Patent Application
20140041491
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to pivoted hand tools, and more particularly, to a magnetic auxiliary mechanism installed onto handles of a pivoted tool, such as scissors, shears and pliers, for facilitating operation or positioning of the handles.
2. Description of Related Art
Scissors, shears, pliers and other pivoted tools commonly have a pair of handles that are configured to be drawn together or separated apart to thereby close or open a pair of functional jaws. For realizing energy-saving operation, there is typically a compression spring provided between the paired handles, so that when the handles are released from a squeezing force, the resilience of the spring can help to push the handles apart, thereby facilitating the relatively laborious jaw-opening operation.
However, the conventional approach has its defects. First, after long-term use, the compression spring tends to have elastic fatigue, and become less effective in facilitating saving energy. In addition, the spring bridging between the two handles can make the appearance of the pivoted tool more complicated. Moreover, when the spring is intertwined with external articles, the smooth operation of the pivoted tool is compromised. Furthermore, the spring exposed in the air is likely to become rusty. It is therefore desirable to have an auxiliary mechanism for scissors that overcomes the defects of the prior art and provides improved auxiliary functions.
In view of the need of an improved auxiliary mechanism, objective of the present invention is to provide a magnetic auxiliary mechanism for a pivoted tool, wherein the magnetic auxiliary mechanism facilitates opening of handles and therefore jaws of the pivoted tool, without adding significant complication to the appearance of the pivoted tool.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a magnetic auxiliary mechanism for a pivoted tool, wherein the magnetic auxiliary mechanism facilitates opening of handles and therefore jaws of the pivoted tool so as to eliminate the risk of having elastic fatigue like the compression spring as used in the prior art for the same purpose.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a magnetic auxiliary mechanism for a pivoted tool, wherein the magnetic auxiliary mechanism helps to position the handles when the pivoted tool is not in use, thereby allowing convenient and safe storage of the pivoted tool.
For achieving the foregoing objectives, in one embodiment of the present invention, a magnetic auxiliary mechanism for a pivoted tool that has two paired handles to be drawn together or separated apart to thereby close or open two paired functional jaws thereof is installed between the paired handles and comprises a fixed magnetic member, fixedly attached to one of the paired handles of the pivoted tool so that two magnetic poles thereof are immovable; and an adjustable magnetic member, pivotally attached to the other of the paired handles of the pivoted tool so that the adjustable magnetic member is rotatable to make two magnetic poles thereof exchange and thus switchable between a first magnetism state where the adjustable magnetic member magnetically repels the fixed magnetic member and a second magnetism state where the adjustable magnetic member magnetically attracts the fixed magnetic member.
With the inventive configuration, the disclosed magnetic auxiliary mechanism provides simple overall appearance, convenient operation and safe storage to the pivoted tool, thus being utility.
The invention as well as a preferred mode of use, further objectives and advantages thereof will be best understood by reference to the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
a is an enlarged view of the circled part of
According to the present invention, a magnetic auxiliary mechanism is designed for a pivoted tool. It is well known that a pivoted tool typically has paired handles to be drawn together or separated apart to thereby close or open a pair of functional jaws. Examples of such pivoted tools include, but are not limited to, scissors, shears and pliers. The magnetic auxiliary mechanism of the present invention is configured to be installed between the paired handles.
For illustrating the concept of the present invention, some preferred embodiments are provided and described herein. Please first refer to
In the depicted embodiment, the scissors 80 has a pair of blades 811 and 812. When handles 821 and 822 of the scissors 80 are drawn together, the blades 811 and 812 approach each other. When the handles 821 and 822 are separated apart, the blades 811 and 812 move in opposite directions and open. The disclosed magnetic auxiliary mechanism is assembled to the handles 821 and 822, and primarily comprises a fixed magnetic member 10, an adjustable magnetic member 20 and a controlling wheel 30 for adjusting the adjustable magnetic member 20.
The fixed magnetic member 10 is fixed to the handle 821 and has its two magnetic poles S, N positioned immovably. The adjustable magnetic member 20 has two magnetic poles S, N, and is pivotally mounted on the other handle 822 such that it faces the fixed magnetic member 10. The adjustable magnetic member 20 is switched by the controlling wheel 30 to have its two poles S and N exchanging, thus making the adjustable magnetic member 20 be in a first magnetism state (or a released state) where it magnetically repels the fixed magnetic member 10 and a second magnetism state (or a locked state) where it magnetically attracts the fixed magnetic member 10. When the adjustable magnetic member 20 is switched to the released state, its two poles N and S are aligned with and repelled by the two poles N and S of the fixed magnetic member 10, respectively. When the adjustable magnetic member 20 is switched to the locked state, its two poles S and N are aligned with and attracted by the two poles N and S of the fixed magnetic member 10, respectively. In one preferred embodiment, as shown in
Thus, as shown in
Referring to
In addition, the controlling wheel 30 has a positioning block 305, while the recess 40 is formed with a first retaining edge 401 and a second retaining edge 403. When the controlling wheel 30 has its positioning block 305 retained by the first retaining edge 401, the controlling wheel 30 makes the adjustable magnetic member 20 be in its released state, and when the controlling wheel 30 has its positioning block 305 retained by the second retaining edge 403, the controlling wheel 30 makes the adjustable magnetic member 20 be in its locked state. Preferably, the controlling wheel 30 is peripherally formed with at least one rubbing tooth 307, so that a user's finger can easily rotate the controlling wheel 30 and switch the adjustable magnetic member 20 between the released state and the locked state.
Moreover, as shown in
Thereby, for using the pivoted tool, a user may rotate the controlling wheel 30 in the direction indicated in
As shown in
Referring to
In comparison with the traditional approach using a spring to facilitate operation, the disclosed magnetic auxiliary mechanism adds less complication to the appearance of the pivoted tool, and eliminates the risks of being intertwined with external articles and having elastic fatigue, thereby ensuring the pivoted tool having it to be more aesthetic, manageable and durable. In addition, the disclosed magnetic auxiliary mechanism helps to position the handles when the pivoted tool is not in use, thereby allowing convenient and safe storage of the pivoted tool.
The present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments and it is understood that the embodiments are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Moreover, as the contents disclosed herein should be readily understood and can be implemented by a person skilled in the art, all equivalent changes or modifications which do not depart from the concept of the present invention should be encompassed by the appended claims.
