Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02307701 2000-OS-OS
COMBINED SCRAPER AND BRUSH
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
brush.
The present invention relates to hand tools, and in particular, to a scraper
combined with a
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Scrapers have long been used to quickly break up ice and snow from vehicle
windshields.
One problem with removing ice and snow from a windshield using a conventional
ice scraper is
the inability of and ice scraper to provide an easy means for removing the
loosened ice and snow
from the windshield once it is broken up by the scraper. Depending on the
amount of ice and
snow on the windshield and depending on the density of the ice and snow, the
removal of the ice
IO and snow using the vehicle's windshield wipers may be inadvisable. The
windshield wipers are
typically constructed for the removal of rain, and therefore they may break
under the weight of
the snow and ice or the wiper motor may not be able to provide sufFcient force
to move the snow
and ice.
Consequently, a need exists for a tool that combines an ice scraper with a
brush that can
I 5 be used to remove the loosened ice and snow from vehicle windshields,
vehicle exteriors, or other
surfaces. The tool should include a brush that is adjustable to a variety of
locked positions with
respect to the shaft in order to facilitate the removal of ice and snow or
other debris from the
surface. The tool should also be easy to adjust and operate.
CA 02307701 2000-OS-OS
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SUWMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a tool that combines an ice scraper with a
brush that can be
used to remove the loosened ice and snow. The present invention achieves this
result by
providing a tool that includes a brush that is adjustable to a variety of
locked positions with
respect to the shaft in order to facilitate the removal of ice and snow or
other debris from the
surface.
The present invention advantageously provides a tool including a shaft having
a handle, a
scraper attached to the shaft, a brush attached to the shaft, and an
adjustment mechanism provided
between the brush and the shaft for adjusting an angular position of the brush
with respect to the
shaft. In the exemplary embodiment the handle is located at one end of the
shaft, while the
scraper and the brush are located at the opposite end of the shaft. The
scraper and the brush are
preferably oriented in opposite directions, facing away from each other to
allow the user to
simply rotate the shaft one hundred and eighty degrees about an axis of the
shaft in order to
engage an object or surface with the scraper or the brush.
The adjustment mechanism includes a spring that biases the brush towards the
shaft
thereby engaging complementary and opposing protrusions and recesses located
on the brush and
the shaft. The adjustment mechanism further includes an actuator that is
configured to have a
locked position, in which the protrusions and recesses are engaged, and an
unlocked position, in
which the actuator forces the protrusions and the recesses to disengage by
moving the brush away
from the shaft. The operator of the tool pushes against the actuator in order
to overcome the force
of the spring and move the actuator into the unlocked position. Once in the
unlocked position, the
operator can rotate the brush freely with respect to the shaft until the
desired angular relationship
CA 02307701 2000-OS-OS
3
is reached and then release the actuator to allow the spring to force the
protrusions and the
recesses to engage, thereby fixing the angular relationship of the brush and
the shaft.
Additional advantages and other features of. the invention will be set forth
in part in the
description which follows and in part will become apparent to those having
ordinary skill in the
art upon examination of the following or may be learned from the practice of
the invention. The
advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained as particularly
pointed out in the
appended claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Figure 1 is a top, right perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of a
scraper
combined with a brush according to the present invention.
Figure 2 is a bottom, left perspective view of the exemplary embodiment of a
scraper
combined with a brush according to the present invention, depicted in an
inverted orientation with
respectto Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a front view of the exemplary embodiment of a scraper combined
with a brush
according to the present invention, depicted in an inverted orientation with
respect to Figure 1 and
depicted with the brush in an alternative orientation.
Figure 4 is a bottom view of the exemplary embodiment of a scraper combined
with a
brush according to the present invention.
Figure 5 is a top view of the exemplary embodiment of a scraper combined with
a brush
according to the present invention.
Figure 6 is a right side view of the exemplary embodiment of a scraper
combined with a
brush according to the present invention.
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4
Figure 7 is a front view of the exemplary embodiment of a scraper combined
with a brush
according to the present invention.
Figure 8 is a rear view of the exemplary embodiment of a scraper combined with
a brush
according to the present invention.
Figure 9 is an exploded view of the exemplary embodiment depicted in Figure 1.
Figure 10 is a top view of the brush of the exemplary embodiment.
Figure 11 A is a bottom view of the shaft of the exemplary embodiment.
Figure 11B is a right side view of the shaft of the exemplary embodiment.
Figure 12 is a perspective view of the bottom of the scraper of the exemplary
embodiment.
Figure 13 is a top view of the shaft of the exemplary embodiment.
Figure 14 is a perspective view of the rod of the exemplary embodiment.
Figure 15 is a partial bottom view of the exemplary embodiment of a scraper
combined
with a brush depicted with the rod removed.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
The tool 10 of the present invention provides a scraper combined with a brush.
The
exemplary embodiment of the tool 10 is depicted in Figures 1-15.
The exemplary embodiment of the tool 10 includes a shaft 20 having a handle
24, a
scraper 24 attached to the shaft 20, a brush 26 attached to the shaft 20, and
an adjustment
mechanism provided between the brush 26 and the shaft 20 for adjusting an
angular position of
the brush 26 with respect to the shaft 20. In the exemplary embodiment the
handle 22 is located
at one end of the shaft 20, while the scraper 24 and the brush 26 are located
at the opposite end of
CA 02307701 2000-OS-OS
the shaft 20. The scraper 24 and the brush 26 are preferably oriented in
opposite directions,
facing away from each other to allow the user to simply rotate the shaft 20
one hundred and
eighty degrees. about an axis of the shaft in order to engage an object or
surface with the scraper
24 or the brush 26.
The handle 22 includes an outer coating 30 that is preferably made of an
elastomeric
material that is pliant, such as, without limitation, SANTOPRENETM. The
coating 30 on the
exemplary embodiment of the handle may be overmolded onto the end of the shaft
20. The
handle 22 preferably includes a hole 32 that can be used to hang the tool 10
from a hook or can be
used to thread a loop of rope like material therethrough. The handle 22 can be
constructed with
various types of contours to better conform to the hand of a user of the tool
10. For example, the
handle 22 can be formed to include a concave depression on opposing sides of
the handle 22,
wherein the concave depressions include a plurality of highly flexible fins
therein, as disclosed in
U.S. Patent No. 4,974,286.
The shaft 20 has an elongated neck 40 that extends from the handle 22 to a
head 42. The
shaft 20 is preferably constructed of a solid, rigid, lightweight, plastic
material. Alternatively, the
shaft 20 can be made of a wide variety of rigid materials, such as, without
limitation, woods,
metals, plastics, ceramics, composite materials, etc., and can be made of
hollow pieces of material
or can have a core material of one material and an outer material of a
different material. The head
42 is the portion of the shaft 20 in the exemplary embodiment to which the
scraper 24 and the
brush 26 are attached. The head 42 includes a slightly concave surface 44 that
is shaped to sit
flush with an upper slightly convex surface 74 on the brush 26. The head 42
includes a bore 46
that extends through one end of the concave surface 44 and into a cavity 54
within the head 42.
The cavity 54 includes a generally rectangular slot 56 that extends out one
side of the head 42.
CA 02307701 2000-OS-OS
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The slot ~6 preferably has a countersunk portion 57 that is oval in shape in
the exemplary
embodiment. In the exemplary embodiment the bore 46 is adj acent four recesses
48 that extend
along radial lines about an axis of the bore 46 and are evenly distributed
about the axis of the bore
46. Alternatively, various numbers of recesses can be used in the present
invention, ranging from
a single recess to any number of recesses, and various configurations of
recesses can be used that
are either in a random configuration or arranged in symmetrical or other
specific patterns. Note
that the recesses 48 and the corresponding protrusions 78 on the brush 26 are
preferably
configured such that when the protrusions 78 are positioned within the
recesses 48, then the brush
24 is oriented in desired position with respect to the shaft 20, for example,
perpendicular to the
shaft 20 or parallel with the shaft 20. In the position where the brush 24 is
parallel to the shaft 24,
the brush 24 can be used for brushing light snow or debris in a side-to-side
manner. However, in
snow that is an inch or more deep the side-to-side motion is not efficient and
becomes labored
and tiring. Therefore, when the snow is deep or heavy the brush 24 can be
quickly and
conveniently rotated such that it is perpendicular to the shaft 20, thereby
allowing the user to use
a pushing or pulling motion to remove the snow or debris from the windshield
or vehicle body.
The brush 26 includes a brush head 70 having a plurality of bristles 72
extending
therefrom. The bristles 72 are thick to provide strength to pull or push snow
and ice and have
terminal ends 73 that are advantageously frayed or exploded in order to soften
the ends of the
bristles 72 so that the bristles 72 do not scratch or mar the surface being
brushed, for example the
paint on a car. The convex surface 74 of the brush 26 is located generally on
a side of the brush
head 70 that is opposite to the bristles 72. The convex surface of the brush
26 includes a
generally cylindrical mating structure 76 having protrusions 78. The mating
structure 76 is
configured to fit within bore 46. In the exemplary embodiment the mating
structure 76 is
CA 02307701 2000-OS-OS
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adjacent four protrusions 78 that extend along radial lines about an axis of
the mating structure 76
and are evenly distributed about the axis of the mating structure 76.
Alternatively, various
numbers of protrusions can be used in the present invention, ranging from a
single protrusion to
any number of protrusions, and various configurations of protrusions can be
used that are either in
a random configuration or arranged in symmetrical or other specific patterns.
Note that the
protrusions and recesses can be formed in a variety of different mating
shapes. The brush head
70 has an aperture 80 extending from the bristled side of the brush head 70 to
an upper surface of
the mating structure 76 along the axis of the mating structure 76. The end of
the aperture 80 that
terminates at the bristled side of the brush head 70 has a countersunk portion
82.
The scraper 24 includes a rigid body portion 90 having a scraping edge 92 at a
terminal
end thereof. The scraper 24 can be formed in a variety of shapes and can be
manufactured from a
variety of tough, rigid materials, such as, without limitation, woods, metals,
plastics, ceramics,
composite materials, etc. The exemplary embodiment of the scraper 24 is made
of a rigid,
transparent, plastic material having a series of ridges 94 that extend
longitudinally along a bottom
1 S surface of the body 90. The exemplary embodiment of the scraper 24
includes a cylindrical
mounting structure 98 that includes a receiving portion 96 with a threaded
bore rigidly mounted
therein. The end of the scraper 24 opposite the scraping edge 92 has a
cylindrical mounting
structure 104 on the bottom surface of the body 90, and an oval recess 106 on
a top surface of the
body 90. A hole 100 extends through the body 90 from the bottom center of the
oval recess 106
to the bottom of the cylindrical mounting structure 104. A portion of the hole
100 at the bottom
of the oval recess 106 includes a countersunk portion (not depicted) that is
preferably hexagonal.
The oval recess 106 has narrow ends that each have an aperture 108 that extend
through the body
90 of the scraper 24. An oval cover 150 that can be used for inscribing a logo
or other
CA 02307701 2000-OS-OS
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representation is configured to sit within oval recess 106. The cover 150
includes a body portion
152 that preferably has a hollow construction, and a pair of projections 154
that extend
downwardly from the narrow ends of the cover 150. The projections 154 have
enlarged terminal
ends that allow them to snap within the apertures 108 in the scraper 24,
thereby holding the cover
150 within the recess 106.
The head 42 of the shaft 20 further includes a recessed portion 58 that
provides a seat for
one end of the scraper 24. The bottom surface of the scraper 24 sits flush
with the surface of the
recessed portion 58. For example, the recessed portion 58 includes a
cylindrical recess 60 within
which sits the cylindrical mounting structure 104, a cylindrical recess 66
within which sits the
cylindrical mounting structure 98, and a series of channels 64 within which
sit the series of ridges
94. A hole 62 extending through the head 42 and into cavity 54 is positioned
at the center of the
cylindrical recess 60 and aligned with hole 100, and a hole 68 extending
through the head 42 is
positioned at the center of the cylindrical recess 66 and aligned with the
threaded bore of the
receiving portion 96. The scraper 24 is mounted to the shaft 20 by a screw 160
and by bolt 140
that has a head portion 144 and a threaded shaft portion 142. The screw 160
extends through hole
68 and mates with the threaded bore in receiving portion 96. The bolt 140
extends through hole
62 and mates with a threaded bore 116 with a rod 110.
The adjustment mechanism of the exemplary embodiment includes a rod 110, a
spring
118, an engagement member 120, an actuator 130, and a bolt 140, which interact
with various
parts of the head 42 of the shaft 20, the scraper 24, and the brush 26 that
have been described
above. In the preferred embodiment, the rod, the bolt, and the spring are made
of metal and the
engagement member and actuator are made of plastic.
w _ CA 02307701 2000-OS-OS
9
The rod 110 includes a shaft portion 112 and a head portion 114 with a slot or
other
standard configuration for manipulation with a screwdriver or similar tool.
The shaft portion 112
has a threaded, bore 116 that is configured to receive the threaded shaft 142
of bolt 140. The rod
110 is positioned to have the shaft portion 112 extend through the center of
spring 118, through
aperture 80, through an aperture 124 in engagement member 120, through a slot
136 in the
actuator 130, and into cavity 54. The head portion 114 is of the rod 110 and
the spring 118,
which is preferably a helical spring, are positioned within the countersunk
portion 82 of the brush
head 70.
The engagement member 120 has a cylindrical body 122, an aperture 124
extending
through the body I22, an inclined surface 126, a base surface 127, and a pair
of keys 128 that
extend along opposing sides of the body 122. The rod 110 extends through
aperture 124 such that
the engagement member 120 is slidably received on the rod 110. The base
surface 127 abuts the
upper surface of the cylindrical mating structure 76 and the inclined surface
126 abuts an inclined
surface 138 on the actuator 130. The body 122 of the engagement member 120 is
received within
bore 46 in the head 42 and keys 128 are received within grooves 50. The
interaction between the
keys 128 and the grooves 50 provides the engagement member I20 with the
ability to slide within
the bore 46 in a direction parallel to the axis of the rod 110, while
preventing the engagement
member 120 from rotating within the bore 46 about the axis of the rod 1 I0.
Tl~e actuator 130 has a button portion 132 that is preferably oval in shape
and is received
within the countersunk portion 57 in the head 42. The actuator 130 also
includes a body 134 that
extends from the button portion and has a slot 136 therethrough that is
adapted to receive the rod
110 and allow the rod to slide therein in a direction perpendicular to the
axis of the rod 110. The
actuator I30 further includes an inclined surface 138 at a terminal end of the
body 134 that is
CA 02307701 2000-OS-OS
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configured to abut the inclined surface of the engagement member 120. The body
134 of the
actuator 130 is located within the slot 56 that extends into the cavity 54 in
the head 42. The
actuator 130 is slidably received within the slot 56 such that the actuator
130 can slide in a
direction perpendicular to the axis of the rod 1 I0.
The exemplary embodiment described above is configured such that the spring
118 is in
compression and pushes against the head 114 of rod 110 and against the brush
head 70, thereby
forcing them apart. As the rod 110 is connected to the head 42 of the shaft
20, the spring 118 has
the effect of biasing the head 42 towards the brush head 70. In this state the
inclined surface 126
of the engagement member 120 acts against the inclined surface 138 of the
actuator 130 and
IO forces the actuator outward from the slot 56 until the end of the slot 136
comes into contact with
rod I I0. The force of the spring 118 in this state is selected by
preselecting the proper size and
strength spring to be set at a predeterniined force such that the forces is
strong enough to maintain
the protrusions 78 within recesses 48 under the tools own weight and during
normal operation of
the tool 10 during removal ice and snow. In this locked state the interaction
between the
protrusions 78 and the recesses 48 prevent the brush 26 from rotating about
the rod 110 with
respect to the shaft 20. The selection of a spring capable of acting in this
manner is known to
one skilled in the art. Note that the inclined surfaces 126 and 138 can be
constructed to have any
oblique angle, however an angle of about forty-five degrees is sufficient to
provide the proper
interaction therebetween. Also note that the inclined surfaces 126 and 138 of
the engagement
member 120 and actuator 130, respectively, should be constructed of materials
that have a low
friction when slid on top of one another.
In order to unlock the brush 26 from the shaft 20 and thereby allow the brush
to freely
rotate about the rod I 10 with respect the shaft 20, the operator simply needs
to push the actuator
CA 02307701 2000-OS-OS
130 into the cavity 54. As the actuator I30 is pushed within the cavity 54
along slot 56, the
inclined surface 138 will push against the inclined surface 126, thereby
forcing the base surface
127 of the engagement member 120 downwards against the mating structure 76 and
forcing the
protrusions 78 out of recesses 48 thereby disengaging the protrusions 78 and
the recesses 48. The
actuator 130 will continue inward along the slot 56 and continue forcing the
brush 26 away from
the head 42 until an end of slot 136 comes into contact with the rod 110. In
the unlocked state the
brush 26 is free to rotate about the rod 110, which allows angular adjustment
of the brush 26 with
respect to the shaft 20. The tool will remain in the unlocked position or
state until such time as
the operator releases the actuator 130 and the spring 118 is allowed to force
the protrusions 78
IO back within the recesses 48. Based on the configuration of recesses 48 and
protrusions 78 (as
discussed in detail above), the brush 26 can be positioned in a variety of
locked positions. In the
exemplary embodiment, the brush 26 can be placed into four locked positions
that include two
positions in which the brush head 70 is parallel to the shaft 20 and two
positions in which the
brush head 70 is perpendicular to the shaft 20. Note that the spring 118
should be selected such
that the operator does not need to exert an excessive amount of force in order
to push the actuator
130 within the cavity 54.
Note that the protrusions 78 that are described above can be located on the
head 42 rather
than on the brush head 70, and the recesses 48 described above can be located
on the brush head
70 rather than on the head 42.
In the previous descriptions, numerous specific details are set forth, such as
specific
materials, structures, processes, etc., in order to provide a thorough
understanding of the present
invention. However, as one having ordinary skill in the art would recognize,
the present invention
can be practiced without resorting to the details specifically set forth. In
other instances, well known
CA 02307701 2000-OS-OS
12
processing structures have not been described in detail in order not to
unnecessarily obscure the
present invention.
Only the preferred embodiment of the invention and an example of its
versatility are
shown and described in the present disclosure. It is to be understood that the
invention is capable
of use in various other combinations and environments and is capable of
changes or modifications
within the scope of the inventive concept as expressed herein.
