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US-20260123779-A1 - FLOOR PROTECTOR

US20260123779A1US 20260123779 A1US20260123779 A1US 20260123779A1US-20260123779-A1

Abstract

An improved floor protector comprising: a body made from a material having a desired shape and thickness, said body having a plurality of surfaces wherein at least one surface has a slip reducing feature.

Inventors

  • Mark Frantellizzi

Assignees

  • Mark Frantellizzi

Dates

Publication Date
20260507
Application Date
20241106

Claims (20)

  1. 1 . A floor protector comprising: a body made from a material comprising wood pulp and rosin having a desired shape and thickness, said body having a plurality of surfaces wherein at least one surface has a slip reducing feature, wherein said slip reducing feature includes dot technology, wherein each dot has a center C, a diameter D and a height H, a contact surface CS, a space S between each dot, wherein S is substantially common.
  2. 2 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , wherein said body is made from a material further comprising recycled paper.
  3. 3 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , wherein said floor protector is made from a material having a thickness in the range of about 1 mil to about 21 mils.
  4. 4 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , where said slip reducing feature populates about one percent of at least one surface.
  5. 5 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , where said slip reducing feature populates about five percent of at least one surface.
  6. 6 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , where said slip reducing feature populates about twelve and one-half percent of at least one surface.
  7. 7 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , where said slip reducing feature populates about twenty-five percent of at least one surface.
  8. 8 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , wherein said slip reducing feature comprises a non-linear contoured topographical surface.
  9. 9 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , wherein said slip reducing feature is infused with said material.
  10. 10 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , wherein said slip reducing feature is made from material selected from the group comprising of polyvinylchloride, rubber, and a light, strong para-aramid synthetic fiber.
  11. 11 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , wherein said contact surface is selected from the group comprising of smooth, and non-smooth.
  12. 12 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , wherein each dot has a common diameter and a common height, wherein said diameter is about one-sixty fourths ( 1/64) of inch to about one-half (½) inch, and said height is about one-sixty fourths ( 1/64) of inch to about one quarter (¼) of an inch.
  13. 13 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , wherein said dots have a plurality of common diameters, wherein said diameters are about one-sixty fourths ( 1/64) of inch to about one-half (½) inch, and said height is about one-sixty fourths ( 1/64) of inch to about one quarter (¼) of an inch.
  14. 14 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , wherein said dots have a common height.
  15. 15 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , wherein said dots have a plurality of common heights.
  16. 16 . A floor protector as in claim 1 , wherein each dot is spaced equidistant, or with plurality of common distances therebetween, wherein each space is about one-sixty fourths ( 1/64) of an inch to about one-half (½) inch.
  17. 17 . A floor protector comprising: a body made from a material comprising wood pulp having a desired shape and thickness, said body having a plurality of surfaces wherein at least one surface has a slip reducing feature, wherein said slip reducing feature includes dot technology, wherein each dot has a center C, a diameter D and a height H, a contact surface CS, a space S between each dot, wherein S is substantially common.
  18. 18 . A floor protector as in claim 17 , wherein said body is made from a material further comprising recycled paper, and rosin.
  19. 19 . A floor protector as in claim 17 , where said slip reducing feature populates at least about one percent of at least one surface.
  20. 20 . A floor protector comprising: a body made from a material comprising wood pulp having a desired shape and thickness, said shape having a length and width, said body having a plurality of surfaces wherein at least one surface has a slip reducing feature, wherein said slip reducing feature forms a pattern that contains at least one stripe.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a floor protector, in particular, an improved floor protector that includes, inter alia, a slip reducing feature. Historically, floor protectors have been used by contractors, movers, painters, plasterers, whether professionals, or do it yourselfers, in either case, to protect surfaces of various materials, inter alia, such as metal, plastic, tile, and wood, whether walls, and or flooring from dirt and undesired abrasions, and benefits of fugitive drips of paint and plaster. The basis for such usage is primarily driven to eliminate the need to repair and/or replace such surfaces, by merely incurring the cost of efforts of deploying a floor protector in the work zone. However, one issue of many exists in the work zone, which is primarily encountered by the worker who needs to walk on top of the deployed floor protector, namely, slippage. Slippage occurs wherein the interface between the floor protector and flooring does not remain static, thereby contributing to the worker's injury. One contributing factor in safety occurs when a worker is carrying items that require both hands to be occupied, such as large tools, or furniture whereby the worker's eyes are focused on not banging into the walls with the furniture during transport (or with their very own knuckles therebetween), and hence the worker is not as focused on their own footing, and must rely on the floor protector's characteristics. A second contributing factor occurs in the scenario of insufficient lighting on the walking surface. Typically in new construction and/or renovation projects, permanent lighting has yet to be installed, and/or the lighting is temporary and sparse thereby casting shadows on the walkways and surfaces thereof, which can precipitate trip and fall cases. A third contributing factor occurs in the scenario when the work zone includes or encompasses a change in terrain, such as staircase or ramp. The safety of the worker is key, and when the staircase has a slick surface, e.g., hard wood, a dynamic interface is almost inevitable between the underside of the floor protector and the topside of the flooring when a worker walks about the floor protector, and due to the nature of staircases, the probability of injury incurred by falling and the severity of the injury is greatly increased. In this regard, there is a need for a slip reducing floor protector. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to an improved floor protector having the primary advantage of increased safety by providing slip reducing features. Other objectives, advantages, and novel features of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The following drawings, in which like reference characters indicate like parts, are provided for illustration of the invention and are not intended to limit the invention in any manner whatsoever. FIG. 1 illustrates a front view of the preferred embodiment; FIG. 2 illustrates a side view of the preferred embodiment; FIG. 3 illustrates a magnified view of a portion of FIG. 1; FIG. 4 illustrates a magnified front view of an alternative embodiment; FIG. 5 illustrates an additional alternative embodiment; and FIG. 6 illustrates a further alternative embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The following descriptions of the preferred embodiments are presented to illustrate the present invention and are not to be construed to limit the claims in any manner whatsoever. In reference to the drawings, namely FIGS. 1 to 6, the preferred embodiment of the present invention is disclosed, which is directed to an improved floor protector 1 comprising: a body 10 made from a material having a desired shape and weight, such as a square, rectangle, triangle, circle, oval, or other practical shape, common sizing includes but is not limited to 9′×12′, 10′×12′, or even a stair blanket having the approximate dimensions of 4′×15′. Often this may be sold in rolls, wherein some rolls are sold in lengths of upwards of 520 feet, having thickness of about 11 mils. It is envisioned the thickness, although substantially uniform for each piece of stock, may be manufactured with varying thicknesses (1) of at least about 1 mil; or (2) of about 1 mil to about 21 mils, although other thicknesses are envisioned. In practice, in a first scenario, once a floor/stair is installed, e.g, wood flooring/stairs, e.g, oak flooring, a roll of the floor protector 1 is purchased by a contractor/worker, and the passage ways and oak flooring are covered by rolling out the supply roll, cutting the stock to desired length and/or width, and often taping any adjacent pieces of cut stock together. The worker thereafter can walk on top of the floor protection device 1 minimizing wear and tear on the wood floor therebeneath. Once the job is completed, the floor protection devic