Patent Publication Number: US-2021180338-A1

Title: Drywall tool

Description:
This disclosure relates to mud pans used for drywall installation and repairs. 
     BACKGROUND 
     A mud pan is a tool used for installing and repairing drywall in for example residential dwelling and commercial construction. The mud pan is used to hold or mix a joint compound referred to as mud, into a smooth paste that is then smeared onto tape that covers a joint between adjacent drywall segments or exposed fastener heads that secure a drywall segment to a stud. Typically, a user grips the mud pan in one hand while holding a joint knife in the other hand, using the latter to mix the mud in the pan and then carry some mud to apply to the drywall surface. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Several aspects of the disclosure here are illustrated by way of example and not by way of limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which like references indicate similar elements. It should be noted that references to “an” or “one” aspect in this disclosure are not necessarily to the same aspect, and they mean at least one. Also, in the interest of conciseness and reducing the total number of figures, a given figure may be used to illustrate the features of more than one aspect of the disclosure, and not all elements in the figure may be required for a given aspect. 
         FIG. 1  illustrates an example of a drywall tool in use when mixing a joint compound to form mud. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the example drywall tool of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  illustrates the drywall tool in use when applying mud to drywall. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Several aspects of the disclosure with reference to the appended drawings are now explained. Whenever the shapes, relative positions and other aspects of the parts described are not explicitly defined, the scope of the invention is not limited only to the parts shown, which are meant merely for the purpose of illustration. Also, while numerous details are set forth, it is understood that some aspects of the disclosure may be practiced without these details. In other instances, well-known circuits, structures, and techniques have not been shown in detail so as not to obscure the understanding of this description. 
     An aspect of this disclosure is a drywall tool that includes a mud pan, and a grip layer affixed to the exterior of the mud pan. The grip layer has a course textured, grip tape-like outer surface and whose inner surface is affixed to the exterior of a bottom wall and left and right longitudinal walls of the pan. The coarse textured outer surface helps prevent the tool from slipping out of its user&#39;s grip, when the user is grasping the tool over the grip layer in one hand and preparing a mixture of drywall joint compound (mud) in the pan, or when the user is applying mud from the pan to a drywall (using a joint knife.) The tool frees the user&#39;s mind to focus on their primary task, e.g., to cover joints between adjacent drywall segments or to cover the exposed heads of fasteners that secure a drywall segment against a stud, without having to also worry about the tool slipping out of their grip. Conventional mud pans become slippery when there is moisture on their exterior surface or when the mud is in a wet condition and therefore risk being dropped while the mud is being mixed or lifted out of the pan. 
       FIG. 1  illustrates an example of a drywall tool  1  which gripped in a user&#39;s left hand, while the user&#39;s right hand is holding a joint knife. The drywall tool  1  is an assembly that includes a mud pan  3 , and a grip layer  4  that is affixed to the exteriors of at least the longitudinal walls of the pan  3 , and in this example also affixed to a bottom wall of the pan  3 . As shown, the user is stirring an amount of a drywall joint compound  5  (using the joint knife) that is contained inside a volume of the pan  3 . When sufficiently mixed, the joint compound  5  becomes a drywall mud that is then smeared against drywall, using the joint knife in their right hand. In this manner, the smeared mud covers any joints and fasteners in the drywall, for example as shown in  FIG. 3 . Once the smeared mud has been smoothed and its excess removed, by the user wielding the joint knife, it is allowed to dry and harden, before the user sands it into a smooth finish. The joints and fastener heads are now smoothly covered and the drywall surface is ready for primer and paint. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 2 , this is a perspective view of the example drywall tool of  FIG. 1 . The drywall tool  1  includes a mud pan  3  that is a hollow, rectangular frustum (or pyramidal frustum) having a lower base that has a larger surface area than an upper base. Only the lower base of the frustum is open, as shown, thereby forming a container. The frustum is oriented upside-down during usage of the tool  1  as shown, so that the joint compound  5  can be placed into the container through the open lower base of the frustum. The joint compound  5  is thus contained inside the volume of the frustum, as shown. Viewed another way, the mud pan  3  is a container defined by a bottom wall to which front and rear ends walls are joined at front and rear ends, respectively, while elongated, left and right longitudinal end walls are joined at left and right ends of the bottom wall, respectively. The walls may be made of stainless steel, or other suitable material that can prevent leakage of water and the joint compound  5 . The dimensions of the mud pan  3  may for example be 5 inches high by 12 to 14 inches long by 6 inches wide, or they may be different as needed to accommodate different hand sizes of users and different sizes of joint knives in the longitudinal direction, as shown in  FIG. 1  and in  FIG. 3 . 
     The grip layer  4  may be grip tape having a coarseness range or grade of 50-grit to 120-grit, e.g., 80-grit, and may for example be one that is manufactured by or offered under the brand MOB GRIP™. The grip tape may consist of a sheet of paper or cloth (a backing) to which abrasive material such as aluminum oxide or silicon carbide pieces have been glued to one face of the backing. The other face (inner surface) of the backing is bonded to the exteriors of the bottom wall and longitudinal walls of the upside-down frustum as shown. The grip layer  4  may be a piece of adhesive-backed grip tape, that is coarsely textured on its outer surface and pressure sensitive adhesive on its inner surface. The latter is bonded to the exteriors of the walls of the mud pan as shown. 
     The grip layer  4  may be die-cut to the shape of the side walls and the bottom wall. For example, the grip layer  4  may be a single rectangular or square piece that wraps around the left and right edges of the bottom wall, but stops short of or does not extend beyond the top edges of the left and right longitudinal walls as shown. Alternatively, the grip layer  4  may be composed of at least three pieces (that may be cut from the same roll or sheet of grip tape), each piece being dimensioned to fit within the surface area of a respective one of the left and right longitudinal walls and the bottom wall. The die cut may be done in a first manufacturing process, and then an inner surface of the grip layer  4  is bonded to the exteriors of the walls of the mud pan  3 . For example, in the case of an adhesive-backed grip tape, after the grip layer  4  has been cut to size its adhesive inner surface is exposed by removing a protection sheet and then pressing the adhesive inner surface of the grip layer  4  against the exteriors of the longitudinal and bottom walls. This may take place in a single assembly application that may apply even pressure along the entire surface of the grip layer  4  to ensure consistent adhesion and a clean edge detail. The bottom and all exterior portions of the pan could be sealed with a powder-coated paint finish for longevity and durability of use. 
     Some appealing features of the drywall tool  1  include its ease of use, functionality, portability, and secure holding power due to the course textured, grip tape exterior of the longitudinal and bottom walls. The mud pan is beneficial to drywall repair and installation because it can be easily yet firmly gripped within a hand of its user. This reduces the likelihood of the pan being dropped during usage when it is full of wet joint compound, thereby avoiding cleanup tasks and creating greater efficiency for the user at the jobsite. This yields greater cost savings in drywall installation and repair jobs by contractors, construction workers, drywall installers/finishers, homeowners, or do-it-yourself enthusiasts. 
     While certain aspects have been described and shown in the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that such are merely illustrative of and not restrictive on the broad invention, and that the invention is not limited to the specific constructions and arrangements shown and described, since various other modifications may occur to those of ordinary skill in the art. For example, while the mud pan is depicted as a frustum with sharp corners, the corners may alternatively be slightly rounded. The description is thus to be regarded as illustrative instead of limiting.