US2771945A - Shower curtain - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 27, 1956 i 18' i iii V Wi JJ( JW /V V i 22 2+ JO 1 &ag-1

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SHOWER CURTAIN Janus B. With-up, Chicago, Ill.

Appiicaon June 39, 1953, Serial No. 355360 2 Ciaims. (Ci. 160-124 The present invention relates generally to shower cur- -tains and the like and has particularly to do with means for releasably securing shower curtains in position to prevent undesirable movements thereof.

Various means have been proposed in the past for releasably securing shower curtains, for example, to adjacent surfaces in order to prevent undesirable movements thereof due to drafts or movements of air caused by the shower. Such movements of the shower curtain besides being annoying to the person taking the shower also permit water and water vapor to escape into the bathroom to cause damage. It has been proposed to secure the shower curtain in place by means of suction cups, but these tended to be bulky and unsightly and functioned properly only when used with certain types of anchoring surfaces and did not work too well when such surfaces were wet. it has also been proposed to attach magnets to the shower curtains but they would of course only adhere to bath tubs made of ferrous material and the weight and bulk of these magnets were found objectionable. Means permanently fastened to the adjacent wall surfaces for having the curtain secured thereto are generally objected to because they make the walls unsightly. It is contemplated by the present invention to provide means having none of the objectionable features pointed out for releasably holding shower curtains in place.

Accordingly one object of the present invention is to provide means for use with shower curtains that will releasably secure the shower curtains against adjacent wall surfaces regardless of the type and condition of such surfaces.

Another object is to provide novel means for securng shower curtains to adjacent wall surfaces, which means may easily be applied to the curtain, is not unsightly, and which does not add weight or buJk to the curtain.

Another object is to provide a novel shower curtain which is convenient to use and which may be arranged in a more attractive manner than has heretofore been possible with prior art curtains.

Another object is to provide novel means for releasably securing a shower curtain to adjacent wall surfaces and to the inside of a bath tub along the bottom of the curtain so as to prevent undesirable movements of the curtain due to air movements.

Another object is to provide a sectional curtain which may be opened and closed from either side to permit entry to and exit from the tub.

Still another object is to provide a novel sectional curtain which may be closed, or folded back or draped in any desired manner while leaving the sides attached to adjacent wall surfaces for decorative purposes and convenience.

Still another object is to provide a novel shower curtain whose sides and bottom are attachable to any kind of surface, whether wet or dry, to hold the curtain against undesirable movements while taking a shower, so that successivo showers may be taken without necessitating 2,77L945 Fatented Nov. 27, 1956 drying wall or tub surfaces without thereby losing any of the securing benefits. i V H More specifically, the inven'tion is dir'ected to a sectional curtain having zipper means on adjacent vertical edges adapted to secure the curtain sections together as a single curtain surface, each 'section having an adhesive surface throughout its outer vertical side edges and its bottom edge, the arrangement being such that when the edges of the sections are joined to each other and to 'adjacent wall surfaces a complete closure is eflected preventing movements of the curtain and splashing of water outwardly therethrough onto the bathroom floor.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawing wherein:

Fig. l shows a perspective view of a bath tub recess closed ofi by a shower curtain embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view taken along line 2-2 of Fig. l as seen from the side showing the relative positicns of the shower curtain, the curtain rod and the bath tu Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view taken along line 3-3 of Fig. l as seen from above, showing the curtain when secured to the bath tub;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a shower curtain illustrating the present nvention;

Fig. 5 is a fractional view of a detail of the novel shower curtain;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged detailed view taken along line 6 6 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 7 shows a modified embodiment of the present invention; and

Fig. 8 is a side view of a slider for a slide fastener operable from either side.

Referring particularly to Fig. 1, the novel shower curtain embodying the present invention is shown as used with a fully recessed bath tub but it will be appreciated from the following description that the invention may be used as well with bath tubs that have either one or both end-s exposed. The bath tub is generally indicated at 10 as being enclosed on three sides by side walls 11 and 12 and back wall 13. The bath tub is of the conventional recessed type and may be made of any suitable material. A curtain rod i secured between the side walls is provided for supporting sliding hangers 15 for supporting a shower curtain and may be of any suitable type. The novel shower curtain is generally shown at 16 and the specific Construction thereof may better be seen from Fig. 4. In accordance with one feature of the invention the shower curtain comprises two parts 17 and 18 which preferably, but not necessarily, are of equal size. The two parts are detachably joined together by means of a slide fastener 19 of the so-called zipper type extending substantially the whole length between the top and the bottom of the shower curtain. The top edge of the curtain is in the usual manner provided with a reinforcing hem 20 and a plurality of spaced grommets 21 for receiving the usual curtain hangers 15. Grommets should be placed near the adjacent corners of the curtain parts as shown. Other means for securing the two curtain parts together such as ribbons, hooks, etc., may, of course, be used in the place of the zipper disclosed.

In accordance with the present invention the outer face of the shower curtain is provided with strips of tacky adhesive material along one or both of the side edges and, preferably, across the bottom portion thereof. This tacky adhesive is provided so that a person desiring to use the shower and wishing to prevent the curtain from,

swaying back and forth may press the edges of the curtain against the adjacent surfaces of the side walls 11 and u tion.

12 and the bottom portion thereof against the inside of Will prevent any water or water vapor from escapingfrom the shower stall along the sides of the bottom of the curr t t ain. To open the shower curtain it is merely necessary 'to open the slide fastener 19 and pull the bottom edge of 'one part of the curtain inward'ly so as to cause the adhesive thereon to separate from the inside surface of the bath tub and to slide this part aside. This will permit ready access to and exit from the bath tub. The curtain may then be closed from the outside by pul-ling shut the slide fastener to present a neat andattractive surface, or it may be slid back to oneside of the tub and tied back in any* suitable drape-like manner for decorative purpose. Although a sectional curtain is discloed ;herein it will be evident that the adhesive fastening means of the present invention may also be used to advantage may beapplied thereto in a pattern formed by two strips in overlapping zigzag as indicated in Fig. 7. `It has V been found that adhesive strips approximately one-half inch wide will hold the curtain firmly in place.

The adhesive material identified above is of a type that will adhere to practically any kind of'surface, whether it is vitrous, enameled, tiledor covered with some other kind of material. It will remain tacky practically indefinitely and its adhesveness will` not be atfected by less* us 'the adhesive areas on the curtain will be c secure the 'curtain in place whether the 'bath tub and the walls of the shower stall are wet or dry.

The slide fastener 19 is provided with a Slider (Figi i 8) constructed so that it may be operated from either side of the curtain 16. The Slider 25 is provided with the usual opening 2-6 on each side for receiving the gripwith conventionalone-piece shower curtains in which,

'case one of the sides would have to be detached 'from the adjacent wall surface in order to permit a person to enter V and leave the bath tub or shower stall.

Although the slide fastener or zipper may be attached V to the curtain so as to close when the slide is brought slide is brought downwardly in which case the slide f astener need only be opened part way from the bottom to permit a person' to enter or leave the tub.

shower curtains of any common material may be used in connection with the present invention. Best results are obtained When used with shower curtains made from one of the many attractive plastic materials readily available on the market. Many types of light-weight materials have hitherto been unsuitable for use in shower curtains because of their excessive movements in drafts. Weights attached to the bottom hem of light-Weight curtains to reduce the movements were found to be unpleasant, unsightly and destructive. When employing the novel means disclosed heren for attaching curtain edges to adjacent walls, on the other hand, even extremely light materials may be used therefor. The adhesive strips or areas may be forrned by applying a cement thereto which is of a type that Will not harden but which will remain tacky practically indefinit'ely; One such cementmay be obtained fron the Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing V Company, St. Paul, Minnesota, under their type No.

'EC-7 91 Cen ent 3 M Brand. This material may be dei posited on 'the showertcurtain in continuous' strips 22 along thesde edges and across the bottom as indicated in Figs. 3, 4 and7. in order to prevent this material from making contact with other parts of the curtain or with wrappng material when the curtain is folded and wrapped for sale, storage and transportation, it should be covered by a masking tape 23 shown partly removed in Fig. 4 and in ,cross section attached to the curtain in Fig. 6, The protective tape should be of sufiicient width to cover theadhesive completely, and should be of a type that wi-ll stick to the adhesive, butwhich will strip o from the curtain material without disturbing the adhesive surface. T his protective tape should not be removed until the shower curtain has been installed. A suitable masking tape may be obtained from Minnesota Mining & Manufactur-ing Company, under their type No. 3M-666.-

3DCT-14C9C-JAJ. i

Although it is preferred to apply a continuous coating of the adhesive material intthe strips on the face of the u curtain as indicated' in Fig. 4, the adhesive coating may also be applied in discontinuous areas or patches along the areas-indicated. If it is desred to provide a larger be permitted to remain ,in engagement with the side walls tion has been disclosed herein, it will be evdent .that varipers 27, and opposed inwardly turned side flanges 28 for bringing the grippers into interlocking relat onship n a well-known manner. Elongated loops' 29`and 30 on oppcsite side-s of the. Slider are provided for receiving 'prill i pieces 31 and 32 respectively. i

, Et will be appreciated that ,the shower c'ur tain inaccordance with the, present invention besides its 'func' j tonal usefulness is' also attractive and neat. When left in the position shown in Fig. 1 it will show the design of the curtain to its full advantage. 'One part of the curtain may "be used for access to the tub while permitting the 'other-half to remainin position at all times. One ,or both sides of the curtain may be permitted to remain attached to the adjacent wall surfaces while the two sections are folded or draped back to'form an attractive and deorative setting for the bath tub and bathroom. Thistypeof curtain is also very desirable when taking'a bath in the tub because it may be` arranged so r as to prevent drafts onthe bather regardless of from which side of the room the drafts emanate. The adhesiyem'aterial.mentioned above is for all practcal ,pur-

poses transparent so that it will hardly be visible on' the shower curtain whenexposed. However, in usual practice. it probably will not be exposed because it will and parted in the middle. r r l Although only ,a particular embodiment of the nvenous modifications may be made therein without departing, from the true scope of the present invent on. v

Iclaim: V l. A sectional curtain for closng ofi a space'between two Wall portions and a bath tub disposed between said wall portions, said curtain being adapted to, be slidably r gaging a supporting rod, a slide fastener for fasteningsaid two parts together along adjacent edgesu thereof, said, slide fastener being operable fromtteither side of the curtain, a continuous strip oftacky materalalong the outside edges of said curtain parts and across the lower i portions of said curtain parts on the outwar-dly facing side of said curtain, whereby said curtainparts may* be Secured together by said ;slide fastener, said tacky material efiecting a continuous seal along the adjacent walls and to the inside of the tub. i u V 2. A sectional showerccurtainiaccording to claimd Wherein the tacky material across the lower portions of said curtain parts comprises an interlaced zigzag pattern of a pair of strips of tackymaterial.

References Cited inthe i le of this patent i UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,2-32,194 r zo b Feb. 18, ;19 41 2,269,964 i Watson i Jan.'1 3, 1942 2,- 296,358 Marinsky Sept. 22, 1942 ,2,'514316 Dobrn u; July 4, 1950 r "w ry",

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