Brushing – scrubbing – and general cleaning – Implements – Brush or broom
Reexamination Certificate
1998-12-10
2001-05-15
Chin, Randall E. (Department: 1744)
Brushing, scrubbing, and general cleaning
Implements
Brush or broom
C015S176100, C015S145000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06230357
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to paintbrushes, and more particularly to paintbrushes having a handle portion and a paint applicator portion, the handle portion and paint applicator portion being releasably connectable to each other.
In this specification, the term “paintbrush” is intended to include a paint application portion which may be comprised of bristles to form a brush, is a roller having an outer fabric surface, or is any other medium by which paint may be applied to a surface.
Paintbrushes are, of course, well known articles for applying paint to surfaces. A typical brush comprises a contoured handle which is elongate, and a plurality of bristles at one end thereof, held together to form a brush. The plurality of bristles are permanently attached to the one end of the handle, usually by means of a metal ring or bracket. Since the bristles, or brush, is permanently affixed to the handle in most paintbrush arrangements, a particular paintbrush will be limited to specific uses, and will often only be used once before being discarded. This is because many users prefer to simply discard a paintbrush rather than go through the messy and time consuming task of cleaning the brush.
The brush portion of the paintbrush may have a variety of different forms and constituents. Thus, brushes may vary in width, from, for example, a half inch width right up to a width of five to six inches and more. Smaller width brushes are suitable for painting strips, edges or corners, and are useful where finer paintwork is required. On the other hand, a much wider bristle or brush component would be used to cover surfaces with paint much more quickly, and where broader stroke and wider area application of the paint is required.
One of the problems with respect to conventional paintbrushes is that painting jobs may typically require brushes having different sizes and attributes. Thus, smaller width brushes are required for edges, while wider width brushes are required for larger surface areas to be painted. Moreover, the nature and quality of the bristles which for the brush have optimal uses in different situations. In some instances, nylon-type bristles may be appropriate, while in others, softer more natural-type bristles are needed. In yet other circumstances, the painting portion need not necessarily be a brush, but may comprise a sponge, fiber or other appropriate material. To properly carry out a painting job may therefore require a painter to have an arsenal of different shaped, sized and quality brushes, which may be difficult to store, expensive to obtain, and somewhat inconvenient to use.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a paintbrush comprising: a handle portion including a stem portion and a head portion, the head portion having a receiving means thereon; a paint application cartridge having a paint application portion, a holding means for holding the paint application portion, and a connecting means whereby the paint application cartridge can be releasably connected to the receiving means of the handle portion.
Preferably, the receiving means comprises a recess in the head portion, and a fastening means in the recess portion for releasable connection to the connecting means. The fastening means may comprise a bolt located in the handle portion, the bolt having a threaded end which engages with the connection means of the paint applicator cartridge. The handle portion may include a channel extending therethrough from the receiving means at the head portion to an opposite end of the head portion, with the bolt being located in the channel. The bolt preferably comprises a ring portion thereon, the ring portion permitting rotational movement of the bolt within the channel, but preventing axial movement of the bolt therein.
In one embodiment, the handle portion further comprises a knob connected to the bolt at an end thereof remote from the threaded portion, whereby rotation of the knob causes rotation of the bolt and the subsequent attachment to or release from the connecting means of the paint application cartridge. The bolt may comprise at least one projection extending radially outwardly from the bolt, with the knob being molded around the projection. Further, the handle portion may further include a retaining ring groove, wherein the ring portion on the bolt is accommodated.
Preferably, the channel comprises a central portion having a diameter slightly wider than the bolt and two end portions each having a diameter substantially the same as the bolt.
The paint application portion, in one form, comprises a medium selected from the group consisting of: nylon bristles, synthetic bristles, natural bristles, and fabric. The paint application cartridge may be a brush or a roller.
The holding means preferably comprises a cup-shaped member having side walls and a base which define a chamber, with a portion of the paint application portion being located within the chamber. The connecting means may comprise a connector piece extending from the base wall of the cup member in a direction away from the chamber. The connector piece may have a central groove therein having an internal thread, the groove receiving a threaded bolt member which forms part of the receiving means. Further, the connector piece may be of hexagonal shape, and taper from a wider diameter portion at a point near the cup-shaped member to a narrower diameter portion at a point remote from the cup member.
According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a paint brush handle connectable to a paint applicator having a connecting member thereon, the paint brush handle comprising a stem portion contoured for holding by a user of the paint brush handle; a head portion at one end of the stem portion, the head portion having a receiving member for receiving the connecting member of the paint applicator; and fastening means within the receiving member for releasably attaching to the connecting member.
In still a further aspect of the invention,there is provided a paint applicator cartridge connectable to a paint brush handle having a receiving means thereon, the paint applicator cartridge comprising a paint applicator portion for absorbing paint and whereby the paint is applied to a surface; a holding member for securely holding the paint applicator portion; and connecting means on the holding member for releasably connecting the paint applicator cartridge to the receiving means on the paint brush handle.
The invention is also for a method of assembling a paintbrush having a handle and a paint application cartridge, the method comprising forming a receiving member in the handle capable of releasably receiving the cartridge portion; forming a connector piece on the cartridge having a shape and configuration corresponding to the receiving means; and locating the connector piece releasably within the receiving means.
The present invention therefore addresses the problem of multiple-type paintbrush heads which may be required by providing a separate handle portion, and a paint application portion in the form of a cartridge which may be releasably and effectively removed from the handle portion when a different paint application portion is needed. In one form, the paintbrush of the invention comprises a handle with a receiving means, and a paint application portion with a registering or corresponding connector, whereby the handle portion may be connected, serially, with a wide variety of different paint application portions depending upon the preferences and requirements of the user.
REFERENCES:
patent: 2526756 (1950-10-01), Krebs
patent: 2558290 (1951-06-01), Brown
patent: 3596304 (1971-08-01), Welt
patent: 3757376 (1973-09-01), Coombes
patent: 3874021 (1975-04-01), Jacobs
patent: 3994039 (1976-11-01), Hadary
patent: 4469223 (1984-09-01), Smith
patent: 4494268 (1985-01-01), Chu
patent: 5226198 (1993-07-01), Martin
patent: 5366314 (1994-11-01), Young
patent: 5926903 (1999-07-01), Kim
patent: 606938 (1926-06-01), None
patent: 122293 (1918-02-
Abrahams Colin P.
Chin Randall E.
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