US 4,680,817 AGranted

Compact personal hygiene center

OwnerGeorge C. Sloan, David J. Laineinventors

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Abstract

A personal hygiene center comprises in combination a tub, hand-held shower head mounted on the tub and toilet. The tub has upright front and rear walls and opposing end walls. A ceiling interconnects the walls and is of a height to accommodate a normal person standing on a floor of the tub. The tub has a walk-in entrance opening in the front wall. The door closes off a lower portion of the front wall to contain water in the tub and leave open an upper portion of the front wall to permit access into the tub by an attendant. A bench-style seat is integral with a first of the end walls. A cavity is defined beneath the bench seat where the opening exposes a major portion of an edge of the bench-style seat adjacent the front wall. A second opening is provided in the front wall to permit sliding movement of the toilet into and out of the cavity. Track means mounts the toilet beneath the bench seat for such sliding movement into and out of storage position. The toilet, when in an extended use position outwardly of the front wall, provides a transfer point for a person moving from outside the tub through the opening onto the bench seat. The hand-held shower head is mounted on the second end wall and is connected by a length of flexible hose sufficient to extend the hand-held shower over to the toilet.

Claims12

Dependent claims

A personal hygiene centre comprising in combination a compact arrangement of a bathtub and a toilet, said bathtub comprising a tub having a door entrance through a front wall of said tub, a seat having a back rest extending across said tub and abutting said front wall, said door entrance comprising an opening in said front wall providing unimpeded access to within said tub and onto said seat, a cavity being defined beneath said seat, means for mounting said toilet for movement into and out of a storage position within said cavity, said toilet comprising a toilet bowl and a toilet seat, means for mounting said toilet seat for movement from a raised position to a lowered position on said toilet bowl, said cavity being defined behind said back rest in addition to being defined beneath said seat, said toilet bowl being connected to said mounting means for movement with said toilet seat in said raised position into and out of a storage position within said cavity beneath said seat and behind said back rest, said mounting means being a track system to which said toilet bowl is secured, said tub having a framework to which said track system is connected, said track system providing cantilever support for said toilet in said extended use position, said door opening defining a front wall edge portion which follows generally an outline of said tub seat and back rest, a door for closing said opening and means for sealingly engaging said door with said front wall when said tub is to contain bath water.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.