US20100319153A1

US20100319153A1 - Back scrubber

Info

Publication number: US20100319153A1
Application number: US12/487,750
Authority: US
Inventors: Ping-Jen CHEN
Original assignee: Ming Yi Tech Co Ltd
Current assignee: Ming Yi Tech Co Ltd
Priority date: 2009-06-19
Filing date: 2009-06-19
Publication date: 2010-12-23

Abstract

A back scrubber has a base and a cleaning plate. The base has a front basal surface, a rear basal surface and a slot. The slot is formed in the front basal surface and has a slot opening, an inner wall and an engaging structure. The cleaning plate has a front plate surface, a rear plate surface, an inserting member and an engaging member. The front plate surface is uneven. The inserting member protrudes into the slot. The engaging member is formed on the inserting member and engaged with the engaging structure. The back scrubber in accordance with the present invention can be used to effectively and efficiently wash and is capable of saving body-cleansing agent and water.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a back scrubber, especially to a back scrubber with an abrasive plate.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventional back scrubbers such as a long-handled brush, loofah or a bath towel are used for cleaning out-of-reach areas. Such conventional back scrubbers are operated by hand and require great exertion for scrubbing, which is inconvenient. Further, when scrubbing with the foregoing, a large area is exposed and focusing scrubbing action on a specific area is difficult.
In addition, the bath towel has a rather large area requiring a great amount of body-cleansing agent for cleaning. The loofah and brush also absorb a large amount of body-cleansing agent when being used. Both the bath towel and the brush consume considerable amount of clean water to wash off the body-cleansing agent after use.
To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention provides a back scrubber to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The main objective of the invention is to provide a back scrubber.
The back scrubber in accordance with the present invention has a base and a cleaning plate. The base has a front basal surface, a rear basal surface and a slot. The slot is formed in the front basal surface and has a slot opening, an inner wall and an engaging structure. The cleaning plate has a front plate surface, a rear plate surface, an inserting member and an engaging member. The front plate surface is uneven. The inserting member protrudes into the slot. The engaging member is formed on the inserting member and engaged with the engaging structure.
Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a back scrubber in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the back scrubber in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side view in partial section of the back scrubber in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the back scrubber in FIG. 1 with a pouch receiving the cleaning plate.

FIG. 5 is a side view in partial section of the back scrubber in FIG. 4.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

With reference to FIGS. 1-3, a back scrubber in accordance with the present invention comprises a base (10) and a cleaning plate (30).
The base (10) comprises a front basal surface, a rear basal surface and a slot (20). The slot (20) is formed in the front basal surface and comprises a slot opening (21), an inner wall and an engaging structure (23). The engaging structure (23) may be a slot formed on the inner wall. The inner wall may have an end. The engaging structure (23) may be a wall edge defined on the end of the inner wall.
The cleaning plate (30) comprises a front plate surface (31), a rear plate surface (32), an inserting member (33) and an engaging member (34). The front plate surface (31) is uneven front plate to provide effective cleaning and massage effects when rubbed against. The inserting member (33) protrudes into the slot (20). The engaging member (34) is formed on the inserting member (33) and is engaged with the engaging structure (23).
The engaging member (34) may be an upward protruding hook formed on the inserting member (33) and engaged with the engaging structure (23). When the engaging structure (23) is a slot formed on the inner wall of the slot (20), the engaging member (34) hooks in the engaging structure (23) to hold the inserting member (33) in the slot (20). When the engaging structure (23) is a wall edge formed on the end of the inner wall of the slot (20), the engaging member (34) is able to hold the inserting member (33) in the slot (20) by hooking at the engaging structure (23).
When using the back scrubber in accordance with the present invention, the base (10) is firmly attached to a wall of a bathroom by an attaching means such as suction cups, nails, pins or adhesive. The front plate surface (31) of the cleaning plate (30) is rubbed against to wipe or scrape dirt off the skin. A body-cleansing agent may also be spread over the front plate surface (31) for improved cleaning. The front plate surface (31) has a small area and no brush to absorb large amounts of body-cleansing agent. Only a small amount of body-cleansing agent is necessary for cleaning. Therefore, body-cleansing agent is saved and less water is required to rinse the cleaning plate after use.
With reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, the back scrubber may further comprises a pouch (40). The pouch (40) is mounted around the cleaning plate (30) and comprises a bottom opening (41). The pouch (40) may be flat and comprise a front part (43) and a rear part (44) an edge of which is attached, may be by sewing, adhesive or thermal bonding, to the front part (43). The pouch (40) is mounted to the cleaning plate (30) before rubbing. The dirt removed attaches to the pouch (40) instead of the cleaning plate (30) for convenient cleaning.
The cleaning plate (30) may further comprise a retaining strip (35) to firmly hold the pouch (40) to the cleaning plate (30). The retaining strip (35) is formed on the front plate surface (31) and is used for fastening the bottom opening (41). The bottom opening (41) may further comprise an inner edge and at least one loop tape (42) attached to the inner edge. The retaining strip (35) may be a hook tape formed on the front plate surface (31) for adhering to the at least one loop tape (42). All of the at least one loop tape (42), may be distributed on either the inner edge of the front part (43) or the rear part (44) of the pouch (40) or may be intrinsic to the pouch (40), adheres to the retaining strip (35). The at least one loop tape (42) may also be distributed on both the inner edge of the front part (43) and the inner edge of the rear part (44). With such structure, the retaining strip (35) may adhere to the at least one loop tape (42) despite the pouch (40) being incorrectly mounted on the cleaning plate (30).
The pouch (40) may be made of a soft textile for improved user comfort and to allow the front plate surface to be felt. When using the embodiment of the back scrubber that comprise a pouch (40) made of a soft textile, both softness of the pouch (40) and refreshing rubbing of the front plate surface (31) of the cleaning plate (30) are felt. The pouch (40) may be made of a reticular nylon material for efficiently scraping skin, retaining cleansing agent and allowing the front plate surface to be felt. With reference to FIGS. 3 and 5, in order to improving convenience, the distance between the slot opening (21) and the engaging structure (23) may be shorter than the distance between the engaging member (34) and the rear plate surface (32). With such structure, the cleaning plate (30) may be pulled forward from the base (10) for easily mounting the pouch (40) to the cleaning plate (30). When using the back scrubber, the cleaning plate (30) will be pushed back to the base (10) by pressing against the front plate surface (31) of the cleaning plate (35).
The back scrubber in accordance with the present invention aids cleaning effectively and efficiently and is capable of saving body-cleansing agent and water. The back scrubber in accordance with the present provides an improved means for body cleansing compared with conventional back scrubbers.
Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and features of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only Changes may be made in the details, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.

Claims

1. A back scrubber comprising

a base comprising

a front basal surface;

a rear basal surface; and

a slot formed in the front basal surface and comprising

a slot opening;

an inner wall; and

an engaging structure; and

a cleaning plate comprising

an uneven front plate surface;

a rear plate surface;

an inserting member protruding into the slot; and

an engaging member formed on the inserting member and engaged with the engaging structure.

2. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the back scrubber further comprises a pouch receiving the cleaning plate and comprising a bottom opening; and

the cleaning plate further comprises a retaining strip formed on the front plate surface and is used for fastening the bottom opening.

3. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 2, wherein the pouch is made of a soft textile.

4. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 2, wherein the pouch is made of reticular nylon.

5. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 2, wherein

the bottom opening comprises an inner edge and at least one loop tape attached to the inner edge; and

the retaining strip is a hook tape formed on the front plate surface for adhering to the loop tape.

6. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 1, wherein a distance between the slot opening and the engaging structure is shorter than a distance between the engaging member and the rear plate surface.

7. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 2, wherein a distance between the slot opening and the engaging structure is shorter than a distance between the engaging member and the rear plate surface.

8. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 3, wherein a distance between the slot opening and the engaging structure is shorter than a distance between the engaging member and the rear plate surface.

9. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 4, wherein a distance between the slot opening and the engaging structure is shorter than a distance between the engaging member and the rear plate surface.

10. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 5, wherein a distance between the slot opening and the engaging structure is shorter than a distance between the engaging member and the rear plate surface.

11. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 1, wherein the inner wall of the slot comprises an end;

the engaging structure is the end of the inner wall; and

the engaging member is a hook engaged with the engaging structure.

12. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 2, wherein the inner wall of the slot comprises an end;

the engaging structure is the end of the inner wall; and

the engaging member is a hook engaged with the engaging structure.

13. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 3, wherein the inner wall of the slot comprises an end;

the engaging structure is the end of the inner wall; and

the engaging member is a hook engaged with the engaging structure.

14. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 4, wherein the inner wall of the slot comprises an end;

the engaging structure is the end of the inner wall; and

the engaging member is a hook engaged with the engaging structure.

15. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 5, wherein the inner wall of the slot comprises an end;

the engaging structure is the end of the inner wall; and

the engaging member is a hook engaged with the engaging structure.

16. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 6, wherein the inner wall of the slot comprises an end;

the engaging structure is a wall edge defined on the end of the inner wall; and

the engaging member is an upward protruding hook formed on the inserting member and engaged with the engaging structure.

17. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 7, wherein the inner wall of the slot comprises an end;

the engaging structure is a wall edge defined on the end of the inner wall; and

18. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 8, wherein the inner wall of the slot comprises an end;

the engaging structure is a wall edge defined on the end of the inner wall; and

19. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 9, wherein the inner wall of the slot comprises an end;

the engaging structure is a wall edge defined on the end of the inner wall; and

20. The back scrubber as claimed in claim 10, wherein the inner wall of the slot comprises an end;

the engaging structure is a wall edge defined on the end of the inner wall; and