The present invention relates to a small home equipment which allows at the same time to dry and to iron clothes in standing position.

In the Italian patent Squilloni n° 1.278.725 it is described an equipment for ironing and cleaning in standing position, constituted by a dummy-shaped frame on which a transpiring coating is placed, said frame combined with a reclining partially holed table is connected to a box-shaped base inside which a circulation of warm air is obtained through a blower means which, carrying the air from the external, sends it inside the dummy-shaped frame, which is inflatable and fabricable. The ironing and the cleaning are obtained using a separate steam brush provided with a suitable boiler for producing the steam.

Even if the above embodiment achieves relevant advantages according to the prior art, using the equipment, some inconvenients regarding the ironing in a standing position on the dummy of parts of the clothes such as sleeves, jacket collars or shirt collars and trousers legs are however arised.

In the Italian patent Squilloni n° 1.289.843, it is described an implemented equipment for drying, ironing and cleaning which, overcoming the inconvenients arised in the patent Squilloni n° 1.278.725, allows at the same time the drying of the clothes and a first implemented ironing of the whole clothes placed in a standing position, but it needs a further finishing of the ironing on an horizontal table of work.

The described equipment in the patent Squilloni n° 1.289.843 includes a base containing the producing and circulating means of warm air, placed below a top frame on which the clothes are vertically inserted, to which a box-shaped ironing table is connected inside which air circulates, which is conveyed by holes present on its own top face and further it is warmed up and blown in a main, vertical, expansible, tubular sack to which it is possibile to connect further secondary sacks to achieve a shape similar to the clothes to treat.

The above described equipments being formed by complex parts, heavy and unwieldy components, are more suitable for an industrial use and to be used by professional personnel, excluding the domestic use.

Main aim of the present invention is to obtain a small equipment for drying and ironing at the same time, to use especially in domestic field, obtained providing the heating and the blow of the air, through means placed at the base of an expansible

counter-shape of the clothes to treat and which is able for the temperature of the blown air, for the flow rate of the same and for the peculiar characteristics of shape and working of the counter-shape of the clothes, to achieve completely the treatment of drying and ironing, included particularly difficult parts such as collars, cuffs, breast collars etc.

An other aim is to obtain a small equipment for completely drying and ironing the clothes without using a complementary ironining table as described in the previous patents.

An other aim is to obtain a small handy equipment whose working position is easy to adapt to the user's height.

An other aim is to obtain an equipment for drying and ironing clothes which is easy to adapt to the size of the clothes to treat, through an easy manouvre to carry out at due time.

Further aim is to obtain an equipment which is easy and unexpensive to manufacture without the use of complex technologies or particularly skilled craftsmanship and which can be sold at a low price, to satisfy the needs of an high number of users.

These and other aims are achieved by a small equipment for drying and ironing clothes in a standing position and especially in a domestic field which comprises a vertical tubular sack which inflates itself as counter-shape of a clothes through the inlet in its internal of warm air coming from a producing means placed in its own base; said vertical tubular is a one body sack in non-transpiring material having a shape similar to a clothes with sleeves, applied on a supporting frame which can be extended vertically and connects a circular carter containing the producing and the outlet means of the warmed air to a terminal head; said head constitutes at the same time the closing means of the upper opened terminal part of the sack whereas its lower terminal part is closed on the carter to which it is externally constrained; said tubular sack has furthermore holed areas substituted or coupled to inserts of transpiring fabric.

The sack can furthermore have means fit for reducing its own transversal size in order to change the size of the circumference of the tubular. The number and the position of said changing means of the transversal size will be those necessary according to different kind and size of the clothes which will be treated on the sack.

The whole set constituted by the sack and the carter is connected to a base which can be extended in height and provided with means for moving it on an horizontal plane.

The present invention allows to dry and iron clothes positioned on a supporting means, carried out in non-transpiring material having suitable holed transpiring areas,

inside which air comes which is dispensed by suitable blowing means, warmed up passing through means generating heat and being the quantity of air let in inside the supporting means bigger than the quantity of air coming out, the means inflates, so that the clothes is perfectly adherent to it and without folds.

The presence on the supporting means of holed transpiring areas corresponding to the areas when the relevant thickness of the clothes is present allows to uniform and to reduce the time of drying.

Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will more clearly arise from the following description, made as illustrative but not limitative example, with reference to the attached drawings in which: -figure 1 is a whole axonometric view of the invention in working position; -figure 2 is an axonometric view of the internal operating means; figures 3,4,5 are axonometric exploded views of the operating means as in figures 1 and 2; figures 6 and 7 show a frontal view and a rear view of a second embodiment of the invention; figures 8 and 9 show respectively a detail of the reducing means of the transversal size of the central body of the invention, in the second embodiment as to figures 6 and 7.

The small equipment of the invention comprises in the top part a supporting body 1 of the clothes to dry and iron constituted by a sack 4 in light and non transpiring material having a shape similar to a clothes with sleeves, by a telescopic rod 7 and by an upper terminal head 8 presenting a lower truncated-cone portion 28; in the central part a carter 2 containing the producing, warming and conveying means of the air inside the supporting body, means basically constituted by a fan and a resistance 5; the carter 2 is upper connected to the supporting body of the clothes through an intermediate body 6 for the convey of the air, constituting at the same time the cap of the production and warming means of the air inside the carter, and lower to a spoke base 3 provided with wheels for its moving.

The sack 4, in the embodiment of the invention, as shown in figure 1, having a shape similar to a clothes with sleeves, has a first, main, almost tubular portion 10 coincident with the bust of the clothes, upper extending in a second portion 11 forming the shoulders, from which, at the sides, two truncated-cone tubulars 12 and 13 project,

which are coincident with the sleeves of the clothes and upper a short tubular appendix with truncated-cone outline 14 coincident with the neck. The lower free terminal part of the two truncated-cone tubulars 12 and 13 has two stiff terminal funnel-shaped portions 22 and 23 acting as closing body of the sleeve.

The sack 4 in the thicker areas of the clothes to treat, such as cuffs, breast areas and neck has the same number of areas respectively indicated by numbers 16 and 17 for the cuffs of clothes with long sleeve, 18 and 19 corresponding to the terminal edges of the sleeves of clothes with short sleeve, 15 corresponding to the collar, 25 and 27 corresponding to breast areas and longitudinally corresponding to the vertical buttoning area 20.

To assure a suitable contact of the sleeves of the clothes with the respective truncated cone tubulars 12 and 13 and to avoid their excessive inflation elastic rings are provided, of which only one is represented and indicated by the number 29 in figure 1, to insert in the same sleeve positioning them along it wherever.

The sack 4 is airtight on the upper terminal head 8, through its tubular truncated cone appendix 14 fitted on the corresponding truncated cone portion 28 of the same head, whereas the lower terminal part of the tubular portion 10 is constrained to the inlet of the intermediate body 6 through an elastic ring (not shown in figure) which is positioned at its base 26.

The intermediate body 6 has a first truncated cone portion 9 whose upper face has four holed areas 32,33,34 and 35 divided by four radial stiffenings 42,43,44,45 positioned orthogonally among each other and converging in the center towards a circular hole 46; the four holed areas having the aim of letting the warm air penetrating towards the internal of the sack 4.

The carter indicated in its whole with number 2 is constituted by a containing base 38 and by a lid 39, such base houses the production means of the air constituted by a fan wheel provided with blades and operated by an electric motor (not shown in figure), the whole set placed in central position, mounted on a bearing and operated by a control device 21 constituted by a timer which allows to fix the period of time during which the air warmed by the resistance 5 is produced, period of time choosen by the user according to the characteristics of the fabric of the clothes to dry and iron.

The containing base 38 with its perimetral annular band 69 is lower connected to a concave body 36 through the spacers 51,52,53 and 54 housed on the respective seats 51 a, 52a, 53a, 54a present on the edge of said concave body, inside the base 38 the

plates 40 and 41 having a substantially trapezoidal section are present and simmetrical positioned according to the middle line, on the upper edge of which the square plate 37 is welded, which is connected through a cylindrical pipe 24 to a telescopic rod 7; such cylindrical pipe passes inside the resistance 5.

The lid 39 through an upper annular band 49 inserts itself countershaping in the lower part of the truncated cone body 9 to which it is secured.

From the hole 46 of the truncated cone portion 9, the upper terminal part of the cylindrical pipe 24 projects, inside which the telescopic rod 7 inserts itself, from which a pneumatic jack projects of which it is shown in figure 3 the spindle 47.

The telescopic rod 7 can be regulated and blocked in a determined position through an usual knob.

The spindle 47 of the telescopic rod 7 has the upper terminal part 48 threaded which allows the blockage to the upper terminal head 8 through the nut 55.

To the cylindrical pipe 70 the threaded rod 73 is welded which passes through a hole 71 present on a first semi-cylindrical block 72 carrying orthogonally to the hole 71 a second cylindrical block (not shown in figure), presenting a shaped portion able to engage itself in the thread of the rod 73, such second cylindrical block is provided with a spring (not shown in figure), which allows its axial displacement, it is therefore possible to lock the upper terminal head 8 in any of the positions reachable by it consequentely to the stroke of the spindle 47.

The upper terminal head 8 having the lower truncated cone hollow portion 28 and the upper blind cylindrical cap 56, acts like a cap of the whole equipment, because the air blown by the fan wheel in the sack 4 has as sole outlet the holed areas present on the same sack or the relative areas of transpiring fabric; as the quantity of warm air let in the sack is bigger than the quantity of air that can come out from the holed areas, the same sack maintains itself streched and inflated, being able to constitute the supporting body of a clothes dressed up on it as it is a dummy.

To the supporting base 3 with its spoke foot on wheels 50 is coupled a pneumatic actuator 57 closed inside an expansible tubular 58. On the upper terminal part of the actuator 57 are fixed a disk 59, through a spacer 61, and said concave body 36 having a lever 60 which is the control means of the pneumatic actuator. The body 99 has the holes 101,102,103 and 104 which house the spacers 105,106,107 and 108, which are interposed between the body 99 and the base 38 of the carter.

The spoke base 3 allows to move the dummy along the bearing plane and to vary

the distance between the bearing plane and the upper terminal part of the same dummy allowing a more confortable use.

The clothes to dry and to iron, for example a shirt, is overlapped to the sack, with the collar suitable tight blocked on the truncated cone head 8, let it matching to the same sack, regulating the height of the telescopic rod and through the pins 62 which hook its lower edges, fastened to the annular element 63 which is present on the central carter 2; such annular element is constituted by a thin metallic tubular and it is supported by the cylindrical spacers 64,65,66 and 67 which anchore it to the base 38 of the carter.

In a different embodiment shown in figure 6 and 7, the sack 4 has in its main, tubular portion 10 corresponding to the bust of the clothes, two vertical, central bands 30 and 31, placed respectively in the frontal area 80 and the rear area 82; said bands are constituted by two respective vertical portions 68 and 78 of the frontal and rear areas of the sack 4; to the longitudinal sides respectively 75,85 and 76,86 of said bands 30 and 32 a device for connecting said sides between them is provided, and more particularly said device is constituted by two strips 78,87 and 79,89 of strong fabric, provided with teeth 81 which engage and release themselves through the sliding of a little plate (not shown in figure), such as commonly known as a zipper. The connection of said strips- 77 with 87 and 79 with 89-reduces the width 90 of the area respectively 68 and 78 comprised between them, with consequent reducing of the circumference 91 of the sack 4, reducing which can be obtained only for the frontal portion 80 of the sack or only for the rear portion 82 or together for the both portions.

In this embodiment the so shaped tubular sack is placed on the telescopic rod, said sack ends upper with the truncated cone head 8 which houses the upper opening 18 of the same sack, whereas lower it is inserted on the circular carter 2 to which it is adapted in size and fastened through the stressing and the blockage of a cord 83 sliding inside a channel 84, said channel obtained on the lower edge 88 of said sack. The number of the longitudinal bands and their positioning is not relevant, provided that a possibility of reducing of the tubular sack can be carried out; and it is of no importance that the means for transversally reducing the longitudinal bands are placed externally or inside the same tubular sack.

It is furthermore evident that the choice between the different possibilities of reduction of the circumference of the sack has the advantage to adapt the supporting body of the clothes to dry and to iron to the size of the same clothes.

In this embodiment as in figures 6 and 7 the sack 4, carried out in light and non

transpiring material, has some areas in transpiring material such as the areas 92 and 94 placed at the terminal portions of the sleeves and corresponding to the cuffs, the frontal areas 93 and 95 corresponding to the breast areas, the central areas 96 and 98 on the lower part of the bust, and the rear area 97 corresponding to the shoulders.

The clothes so placed on the supporting body will be dryed by the heat coming from the air in pressure inside the sack and at the same time will be ironed thanks to the streching of the fibers.

Many different embodiments or implementations are possible without coming out the same inventive concept; for example the body which is countershaped to the clothes can have the shape of a simple sack with neck, or that of trousers, it can furthermore be a completely closed sack which does not need, once it is inflated, the internal support and the upper head; furthermore when it is concerned the treatment of clothes whose fabric is particulary strong, for example jeans, the clothes can support itself being not necessary nor the internal supporting rod nor the supporting sack.

Furthermore all the details are changeable with others technically equivalent.