Clamp and process for protecting printing screens and frames
OwnerErvin V. Barocas, Lewis C. McLemore, IIIinventors
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An attractive, economical, dependable frame protector and process are provided to minimize tearing, puncturing, scratching, and loosening of printing screens as well as to protect and extend the useful life of a printing screen frame. The frame protector comprises a special expandable clamp with an annular body portion and lips which clamp the printing screen. The lips of the clamp can be taped to the printing screen. The clamp annularly surrounds and covers the frame member. The annular body portion includes a printing screen frame-engagable clamping member with a bight that is shaped and arranged to complement the contour of and clamp a frame member of a printing screen frame.
Claims18
A frame protector for protecting and extending the useful life of a printing screen frame, comprising:
- an expandable clamp for peripherally surrounding, enclosing and extending along a length of a frame member of a printing screen frame;
- said clamp having an annular body portion comprising a printing screen frame-engageable clamping member with a resilient bight portion extending at least about 270 degrees, said bight portion being complementary to the contour of the frame member to matingly engage the frame member, said clamping member being in a normally closed biased position for clamping and snap fitting interlocking engagement with said printing screen frame and being expandable to define a mouth for slidably receiving said frame member;
- and
- said clamp having substantially parallel flanges defining screen-engageable lips extending inwardly from said clamping member for engaging, clamping and preventing tearing of a printing screen.
A frame protector assembly for protecting a printing screen frame and preventing tearing of edges of a printing screen secured by the printing screen frame, comprising:
- a pair of longitudinal substantially symmetrical frame protectors;
- a pair of lateral substantially symmetrical frame protectors extending laterally between and connected adjacent to said longitudinal frame protectors;
- each of said longitudinal and lateral frame protectors comprising an expandable elongated impact-resistant clamp for annularly surrounding, enclosing and extending along a frame member of a printing screen frame;
- said clamp having an annular body portion comprising a printing screen frame-engageable clamping member with a flexible arcuate bight, said bight being complementary to the contour of the frame member to matingly engaging the frame member, said clamping member being in a normally closed biased position for clamping and compressively engaging said printing screen frame and being expandable to define a mouth for receiving said frame member;
- said clamp having substantially parallel flanges defining screen-engageable lips extending inwardly from said clamping member for covering and clamping edges of a printing screen;
- and
- detachable water-impermeable tape for taping and connecting said lips to said printing screen.
A screen printing process, comprising the steps of:
- preventing a printing screen from tearing and extending the useful life of a printing screen frame holding said printing screen by annularly surrounding and covering frame members of said printing screen frame with elongated annular clamps;
- clamping edges of said printing screen with lips of said clamps;
- and
- taping the lips of said clamps to the edges of said printing screen.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.