FIELD OF INVENTION This invention relates to a fountain brush assembly and more particularly to such a brush assembly which advantageously delivers paint to the bristles during use and assists cleaning of the bristles after use.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION When painting large areas by brush a great deal of time and effort is wasted by the need to frequently reload the brush by dipping it into a paint container. A number of devices have sought to overcome this inefficiency by constructing a fountain brush which is continually supplied with paint. Most of these devices, however, are directed to the problem of delivering paint to the bristles. Other aspects required for a workable, reliable brush assembly are not addressed. For example, little attention has been paid to the buildup of excess paint on the brush which leads to dripping, or to the necessity of cleaning the brush after use, particularly for oil-base paint which can dry and cake on the bristles. Standard brushes are cleaned by combing the bristles with a wire brush. During wire brushing, any feeder tubes within the bristles of a fountain brush are damaged by the wire brush. To conveniently clean the brush, therefore, the feeder tubes must be removed.

Marsh, U.S. Patent No. 1,465,856, discloses the use of screw plugs to access the manifold which supplies a number of feeder tubes. To clean the bristles, however, one must individually unscrew the feeder tubes. It is inconvenient to access the feeder tubes through the bristles, and extremely inconvenient to reposition the feeder tubes during attempted reattachroent of the tubes .

The brush of Choo, 1,829,850, disassembles into two parts, but his short feeder spouts remain attached to the portion of the brush containing the bristles. Further, the spouts do not extend into the bristles and therefore saturate the entire brush with paint. Once saturated, the brush drips paint, particularly when the brush is inverted to paint a ceiling or overhang.

Moreover, conventional fountain brushes deliver paint to the interior of the bristles. Bristle heads are designed, however, to apply paint which resides primarily on or near the exterior of the brush.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an improved brush assembly which enables use of elongated feeder tubes to properly deliver the paint to the working tips of the bristles while being easily removable during cleaning of the brush assembly.

It is a further object of this invention to provide such a brush assembly which can reliably deliver paint without dripping, even when inverted.

It is a further object of this invention to provide such a brush which can deliver paint both to the interior of the brush and, through reflow, to the exterior of the brush as well.

It is a further object of this invention to provide such a brush which compensates for variable paint delivery.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide an improved manifold which can be easily separated from an associated brush assembly and easily disassembled for cleaning.

A still further object of this invention is to provide such a manifold which is adaptable to different size bristle heads.

This invention results from the realization that a truly effective, readily cleanable fountain brush can be achieved by providing a manifold having a number of feed conduits which are removably insertable into a bristle head modified to slidably receive the manifold. A further realization is that the manifold can include a manifold head and a cover plate of a feed assembly which is detachable from the manifold head, the feed assembly further including a number of feed conduits attached at a first end to the cover plate, the feed conduits being of an appropriate length for the size of the bristle head to deliver paint only to the tips of the bristles while being easily removed during cleaning of the brush assembly. A still further realization is that more uniform application of paint can be achieved by forming a reservoir in the bristles using a sleeve which surrounds a portion of the bristles and establishes reflow of excess paint over the exterior of the bristles to their working surface.

This invention features a brush assembly including a bristle head having bristles secured at one end by a base, the base including a substrate and a skirt surrounding the substrate. There are also a manifold head having a feed port and a distribution channel communicating with the feed port, and a feed assembly having a cover plate for removably engaging the manifold head. The feed assembly has a plurality of feed conduits each attached at a first end to the cover plate and alignable with the distribution channel. The substrate includes a plurality of holes to slidably receive the other, delivery ends of the feed conduits when the manifold head and feed assembly are inserted within the skirt.

In one embodiment, the feed assembly is matched with the size of the bristle head so that the delivery ends of the feed conduits are proximate the tips of the bristles when the feed assembly is fully inserted within a skirt.

The sides of the cover plate may seat against the inner surface of the skirt. The brush assembly further includes means for removably securing together the bristle head, the manifold head and the cover plate, such as first means for engaging the cover plate and the manifold head relative to each other, and second means for engaging the manifold head to the substrate. The first means for engaging may include screw means for securing the cover plate to the manifold head, and second means for engaging may include at least two elongated screw means and the substrate further includes corresponding threaded holes for receiving the elongated screw means.

In another embodiment, the manifold head further includes a gasket for removably sealing the cover plate and the manifold head relative to each other, and the brush assembly further includes a brush handle having a passageway for conducting paint to the feed port of the manifold head. One or more of the feed conduits are constructed of a first, relatively inflexible member attached to a cover plate and a second, relatively flexible member which establishes the delivery end of the feed conduit. The bristle head may further include a sleeve which surrounds a portion of the bristles and sealingly engages at least a portion of the skirt to establish a reservoir for excess paint delivered through the feed conduits. The edge of the sleeve distal to the skirt is flared outwardly.

This invention also features a brush assembly including a bristle head having bristles secured at one end by a base, and a manifold having a feed port, a distribution channel communicating with the feed port, and a plurality of feed conduits each associated at a first end with the distribution channel. The base includes a plurality of holes to slidably receive the delivery ends of the feed conduits, and the brush assembly further includes means for

removably securing together the bristle head and the manifold.

This invention further features a manifold for delivering paint to the bristles of a bristle head of a brush assembly, including a manifold head having a feed port and a distribution channel communicating with the feed port, and a feed assembly having a cover plate for removably engaging the manifold head and having a plurality of feed conduits. The cover plate and the manifold head are shaped for insertion within the bristle head, and the manifold further includes means for removably securing together the manifold head and the cover plate.

DISCLOSURE OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT -

Other objects, features and advantages will occur from the following description of a preferred embodiment and the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a brush assembly according to this invention connected to a supply tank;

Fig. 2 is a schematic axonometric, partial cutaway view of a bristle head modified to removably receive a manifold according to this invention;

Fig. 3 is a schematic elevational exploded view of a manifold according to this invention and a handle to which it is removably attachable;

Fig. 4A is a top plan view of the manifold head shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 4B is a cross-sectional view of the manifold head of Fig. 4A;

Fig. 5A is a bottom plan view of the cover plate shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5B is a top plan view of the cover plate with the feed conduits removed;

Fig. 5C is a cross-sectional view of the cover plate of Fig. 5B;

Fig. 6 is a schematic axonometric view of an alternative bristle head according to this invention including a reservoir sleeve;

Fig. 7 is a schematic elevational view of an alternative feed assembly for use with the bristle head of Fig. 6; and

Fig. 8 is a schematic of paint delivery through the feed assembly of Fig. 7 when inserted in the bristle head of Fig. 6.

This invention may be accomplished by a manifold, for use with a brush assembly, which has a number of feed conduits that are removably insertable into a brush head modified to slidably receive the manifold. In one construction, the manifold includes a manifold head with a feed port and a distribution channel communicating with the feed port, and a feed assembly having a cover plate for removably engaging the manifold head. The feed assembly further includes a plurality of feed conduits each attached at a first end to the cover plate and alignable with the distribution channel. The other, delivery ends of the feed conduits supply paint to the tips of the bristles. To clean the bristles, the manifold is detached from the bristle head which withdraws the feed conduits from the bristles and permits simple wire brushing of the bristles to clean them.

In another construction, the bristle head includes a sleeve surrounding a portion of the bristles to establish a reservoir which provides more uniform distribution of paint. Wtren the sleeve is provided with a flared edge facing the working tip of the bristles, dripping is virtually eliminated regardless of the angle at which the brush is held during use. Further, the sleeve minimizes drying and caking of paint on the bristles so that simply rinsing the bristle head in solvent is usually sufficient to clean it.

Brush assembly 10, Fig. 1, includes brush head 12 attached to handle 14. Brush assembly 10 is connected at

coupler 16 to hose 18 which supplies paint through control valve 20 from tank 22. Coupler 16 is a swivel joint in one construction. Tank 22 includes pump apparatus 24 for pressurizing the contents of tank 22, and webbing 26 which serves as a shoulder strap so that tank 22 may be easily carried about without use of hands: one hand operates control valve 20 while the other manipulates brush assembly 10.

Brush head 12 includes bristle head 30, Fig. 2, including bristles 32 secured at one end by base 34 which includes substrate 36 surrounded by skirt 38. Bristle head 30 is preferably derived from a conventional bristle head by removing it from its associated handle and drilling holes 40 for receiving feed conduits. Holes 42 are drilled at either end for receiving screws for removably securing handle 14 to substrate 36. Once drilled, hole 42 is made threaded in one construction by inserting a conventional heli coil.

Referring to both Figs. 2 and 3, bristle head 30 slidably receives manifold 44 to establish brush head 12. Feed conduits 46 are received by holes 40 and, when fully inserted, come to rest approximately one-quarter to one-half inch from the tips of the bristles. Feed conduits 46 are part of feed assembly 48 which also includes cover plate 50. When manifold 44 is fully inserted within skirt 38, upper surface 52 comes to rest against the lower surface of substrate 36.

Manifold 44 further includes manifold head 54 to which cover plate 50 is removably attached. Gasket 53 assists sealing of cover plate 50 relative to manifold head 54. Manifold head 54 includes fitting 56 which serves as a feeder port for receiving paint which passes through hose 18 and passageway 58 of handle 14. Fitting 56 threadably engages portion 60 of handle 14; gasket 62 further seals manifold head 54 to handle 14. Handle 14 further includes holes 64, 66 for receiving elongated attachment screws 65,

67 which pass through manifold 44 to engage holes 42 in substrate 36.

Alternatively, passage 58 accommodates a pipe which is slidable through the handle and is threaded at one end to engage a threaded hole within manifold head 54. The other end of the pipe is secured to hose 18 by a clamp. In that construction, the need for gasket 62 is eliminated.

Manifold head 54 is shown in greater detail in Fig. 4A with cover plate 50 and gasket 53 removed. Manifold 54 includes holes 70, 72 for receiving screws 65, 67, respectively. Feed port 74 receives fitting 56, Fig. 3, and provides paint to distribution channel 76 which is shown in cross-section in Fig. 4B. Gasket 53 is also shown in Fig. 4B.

Holes 78, 80, 82, 84, Fig. 4A, correspond to holes 78a, 80a, 82a and 84a of cover plate 50, Fig. 5A. Similarly, holes 70a and 72a correspond to holes 70, 72. Cover plate 50 further includes openings 86, 88, 90, 92 which receive first, proximal ends of the feed conduits and are aligned with distribution channel 76, Figs. 4A, 4B.

The same manifold head may be used with a number of different bristle heads even if they are of various sizes. For each width of bristle head, cover plate 50 is selected so that its edges seat against the inside of the skirt of the bristle head to assist the anchorage and mechanical support provided by the attachment screws. For example, if cover plate 50 is constructed to match a two and one half-inch bristle head, cover plate 50a, whose outline is shown in phantom, matches a three-inch bristle head. The holes within cover plate 50a are at the same location as the holes within cover plate 50, insuring compatability of the various cover plates to a manifold head. Cover plate 50a includes feeder conduits which are longer in length, e.g., three and one half inches instead of two and one half

inches, corresponding to the longer bristle length which is found in a three-inch bristle head.

A top plan view of cover plate 50 is provided in Fig. 5B. The edges surrounding holes 78a, 80a, 82a, 84a are countersunk in this construction to receive flat head screws which threadably engage holes 78, 80, 82, 84, Fig. 4A. Cover plate 50 further includes recess 94, shown in cross-section in Fig. 5C, which receives epoxy to surround and embed the feeder conduits when they are inserted within holes 86, 88, 90, 92.

Components of an alternative brush assembly according to this invention are shown in Figs. 6 and 7. Bristle head 30a, Fig. 6, includes sleeve 100 which surrounds skirt 38a and extends approximately halfway toward the tip of bristles 32a. Substrate 36a is indicated in phantom. It is desirable to form sleeve 100 from heat shrink tubing which is heated until it sealingly engages against skirt 38a. The distal portion of sleeve 100 is heated by a lesser amount to develop flared lip 102 which catches excess paint that would otherwise drip when bristle head 30a is in the inverted position as shown.

Feed assembly 48a, Fig. 7, includes feed conduits 46 which are formed of two elements, relatively inflexible members 103 embedded in cover plate 50a at one end and engaged at the other end by flexible members 105 which establish the delivery end of feed conduits 46. For example, first member 104 and second member 106 comprise feed conduit 107. First member 104 can be formed from a stiff yet flexible plastic tube; the stiffness of the tube maintains the position of feed conduits 46 within the center of the bristles once inserted in the bristle head. Second member 106 may be formed from heat shrink tubing which exhibits both great flexibility and durability. Feed assembly 48a further includes neoprene gasket 108 which surrounds the proximal end of first members 103 and

establishes a seal between cover plate 50a and the substrate of the bristle head.

The interaction of feed assembly 48a and bristle head 30a is shown in Fig. 8. Bristle head 30a is applied to surface 110 and moved in the direction indicated by arrow 112. Flexible member 104 bends to approximately the same degree as bristles 32a. The bending assists delivery of paint to the center of the working tip of bristles 32a; any further positioning is assisted by stiffness of first member 104 and by support from captive bristles within sleeve 100.

Paint is delivered to the tip of bristles 32a in several ways. Initially, paint is delivered directly to the working tip as indicated by arrow 114. After a short period of" time, however, excess paint travels through a wieking or capillary type action as shown by arrows 116, 118 to enter sleeve 100. Sleeve 100 establishes reservoir 120 which accumulates excess paint. As reservoir 120 fills, paint begins to reflow along the outside of bristles 32a as shown by arrows 122, 124. Although paint may be delivered on both the leading and trailing edge of flared lip 102, more paint tends to flow from the leading edge because gap 126 develops as bristle head 30a is moved in direction 112. The additional paint flows along the exterior surface of bristles 32a as shown by arrow 128.

In addition to serving as a reservoir which provides more even distribution of paint and accommodates variable delivery of paint, sleeve 100 cooperates with feed assembly 48a to enable inside-out delivery of paint to bristles 32a, which is particularly useful during the first few minutes of painting, and then delivers paint by reflow to the working surface along the outside of bristles 32a. Because bristle head 30a can be modified from a standard paint brush, and because a standard paint brush is designed to carry paint primarily on the outside of its bristles, sleeve 100 enables the bristles to function more effectively. Moreover, sleeve

100 serves as a barrier between the hand of the painter and the saturated bristles 32a; this construction conserves paint and reduces clean-up time. Of course, sleeve 100 can be combined according to this invention with other bristle heads having different manifold configurations and still establish reflow of excess paint over the exterior of the bristles to their working surfaces.

Further, the addition of sleeve 100 makes bristle heads more versatile. Bristles such as Chinese bristles, which swell and lose their tapered shape when immersed in a water-based paint such as latex paint, when surrounded by sleeve 100 can now be used with the water-based paints: sleeve 100 controls the shape of the bristle head to maintain the desired taper.

Although specific features of the invention are shown in some drawings and not others, this is for convenience only as each feature may be combined with any or all of the other features in accordance with the invention.

Other embodiments will occur to those skilled in the art and are within the following claims: What is claimed is: