Ribbed towel with handles

• US 6,849,055 B1
• Filed: 09/19/2003
• Issued: 02/01/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/19/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Alex Williams
• Original Assignee: Alex Williams
• Inventors: Williams, Alex
• Primary Examiner(s): Brown, Michael A.
• Application Number:
  US10/665,538
• Time in Patent Office: 501 Days
• Field of Search: 601/137, 601/138, 428/72, 428/76, 152/08, 152/22, 401/6, 401/8, 401/201
• US Class Current: 601/137
• CPC Class Codes: A47K 7/022 for washing the back, e.g. bath straps A47K7/028 and A47K7/04 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61H 11/00 Belts, strips or combs for massage purposes
• CPC Class Codes: A61H 7/003 Hand-held or hand-driven devices

Abstract

A ribbed towel device for massaging and/or drying hard-to-reach areas of the body during or after bathing includes:

• • (a) an elongate body of an absorbent material, the elongate body having opposite lateral ends;
  • (b) a handle at each opposite lateral end of the elongate body;
  • (c) a plurality of spaced-apart, rod-shaped pockets in the elongate body;
  • (d) a plurality of massage bars, each one being inserted in one of the pockets; and preferably
  • (e) end seams extending transversely across opposite ends of the elongate body; and
  • (f) a channel at each of the opposite ends of the elongate body, each channel being formed by the end seams; wherein each handle extends through one of the channels.

Claims

1. A ribbed towel device for massaging or drying hard-to-reach areas of the body during or after bathing, the towel device comprising:

(a) an elongate body of an absorbent material, the elongate body having opposite lateral ends;

(b) a handle at each opposite lateral end of the elongate body;

(c) a plurality of spaced-apart, rod-shaped pockets in the elongate body; and

(d) a plurality of massage bars, each of the plurality of massage bars being inserted in one of the plurality of pockets.

2. The towel device according to claim 1, wherein the massage bars are removable.

3. The towel device according to claim 1, wherein each of the pockets is formed by a spaced-apart pair of substantially parallel seams extending across the elongate body.

4. The towel device according to claim 3, further comprising:

(e) end seams extending transversely across opposite ends of the elongate body; and

(f) a channel at each of the opposite ends of the elongate body, each channel being formed by the end seams;

wherein each handle extends through one of the channels.

5. The towel device according to claim 4, wherein the elongate body is made of a single piece of material folded in two along a longitudinal axis of the single piece, and at least one longitudinal edge of the elongate body is seamed.

6. The towel device according to claim 5, wherein the pockets are not openable, and the bars are not removable.

7. The towel device according to claim 5, wherein the handles are ring-shaped and flexible.

8. The towel device according to claim 4, wherein the absorbent material is terry cloth, and the handles are made of rope.

9. The towel device according to claim 1, wherein the handles are removable.

10. The towel device according to claim 2, wherein the elongate body is comprised of two (2) superimposed matching pieces.

11. The towel device according to claim 1, wherein each of the massage bars is generally cylindrical in shape, and extends substantially the width of the towel device.

12. The towel device according to claim 11, wherein the massage bars are flexible, rigid, or a combination thereof.

13. The towel device according to claim 4, wherein each handle comprises a first component and a second component, an end of the first component being attached to an end of the channel, and an end of the second component being attached to another end of the channel.

14. The towel device according to claim 13, wherein the handles are made of cotton rope.

15. The towel device according to claim 1, wherein each one of the substantially parallel seams is linear.

16. The towel device according to claim 15, wherein the massage bars are made of plastic.

17. The towel device according to claim 4, wherein each one of the substantially parallel seams and each one of the massage bars within the pockets formed by the seams, is irregular in shape.

18. The towel device according to claim 1, wherein the handles are two of the plurality of massage bars in the two end channels, one of the massage bars extending through each of the end channels, opposite ends of the end channels comprising corresponding lock and loop patches for closing the ends of each channel after insertion of the massage bar.

19. The towel device according to claim 1, wherein the massage bars are made of a heatable, microwavable material.

20. The towel device according to claim 19, wherein each of the handles is comprised of a removable end bar with bulbous opposite ends, each of the end bars being substantially enclosed in one of the end channels.