The present disclosure relates to system safety razors in general and, more particularly, to release mechanisms to eject a cartridge from a handle of the system.
Many modern so-called “system” safety razors include a disposable razor cartridge adapted to be selectively connected to a reusable handle by connecting structure therebetween. When the cartridge is perceived by a user to have reached the end of its useful life it can be ejected from the handle by operation of an actuator or (release) button connected to a suitable release mechanism.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,787,586 discloses a release button for a system safety razor mounted to a side of a razor handle, and close to the cartridge-bearing end of the handle. International patent application WO2018/202847 discloses another side mounted button but mounted remotely from the cartridge-bearing end of the system handle. U.S. Pat. No. 7,168,173 discloses another release mechanism again having a release button mounted close to the cartridge-bearing end of the system handle.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,848,078 and 3,608,173 and G.B. patent number 1,209,281 disclose various embodiments of so-called naked blade razors wherein e.g. a naked double edge blade and not a contemporary razor cartridge is clamped between a cap and a guard of the razor handle. Each of these documents disclose a push button at the end of the handle opposed the blade. Each push button is connected to a relatively long and thin rod, in turn adapted to release the latched cap of the handle to enable a user to selectively change the blade.
A user-perceived indication of quality and performance of a system safety razor lies in the mass of the razor, and position of its center of mass (i.e. how the razor balances in the user's hand). A heavier system razor has more appeal than a lighter razor. Conversely, a heavier razor is less desirable to manufacture due to increased material and shipping costs etc. compared to a lighter razor. Returning to the '586 patent, this discloses a weight component within its handle structure (e.g. 36 in FIG. 3 therein), but this weight provides no benefits to any release mechanism.
The present disclosure has for its objective to eliminate, or at least substantially alleviate the limitations of the prior art razor handles by providing a handle for a safety razor. The handle has a body with a cartridge attachment end with an adjoined elongated portion having a hollow portion defining an axis and terminating in an opening normal to the axis at an end of the body opposed the cartridge attachment end. The handle also has a pushbutton slidably retained in the opening e.g. by a snap fit, and movable along the axis between an at-rest position and a depressed position. The handle has an elongated transfer rod located in the hollow portion having a first end in the cartridge attachment end reunion of the hollow portion and a second end closely abutting the pushbutton. A compression spring is located in the hollow portion and acts between the cartridge attachment end and the first end of the transfer rod to bias the transfer rod in a direction along the axis towards the opening. An ejector is mounted in the cartridge attachment end having an outer end that can be bifurcated and an inner end closely abutting the first end of the transfer rod. The outer end of the ejector is extendable outwardly from the cartridge attachment end of the handle. The extending direction of the ejector can define an obtuse angle less than 180 degrees to the axis of the hollow portion When the pushbutton is moved by a user from its at-rest position to its depressed position it contacts the second end of the transfer rod to move the transfer rod along the hollow portion axis in a direction towards the cartridge attachment end of the handle against bias forces of the spring such that the first end of the transfer rod contacts the inner end of the ejector to extend the outer end of the ejector outwardly from the cartridge attachment end of the handle.
A safety razor comprises the previously-described handle having a razor cartridge mounted to the cartridge attachment end of the handle. When the pushbutton is operated as previously described, the ejector extends outwardly from the cartridge attachment end of the handle and contacts the razor cartridge to eject the razor cartridge from the handle. When the user releases the pushbutton, bias forces of the compression spring act on the transfer rod to return the pushbutton to its at-rest position.
In other aspects of the present disclosure the transfer rod is tubular and preferably cylindrical and can be manufactured from a relatively high specific gravity material such as steel, stainless steel, brass, copper alloy, zinc alloy, or “heavy” filled thermoplastic polymer. The transfer rod can be manufactured from an intermediate specific gravity material such as aluminum alloy or filled thermoplastic polymer or can be manufactured from a relatively low specific gravity material such as an unfilled thermoplastic polymer.
In further aspects of any preceding aspect the pushbutton can be securely coupled to the second end of the transfer rod. However, preferably the pushbutton closely abuts the second end of the transfer rod such that motion of the pushbutton can move the transfer rod but the transfer rod is independently moveable away from the pushbutton against bias forces of the compression spring to partially absorb impact forces, e.g. if the handle is accidentally dropped.
A transfer rod provides multiple benefits. It can add mass to the razor handle. It transfers motion from the pushbutton to the cartridge ejector without buckling and can provide impact energy absorption. An actuator of (release) button mounted at a cartridge-bearing end of a handle can be accidentally operated by a user during a shaving operation. A pushbutton mounted to an opposed end of a handle can avoid such accidental operation. The above features and advantages will be more fully understood with reference to the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
Referring now to the drawings and in particular
Referring now to
A pushbutton 50 is slidably retained in the opening 44 and movable along the axis 42 between an at-rest position (as shown in
Referring additionally to
The material and dimensions of the transfer rod 60 can be adjusted to suit the application at hand. The transfer rod 60 can be a solid bar. The transfer rod 60 can also be a tubular body having in some instances a relatively thick wall 67 (i.e. a relatively smaller internal diameter 68, see
A compression spring 70 is shown in detailed view
Referring additionally to
When the pushbutton 50 is moved by a user from its at-rest position to its depressed position it contacts the second end 64 of the transfer rod to move the transfer rod 60 along the axis 42 of the hollow portion 40 in a direction towards the cartridge attachment end 24 against bias forces of the spring 70 such that the first end 62 of the transfer rod 60 contacts the inner end 82 of the ejector 80 to extend the outer end(s) 84 of the ejector 80 outwardly from the cartridge attachment end 24 of the handle 20. The outer end(s) 84 of the ejector 80 contact the razor cartridge 30 (e.g. an inner surface of the connector 34) to eject the cartridge 30 from the handle 20. In doing so, the spring 70 is further compressed to a second condition. When the user releases the pushbutton 50, bias forces of the compression spring 70 act on the transfer rod 60 to bias this towards the opposed end 26 of the handle 20. The transfer rod 60 in turn acts on the pushbutton 50 to return this to its at-rest position. The plunger spring 92 acts on the root region of the bifurcated outer end(s) 84 of the ejector 80 to bias the ejector 80 inwardly of the attachment end 24 to maintain close contact between the inner end 82 of the ejector 80 and the first end 62 of the transfer rod 60.
The second end 64 of the transfer rod 60 abuts but is not securely coupled to the pushbutton 50. In instances of impact forces acting along the length of the handle 20, the transfer rod 60 can move independently of (away from) the pushbutton 50 against forces of the compression spring 70. This can act to absorb impact energy e.g. from accidentally dropping the handle 20 or complete razor 10 onto a hard surface. The second end 64 of the transfer rod 60 can less desirably be securely coupled to the pushbutton 50, e.g. by a suitable adhesive.
The transfer rod 60 provides multiple benefits. It can add mass to the razor handle. It transfers motion from the pushbutton to the cartridge ejector and can provide impact energy absorption.
While various embodiments have been described above it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not limitation. For instance, modifications or changes as can be made within the scope of the attached claims and features disclosed in connection with any one embodiment can be used alone or in combination with each feature of the respective other embodiments. Thus, the breadth and scope of any embodiment should not be limited by any of the above described exemplary embodiments but should be defined only in accordance with the following claims and their equivalents.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/US20/23486 | 3/19/2020 | WO | 00 |
Number | Date | Country | |
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62825921 | Mar 2019 | US |