Paint roller coating apparatus

Claim 1

A PAINT ROLLER COATING APPARATUS COMPRISING A HOUSING ASSEMBLY PROVIDING A RESERVOIR PORTION WITH A TRANSVERSE OPENING AT ONE END THEREOF; A GENERALLY CYLINDRICAL INNER ROLLER ROTATABLY MOUNTED ADJACENT SAID TRANSVERSE OPENING IN SAID HOUSING ASSEMBLY WITH ITS AXIS EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY OF SAID HOUSING, SAID ROLLER HAVING A RELATIVELY RIGID CORE PORTION AND AN ABSORBENT OUTER PORTION ADAPTED TO ABSORB PAINT CONTAINED WITHIN SAID RESERVOIR PORTION DURING OPERATION OF THE APPARATUS; FIRST SEALING MEANS FOR SAID INNER ROLLER MOUNTED ON SAID HOUSING ASSEMBLY HAVING PORTIONS EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY THEREOF ABOVE AND BELOW THE AXIS OF SAID INNER ROLLER AND IN CLOSEFITTING RELATIONSHIP WITH THE SURFACE OF SAID INNER ROLLER ALONG THE AXIAL LENGTH THEREOF; SECOND SEALING MEANS FOR SAID INNER ROLLER MOUNTED ON SAID HOUSING ASSEMBLY HAVING PORTIONS ADJACENT THE END PORTIONS OF SAID INNER ROLLER IN CLOSE-FITTING RELATIONSHIP THEREWITH AND COOPERATING WITH SAID FIRST SEALING MEANS AT THE ENDS THEREOF TO PREVENT SUBSTANTIALLY THE PASSAGE OF PAINT FROM SAID RESERVOIR PORTION THROUGH SAID OPENING AT SAID ONE END OF SAID HOUSING ASSEMBLY EXCEPT AS ABSORBED AND TRANSPORTED BY SAID ABSORBENT OUTER PORTION OF SAID INNER ROLLER DURING OPERATION OF THE APPARATUS; A GENERALLY CYLINDRICAL OUTER ROLLER HAVING AN ABSORBENT OUTER PORTION AND A RELATIVELY RIGID CORE PORTION; MEANS ROTATABLY MOUNTING SAID OUTER ROLLER WITH ITS AXIS OUTWARDLY OF SAID INNER ROLLER AND ADJACENT SAID OPENING OF SAID HOUSING ASSEMBLY AND PARALLEL TO THE AXIS OF ROTATION OF SAID INNER ROLLER AND WITH A PORTION THEREOF EXTENDING RADIALLY OUTWARDLY OF SAID OPENING, SAID MEANS MOUNTING SAID OUTER ROLLER WITH ITS ABSORBENT OUTER PORTION SECANTALLY INTERSECTING THE ABSORBENT OUTER PORTION OF SAID INNER ROLLER TO ROTATE SAID INNER ROLLER AND EFFECT TRANSFER OF PAINT FROM SAID INNER ROLLER TO SAID OUTER ROLLER DURING ROTATION THEREOF IN OPERATION OF THE APPARATUS.