Record Care Pad

This invention relates to apparatus for supporting, holding and protecting a record and its surrounding environment during treatment such as cleaning or application of a protective coating to lubricate or seal the record. In particular, the invention relates to a device in the presently preferred form of a stationary pad having outer dimensions larger than that of the phonograph record which is to be treated.

When treating a record, it should be placed on a clean, lint-free surface. Various methods are presently used, such as placing the record on a towel or on a couch cushion, etc. In most of these methods, the record may bend, pick up additional dirt or slide about.

U.S. Pat. No. 1,102,073 to Pearson, discloses a stationary cleaning structure. Treatment of the record occurs at the interface between the record and the stationary structure, and the stationary cleaning structure is of lesser diameter than the record itself. Furthermore, no provision is made for the collection of fluids which may flow from the record or device during treatment.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,558,123 to Candella, teaches a structure which sits on the usual turntable and rotates therewith. The structure contains a raised central portion and a continuous outer lip extending beyond the periphery of the record so as to contain fluids used in treatment of the record within a pan-shaped device. The fact that the turntable is used as a support is undesirable in that treatment of the record exposes the turntable to unnecessary chances of damage.

In addition, there are a great number of references related to turntable structures for phonographs. However, all of the references appear to have some deficiency for use as a treatment surface. U.S. Pat. No. 1,347,113 to Merriam, does appear to have a lip surrounding the figure; however, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the whole structure is perforated so that the lip could not be used to contain a treatment fluid. U.S. Pat. No. 2,577,035 to Reid and No. 3,524,652 to Van Antwerp, also illustrate turntable structures; however, neither patent shows an outer lip, nor do the structures seem to be necessarily larger than the record which is to be played thereon.

Finally, U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,247,232 to Delany and 3,792,507 to Szabrak et al both disclose structures for cleaning records or computer disks. However, the structure disclosed in both is quite different from the present invention.

The present invention overcomes many of the problems of the prior art. When placed on a flat, firm surface, the device provides a safe, secure means for holding a record during treatment. The device consists of a somewhat flexible stationary pad having outer dimensions larger than the phonograph record which is to be treated on it. The periphery of the pad is provided with a continuous raised lip so as to prevent the inadvertent spillage of treatment liquids from the pad onto the underlying surface or the like. Pedestal portions are distributed over most of the area with undercut channels therebetween in order to aid the removal of the record (e.g. finger gripping and air passage areas are defined) and to prevent the lower surface of the record from lying in the treatment fluids that may flow off of the upper surface of the record or be inadvertently misapplied beyond the record edges. The pad is preferably made of a rubber-like, nonabrasive material which has a high coefficient of friction for prohibiting the record from rotating or sliding about so that an operator need not hold the record in place during treatment. This material is also preferably of a low electrical conductivity so as to retain static electricity charges which tend to attract and retain dirt particles from the record surface placed in contact therewith.

In one embodiment of the invention, a central protrusion is provided on which to center the record. In a second embodiment of the invention, the peripheral lip extends in height above the level of the pedestal portions so as to provide a further safeguard that the record will not slide off of the pad.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent and more readily appreciated from the following detailed description of the presently preferred exemplary embodiment of this invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a sectional elevation taken along the 2--2 line of FIG. 1.

Referring now to the drawings, pad 10 has outer dimensions somewhat larger than the largest record which will be treated on pad 10 (typically a standard long-playing record). Raised pedestal portions, such as portion 12, has a diameter somewhat smaller than that of a long-playing record and projects approximately 0.05 inches above the surface of pad 10. Pedestal portions 12 are separated by channels 13 having the same elevation as the upper surface of pad 10. Pedestal portions 12 serve to raise the record above any fluid that may accumulate on pad 10 during treatment and to aid in the removal of the record after treatment. The surface of pedestal portions 12 is roughened so that the surface varies by approximately two to three thousandths of an inch in depth to increase the friction between pedestal portions 12 and the record. The roughening is preferably accomplished so as to give the appearance of leather.

The periphery of pad 10 is provided with a continuous raised lip 14 so as to prevent the inadvertent spillage of fluids from the pad onto an underlying surface or the like. The height of lip 14 is slightly lower than the height of pedestal portions 12 so as to protect the underside of the record being treated from an excess accumulation of treatment fluid.

At the center of pad 10 is small protrusion 16 designed to fit into the standard locating hole in a long-playing record. In use, the record is centered on protrusion 16 so as to prohibit sliding. The roughened surface of pedestal portions 12, in addition to preventing sliding, also prevents rotation.

In the preferred embodiment, pad 10 and the features thereon are all constructed of the same material. This material is preferably rubber-like and nonabrasive, with a high coefficient of friction. Preferably, pad 10 is composed of a thermoplastic rubber. In the preferred embodiment, pad 10 is composed of a butadiene-styrene copolymer such as Solprene manufactured by Phillips. This substance not only increases the friction between pedestal portions 12 and the record, but also increases the friction between pad 10 and the stationary surface on which it is placed, thereby increasing the stability of the record.

The butadiene-styrene copolymer is of relatively low electrical conductivity and thus has a tendency to develop and retain a static charge on its surface while the record is being rubbed during treatment. This static charge has been discovered to be useful in attracting and retaining foreign particles, such as lint, dust, etc., from the lower surface of the record.

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, lip 14 is constructed so as to extend slightly above pedestal portions 12, and protrusion 16 is eliminated. In this embodiment, lip 14 prohibits the record from sliding off of pad 10.

Although only two exemplary embodiments of this invention have been described in detail above, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. For example, if it is known that all treatments performed on the pad will not involve excess fluids, lip 14 need not be continuous around the periphery of pad 10. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.