EP3920762B1 - Soap, soap holder and soap - soap holder assembly - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL AREA

The invention relates to a holder for a soap, more particularly a holder that can be held in one hand. The invention also relates to a soap allowing a user to wash himself, this soap being intended to be held on such a holder. The invention further relates to a soap-soap holder assembly. This holder is removable in the sense that it is not necessarily fixed to a wall for example.

PRIOR TECHNIQUE

For a number of years, solid soap allowing a user to wash has been largely replaced by liquid soap and other shower products. Such liquid soaps avoid the problems and inconveniences of solid soaps for personal use which are very slippery and have the unfortunate tendency to slip from the user's hands, especially as the soap wears out, which is disturbing in terms of effectiveness and in practical terms and can even cause accidents. In addition, these soaps soften and become sticky when in contact with the area where they are stored, often wet, after use. Liquid soaps, on the other hand, do not have these disadvantages and this risk.

Replacing solid soap with liquid soap is not without its problems. On the one hand, the fact that soap is liquid means that it must be packaged in a container. This container, generally made of plastic, involves pollution during its manufacture and disposal. Keeping the soap in a liquid state involves the use of chemicals that can cause skin problems for the user. The amount of liquid soap used for a wash is much greater than the amount of solid soap for the same wash. A significant portion of the liquid soap actually flows directly into the sewers before it has even been used.

A great many attempts have been made to avoid the above problems associated with solid soaps, with particular emphasis on preventing the soap from slipping out of the user's hands.

Among these attempts, the American patent, published under the number US 1,617,466 , describes a handle intended to allow an object that is relatively heavy to float on water. More specifically, the handle is used to float a soap on water. The handle is made from a resilient material and has a hollow area that is inserted into the soap. The contact surface between the soap and the handle is relatively small.

The US patent published under the number US 3,192,894 discloses a holder for an article made of a wearable material such as a bar of soap. The holder includes a handle that has a male portion that is inserted into a female portion of the bar of soap. The handle has protrusions that serve to hold the bar of soap in place. The handle is not designed to be held in the hand, but rather to hang the bar of soap from a fixed, solid object such as a hook for hanging the bar of soap, with its usable side either up or down.

The patent US 4,335,007 describes a support comprising hollow elements such as dovetail grooves or spherical cavities. A soap is cast into a mold during the manufacture of this soap, this mold containing the support. The soap being liquid or pasty during its manufacture, it flows into the hollow elements of the support so as to fill them. When the soap dries, it hardens and the parts of the soap contained in the hollow elements of the support allow the soap to be held on the support.

Such a soap-soap holder assembly has a significant drawback. In fact, the soap must be secured to the holder at the time of soap manufacture. As a result, the holder cannot be reused when the soap attached to it has been used up. It is therefore a single-use holder. In addition, the holder has areas with sharp corners or acute angles, these areas being in particular the areas in which the hollow elements of the holder open into the surface of this holder. On the one hand, the soap which is in the hollow areas of the holder is not usable and is lost. On the other hand, these sharp corners can be unpleasant for the user and cause injury or inconvenience when the soap is almost used up and some sharp corners are no longer covered by soap.

The state of the art includes many support systems in which a connecting element is introduced into the soap and into a holder or handle, so as to connect these two components. This implies that the connecting element must be introduced into the soap, if possible at the time of soap manufacture.

Other supports exist like the one disclosed in the publication FR 737.159 , these holders comprising an element which holds the soap in the holder, in particular in a housing of the holder. This element may comprise claws or other protuberances, which could touch or even injure the skin of the user when the soap has undergone a certain wear. In addition, the part of the soap which is held between the claws or protuberances is generally lost and thrown away. The publication US 3,498,726 describes for example a holder containing four rods inserted into the soap. These rods are unpleasant for the user and simply render the holder unusable in practice, as soon as the soap has reached a certain degree of wear.

• le support doit permettre de maintenir le savon de manière simple et efficace, sans que celui-ci ne glisse des mains de l'utilisateur ;
• ce support doit permettre d'utiliser le savon jusqu'à l'usure complète ou du moins aussi complète que possible dudit savon, sans gaspillage ;
• ce support ne doit pas blesser l'utilisateur ; et
• le savon doit pouvoir être rendu solidaire du support après la fabrication du savon, c'est-à-dire lorsque le savon est dur, de façon à rendre ce support réutilisable lorsque le savon est usé.

There is therefore a need for a solid soap holder for personal use that meets the following conditions:

• the support must allow the soap to be held in a simple and effective manner, without it slipping from the user's hands;
• this support must allow the soap to be used until the soap is completely worn out, or at least as completely worn out as possible, without waste;
• this support must not injure the user; and
• the soap must be able to be made integral with the support after the soap has been made, that is to say when the soap is hard, so as to make this support reusable when the soap is used up.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention proposes to provide a soap holder, a soap and a soap-soap holder assembly which allows a user to wash or use a solid soap, without the risk of it slipping out of his hands. In addition, the holder is reusable with a new soap when an old soap has been consumed, which implies that it is not necessary for the soap to be poured onto the holder during its manufacture, but that it can be put in place at any time.

The aim of the present invention is achieved by a support according to claim 1 for soap intended to retain at least one soap having at least one cleaning surface, a holding face and at least one lug protruding from this holding face, said soap support comprising at least one contact face intended to be in contact with the holding face of the soap, and a handling surface arranged to be held by a user, this soap support comprising at least one housing opening into said contact face, said at least one housing being configured to receive said corresponding lug of the soap, said housing being arranged to allow said lug of the soap to be removably introduced into the housing and said soap support not comprising a protuberance intended to retain the soap on the support.

The object of the invention is also achieved by a soap according to claim 8 comprising at least one cleaning surface arranged to be in contact with a body to be cleaned when using the soap, a holding face arranged to be in contact with a soap holder and at least one lug emerging from the holding face, this soap being characterized in that said at least one lug is configured to be able to be removably inserted into a corresponding housing of said soap holder, in that the cleaning surface of the soap comprises at least one recess, the number of recesses, their shape and their dimensions being identical to the number of lugs, their shape and their dimensions, and in that said recesses and said lugs are configured so that said lugs of one soap can be inserted into said recesses of another identical soap.

This object is further achieved by a soap-holder assembly according to claim 11 for soap formed of a holder and at least one soap, said at least one soap having at least one cleaning surface and a holding face comprising at least one lug opening out of the holding face, said holder comprising at least one contact face intended to be in contact with the soap holding face, a handling surface arranged to be held by a user and at least one housing opening out into said contact face, said at least one lug being configured to be able to be removably inserted into a corresponding housing of said soap holder and said soap holder not comprising a protuberance intended to retain the soap on the holder.

According to this invention, the soap holder serves as a handle that can be held in one hand and serves to hold the soap without it slipping. This holder greatly facilitates holding the soap in the hand, especially when it is wet and worn. Holding the soap on the soap holder is carried out simply and effectively without tools and without complex handling.

The soap holder assembly includes a soap having a shape that allows the soap to be placed in a position that leaves at least one surface of the soap exposed so as to be able to contact the skin of a user and a holder that has a portion that contacts the soap and a portion that can be held without slipping in a hand of the user. The holder holds the soap in a most surprising and unexpected manner.

The invention allows a user to continue using the soap even when the soap is flush with the holder without risking injury or disturbance from sharp angles formed by hollow elements such as grooves or recesses or by protruding elements such as spikes, claws or protrusions that would serve to retain the soap in the holder. The soap and holder are configured so that a portion of the soap fits into a hole or recess in the holder. In one embodiment, when the soap is used up and only the portion of the soap that is held in the recess remains, this last piece of the soap can be used as a bar of soap. In another embodiment, the last piece of the soap can be removed from the recess and added to a portion of a new bar of soap, this new soap comprising a "female" housing of the same shape as the last piece of used soap. All embodiments allow the user to use the soap without it slipping in the hand, even when it is used and wet, and this until it is completely or almost completely worn out.

The invention allows a very simple installation and replacement of the soap on its support, without any special tool or other system or added fixing part and this, in a way totally independent of the time of the manufacture of the soap. In other words, the soap does not contain any foreign part that should be connected to the support and the soap does not need to be fixed to the support during the manufacture of this soap.

Positioning a soap on the holder is extremely simple and holding the soap on the holder is surprisingly effective, regardless of wear and tear on the soap.

SUMMARY DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

• la figure 1 illustre un premier mode de réalisation d'un support pour savon selon l'invention, vu de profil;
• la figure 2 représente le support pour savon de la figure 1, vu de dessus;
• la figure 3 représente un deuxième mode de réalisation d'un support pour savon, vu de profil;
• la figure 4 illustre le support pour savon de la figure 3, vu de dessus;
• les figures 5 à 8 représentent différentes formes de réalisation possibles de savons, vus de profil, adaptés aux supports pour savon des figures 1 à 4 notamment ; les formes de réalisation des savons des figures 5-7 ne font pas partie de l'invention,
• la figure 9 est une vue de dessus du savon illustré par la figure 8 ;
• la figure 10 est une vue de dessus d'une variante de savon selon l'invention ;
• la figure 11 est une vue de profil d'un savon dans lequel un reste d'un ancien savon a été placé dans un nouveau savon ;
• les figures 12 à 14 illustrent différentes variantes de formes de supports pour savons, vus de profils;
• la figure 15 représente un savon compatible avec le support pour savon de la figure 14; le savon de la figure 15 ne fait pas partie de l'invention,
• la figure 16 représente un support pour savon pouvant être posé sur sa tranche de ce support;
• la figure 17 représente un support pour savons, vu de face, prévu pour être tenu par un élément de maintien tel qu'un pied ;
• la figure 18 est une vue de dessus d'un mode de réalisation particulier de support selon l'invention;
• la figure 19 est une vue de dessous du mode de réalisation de support de la figure 18;
• la figure 20 est une vue de profil du mode de réalisation du support des figures 18 et 19 ;
• la figure 21 représente un ensemble savon - support pour savon selon un premier mode de réalisation de l'invention; le mode de réalisation de la figure 21 ne fait pas partie de l'invention,
• la figure 22 est une vue en coupe d'une variante d'ensemble savon - support pour savon selon l'invention; la variante de la figure 22 ne fait pas partie de l'invention,
• la figure 23 est une vue de dessus d'un autre mode de réalisation particulier de support pour savon selon l'invention;
• la figure 24 est une vue de dessous d'un savon compatible avec le support de la figure 23; le mode de réalisation de la figure 24 ne fait pas partie de l'invention,
• la figure 25 est une vue de profil du support de la figure 23;
• la figure 26 est une vue de profil du savon de la figure 24;
• la figure 27 est une vue de dessus d'un support, selon un autre mode de réalisation de l'invention;
• la figure 28 est une vue de profil du support de la figure 27 ;
• la figure 29 est une vue de profil d'un autre mode de réalisation du savon de l'invention ; le mode de réalisation de la figure 29 ne fait pas partie de l'invention,
• la figure 30 est une vue en coupe d'un support utilisable avec le savon illustré par la figure 29 ;
• la figure 31 est une vue de profil d'un autre mode de réalisation de savon selon la présente invention ; le mode de réalisation de la figure 31 ne fait pas partie de l'invention,
• la figure 32 est une vue de profil du savon de la figure 31, pivoté de 90° par rapport à la vue de la figure 31 ;
• la figure 33 est une vue en coupe selon l'axe A-A de la figure 31 ;
• la figure 34 est une vue de dessus d'un support utilisable avec le savon des figures31 à 33 ;
• la figure 35 est une vue du support de la figure 33 avec un savon partiellement en coupe, placé dans le support dans une première position dite position d'introduction ; et
• la figure 36 est une vue similaire à la figure 35, avec le savon dans une deuxième position, dite position de verrouillage.

The present invention and its advantages will be better understood from the following detailed description, with reference to the attached figures, in which:

• there figure 1 illustrates a first embodiment of a soap holder according to the invention, seen in profile;
• there figure 2 represents the soap holder of the figure 1 , seen from above;
• there figure 3 represents a second embodiment of a soap holder, seen in profile;
• there figure 4 illustrates the soap holder of the figure 3 , seen from above;
• THE Figures 5 to 8 represent different possible embodiments of soaps, seen in profile, adapted to the soap holders of the Figures 1 to 4 in particular; the forms of realization of the soaps of Figures 5-7 are not part of the invention,
• there figure 9 is a top view of the soap illustrated by the figure 8 ;
• there figure 10 is a top view of a variant of soap according to the invention;
• there figure 11 is a side view of a soap in which a remnant of an old soap has been placed in a new soap;
• THE Figures 12 to 14 illustrate different variations of soap holder shapes, seen in profile;
• there figure 15 represents a soap compatible with the soap holder of the figure 14 ; the soap of the figure 15 is not part of the invention,
• there figure 16 represents a soap holder which can be placed on its edge of this holder;
• there figure 17 represents a soap holder, seen from the front, intended to be held by a support element such as a foot;
• there figure 18 is a top view of a particular embodiment of support according to the invention;
• there figure 19 is a bottom view of the support embodiment of the figure 18 ;
• there figure 20 is a side view of the embodiment of the support of the Figures 18 and 19 ;
• there figure 21 represents a soap-soap holder assembly according to a first embodiment of the invention; the embodiment of the figure 21 is not part of the invention,
• there figure 22 is a sectional view of a variant of a soap dish - soap holder assembly according to the invention; the variant of the figure 22 is not part of the invention,
• there figure 23 is a top view of another particular embodiment of a soap holder according to the invention;
• there figure 24 is a bottom view of a soap compatible with the holder of the figure 23 ; the method of realization of the figure 24 is not part of the invention,
• there figure 25 is a profile view of the support of the figure 23 ;
• there figure 26 is a side view of the soap of the figure 24 ;
• there figure 27 is a top view of a support, according to another embodiment of the invention;
• there figure 28 is a profile view of the support of the figure 27 ;
• there figure 29 is a side view of another embodiment of the soap of the invention; the embodiment of the figure 29 is not part of the invention,
• there figure 30 is a sectional view of a support usable with the soap illustrated by the figure 29 ;
• there figure 31 is a side view of another embodiment of soap according to the present invention; the embodiment of the figure 31 is not part of the invention,
• there figure 32 is a side view of the soap of the figure 31 , rotated 90° relative to the view of the figure 31 ;
• there figure 33 is a sectional view along axis AA of the figure 31 ;
• there figure 34 is a top view of a holder that can be used with soap figures 31 to 33 ;
• there figure 35 is a view of the support of the figure 33 with a partially cut soap, placed in the holder in a first position called the introduction position; and
• there figure 36 is a view similar to the figure 35 , with the soap in a second position, called the locking position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Several embodiments of the invention are described. References formed by a number followed by a letter relate to a specific embodiment of an element of the invention. Similar elements of different embodiments of the invention have the same reference number, this reference number being followed by a different letter for different embodiments. When an element is followed in the description by a reference number without a letter, the text relates to the element described, regardless of the specific embodiment. When an element is followed in the description by a reference number with a letter, the text relates to the element described according to the specific embodiment.

THE Figures 1 and 2 illustrate a first embodiment of a soap holder 10a according to the present invention. This soap holder 10a has a shape of a portion of a cylinder having two circular faces, connected by a handling surface 11a. One of the faces of the soap holder forms a contact face 12a whose function is explained below. The holder has a face 13a, opposite the contact face 12a.

The soap holder 10a further comprises a female housing 14a made in the form of a hole passing through this holder 10a and opening on the one hand into the contact face 12a and on the other hand into the face 13a opposite this contact face 12a.

There figure 2 is a plan view of the soap holder 10a illustrated by the figure 1 . The female housing 14a is visible, this housing 14a passing through the support 10a from the contact face 12a to the opposite face 13a.

The housing 14a is delimited by a wall 114 forming an intersection with the contact face 12a. The wall 114 of the housing 14a and the contact face 12a define an angle α at their intersection, this angle α being on the side of the support in which there is material and not on the side of the void of the housing, as illustrated by the figure 1 in particular. This angle α is not acute, i.e. obtuse or right. In the illustrated embodiments, this angle is equal to 90°. As mentioned above, it could however also be obtuse. Furthermore, the housing 12a does not have any “overhanging” element, i.e. elements of the housing whose projection on the contact face 12a would extend further than the opening of the housing 14a in the contact face 12a in the direction of the handling surface 11a or the periphery of the support, or would be larger than this opening of the housing.

The absence of an acute angle and overhang offers two advantages. On the one hand, an acute angle can be unpleasant for the user and cause discomfort or even injuries at the time when this angle becomes accessible to the user, that is to say when the soap has reached a certain degree of wear. On the other hand, the absence of an overhang makes it possible to place a new soap on the support when an old soap has been consumed. This therefore makes it possible to reuse the support. Indeed, the presence of an overhang implies that the soap must be fixed to the support while the soap is still pasty, that is to say during its manufacture. A new soap being in principle solid, it will not be able to be introduced into a support, the latter therefore not being reusable. On the contrary, in the absence of an overhanging area, it is possible to move the soap in a general movement perpendicular to the contact surface 12a, without this overhanging element retaining the soap. In this way, the soap can be considered as being able to be removably placed on the holder.

The soap holder 10a, and more precisely the handling surface 11a, is intended to be held by a user when he wishes to use a soap held on the holder 10a. For this purpose, the diameter and the height of the holder 10a are such that this holder can be held and handled easily.

THE Figures 3 and 4 represent a second embodiment of a support 10b according to the invention. This embodiment is similar to the embodiment of the Figures 1 and 2 , except as regards the accommodation. Accommodation 14b of the embodiment of the Figures 3 and 4 has a blind hole, which opens into the face contact 12b of the support 10b for soap. This housing 14b further comprises a groove 15b communicating with the blind hole and provided to receive a tool for extracting a remainder of soap.

As in the previous embodiment, the wall of the housing forms a non-acute angle α with the contact face of the support so that this housing does not form a sharp angle nor does it have an overhanging element.

THE Figures 5 to 11 illustrate different embodiments of soaps 20 compatible with a soap holder 10 according to the Figures 1 to 4 . These soaps 20 all comprise a cleaning surface 21 designed to be in contact with a body to be cleaned. These soaps further comprise a holding face 22 arranged to be in contact with the contact face 12 of the soap support 10 and to hold this soap 20 on the soap support 10.

Each soap also includes a male lug 23 which has a shape complementary to and/or adapted to the female housing 14 of the soap holder 10.

When a soap 20 is to be mounted on a soap holder 10, the male lug 23 of the soap is inserted into the female housing 14 of the soap holder. The holding face 22 of the soap 20 is pressed against the contact face 12 of the soap holder 10. This has the effect of holding the soap on the holder, possibly by suction effect, and of reinforcing the stability of the soap on the holder. Due to the relatively large contact surface between the contact face 12 of the holder and the holding face 22 of the soap and due to the presence of a lug 23 serving as a holder and guide, no foreign fixing element is necessary for the soap 20 to hold on the holder 10. Surprisingly, it is sufficient to wet or moisten the soap 20 and press it against the holder 10 for this soap to hold on this holder. This method of fixing in which the soap is not retained by a housing whose walls form an acute angle with the contact face 12 or whose housing forms an overhang or in which protuberances are introduced into the soap, goes against all the soap supports which have been developed and goes against what is generally accepted and considered obvious and essential by those skilled in the art.

In all illustrated embodiments, other than that illustrated by the Figures 29 and 30 , the lug 23 has a cylindrical shape. The base of this cylinder forming this lug can be circular, but it can also be partially circular, rectangular or any. The generator of the cylinder is in principle perpendicular to the holding face 22 of the soap.

In the embodiment illustrated by the figure 5 , the soap 20a has a cleaning surface 21a, that is to say a surface in contact with the user, curved so as not to present angles which could be unpleasant for the user.

In the embodiment of the figure 6 , soap 20b has a cylindrical shape, with a rectangular cross-section. This makes it possible to have a soap with a greater quantity of material than the soap of the figure 5 , but the 20b soap has a sharp edge that can be unpleasant for the user, at least at the beginning of using a new soap.

The 20c soap of the figure 7 combines the advantages of soaps from figures 5 And 6 . It has a large amount of material without having sharp angles that are unpleasant for the user.

The 20d soap illustrated by the figure 8 comprises, in its cleaning surface 21d, a recess 24d having a shape and dimension substantially identical to the shape and dimensions of the lug 23d. This recess 24d is also visible on the figure 9 which is a top view of the 20d soap from the figure 8 .

There figure 10 is also a top view of a soap 20e according to the invention, comprising a recess 24e intended to receive the remainder of a used soap. In the embodiment illustrated by this figure, the recess 24e has a groove shape.

When a soap 20 and a soap holder 10 according to the invention are used, the soap 20 wears away until it reaches the surface of the holder 10. At this point, only the part of the soap placed in the housing, namely the lug 23, remains. In the case where the housing 14a has a through hole, as illustrated for example by the Figures 1 and 2 , the remaining soap is pressed outside this housing 14a by the face 13a opposite the contact face 12a. In the case where the housing 14b has a blind hole, as illustrated by the Figures 3 and 4 , a leftover soap corresponding to the lug 23 is extracted from the support 10 by inserting an extraction tool such as a stick or a screwdriver into the groove 15b.

This remaining soap can be used as a bar of soap for example. In the case where the soap has a recess 24 adapted to the shape of the lug 23, as illustrated by the Figures 8 to 11 , the remaining soap corresponding to a lug 23f' of an old soap can be introduced into the recess 24 of a new soap, which avoids any waste.

There figure 11 illustrates a soap according to the method of making the figures 8, 9 or 10 , in which a lug 23f' of an old soap has been inserted into a recess 24f of a new soap. Due to the properties of moistened soap, in particular the fact that a soap can be slightly deformed and stuck together by simple moistening, it is simple to position the lug of an old soap in the recess of a new soap and to hold the two soaps together, thus avoiding any waste.

THE Figures 12 and 13 represent two supports 10 for soaps having different shapes. In the figure 12 , the soap holder 10c has a flat contact face 12c, as in the embodiments of Figures 1 to 4 . The handling surface 11c has a shape of a portion of a sphere or a shape similar to a portion of a sphere, such that this support can be held in the hand of a user in a manner comfortable for this user.

There figure 13 illustrates a 10d soap holder similar to that of the Figures 1 and 2 , to which a 30d handle or handle has been added. This 30d handle is intended to be able to easily hold the 10d support in the hand and acts as an 11d handling surface.

According to different possible variants, the handling surface 11 could have a shape chosen from a handle, a grip, a disc, a portion of a disc, a cylinder, a cylindrical strip, a portion of a sphere or any other suitable shape.

THE Figures 14 and 15 illustrate respectively a 10e soap holder and a 20e soap compatible with this holder. The 10e soap holder has a slightly domed 12e contact face, which is also the case for the opposite 13e face. In other words, this 10e holder has a slightly barrel-shaped cross-section.

In this case, the angle between the handling surface 11e and the tangent to the contact face 12e is an obtuse angle referenced by the letter β on the figure 14 . Such an obtuse angle implies that there is no risk of injury or discomfort when the 10e soap holder comes into contact with the user's skin when the 20e soap is practically completely consumed.

The 20th soap of the figure 15 is compatible for use with the 10e bracket of the figure 14 . For this purpose, it has a holding face 22e which is also curved, of a shape complementary to the contact face 12e of the support 10e, so that the contact face 12e of the support presses against the holding face 22e of the soap and the contact surface between the contact face 12e and the holding face 22e is relatively large.

THE Figures 16 and 17 illustrate supports 10 having a resting area intended to allow the supports to be resting in such a way that the soap does not rest on a wet or humid area and in such a way that these supports 10 do not roll.

For this purpose, the 10f support of the figure 16 has a flat area 40 on which this support 10f can be placed vertically. In this position, the soap remains exposed to the air and dries without disintegrating as is the case when the soap is simply placed in a conventional soap holder. In this embodiment, the diameter of the soap can be smaller than the diameter of the support, or the soap can also have a flat, so that the soap does not protrude from the support.

The 10g support of the figure 17 has a hole 50 provided to receive a rod of a holding element or foot (not shown). In this case also, the soap remains exposed to the air and does not disintegrate. Such a support can add an aesthetic effect to the whole.

THE Figures 18 and 19 represent two opposite faces of the same 10h support for soap, this support being illustrated in profile by the figure 20 . In this embodiment, a contact face 12h of the support 10h for soap comprises a female housing 14h intended to receive a male lug of the soap. This housing 14h has a cylindrical shape with a substantially rectangular base.

As illustrated by the figure 19 , the 10h support has an opposite face 13h to the contact face 12h, this opposite face also having a housing 14h'. This housing 14h' has a cylindrical shape with a circular base. The soap holder also has a through hole 60 connecting the two housings.

In this embodiment, a first soap can be placed opposite the contact face 12 o'clock of the soap holder, while a second soap can be placed on the opposite face 13 o'clock. The shape of the housings 14 o'clock, 14 o'clock' acts as a "foil" in the sense that a soap whose lug 23 is provided to fit into one of the housings of the holder can only be placed in this housing and not in the housing made in the opposite face.

The two soaps may be of identical composition and have an identical application. This may for example be the case of a soap used for washing hands, where it is quite logical that the two soaps are identical. It is also possible to have different soaps, intended for different applications, such as a soap for a user's body and a soap for washing hair. It is also possible to provide two soaps having, in particular, different compositions, perfumes or colors. The soaps may also be intended for two different people.

The through hole 60 connecting the two housings allows the lug to be easily removed from the soaps when they have been consumed. As in the other embodiments, none of the housings has an overhanging area relative to the opening of the corresponding housing. Thus, it is possible to introduce a soap onto the support with a lug placed in the housing, while the soap is hard.

There figure 21 illustrates an embodiment of a soap-soap holder assembly 70a in which a holder 10a as illustrated by the figure 1 receives two 20c soaps as illustrated by the figure 7 .

In this assembly 70a soap - soap holder, the holding face 22c of each of the soaps is in contact with the contact face 12a of the holder or with the opposite face 13a to the contact face. The lug 23c of each soap is placed in the housing 14a of the holder. The large contact surface between the holding and contact faces ensures good holding of the soaps on the holder. The surface of 11a handling of the support is easily accessible to the user and allows him to hold the soap - soap support assembly firmly and conveniently, without the risk of the assembly slipping out of his hands.

The soap cleaning surface 21c is also easily accessible to the user, allowing the user to easily use the soap. The only surface not containing soap is the handling surface 11a. On the one hand, when using the soap-soap holder assembly 70a, this handling surface is held by the user, which means that it is unlikely to come into contact with the parts of the body that the user is cleaning. On the other hand, even if this handling surface rubs the user's body, it is soft and is unlikely to injure the user.

There figure 22 is a sectional view of a 70b soap - soap holder assembly similar to the 70a assembly of the figure 21 . This set 70b is formed of a support 10e as represented by the figure 14 and two 20th century soaps similar to the soap of the figure 15 .

There figure 23 represents a support 10i for soap, and more precisely its contact face 12i. In this embodiment, the central housing of the previous embodiments is replaced by several housings 14i, for example three housings arranged in different places on the support. These housings 14i can be through, as is visible on the profile view of the support 10i, this profile view corresponding to the figure 25 .

There figure 24 is a view of the holding face 22i of the soap 20i adapted to be used in the holder 10i of the figure 23 . This 20i soap has three 23i lugs positioned and sized so that they can be placed in the 14i housings of the support.

There figure 26 is a side view of the 20i soap illustrated by the figure 24 .

It is clear that a number of housings and supports other than one or three could be used, provided that a soap can be placed on a support. Alternatively, the support could have more housings than the soap has lugs. For example, the soap could have two lugs while the support has three housings. As indicated above, it is sufficient that a soap can be held in place on a support and therefore that the contact surface between the soap and the support is sufficiently large.

In the embodiment illustrated by the Figures 27 and 28 , the housing 14j of the support 10j does not have a cylindrical shape with a circular base, but has a base having a shape which can be chosen for example by the manufacturer of the support. This shape can correspond to a distinctive sign of the soap manufacturer or producer. It is clear that the soap has a lug having a corresponding shape, not necessarily identical, but such that the soap can be held on the support.

This embodiment allows a company to affix a distinctive sign such as a trademark or any other suitable shape of its choice, on the one hand so that its soap and the corresponding support are recognizable to the consumer and on the other hand, in order to link the support to a particular brand of soap. The company can thus for example offer a support to its customers and ensure that they will only use its soap on the support in question. It is also possible to associate a shape of the base with a particular event such as for example a religious festival, a media event or other.

The housing of the support can be entirely through, as long as the symbol allows it or it can be partially through. In the latter case, it is advantageous to provide an extraction means to be able to remove the lug from the support when the soap is consumed.

In the embodiment illustrated by the Figures 29 and 30 , the lug 23j of the soap 20j has a thread 80. The housing 14j of the support 10k has a threaded area 81 complementary to the thread 80 of the soap so that the soap 20j can be “screwed” into the support 10k. This threaded area, as well as the thread, can be very short and can even be limited for example to a quarter turn. On the contrary, they can also extend over several turns. The axis of the thread 80 of the lug is in principle perpendicular to the holding face 22j of the soap.

In this embodiment also, the 20j soap can be mounted on the support independently of the time of soap making, which means that the support is reusable. In addition, no protruding or protruding elements protrude from the support so that the user cannot injure himself or suffer any inconvenience.

The remaining part of the lug 23j of the soap 20j, when the soap is used up, can be extracted from the support by rotating this lug for example by means of a screwdriver or a coin. This remaining part can also be placed in a recess provided for this purpose in a new soap.

THE Figures 31 to 36 illustrate an embodiment in which two 20k soaps are linked together by a 23k lug having a particular shape, cooperating with a 10l support also having a particular shape. More precisely, as can be seen in particular in the figure 34 , the 10l support has a 14l housing which is extended by a 90 groove opening into the 11l handling surface.

The lug 23k has a cylindrical shape having a portion 91 of its base in the shape of a portion of a circle with a diameter allowing the lug 23k to be placed in the housing 14l of the support, and two flats 92 parallel and spaced such that the width of the lug 23k is less wide than the width of the groove 90.

In this embodiment, when the soap is to be introduced onto a support, the lug 23k is presented opposite the groove 90 so that this lug can be moved along the groove towards the housing 14l. The position of the soap relative to the support is called the introduction position.

When the lug has been moved into the housing, the soap is pivoted so that the flats 92 of the lug are no longer in line with the groove 90, so that the lug 23k cannot come out of the housing 14l. This position corresponds to a so-called locking position.

In this embodiment also, a new soap can easily be placed on a holder when the soap is hard, i.e. regardless of when it was made, making the holder reusable.

The absence of any protruding, sharp or acute angle elements ensures that the holder will not injure the user or cause discomfort or pain. The absence of overhanging elements also allows a new soap to be replaced on the holder, making the holder reusable.

When the soaps are used up, only the lugs remain in the housings. These lugs can easily be removed from the housings by simple pressure. The soap remaining in these lugs can be used as a bar of soap or attached to a new soap, as previously described. Thus, no soap is wasted.

According to various embodiments of the invention, the soap holder may be made entirely or partially of wood, synthetic or biodegradable materials, or virtually any water-resistant material.

The soap dish - soap holder set allows the soap(s) to be held easily and firmly, without the risk of the soap(s) slipping and falling out of the user's hands. This holder prevents any waste of soap and does not present any risk of injury or inconvenience to the user. In addition, the holder can be easily reused to receive a new soap. This holder allows the user to easily place the soap dish - soap holder set in a position such that the set does not rest on the soap. This would have the effect of leaving the soap in the humidity, the soap then disintegrating, sticking to the holder, in an unhygienic manner.

Several embodiments of the invention have been described. However, these embodiments are not limiting. The shape of the housing can be any as long as it allows a new soap to be put in place when an old soap has been consumed. This putting in place must be able to be done when the soap manufacturing is finished, when a user has acquired the soap and not during the manufacturing of this soap.

In the illustrated embodiments, the support has a circular shape, seen from above. It is clear that other shapes are also conceivable. Among these shapes, there are in particular oval, ovoid, square, rectangular shapes, with rounded corners for example, but also all kinds of geometric shapes or even distinctive shapes, for example specific to a company.

Claims (13)

1. Holder for soap intended to retain at least one soap (20) having at least one cleaning surface (21), a holding face (22) and at least one lug (23) protruding from this holding face, said holder (10) for soap comprising at least one contact face (12) intended to be in contact with the holding face (22) of the soap, and a handling surface (11) arranged to be held by a user, this holder (10) for soap comprising at least one housing (14) emerging from said contact face (12), said at least one housing (14) being configured for receiving said corresponding lug (23) of the soap (20), said housing (14) being configured to allow said lug (23) of the soap to be introduced removably into the housing (14) and said holder for soap not including any protuberance intended to retain the soap on the holder.
2. Holder for soap according to claim 1, wherein the housing (14) is delimited by a wall (114) and wherein the wall (114) of the housing (14) and the contact face (12) form between them a non-acute angle (α).
3. Holder for soap according to claim 1, wherein the housing (14) is delimited by a wall (114) and wherein the projection of the wall (114) of the housing (14) on the contact face (12) does not protrude from the opening of the housing (14) in the direction of the handling surface (11).
4. Holder for soap according to claim 1, wherein the housing (14) comprises a threaded zone (81) and wherein the lug (23) comprises a thread (80) complementary to the threaded zone (81) of the housing (14).
5. Holder for soap according to claim 1, wherein said at least one housing (14a, 14h, 14h', 14i, 14j) is a through hole.
6. Holder for soap according to any of the previous claims, wherein this holder (10i) comprises several housings (14i).
7. Holder for soap according to any of the previous claims, wherein this holder comprises two contact faces (12).
8. Soap comprising at least one cleaning surface (21) arranged to be in contact with a body to be cleaned when using the soap, a holding face (22) arranged to be in contact with a holder for soap, and at least one lug (23) emerging from the holding face (22), this soap being characterized in that said at least one lug (23) is configured to be able to be introduced removably into a corresponding housing (14) of said holder (10) for soap, in that the cleaning surface (21) of the soap comprises at least one recess (24), the number of recesses, their shape and their size being identical to the number of lugs (23), to their shape and to their size, and in that said recesses (24) and said lugs (23) are configured so that said lugs (23) of a soap can be introduced into said recesses (24) of another identical soap.
9. Soap according to claim 8, wherein said lug (23) has a cylindrical shape having a generatrix perpendicular to the holding face (22).
10. Soap according to claim 8, wherein said lug (23) comprises a thread (80) having a thread axis perpendicular to the holding face (22).
11. Soap - soap holder assembly formed by a holder and by at least one soap, said at least one soap having at least one cleaning surface (21) and one holding face (22) comprising at least one lug (23) emerging from the holding face (22), said holder (10) comprising at least one contact face (12) intended to be in contact with the holding face (22) of the soap, a handling surface (11) arranged to be held by a user, and at least one housing (14) emerging from said contact face (12), said at least one lug (23) being configured to be able to be inserted removably into a corresponding housing (14) of said holder for soap, said holder for soap not including any protuberance intended to retain the soap on the holder.
12. Soap - soap holder assembly according to claim 11, wherein this assembly (70) comprises a holder (10) for soap and two soaps (20).
13. Soap - soap holder assembly according to claim 12, wherein the housing (14) of said holder (10) for soap comprises a through hole and wherein the lugs (23) of the two soaps are arranged in said through hole.

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