Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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STONE MASSAGE THERAPY DEVICE
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
L. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to systems and methods
of applying heat and/or massage therapy. More
particularly, the present invention relates to systems and
methods utilizing heated stones to apply heat and/or
massage therapy.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is known to use a variety of devices to transfer
heat energy to the body for therapeutic and relaxation
purposes. In addition, it is known to use a variety of
devices to simultaneously massage while delivering heat.
Different devices and methods from among those known vary
in their performance, durability, versatility, efficiency
and other characteristics. A common characteristic among
most, however, is the ability to deliver heat through
direct contact by positioning a heated device or component
from a system on the area for which heat or massage is
desired.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a
system and related method of selectively delivering heat
therapy to one or more body parts.
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It is another object of the present invention to
provide a system and related method of providing a massage
device to one or more body parts while delivering heat
thereto.
It is still another object of the present invention to
provide a system and related method of treating skin while
delivering heat and/or massage.
It is a further object of the present invention to
provide a system and related method for efficiently heating
components to be selectively placed into contact with body
parts, in which the components have superior performance,
durability, versatility, efficiency and other
characteristics over similar devices known to those skilled
in the art.
These and other objects and advantages of the present
invention are disclosed in the following description and
claims.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a basin with a lid of
the present invention;
Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the basin of Fig. 1;
Fig. 3 is a top view of the basin of Fig. 1;
Fig. 4 is a top view of the floor of the basin of Fig.
1;
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Fig. 5 is a top view showing an impact plate of the
basin of Fig. 1;
Fig. 6 is a top view of the lid of Fig. 1;
Fig. 7 is a front view of the basin of the Fig. 1;
Fig. 8 is a schematic view of the logic of the present
invention;
Fig. 9 is an alternative embodiment of the basin of
the present invention;
Fig. 10 is a bottom view of a base floor in the basin
of Fig. 1;
Fig. 11 is a bottom view of an upper portion of the
basin of Fig. 1;
Fig. 12 is a schematic view of an operation of the
present invention;
Fig. 13 is a diagrammatic view of alternatives to the
stones used in the basin of the present invention; and
Fig. 14 is a cross sectional view of another
alternative embodiment of the steam-producing heat device
of the present invention.
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring to the drawings and, in particular, a
preferred embodiment of the present invention as shown in
Fig. 1, there is provided a basin generally represented by
reference numeral 10. The basin 10 preferably has an open
top. The basin 10 can mate with a lid 26 that can covers
the opening of the basin to hold heat and materials
therein.
The basin 10 is a heatable basin that is adapted to
hold therein one or more stones 12 or stone-like objects.
The basin 10 can hold water or another liquid into which
the stones 12 are immersed. The basin 10 has a base
portion 16, and an electrical power cord 14, which can be
plugged into an electrical outlet to provide current to an
electric heating element housed in the base portion. Upon
delivering heat to the base portion 16, the water and
stones 12 in the basin 10 are heated up. As will be
described below, the stones 12 can then be positioned into
contact with body parts to deliver heat, massage, or skin
conditioning therapy.
Referring to Fig. 2, the basin 10 has an upper portion
18 with an inner wall 20 and an outer wall 22. The base
portion 16 of the base 10 also has a floor 24. The floor
24 and the inner wall 20 form an internal chamber. In Fig.
3, the basin 10 has a generally oval shape in the preferred
embodiment, but is not limited to such a shape and may take
on a variety of shapes.
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The lid 26 preferably has a handle 28. The handle 28
is preferably an integral handle formed on the lid 26, to
prevent heat from escaping while stones and water are
heating or to prevent debris from inadvertently entering
the chamber of the basin 10. The basin 10 may also have an
inner tub or inner surface of a metal, such as aluminum,
which is known to have good heat transfer characteristics.
Referring to Fig. 4, the floor 24 of the basin 10 may
include a series of ridges 30 or other elements that form
maximum surface contact area while maintaining an overall
generally planar shape. The ridges 30 can transfer heat.
It is desirable to maximize the surface contact area
between the floor 24 and the water in the chamber of the
basin 10 to provide optimum heat transfer efficiency from
the internal heat element (discussed below), through the
floor 24, and to the water.
As shown in Fig. 3 and Fig. 5, an impact plate 32 may
be positioned over and against the floor 24 to provide a
break-resistant surface upon which stones placed or dropped
into the chamber of the basin 10 may impact. The impact
plate 32 preferably has one or more vents 34 or similar
features that allow communication between the heat
transferring ridges 30 and the water. The impact plate 32
may be bolted or otherwise connected to the floor 24 by
screws 36 or other similar ways. Alternatively, the floor
24 may be reinforced by molding ribs (not shown) or similar
features unitarily with the floor rather than using the
separate impact plate 32 that is fastened to the floor, or
by increasing the dimensions of the ridges 30 for impact
resistance and strength.
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As shown in Fig. 10, the underside of the floor 24 has
a heat element wire 62. The heat element wire 62 is
preferably interwoven between and in contact with the
underside of the heat transferring ridges 30. This allows
heat derived from electrical energy to be transferred to
the floor 24 and to the water and stones 12 in the basin
10. The heat element wire 62 and the various electrical
components used to operate the basin 10 are known to those
of ordinary skill in the art. If desired, heat plates (not
shown) can be placed in contact with the underside of the
floor 24 instead of wires. Alternatively, the heat element
may be an in-line heat element (not shown) that is
generally in the form of a conduit through which the water
is pumped while heat is delivered through conventional
means, to the inside surface of the conduit thereby
transferring the heat to the water before it is ejected
from the conduit and into the basin. A further alternative
is to provide one or more heat elements on the outer
surface of the basin walls instead of or in addition to
providing one or more heat elements to the floor. Yet a
further alternative is to inject heated air into the basin
to heat the stones without using liquid. In such an
embodiment, the air may be re-circulated.
Referring to Fig. 11, the basin 10 has a base 16 that
is generally hollow and can cover the underside of the
upper half of the basin 10, as well as the internal
components. The basin 10, preferably base 16, has an
aperture 64 that allows the power cord 14 to pass
therethrough.
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The basin 10 may be made of impact-resistant, water-
resistant, and heat-resistant plastics or other suitable
materials. For example, the basin 10 may be made from
metal, plastic, ceramic, clay or other suitable materials.
The lid 26 may be made of similar materials.
Referring to Fig. 1, the basin 10 has an outer surface
that may have an operation switch 38 positioned thereon.
The operation switch 38 controls on/off functions to
activate or shut off heat. The outer surface of the basin
may also have indicator ligh t 40 that may correspond to
the "on" and "off" modes. If desired, one can add
additional controls as are known in the art, such as
temperature control, timers, and similar features.
Additional displays, including LED or LCD displays, may
also be provided.
Alternatively, as shown schematically in Fig. 8, the
present invention may include a programmable controller 42
or logic device in communication with a clock 44, a timer
and auto-shutoff component 46, and a temperature or heat
level control 48. The outer surface of the basin 10 may be
hard-wired to the input/output terminal 52, which
communicates with the controller 42, to send user input
commands or to receive visual output signals, readouts, or
audible signals. If desired, a remote control device 54
having an infra-red emitter 56 or a similar device that
communicates with an infra-red receiver 58 located on the
control panel 50 shown in Fig. 7, may be used. Both the
control panel 50 and the remote control device 54 can have
push-button or touch-pad controls, and either can be used
to operate the basin 10 or to pre-program the basin as will
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be described below. If desired, the remote control unit 54
may be tethered by a cord 60, as shown in Fig. 9. The cord
60 may include electrically conductive material for
carrying electrical energy or signals, or it may be a non-
conductive cord that serves only to physically attach the
remote control unit 54 to the basin 10. The features
disclosed with respect to Figs. 7 through 9, while unique
in combination with the presently disclosed invention, may
have various components that are known to those or ordinary
skill in the art.
Referring to the operational schematic 66 shown in
Fig. 12, the initial operation steps are for the user to
select the desired stones 12 and place them into the basin
10. The user may then add water, another liquid, and, if
desired, aromatic or therapeutic additives to the water or
liquid. The sequence of placing the stones 12 and adding
liquid may be reversed if desired.
Next, the user next activates the power "on" switch
(in manual mode or on a manual-only model). If a
programmable model is being used in automatic mode, the
timer is set to a preselected duration or to times at which
automatic "on" and "off" modes are activated. In either
instance, the controls for manually powering "on" or for
programming "on" mode may be input using one or more of the
switch 38,.control panel 50, or remote control device 54.
The same holds true for the additional operational steps
described below.
In the instance of manual operation, the user may
adjust heat temperature corresponding, for example, to the
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amount or type of liquid or stones 12 being used, or the
user may rely on the pre-set temperature. After a
sufficient period of time to heat the liquid and stones 12,
the user may manually shut off the unit. In the event a
user forgets to shut off the unit or if it stays on for an
excessive period, the unit can be designed with a shutoff
device to automatically shut itself off using any one of a
variety of known safety shutoff technologies such as a bi-
metal switch.
In the instance of programmable operation, after pre-
selecting the "on" and "off" times or the interval, the
user may pre-select a temperature setting corresponding,
for example, to the amount or type of liquid or stones 12
being used, or the user may rely on the pre-set
temperature. After heating for the preselected time
duration, the unit will automatically shutoff or the user
may manually override the auto shut oft and shut the unit
off selectively. Instead of a preselected time duration,
the unit may also be programmed to shutoff when a
predetermined temperature is reached, using temperature
sensors and feedback controls of the type known to those
generally skilled in the art. As described above with
respect to manual mode, a safety shutoff is provided as
well.
Once the stones 12 are heated as desired, the user
removes the stones using tongs or by hand, and places them
on parts of the body of the user (or another) for which
heat therapy is desired. At rest, the stones emit heat to
the user's body. If massage or skin therapy is desired,
the stones 12 may be moved manually against the user's body
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or skin to apply massaging movement and force, or to gently
brush against skin surfaces.
The types of stones 12 used may vary depending upon
such factors as heat retention, surface smoothness, shape
and size, mineral qualities (e. g., salt content or aroma),
availability, cost, and other factors. In the preferred
embodiment, it is desirable to use stones 12 having smooth
surfaces and sized to be easily handheld.
Alternatively as shown in Fig. 13, the stones 12 may
be replaced by various types of heatable material objects.
Such objects that may be used are, for example, glass 68,
metal 70, ceramic 72, plastic 74, natural crystal 76, or
composite 78. Such composites may include both or one of
organic and inorganic materials. Additional materials
having desirable heat conductive and surface properties may
also be used.
In another embodiment shown in Fig. 14, a steam-
producing heat device 102 of a type generally known to
those skilled in the art may produce steam through vents
104 in the floor of the basin 100 to heat stones 106. The
stones 106 may be place above the vents 104 on a grated
platform 108 so as to not inhibit steam flow.
L~lhile the preferred embodiments have been herein shown
and described, it is understood that variation and
modification can be made without departing from the scope
of the present invention.
