Walk in bath

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2018192829-A1
Application number	US-201715404534-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jan 12, 2017
Priority date	Jan 12, 2017
Publication date	Jul 12, 2018
Grant date	—

Abstract

A walk in bath includes a shell, a door, and a seal member. The shell defines a bathing area and includes a wall with an opening therein. The door is moveable relative to the wall between a closed position, in which the door engages the opening, and an open position allowing ingress into and egress from the bathing area through the opening. The seal member is located between the wall and the door in the closed position to seal a gap therebetween to prohibit water from leaking from the bathing area through the gap. The seal member includes a first end, a second end, and an intermediate hollow section extending between the first and second ends. Each of the first and second ends is closed to prevent water from entering into the seal member.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A walk in bath comprising:
a shell defining a bathing area, the shell comprising a wall with an opening therein; a door that is moveable relative to the wall between a closed position, in which the door engages the opening, and an open position allowing ingress into and egress from the bathing area through the opening; and a seal member located between the wall and the door in the closed position to seal a gap therebetween to prohibit water from leaking from the bathing area through the gap, wherein the seal member comprises a first end, a second end, and an intermediate hollow section extending between the first and second ends; and wherein each of the first and second ends is closed to prevent water from entering into the seal member.

2 . The walk in bath of claim 1 , wherein the seal member extends in a non-interrupted manner along an underside, a hinge side, and a handle side of the door.

3 . The walk in bath of claim 2 , wherein the seal member is coupled directly to the door and generally has a U-shape.

4 . The walk in bath of claim 3 , wherein each of the first and second ends of the seal member includes a finger that engages an opening in the door to couple the associated end of the seal member directly to the door, and wherein the door is hollow and includes a weep hole in the door.

5 . The walk in bath of claim 1 , further comprising a handle coupled to the wall and rotatable relative to the shell and the door between a non-locking position, in which the door is free to move relative to the shell and the handle between the open and closed positions, and a locking position, in which a portion of the handle engages a portion of the door to retain the door in the closed position.

6 . The walk in bath of claim 5 , wherein the handle comprises:
a pivot member defining an axis about which the handle rotates; and a projection that is offset from the pivot member and extends away from a base surface, which is adjacent to the wall and the door; wherein the projection is the portion of the handle that engages the portion of the door.

7 . The walk in bath of claim 6 , further comprising a wave washer located between the handle and the shell, wherein the wave washer surrounds the pivot member and biases the handle away from the shell.

8 . The walk in bath of claim 6 , wherein the portion of the projection that contacts the portion of the door in the locking position is shaped to remove clearance between the handle and the door in moving the handle from the non-locking position toward the locking position.

9 . The walk in bath of claim 8 , wherein shape of the portion of the projection is one of a ramped shape, a semi-spherical shape, and a cam shape; and wherein the projection comprises a compliant material.

10 . The walk in bath of claim 6 , wherein the handle comprises a composite material that includes an external aesthetic material over an inner structural material.

11 . A walk in bath comprising:
a shell defining a bathing area, the shell comprising a floor, a front side wall having an opening therein, a rear side wall, a left side wall, a right side wall, a seat, and a deck at the top of each side wall; wherein the seat is below the deck and above the floor and the seat extends from one of the left side or right side walls, wherein the seat comprises:
a seating surface that supports a user and slopes downwardly moving from a front of the seat toward a rear of the seat proximate the associated left side/right side wall; and
a drainage channel having a side portion extending between the seating surface and the associated left side wall or right side wall, a front portion extending between the front side wall and the seating surface, and a rear portion extending between the rear side wall and the seating surface, wherein the drainage channel is lower than the seating surface to channel water; and
a door that is moveable relative to the shell between a closed position, in which the door engages the opening in the front side wall, and an open position allowing ingress into and egress from the bathing area through the opening.

12 . The walk in bath of claim 11 , wherein each of the front and rear portions of the drainage channel slope downwardly moving away from the side portion of the drainage channel.

13 . The walk in bath of claim 11 , further comprising a heating element that selectively heats the left side wall or right side wall that is associated with the seat independently of water in the bath.

14 . The walk in bath of claim 13 , wherein the heating element also heats a head and neck portion of the deck that is adjacent to the left side wall or right side wall that is associated with the seat.

15 . The walk in bath of claim 13 , further comprising:
a frame supporting the shell, the frame comprising a seat supporting member that supports an underside of the seat; a plurality of water jets positioned in the left side wall or right side wall that is associated with the seat, so that the plurality of water jets are above the seat and below the deck; and a controller located proximate at least one of the deck or the rear side wall for controlling operation of the plurality of water jets and at least one of a temperature or a location of the heating element.

16 . A walk in bath comprising:
a shell defining a bathing area, the shell comprising a floor, a front side wall having an opening therein, a rear side wall, a left side wall, and a right side wall; a door that is moveable relative to the shell between a closed position, in which the door engages the opening in the front side wall, and an open position allowing ingress into and egress from the bathing area through the opening; a hand bar extending into the bathing area from the rear side wall of the shell opposite the door; and a hand rail integrated into a front facing side of the front side wall, the hand rail comprising a lip and a channel located beneath the lip; wherein the hand bar and the hand rail are spaced apart by a user distance.

17 . The walk in bath of claim 16 , wherein the shell comprises a deck located above and coupled to each side wall, the deck and an upper portion of the front side wall define the lip, and the channel extends into the front side wall from the front facing surface toward a rear facing surface.

18 . The walk in bath of claim 16 , wherein the hand bar is adjacent to a handle side of the door in the open position, a portion of the channel of the hand rail is located adjacent to the door in the closed position, and the user distance is no more than four feet.

19 . The walk in bath of claim 16 , wherein the floor includes a drain for draining water from the bathing area, and wherein a height of a step of the front side wall, which is located below the door in the closed position, is no more than 3 inches.

20 . The walk in bath of claim 16 , wherein the front side wall includes one or more access panels that are selectively removable from a base panel to provide access to one or more spaces housing components.

Assignees

• Kohler Co

Inventors

• Manchiraju Ravikanth

Classifications

• A61H33/0087

  Therapeutic baths with agitated or circulated water · CPC title

• A61H33/6005

  Special constructive structural details of the bathtub, e.g. of the walls or supporting structure · CPC title

• A47K3/003

  Grips for baths · CPC title

• A61H2201/0207

  heated · CPC title

• A47K3/006 Primary

  Doors to get in and out of baths more easily · CPC title