It is often desirable to place a mat atop a carpet in order to keep the carpet clean and to reduce its wear and tear. Generally, the mat lies freely atop the carpet and, upon the exertion of an exterior force, it is moved away from its initial location, and as a result, the carpet becomes dirty and worn. One method to secure a mat atop a carpet is to sew or otherwise secure one-half of a hook and loop type fastener directly to the carpet and to secure the corresponding other half of the fastener directly to the underside of the mat. See, for example, Richards U.S. Pat. No. 4,012,544 and McLaughlin U.S. Pat. No. 4,671,981. There are problems with this, however. Once the fastener on the carpet wears, it has to be removed and this is not only difficult, but it can also cause damage to the carpet.
Secondly, periodic cleaning of the carpet can wear the fastener and thus hinder its performance.
Additionally, once the fastener is secured to the carpet, the car operator is forced to use mats having a specific size and configuration to correspond to the location of the fasteners.
Patent disclosing the use of metal clips or pins which are inserted through the mat and carpet such that a head of the clip or pin remain above the surface of the mat include Kilmer U.S. Pat. No. 363,399 and VanBuren U.S. Pat. No. 778,287. These metal clips or pins, however, are unsightly since the head of the clip or pin is visible in use. Also, the clips must be completely removed and reinserted whenever the carpet is to be cleaned, thus causing damage to the carpet and mat in addition to inconveniencing the user.
The present invention is directed toward overcoming one or more of the problems as set forth above.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds