US2503174A - Bathroom mat - Google Patents

Description

April 4, 1950 I J. sALvADoRE 2,503,174

BATHROOM MAT Fiied oet. 2:5. 1948 [lll INVENTOR. Jose/ Sa/rdf/ore BY m z www Patented y Apr. 4, 1950 BaranooMMA'r Y Joseph salvadora, South' Barre, Mass; Appueatimoefdber 23, 1948,#seria1No'. 56,107`

The present invention relates f to" bathroomappliances'y and more particularly; to appliances ofythe character which are`-p1aced upon the bathroom oor for the purpose ofsupporting-afbatherandabsorbingthe moisture shed from the bather, as 'heur-ies himself upon-emerging from the bath;

It' isa primary object-of the present invention to-provide an appliance of the above 'describedv type which is highly water absorbent, and at thev same time, is'designed to'ret'ainallof its absorbed moisture, sofasv to prevent the bathroom floor: from" becoming damp'v and^consequently soiledr" A'iurther objectof thepresent'invention-*is to provide such an appliance which'maybe readily'` andy conveniently` emptied; of Vits accumulated moisture: y A still further object of the present'invention' is to provide an appliance/ofw the f abovede'scribed type whichis adapted to 'function notl only as' amoisture-absorbing de'vicefbutI also vas-'a highlyl efficient safetyv appliance which', whenproperly employed byk a batherywill Eprevent'him from"- slipping, while *dryinghimse'lff aterbathing.-

With "the above 'and :other objectsdn view,I asy will hereinafter appear, the invention-comprises the devices, combinations-,- and 'arrangements `of parts Ahereinafter set forth and illustrated' inr the accompanying drawings of a' preferred embodifment of the invention,r fromwhich-:th'e'several features-'of the-invention; and theV advantages attained thereby, `will`be.,readily understood by those skilled inthe art'.

In the accompanying drawings,

Fig. 1 represents a perspective viewof the present device.V

taaie, a substantially a't baiile member'IZ, the.'

peripheral portionof which is provided'withfa depending iiange I3:v From this, it willi-The readilyl understood that the baffleL member I 2y 'may be in-v' sertediwithin the receptacle, and that the ange f :I3 .will functionatospaceithe baiiie'slightly above* thezabase memberil, so astov form therebetweenf a vwafter-receiving chamber. The baffle member isprovidedY with a plurality off aperturesfIl-Irdfl which vYc:orxirriunicate directlyk with `the chamber formedbetween the baiile andVlk the receptacle base l It desired, thebafe member-maybej rigidly secured-,within the receptacle member,but 2 this is 'notfnecessarys i for thefpresent device y-will' function quite-properly;A even though-the baille"v *member is looselyinserted within the receptacle;

As may beparticularly observed in- Figs;v 2 "and-1 3, the 1upstandii1g-iiange -I I is' provided 'with' one -downwardly depending-flange I3 off'thebafe'" Fig. 2 issimilar to Fig. 1, with the exception that the former figure illustrates they devicewith its: uppermat.: portion removed."

Fig.: 3 Lrepresents, on an enlargedJscale, a. sectional' view taken substantially along the lline 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 represents, on an enlarged scale, a sectional view of a modified form of the present invention.

The present appliance is adapted to be used in the manner of a bath mat, in that itis designed to be placed upon a bathroom floor adjacent a tub or shower stall, so that thebather, upon emerging from his bath, may stand upon the device, thereby to prevent the bather from slipping and injuring himself upon the normally slippery bathroom oor. Also, as hereinabove indicated, the present appliance is adapted to'absorb all of the moisture which is normally shed from the v'membe'er may be'provi'clecl` with'one or 'more' water-egress apertures I6, I6 which are disposed l within-theange I3;-so as tobe aligned'withwthe receptacle aperturesfl I5, whenever the'baf member I' is properly positioned/within*the ref# y ceptacle-:h

Removably insertable within'theupper pore f tionofthefreceptacle is'a'mat "I'I whichfis fabri# 7 cated from a, sponge-like foraminous substance, such as, for example, sponge rubber. However, it will be readily appreciated that many other materials, other than sponge rubber, could be employed, for any material which is relatively pliable and porous could be employed with success, in the present appliance. It is to be particularly observed that the mat I 'I is supported upon the baffle member I2 so as to be spaced above the base I0 of the receptacle. Further-` more, in a preferred form of the present invention, the mat I1 is of a thickness sufficient to permit it to extend a substantial distance above the upper edge portion of the receptacle flange I I.

It may Ibe particularly noted in Fig. 3 that the bottom face of the base member I is provided with a plurality of nonskid feet I8, I3, and in one form of the present invention, each corner portion of the receptacle is provided with such a foot. These feet may be made of rubber, and secured to the base member by means of rivets I9. It is the purpose of these feet to prevent the device from skidding upon a smooth bathroom floor, as the bather steps from his bath and upon the device. Those skilled in the art will readily Xappreciate that rubber suction cups could be used i in place of the feet I8, or abrasive material could be applied over the entire base portion of the receptacle with equal success, so as to prevent the appliance from shifting relative to a iloor surface under the weight of a bather.

As hereinabove noted, the present unit may be positioned on a bathroom floor adjacent a tub or shower stall, so as to support a bather as he emerges from the bath. Thus, while the bather dries himself, the mat II, being of a porous nature, will function to absorb all of the moisture shed from the bather. While the bather dries himself, he will, of course, continually tramp upon the mat Il, with the result that the water absorbed in the mat will be repeatedly squeezed from the mat, so as to drip into the receptacle chamber through the apertures I4, I4 provided in the baffle plate I2. Thus, no matter how much water is shed from the bather, the mat I'I will never become saturated to a degree that it would, upon being squeezed, spill its contents over the side portion of the flange I I and on the bathroom floor. In other words, as soon as an appreciable amount of moisture is absorbed within the mat I1, the continual tramping of the vbather upon the mat will :function to transfer the mats moisture to the bottom portion of the receptacle. After the present appliance has been so employed, it may be readily relieved of its fluid contents, for the user may pour the liquid accumulated within the lower chamber, into a drain by way ofthe egress apertures I5 `and I6. In performing this' operation, the mat I'I may be left in place or, if desired, it may be removed, so that the last vestige of the mats moisture may be drained therefrom by a simple squeezing operation.

The above described receptacle and baille units may be fabricated from sheet metal, or any other appropriate material that is strong enough to withstand the weight of a bather. For example, either or both of the receptacle and baffle elements may be molded from a so-called synthetic plastic material, and such a unit can be produced in rather striking yand attractive colors. In the event that the baille element is to be molded from a plastic material, it would be best to provide the bottom portion thereof with a plurality of strengthening ribs. For example, Fig. 4 illustrates a sectional view through such a baille member which comprises a at perforated plate I2' having a flange I3 depending from the peripheral portion thereof. Within the confines of the flange I3 and depending from the bottom portion of the apertured plate I2 are provided a plurality of reinforcing ribs 2D, 20. These ribs 20, 20 should extend a suicient distance below the apertured lplate I2' so as to rest upon the base member I0 of the receptacle unit.

From the above, it should be appreciated that the present unit will not only function in a highly eicient manner as both a water-absorbing unit and a safety device, brut it is, at the same time, vdesigned so that it may be readily and inexpensively manufactured.

I claim:

1. A bathroomappliance of the character de- 4scribed comprising, a substantially at base member adapted to rest upon a floor surface, a flange extending upwardly from? and about the periphery of said base so as to form therewith a substantially watertight receptacle, a substantially flat foraminous baffle member disposed within said receptacle in spaced parallel relation with said base member and below the peripheral edge portion of said flange, and a mat of pliable sponge-like material disposed partially within the connes of said flange and against said baille member, said mat being of sufficient thickness to extend a substantial distance above the peripheral edge portion of said flange.

2. A bathroom appliance of the character der scribed comprising, a substantially fiat base member, nonskid foot elements disposed upon the bottom surface of said base, a flange extending upwardly from and about the periphery of said base so as to form therewith a substantially watertight receptacle, said ange being provided with .a water-egress aperture at a location removed from the receptacle base, a substantially flat foraminous baille member disposed within said receptacle in spaced parallel relation with said base member and at a location below the peripheral edge of said flange and above the level of said aperture, and a mat vof pliable sponge-like material disposed partially within the confines REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the iile of this-patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS l Date Number Name 491,851 Morton Feb. 14, 1893 f 510,869 Dellar Dec. 12, 1893 913,310

Schreiber Feb. 23, 1909

Images