Clothing Wipe
A clothing wipe includes an applicator having a novel odor neutralizing formulation deposited on one layer that is bonded to another layer to form a finger mitt. The applicator is removed from a pouch and rubbed against a person's clothing that may have accumulated a variety of smoke, food, and other odors during an outing. The odors clinging to the clothing are neutralized by contact with the odor neutralizing formulation. The applicator is stored in the pouch when not in use. A method of fabricating the clothing wipe in a web process is disclosed.
The present Application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/606,827 filed Sep. 7, 2012 by the same inventors and entitled CLOTHING WIPE, which is a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/386,425 filed Mar. 22, 2006 by Ben Kusin and entitled ODOR NEUTRALIZATION APPARATUS AND METHOD, abandoned.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention generally relates to neutralizing unpleasant odors and, more particularly, to apparatus and a method for neutralizing unpleasant odors that may cling to the surface of a person's clothing and refreshing the scent of the clothing.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONDining out, attending concerts or dance performances, going to the theatre or to movies, going to parties, dances and celebrations, going to night clubs and other entertainment venues, or just hanging out with friends are some of the activities people engage in during their free time. Generally, in preparing to participate in these activities, people take great pains to look their best and to present themselves in the best possible light. Personal grooming aids and products are often employed, most of which are scented, in an effort to appear attractive. Perfumes and scented grooming products are used to enhance the effects, particularly among persons interested in attracting other persons of the opposite sex, for example.
Unfortunately, the scented effects tend to diminish rapidly, reducing the intended effect of the personal grooming efforts. Further, many of the venues for the above activities include exposure to a wide variety of odors. These odors typically originate from food and beverages in restaurants, from smoke in restaurants, bars, night clubs, etc., from the perspiration of the persons themselves and other patrons, and from other substances that may be encountered during an evening's entertainment. Many of these odors are unpleasant or become more so with the passage of time. Such odors are readily absorbed by a person's clothing or hair, and are carried with the person for the rest of the evening. Thus, not only are the original scents diminished through the natural evaporation and deterioration that occurs, but they are often overwhelmed or masked by the many odors in the surroundings. These circumstances may be especially worrisome to people in a dating situation, especially as the evening wears on and the persons anticipate extending the evening or just wish to freshen themselves before proceeding with the remainder of the evening's activities, one's next appointment, etc. Other circumstances where the need to refresh one's clothing or hair may arise include following a long or arduous meeting, working out in a gym, a long walk between offices, playing with pets, and the like.
Conventional remedies include perfume or perfumed products such as cologne applied to a person's skin or clothing, typically provided in a spray container or a bottle. Other similar products may be applied by hand. Further, it is known that certain products, such as dryer sheets for use in clothes dryers, have sometimes been used in an effort to absorb the unpleasant odors from a person's clothing or hair, but generally with limited success. Further, such dispensing devices as traditionally used for perfume or cologne are not readily available with odor neutralizing capabilities adapted to neutralizing the odors accumulated on a person's clothing. Moreover, the use of paper or fabric odor absorbing devices has heretofore failed to provide more than limited usefulness.
It is known or has been observed that certain paper or fabric products, such as the Bounce® dryer sheets and Swiffer® floor mop products manufactured and distributed by the Proctor & Gamble Corporation for the laundry and floor cleaning markets respectively, and which may respectively contain anti-static or scented compounds or cleaning agents, have certain properties that might suggest possible applications in this field of odor neutralization of clothing. However, the available configuration of these articles is not appropriate or well suited to the application of neutralizing the odors absorbed by a person's clothing in a night club or restaurant venue. The Bounce® dryer sheets and the Swiffer® mop refills are loose sheets of fabric. They are not conveniently packaged for a person's pocket or purse, are not adapted to the particular use of odor neutralization of a person's clothing, and do not contain suitable substances for neutralizing odors absorbed into or clinging to a person's clothing or for refreshing originally applied perfumes or scents.
What is needed is an apparatus and a method of using the apparatus, which overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art devices and methods, that can serve both to eliminate or neutralize unpleasant odors that accumulate on a person's clothing during an evening's entertainment in a wide variety of venues, and to refresh or restore the original scent or replace it with an alternative scent.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONAccordingly there is disclosed a personal care apparatus for neutralizing odors on a person's clothing. The apparatus comprises a hand-held applicator formed of a first layer and a second layer bonded together along mutual edges thereof except along a portion of the mutual edges thereby forming a pocket or sleeve; an odor neutralizing formulation uniformly deposited on an outer side of the first layer of the applicator, wherein the formulation includes a base component and a neutralizer component; the base component includes approximately 86% polyethylene glycol ester and 10% glycerin and the neutralizer component includes a fragrance mixture formed of essential oils and one or more aroma compounds combined in predetermined proportions; and a pouch for enclosing the applicator when not in use, the pouch formed of a flexible packaging film and having a reusable closure mechanism disposed along one side thereof.
In another embodiment, a method for fabricating a clothing wipe is provided, comprising the steps of forming a first layer of an applicator in a first branch of a web process including uniformly depositing an odor neutralizing formulation on an outer surface of said first layer; forming a second layer of said applicator in a second branch of a web process including imprinting said second layer with indicia followed by merging said first and second web process branches in a step for aligning said first and second layers of said applicator for cutting, trimming and bonding operations; and forming and imprinting a storage pouch for said applicator from flexible packaging film in a third web process followed by merging said third web process branch with said combined first and second web process branches in a step to insert said applicator in said storage pouch.
In another aspect of the method for fabricating a clothing wipe, the step of formulating the odor neutralizing formulation includes the steps of combining a fragrance mixture in a predetermined proportion to provide a fragrance component having a “clean linen” aroma; and combining the fragrance component with a base component including a mixture of a polyethylene glycol ester and glycerin. In another aspect, the polyethylene glycol ester is combined with the glycerin in respective proportions of 86% and 10% of the odor neutralizing formulation.
In another embodiment, there is disclosed an apparatus for neutralizing odors in clothing, comprising an applicator for applying a neutralizing substance to a person's clothing, the applicator including a carrier layer having a generally rectangular shape defined by a perimeter thereof and impregnated with the neutralizing substance, and a substrate layer having generally the same shape as the carrier layer and bonded to the carrier layer around all but a select portion of the perimeter of the carrier layer to form a finger pocket for manipulating the applicator. In an alternate embodiment, an activating mechanism or protective sleeve associated with the applicator may be provided for releasing the neutralizing substance from the carrier layer.
In another aspect of the invention, a method is disclosed comprising the steps of providing an odor-neutralizing applicator having a carrier layer impregnated with an odor neutralizing substance and adapted to be slipped over the person's fingertips of one hand; slipping the applicator over the fingertips of the person's hand; and manipulating the applicator against the person's clothing to neutralize the odors in the person's clothing. In an alternate embodiment the method includes the step of activating the carrier layer of the applicator to release the odor neutralizing substance onto the person's clothing.
Referring to
The applicator 10 in its preferred embodiment is intended to be a compact device easily carried in a pocket or purse. Thus, its dimensions are determined accordingly to be slim and only slightly larger than a business card, for example. The applicator 10 in the illustrative embodiment shown in
Referring to
The carrier layer 26 may be bonded to the substrate layer 24 around the perimeter of the substrate layer 24 except at the selected open space shown in
In some embodiments it is advantageous for the applicator 10 to be disposable; that is, it may be discarded when the odor neutralizing substance impregnated in the carrier layer 26 is exhausted. Thus, the materials used in the construction of the applicator 10 need not be particularly durable. On the other hand, it is further contemplated that other embodiments of the applicator 10 may be reusable. For example, an applicator 10 constructed of relatively durable materials and configured to be fitted with a replaceable carrier layer 26, may be provided. The latter embodiment might provide a marketing advantage in that the applicator may be provided at nominal cost with or without a package of refill carrier layers 26 (or, carrier sheets 26). A reusable applicator would include a bonding mechanism to enable removal of the carrier layer 26 for replacement by a fresh carrier layer 26.
Referring to
Continuing with
In one example, an activated charcoal material that is formed into a textile fabric having a microporous structure may be used in the carrier layer 26. The microporous structure provides a very large surface area presented to the odor-causing substances, effectively absorbing them from the person's clothing during use of the applicator 10. The activated charcoal textile material, developed in Britain for its filtering properties, is further disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,313,371 issued to Conant et al.
The following detailed description describes several alternative and preferred embodiments with reference to
In one preferred embodiment to be described with reference to
The organic odor neutralizer component may comprise a fragrance component or mixture or composition. This component comprises approximately 4% of the total odor neutralizing formulation. Fragrance mixtures are well known and are available in a wide variety of formulations or types, for neutralizing a wide variety of odors. Some of the available types include: a masking agent, a solvent, an absorbant, an encapsulant, and a spray dry fragrance. In the present invention, one class of fragrance compositions or mixtures has been found particularly suitable for counteracting or neutralizing odors on clothing or a person's hair, for example. Such a fragrance mixture is a blend of several constituents that is formulated to present—i.e., leave behind on the user's clothing—a “clean linen” aroma or scent. In the illustrated embodiment, the constituents of the fragrance mixture may include chemicals of an aromatic or aliphatic nature such as aldehydes, ketones, alcohols, esters, and materials containing oxygen, nitrogen or sulphur. The fragrance mixture are preferably comprises approximately 4% of the total odor neutralizing formulation. However, due to the subjective nature of the sense experience, this proportion may be varied by experimenting with the proportions to be mixed. For example, the test may begin by varying the ingredients in greater or lesser proportion until a preferred proportion is determined for a particular application.
In regard to the proportions of the three principal ingredients of the odor neutralizing formulation described above in specific percentages, it is important to point out that these are percent values arrived at for one embodiment of the illustrated clothing wipe. The clothing wipe may be configured for a variety of specific applications depending on the market for such variations. Accordingly, the proportions of the these ingredients may be varied to suit particular formulations to meet a specific target market segment. In general, the proportion of the polyethylene glycol ester may range from 80% to 90%, the glycerin (or an acceptable substitute) may range from 6% to 16%, and the fragrance mixture may range from 0.5% to 10%. Potential market segments may be gender-specific or unisex, or directed to particular kinds of activities such as indoor or outdoor, social or business or recreation, etc. Other applications may include clothing wipes that are formulated as insect repellants or other ancillary uses besides refreshing the scent or odors present on a person's clothing or hair. Such applications may include ingredients that are combined in proportions that differ substantially from those set forth herein. For example, a wipe having an insect repellant substance may include 15% to 30% repellant chemical in combination with a base component of 70% to 85% and a fragrance mixture of a few percent, for example. Other applications may include wipes having formulations adapted to a person's skin surfaces. Such applications may include ingredient formulations based on other types of ingredients in other proportions, etc. Thus, the clothing wipe described herein is only one example of a versatile delivery system for scented or other chemical formulations configured for a wide variety of personal care products.
In use, as described herein below, the rubbing action that occurs when the clothing wipe device is brought into contact with the user's clothing or hair and deposits the odor neutralizing formulation or substance in proportion to the degree of force used and the length of path or amount of time expended as the device is rubbed across the surface of the clothing. This provides a convenient way to regulate the amount of odor neutralizing formulation deposited during use, thereby affecting the strength and noticeability of the fragrance and the effectiveness of the clothing wipe device described herein.
Manufacturing the clothing wipe device may be illustrated by a simple sequence of steps. Both the applicator and the pouch may be supplied in bulk as thin fabrics and packaging film respectively. Each one may be imprinted in bulk web-processing facilities prior to cutting and bonding the individual pieces that will be assembled to form the applicator or the pouch Imprinting may be used to apply logo and other indicia, as well as instructions for use and/or attractive graphics, to the pouch. The fragrance mixture may also be applied during a bulk web-processing process by depositing the compound odor neutralizer material in a slot-dye coating process, well-known in the art. In this process, the formulated mixture is placed into a reservoir such as a hopper device and conveyed to a distributing device that has a narrow slot orifice oriented across the width of the fabric that is to receive the mixture. The slot has a length approximately equal to the width of the fabric, and deposits a measured layer of the odor neutralizer formulation onto the surface of the bottom, active (first) layer of the applicator.
Materials for the bottom (first) and top (second) layers of the applicator are selected for the abilities to be imprinted, bonded ultrasonically, and fabricated in a web-processing process as will be described. The bottom layer of the applicator may be a single ply of a non-woven (e.g., spun-bound) polypropylene fabric or a two-ply combination of a non-woven polypropylene fabric having a weight of approximately 160 g/m2 weight and a rayon fabric that is needle punched in a predetermined pattern over the area of the layer to secure it to the polypropylene fabric. The total thickness of the two-ply layer may then have an approximate thickness of 0.10 inch or less. In a single layer embodiment the additional step to bond the rayon or other fabric layer may be deleted. The top layer of the applicator may preferably be a non-woven (e.g., spun-bound) polypropylene fabric of approximately 100 g/m2 weight and a thickness of approximately 0.013 inch. These weights/thicknesses are approximate and selected for the size and weight appropriate to the look and feel of the hand-held clothing wipe device described in this example. Other materials may be selected as long as they have the properties suited to the application. For example, certain alternate embodiments intended for heavy-duty service may be fabricated of heavier weight materials or synthetic fabrics of greater durability.
In the embodiment of
The storage pouch may be manufactured from a flexible packaging film that is imprinted with graphics, logos, legends, indicia, instructions for use, etc. As is well known, flexible packaging film is available in many forms depending on the kind of product to be contained therein and the kind of graphics imprinted on the outside layer, etc. In the illustrated example, the packaging film, which should be adapted to containing personal care products, may be a laminated product whereby each layer of the material is selected to provide the particular properties desired in the package. Such flexible packaging film products are typically laminated of multiple layers of thin film materials such as a coated and printable outer layer to support printed graphics (e.g., polyester), low density polyethylene (LDPE), a metal foil, a linear low density polyethylene film (LLDPEF), and the like. These materials may be provided in thicknesses that range from 0.25 to 1.5 mil (1 mil= 1/1000 of an inch). In the embodiment described herein the total thickness of the film packaging material may be approximately 3.5 mil. These materials in combination provide sufficient body, moisture and puncture resistance, resistance to tearing, the effects of light, etc.
As shown in
Continuing with
The odor neutralizer component 94 makes up the remaining 4% of the odor neutralizing formulation 88. One reason for the relatively small percentage—approximately 4%—used in the illustrated embodiment is that typically only a very small amount of a malodor substance is very noticeable. Accordingly, only a very small amount of a counteracting fragrance may be needed to be effective in neutralizing the malodor. Further, it is possible for a limited amount of a fragrance blend or composition to counteract a malodor or to neutralize an odor. For example, in an aroma compound based on an aldehyde, the aldehyde may react with nitrogen in a malodor to form what is known in the art as a “Schiff Base” product that “ties up” the nitrogen malodor materials, thereby reducing the perception of the malodor.
Continuing with
In the present formulation these aroma compounds may include chemicals of an aromatic or aliphatic nature such as aldehydes, ketones, alcohols, esters, and/or materials containing oxygen, nitrogen or sulphur. One example of a fragrance mixture is perfume, which is a mixture of essential oils, aroma compounds, fixatives, and solvents, each selected to yield a desired particular effect. In the present invention, a fragrance mixture that presents a “clean linen” scent is preferred. However, there are many possible fragrance mixtures and fragrance paradigms that may be used in a device of the type described herein, including active scents (typically associated with masculine users) and floral scents (typically associated with feminine users) for example.
Continuing with
As is well known, a slot dye process is adapted to dispense a measured amount of a substance from a narrow slot opening across the width of a moving belt of the film or fabric to be coated or imprinted. As readily understood by persons skilled in the art, alternatives to the slot dye process exist that also deposit a uniform coating of a material in fluid, powder, or granular form upon the surface of a fabric. The choice is best made to suit the particular form of the product being fabricated. The slot dye process is described as one readily understood method of applying a uniform coating of material to a surface of an object.
Following deposit of the odor neutralizer formulation 66 the material for the bottom layer 54 is next prepared to be aligned with and joined to—i.e., merged with—the material for the top layer 56 in step 114. Following alignment, the flow advances to step 124 wherein the line of applicators formed to that point may be cut into separate applicators 52 followed by bonding the side and rear edges 58 of the aligned top 56 and bottom 54 layers together in step 126. Such bonding may utilize an ultrasonic bonding process to bond the edges of the top 56 and bottom 54 layers to each other, thereby forming an applicator 52 that may be worn as a small pouch or finger mitt as depicted in
Beginning at step 130 with loading the flexible packaging film for fabricating the pouch 70 the flow advances to step 132 to imprint the flexible packaging film with indicia such as product or brand name, logo, colorful graphics, instructions for use, other text to comply with regulatory requirements, etc. following imprinting, the imprinted film passes through a station to cut the blanks of the pouch 70 to size in step 134 before being folded, and the aligned side edges are bonded, again by an ultrasonic process, for example. The completed storage pouch 70 is aligned to merge with the completed applicator 52 in step 128, wherein the applicator 52 is inserted into the pouch 70, including folding over the flap 76 to seal it against the top layer 56 by pressing the two sides of the string zipper 78 together or otherwise securing the closure. The process may then deliver the finished clothing wipes 50 to a bulk packing station 138 to prepare them for shipment. Typically the clothing wipes manufactured as described may be packaged in quantities of one dozen to multiples of a dozen, for example. The packed products may proceed to a station 140 that tests whether the package is to be shipped immediately in step 142 according to an order or transferred to inventory in step 144. At this point, the flow ends.
As will be readily understood, the example of the fabrication process depicted in
Continuing with
Continuing with
The applicators 10, including embodiments 52, 152, 172, and variations thereof, described herein above may be used multiple times and stored in a person's pocket or purse when not in use. However, in an alternate embodiment, the applicator 10 may be enclosed in a protective wrapper (See, e.g.,
While the invention has been shown in only one of its forms, it is not thus limited but is susceptible to various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof. For example, the embodiment illustrated in the drawings is shown with the opening disposed in one of the longer sides of the applicator 10. In one modification (not shown because its appearance is readily visualized to one skilled in the art, based on the structural features shown in
In another modification, the applicator 10 may be enlarged such that a user's entire hand fits within the pocket 28 between the substrate 24 and carrier 26 layers. This configuration enables the use of the applicator as a hand mitt, for applying odor neutralizing substances to a larger fabric surface area, for example, such as to upholstery in vehicles or on furniture or draperies and curtains in offices or residences, etc.
As noted herein above, potential market segments for clothing wipes as described herein may be gender-specific or unisex, or directed to particular kinds of activities such as indoor or outdoor, social or business or recreation, etc. Other applications may include clothing wipes that are formulated as insect repellants or other ancillary uses besides refreshing the scent or odors present on a person's clothing or hair. Other applications may include wipes having formulations adapted to a person's skin surfaces. Such applications may include ingredient formulations based on other types of ingredients in other proportions, etc. Thus, the clothing wipe described herein is only one example of a versatile delivery system for scented or other chemical formulations configured for a wide variety of personal care products.
Yet another modification is to provide a pouch or sleeve 70 as described in
Claims
1. A method for fabricating a clothing wipe, comprising the steps of:
- forming a first layer of an applicator in a first branch of a web process including uniformly depositing an odor neutralizing formulation on an outer surface of said first layer; and
- forming a second layer of said applicator in a second branch of a web process including imprinting said second layer with indicia followed by merging said first and second web process branches in a step for aligning said first and second layers of said applicator for bonding, cutting, and trimming operations.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:
- forming and imprinting a storage pouch for said applicator from packaging film in a third web process.
3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:
- forming a pouch from a packaging film for sealably enclosing said applicator and including a reusable string zipper closure mechanism along one side of said pouch.
4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:
- merging said third web process branch with said combined first and second web process branches in a step to insert said applicator in said storage pouch.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of forming a first layer further includes the steps of:
- formulating said odor neutralizing formulation in a separate step; and
- applying said formulation to an outer surface of said first layer of said applicator in a step in said first branch of said web process.
6. The method of claim 5, wherein the step of formulating said odor neutralizing formulation comprises the steps of:
- providing a fragrance mixture in a predetermined proportion to provide a clean linen scent; and
- combining said fragrance mixture with a base component, said base component including a mixture of a polyethylene glycol and glycerin.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of combining said fragrance mixture comprises the step of:
- combining said fragrance mixture with said base component in respective proportions of approximately 4% and 96%.
8. The method of claim 5, wherein said step of formulating said odor neutralizing formulation comprises the step of:
- combining a proportion of 80% to 90% of an polyethylene glycol with a proportion of 6% to 16% of an glycerin of said odor neutralizing formulation.
9. The method of claim 5, wherein said step of formulating said odor neutralizing formulation comprises the step of:
- combining said polyethylene glycol with said glycerin in respective proportions of 86% and 10% of the odor neutralizing formulation.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein said bonding of said first and second layers is selected from the group consisting of continuous ultrasonic, uniform discontinuous ultrasonic, and a stitched bond.
11. The method of claim 1, wherein said bonding of said first and second layers is operated to form a finger space between said first and second layers.
12. The method of claim 5, wherein the step of formulating said odor neutralizing formulation comprises the step of:
- including an insect repellant substance in said odor neutralizing formulation.
13. The method of claim 5, wherein said step of formulating said odor neutralizing formulation comprises the step of:
- providing a base component of polyethylene glycol mixed with glycerin; and
- combining with said base component a proportion of an insect repellant substance within a range of 5% to 30% of said odor neutralizing formulation.
Type: Application
Filed: Nov 16, 2012
Publication Date: Apr 25, 2013
Inventors: Ben Kusin (Dallas, TX), Charles C. Steward (Oradel, NJ), Ronald C. Griepenburg (Oradel, NJ), Edgardo Guce (New Milford, NJ)
Application Number: 13/679,563
International Classification: B31D 1/00 (20060101);