Mouse pad

Abstract: A mouse pad (the sheet placed under a mouse during VDT operation) comprises a fibrous sheet made of ultrafine fibres, and a substrate. Such a mouse pad may be incorporated in a mouse pad package so that a part of the surface of the mouse pad provided by the fibrous sheet or a separate piece made of substantially the same material is exposed so that a consumer can touch it directly to confirm its touch and test its likely behaviour as a mouse pad.

Description: Conventionally, as mouse pads (the sheet placed under a mouse during VDT operation), soft flexible sheets, woven fabrics, knitted fabrics, non-woven fabrics, foamed materials or laminates thereof have been used. US-A-4,799,054 discloses a mouse pad having a textured control surface, to enable the mouse tracking member to stably rest at any point on the pad surface. EP-A-0328225 discloses a mouse pad having a non-static upper layer which has a suede-like structure, a crease resistant intermediate layer and a bottom anti-slip layer. However, in some instances although a mouse pad may make a track ball roll smoothly, when the track ball is stained for some reason such as after a long use or with human sweat in the summer season, it does not roll smoothly and must be cleaned to recover smooth rolling. GB-A-2288223 proposes a mouse pad which has an area of its upper surface composed of pile, looped, hooked or woven material to provide a cleaning action on the mouse ball. This invention seeks to provide a new mouse pad which keeps the track ball clean so that it can roll smoothly for a long time without cleaning. According to a first aspect the present invention provides a mouse pad comprising a fibrous sheet made of ultrafine fibres in the range of 0.00001-1 denier, and a substrate. According to a second aspect, the present invention provides a mouse pad package according to claim 12. EP-A-0098604 discloses an artificial grain leather consisting essentially of a fibrous substrate comprising ultrafine fiber of less than 0.7 denier. Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 shows a plan view of a typical example of a mouse pad package embodying the present invention, with a part of the casing broken away to reveal the mouse pad. Fig. 2 shows a cross-section of the mouse pad of Fig. 1 along the line I-I of Fig. 1 Fig. 3 shows a plan view of another typical example of a mouse pad package embodying the present invention having a transparent case. Fig. 4 shows a cross-section of the mouse pad of Fig. 3 along the line II-II of Fig. 3. More particularly, each of Figs. 1 and 3 shows a mouse pad package comprising: a mouse pad 1 and a separate test piece 2 having a surface of a structure identical to that of the mouse pad 1, each within a case 3, having an opening 4, exposing a part of the surface of the test piece 2, thereby allowing a prospective user to touch the surface, enabling him to assess the likely performance of the mouse pad 1. The mouse pad of the invention has ultrafine fibres, the thickness of which is 0.00001-1 denier, more preferably, 0.001-0.3 denier and still more preferably, 0.01 to 0.1 denier. Surprisingly, such small thickness of the fibres allows the ball of the mouse to roll smoothly for a long time without cleaning the track ball. That means that the ultrafine fibres remove the stains of the ball as the ball rolls over the ultrafine fibres. The "fibre thickness" referred to herein means the weight average fibre thickness. The fibrous sheet may be any kind of sheet as long as the top surface thereof, on which the track ball rolls, is covered with the ultrafine fibres. It may be, for example, a knitted fabric, woven fabric or non-woven fabric. It may contain some finishing agents or binder. However, for best results, the top surface is preferably substantially of ultrafine fibres alone. Among the structures mentioned above, a non-woven fabric, especially such a fabric of which the top surface thereof is raised, is preferred having regard to its appearance, soft touch and firm rolling of the track ball. Such raised fabrics are well known in the field of artificial suede. Of course, raised fabrics of woven or knitted fabrics are also preferred. Raising can be effected, for example, with sandpaper, a grindstone or picking with a needle etc. Other kinds of sheet structure, such as those entangled (punched) with a water jet can also be used. Non-woven or loosely woven structures (such as twill or satin), of ultrafine fibres, can also be used, especially after entanglement by means of a water jet. A product having fibres entangled by means of a water jet is highly effective in cleaning a track ball since it has loops and spaces therein and has a firm structure which does not need a large amount of binder to maintain its structure. Since the cleaning effect is based on the fineness of the fibres, the effect is not damaged with washing. In any event, the cleaning effect is almost permanent in practical use even without washing. Although many non-woven fabrics contain a certain amount of binder such as polyurethane, the binder does not present a problem as long as it does not drop from the fabric or it does not cover the top surface of the mouse pad which should come into contact with the track ball. As for fibre material, any of polyesters, polyamides, acrylics, acetates, polyvinylchloride, cellulose and polypropyrene can be used. Among them, polyesters, polyamides and acrylics are preferable since their ultrafine fibre fabrics are commercially available at reasonable cost. Generally speaking, it is preferable that the fibrous sheet made of ultrafine fibres is antielectrostatistic so that any flying dust which might enter into the inside of the mouse does not stick to it. The fibrous sheet should also be selected having regard to this problem. Of course, the mouse pad can be in any shape such as rectangular, elliptical, circular or gourd-shaped. However, especially in the case of a tetragonal or square shaped mouse pad, it is preferable that its corners are round. According to an embodiment, the present invention provides a mouse pad package wherein a part of the surface of the present mouse pad or a piece made of substantially the same material is exposed to the exterior from an opening. Preferably, the exposed piece is a piece separate from the mouse pad so that consumers can confirm its touch and conduct a test as to how it functions as a mouse pad. Any consumer can confirm the touch and assess its likely behaviour as a mouse pad by touching it through the opening. By presenting a separate test piece at the opening, the new mouse pad can remain unstained and is not worn away as a result of handling by consumers. The fibrous sheet made of ultrafine fibres and the substrate are preferably laminated with an adhesive. However, they can also be combined by sewing or heat pressing to form a laminate. Adhesives which allow retention of the softness of the laminate, such as rubbery type adhesives, are preferable. As a substrate, a foamed material, rubbery material or thick fibre sheet such as a thick non-woven fabric can be used. Among them, foamed or rubbery materials of, for example, polyurethane, polyethylene, chloroprene rubber, polyvinyl chloride or polypropylene, or a combination of any two or more of such materials is preferable because they are soft, clean and are commercially available at any thickness and at reasonable cost. The thickness of the substrate is preferably 1-10 mm, more preferably 2-8 mm so that the total thickness of the mouse pad becomes 3-10 mm. However, in any event, the thickness should be selected so that the softness and bending property of the resulting laminate allows easy handling. Example 1 An artificial ultrasuede "Ecsaine" standard type (commercially available from Toray Industries, Inc., Japan) fibrous sheet which has a 0.5 mm thickness, 140 g/m 2 weight and 0.05-0.2 mm raised fibre length comprising a composite of 0.1 denier entangled (by needle punching) fibres and a polyurethane binder was laminated with chloroprene rubber foam having 4.0 mm thickness as substrate. The resultant laminated mouse pad was 240 mm in length, 175 mm in width and 4.5 mm in thickness. This mouse pad was used continuously for a long time and evaluated by assessing the staining of the encoders of the mouse and the staining of the mouse itself at 50,000 and 100,000 metre rollings. The evaluation of the staining of the encoders was conducted by determination of the mean values of the width of stains of the three encoders which come into contact with the mouse ball. The staining of the mouse ball was evaluated by observation with the naked eye. The results are shown in Tables 1 and 2. Example 2 A knitted fabric having constituent filaments of 0.4 denier polyethyleneterephthalate and 0.2 denier nylon 6 was prepared. The weight ratio of the polyester/polyamide was 29/71 and the knitted fabric had many microloops of polyester filaments on the surface developed by the shrinkage of the polyester filaments. The knitted fabric had 0.3 mm thickness, 100 g/m 2 weight and the lengths of the microloops were in the range 0.05-0.2 mm. A mouse pad of 240 mm length and 175 mm width was prepared by adhering the fabric to a 4mm thick elastomer sheet. This mouse pad, as Example 1, was used continuously for a long time and evaluated by the staining of the encoders of the mouse and the staining of the mouse itself at 50,000 and 100,000 metre rollings. The results are shown in Tables 1 and 2. Comparative Example 1 A knitted fabric having a 0.3 mm thickness and 100 g/m 2 weight made of yarns constituting 2 denier filaments was prepared. The fabric was adhered to the same substrate as Example 1 to obtain a mouse pad having a 240 mm length, 175 mm width and 4.5 mm thickness. This mouse pad was evaluated as in Example 1 and the results are shown in Tables 1 and 2. As shown in Examples 1 and 2, when using a mouse pad embodying the present invention, staining of the encoder roller and the mouse ball was not observed even after long use of the mouse. On the other hand, in the Comparative Example 1, after such long use, staining was observed on the mouse ball and rolling of the mouse ball was no longer smooth, which might have been attributable to staining of the encoder roller. Example 3 A mouse having encoder rollers which had been stained as a result of usage for several years was used as a mouse for a personal computer on a mouse pad prepared as in Example 1. The average time of actual use of the personal computer was more than 4 hours a day. The staining of the three encoder rollers after 1 month and after 2 months were as shown in Table 3. The staining was expressed by the maximum width of the stained zone (mm). Comparative Example 2 A commercially available mouse pad made of rubber on which a silicone resin layer had been laminated and colour printed was tested in the same way as in Example 3. As shown in Example 3 and Comparative Example 2, the mouse pad embodying the present invention has a cleaning effect. On the other hand, the silicone resin layer does not have such an effect. Stain width of Encoder Roller (mm) after rolling 0 m 50,000 m 100,000 m Example 1 0 0 0 Example 2 0 0 0 Comp. Example 1 0 1.7 2.5 Staining of Mouse Ball after rolling 0 m 50,000 m 100,000 m Example 1 none none none Example 2 none none none Comp. Example 1 none stained stained Stain width of Encoder Roller (mm) after use o month 1 month 2 months Example 3 Roller 1 2.8 1.2 0 Roller 2 2.5 1.2 0.5 Roller 3 2.5 1.5 0.8 Comp. Example 2 Roller 1 2.2 2.3 2.5 Roller 2 1.7 1.7 1.7 Roller 3 0 0 0.5

Claims: A mouse pad comprising a fibrous sheet and a substrate, characterised in that the fibrous sheet is made of ultrafine fibres in the range of 0.00001-1 denier. A mouse pad according to claim 1, wherein the ultrafine fibres are in the range of 0.0001-0.3 denier. A mouse pad according to claim 2, wherein the ultrafine fibres are in the range of 0.01-0.1 denier. A mouse pad according to any preceding claim, wherein the fibrous sheet is a knitted fabric. A mouse pad according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the fibrous sheet is a woven fabric. A mouse pad according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the fibrous sheet is a non-woven fabric. A mouse pad according to claim 6, wherein the non-woven fabric is a raised fabric. A mouse pad according to claim 6 or claim 7, wherein the non-woven fabric comprises the ultra-fine fibres and a binder. A mouse pad according to any preceding claim, wherein the substrate is a foamed material. A mouse pad according to claim 9, wherein the foamed material is a polyolefin foam or polyurethane foam. A mouse pad according to any preceding claim, having corners which are round. A mouse pad package comprising a mouse pad (1) as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 11, a casing (3) containing the mouse pad (1) and optionally additionally a test piece (2), separate from the mouse pad (1) and of the same material as the mouse pad (1), which casing (3) has an opening (4) therein and wherein a part of the surface of the mouse pad (1) or, when present, of the test piece (2) is exposed by the opening (4) to allow access to the surface to enable it to be touched by a prospective user. A mouse pad package according to claim 12, wherein a test piece (2) is present and the opening (4) in the casing (3) exposes the test piece (2). Use, as a mouse pad, of a fibrous sheet made of ultrafine fibres in the range of 0.00001-1 denier and a substrate.

Inventors: AMANO MASAKI, SAKAI KAZUYUKI, SUGA YASUO, TAGUCHI SATOSHI, YAMAMOTO HAJIME, YOSHIDA TAKASHI, AMANO, MASAKI, SAKAI, KAZUYUKI, SUGA, YASUO, TAGUCHI, SATOSHI, YAMAMOTO, HAJIME, YOSHIDA, TAKASHI
Applicants: TORAY INDUSTRIES, TORAY INDUSTRIES, INC.
Application year: 1996
Main classification: G06K11
IPC codes: G06F3, B32B5