Disposible protective shield for human body part
The shield is formed of a single thin (approximately 2 mils thick) flexible sheet, which may be made of polyurethane. The sheet has a surface and a peripheral edge. The peripheral edge has the shape of the body part to be protected. The surface is coated with an adhesive. The coating is adapted to removably attach the shield to the body part to protect the body part from contamination from objects to which the protected body part may come in contact. A second shield formed of a similar sheet has a peripheral edge with a shape that is substantially the mirror image of the peripheral edge of the first sheet for use with paired body parts, such as hands or feet.
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STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENTNot Applicable
REFERENCE TO A “SEQUENCE LISTING”, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING APPENDIX SUBMITTED ON COMPACT DISCNot Applicable
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a disposable protective shield for a human body part, such as a hand or foot, formed of a single thin, flexible protective sheet with a coating of adhesive and a method for protecting the body part with the shield.
2. Description of Prior Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98
The world we live in is full of surfaces that contain germs or other contaminates. We all come into contact with those contaminated surfaces on a daily basis. Examples of such surfaces are doorknobs, handles for shopping carts, bathroom fixtures, remote control devices, which hands commonly come in contact with, and floors in public places such as locker rooms or showers and the like which often must be walked on with bare feet.
Disposable gloves are available commercially to protect the hands. However, those gloves are relatively expensive and not easy to put on and take off the hands. Similarly, paper slippers are available to protect the feet but are also relatively expensive and difficult to use. As a result, those products are not commonly used by the public in everyday life.
Clearly there is a need for a product which can protect a human body part, such as a hand or foot, and which is disposable, inexpensive to produce, easy to transport in the purse or pocket and is convenient to use.
It is, therefore, a prime object of the present invention to provide a disposable protective shield for protection of a human body part.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a disposable protective shield for a human body part which consists of a single thin, flexible sheet with an adhesive coated surface.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a disposable protective shield for a human body part which can be quickly and easily mounted on and removed from the body part.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a disposable protective shield for a human body part which does not require the user to separate layers in order to insert the body part.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a disposable protective shield for a human body part which is easily transported in the purse or pocket of the user.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a disposable protective shield for a human body part which is inexpensive to produce.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a disposable protective shield for a human body part which can be easily discarded after use.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIn general, the above objectives are met by the present invention which is a disposable shield for protecting a human body part from contamination. The shield consists of a single thin, flexible sheet having a surface with a peripheral edge. The peripheral edge of the sheet substantially corresponds to the shape of the body part which the shield is designed to protect. The surface of the sheet has an adhesive coating. The adhesive coating is adapted to removably attach the sheet to the body part to protect the body part from contamination from objects to which the protected body part comes in contact.
The sheet that forms the shield may have a peripheral edge in the shape of a hand or a foot. The peripheral edge of the sheet can correspond to the shape of a large, medium or small body part. The body part can be male or female, adult or child.
For protecting paired body parts, such as hands or feet, two shields may be provided. The shields are formed in the shape of the body part, but in mirror image. In this manner, left and right extremities can be protected.
Preferably, the sheet which forms the shield is made of polyurethane and has a thickness of approximately 2 mils.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a method is provided for protecting a human body part from contamination. The method includes the steps of: forming a single thin, flexible sheet having a surface with a peripheral edge; forming the peripheral edge to have a shape substantially corresponding to the shape of the protected body part; forming an adhesive coating on the sheet surface; and removably attaching the sheet to the body part, using the adhesive coating, so as to protect the body part from contamination from objects to which the protected body part comes in contact.
The method further includes the steps of: providing a second sheet with substantially the same structure as the first sheet; and shaping the peripheral edge of the second sheet to be substantially the mirror image of the peripheral edge of the first sheet.
The sheet may be formed with a peripheral edge in the shape of a hand or a foot. It may be formed to correspond to the shape of a large, medium or small body part. It may be formed to fit an adult or child.
The single sheet is preferably formed of polyurethane. The sheet is formed to have a thickness of approximately 2 mils.
To these and to such other objects that may hereinafter appears, the present invention relates to a disposable protective shield for a human body part as described in detail in the following specification and recited in the annexed claims, taken together with the accompanying drawings, in which like numerals refer to like parts and in which:
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
Surface 14 of the sheet is provided with an adhesive coating 18. Coating 18 is adapted to removably attach sheet 10 to the body part. In this manner, the body part is protected from contamination from objects to which the protected body part comes in contact.
Preferably, sheet 12 is formed of polyurethane. Preferably, the sheet has a thickness of approximately 2 mils.
As shown in
As shown in
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
The covered, adhesive coated plastic sheet then travels through a die cutting station 28 which has a reciprocating die with a cutting edge in the shape of the body part which the shield is designed to protect. In cases where shields for paired body parts are desired, such as right and left hands as illustrated in
While only a limited number of preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed for purposes of illustration, it is obvious that many modifications and variations could be made thereto. It is intended to cover all of those modifications and variations which fall within the scope of the present invention, as defined by the following claims.
Claims
1. A disposable shield for protecting a human body part from contamination, the shield comprising a single thin, flexible sheet having a surface and a peripheral edge, the peripheral edge substantially corresponding to the shape of the body part to be protected, said surface having an adhesive coating, said coating adapted to removably attach the shield to the body part to protect the body part from contamination from objects to which the protected body part comes in contact.
2. In combination, the shield of claim 1 and a second shield formed of a sheet of substantially the same structure as said sheet of the shield of claim 1, said second shield having a peripheral edge with a shape that is substantially the mirror image of the peripheral edge of said sheet of the shield of claim 1.
3. The shield of claim 1 wherein said sheet comprises polyurethane.
4. The shield of claim 1 wherein said sheet has a thickness of approximately 2 mils.
5. The shield of claim 1 wherein said sheet has a peripheral edge in the shape of a hand.
6. The shield of claim 1 wherein said sheet has a peripheral edge in the shape of a foot.
7. The shield of claim 1 corresponding to the shape of a large, medium or small body part.
8. The shield of claim 1 corresponding to the shape of a male or female body part.
9. The shield of claim 1 corresponding to the shape of the body part of a child.
10. A method of protecting a human body part from contamination, the method comprising the steps of:
- forming a single thin, flexible sheet having a surface and a peripheral edge;
- forming the peripheral edge to have a shape substantially corresponding to the shape of the body part to be protected;
- coating the surface of the sheet with adhesive; and
- removably attaching the sheet to the body part, using the adhesive coating, so as to protect the body part from contamination from objects to which the protected body part comes in contact.
11. The method of claim 10 further comprising the steps of:
- providing a second sheet of substantially the same structure as the sheet of claim 10; and
- forming the peripheral edge of the second sheet to be substantially the mirror image of the peripheral edge of the sheet of claim 10.
12. The method of claim 10 wherein the step of forming the sheet comprises the step of forming the sheet of polyurethane.
13. The method of claim 10 wherein the step of forming the sheet comprises the step of forming the sheet to have a thickness of approximately 2 mils.
14. The method of claim 10 wherein the step of forming the peripheral edge comprises the step of forming the peripheral edge in the shape of a hand.
15. The method of claim 10 wherein the step of forming the peripheral edge comprises the step of forming the peripheral edge in the shape of a foot.
16. The method of claim 10 wherein the step of forming the peripheral edge comprises the step of forming the peripheral to have a shape which corresponds to the shape of at least one of a large, medium or small body part.
17. The method of claim 10 wherein the step of forming the peripheral edge comprises the step of forming the peripheral edge to have a shape which corresponds to the shape of at least one of a male or female body part.
18. The method of claim 10 wherein the step of forming the peripheral edge comprises the step of forming the peripheral edge to have a shape which corresponds to the shape of the body part of an adult or child.
Type: Application
Filed: Jun 23, 2011
Publication Date: Dec 27, 2012
Applicant:
Inventors: Deborah Steinberg (Woodbury, NY), Michele Ann Osterland (Huntington, NY)
Application Number: 13/135,040
International Classification: A41D 13/08 (20060101); A41D 19/015 (20060101);