Hair washing apparatus

Claim 2

Apparatus for washing hair, characterised in that it comprises: - a casing in the form of a helmet (28) provided around its rim with means (36) for sealingly surrounding the region of the head to be washed and provided internally with a plurality of spray nozzles (40) facing inwardly of the casing (28), - supply means (46,50,52) for supplying water or a mixture of water and detergent under pressure to the said spray nozzles (40), - discharge means (60,64,66) for discharging from the casing (28) the water or the mixture of water and detergent coming from the spray nozzles (40), and - a central programme and control unit (80) for controlling the said supply means and the said discharge means according to a predetermined operating cycle.

Claim 3

Apparatus according to Claim 1, characterised in that the spray nozzles (40) are oriented in such a way that the jets leaving each nozzle (40) interfere,in use, with the jets from the adjacent spray nozzles (40).

Claim 4

Apparatus according to Claims 1 and 2, characterised in that the spray nozzles (40) each have an outlet opening (42) of flattened section.

Claim 5

Apparatus according to Claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the helmet-shaped casing (28) has an outer wall (30) and an inner wall (32) defining between them a peripheral cavity (34), and in that the spray nozzles (40) are disposed on the inner wall (32) and communicate with the said cavity (34), the outer wall (30) being provided in the upper region of the casing (28) with an inlet connection (44) and in the lower region of the casing (28) with an outlet connection (46) communicating with the said cavity (34), the connections being connected with the said supply means and the said discharge means respectively.

Claim 6

Apparatus according to Claim 4, characterised in that the spray nozzles (40) are constituted by embossed protuberances in the form of hollow, circular bosses formed by pressing / on the surface of the inner wall (32) ofthe casing (28), each protuberance (40) having an elongate diametral slit (42) constituting the outlet of the spray nozzle.

Claim 7

Apparatus according to Claim 4, characterised in that it further includes a flow distributor (88) inserted in the cavity (34) of the casing (28) in correspondence with the said inlet coupling (44).

Claim 8

Apparatus according to Claim 4, characterised in that the said supply means and the said discharge means comprise: - a container (52) having a first inlet coupling (54) connectable by means of a supply duct (56) to a water-supply source, a delivery coupling (48) connected by means of a delivery tube (46) with an inlet coupling (44) of the casing (28), and a second inlet coupling (68) connected by means of a first discharge duct (64) to an outlet coupling (46) of the casing (28), - a detergent receptacle (74) connected to the container (52), - a pump (50) operable to withdraw the water or mixture of water and detergent from the container (52) and to send it under pressure to the delivery duct (46), - first valve means (58) for controlling the passage through the supply duct (56), - second valve means (6 2 ) for controlling the passage through the first discharge duct (64) and through a second discharge duct (66) branching from the first discharge duct (64) downstream of the outlet connection (46) of the casing (28) and connectable with means for collecting the water or the mixture of water and detergent, - third valve means (78) for controlling the passage of the detergent from the detergent receptacle (74) to the container (52); the said first, second and third valve means (58,62,78) and the said pump (50) being controlled by the said central programme and control unit (80).

Claim 9

Apparatus according to Claim 7, characterised in that the said collection means are constituted by a collection vessel (70) into which the said second discharge duct (66) leads.

Claim 10

Apparatus according to the preceding Claims, characterised in that it further includes a support structure (10) to which the said helmet-shaped casing (28) is fixed in an adjustable and orientable manner.

Claim 11

Apparatus according to Claim 9, characterised in that the support structure is constituted by a vertical support column (10) carrying a horizontal arm (16) projecting from its upper end, the arm (16) having one end mounted slidably and rotatably with respect to the column (10) and the other end being formed as a fork the arms (16a) of which support a pair of horizontal pins (26) which project towards each other, and about which the said helmet-shaped casing (28) is articulated, positioning means (18) being provided for rigidly locking the horizontal arm (16) with respect to the column (10); the lower end of the said column (10) supporting the said container (52) and the said detergent receptacle (74) and, in a readily removable manner, the said collection vessel (70) and the said central programming and control unit (80).

Claim 12

Apparatus according to the preceding Claims, characterised in that the central programme and control unit incorporates a programmable timer (86).

Claim 13

Apparatus substantially as described with reference to the attached drawings.

Claim 14

Apparatus substantially as described with reference to the attached drawings.