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Male urinalMale urinal description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20090158511, Male urinal. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
The present invention relates generally to a urinal. More particularly, the present invention relates to an all-plastic, disposable, male urinal with enhanced reinforcing elements, an improved lid-attachment mechanism and automated method for attaching a lid to a urinal, and a leak-resistant lid and which is additionally configured for nesting to allow cost-effective storing, transporting, and/or shipping. One piece, all-plastic urinals in widespread use are generally manufactured using an extrusion blow-molding process where a molten tube of polymer is dropped between two halves of a mold. The polymer may include polyurethane, polypropylene, polyethylene, polyethylene, PET polyester, polyvinyl chloride, another type of thermoplastic polymer, or other suitable polymers. A thermoplastic polymer includes any polymer that may be melted, ground, and re-melted. The mold halves are closed onto the molten tube. Compressed air is then injected into the molten tube forcing the walls of the tube to expand into the mold, thereby taking the shape of the inside of the mold. The mold and molten plastic are cooled so that the plastic retains the permanent shape of the mold. When the mold halves are opened, the urinal is removed from the mold. The urinal generally includes a body having a front wall, a back wall, opposing side walls bridging the front and back walls, and a lower wall forming a bottom of the urinal. A unitary handle projects from the body, near an upper mouth, toward a lower portion of the front wall, whereby a gap is defined between the handle and an upper portion of the front wall. Often, the urinal is provided with a lid, which is adapted to be snap-fitted around a margin of the mouth and which is attached to the handle where the handle meets the body. The lid is attached to the handle via a strap that is unitary with the lid and that includes a loop through which the handle is placed. To be cost effective, the walls of existing urinals are blow-molded in a very thin manner, and the walls are relatively thin. Because the walls are thin, the urinals have a tendency to tip, deform, and/or collapse when gripped and/or handled, particularly when the urinal is full or nearly full. Therefore, it is often difficult for a user to hold, keep upright, carry, and/or empty the contents of existing urinals, which often causes spillage. Current thicker-walled urinals are less likely to collapse but are more difficult to dispose of and more costly to ship due to their greater weight compared to existing thin-walled disposable urinals. Furthermore, thicker-walled urinals are generally more costly to manufacture because they require more material. Lids of existing urinals also have considerable disadvantages. For example, existing urinals utilize lids that are attached to the urinals by placing the urinal handle through a hole in a lid strap attached to the lid. Because the process of attaching the lids to the handle requires maneuvering of the urinals, it must be done manually and is very difficult or cannot be automated. The lids of existing urinals also have a tendency to fall off during packing or shipping. Furthermore, because the movement of existing lids between an open and a closed position is unrestricted, existing lids may fall into the urine flow when the urinal is being emptied and become contaminated. When lids are installed over the mouths of existing urinals, the lids often do not seal properly around the mouths, thereby causing significant leakage of urine from the space between the lids and the mouths of the urinals. The lids of existing urinals are also prone to pop off altogether, thereby causing urine to spill out from the urinals. Another disadvantage of existing urinals is that they are often expensive and/or bulky to store, transport, and/or ship. Because of their often irregular shape, size, and/or dimensions, existing urinals require a substantial amount of space for storing, transporting, and/or shipping. Furthermore, existing urinals are not conducive to side-by-side packing of urinal pairs or to stacking urinals on top of one another. Consequently, existing urinals may be expensive for consumers, manufacturers, hospitals, healthcare facilities, or the like to store, transport, and/or ship. Therefore, there exists a need for a urinal having improved reinforcing elements, an improved lid-attachment mechanism and automated method for attaching a lid to a urinal, and a leak-resistant or leak-proof lid and which additionally is configured for nesting to allow cost-effective storing, transporting, and/or shipping. According to one embodiment of the present invention, a urinal assembly comprises a body comprising a bottom wall, a front wall, a back wall, first and second side walls bridging the front wall and the back wall, an open mouth positioned generally opposite the bottom wall, and an attachment feature positioned proximate to the open mouth. The attachment feature includes an outer edge, an inner edge, and an opening defined by the inner edge. The urinal assembly further comprises a lid including a lid portion and a strap having a fastener positioned at a distal end. The fastener includes a central portion positioned between first and second arms. Each of the first and second arms has a first end coupled to the central portion and a second free end positioned a distance away from the central portion. The first and second arms extend through the opening such that the first and second free ends of the arms abut the inner edge of the attachment feature. In another embodiment of the present invention, a generally circular lid comprises a generally flat disk portion. The lid further comprises a reinforced area positioned at or near the center of the disk portion. The lid further comprises a cylindrical area surrounding the disk portion. The cylindrical area includes an inner cylindrical surface extending from the disk portion. The inner cylindrical surface has a first circumferential detent. The cylindrical area further includes an upper cylindrical surface extending from the inner cylindrical surface. The upper cylindrical surface has a second circumferential detent. The cylindrical area further includes an outer cylindrical surface extending from the upper cylindrical surface and being generally parallel to the inner cylindrical surface. The outer cylindrical surface includes a third circumferential detent. The outer cylindrical surface is configured to be positioned around the outside of a mouth of a bottle. The inner cylindrical surface is configured to be positioned within the mouth of the bottle, and the upper cylindrical surface is configured to be positioned over a top of the mouth of the bottle. The first, second, and third circumferential detents are configured to form a seal with the mouth of the bottle. In yet another embodiment of the present invention, a plastic urinal comprises a body including a bottom wall, a front wall, a back wall, and first and second side walls bridging the front wall and the back wall. The front wall defines a first plane generally parallel to a second plane defined by the back wall. The urinal further comprises an open mouth comprising a generally circular portion. The open mouth is positioned generally opposite the bottom wall. The urinal further comprises a handle extending from the front wall. At least one of the front wall, back wall, side walls, and handle includes indentations or raised areas. The indentations or raised areas are configured to increase the strength of the urinal. In a further embodiment of the present invention, a package comprises a plurality of similar urinals. Each urinal has a bottom wall, a front wall, a back wall, a first side wall radially coupled to each of the front wall and the back wall, a second side wall positioned generally opposite the first side wall, the second side wall being radially coupled to each of the front wall and the back wall, an open mouth positioned generally opposite the bottom wall, and a handle extending from the front wall forming a gap positioned between the front wall and the handle. A first urinal is inverted in relation to a second urinal such that a handle of the first urinal fits into the gap defined between a handle of the second urinal and a front wall of the second urinal, a back wall of the first urinal is positioned adjacent to a back wall of a third urinal, a first sidewall of the first urinal is positioned adjacent to a first or second sidewall of a fourth urinal, and a second sidewall of the first urinal is positioned adjacent to a first or second sidewall of a fifth urinal. In a process of the present invention, a method of forming a urinal-lid assembly comprises the act of placing a molten tube of a polymer between two mold halves. The method further comprises the act of closing the mold halves onto the molten tube and the blow pin. The method further comprises the act of inserting a blow pin having a diameter similar to the diameter of a desired open mouth of a urinal. The method further comprises the act of injecting compressed air into the molten tube. The method further comprises the act of removing a resulting urinal from the mold. The urinal includes an attachment feature having an opening therethrough. The method further comprises the act of attaching a lid to the urinal by inserting a fastener coupled to the lid through the opening in the attachment feature. The method further comprises the act of snap-fitting the lid onto the mouth of the urinal. The above summary of the present invention is not intended to represent each embodiment or every aspect of the present invention. The detailed description and Figures will describe many of the embodiments and aspects of the present invention. The foregoing and other advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and upon reference to the drawings. Continue reading about Male urinal... Full patent description for Male urinal Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Male urinal patent application. ###  How KEYWORD MONITOR works... a FREE service from FreshPatents1. Sign up (takes 30 seconds). 2. Fill in the keywords to be monitored. 3. Each week you receive an email with patent applications related to your keywords. Start now! - Receive info on patent apps like Male urinal or other areas of interest. ### Previous Patent Application: Spear shield Next Patent Application: Urinal collecting pad for toilet or commode Industry Class: Material or article handling ### FreshPatents.com Support Thank you for viewing the Male urinal patent info. IP-related news and info Results in 2.28447 seconds Other interesting Feshpatents.com categories: Software: Finance , AI , Databases , Development , Document , Navigation , Error paws |
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