Patent Application
20240382637
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The disclosure relates to sanitizing device and more particularly pertains to a new sanitizing device for sanitizing a writing utensil prior to and/or after using the writing utensil to prevent the spread of germs and bacteria from touching the writing utensil.
The prior art relates to sanitizing devices and teaches of sanitizing devices sterilizing an exterior surface of a writing utensil, but does not teach an efficient means for coating the exterior surface of the writing utensil with a sanitizing solution.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a housing having a first end wall, a second end wall, and a perimeter wall attached to and extending between the first and second end walls. The first end wall has a first aperture extending therethrough, and the second end wall has a second aperture extending therethrough. The first and second apertures are axially aligned with each other and are configured to receive the writing utensil. An absorbent medium is positioned within the housing. The absorbent medium has an open conduit extending therethrough and is aligned with each of the first and second apertures. The open conduit is configured to receive the writing utensil such that the writing utensil abuts a surface of the open conduit. The absorbent medium is configured to absorb a sanitizing fluid for application onto the writing utensil when the writing utensil passed through the open conduit.
Another embodiment of the disclosure comprises a method including the steps of saturating an absorbent material with a sanitizing fluid and positioning the absorbent material within a housing. A writing utensil extends through a first aperture in a first end wall and a second aperture in a second end wall of the housing such that an outer surface of the writing utensil abuts the absorbent medium and is sanitized with the sanitizing fluid. The housing has a perimeter wall extending between the first and second end wall. The first and second apertures are axially aligned with each other. The absorbent medium has an open conduit extending therethrough and is aligned with each of the first and second apertures.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
An absorbent medium 32 is positioned within the housing 12. The absorbent medium 32 has an open conduit 34 extending therethrough and is aligned with each of the first 20 and second 22 apertures. The open conduit 34 is configured to receive the writing utensil 24 such that the writing utensil 24 abuts a surface of the open conduit 34. The absorbent medium 32 is configured to absorb a sanitizing fluid 36 for application onto the writing utensil 24 when the writing utensil 24 passed through the open conduit 34. The sanitizing fluid 36 sterilizes an exterior surface 38 of the writing utensil 24, wherein the writing utensil 24 is sterile immediately after exiting through the absorbent medium 32. The absorbent medium 32 normally comprises a sponge material and has a cylindrical shape corresponding with a tubular shape of the housing 12. The sponge material abuts the writing utensil 24 and therefore will also frictionally clean the writing utensil 24.
A mount 40 is engaged with the housing 12 and is configured to support the housing 12 when the writing utensil 24 is passed through the housing 12. The mount 40 includes a base 42 and a pair of supports 44 attached to and extending upwardly from the base 42. The pair of supports 44 releasably couple the housing 12 to the base 42. Each of the supports 44 includes a vertical wall 46 including a first mating member 48. An adhesive 50 is positioned on a bottom surface 52 of the base 42 and is configured to secure the base 42 to a planar surface. The adhesive 50 is typically a pressure sensitive adhesive 50, wherein the bottom surface 52 of the mount 40 is configured to be pressed against the planar surface.
Each of the first 14 and second 16 end walls has a respective one of a pair of second mating members 54 attached thereto, wherein the first mating member 48 of each support of the pair of supports 44 is engaged to one of the second mating members 54 of the pair of second mating members 54. Each of the second mating members 54 comprises a protrusion having an outer surface have a shape inhibiting rotation of the first 14 and second 16 end walls relative to the pair of supports 44. The first 20 and second 22 apertures extend through an associated one of the second mating members 54.
The first end wall 14 comprises a cap releasably engaged to the perimeter wall 18. The first end wall 14 includes an outer plate 66 and a peripheral shoulder 68 being attached to and being co-extensive with an exterior edge of the plate. The peripheral shoulder 68 extends over the perimeter wall 18 when the first end wall 14 is engaged with the perimeter wall 18. A seal 70 is positioned at a juncture of the first end wall 14 and the perimeter wall 18. The seal 70 typically comprises an O-ring continuously abutting against the absorbent medium 32 and the perimeter wall 18 of the housing 12. In another embodiment, the first 14 and second 16 end walls each may comprise a cap releasably engaged to the perimeter wall 18.
A trough 56 is attached to the mount 40 and extends laterally away therefrom. The trough 56 has an open upper side 58 and is configured to hold a quantity of sanitizing fluid 36, wherein the fingers 60 of the user are physically contactable with the sanitizing fluid 36 to sterilize the fingers 60 prior to or after inserting the writing utensil 24 through the absorbent medium 32. The trough 56 includes a bottom wall 62 being co-extensive and co-planar with the base 42. A peripheral wall 64 is attached to and extends upwardly from the bottom wall 62.
In use, the fingers 60 of the hand used to grip the writing utensil 24 are cleaned either before or after extending the writing utensil 24 through the first 20 and second 22 apertures by placing the fingers 60 in contact with sanitizing fluid 36 positioned in the trough 56. The absorbent material is saturated with the sanitizing fluid 36 and the absorbent material is positioned within the housing 12 thereafter. The writing utensil 24 extends through the first aperture in the first end wall 14 and the second aperture 22 in the second end wall 16 of the housing 12 such that the outer surface of the writing utensil 24 abuts the absorbent medium 32 and is sanitized with the sanitizing fluid 36.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
