US2415237A - Child's toilet seat - Google Patents

Description

` Feb. 4, 1947. w, J DUNN mL 2,415,237

CHILDS TOILET SEAT Filed Aug. 14, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet l Feb. 4, w J, DUNN ETAL cHILDs TOILET SEAT Filed Aug. 14, 1944 2 Sheets-She'let 2 Patented Feb. 4, V1947 CHILDS TOILET SEAT William J. Dunn, Winnetka, Ill., and Robert R. Richolt, Tujunga, Calif., assignors, by mesne assignments, to General American Transportation Corporation, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of New York Application August 14, 1944, Serial No. 549,316

The present invention pertains to toilet seats for children. One general object of the invention is to provide a, novel toilet seat for children adapted to be installed as an auxiliary on ordinary toilet bowl assemblies for adults and which embodies the two more or less antithetical attributes of affording full and` secure lateral support for the child when in use, yet' which can, when not in use, be vcollapsed into a form of so little bulk that when hinged between the ordinary adult toilet seat and lid it lcan simply be swung up out of the way like a second or inner lid in exposing the regular adult seat for use.

More specifically stated, if an ordinary toilet seat for adults is equipped simply with an overly- 'ing seat ring having a suitably small aperture for toileting a child, constant attention to the child is required during its use of the same, especially in the case of very small children, because of the danger of their toppling over. Such an arrangement is neither convenient nor conducive to good toileting habits. On the other hand, a childs toilet seat with permanently erected arm and back rests is so bulky that it must be completely removed after each use, a nuisance in itself, and, moreover, it ordinarily lies around the bathroom iioor Where it is a constant source of exasperation and barked shins.` What we aim to do is to provide a childs toilet seat adapted to be hinged in an ordinary installation between seat and lid and which may be leftthere more or less permanently, being taken off only when going on trips, etc., by reason of the fact that it embodies a novel correlation of the seat base and collapsible arm rests so that it is but the work of a moment either to erect the rests to secure the child against falling or to collapse such rests into ilat configuration so that the auxiliary seat can be swung up with the lid to clear the regular seat.

Another objecty of fthe invention is to provide a childs toilet seatvofthe general character outlined above which is` easy to maintain in a clean, sanitaryand odorless condition, which will not mar and damage a regula-r toilet seat to which it may be applied, which is of suchvsmall bulk that it may be easily packaged Vand carried on trips, and which is economical-to manufacture.

Still anotherI object is to provide a childs toilet seat embodying a'novelfseat plate and attachment arrangement lfor detachably installing the same on an ordinary toiletand which is of desirable and improved construction quite aside 1o claims. (c1. 4-2s9 from whether or not it be equipped with arm or back rests.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the following description proceeds, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which: y

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a childs toilet seat embodying the present invention, and showing the ,same in erected condition ready for use in place on an ordinary toilet. V

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially along the line 2-2 in Fig. l.

Fig. 2a is an enlarged detail sectional View through one of the -attachment arms, taken substantially along the line 2er-2a in Fig. 2.

Fig. 3 is a side elevational View showing the auxiliary childs toilet seat collapsed and swung upward into an out of the way position while still remaining attached to the conventional toilet installation. l

Fig. 4 is a perspectiveview of the childs toilet seat shown in Fig. 1 but with the parts collapsed for storage or carrying.

While `the invention is susceptible of various modications and alternative constructions,` we have shown in the drawings and willherein describe in detail the preferred embodiment, but it is to be understood that we do not thereby intend to limit the invention to the specic form disclosed, but intend to cover all modifications and alternative constructions falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims. p

Referring more particularly toV the exemplary embodiment ofthe invention illustrated in the drawings, it will be seen uponreference to the same that the childs toilet seat there shown is adapted to be removably installed as an auxiliary device or attachment in a conventional adults toilet. Asis customary, the latter may include a bowl I0 having a generally oval or ring-shaped seat Il as well as a lid l2 hinged on it` at'thei'r rear edges b'y hinges l 4. In brief, the attachment embodying the present invention aiords a seat plate l5. with a generally central aperture'l of suitably small dimensions for toileting a child, aswell as arm rests Il, a back rest l-8 and a iront guard I9. The elements of the childs seat shown can, however, be readily collapsed into such` a thin, flat configuration that it is adaptedtoube sandwiched between the conventional seatA and lid when the lid is closed orswung up against the lid when the latter is opened (Fig. 3) to expose the regulan-seat H for unobstructed use. Complete. and safe support .for a child is thus assuxes.,

and yet the necessity is avoided of repeatedly installing and removing a bulky and clumsy device with permanently erected arm and back rests.

The base plate I5, the back rest I8 and arm rests I'I are all desirably made of molded plastic material, preferably a transparent oneythe element of transparencyV serving not only to enhance the appearance but also aiding in inspecting the same for cleanliness. Molded plastic material is strong enough in even thincrosssection to afford a sturdy structure which is of small thickness when collapsed. Moreover, such plastic material lends itself readily to `fashioning of the desired smoothly contoured shapear-isune affected by either water or the-.acid contentof urine, is easily cleaned and has a pleasing appearance without requiring v painting or other special finish. The smooth surface of the plastic material protects the child against injury as Well as preventing scraping or marring of the regular toilet seat II.- f. In the instant embodiment the seat plate I5 is .ofv generally rectangular shape with smoothly rounded yfront corners.r The laperture I6 in the seat plate .is bordered by a ydownturned integral flange of smoothly curved contourr and which is sufliciently shallow in depth that it does not addmaterially to the thickness -of the assembly. At its rear edge the seat plate I5 is hinged to a transverse supporting-member or bar 2lv to swing vertically. For that purpose sheet metal hinge plates 22 doubled upon themselves about the bar are riveted as indicated at 23 (Fig. 4) to the seat plate. A torsionspring 25 encircling the rod 2I yieldably urges the seat plate I5 to swing in anupward direction about the bar.. One end of this spring is hooked to a tab 24 fixed tothe bar` and the .other is anchored to the underside vof the seat plate. Y y

To detachably secure the hinge bar 2l 1 `(and, thereby, the seat plate I5 attached to the same) to the regular toilet seat IIy ay -pair of `resilient arms 26 are arranged to embrace and. grip the latter.. In thepresentinstance these .arms are formed .as simple integral extensions .of vthe rod 2l, the .arms and rod being fashioned as asingle generally. U-shaped piece from .a length of. suitably springysteel rod or the like. The arms 26 Yare oiset downwardly beneath .the plane ofthe hinge bar 2l. so that they will .underlie thelateral side edge portions of the regular toilet seat Il (see Fig. 2). At their forward ends the arms 26 are doubled and bent into more or lessA C- shaped form to embrace the adjacent side edges of the regular `seat as indicated at 2l. yThe shaped ends 2l of the `arms 26 thus extend upward in respective loops overlying the edge of the regular seat and thence down underneath the latter so as to grip the same rmly. It will be observed, however, that these looped portions 2T ofthe arms 25de not extend far enough over the top 'of the` regular seat to interfere with its use.` '.'Io' snap 'thedevicein place on the seat II it is necessary merely to spread the resilient arms 2621apart,rest the seat plate I5 on the seat II with thearms 26 below the latter, and release theV arms to grip the opposite edges of the seat I I. Since'the looped ends2l of the arms are located to grip the seat II at points forward of the latters 'point of maximum 'transverse width, the childs seat is restrained against slipping rearwardly.

Marring of the toilet seat I I is avoided by cov- 'ering `the arms 26 with plastic tubing 21a (Fig.

is dimensioned to be stretched tight and if trans- 4 parent is hardly noticeable. It also protects the metal arms 2'I against corrosion or discoloration. The arm rests II are shown herein as thin, rectangular bars of molded plastic with smoothly rounded corners. They extend along opposite sidesof the base plateV I5, being'displaced slightly in alateral direction from the edges 0f the base plate to clear the latter when lowered (see Fig.

Suitable linkages are provided for supporting the arm rests in the elevated position of Figs. 1 and 2, and which are collapsible to swing the arm restsforward'into the alternatively available lowered position of- Figs. 3 and 4. Swinging of the linkages forward rather than rearward aids in clearing the collapsed structure from the rear edge pivot for the seat plate I5 so that the latter canl readily be swung upward to the position of Fig. 3. f

In the illustrated embodiment each of the arm rests I'i is supported by a front link 28 and a rear link 29'pivoted, respectively, at their .upper and lower ends to the corresponding armrest and to the base plate for swinging the arm .rests generally fore and aft of the baser plate. Each such link has an inturned lower end journaled in a corresponding bore 30 (Fig.v 1)*extending inwardlyfrom the side edgesof thefbase plate |15 within one of the four bosses 3| provided thereon, while the upperend of each link is bent outwardly and journaled in acorrespondng. transverse bore 32 opening from the inner edge. of Athe* arm rest associated therewith. Upsetting the inserted ends of the links `serves to retain them in place-.f .i

To hold the swingable ,arm ,rest supporting linkages against collapsing rearwardly from. the erected position of Figs. 1 and 2,` iiexible steel wire ties 33 are provided. These ties are covered with protective flexible tubing 33a preferably made of plastic, andare anchored to the `re? spective lower and upper `ends of thefrontand rear` links.I Similarly,I a second set-.of` flexible ties 34, alsornade of wire and covered with pro; tective plastic tubing 34a, serves to hold thearm rest linkages.V releasably against. .forward cole lapsing movement. For *thisy purpose the ties 34 are anchoredat their forward, ends to the upper ends of .the `front links 28, Whereas .apertured plastic tabs.V v35 are flxedto the lowerends `of such ties. Laterally projecting loops 36in .the lower portions of the `rear links 29 are projected through the apertures in the tabs 35 to secure the sameinplace. 1 y -v 4 .The back rest I8 is ,shOWndn this instance, as comprising a thin, rectangular sheet Iofmolded plastic having longitudinal reenforcing flutes I8a. Its ends are curled about the rear links 29f-so that it is carriedlbythe latter and vmoved into upright or lowered position vcoincidentally with the elevation orlowering of the arm rests. l

A front support is desirablyyprovided, preferably in the form of a splash guard, such asthat shown, for the use of small boys. Suchsplash guard I9 com-prises `a more or less triangularly shaped-piece Jof Acloth having its upper/'corners detachably secured by spring clips 3'I `(Fig. 1) to loops -38 bent inthe upper portions of the frontl links 28'. The lower end ofthe splash guard is led down through the central aperture I6 in the base plate I5 andupv-through a slot 33 in 'the latter, being secured -bysnaps 40.

-The mode of installing andl erectingor 4collapsing the Ychilds toilet seat shown will, in general, be clear fromthe foregoing. -rBy way of recapitulationv it may beobserved that-in orde-r to install' the same on the conventional toilet seat. II itjisnecessary merely to vputthe seat plate. I in place and snap the arms 26` to the :edges of the main seat. To condition the device for use of a child the arm rests I1 are swung upward to the elevated position in Figs. 1' and 2 4and the tabs 35 engaged with the loops 36, whereupon the arm rests I'l and back rest I8, as well as thesplash guard I9, are all securely heldin position. After use, it is merely `necessary to disengage the tabs from the loops 36 and let the arm rest supporting linkages collapse forwardly. Thereupon the flattened assembly can be swung upward to the position of Fig. 3 where it is completely out of the way and yet ready for subsequent use whenever required, When the ldevice is removed from the ordinary toilet seat for storage or travel, it is necessary merely to disengage the spring arms `26 from the seat Il and snap the loops 21 over the outer edges of the arm rests I1, as shown in Fig. 4. Itwill thus be seen that the spring arms 26 serve the `additional purpose of holding the assembly `in flat, collapsed condition to make the carrying of the same easy. l

We claim as our invention; l l

'1. A childs toilet seat adapted for detachable mounting in an ordinary toilet assemblyincluding the usual toilet .bowl with generally ring shaped seat for adultsyand overlying lid independently hinged thereon, said childs toilet seat comprising, in combination, a generally centrally apertured thin seat plate dimensioned to overlie and rest upon the adult seat, -means for. detachably hinging said base plate at its rear edge on the assembly.insuchJposition as to swing up away from the adult seat` and clear the latter, a pair of arm rests disposed at opposite sides of said base plate, linkage means connecting Said arm rests to said base plate to swing in 'a fore and aft direction relative to the latter from an elevated position'for said arm rests to a lowered position therefor in which they are substantially coplanar with said base plate, and a triangularly shaped fabric front splash guard arranged with its upper corners secured adjacent the fore portions of said arm rests to move therewith and its lower end detachably secured to said base plate.

2. A childs toilet seat adapted for detachable mounting in an ordinary toilet assembly including the usual toilet bowl with generally ring shaped seat for adults and overlying lid independently hinged thereon, said childs toilet seat comprising, in combination, a generally centrally apertured thin flat seat plate dimensioned to overlie and rest upon the adult seat, a generally U-shaped resilient metal rod disposed with the base portion of the U extending transversely along the rear edge of said seat plate and with the arms of the U projecting forwardly at opposite sides of said seat plate, means for hingedly connecting said seat plate at its rear edge to the base portion of said U, the forward end portions and rear portions of said arms being shaped for gripping engagement with the side edge portions of the adult seat, a pair of arm rests disposed at opposite sides of said base plate, and linkage means connecting said arm rests to said base plate to swing forwardly from an elevated position to a lowered position substantially coplanar with said base plate and clear of said hinging means to leave the latter unobstructed.

3. A childs toilet seat adapted for detachable mounting on an ordinary generally ring shaped toilet seat for adults and comprising, in combination, a, generally centrally apertured seat plate dirnensio'ned` to-V overlie and rest". upon the adult seat, la generallyfU-shaped resilient metalvrod disposed with the baseof `the-U extending-transversely along therear' edge of saidseat-plate and with the arms of the-U `projecting forwardly'at opposite sides of said seat plate, Lmeans for hingedly connecting said seat plate at `its lower edges to the baselportion of said U, and theforward end portions of said arms being shapedfor gripping engagement with the side edge portions oftheadult seat. l m V 4. A `childs toilet seat adaptedl for detachable mountinglon an ordinary generally ring shaped toiletseat foradults and comprising, in combination, a generally centrally ,apertured seat plate dimensioned to overlieand'rest upon Athe adult seat, a generally U-shaped resilientmetal -rod disposed withlthe base of the lU extending transversely alongthe-'rear edgevoi said seat plate and with the arms of the UofEset downwardly from said base portion to overlie the adult seat, said-arms being `disposed to project forwardly with reference to the base portion of the U, means for hingedly connecting said seatplate at-'its rear edgeto the base portion of said U, and the forward end portion .of each of said arms being doubled upon itself and bent transversely in C- shape to engage the adjacentedge of the adult seat.-` .l l

5. `A childs toilet seat adapted for detachable mounting on ari-ordinary generally ring shaped toilet seat for adults and comprising, in combination, a generally centrally apertured seat plate dimensioned to overlie and rest upon th-e adult seat, a supporting member extending transversely of the rearend of said seat plate, means pivotally connecting said seat plate to said memberfand a pair of laterally spaced resilientlarms projecting forwardly from said member presenting opposed end portions shaped for gripping engagement with opposite side edges of the adult seat under the urging of said` arms as'the' latter are forcedlapart upon engagement of said end por-1 tions With-said 'seat edges.

6. A childs toilet seat adapted for detachable mounting in an ordinary toilet assembly including the usual toilet bowl with generally ring shaped seat for adults hinged thereon, said childs toilet seat comprising, in combination, a generally centrally apertured thin at seat plate dimensioned to overlie and rest upon the adult seat, a pair of arm rests disposed at opposite sides of said base plate, linkage means pivotally connected respectively to said base plate and to said arm rests for supporting the same alternatively either in a raised position or in a lowered position in which they lie substantially in the plane of said seat plate, a generally U-shaped resilient metal rod disposed with the base of the U extending transversely along the rear edge of said seat plate and with the arms of the U projecting 'forwardly at opposite sides of said seat plate, means for hingedly connecting said seat plate at its rear edge to the base portion of said U, and the forward end portions of said arms being shaped for alternative gripping engagement with either the side edge portions of the adult seat or with said arm rests, whereby the seat plate may be clamped thereby to the adult seat or alternatively conditioned for transport when removed from the regular toilet seat by engaging said forward end portions of said arms with the lowered arm rests.

7. A childs toilet seat adapted to be mounted on an ordinary generally ring shaped toilet seat for adults and comprising, in combination, a thin `seat plate generally centrally apertured anddlmensioned to. overle and restv upon ytheadult seat, aresilient metal clamp rod at each side of the childs toilet seat, each of said rods having a porytion bent transversely Yin C-shape to embrace and grip an adjacent portion of the adult seat, and means for hingedly connecting said seat plate adjacent its rear edge to said clamping rods to swing upwardly with reference thereto.

8. A childs toilet seat adapted to be mounted on an ordinary generally ring shaped toilet seat for adults and comprising, in combination, a thin seat plate generally centrally apertured and dimensionedto overlie and rest upon the adult seat, a metal rod extending along the rear edge of said seat plate with the latter pivoted on said rod to swing vertically about the same, a resilient metal clamp rod at each end of said metal rod and disposed at opposite sides ofthe childs toilet seat andeach said clamp rod having a portion doubled upon :itself and bent transversely in C-shape for grippingl engagement with `an `adjacent portion of the adult seat at opposite sides thereof.

' 9.V A childs toilet seat adapted by its thinness when `collapsed to be interposed simply as an extra leaf between the hinged seat and cover of 'an ordinary toilet seat assembly for adults and withoutinterfering with the normal positioning of suchlid and seat, said childs toilet seat comprising, in combination, a generally centrally apertured thin flat seat plate dirnensioned to overlie and Vresi-l upon said adult seat, means for detachably connectingisaid `seat plate to said assembly for upward kswinging of said plate about a pivotal axis adjacent that of said adult seat and lid land as a separate leaf interposed between the sameQa vpair ofrthin iiat arm rests, `pairs of supporting links for each of said arm rests pivoted to said seat plate and to respective `ones of said arm rests to swing 'forwardly from generally upright-positions in Iwhich said arm rests are held above the level of said seat plate by said links to a forwardly collapsed position in which said arm rests and said links all lie alongside opposite side edges-,of said `seat platefsuhstantiallycoplanar with lsaid seat plate, a Vback rrest 'extendingbe tween the rearward lones of said links, 'and means for securing said back rest to said rearward links in position to lie to the rear thereof a. distance sufficient to permitsuch links to Vswing downward below Vthe top face of said seat plate when co1- lapsed and with said back rest overlying said seat plate in contact therewith, whereby the `total thickness of the collapsed seat assembly issimply that of the seat plate and back `rest in face to face contact.

10. A childs toilet seat adapted to kbe mounted on anlordinary generally ring shaped toilet seat for' adults and comprising, 'in combination, a thin seat plate generally centrally aperturedand dimensioned to overlie and rest upon the adult seat,la metal rodcon'stituting a combined hinge pivot for said seat plate and a means for 'grip'. ping an adjacent portion of the adult seat, said gripping portion of said rod comprising a portion bent transversely in C-shape to `embrace and grip anadjacent portion of the adult seat, and means for hingedly connecting said seat plate adjacent its rearr edge to said hinge pivot portion of said metal rod to swing upwardly with reference thereto. y

Y WILLIAM J. DUNN."

ROBERT R. RIC'HOLT.'

Y REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the lile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS British Mar. 13, 1930

Images