U.S. patent application number 11/036551 was filed with the patent office on 2006-07-20 for clothes hamper assembly.
Invention is credited to Lena L. Heidel.
Application Number | 20060157358 11/036551 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 36682749 |
Filed Date | 2006-07-20 |
United States Patent
Application |
20060157358 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Heidel; Lena L. |
July 20, 2006 |
Clothes hamper assembly
Abstract
A clothes hamper assembly having a frame and a plurality of bags
removably mounted to the frame. Each bag has an open top, and a lid
selectively covers and uncovers the open tops of the bags. At least
a portion of the lid is constructed of a mesh material and forms a
drying surface for small articles of clothing.
Inventors: |
Heidel; Lena L.; (Dunwoody,
GA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
GIFFORD, KRASS, GROH, SPRINKLE & CITKOWSKI, P.C
PO BOX 7021
TROY
MI
48007-7021
US
|
Family ID: |
36682749 |
Appl. No.: |
11/036551 |
Filed: |
January 14, 2005 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
206/278 |
Current CPC
Class: |
D06F 95/002
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
206/278 |
International
Class: |
B65D 85/18 20060101
B65D085/18 |
Claims
1. A clothes hamper assembly comprising: a frame, a plurality of
bags removably mounted to said frame, each bag having an open top,
and a lid which selectively covers and uncovers said open tops of
said bags.
2. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein each bag is made of
a flexible material.
3. The invention as defined in claim 2 and comprising a handle
secured to the top of each bag, said handles being supported by
said frame.
4. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein said lid includes a
portion constructed of a mesh material.
5. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein said lid comprises a
pair of spaced apart side supports, at least one rigid cross member
extending between and attached to said side supports, and a mesh
material disposed between said side supports.
6. The invention as defined in claim 1 and comprising a plurality
of wheels mounted to a lower portion of said frame.
7. The invention as defined in claim 1 and comprising a pocket
attached to said frame.
8. The invention as defined in claim 1 and comprising a wash bag
and a clip, said clip selectively attaching said wash bag to said
frame.
9. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein said frame comprises
a pair of spaced apart and parallel Z-shaped side supports, at
least one cross support extending between and attached to said
Z-shaped side supports, and wherein said lid is pivotally mounted
to said at least one cross support.
10. The invention as defined in claim 9 wherein said Z-shaped side
supports are tubular.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] I. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates generally to clothes hamper
assemblies.
[0003] II. Description of the Prior Art
[0004] Clothes hampers have long been used in laundry facilities of
the type used in homes. The previously known clothes hampers are
relatively rudimentary in construction and generally comprise a
basket or a bag having an open top. Dirty clothing is placed within
the open top of the clothes hamper and oftentimes a lid is used to
close the top of the hamper.
[0005] When it is time to wash the articles contained within the
clothes hamper, the clothes hamper is simply emptied, the articles
separated, and the desired articles to be washed placed within the
washing machine.
[0006] These previously known clothes hampers, however, all suffer
from a number of common disadvantages. One disadvantage of the
previously known clothes hampers is that the various different
articles of clothing are intermixed with each other. For example,
colored articles are intermixed with the white articles and must be
separated prior to the wash so that only white articles are placed
together within the washing machine and, likewise, only colored
articles are placed together within the washing machine.
[0007] A still further disadvantage of these previously known
clothes hampers is that such clothes hampers typically have a flat
bottom which simply rests upon a floor surface. As the volume of
clothes accumulates within the clothes hamper, the entire clothes
hamper becomes heavy. This, in turn, makes it more difficult to
move the clothes hamper to a different location, for example to
separate the white clothing articles from the colored clothing
articles.
[0008] A still further disadvantage of these previously known
clothes hampers is that such clothes hampers did not contain any
means or mechanism for drying small articles of clothing. Instead,
it was necessary to erect separate drying racks within the laundry
facility in order to dry such small articles.
SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
[0009] The present invention provides a clothes hamper assembly
which overcomes all of the above-mentioned disadvantages of the
previously known clothes hampers.
[0010] In brief, the clothes hamper assembly of the present
invention comprises a frame constructed of a rigid material, such
as metal tubing. A plurality of bags are removably mounted to the
frame so that the bags are positioned side by side to each other
and so that each bag has an open top. The provision of multiple
laundry bags which are insertable into and removable from the frame
enables the articles of clothing to be separated automatically by
simply placing the different types of articles in the different
laundry bags.
[0011] A lid is pivotally mounted to the frame and movable between
an open and a closed position. In its open position, the lid
provides access to the open tops of the laundry bag to enable
articles to be placed into the appropriate laundry bags or, if
desired, removed from the appropriate laundry bags. Conversely, in
its closed position, the lid overlies and covers the open tops of
the laundry bags.
[0012] Unlike the lids of the previously known hampers, the lid of
the present invention includes at least a portion constructed of a
mesh material. This mesh material thus forms a drying surface for
small articles of clothing which can be placed on top of the lid.
Due to the mesh construction of the lid, the mesh material allows
airflow not only over the top of the articles, but also through the
mesh and across the bottom of the articles to be dried. This in
turn facilitates rapid and even drying of the articles.
[0013] A plurality of wheels are also mounted to the bottom of the
frame to facilitate moving the entire clothes hamper assembly from
one location and to another. Additionally, a clothes laundry bag
for washing delicate articles, such as bras and panties, is
selectively connected to the frame to facilitate not only
separation of those articles prior to washing, but also drying of
those articles after washing.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
[0014] A better understanding of the present invention will be had
upon reference to the following detailed description, when read in
conjunction with the accompanying drawing, wherein like reference
characters refer to like parts throughout the several views, and in
which:
[0015] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a preferred
embodiment of the present invention;
[0016] FIG. 2 is an exploded view illustrating the preferred
embodiment of the present invention; and
[0017] FIG. 3 is a fragmentary partial exploded perspective view
illustrating an aspect of the preferred embodiment of the present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE PRESENT
INVENTION
[0018] With reference now to FIGS. 1 and 2, a preferred embodiment
of the clothes hamper assembly 10 of the present invention is shown
and includes a frame 12 having a pair of spaced-apart and generally
parallel Z-shaped side supports 14. A pair of lower cross supports
16 extend between and are secured to the Z-shaped side supports 14.
Similarly, a pair of upper cross supports 18 extend between and are
secured to the upper end of the Z-shaped side supports 14. The side
supports 14 as well as the cross supports 18 and 16 are all
constructed of a rigid material, such as metal tubing. Any
conventional fastener may also be used to secured the cross
supports 16 and 18 to the side supports 14.
[0019] At least two and preferably three or more laundry bags 20
are positioned within and supported by the frame 12. Each laundry
bag 20 is constructed of a flexible material, such as canvas, and
includes an open top 22. In addition, the open tops 22 of the bags
20 are preferably rectangular in shape so that the bags 20, when
positioned adjacent each other, extend between the side supports
14.
[0020] Any conventional means may be used to removably attach the
bags 20 to the frame 12. However, in the preferred embodiment of
the invention, a pair of wire hangers 24 are attached to each bag
20 such that one wire hanger 24 is attached along two opposing
sides of each bag 20. Consequently, as best shown in FIG. 3, the
handles 24 may be used to selectively and individually remove the
bags 20 from the frame 12.
[0021] Although any conventional means may be used to secure the
handles 24 to their respective bag 20, in the preferred embodiment
each bag 20 includes a cloth loop 26 at each of its four corners so
that two loops 26 along one side of each bag 20 register with each
other while, similarly, the other two loops on the opposite side of
each bag 20 also register with each other. The handles 24 are then
attached to the bag 20 by inserting the hanger ends 28 through the
cloth loops 26.
[0022] Referring particularly to FIGS. 2 and 3, each handle 28
includes a hook 30 at each end. These hooks 30 are dimensioned so
that, with the bag 20 positioned within the frame 12, the hooks 30
of each bag 20 rest upon and are supported by the upper frame cross
members 18.
[0023] With reference still to FIGS. 2 and 3, a plurality of wheels
32 are secured to the bottom 34 of each Z-shaped side support 14.
These wheels 32 enable the entire clothes hamper assembly 10 to be
easily moved from one location to another by rolling the hamper
assembly 10 on a floor support surface.
[0024] In addition, a pocket 36 is preferably mounted to the front
of the frame near its bottom. This pocket 36 may be used to store
cleaning supplies, soaps and the like.
[0025] With reference now to FIGS. 1 and 2, a lid 40 is pivotally
mounted to the frame 14 and movable between a closed position in
which the lid 40 overlies and covers the open tops 22 of the bags
20 and an open position, illustrated in FIG. 1. In its open
position, the lid 40 enables access to the clothes contained in the
bags 20 through their open tops 22.
[0026] With reference now particularly to FIG. 2, the lid 40
includes a pair of spaced-apart and generally parallel elongated
side supports 42 having a mesh fabric 44 disposed between the side
supports 42. The side supports 42 are each slidably positioned
within a lid side support frame 46.
[0027] A pair of lid cross supports 48 extend between and are
secured to both the front and back of the side frames 46. The lid
cross supports 48 as well as the lid side frames 46 are each
constructed of a rigid material and are dimensioned so that, when
the cross supports 48 are secured to the lid side frame members 46
and the lid supports 42 are slidably positioned within their frames
46, the mesh 44 is tautly secured between the lid side frames
46.
[0028] In order to pivotally mount the lid 40 between its open and
its closed position, each lid side frame 46 includes a U-shaped
portion 50 at one end. These U-shaped portions are dimensioned to
fit over the rear upper cross support 18 of the frame 12 and thus
support the lid 40 to the frame 12.
[0029] With reference to FIG. 1, an alternative design for the lid
40' is shown in which the lid 40' has a generally rectangular frame
60 with a mesh material 62 extending between and supported by the
frame 60. The lid frame 60 is pivotally mounted to the frame
12.
[0030] With reference now to FIGS. 1 and 2, a resilient clip 60 is
optionally used to removably attach a laundry wash bag 62 to the
front upper frame cross support 18. The wash bag 62 is used to wash
delicate clothing articles, such as panties, bras and the like.
[0031] The hamper assembly of the present invention achieves many
advantages over the previously known hamper assemblies. A primary
advantage of the present invention is that the mesh portion 44 of
the lid 40 may be used as a drying surface for small clothing
articles. The mesh material 44 allows airflow not only across the
top of the wet or damp article, but also underneath it to
facilitate not only even but also rapid drying of the clothing
article.
[0032] A further advantage of the present invention is that, since
two or more laundry bags 20 are supported within the frame 12,
different types of clothing articles may be automatically separated
from each other by merely placing the different articles in the
different laundry bags 20. Furthermore, when it is desired to wash
one type of clothing article, the entire bag containing that type
of clothing article may be easily and simply removed from the frame
12 by using the handles 24 to remove the individual laundry bag
from the frame 12.
[0033] A still further advantage of the present invention is that
the wheels 32 on the frame facilitate moving the frame from one
location to another by simply rolling the entire hamper assembly
along a floor surface.
[0034] Having described my invention, many modifications thereto
will become apparent to those skilled in the art to which it
pertains without deviation from the spirit of the invention as
defined by the scope of the appended claims.
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