TOILET DEVICE

• US 20120272441A1
• Filed: 03/29/2012
• Published: 11/01/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oakstrong International Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Oakstrong International Ltd.
• Inventors: Lovatt, Christopher
• Granted Patent: US 8,640,274 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 4/237
• CPC Class Codes: A47K 11/06 Chamber-pots bed pans or other sanitary devices for bed-ridden persons A61G9/00; Throw-away urinals for non-bedridden persons; Chamber-pots for children, also with signalling means, e.g. with a music box, or the like
• CPC Class Codes: A47K 13/06 Auxiliary or portable seats for children

Abstract

A toilet device includes a seat (2) with a pair of side walls (14 & 16) pivotally connected thereto. The side walls are capable of three configurations with respect to the seat portion (2). In a first folded configuration they extend towards one another for compact storage of the device. In a second configuration they extend downwardly in right angles to the seat for use as a chamber pot when supplied with a suitable liner. In a third configuration the side walls extend outwardly away from one another so that the device can be placed on a conventional toilet seat and adapt that seat to the user of the device. Locking and locating means are provided for locking and/or locating the device in the three configurations.

Claims

1. A toilet device comprising a seat portion, a pair of side walls pivotally secured to opposite sides of the seat portion so that the side walls can be displaced from a first folded configuration in which they extend inwardly towards each other, through a second erect configuration in which they extend generally at right angles to the seat portion to a third toilet seat adapting configuration in which they extend generally away from one another, locking means for locking the side walls to the seat portion in the second configuration and stop means for preventing the side walls from pivoting beyond the third configuration, wherein said seat portion comprises an annular body having inner and outer downwardl depending skirts, wherein each said side wall is supported by a rod and includes for each side wall a pair of spaced support flanges extending between the inner and outer skirts and rotationally supporting a respective rod, wherein each support flange includes a profiled slot, extending substantially at right angles to the seat portion and having first and second spaced enlarged areas sized to accommodate the rod, the rod being displaceable from one enlarged area to the other through a gap normally narrower than the diameter of the rod by virtue of the resilience of the flange.

2. A device according to claim 1, including means for locking said side walls in said third configuration.

3. A device according to claim 1, including detent means for locating said side walls in each of said first and second configuration.

6. A device according to claim 1, including a plurality of locking flanges extending between the inner and outer skirts, each locking flange having a slot for receiving a portion of the side wall when the side wall is in the second configuration in response to displacement of the rod of the side wall from a first said enlarged area of the slot to a second said enlarged area thereby locking the side wall against rotation about the axis of the rod.

7. A device according to claim 6, wherein in moving a side wall from said first to said second configuration said locking flanges define an interference fit with the side wall and so cause the support flange to resile, the locking flanges being free of such an interference fit at the first and second location to thus define detent locations for said first and second configurations.

8. A device according to claim 1 wherein each said side wall has an outer surface which abuts the outer face of the outer skirt when in the third configuration whereby to resist displacement of said side wall beyond the third configuration.

10. A device according to claim 1 wherein the toilet seat engaging faces of the side walls are lined with a non-slip material.

11. A device according to claim 1 wherein the ground engaging surfaces of the side walls are lined with non-slip material.

12. A device according to claim 10 wherein said non-slip material is silicon rubber or rubber.

4. (canceled)

5. (canceled)

9. A toilet device comprising a seat portion, a pair of side walls pivotally secured to opposite sides of the seat portion so that the side walls can be displaced from a first folded configuration in which they extend inwardly towards each other, through a second erect configuration in which they extend generally at right angles to the seat portion to a third toilet seat adapting configuration in which they extend generally away from one another, locking means for locking the side walls to the seat portion in the second configuration and stop means for preventing the side walls from pivoting beyond the third configuration, wherein said seat portion comprises an annular body having inner and outer downwardly depending skirts, wherein each said side wall is supported by a rod and includes for each side wall a pair of spaced support flanges extending between the inner and outer skirts and rotationally supporting a respective rod, wherein each said side wall has an outer surface which abuts the outer face of the outer skirt when in the third configuration whereby to resist displacement of said side wall beyond the third configuration, wherein said outer surface of each side wall carries a plurality of spaced ribs which engage an outwardly projecting rim from said skirt as the side wall approaches the third configuration against the resistance of the supporting flanges, whereby when the ribs clear the rim the resilience of the supporting flanges locks the rim in the gap between the said outer face and said ribs.

13. (canceled)