Abstract:
A series of disposable spray shields may be used singularly or in combination to shield the tire, wheel, or the floor around the tire individually, or in combination, during a treatment of the tire or the wheel. By including more than one radius in portions of the outer edges of the tire and wheel shields, or by providing an adjustable tire-receiving opening in the floor shield, a single set of shields may fit many different tires, tire inflations, vehicles, and wheels. The preferred shields are made from materials that can be shaped, cut, embossed, stamped or milled to create these radiused edges and openings that, when properly positioned by the user, will prevent undesirable tire and wheel treatment materials, coatings and paints from contacting certain pre-selected surfaces.

Description:
[0001]    This application claims priority of provisional application No. 60/347,735, filed on Jan. 11, 2002, entitled “Universal Vehicle Tire/Wheel and Floor Spray Shield Kit,” which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    1. Field of Invention:  
           [0003]    The invention relates to the shielding and protection of the surrounding tire, wheel and floor area adjacent to vehicle tires while spraying with assorted commercial liquids for tire or wheel preservation, maintenance, and beautification.  
           [0004]    2. Related Art  
           [0005]    There are several problems associated with spraying commercial washes, cleaners, dressings, coatings and protectorates on tires and/or wheels. Such treatment of tires can result in staining or other damage to the wheel and the floor. Such treatment of wheels can result in staining or other damage to the tire and the floor.  
           [0006]    First, many vehicles have expensive wheels made from metals that can tarnish or corrode from certain chemicals that can be present in tire sprays. There can be a buildup of coatings over-time. This can result in losses in value or additional costs to reverse the problem. Secondly, many of the sprays, become a sealant when they dry. This can create problems by discoloring garage floors, driveways and other surfaces where spraying is done. This phenomenon is extremely difficult and costly to correct.  
           [0007]    Spraying coatings on wheels to clean, coat or paint the wheels requires protection of the tire from over spray to prevent unsatisfactory results. While such over spray typically reaches the tire, it can also reach the floor, which again is extremely difficult and costly to correct.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0008]    The invention comprises one or more simple shields that can be used to protect a vehicle tire, wheel and/or ground/floor surface, to prevent staining or other damage during treatment of the tire or wheel by application of cleaners, dressings, coatings, protectorates, paints or other sprays. A combination of the preferred shields may be used to shield the combination of a tire and the floor, or the combination of a wheel and the floor, for an efficient and effective treatment operation. The shields are each preferably a generally flat, planar sheet having specially designed cut-outs, fold-outs, and/or perimeter edges that allow one set of the preferred shields to universally fit a wide variety of different tires and vehicles. This way, a single set of preferably-disposable shields may be sold in the marketplace, and may be adapted for use and/or positioned differently by the user on whatever vehicle and tire the user wishes.  
           [0009]    The first shield is an irregularly-shaped disc designed to protect the wheel. The first shield outer perimeter edge is irregular, in that various sectors of the generally circular shield have different radii. In other words, this shield features a series of two or more broken radiuses that can accommodate a wide range of wheel diameter sizes. Each broken radius extends along a circumference plane of 180 degrees or less depending on the number of different radii. A convenient precut and pre-stamped fold-mark handhold in the center of the device may be included to allow for ease in positioning and turning the disc, so that the sector with the appropriate radius is held against the tire portion being sprayed, while applying the spray treatment solution to the tire portion. One of more surfaces of the first shield may include indicia, to provide ample space for instructions of use, primary advertising and co-marketing opportunities.  
           [0010]    The second shield is designed to protect the ground-floor surface adjacent to and around the tire. This second shield is adapted to rest on the ground or floor on which the vehicle is parked, and to extend on or near to the ground/floor around preferably three sides of the tire being treated. The preferred second shield includes size adjustment to permit the shield to be adjusted to various tire sizes allowing the shield to slide around the tire, preferably with a close fit to the tire footprint, while the tire is mounted on the vehicle. A precut and pre-stamped fold-mark handhold in the center of the second shield may be included to permit easy installation, positioning and removal of the second shield. One of more surfaces of the second shield may include indicia to provide ample space for instructions of use, primary advertising and co-marketing opportunities.  
           [0011]    The third shield feature is designed to protect the tire, for example, for operations in which the wheel is being treated with sprays that are not desirable on the tire. The third shield is preferably a generally circular disc having a series of select radius cutouts that will receive or substantially match specific wheel diameter sizes. The shield will cover the tire while the wheel is being coated, cleaned or painted.  
           [0012]    These three invented shields may be used and/or marketed separately, collectively or in any combination. When the need is to protect the wheel, the wheel shield and floor shield will be used. When the tire is to be protected, the tire shield and floor shield will be used. Consequently, the shields may be packaged to sell as a master kit or packaged for a specific market need or targeted market.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS  
       [0013]    [0013]FIG. 1 is a side view of one embodiment of the invented Universal Floor Shield and one embodiment of the invented Universal Wheel Shield in place protecting the wheel and ground surface area while the tire is being treated.  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 2 is a top view of one embodiment of the Universal Floor Shield in a flattened position, showing one embodiment of the protection and size adjustment features prior to adjustment and folding for use.  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 3 is a top view of one embodiment of the invented Universal Wheel Shield configured for multiple wheel diameters, specifically, the Shield having three sectors with different radii.  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 4 is an angle view of an embodiment of the Universal Floor Shield in place around the bottom of a tire, prior to the Universal Wheel Shield or Universal Tire Shield being held in position in preparation for tire or wheel treatment.  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 5 is a top view of one embodiment of the invented Universal Tire Shield in a multiple size configuration having three different radii cut-outs, wherein the Tire Shield is ready for use by positioning the Tire Shield against various diameter tires. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0018]    Referring to the Figures, there are shown several, but not the only, embodiments of the invented shield system. The preferred embodiment of this invention is shown in FIG. 1 through FIG. 5. Individuals in the consumer and professional markets will use the universal shields for protection of either the tire or wheel in conjunction with the floor shield to prevent over spray when applying special treatments, coatings or paints. Since the three universal shields are designed to protect and accommodate different sized wheels, tires, and contact space between tire and the ground surface and serve the needs of numerous consumer and industrial markets, the dimensions, sizes, shapes and materials may vary according to the needs of the specific end user and/or market. The low cost, disposable and recyclable shields will permit an easy solution with broad market appeal.  
         [0019]    The preferred embodiments may be made, for example, from cellulose or other fibers, solids or composites in various forms, including cardboard and corrugated medium, hardboard, particle board, metals, plastic, vinyl, acrylic, fiberglass, composites and/or other types of flat, thin resilient materials that are structurally stable and may be precut, fold-marked, sized so that they are ready-to-use without any further preparation.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 1 demonstrates the primary shape, profile, form and position for use of both the Universal Floor Spray Shield  20  and the Universal Wheel Spray Shield  8 . The Universal Floor Spray Shield is adjusted to fit properly around the tire on the floor surface  70  and is installed around the tire as shown in FIG. 1. The correct or closest-matching radius of the wheel on the Universal Wheel Spray Shield is selected, and that sector of the Wheel Spray Shield is held against the wheel to cover the wheel especially in the area where spraying ( 6 ) is to be started. The Wheel Spray Shield is then rotated by hand around the circumference of the wheel, still with the appropriate sector being held against the wheel so that the wheel is covered, and the tire is uncovered, in the area being sprayed. This, therefore, provides protection from the tire spray while the treatment is in progress. For example, in FIG. 1, the “appropriate sector” with the “correct or closest-matching radius” is shown at call-out number  108 . One may see, also from FIG. 1, that the other sectors, with other radii, do not fit that particular tire diameter as well as does sector  108 , and so are not selected for use with that particular tire. The other sectors tend to either expose part of the wheel or cover part of the tire, making them less effective.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 2 shows the various components of the preferred Universal Floor Shield  20 . The main portion of the Floor Shield is typically used flat on the floor or ground around the tire to protect the floor, and comprises the over-spray areas  30 , and the front apron  130 . The preferred floor shield extends around at least two sides (at least one tread side and the front or outer side) of the tire. Most preferably, as shown in FIG. 2, the floor shield extends around three sides of the tire (both tread sides and the front or outer side of the tire).  
         [0022]    The Floor Shield  20 , in use, includes an opening  140  that receives the bottom of the tire, that is, the foot-print of the tire as it makes contact with the ground/floor. This opening  140  is preferably as close as possible to the footprint of the tire, wherein the footprint is generally a rectangular shape with somewhat rounded corners. In order to make the opening  140 , and to make it adjustable so that the user may select the opening size to fit his/her particular tire and its particular footprint, the Floor Shield is provided with an adjustable opening system. This adjustable opening system includes two Adjustable Wings (Macro Adjustment Wing  23  and Micro Adjustable Wing  24 ) that permit universal use and versatility with any size tire/wheel combination. The Wings are separated by the Adjustment Wing Separator Die-cut  27 . The left hand tire size Macro Adjustment Wing Die-cut  23  accepts certain small size tire/wheels. However, if adjustments need to be made to receive larger tires/wheels, the shield can be tailored to fit any size tire/wheel by merely selecting the appropriate Micro Adjustment Wing  24  position. In other words, the user separates wing  23  from the adjacent portion of wing  24  and folds wing  23  up out of the plane of the over-spray areas  30 , and the front apron  130 . The user selects the location at which to fold wing  24  up out of the plane of the over-spray areas  30 , and the front apron  130  by selecting at which line  124  he/she will fold wing  24 . For a small tire footprint, the user will not fold wing  24  up at all. For a slightly larger footprint, the user will fold wing  24  at the first line  124  to the right in FIG. 2 of the separator die-cut  27 , or at the second or third line  124  to the right of the die-cut  27  for a larger footprint, etc. For the largest footprint, the user will fold wing  24  upwards at the farthest right line  124  in FIG. 4. Note that wing  23  preferably also has curved/rounded front corners  129  at its front edge, for forming curved opening corners  424 . This way, if the opening is formed from one flap ( 23 ) being pivoted up out of the plane of the shield, the opening will still have the curved corners that fit well around the tire footprint.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 4 also illustrates a preferred adaptation that improves the shielding capabilities of the Floor Shield. This adaptation may be called the Curved Tire Footprint Micro Adjustment Wings  29  that are the inner ends of the each of the wing  24  portions  224 . When a given one of the wing portions  224  is folded upward, the wing portion  224  separates from the adjacent portion  224  (to its right in FIG. 4) and leaves the flat portion of the shield with a curved edge  324 . This curved edge  324  fits up closely to the tire in the “corner” of the tire footprint. This way the shield reaches closely adjacent to and preferably almost underneath the tire, so that no gaps in shielding of the floor are experienced. Otherwise, without the curved edge  324 , there may be a generally triangular gap in shielding at the corners of the footprint through which spray can reach the floor. In other words, these Micro Adjustment Wings  29  are designed to wrap around the shape of the tire at the surface contact point.  
         [0024]    In FIG. 4, only the Floor Shield  20  is being used, with the tire tread  63 , tire edge  64 , sidewall  65 , and rim  66  exposed. Also, because no wheel shield  8  is being used in FIG. 4, the hub cap or wheel  67  is shown.  
         [0025]    The convenient Hand Hold Die-cut  22  and Hand Hold Fold Embossed Crimp  21  creates a strong open hand hold area that permits easy ingress and egress for positioning the Floor Shield around the tire. Embossed/Crimped Packaging Fold Lines  25  and  26  are designed that the Shield  20  may be folded at two places transverse to its length. This reduces exposed shipping, merchandising and storage area by ⅓ and provides platform space for product attachment and marketing using shrink wrapping processes. The distance between the two lines in each set of two fold lines  25 ,  26  his provides space for nesting other Shield products in shipment or for merchandising purposes. Over-Spray Areas  30  are left open to provide surface protection space for over-spray on each side of the tire. The Graphic Placement Areas  31  provides space for advertising or promotion graphics by the seller and/or in conjunction with the buyer.  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 3 reflects the uniqueness of having multiple radiuses designed into a single wheel spray shield that will accommodate different size tires/wheels. The Universal Wheel Spray Shield in FIG. 3 shows that several broken radiuses can be included on a single plane by merely adjusting the radius measurements from center. The Universal Wheel Shield can be manufactured with a selection of assorted radiuses in any combination of tire/wheel sizes to satisfy the needs of the markets. The Hand Hold Die-cut  42  in Shield  8  makes it easy for the user to properly hold and rotate the shield in position around the perimeter of the wheel while the tire treatment is in progress. The Pre-stamped Embossed/Crimped Fold and Store Line  50  are provided to allow the shield to be folded to reduce storage, shipping and merchandising space.  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 4 graphically shows the Universal Floor Spray Shield  20  indicating how the Tire Size Adjustment Wings  23 ,  24  fold out to fit any size tire/wheel. The wings can be fitted tightly by the user to prohibit any spray to come in contact with the ground or floor surface.  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 5 shows an example of the Universal Tire Spray Shield  80  with several shapes that correlate to multiple tire/wheel diameters. The Shield is held in place by hand over the tire to prohibit wheel treatments, coatings or paint to strike the tire surface. The preferred multiple cutouts  81 ,  82 ,  83  are of different radii, so that the correct/closest-matching one may be selected by the user for his/her wheel. The convenient Hand Hold Die-cut  85  permits the user to position and rotate the shield so that the appropriate (the selected) cutout  81 ,  82 ,  83  is moved around the perimeter of the wheel to most accurately and carefully protect the tire while the treatment is in progress. Again, the Shield  80  is adapted to protect the object being shielded (the tire) while not covering a portion of the object being treated (the wheel). The central portion  87  of the Shield  80  and also the spokes  88 ,  89 ,  90  serve at the shielding surfaces. The preferred Pre-stamped Embossed/Crimped Fold and Store Line  84  permits the shield to be folded to reduce storage, shipping and merchandising space by folding the Shield  80  roughly in half at position  86 .  
         [0029]    Preferably, all three shields  20 ,  8  and  80  may fold and nest together for convenience of storage, shipping and merchandising, with the wheel shield and the tire shield preferably being contained inside the folded floor shield. Two portions ( 31 ) of the floor shield may be printed with different indicia, for example, with advertising for two entities, such as the manufacturer and the retail store. This way, depending upon which side is folded to be outside, that indicia will show.  
         [0030]    In the Description and the claims, the term “closely match” means that the radius of a sector of the shield is the same as that of the object it is shielding or at least within an acceptable tolerance, which in this field would be about 10 percent of the radius length. For example, therefore, if a radius to be matched were 7 inches, then “closely match” would mean that the radius of the shield would be 7 inches plus or minus about 0.7 inches. The term “substantially match” means that the tolerance may be somewhat less strict, for example, within about 20 percent, so that the tolerance on a 7 inch radius would be plus or minus about 1.4 inches. One may see that this would allow the manufacturer to make wheel and tire shields with three sectors/arms that will acceptably fit nearly all commercial tires within these guidelines. Specific examples of preferred radius and degrees of circumference for each sector are for three sizes as follows: may be a 120 degree circumference length for 17-18 inch wheels (radius average 8.5 inches), 120 degrees circumference length for 15-16 inch wheels (radius average 7.5 inches), and 120 degrees for 13-14 inch wheels (radius average 6.5 inches). Three similar selections (8.5 inch radius for 17-18 inch wheels, radius 7.5 inches for 15-16 wheels, and 6.5 inch radius for 13-14 wheels) may be made for a tire shield as in FIG. 5.  
         [0031]    In the Description and the claims, “without gaps” between the tire and the floor shield at the opening means that there are preferably no gaps through which a significant amount of treatment material would spray when the sprayer is held at a reasonable angle to reach the tire surfaces. Certainly, there may be very small gaps due to unevenness of the tire and the floor or slightly imperfect fit of the shield, but “without gaps” means that there is preferably less than about 10 mm, and more preferably less than 5 mm, of gap at the curved corners of the opening of the floor shield.  
         [0032]    Alternative shapes may be useful for the shields, especially for the floor shield, which need not necessarily be rectangular. A curved apron portion front edge could be used, for example.  
         [0033]    Preferably, all three shields are generally flat and planar. This way, the rear sides (not shown) in the case of the wheel shield and tire shield may fit generally flat against the wheel and tire, and the bottom side (not shown) of the floor shield may fit generally flat against the floor. Protrusions from, or non-flat and non-planar surfaces on, the front surface (wheel and tire shields) and top surface (floor shield) may be acceptable for decorative, packaging, or display purposes, for example, but the preferred, flat embodiments are believed to be the most economical and practical.  
         [0034]    A partial list of call-out references follows:  
                                                     FIGURE   No.   Description                                1   63   Tire Surface Tread.           64   Tire Side Tread.           65   Tire Side Wall.           66   Premium Wheel Rim Bead.           67   Premium Wheel Rim or Wheel Cover.           6   Tire treatment spray or solution.           70   Floor Surface           8   Wheel Spray Shield           20   Floor Spray Shield-Side View       2   20   Floor Shield-Top View           21   Hand Hold Fold Embossed/Crimp           22   Hand Hold Die-cut           23   Left Hand Tire Size Macro Adjustment Wing           24   Right Hand Tire Size Micro Adjustment Wings           25   Left Hand Tire Size Adjustment Wing               Embossed/Crimp               Packaging Fold Lines           26   Right Hand Tire Size Adjustment Wing               Embossed/Crimp               Packaging Fold Lines           27   Adjustment Wing Separator Die-cut           28   Adjustment Wing-Standard Tire Size Die-cut           30   Over-Spray Area           31   Graphic Placement Areas-For Instructions and               Advertising           32   Pre-stamped Embossed/Crimped Fold and Store Line       3   8   Wheel Spray Shield-Top View           41   Hand Hold Fold Embossed/Crimp           42   Hand Hold Die-cut           43   120 Degree Radius for 17-18 Inch Wheels           44   120 Degree Radius for 15-16 Inch Wheels           45   120 Degree Radius for 13-14 Inch Wheels           46   Graphic Placement Areas-Instructions and Advertising           50   Pre-Stamped Embossed/Crimped Fold and Store Line       4   20   Floor Shield-Angle View           24   Right Hand Tire Size Adjustment Wing           23   Left hand Tire Size Adjustment Wing           63   Tire Surface Tread           64   Tire Side Tread           65   Tire Side Wall           66   Premium Wheel Rim Bead           67   Premium Wheel Rim or Cover           70   Floor/Ground Surface       5   80   Tire Spray Shield-Top View*           81   Radius for 17-18 Inch Tires           82   Radius for 15-16 Inch Tires           83   Radius for 13-14 Inch Tires           84   Hand Hold Fold Embossed/Crimped           85   Hand Hold Die-cut           86   Pre-stamped Embossed/Crimped Fold and Store Line           87   Tire Shield Graphic Area                  
 
         [0035]    Although this invention-has been described above with reference to particular means, materials and embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to these disclosed particulars, but extends instead to all equivalents within the scope of the following claims.