WO2005089393A2

WO2005089393A2 - Lint roller holder

Info

Publication number: WO2005089393A2
Application number: PCT/US2005/008782
Authority: WO
Inventors: Lena L. Heidel
Original assignee: The Evercare Company
Priority date: 2004-03-16
Filing date: 2005-03-16
Publication date: 2005-09-29
Also published as: WO2005089393A3; US20050205736A1

Abstract

A lint roller holder for use with a lint roller assembly having a handle and an adhesive roll rotatably mounted to the handle. A base is mounted to a vertically extending wall while a hook extends outwardly from the base and is dimensioned to extend through an aperture in the handle. The base includes an outwardly protruding portion beneath the hook so that, with the handle aperture positioned to the hook, the outwardly protruding base portion maintains the adhesive spaced away from the wall. Alternatively, the lint roller holder includes a tubular and cylindrical cup having a bottom and an open top dimension to receive the lint roller. A plurality of angularly spaced ribs are attached to the inside of the cup to prevent contact of the adhesive roll with the cup.

Description

LINT ROLLER HOLDER

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims benefit of U.S. provisional patent application Serial No. 60/553,630, filed March 16, 2004, which is incorporated herewith in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION I. FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to lint roller holders of the type used to remove detritus. II. DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART Lint roller assemblies are frequently used to remove detritus from clothing, furniture, as well as other surfaces. These lint roller assemblies typically comprise a handle having an adhesive roll rotatably mounted to the handle. The adhesive roll, in turn, includes a plurality of overlapping and outwardly facing adhesive sheets. Once the adhesive on the outermost sheet has become spent, the sheet is removed to expose the underlying sheet with fresh adhesive. Since the outwardly facing sheet of the adhesive roll is necessarily tacky, storage of the lint roller assembly while not in use becomes inconvenient, particularly when the adhesive roll touches and adheres to an unintended surface. Although many lint roller assemblies include an outer cover which is removably attached around the adhesive roll in order to cover the outwardly facing adhesive surface, the use of these covers is somewhat cumbersome in practice. SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION The present invention provides a lint roller holder which overcomes all of the above-mentioned disadvantages of the previously known devices. In brief, the lint roller holder of the present invention is provided for use with a lint roller assembly having a handle with an aperture and an adhesive roll rotatably mounted to the handle. The lint roller holder includes a base which is adapted to be mounted to a vertically extending wall in a conventional fashion, i.e. by a threaded fastener, an adhesive pad, or the like. A hook extends outwardly from the base and this hook is dimensioned to extend through the handle aperture. The base also includes an outwardly protruding portion beneath the hook so that, with the hook positioned through the handle aperture, the outwardly protruding portion abuts against the lint roller handle and maintains the adhesive roll in a position spaced away from, and thus not contacting, the wall. In a second embodiment of the invention, the lint roller holder includes a tubular and cylindrical cup having a bottom and an open top dimension to receive an adhesive roll mounted to the handle. A plurality of angularly spaced and vertically extending ribs are attached to an inside surface of the cup. These ribs prevent the adhesive roll from contacting the inside of the cup, other than the ribs, and thus minimize the area of contact between the adhesive roll and the lint roller holder. The lint roller holder preferably includes a mounting plate attached to the cup for attaching the lint roller holder to a vertically extending wall.

Optionally, the bottom of the cup may be supported by a horizontal surface, such as a shelf or countertop.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING A better understanding of the present invention will be had upon reference to the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the several views, and in which: FIG. 1 is a side view illustrating a first preferred embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is an elevational view illustrating the first preferred embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 3 is a top view illustrating the preferred embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken substantially along line 4-4 in FIG. 1 ; FIG. 5 is a side view illustrating a second preferred embodiment of the invention; FIG. 6 is an elevational view illustrating the second preferred embodiment of the invention; and FIG. 7 is a side view illustrating the second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS With reference first to FIGS. 1 and 2, a first preferred embodiment of the lint roller holder 10 of the present invention is shown. The lint roller holder 10 includes a generally tubular and cylindrical cup 12 having a closed bottom

14. The cup 12 is dimensioned to receive an adhesive roll 16 which is rotatably mounted to a lint roller handle 18 which together form the lint roller assembly. With reference now particularly to FIGS. 1 and 3, a plurality of circumferentially spaced and vertically extending ribs 20 are attached to and extend inwardly from the cup 12. Consequently, as best shown in FIG. 3, with the adhesive roll 16 positioned within the cup 12, one or more of the ribs 20 contact the outer adhesive surface of the lint roll 16 once inserted into the holder 10. The ribs 20 thus prevent the outer adhesive surface of the adhesive roll

16 from contacting the cup 12. Furthermore, the ribs 20 provide a minimal area of contact between the ribs 20 and the adhesive roll 16, thus minimizing any adhesion between the adhesive roll 16 and the holder 10. With reference now to FIGS. 1-3, a mounting plate 22 is attached to the cup 12, preferably adjacent its upper end. This mounting plate 22 preferably includes one or more openings 24 for attaching the lint roller holder 10 to a vertical wall surface 26 (FIG. 3) by threaded fasteners 28 (FIG. 3). With reference now to FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, the cup 12 preferably comprises a pair of bands 30 and 32 which extend outwardly from opposite sides of the mounting plate 22 at their upper ends 34 and 36, respectively. The lower ends 38 and 40 of the bands 30 and 32, respectively, are in turn attached to the cup bottom 14. Preferably, the lower ends 38 and 40 of the bands 30 and 32 are circumferentially spaced from each other at their attachment with the cup 12, thus forming a vertically extending slot 42 along one side of the cup 12. This vertically extending slot 42 facilitates both the insertion of the adhesive roll 16 into the holder 10, as well as the removal of the adhesive roll 16 from the holder 10. Preferably, the cup 12, bottom 14, ribs 20 and mounting plate 22 are of a one-piece plastic construction. With reference now to FIGS. 5-7, a second preferred embodiment of a lint roller holder assembly 50 is illustrated. The lint roller holder 50 includes a base 52 having an upwardly extending hook 54 protruding outwardly from the base 52. The hook 54 includes a recessed portion 56 extending from the base 52 and to a position short of a free end 58 of the hook 54. As best shown in FIG. 5, the recessed portion 56 of the hook 54 has a length substantially the same of an aperture 60 formed through the handle 18 of the lint roller assembly. With reference now particularly to FIGS. 5 and 6, the base 50 includes an outwardly protruding portion 64 beneath the hook 54. Consequently, with the handle aperture 60 positioned over the hook 54 and nested within the recessed portion 56 of the hook 54 as shown in FIG. 5, the outwardly protruding portion 64 abuts against the handle 18 and tilts the lint roller assembly away from a vertical wall 66 on which the base 50 is mounted, thus preventing contact between the wall 66 and the adhesive roll 16. Any conventional means may be used to secure the base 50 to the wall

66. However, as shown in FIG. 6, a base preferably includes a hole 68 immediately beneath the hook 54 for securing the base 50 to the wall 16 by a threaded fastener. Other means, such as an adhesive, may alternatively be used to secure the base 50 to the wall 66. The lint roller holder 50 is preferably of a one-piece plastic construction. From the foregoing, it can be seen that the present invention provides a simple and yet highly effective means for storing a lint roller assembly between uses. Having described my invention, however, many modifications thereto will become apparent to those skilled in the art to which it pertains without deviation from the spirit of the invention as defined by the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

CLAIMS 1. A lint roller holder for use with a lint roller assembly having a handle with an aperture and an adhesive roll rotatably mounted to the handle comprising: a base adapted to be mounted to a wall, a hook extending outwardly from said base, said hook dimensioned to extend through the handle aperture, said base having an outwardly protruding portion beneath said hook so that, with said hook extending through the handle aperture, said protruding portion abuts against the lint roller handle and maintains the adhesive roll spaced away from the wall.

2. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein said lint roller holder is of a one-piece construction.

3. The invention as defined in claim 2 wherein said lint roller holder comprises a plastic material.

4. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein said base includes a hole immediately below said hook and wherein said base is secured to the wall by a threaded fastener extending through said hole.

5. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein said hook comprises a recessed portion extending from said base and to a position spaced from a free end of said hook.

6. The invention as defined in claim 5 wherein said recessed portion has a length substantially the same as the length of the handle aperture.

7. A lint roller holder comprising: a tubular and cylindrical cup having a bottom and an open upper end dimensioned to receive a lint roller, a plurality of annularly spaced ribs attached to an inside surface of said cup, said ribs preventing contact of an adhesive roll positioned in said cup and supported by said cup bottom from contacting said cup.

8. The invention as defined in claim 7 and comprising means for attaching said cup to a vertically extending wall.

9. The invention as defined in claim 7 wherein said cup and said ribs are of a one-piece construction.

10. The invention as defined in claim 9 wherein said cup is of a plastic construction.

11. The invention as defined in claim 7 and comprising a mounting plate attached to said cup.

12. The invention as defined in claim 7 wherein said cup comprises a pair of bands extending between said mounting plate and said bottom.

13. The invention as defined in claim 12 wherein said bands extend from opposite sides of said mounting plate.

14. The invention as defined in claim 13 wherein said base is substantially circular in shape and wherein said bands are attached to said bottom at circumferentially spaced positions on said bottom.