Patent Grant
8869407
The field of the invention is bag cutters.
Employment of sealed bags for housing various products is a well-accepted packaging approach. While such bags are highly desirable for their efficiency in maintaining product integrity, access into the contents of such bags is often inconvenient, and contents often spill due to messy cuts and tears.
Various bag cutters are available that attempt to overcome some of the problems described above. Such cutters include the devices described in International Patent Application Publication No. 2008/086101, United States Patent Publication No. 2005/0102844, and U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,073,264, 6,658,742, 4,887,355, and 5,007,171.
These and all other extrinsic materials discussed herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety. Where a definition or use of a term in an incorporated reference is inconsistent or contrary to the definition of that term provided herein, the definition of that term provided herein applies and the definition of that term in the reference does not apply.
The following background discussion includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
Existing bag cutters are not necessarily as versatile, durable, or safe as could be desired. Thus, there is still a need for improved cutting devices.
The inventive subject matter provides apparatus, systems and methods for cutting various objects, especially plastic bags, using a dual cutting device having a first cutter with a first blade and a second cutter with a second blade. The first blade preferably operates in conjunction with a movable arm.
Preferred bag cutters generally have two arms, which can advantageously be injection molded as a single, continuous piece of plastic. Alternatively, the arms can be two discontinuous pieces of material coupled to a pivot.
The cutting surface(s) can be distributed on one or both arms in any suitable fashion. For example, one arm can partially enclose a first blade, while the other arm can have a cutting surface that is at least partially juxtaposable against the first blade. Also contemplated are embodiments having one or more blades extending into one or more cutouts.
As used herein, a “cutting surface” means any surface that could be used in conjunction with a blade to create a cut. Contemplated cutting surfaces include, among other things, a recessed portion of an arm, a raised portion of an arm, and/or an anvil. A “raised portion” could be continuous with an arm or be a separate piece of material coupled to an arm. Where a different type and/or separate piece of material is used as a raised portion, it is contemplated that the material could be harder, equal to, or softer in hardness to the material of one or more of the arms. Suitable raised portion materials include any and all materials suitable for any other portion of a cutting apparatus as described herein. Suitable anvils will typically have a convex surface, as for example in a cylinder or cone, and could even have a compound convex surface as in a ball.
Bag cutters can have one, two, or even more blades, anvils and raised portions. For example, a cutting apparatus could have three blades, no anvil, and four raised portions. In such a configuration, each blade can be used to make a cut in a work piece in conjunction with one or two of the four raised portions, or two of the blade can be used to make two cuts in conjunction with the raised portions with a third blade exposed by a cutout configured to create an optional separate cut. Where there are an unequal number of blades and cutting surfaces, the extra piece(s) will typically provide either a deeper cut, or a strip cut.
Contemplated blades can have any suitable edge that mates with the anvil or other cutting surface, and can have flat, concave or convex edges. Blades can be made of any suitable material, including steel, ceramic, and plastic. Blades made with one or more non-optimal materials can optionally have suitable coatings, including for example Teflon™ or other friction-reducing coating, and metal coatings or other corrosion-resistance coatings. Stops can be included to control cutting depth. Each blade is preferably embedded in such a way that at least a portion of an edge of a blade is exposed at all times (as shown in
Also contemplated is a tab coupled to an arm or pivot, the tab having a hole configured to accept a hanger. Still further it is contemplated for a bag cutter to have various safety features, including, for example, a locking strap, and a ridge in one or both of the arms to help prevent a user's fingers from sliding off the arm.
Contemplated devices could typically be used in at least two ways: (1) placing a bag between a cutting surface and a blade and squeezing the arms while sliding across the bag; and (2) sliding a bag through a cutout exposing a blade.
Various objects, features, aspects and advantages of the inventive subject matter will become more apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments, along with the accompanying drawing figures in which like numerals represent like components.
The following discussion provides many example embodiments of the inventive subject matter. Although each embodiment represents a single combination of inventive elements, the inventive subject matter is considered to include all possible combinations of the disclosed elements. Thus if one embodiment comprises elements A, B, and C, and a second embodiment comprises elements B and D, then the inventive subject matter is also considered to include other remaining combinations of A, B, C, or D, even if not explicitly disclosed.
In
As described herein, a blade that is partially or completely “embedded” in an arm can either be embedded in (1) the material of the arm itself, or (2) a separate piece of material that is directly coupled to the arm. Thus, a blade, e.g. 101, can be described as “partially embedded in second arm”, even if it is only directly embedded in a visually distinct piece of material directly coupled to the first arm. Where a blade(s) is embedded in a separate piece of material, it is contemplated that the separate piece of material could be rotatably and/or slidably coupled to an arm so that the location of the blade(s) and the orientation of the blade relative to a midline could be adjusted. The same coupling options apply to anvils, raised portions, and so forth.
The first and second arms and of a cutting apparatus could comprise a single continuous piece of material, or could comprise two or more separate pieces of material. Contemplated materials include metals and steel. However, preferred materials include various types of plastics, such as acrylics, polyesters, silicones, polyurethanes, halogenated plastics, and all materials or polymers having sufficient flexibility to bend and sufficient rigidity to maintain the overall shape of the apparatus during repeated use.
The first blade 101 is preferably juxtaposable against a cutting surface (not shown). It is contemplated that the edge of the blade could be flat, concave, or convex at juxtaposition with the cutting surface. The blade could be made of any suitable material or materials, including for example, a steel, a plastic, a ceramic, a bronze, a copper, or any combination thereof.
In
Cutting apparatus 200 includes a second blade 202 extending from a portion of a first cutout 204. A blade and the cutout from which it extends can be located on any part of first arm or second arm, including the midline, e.g., 209 of a cutting apparatus, where the first and second arms are made of a single piece of material.
It is contemplated that first blade 201 can be positioned at any angle relative to midline 209 of the cutting apparatus 200. For example, the first blade and raised portions can be parallel to a midline, perpendicular to the midline, or positioned at any angle in between.
It is contemplated that each of the blades, raised portions, anvils, and cutouts can be located on any portion of any arm. As used herein, the term “raised” with respect to a component means that a portion of the raised component is elevated above an adjacent surface or edge by at least 1 mm, and more preferably by at least 4 mm, and more preferably by at least 7 mm.
One possible cutting surface is an anvil (not shown). As used herein, an “anvil” is any separate piece of a hard material or materials that is at least partially inserted into and/or molded into at least one of an arm (e.g., 205 or 203) or a raised portion (e.g., 207 or 208) of the cutting apparatus. An anvil can be of any suitable size and shape, including for example, a blade, a ball, a compound convex surface, a cylinder, a cone, or any other suitable shape. An anvil could be made of any suitable material or materials, such as steel, plastic, ceramic, bronze, copper, or any combination of those or other materials having sufficient hardness and durability to act as a cutting surface for a blade. It is contemplated that an exposed portion of an anvil could comprise a different material than other portions of the anvil. Any and all portions of an anvil could comprise a material that is harder, of the same hardness, or softer than the material used on an arm to which it is coupled. It is further contemplated that an anvil could comprise the same material as an arm to which it is coupled.
In another embodiment as illustrated in
First arm 305 has a first blade 301 at least partially juxtaposable against a first raised portion 307, and a third blade 310 at least partially juxtaposable against a second raised portion 308. The first blade 301 and third blade 310, and thus the first and second raised portions 307 and 308, can be aligned end to end (as in
The first and third blades (e.g., 301 and 310) can be partially embedded into a separate piece or pieces of material slidably coupled to the first or second arms. In such embodiments, the first and third blades could move relative to one another to provide deeper cuts and a variety of strip cuts of different widths. Moreover, the first and second raised portions could be slidably coupled to the opposite arm.
It is contemplated that the first raised portion and second raised portion could be of the same size and shape as one another, or be of different sizes and shapes, relative to one another. Moreover, it is contemplated that the first and third blades could protrude out away from an arm at a same distance, or protrude out at different distances.
Either of the first arm and/or second arm can serve as a base. For example, a first arm could comprise a first blade and a second raised portion, while a second arm comprises a third blade and a first raised portion. The first blade of first arm could provide a cut in conjunction with a first raised portion on second arm acting as a base, while the third blade of second arm could provide a cut in conjunction with a second raised portion on first arm acting as a base. One or more of the arms, e.g. second arm 303, can have a first cutout 304 and second blade 302 to provide an alternative cutter.
In
In
Because the anvil 514 is initially completely embedded within first raised portion 507, first raised portion 507 can initially act as the sole cutting surface. With repeated use, anvil 514 could become exposed to an extent that the anvil, either alone, or with the cutting surface, acts as a cutting surface.
Each part of a cutting apparatus, e.g. first arm, second arm, blades, raised portion, and anvil, could comprise any suitable shape and be of any suitable size. Nevertheless, in preferred embodiments the entire cutting apparatus could easily be held and operated using a single hand.
It is contemplated that anvil 514 could comprise a through-hole (not shown) that is configured to mate with an internally facing detect in a raised portion or arm to hold the anvil 514 in place. Where the anvil is has a length that is at least twice as long as a width (e.g. rectangular block, blade, etc.) it is contemplated that the long axis of an anvil can be disposed orthogonal to the long axis of a blade, thereby reducing the size of the cut made. Alternatively, the long axis of an anvil can be parallel or diagonal to, the long axis of the blade. It is further contemplated that anvil 514 can be rotatable, either alone, or along with a piece of a raised portion, thereby allowing a user to switch the size of the cut(s) made by the cutting apparatus 500.
In preferred embodiments, the anvil, e.g. 514 is removable and/or replaceable with another anvil (not shown) to provide durability. The replacement anvil could either be the same type (material and/or shape) as the existing anvil, e.g. 514, or a different type of anvil. Alternatively, an anvil could be permanently embedded into a raised portion of the cutting apparatus.
A cutting apparatus can have one or more anvils embedded (each partially or completely) into an arm and/or raised portion(s). For example, an apparatus can have a single anvil that is embedded in two or more raised portions, a single anvil embedded into both an arm and an attached raised portion, a single anvil embedded into an arm without a raised portion, or even have a single anvil embedded in one raised portion and a separate anvil embedded in another raised portion.
In
Cutout(s) can have any suitable dimensions, but are preferably long and narrow to receive a bag or other thin object being cut. As used herein, the terms (a) “a cutout having a blade”, (b) “a blade extending from a cutout”, and (c) “a cutout exposing a blade” are all used interchangeably.
In
In
As used herein, and unless the context dictates otherwise, the term “coupled to” is intended to include both direct coupling (in which two elements that are coupled to each other contact each other) and indirect coupling (in which at least one additional element is located between the two elements). Therefore, the terms “coupled to” and “coupled with” are used synonymously.
In embodiments such as the one shown on
Apparatus 800 comprises a second arm 803 having a first cutout 804 and second cutout 821 sharing a second blade 802. First and second cutouts can be located on either the same arm or different arm as first blade (not shown but on first arm 805). Moreover, first and second cutouts can be located on any portions along an arm. They can be located near middle portions of second arm, as shown in
In
In
As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “a,” “an,” and “the” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description herein, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
Groupings of alternative elements or embodiments of the invention disclosed herein are not to be construed as limitations. Each group member can be referred to and claimed individually or in any combination with other members of the group or other elements found herein. One or more members of a group can be included in, or deleted from, a group for reasons of convenience and/or patentability. When any such inclusion or deletion occurs, the specification is herein deemed to contain the group as modified thus fulfilling the written description of all Markush groups used in the appended claims.
The recitation of ranges of values herein is merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range. Unless otherwise indicated herein, each individual value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g. “such as”) provided with respect to certain embodiments herein is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element essential to the practice of the invention.
It should be apparent to those skilled in the art that many more modifications besides those already described are possible without departing from the inventive concepts herein. The inventive subject matter, therefore, is not to be restricted except in the scope of the appended claims. Moreover, in interpreting both the specification and the claims, all terms should be interpreted in the broadest possible manner consistent with the context. In particular, the terms “comprises” and “comprising” should be interpreted as referring to elements, components, or steps in a non-exclusive manner, indicating that the referenced elements, components, or steps may be present, or utilized, or combined with other elements, components, or steps that are not expressly referenced. Where the specification claims refers to at least one of something selected from the group consisting of A, B, C . . . and N, the text should be interpreted as requiring only one element from the group, not A plus N, or B plus N, etc.
This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/528,473, filed Jun. 20, 2012, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
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| Child | 13546212 | US |
