GB2456167A

GB2456167A - Rotatable ironing board

Info

Publication number: GB2456167A
Application number: GB0800161A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Charles Mooring
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2008-01-05
Filing date: 2008-01-05
Publication date: 2009-07-08
Also published as: GB0800161D0

Abstract

The board includes low-voltage electric motors to rotate it in either direction. A rocker type foot switch is used to control the rotation. The board may have a low frame style to fit on top of an existing ironing board. Alternatively the board may have a traditional high frame style. Both styles may have collapsible, height adjustable legs which fold down for easy storage. A garment to be ironed may be pulled onto the board and pre-tensioned by an under body roller.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF VARIOUS DRAWINGS

Application number: GBOSOO161.2 Page number 1 Figure A. Low body frame to fit on top of existing ironing board.

Handle to move middle under body roller.

Non-slip pads on bottom of frame.

Fold up legs and lower body.

Figure B. High frame type, stand alone type.

Fold up legs.

Forward and reverse electrical foot switch.

B1&B2 under body lever, rotation motor.

Figure C. Front fixed tapper body, Cl, Angled holding slots C2, Side roller.

C3, Front fixed tapper body.

C4, side fixed body.

Figure D. Elastic iron board cover.

D1,Tie cord ends.

REF; GBOSOO 161.2 cont Figure E. Under body roller up position.

Adjustable handle to lower body roller.

Figure F. Under body roller down position and spring steel arm, and iron stand area.

Figure G. Arm fit to pin at each end of roller and roller pin and bush.

Figure I. Top view looking down.

Clothes (tee shirt etc) pulled on over rota-board, thus leaving both hands free for continuous ironing of the complete garment. foot switch to rotate each way, front or back via foot switch.

Figure J. Tee shirt etc, just laid on rota-board and powered around, leaving both hands free to iron with and save ironing small area of tee shirt and having to stop, put iron down, refit tee shirt (garment) onto ironing board and start again.

ROTATING IRONING BOARD

(ROTA-BOARD) This invention is a device to help assist and speed up the ironing of general garments. Using this powered rotating ironing board, which by using the rocker foot pedal to rotate forward or backward the main flat ironing area of the ironing board.

This invention makes a slow/boring/time consuming job much quicker and easier. Using a normal type of ironing board and pulling a t-shirt type garment over the front tapered end of the ironing board using both hands to flatten the garment out the picking up the iron with one hand and start to iron across the flat area on the top of the ironing board. When this part of the garment has been ironed the iron is then replaced onto the iron stand using both hands the garment is removed off the ironing board rotated slightly and pulled back on then the ironing procedure is repeated until the complete garment is ironed so the normal practice of ironing garments of this type is a stop start process and the actual ironing time is only approximately 25% of the overall operation.

When using my invention the rotating ironing board the same t-shirt type garment is placed over the front tapered end of the ironing board but with having no under body legs to foul the garment it can be pulled on fully to give a larger overall ironing area. Then the under body roller is slowly lowered down to put the required tension on the garment, this tension will flatten garment across the ironing area ready to iron.

The iron is picked up with one hand as usual and the garment is ironed as normal but when this first section of the garment has been ironed using the foot pedal the ironing and garment rotates in the direction required, leaving both hands free, to continue with the ironing process until the full garment has been fully rotated and ironed.

Using this type of ironing system approximately 75% of the time spent in the ironing process is spent ironing thus more garments are ironed in the time allocated.

As in Fig A. a low body type with short legs and a bottom frame which is as long as the upper body to give free access to upper rotation body. But also allows strength for pressing down using the ironing board.

This unit can be used on top of an existing ironing board and strapped on for stability and safety it also has anti-slip pads under the main frame, so it can also be used on a worktop or table top.

Both high and low style bodies have the same simple rotation system which can be mains low voltage or rechargeable battery powered.

Each main side roller has a rotation motor, one to rotate one way and the other motor to rotate the opposite direction. Rotation motors are operated via a simple rocker style foot switch which is pressed one side for one direction and the opposite direction by pressing the foot switch the other way.

The rotation table rotates by having two main side rollers on the very edges using simple plastic pin and bush type bearings, the rollers have an anti-slip surface so when powered around they rotate the elasticated material which the ironing board cover is made from.

The rotation ironing bed area has a replaceable expandable iron board cover which is simply pulled on over the board frame with a pull cord on the open end to prevent the cover trying to move back off the board when being rotated. With a small gap in-between the rotating part and the fixed body, the end the ironing board cover with the pull cord sits in this gap, so when rotates holds the cover in place.

As with normal ironing boards both high and low body styles have height adjusters and folding legs to aid easy storage and transporting the units.

The under body tension roller system has a simple middle mounted pin and bush roller with a holding arm fixed to the pins at each end of the roller "see fig K". This coat hanger style holding arm has a simple pivot pin at the top connecting it to the spring steel tensioning arm "see fig 1". At the top of the handle area there is a slotted section to put the handle in when the required tension has been put on the garment by pushing the handle down. See "fig E & F".

When using the "Rotaboard" a garment can be ironed in a number of ways, Firstly the garment can be pulled on over the tapered end of the board, then simply lower the tension arm to the required setting and lock the handle in the relevant locking slot see fig "Cl".

This tension helps remove loose creased material from the top ironing area thus making it easier and quicker. When using the tension roller it expands the flexible ironing board cover as well as the garment so 2.

the complete garment and cover will all rotate in the desired direction. Secondly if the item or garment does not require to be pulled on over the ironing board it can simply just be laid across the top ironing area smoothed out with one hand and using the other hand to iron with, simply rotate the ironing board in the desired direction using the foot switch. This method is simple, easy and much quicker than the normal prepare, pick up and start to iron, stop put iron back, remove garment and prepare again to start all over again.

To explain some of the inc drawings See "fig K" showing coat hanger style holding arm fixed at each end to the simple pin and bush bearings which allow it to rotate.

See "fig L" view from the front showing the under body roller in the up position with the lowering handle also up.

See "fig M" view from the front showing the under body roller in the down position with the handle down

Claims

CLAIM "ROTA-BOARD" 1. This rotating ironing board is a simple way to make the ironing of garments a much easier, quicker, operation, using the low voltage electric motors to rotate in either direction via a rocker type foot switch.
2. Using the same top body Rota-board can be a low style frame to fit on top of existing ironing boards or on top of a table, work top etc. or a high frame traditional style ironing board, both styles have collapsible fold down and height adjustable legs for easy storage.
3. With two main types of ironing style, firstly if a tee-shirt type garment is to be ironed it can be pulled on to the board and pre-tensioned using the under body roller, then fully rotated 360o using rocker type a foot switch leaving both hands free to make the ironing operation much easier and quicker. The second type of ironing is also made much easier and quicker by simply laying the garment on top of the ironing area, using one hand to flatten the garment the other hand to operate the iron, using the foot rocker switch to simply rotate in the desired direction so a much quicker,easier operation not having to stop, reposition, start and stop all the time.
4. Using this invention at least 50% more time is spent actually ironing, so the process is carried out a lot faster or twice as much ironing can be done.
5. Using this invention the ironing operation is a lot less strenuous and much less of a chore. Making it easier and quicker.
6. Using this system also means with the ironing carried out up to 50% quicker and most irons using at least 1kw and some up to 2.2kw of electricity it saves money and would pay for its self in saved money
7. Using this system not only saves money but is good for the environment, estimating millions for irons in use every day in the uk alone.
8. With over 55 million people and over 15 million household in the uk alone, if each house only spent two hours per week ironing and each iron was only 1kw/per hour and a low 2007 price of lop per kw/h electric rate this would be 30 million kwh x lop = �3 million spent on electricity alone each week.. the savings in money and carbon foot prints are massive, world wide mind boggling. Lf