U.S. patent application number 11/812206 was filed with the patent office on 2008-05-01 for retaining assembly for flat mop refill.
Invention is credited to Ya-Ching Yang.
Application Number | 20080098549 11/812206 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39328408 |
Filed Date | 2008-05-01 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080098549 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Yang; Ya-Ching |
May 1, 2008 |
Retaining assembly for flat mop refill
Abstract
The present invention generally relates to a retaining assembly
for a flat mop refill and primarily comprises: a base, having an
operative bottom surface and a top; and a plurality of retaining
portions provided at least at four corners of the top, wherein each
said retaining portion inlaid in the base has hollow interior and
an elastic flap positioned thereover on which a plurality of tooth
portions are provided in the manner to collectively construct a
saw-toothed opening, wherein the tooth portions are arranged in a
staggered manner and each has at least one grasping portion
extended inward the retaining portion so that the mop refill can be
grasped by the grasping portions and firmly attached to the
base.
Inventors: |
Yang; Ya-Ching; (Taipei,
TW) |
Correspondence
Address: |
BIRCH STEWART KOLASCH & BIRCH
PO BOX 747
FALLS CHURCH
VA
22040-0747
US
|
Family ID: |
39328408 |
Appl. No.: |
11/812206 |
Filed: |
June 15, 2007 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
15/147.2 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47L 13/256
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
15/147.2 |
International
Class: |
A47L 13/20 20060101
A47L013/20 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Oct 31, 2006 |
TW |
095140111 |
Claims
1. A retaining assembly for a flat mop refill, which is adapted to
attach the mop refill firmly to a flat mop, comprising a base,
having an operative bottom surface and a top; and a plurality of
retaining portions provided at the top, wherein each said retaining
portion has an inner space and an elastic flap provided thereover
in which the elastic flap has a saw-toothed opening constructed
from a plurality of tooth portions, wherein each said tooth portion
is extended inward to the corresponding retaining portion and thus
formed as at least one grasping portion so that the resilience of
the elastic flap can be transformed into a downward grasping force
of the grasping portions acting on the mop refill; wherein the
grasping portions extended downward from the tooth portions
protrude into the inner space with a slope, a user can be protected
from jamming his/her finger between the grasping portions when
installing the mop refill.
2. The retaining assembly according to claim 1, wherein the
grasping portions are arranged in a staggered manner and contact
mutually while protruding into the inner spaces as far as at least
one of ten of the depth thereof and having a slope of at least 5
degrees.
3. The retaining assembly according to claim 1, wherein a plurality
of accommodating recesses is provided on the top for permitting the
retaining portions to be inlaid therein.
4. The retaining assembly according to claim 3, wherein a
universally rotatable universal joint is provided on the top.
5. The retaining assembly according to claim 4, wherein a plurality
of accommodating recesses are arranged as circling the universal
joint.
6. The retaining assembly according to claim 1, wherein the size of
the inner space can be designed to further squeeze the elastic
flap, so as to enhance the deformation stress of the deformed
elastic flap and in turn improve the grasping force of the grasping
portion acting on the mop refill.
7. The retaining assembly according to claim 1, wherein the sides
of the elastic flap parallel to the saw-toothed opening is designed
slightly shorter than the corresponding sides of an opening of the
inner space while the sides of the elastic flap perpendicular to
the saw-toothed opening is designed slightly longer than the
corresponding sides of the opening of the inner space so that a
squeeze can be produced when the elastic flap is pushed into the
opening of the inner space, wherein the elastic flap is longer or
shorter than an opening of the inner space for a length between 0.5
mm and 25 mm.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Technical Field
[0002] The present invention generally relates to a retaining
assembly for a flat mop refill and, more particularly, to a
structure of a mop for grasping and tightly seizing a flat mop
refill.
[0003] 2. Description of Related Art
[0004] For holding a mop refill, a conventional mop refill
retaining assembly typically implements a buckle mechanism or a
grasping mechanism wherein the latter is relatively more popular
due to its advantages of easy fabrications and simple composition
over the former.
[0005] As shown in FIG. 1, a flap mop with a conventional grasping
mechanism primarily comprises a base I and a handle 2, which is
extended upward from the base 1. A plurality of retaining portions
3 may be provided at the top of the base 1 and circling the handle
2 for retaining apexes of a mop refill C so that the mop refill C
can tightly wrap the base 1. Specifically, each of the retaining
portions 3 encloses an inner space, which can be seen clearly in
FIG. 2, and an elastic flap 4 is provided over the space and
aligned with the top of the base 1. Each said elastic flap 4
comprises a saw-toothed opening that is constructed from a
plurality of tooth portions 5. To make the apex of the mop refill C
retained, a user can exert force onto the elastic flap 4 with the
mop refill C placed intermediately so that as the tooth portions 5
become deformed under the force that in turn causes the space of
the retaining portion 3 open, the mop refill C can be pushed into
the space, as shown in FIG. 2.
[0006] Such a conventional grasping mechanism may permit simple and
quick operation for retaining the apexes of the mop refill C at the
retaining portions 3 on the base 1. However, in practical use, the
mop refill C can be disadvantageously pulled away from the
retaining portions 3 of the base 1 by the friction force generated
between the mop refill C and the ground because the tooth portions
5 fail to provide a sufficient retaining force. On the other hand,
the tooth portions 5 tend to jam a user's finger when the user
installs the mop refill C because the tooth portions 5 are formed
by cutting or die-punching the elastic flap 4 and an interval D
exists between each two adjacent tooth portions 5, as shown in FIG.
1. Furthermore, in the event that the intervals D are excessively
wide (i.e. wider than two times of the thickness of the mop refill
C), the tooth portions 5 can merely retain the mop refill C by
resiling and making the inner space closed instead of grasping the
mop refill C directly, and this renders the grasping effect
handicapped.
[0007] Hence, it is the objective of the present invention to make
the tooth portions firmly grasp the mop refill so as to overcome
the friction force generated between the mop refill and the
ground.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] The present invention has been accomplished under these
circumstances in view to provide a retaining assembly for a flat
mop refill. The disclosed retaining assembly implements a plurality
of tooth portions that collectively construct a saw-toothed
opening. Each of the tooth portions is extended toward a
corresponding inner space of a retaining portion and formed in the
inner space as a grasping portion so that the resilience of an
elastic flap can effectively act on the mop refill. As a result,
the mop refill can be grasped by the tooth portions and firmly
fixed to the base. Besides, since the grasping portions are
provided as a sloping downward structure, a user can be protected
from jamming his/her finger when installing the mop refill.
[0009] To achieve the objectives of the present invention, the
retaining assembly for a flat mop refill comprises:
[0010] a base, having an operative bottom surface and a top;
and
[0011] a plurality of retaining portions provided at least at four
corners of the top, wherein each said retaining portion inlaid in
the base has hollow interior and an elastic flap positioned
thereover on which a plurality of tooth portions are provided in
the manner to collectively construct a saw-toothed opening, wherein
the tooth portions are arranged in a staggered manner and each has
at least one grasping portion extended inward the retaining portion
so that a mop refill can be grasped firmly by the grasping portions
and in turn overcome the friction force generated between the mop
refill and the ground.
[0012] According to the retaining assembly for a flat mop refill of
the present invention, the grasping portions extended from the
tooth portions facilitate effectively transforming the resilience
of the elastic flap into a grasping force of the tooth portions
acting on the mop refill so that the mop refill can be firmly fixed
to the base. Further, as each grasping portion extended downward
from the tooth portion protrudes into the corresponding inner space
as far as at least one of ten of the depth thereof, the user is
protected from jamming his/her finger between the grasping portions
when installing the mop refill, so as to ensure safety of use.
[0013] According to a concept of the retaining assembly for a flat
mop refill of the present invention, an extendable and universally
rotatable handle may be settled on the top of the base.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] The invention as well as a preferred mode of use, further
objectives and advantages thereof, will best be understood by
reference to the following detailed description of an illustrative
embodiment when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,
wherein:
[0015] FIG. 1 is an assembly drawing of a conventional flat
mop;
[0016] FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along with line A-A of FIG.
1 showing the intervals between each two adjacent tooth portions
wider than the thickness of the mop refill;
[0017] FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along with line A-A of FIG.
1 showing the interval between each two adjacent tooth portions
narrower than the thickness of the mop refill;
[0018] FIG. 4 is a top view of the retaining assembly for a flap
mop refill of the present invention;
[0019] FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along with line B-B of FIG.
4 showing the mop refill pushed inward and entering the grasping
portions;
[0020] FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along with line B-B of FIG.
4 showing the mop refill grasped by the grasping portions;
[0021] FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along with line C-C of FIG.
4 showing the mop refill placed above the grasping portions;
and
[0022] FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along with line C-C of FIG.
4 showing the mop refill grasped by the grasping portions.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0023] It is to be stated firstly that the mop refill described in
the following description may be a wiper, a piece of dusting cloth
or a piece of electrostatic dust paper.
[0024] Please refer to FIGS. 4 through 8. The retaining assembly
for a flat mop refill of the present invention comprises a base 10
and a plurality of retaining portions 20. The base 10 has an
operative bottom surface 11 and a top 12 which are oppositely
positioned. The operative bottom surface 11 is an elastic pad while
a surface of the top 12 is equipped with a swayable and rotatable
handle 111 through a universal joint. Further, an accommodating
recess 101 is provided at each corner of the base 10 for
accommodating the said respective retaining portion 20. The
accommodating recesses 101 are arranged as circling the universal
joint or handle 111.
[0025] Each of the retaining portions 20 is inlaid into the said
accommodating recess 101 provided at the top 12 of the base 10 and
encloses an inner space 201. An elastic flap 21 is provided at the
top of each said retaining portion 20 and aligned with the surface
of the top 12 of the base 10. Each of he elastic flaps 21 has a
saw-toothed opening 22 constructed from a plurality of tooth
portions 221, wherein, each said tooth portion 221 is extended into
the inner space 201 for a predetermined distance and formed as an
arc grasping portion 222, so as to exert force to the mop refill C
and retain the mop refill C at the upper surface of the base
10.
[0026] Now referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, to install the mop refill C
onto the base 10, the mop refill C is firstly placed at the middle
portion thereof covering the operative bottom surface 11. Then two
lengthwise sides C1 of the mop refill C can be pulled upward and
folded reversely in the manner that the two lengthwise sides C1 can
be positioned corresponding to the retaining portions 20 provided
at two sides of the base 10, as shown in FIG. 7. Afterward, a
finger or a hand tool may be implemented to push the mop refill C
toward the elastic flaps 21. According to FIG. 8, under the pushing
force, the tooth portions 221 at the surface become deformed and in
turn permit the mop refill C to enter the inner space 201 (as the
left retaining portion shown in FIG. 6). Afterward, when the tooth
portions 221 are released from the pushing force caused by the
finger or the hand tool, the grasping portions 222 of the tooth
portions 221 resile under the resilience of the elastic flap 21 and
grasp the mop refill C are arranged in a staggered manner (as the
right retaining portion 20 shown in FIGS. 6 and 8). Since the
entire length of each said tooth portion 221 and the associated
grasping portion 222 is greater than that of the conventional tooth
portion 5, the resilience of the elastic flap 21 can be effectively
transformed into a grasping force, so that the tooth portions 221
upon the grasping portions 222 can firmly retain the mop refill C
inside the inner space 201, and therefore the result that the mop
refill C gets firmly attached to the base 10 can be achieved.
Further, as each grasping portion 222 protrudes into the
corresponding inner space 201 as far as at least one of ten of the
depth thereof, and is extended downward from the tooth portion 221
with a slope of at least 10 degrees, the user is effectively
protected from jamming his finger between the grasping portions 222
when installing the mop refill C. Moreover, the inner space 201 can
further restrict the elastic flap 21 so that the deformation stress
of the deformed elastic flap 21 can be transformed into a grasping
force of the grasping portions 222 acting on the mop refill C.
[0027] Preferably, the sides of the elastic flap 21 parallel to the
saw-toothed opening 22 is made slightly shorter than the
corresponding sides of the opening of the inner space 201 while the
sides of the elastic flap 21 perpendicular to the saw-toothed
opening 22 is made slightly longer than the corresponding sides of
the opening of the inner space 201 so that a squeeze force can be
produced when the elastic flap 21 is pushed into the opening of the
inner space 201. More preferably, the elastic flap 21 is longer or
shorter than the inner space 201 at a length between 0.5 mm and 5
mm.
[0028] Although a particular embodiment of the invention has been
described in detail for purposes of illustration, it will be
understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that numerous
variations will be possible to the disclosed embodiments without
going outside the scope of the invention as disclosed in the
claims.
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