Abstract:
A wide roll tape and dispenser is disclosed. The roll of tape comprises a wide adhesive tape, such as duct tape, and a dispensing apparatus that includes at least a first and second axis portions and cutter means for providing a tearing or cutting of the rolled tape.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     This application relates to adhesive tape and more particularly to wide roll tape and associated dispensing apparatus.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to adhesives. In particular, embodiments of the present invention relates to pre-shaped adhesives and methods.  
         [0003]     Many industrial, commercial and residential projects require repair, sealing, joining, and/or fastening of materials that have holes, gaps or openings. Some of these areas can be geometric shapes or irregular shapes and may be relatively wide.  
         [0004]     Currently, adhesives are sold as tape, which is available in rolls of about 2-4 inch widths with varying thread counts. If areas needing an adhesive are large or not square or rectangular in shape, currently available adhesive tapes are inefficient in repairing, sealing, joining, and/or fastening these areas. Due to existing shape and size limitations of adhesive tape, multiple pieces or applications are required to cover these large areas of various shapes and sizes. Multiple applications are undesirable because of the added weight, overlaps, etc. The tape in accordance with the present invention provides increased speed of repair, customization of required sizes and shapes for repair larger than 2″ or  3 ″ offered by standard width tape.  
         [0005]     In addition, the width and thread count associated with a cloth tape, such as duct tape, determines the difficulty and sharpness of a tear. When a desired length of tape is needed, the tape is usually torn by hand. This may be difficult based on the desired length and width of tape needed, as well as the thickness or thread count.  
         [0006]     Therefore, there is a need in the art for improved adhesive tapes and associated dispensing apparatus. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0007]     So the manner in which the above recited features of the embodiments of the present invention can be understood in detail, a more particular description, briefly summarized above, may be had by reference to embodiments, some of which are illustrated in the appended drawings. It is noted; however, the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of this invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to other equally effective embodiments.  
         [0008]      FIG. 1  is as perspective view of wide adhesive roll in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0009]      FIG. 2  illustrates a sectional view of  FIG. 1  cut along line a-a in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0010]      FIG. 3  is a top plan view of a dispenser in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0011]      FIG. 4  is a side view of cutter means in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0012]      FIG. 5  is a top plan view of a dispenser in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0013]      FIG. 6  is a side view of cutter means in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and  
         [0014]      FIG. 7  illustrates a perspective view of roll  10  positioned in dispenser  200  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
       [0015]     To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the above-referenced figures.  
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0016]      FIG. 1  illustrates a perspective view of a wide roll of tape  10  in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. Tape  10  is shown partially unwound. Adhesive tape, for example, duct tape is traditionally manufactured in rolls that are 2-4 inches in width. However, as noted above, many uses for such tape require much wider rolls, for example, 8-12 inches wide and even wider. Tape roll  10  includes tape  30  having an adhesive side  20 , a non adhesive side  12  and a roll tube  15  around which, tape  30  is wound. Tube  15  may be comprised of cardboard or other material sufficiently rigid to withstand the weight of tape  30  wound around tube  15 . Tube  15  may extend beyond the width of tape  30 . Additionally, a release liner, not shown, may also be employed for tapes with high adhesion to prevent the tape from sticking to itself thereby compromising unrolling.  
         [0017]      FIG. 2  depicts a sectional view of  FIG. 1  cut along line a-a illustrating adhesive side  20  and corresponding non-adhesive side  12 . The non-adhesive side  12  of tape  30  may be any backing used in the adhesive industry such as, but not limited to, bi-axially-oriented polypropylene backing (BOPP), cloth, crepe paper, fiber filled, fiberglass cloth, flatback paper, foil, foil/tri-directional/paper, or glass fiber—BOPP, and the like. The adhesive side  20  can be any adhesive used in the industry such as, but not limited to, acrylic, rubber, polyurethane, silicone or urethane, and the like. The rubber used for adhesive can be any rubber used in the adhesives industry such as, but not limited to, butyl rubber, flame retardant rubber, hot melt rubber, natural and synthetic rubber, natural rubber, synthetic rubber, or reclaim rubber, and the like.  
         [0018]      FIG. 3  illustrates a top plan view of roll  10  within dispenser  60 . Dispenser  60  has a generally rectangular shape having elongated sides  61 ,  62  and connecting sides  63  and  64  adapted in length and width to receive roll  10 . Dispenser  60  also includes a floor portion (not shown) attached to sides  61 ,  62 ,  63  and  64  to support roll  10 . The interior of side  63  has disposed thereon an axis portion  80  comprising support member  90  and elongated tube insert  95 . Tube insert  95  is configured to be received by tube  15  at a first end  16  and may also extend through the length of tube  15  depending on the support needed for roll  10 . Similarly, interior of side  64  has disposed thereon an axis portion  80 ′ comprising support member  90 ′ and elongated tube insert  95 ′. Tube insert  95 ′ is configured to be received by tube  15  at a second end  17 . Axis portions  80  and  80 ′ are configured to allow ease of rotation of roll  10  within dispenser  60 . Again, roll  10  may be relatively heavy because of its width and length as compared to conventional tape rolls having typical widths of 2-4 inches.  
         [0019]     Axis portions  80  and  80 ′ may be comprised of cardboard, disposable plastic or other material sufficiently rigid to support roll  10  within dispenser  60 . Alternatively, roll  10  may be disposed within dispenser  60  without axis portions  80  and  80 ′. In this embodiment, roll  10  rests on the floor portion of dispenser  60  and unrolled using greater force as compared with the use of axis portions  80  and  80 ′.  
         [0020]     Dispenser  60  may also include cutter means  70  positioned on or disposed in elongated side  62 .  FIG. 4  illustrates a side view of cutter means  70 . Cutter means  70  includes holder  71  and cutter  72 . Cutter  72  may be a blade made from metal, sharp plastic or other material having necessary rigidity to tear or cut tape  30  as well as a release liner if employed. Preferably, cutter  72  is disposed on the inside  62 ′ of dispenser wall  62  for obvious safety concerns. In practice, as a length of tape  30  is unrolled from roll  10  to a desired length, cutter means  70  traverses across tape  30  from a first end  73  of side  62  to a second end  74  of side  62  thereby engaging cutter  72  across tape  30 . A user may also traverse cutter means  70  a portion of the length of wall  62  depending on the size of tape desired.  
         [0021]      FIG. 5  illustrates a cross sectional view of cutter means  100  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. Cutter means  100  may include cutter holder  110  and cutter  172 . Cutter holder may include extending side walls  110 A and  110 B between which cutter  172  is disposed. Side walls  110 A and  110 B slidably engage dispenser wall  62 . The length of side walls  110 A and  110 B may be determined by the width of dispenser wall  62  and/or size of cutter  172 . Cutter  172  may be a blade made from metal or sharp plastic having necessary rigidity to tear or cut tape  30 . In operation, cutter means  100  is positioned at either end  73  or  74  of wall  62  sufficient to allow tape  30  to be unrolled; tape  30  is unrolled over top portion  62 A of wall  62  to a desired length; and cutter means  100  traverses the length or a portion of the length of wall  62 , thereby cutting tape  30 . In this embodiment, the cutter element is disposed within holder  110  to provide safety. Alternatively, cutter  172  may be integrally formed with or attached to either side wall  110 A and/or  110 B of holder  110 . Accordingly, side walls  110 A and  110 B may only be of sufficient length to slidably engage dispenser wall  62 .  
         [0022]      FIG. 6  illustrates a top plan view of roll  10  within dispenser  200 . Dispenser  200  also has a generally rectangular shape similar to dispenser  60  with elongated sides  210 ,  230  and connecting sides  220  and  240  adapted in length and width to receive roll  10 . Dispenser  200  also includes a floor portion (not shown) attached to sides  210 ,  220 ,  230  and  240  to support roll  10 .  
         [0023]     The interior of side  220  and interior of side  240  may have disposed thereon axis portions  80  and  80 ′, respectively as described above in connection with dispenser  60 . Again, axis portions  80  and  80 ′ are configured to allow ease of rotation of roll  10  within dispenser  200 . The top portion of wall  230  includes a serrated edge  250  which may be a metal or rigid plastic member attached to wall  230  having sufficient sharpness to cut tape  30  upon receipt of a downward force. In operation, tape  30  is unrolled to a desired length and a sufficient downward force is applied to engage tape  30  against serrated edge portion  250  to cut or tear tape  30 .  
         [0024]      FIG. 7  illustrates a perspective view of roll  10  positioned in dispenser  200  in accordance with an embodiment. Dispenser  200  include cover  270  configured to cover roll  10  within dispenser  200 . Cover  270  provides protection for tape rolls  10  as well as added packaging configurations.  
         [0025]     While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present invention, other and further embodiments of the invention may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof, and the scope thereof is determined by the claims that follow.