Abstract:
A method for advertising in a restroom is shown and described. The method includes the use of a three-dimensional advertisement article which may attach to a wall above a urinal and at least partly cover the urinal. The advertisement article may resemble a container, perhaps a bottle or can, for a product, which may be beer or a soft drink, being advertised.

Description:
This application is a continuation under 35 U.S.C. §120 of U.S. Ser. No. 11/821,750 filed Jun. 25, 2007, which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention is a method of advertising. More specifically, the present invention is a method for advertising in restrooms. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     Numerous approaches have been taken in the prior art to advertise in restrooms. For example, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 370,938 shows a urinal shield of the variety used to hold a deodorizing and disinfectant cake over a drain in a urinal. The urinal shield disclosed in this patent includes an upstanding plaque on which an advertisement may be displayed. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,671,558 shows an advertisement display device which is removably secured to a toilet flush valve cap. The device includes a clear plastic valve cap cover which receives advertisements therein and is then placed over the valve cap. The device may be secured onto the valve cap by means of one or more set screws, and is held in position by means of the toilet water inlet pipe. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,867,848 discloses a thermochromic urinal display apparatus and method for displaying a message when activated by a warm urine stream and terminating the display when the apparatus is rinsed with cool rinse water. A urinal display screen is disclosed with advertisement, slogans or public service message either painted, printed, screened or incorporated onto the urinal display screen using thermochromic paint, ink, film or decal. The urinal display screen is placed so that the thermochromic display is above the water line in the urinal reservoir. A warm urine stream activates the thermochromic paint to induce opaqueness or clarity to reveal advertising slogans or public service messages to the user. Once flushed, the cool water from the urinal rinse deactivates the thermochromic paint so that it returns to its original state, thereby becoming opaque to conceal an underlying message from the next user. Alternatively, the message can be printed in thermochromic paint in a quiescent transparent state to become activated and visible in its active opaque state. 
     U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,527,239 and 6,899,309 show a beverage container support for supporting a beverage upon a component of a flush valve for use in public restroom facilities. The support includes a support surface upon which a beverage container could be placed as well as a depending skirt that can be used as a display surface for advertisements. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 7,096,521 shows a beverage holder with advertising display providing a slot at the top of the display for placement of an advertisement card, the beverage holder being designed to be attached to a flush valve housing in a commercial sanitary fixture such as a urinal or toilet without modification to the flush valve. The beverage holder has a base with a threaded opening for a long threaded shaft to hold a clear plastic display mounted on top of the shaft as a changeable eye-level advertisement and a plurality of depending legs with end teeth that engage the flush valve housing of the sanitary fixture. 
     Finally, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US2002/0162934 A1 discloses a urinal coaster affixed to an upper portion of a plumbing fixture of a urinal. The coaster includes a planar section affixed to a top of the plumbing fixture by an elastomeric attachment section surrounding the upper portion of the plumbing fixture. A beverage container may be positioned on top of the planar section. 
     The present invention provides a more visually striking method of advertising than those existing in the prior art for restrooms. As will be made apparent below to the reader, the inventive method can make a more lasting impression and have a greater impact upon a viewer than those of earlier methods. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, the present invention is a method of advertising in a restroom which includes the step of providing a urinal. The urinal is typically mounted on a wall, and has a top, a left side, a right side, a bottom, and an inner surface bounded by the top, left side, right side and bottom. The method further requires the step of providing a three-dimensional advertisement article, which may be bottle-shaped, can-shaped or of some other shape related to or suggestive of a product or service to be advertised. The advertisement article is adapted for attachment to the wall where the urinal is mounted and is adapted to cover at least the top of the urinal. 
     Advertisement graphics, such as those appearing on bottles or cans in which beverages are sold, are then placed on the advertisements and, finally, the advertisement article is attached to the wall to cover at least the top of the urinal. 
     In alternate embodiments of the invention, the advertisement article covers only the plumbing connection above the urinal or a side of the urinal. 
     In yet another embodiment of the invention, the method of advertising in a restroom includes the step of providing a sink, the sink being mounted on a wall and having a top surface. An advertisement article is then provided, the advertisement article being adapted for attachment to the wall above the top surface of the sink. Advertisement graphics are then placed on the advertisement article and, finally, the advertisement article is attached to the wall above the top surface of the sink. 
     The present invention will now be described in more completed detail with frequent reference being made to the figures identified below. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a typical urinal, 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a wall adapter fixture mounted around a urinal; 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view showing the installation of a bottle-shaped advertisement article over a urinal; 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view showing the bottle-shaped advertisement article of  FIG. 3  following installation over a urinal; 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view showing the installation of an alternate embodiment of a bottle-shaped advertisement article over a urinal; 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view showing the bottle-shaped advertisement article of  FIG. 5  following installation over a urinal; 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the installed bottle-shaped advertisement article of  FIG. 6  showing the installation of a removable liner thereon; 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view showing the installation of yet another embodiment of a bottle-shaped advertisement article over a urinal; 
         FIG. 9  is perspective view showing the bottle-shaped advertisement article of  FIG. 8  following installation over a urinal; 
         FIG. 10  is a perspective view of the installed bottle-shaped advertisement article of  FIG. 9  showing the installation of a removable liner thereon; 
         FIG. 11  is a perspective view showing the installation of a modular embodiment of a bottle-shaped advertisement article over a urinal; 
         FIG. 12  is a perspective view of a row of urinals having bottle-shaped advertisement articles installed thereover; 
         FIG. 13  is a perspective view showing the installation of a can-shaped advertisement article over a urinal; 
         FIG. 14  is a perspective view showing the can-shaped advertisement article of  FIG. 13  following installation over a urinal; 
         FIG. 15  is a perspective view of the installed can-shaped advertisement article of  FIG. 14  showing the installation of a removable liner thereon; 
         FIG. 16  is a perspective view of a row of urinals having can-shaped advertisement articles installed thereon; 
         FIG. 17  is a perspective view of a row of urinals having can-shaped advertisement articles of an alternate embodiment installed thereon; 
         FIG. 18A  is a perspective view showing the installation of a bottle-shaped advertisement article of yet another alternate embodiment over a urinal; 
         FIG. 18B  is a perspective view showing the bottle-shaped advertisement article of  FIG. 18A  following installation over a urinal; 
         FIG. 19  is a perspective view of a pair of urinals having alternative advertisement articles installed over their flush valves; 
         FIG. 20A  is a perspective view showing the installation of an automobile-shaped advertisement article of still another alternate embodiment over a urinal; 
         FIG. 20B  is a perspective view showing the automobile-shaped advertisement article of  FIG. 20A  following installation over a urinal; 
         FIG. 21A  is a perspective view showing the installation of a cigarette-box-shaped advertisement article of a further alternate embodiment over a urinal; 
         FIG. 21B  is a perspective view showing two cigarette-box-shaped advertisement articles following installation over two adjacent urinals; 
         FIG. 22 through 26  are perspective views of five alternate approaches for advertising a medication following installation over a urinal; and 
         FIG. 27  is a perspective view of a row of sinks, one of which has an advertisement article installed on the wall over the top surface thereof. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Turning now to these figures in detail,  FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a typical urinal commonly found in men&#39;s restrooms in public and commercial establishments, such as, but, of course, not limited to, transportation facilities, stadiums, arenas, restaurants, public parks and so forth. The urinal  10  itself is commonly of a glazed ceramic, and is typically white, although it may be formed or molded from other water-impervious materials and may be of any color. The urinal  10  may be of a generally rectangular shape, as shown, although those of other shapes are manufactured and are available. The present invention is not restricted to urinals of any particular shape, and may be practiced with any of them. 
     The urinal  10  is mounted on a wall or other vertical support, and, regardless of shape, is connected to a water supply which passes through the wall or other vertical support in a pipe or other conduit. A first valve  12  regulates the flow rate of the water supplied to the urinal  10 , while a second, or flush, valve  14 , operable by handle  16 , allows water to flow for a typically short amount of time, perhaps fifteen seconds, after a person using the urinal  10  pulls the handle  16 . Water, delivered through pipe  18 , is dispensed through holes  20  at the top of the inner surface  22 , and flows downward along the inner surface  22  to a reservoir  24  at the bottom. Drain  26 , generally including some form of P-trap, connects the urinal  10  to a waste pipe. 
     Turning now to  FIG. 2 , in a first embodiment of the present invention, a wall adapter fixture  30  is mounted on a wall  32  around urinal  10  before the plumbing connection, namely, first and second (flush) valves  12 ,  14  and pipe  18 , is made. Wall adapter fixture  30  may be held in place with an adhesive or by screws  34 , and has a plurality of hooks  36  for mounting advertising materials. 
     Turning now to  FIG. 3 , once the plumbing connection  38  to the urinal  10  is made, an advertisement article  40 , shaped, in this instance, like a beer bottle, is disposed on the wall adapter fixture  30 , substantially covering plumbing connections  38  and the top and sides of the urinal  10 . Advertisement article  40  has slots, not shown in the figures, on rear surface thereof into which hooks  36  engage. The mounted advertisement article  40  is shown in  FIG. 4 . 
     In a second embodiment, shown in  FIG. 5 , wall adapter fixture  44  may be installed behind a previously installed plumbing connection  38  to the urinal  10  and has a plurality of hooks  46  for mounting an advertisement  50 . In this embodiment, advertisement article  50  substantially covers plumbing connection  38  and the top of the urinal  10 . However, as shown in  FIG. 6 , when mounted, advertisement article  50  does not extend over the sides of urinal  10 , but rather has a substantially concave central portion  52  which extends backward into the urinal  10  toward the inner surface  22  thereof. 
     It will become readily apparent to the reader that central portion  52  will not be rinsed by any water flowing downward along the inner surface  22  of the urinal  10  when the urinal  10  is flushed. Referring now to  FIG. 7 , the substantially concave central portion  52  may be provided with a removable liner  54  which may be taken out for cleaning or replacement. 
     In a third embodiment, shown in  FIG. 8 , advertisement article  60  is installed on wall adapter fixture  30 , shown schematically in  FIG. 8 , but completely in  FIG. 2 . Advertisement article  60  in this third embodiment substantially covers plumbing connection  38  and the top and sides of the urinal  10 , as shown in  FIG. 9 . Advertisement article  60  also has a substantially concave central portion  62 , which, as shown in  FIG. 10 , may be provided with a removable liner  64  which may be taken out for cleaning or replacement, as was the case in  FIG. 7 . 
     In a fourth embodiment, shown in  FIG. 11 , a modular version of advertisement article  60  comprises a universal modular neck  72 , a universal modular left side panel  74 , a universal modular right side panel  76 , and a removable inner liner  78 . The latter could be adapted to fit into each specific brand of urinal. 
       FIG. 12  is a perspective view of a row of urinals  10  on which advertisement articles  60  have been installed and shows the overall impression that would be made upon a viewer of the urinals  10  by the practice of the present invention. 
     Heretofore, the advertisement articles have been generally bottle-shaped.  FIG. 13  shows a fifth embodiment of the present invention wherein the advertisement article is in the shape of a can. 
     Referring to  FIG. 13 , a wall adapter fixture  80  is mounted on a wall  32  around urinal  10  before the plumbing connection  38  is made. Wall adapter fixture  80  may be held in place with an adhesive or by screws  82 , and has a plurality of hooks  84  for mounting advertising materials. An advertisement article  90 , shaped like a beer can, is disposed on the wall adapter fixture  80 , substantially covering the top and sides of the urinal  10 . Advertisement article  90  has slots, not shown in the figures, on its rear surface into which hooks  84  engage. The mounted advertisement article  90  is shown in  FIG. 14 . 
     It will be noted  FIG. 14  that advertisement article  90  has a substantially concave central portion  92  which extends backward into the urinal  10  toward the inner surface  22  thereof. Referring now to  FIG. 15 , the substantially concave central portion  92  may be provided with a removable liner  94  which may be taken out for cleaning or replacement. 
       FIG. 16  is a perspective view of a row of urinals  10  on which advertisement articles  90  have been installed and shows the overall impression that would be made upon a viewer of the urinals  10  by the practice of this embodiment of the present invention. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 17 , in an alternate embodiment from that shown in  FIGS. 13 through 16 , the advertisement articles  100  are flattened relative to advertisement article  90  so as not to protrude outwardly beyond the sides of urinals  10 . Moreover, advertisement articles  100  have a bottom portion  102  and, accordingly, completely frame the urinals  100 . 
       FIGS. 18A and 18B  shown an alternate embodiment of a bottle-shaped advertisement articles  110  designed for use with a urinal  112  having a sensor  114  which causes the urinal  110  to be flushed when the sensor  114  detects that a user has stepped away from the front thereof. Advertisement articles  110  may be installed on wall adapter fixture  30 , shown schematically in  FIG. 18A , ultimately appearing as shown in  FIG. 18B . 
       FIG. 19  shows yet another embodiment of the advertisement articles of the present invention. The plumbing connection  38  for each urinal  10  is concealed by a bottle-shaped advertisement articles  120  on the left and by a can-shaped advertisement article  122  on the right. In each case, the handle  16  extends outward from an appropriate cut-out in the advertisement article  120 ,  122  so that the urinal  10  may be operated. This particular embodiment is intended for use where space is limited or in low-key applications, and is attached to the wall above the urinal  10  and around its plumbing connections  38 , for example, by an adhesive. 
     The present invention may find application in the advertisement of products or services other than simply to beverages, such as beer and soft drinks. Referring to  FIGS. 20A and 20B , an automobile-shaped advertisement article  130  is primarily intended to advertise NASCAR® auto racing. Secondarily, it may also advertise the products or services whose logos appear on the automobile-shaped advertisement article  130 , as they may on actual NASCAR® autos to denote sponsorship. For present purposes, it may be necessary to invert or otherwise reorient the logos relative to their positions on actual NASCAR® autos, so that they may be in positions and orientations more clearly legible on the advertisement article  130 . 
     In  FIG. 20A , urinal  10  and plumbing connection  38  appear as previously shown. Wall adapter fixture  132  is mounted above urinal  10  using screws  134  or the like, and may include a plurality of hooks as previously shown. Adhesive plates  136  are provided on each side of the urinal  10  to prevent advertisement article  130  from slipping following installation as shown in  FIG. 20B . 
     Similarly, referring to  FIGS. 21A and 21B , a cigarette-box-shaped advertisement article  140 , or a box-shaped advertisement article for any other product or service, may be installed on urinal  10  in the same manner as automobile-shaped advertisement article  130 . Advertisement article  140  has a cut-out  142  on its top surface, so that it may fit around plumbing connection  38 .  FIG. 21B  illustrates the appearance of cigarette-box-shaped advertisement article  140  following installation. It will be noted in  FIG. 21B  that cigarette-box-shaped advertisement article  144  on the right side has a top side  146  and left and right sides  148 , which are tapered downwardly or inwardly, respectively, to give advertisement article  144  a sleeker appearance than advertisement article  140 . The Surgeon General&#39;s warning  150  may be included on the side of the advertisement articles  140 ,  144 , as it is on actual cigarette packs and boxes. 
       FIGS. 22 through 26  are perspective views of five different approaches for advertising a well-known medication. Referring to  FIG. 22 , advertisement article  160  is in the form of an inverted medication bottle whose contents and cap cover the top and sides of urinal  10 . As was the case with previously described embodiments handle  16  protrudes from the side of the medication bottle, which has a label  162  inverted relative to its position on an actual bottle, so that it may be in an orientation more clearly legible on the advertisement article  160 . Like advertisement articles  130 ,  140 , advertisement article  160  may be mounted using wall adapter fixture  132 , with adhesive plates  136  being provided on each side of the urinal  10  to prevent advertisement article  160  from slipping following installation. 
     Adhesive plates  136  may also be used to mount pill-shaped advertisement articles  164  on the sides of urinal  10  in  FIG. 23 . Similarly, an advertisement article  170 , molded to have the appearance of three pills or doses of the well-known medication. As before, the top portion of the advertisement article  170  may be mounted using wall-adapter fixture  132 , with adhesive plates  136  being provided on each side of the urinal  10  to secure the side portions and to prevent advertisement article  170  from slipping following installation. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 25 , advertisement article  174  is akin to the bottle- and can-shaped advertisement articles previously shown, and can be mounted on or over urinal  10  in the previously described manner. Note that advertisement article  174  lends itself to the use of a pill-shaped freshener  176 , having the color of the medication being advertised, in the reservoir  24  at the bottom of the urinal  10  to complement the bottle-shaped advertisement article  174 . 
     In  FIG. 26 , advertisement article  178  fits on top of urinal  10  and covers plumbing connection  38  except for handle  16 . Advertisement article  178  is mounted on the wall above the urinal  10  like bottle-shaped advertisement article  120  and can-shaped advertisement article  132  shown in  FIG. 19 . 
     Finally, referring to  FIG. 27 , the practice of the present invention may be extended to sinks, such as sink  180  of the type commonly found in a public restroom. On top of the sink  180  and against the wall  182  on which it is mounted, advertisement article  184  may be secured to promote any of a wide variety of products or services. Advertisement article  184  may be of any shape, and is not limited to the essentially rectangular form shown in  FIG. 27 . 
     While the messages being conveyed by the advertisement articles shown in the figures relate to a number of well-known products, the present invention should not be considered to be limited to the advertisement of the products shown. In fact, the bottle-shaped advertisement articles may be used to advertise anything that comes in a bottle, such as juices, energy drinks or soft drinks, and may be used to advertise materials that are not beverages. Moreover, the can-shaped advertisement articles may be used to advertise any beverage which is sold in a can, as well as, with a slight modification, may be used to advertise a product sold in a cup, such as coffee or tea, or other non-beverage products. The box-shaped advertisement articles and product-shaped advertisement articles may be used to advertise an innumerable variety of other products or services. In fact, the advertisement articles may take on any shape, particularly where the product or service being advertised does not have a particular shape associated with or suggestive of it. 
     Needless to say, the various advertisement articles shown in the various figures will have to be designed to stand up not only to the ordinary wear and tear that would be expected in a restroom, but also to vandalism and other destructive tendencies which often find an outlet in restrooms in public places. As such, the various advertisement articles may be molded from sturdy and resilient polymeric resin materials in three-dimensional form, and the advertisements applied to their surfaces according to methods well known in the art. 
     Modifications to the above would be obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art, but would not bring the invention so modified beyond the scope of the appended claims.