Tabletop Protective Shield
A tabletop protective shield is provided that includes clear panels connected using clear flexible joints therebetween.
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This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/109,090 filed on Nov. 3, 2020, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein by reference.
TECHNICAL FIELDThe following relates to protective shields for health and safety applications, in particular to a tabletop protective shield, e.g., for use in a classroom setting.
BACKGROUNDWith recent widespread outbreaks of disease or other conditions stemming from viruses, bacteria, or other pathogens, there is an increased desire to provide barriers between humans to avoid the spread of disease. These barriers can include articles of personal protective equipment (PPE) or physical barriers to limit the airborne spread of a pathogen, particularly when so-called “physical distancing” is difficult or cannot be maintained. There is an increasing concern with minimizing contact, particularly in public places where pathogens can spread between humans causing the spread of infections and the like.
Schools, offices and other places where potentially large numbers of people are required to be in proximity to each other may rely on the use of both physical separation (e.g., to maintain physical distancing) and physical barriers to protect a work area for each person.
A concern with physical barriers is that there could be a reduction in visibility and impediment to the ability to interact with co-workers, other students, or other people in the same environment, even when next to each other. Moreover, since different environments often use different tables, desks, and workstations, custom barriers may be required or at least barriers with some flexibility to accommodate different configurations.
SUMMARYA tabletop protective shield is provided that includes clear panels connected using clear flexible joints therebetween. The protective shield can therefore be configured to place the panels at various angles relative to each other and thus adopt multiple configurations to suit different tabletop surfaces while having a minimum of visual obstructions due to the clear material used in both the panels and joints.
The protective shield can also include a set of carrying passages (also referred to herein as “hand holes”) near the upper edge of each panel that align with each other when the panels are folded, to provide transportability to the shield. Moreover, the side panels of the shield can be contoured to provide cut outs or passageways for reaching around and beyond the side walls of the shield. The protective shield is also supported by a set of mounting clips that can be attached to the panels and include lower surfaces to be temporarily or semi-permanently engage the tabletop surface.
The protective shield can therefore maintain a physical barrier while allowing visual interaction, i.e., to avoid the need to lean over or around the barrier to see and be seen, or to hear and be heard; as well as some physical interaction, i.e., via the cut outs. That is, the protective shield acts to contain the student, employee, or other user and the throw of their breath without limiting their ability to communicate, allowing social interaction with others in the same environment. These advantages can be particularly important for students in a classroom setting.
In one aspect, there is provided a protective shield, comprising a transparent front panel; a pair of transparent side panels; first and second clear flexible joints, each joint attaching one edge of the front panel to an edge of one of the side panels and including a flexible portion to permit the side panels to be rotated relative to the front panel to configure the protective shield; and a plurality of mounting clips, each mounting clip configured to support a respective one of the panels and to provide a downwardly facing surface to engage an upper surface on which the protective shield is placed.
Embodiments will now be described with reference to the appended drawings wherein:
Turning now to the figures,
It can be appreciated from the view in
Referring now to
Near the upper edges of the panels 16a, 18, 16b are a set of carrying passages 20 or “hand holes”. In this example, a first carrying passage 20a is provided in the left side panel 16a, a second carrying passage 20b is provided in the front panel 18, and a third carrying passage 20c is provided in the right side panel 16b. As shown in
The side panels 16a, 16b are also contoured at the lower distal end thereof to provide “cut outs” 24a and 24b respectively. The cut outs 24a, 24b provide a passage for accommodating a user's elbows or hands and permits passing items between adjacent shields 10, e.g., in a classroom environment.
An enlarged view of a clear flexible joint 22b is shown in
Referring now to
It can be appreciated that the flexibility of the joints 22a, 22b, and the securability of the mounting clips 26 allows the side panels 16a, 16b to be relatively closer or wider apart to accommodate different surfaces 14 or desk/table/countertop configurations.
Moreover, it can be appreciated that the front and side panels 18, 16a, 16b, can also include different sizes and proportions from that shown in these examples to provide further flexibility and configurations.
Referring to
For simplicity and clarity of illustration, where considered appropriate, reference numerals may be repeated among the figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements. In addition, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the examples described herein. However, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the examples described herein may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures and components have not been described in detail so as not to obscure the examples described herein. Also, the description is not to be considered as limiting the scope of the examples described herein.
It will be appreciated that the examples and corresponding diagrams used herein are for illustrative purposes only. Different configurations and terminology can be used without departing from the principles expressed herein. For instance, components and modules can be added, deleted, modified, or arranged with differing connections without departing from these principles.
Although the above principles have been described with reference to certain specific examples, various modifications thereof will be apparent to those skilled in the art as outlined in the appended claims.
Claims
1. A protective shield, comprising:
- a transparent front panel;
- a pair of transparent side panels;
- first and second clear flexible joints, each joint attaching one edge of the front panel to an edge of one of the side panels and including a flexible portion to permit the side panels to be rotated relative to the front panel to configure the protective shield; and
- a plurality of mounting clips, each mounting clip configured to support a respective one of the panels and to provide a downwardly facing surface to engage an upper surface on which the protective shield is placed.
2. The protective shield of claim 1, wherein the clear flexible joints each comprise a pair of rigid strips affixed to the adjacent panels and a central flexible strip attached to the rigid strips to provide flexibility.
3. The protective shield of claim 1, wherein the clear flexible joints are affixed along the entire length of the edges of the panels to which they are attached.
4. The protective shield of claim 1, wherein each mounting clip comprises a pair of upstanding walls defining a slot into which a panel is inserted and a base comprising the downwardly facing surface.
5. The protective shield of claim 1, wherein each mounting clip comprises an attachment layer on the underside of the base to work with the upper surface to create a bond.
6. The protective shield of claim 5, wherein the attachment layer comprises a releasable and reusable adhesive.
Type: Application
Filed: Oct 27, 2021
Publication Date: May 5, 2022
Applicant: Alumni Classroom Furniture Inc. (Waterloo)
Inventor: Paul GODWIN (Waterloo)
Application Number: 17/512,163