Patent Document

RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/175,777 filed Jul. 5, 2005, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,226,232, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/215,530 filed on Aug. 8, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,913,407, which claims priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/311,424, which was filed on Aug. 10, 2001. The contents of all related applications listed above are incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD  
       [0002]     The present invention relates to the application of coating materials and, in particular, to the systems and methods for dispensing texture material containing particulate material to a surface such as a wall or ceiling.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     To form walls, modern building methods typically employ sheets of wall material nailed and/or screwed to wall studs. The wall material may be coated with a texture material appropriate for either interior or exterior walls.  
         [0004]     Texture materials can be applied to a destination surface in a number of different ways. For large surface areas, the texture material is typically applied with a sprayer system. Sprayer systems may be airless or may mix the texture material with a stream of pressurized air. The source of pressurized air may be a compressor, storage tank, or hand operated pump.  
         [0005]     In other cases, such as touch up or repair of a wall or ceiling surface, only a small area need be covered with texture material. For small surfaces areas, the texture material is preferably dispensed using an aerosol system. Aerosol systems typically employ a container assembly, valve assembly, nozzle assembly, and propellant. The propellant pressurizes the texture material within the container such that, when the valve is opened, the texture material flows out of the nozzle assembly. The nozzle assembly is typically designed to deposit the texture material on the destination surface in selected one of a plurality of predetermined texture patterns.  
         [0006]     The present invention is of particular relevance to the application of stucco or “sand texture” texture materials to small surface areas, and those applications will be described herein in detail. Stucco texture materials contain, in addition to a carrier and base, what will be referred to herein as a “particulate” material. The particulate material in stucco is typically formed by sand or other similar materials.  
         [0007]     The need exists for improved systems and methods for applying stucco texture material to relatively small surface areas.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0008]     The present invention may be embodied as a dispensing system for patching a destination surface to match an existing texture pattern. The dispensing system comprises a tube member and a sponge member. The tube member defines a container opening and a container chamber, with stucco material being arranged in the container chamber. The stucco material comprises a base, a carrier, and particulate material. The sponge member defines an applicator surface and a sponge opening. The stucco material is forced out of the tube member through the container opening and the sponge opening and onto the applicator surface. The applicator surface of the sponge member is displaced such that the stucco material on the applicator comes into contact with the untextured portion of the destination surface to transfer texture material in flowable form from the applicator surface to the destination surface. The stucco material is allowed to dry. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0009]      FIG. 1  is an elevational view depicting a dispensing system constructed in accordance with, and embodying the principals in the present invention;  
         [0010]      FIGS. 2 and 3  depict a method of using the system shown in  FIG. 1  to apply texture material to a wall or ceiling surface;  
         [0011]      FIG. 4  is an exploded section view depicting a portion of the dispensing system of  FIG. 1 ; and  
         [0012]      FIG. 5  is a section view depicting a portion of the dispensing system of  FIG. 1 .  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0013]     Referring initially to  FIG. 1 , depicted therein is a dispensing system  20  constructed in accordance with, and embodying, the principals of the present invention. As shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the dispensing system  20  is used to apply new texture material  22  to a wall or ceiling surface  24 . Existing material  26  is present on the exemplary surface  24 , and an area  28  to be patched is shown in  FIG. 2 . The dispensing system  20  is of particular significance in the context of patching the area  28  of the wall surface  24  to match the existing texture material  26 .  
         [0014]      FIG. 2  also shows new texture material, indicated by reference character  22   a , in the process of being dispensed from the system  20 .  FIG. 3  shows, as indicated by reference character  22   b , the new texture material  22  applied to the surface  24  over the area  28  to be patched.  
         [0015]     Texture material typically comprises a base  36 , a particulate  38 , and a carrier  40 . The base  36  typically comprises a binder, a pigment, and filler material. The binder binds the remaining materials together and to the surface  24  to be coated. The pigment provides color to the applied coating. The filler is typically an inexpensive material that provides bulk to the coating without interfering with the function of the pigment or binder.  
         [0016]     The particulate  38  in the texture material of the present invention is large enough to be visible to the unaided eye. The particulate  38  is typically sand, perlite, cork, polystyrene chips, foam, or the like. The particulate  38  provides a desirable aesthetic “look” and in some cases a functional purpose such as wear resistance or sound deadening.  
         [0017]     The carrier  40  is typically oil or water that forms a solvent for the base  36  and thus allows the materials  22  to be in a liquid or plastic form when not exposed to air. Exposure to air causes the carrier  40  to evaporate or dry, leaving the base in a hardened form. The carrier  40  is represented by dots in the drawings; no dots are used when the texture material depicted has hardened.  
         [0018]     The present invention is most significant in the context of patching a ceiling surface with what is referred to as stucco texture material. The dispensing system  20  may be used to dispense other texture materials, such as sand texture or stucco, but is of primary significance when applying acoustic texture material, and that application of the present invention will be described below in detail.  
         [0019]     In the following discussion, the physical structure of the dispensing system  20  will be described in further detail. Following that, a method of using the dispensing system  20  to apply the new texture material  22  to the surface  24  will be described in detail.  
         [0020]     Referring now to  FIGS. 4 and 5 , it can be seen that the exemplary dispensing system  20  comprises a container  30 , a sponge assembly  32 , and a cap member  34 . The exemplary sponge assembly  32  comprises a sponge base  42  and sponge member  44 . The sponge member  44  defines a sponge opening  46  and an applicator surface  48 . The exemplary sponge base  42  is made of rigid plastic and is adapted to engage both the container  30  and the cap member  34 . The sponge member  44  is relatively resilient and is secured by adhesive or the like to the sponge base  42 .  
         [0021]     The sponge base  42  and sponge member  44  of the exemplary sponge assembly  32  are made of different materials. In particular, the sponge base  42  is made of a relatively rigid plastic and the sponge member  44  is made of a resilient material such as synthetic or natural sponge or foam. This use of two different materials for the parts  42  and  44  simplifies the manufacturing process and reduces cost, but one of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that certain materials and manufacturing techniques may be used to manufacture the sponge assembly  32  out of a single piece of material. In this case, the sponge base  42  and sponge member  44  would be integrally formed and not separate members secured together as in the exemplary embodiment described herein. The exemplary sponge base  42  and sponge member  44  will be described in further detail below.  
         [0022]     Referring now for a moment to  FIG. 1 , it can be seen that the container  30  comprises a main portion  50 , a shoulder portion  52 , and a closed end  54 .  FIGS. 4 and 5  show that the container  30  also comprises an opening portion  56 .  
         [0023]     The container  30  is preferably made of a soft or resilient plastic material that is substantially impermeable to air and can be deformed by squeezing by hand. Other materials, such as paper, paperboard, metal, or the like may be used.  
         [0024]     The exemplary main portion  50  starts out during manufacture as a cylindrical tube having a fill opening at one end and the shoulder and opening portions  52  and  56  at the other end. The new texture material  22  is introduced into a container chamber  58  defined by the container  30 . The fill opening is then closed to form the closed end  54 .  
         [0025]     Formed on the opening portion  56  is an external threaded surface  60  and a dispensing surface  62 . A container opening  64  is formed in the dispensing surface  62 . When the closed end  54  is formed, the new texture material  22  in the material chamber  58  may thus exit the container  30  only through the container opening  64 . A dispensing axis  66  extends through the container opening  64 . In the exemplary system  20 , the opening portion  56  and container opening  64  are generally cylindrical and their longitudinal axes are aligned with each other and with the dispensing axis  66 .  
         [0026]     As shown in the drawing, again with reference to  FIGS. 4 and 5 , the sponge base  42  comprises a plate portion  70 , a mounting portion  72 , and a skirt portion  74 . The plate portion  70  defines a sponge surface  76  to which is attached the sponge member  44 .  
         [0027]     The mounting portion  72  defines a mounting cavity  78  having an internal threaded surface  80 . The external threaded surface  60  and internal threaded surface  80  are complimentary such that the sponge base  42  may be threaded onto the container  30  to attach the sponge assembly  32  to the container  30 .  
         [0028]     A base opening  82  is formed in the sponge base  42 . In particular, the base opening  82  extends from the sponge surface  76  to the mounting cavity  78 . When the threaded surfaces  60  and  80  are engaged with each other, the base opening  82  is substantially aligned with the container opening  64 . In addition, with the sponge member  44  secured to the sponge surface  76 , the sponge opening  46  is also substantially aligned with the base opening  82 .  
         [0029]     The skirt portion  74  of the sponge base  42  comprises a side wall  84  defining a skirt edge  86 . The side wall  84  extends downwardly from the plate portion  70  around the mounting portion  72 . A cap surface  88  is formed on the side wall  84 . A stop portion  90  of the cap surface  88  extends radially outwardly from the side wall  84 .  
         [0030]     The exemplary cap member  34  is or may be conventional in that it comprises a disc portion  92  and a wall portion  94 . The exemplary cap member  34  further comprises a pin portion  96  that extends from the disc portion  92  within the wall portion  94 . The wall portion  94  further defines an edge portion  98 .  
         [0031]     The cap member  34  may be selectively attached to or detached form the sponge assembly  32  by engaging the edge portion  98  of the cap member wall portion  94  with the side wall  84  formed on the skirt portion  74  of the sponge base  42 . The edge portion  98  engages the stop portion  90  when the cap member  34  is secured to the sponge assembly  32 . However, the edge portion  98  engages the cap surface  88  such that deliberate application of manual force on the cap member  34  can remove the cap member  34  from the sponge assembly  32 .  
         [0032]     Other systems and methods may be used to secure the cap member  34  relative to the sponge assembly  32 . For example, complimentary threaded portions may be formed on the cap surface  88  and the edge portion  98  such that the cap member  34  is threaded onto the sponge assembly  32 . Alternatively, the cap member  34  may be oversized such that it extends completely over the sponge assembly  32  and directly engages the container  30 , preferably at the transition between the shoulder portion  52  and the main portion  50  of the container  30 . If the cap member  34  directly engages the container  30 , the skirt portion  74  of the sponge base  42  may be eliminated. The cap member  34  is not essential to the principals of the present invention, and the present invention may be embodied in a dispensing system  20  without a cap member.  
         [0033]     When the edge portion  98  of the cap member  34  engages the cap surface  88  of the sponge base  42 , the pin portion  96  extends into the sponge opening  46  in the sponge member  44 . The pin portion  96  removes at least a portion of the dried texture material  22  within the sponge opening  46  and thus facilitates re-use of the system  20  after it has initially been opened.  
         [0034]     With the sponge member  44  secured to the sponge surface  76  and the complimentary threaded surfaces  60  and  80  securing the sponge assembly  32  onto the container  30 , the aligned sponge opening  46 , base opening  82 , and container opening  64  define a dispensing passageway  100  that allows material to flow out of the material chamber  58 .  
         [0035]     With the foregoing understanding of the dispensing system  20  in mind, the method of use of this system  20  will now be described in detail. Initially, the area  28  to be patched is preferably cleaned and otherwise primed or prepared, although the present invention may be implemented without this preliminary step.  
         [0036]     The main portion  50  of the container  30  is then squeezed by hand or other method such that the container  30  deforms and the new texture material  22  is forced along the dispensing passageway  100  and onto the applicator surface  48 .  
         [0037]     As shown in  FIG. 2 , reference character  22   a  identifies a small portion of the new texture material  22  on the applicator surface  48 . The entire container  30  is then displaced in the direction of arrow A such that the texture material  22   a  comes into contact with the surface  24  at the area  28  to be patched. Surface tension will cause at least a portion of the texture material  22   a  to adhere to the surface  24 . At this point, the container  30  is displaced away from the surface  24  in the direction shown by arrow B, leaving a portion  22   b  of the new texture material  22  on the surface  24  at the area  28  to be patched.  
         [0038]     The process of squeezing the container  30  to cause the texture material  22   a  to accumulate on the applicator surface  48 , displacing the container assembly  30  as shown by arrow A such that the material  22   a  is deposited on the surface  24 , and then withdrawing the container  30  in the direction shown by arrow B is repeated until the entire area  28  to be patched is covered with the texture material  22   b.    
         [0039]     The compressibility of the sponge member  44  is of significance in that the sponge member  44  does not define rigid edges or surfaces that will scrape and thus flatten the particulate within the texture material  22 . In addition, the texture material  22   a  is daubed onto the surface  24  such that particulate material within the texture material  22  projects from the surface  24  in a manner similar to that obtained by an application process involving spraying. The daubing action used to apply the texture material  22  is substantially straight toward the surface  24  along the arrow A and substantially straight away from the surface  24  along the arrow B. The sponge member  44  is not wiped against the surface  24  during normal use.  
         [0040]     To the contrary, a wiping action (movement substantially perpendicular to the direction shown by arrows A and B), would orient the particulate in the texture material  22  such that the particulate  38  is pressed into and embedded within the material  22  and does not extend from the surface  24 . Again, the idea is to match the existing texture material  26 , which in the vast majority of cases will have been blown or sprayed on using an air sprayer. The blowing process allows the particulate  38  to project out from the surface  24 .  
         [0041]     Clearly, the cap member  34  must be removed while the system  20  is used to apply the texture material  22  to the surface  24 . After the first time the system  20  is used, the cap member  34  is fixed relative to the container such that the cap member  34  protects the sponge member  44  and facilitates re-use of the system  20  at a later time.  
         [0042]     In particular, the dispensing system  20  is preferably distributed and sold with the container opening  64  unformed or possibly with an adhesive tab covering the container opening  64 . If the container opening is unformed during distribution and sale, the opening  64  is formed by the end user immediately prior to use by piercing the surface  62  with a sharp object such as a knife, nail, screw driver or the life. If an adhesive tab is used, the user detaches the sponge assembly  32  from the container  30 , removes the removable tab, and reattaches the sponge assembly  32  to the container  30 .  
         [0043]     Once the factory seal on the container opening  64  is broken by a method such as just described, air may infiltrate the material chamber  58  through this opening  64  and cause the material  22  therein to harden. The cap member  34  substantially seals the opening  64  and thus prolongs the life of the dispensing system  20  after it has initially been opened.  
         [0044]     From the foregoing, it should be apparent that the present invention may be embodied in forms other than that described above without departing from the principals of the present invention. For example, the various components  30 ,  34 ,  42 , and  44  are generally symmetrical about the dispensing axis  66 . (e.g. cylindrical or frusta-conical or define cylindrical or frusta-conical surfaces). This configuration of parts is relatively easy to manufacture and is thus preferred. However, the present invention may be embodied with forms that are not symmetrical about an axis of rotation, and such other forms are considered within the scope of the present invention.  
         [0045]     In addition, containers other than the exemplary container  30  described herein may be used. For example, cylindrical cartridges with a floating piston member are often used to dispense materials of this type. Such cartridges are placed into a squeeze gun that contains a ratchet mechanism that acts on the floating piston member to force the material out of the opening. This type of arrangement could also be used in conjunction with the principals of the present invention to apply more viscous texture materials such as stucco or the like to wall surfaces.  
         [0046]     The scope of the present invention should thus not be determined with reference to the foregoing preferred embodiment.

Technology Category: b