GB2199264A

GB2199264A - Paint roller guard

Info

Publication number: GB2199264A
Application number: GB08627132A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Laszlo Kovacs
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1986-11-13
Filing date: 1986-11-13
Publication date: 1988-07-06
Also published as: GB8627132D0

Abstract

A guard for a paint roller to prevent splashing comprises an arcuate element that is pivotally mounted about the roller shaft. The guard element is formed of two parts joined by a hinge 11. The two parts are normally biassed into an arcuate configuration, but one of the parts may be moved against the bias to facilitate dipping of the roll in a paint tray. <IMAGE>

Description

PAINT ROLLER GUARD This invention relates to a guard for a paint roller.

Paint rollers have become over the years increasingly popular for both professional and domestic decorating. They have been found to be particularly advantageous for painting large flat areas, such as walls and ceilings, since a uniform coat of paint can be applied more quickly than with traditional paint brushes.

Paint rollers suffer from a disadvantage however in that rapid rotation of the roller in use tends to fling paint off the roller and onto furniture, carpets and clothes etc, as well as the surface being painted. In addition when a roller is being used to paint a ceiling it is not uncommon for paint to drip off the roller and onto the user standing below. It has in the past been proposed to overcome this problem by developing special 'non-drip' paints that are more viscous than normal. Such paints have not however found general acceptance, largely since they tend to be somewhat more expensive than conventional paints.

Viewed from one broad aspect there is herein disclosed a guard for a paint roller that may be fixed to a said paint roller in such a manner as to be pivotable with respect to the axis of the roller, whereby said guard may be rotatably adjusted about the roller axis.

By means of this arrangement, at least in its preferred forms, there is provided a guard which may collect any paint that is flung off, or drips off, a paint roller while in use. Since the guard is pivotable about the roller axis, the position of the guard may be adjusted for the angle at which the roller is held relative to the surface being painted.

Preferably the guard comprises a substantially arcuate, e.g. semi-cylindrical, element that is slightly longer than the roll. The guard may be provided with a hinge parallel to its axis dividing the guard into two sections, normally biassed into the arcuate configuration, but one of which may be folded back to allow the paint roller to be dipped into a paint tray without part of the guard being immersed or obstructing the application of paint to the roller.

Preferably the guard is fixed to a paint roller by means of a clamping element which is in turn pivotally connected to the guard.

While the guard described above may be fixed to most conventional paint rollers, it will be appreciated that a paint roller could be formed with an integral guard.

Viewed from another broad aspect there is disclosed herein a paint roller comprising a roller guard pivotable with respect to the axis of the roller, whereby said guard may be rotatably adjusted about the roller axis.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a plan view of a paint roller having a guard attached thereto, and Fig. 2 is a view along the axis of the roller in the direction of Arrow A in Fig. 1.

A paint roller comprises a handle 1, a roller shaft 2 formed as part of a piece of metal rod 3 extending from the handle, and a roller 4 rotatably mounted on the roller shaft 2.

An arcuate roller guard 5 is provided in the form of a semi-cylindrical shield. At one end of the guard there is provided a generally sectoral end element 6 perpendicular to the axis of the guard.

The element 6 has an area slightly greater than a quarter of a circle that would be defined by the radius of the guard, so that the axis of the guard, by which is meant the axis of a cylinder corresponding to the semi-cylindrical guard, passes through sectoral element 6.

The guard 5 is fitted to the paint roller by means of a clamping element 7 which is pivotally connected to the guard, via the sectoral element, about the guard axis. The clamping element 7 is fixed to the rod 3 on the straight section of the rod perpendicular to and adjacent the roller shaft 2 which extends through the pivotal connection between the guard and the clamping element and along the axis of the guard. This means that the guard is able to pivot about the roller shaft.

The sectoral end element 6 is provided with a slot 8 in the form of an arc through which extends a pe 9 connected to the clamping element 7. This slot and peg arrangement limits the extent of rotational adjustment of the guard relative to the roller that is possible. The full extent of possible adiustment is shown by the broken line in Fig.

2. The pin may be in the form of a screw having a washer 10, preferably a plastics washer, in contact with the inside surface of the sectoral element.

The tightness of this screw and washer may be set so that while the guard may be adjusted it will generally be held in position by friction unless a user wishes to adjust the guard, in which case the screw may be slid along the slot.

The guard is provided with. a hinge 11 that extends parallel to the guard axis and which divides the guard into two halves. The two halves of the guard are generally biassed, e.g. by spring means (not shown), into the semi-cylindrical configuration shown in full lines in Fig. 2. However one of the two halves of the guard may be pivoted about the hinge in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 2 into a folded back position so that the roller 4 is exposed and may more easily be dipped into a paint tray or into a suitable cleaning fluid. A latching mechanism (not shown) may be provided to hold the guard half in this folded back position.

Paint rollers generally come in two different sizes, namely roller lengths of seven inches and nine inches respectively. The roller guard will preferably be formed of a sufficient size to fit a 9" roller, but will be provided with a frangible portion at one end of the guard 5 which may be broken off to provide a guard of a suitable size for a 7" paint roller.

The guard 5, clamping element 7 and sectoral end element 6 are preferably all formed from lightweight plastics material since it would clearly be undesirable if the roller guard were to unduly increase the weight of the paint roller.

While the roller guard has been described in the context of a guard that may be fitted to an existing roller, it will be appreciated that the guard could just as easily be formed integrally with the paint roller rather than being a separate element.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A guard for a paint roller that maybe fixed to a said paint roller in such a manner as to be pivotable with respect to the axis of the roller, whereby said guard may be rotatably adjusted about the roller axis.

2. A guard as claimed in claim 1 wherein said guard comprises a substantially arcuate element that is slightly longer than the roll of the paint roller.

3. A guard as claimed in claim 2 wherein said guard is provided with a hinge parallel to its axis dividing the guard into two sections, normally biassed into the arcuate configuration, but one of which may be folded back to allow the paint roller to be dipped into a paint tray without part of the guard being immersed or obstructing the application of paint to the roller.

4. A guard as claimed in claim 3 wherein latching means are provided to hold said section in said folded back state.

5. A guard as claimed in any preceding claim wherein said guard is fixed to a paint roller by means of a clamping element which is in turn pivotally connected to the guard.

6. A guard for a paint roller substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

7. A paint roller having fixed thereto a guard according to any preceding claim.

8. A paint roller comprising a roller guard pivotable with respect to the axis of the roller, whereby said guard may be rotatably adjusted about the roller axis.

9. A paint roller substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.