Title

Towel Rail Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to towel rails and in particular to electrically heated towel rails. In a preferred arrangement such an electrically heated towel rail is configured for use in a bathroom. Background

Towel rails are well known in the art. Electrically heated towel rails are particularly useful in bathroom environment where one wishes to selectively heat the towel rail to provide a heating either of the bathroom or specifically for drying and warming the towels that are used for bathing or showering activities. Such towel rails are conventionally provided in a ladder arrangement where a plurality of heated rungs may be used to hang individual towels.

The heating for electrically heated towel rails can be provided using an electrical element that is internally provided within the towel rail. The variations on the towel rail include so called "dry rails" where there is no internal fluid within the towel rail and "wet rails" where the element is used to heat a liquid within the towel rail, and the heated liquid subsequently imparts heat to the metal that forms the rungs of the towel rail. In both variations a heating element is provided within the interior volume of the towel rail. In the wet rail environment this heating element is used to impart heat to a circulating fluid that subsequently travels around within the towel rail and heats the individual rungs. Such a heating element is typically located in a lower region of the towel rail. In the dry rail environment there is no circulating fluid such that any heating of the individual rungs requires a location of a heating element proximal to those rungs- typically the heating element extends within the interior volume defined by each rung, and imparts heat to its surrounding environment. The length of the heating element that is required therefore for a dry rail is much greater than

that required for a wet rail. However as dry rails do not contain a fluid they can traditionally be made much lighter than wet rails.

The conventional towel rail is mounted vertically on a wall within the bathroom and when the towels are stacked on the individual rungs of the rail, one portion of the towel is located between the rail and the vertical wall whereas the other portion is hanging on the other side of the rung. Where two or more towels are hung above one another on separate rungs there towels on the lower rungs are at least partially covered by those towels hung above. This can increase the drying time of the towels and can lead to incomplete drying in that the towel is never dried sufficiently between bathing activities.

As the towel rail has traditionally been used as an ancillary heating source, the limitations of such arrangements have been tolerated. If a user wished to efficiently dry their towel they would use a clothes line or some other drying source. In effect the towel rail was provided as a hanging facility for the towel within the bathroom with an element of heating. However with changing living conditions such additional space is not always available.

Summary

These and other problems are addressed by a wall mountable towel rail in accordance with the teaching of the invention that is moveable from a first position wherein the towel rail is substantially parallel to and proximal with the wall on which it is mounted to a second position wherein the towel rail is moved away from the wall. The movement is typically such as to allow a movement from a vertical orientation of the towel rail to one substantially perpendicular to the wall on which it is mounted. By providing a pivotable or otherwise moveable towel rail it is possible to provide the towel rail in a number of different orientations including a substantially horizontal configuration wherein the rail

projects laterally into the room in which it is located. At any one of the number of possible mounting positions, the towel rail may be locked and maintained in that position. By providing such a configuration individual items may be hung on the towel rail without overlapping with one another thereby improving the drying capabilities of the rail. In this way the towel rail may be used as a clothes horse which may be useful in effecting a drying of any number of different types of articles, including of course towels.

Accordingly the invention provides a towel rail according to claim 1 with advantageous embodiments provided in the dependent claims thereto.

These and other features of the invention will be better understood with reference to the following drawings.

Brief Description Of The Drawings

The present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a towel rail in accordance with the teaching of the invention provided in a first mounting position.

Figure 2 is a perspective view showing how the towel rail of Figure 1 may be moved away from the wall and a first mounting arrangement suitable for maintaining the towel rail in such an orientation.

Figure 3 is an example of how collapsible arms may be used within the context of the teaching of the invention to achieve a support of the towel rail in its second position.

Figure 4 shows an alternative arrangement for supporting the towel rail.

Figures 5 and 6 show an alternative embodiment of a towel rail in accordance with the teaching of the invention.

Detailed Description Of The Drawings

The teaching of the invention will be better understood with reference to the exemplary embodiments which follow. While illustrated with reference to preferred arrangements as set forth in Figures 1 to 4, it will be understood that such arrangements are provided to assist in an understanding of the teaching of the invention and it is not intended to limit the invention in any way except as may be deemed necessary in the light of the appended claims.

Figure 1 shows a wall mountable towel rail 100 in accordance with the teaching of the invention, located in a first position. The towel rail includes an electrical heating element. In the arrangement of Figure 1 the rail 100 is shown mounted to a wall 105, and is coupled via a power lead 110 to an electricity supply box 115 that is provided within the wall. Such coupling of electrical towel rails to an electricity supply will be well known to the person skilled in the art. When used within a bathroom environment in Ireland and the UK, regulations for electrical installations dictate that such a supply box 115 must be rated for bathroom usage. The towel rail may include some circulating fluid to assist in a distribution of heat generated through the heating element, a wet rail, but is desirably of the type known as a dry rail.

In the configuration of Figure 1 , the towel rail is shown as including a plurality of rungs 120 that are provided in a ladder configuration 125, neighbouring rungs being located one above another. Each of the rungs are secured at either end to an support member 130, which in accordance with the language used to describe ladders are termed stiles or beams. The length of the stile will determine the height of the towel rail . It will be understood from an examination of Figure 1 that if a towel was hung on an upper rung that it would overhang towels located on those rungs below. It will be understood that this example of a towel rail is a specific example provided to assist in an

understanding of the teaching of the invention and that it is not intended to limit the invention to any one physical configuration of a towel rail except as may be deemed necessary in the light of the appended claims. For example, while the towel rail herein described includes two parallel stiles in a ladder configuration, it will be understood that one vertical support member coupled to a number of rungs could also be used.

The combination of stiles and rungs defines a moveable towel rail portion, which is pivotably coupled to a wall mounting portion- described with reference to Figure 2 below as being in the form of a mounting bracket. The present invention provides for a movement of the towel rail portion away from the vertical mounting bracket where it is substantially parallel to the wall. Desirably the movement is a controlled movement which allows the location of the towel rail in any one of a number of different orientations relative to its first resting position. In the example of Figure 2, the towel rail is moved from the orientation shown in Figure 1 to a second orientation where it is substantially perpendicular to the first orientation. In this arrangement the towel rail has been pivoted vertically away from the wall such that the stiles 130 are not parallel with the wall. The individual rungs are arranged in a horizontal configuration such that if a towel or other article were hung on an individual rung it would hang downwardly and would not necessarily overlap with articles hung on other rungs. It will be understood that such a movement effects a projection of a distal end portion 200 of the towel rail into the room in which the towel rails is located. The distal end portion 200 has moved from a position where it was proximally located to the wall (Figure 1 ) to a position where it is distally located (Figure 2). While the movement has been shown as being effected through a vertical pivot of approximately 90 degrees, it will be understood that any number of different locking positions could be chosen depending on the level of projection away from the wall that is required. The rail could also be configured to be moveable through the position adopted in Figure 2 to a final resting position where it is

parallel to the wall again, but located below the orientation of Figure 1 - in effect moveable through 180 degrees.

The movement that is shown through an examination of Figures 1 and 2 is achieved in this exemplary arrangement by a pivoting of the towel rail away from the wall. This may be achieved by mounting the stiles and rungs of the towel rail to a mounting bracket 201 which includes a hingeable portion 202. The bracket may include fixing arms 205, 210 which are permanently fixable to the wall and provide a necessary securing of the towel rail to the wall. By coupling a proximal end portion 215 of the towel rail to the hingeable portion 202 of the mounting bracket it is possible to achieve a controlled pivoting of the towel rail away from the wall 105. The control may be achieved in any number of different arrangements including use of a ratchet mechanism, a pin and socket arrangement, through use of an assisted movement using for example hydraulic or pneumatic fluids or indeed through control effected by the user. In the arrangement of Figure 2 the stiles 130 are shown as being substantially perpendicular to the wall, and the rail is supported in that position using the support arms 230, 235. In this exemplary arrangement the mounting portion 201 is desirably not heated, active heating only being provided to the moveable towel rail portion. By selectively heating the towel rail it is possible to minimise the amount of heat that is wasted. It will be appreciated that if the wall mounting portion was heated that a direct heating of the wall is also effected. By only heating the portions of the towel rail that will be used to support articles- like towels or the like- and not heating the wall mounting portion there is no heating of the wall, and a saving in energy is resultant. To achieve this selective heating of the towel rail portion, it is desirable that the towel rail portion includes an active heating element- activated through electrical supply. To provide that connection to the mains power supply it is desirable that the electrical connector is provided as part of the moveable element as opposed to the mounting brackets. In this way there is a direct electrical connection between the towel

rail portion and the electrical means and there is no need for complicated couplings between each of the mounting bracket and the moveable towel rail portion.

As mentioned above, once a desired second position has been achieved it is necessary to support the towel rail in that second position so as to enable it to support articles which are then hung on the rail. Such support may be achieved in a number of different fashions. For example the hingeable portion may be provided with an assisted lift mechanism such as that implemented using hydraulic action or the like, where once a desired location is achieved such a location is maintained until a release mechanism allows subsequent movement. In a simpler arrangement such as that shown in Figure 2, support arms 230, 235 are shown which are pivotably coupled to the fixing arms 205, 210 such that they may be moved away from the fixing arms but are in contact with them. The support arms may be provided with jaws 240 that are engageable with individual rungs of the rail. It will be appreciated that choice of rung will determine the ultimate support position of the towel rail relative to the wall. To allow the support arms 230, 235 to be coupled to one of a number of different rungs it is desirable that they are telescopic, allowing their distance from the fixing arms to be modified as desired. It will be understood that the use of two support arms and their corresponding jaws is exemplary of the type of locking means that may be used to effect a securing of the towel rail in its second position.

If it desired to move the towel rail, the end portion 200 may be lifted away from the jaws 240 such that the jaws and their corresponding rungs will separate from one another. As shown in Figure 3, the support arms may then be collapsed upon one another and then moved to a resting position where they are parallel to the fixing arms - such as what is shown in Figure 1. Such an arrangement requires a manual intervention in that the user is required to

individually separate and collapse the support arms and then return them to their resting position. If an arrangement such as a ratchet hinge mechanism was used, then the support may be integrally provided through the use hinge mechanism and the need for separate support arms may be obviated.

In another arrangement such as that shown in Figure 4, support arms 400 are modified so as to be slideably moveable within the stiles 130. In this arrangement the support arms are still pivotably coupled to the fixing arms 205, but are also permanently coupled to the stiles 130. By providing a channel within the stiles, on a lower surface thereof (not visible in the view of Figure 4), end portions of the support arms are slideable within the stiles. The continuous intimate contact between the two serves to ensure that the controlled movement and final support can be achieved in an easier fashion, than having to separately move the support arms to provide the support once the desired location has been achieved. One or more stop locations may be predetermined to enable a user to select which orientation they desire their towel rail to be supported in.

In another arrangement such as that shown in Figures 5 and 6, a towel rail 500 is provided. The towel rail comprises a wall mounting portion 501 and a moveable towel rail 502. The moveable towel rail 502 comprises stiles 520 defining support members and a plurality of rungs 530 in a ladder configuration similar to that described previously. The towel rail 502 is moveable from a first position where it is substantially parallel to the wall to a second position in which it is arranged at an angle to the wall. In the second position the stiles are not parallel to the wall but rather at an angle thereto and the rungs are similarly at a separation from the wall. In both the first and second positions the rungs are arranged in a substantially horizontal configuration. In the second position, the stiles and rungs of the towel rail portion are at a separation from the wall and the towel rail portion projects laterally into the room in which it is located. In

particular the rungs are arranged in a horizontal configuration such that if a towel or other articles was hung on a rung it would hang downwardly at a separation from the wall and not necessarily overlap with articles on other rungs. In the first position in proximity to the wall the towel rail may be used mainly for the purposes of heating. In the second position extended from the wall the towel rail may be used mainly for the purpose of supporting items to be dried.

In the illustrated embodiment the wall mounting portion 501 defines a frame 503 having two upright arms 504, 505 and two horizontal arms 506, 507. The wall mounting portion or frame is connected to the wall at intervals. The wall mounting portion in this case defines a frame for the towel rail portion. The upright arms 504, 505 each comprise a channel 508 configured to cooperate with connecting members of the moveable towel rail portion 502. In this case the channel 508 is provided on the inner facing surfaces of the upright arms of the frame. The length of the channel 508 defines at least part of the range of movement of moveable towel rail relative to the wall mounting portion. The channel 508 may comprise upper or lower stop members.

In this case, the moveable towel rail 502 is segmented and includes first and second segments. As this exemplary arrangement is described with reference to a vertical arrangement whereby the towel rail moves in a vertical axis along the channel 508, these two segments may be considered an upper towel rail portion 540 and a lower towel rail 550. If the towel rail was orientated differently - for example rotated through 90 degrees, then the slideable movement would be in a horizontal direction, and the relative positioning of the two segments would not be "upper" and "lower". However for the present discussion these relative terms will be used. Each of the upper and lower towel rail portions has stiles or support members 520 and rungs 530. The upper and lower towel rail portions 540, 550 are connected to each other at joints 560 by

means of connecting members 561 and configured to rotate or pivot relative to each other at these joints 560. A lock means may be provided to lock the towel rails 540 and 550 at a particular relative orientation. When the lock means is released the towel rails may pivot relative to each other as required. The upper and lower towel rails 540 and 550 may each comprise active heating elements, and typically will both be controlled so as to provide the same output temperature. In an alternative arrangement each of the upper 540 and lower

550 towel rails may be coupled to a separate thermostat such that selective differential heating of each may be provided. In this way, if one requires a heating surface of a lower than usual temperature- for example for us in drying delicate materials- one can selectively lower the temperature of the respective rail to which that article is to be supported from. Active heating elements may be provided solely in the moveable towel rail 502 or could also be provided in the wall mounting portions as well. The stiles and rungs 520 and 530 may all include active heating elements/resistors or alternatively the heating may be provided in the rungs only. As mentioned above, the heating elements of the upper and lower towel rail portions may be operable separately, as required.

The upper towel rail portion 540 comprises a proximal end 541 and a distal end 542. The lower towel rail portion 550 similarly comprises a proximal end

551 and a distal end 552. The terms "proximal" and "distal" is meant to define the distance of these ends from the wall relative to the other ends. In this way, the proximal ends 541 , 551 are those ends which remain in proximity to the wall when the towel rail is moved to the second position, and the distal ends 542, 552 being those ends which are pivoted away from the wall to which the towel rail is mounted in the second position. Desirably the upper and lower portions are pivotable releative to one another via the pivot coupling 560 which is provided at each of the distal ends of the upper and lower portions respectively.

The lower towel rail 550 is connected to the wall mounting portion at the lower proximal end 551 at joints 570 by means of connecting members 571. The lower towel rail portion is configured to pivot or rotates about the joint 571 to the wall mounting portion. In this case, the connecting members 571 project outwardly from the towel rail portion to connect to the wall mounting portion. The connecting members may be received in the channel 508. In this exemplary arrangement the coupling of the lower towel rail 550 is via a non- moving coupling. By this is meant, that while the coupling provides for a pivoting of the lower towel rail portion relative to the wall mounting portion, the movement of the lower portion to achieve the second position of the towel rail does not require a vertical movement of the proximal end 551 up along the wall mounting portion.

The upper towel rail portion 540 is similarly connected to the wall mounting portion about a pivoting or rotating connection 580 by means of connecting members 581 provided at the proximal end 541 thereof. The connecting members 581 in this case project outwardly from the supporting members 520 of the towel rail portion 540 and are received in the channels 508. However, differing from the non-moveable coupling of the lower towel rail portion, in this configuration of the upper towel rail portion, the connecting members 581 are further configured to slide in the channels 508. The length of the channels 508 may limit the vertical or sliding movement of the connecting members in the channels. The channels 508 may also include one or more stop members to define the range of sliding movement of the towel rail portion.

The movement of the moveable towel rail 502 is thus defined by the interaction of the connecting members 581 of the upper towel rail portion 540 and the channels 508 of the wall mounting portion. It is also limited by the range of movement of the upper towel rail portion 540 relative to the lower towel rail portion 550 about the central connection 560 and connectors 561. In

another configuration the lower towel rail portion could also be moveable along a track or channel defined within the wall mounting portion such that the adoption of the second position is effected by a movement of each of the two proximal ends towards one another. In a further arrangement, also not shown, the top portion is provided with a non-slideable coupling and the proximal end of the lower portion is moveable towards the upper portion to achieve the adoption of the second position.

Referring to Fig. 5, the towel rail 500 is shown in the first position where it is oriented substantially vertically and parallel to the wall. Referring to Fig. 6, the towel rail is shown in the second position, where the distal end portions of each of the upper and lower towel rail portions have moved away from the wall and have adopted a position such that the upper and and the lower portion are at an acute angle to the wall. In effect the towel rail will have been released from the first position, and moved into the second position. The movement into the second position involves a rotation and sliding of the upper towel rail portion relative to the wall mounting portion and lower towel rail, and a rotation of the lower towel rail portion relative to the wall mounting portion.

Referring to the drawings of the example embodiment, the connection 580 between upper and lower towel rail portions is substantially centrally located. The location may be varied of the connection clearly may be varied to provide different open configurations as required depending on available space. In this case, it is the connecting means 581 of the upper towel rail which slides downwardly relative to the channel of the wall mounting however, it will be appreciated that the connecting means of the lower towel rail could also or alternatively be configured to slide upwardly relative to the wall mounting. Furthermore, a direct pivot coupling between the two is not essential, as the mating of the two could be achieved subsequent to their movement, In this way

it will be appreciated that the two segments inter-engage and that one of the two segments may be used to support the other.

The connecting members 581 of the upper towel rail portion slide in the channels 506 and the towel rail 540 rotates about the connecting members 581. The combination of the sliding and pivoting movements enables the upper towel rail portion to be moved downwardly and pivoted outwardly to the second position where the stiles and rungs are at a separation from the wall. In the same movement, the lower towel rail will have been rotated relative to its connection to the wall mounting portion and about the joints connecting the upper and lower towel rails. This movement may be achieved in a single action by the user, in that by holding one of the rungs 530 at the distal ends of either of the upper and lower portions, and pulling them outwardly away from the walls, each of the upper and lower portions will be displaced from their first position to adopt the second position. Similarly to return the towel rail portions to the first position all that is required is a pushing action, a single push effecting movement of both the upper and lower towel rail towards the wall. In this way it is very easy for a person who wishes to hang articles of clothing on the towel rail to, using one hand, effect movement of the towel rail to its second position wherein a plurality of articles may be supported. They therefore may continue to hold the articles in the other hand.

In this case the towel rail comprises integral support arms for supporting the towel rail in the second position. It is not necessary to provide separate support arms. The upper towel rail 540 is supported both by the stiles 520 of the lower towel rail 550 and by its connection to the wall mounting portion 501. In this arrangement it will be appreciated that the lower towel rail portion supports the upper towel rail portion. The integral support arms of this embodiment being part of the towel rail thus represent an increased towel rail surface for

supporting items to be dried. The support arms defined by the lower towel rail portion are strong and robust.

Electrical connection to the moveable towel rail portion is desirably provided via an electrical coupling provided adjacent to or at the pivot coupling of the lower towel rail portion to the mounting portion 501. In this way any electrical cable between the towel rail and the electrical supply provided at the wall can be minimised- the distance between the wall plate and the electrical connection is a static distance that does not vary subsequent to initial coupling. Electrical connection to heating elements provided in the upper towel rail portion may be effected through the lower towel rail portion.

The moveable towel rail 502 is a unitary device or a self contained unit which is moveable in its entirety relative to the wall mounting portion from the first position to the second position. The moveable towel rail is further configured to be moved in a single motion relative to the wall mounting portion. This movement may be assisted in that the towel rail may include means such as a hydraulic actuator to provide for assisted movement between of the moveable element.

The towel rail arrangement of the present embodiment has a number of advantages. First of all the arrangement is strong and robust. The wall mounting portion comprises a frame. The frame has a relatively large footprint which enables the load of the towel rail to be spread over a relatively large area. The provision of means for balancing the load is particularly important when it is considered that the towel rail portion may be used to support a weight of wet items. The towel rail portion is supported at a plurality of points by the wall mounting portion providing a secure support configuration. The arrangement is compact while at the same time providing a relatively large available support surface for supporting towels or other items to be dried or aired. The support

surface available is relatively large since in the second position with the towel rail portion extending laterally into the room, then upper and lower support rungs are provided at separations from the wall. Clearly the user can use the available support surfaces to their maximum convenience, for example by hanging smaller items on the upper surfaces and longer or trailing items on the lower surfaces.

The spacing of the rungs on the stiles of upper and lower towel rail portion may be selected to ensure that the in second position the rungs of the upper portion do not directly overlie the rungs of the lower portion.

As each of the upper and lower portions provide support surfaces for articles, it is possible to provide for a hanging of a plurality of articles. In this last described arrangement, the configuration provided in Figures 5 & 6, as each of the upper and lower portion are coupled to one another and on adoption of the second position and project at an acute angle less than 90 degrees into the room, the area within the room that is occupied by the towel rail is not as great as prior art configurations where the hanging surfaces where provided by substantially horizontal towel rail arrangements.

It will be understood that a towel rail such as that heretofore described is advantageous for a number of regions. By providing a moveable towel rail, it is possible to extend the towel rail so as to project into a room so as to provide an extended drying surface which may be utilized for drying any one of a number of articles. Such an arrangement is particularly useful in apartments or other modern living environments where large amounts of space are not available. By incorporating a towel rail such as that provided in accordance with the teaching of the invention it is possible to enable a user to avail of the towel rail in its conventional vertically mounted configuration for normal usage and yet where an extended drying area is required to enable the user to modify the

configuration to provide an extended drying area. While the movement to a second position has been described with reference to adoption of a horizontal configuration it will be understood that any movement that effects a pivoting of the towel rail away from the wall irrespective of the final location will be considered as falling within the teaching of the invention. Furthermore whereas the invention has been described with reference to a pivoting at a fixed location on the fixing arms, it is envisaged that movement could be achieved through a rotation and slide of the towel rail relative to the fixing arms. Such an arrangement is particularly useful where the height of the towel rail in the second position is desired to be moveable.

The moveable towel rails described have the further advantages that the towel rails comprise complete or self contained component units. The towel rails described are completely moveable relative to the respective wall mounting portion. This has the advantage that the drying area is maximised.

The towel rails are further configured to be moved in a single integrated action. The specific arrangement has the further advantages that it is easy to use, the user does not have to open and arrange separate portions to bring the towel rail into the final airing or drying position.

Furthermore, the complete towel rail portion may also be actively heated which again provides for maximising the drying area presented to the user when the towel rail is moved to the second drying position. Effectively the towel rail is configured such that the surfaces of the stiles together with the rungs are presented and available at a separation from the wall the receive items.

A further advantage of the arrangement of the present towel rail is that as the complete towel rail is moveable relative to the wall mounting portion and the number of components is minimised. The number of joints is also minimised

with the result that wear of movable parts or joints including possible wear at connections carrying electrical components is minimised.

It will be understood that what has been described herein are exemplary embodiments of a moveable towel rail. Such an electrically heated towel rail is mountable to and moveable relative to a wall. Movement of the towel rail may be controlled and allows the adoption by the towel rails of a number of different orientations relative to the wall such that the towel rail may be located parallel to the wall onto which it is mounted or may be arranged to at least partially project away from the wall and into the room. While the invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof it will be understood that these have been provided to assist in an understanding of the teaching of the invention and it is not intended to limit the invention in any way except as may be deemed necessary in the light of the appended claims. Furthermore where integers or components are described with reference to any one figure it will be understood that these could be replaced by or interchanged with those of another figure without departing from the teaching of the invention.

The words comprises/comprising when used in this specification are to specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps or components but does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers , steps, components or groups thereof.