Patent Application
20070286984
A first preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in
The surface protection mat 10 may be used in many places, such as entranceways, cafeterias, and other heavily used areas where persons pass, but which surface may be had liquids spilled thereon. Also, floor areas in front of vending machines could be subject to such problems.
In particular, the surface protection mat 10 is intended to be used in restrooms and the like and to be placed on the floor surface about a toilet, commode, or under a man's wall mounted urinal to capture the dripping of urine during a urinating activity. The protection mat 10 protects the floor from staining as well persons from slips and falls occasioned by walking on such floor surface. Additionally, the mat is of sufficient thickness to not only capture undesirable drippings but also provide a slip free surface that the user may stand upon and protect the feet from such fluids.
The liquid absorbing mat 10 for placement on a surface and protecting the surface from liquid spills includes a generally planar semi-rigid cartridge 12 and a top layer 14. The cartridge 12 comprises, at least in part, an upper layer 16 of fluid absorbing material, and a lower layer 18 of fluid impervious material that resists passage of fluid and having a coefficient of friction that resists movement when placed on the floor or like receiving surface.
The top layer 14 is of semi-rigid material and includes a topside 20 adapted to be stood upon to protect the foot of a user, a bottom side 22 adhered, at least in part, to the upper layer 16 of fluid absorbing material and adapted to be placed on the floor or like receiving surface. Further, the top layer 14 includes a central portion 24 and a peripheral portion 26 that encircles the central portion.
To assist maneuvering and placement of the mat, a pair of lift tabs 27 are provide on the outer peripheral portion 26.
The bottom side 22 includes a shaped cavity 28 within which the cartridge 12 is interfitted and superposed by the central portion 24. The shaped cavity 28 includes an outer peripheral wall 28a of predetermined height and is complementary to the shape and thickness of the cartridge unit 12. A substantially continuous floor engaging surface is defined by the bottom side of the outer peripheral portion of the top layer 14 and the bottom side of the lower layer 18 when the cartridge 12 is interfitted within the cavity 28. To resist skidding and movement, the bottom side of the moisture barrier 18 may be spaced from the bottom side of the top layer 14 whereby to engage the floor surface when the support mat 10 is placed thereupon.
Importantly, the central portion 24 is substantially completely defined by a honeycomb type structure formed of a plurality of contiguous like shaped hexagonal funnels 30, the funnels being symmetrically centered on respective geometric axes that are generally perpendicular to a plane including the top layer 14. The funnels 30 extend through the top layer 14 and direct liquid from the topside 20 downwardly and onto the upper layer 16 of fluid absorbing material.
Desirably, the honeycomb structure, and associated hexagonal shaped funnels, has unexpected advantages over other shapes. The hexagon fills the space with minimal perimeter per piece area. Thus a hexagonal structure uses the least material to create a lattice of cells with a given volume.
Each hexagonal shaped funnel 30 forms hexagonal shaped upper and lower end portions and is comprised of six sidewalls 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d, 30e, and 30f for directing fluid downwardly onto the upper layer 16 of fluid absorbing material. The sidewalls 30a-30f narrow and slope inwardly towards one another from the topside downwardly to the bottom side. The end portions of the hexagonal shaped funnels 30 are concentrically disposed on the geometric axis of the funnel with the lower end portion forming a discharge opening that is smaller than the entry into the throat formed at the upper end portion.
Each hexagonal shaped funnel 30 defines three pairs of opposed inwardly angled sidewalls, such as 30a and 30d, 30b and 30e, and 30c and 30f, each pair of opposed sidewalls being symmetrically disposed at a double included angle “A” of about 37° to 42° relative to the center geometrical axis of the funnel. Stated differently, each sidewall of a hexagonal fluid passing funnel 30 of the honeycomb structure is at an angle of about 18° to 21° relative to the geometric axis of the hexagonal shape. Preferably the double included angle is about 40°.
The wall defining the narrowing sidewalls is substantially V-shaped in cross-section, defines a sidewall in each of two adjacent contiguous funnels 30, and the sidewalls of each V-shaped wall are at the above noted double included angle.
Further, each V-shaped wall terminates in a rounded apex to receive and direct fluid into the downwardly narrowing funnel.
In one aspect, the vertical distance between the topside 20 and the bottom side 22 define a predetermined thickness of the support mat 10, and the funnel 30 forms a throat of hexagonal cross-section that narrows from the entry at the topside to the outlet discharge proximate to the top surface of the upper layer 16 of absorbent layer. The lateral dimension at the outlet discharge opening is substantially the same as the vertical thickness of the support mat 10.
Turning to
In particular, the structure for resisting movement of the support mat 100 relative to the floor comprises at least one section 102 of elongated flexible ribs 106, although a plurality of sections 102, 103, 104, etc are preferably disposed around the central portion 124. Shown best in
In each of the embodiments of liquid absorbing or surface protection mats 10 and 100 described hereinabove, the top layer 14 is comprised of a moisture impervious material selected from the group consisting of polypropylene, nylon, plastic, rubber, synthetic material, and cellulosic paper.
The upper layer 16 of the cartridge unit 12 is comprised of a moisture absorbent material selected from the group consisting of (a) polymer and cotton-fluff, (b) fiber and cotton-fluff, each of (a) and (b) having ten percent cotton-fluff, and (c) wood pulp.
The moisture barrier 18 forms a seal to prevent leakage of the liquid and has a coefficient of friction that resists movement when placed atop a surface. Preferably, the moisture barrier 18 is herein is comprised of a TPE compound, consisting of a styrenic block copolymer (such as SBS, SEBS, SEPS), a hydrocarbon oil, a polyolefin polymer (such as PPH, PPC, PE), fillers (such as CaCO3, talc, etc.), a heat stabilizer, a color additive, and other additives (such as for odor control).
The cartridge 12 is formed as an interfittable unit in that the upper surface of the moisture barrier 18 is secured to the lower surface of the upper layer 16. Further, for final assembly of the sealed disposable product, the upper surface of the upper layer 16 is adhesively secured to the bottom side (as defined in the cavity 28) by a suitable adhesive, and the outer periphery of the cartridge 12 is secured to the cavity wall 28a by a suitable adhesive. In some applications the upper and lower layers 16 and 18 may be sonic-welded.
In general, the resulting urinal mat has an advantage over prior art designs in that the mat is soft and flexible. Additionally, the material makes for a urinal mat that is somewhat heavy. These features ensure that the mat will stay flat to the floor. Further, the urinal mat is easier to dispose of, when the useful life is over, in that the mat will bend in half.
Importantly, the top layer 14 provides an array of hexagonal shaped openings, which openings are somewhat more open than the square-shaped openings of the prior art and provide a more effective funneling action. Another advantage of this honeycomb structure in the top layer is that the absorbent core 16 therebelow is more visible to the end-user. When the absorbent core is soiled from use, such fact will be more apparent to the end-user. As a result the user will tend to replace the mat more often, leading to a cleaner more sanitary facility.
Further, the top grid layer 14 is comprised of a material (e.g., polypropylene) that is soft and more flexible (not as rigid), which feature will allow the mat to conform to the shape of the floor surface and lay flat, thereby helping to eliminate possible trip hazards. Additionally, provision of a softer more flexible material makes the urinal mat more difficult to kick out of place. Flexibility and softness of the respective mat layers makes the urinal mat more likely to bend rather than slide across the floor. Furthermore, because of the overall flexibility of the mat, it is easier to dispose of since it can easily be folded or rolled up and placed in a suitable trash receptacle.
While there many methods available, a “softer” polypropylene is made by using a gas-assisted process in the injection molding procedure.
Additionally, the top grid layer 14 has a finished tapered edge to keep it very low and flat to the floor surface. Advantageously, such feature will minimize the likelihood of slip-and-falls as well as allow for custom labeling, if desired by an end-user or customer.
The moisture barrier or bottom layer 18 serves as a moisture barrier to prevent fluids from reaching the floor surface. Importantly, the material of the moisture barrier 18 is non-slip and non-skid (i.e., has a high coefficient of friction), and does not rely on adhesive, which would leave residue on the floor. This material makes the bottom layer 18, and thus the product, much safer in that the material continually hold the urinal mat in correct position under the urinal and commode to catch urine dropping.
Accordingly, while the main focus of the mat 10 and 100 herein has been described in connection with floor protection, the invention addresses countertop and other surfaces as well.
Further, the shape of the mat may be other than that shown, depending on the use and desired application. For example, the mat can be circular, oval, trapezoidal, triangular, etc. The mat can comprise a urinal mat, a commode or the like.
