Portable And Collapsible Clothes Drier Receptacle

Abstract

A portable and collapsible clothes drier receptacle mounted on a foldable frame and adapted for attachment to a heater-blower unit.

Description

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

The advantages of having a small inexpensive drier receptacle assembly adapted to cooperate with the heater-blower unit of a conventional portable hair drier are immediately apparent. When traveling, the problem of clothes drying particularly in wet weather or on short stopovers is quite annoying. With this in mind, this drier receptacle assembly has been developed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of this invention to provide a drier receptacle assembly adapted to cooperate with the heater-blower unit of a conventional hair dryer.

It is another object of this invention to provide a drier receptacle assembly which is collapsible into a very small compact unit for easy portability.

It is yet another object of this invention to provide a drier receptacle assembly made of inexpensive yet sturdy materials to afford the desired results without undue cost.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a portable and collapsible clothes drier receptacle assembly adapted to be operatively connected to a heater-blower unit, said drier receptacle assembly comprising a flexible rectangularly shaped closed receptacle having a top, bottom, end and sidewalls, an access flap portion formed in the receptacle top, means for fastening the free edges of the flap portion to said top, said receptacle being provided with a plurality of exhaust openings, reinforcing and supporting seams affixed to and transversely of the upper inner portion of each end wall, flexible lines connected to and extending between said reinforcing and supporting means, air distributing means positioned in the receptacle, air intake means connected to the air distributing means and extending through a portion of the receptacle to provide an outside connection to which a heater-blower unit may be attached to furnish hot dry air to the air distributing means and means for supporting the receptacle in erected operative position.

Other objects and advantages will become more apparent when considered in conjunction with the following detailed description and drawing, showing by way of example several embodiments of this invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of this invention in assembled position ready for use;

FIG. 2 is a partial view in perspective illustrating an alternative manifold arrangement, and

FIG. 3 is a partial view in perspective showing yet another alternative manifold arrangement.

As illustrated in FIG. 1 of the drawings, the portable drier unit 10 comprises a foldable frame assembly 12 including a pair of U-shaped supports 14 and 16, said U-shaped supports having parallel legs 18 and 20 and 22 and 24 respectively. Parallel legs 18 and 20 are connected by a horizontal member 26 while legs 22 and 24 are bridged by horizontal member 28. The U-shpaed supports 14 and 16 are crossed intermediate their leg lengths and pivotally connected at their point of intersection by means of pivot pin 30. The free ends of the legs 18, 20, 22 and 24 mount swivel caster 32 to provide easy mobility of the unit. A folding locking bracket 34 is provided between legs 18 and 22 to maintain the frame assembly in erected position.

The folding frame assembly 12 supports a collapsible clothes drier receptacle 40 which is generally rectangular in shape having a bottom 42, top 44, end walls 46 and 48 and sidewalls 50 and 52. Plastic material is quite advantageously used for the receptacle, particularly the types which are readily heat sealable. The top 44 is provided with a flap portion 54 whose three sides are secured to the top by means of a zipper 56. The flap portion 54 is provided with a plurality of exhaust apertures 58 for the exiting of the moisture laden air from within the receptacle.

A reinforcing and support bar 60 is positioned within the receptacle 40 and secured to the upper inner face of each of the end walls 46 and 48. These bars 60 act as the support for lines 62 which serve as clothes lines for the receptacle. Both upper transverse edges of the receptacle have a mounting flap 64 secured thereto. The free end of the flap 64 is passed over the respective horizontal members 26 and 28 of the U-shaped supports and secured to adjacent bar 60 by means of fasteners 66.

The receptacle bottom 42 has a manifold 70 positioned on its inner face generally throughout the length of the bottom. This manifold 70 is semicircular in cross section and has a plurality of holes 72 through which hot air is introduced into the receptacle. The end of the manifold 70 contiguous to end wall 48 is closed while the other end is open and connected to intake plate 74 secured to end wall 46. A nipple 76 extends from the plate 74 on the outside of the wall 46 and receives a flexible conduit 78 which in turn is connected to heater-blower unit 80.

It is believed that the operation and use of the unit is reasonably apparent in view of the foregoing description. Even so, a brief description follows. With the portable drier unit 10 in erected position, as illustrated in FIG. 1, the zipper 56 is operated to free flap portion 54 whereupon the items to be dried are hung on lines 62 provided for this purpose. After the receptacle is filled, the zipper is again pulled to close the top 44. Next, the heater-blower unit 80 is started and hot dry air is forced through conduit 78 into manifold 70 and out through holes 72. The moisture laden air is exhausted through apertures 58 in the flap portion 54. As soon as the items within the receptacle are dry, they may be removed.

It is contemplated that the manifold 70 of FIG. 1 may be modified, and in this connection, attention is directed to FIG. 2 wherein the drier receptacle 90 is provided with a flexible manifoldlike cover 92 extending over the entire bottom of the receptacle in spaced relation thereto to provide a hot air chamber 94. The cover 92 has a plurality of evenly spaced holes 96 over its entire surface for the discharge of hot dry air into the receptacle. The same type intake plate 98, as in FIG. 1, is used in this embodiment.

Yet another modification is shown in FIG. 3 wherein a different manifold arrangement is depicted. In this embodiment, the manifold comprises a flexible rectangularly shaped tube 100 secured around the upper inner portion of the drier receptacle 102. The exposed inner face of the tubular manifold 100 has a plurality of hot air feed holes 104 for directing the hot dry air into the upper portion of the drier receptacle. The usual conduit plate 106 is provided to feed the hot air from the heater-blower unit to the manifold 100. Obviously, the discharge openings in this embodiment would be located in the bottom of the drier receptacle.

In all of the constructions illustrated and described, use of a transparent heat sealable plastic for the drier receptacle is quite advantageous. The supporting frame assembly can be made of aluminum, stainless steel or even other materials depending mainly on cost factors. The heater-blower unit may be of the type usually associated with portable hair drier units although other types of heater-blower units could obviously be employed.

Many conventional additions could be made to the basic units as described above. For example, means can be provided to communicate with the entering hot air to introduce a scent into the drier receptacle. Further, an ultraviolet light could be positioned within the drier receptacle to deodorize and purify the air and items in the receptacle.

Claims

I claim:

1. A portable and collapsible clothes drier receptacle assembly adapted to be operatively connected to a heater-blower unit, said drier receptacle assembly comprising a flexible rectangularly shaped closed receptacle having a top, bottom, end and sidewalls, an access flap portion formed in the receptacle top, means for fastening the free edges of the flap portion to said top, said receptacle being provided with a plurality of exhaust openings, a reinforcing bar affixed to and transversely of the upper inner portion of each end wall, flexible lines connected to and extending between said bars, a mounting flap connected to and extending upwardly from the transverse upper outer edge of each end wall, a pair of U-shaped supporting members having crossed legs pivotally secured to each other, the closed ends of said U-shaped supporting members being connected to the mounting flaps to freely support the clothes drier completely from the outside, air distributing means positioned in the receptacle, and air intake means connected to the air distributing means and extending through a portion of the receptacle to provide an outside connection to which a heater-blower unit may be attached to furnish hot dry air to the air distributing means.

2. The invention as described in claim 1 and wherein the air distributing means in the receptacle comprises a longitudinally extending manifold tube of flexible material secured to the receptacle bottom, one end of the manifold tube is closed and the other end being connected to the air intake means, said manifold tube having a plurality of holes through which hot dry air is passed into the receptacle.

3. The invention as described in claim 1 and wherein the air distributing means in the receptacle comprises a flexible sheet extending completely over the bottom and in spaced relation thereto to form a manifold chamber, said manifold chamber being connected to the air intake means, the flexible sheet being provided with a plurality of holes for passing hot dry air into the receptacle.

4. The invention as described in claim 1 and wherein the air distributing means positioned in the receptacle comprises a tubular manifold extending around the inside of the receptacle, said manifold having a plurality of openings for directing the hot dry air into the receptacle, the tubular manifold being connected to the air intake means, and the exhaust openings in the receptacle being located remotely from the manifold.