SYSTEM AND APPARATUS FOR SANITIZING A DOOR OPENING DEVICE OR OTHER POINT OF CONTACT

• US 20140291552A1
• Filed: 06/09/2014
• Published: 10/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/23/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GERM DOME Industries LLC
• Original Assignee: Dean Schumacher
• Inventors: Schumacher, Dean
• Granted Patent: US 9,833,525 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 250/492.1
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 25/04 for door-knobs
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 2/10 Ultraviolet radiation
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 2202/14 Means for controlling sterilisation processes, data processing, presentation and storage means, e.g. sensors, controllers, programs
• CPC Class Codes: B08B 7/0057 by ultraviolet radiation

Abstract

An apparatus for sanitizing a point-of-contact surface may include a housing configured to be affixed about at least a portion of said point of contact. The housing may have an interior in or through which the point of contact may be accessed and an anterior opening for access to the interior. The apparatus may further include one or more sources of a sanitizing agent, such as germicidal light, configured to direct the sanitizing agent toward a location where at least a portion of the point-of-contact surface may be disposed. One or more of an anterior dome, an inner surface, and a posterior surface may also be configured to reflect the sanitizing agent toward the location where at least a portion of the point-of-contact surface may be disposed.

Claims

1. An apparatus for sanitizing a point-of-contact surface, the apparatus comprising:

a housing having an interior in or through which a point-of-contact surface may be accessed, a posterior opening through which at least a portion of the point-of-contact surface may extend into said interior, and an anterior opening for access to said interior;

one or more sources of germicidal light configured to direct said germicidal light toward a location where at least a portion of the point-of-contact surface may be disposed;

an anterior structure, affixed to or integral with said housing, configured to reflect said germicidal light toward a location where at least a portion of said point-of-contact surface may be disposed, said anterior structure defining said anterior opening through which said interior may be accessed, wherein at least a portion of said anterior structure extends in an anterior direction beyond an anterior-most portion of said point-of-contact surface, such that the apparatus is configured to sanitize the anterior-most portion of said point-of-contact surface.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said anterior structure comprises a dome.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said dome comprises a planar surface.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said dome comprises a curved surface.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said housing comprises a wall that extends from a posterior end of said housing to an anterior end of said housing at an angle that is not perpendicular to a posterior surface of said housing.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said germicidal light comprises germicidal ultraviolet (UV) light.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said germicidal light comprises germicidal blue light.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said germicidal light comprises germicidal high-intensity, narrow-spectrum (HINS) light.

9. An apparatus for sanitizing a point-of-contact surface, the apparatus comprising:

one or more sources of germicidal light configured to direct said germicidal light toward a location where at least a portion of the point-of-contact surface may be disposed; and

a housing in which said one or more sources of germicidal light are disposed, said housing configured to be affixed about at least a portion of said point-of-contact surface, said housing comprising;

an interior in or through which said point-of-contact surface may be accessed;

a posterior surface defining a posterior opening through which at least a portion of said point-of-contact surface may extend into said interior, said posterior surface configured to reflect light from said one or more sources of germicidal light towards a portion of said point-of-contact surface; and

an anterior opening for access to said interior;

wherein a portion of said housing extends in an anterior direction beyond an anterior-most portion of the point-of-contact surface.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein said housing comprises a wall that extends from a posterior end of said housing to an anterior end of said housing at an angle that is not perpendicular to a posterior surface of said housing.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein said germicidal light comprises one or more germicidal lights selected from the list consisting of:

germicidal ultraviolet (UV) light;

germicidal blue light; and

germicidal high-intensity, narrow-spectrum (HINS) light.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising a protective screen configured to separate at least one of said sources of a sanitizing agent from a central portion of said interior in or through which said point-of-contact surface may be accessed.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein said protective screen is substantially cylindrical.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein said protective screen comprises a material that is transparent or translucent to the germicidal light.

15. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein said housing comprises a frustoconical portion.

16. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein said housing comprises an inner surface configured to reflect the germicidal light.

17. An apparatus for sanitizing a point-of-contact surface, the apparatus comprising:

a housing having an interior in or through which a point-of-contact surface may be accessed, a posterior opening through which at least a portion of the point-of-contact surface may extend into said interior, and an anterior opening for access to said interior; and

one or more sources of germicidal light configured to direct said germicidal light toward a location where at least a portion of the point-of-contact surface may be disposed, wherein at least a portion of at least one of the one or more sources of germicidal light extends in the anterior direction beyond an anterior-most portion of the point-of-contact surface.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein a portion of said housing extends in the anterior direction beyond an anterior-most portion of the point-of-contact surface

19. The apparatus of claim 17, further comprising an anterior structure, affixed to or integral with said housing, configured to reflect said germicidal light toward a location where at least a portion of said point-of-contact surface may be disposed, said anterior structure defining an anterior opening through which said interior may be accessed, wherein at least a portion of said anterior structure extends in an anterior direction beyond an anterior-most portion of said point-of-contact surface, such that the apparatus is configured to sanitize the anterior-most portion of said point-of-contact surface

20. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein said housing comprises a frustoconical portion that defines said anterior opening.