Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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COLOR CODED MOP PADS AND METHOD OF COLOR CODING SAME
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Nos.
60/567,794 (filed May 5, 2004), 60/637,440. (filed December 21, 2004), and
60/646,986 (filed January 27, 2005), which are incorporated herein by
reference in
their entirety.
BACKGROUND
[0002] It can be desirable to designate particular mop pads, within a set of
mop pads,
for certain uses. It may be desirable to designate some mop pads for use in
one
location and other mop pads for use in another location. For example, to
prevent
cross-contamination, an environmental services manager may wish to ensure that
mop
pads used for disinfecting patient room floors in a hospital are not used in
the
hospital's common areas. As another example, a facility manager may wish to
associate certain mop pads with specific locations to track the number of mop
pads
used over a time period in those locations.
[0003] It also may be desirable to designate some mop pads for one type of use
and
other mop pads for another type of use. As a specific example, to prevent
cross-
contamination, a facility manager may wish to designate certain mop pads for
cleaning up hazardous materials and other mop pads for applying disinfectant.
[0004] Also, it may be desirable to designate mop pads for use only by
particular
users. The ability to correlate mop pads to users allows a facility manager to
track the
number of mop pads used by each user. Also, it allows the facility manager to
determine whether particular users are experiencing losses of mop pads.
[0005] Mops have been designated for particular uses by color coding
techniques that
are less than optimal. For example, mops have been made entirely of a yarn of
a
particular color, and the mops are differentiated by using a different color
yam for
each mop. This technique creates problems in manufacturing because large
quantities
of yarns of different colors must be stored, and the different yarns must be
loaded on
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the manufacturing equipment when switching from one color mop to another. As
another example, mops have been made with stitching of a particular color, and
different color stitchings are used to differentiate mops. This technique also
creates
problems in manufacturing because different color stitchings must be stored
and
loaded on the manufacturing equipment when changing from type of mop to
another.
In addition, the distinguishing colors can be difficult to see when the mops
are stacked
or in use.
SUMMARY
[0006] An aspect of the present invention relates to a method of coding mop
pads.
The method comprises the steps of providing a first mop pad, wherein the first
mop
pad is substantially flat, has a mop portion with a periphery, and has a first
colored
piping associated with a first use and that extends along on at least a
portion of the
periphery of the mop portion of the first mop pad, and providing a second mop
pad,
wherein the second mop pad is substantially flat, has a mop portion with a
periphery,
and has a second colored piping associated with a second use and that extends
along
at least a portion of the periphery of mop portion of the second mop pad. The
color of
the first colored piping is different from the color of the second colored
piping and the
first use is different from the second use.
[0007] Another aspect of the present invention relates to a set of color coded
mop
pads. The set comprises a first mop pad that is substantially flat, has a mop
portion
with a periphery, and has a first colored piping on the periphery associated
with a first
use, and a second mop pad that is substantially flat, has a mop portion with a
periphery, and has a second colored piping on the periphery associated with a
second
use. The color of the first colored piping is different from the color of the
second
colored piping and the first use is different from the second use.
[0008] It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and
the
following detailed description are merely exemplary of the invention, and are
intended to provide an overview or framework for understanding the nature and
character of the invention as it is claimed. The accompanying drawings are
included
to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated in
and
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constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate various
embodiments of
the invention, and together with the description serve to explain the
principles and
operation of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] Figure 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a set of mop
pads
according to the present invention;
[0010] Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of a first embodiment of a mop pad
according to the present invention taken along line A-A in Figure 3;
[0011] Figure 3 is a top view of the mop pad of Figure 2; and
[0012] Figure 4 is a top view of the mop pad of Figure 2, which is mounted on
a mop
pad support.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0013] Presently preferred embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the
drawings. An effort has been made to use the same or like reference numbers
throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.
[0014] One aspect of the present invention relates to a set of color coded mop
pads.
An embodiment of a set of color coded mop pads 10 is shown in Figure 1. The
mop
pads in that figure are stacked on top of one another. The set of mop pads 10
preferably includes at least a first mop pad 15 and a second mop pad 20. The
set of
mop pads shown in Figure 1 contains ten mop pads.
[0015] Each mop pad 15, 20 in the set 10 preferably is substantially
identical, except
for the color coding that will be described below. For ease of explanation,
the
specific structure of only the embodiment of the second mop pad 20 will be
described,
and it is to be understood that the first mop pad 15 preferably has the same
structure.
[0016] The mop pad 20 preferably is substantially flat and has a mop portion
21 with
a periphery 22. The mop portion 21 can include a plurality of layers 24, 26,
28.
Figure 2 shows a cross-sectional view of an example of a mop pad 20 having a
top
layer 24, a middle layer 26, and a bottom layer 28. The top layer 24
preferably is
formed of the loop side of VELCRO material. The middle layer 26 preferably is
made of conventional foam used in mop pads. The bottom layer 28 preferably is
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formed of a knitted microfiber material, as is conventional in the art. The
layers 24,
26, 28 can be connected by stitching 29, as shown in Figure 2.
[0017] The mop pad 20 also includes colored piping 30 disposed along at least
portion of the periphery 22 of the mop portion 21. The colored piping 30 can
be, for
example, polyester material. As shown in Figure 3, preferably the colored
piping 30
extends around the entire periphery 22 of the mop portion 21 of the mop pad
20. The
colored piping 30 can be attached to a layer 24, 26, 28 in the mop portion 21
by
stitching 32 (see Figure 2) that extends through the colored piping 30 and the
layer
24, 26, 28. Preferably the stitching 32 extends through the top and bottom
layers 24,
28, and more preferably it extends through all three layers 24, 26, 28, as
shown in
Figure 2. In the embodiment shown in the drawings, the layers 24, 26, 28 of
the mop
portion 22 are stacked on top of one another and have peripheries 22', 22",
22"' that
are coextensive to form the periphery 22 of the mop portion 21. Should the
peripheries 22', 22", 22"' of the layers 24, 26, 28 not be coextensive (not
shown), the
colored piping 30 could extend along at least a portion of a periphery 22',
22", 22"'
of at least one of the layers 24, 26, 28.
[0018] The first mop pad 15 in the set 10 has colored piping of a first color
(e.g.,
blue), and the second mop pad 20 has colored piping 30 of second color (e.g.,
green)
that is different from the first color. Preferably, the colored piping 30 on
an
individual mop pad 15, 20 is uniform in color. The first color is associated
with a first
use, and the second color is associated with a second use that is different
from the first
use. The first and second uses can relate to, for example, a type of use, such
as
picking up hazardous material (first use) and applying disinfectant (second
use). As
another example, the first and second uses can relate to an area of use, such
as
mopping a hospital patient room floor (first use) and mopping a hospital lobby
or
other common area (second use). As yet another example, the first and second
uses
can relate to a user, such as mop pads for an employee on the day shift (first
use) and
mop pads for an employee on the night shift (second use).
[0019] The flat mop pad 20 preferably is attached to a mop pad support 40 (see
Figure 4). A preferred mop pad support 40 includes a frame 42 configured to
retain a
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mop pad 20, a handle 44 for maneuvering the frame 42, and a joint mechanism 46
that
connects the handle 44 to the frame 42. Such a preferred mop pad support is
disclosed in a patent application that is to be concurrently filed by A.
Reneau Van
Landingham entitled "Mop Having Ergonomic Handle and Joint" (Serial No.
; Attorney Docket Number 086554-1179), the entire contents of which
is hereby incorporated by reference. The VELCRO material layer 24 of the mop
pad
20 can mate with hook side VELCRO strips (not shown) on the frame 42 of the
mop
pad support 40.
[0020] The mop pad can be used, for example, with a mop bucket having a foot
pedal
wringer mechanism and a scrub board. A preferred mop bucket is disclosed in a
patent application that is to be concurrently filed by A. Reneau Van
Landingham and
Craig Rogers entitled "Bucket With Foot Pedal Wringer Mechanism and Scrub
Board" (Serial No. ; Attorney Docket Number 086554-1173), the
entire contents of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
[0021] The mop pad also can be used, for example, with a disinfecting bucket.
A
disinfecting bucket is disclosed in a patent application that is to be
concurrently filed
by A. Reneau Van Landingham entitled "Disinfecting Bucket" (Serial No.
; Attorney Docket Number 086554-1172), the entire contents of which
is hereby incorporated by reference.
[0022] Embodiments of the set 10 of mop pads 15, 20 of the present invention
can be
configured to resolve problems experienced with conventional mop pads. For
example, providing colored piping 30 on the periphery 22 of the mop portion 21
of
the mop pad 20 decreases manufacturing problems. It is not necessary to store
different color yarn and stitching used to make the mops, and reload
manufacturing
equipment during manufacturing runs. Instead, the yarn and stitching can be
maintained uniform, and only a different colored piping 30 need be applied to
the
periphery 22 of the mop portion 21 of the mop pad 20. Additionally, providing
colored piping 30 on the periphery 22 of the mop portion 21 of the mop pad 20
enhances the ability to differentiate between mop pads 15, 20. Unlike the use
of
different color stitching, which can make it difficult to distinguish between
the mops
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when they are stacked or in use, the mop pads 15, 20 of the present invention
can be
configured to provide high visibility. For example, as shown in Figure 1, the
piping
on the periphery of all mop pads 15, 20 in the set 10 can be readily seen.
Additionally, as shown in Figure 4, the piping 30 on the periphery 22 of the
mop
portion 21 mop pad 20 can be readily seen even when the mop pad 20 is mounted
on a
mop pad support frame 42.
100231 It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various
modifications and
variations can be made to the present invention without departing from the
spirit and
scope of the invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention cover
the
modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the
scope of
the appended claims and their equivalents.
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