Patent Publication Number: US-5249316-A

Title: Bathtub divider

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a divider for a bathtub to allow a parent to bathe a small child in the least amount of water possible. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     Various dividers and dams have been constructed to direct water in a bathtub or toilet. U.S. Pat. No. 4,473,911, issued Oct. 2, 1984, to Sylvia A. Germain discloses a water dam for the rim of a bathtub which is intended to be fixed to the top surface of the bathtub rim to keep water inside the bathtub while a person is taking a shower. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,472,844, issued Sep. 25, 1984, to Ronald L. Mace discloses a tub shower seat which is made of molded waterproof plastic material which includes an integral hand bar. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,166,295, issued Sep. 4, 1979, to Klaus Schiron et al. discloses a swimming bath with dividers made of concrete which can be moved on rails by means of jack wheels or track rollers. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 3,713,179, issued Jan. 30, 1973, to Stephen Dubiel discloses a bathtub safety divider which provides a front divider to selectively shorten the tub to the user&#39;s size and reduce the risk of a user falling supine in the bathtub by providing an abutment for the feet. 
     U.S. Pat. No. Des. 252,765, issued Aug. 28, 1979, to Thomas J. Ziolkowski discloses the ornamental design for a water dam for a flush tank. 
     None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a divider for a bathtub to allow a child or infant to be bathed by a parent in the least amount of water possible. 
     It is another object of the invention to provide a divider for a bathtub which has an integral seat portion, divider portion and container portion. 
     It is a further object of the invention to provide a divider for a bathtub where the seat portion is designed to hold a child or an infant in a seated position during bathing. 
     Still another object of the invention is to provide a divider for a bathtub where the bottom has integral, inset suction cups. 
     It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof in an apparatus for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes. 
     These and other objects of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is an environmental perspective view of the bathtub divider showing a child seated in the seat portion; 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the bathtub divider; and 
     FIG. 3 is a section view drawn along lines 3--3 of FIG. 2 showing the integral, inset suction cups. 
     Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The present invention is an integral, one piece bathtub divider 10 which makes it possible to bathe a child C or an infant in the least possible amount of water. Referring to FIG. 1, the bathtub divider 10, which is made of one piece of resilient waterproof plastic, is press fit into the bathtub B with the seat portion 20. 
     The bathtub divider 10 is formed as wide as the bathtub B into which it is to be placed facing the faucet F. A seat portion 20 which is formed with enough space for a child C or an infant to sit in with a back portion 70 which is formed smaller so as to differentiate between the front and the back of the bathtub divider 10. A desired amount of water is then run to fill the seat portion 20 and a child C or an infant is placed in the seat portion 20. The backrest 30 of the seat portion 20 is formed by the divider portion 40 of the bathtub divider 10. A handle 50 is formed in the divider portion 40 with two depressions 60 formed on either side of the handle 50. The back portion 70 of the bathtub divider 10 is formed with a container 80. The container 80 is formed on the back 90 of the divider portion 40. The container 80 may be made by having a wall formed between the two back wings 100, by having an open-topped U-shaped box formed on the back 90 of the divider portion 40 of the bathtub divider 10, or by having netting strung between the two back wings 100. 
     Referring now to FIG. 3, integral, inset suction cups 110 are formed in the bottom of the bathtub divider 10 such that the bathtub divider 10 is held firmly to the bottom of the bathtub B without any possibility of water flowing under the bathtub divider 10, causing the bathtub divider 10 to float. Referring back to FIGS. 1 and 2, on either side of the backrest 30 of the divider portion 40 are formed front wings 120 which may be used by a child C as arm rests. 
     After the parent has finished bathing the child C or infant, the parent lifts up on the handle 50 to lift the bathtub divider 10 out of the bathtub B. 
     It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the sole embodiment described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.