PAINT BRUSH THE BRISTLES OF WHICH ARE RAISED OFF THE SURFACE ON WHICH THE BRUSH LIES

The present invention relates to a paint brush.

Known paint brushes comprise a handle portion, and bristles which are connected to the handle portion using a metallic ferrule which performs two functions in that firstly it wraps around an end of the handle to secure itself to the handle, and secondly it wraps itself around the bristles. The bristles are mounted in an adhesive block which is also clamped by the ferrule. Typically the ferrule is a thin metallic strip which is wrapped around the handle and bristles, and is then mechanically pressed to form a band so as to secure itself to the handle. Such a known arrangement is shown in Figure 1.

When consumers are applying paint with a brush to a surface such as a wall or ceiling there are many occasions where it is necessary to temporarily store the brush to enable the consumer to carry out another task, for example, to use a different size brush, or to use a roller. This often causes a problem in that the consumer has no convenient place to temporarily store the brush and prevent paint from dripping onto a protected surface such as a piece of furniture or a floor covering.

The consumer will often temporarily position the paint brush on a protected work surface and support it on the ferrule. Since the ferrule is thin, and wraps around both the handle and the bristles, when the brush is supported by the ferrule, the bristles will often come into contact with the work surface and pick up any dirt present. This is a concern to consumers since this will then be transferred to the wall when painting is recommenced.

An object of the present is to provide a paint brush that can be stored conveniently.

Thus, according to the present invention there is provided a paint brush comprising a bristle portion for applying paint, a handle portion, and a ferrule which secures the bristle portion to the handle portion, in which the ferrule partially locates inside the handle portion.

Advantageously this allows the handle portion to circumvent the ferrule, and therefore the paint brush can be supported on a surface by the handle portion and minimise the risk of the bristle portion coming into contact with the surface thus protecting the surface from paint, and the bristle portion from any dirt on the surface.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a paint brush comprising a bristle portion for applying paint, a handle portion, and a ferrule which secures the bristle portion to the handle portion, in which the ferrule is extruded.

By manufacturing the ferrule by extrusion, the ferrule can be made in a continuous band, and therefore there are no joins that allow paint build up and reduce the ergonomic feel of the brush.

The invention will now be described by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a side view of a known paint brush,

Figure 2 is a perspective view of a paint brush according to the present invention,

Figure 3 is a side view of the paint brush of Figure 2,

Figure 4 is a plan view of a paint brush of Figure 2,

Figure 5 is a sectional perspective view of the paint brush of Figure 2,

Figure 6 is a sectional plan view of the paint brush of Figure 2,

Figure 7 and Figure 8 are perspective views of the handle of the paint brush of Figure 2 without the ferrule and bristles, and

Figure 9 is a side view of the paint brush of Figure 2 resting on a surface.

With reference to Figures 2 to 4. there is shown a paint brush 10 which comprises a handle 12, bristles 14, and a ferrule 16.

The ferrule 16 is a one-piece continuous extruded section which has the advantage that there are no joins to attract and retain paint.

The handle 12 is a plastic moulding and comprises an elongated portion 13 and a ferrule receiving portion 15 that has a larger diameter than the elongated portion 13.

The ferrule receiving portion 15 has an external peripheral surface 41.

The ferrule 16 has an external peripheral surface 39.

It can be seen from Figures 3 to 5 that the external peripheral surface 39 of the ferrule 16 is positioned radially inwardly of the external peripheral surface 41 of the ferrule receiving portion 15 of the handle 12.

The handle 12 includes a metallic blade 20 at the free end of the elongated portion 13 for removing a lid (not shown) of a paint container (not shown).

With reference to Figures 5 to 8, the ferrule receiving portion 15 defines a blind aperture 17 which has an inside surface 21 having a raised section 23 spaced from a free end 25 of the handle 12. The ferrule receiving portion 15 has a ferrule support 27 which extends from the base 29 of the aperture 17.

The bristles 14 are attached to the handle 12 as follows:

The bristles 14 are inserted into a resin block 18. The ferrule 16 is extruded such that it is a complete band without any joins. The ferrule 16 is inserted into the free end 25 of the ferrule receiving portion 15 such that it is in contact with inside surface 21 and abuts against the raised section 23. The resin block 18 containing bristles 14 is then inserted inside the ferrule 16. The ferrule 16, and the resin block are retained inside the ferrule receiving portion using an adhesive 30. The ferrule support 27 acts as an

anchor for the adhesive 30 such that the ferrule 16 and resin block 18 are retained within the ferrule receiving portion 15.

It can be seen from Figures 2 to 4 that once assembled, the ferrule 16 is partially located inside the handle 12, such that the handle actually surrounds the ferrule.

A comparison of Figures 1 and 9 shows that the paint brush of the present invention can be supported on a surface 80 by the handle 12 without the bristles 14 coming into contact with the surface. This is achieved due to the fact that the ferrule locates inside the handle thereby allowing the handle to circumvent the ferrule. The weighting and positioning of the metallic blade 20 enables the centre of gravity of the paint brush to lie such that the bristles are raised off the surface.

It can be seen from Figure 3 that there is a step 31 between the ferrule and the handle as a result of the ferrule locating inside the handle. This step acts as a paint drip catcher for any paint running down the bristles towards the handle.

It can be seen from Figure 4 that positioning the ferrule inside the handle increases the exposed area of the handle which the user can manipulate when painting with the brush.