Protective door shield

Abstract

A shield for protecting doors from damage caused by contact from construction equipment, furniture or other objects carried in and out of a doorway. The door shield comprises a corrugated cardboard rectangular panel with top, bottom, left, and right side edges. The panel includes perforations along a plurality of parallel and spaced apart vertical lines in its right portion and a plurality of parallel and spaced apart horizontal lines in its top portion. The perforations enable tearing of portions of the panel along the vertical and horizontal lines to make the door shield adaptable to different lengths and widths of the doors. The panel also includes perforations along grid lines at a location so as to receive a door handle through a hole formed by tearing portions of the panel along the grid lines.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the door shield of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an illustration of a door and the door shield in its folded configuration.

FIG. 3 is an illustration showing the door shield that is unfolded for attachment to the door.

FIG. 4 shows the door shield that is cut along the perforations to match the dimensions of the door.

FIG. 5 shows the door shield attached to the door using adhesive tape.

FIGURES—REFERENCE NUMERALS

• 10 . . . Door Shield
• 11 . . . Rectangular Panel
• 12 . . . Top Edge
• 13 . . . Bottom Edge
• 14 . . . Left Edge
• 15 . . . Right Edge
• 16 . . . Vertical Line
• 17 . . . Horizontal Line
• 18 . . . Handle Grid
• 19 . . . Fold Line
• 20 . . . Door
• 21 . . . Door Handle
• 22 . . . Hole
• 23 . . . Adhesive Tape

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to the drawings, a preferred embodiment of a door shield of the present invention is illustrated and generally indicated as 10 in FIGS. 1 through 5. The door shield 10 is adaptable to various door sizes.

Referring to FIG. 1, the door shield 10 comprises a rectangular panel 11 made of corrugated cardboard in a preferred embodiment. The panel has top 12, bottom 13, left 14 and right 15 edges. The panel includes perforations along a plurality of parallel and spaced apart vertical lines 16. The vertical lines 16 are at one side portion of the panel 11 and parallel to the right 15 and left 14 edges. The panel 11 also includes perforations along a plurality of parallel and spaced apart horizontal lines 17, parallel to the top 12 and bottom 13 edges. The perforations on the vertical lines 16 enable portions of the panel 11 to be removed along the vertical lines 16 to adjust to different widths of doors, whereas the perforations on the horizontal lines 17 enable portions of the panel to be removed along the horizontal lines 17 to adjust to different door lengths.

The panel further includes perforations along grid lines 18 opposite the vertical lines 16, in a preferred embodiment approximately midway between the bottom most horizontal line and the bottom edge 13, as seen in FIG. 1. Portions of the panel 11 may be removed along the perforations on the grid lines 18 to make a hole for accommodating door knobs or handles of various sizes and designs. The location and area covered by the handle grid 18 match typical locations for door handles, which are approximately in the middle of a door along the edge. The door shield can be folded in half along a fold line 19, to reduce its size prior to, and after use.

Referring to FIGS. 2 through 5, in order to use the door shield 10, it is unfolded to assume a flat configuration. The door shield 10 is then adjusted to the dimensions of the door 20 by removing portions of the panel 11 along the vertical and horizontal lines 16 and 17. Depending on the location and size of the door handle 21, appropriate portions of the area comprising the handle grid 18 are removed along the grid lines to form a hole 22. The adjusted door shield is then placed on the surface of the door 20 and the door handle 21 is received through the hole 22. The door shield 10 is then secured to the door using a securing means, including low tack adhesive tape 23, painters tape or other types of adhesive means that will not damage the door.

The dimensions of the door shield 10 and the distance between the consecutive vertical lines 16 and horizontal lines 17 make the door shield usable with doors of all sizes. In one preferred embodiment, the length of the door shield is 99 inches, the width is 35 inches, and the distance between the consecutive vertical lines 16 and horizontal lines 17 is two inches; the rightmost vertical line is at a distance of two inches from the left edge and a topmost horizontal line is at a distance of two inches from the top edge. However, other embodiments are contemplated, with difference dimensions for the door shield 10, vertical 16 and horizontal 17 lines, and handle grid 18.

All features disclosed in this specification, including any accompanying claims, abstract, and drawings, may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.

Any element in a claim that does not explicitly state “means for” performing a specified function, or “step for” performing a specific function, is not to be interpreted as a “means” or “step” clause as specified in 35 U.S.C. §112, paragraph 6. In particular, the use of “step of” in the claims herein is not intended to invoke the provisions of 35 U.S.C. §112, paragraph 6.

Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, various modifications and substitutions may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, it is to be understood that the present invention has been described by way of illustration and not limitation.

Claims

1. A protective door shield comprising: a) a panel having vertical and horizontal edges; andb) a means of removing portions of the panel along the edges to change the size of the panel.

2. The protective door shield of claim 1, wherein the panel is a quadrilateral shape, including a rectangle.

3. The protective door shield of claim 1, wherein the panel is the size of a door or doorway.

4. The protective door shield of claim 1, wherein the door shield may be folded along one or more axes.

5. The protective door shield of claim 4, wherein the door shield may be folded in half along its vertical mid-section.

6. The protective door shield of claim 1, comprising a means to remove a portion of the shield near a door handle, allowing the door handle to cross through the plane of the shield.

7. The protective door shield of claim 6, wherein the means to remove a portion of the shield near a door handle comprises perforated indicator lines.

8. The protective door shield of claim 1, wherein the means of removing portions of the panel comprises perforated indicator lines running the length of one or more edges of the panel.

9. The protective door shield of claim 8, wherein the indicator lines run along horizontal and vertical axes.

10. The protective door shield of claim 9, wherein the perforated indicator lines are spaced apart, run parallel with the edges of the panel, and extend inward from the edges of the panel.

11. The protective door shield of claim 10, wherein the perforated indicator lines are spaced between 0.5 and five inches apart.

12. The protective door shield of claim 11, wherein the perforated indicator lines are spaced evenly apart.

13. The protective door shield of claim 11, wherein the perforated indicator lines are spaced apart with increasing or decreasing distance between them.

14. The protective door shield of claim 1, wherein the panel is comprised of cardboard, corrugated cardboard, plastic, or a combination of materials.

15. The protective door shield of claim 1, wherein the panel further comprises measurement data and other grid lines to indicate the size and position of the panel relative to a door, doorway, another object or space.

16. A protective door shield comprising: a) a rectangular cardboard panel which folds along its horizontal axis at its vertical midpoint;b) a series of horizontal and vertical perforations along horizontal and vertical indicator lines, forming a grid on the left edge of the panel, so that the grid corresponds with the position of a door handle, so that one, all, or a combination of portions of the grid may be removed to accommodate a door handle, allowing it to pass through the panel;c) a series of horizontal and vertical perforations along indicator lines running the length of the panel on its right edge and across the top of the panel parallel, so that one or more portions of the panel defined by the area between the indicator lines and the edge of the panel may be removed from the panel, to adjust the size of the panel.