Patent Publication Number: US-9414719-B2

Title: Corner support platform

Description:
PRIORITY CLAIM 
     This application is a non-provisional of and claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/720,053 entitled “LEG SUPPORT FOR USE IN A SHOWER,” filed on filed Oct. 30, 2012, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     This invention relates to home furnishings and accessories. 
     BACKGROUND 
     At various times there is a need for a support platform that can be located in the corner of a room. A glaring example of this is in a shower stall. Women generally shave their legs in the shower and as such require some form of support for the elevated leg being shaved. However, shower stalls lack adequate provisions to aid in this task. Shower stalls also tend to have very little space so there is typically inadequate room to address this issue with typical furniture, step stools and the like. Similar problems within the shower stall extend to other areas of the home where a support platform can be used. For example, walls in a home typically have some sort of protrusion near the floor. This protrusion, commonly in the form of a base board, frequently interferes with furniture that is meant to contact the wall. A specific example of this is in a shower stall. In many showers the basin and the wall are not in the same plane. Instead a portion of the basin or something similar protrudes from the wall at the base. As such, it is difficult to keep a step or platform in a shower stall, which is already small, without taking up unnecessary space by having the step/platform unnecessarily far from the wall or with unnecessarily bulky supports holding the step/platform off the floor. One consequence is that typical shower stalls have no suitable place to support one&#39;s legs for shaving and that makes shaving legs difficult. 
     It is therefore desirable to provide an improved support surface for use in the various corners of homes such as in the shower, and in particular a support surface, which addresses the above described problems and/or which more generally offers improvements or an alternative to existing corner support surfaces. 
     SUMMARY 
     As variously discussed herein, there is provided a corner support device as defined in the accompanying claims. In accordance with various embodiments, a corner step may comprise a top support surface, a first contact surface, a second contact surface, and connecting walls. The first contact surface may be connected to the top support surface and configured to be parallel to or contact a first wall. The second contact surface may be connected to the top support surface and the first contact surface and may be configured to be parallel to or contact a second wall which is perpendicular to the first wall. The connecting walls may be connected to the top support surface, the first contact surface, and the second contact surface. One or more of the connecting walls may angle away from the top support surface such that the connecting walls do not contact the first wall or second wall while the first contact surface and the second contact surface are in contact with the first wall or the second wall respectively. 
     In accordance with various embodiments, a corner support platform may comprise a top support surface having two sides which are positioned to contact two perpendicular walls which are each perpendicular to the floor. The corner support platform may also comprise a support frame which connects to the top support surface such that the bottom of the support frame and the top support surface are not aligned but are offset from one another. This orientation may be such that the area directly below the top support surface is not occupied by the bottom of the support frame. 
     A leg support for use in the shower comprises a base module mechanically coupled to a support frame which includes the top supporting surface. The assembly can be supported against two adjacent perpendicular corner walls and floor of a shower and provides sufficient support for a user&#39;s leg upon the top portion. 
     This summary of the disclosure is given to aid understanding, and one of skill in the art will understand that each of the various aspects and features of the disclosure may advantageously be used separately in some instances, or in combination with other aspects and features of the disclosure in other instances. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The present invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the following figures in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a back view of a support surface. 
         FIG. 2  is a right side view of a support surface. 
         FIG. 3  is a top view of a support surface. 
         FIG. 4  is a bottom view of a support surface. 
         FIG. 5  is a top perspective view of a support base of a support surface. 
         FIG. 6  is a front perspective view of a support surface used in a shower. 
         FIG. 7  is a front view of a shower stall with a support surface. 
         FIG. 8  is a cross-section view A-A as shown in  FIG. 7  of a support surface. 
         FIG. 9  is a cross-section view B-B as shown in  FIG. 7  of a support surface. 
         FIG. 10  is a cross-section view C-C as shown in  FIG. 3  of a support surface located in a shower. 
         FIGS. 11A-11D  are back perspective views of support surfaces showing various friction surfaces. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     This invention relates to home furnishings and accessories that utilize corner space of a shower stall as a support platform. The support platform may include a top support surface with two sides positioned to contact two perpendicular walls of the corner. A support frame may connect to the top support surface such that the bottom of the support frame and the top support surface are offset from one another. This offset configuration of the support platform may prevent the support frame for interfering with anything in the area directly below the top support surface. 
     In accordance with various embodiments, as illustrated in  FIG. 1 , a corner support structure  100  may include a top support surface  110 . The top support surface  110  may be operable to support an item on its upper surface. The top surface  110  may be smooth or textured to provide for additional traction. For example, the top surface  110  may include texture grooves  112 . (Also shown in  FIG. 3 ) The texture grooves  112  may be contours in the surface. The contours may be included at the time of manufacture such as in a plastic injection molding tool. Alternatively the texture grooves may be machined into the surface after manufacture of the corner support structure  100 . The surface may also be textured by applying a textured coating to the surface after manufacture of corner support structure  100 . The corner support structure  100  may further include a contact surface  130  and a contact surface  160 . The top support surface  110  and the contact surfaces  130 / 160  may be connected. The connection may be at transition  105 . Transition  105  may be any variety of connection between surfaces residing in different planes. For example, transition  105  may be a round, flat, or line connection between top support surface  110  and contact surfaces  130 / 160 . 
     In accordance with various embodiments, the contact surface  130  and the contact surface  160  may be perpendicular to one another. However, in other embodiments, the contact surface  130  and the contact surface  160  may reside at angles to one another that reflect an angle between two walls for which the corner support structure is used. The contact surface  130  and the contact surface  160  may intersect at a transition  135 . In various embodiments, transition  135  may be a round transition from contact surface  130  to contact surface  160 . In other embodiments, transition  135  may be a flat transition from contact surface  130  to contact surface  160 , forming another wall. Such a flat transition may avoid interfering with the profile of the intersection corner between two walls for which the corner support structure is used. As discussed in more detail below, contact surfaces  130  and  160  may further include traction pads  132 / 162  adhered to their surface. 
     Corner support structure  100  may also include one or more walls that extend from the bottom of the corner support structure  100  up top support surface  110 . The one or more walls may include an interior wall  170 . In one embodiment, interior wall  170  may be substantially vertical. This orientation may aid in manufacturing the corner support structure with a straight pull plastic injection molding process. In another embodiment, interior wall  170  may angle away from the top support surface  110 . Alternatively, interior wall  170  may angle under the top support surface  110 . In one example, the wall  170  may extend up from the bottom of corner support structure  100  to the top support surface  110 . The one or more walls may further include side walls  150 / 180 . Side walls may be connected at either side of the interior wall  170 . As illustrated in  FIG. 2 , the one or more walls may further include an exterior wall  140 . Exterior wall  140  may be connected to side walls  150 / 180 . In accordance with various embodiments, the side walls  150 / 180 , exterior wall  140  and interior wall  170  may form a support frame for top support surface  110 , contact surface  160  and contact surface  130 . At the bottom of this support frame, the bottom edges of the side walls  150 / 180 , the exterior wall  140 , and the interior wall  170  all end in the same plane (i.e. the bottom plane of the corner support structure  100 ) forming a structure that may contact a floor  20  flatly. In accordance with various embodiments, a base member  120  may be attached to the bottom edges of the walls. 
     The support frame may have various reinforcing features. For example, as illustrated in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , exterior wall  140  may include ribs  142 . The ribs  142  may extend along the height of exterior wall  140 . While illustrated with respect to exterior wall  140 , ribs may also reinforce the rest of the support frame such that support frame does not collapse under a force exerted on the top surface  110 . 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 2 , the exterior wall  140  may reside at an angle  149  relative to the bottom plane of the corner support structure  100 . The angle  149  may be from 30 degrees to 90 degrees. For example, in one embodiment, the angle may be 74 degrees. It may be noted that the angle may vary based on the height of the corner support structure  100 , the area of the top support surface  110 , and the area of the bottom of the corner support structure  100  takes up, such as the area of the base member  120 . Variation in the angle  149  may be utilized to position the top support surface so that it is not directly above the bottom of the support frame and/or the base member  20 . One of ordinary skill in the art may be able to calculate the angle in order to place the bottom of the support frame in the desired position relative to the top surface. In other embodiments, the top support surface  110  may be positioned partially over the bottom of the support frame/base member  20 . 
     As illustrated in  FIGS. 1-2 , the contact surfaces  130 / 160  may only extend to length  137 , which may be a portion of the height of support structure  100 . The contact surfaces  130 / 160  may begin at a length of  136  from the bottom of the support structure  100 . By beginning at length  136 , the contact surfaces may avoid interfering with any protrusions at the base of the wall that the contact surfaces  130 / 160  contact. For example, length  136  may be greater than the height of the rim or curb of the basin in a shower stall such as curb  40 / 50  illustrated in  FIGS. 6-7 . Length  136  may be 3-12 inches tall. More specifically length  136  may be about 7 inches tall. Length  136  and length  137  may be combined to be a suitable height for utilizing the corner support. For example, in a shower stall use, length  136  and  137  may be combined to be 8-18 inches. More specifically, length  136  and  137  may be combined to be about 13-14 inches tall. 
     As the contact  130 / 160  surfaces may not extend to the bottom of the support frame, elements of the support frame may flare out in order to connect to the contact surfaces. As such, the exterior wall  140  may have wings  152 / 162 . The wings  152 / 162  include a portion of the exterior wall  140  near the top that attaches to contact surfaces. As illustrated in  FIGS. 1-2  wings  152 / 162  may flare out from exterior wall  140  in order to connect the exterior wall  140  to the contact surfaces  130 / 160  respectively. The contact surface  130 / 160  and the exterior wall  140  may intersect at a transitions  144 / 146  respectively. In various embodiments, transitions  144 / 146  may be round transitions from contact surfaces  130 / 160  to exterior wall  140 . In other embodiments, transitions  144 / 146  may be flat transitions. 
       FIG. 3  illustrates a top view of the corner support  112 . As shown herein the texture grooves  112  (also discussed above) may extend across the top surface  100  providing increased friction/traction for anything that comes into contact with the surface. In accordance with various embodiments, as illustrated in  FIG. 3 , the exterior wall  140  may have a convex curvature extending away from top surface  110 . Similarly illustrated in the bottom view of  FIGS. 4 and 5 , the corner support  100  may be formed in a shape that is a fraction of a circle. While the contact surfaces  130 / 140  may be perpendicular (or custom formed to the specific angle between two walls where the corner support  100  will be used) as indicated by angle  220 , the shape of the structure between these two walls may form the arcs of a circle extending out (the corner support  100  may also be other shapes such as square, triangular, oval, or any unique and custom profile.) For example, from transition  135  out to interior wall  170  may be radius  230 . From transition  135  out to exterior wall  140  may be radius  240 . Radius  230  may be sufficient to clear any protrusion from the various walls adjacent to the corner support  100 . Radius  240  may be sufficient to provide enough surface area to support the device and also enough surface area to provide sufficient traction from a traction pad to keep the corner support device  100  from sliding away from the walls. In various examples, radius  230  may be between 2 and 9 inches. More specifically, radius  230  may be between 5-6 inches. In various examples, radius  240  may be between 4 and 12 inches. More specifically, radius  240  may be between 8-9 inches. In one specific example, radius  230  may be about 5.5 inches and radius  240  may be about 8.3 inches. 
     In accordance with various embodiments, the angle  210  between side walls  150  and  180  may be less than the angle  220  between contact surfaces  130  and  160 . By having the angle  210  between side walls  150  and  180  be less than the angle  220  between contact surfaces  130  and  160 , the side walls may avoid interfering with any protrusions as the base of the shower stall. In one example, the angle  210  between side walls  150  and  180  may be from 10-80 degrees. More specifically, the angle  210  may be 40-60 degrees. In one specific example, the angle  210  may be 50 degrees. 
     By forming the corner support in a circular shape (or at least a portion of a circular shape) that floor area that the corner support  100  takes up is minimalized while the contact area of the corner support with the floor is maximized. This achieves a good balance between usefulness and taking up an efficient amount of space in the corner where the device is utilized. 
     In accordance with various embodiments, as illustrated in  FIG. 6  and alluded to above, a corner support structure  100  may be utilized in any situation in which two walls come together, such as wall  30  and wall  60 . The corner support structure  100  may lean against the walls  30 / 60  near the location in which they meet. The corner support structure  100  may also be supported by a floor  20 . At the top of the corner support structure  100 , a support surface  110  may be suitably located to support an object on the top of the corner support structure  100 . As illustrated in  FIG. 6  the object may be a person&#39;s leg  10 . It may be noted that the corner support structure  100  may be operable to support any object however as the figures utilize a shower stall as an example location for use of the corner support, the example object will be discussed herein with reference to a person&#39;s leg  10 . 
     The person&#39;s leg  10  may create a downward force, illustrated by arrow D in  FIG. 6 , on the corner support structure  100 . The resultant forces of the corner support structure  100  against the walls and floor are represented by arrows A, B, and C. Side surfaces of the corner support structure  100  are forced against the walls  30 / 60  along arrows B and C. A downward force drives the bottom of the corner support structure  100  against the floor. The downward force D is applied against the top support surface  110 . However, according to various embodiments and further discussed herein, the top support surface may not be located directly above the bottom of the corner support structure  100  where the downward force A is located. Nonetheless, the geometry of the corner support structure  100  allows the unit to maintain its position without slipping. 
     In accordance with various embodiments, as illustrated in  FIG. 7 , the corner support structure  100  may include a contact surface  130  located on the vertical side of the corner support structure  100 . The contact surface  130  may be located such that it may contact the vertical wall  30 . The contact surface  130  may connect with top support surface  110 . In various embodiments, the support surface  110  and the contact surface  130  may be perpendicular. However, in other embodiments, top support surface  110  may not be perpendicular to contact surface  130  as it may be more or less than 90 degrees offset from the contact surface  130 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 7 , the corner support structure  100  may further include a base element  120 . Base element  120  may be positioned at the bottom of the corner support structure  100 . In one embodiment, base element  120  may be in direct contact with the floor. In another embodiment, base element  120  may include traction pad  122 , which may in turn be in direct contact with floor  20 . In yet another embodiment, the bottom of corner support structure  100  may be in direct contact with the floor  20  or the bottom of the corner support structure  100  may include a traction pad. 
     In high friction environments, the contact surface, base member, or the corner support structure may be configured without a traction and contact the structural features of the environment directly, such as contact surface  130  directly against wall  30 . However, in low friction environments, such as a shower stall, where water on hard surfaces makes slipping of the corner support structure  100  more likely, the contact surface, base member, or the corner support structure may include a traction pad, with the traction pad making direct contact with the environment support features such as traction pad  132  directly against wall  30 . 
     In accordance with various embodiments, as illustrated in  FIG. 7 , a side wall of the corner support structure  100  is offset from the contact surface  130  according to relative position  134 . This relative position  134  is greater than the typical structural features that protrude out from wall  30  such as a base board  50 . Also shown in  FIG. 7 , the contact surface  130  may not extend all the way from the bottom of the support frame surface  130  to the floor  120 . Instead, the end of the contact surface  130  may be offset from the bottom of the support frame as indicated by relative position  136 . It may be noted that the relative positions  134  and  136  may be adjusted to any distance such that the bottom portion of the corner support  100  avoids contact with protrusions from walls  30 / 60  such as base boards  50 / 40  (e.g. the raised portion of a shower basin as specifically shown in  50 / 40  of  FIGS. 6-7 . 
     In accordance with various embodiments, as illustrated in the cross section of  FIG. 8 , as discussed above, the corner support structure  100  may be located in the corner of two walls  20 / 30  with traction pads  162 / 132  exerting a force against walls  20 / 30  along arrows B and C respectively. As illustrated herein, the exterior wall  140 , the contact surface  130 , and the contact surface  160  form the sides around volume  190  (also shown in  FIG. 10 ). Volume  190  may be formed as a part of a straight tooling pull of the mold that may form the corner support platform  100 . In accordance with various embodiments, as illustrated in  FIG. 9 , the bottom of the support frame and/or the base element is offset (i.e. not in contact with) the base boards  50 / 40 . This cross section also highlights the embodiment in which interior wall  170 , exterior wall  140 , and side walls  180 / 150  together form the volume  195  (also shown in  FIG. 10 ). Volume  195  may be formed as part of a straight tooling pull of the mold thus forming a useful device while simplifying manufacturing. 
     In accordance with various embodiments, the corner support  100  may include a traction pad such as those illustrated in  FIGS. 11A-11D . For example, a circular traction pad  132 A and circular traction pad  132 B, shown in  FIG. 11A , may be adhered to the face of the contact surface  130  and the contact surface  160  respectively. In another example, dual strips of traction pad such as traction pads  132 B and  162 B, shown in  FIG. 11B , may be adhered to the face of the contact surface  130  and the contact surface  160  respectively. In another example, a plurality of circular traction pads such as traction pads  132 C and  162 C, shown in  FIG. 11C , may be adhered to the face of the contact surface  130  and the contact surface  160  respectively. In another example, rectangular traction pads such as traction pads  132 D and  162 D, shown in  FIG. 11D , may be adhered to the face of the contact surface  130  and the contact surface  160  respectively. As discussed above and similarly illustrated in  FIG. 7 , the base member  120  may similarly include a traction pad  122 . This traction pad may be similar in shape to those discussed above or as shown in  FIG. 7 , the traction pad  122  may be formed the same shape as the base member  120  (while not shown traction pads  132 / 162  may likewise take the shape of their respective surfaces). The traction pads  122 ,  132 , and  162  may cover a substantial area of the contact surfaces  122 / 130 / 160 , such as more than half of their respective surface area. In other embodiments, the traction pads  122 ,  132 , and  162  may cover very little of the surfaces  120 / 130 / 160 , such as less than a quarter. Alternatively the pads may also occupy any range in-between. 
     The traction pads  122 / 132 / 162  are located in areas that touch the surrounding support structure, such as the shower walls  30 / 60  and the shower floor  20 . As such, the traction pads  122 / 132 / 162  may be specifically selected to limit the ability of the contact surfaces  130 / 160  to slip relative to the surrounding support structure which they contact such as shower walls  30 / 60  or shower floor  20 . The traction pads may be made from any traction improving material. For example, when used in a wet environment with hard surfaces such as a shower, the traction pads may be formed from a nonslip material such as neoprene rubber, but any material may be used. On other surfaces such as carpet more aggressive traction cleats may be utilized. In accordance with the various embodiments discussed herein, any traction improving surface may be utilized. 
     The corner support structure as described herein may be formed using plastic materials including, but not limited to, polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), poly carbonate (PC), polyamide (PA), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), and so on. In various embodiments, the corner support structure may be manufactured using any process including, but not limited to, plastic injection molding, vacuum forming, 3d printing, machining, and so on. 
     In accordance with one specific example of the corner support structure  100 , a base assembly comprises a base mechanically coupled to a base pad. The base pad has the shape of an inner arc mechanically coupled to an outer arc by two lines connecting the inner arc to the outer arc. The base is mechanically coupled to a support frame. The support frame has the shape of a partially rounded front portion mechanically coupled to a side portion. The side portion is mechanically coupled to side pads that can support the support frame against a wall. The side portion and the front portion are mechanically coupled to a top portion. The top portion is mechanically coupled to a foot rest surface. The base is injection molded acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS). The base pad may be a die cut ⅛ inch thick adhesive backed non-slip neoprene rubber. The foot rest surface comprises shallow ribs for non-slip. The side pads may be two die cut ⅛ inch thick adhesive backed non-slip neoprene rubber pads. In accordance with various embodiments, one or more of the elements of the support platform may be injection molded ABS. For example the base member and/or the support frame may be injection molded. While in some embodiments the base pads and side pads may be applied to the support platform structure with an adhesive, in other embodiments, the base pads and side pads may be formed as part of the device during the injection molding process. For example, the base pads and side pads may be insert molded or over-molded into the base member and support frame respectively during the injection molding process. 
     It should be noted that all directional and/or dimensional references (e.g., upper, lower, upward, downward, left, right, leftward, rightward, top, bottom, above, below, front, back, rear, forward, backward, rearward, inner, outer, inward, outward, vertical, horizontal, clockwise, counterclockwise, length, width, height, depth, and relative orientation) are only used for identification purposes to aid the reader&#39;s understanding of the implementations of the disclosed invention(s), and do not create limitations, particularly as to the position, orientation, use, relative size or geometry of the invention(s) unless specifically set forth in the claims. 
     Connection references (e.g., attached, coupled, connected, joined, and the like) are to be construed broadly and may include intermediate members between a connection of elements and relative movement between elements. As such, connection references do not necessarily infer that two elements are directly connected and in a fixed relation to each other.