Abstract:
A combined toilet and waste holding tank is provided for mounting within a portable toilet cabana having side walls, a rear wall, and a front wall with a door and a floor. The tank extends along the rear wall and between the side walls and occupies roughly the rear half of the cabana floor space. The toilet includes a ring-like structure having a rear portion opening directly into the tank through a cover panel upon the upper surface of the tank, and also having a forward extending, bowl-like portion which is integral with and extends forwardly of the front wall of the tank. The cabana has a rear-to-front extending central axis which approximately bisects the cabana. The toilet structure is located substantially on one side of the cabana axis, so that it is closer to one side wall of the cabana and the toilet is acutely angled relative to the cabana axis. The front wall of the tank is angled relative to the cabana axis so that it is perpendicular to the axis of the toilet on opposite sides of the toilet bowl-like portion. The arrangement provides increased occupant usable floor space within the cabana, enables nesting a pair of tanks for storage and shipment independently of the cabana, and functions as both a urinal and toilet.

Description:
This is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/593,785 filed Jan. 30, 1996 now abandoned entitled PORTABLE COMBINED TOILET AND WASTE HOLDING TANK, naming as the inventor Richard L. Tagg, which was a continuation of application Ser. No. 08/380,683 filed Jan. 30, 1995 now U.S. Pat. No. 5,560,050 entitled PORTABLE COMBINED TOILET AND WASTE HOLDING TANK, naming as the inventor Richard L. Tagg. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF INVENTION 
     This invention relates to a combined toilet and waste holding tank used for portable, outdoor-type toilets. 
     Conventional portable toilets comprise a cabana or housing within which a toilet and waste holding tank is mounted. Typically, cabanas are made of large sheets of plastic which are thermo-formed or otherwise bent and connected together to form rear and side walls, a front wall providing a doorway and door, a roof and floor. The cabana or housing forms an enclosure having a relatively small floor space. 
     Usually, a relatively large size waste material holding tank is positioned within the cabana and may occupy roughly one half of the floor space. Conventionally, the upper cover or panel of the tank, is provided with a toilet opening over which a toilet seat and cover is positioned. Commonly, a urinal construction is fastened to a wall, within the cabana, along side of the tank and, in some installations, a sink or wash bowl may also be provided. 
     Examples of such types of portable toilets, including their cabanas and toilet and waste tank constructions, are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,447,167, issued Jun. 3, 1969 to David B. Harding, for a Portable Toilet Cabana; U.S. Pat. No. 3,835,480, issued Sep. 17, 1974 to George W. Harding for a Chemical Toilet Cabana; U.S. Pat. No. 4,031,572, issued Jun. 28, 1977, to George W. Harding for a Chemical Toilet Cabana Shell Section; U.S. Pat. No. 4,577,351, issued Mar. 25, 1986, to George W. Harding for a Portable Toilet Cabana; U.S. Pat. No. 4,831,671, issued May 23, 1989 to George W. Harding for a Portable Toilet Cabana and U.S. Pat. No. 4,918,765, issued Apr. 24, 1990 to George W. Harding for a Portable Toilet Cabana. 
     Another example of a combined toilet and waste holding tank is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,435,464, issued on Apr. 1, 1969 to David B. Harding for a Portable Toilet. This patent discloses a tank having a cover upon which a toilet construction is formed so that the tank may be used as a toilet as well as a static waste collector. In this construction, as in comparable outdoor toilet constructions, the toilet waste material is removed from time to time by pumping the material, through a hose, from the tank into the collection tank of a waste removal truck. 
     While the types of combined toilets and tanks disclosed, for example, in the foregoing patents, are satisfactory, it would be desirable to make them more user-friendly for both men and women and to better utilize or make available more of the limited space commonly provided within a toilet cabana. Thus, this present invention relates to an improved combined toilet and waste-holding tank as will be further described below. 
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     This invention contemplates a combined toilet and waste material holding tank for use within outdoor, portable toilet cabanas or housings. The tank is shaped to fit between the cabana side walls and against the rear wall thereof so as to occupy roughly one-half of the floor space of the cabana. A ring-like shaped toilet construction is formed on the upper cover panel of the tank and opens into the tank. However, the toilet includes a forward, partial bowl-like portion which is molded or formed on the forward wall of the tank and extends forwardly. In addition, the toilet construction has a central axis which is acutely angled relative to the central, front to rear, axis of the cabana and tank. Thus, the toilet, which may be roughly oval in shape, is generally angled from a rear corner of the cabana towards the opposite, front corner. Further, the toilet construction is offset relative to the central axis of the cabana so that most, or all, of the toilet is arranged on one side of the axis of the cabana, where it is nearer to one of the side walls than to the opposite side wall. 
     Preferably, the front wall of the tank has a depressed center portion which is relatively flat and is arranged at an angle to the cabana central axis, but perpendicular to the central axis of the toilet construction. Thus, the bowl-shaped portion of the toilet, which extends forwardly of that wall section, has its forward-most point approximately equally spaced from the angled front wall section, on both sides of the toilet bowl portion. 
     With this toilet and tank construction, because of the forwardly extending bowl portion of the toilet, the toilet can provide a substitute for a urinal and is user friendly to both male and female users. In addition, the angularity of the toilet, that is, its axial angularity relative to the center line of the cabana, and its offset location relative to the center line, substantially increases the amount of space available to an occupant in using the toilet. In effect, the usable floor space is substantially increased without changing the dimensions of the cabana or its floor. 
     Further, it is contemplated to store and ship such combined toilet and waste material tanks separately from a cabana in order to reduce shipping costs, storage facility space and the like. Consequently, with this offset toilet arrangement, a pair of tanks can be nested together, front face to front face, with their respective toilet bowl portions nesting, side by side, on opposite sides of the tank central axes, within the depressed and angled front wall sections. Where desired, a second, similarly nested pair can be stacked upon the first pair and all of these tanks can be held together by suitable conventional strapping. Thus, the tanks can be shipped in groups of two or four. The nesting of the tanks tend to reinforce or protect them against damage due to impact incurred in the shipping. The tanks are constructed in such a manner as to be easily installed and removed from an assembled cabana when desired. 
     One object of this invention is to provide a combined toilet and waste material storage tank for use within portable toilet cabanas, which increases the usable floor space and which facilitates convenient unisex usage of the unit. 
     Another object of this invention is to provide a toilet and waste material storage tank construction which can eliminate the need for a separate urinal within an outdoor portable toilet cabana. 
     Still a further object of this invention is to provide a combined toilet and waste material storage tank construction which permits bundling or nesting of pairs of such tanks for storage and shipment separately from their cabanas so as to reduce the volume of space needed for shipping or storage purposes. 
     Yet another object of this invention is to provide an inexpensive, easily used and easily installed and serviceable toilet and waste tank unit which is easy to clean and which more efficiently utilizes the space within a typical portable toilet cabana. 
     These and other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent upon reading the following description, of which the attached drawings form a part. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective front and side view of the cabana; 
     FIG. 2 is a front, elevational view of the cabana; 
     FIG. 3 is a rear, elevational view of the cabana, and 
     FIG. 4 is a top, plan view of the cabana. 
     FIG. 5 is an exploded or disassembled view of the major parts of the cabana. 
     FIG. 6 is an enlarged, partially fragmentary, view of a cross-section of the cabana showing the connections between the side and rear walls thereof. 
     FIG. 7 is an enlarged, cross-sectional view illustrating the rear wall and side wall connector strip with the adjacent wall sections positioned for insertion in the connector strip channels. 
     FIG. 8 is a schematic, enlarged view showing the overlapping relationship of the rear and side wall flanges. 
     FIG. 9 illustrates a modification of the connector strip in which the side and rear wall edge flanges arc arranged edge to edge, rather than overlapped. 
     FIG. 10 is an enlarged, fragmentary view showing the aligned flanges of the modification of FIG.  9 . 
     FIG. 11 is a fragmentary, cross-sectional and perspective view illustrating the wall connector strip with a bumper strip arranged in position for assembly thereto. 
     FIG. 12 is a fragmentary, cross-sectional view showing the assembly of the connector strip, the roof and rear wall flanges and the bumper strip. 
     FIG. 13 is an enlarged, fragmentary, perspective view of the doorway strip. 
     FIG. 14 is an enlarged, fragmentary, perspective view of a corner of the doorway defining strip illustrating a segment of the cover flange and side wall flange connected thereto and, in dotted lines, a door fitted therein. 
     FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view of a fragment of the base or pallet of the cabana with the lower edge of a side wall panel connected thereto. 
     FIG. 16 is a top, plan view of the toilet and waste holding tank. 
     FIG. 17 is a perspective view of the toilet and tank with the toilet lid swung open. 
     FIG. 18 is a top, cross-sectional view, to a reduced scale, showing the combined toilet and tank positioned within a cabana. 
     FIG. 19 is an enlarged, cross-sectional view of the toilet and tank fitted within a cabana base, with the lower portion of the cabana shown in cross-section. 
     FIG. 20 is a top, plan view showing a pair of toilet and tank units nested together, face to face, for storage or shipping. 
     FIG. 21 is a perspective view of two pairs of toilet and tank units stacked upon each other for storage or shipping. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     As shown in the drawings, the cabana  10  includes a base or pallet  11 , opposing side walls  12  and  13 , a rear wall  14 , a door  15  and a roof  16 . A combined toilet and waste material tank  17  is positioned in the cabana. Each of these components will be separately described. 
     The side walls  12  and  13 , preferably, are mirror images of each other. That is, they are made out of a single thermo-formed plastic sheet element which is symmetrically formed. Therefore, they can be reversely arranged to form either a left or right side of the cabana. The side walls have a large panel face  20  which is substantially flat. Preferably, rather than forming the face truly planar, it is bowed outwardly a small amount. Also, the panel is formed with a series of indentations or channel-like depressions  21  which provide a decorative appearance as well as serve to rigidify the panels. 
     The opposite corners of each side wall are bent into corner sections  22 . These sections may be angled, such as about 45°, to the panel face  20 . The free edges of the corner sections are bent into vertical, side edge flanges  23 . These side edge flanges are approximately perpendicular to the plane of the panel face  20  so that the corresponding side edge flanges  23  at the rear of both side panels extend toward each other in substantially the same plane. Likewise, the side edge flanges at the forward portion of the cabanas that is, where the door and doorway are located, also extend towards each other and are substantially in the same plane. The lower edges of the side walls  12  and  13  are each provided with a lower edge, horizontally extending flange  24 . 
     The cabana rear wall  14  is provided with opposite side flanges or edge strip portions  25 . Similarly, the upper edge of the rear wall  14  is formed with an upper flange or strip portion  26 . A lower flange or strip portion  27  is formed on the lower edge of the rear wall. 
     The adjacent rear wall side flanges and side wall edge flanges are connected together by means of a connector strip  30 . Preferably, the connector strip is formed of an extruded metal, such as aluminum, of sufficient strength and rigidity. The connector strip is formed in a squared S-shaped cross-section which provides an inner channel  31  whose inner wall is formed with a depressed, central, wall section  32 . In addition, the connector strip has an outer channel  33 . The two channels share a common wall  34 . The outer wall  35  of the outer channel is provided with a pair of integral, rearwardly opening rear or bumper channels  36 . Preferably, the free edges of the walls forming the bumper channels are provided with a hook-like configuration  37 . The connector strips extend along the sides of the rear panel  14 . In addition, connector strip portion  38  extends along the upper edge of the rear panel, as illustrated in FIG.  5 . 
     In the preferred embodiment illustrated in FIG. 8, the side edge flange  23  and the rear wall side flange or strip  25  are arranged in substantially the same plane, but are actually offset slightly one from the other. Thus, the flange  25  overlaps the flange  23 . As shown in FIG. 7, the flange  25  slips into the outer channel  33  of the connector strip  30 . The side wall edge flange  23  slips into the inner channel  31  of the connector strip  30 . The channels  31  and  33  are deeper than the anticipated lengths of the flanges  25  and  23  that fit within them. Thus, as illustrated in FIG. 6, the flanges  23  and  25  do not fill their respective channels but rather are spaced from the bottoms of these channels. Consequently, considerable room is allowed to accommodate for inaccuracies in the dimensions of the side walls and rear wall of the cabana. That is, the depth of entry of the flanges into the respective channel can be adjusted to obtain the desired overall width dimension of the cabana. Moreover, the free edges of the flanges need not be carefully trimmed or squared. This substantially reduces the amount of labor that might otherwise be required for that purpose. Once the flanges  23  and  25  are inserted and frictionally held within their respective channels  31  and  33 , rivets  39  may be applied to fix the parts together. (See FIG. 6.) 
     The connector strip is covered with a bumper strip  40 . The bumper strip is made of a resilient plastic material, which is rubber-like in characteristics, and is generally U-shaped in cross-section. The bumper strip  40  is shown in assembled position, in FIGS. 6 and 12. FIG. 11 illustrates the bumper strip in position ready to be applied upon the connector strip. 
     The bumper strip  40  is held in place by integral prongs or tongues  41 , that are arrow-head shaped, which fit into the bumper channels  36  on the connector strip  30 . The arrow head prongs tend to interlock with the hooked ends  37  of the bumper channels to prevent removal of the bumper strip once they are inserted. The bumper strip is arranged to extend around and to cover the exposed portions of the connector strip. Thus, one of its purposes is to enhance the appearance of the rear of the cabana. Another purpose is to provide a resilient bumper to protect the cabana against damage due to impacts which occur during the transportation of the cabana to and from its sites of use. Normally, these cabanas are transported from one site to another, upon trucks. When a number of cabanas are carried upon a truck, there is a tendency for them to strike each other during the jolting of the truck. Thus, the bumper strips prevent damage. 
     The bumper strips  40  may include grooves  43  or indentation stripes. These grooves or stripes enhance the appearance of the bumper strips and also, may increase the resilient movement of the portions of the bumper strips that sustain impacts. 
     As illustrated in FIG. 12, the cover or roof  16  of the cabana is provided with a rear, downwardly extended, flange  44 . This flange fits into the inner channel  31  of the horizontal upper portion  38  of the connector strip. The upper flange  26  of the rear panel fits into the outer channel  33  of the horizontal part  38  of the connector strip (see FIG.  12 ). 
     FIGS. 9 and 10 illustrate a modified form of connector strip. This strip  45  is generally H-shaped in cross-section and is made of a suitable metal extrusion, such as aluminum, of sufficient strength for the purpose. Here, the strip is provided with opposed channels  45  into which the aligned flanges  23   a  and  24   a  of the respective side and rear walls are inserted. 
     FIG. 10 shows the flanges arranged in a common plane rather than being slightly offset from the same plane as illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8. As illustrated in the drawings, the channels  46  are deeper than the portions of the flanges inserted into them so as to allow for variations in dimensions of the wall portions. Suitable rivets (not shown) may be used to fix the flanges within the channels. 
     Turning to the front of the cabana, the space between the opposed side wall flanges provides a doorway. The doorway is defined or outlined by a doorway strip  50 . This strip is preferably formed of a metal extrusion, such as aluminum, which, as shown in FIG. 13, is T-shaped in cross-section to provide a head  51  and a stem  52 . One side of the head provides a door stop flange  53 . The other side of the head, along with an integral second flange  54 , forms a channel  55 . This channel receives the side wall forward flanges  23  (see FIG.  14 ). In addition, the stem part of the extruded strip is bent into a J-shaped cross-section to provide a water drain channel  56 . 
     The doorway-defining strip is arranged to provide jamb portions  57  and a header portion  58  along the sides and top of the doorway. In addition, a sill strip  59  is fastened to the lower ends of the jamb portions  57 . The sill strip may be of the same cross-section as the doorway strip or may simply be a metal strip which is flat or is angled, in cross-section. Thus, the strip  50  provides a doorway outline or frame. 
     The door  15 , may be provided with an edge flange portion  60 . A suitable gasket or padding strip (not shown) may be arranged around the edges of the door. Also, the door may be formed of a pair of overlapped panels, joined together at their edges to provide a rigid door panel (not shown). The door is provided with hinges  61  for connecting it to one of the jamb forming members  57 . In addition, a latch mechanism  62  (shown schematically) may be mounted upon the door for closing and locking the door when the cabana is in use. 
     The roof  16  is provided with a front edge flange  63  which is fitted within the channel  55  of the header portion  58  of the doorway defining strip  50 . (See FIG. 14.) Rivets or the like may be used to secure the parts together. 
     The cabana base  11 , preferably, is in the form of a pallet frame  65 . The pallet frame may be molded of a suitable, strong, durable, plastic material and is hollow (see, for example, FIG.  15 ). As illustrated in FIG. 5, the base or pallet frame is preferably formed with a rear socket forming opening  66  and forward supports or struts  67 . Integral skids or skid portions  68  are formed on the sides and lower surface of the base or pallet. These skids may have their lower surfaces provided with a series of beads or ribs  69  and  69   a  (see FIG.  15 ). Between the beads  69   a , a plastic skid strip insert  70  may be positioned and fastened in place with suitable screws (not shown) so that the cabana unit may be slid upon the ground or upon a support surface. Thus, wear on the bottoms of the pallets of such cabanas is taken by the inserts and, in the event of undue wear or damage, the worn inserts  70  may be removed and replaced with new inserts. 
     The cabana is primarily designed as a housing for an outdoor toilet. Thus, as shown in FIG. 5, a static waste-receiving toilet tank  17  is arranged upon the base or pallet  11  over the rear open socket portion. The lower portion of the tank may be extended downwardly to form a flat, pan-like portion  71  that fits within the open socket portion  66  to thereby stabilize the tank in position. A toilet opening  72  is provided on the upper surface of the toilet tank. A toilet seat and cover unit  73  is positioned over the toilet opening. 
     The forward portion of the pallet is covered with a rigid floor panel  74  which may be formed of plywood or sheet plastic or the like to provide a floor upon which an occupant may stand. 
     The lower edge flanges  24  of the side walls of the cabana are fastened, such as by rivets  75  or screws or the like, to the sides, along side notches  76  formed on the base frame (see FIG.  15 ). The upper edges of the side walls are cut out to form depressions or elongated slots  80  which may provide ventilation openings beneath the sides of the overlapping roof. The roof may be formed with integral box-like side edge sections  81  which overlap enlargements  82  formed on the upper edges of the side walls. The roof edge sections may be fastened to the enlargements by suitable rivets or the like (not shown). 
     In addition, the cabana may include a sink unit  85  of suitable design. This includes a sink or washing bowl  86  which may be mounted upon a support that can be used as a water tank  87  (see FIG.  5 ). A suitable water pump, such as a manually operated pump, can be installed for pumping water to the sink from the water tank. Alternative arrangements of the toilet and the sink units within the cabana may be used. Thus, the drawings and the disclosure herein illustrate one embodiment of this arrangement. 
     The combined toilet and waste material tank  17 , in more detail, is formed with opposed side walls  90  and  91  and a rear wall  92 . The side walls are preferably bowed or curved somewhat to closely match the interior surfaces of the cabana walls  12  and  13 . In addition, the upper edges of the side and rear walls of the tank are formed with a notch  93  which receives a rubber-like gasket strip  94 . The gasket seals the tank to the adjacent areas of the cabana walls (see FIGS.  18  and  19 ). 
     The bottom panel  95  of the tank (see FIG. 19) is formed with the depressed, shallow, flat pan-like portion  71 , mentioned previously. Thus, the area of the bottom which surrounds the pan-like depression, provides a ledge which rests upon the upper surface of the portions of the base which define the open socket  66  of the base. This is shown schematically in FIG.  19 . 
     The tank is closed with an upper, closure panel  96  which has a depressed portion  97  integrally connected to the main body of the upper panel by an integral flange-like strip  98 . In addition, the tank has a front wall  99  having a middle portion  100  which is angled relative to opposite side portions  101  and  102  of the front wall  99 . 
     The toilet  72  has a forward, partial bowl-like portion  105  which extends forwardly of the middle portion  100  of the front wall. 
     As shown in FIGS. 18 and 20, the cabana has a front to rear central axis  106  which bisects the cabana into two opposite sides. Similarly, the tank has a corresponding central axis  107  which is in alignment with the cabana axis  106 . 
     The toilet, however, has a central axis  108  (see FIG. 18) which is angled to intersect the central cabana and tank axes  106  and  107  at an acute angle. The middle section  100  of the front wall is approximately perpendicular to the axis  108  of the toilet so that it is angled relative to the axes  106  and  107 . 
     Thus, the forward-most portion of the bowl-like portion of the toilet is roughly in the plane of the side portions  101  and  102  of the front wall  99  of the tank. The distances from the forward-most point of the bowl-like portion of the toilet to the surface of the middle wall section  100 , are approximately equal on both sides of the toilet. 
     The toilet seat-cover unit  73  may be formed of a conventional toilet seat  110  and a suitable, correspondingly shaped and sized cover or lid  111 . The cover and lid are connected together and to the tank by conventional hinges  112 . Thus, for use, the toilet lid  111  may be swung upwardly, as illustrated in FIG. 17, to expose the seat  110 . The partial bowl-like extension of the toilet, extending forwardly and spaced on either of its sides approximately equidistantly from the front wall section with which it is joined, makes the toilet more user friendly for both males and females. This arrangement makes it possible to eliminate a separate urinal which would otherwise be conventionally mounted within the cabana. Hence, the toilet arrangement is intended to be unisex and is convenient and comfortable for use by either gender. 
     The tank may be periodically cleaned by inserting the end of a pipe through the toilet opening into the tank and connecting the opposite end of the pipe to a waste removal truck for pumping out the contents of the tank. This is a conventional system for cleaning toilets of this type. 
     When the cabana, whether fully assembled or in a disassembled or knockdown form, is to be transported from one site to another or is to be stored, the waste tank may be removed and bundled together with other waste tanks as shown in FIGS. 20 and 21. With the toilet offset to one side of the central axis of the tank and the angled arrangements of the toilet and the middle portion of the front wall, a pair of tanks may be positioned in front face to front face arrangement. The forward extending partial bowl-like portions of each of the toilets nest within the deepest portions of the angled opposing front wall middle section. Hence, the two tanks reduce the space required for storage or shipping and, tend to strengthen each other against impacts. For this purpose, conventional shipping straps (not shown) may be wrapped around the tanks to hold them together. 
     Two separate pairs of tanks may be shipped together as a single unit by stacking one pair upon the other, as illustrated in FIG.  21 . Thus, the lower surface of the pan-like lower extension  71  of each of the upper pairs of tanks rest upon the upper surface of the pair of tanks beneath them. All of the tanks may then be secured together with conventional wrapping straps. 
     As can be seen, the components forming the cabana are relatively simple in construction and the system for securing the components together is able to accommodate relatively wide discrepancies in dimensions or finishings of the edges of the wall and door components while still providing a strong, rigid and attractive cabana unit. Moreover, the components are so formed and so fastened together that they may be individually replaced in the event any one or more of the components are damaged during the transportation or use of the unit. Further, the toilet and tank units can be easily transported and replaced when necessary. 
     This invention may be further developed within the scope of the following claims. Thus, having fully described at least one operative embodiment of this invention,