WO2009072800A2

WO2009072800A2 - Apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves

Info

Publication number: WO2009072800A2
Application number: PCT/KR2008/007126
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jae-Choon Shin
Original assignee: Jae-Choon Shin
Priority date: 2007-12-07
Filing date: 2008-12-03
Publication date: 2009-06-11
Also published as: KR200440611Y1; WO2009072800A3

Abstract

This invention relates to an apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves, comprising: a body having a power switch (11) and a waterspout (30) whose bottom is depressed on the top; a fingers support (200) supporting rubber gloves with the fingers part (211) and the wrist part (212) to be inserted to the rubber gloves, which is connected to the top of the above-described waterspout (30); and a drying and sterilizing unit (20) having a heating means (300) inside the above-described fingers support (200).

Description

APPARATUS FOR DRYING AND STERILIZING RUBBER

GLOVES

Technical Field

[1] This present invention relates to an apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves, and more specifically, to an apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves which can remove moisture inside the rubber gloves by heating and air flow method, and can prevent the propagation of bacteria through a sterilizing action. Background Art

[2] Rubber gloves are commonly worn at home for washing dishes and clothes etc. According, water usually permeates into the rubber gloves. Therefore, they usually put the rubber gloves on the faucet or the kitchen sink, or they hang them by their fingers with a clothespin, in order to remove moisture inside the rubber gloves.

[3] However, if the rubber gloves are stacked, they are not dried because air does not circulate well and if they are hung with a clothespin, a certain area of the rubber gloves may be damaged by the clothespin and also, using a clothespin is troublesome work.

[4] The undried rubber gloves which remain wet give the user an unpleasant feeling, and may cause eczema, or facilitate the multiplication of various bacteria including colon bacilli, which is also bad for hygiene.

[5] In order to overcome these problems, Korea Utility Model Registration Gazette No.

20-0437060 notifies an apparatus for drying rubber gloves by injecting air into the rubber gloves through an air pump. However, it has the disadvantage that an air pump, a relatively complicated apparatus, should be equipped, and because the structure of the support supporting the rubber gloves is so simple, the rubber material may be shrunken or transformed while being dried. Disclosure of Invention Technical Problem

[6] Designed to solve these problems, the present invention purposes to provide the apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves which can drain water out of the rubber gloves by propping them against the support in the original shape and at the same time, can remove moisture inside the rubber gloves and sterilize them by heating and air flow method. Technical Solution

[7] For this purpose, the characteristic of the invented apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves is the inclusion of a body having a power switch and a waterspout whose bottom is depressed on the top; a fingers support supporting rubber gloves with the fingers part and the wrist part to be inserted to the rubber gloves, which is connected to the top of the above-described waterspout; and a drying and sterilizing unit having a heating means inside the above-described fingers support.

[8] The said heating means desirably includes a heating board which generates heat by the applied current; and a thermal conduction board shaped according to the above- described fingers support and conducting the generated heat to the above heating means.

[9] As an alternative, the above-described heating means is shaped according to the above fingers support and it includes the heating board which generates heat by the applied current.

[10] According to this invention, the external side of the above-described fingers support has a multiple of projections.

[11] More desirably, the above-described fingers support has a multiple of penetration holes so that air may pass between the inside and the outside.

[12] The above fingers support is composed of the front part and the rear part, which are symmetrical. And, a space is made between the front part and the rear part by putting them together.

[13] In addition, the said drying and sterilizing unit can be connected to the said waterspout by a connecting rod in the shape of a corrugated tube.

Advantageous Effects

[14] The invented apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves has following effects:

[15] Firstly, the apparatus can prevent drying shrinkage or transformation by drying the rubber gloves and by propping them against the support in the original shape.

[16] Secondly, the water in the rubber gloves can be drained out naturally by the self- weight and the drained water can be collected in the waterspout on the bottom.

[17] Thirdly, the moisture in the rubber gloves can be quickly removed by heating the inside of the rubber gloves with the heating board and the thermal conduction board, and the multiplication of bacteria can be prevented by a sterilizing action.

[18] Fourthly, by leaving space for air circulation inside the rubber gloves, more efficient drying is possible. Brief Description of Drawings

[19] While this invention is specifically described by below drawings, they are only desirable application examples of the invention. Therefore, the interpretation of the technical ideas of the invention should not be limited to the drawings.

[20] FIG. 1 is an outline skew drawing of the apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves constructed according to the preferred embodiment of the disclosure;

[21] FIG. 2 is an outline exploded skew drawing of the drying and sterilizing unit of the apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves constructed according to the preferred embodiment of the disclosure;

[22] FIG. 3 is a section details drawing according to the III-III line of FIG. One.

Best Mode for Carrying out the Invention

[23] Below, the preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in greater detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Here, the terminology or words used in the specification and the claims of the present invention should not be interpreted as typical meanings of their own, and they should be interpreted as the meaning and concept conforming to the technological idea of the present invention on the basis of the idea that the inventor can define the concept of the words appropriately in order to illustrate his invention in the best manner. While the present invention is particularly shown and described with reference to the preferred embodiment, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made within the spirit and the scope of the present invention, and accordingly, the scope of the present invention is not limited within the described range but the following claims and the equivalents

[24] FIG 1 illustrates a desirable application example of the apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves. Referring to FIG. 1, the apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves is composed of the body (10) which is a support, and also contains the operating unit including a switch, and the drying and sterilizing unit (20) installed at the top of the body ( 10).

[25] The above-described body (lθ) is desirably composed of housing made from plastic material and a waterspout (30) is equipped on the top.

[26] The above waterspout (30) has the function to collect the water which falls down from the rubber gloves by the self- weight, and for containing water, the bottom is depressed.

[27] The above body (lθ) is equipped with a switch (l 1) and a timer (12) for operating the apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves. The above-described timer (12) sets the operating time of this apparatus in advance.

[28] The front side of the body (lθ) includes a power lamp (13) and a heating lamp (14) which display the operating status of the apparatus. The above power lamp (13) displays the status that external power is applied to the apparatus. The above heating lamp (14) is lit when the switch (l 1) is turned on, which displays that the rubber gloves are being dried and sterilized.

[29] And, although not illustrated in FIG. 1, the apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves is equipped with a temperature controller. Accordingly, one can control the temperature of the heating board appropriately. [30] As the structures and functions of the above switch, timer and lamps have been already well known in this industry, I omit the detailed explanation about them in this specification. And, it should be understood that as long as the structures can apply power to the apparatus and perform the function of drying and sterilizing, the prior various technical means can be applied.

[31] The above-described drying and sterilizing unit (20) is the part that rubber gloves are propped against for drying and sterilizing. The above drying and sterilizing unit (20) is connected to the top of the body (lθ), desirably to the top of the said waterspout (30) by a connecting rod (40).

[32] The said connecting rod (40) is a corrugated tube having hollowness inside, which is made so that the user may bend the connecting rod (40) as occasion demands.

[33] One end of the above connecting rod (40) is connected to the bottom of the drying and sterilizing unit (20) and the other end is connected to the top of the waterspout (30). In this time, it is desirable to seal up the connection area in order to prevent water from permeating into it.

[34] Although not illustrated in FIG. 1, as another alternative, it is possible that the above drying and sterilizing unit (20) is connected to the top of the body (10) without the above connecting rod.

[35] FIG. 2 is an exploded skew drawing of the above drying and sterilizing unit (20).

[36] Referring to FIG. 1 and 2 together, the above drying and sterilizing unit (20) includes the fingers support (200) supporting rubber gloves by being inserted to the rubber gloves (not illustrated) and a heating means (300) inside the above-described fingers support ( 200).

[37] The above fingers support (200) is composed of the fingers part (211) and the wrist part (212), which have the shape of human fingers and wrist, respectively. And accordingly, it makes the fitted rubber gloves keep the original shape.

[38] The external side of the above fingers support (200) has a multiple of projections (213). The purpose of the above projections (213) is to make an air route between the internal side of the rubber gloves and the external side of the fingers support (200) by avoiding the internal side of the rubber gloves (refer to No. 50 dotted line of FIG. 3) clinging to the external side of the fingers support (200). These projections (213) may be arranged continuously lengthwise along the fingers support (200) as seen in the application example, or they may be arranged in the shape of regular or irregular dots or a broken line.

[39] In addition, the above fingers support (200) has a multiple of penetration holes (214) for air circulation between the inside and the outside. The air flow through these penetration holes (214) facilitates drying of the rubber gloves. The said penetration holes (214) descend from the inside of the fingers support (200) to the outside in order to prevent water from flowing into the fingers support (200) through the penetration holes (214).

[40] The above fingers support (200) is composed of the front part (210) and the rear part (220), which are symmetrical. And, as seen in FIG. 3, a section details drawing according to the III- III line of FIG. 1, as the front part (210) and the rear part (220) are put together, a space is made inside and a heating means (300) is placed in the space. One of the front part (210) and the rear part (220) connection sides has connection projections (215) and the other one has connection grooves, and by coupling them, they are put together. It is desirable to seal up the connection area with epoxy resin or sealant in order to prevent the external moisture from permeating.

[41] As another alternative, although it is not illustrated in FIG. 3, the above front part (210) and the rear part (220) may be coupled by a connecting bolt (not illustrated).

[42] And, fixed grooves (216) may be made at the bottom of the front part (210) and the rear part (220) to fix the end of the connecting rod (40). While the application example illustrates the method that the end of the connecting rod is fixed at the fixed grooves, the invention is not limited to this. As long as the end of the above connecting rod is connected to the fingers support, the prior various connecting methods can be applied.

[43] The front part (210) and the rear part (220) of the above fingers support (200) can be manufactured by injection molding the synthetic materials including polypropylene and polycarbonate having a high heat-resisting property without conductivity.

[44] The above-described heating means (300) includes the thermal conduction board (310) inside the above fingers support (200) and the heating board (320) which generates heat by applied current. The above heating board (320) that wires are connected generates heat when the switch (l 1) is turned on. Here, the above wires can be connected to the body (lθ) through the hollowness of the connecting rod (40). The heating board (320) is made of high-resistant metal materials. Because the properties and the kinds of materials are already well known in this industry, the detailed explanation is omitted.

[45] The above thermal conduction board (310) is made according to the shape of the fingers support (200) using the metal materials with high thermal conduction. In combination with the above heating board (320), it conducts heat generated from the heating board (320) evenly. Desirably, as illustrated in FIG. 3, a connection jaw (217) is formed in the connection side of the front part (210) and the rear part (220), and it can be connected by inserting the edge of the thermal conduction board (310). However, the above thermal conduction board (310) or the heating board (320) can be connected in other various ways. And, it is also permitted to connect the edge even without letting it touch the inside of the fingers support (200).

[46] More desirably, in case one connects the thermal conduction board (310) between the front part (210) and the rear part (220), for easy positioning, one of the front part (210) and the rear part (220) may have positioning projections (218) and the positioning projections (218) are inserted into the positioning holes (311) formed in the thermal conduction board (310).

[47] According to another application example of this invention, the heating means can be composed of only the heating board (320) without the thermal conduction board, and this time, the heating board (320) will be shaped according to the shape of the fingers support (200).

[48] How to use the apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves is as follows: The user takes off rubber gloves and props them against the above fingers support (200). This time, the fingers part (211) of the fingers support (200) may be inserted into the fingers part of the rubber gloves. Then, initially the moisture inside and outside the rubber gloves falls down by the self- weight and is gathered in the waterspout (30) of the body (lθ). This time, the user can control the angle of the connecting rod (40) freely for easy insertion of rubber gloves or can leave space between the rubber gloves appropriately.

[49] In this status, if the switch (l 1) is turned on, power is supplied to the heating board (320) and heat is generated. This heat is immediately transferred to the entire fingers support (200) through the thermal conduction board (310). In case it is composed of only the heating board without the thermal conduction board, heat will be generated directly from the heating board. Although this specification does not attach the circuit diagram to display the connection status of the switch and the power, it is very general in the technical field and specific application examples may be various. Accordingly, I omit its example.

[50] Like above, as the thermal conduction board (310) is heated, the temperature of the fingers support (200) increases and the moisture inside the rubber gloves is removed. And, at the same time, the bacteria including colon bacilli are eradicated or their multiplication is prevented by heating the inside of the rubber gloves.

[51] According to the invention, as there are projections (213) on the external side of the fingers support (200), the internal side (50) of the rubber gloves does not cling to the external side of the fingers support (200 ), as seen in FIG. 3, and through the air route between them, the evaporated moisture can be exhausted easily.

[52] Additionally, the air flow through a plurality of penetration holes (214) formed in the above fingers support (200) facilitates heat transmission from the heating board or thermal conduction board (310), which helps drying the inside of the rubber gloves more effectively.

[53] While being dried, the rubber gloves keeps the original shape by the fingers support (200). According, transformation or shrinkage by drying is prevented.

Claims

[1] An apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves, comprising: a body having a power switch(l 1) and a waterspout(30) whose bottom is depressed on the top; a fingers support(200) supporting rubber gloves with the fingers part(211) and the wrist part(212) to be inserted to the rubber gloves, which is connected to the top of the above-described waterspout(30); and a drying and sterilizing unit(20) having a heating means(300) inside the above-described fingers support(200).

[2] The apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves of claim 1, wherein the heating means includes the heating board(320) which generates heat by the applied current; and the thermal conduction board(310) shaped according to the above fingers support(200) and conducting the generated heat to the above heating means (300).

[3] The apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves of claim 1, wherein the heating means includes the heating board shaped according to the fingers support(200) and generating heat by the applied current.

[4] The apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves of claim 2 or 3, wherein the external side of the fingers support (200) has a plurality of projections (213).

[5] The apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves of claim 4, wherein the fingers support (200) has a plurality of penetration holes (214) for air circulation between the inside and the outside.

[6] The apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves of claim 2 or 3, wherein the fingers support(200) is composed of the front part(210) and the rear part(220), which are symmetrical, and a space is made inside by putting together the front part(210) and the rear part(220).

[7] The apparatus for drying and sterilizing rubber gloves of claim 2 or 3, wherein the drying and sterilizing unit(20) is connected to the top of the said waterspout(30) by the connecting rod(40) in the shape of a corrugated tube.