Patent Publication Number: US-2015074891-A1

Title: Single-use sink strainer

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This patent application is a continuation-in-part of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/925,592, filed Oct. 26, 2010, which in turn is a continuation of PCT patent application No. PCT/IL2008/000714, filed May 27, 2008, which is based upon Israeli patent application No. 183496, filed May 29, 2007, each of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention refers to a disposable strainer designed for use in sinks, bathtubs, drain holes and so on. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     It is nowadays customary to cover the drain holes of sinks with strainers that are usually made of metal or plastic and are designed to prevent masses of waste from entering the plumbing system. It is customary to collect the waste on the strainer, remove the strainer from the drain hole, empty the waste into the garbage can and replace the strainer over the sink&#39;s drain hole. 
     The user&#39;s need to collect the waste from the bottom of the sink, pile it up on the strainer, remove the strainer, empty the waste into the garbage can, and clean the strainer from pieces of scummy waste that often stick to it, is unpleasant, to say the least, and constitutes a problem for the general public. The present invention offers an appropriate, efficient and inexpensive solution to this problem. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention refers to a disposable strainer ( 1 ) designed for use in sinks, bathtubs, drain holes and so on. For the sake of convenience and fluency, the following explanation refers to sink strainers, although the invention encompasses and refers also to strainers designed to be used in bathtubs, drain holes and so on. 
     According to one embodiment, a system is provided that comprises:
         a sink or bathtub having a surface and a hole, and   a thin removable strainer positioned on the hole, the thin removable strainer having:       

     a middle part with perforations and an edge, wherein the middle part fits into the hole, 
     and the edge extends to the surface of the sink or bathtub, 
     and wherein the edge is thin and made from a flexible, water-proof polymeric material 
     that does not lose mechanical strength when wettened, and adheres to the sink or bathtub surface upon contact with water. 
     Furthermore and in accordance with another embodiment, said perforated middle portion is concave. 
     Furthermore and in accordance with another embodiment, said disposable strainer is capable of being printed upon. 
     Furthermore and in accordance with another embodiment, the edge has a width sufficient to prevent garbage on the strainer or on the sink surface adjacent to the strainer from falling into the sink hole when the strainer is removed from the sink. 
     In accordance with yet another embodiment, a disposable strainer to be used on a drain hole in a surface of a sink or a bathtub is provided, the disposable strainer comprises: 
     a perforated middle part substantially corresponding to the drain hole; and 
     a circumferential edge, wide and thin enough to cause a portion of the circumferential 
     edge to adhere to the surface when the surface is wet. 
     Furthermore and in accordance with another embodiment, said perforated middle portion is concave. 
     Furthermore and in accordance with another embodiment, said disposable strainer is capable of being printed upon. 
     Furthermore and in accordance with another embodiment, said circumferential edge is wide enough to be in contact with the surface beyond the drain hole. 
     Furthermore and in accordance with another embodiment, the surface, from which the drain hole drains water and waste, is a part of a sink, bathtub, or floor. 
     Furthermore and in accordance with another embodiment, said perforated middle part can be stretched downwardly and into the drain hole. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The drawings attached to the application are not intended to limit the scope of the invention and the possible ways of its application. The drawings are intended only to illustrate the invention and constitute only one of many possible ways of its application. 
         FIG. 1  illustrates an upper view of a strainer in accordance with a first embodiment including the middle part, which is concave and has perforations. 
         FIG. 2  illustrates a side view of the strainer shown in  FIG. 1  including the middle part, which is concave and has perforations. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the strainer including the middle part, which is concave and has perforations. 
         FIG. 4  illustrates a side view of a strainer in accordance with another embodiment including the middle part, which is concave and has perforations, and a rim around the middle part (in closed position). 
         FIG. 5  illlustrates a side view of the strainer shown in  FIG. 4  including the middle part, which is concave and has perforations, and the rim around the middle part (in open position). 
         FIG. 6  illustrates a perspective view of the strainer shown in  FIG. 4  including the middle part, which is concave and has perforations, and the rim around the middle part (in open position). 
         FIG. 7  illustrates a cross-sectional side view of the strainer shown in  FIG. 2  placed in a drain hole and onto the surface of a sink 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The strainer ( 1 ), subject of the present invention, can be round or any other shape, for instance, elliptical, square, triangular and so on. The specific shape of the strainer fits the common kinds of sinks used in relevant locations. It is desirable that the overall diameter of the strainer ( 1 ) be wider than the diameter of standard strainers commonly in use today so that an outer rim or a circumferential edge ( 3 ) is wide enough to be in contact with the surface of the sink. In such a way, more waste can be collected on the strainer ( 1 ) in an easy and efficient manner and it adheres to the surface of the sink. 
     The middle part ( 2 ) of the strainer has perforations ( 21 ). The middle part ( 2 ) of the strainer ( 1 ) is designed to be placed on or over the sink&#39;s drain hole. The strainer ( 1 ) enables water to flow through the perforations ( 21 ) into the drain, whereas the waste is stopped and accumulated on the strainer ( 1 ), as in the case of a standard strainer. The middle part ( 2 ) of the strainer is generally fitted to the drain holes of sinks and the edge ( 3 ) rests on the surface of the sink. The middle part of the filter may be round (although the invention applies also to any other shape), and of a size (diameter) that matches the diameter of the sink&#39;s drain hole. The diameter of the middle part ( 2 ) of the strainer should be slightly smaller than the diameter of the drain hole so as to enable the strainer ( 1 ) to be quickly and easily placed over the drain hole. 
     The middle part ( 2 ) of the strainer ( 1 ) can be flat and flush with the rest of the strainer ( 1 ). Nevertheless, the most preferable and efficient design includes a concave middle part ( 2 ), as depicted in the drawings attached to the application, so as to enable the waste to accumulate in the concavity of the middle part ( 2 ) of the strainer. The strainer ( 1 ) is depicted, for instance, in  FIGS. 1-3 . 
     In order to better explain the placement of the strainer onto the drain hole, reference is made to  FIG. 7 .  FIG. 7  depicts a cross-sectional side view of the strainer placed into a drain hole and onto the surface of a sink. The middle part ( 2 ) is placed within the hole of the drain hole ( 32 ) wherein filtered water is being drained through the perforations ( 21 ) to the drain and the circumferential edge ( 3 ) is placed on the edges of the drain hole ( 32 ) and the surface of the sink ( 30 ). It should be noted that the drain hole has a portion that is parallel to the surface of the sink. When water is introduced into the sink, the edge ( 3 ) that is wide enough and thin enough adheres to the surface of the sink ( 30 ) beyond the drain hole and prevents waste from reaching beneath the edge ( 3 ) and into the drain hole ( 32 ). 
     The middle part ( 2 ) of the strainer can be pulled downward so as to create the concavity that fits over the sink&#39;s drain hole and into which the waste accumulates. In order to enable convenient and easy marketing, sale, and storage of the strainers, they may be supplied in almost flat condition, as depicted in  FIG. 4 . The strainer ( 1 ) comprises, as mentioned, a middle part ( 2 ) that extends downward and creates a concavity with a circumferential rim ( 22 ) as depicted in  FIG. 5 . The rim ( 22 ) around the middle part ( 2 ) is corrugated and can be stretched open or closed, like an accordion. The strainer ( 1 ) may be sold in packets that contain several dozen strainers, or more, in closed (flat) condition. Before use, one strainer is extracted from the packet, the middle part ( 2 ) is pressed downward, and the rim ( 22 ) is stretched so that the strainer is concave and ready for use. 
     The strainer rim ( 22 ) is preferably thin and made from a flexible, water-proof polymeric material (that does not lose mechanical strength when wettened). The strainer ( 1 ) is preferably made from environment-friendly materials. As mentioned herein before, the edge of the strainer extends beyond the hole of the sink so that it should also become adhesive with the sink (or bathtub or floor) surface upon contact with water. In other words, after the strainer ( 1 ) is placed over the drain hole, the contact between the strainer and the sink should cause it to adhere to the sink and thus seal the drain hole. Obviously, for this affect to occur, the strainer has the edge that extends to the sink surface itself Accordingly, in accordance with one aspect, a sink system is provided, comprising a sink having a surface and a hole, and a strainer positioned on the hole, the strainer having a middle part with perforations, and an edge, wherein the middle part fits into the hole and the edge extends to the surface of the sink. The strainer ( 1 ) may be made of a material of the kind that can be printed on. Thus, the strainer ( 1 ) may serve as advertising space, particularly for detergents and so on, or be printed on for aesthetic purposes, such as a flowered print and so on. 
     The strainer ( 1 ), subject of the invention, is used as follows: The user places the disposable strainer over the sink&#39;s drain hole. The wetness of the sink causes the strainer ( 1 ) to adhere to the sink and prevents it from moving from its position over the drain hole. The user can collect the waste on the strainer, fold it into a kind of small garbage bag that contains the waste and throw it into the garbage can along with the waste that is in it. In this sense, the strainer ( 1 ) is disposable. The user can use an existing standard strainer on a daily basis, and, when there is a lot of waste or scummy waste or in any other appropriate case, the user can place the disposable strainer ( 1 ) over the sink&#39;s drain hole and solve the problem. When the strainer ( 1 ) is used in a bathtub, the disposable strainer ( 1 ), subject of the invention, is placed over the drain hole, and thus the extremely unpleasant task of collecting up the hair that clogs the drain is avoided. When the strainer ( 1 ) is used on domestic floor drain holes (located usually in the bathroom floor), for instance, when washing the floors and draining water into the drain hole, the disposable strainer ( 1 ), subject of the invention, is placed over the said drain hole, and thus waste is prevented from entering the plumbing system, and the need to collect such waste from the wash water is avoided. 
     The strainer ( 1 ), subject of the present invention, constitutes an efficient and inexpensive solution to the above-mentioned problems. The strainer ( 1 ), subject of the invention, offers many advantages, including: (a) due to the strainer&#39;s wide edges, a larger amount of waste may be accumulated on it; (b) use of the disposable strainer avoids the need, the trouble, and the unpleasantness of emptying the waste into the garbage can and rinsing the strainer before reusing it, as in the case of the standard strainer; (c) using the disposable strainer is convenient, efficient, and more hygienic; and (d) when the invention is implemented on bathtubs and floor drains holes (usually located in bathroom floors), the strainer ( 1 ), subject of the invention, constitutes an efficient way of preventing waste from entering the plumbing system. The width of the circumferential edge is sufficient to prevent garbage on the strainer (see point (a) above) or on the sink surface adjacent to the strainer from falling into the sink hole when the strainer is removed from the sink. 
     While the present invention has been described in connection with what is considered the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is understood that this invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements.