US20120192344A1

US20120192344A1 - Portable Toilet Cover

Info

Publication number: US20120192344A1
Application number: US13/238,782
Authority: US
Inventors: Kenneth A. Novotny
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2011-01-13
Filing date: 2011-09-21
Publication date: 2012-08-02
Also published as: CA2728600C; CA2728600A1

Abstract

A cover for a portable toilet includes a front panel, a rear panel, two side panels and a roof panel arranged to fully span respective ones of the front wall, the rear wall, the two side walls and the roof member of the portable toilet. The roof panel has a window portion formed of a translucent material aligned with translucent material of the roof member of the portable toilet to communicate external light therethrough into the interior of the portable toilet. A lower panel of heat insulating material spans a bottom side of the portable toilet between spaced apart skid members on the bottom of the portable toilet. A strip of reflective material is also mounted on each of the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels.

Description

This application claims foreign priority benefits from Canadian Patent Application 2,728,600, filed Jan. 13, 2011.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a cover for a portable toilet in which the cover can provide some heat insulation while still allowing sufficient light penetration into the interior of the portable toilet through the roof panel thereof.

BACKGROUND

Portable toilets are commonly used in various temporary locations such as construction sites or at temporary events, for example parties, concerts and the like. Typical portable toilets have a front wall including a door, a rear wall, two side walls and a roof member of translucent material allowing some light to enter therethrough into the interior of the toilet so that no electrical light is required to be installed in the portable toilet for illumination.
Due to a problem with heat readily escaping the typical construction of portable toilets in colder climates, U.S. Pat. No. 6,622,319 by Mousseau et al proposes an insulating cover comprising a front panel, a rear panel, two side panels and a roof panel all formed of insulating material for spanning the respective front wall, rear wall, sides walls and top of the portable toilet. The insulating material of the roof panel obstructs the passage of light through the translucent roof member of the portable toilet however such that auxiliary lighting may be required to be installed in the portable toilet, otherwise the interior of the toilet is too dark for the comfort of users.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the invention there is provided a cover for a portable toilet including a front wall, a rear wall, two side walls connected between the front and rear walls, a door operatively mounted across a door opening in the front wall, and a translucent roof member spanning a top end of the portable toilet, the cover comprising:
a front panel arranged to fully span the front wall of the portable toilet;
a cut line in the front panel arranged for alignment with a perimeter of the door opening such that the cut line defines a door flap portion in the front panel arranged to span the door of the portable toilet;
a pair of side panels joined to the front panel so as to be arranged to fully span respective side walls of the portable toilet;
a rear panel joined to the side panels so as to be arranged to fully span the rear wall of the portable toilet; and
a roof panel joined to the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels so as to be arranged to fully span the roof member of the portable toilet;
at least a portion of the roof panel comprising a window portion formed of a translucent material.
The use of translucent material in the roof panel allows external light to be readily transmitted through the translucent roof member of the portable toilet in the usual manner. Translucent material in a cover for a toilet has previously not been attempted as cover are only known to be used for providing heat insulation and known translucent materials provide substantially no insulating value. It has been surprisingly discovered however that the use of heat insulating material only on the front, rear and side walls of the cover is sufficient to retain a comfortable amount of heat in the interior of the portable toilet even when the roof panel includes translucent material such that the cover according to the present invention can still retain heat in a portable toilet while allow natural light to enter into the interior through the roof for optimal comfort to the user.
Preferably the window portion of the roof panel of the cover is more transparent than the roof member of the portable toilet.
The front panel, the rear panel and the side panels are preferably thicker than the window portion of the roof panel so as to be arranged to be heat insulating.
The roof panel preferably solely comprise a single panel of translucent material such that the window portion fully spans the roof panel. The translucent material may comprise translucent fibres which are woven together.
There may be provided a vent opening in the window portion of the roof panel arranged to receive a vent in the roof member of the portable toilet therethrough.
Preferably the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels have a black exterior surface arranged to absorb solar heat.
Preferably reflective material is mounted on each of the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels.
The reflective material may comprise a horizontally extending strip arranged to span continuously between the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels at an intermediate location between top and bottom ends of the respective panels. More particularly, the reflective material may comprise two stripes of contrasting colours arranged to span continuously between the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels.
A lower panel of heat insulating material may be arranged to span a bottom side of the portable toilet. When the portable toilet comprises a pair of skid members protruding from a bottom side of the portion toilet at spaced apart locations so as to be arranged to receive lifting forks therebetween, the lower panel is preferably suitably sized so as to be arranged to fit between the skid members.
A front edge of the lower panel may include fasteners arranged to be secured to mating fasteners on the portable toilet below the door opening.
When some of the panels include anchoring loops at a bottom end thereof and a rope is arranged to span beneath the toilet between opposing anchoring loops to secure the cover to the portable toilet, the grommets in the lower panel are preferably provided along at least one edge of the panel so as to be arranged to receive the same rope of the anchoring loops therethrough for fastening the lower panel to the portable toilet.
According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a cover for a portable toilet including a front wall, a rear wall, two side walls connected between the front and rear walls, a door operatively mounted across a door opening in the front wall, a translucent roof member spanning a top end of the portable toilet, and a pair of skid members protruding from a bottom side of the portion toilet at spaced apart locations so as to be arranged to receive lifting forks therebetween, the cover comprising:
a front panel arranged to fully span the front wall of the portable toilet;
a cut line in the front panel arranged for alignment with a perimeter of the door opening such that the cut line defines a door flap portion in the front panel arranged to span the door of the portable toilet;
a pair of side panels joined to the front panel so as to be arranged to fully span respective side walls of the portable toilet;
a rear panel joined to the side panels so as to be arranged to fully span the rear wall of the portable toilet;
a roof panel joined to the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels so as to be arranged to fully span the roof member of the portable toilet; and
a lower panel of heat insulating material arranged to span a bottom side of the portable toilet;
the lower panel being suitably sized so as to be arranged to fit between the skid members.
According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a cover for a portable toilet including a front wall, a rear wall, two side walls connected between the front and rear walls, a door operatively mounted across a door opening in the front wall, and a translucent roof member spanning a top end of the portable toilet, the cover comprising:
a front panel arranged to fully span the front wall of the portable toilet;
a cut line in the front panel arranged for alignment with a perimeter of the door opening such that the cut line defines a door flap portion in the front panel arranged to span the door of the portable toilet;
a pair of side panels joined to the front panel so as to be arranged to fully span respective side walls of the portable toilet;
a rear panel joined to the side panels so as to be arranged to fully span the rear wall of the portable toilet;
a roof panel joined to the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels so as to be arranged to fully span the roof member of the portable toilet; and
a strip of reflective material mounted on each of the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels.
One embodiment of the invention will now be described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the portable toilet cover.

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the portable toilet cover.

FIG. 3 is a rear elevational view of the portable toilet cover.

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the portable toilet cover.

FIG. 5 is a bottom plan view of the portable toilet cover.

FIG. 6 is a top plan view of the portable toilet cover.

In the drawings like characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the different figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to the accompanying figures there is illustrated a portable toilet cover generally indicated by reference numeral 10. The cover 10 is particularly suited for use with a portable toilet 12 of the type commonly found on various temporary sites such as constructions sites or temporary events including concerts and the like.
The portable toilet typically comprises a front wall 14 spanning a front side, a rear wall 16 spanning a rear side, and two side walls 18 spanning laterally opposed sides of the toilet between the front and rear walls. A roof member 20 of rigid translucent material spans the top side of the toilet between the walls to fully enclose the hollow interior of the toilet.
The toilet typically further comprises a base 22 comprising a flat bottom panel spanning between two laterally opposed skid members 24 extending longitudinally between the front and rear walls adjacent respective ones of the two side walls 18 of the toilet. The skid members protrude downwardly beyond the bottom panel along opposing sides of the toilet such that the bottom panel is recessed upwardly in relation to the bottom of the skid panels when supported on a level supporting surface for accommodating lifting forks between the two skid members for handling of the portable toilet during installation or transport. The portable toilet further comprises a bench within the interior which integrally locates a waste reservoir therebelow between the bench and the bottom panel. Side vents 26 are located in the two side walls 18 adjacent the top end thereof to provide some ventilation between the interior and exterior of the toilet enclosure. The waste reservoir is also ventilated to the exterior by a vent pipe extending through the interior of the toilet from the reservoir to the roof member where the vent pipe 28 of the reservoir vent protrudes upwardly through the top end of the toilet enclosure.
The cover 10 according to the present invention is arranged to fully surround the various walls of the portable toilet to provide some insulation to the toilet for retaining heat therein.
More particularly the cover includes a lower panel 30 comprising flexible insulating material arranged to span the bottom panel of the toilet between the two skid members 24. The lower panel fully spans the bottom panel between the two skid members to fit between the two skid members without overlapping the skid members and interfering with the handling and transport of the portable toilet.
Mechanical fasteners 32 are provided at spaced locations along the front and rear edges of the lower panel for mating with corresponding fasteners installed in the bottom panel of the toilet. Typically, the fasteners comprise snap fasteners in which a base portion of the fastener is riveted to the plastic panel forming the bottom panel of the toilet while the mating fastener is punched through the flexible material forming the lower panel 30.
The cover further comprises a front panel 34 which is sized and shaped to fully span the front wall 14 of the toilet. A cut line 36 is formed in the front panel in alignment with a perimeter of a door opening in the front wall 14 which supports a door 29 of the toilet therein. The door 29 is hinged along one side of the door opening for pivotal movement about a vertical axis between open and closed position relative to the door opening in the front wall. The cut line follows the perimeter of the top edge of the door and one side of the door opening opposite the hinges of the door to communicate through to the bottom end of the front panel such that the cut line defines a door flap portion 38 in the front panel corresponding approximately in shape and size to the door 29 of the front wall of the toilet. A trim panel 38 mounted about the periphery of the door flap portion 38 so as to be arranged to overlap the cut line 36 in the front panel in the closed position of the door.
Fasteners 42 are mounted in the front panel along both sides of the cut line 36 for anchoring the front panel 34 to the front wall 14 of the toilet about the perimeter of the door opening as well as for securing the free edge of the door flap portion 38 to the free edge of the door panel 29 of the toilet. Fasteners 42 are also provided in alignment with the perimeter of the door opening where the hinges of the door are mounted such that the front panel remains secured to the front wall of the toilet where the door flap portion connects to the remainder of the front panel as the door is opened and closed. Each of the fasteners 42 includes a base portion which is riveted to the molded plastic wall forming the front wall of the toilet and a mating portion secured to the fabric forming the front panel such that the mating portion and base portion can be selectively secured such as in a snap fastener for example.
The front panel 34 further comprises two anchoring loops 44 protruding from the bottom edge thereof adjacent laterally opposed side edges of the front panel for fastening at the bottom side of the toilet as described in further detail below.
The cover also includes a rear panel 46 which is suitably sized and shaped to fully span the rear wall of the toilet similarly to the front panel, the rear panel includes three anchoring loops 48 protruding from the bottom edge thereof so that two of the loops are located adjacent laterally opposed sides of the rear panel while the third loop is centrally located therebetween.
The cover also includes two side panels 50 which are arranged to span respective ones of the two side walls 18 of the toilet. Accordingly, each side panel comprises a rectangular panel of flexible material spanning between respective side edges of the front panel and rear panel respectively. The side panels are joined between the front and rear panels at opposing sides of the toilet such that the front panel, the rear panel and the two side panels form a continuous wrap of integrally joined panels extending about the full rectangular perimeter of the toilet when mounted thereon. The panels may be joined together integrally or may comprise separate panels of material which are joined by suitable stitching and the like. Each of the side panels 50 includes a window pane 52 comprising a clear material in alignment with the side vents 26 in the side walls of the toilet. The window panes 52 block the ventilation through the side vents 26 to assist in retaining heat within the interior of the toilet while allowing light to penetrate therethrough.
The cover further comprises a roof panel 54 comprising a single panel of translucent material defining a window portion which fully spans the roof member at the top end of the toilet. The roof panel is a substantially rectangular panel of material which follows the domed profile of the roof member of the toilet when installed due to the domed profile of the top edge of the front and rear panels to which it is joined.
The material forming the roof panel comprises transparent or translucent plastic fibres which are woven together to form a flexible material defining a substantially uniform plastic sheet which is substantially waterproof. The fibres forming the woven transparent material of the roof panel are arranged to be more transparent than the material of the roof member so as to allow a considerable portion of the surrounding light to pass therethrough and through the roof member for illuminating the interior of the toilet enclosure. An aperture 56 is formed in the roof panel for receiving the vent pipe of the reservoir vent 28 communicating therethrough.
The panels forming the front, rear, side, and lower panels are much thicker than the roof panel and are formed of a multi-ply construction including a layer of heat insulating filler material between inner and outer shell layers so as to be arranged for heat insulating about the sides and bottom of the portable toilet enclosure.
The exterior surface of at least the front, rear and sides is arranged to be black for absorbing solar heat to further assist in the heat retention within the interior of the toilet enclosure.
The cover further includes a reflector 58 comprising two stripes of reflective material which extend horizontally about the full circumference of the cover and toilet upon which it is mounted. Accordingly the reflector includes reflective material spanning continuously across the front panel including the door flap portion 38, the two side panels, and the rear panel at an intermediate location which is generally central between top and bottom ends, but is closer to the top end so as to be located above the handle of the door of the toilet. The two stripes of reflective material are contrasting in colour, for example one of the stripes is white while the other is red to enhance the visibility of the cover and the toilet when the cover has a black exterior surface for absorbing solar heat.
The cover is further provided with apertures in alignment with a door handle and an indicator of a door 29 of the toilet. In particular, there is provided an indicator aperture 60 in the door flap portion in alignment with the occupation indicator of the toilet at a location below the reflector 58. A door handle aperture 62 is also provided in the door flap portion 38 in alignment with the handle of the door 29.
Additional pockets of transparent material are provided at various locations such as on the rear panel or centrally at the top end of the door flap portion 38. The pockets 64 accommodate various signs for advertising or for various indications such as the gender designated for using the toilet.
For installing the toilet cover, the toilet is initially positioned in an upright orientation so that the fully assembled cover can be slidably mounted over top of the top end of the toilet. The roof panel is aligned with the roof member such that the remaining panels depend therefrom in alignment with respective ones of the front, rear and side walls of the toilet. With the side walls and door flap portion aligned with the corresponding parts of the toilet, the toilet is then laid on its rear side for accessing the bottom of the toilet. The lower panel is usually installed at this point. A rope 66 is then used for connecting through all of the anchoring loops of the front and rear panels. In particular, the rope is initially secured to one of the side loops of the rear panel before being subsequently inserted through one of the loops of the front panel at the same side followed by the central rear loop followed by the other front loop and finally anchored to the remaining rear loop. An even amount of tension is provided on the rope to draw the anchoring loops towards one another which applies tension to the cover to hold the cover down over top of the top end of the toilet.
Once the toilet is again in the upright position, the fasteners in the front panel including the door flap portion are aligned with corresponding mounting locations on the front wall and door of the toilet so that the base portion of the fasteners can be installed on the toilet and the mating portions on the cover can then be secured to the respective base portions. The base portions are typically riveted through the plastic wall forming the wall of the toilet with the mating portion comprising a snap fastener securable to the base portion.
Typically, the lower panel is installed prior to the rope 66 by securing similar mechanical fasteners to the bottom panel of the toilet along the front and rear edges thereof. In particular fasteners are located at the front edge below the door opening and door flap portion of the cover.
In alternative embodiments, grommets may be provided in the front and rear edges of the lower panel for receiving the same rope therethrough which is used to connect the anchoring loops of the front and rear panels.
Since various modifications can be made in my invention as herein above described, and many apparently widely different embodiments of same made within the spirit and scope of the claims without department from such spirit and scope, it is intended that all matter contained in the accompanying specification shall be interpreted as illustrative only and not in a limiting sense.

Claims

1. A cover for a portable toilet including a front wall, a rear wall, two side walls connected between the front and rear walls, a door operatively mounted across a door opening in the front wall, and a translucent roof member spanning a top end of the portable toilet, the cover comprising:

a front panel arranged to fully span the front wall of the portable toilet;

a cut line in the front panel arranged for alignment with a perimeter of the door opening such that the cut line defines a door flap portion in the front panel arranged to span the door of the portable toilet;

a pair of side panels joined to the front panel so as to be arranged to fully span respective side walls of the portable toilet;

a rear panel joined to the side panels so as to be arranged to fully span the rear wall of the portable toilet; and

a roof panel joined to the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels so as to be arranged to fully span the roof member of the portable toilet;

at least a portion of the roof panel comprising a window portion formed of a translucent material.

2. The cover according to claim 1 wherein the window portion of the roof panel is more transparent than the roof member.

3. The cover according to claim 1 wherein the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels are thicker than the window portion of the roof panel so as to be arranged to be heat insulating.

4. The cover according to claim 1 wherein the window portion fully spans the roof panel.

5. The cover according to claim 4 wherein the roof panel solely comprises a single panel of translucent material.

6. The cover according to claim 1 wherein the translucent material comprises translucent fibres which are woven together.

7. The cover according to claim 1 wherein there is provided a vent opening in the window portion of the roof panel arranged to receive a vent in the roof member of the portable toilet therethrough.

8. The cover according to claim 1 wherein the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels have a black exterior surface arranged to absorb solar heat.

9. The cover according to claim 1 further comprising reflective material mounted on each of the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels.

10. The cover according to claim 9 wherein the reflective material comprises a horizontally extending strip arranged to span continuously between the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels at an intermediate location between top and bottom ends of the respective panels.

11. The cover according to claim 10 wherein the reflective material comprises two stripes of contrasting colours arranged to span continuously between the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels.

12. The cover according to claim 1 further comprising a lower panel of heat insulating material arranged to span a bottom side of the portable toilet.

13. The cover according to claim 12 for a portable toilet comprising a pair of skid members protruding from a bottom side of the portion toilet at spaced apart locations so as to be arranged to receive lifting forks therebetween, the lower panel being suitably sized so as to be arranged to fit between the skid members.

14. The cover according to claim 12 wherein a front edge of the lower panel includes fasteners arranged to be secured to mating fasteners on the portable toilet below the door opening.

15. The cover according to claim 12 wherein the lower panel includes grommets formed therein arranged to receive a rope therethrough for fastening the lower panel to the portable toilet.

16. The cover according to claim 15 wherein at least some of the panels include anchoring loops at a bottom end thereof and wherein the cover further comprises a rope arranged to span beneath the toilet between opposing anchoring loops to secure the cover to the portable toilet and wherein the grommets in the lower panel are provided along at least one edge of the panel so as to be arranged to receive said rope of the anchoring loops therethrough for fastening the lower panel to the portable toilet.

17. A cover for a portable toilet including a front wall, a rear wall, two side walls connected between the front and rear walls, a door operatively mounted across a door opening in the front wall, a translucent roof member spanning a top end of the portable toilet, and a pair of skid members protruding from a bottom side of the portion toilet at spaced apart locations so as to be arranged to receive lifting forks therebetween, the cover comprising:

a front panel arranged to fully span the front wall of the portable toilet;

a rear panel joined to the side panels so as to be arranged to fully span the rear wall of the portable toilet;

a roof panel joined to the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels so as to be arranged to fully span the roof member of the portable toilet; and

a lower panel of heat insulating material arranged to span a bottom side of the portable toilet;

the lower panel being suitably sized so as to be arranged to fit between the skid members.

18. The cover according to claim 17 wherein a front edge of the lower panel includes fasteners arranged to be secured to mating fasteners on the portable toilet below the door opening.

19. A cover for a portable toilet including a front wall, a rear wall, two side walls connected between the front and rear walls, a door operatively mounted across a door opening in the front wall, and a translucent roof member spanning a top end of the portable toilet, the cover comprising:

a front panel arranged to fully span the front wall of the portable toilet;

a strip of reflective material mounted on each of the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels.

20. The cover according to claim 19 wherein the reflective material comprises two horizontally extending stripes of contrasting colours arranged to span continuously between the front panel, the rear panel and the side panels at an intermediate location between top and bottom ends of the respective panels.