Grip-type lockable cutter knife

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6189218
  • Patent Number
    6,189,218
  • Date Filed
    Friday, June 11, 1999
    25 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, February 20, 2001
    23 years ago
  • Inventors
  • Original Assignees
  • Examiners
    • Watts; Douglas D.
    Agents
    • Evenson, McKeown, Edwards & Lenahan, P.L.L.C.
Abstract
A gripping type of cutter knife wherein a knife blade can be locked into both the retracted and projected positions. This cutter knife includes a locking mechanism of which construction and handling are simple. In this cutter knife, a knife blade is projected by grasping, against spring force, a trigger lever projected from the grip portion of the cutter body. This cutter knife is characterized in that it has a push-type locking mechanism which is selectively held in “unlocking position” wherein the trigger lever is allowed to swing, or “locking position” wherein the swing is prohibited.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




FIELD OF THE INVENTION




The present invention relates to a grip-type cutter knife wherein a knife blade is projected from a cutter body thereof by pressing a trigger lever.





FIGS. 1 and 2

show one example of a well-known conventional grip-type cutter knife


10


. This cutter knife comprises an elongated cutter body


11


provided with a grip portion


12


. At the front end of the body


11


, there is provided a circular rotary blade


15


. In

FIG. 1

, the rotary blade


15


is projected from the body for cutting. In

FIG. 2

, the rotary blade


15


is retracted in the body, and the cutting is impossible.




The rotary blade


15


is connected to a swing member which is pivotally supported in the cutter body


11


. A part of this swing member is projected from the grip portion


12


to serve as a trigger lever


14


(FIG.


2


). The swing member is forced into the non-cutting position (

FIG. 2

) by a spring member (not shown) arranged in the cutter body


11


. That is, when grasping the trigger lever


14


into the cutter body


11


against the spring force, the rotary blade


15


is projected from the forward end of the cutter body


11


(FIG.


1


). On the other hand, when releasing the grasping hand, the rotary blade


15


is retracted into a platform


13


at the forward end of the cutter body


11


.




Among the grip-type cutters, there are some products which have a cover on the platform


13


of the cutter body


11


, or which have a locking mechanism prohibiting the swing of the swing member, in order to avoid the unintentional projection of the blade. The cutter having the locking mechanism is more convenient in handling than that having the cover.




Even among the grip-type cutters having a locking mechanism, although a mechanism locking the knife blade in retracted position is known, a mechanism locking the knife blade in projected position is unknown. It is understood from

FIG. 1

that, in order to keep the knife blade projected, a user must keep on grasping the grip portion


12


against the spring force to press the trigger lever in. This would bring physical fatigue to the user in continuous working.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a grip-type cutter knife wherein a knife blade can be locked in both retracted and projected positions with a locking mechanism the construction and handling of which are both simple.




In view of the above object, the present invention provides a grip type of cutter knife comprising:




a knife blade which is projected by grasping, against spring force, a trigger lever projected from a grip portion of a cutter body; and




a push-type locking mechanism which is selectively held in an unlocking position wherein the trigger lever is allowed to swing, or a locking position wherein the swing is prohibited.




Further, the present invention provides a grip type of cutter knife comprising:




a cutter body having a grip portion;




a swing member being pivotally supported in the cutter body and carrying a knife blade, wherein one end of the swing member serves as a trigger lever;




a biasing member forcing the swing member into a non-cutting position wherein the knife blade is retracted in the cutter body and the trigger lever is outwardly projected from the grip portion of the cutter body; and




a locking member which is longer than a thickness of the cutter body and which is placed through an opening formed in the cutter body and through an elongated opening formed in the swing member, the locking member comprising a larger diameter cylindrical body and a smaller diameter portion partially formed in the cylindrical body;




wherein the opening formed in the cutter body fits a cross sectional configuration of the locking member so as to allow the locking member to slide only in the thickness direction of the cutter body;




wherein the elongated opening formed in the swing member comprises a first wider space and a second wider space with a neck portion therebetween, through which neck portion the smaller diameter portion of the locking member is able to pass, but the larger diameter cylindrical body is not able to pass, and




wherein the locking member has a holding mechanism which holds the locking member itself selectively in an unlocking position wherein the smaller diameter portion of the locking member is in a swing route of the swing member so as to allow the swing member to swing, or a locking position wherein the larger diameter cylindrical body of the locking member is in the swing route of the swing member so as to engage with the first or second wider space to prohibit the swing of the swing member.




In the cutter knife of the present invention constructed as above, the locking member longer than the thickness of the cutter body is held in the cutter body so as to slide only in the thickness direction of the cutter body, so that the locking member can be selectively placed in the “unlocking position” wherein one end of the locking member is projected from one side of the cutter body, or the “locking position” wherein the other end of the locking member is projected from the other side of the cutter body. When the locking member is placed in the “unlocking position” , the smaller diameter portion of the locking member is in the swing route of the swing member. Because the neck portion of the elongated opening formed in the swing member can pass through the smaller diameter portion, the swing member is allowed to swing. On the other hand, when the locking member is placed in the “locking position”, the larger diameter cylindrical body of the locking member is in the swing route of the swing member, and engages with the first or second wider space of the elongated opening formed in the swing member. Because the neck portion of the elongated opening formed in the swing member can not pass through the larger diameter cylindrical body, the swing of the swing member is prohibited.




The locking member is to be projected from the different side of the cutter body depending on its positioning in the “unlocking position” or in the “locking position”. Further, the locking member is provided with a holding mechanism which selectively holds the locking member itself in the “unlocking position” or the “locking position”. Therefore, the switching between the “unlocking position” and the “locking position” can be easily executed by pushing the locking member with a finger.




Further, the knife blade can also be locked in the projected position by switching the locking member from the “unlocking position” to the “locking position” when the knife blade is in the projected position (cutting position), as well as that the knife blade can be locked in the retracted position by switching the locking member from the “unlocking position” to the “locking position” when the knife blade is in the retracted position (non-cutting position). Thanks to this function, in the case of continuous working with the cutter knife for a long time, at least the “gripping force for keeping the rotary blade in the projected position” is not needed, so that the physical fatigue due to the continuous working can be lowered.




In the present invention, the holding mechanism of the locking member can be preferably constituted by a protrusion which is laterally projected from the larger diameter cylindrical body and is able to elastically retract into the larger diameter cylindrical body. This protrusion engages with an edge of the opening formed in the cutter body so as to selectively hold the locking member in the “unlocking position” or the “locking position”.




In the case this holding mechanism is employed, because of the appropriate snap fitting at the time of reaching the “unlocking position” or the “locking position” of the locking member, not only the holding of the locking member at each position is ensured, but also a sense of safety at handling is enhanced.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS




This and other objects and features of the present invention will become clear from the following description taken in conjunction with the preferred embodiment thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:





FIG. 1

shows a conventional grip-type cutter knife with its rotary blade being projected;





FIG. 2

shows the cutter knife of

FIG. 1

with its rotary blade being retracted;





FIG. 3

is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the cutter knife, of the present invention, being in a locked condition;





FIG. 4

is a perspective view showing the cutter knife of

FIG. 3

being in an unlocked condition;





FIG. 5

is a plan view showing an outer surface of one body piece which constitutes the cutter body;





FIG. 6

is a plan view of a swing member which is pivotaly supported in the cutter body;





FIG. 7

is a plan view showing an inner surface of the other body piece which constitutes the cutter body;





FIGS. 8 and 9

explain the swing of the swing member of

FIG. 6

;





FIG. 10

is a side elevational view showing a locking member employed in the cutter knife of

FIG. 3

;





FIG. 11

is a side elevational view of the locking member of

FIG. 10

, shown from the direction A; and





FIGS. 12

to


15


explain the locking mechanism in the cutter knife of FIG.


3


.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT





FIGS. 3 and 4

are perspective views showing an entire cutter knife


20


of the present invention. The cutter knife


20


is distinguished from the conventional one


10


in

FIGS. 1 and 2

by the fact that the cutter knife


20


is provided with a push-type lock button


30


. As to other basic construction, there is no difference between them.




The lock button


30


is constituted by a cylindrical locking member


600


(FIGS.


10


and


11


), which is described in detail later. The height (or length) of the lock button


30


is equal to the sum of “cutter body thickness” and “upward projection amount in FIG.


3


″”. That is, when the lock button


30


is pushed into the cutter body


21


from

FIG. 3

to

FIG. 4

, the lock button


30


is downwardly projected from the backside of the cutter body


21


in FIG.


4


. The downwardly projected portion does not appear in FIG.


4


.




When the lock button


30


is upwardly projected (FIG.


3


), the swing of a swing member


400


is prohibited so that a rotary blade


55


cannot move. Hereinafter, this position of the lock button


30


is referred to as “locking position”. On the other hand, when the lock button


30


is pushed into the cutter body


21


so as to downwardly project (FIG.


4


), the rotary blade


55


can freely move with grasping or releasing a grip portion


22


. Hereinafter, this position of the lock button


30


is referred to as “unlocking position”. The detail mechanism of the cutter knife


20


is explained below.




As shown in

FIGS. 3 and 4

, the cutter knife


20


comprises two body pieces


200


,


300


and a swing member


400


sandwiched therebetween. The two body pieces


200


and


300


constitute the cutter body


21


. The swing member


400


carries the rotary blade


55


and one end of the member


400


serves as a trigger lever


44


.





FIG. 5

shows the outer surface of the body piece


200


, and

FIG. 7

shows the inner surface of the body piece


300


. The swing member


400


shown in

FIG. 6

is placed on the inner surface of the body piece


300


, and the body piece


200


is placed thereon to integrate these three members. Of course, at this time, a spring


500


described below and the locking member


600


are also mounted between the body pieces.




The body piece


200


of

FIG. 5

has a configuration corresponding to that of cutter body


21


shown in

FIGS. 3 and 4

. The body piece


200


is, at its front end, provided with a platform


230


which accommodates the rotary blade


55


. At the center of the platform


230


, elongated circular opening


231


is formed for allowing the rotary blade


55


to slide. At the opposite side of the platform


230


, an elongated grip portion


210


is arranged. On the outer middle surface of the grip portion


210


, there is formed a bulging land


211


intended for an ornament and improving the grip feeling. Between the platform


230


and grip portion


210


, a circular opening


220


is formed for holding the cylindrical locking member


600


described below (

FIGS. 10 and 11

) in the thickness direction of the cutter body


21


.




The body piece


300


is shown in

FIG. 7

at its inner surface, and the contour of the piece


300


is the same as that of the body piece


200


shown in FIG.


5


. At the peripheral portion of the inner surface of the body piece


300


, other than the area where the swing member passes through, rib wall


311


is formed for connection and reinforcement. Plural inwardly protruding walls


311




a


are extended from the rib wall


311


at predetermined interval to each other. Also on the body piece


300


, there is formed a circular opening


320


and an elongated circular opening


331


, respectively, corresponding to the circular opening


220


and the elongated circular opening


231


of the body piece


200


shown in FIG.


5


. But, note that, to the circular opening


320


, a key way


321


outwardly extending is adjoined. As described later, this key way


321


is intended to guide the sliding of the locking member


600


.




In

FIG. 7

, at the slightly lower position from the circular opening


320


, two bosses


340


and


350


are formed. The boss


340


with a relatively larger diameter is intended for a swing center of the swing member


400


and for supporting a coil portion of the coil spring


500


(

FIGS. 8 and 9

) described later. The boss


350


with a relatively smaller diameter is intended for abutting a relatively shorter arm


502


of the spring


500


.





FIG. 6

shows the swing member


400


placed between the two body pieces


200


and


300


. The swing member


400


has a boss


450


at its front end (left side in the drawing) for holding the rotary blade


55


. This boss


450


is comprised of a cylindrical wall


450


and a bore


450




a


formed therein. Into this bore


450




a


, a shaft (not shown) for rotation center of rotary blade


55


is inserted. The opposite end of the swing member


400


to the boss


450


is a grip portion


410


which serves as a trigger lever


44


projecting from the cutter body


21


.




In

FIG. 6

, between the boss


450


and grip portion


410


, there is formed an elongated opening


420


which is constituted by partially overlapping two circular openings. The function of this elongated opening


420


will be explained later. Below the opening


420


, there is formed a circular opening


430


intended for swing center of this swing member


400


. Into this opening


430


, the supporting boss


340


formed on the inner surface of the body piece


300


is inserted, so that the swing member


400


can swing in the cutter body


21


around the supporting boss


340


. An opening


440


formed between the swing opening


430


and the elongated opening


420


provides a run-off space for the abutting boss


350


during the swing of the swing member


400


.




The swing member


400


is formed to be thicker at the region of its grip portion


410


(right side in FIG.


6


), and to be thinner plate than the grip portion


410


at the region wherein the boss


450


, and the openings


420


,


430


,


440


are formed. As a result, a wall


400




a


of a predetermined configuration is formed between the thicker region and the thinner region. A part


411


of this wall


400




a


serves as an abutment for a relatively longer arm


503


of the spring


500


.




Hereinafter, with reference to

FIGS. 8 and 9

, the swing of the swing member


400


is described. For the sake of clear explanation, the upper body piece


200


and the rotary blade


55


are not shown in

FIGS. 8 and 9

.




Around the supporting boss


340


upwardly projecting from the swing opening


430


of the swing member


400


, a coil portion


501


of the spring


500


is placed. The spring


500


is comprised of the one roll coil portion


501


, and longer and shorter arms


503


,


502


projected therefrom. The shorter arm


502


is forcedly abutting against the boss


350


, and the longer arm


503


is forcedly abutting against the abutment


411


. The spring


500


forces the swing member


400


relatively to the body piece


300


(in other words, relatively to the cutter body


21


) into the position shown in

FIG. 8

wherein the trigger lever


44


is projected at maximum. At this potion, the rotary blade


55


(not shown in

FIGS. 8 and 9

) is retracted into the platform


230


(

FIG. 5

) of the body piece


200


. From the position in

FIG. 8

, by grasping the grip portion of the cutter body so as to press the trigger lever


44


into the cutter body, the position of

FIG. 9

is realized and the rotary blade


55


is projected from the front end of the cutter body. When releasing the gripping hand, the swing member


400


will return to the original position shown in

FIG. 8

by virtue of the spring force of the spring


500


.




The above explanation with

FIGS. 8 and 9

is made with granting that there is no locking mechanism and therefore the swing member


400


can freely swing. But actually in the present invention, there is employed a locking mechanism which selectively allows the swing member


400


to freely swing, or locks the same into positions wherein the rotary blade


55


is retracted into or projected from the cutter body


21


. This locking mechanism is comprised of the circular openings


220


,


320


formed in the body pieces


200


,


300


, the elongated opening


420


formed in the swing member


400


, and the cylindrical locking member


600


shown in

FIGS. 10 and 11

.

FIG. 11

shows the side view of the locking member


600


seen from the direction represented by an arrow A.




The locking member


600


comprises a generally cylindrical and larger diameter body


601


, and a smaller diameter portion


602


at approximately middle of body height. The smaller diameter portion


602


is formed by partially removing the circumference wall of the larger diameter body


601


. At the outer surface of the larger diameter body


601


, there is integrally formed a fin-like key


604


which is outwardly projecting. This key


604


slides through the key way


321


formed in the lower body piece


300


so as to guide the locking member


600


to slide without changing its orientation.




Near the upper end of the locking member


600


, an inlet


610


is formed. As shown in

FIG. 11

, the inlet


610


is formed like an L-character, and the cross section at its bottom is made to be elongate circular. Two elastically deformable portions


611




a


and


611




b


are defined by this inlet


610


. That is, because the whole of the locking member


600


is made of plastic material, under external pressing force, two deformable portions


611




a


and


611




b


defined by the inlet


610


can deform so as to approach to each other in the direction represented by arrows B. In other words, the two deformable portions


611




a


and


611




b


can be elastically retracted into the larger diameter body


601


in the direction represented by arrows B. When the pressing force is released, both of the deformable portions elastically return to the original position. The head


603


is intended for concealing the inlet


610


. On the outer surface of one deformable portion


611




a


, there is integrally formed a protrusion


612


. On the surface of the other deformable portion


611




b


, there is also integrally formed a same protrusion


613


. The function of these protrusions


612


,


613


will be explained in detail later.




The locking member


600


is assembled into the cutter body


21


by placing it through the circular openings


220


,


320


formed in the body pieces and the elongated opening


420


formed in the swing member


400


.

FIGS. 12

to


15


show cross sections of main portion explaining the function of the locking member


600


.

FIGS. 12 and 14

are respectively a cross section along the line


12





12


in FIG.


7


. Note that although in

FIG. 7

one body piece


300


is shown solo, in

FIGS. 12 and 14

the other body piece


200


and the locking member


600


are also shown in addition.

FIGS. 13 and 15

are respectively a cross section along the line


13





13


in FIG.


7


. In these Figs., like the case of

FIGS. 12 and 14

, the other body piece


200


and the locking member


600


are also shown in addition. In

FIGS. 12

to


15


, an orbit zone


700


represented by the imaginary lines is a swing route of the swing member


400


.




In

FIGS. 12 and 13

, the locking member


600


is in the “locking position” wherein the locking member


600


is upwardly projected from the upper body piece


200


. It can be understood that, in this “locking position”, the smaller diameter portion


602


is out of the swing route


700


of the swing member


400


, and the larger diameter body


601


is in the swing route


700


. Pressing down the locking member


600


from the “locking position” brings the locking member


600


into the “unlocking position” shown in

FIGS. 14 and 15

, so that the locking member


600


is downwardly projected from the lower body piece


300


. It can be understood that, in this “unlocking position”, the smaller diameter portion


602


of the swing member


400


is in the swing route


700


of the swing member


400


.




Now referring to

FIG. 6

, the elongated opening


420


of the swing member


400


is formed by overlapping two circular openings


421


and


423


, and therefore, the elongated opening


420


has a neck portion


422


between the two openings


421


and


423


. In other words, the openings


421


and


423


provide wider spaces on both sides of the neck portion


422


. The width of the neck portion


422


is set to be larger than the width W (

FIG. 11

) of the smaller diameter portion


602


of the locking member


600


, but to be smaller than the diameter D (

FIG. 11

) of the larger diameter body


601


. As to the diameters of both of the openings (wider spaces)


421


and


423


, they are set to fit the diameter D of the larger diameter body


601


of the locking member


600


. The rectangular opening


421




a


(

FIG. 6

) adjoined to the opening


421


provides a run-off space for the key


604


during the sliding of the locking member


600


.




Because the locking member


600


is inserted into the elongated opening


420


of the swing member


400


, when the locking member


600


is in the “unlocking position” (

FIGS. 14 and 15

) wherein the smaller diameter portion


602


is in the SWing route


700


, the neck portion


422


of the elongated opening


420


can pass through the smaller diameter portion


602


so as to allow the swing of the swing member


400


. In contrast with this, when the locking member


600


is in the “locking position” (

FIGS. 12 and 13

) wherein the larger diameter body


601


is in the swing route


700


, the neck portion


422


of the elongated opening


420


cannot pass through the larger diameter body


601


so as to prohibit the swing of the swing member


400


. When the left side opening


421


in

FIG. 6

engages with the larger diameter body


601


, the rotary blade


55


is locked in the retracted position. When the right side opening


423


in

FIG. 6

engages with the larger diameter body


601


, the rotary blade


55


is locked in the projected position.




Although the locking member


600


is cylindrical in the shown embodiment, the cross section of the locking member is not necessarily circular and may be elliptical or polygonal in shape. But, in that case, in compliance with the configuration of the locking member, the configuration of the openings


220


,


320


formed in the body pieces and the openings (wider spaces)


421


,


423


constituting the elongated opening


420


in the swing member


400


are also made to be elliptical or polygonal to fit the locking member.




Now referring to

FIGS. 13 and 15

, it can be understood that when the locking member


600


is in the “locking position” (FIG.


13


), the protrusions


612


and


613


engage with the upper edge of the opening


220


formed in the body piece


200


, and when the locking member


600


is in the “unlocking position” (FIG.


15


), the protrusions


612


and


613


are engaged with the inner edge of the opening


220


. That is, only when applying some extent of power on the locking member, one can push down the locking member


600


from the “locking position” to the “unlocking position”. Because the protrusions


612


and


613


are formed on the abovementioned deformable portions


611




a


and


611




b


, when one presses the locking member


600


with some extent of power, the protrusions


612


,


613


are elastically retracted, so that he/she can slide down the locking member


600


. When the locking member


600


reaches the “unlocking position” shown in

FIG. 15

, both of the protrusions


612


and


613


elastically return to the original position with an appropriate snap fitting. Also when moving the locking member


600


from the “unlocking position” to the “locking position”, the same effect will be brought.




Because the openings


220


,


320


formed in the upper and lower body pieces


200


,


300


have each diameter fitting to circular cross sectional configuration of the locking member


600


, the locking member


600


is allowed to slide only in the thickness direction of the cutter body


21


.




As can be understood from the above explanations, in the grip-type cutter knife of the present invention, when the locking member


600


is kept in the “unlocking position”, the swing member


400


can freely swing. Further, the swing member


400


is forced by the spring


500


to the “non-cutting position” like in FIG.


2


. Therefore, the user can continue to handle the cutter knife of the present invention with keeping it in a condition that when gripping the grip portion, the rotary blade


55


is projected, and when releasing the gripping hand, the rotary blade


55


is automatically retracted.




To the contrary, in the case that the user does not handle the cutter knife, he/she releases his/her hand from the grip portion to retract the rotary blade


55


, and in this condition he/she can lock the rotary blade


55


in the retracted position by pushing the locking member


600


into the “locking position”. In the case of continuous working with the cutter knife for a long time, he/she grips the grip portion to project the rotary blade


55


, and in this condition he/she can lock the rotary blade


55


in the projected position by pushing the locking member


600


into the “locking position”. In the conventional cutter of

FIGS. 1 and 2

, in the case of continuous working with the cutter knife for a long time, there are needed both “pressing force for cutting objects” and “gripping force for keeping the rotary blade in the projected position”. Therefore, there arises a problem that the continuous work is often accompanied by large physical fatigue. To the contrary in the present invention, at least the “gripping force for keeping the rotary blade in the projected position” is not needed, so that the physical fatigue is accordingly lowered.




Further, the switching between the “unlocking position” and the “locking position” can be executed by merely pushing the locking member


600


(lock button


30


) with a finger which is projected from the cutter body. Therefore, handling is easier than that of the lever-type or screw-type of locking mechanism, and the switching can be executed with holding the cutter knife in one hand.




In the above, the present invention have been described as a cutter knife carrying a rotary blade as a knife blade. But, the present invention is characterized by its locking mechanism, and therefore the configuration of the knife blade is not to be limited to particular one.



Claims
  • 1. A grip type of cutter knife comprising:a cutter body having a grip portion; a swing member being pivotally supported in the cutter body and carrying a knife blade, wherein one end of the swing member serves as a trigger lever; a biasing member forcing the swing member into a non-cutting position wherein the knife blade is retracted in the cutter body and the trigger lever is outwardly projected from the grip portion of the cutter body; and a locking member which is longer than a thickness of the cutter body and which is placed through an opening formed in the cutter body and through an elongated opening formed in the swing member, the locking member comprising a larger diameter cylindrical body and a smaller diameter portion partially formed in the cylindrical body; wherein the opening formed in the cutter body fits a cross sectional configuration of the locking member so as to allow the locking member to slide only in the thickness direction of the cutter body; wherein the elongated opening formed in the swing member comprises a first wider space and a second wider space with a neck portion therebetween, through which neck portion the smaller diameter portion of the locking member is able to pass, but the larger diameter cylindrical body is not able to pass, and wherein the locking member has a holding mechanism which holds the locking member itself selectively in an unlocking position wherein the smaller diameter portion of the locking member is in a swing route of the swing member so as to allow the swing member to swing, or a locking position wherein the larger diameter cylindrical body of the locking member is in the swing route of the swing member so as to engage with the first or second wider space to prohibit the swing of the swing member.
  • 2. The grip type of cutter knife of claim 1, wherein the locking member is provided with a protrusion which is laterally projected from the larger diameter cylindrical body and is able to elastically retract into the larger diameter cylindrical body, andwherein the protrusion engages with an edge of the opening formed in the cutter body to serve as the holding mechanism.
Priority Claims (1)
Number Date Country Kind
10-165034 Jun 1998 JP
US Referenced Citations (5)
Number Name Date Kind
4541175 Boyd et al. Sep 1985
5101564 Melter Apr 1992
5299355 Boda et al. Apr 1994
5355588 Brandenburg Oct 1994
5924203 Huang Jul 1999