Road structure – process – or apparatus – Apparatus – With surface marking
Reexamination Certificate
1999-03-04
2001-02-06
Lillis, Eileen D. (Department: 3673)
Road structure, process, or apparatus
Apparatus
With surface marking
C404S093000, C239S129000, C239S130000, C165S163000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06183161
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention is a portable manually maneuverable painting unit or machine for painting stripes on pavements such as roads, streets and parking lots. The paint in such operation is preferably heated particularly because of viscosity problems in painting during cold weather. During cold weather the viscosity of the paint becomes abnormally high, making it in most instances difficult or impossible to paint the stripes desired. By heating the paint, striping can be accomplished during weather conditions which otherwise would prohibit striping operations.
Whereas larger units, such as truck units, utilize hot water heating units for heating the paint, such hot water heating units are of such bulky size and weight as to make incorporation in portable units impractical. Propane heating units have been known to be used for such purposes but such heating units are also too large to classified as portable manually operable units as proposed.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the present invention, by use of the hot exhaust gas from an internal combustion engine driving a pressure producing unit, such as a compressor or paint pump in the system, the paint is heated to a lower viscosity appropriate for painting stripes on pavements. Because of the heat, lowered viscosity, the amount of solvent or thinning agent necessary to provide the low viscosity can be reduced to a minimum, which in turn reduces the drying time as well as possible danger of toxicity from solvents. Additionally, the hot paint in hitting a usually lower temperature pavement is cooled quickly further reducing the drying time and adding to the durability of the applied stripes.
When air is used to assist spraying the paint at the nozzle, the exhaust gas from the engine can be used to heat both the paint and the air used to spray the paint. Whereas in airless spray systems, the paint alone is all that requires heating.
In the use of the term “paint” for striping, it is contemplated that the term apply as well to other materials such as thermoplastic resins in fluid form also capable of being applied as stripes with the apparatus of the present invention.
The exhaust gas from an engine such as from even the smallest Honda engine, in driving the compressor or pump of striping unit, has been found to perform excellently in heating paint directly in a heat exchanger. The heat exchanger can be in the form of a simple cylindrical container through which tubing conveys the paint where it receives heat of the gas of the engine exhaust to heat the paint. The tubing conveying the paint is usually made of metal such as copper, steel or an alloy metal, and may be shaped, for example, in the form of a coil or in U-shape or merely passed straight through the exchanger. When the striping is done with an air gun, to assure that the paint is not cooled before it strikes the pavement, the air can be passed through the same heat exchanger as that used to heat the paint, or possibly another heat exchanger. In this regard, heating the air assists in retention of the flowability of the paint for the striping operation. If the air is heated in a separate heat exchanger, a muffler type exchanger can be provided which also receives its heat from the exhaust of the compressor engine.
An object of the invention is to provide a small portable striping unit readily and efficiently operable manually independent of temperature conditions.
Another closely related object is to provide a lightweight road and parking lot striping machine manually maneuverable by a single person.
A feature of the invention is that by heating the paint, the amount of solvent necessary to maintain the desired fluidity can be reduced, which in turn results in quicker drying of the paint with greater durability.
Another feature is that by use of the hot exhaust of an engine to heat the paint and the air at the striping gun or nozzle, the seasons of the year can be reduced as a variable in determining when striping operations are to be conducted.
A further feature of the invention is the ecological advantage which it provides by use of a lesser amount of solvent necessary to maintain the desired paint fluidity.
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Hartmann Gary S.
Lillis Eileen D.
Schroeder Charles F.
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