Patent Publication Number: US-2007107116-A1

Title: Training potty liner

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
      The invention is directed toward the potty training of toddlers. Small children such as toddlers must learn to use a toilet as soon as is feasible. For this purpose, various methods are being used for the training of the toddlers.  
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      Most of the time the toddlers are placed on a potty and when they are finished the potty has to be emptied and cleaned which in most instances is very cumbersome and unsanitary. Other known systems use a potty liner that must be disposed of at a later date and most of the materials for the liner are not suitable to be flushed down a toilet which in many instances results in a plumbing blockage.  
      U.S. Pat. No. 6,564,399 discloses a liner to be used within a flush able toilet so that any excrements do not come in contact with the wall of the toilet bowl. The liner is described as being constructed from water sensitive film. The material maintains its structural integrity and strength when in use but disperses when placed in contact with water. It is believed, whenever the liner is being used, that time is of essence because most all toilet bowls have water standing therein whether in use or not. Such a liner would disintegrate rather quickly.  
      U.S. Pat. No. 6,611,092 discloses a toilet specially constructed for the use by a child included is a disposable liner. The disposable liner is being described to resemble a coffee filter and is constructed of a material strong enough to withstand liquid permeation there through and still be capable of safely disposing. How it is to be disposed has not been explained.  
      U.S. Pat. No. 5,745,929 illustrates a sanitary cover for a toilet seat comprised of a non-porous flexible material. The flexible material should be large enough to cover a toilet seat and to tuck one or more portions underneath the toilet seat. There is no disclosure as to the type of material to be used for the liner or cover.  
      US Patent D472,620 discloses a disposable absorbent liner having an elastic rim for a portable seat and bowl. This Patent, being a Design Patent does not go into details of the material being used.  
      U.S. Pat. No. 6,783,826 discloses a liner useful for use in a commode. The liner is a composite made of several layers including a barrier film, water dispersible film layer and an inextensible support layer.  
      U.S. Pat. No. 6,738,992 illustrates a potty chair liner comprising a waste receiving container having an impervious outer layer, a permeable inner layer and an absorbent core between the inner and outer layer.  
      U.S. Pat. No. 6,532,605 shows a liner which may be utilized in a child&#39;s potty. The liner comprises a flexible sheet fabricated from biodegradable material. The sheet is liquid impermeable and is capable of retaining human excrement. The liner includes a central portion of a bag-like configuration.  
      U.S. Pat. No. 6,115,855 discloses a potty liner comprised of flexible material. A layer of the flexible liner is of a permeable material having an inner absorbing layer sandwiched between the permeable layer and the outer non-permeable layer. The liner is constructed as a bag having an opening therein so that a handle of the potty can protrude there through.  
      US Patent No. D402,739 shows a disposable liner, apparently having handles thereon  
      U.S. Pat. No. 5,778,458 illustrates a bedpan liner. The liner is constructed in an oblong configuration and is made out of paper that is biodegradable and is flush able down the toilet.  
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
      The potty liner of the present invention is made in a shape, that is like a coffee filter but having a top extension like a collar that can be draped over the top circumference of a potty into which the liner is inserted. This type construction is not shown or taught in the prior art. The liner is biodegradable to thereby prevent any plumbing blockage. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING  
       FIG. 1  is an exploded view of the liner prior to being installed in a potty;  
       FIG. 2  shows a different embodiment of the liner itself. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       FIG. 1  is an exploded view of the combination of the inventive liner  3  prior to being installed in a training potty  2 . The training potty  2  could be used by itself or in combination with a toilet seat  1 . The liner  3  is made out of pleated  4  material so that can it can be used in differently sized potties. The top of the liner  2  should have a flange, a collar or a projecting rim  5  of a flat configuration. This collar  5  is ideal for projecting over the top rim of the potty  2  which also could have a projecting flange  2   a . In this manner the potty itself is being protected against any soiling.  
      The training potty liner is  3  inserted into the potty  2  prior to use. The top collar  5  is draped over the rim  2   a  of the potty for sanitary reasons. The flat configuration is an aid to keep the liner  3  in a tight relationship with the top rim  2   a  of the potty  2 . With the liner  3  in place, solid waste can be disposed of by simply depositing the soiled liner and its contents into the toilet and flushing. This process eliminates the need to clean out by hand the residual solid waste that usually remains after trying to empty the potty without the liner in place. These liners also solve the problem of having to disinfect the sink or other facility after cleaning out the potty. There is no need to worry about the sink or potty possibly being contaminated by  E coli  or other bacteria. The liner easily inserts into the removable portion of the training system by removing the potty itself from the toilet. The liner is designed in such a way, that is, with accordion pleats that it is adjustable, which allows it to fit various potty seat models.  
       FIG. 2  shows a different embodiment of a potty liner  6  having pleats  7  therein. These pleats are carried over into the top collar  8  to accommodate different styles or sizes of potties including oblong shapes. For this reason the extra pleats are expendable to different styles.  
      The liners are made of flush able material similar to a disposable toilet seat cover. Experience has shown that many toilet or potty liners are made of such a material that does not lend itself to flushing in a standard toilet because of the bulk such a material does interfere with the plumbing of the toilet and cause blockage. The material of the liner is liquid impermeable and capable of retaining human excrements until it is exposed to water. The material is coated with polyvinyl alcohol creating a polymeric film having hydrolytic degradability additives that allow the soluble material to dissolve when exposed to water.