EP0808602B1

EP0808602B1 - Cleaning device

Info

Publication number: EP0808602B1
Application number: EP19970201457
Authority: EP
Inventors: Alfonso Guillen Lopez; Carmen Martin Rivera
Original assignee: Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Co
Current assignee: 3M Co
Priority date: 1996-05-20
Filing date: 1997-05-15
Publication date: 2002-04-10
Anticipated expiration: 2017-05-15
Also published as: EP0808602A1

Description

The present invention relates to cleaning devices suitable for use especially, but not exclusively, in a domestic environment for cleaning soiled or stained surfaces, particularly cooking utensils and implements.
Scouring pads are widely used in domestic cleaning, especially for cleaning soiled cooking utensils and implements. One well known form of scouring pad comprises a pad of wire wool (for example, steel wool) which has an abrasive action on the surface to be cleaned and which may optionally be provided with its own supply of soap to assist the cleaning. Pads of coiled metallic material (also known as spiral metallic material) are also widely used for cleaning soiled cooking utensils and are known to be very effective for that purpose, although they suffer from the disadvantage that they are somewhat unpleasant to handle.
Sponge pads are also used for domestic cleaning, typically for wiping surfaces and cleaning tableware, but are not particularly effective in cleaning cooking utensils and implements.
Combination sponge and scouring pads are available in various forms, and can provide both a wiping action and an abrasive action. Such combination pads are suitable for cleaning surfaces and tableware and to some extent, for cleaning cooking utensils and implements. They are, however, less effective for the latter purpose than the pads of wire wool or coiled metallic material mentioned above.
One form of combination sponge and scouring pad, described in US-A-2 066 420, comprises a rectangular pad of sponge rubber in one face of which is a rectangular opening containing a mass of coiled wire. The opening is lined, at least partly, with a fabric sheet to which the coiled wire is secured by stitching to hold it in place in the opening. A similar pad, in which the coiled wire is replaced by tightly-wound animal hair, is described in US-A-2 113 452. In that case, the hair is either vulcanized or stitched directly to the sponge rubber to hold it in place in the rectangular opening.
Also known are sponge pads provided, on one face, with an abrasive material. Pads of that type are described, for example, in US-A-3 634 901; US-A-3 226 751, FR-A-1 543 656 and GB-A-840 484.
FR-A-1 562 016 describes a cleaning device comprising a bundle of abrasive filaments contained within a casing formed by a spirally-wound foam band.
The present invention provides a cleaning device as claimed in the accompanying claim 1.
In some cases, the coiled metallic material may project from the cavity above the surrounding surface of the foam material and, in other cases, the top surface of the coiled metallic material may be approximately level with the surrounding surface of the foam material.
By way of example only, embodiments of the invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a cleaning device in accordance with the present invention;
Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the device shown in Fig. 1; and
Figs. 3 to 7 are perspective views of other cleaning devices in accordance with the present invention.
Fig. 1 shows a cleaning device 1 comprising a pad 2 of a foam material formed with a cavity 3 which contains a mass of coiled metallic material 4. The pad 2, which is intended to be held in the hand, constitutes a holder for the metallic material and has the general shape of a flattened sphere. The pad 2 is preferably formed from a synthetic foam material, for example a polyester foam or a polyether foam, and has a thickness in its central region of about 45 mm and a diameter of about 90 mm. The foam material preferably has a density in the range of from 22 to 25 kg/m³. The cavity 3, which is formed in a flattened face 5 of the pad 2, is generally cylindrical and has a diameter of about 45 mm and a depth of about 25 mm. The coiled material 4 is formed from any suitable metal, for example nickel or stainless steel and is secured directly to the foam walls of the cavity 3 by an adhesive 6. The adhesive 6 may be a urethane-based adhesive or a hot melt adhesive or any other suitable adhesive that is water resistant and, preferably, retains a degree of flexibility during the life of the cleaning device 1. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the material 4 projects to some extent from the cavity 3 above the surrounding flattened face 5 of the pad 2; that is not essential, however, and the top surface of the material 4 could be approximately level with the surrounding face of the pad 2.
Preferably, the pad 2 is a polyester foam having a density of 22 kg/m³, such a material being obtainable from, for example, Cordex Espumas of Esmoriz, Portugal. However, any other foam material normally used for domestic cleaning tools may be used for the pad 2. The coiled metallic material 4 is preferably formed from stainless steel but may be any coiled metallic material normally used for scouring pads for domestic cleaning. A suitable stainless steel material is available from Porfirio Machado Correia of Rio Tinto, Portugal. The adhesive that is used to secure the coiled material 4 to the foam 2 is preferably a polyurethane-based adhesive available under the trade name "Ultraflex 56B", from Isar-Rakoll Chemie Portuguesa s.a. of Vila do Conde, Portugal. The adhesive is applied over the bottom and the side wall of the cavity 3, although not entirely to the top of the side wall to ensure that it does not spill out of the cavity when the coiled material 4 is inserted.
The cleaning device 1 shown in Figs. 1 and 2 is particularly useful for cleaning cooking utensils and implements. The coiled metallic material 4 is already known to be very effective for that purpose but, by containing the metallic material in a foam pad 2, a cleaning device is provided which is much more comfortable for the user to hold than a mass of coiled metallic material on its own. The metallic material 4 is, however, still very easy to manipulate and will still reach easily into comers and awkward spaces which need to be cleaned. Provided a suitable adhesive 6 is used to secure the metallic material in place (specifically one which retains a degree of flexibility during the life of the cleaning device 1), the user should be unaware of the presence of the adhesive. A further advantage of the cleaning device shown in Figs 1 and 2 is that the foam pad 2 will retain soap, making the device still more effective. If desired, the foam material from which the pad 2 is formed may be soap-filled. It is also possible for the metallic material 4 to be soap-filled.
Various modifications can be made to the cleaning device shown in Figs. 1 and 2. For example, although the rounded shape of the foam pad 2 makes the device particularly easy and comfortable to hold, it is not essential. The foam pad could, for example, have a rectangular or any other suitable shape and the cavity 3 in which the coiled metallic material is contained could also have a different shape.
Other suitable shapes for the foam holder for the metallic material 4 are illustrated, by way of example, in Figs. 3 to 6. The foam holder 7 shown in Fig. 3 is generally similar to the pad shown in Fig. 1 but is formed with a circumferential depression 8 to assist the user in gripping the holder. In the foam holder 9 shown in Fig. 4, the circumferential depression 8 of Fig. 3 is replaced by a depression 10 which extends in the orthogonal direction from one side of the cavity 3 to the other. Fig. 5 shows a cleaning device in which the foam holder 11 is a rectangular block with grooves 12 in two opposed sides to enable it to be held easily. In this case, as an additional feature, a layer of an abrasive material 13 (for example a non-woven abrasive web material) is laminated to the holder 11 on the face opposite that which contains the coiled metallic material 4. It will be appreciated that the layer of abrasive material 13 is not essential and could be omitted. It will also be appreciated that similar layers of abrasive material could be provided on the pads 2, 7 and 9 of Figs. 1, 3 and 4 if required.
Depending on the shape of the foam holder, it is possible for the coiled metallic material to extend through to the other side of the holder, enabling the coiled material to be visible on both sides. Fig. 6 shows a cleaning device of that type, in which the foam material 14 forms a ring around the mass 15 of coiled metallic material. The ring of material 14 is shown as having plain sides but the sides could be provided with grooves, or otherwise shaped, if required.
Fig. 7 shows a cleaning device in which the foam holder 16 is bowl-shaped and is formed from a comparatively high density foam. The holder 16 is firmer than those of Figs. 1 to 6 but, again, is more comfortable for the user to hold than a mass of coiled metallic material.
It will be appreciated that the various shapes for the foam holder shown in Figs. 1 to 7 of the drawings are examples only. Other shapes could be used to provide a foam holder to which coiled metallic material can be secured to form a cleaning device which is more comfortable for the user to hold.

Claims

A cleaning device comprising a holder (2) of foam material, shaped to be held in the hand, and a mass of coiled metallic material (4) located in a cavity (3) in the foam material, characterized in that the mass of coiled metallic material is secured directly to the foam material by an adhesive (6).
A cleaning device as claimed in claim 1, in which the coiled metallic material (4) is stainless steel.
A cleaning device as claimed in claim1 or claim 2, in which the adhesive (6) is a urethane-based adhesive.
A cleaning device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, in which the foam material is a synthetic foam.
A cleaning device as claimed in claim 4, in which the foam material is a polyester foam.
A cleaning device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, in which the foam material has the shape of a flattened sphere, the cavity (3) being located in a flattened side (5) of the pad.
A cleaning device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, in which the cavity (3) has a cylindrical shape.