degree to which the panels 150 , 160 overlap varies.
- the additional dot 260 progressively impinges each of the plurality of dots 240 as it moves from right to left and, further, once the additional dot 260 proceeds past a given one of the dots 240 , the horizontal line component 270 then further impinges and envelopes that dot 240 .
- first and second image features 310 and 320 a second embodiment of the first and second image features 190 , 200 on the panels 150 , 160 of the sliding doors 100 , 110 is shown as first and second image features 310 and 320 , respectively.
- the first image feature 310 on the first panel 150 specifically includes a first plurality of horizontal line components 330 extending inward from a left side 340 of the panel 150 and a second plurality of horizontal line components 350 extending inward from a right side 360 of that panel.
- the line components 330 , 350 are generally spaced apart from one another in a vertical direction, with the line components 330 being generally interleaved with the line components 350 in terms of their relative vertical positions.
- the line components 330 and 350 only extend inward to a middle region 370 of the panel 150 and do not extend inward so far that the line components 330 contact or extend past the components 350 , or vice-versa.
- the second image feature 320 on the second panel 160 includes a third plurality of horizontal line components 380 that begin somewhat to the right of a left side 390 of the panel and extend inward therefrom, and a fourth plurality of horizontal line components 400 that begin somewhat to the left of a right side 410 of the panel and extend inward therefrom.
- the line components 380 , 400 as in the case of the line components 330 , 350 are generally vertically spaced apart from one another, and the line components 380 are interleaved with the line components 400 .
- the line components 380 , 400 extend inward past one another.
- the horizontal line components 400 of the fourth plurality generally are thicker than the horizontal line components 330 , 350 of the first and second pluralities, which are approximately the same in thickness, and which are thicker than the horizontal line components 380 of the third plurality.
- FIG. 4 shows the panels 150 , 160 and the image features 310 , 320 thereon to be non-overlapping
- FIG. 5 shows the panels to be fully-overlapping one another. Consequently, in FIG. 5 the first and second image features 310 , 320 are superimposed to form an overall image feature 420 .
- the overall image feature 420 is intended to resemble a keyboard. Additionally of significance is that, as the panels 150 , 160 move from a non-overlapping position toward the completely-overlapping position, the line components 330 , 350 , 380 and 400 become increasingly and to varying degrees superimposed upon one another. Consequently, as the panels move in relation to one another, the overall image feature varies in interesting manners that provide graphical texture.
- FIGS. 4 and 5 also demonstrates that the overall image feature 420 that results from the overlapping of the individual image features 310 , 320 associated with the different panels 150 , 160 in part depends upon the degree of transparence or translucence of the individual image features themselves.
- FIG. 5 demonstrates that the overall image feature 420 takes on a variety of different shadings at different locations since the horizontal line components 330 , 350 , 380 and 400 are not entirely darkened or absorptive but rather are partly transparent. Consequently, when two horizontal line components from the two different image features 310 , 320 are overlapped, a lesser amount of light passes through the overlapped line components than through the line components that are not overlapped.
- the embodiments of the first, second and overall image features shown with reference to FIGS. 2-5 are intended to be exemplary of a variety of possible image features that could be employed on a pair of panels in a bathing enclosure in accordance with the present invention. That is, the present invention is intended to encompass bathing enclosures having panels on which a variety of image features other than those shown herein are provided, so long as the panels on which the image features are provided can be moved between non-overlapping and overlapping positions and so long as the overall image feature formed by the superimposition of individual image features has a meaning or form that is recognizably different than either of the image features being combined and represents a real item.
- the present invention also is intended to pertain to a variety of other bathing enclosures.
- only one panel is slidable as part of a sliding door, and yet it is possible to form an overall image feature using an image feature on that panel insofar as that panel can be slid in relation to a fixed wall panel that has another image feature.
- more than two image features e.g., three image features
- displayed on more than two panels are combined to form an overall image.
- one, two or more of the image features are potentially located on sliding panels, and some of the image features also can be located on fixed wall panels.
- more than three different image features are available for being overlapped (e.g., three image features on three different panels)
- FIGS. 2-5 relate to bathing enclosures in which both of the two sliding door panels are generally transparent or translucent
- the present invention is also intended to encompass embodiments in which only one or some of the superimposed panels are transparent or translucent.
- the door positioned more inwardly e.g., the door 110
- the door positioned more outwardly e.g., the door 100
- an overall image feature formed by the combination of first and second image features on the two door panels would still be visible from the outside of the bathing enclosure when the two door panels overlapped, even though such overall image feature would not be visible from the inside of the bathing enclosure.
- the invention provides an improved bathing enclosure having one or more sliding doors in which both individual image features associated with specific panels and combination image features associated with overlapping panels can be displayed.
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Abstract
A bathing enclosure on which an overall image feature is displayed, as well as a method of displaying an overall image feature on a bathing enclosure, are disclosed herein. The bathing enclosure includes a sliding door including a first panel, and a first portion including a second panel, the sliding door being capable of moving in relation to the first portion between an open position in which the second panel substantially overlaps the first panel, and a closed position. At least one of the first and second panels includes a section that is one of transparent and translucent, and the first and second panels include first and second image features, respectively. Additionally, the first and second image features are complementary in appearance so that, when the sliding door is in the open position, the first and second image features are combined to form the overall image feature.
Description
- Not applicable.
- Not applicable.
- The present invention relates to bathing enclosures such as shower enclosures and shower/bath enclosures. More particularly it relates to door assemblies useful therewith having decorative attributes that are apparent regardless of whether the doors are overlapped or not.
- Contemporary bathing enclosures for showers and bathtubs commonly have door assemblies that allow for entry into and egress from the enclosures, and can be moved to close off the entry when the enclosure is in use. Two or three doors are employed in such assemblies in a sliding/bypass configuration with respect one another. In this type of configuration, the entry is opened when at least two of the doors are made to essentially completely overlap, and the entry is closed by minimizing the degree of overlapping of the doors.
- Many of such doors are made of transparent or translucent materials (particularly plastics or glass) to improve the amount of light entering the enclosure. It is also known in the art to include various imagery on such panels, such as floral patterns.
- Such imagery may be for largely decorative purposes, but may also be informational in some situations. Unfortunately, when such doors are positioned in overlapping configuration the imagery tends to become “muddied”, particularly if the front panel is transparent. For example, where both transparent sliding doors of a bathing enclosure include floral images, and the doors are moved so that they overlap, the overall appearance of the overlapping doors can ornamentally become unrecognizable.
- Therefore, it can be seen that a need exists for transparent or translucent paneling for bathing enclosures where the doors are ornamented in an improved manner.
- In one aspect the present invention provides a door assembly for a bathing enclosure. It has a first door suitable to slide along an entry of the bathing enclosure, the first door having a transparent or translucent portion and a portion with a first imagery. There is also a second door suitable to slide along the entry of the bathing enclosure into and out of an overlapping relationship to the first door, the second door having a portion with a second imagery.
- The first imagery and second imagery are complementary in appearance so that when the first and second doors overlap each other to a specified extent the first and second imagery combine to form an overall image feature that is a representation of a real object and is visible from a front side of the first door.
- In one preferred form the overall image feature comprises a target having a bull's eye, such as where there are at least two linear components extending outward away from the target in two different directions.
- In another form the overall image feature comprises a keyboard.
- Both the first and second doors can have a transparent or translucent portion, preferably both being transparent apart from the imagery and the outer rim.
- In another aspect the invention provides such a door assembly mounted on a bathing enclosure.
- The invention is advantageous because it creates doors that have ornamental designs that present a decorative appearance regardless of whether the doors are overlapped or not. This can be achieved at relatively low cost, and can create interesting and unique ornamental effects.
- While preferred embodiments will be described below, the following is merely intended as some examples of the invention. For an understanding of the full scope of the invention, the claims which follow that description should be referred to.
-
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary bathing enclosure having two sliding doors; -
FIG. 2 is an elevation view of the panels ofFIG. 1 , in a non-overlapped position corresponding to a fully-closed position of the sliding doors; -
FIG. 3 is an elevation view of the pair of panels ofFIG. 2 , in which the panels are in a position corresponding to a fully-open, overlapped positioning of the sliding doors; -
FIG. 4 is a view similar toFIG. 2 , but of alternative panels; and -
FIG. 5 is a view similar toFIG. 3 of theFIG. 4 embodiment. - Referring first to
FIG. 1 , an exemplary bathing enclosure is shown, which in this case is ashower bathing enclosure 10 and in alternate embodiments could be an enclosure for a bathtub, a hot tub or whirlpool, or another type of bathing enclosure. As shown, thebathing enclosure 10 includes afloor 20 with adrain 30, aceiling 40, first, second andthird side walls shower head 80 mounted on the first side wall. Additionally, positioned along a furtherouter side entry 90 of thebathing enclosure 10 are first and second slidingdoors - The sliding
doors rails FIG. 1 , the doors are slid apart from one another so that the doors only overlap, if at all, along ajunction 140 between the two doors. - In the embodiment of
FIG. 1 , the first slidingdoor 100 is positioned on therails door 110, along the outside of thebathing enclosure 10, while the second sliding door tends to slide in back of the first sliding door, along the inside of the bathing enclosure. However, in alternate embodiments, the orientations of the two slidingdoors door 110. - In additional alternate embodiments the bathing enclosure could employ more than two sliding doors, a sliding door that is capable of sliding in front of or in back of two or more fixed walls, or two or more sliding doors capable of sliding in front of or in back of one or more fixed walls. Further, while the sliding
doors FIG. 1 as well as theaforementioned side walls - The first and second sliding
doors FIG. 1 include first andsecond panels rectangular support structures rectangular support structures panels doors rails rails rails doors - Each of the first and
second panels bathing enclosure 10 is transmitted into the enclosure, and at least some light existing within the bathing enclosure is transmitted to outside of the enclosure. Depending upon the material that is used for thepanels - While the first and
second panels patterns FIGS. 2-5 , the image features 190, 200 can take on a variety of shapes, sizes, colors, and other characteristics. The image features 190, 200 can also be transparent, translucent or reflective (or absorptive of light), albeit at least some portions of the image features will have characteristics different from the general characteristics of thepanels - In accordance with the present invention, while the first and second image features 190, 200 can take on a variety of forms, the first and second image features are complementary with one another. That is, the first and second image features 190, 200 are related to one another in a manner such that, when the sliding
doors - The term “overall image feature” is not intended to encompass every graphical image and, in particular, is not intended to encompass a disordered amalgam of image features that merely happens to arise as a result of superimposing the first and second image features. Rather, the term “overall image feature” is intended to encompass graphical images that have an independent, recognizable meaning or order representational of a real item that is different from, and not provided by, either the first image feature or the second image feature by themselves. In terms of its meaning, the overall image feature is often greater than the sum of its image feature parts.
- In particularly preferred embodiments of the invention, a fragmentary first image feature is overlapped with a fragmentary second image feature when the sliding
doors - While the first and second image features do not, by themselves, constitute the overall image feature, it is possible that, in some embodiments, one or both of these image features will represent one or more recognizable or real items. In such case, the recognizable or real item(s) represented by the first or second image feature(s) necessarily would be different than the recognizable or real item shown by the overall image feature. Nevertheless, in other embodiments, one or both of the first and second image features will not represent any particular recognizable or real items, even though the overlapping of the first and second image features results in the overall feature that is a recognizable or real item.
- Turning to
FIGS. 2 and 3 , a first exemplary embodiment of the first and second image features 190, 200 employed on the first andsecond panels FIG. 2 shows thepanels doors - As shown, the
first image feature 210 encompasses aring 230, a plurality ofdots 240 extending horizontally away from the ring, and avertical line component 250 extending downward away from the ring. Thevertical line component 250 and thering 230 each have a thickness that is identical to, or approximately identical to, the diameter of each of thedots 240. Thesecond image feature 220 includes anadditional dot 260 and ahorizontal line component 270 extending away from the additional dot to the right. Thehorizontal line component 270 has a thickness that is about the same as the diameter of theadditional dot 260, which is somewhat larger than the diameter of thedots 240 but less than the inner diameter of thering 230. - In contrast to
FIG. 2 ,FIG. 3 shows the first andsecond panels doors panels overall image feature 280. As shown, theoverall image feature 280 includes atarget formation 290 having a bull's eye and accompanied by ahorizontal line component 300 and avertical line component 305. Thehorizontal line component 300 in particular is formed by the superimposition of thehorizontal line component 270 and the plurality ofdots 240, which only remain slightly visible (if at all) due to the presence of thehorizontal line component 270. - As shown, the
overall image feature 280 has a recognizable form that is substantially different than that of either of the first and second image features 210, 220. Thetarget formation 290 in particular is an aspect of theoverall image feature 280 that is greater than the sum of the parts supplied by the first and second image features 210, 220 (namely, thering 230 and the additional dot 260) insofar as a target with a bull's eye has a meaning that is entirely different than the meanings of a ring and a dot. - Of further significance in relation to the embodiment of
FIGS. 2 and 3 is that the particular first and second image features 210, 220 not only make it possible to arrive at theoverall image feature 280 when thepanels panels doors panels additional dot 260 progressively impinges each of the plurality ofdots 240 as it moves from right to left and, further, once theadditional dot 260 proceeds past a given one of thedots 240, thehorizontal line component 270 then further impinges and envelopes that dot 240. - To summarize, therefore, as the
panels dots 240 are impinged and enveloped. Further, if movement of thepanels horizontal line component 270 andadditional dot 260 in relation to thedots 240 will provide an indication of the degree to which the slidingdoors - Turning to
FIG. 4 , a second embodiment of the first and second image features 190, 200 on thepanels doors first image feature 310 on thefirst panel 150 specifically includes a first plurality ofhorizontal line components 330 extending inward from aleft side 340 of thepanel 150 and a second plurality ofhorizontal line components 350 extending inward from aright side 360 of that panel. Theline components line components 330 being generally interleaved with theline components 350 in terms of their relative vertical positions. As for their horizontal extent, theline components middle region 370 of thepanel 150 and do not extend inward so far that theline components 330 contact or extend past thecomponents 350, or vice-versa. - Similar to the
first image feature 310, thesecond image feature 320 on thesecond panel 160 includes a third plurality ofhorizontal line components 380 that begin somewhat to the right of aleft side 390 of the panel and extend inward therefrom, and a fourth plurality ofhorizontal line components 400 that begin somewhat to the left of aright side 410 of the panel and extend inward therefrom. Theline components line components line components 380 are interleaved with theline components 400. However, in contrast to theline components line components horizontal line components 400 of the fourth plurality generally are thicker than thehorizontal line components horizontal line components 380 of the third plurality. - While
FIG. 4 shows thepanels FIG. 5 shows the panels to be fully-overlapping one another. Consequently, inFIG. 5 the first and second image features 310, 320 are superimposed to form anoverall image feature 420. In contrast to the first and second images features 310, 320, which merely show sets of horizontal line components, theoverall image feature 420 is intended to resemble a keyboard. Additionally of significance is that, as thepanels line components - The embodiment of
FIGS. 4 and 5 also demonstrates that theoverall image feature 420 that results from the overlapping of the individual image features 310, 320 associated with thedifferent panels FIG. 5 demonstrates that theoverall image feature 420 takes on a variety of different shadings at different locations since thehorizontal line components - The embodiments of the first, second and overall image features shown with reference to
FIGS. 2-5 are intended to be exemplary of a variety of possible image features that could be employed on a pair of panels in a bathing enclosure in accordance with the present invention. That is, the present invention is intended to encompass bathing enclosures having panels on which a variety of image features other than those shown herein are provided, so long as the panels on which the image features are provided can be moved between non-overlapping and overlapping positions and so long as the overall image feature formed by the superimposition of individual image features has a meaning or form that is recognizably different than either of the image features being combined and represents a real item. - Although the embodiments disclosed above pertain to a bathing enclosure having two sliding doors, each of which can slide in relation to the other, the present invention also is intended to pertain to a variety of other bathing enclosures. For example, in some bathing enclosures, only one panel is slidable as part of a sliding door, and yet it is possible to form an overall image feature using an image feature on that panel insofar as that panel can be slid in relation to a fixed wall panel that has another image feature.
- In other embodiments, more than two image features (e.g., three image features), displayed on more than two panels are combined to form an overall image. In such embodiments, one, two or more of the image features are potentially located on sliding panels, and some of the image features also can be located on fixed wall panels. In further embodiments in which more than three different image features are available for being overlapped (e.g., three image features on three different panels), it is possible that more than one different overall image feature could be formed by different combinations of the three or more image features.
- Further, although the embodiments of
FIGS. 2-5 relate to bathing enclosures in which both of the two sliding door panels are generally transparent or translucent, the present invention is also intended to encompass embodiments in which only one or some of the superimposed panels are transparent or translucent. For example, in certain alternate embodiments employing two sliding doors as shown inFIG. 1 , the door positioned more inwardly (e.g., the door 110) could be entirely reflective (and even partly absorptive) of light while the door positioned more outwardly (e.g., the door 100) was transparent/translucent. In such embodiments, an overall image feature formed by the combination of first and second image features on the two door panels would still be visible from the outside of the bathing enclosure when the two door panels overlapped, even though such overall image feature would not be visible from the inside of the bathing enclosure. - While the foregoing illustrates and describes the preferred embodiments of this invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise construction herein disclosed. The invention can be embodied in other forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes of the invention. Accordingly, reference should be made to the following claims, rather than to the foregoing specification, as indicating the scope of the invention.
- Therefore, the invention should not be limited to just the described embodiment. To ascertain the full scope of the invention, the following claims should be referenced.
- The invention provides an improved bathing enclosure having one or more sliding doors in which both individual image features associated with specific panels and combination image features associated with overlapping panels can be displayed.
Claims (7)
1. A door assembly for a bathing enclosure, the assembly comprising:
a first door suitable to slide along an entry of the bathing enclosure, the first door having a transparent or translucent portion and a portion with a first imagery; and
a second door suitable to slide along the entry of the bathing enclosure into and out of an overlapping relationship to the first door, the second door having a portion with a second imagery;
wherein the first imagery and second imagery are complementary in appearance so that when the first and second doors overlap each other to a specified extent the first and second imagery combine to form an overall image feature that is a representation of a real object and is visible from a front side of the first door.
2. The door assembly of claim 1 , wherein the overall image feature comprises a target having a bull's eye.
3. The door assembly of claim 2 , wherein the overall image feature comprises at least two linear components extending outward away from the target in two different directions.
4. The door assembly of claim 1 , wherein the overall image feature comprises a keyboard.
5. The door assembly of claim 1 , wherein both the first and second doors have a transparent or translucent portion.
6. The door assembly of claim 1 , wherein both the first and second doors have a transparent portion.
7. A bathing enclosure, comprising:
enclosure walls with a frontal entry; and
the door assembly of claim 1 mounted across the frontal entry.
Priority Applications (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US10/757,951 US20050155146A1 (en) | 2004-01-15 | 2004-01-15 | Bathing enclosure sliding door panels having complementary visual characteristics |
PCT/US2005/001470 WO2005069901A2 (en) | 2004-01-15 | 2005-01-14 | Bathing enclosure sliding door panels having complementary visual characteristics |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US10/757,951 US20050155146A1 (en) | 2004-01-15 | 2004-01-15 | Bathing enclosure sliding door panels having complementary visual characteristics |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
US20050155146A1 true US20050155146A1 (en) | 2005-07-21 |
Family
ID=34749438
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US10/757,951 Abandoned US20050155146A1 (en) | 2004-01-15 | 2004-01-15 | Bathing enclosure sliding door panels having complementary visual characteristics |
Country Status (2)
Country | Link |
---|---|
US (1) | US20050155146A1 (en) |
WO (1) | WO2005069901A2 (en) |
Citations (5)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US3461466A (en) * | 1967-04-10 | 1969-08-19 | Ksh Inc | Multidoor shower enclosure |
US3484969A (en) * | 1966-12-02 | 1969-12-23 | Henry Alan Newland | Display device |
US4126172A (en) * | 1977-09-26 | 1978-11-21 | Saturday Knight Ltd. | Shower curtain |
US6490818B1 (en) * | 2000-10-20 | 2002-12-10 | Bramhall & Hazel, Inc. | Sliding picture frame |
US20030070221A1 (en) * | 1997-10-31 | 2003-04-17 | Shaul Goldenberg | Roll out shower curtain and the use thereof as an advertising display for the hospitality industry |
-
2004
- 2004-01-15 US US10/757,951 patent/US20050155146A1/en not_active Abandoned
-
2005
- 2005-01-14 WO PCT/US2005/001470 patent/WO2005069901A2/en active Application Filing
Patent Citations (5)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US3484969A (en) * | 1966-12-02 | 1969-12-23 | Henry Alan Newland | Display device |
US3461466A (en) * | 1967-04-10 | 1969-08-19 | Ksh Inc | Multidoor shower enclosure |
US4126172A (en) * | 1977-09-26 | 1978-11-21 | Saturday Knight Ltd. | Shower curtain |
US20030070221A1 (en) * | 1997-10-31 | 2003-04-17 | Shaul Goldenberg | Roll out shower curtain and the use thereof as an advertising display for the hospitality industry |
US6490818B1 (en) * | 2000-10-20 | 2002-12-10 | Bramhall & Hazel, Inc. | Sliding picture frame |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
WO2005069901A2 (en) | 2005-08-04 |
WO2005069901A3 (en) | 2005-09-15 |
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AS | Assignment |
Owner name: KOHLER CO., WISCONSIN Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:TSAI, HSIN-I CINNY;REEL/FRAME:015519/0117 Effective date: 20040622 |
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STCB | Information on status: application discontinuation |
Free format text: ABANDONED -- FAILURE TO RESPOND TO AN OFFICE ACTION |