Laundry bag

Abstract

Soiled garments are placed in a mesh laundry bag. Two holes in the bag are connected by a spindle sleeve and placed over a spindle of a washing machine so the spindle passes through the center of the bag to center the bag during washing. The bag allows delicate garments to be washed and held separate from other garments in the washing machine. The bag is releasably fastened to connectors on the washing machine's tub which contains the spindle. Releasable closures around the holes prevent garments from slipping out of the bag during washing. An internal stand can be placed in the spindle sleeve to hold the bag in position to receive laundry when the bag is outside the tub. An external frame can do the same.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0001]This invention relates to laundry bags and apparatus for holding laundry bags, including laundry bags used for accumulating soiled laundry as well as for holding laundry during washing.BACKGROUND[0002]Laundry bags are used to hold soiled clothing and other items and transport them to the Laundromat for washing. But when the laundry is removed from the laundry bag it sometimes falls on the floor of the Laundromat and acquires undesirable matter which further contaminates laundry being washed. There is thus a need for an improved way to transport soiled laundry to a washer while minimizing the soiling of the laundry contained in the laundry bag.[0003]After being washed and / or dried, the cleaned laundry is often placed back in to the same laundry bags in which the soiled laundry was previously transported. The laundry bag may accumulate dirt from the soiled laundry and redeposit it on the freshly cleaned laundry. There is thus a need for a laundry bag that i...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0010]In a still further embodiment, the laundry bag has an annular shape having an inner and outer wall, and is placed in a frame which supports the inner wall in an upward orientation. Clothes or other items can be placed into the laundry bag through an aperture that is advantageously held open or held in an accessible orientation by the frame. When the bag and clothes in the bag are removed from the frame the inner wall is held in an upward orientation by the clothes inside the bag. The spindle of a washing machine can slip into the upwardly supported inner wall following the same path as the frame, to support the bag around the spindle. The frame supporting the inner wall of the laundry bag thus helps align the inner wall with the spindle and makes it easier to place the filled laundry bag onto the spindle. When the laundry bag and its contents are washed, the bag and contents can be placed in a machine dryer, or some or all of the contents can be removed from the bag for air drying or machine drying.

[0011]This laundry bag and its method of use allow delicate garments to be washed safely. By placing garments from separate persons in separate laundry bags, it also allows the laundry of several persons to be simultaneous washed, while still keeping the laundry separate during washing, and making for easier identification after washing.

[0018]The method further optionally includes placing the bag on a frame having an upward support which supports an inner wall of a bag having an annular portion, with the annular portion sized to fit over a spindle of a washing machine. The upward support helps align the inner wall of the bag with the anticipated orientation of the spindle, and as clothes are placed into the bag the orientation remains as the clothes help hold the inner wall in the appropriate orientation even when the bag is removed from the frame. The method also advantageously, but optionally, includes holding the laundry bag and especially includes holding an aperture of the laundry bag open or in alignment for easy insertion of clothes into the laundry bag.

[0022]In a still further embodiment, a stand is provided which cooperates with the exterior periphery of the bag to support the bag in a position for insertion of laundry through the access opening. Advantageously the stand cooperates with the spindle passage to support the bag in a position for insertion of laundry through the access opening. A funnel shaped stand with a larger base on the floor and a narrower top engaging a closed end of the spindle sleeve can be used as an internal support. If the funnel-shaped tube has a removable top which is fastened to the bag and sized to fit over the spindle during washing, then the top can be placed over the spindle during washing and help avoid abrasion of the sleeve at that location.

[0026]Still further, the bag can be removably fastened to the tub by use of a connector releasably fastened to at least one hole in the tub. A drawstring around an opening on the bag can be used to fasten to a connector fastened to a hole in the tub. More than one such bag containing laundry can be placed on the same spindle during washing. Placing indicia on each such bag that is associated with a person whose laundry is in the bag allows associating the laundry with the correct person, while simultaneously washing the laundry of multiple persons.

Problems solved by technology

But when the laundry is removed from the laundry bag it sometimes falls on the floor of the Laundromat and acquires undesirable matter which further contaminates laundry being washed.

But the small containers can become entwined with larger items such as sheets, and be inadequately washed or be damaged.

Images