Multi purpose vibrating foot stool

A cosmetic foot stool for grooming and massaging the feet comprises a foot support mounted to a base with the foot support being adjustable in height with respect to the base in order that the user may position the foot support in such a way that it is comfortable during use. The foot support defines a recess in an upper surface thereof for receiving a foot of the user. The recess has an inclined surface for receiving the sole of the foot. This inclined surface faces towards the user so that the foot is perpendicular to the line of vision of the user. The foot support is provided with a vibrating device which can be connected to a shoe into which the user can position his foot for receiving a massage. As the foot stool is used for grooming the feet and, for instance, for applying nail polish to the toes thereof, a blower is provided in the foot support with apertures being defined in the inclined surface thereof in such a way that air displaced by the blower flows through the apertures. A deflector is positioned on top of the inclined surface to redirect this air towards the recess and thus towards the user's toes. Circular recesses are defined in the foot support for receiving various items which are used during the grooming of the feet, such as nail polish bottles. An orientable lamp is provided on the foot support for the user's convenience.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
The present invention relates to foot stools and, more particularly, to a 
foot stool having foot grooming and massaging facilities. 
2. Description of the Prior Art 
Various foot stool constructions have been proposed over the years for 
varying the vertical position of the support surface. For example, U.S. 
Pat. No. 3,051,527 issued on Aug. 28, 1962 to McKenna discloses a foot 
stool having a vertical frame with a horizontal foot support slidable 
thereon which can be maintained in a selected vertical position by way of 
a downward tilt thereof which is induced by the foot support's own weight. 
The foot support is thus frictionally held in the adjusted position. 
Also, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,264,033 issued on Aug. 2, 1966 to Hansburg, there 
is disclosed a somewhat similar foot stool which has its horizontal 
support pivotally mounted to the frame and which can be vertically 
adjusted by way of telescopic legs. 
U.S. Pat. No. 3,163,468 issued on Dec. 29, 1964 to Koch discloses a foot 
stool having a horizontal support portion which is hinged to the frame and 
which can be frictionally adjusted at different angular positions by way 
of a substantially vertical rod which extends from a bottom of a free end 
thereof opposite its hinged end and which engages an opening defined in an 
elongated latch or clutch member which extends substantially horizontally 
inwards from a horizontal rod connecting a pair of consecutive vertical 
side members of the foot stool. The latch is pivotally mounted to the 
connecting rod whereby a gravity-induced deflection thereof clutches the 
vertical rod in its opening in a frictional engagement. 
All of the above foot stools offer a different mechanism to ensure the 
vertical adjustability of the foot supporting surface thereof. However, 
none of these foot stools are of a design dedicated to facilitate the 
grooming and massaging of the feet. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
It is therefore an aim of the present invention to provide a foot stool 
which is designed for the grooming and massaging of the feet. 
It is also an aim of the present invention to provide a foot stool which is 
designed to facilitate pedicures and to facilitate the application of nail 
polish to the feet and the drying thereof. 
Therefore, in accordance with the present invention, there is provided a 
foot stool which comprises a foot support means mounted to a base means 
with the support means being adjustable in height for the user's comfort. 
The support means defines a recess in an upper surface thereof for 
receiving a foot of the user. The recess has an inclined surface facing 
towards the user, wherein the foot overlying the inclined surface is 
substantially perpendicular to the line of vision of the user. Therefore, 
the user's foot can be positioned in the recess for being worked on. 
In a more specific construction in accordance with the present invention, 
the support means is provided with a blower means for drying substances 
applied to the foot. The lower means can be mounted in the support means 
with apertures being defined in the inclined surface and a deflector means 
being provided on the support means for deflecting the air displaced by 
the blower means through the apertures towards the foot. 
In a still more specific construction in accordance with the present 
invention, the deflector means is an elongated member of inverted "L" 
shaped cross-section and mounted to the inclined surface in order that the 
apertures are positioned between the elongated member and the foot. A 
series of circular recesses can be defined in the support means for 
receiving foot grooming items, such as nail polish bottles. 
In another specific construction in accordance with the present invention, 
a vibrating means is mounted to the support means for massaging the foot. 
In a more specific construction, the vibrating means is mounted in the 
support means and includes a coupling means. An opening is defined in the 
inclined surface opposite the coupling means. A shoe means is adapted to 
receive the foot and to be connected through the opening to the coupling 
means. Therefore, vibrations produced by the vibrating means are 
transmitted to the shoe and thus to the foot. 
In another specific construction in accordance with the present invention, 
an orientable lamp is mounted to the support means. 
In a further specific construction in accordance with the present 
invention, the base means comprises a pair of parallel "L" shaped members 
each having an horizontal section overlying the floor and a vertical 
section extending upwards therefrom. Horizontal cross members join 
respective upper and lower free ends of the pair of "L" shaped members. 
The vertical sections extend through vertical openings defined in the 
support means with the upper cross member being located above the support 
means. The support means project as a cantilever from the vertical 
sections, whereby gravity causes the support means to pivot downwards with 
respect to the vertical sections. The friction between the vertical 
sections and the openings maintain the support means secured to the base 
means at a selected height. 
In a still more specific construction in accordance with the present 
invention, sleeves are provided in the openings, whereby the vertical 
sections coact with the sleeves. The sleeves can be made of a high 
friction plastics material.

DESCRIPTION QF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
Referring to FIGS. 1 to 4, a foot stool S in accordance with the present 
invention and intended for cosmetic purposes comprises a foot support 10 
mounted at a distance from the floor to a base 12 made of tubular steel 
and having a pair of vertical elongated members 14 extending through a 
pair of elongated vertical openings defined at the rear of the foot 
support 10. The foot support 10 can be positioned all along the vertical 
members 14, as it will be explained in details hereinafter, whereby the 
foot stool S can be adjusted to ensure that the user is comfortable. 
An upper inclined surface 18 of the foot support 10 defines a foot 
receiving recess 20 having the general outline of a "V", the apex of which 
is rounded. The recess 20 has an inclined bottom surface 22 and sidewalls 
24 extending at right angles therefrom, with the side walls 24 tapering in 
height from the rounded apex towards the upper ends of the "V". The 
portion of the sidewalls 24 located at the rounded apex of the recess 20 
provides a support for the back of the foot of the user when positioned in 
the recess 20. An opening 26 which is defined in the bottom wall 22 of the 
recess 20 is aligned with a coupling 28 of a vibrating device 30 mounted 
within the foot support 10 below the upper inclined surface 18 thereof. 
The vibrating device 30 is connected to one of a series of switches 32 by 
way of an electric cord 34. Now referring only to FIG. 2, a shoe 36 which 
can be fitted around a foot F of the user includes a connecting pin 38 at 
its bottom which, when inserted and coupled to the coupling 28, will 
transmit the vibrations produced by the vibrating device 30 to the shoe 36 
and thus to the foot F for massaging the same. 
Now referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, a series of apertures 40 are defined in the 
upper inclined surface 18, just above the recess 20. Within the foot 
support 10, there is provided a blower 42 which is positioned in order 
that air displaced thereby flows upwards through the apertures 40. A 
deflector 44 which has an inverted "L" shape is mounted on the upper 
inclined surface 18, above the apertures 40, for deflecting the air 
flowing through the apertures towards the toes of the user's foot F (see 
arrows 46) in order, for instance, to accelerate drying of nail polish 
applied thereto. The blower 42 is connected by an electric cord 47 to one 
of the switches 32. 
A horizontal upper surface 48 of the foot support 10 defines a series of 
aligned circular recesses 50 adapted to receive therein, for example, nail 
polish bottles 52, as seen in FIG. 3. As best seen in FIGS. 1 and 4, a 
removable cover 54 is positioned over the recesses 50 and thus over the 
bottles 52. 
A lamp 56 which can be conveniently oriented to the user's preference is 
mounted to the foot support 10. The lamp 56 is controlled by one of the 
switches 32. Electrical power is supplied to the foot stool S by a cord 58 
connected to the switches 32. 
As seen in FIG. 2, a battery pack 60 may be provided for operating the 
vibrating device 30, the blower 42 and the lamp 56 in locations where an 
electric wall outlet might not be readily available. 
Now referring to FIGS. 5 to 7, the foot support 10, as mentioned 
hereinabove, can be vertically adjusted along the elongated members 14 of 
the base 12. This is achieved with a pair of sleeves 62 mounted in the 
foot support 10 and coaxial with the openings 16 thereof, as best seen in 
FIGS. 6 and 7. The inside diameter of the sleeve 62 is slightly greater 
than the diameter of the openings 16, whereby the foot support 10, 
extending as a cantilever from the base 12, pivots slightly downwards at 
its front end, as indicated by arrow 64 in FIG. 7, and is held in position 
by the friction forces between the elongated members 14 and the sleeves 
62. For that purpose, the sleeves 62 may be made of a plastics or rubber 
material. To be able to vertically displace the foot support 10 with 
respect to the base 12, the front end of the foot support 12 is slightly 
raised in order that the vertical elongated members 14 of the base are 
coaxial with the axes of the sleeves 62, as seen in FIG. 6, whereby the 
sleeves 62 are slidable over the elongated members 14. In this position, 
the foot support can be thus selectively raised or lowered along arrows 66 
and 68 of FIGS. 5 and 6, respectively. 
The present invention thus offers a foot stool which assists the user in a 
series of functions, including manicuring, the application and drying of 
nail polish, and foot massaging. 
The present cosmetic grooming foot stool facilitates the access by the user 
to his or her feet. It is also very convenient to be able to elevate the 
stool to a height at which the user can work comfortably or at which the 
foot can be rested. In its collapsed position, that is when the foot 
support 10 overlies the horizontal tubular members of the base 12, the 
present foot stool can be stored easily. 
The present foot stool is thus designed for toe nails and foot grooming. 
The recesses 50 are provided for accommodating a variety of nail grooming 
commodities, i.e. nail fortifier, nail polish, nail polish top coat, nail 
file, nail clips, scissors, cotton wool balls and nail polish remover. The 
intent is to give the user the convenience of having these grooming 
accessories readily available while the foot is elevated and being worked 
on. 
The present foot stool also includes a blow drying feature which will 
decrease the nail polish drying process and save the user some valuable 
time. 
The lamp is also an added feature which will allow the user to clearly see 
what he is doing even in a dark enclosure, such as a camp site, and will 
assist those who need that extra light for seeing. 
The vibrating pad or device allows the user to undergo rotation massages on 
his or her feet in order, for instance, to remove tension. 
The present foot stool is also designed to be easy on the neck and 
shoulders and on the spinal column and to prevent dizziness. Indeed, the 
foot stool provides the user with the choice to elevate the foot support 
to a desired and comfortable height for grooming sessions. This prevents 
the user from engaging in excessive lowering of the upper torso of the 
body which in turn forces the slumbering of the neck and the upper 
shoulders and therefore overload these areas with stress and strain. The 
stool is designed to relieve these problems. Also, the stool with its 
adjustable height assists in positioning the user's spinal column in order 
that it is free of strain, whereby the user will also benefit from an 
elimination of stress in this area during grooming. 
The variable elevation feature of the present foot stool in addition to the 
parallelism of the foot with respect to a perpendicular line extending 
between the eyes of the user and the foot positioned in the recess of the 
foot stool will protect the user from developing the dizzy feeling 
associated with excessive lowering of the head for an extended period of 
time followed by the raising of the head to an upright position.