"Necessity is the mother of invention."
While the origin of this proverb has long since been lost, there's a lot of truth to it. The now more-than-ten million patents issued by the U.S. Patent Office stand as a testament to the ingenuity of all the inventors who have sought to meet the unmet needs of their day with their inventions.
Now, with that in mind, think about the unmet need that must have served as the inspiration for U.S. Patent 6,681,419. This invention is officially described in the 2002 patent as a Forehead Support Apparatus by its inventor, Eric D. Page. However, it is really better described as a headrest for the patrons of fine establishments who require this form of additional support while utilizing the establishment's standing urinal facilities.
We're not making it up. Here's our colorized version of Figure 1 from the patent:
Let's get to the good part. The background section of the patent describes exactly the unmet need that inventor Page was out to solve with this innovation and how it meets that need. We've added the links to the other patents he references:
Those who are tired and weary and find themselves in need of using a urinal or a commode may find the time required to stand in an upright position excessively long and burdensome. At present, the only option for in any way relieving the stress and tension of a tired or depleted body is to simply place the forehead against the wall onto which the urinal or commode is positioned or attached.
A number of prior U.S. patents are known to applicant which are intended to provide some support for a portion of the torso or limb of a user as follows:
- U.S. Pat. No. 6,154,903 to Wai-Chung
- U.S. Pat. No. 4,560,201 to Scott
- U.S. Pat. No. 5,632,050 to Zajas et al.
However, none of these devices in any way provide a teaching for use thereof for supportive leaning comfort as above described to someone using a urinal or commode.
One device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,061,842 invented by Randolph does disclose a hand support apparatus over a commode or urinal. This device, which is swively adjustable and lockable in various angular orientations with respect to the wall, provides a hand support position for the dirty hands of someone wanting to use a commode or urinal. In one embodiment, disposable sheets are provided so that a subsequent user will have a clean surface against which to place one of another set of dirty hands.
The present invention provides an answer to those users of urinals and commodes which find the duration of the event onerous, possibly made worse by a tired or somewhat incapacitated physical condition. Such a user of a urinal or commode will simply place his forehead against the compressible surface provided by the apparatus to effect a more comfortable inwardly leaning orientation with respect to the commode or urinal.
The patent indicates the invention may also find use in a shower, but if Page were truly focused on that application, there would be a figure to depict it in that use. The invention is pretty clearly intended for the dedicated function of being a headrest for a urinal.
We came up empty in searching for any commercial product based on Page's patent. The closest we could get are headrests for use in a bathtub. However, we did find evidence that at least one establishment has installed urinal headrests that are perhaps inspired by Page's invention for their patrons, but unfortunately, we could not confirm its location to verify it.
From the Inventions in Everything Archives
The IIE team has previously found at least two surprising innovations in restrooms. Here's that short list: