Patent ID: 8334041

Claim:
A drop cloth and a staircase in combination, comprising: (a) a drop cloth comprising, (1) an elongate foldable sheet of material having a length and a width, wherein the length is substantially greater than the width; and (2) a plurality of panels connected to the sheet in series, the panels being spaced apart from each other along the length of the sheet and providing a sufficient rigidity to the drop cloth to enable the drop cloth to be kicked into a position in which the drop cloth defines a generally straight edge along its length; and (b) a staircase comprising a plurality of stairs; (c) wherein the drop cloth covers stairs of the staircase a first subset of panels of the plurality of panels covers horizontal sections of the stairs and a second subset of panels of the plurality of panels covers vertical sections of the staircase, with a portion of the sheet of material extending between a panel of the first subset and a panel of the second subset folding over an edge of one of the stairs of the staircase.