1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to an apparatus for unclogging a stopped-up drain pipe from a sink, a bathtub, a shower or a toilet, and more particularly to a drain cleaning apparatus that can be assembled to have more than one length and which can be adapted to use different end tools for serving different purposes related to unclogging or cleaning a drain pipe or retrieving an object from a drain pipe or similar restricted space.
2. Description of the Related Art
A drain pipe from a sink, a bathtub, a shower or a toilet often becomes clogged and will not drain properly due to an accumulation of debris, such as hair, toothpaste, solid waste and paper. A drain snake has often been used to unclog a drain pipe, but a drain snake may be more than is needed for a clog that is located relatively close to a drain opening. U.S. Pat. No. 6,775,873, issued to Luoma, is directed to an apparatus for removing from a drain. The Luoma apparatus consists of an elongate, flexible strip that has a handle formed integral on one end of the strip. The strip has barbed portions alternating along the sides of the strip. The strip can be inserted into a drain clogged with an accumulation of hair, and the barbed portions serve to grip the hair so that the hair can be removed from the drain as the strip is pulled out of the drain. The Luoma apparatus may be useful, but its usefulness is limited by its fixed length, its ability to negotiate bends in a drain pipe, its ability to clean hair and other debris from a drain pipe, and it is limited to cleaning hair from a drain pipe and does not provide for serving any other purpose. Consequently, there continues to be a need for an improved drain cleaning apparatus.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds