Scrubbing implement

Details Scrubbing implement Scrubbing implement

1999-12-03

2001-05-08

Walczak, David J. (Department: 3751)

Coating implements with material supply

Including means to apply material-moving force

By compression or suction of gas in reservoir

C401S139000, C401S187000, C401S190000, C401S288000, C401S289000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06227740

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a hand scrubbing implement, and in particular to a brush attachment for an conventional spray bottle so that cleaning material can be dispensed onto a surface and the surface scrubbed with the same hand.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Plastic spray bottles which use a hand held pump are well known for a variety of different uses. Commercially available spray bottles may be used domestically, for example, to water plants, dispense insecticide or dispense a liquid cleaning material. Commercially available plastic bottles typically have the capacity of about one quart or less, and have a pump attachment threadably received on the bottle top so that when a trigger is squeezed on the pump liquid from the within the bottle will be dispensed through the nozzle. These pump attachments typically have a threaded cap on a dispensing nozzle so that the stream dispensed can be regulated from a fine mist to a spray, to an actual stream. The cap has an axially arranged pin hole which registers on an internal nozzle so that as the cap is rotated into the nozzle the spray will become finer.
Because the bottle is plastic it is usually desirable to admit air as the liquid is dispensed, so that the bottle will not collapse. In certain of these commercially available devices, however, the dispensing opening remains open even when the cap is completely threadably received on the bottle. (See for example U.S. Design Pat. No. 275,456; U.S. Pat. No. 5,641,125 and U.S. Pat. No.5,526,985.)
On the other hand, certain pumps, such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,489,890, use a flexible cup disposed within the cap surrounding the dispensing opening so that the opening is normally closed, except when the trigger is depressed actuating the pump. In this type of device, if the bottle is overturned, it will not leak.
In a typical cleaning activity the cleaning material is dispensed onto a surface and then a scrubbing device is used. A number of prior patents have been directed to providing liquid applicators within different types of scrubbing devices. A number of patents describing such prior art devices are listed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,885,019.
That patent describes a brush attachment for a conventional spray bottle. The brush consists of a brush back with a central hole therethrough and the brush back is friction fitted on the bottle's nozzle cap. The spray from the dispenser, depending upon the position of the nozzle cap, can either inject a mist into the brush or a stream passing directly through the brush onto the surface to be cleaned.
For many years, brushes have been constructed using the staple set method wherein individual tufts are held in apertures in a brush back by staples.
Brushes have also been made wherein synthetic filaments tufts are picked, and the end of the tuft fused and then attached to a synthetic brush back to form a brush having tufts integral with the back. U.S. Patents assigned to Tucel Industries, Inc. disclose a number of brush backs with integral tufts. Examples of such patents are U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,604,043; 4,189,189; 4,291,431; 4,348,060; 4,690,277 and 4,693,519. The listed patents are merely examples of Tucel Industries products and the foregoing is not intended to be an exhaustive list of such patents. The disclosures of the above Tucel patents are hereby incorporated by reference.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It has been discovered that a tufted brush construction can be mounted on a convention pump dispenser bottle replacing the nozzle cap by providing such a brush implement with a central hole therein and internal threads so that the brush may be threadably received on the pump dispenser in place of the conventional cap. The brush itself then can be used to regulate the spray from the bottle, and also used as a brushing implement on a surface to be cleaned. The attachments includes a base member having a topface mounting a plurality of tufts and a bottom face. A communication channel extends through a base member and the channel is internally threaded. The top face of the channel forms a pinhole to dispense liquid and the bottom face of the channel is designed to be threadably received on the nozzle of the pump dispenser. The nozzle of the pump dispenser typically has a groove and an O-ring mounted therein to frictionally engage the internal surface of the channel as the brush is rotated onto the dispenser nozzle. In this way the brush will not inadvertently rotate as it is used as a scrubbing implement.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a hand held scrubbing implement wherein a brush is mounted on a pump dispenser nozzle.
It is another object of this invention to provide a light weight plastic scrubbing implement wherein liquid can be dispensed through a brush as the brush is used for scrubbing a surface to be cleaned.
It is another object of this invention to provide an improved scrubber attachment for a spray bottle which uses a hand pump as a source of air pressure to dispense liquid wherein the scrubber attachment regulates the flow of liquid from the spray bottle.
It is still another object of this invention to provide a lightweight and efficient scrubber attachment for a conventional hand pump spray bottle wherein the scrub brush is a brush back with integral tufts extending therefrom which is threadably received on the dispensing nozzle of the hand operated pump.


REFERENCES:
patent: 4848946 (1989-07-01), Goncalves
patent: 4922859 (1990-05-01), Durell et al.
patent: 5885019 (1999-03-01), Stear
patent: 6092952 (2000-07-01), Eberle

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