Abstract:
Each of the embodiments of the invention has a rim, a deck and a raised portion on the deck to accommodate switch levers and television cable connectors. The rim fits closely around the perimeter of a cover plate and switch or outlet being shielded. The deck is generally parallel to the surface of the cover. Adhesive is applied to areas of the under surface of the deck which overlie the relatively smooth end areas of the cover plate. The shield has flexibility allowing for deflection under finger pressure to bring the adhesives into contact with the cover plate to securely attach the shield to the cover plate.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]    This application is a continuation-in-part of prior U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/325,355, filed Sep. 26, 2001, and hereby claims the benefit of the filing date thereof under 35 U.S.C. §119. 
     
    
     
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    The subject invention relates to methods and apparatus for masking or covering surfaces and articles to prevent paint from being applied to the surfaces and articles mounted on the surfaces. In particular, the invention relates to a paint shield used to prevent application of paint on plaques and cover plates for electrical and electronic outlets and switches.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0003]    For purposes of this disclosure, the term cover plate(s) includes plaque(s). There is much prior art, patented and not, in this particular field. U.S. Pat. No. 5,285,014 discloses two embodiments of the patented inventions. The first is for cover plates and electrical outlets on which the cover plate is used. The second is for cover plates and electrical switches on which they are used. The first shield is secured in place by prongs simulating the prongs on an electrical plug engaged in one of the outlets being shielded along with the cover plate. The second embodiment is for use with electrical switches. It is deep enough to accommodate the switch lever and is held in place by a small suction cup located near one end of the shield. These products have never been successfully marketed and this is attributed to the fact that two embodiments are needed and that use of the small suction cup is not a reliable technique. Other devices are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,063,872 and Des. No. 279,860 and Des. No. 293,396. None of these devices has proven practicable as well.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0004]    The subject invention provides a paint shield suitable for use on both cover plates used with outlets and switches and has reliable means for attaching the shield to the cover plates. The shields of the present invention are also economical enough to manufacture to make them disposable after one or more usages. The cost per shield is less than the cost of removing and replacing a cover plate and exercising the extra care required to avoid applying paint to the exposed sockets and switches. The invention takes advantage of the fact that cover plates are standardized and manufactured to close dimensional tolerances. The shield of the present invention comprises an upper housing portion extending outwardly from a deck and a rim around the perimeter of the deck. The upper portion is shaped to accommodate a switch lever (one or more, as required), a television cable connector, or an electrical and electronic sockets. The rim fits snugly around the perimeter of the cover plate being shielded and contacts the surface on which the cover plate is mounted. The shield may be made of one or two primary pieces. If one piece, the piece is preferably thin, molded flexible plastic. The shield may be somewhat elastomeric so that the skirt may be slightly smaller than the perimeter of the cover plate and extend to fit it closely when installed. If made of two pieces, the upper portion and deck comprise one piece and the second piece is an elastomeric rim which snaps into place around the edges of the deck.  
           [0005]    The shield is removably attached to the cover plate by an adhesive, either applied directly to portions of the inner surface of the deck or by pieces of preferably double-sided adhesive tape. The side applied to the shield has a greater adhesive capability than the side that contacts the cover plate to assure that the adhesive tapes, if used, are removed from the cover plate when the shield is removed. The upper housing portion may be specially shaped to allow the adhesive pieces or areas to be deflected easily onto the surface of the cover plate to accept adhesive attachment without deflection of the shield. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0006]    The foregoing aspects and many of the attendant advantages of this invention will become more readily appreciated as the same become better understood by reference to the following detailed description, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:  
         [0007]    [0007]FIG. 1 is an exploded isometric view of a typical shield constructed in accordance with the present invention positioned to be installed over a switch and cover plate;  
         [0008]    [0008]FIG. 2 is a longitudinal view of the shield of FIG. 1 taken along section line  1 - 1  showing the shield over a cover plate;  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 3 is an isometric view of a second embodiment of the invention shielding a cover plate;  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken at section line  4 - 4  in FIG. 3;  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 5 is an isometric view of a third embodiment of the invention shielding a cover plate;  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken at section line  6 - 6  in FIG. 7;  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 7 is an exploded isometric view of two shields constructed in accordance with the first embodiment with denesting lugs; and  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 8 is an isometric view showing nested shields with denesting lugs. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0015]    Referring to FIG. 1, a typical prior art cover plate  10  is installed over a switch assembly  11 . The majority of cover plates are made in accurate standardized shapes and sizes. The broad rectangular surface  12  of most cover plates that surrounds the central switch opening is generally flat except for the downwardly curved peripheral edges  13 . The broad surface  12  may also be slightly outwardly curved or there may be decorative designs molded into the cover plate. However, in all but a few instances, the surface  12  is sufficiently smooth (flat or curved) so that the present invention may be employed effectively as a paint shield.  
         [0016]    Referring to FIG. 2, a first embodiment of the subject shield  16  is installed over cover plate  10 . The cover plate is attached to a switch lever  18 . The cover plate is generally rectangular in shape, with a flat deck  25  that covers the portion of the cover plate surrounding the switch  18 . A central rectangular raised portion  19  extends outwardly from the central portion of the deck  25  and is long, high and deep enough to form a cavity  17  that fits over the switch lever  18  (FIG. 2) and/or over and around electrical outlets when the shield is installed over an outlet cover plate. Perimeter  23  of the shield extends outwardly from a rectangular edge  21  and curves to join the generally flat deck  25 . The rectangular edge  21  contacts the surface of the wall (not shown) underlying the cover plate  10 . The perimeter  23  of shield  16  fits snugly around perimeter  24  of cover plate  10 . The flat deck  25  of the shield is constructed so that it is spaced a small distance d, in a range of five to 100 thousandths of an inch, above surface  12  of the cover plate  10 . Patches  27  and  28  of self-stick adhesive are applied to inner surface  29  of the deck  25  adjacent the perimeter  23  and the inner surface of the perimeter  23 . The adhesive is a releasable, water-based material available from 3M Company under the trade name of Fastbond Insulation Adhesive, Number  49 . The adhesive is applied in a rectangular pattern spaced between the raised portion  19  and the perimeter  23 . The inner edges  30  and  31  of the patches are preferably close to junctures  32  and  33  between the raised portion  19  and deck  25  of the shield. The adhesive preferably has greater holding power to the inner surface of the deck  25  than to the outer surface  12  of the cover plate  20  so that upon removal, all of the adhesive clearly separates from the cover plate.  
         [0017]    The shield is preferably molded from a semi-rigid, but slightly pliable polymeric material so that the material will flex when pressed against the cover plate  10 . A suitable plastic material is utility grade polyvinylchloride (pvc). The preferred thickness of the shield is 0.01 inch. In this embodiment, the perimeter  23 , deck  25  and raised portion  19  are all integrally molded as a single piece. In use, the shield is installed on the cover plate  10  and finger pressure is applied to the deck  25  over the adhesive patches  27 ,  31  to deflect the shield so that the adhesive patches  27  and  28  contact the relatively smooth areas of the surface  12  of the cover plate  10  to hold the shield  16  in place. The shield is removed by grasping the raised portion, crushing it if necessary to get a grip on it and pulling it off the cover plate. Tab  34  may be formed in the top  35  of the shield to aid in removing it.  
         [0018]    Referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, a second embodiment of the invention includes a shield  36  positioned over a cover plate  37  for a switch assembly  38 . This embodiment differs from that of FIG. 2 in that it is molded from a thicker material that is relatively stiff. The technique used to fasten this shield to the cover plate is also different. As shown in FIG. 4, two openings,  39  and  40 , are provided on opposite ends of the deck of shield  36 , one near each end of the cover plate in the deck portions  41  and  42  that are above and below the raised portion  43  of the shield  36 . The openings are rectangular in shape and are positioned between the top and bottom of the raised portion  43  and the perimeter  44  of the shield  36 . The members  45  and  46  are made of non-elastic, pliable material that is either inherently adhesive on one side or is treated to make it adherent. Flexible rectangular members  45  and  46  are positioned over the openings  39  and  40  and overlap the edges of the openings. The members  45  and  46  are depressed through the holes to contact the cover plate. The adhesive side of the pieces  45  and  46  face toward the outer surface of the deck so that the adhesive adheres to the perimeter of the holes  39  and  40 . The central portions of the members are exposed through the openings  39  and  40  and are pressed downwardly onto the smooth surface of the cover plate underlying the openings, thus affixing the shield to the cover plate. In this embodiment, the shield may be relatively rigid, and thus, its perimeter edge  47  can be sharp.  
         [0019]    Referring to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, a third embodiment of the shield  48  is shown installed on cover plate  49  covering a switch  50 . In this embodiment, the shield  48  comprises two parts  51  and  52 . The first part  51  includes a deck  53  with a central raised portion  54 . The second part  52  is a molded elastomeric rim. As shown in FIG. 6, part  52  is L-shaped with an outer arm having a knife-edged perimeter  55  that engages the wall outside the cover plate. The other arm of the rim extends over the edge of the cover plates and terminates in a bifurcated inner juncture  57 . The perimeter  58  of the first part  51  extends into the bifurcated juncture and is secured therein by adhesive or other conventional means. This interconnection holds parts  51  and  52  together. Deck  53  is molded so that it is lower than perimeter  58  to bring inner surface  59  of the deck closer to the surface  60  of the cover plate. Adhesive patches  61  and  62  are located as in the other embodiments on the inner surface of the deck. The rim deflects under finger pressure to allow the adhesive patches to come into contact with the outer surface of the cover plate to attach the shield to the cover plate.  
         [0020]    Patches made of the non-elastic, pliable material described above may be applied to the inner surface of the deck. In all instances, the patches may be a self-stick adhesive. Appropriately sized and shaped pieces of double-sided adhesively backed tape may also be used instead of the applied patches including double adhesively backed tape. An example of such a tape comprises a strip of smooth surfaced elastomeric foam coated on each surface with self-stick adhesive. The strip may also be non-elastic and pliable with adhesive on both sides.  
         [0021]    Also, in each embodiment of the invention, one or more additional features may be incorporated for facilitating removal of the shields. As shown in FIG. 5, a perforation or zone of weakness  63  can be formed in the shape of a tab  64  on the end or sidewall of the raised portion  54 . To remove the shield  66 , the tab  64  is separated at the perforation  63  by finger pressure and deflected inwardly to provide finger access for a firm grip on the interior of the raised portion of the shield. Another alternative is a tape  69  shown in dashed lines having ends  67  and  68  adhered to the sides  70  and  71  or ends  72  and  73  of the raised portion  54  to provide a bail which provides a firm grip on the shield.  
         [0022]    Referring now to FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, another embodiment of the shield  74  incorporates denesting lugs  75  on the raised portion  76  that covers the switch and/or outlet. All the embodiments are shaped so that they are readily stackable for conservation of packaging, mailing and storing costs. The denesting lugs are molded onto the juncture between the sides of the raised portion  76  and the top surface  77  of the raised portion. The lugs extend inwardly and downwardly and have a lower shoulder  78 . The denesting lugs of successively stacked shields are offset from the lugs on adjacent shields to prevent the lugs from nesting with each other. When successive shields are stacked or nested, the shoulder  78  engages the upper surface of the raised portion on the next successively lower shield. This keeps the upper surfaces of the raised portions separated, and thus the deck portions  79 . The deck portions are spaced sufficiently so that the adhesive  80  on the bottoms of the decks will not contact and adhere to the upper surface of the deck on the next successively lower shield in the stack.  
         [0023]    While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it will be appreciated that various changes can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, it is understood that the shields can be made in a variety of sizes and shapes to suit all standardized cover plates, whether single switch, multiple switch or multiple outlets.