Showers

The present invention relates to showers.

It has been proposed to incorporate into a shower infra red and/or ultraviolet radiation sources. Such an arrangement is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,424,598, DE No. 3,500,367, DE No. 331,740, GB No. 2,020,970, AU No. 252,062. All of these prior proposals are, however, unsatisfactory as regards the general mounting of the radiation sources and the provision for access to permit replacement and servicing whilst maintaining the sources sealed from the shower.

According to the present invention, there is provided, in combination, a shower wall having a translucent panel, an assembly behind the panel, said assembly including at least one lamp for emitting ultraviolet radiation into the shower via the panel, and means mounting said assembly for movement generally parallel to the wall to permit the assembly to be withdrawn from behind the wall at least to an extent sufficient to permit replacement of the or each lamp.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevation of a shower incorporating an assembly for emitting ultraviolet radiation.

FIG. 2 is an elevation of one of the assembly as installed.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the shower; and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an especially preferred form of the assembly.

As shown in the drawings, a shower assembly comprises a tray 2, a rear wall 4 and opposed side walls 6. Each side wall 6 is of hollow construction and comprises a transparent, waterproof, inner panel 8, for example of acrylic sheet such as "Perspex", which faces into the interior of the shower. The interior of the side wall 6 houses, behind the transparent panel 8, a frame 10 supporting an array of ultraviolet lamps. Preferably, the lamps are in the form of parallel fluorescent tubes 12 which extend vertically in the frame, and span substantially the entire height of the side wall 6, the array of lamps extending across a substantial part of the width of the side wall. The frame 10 also carries reflectors 14 positioned to reflect light into the interior of the shower.

The frame 10 is supported at its lower edge on wheels 16 which run along a horizontal track 18 in the base of the side wall 6, the frame also being suitably guided or supported at its upper edge. The frame 10 can be withdrawn, at least partly from the interior of the wall 6 via an open front edge of the wall 6, by movement along the track 18. In its withdrawn position the frame 10 is exposed to permit easy replacement of the lamps. Suitable guide means (not shown) are provided for locating and guiding the upper part of the frame, while the frame 10 is located within the wall, and when the frame is withdrawn from the wall. A hinged or other movable end panel 20 closes the open front edge of the side wall in order to enclose the frame 10 in the side wall, suitable sealing means being provided between the end panel 20 and the side wall to ensure that no water enters the interior of the side wall when the end panel is in position to close the front edge.

In an especially preferred arrangement as shown in FIG. 4, the frame 10 includes at its bottom a box-like casing 30 which is open at the top and which shields the lower ends of the lamps and associated electrical equipment against water which may penetrate behind the shower wall and rise to the level of the lower ends of the lamps. The casing 30 carries the wheels 16 (typically, four such wheels) which are spaced along the length of the casing to run along the track 18. At its upper end, the frame carries a row of wheels 32 (again, typically four such wheels) which project laterally from the frame to engage in a horizontal guide track 34 secured to the adjacent wall of the overall recess in which the shower is installed. A stop wheel 36 externally of the track 34 is operative to engage a stop 38 carried by the upper side of the track 34 at a position corresponding to a desired extent of maximum withdrawal of the frame. In this withdrawn condition, the frame is exposed to an extent sufficient to provide ready access to the lamps so as to permit replacement of the lamps, while the frame is still supported by the tracks 18, 34.

Operation of the lamps 12, while a person is showering, results in emission of ultraviolet radiation to cause tanning of the person over his entire body. The lamps used are chosen to emit radiation substantially wholly within the ultraviolet band of the spectrum, with substantially no emission of infra red radiation and which would cause excessive heating within the interior of the hollow side walls.

The invention may be embodied within an integral pre-formed shower comprising the sidewalls, rear wall and tray which can be installed, as a unit, in a suitable recess. Alternatively hollow, prefabricated side wall assemblies incorporating the frames and lamps, can be produced for installation into existing showers or for building-in into new showers constructed on site.

The embodiment has been described by way of example only and modifications are possible within the scope of the invention.