Abstract:
A potting training device for preventing a potty-training child&#39;s urine stream from passing through the opening formed between the toilet seat and the toilet bowl. The device is made of a flexible, water-resistant, preferably non-porous sheet material, having a folding seam separating a urine-deflecting surface and a plurality of attachment tabs. An adhesive material is layered on the surface of each attachment tab and attaches the attachment tabs to the underside of the toilet seat. The sheet material, in its unattached flat configuration, is manipulated into a curved configuration that matches the curvature of the toilet seat, and is attached thereto. The potty training device is also not visible to the observer unless the toilet seat is lifted up, in a vertical position or viewed from a position to the rear of the attachment point when the toilet seat is down.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application claims the benefit of provisional application Ser. No. 60/682,829, filed on May 20, 2005. 
     
    
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH  
       [0002]     Not applicable.  
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     This invention is directed to a potty training device that functions as a urine deflector when attached to the underside of an adult sized toilet seat. The invention is designed to block the opening formed between the toilet seat and the toilet bowl. This invention reduces accidental wetting of clothing and the floor that occurs when a child&#39;s urine stream passes through the opening between the toilet seat and the toilet bowl.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004]     It is a major accomplishment for a child to reach the stage of sitting on an adult toilet during potty training. Obtaining control over the direction of urine flow, however, may take some time for a child to master, particularly a male child. When sitting on the toilet, a child&#39;s urine stream is not always directed into the toilet. There are occasions where the child&#39;s urine stream finds its way out of the toilet through the opening formed between the toilet seat and the toilet bowl. This results in the urine stream coming in contact with the child&#39;s pants or other clothing and the floor. This can be very upsetting for a child who is trying to do their best to stay dry and master going to the toilet, as well as the parent who has to continually clean up the mess.  
         [0005]     Urine deflecting devices are not new to the art. Many of the known devices, however, are designed for adult males to prevent urine from splashing onto the seat during urination from a standing position. Few potty training devices address preventing the urine stream from passing through the opening between the toilet seat and toilet bowl.  
         [0006]     Truettner (U.S. Pat. No. 6,289,527) discloses a molded plastic device that attaches to the underside of the toilet seat to prevent a child&#39;s urine stream from passing through the opening formed between the toilet bowl and the toilet seat. When attached to the underside of the toilet seat, the prior art device is not visible when the toilet seat is down, unless viewed from a position to the rear of the attachment point.  
         [0007]     However, this prior art device is bulky, which results in increased manufacturing and sales costs. The device is also difficult to clean and frequent replacement increases expense for the consumer. Another drawback is that the prior art device has a fixed configuration. Given the variety of toilet seat shapes, the fixed configuration of the prior art device limits its compatibility with many toilet seats. Therefore, in order to accommodate the full range of toilet seat shapes, the prior art device would have to be manufactured in a variety of configurations, adding additional expense to manufacturing costs and to the consumer.  
         [0008]     What is needed is an inexpensive device that is effective for blocking the opening formed between the toilet seat and the toilet bowl, that requires minimal manufacturing cost, and is easy to clean and replaced without significant expense to the consumer. Additionally, there is a need for a single device that is flexible enough to match the curvature of any toilet seat and still remain hidden when the toilet seat is down, unless viewed from a position to the rear of the attachment point.  
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0009]     The potty training device of the present invention, effectively blocks the opening formed between the toilet seat and the toilet bowl and provides a simple and inexpensive solution to the above-described problems. In its unattached configuration, the potty training device of the present invention is a flat sheet material that is manipulated into a curved configuration and attached to the underside of a toilet seat, as shown in  FIGS. 7 and 8 . The potty training device comprises a sheet material and a means for attaching the sheet material to the underside of a toilet seat. The sheet material further comprises a urine-deflecting surface, a folding seam, and a plurality of attachment tabs. Each attachment tab has layered thereon, an adhesive material, which provides the means for attaching the sheet material to the underside of the toilet seat. The device is made from any sheet material that is flexible, water resistant and preferably non-porous.  
         [0010]     More specifically, as shown in  FIG. 1 , an embodiment of the device of the present invention comprises a sheet material  100  having a plurality of attachment tabs  1 , a folding seam  3 , a urine-deflecting surface  4  and an adhesive material  2  layered on the surface of each attachment tab  1 . As shown in  FIG. 7  and  FIG. 8 , the sheet material  100  is attached to the underside of a toilet seat  50  in a curved configuration and follows the curvature of the toilet seat  50  at the attachment point. The sheet material  100  may be any material that has the aforementioned characteristics of flexibility and water resistance. The sheet material  100  is also strong and flexible enough to resist tearing or breaking during manual manipulation and attachment, and provides rigidity to the urine deflecting surface  4  once in place on the toilet seat  50 .  
         [0011]     In another embodiment, the device of the present invention comprises: a sheet material  100  having a folding seam  3 , a plurality of attachment tabs  1  and a urine-deflecting surface  4 , wherein the plurality of attachment tabs  1  is positioned above and in contact with the folding seam  3 , and a urine-deflecting surface  4  positioned below and in contact with the folding seam  3 . The folding seam  3  is positioned horizontally along the width of the sheet material  100  thereby separating the plurality of attachment tabs  1  and the urine-deflecting surface  4 .  
         [0012]     For the purposes of description, reference number  1  in the relevant figures refers to either a single attachment tab or a plurality of attachment tabs. When referring to more than one attachment tab, the phrase “plurality of attachment tabs” is used throughout the specification, unless otherwise indicated. In a particular embodiment of the present invention, the means for attaching the sheet material  100  to the underside of toilet seat  50  comprises an adhesive material  2  layered on each attachment tab  1 . Each attachment tab  1  folds down along the folding seam  3  away from the urine deflecting surface  4 , to expose the adhesive material  2  to the underside of the toilet seat  50 . With each attachment tab  1  folded as described, the sheet material  100  is manually manipulated into a curved configuration, which separates the plurality of attachment tabs  1  as shown in  FIG. 4  and  FIG. 6 . Once in a curved configuration, the sheet material  100  is attached to the underside of the toilet seat  50  by pressing the adhesive material  2  on each attachment tab  1  against the underside of the toilet seat  50 . In the curved configuration, the urine deflecting surface  4  is the concave side of the sheet material  100  and faces to the rear of the toilet seat. The flexibility of the sheet material  100  allows for manual manipulation into various curvatures, so as to accommodate the shape of many different toilet seats.  
         [0013]     The sheet material  100  preferably has a rectangular configuration. Once the sheet material  100  is attached to the underside of the toilet seat, the dimensions of the urine-deflecting surface  4  are sufficient to block the opening  52  formed between the toilet seat  50  and the toilet bowl  51 . Additionally, the dimensions of the urine-deflecting surface  4  are sufficient to avoid contact with the toilet bowl  51  when the toilet seat  50  is lifted to, or lowered from, a vertical position. The dimensions of the sheet material  100  are also sufficient to allow for variations in the lateral direction of a child&#39;s urine stream. Further, the sheet material  100  once attached, is not visible to the observer unless the toilet seat  50  is raised, is in an upright vertical position or viewed from a position to the rear of the attachment point when the toilet seat  50  is down. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0014]      FIG. 1  is a front view of the urine deflector of the present invention, in a flat configuration.  
         [0015]      FIG. 2  is a cross sectional view of the urine deflector of the present invention depicted in  FIG. 1 , taken along line  2 - 2 .  
         [0016]      FIG. 3  is the cross sectional view of the urine deflector of the present invention shown in  FIG. 2 , with the attachment tab folded down, thereby resulting in the sheet material  100  having an L-shaped configuration.  
         [0017]      FIG. 4  is a top view of the urine deflector of the present invention in a curved configuration, showing separation of the top corners of adjacent attachment tabs.  
         [0018]      FIG. 5  is the cross sectional view of the urine defector of the present invention shown in  FIG. 3 , having a protective covering layered on the adhesive layer.  
         [0019]      FIG. 6  is a plan view of the urine deflector depicted in  FIG. 4 .  
         [0020]      FIG. 7  is top view of the urine deflector depicted in  FIG. 4 , attached to the underside of a toilet seat.  
         [0021]      FIG. 8  is a cross-sectional side view of the urine deflector attached to the underside of a toilet seat taken, as depicted in  FIG. 7 , taken along the line  8 - 8 .  
         [0022]      FIG. 9  is a front view of the urine deflector of the present invention, in a flat configuration, showing an additional sheet material layered onto the urine-deflecting surface wherein the left, right and bottom edges of the additional sheet material extend beyond the left, right and bottom edges of the urine-deflecting surface.  
         [0023]      FIG. 10  is a cross sectional view of the urine deflector of the present invention depicted in  FIG. 9 , taken along lines  10 - 10 .  
         [0024]      FIG. 11  is the cross sectional view of the urine deflector shown in  FIG. 10 , with the attachment tab folded down, thereby resulting in the sheet material  100  having an L-shaped configuration. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0025]     The potty training device of the present invention comprises a sheet material and a means for attaching said sheet material to the underside of a toilet seat. The sheet material further comprises: a urine-deflecting surface, a folding seam and a plurality of attachment tabs. The present invention is also directed to a potty training device for blocking the opening  52  formed between the toilet seat  50  and the toilet bowl  51 , as shown in  FIG. 8 , wherein the potty training device  100  comprises a sheet material and a means for attaching the potty training device to the underside of a toilet seat, wherein the sheet material further comprises: a urine-deflecting surface, a folding seam and a plurality of attachment tabs.  
         [0026]     The present invention is also directed to a potty training device comprising a sheet material, wherein the sheet material comprises a folding seam, a urine deflecting surface, a plurality of attachment tabs and an adhesive material layered on each attachment tab within the plurality of attachment tabs, wherein the adhesive material attaches the sheet material to the underside of a toilet seat.  
         [0027]     The potty training device is made from a sheet material  100  that is flexible, water-resistant and preferably non-porous. Any material having these characteristics is suitable for the invention. In a particular embodiment of the invention, the sheet material  100  is selected from a rubber or plastic material, wherein a plastic material is particularly preferred. While any plastic material having the above characteristics can be used, the plastic material may be selected from polystyrene films, polyester films, polyacetate films, polyvinyl films, polycarbonate films, polyethylene films, polypropylene films and T EFLON.  For the invention, preferred plastic materials are: polyester, polycarbonate and polyvinyl films. Examples of suitable polyester films are M ELINEX,  M YLAR,  T EIJIN,  T ETORON  and T EONEX.  Examples of suitable polycarbonate films are M AKROFOL  and B AYFOL.  Examples of suitable polyvinyl films are soft vinyl and ridged vinyl. Mylar and ridged vinyl are particularly preferred plastic materials for the invention.  
         [0028]     The thickness of the sheet material  100  should not compromise its flexibility. Regardless of the thickness and type of sheet material used, it should be flexible enough to readily conform to the curvature of the toilet seat  50  and strong enough to resist tearing or breaking during manipulation and attachment to the underside of the toilet seat. The thickness of the sheet material  100  should also provide rigidity to the urine-deflecting surface  4  when attached to the toilet seat  50 . The thickness of sheet material  100  ranges from 0.005-0.025 mils; more specifically, 0.005, 0.006, 0.007, 0.008, 0.009, 0.010, 0.011, 0.012, 0.013, 0.014, 0.015, 0.016, 0.017, 0.018, 0.019, 0.020, 0.021, 0.022, 0.023, 0.024 or 0.025 mils. In a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, the sheet material  100  is a Mylar film or a ridged vinyl film having a thickness of 0.010, 0.015 or 0.020 mils.  
         [0029]     The sheet material  100  preferably has a rectangular shape. For the purpose of defining spatial orientation, the folding seam  3  separates the top portion of the sheet material  100  from the bottom portion. The top portion of the sheet material  100  comprises the plurality of attachment tabs  1  and bottom portion of the sheet material  100  comprises the urine-deflecting surface  4 . The height of the sheet material  100  is defined as the length from the top edge of an attachment tab  1  to the bottom edge of the urine-deflecting surface  4 . The width of the sheet material  100  is defined as the length from the left edge to right edge of the sheet material  100 . The width of the sheet material  100  is greater than its height.  
         [0030]     In a particular embodiment of the invention, the entire top portion of the sheet material  100  comprises the plurality of attachment tabs  1 , the entire bottom portion of the sheet material  100  comprises the urine-deflecting surface  4  and both the plurality of attachment tabs  1  and the urine-deflecting surface  4  are in contact with the folding seam  3 . The bottom corners of the sheet material  100  comprising the urine-deflecting surface  4  may optionally be rounded and the top corners of the sheet material  100  comprising the outermost attachment tabs are preferably squared to provide maximum surface area for the adhesive material  2  layered thereon.  
         [0031]     The width of the sheet material  100  is selected to provide sufficient coverage for the variation in the lateral direction of a child&#39;s urine stream. While not intending to be limited to any particular width for the sheet material  100 , preferred widths are from 6-9 inches. The height of sheet material  100  is selected to provide sufficient attachment surface area to the plurality of attachment tabs  1 , and allow the urine-deflecting surface  4  to completely block the opening formed between the underside of the toilet seat  50  and the top of the toilet bowl  51 . While not intending to be limited to any particular height for sheet material  100 , preferred heights range from 1.5-3 inches. In a particular embodiment of the invention the sheet material  100  has a rectangular dimension of 6 inches by 3 inches or 6 inches by 2 inches.  
         [0032]     The folding seam  3 , as shown in  FIG. 1  is linear and extends the full width of the sheet material  100 . Where rubber or plastic is selected for sheet material  100 , folding seam  3  is prepared using any means known in the art for creating folds in material sheets having the above-mentioned characteristics. While not intending to be limited to any particular method of making the folding seam  3 , an example of a suitable method of preparing the folding seam  3  comprises scoring the surface of the sheet material  100  with a cutting tool, such that the resulting cut line does not penetrate the entire thickness of the sheet material  100 , as depicted in  FIG. 2 .  
         [0033]     In another example, the folding seam  3  is prepared by linearly perforating the sheet material  100 . In still another example, the folding seam  3  is prepared by creating linear depressions in the sheet material  100 , such that along the length of the created folding seam  3 , the thickness of the sheet material  100  where a depression is formed, is less than the thickness of the non-depressed portions of the sheet material  100 . The depressions may be positioned on one or both sides the sheet material  100 . Therefore, where a depression method is used, the folding seam  3  may be prepared by making a single contiguous linear depression on one or both sides of the sheet material  100 , or by making a plurality of individual linearly arranged depressions on one or both sides of the sheet material  100 .  
         [0034]     As depicted in  FIG. 1 , the sheet material  100  further comprises a plurality of attachment tabs  1 , wherein each attachment tab  1  is in contact with the folding seam  3 . Additionally, adjacent attachment tabs  1  are separated by a linear cut  5  in the sheet material  100 . Each linear cut  5  passes through the entire thickness of the sheet material  100 , and is perpendicular to, and terminates at the folding seam  3 .  
         [0035]     The sheet material  100  of the present invention may comprise any number of attachment tabs  1 . Depending on the size of the sheet material  100 , from 4-10 attachment tabs  1  are preferred. An odd number of attachment tabs  1  is particularly preferred, because the center attachment tab provides a visual reference point for centering the sheet material at the attachment point on the underside of the toilet seat  50 . Thus, in a particular embodiment of the invention, 5, 7 or 9 attachment tabs  1  are preferred.  
         [0036]     For a given sheet material  100 , all attachment tabs preferably have the same dimensions and are evenly distributed across the width of the sheet material  100 . The height of each attachment tab  1  preferably is from one-third to one-half the height of the sheet material  100 . The “height of the attachment tab” is defined as the length from the top edge of the attachment tab  1  to the folding seam  3 . In a particular embodiment of the invention, the height of the attachment tab  1  is 1.0 inch.  
         [0037]     In order to attach the sheet material  100  to the underside of the toilet seat, an adhesive material  2  is layered each attachment tab  1 . The attachment tab  1  is folded away from the urine-deflecting surface  4  along the folding seam  3 , as shown in  FIG. 3 , resulting in the sheet material  100  having an L-shaped configuration. Once in the L-shaped configuration, the sheet material  100  is then manipulated into a curved configuration such that the top corners of adjacent attachment tabs  1  separate as shown in  FIG. 4 . In this curved configuration the adhesive material is applied to the underside of the toilet seat by pressing the attachment tabs  1  against the seat, thereby attaching the sheet material  100  to the toilet seat.  
         [0038]     While any means for attaching the potty training device to the underside of a toilet seat  50  can be used, an adhesive material  2  is preferred. The adhesive material  2  is a pressure sensitive adhesive strip or resin that is layered onto each attachment tab  1  and once applied to the underside of the toilet seat  50 , is preferably strong enough to hold the sheet material  100  in place until physically removed by the consumer and not damage the finish of the toilet seat  50  during removal.  
         [0039]     While not intending to be limited to any particular type of adhesive material, a suitable adhesive material is manufactured by 3M Corporation under the trade name P OSTER  T APE.  Regardless of the type of adhesive material used, it is applied to the surface of each attachment tab  1 , as shown in  FIG. 2 , and may optionally cover the entire surface area each attachment tab  1 .  
         [0040]     A removable protective covering  6  may also be layered on the surface of the adhesive material  2 . In a particular embodiment, the removable protective covering  6  is configured to form a removal tab  6   c,  as shown in  FIG. 5 . For this particular embodiment the length of each removable protective covering  6  is preferably from 2.25-3.00 times the length of the adhesive material  2 . The length of the adhesive material  2  on an attachment tab  1  is defined as the distance from the edge of the adhesive material  2  near the top edge of the attachment tab  1  to the edge of the adhesive material  2  near the folding seam  3 .  
         [0041]     As shown in  FIG. 5 , the removable protective covering  6  comprises a lower layer  6   a  and an upper layer  6   b.  The lower layer  6   a  is layered on the surface of the adhesive material  2  in a direction starting from the top of an attachment tab  1 , towards the folding seam  3 . At the folding seam  3 , the lower layer  6   a  is folded back on itself, thereby creating upper layer  6   b,  which is layered on top of lower layer  6   a  and extends past the top of the attachment tab  1 . The portion of the upper layer  6   b  extending beyond the top of the attachment tab  1  forms a removal tab  6   c,  that when pulled, exposes the surface of the adhesive material  2  to the under side of the toilet seat  50 .  
         [0042]     The sheet material  100  is attached to the underside of the toilet seat  50  by: 
        folding the plurality of attachment tabs  1  down and away from the urine deflecting surface  4  along the folding seam  3 , resulting in the sheet material  100  having an L-shaped configuration;     while in the L-shaped configuration, bending the left and right edges of the urine-deflecting surface  4  inward such that the top corners of adjacent attachment tabs  1  separate; and     pressing the adhesive material  2  layered on each attachment tab  1  against the underside of the toilet seat  50  at a desired attachment location, such that the curvature of the sheet material matches the curvature of the toilet seat  50 . 
 
 Alternatively, the sheet material  100  can be formed into a curved configuration during sequential attachment of individual attachment tabs  1 . In a preferred embodiment, the center attachment tab  1  is positioned at the desired location on toilet seat  50 , followed by removal of the protective covering  6  by pulling removal tab  6   c,  thereby exposing the adhesive material  2  to the underside of the toilet seat, and securing the attachment tab  1  thereto. This process is repeated, wherein the sheet material  100  is bent to individually position remaining attachment tabs  1  in a curved configuration prior to removal of the protective covering  6 . 
       
 
         [0046]     In another embodiment of the invention, as shown in  FIGS. 9, 10  and  11 , sheet material  100  further comprises an additional sheet material  7 , that is laminated onto the urine-deflecting surface  4 , wherein the left, right and bottom edges of the additional sheet material  7  extend beyond the left right and bottom edges of the urine-deflecting surface  4 . For this particular embodiment, the additional sheet material  7  is a softer material than sheet material  100  and is preferably a soft vinyl film.  
         [0047]     In another embodiment of the present invention, the sheet material  100  may be transparent, having a tinted or clear color. The transparent characteristic of the sheet material  100  facilitates easy cleaning, since the consumer can see the areas that need direct cleaning from a standing position when the toilet seat  50  is in a vertical position.  
         [0048]     To further assist in maintaining the sanitary condition of the urine-deflecting device of the present invention, the sheet material  100  may also be treated with any compound that inhibits the formation of odor, bacteria, mold or other urine associated growth. The sheet material  100  may also be a medical grade type material, such as a medical grade plastic for example, that is also resistant to the formation of odor, bacteria, mold or other urine associated growth.  
         [0049]     The invention has been described in terms of illustrative embodiments. It will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that various modifications and changes may be made to these embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. It is intended that the invention not be limited in any manner by the embodiments shown and described herein.