U.S. patent application number 11/978504 was filed with the patent office on 2008-05-01 for replaceable hook and loop fastener protection pad system.
Invention is credited to Stephen Webster.
Application Number | 20080099639 11/978504 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39328970 |
Filed Date | 2008-05-01 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080099639 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Webster; Stephen |
May 1, 2008 |
Replaceable hook and loop fastener protection pad system
Abstract
A hook and loop detachable and re-attachable pad apparatus that
is applied to furniture to protect flooring surfaces and make
sliding furniture easier, has a hook material on a plate that
attaches to the furniture to which a separate loop pad, made of
loop material, attaches. The loop pad is detachable and
re-attachable and may have loop material on both sides.
Alternatively, a loop plate applied with loop material may attach
to the furniture and have a separate, hook and loop combination pad
that attaches to it. The combination pad has one side that is hook
material and one side that is loop material so that additional hook
and loop combination pads may be stacked on top of the prior pad to
provide a thicker cushion to account for pad compression due to
heavier pieces of furniture or to slightly raise pieces of
furniture to better suit a user.
Inventors: |
Webster; Stephen; (Marlette,
MI) |
Correspondence
Address: |
HARNESS, DICKEY & PIERCE, P.L.C.
P.O. BOX 828
BLOOMFIELD HILLS
MI
48303
US
|
Family ID: |
39328970 |
Appl. No.: |
11/978504 |
Filed: |
October 29, 2007 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
60855567 |
Oct 31, 2006 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
248/188.9 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47B 2091/063 20130101;
A47B 91/06 20130101; A47C 7/002 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
248/188.9 |
International
Class: |
A47B 91/00 20060101
A47B091/00 |
Claims
1. An apparatus for furniture that protects a floor, the apparatus
comprising: a first plate that abuts the furniture; a hook material
attached to the first plate; and a first pad equipped with a loop
material on two generally flat surfaces, wherein the loop material
of one surface of the first pad attaches to the hooks of the first
plate, and wherein the first pad is detachable by pulling, and
re-attachable by pushing, on the first pad.
2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first plate defines a
hole, the apparatus further comprising: a separate fastener that
passes through the hole and attaches the first plate to the
furniture, wherein the first pad covers the fastener and the first
plate.
3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the hole in the first plate is
recessed and the separate fastener is shaped to accommodate the
recessed hole.
4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first plate further
comprises: an integral nail fastener, wherein the integral fastener
attaches the first plate to the furniture, and wherein the first
pad covers the first plate.
5. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising: a second pad
equipped with a loop material on a first surface and a hook
material on a second surface, the hook material of the second pad
attaching with the loop material of the first pad, wherein the
second pad is detachable by pulling, and re-attachable by pushing,
on the second pad.
6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first plate further
comprises a cylindrical side wall to form a cap around a portion of
the furniture.
7. An apparatus for furniture that protects a floor, the apparatus
comprising: a base plate having a first and a second flat surface;
a base swivel portion pivotably mounted to the second surface of
the base plate and having a flat surface to which a hook material
is applied; and a pad having two generally flat opposing surfaces
with a loop material on both generally flat surfaces, wherein the
loop material from one of the generally flat surfaces attaches to
the hook material of the base swivel portion.
8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the first surface of the base
plate has a protruding integral fastener to mount the apparatus to
the furniture.
9. An apparatus for furniture that protects a floor, the apparatus
comprising: a first plate having a first surface that abuts and
attaches to the furniture and a second surface that has loop
material attached to it; and a coaster, wherein the coaster has at
least a first surface that is nylon and a second surface that has a
hook material that attaches to the loop material of the second
surface of the first plate.
10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the coaster is larger in
diameter than the first plate,
11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein and the diameter of the hook
material on the coaster is the same size or smaller than the
diameter of the loop material on the second surface of the first
plate.
12. The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising: a fastener,
wherein the fastener attaches the first plate to the furniture and
the coaster covers the fastener when the coaster is attached to the
first plate.
13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the first plate defines a
countersunk hole that passes through the center of the surfaces,
through which the fastener passes.
14. A floor-contacting apparatus for a furniture surface, the
apparatus comprising: a first pad having a first generally flat
surface that includes an adhesive layer and a second generally flat
surface covered with a loop material, the adhesive layer adheres to
the furniture surface.
15. The floor-contacting apparatus of claim 14, further comprising:
a second pad having a first generally flat surface with a hook
material and a second generally flat surface with a loop material,
the first surface with the hook material attachable to the second
surface of the first pad with the loop material.
16. The floor-contacting apparatus of claim 14, further comprising:
an entirely nylon disk having a first flat surface with a hook
material applied and a second flat surface of exposed nylon, the
hook material attachable to the loop material of the second surface
of the first pad.
17. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising: a plastic
coaster larger in diameter than the first pad, the plastic coaster
having a first generally flat surface with a hook material and a
second generally flat surface that is exposed plastic, the hook
material attachable to the loop material of the second surface of
the first pad.
18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the hook material of the
plastic coaster has a diameter that is smaller than the coaster
diameter.
19. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the hook material of the
plastic coaster has a diameter that is the same size as the
diameter of the first pad.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional
Application No. 60/855,567, filed Oct. 31, 2006, which is
incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD
[0002] The present disclosure relates to a hook and loop pad system
for protecting surfaces against which the pad system is
applied.
BACKGROUND
[0003] The statements in this section merely provide background
information related to the present disclosure and may not
constitute prior art. Protecting a floor from markings caused by
contacting furniture has traditionally been accomplished with felt
or plastic pads. While generally satisfactory for their purpose,
each has been associated with its share of problems. One problem
associated with felt pads is their application to a piece of
furniture with either glue or a sticky backing. With glue, such
application may be permanent, and with a sticky backing, such felt
pad may easily peel from the furniture as the furniture is
repeatedly slid across a floor.
[0004] Another problem associated with plastic pads, such as nylon
or similar solid plastic material is its application to furniture
with a screw, nail or other metal fastener that must be driven into
the furniture, thus damaging the furniture. This problem is
compounded when changing the pad is desired. In such instance, the
fastener must again be driven into the same portion of the
furniture, thus further degrading the integrity of the furniture
and perhaps creating splinters and stripping wood finish thereby
creating an unsightly area on the furniture. Another limitation of
current, hard plastic floor protectors is their propensity to strip
finish from hard floors or otherwise mark the hard floor surface
with which they contact.
[0005] What is needed then is a device that does not suffer from
the above limitations. This, in turn, will create a device that is
applicable to furniture such that it can be removed and replaced in
a matter of seconds, that can be easily washed, and that will
provide a soft, non-marking easily slidable surface against most
hard surface floors.
SUMMARY
[0006] A detachable floor protection system attaches to legs or
surfaces of furniture, which would otherwise contact flooring
surfaces. The detachable system employs detachable hook and loop
material to provide a system that is convenient to use, will not
mark or scuff flooring surfaces, and can be removed to be washed
and then reapplied.
[0007] In one example, a plate attaches to a piece of furniture,
such as the bottom of a chair leg, with a fastener such as a screw,
nail or adhesive. The plate has hook material on the side opposite
the furniture so that a second "pad" piece composed of loop
material can be applied to the hook side of the plate. Because the
pad has loop material on both sides, both sides may be used.
Additionally, the pad can be removed and washed by hand or a
washing machine. Because the loop material is made from a soft
material, such as nylon, the loop material will actually polish the
floor surfaces that it is slid across.
[0008] In another example, a plate attaches to a piece of
furniture, such as the bottom of a chair leg, with a fastener such
as a screw, nail or adhesive. The plate has loop material on the
side opposite the furniture so that a second "pad" piece, composed
of loop material on one side and hook material on its other side,
can be applied to the loop material of the plate. Specifically, the
hook material of the pad attaches to the loop material of the plate
so that the loop side of the pad will contact the flooring surface
below the furniture. An added advantage of the second example is
that multiple hook and loop pads can be stacked one after another
to accommodate heavy pieces of furniture, such as a heavy bookcase
that may other wise compress thin pads. As in the first example,
the pad with its hook and loop sides can be removed and washed.
[0009] Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the
description provided herein. It should be understood that the
description and specific examples are intended for purposes of
illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the
present disclosure.
DRAWINGS
[0010] The drawings described herein are for illustration purposes
only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present
disclosure in any way.
[0011] FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a first embodiment of a
removable hook and loop pad system;
[0012] FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a second embodiment of a
removable hook and loop pad system;
[0013] FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a third embodiment of a
removable hook and loop pad system;
[0014] FIG. 4 is an exploded view of a fourth embodiment of a
removable hook and loop pad system;
[0015] FIG. 5 is an exploded view of a fifth embodiment of a
removable hook and loop pad system;
[0016] FIG. 6 is an exploded view of a sixth embodiment of a
removable hook and loop pad system;
[0017] FIG. 7 is a side view depicting the pad system and shear
forces involved when a chair leg slides across a floor;
[0018] FIG. 8 is an exploded view of a seventh embodiment of a
removable hook and loop pad system;
[0019] FIG. 9 is an exploded side view of the seventh embodiment of
a removable hook and loop pad system; and
[0020] FIG. 10 is an exploded view of additional embodiments of a
removable hook and loop pad system.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0021] The following description is merely exemplary in nature and
is not intended to limit the present disclosure, application, or
uses. It should be understood that throughout the drawings,
corresponding reference numerals indicate like or corresponding
parts and features.
[0022] FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a first embodiment of a
removable floor-protection or floor-protecting system 10 such as a
removable hook and loop pad system. Although the apparatus to be
described may be referred to as a floor-protection system, the
system also may facilitate easier sliding of furniture, including
tables, chairs, bookcases, etc. upon floors, than if the system
were not resident on such furniture. Generally, the
floor-protecting system 10 may be an assemblage of a double sided
loop pad 12, a plate 14, which may be a countersunk plate with hook
material, and a fastener 16. The fastener 16 is used to attach the
plate 14 to a piece of furniture, such as a leg or bottom surface.
The plate 14 may also be known as a countersunk hook plate or
simply as a hook plate. Continuing, the plate 14 may be installed
against the end of a table or chair leg 18 in a flush arrangement
while a fastener 16, such as a screw or nail or similar sharp
attachment post is driven through the hole 20 to securely hold or
attach the countersunk plate 14 to the end 19 of the leg 18 or
bottom of furniture. End 19 may be regarded as a furniture surface.
Alternatively, a furniture surface could be a surface larger than a
leg end, such as the bottom of a bookcase. As depicted in FIG. 1,
the plate 14 may have a countersunk plate portion 22 that mates to
a countersunk screw portion 24 on the fastener 16. The fastener
head drive pattern 26 may be driven with a typical drive style such
as a Philips, straight, square or hex drive instrument. Additional
fastener head drive patterns may be utilized.
[0023] Continuing with reference to FIG. 1, an explanation of how
the double-sided loop pad 12 works in conjunction with the plate 14
will be explained. The plate 14 has "hook" material on a side 28
while pad 12 has "loop" material on a side 30 and side 32. The
"hook" and "loop" material may be the same as or similar to that
combination of materials known as the trademark VELCRO.RTM.. The
hook and loop fastening method may also be known as a "burr" or
"touch" fastener system. The hook material and loop material, which
may also be referred to as hooks and loops, respectively, may be
permanently adhered to or glued to their respective surface. For
instance, the hooks 15 of a hook material may be glued to a surface
28 of the plate 14. Likewise, the loops 13 of a loop material may
be glued to the surface 30 of pad 12. Alternatively, the loop
material itself may be the pad 12. Still yet, two pieces of loop
material may be sewn together to form the pad 12. Furthermore, two
pieces of loop material may be sewn together with a filler material
inside to provide thickness to the pad 12. The same may be done
with hook material.
[0024] The hook and loop fastening system may consist of two
layers: a hook side that is composed of miniature plastic hooks,
and a loop side that is composed of miniature plastic loops that
are generally smaller than the hooks. When the hooks and loops are
pressed together, the hooks catch in the loops and hold each other
together and form a bond. The strength of a hook and loop fastening
system depends upon, for example, how well the hooks are embedded
into the loops, and further, the structural integrity of the loops
and hooks.
[0025] Continuing with FIG. 1, side 30 of the loop pad 12 is
manually pressed against side 28 of the hook plate 14. The loop pad
12 becomes joined to the hook plate 14 when a hook 15 hooks onto or
into the loop 13 of side 30 as depicted in FIG. 1. Although only a
single hook 15 and a single loop 13 are depicted on a side of a
piece of material, it should be understood that the entire side of
the material, such as pad 12 or plate 14, is covered with the
representative hooks 15 and loops 13. For instance, pad 12 has both
sides fully covered with loops 13 while plate 14 has only one side
fully covered with hooks 15. Although this creates a strong hook
and loop fastener bond across the entire surface area of the
material, such a hook and loop bond may be broken by pulling the
loop pad 12 from the hook plate 14 starting with an edge of the
loop pad 12. One advantage of the floor protection system 10 of
FIG. 1 is that the pad 12 may be easily removed for cleaning,
replacement if it is showing signs of wear, or for changing the pad
12 to a different color for decorative purposes. With such a
system, no fasteners or adhesives need to be used to change the pad
12. The loops 13 of the loop pad 12 provide a soft, non-scratching
surface for contact with a variety of floor surfaces, such as
ceramic tile, plastic tile, plastic sheet or wood flooring.
Although the loop pad 12 may be used on virtually any floor,
including some carpets, the loop pad 12 is best suited to hard
floor surfaces, such as those recited above.
[0026] FIG. 2 depicts an exploded view of a second embodiment of
the teachings of the present invention. In such embodiment, the
plate 34 may be equipped with a nail 36 with a point 38 such that
the plate 34 may be referred to as a nail plate 34. In such an
arrangement, the nail 36 may be driven into the end 19 of the leg
18 when sufficient force is applied to the nail plate surface 40.
The nail 36 may be integrally molded into or set into the material
of the nail plate 34. For instance the nail plate 34 may be a
plastic and the nail 36 may be a metal. With the molding together
or integration of the nail 36 and plate 34, the plate 34 and nail
36 may be handled as one piece. Similar to the first embodiment
depicted in FIG. 1, the loop pad 12 is applied to the hook plate 14
by simply pressing the loop pad 12 onto the hook plate 14. The loop
pad 12 may be removed and re-applied.
[0027] Continuing with the embodiment of FIG. 2, like that of FIG.
1, the plate 12 may have loops 13 over both flat sides or surfaces
30, 32 that are capable of bonding or joining to hooks 15 on the
side or surface 40 of the plate 34. The advantages of the
embodiment of FIG. 2 are the same or similar to those enumerated
for FIG. 1, with the addition that the nail plate 34 may be easily
hammered to cause the nail 36 to be driven into a leg 18, for
example, of a wooden chair or table. The pad 12 remains easily
removable because of the hook and loop system.
[0028] FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a third embodiment of a floor
protecting system 10, such as a removable hook and loop pad system.
The component parts of FIG. 3 are similar to those of FIG. 2;
however, FIG. 3 depicts a hook pad 42 that is equipped with a
self-adhesive side 44 and a side 46 that is equipped with the hook
portion, hooks 15 of the hook and loop fastening system. Because
the adhesive side 44 is a self-sticking backing side 44, the hook
pad 42 can easily be pressed onto or applied to leg end 19 of leg
18. In such a scenario, the adhesive side 44 will stick to the end
19. With an adhesive bond in place, the loop pad 12 can be applied
to the hook pad 42. More specifically, the double sided loop pad 12
with its loop material on side 30 and side 32, may be applied
directly to side 46 of the hook pad 42. The advantages of the
embodiment of FIG. 3 are the same or similar to those of FIGS. 1
and 2.
[0029] FIG. 4 is an exploded view of a fourth embodiment of a floor
protecting system 10, such as a removable hook and loop pad system.
More specifically, a cap 48 is able to be pressed over the chair
leg 18 in an interference fit such that the inside end surface 52
of the cap 48 abuts against the leg end 19 of leg 18. Additionally,
the sidewall 47 of the cap 48 will fit over a portion of the
sidewall 49 of the leg 18 to the extent of the sidewall 47 of the
cap 48. Once installed, the cap 48 will remain securely attached to
the end of the leg 18. Furthermore, the loop pad 12, with its loops
13 of a loop material on side 30 and side 32, can then be pressed
onto cap end 50, which is equipped with hooks 15 of a hook
material. Again, because the entire surfaces 30, 32 of double-sided
loop pad 12 has loops 13, easy and secure fixing to the hooks 15
over the entire surface 50 of cap 48 is possible. As arranged in
FIG. 4, the loops 13 on side 30 will bond to the hooks 15 on end
50. The cap 48 may be made of a slightly pliable material, such as
plastic, that may stretch or slightly deform when placed over the
leg 18. In addition to the advantages mentioned above, the
embodiment of FIG. 4 presents an easily removed, non-destructive
method of utilizing the floor protecting system, that is, because
the cap 48 slides over the end of leg 18, no drilling, screwing or
nailing into the leg 18 is required. The embodiment of FIG. 4 is
easily applicable to metal furniture legs.
[0030] FIG. 5 is an exploded view of a fifth embodiment of a floor
protection system 10, such as a removable hook and loop pad system.
The system of FIG. 5 is similar to FIG. 4 regarding the double
sided loop pad 12; however, the loop pad 12 mounts to a base swivel
56. More specifically, the base swivel 56 has a mounting surface
60, which is equipped with hooks 15 of a hook material to securely
mount to the loops 13 of a loop material on side 30 of the loop
plate 12. The loops 13 on side 32 provide the soft surface to glide
easily over flooring surfaces. The pad 12 may be reversed or
flipped to reveal side 30 against a floor due to the use and
wearing of side 32, for example. Continuing, the base swivel 56
mounts to a base plate 54 such that the base swivel portion 56 is
able to not only pivot on the base plate 54, such as is possible
with a loose point connection, but also rotate 360 degrees in
accordance with arrow 55, on the base plate 54. The base plate 54
may be equipped with a mounting device, such as a nail 58, that can
be driven into the leg end 19 of a leg 18, for example. As an
alternative, and adhesive may be used instead of a nail. An
advantage of the swivel device 53 of FIG. 5 is that it may be used
on a floor with uneven surfaces, a floor that is not level (i.e.
sloped), or a level floor. Regardless of the application, the chair
or table equipped with the swivel device would securely rest on the
floor and not "rock" as weight is shifted and applied to different
legs of the chair or table. Additionally, a chair equipped with the
base swivel 53 may be leaned or tilted onto two of its four legs
yet completely maintain surface 32 on the floor.
[0031] FIG. 6 is an exploded view of a sixth embodiment of a floor
protection system 10, such as a removable hook and loop pad system.
In the embodiment, the leg 18 is equipped with a loop disk 62,
which is equipped with a loop surface 64 covered with loops 13. The
loop disk 62 may be attached with a fastener 66 such as a screw or
nail as in prior embodiments. Continuing, while the leg 18 with a
loop disk 62 and loop surface 64 may be used as a floor protector
as depicted, the embodiment of FIG. 6 possesses the advantage of
optionally having its overall bottom pad thickness increased by
adding additional disks 68, 74, 80 to the loop disk 62. More
specifically, the disk 68 may have a hook side 70 filled with hooks
15, and a loop side 72 filled with loops 13 such that the hook side
70 mounts directly against the loop side 64. Likewise, disk 74 may
have a hook side 76 and a loop side 78 and disk 80 may have a hook
side 82 and a loop side 84. With such a construction, the hook side
76 of disk 74 may be pressed against the loop side 72 of disk 68.
Finally, the hook side 82 of disk 80 may be pressed against the
loop side 78 of disk 74. When a leg 18 has such a construction of
disks 62, 68, 74, 80 with loop sides 64, 72, 78, 84, the floor
contacting such sides will always be protected by the easily
replaced, soft surface of the loop material. Stacking of pads or
disks 68, 74, 80 provides the advantage of raising a table or chair
as desired to meet the height desired by a user.
[0032] An advantage of the stackable hook and loop disk arrangement
of FIG. 6, is that as a piece of furniture, be it a table,
entertainment stand, bookcase, etc. becomes heavier as objects are
located on it, stackable disks may be added to the base disk 62.
This may be especially important in protecting floor surfaces when
a flat bottomed piece of furniture such as a heavily loaded
bookcase is slid across a floor, even for a short distance such as
to access an electrical plug behind such piece of furniture. If
say, only thin pieces of felt were used under such a heavy
bookcase, the bookcase may "bottom-out" and completely compress
such felt and still contact the floor surface when it is pushed
across the floor. This may scratch and damage a floor surface. The
disks 68, 74 and 80 may be easily added and removed as the need
requires due to the hook and loop floor protecting system 10 of
FIG. 6.
[0033] FIG. 7 depicts the leg 18 equipped as depicted in FIG. 2,
for example, although all other embodiments are capable of being
depicted in such a situation, and contacting a floor surface 86.
More specifically, a shear arrangement is depicted such that as the
leg 18 is moving in the direction depicted by force arrow 88, the
leg 18, plate 34 and pad 12 create a force, an "action," to which
the floor surface 86 exerts an opposite "reaction" force, in
accordance with force arrow 90, on the pad 12. Despite the opposing
forces 88, 90 involved, the attachment bond of the hook and loop
fastening between the loop pad 12 and the plate 34, as described
above in all embodiments, is strong enough to resist separation.
Separation will not occur even when adults of varying weights
individually sit on a chair and slide the chair to and fro across a
floor, such as at a table in the course of normal chair use. This
is another advantage of the hook and loop fastening system; more
specifically, flat surfaces bonded by hook and loop fastening are
generally strong bonds because the entire surface area of the bond
works together to resist separation from each other.
[0034] Turning now to FIG. 8, another embodiment will be presented.
Like the embodiment depicted in FIG. 1, a fastener 16 with a
countersink portion 24 may be used to secure a plate 14 to an end
19 of a leg 18 of a piece of furniture; however, use of other
fasteners, such as nails, are feasible. With the plate 14 depicted,
the loops 13 of a loop material or hooks 15 of a hook material may
be present upon the entire flat surface 28 of the plate that faces
away from the leg 18, although in FIGS. 8 and 9, only one loop 13
and one hook 15 is depicted for representative purposes. Such loops
13 or hooks 15 may then bond or attach to hooks 15 or loops 13,
respectively, upon a surface 92 of the plate or coaster 94, which
may be made from a combination of nylon and steel, for example.
More specifically, the area 98 alone of the coaster 94 may be
equipped with loops 13 or hooks 15 of such a material to bond with
their corresponding hooks 15 or loops 13 of such a material on
surface 28.
[0035] The coaster 94 may be manufactured from steel and covered
with nylon. For instance, the surface 93 of the coaster 94 may be
nylon to provide a smooth, slidable surface upon a floor. The
advantage of such an arrangement is that the steel will add
strength and rigidity to the coaster 94 while the nylon covering or
surface 93 will offer a material that is capable of sliding on a
variety of surfaces, such as wood, plastic or vinyl sheet flooring
and carpeting. With the surface 98 and 28 attaching using hook and
loop material, in either combination, securing of the coaster to
the plate 14 is ensured. Because the coaster 94 may be slightly
larger than the plate 14, no hook or loop material will be visible
and an aesthetically pleasing appearance is ensured.
[0036] While the embodiment of FIG. 8 presents another option for
users, the embodiment retains the basic advantage of a removable
plate or coaster 94 with the ease of hook and loop fastening. With
such a feature, the coaster 94 may easily be replaced with another
pad having a loop surface to glide on a floor, as described in
conjunction with other embodiments above. FIG. 9 presents a side
view of the embodiment of the floor protection system 10 of FIG.
8.
[0037] Turning now to FIG. 10, further examples of the present
teachings will be presented. FIG. 10 depicts a floor protection
system 10 that utilizes a leg 18 of a piece of furniture, such as a
chair or table. The end surface 19 of the leg 18 mounts to a pad
100 that has a surface 102 equipped with an adhesive. The other
side of the pad 100 has a surface 104 equipped with loops 13. The
loops 13 occupying the complete surface 104 may then be joined to a
pad 106 that employs hooks 15 on a hook material over a surface 110
that faces the surface 104 of pad 100. By stacking the pad 100 and
pad 106 together, a thicker overall assembly may be provided in
instances requiring a thicker pad between the leg and surface 108,
which employs loops 13 to provide a soft, non-scratch surface to
contact a floor surface. As mentioned previously, thicker pads may
be required on furniture legs that must support increasingly
heavier loads. A system such as that depicted in FIG. 10, which
permits the addition of a pad 106 to an existing pad 100
facilitates such a need.
[0038] Continuing with FIG. 10, as an alternative to adding the pad
106 to the pad 100, pad 112 may be added to pad 100. The pad 112 is
a nylon pad with hooks 15 of a hook material on a surface 114.
Alternatively, the hooks 15 of a hook material may be confined to
the area 115, which is bounded by dashed lines. By confining the
area to which the hooks 15 of a hook material are applied, it is
ensured that the hooks 15 of the hook material will not be seen by
someone looking at the floor protection system 10, that is, the
hooks 15 of the hook material will be hidden from view. The hooks
15 on the surface 114 may join and form a bond to the loops 13 of
surface 104. In so doing, a nylon surface 116 of pad 112 is able to
contact a flooring surface.
[0039] Still yet another alternative to using the pad 112 (or pad
106), a disk or coaster 118, made of a plastic material, for
example, may be attached to the loops 13 of surface 104 of pad 100
or even the loops 13 of surface 108 of pad 106, to provide for a
thicker overall pad, that is, coaster 118 plus pad 106 plus pad
100, as compared to coaster 118 plus pad 100 alone. Attachment of
the coaster 118 is made possible by hooks 15 of a hook material on
surface 120 that may contact either surface 104 or 108, each
employing loops 13, depending upon the overall thickness of the
floor protection system 10 desired. Alternatively, the hooks 15 of
the hook material may be confined to the area 119 bounded by dashed
lines. By restricting the area to which hooks 15 of a hook material
are applied, a person may be unable to actually see the hooks 15 of
a hook material when the floor protection system 10 is employed.
The hooks 15 of a hook material of area 119 will essentially be
hidden from view. By attaching a plastic coaster 118 as part of the
floor protection system 10, the pressure or force per unit area due
to an occupant sitting on a chair, will be less, thus requiring a
lower force or effort to push the chair across a flooring surface
than if the coaster 118 were not part of the floor protection
system 10.
[0040] Throughout FIGS. 1-10, for ease of viewing, the hooks 15 and
loops 13 are depicted larger than they may be in actuality. While
the hooks 15 and loops 13 do interact (the hooks 15 "hook" within
the loops 13), they together compress when weight is applied such
that the floor protection system 10 creates a neat and compact
appearance.
[0041] There are numerous advantages of removable loop-equipped
pads, such as pad 12 of FIG. 1 for example, being bonded or
fastened to hook-equipped plates, such as plate 14 of FIG. 1 or
plate 34 of FIG. 2. First, because the pad 12 is separable from and
re-attachable to the plate 14, the pad 12 may be washed and
afterward be quickly and easily re-applied to the plate 14.
Different interchangeable colors are also possible. The hook and
loop fastening system as depicted in FIGS. 1-10 and described above
strongly resists separation upon subjection to normal shear forces
when used on furniture that rests on a smooth flooring surface such
as hardwood, tile or plastic sheet flooring. Continually subjecting
the hook and loop fastening systems described above to compression,
such as when the system is used on the bottom of a piece of
furniture, increases the bond between such hook and loop surfaces.
This occurs because the hooks 15 of the hook material are thrust
deeper into the loops 13 of the loop material. Typical loop
surfaces may be made from a soft nylon or similar synthetic or
natural material that will not scratch flooring with which the loop
surfaces come into contact. The hook and loop systems described
above are easily and quickly changeable. Finally, as depicted in
FIG. 6, hook and loop pads are stackable to accommodate different
weights of furniture, such as bookcases that become heavier as
books are added, people on chairs, etc. The removable pads are
easily removed to readjust to changing furniture weights, if
desired.
[0042] Additionally, the removable and stackable pads may easily
accommodate furniture with unequal length legs. In such an
instance, due to manufacturing inconsistencies, sloping or uneven
floors, or other occurrences, the various legs of a table, chair,
bottom of a bookcase, etc. may not rest in a level fashion upon a
floor surface. By using the easily attachable, detachable and
stackable pads, such unlevel sitting pieces of furniture may be
made to sit level, and unequal length legs may be "made equal" to
provide a piece of furniture that does not rock or shake when used.
This solution to wobbling furniture and unequal length legs
provides a quick, easy and attractive solution to such unstable
pieces of furniture. An added advantage is that the soft,
non-scratching loop pads used to make a piece of furniture not
wobble will stay in place as the furniture is even just slightly
moved or moved from room to room. The pads, such as pad 12 for
example, may be made in a variety of thicknesses and stacked to
solve a variety of unlevel furniture situations yet provide a way
to easily slide furniture without scratching flooring surfaces.
[0043] The description of the invention is merely exemplary in
nature and, thus, variations that do not depart from the gist of
the invention are intended to be within the scope of the invention.
Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the
spirit and scope of the invention.
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