Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6722044
-
Patent Number
6,722,044
-
Date Filed
Monday, August 19, 200222 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, April 20, 200420 years ago
-
Inventors
-
-
Examiners
Agents
- Toupal; John E.
- Jarcho; Harold G.
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 030 299
- 030 304
- 030 329
- 030 332
- 030 286
- 030 287
- 030 2792
- 030 338
- 030 337
- 030 314
- 030 315
- 030 280
- 030 294
-
International Classifications
-
Abstract
A multiple receptacle blade holder tool including an elongated rectangular cross section main body with one end being rounded and having multiple rectangular receptacles for blades. The blade holder also has top and bottom surfaces parallel to the blade receptacles and a relief channel forming independent legs that clamp one or more blades in the holder.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
It is common practice to cover a surface or structure with sheet material for decoration, protection or reinforcement. A few examples of these applications include wallpapering and covering models of planes, boats, cars and such with a sheet material. When covering models the sheet material can be used to form a surface over a series of spaced planar ribs or bulkheads arranged to form a particular shape or contour. It is also used to cover an already existing surface of any shape or contour.
With such applications it is most desirable to trim sheet material at a uniform predetermined distance from an inside or outside line of intersection of two surfaces. This uniform line of overlap helps to ensure a lasting and aesthetically pleasing application.
At present, few tools are available for such cutting operations and they have very little adjustability. As a result, many modelers resort to gluing individual hobby blades to rectangular balsawood sticks of a certain thickness to achieve the desired overlap.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is a sheet material cutting tool including a body defining a bottom guide surface; a front surface; a channel extending transversely to the bottom guide surface and intersecting the front surface; and a first leg and a second leg straddling the channel and each forming a portion of the bottom guide surface. The body also includes at least one slot defined by the first and second legs and transversely intersecting the channel, the slot being parallel to the bottom guide surface and shaped to receive the shank of a blade; and a closure actuatable to produce a force clamping the shank between the legs.
According to certain features of the invention, the front surface is convex and, radially intersected by the slot; the front surface is symmetrical around the slot; and the body has a top guide surface parallel to the bottom surface. These features facilitate desired material trimming with the tool.
According to other features of the invention, the first and second legs define a rectangular cavity for receiving the shank and the slot includes a rear portion extending rearwardly of the cavity; and the closure includes a tightening mechanism extending between the first and second legs and through the rear portion of the slot which further includes a fan-shaped portion extending between the cavity and the front surface and a transversely enlarged opening terminating an inner end of the rear portion and extending between the top surface and the bottom surface. These features further facilitate desired use of the tool.
According to an important feature of the invention, the tool includes a plurality of the slots. The plural slots greatly increase the functional flexibility of the tool.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
These and other objects and features of the invention will become more apparent upon a perusal of the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:
FIG. 1
is a right hand isometric view of the blade holder tool invention;
FIG. 2
is a left hand isometric view of the blade holder tool invention;
FIG. 3
is an exploded partial longitudinal cross section taken along lines
3
—
3
of
FIG. 1
exposing a typical receptacle slot;
FIG. 4
is a partial longitudinal cross section identical to
FIG. 3
, but shown fully assembled;
FIG. 5
is a partial longitudinal cross section identical to
FIG. 4
but with the blade shown in the “clamped” position;
FIG. 6
is a partial isometric view similar to
FIG. 1
with the blade shown installed in a right hand position;
FIG. 7
is a partial isometric view similar to
FIG. 6
, but with the blade shown in a left hand position;
FIG. 8
is a side view of the blade holder illustrating an important feature of the invention's design:
FIG. 9
is a front elevation illustrating the arrangement of the slots and their spatial relationship to the guiding surfaces;
FIG. 10A
is a top view of the invention during a cutting operation illustrating one type of “on the fly” adjustability;
FIG. 10B
is a view similar to
FIG. 10A
illustrating a second type of “on the fly” adjustability;
FIG. 11
is a side elevation illustrating a cutting operation at an “outside” edge whereby sheet material is severed precisely at a uniform predetermined distance from the line of intersection of two surfaces;
FIG. 12
is a side elevation illustrating a cutting operation at an “inside” edge whereby sheet material is severed precisely at a uniform predetermined distance from the line of intersection of two surfaces;
FIG. 13
is a side elevation illustrating a cutting operation performed by slidingly guiding the tool tangentially on a rounded corner of a structure severing sheet material precisely at a uniform predetermined distance of overlap;
FIG. 14
is a side elevation illustrating the tool being used to cut “pinstripes” with the aid of a straightedge;
FIG. 15
is an isometric view of the blade holder tool being used to cut freehand or non-linear “pin-striping”; and
FIG. 16
is an isometric view illustrating the blade holder tool being used to cut a shape with a uniform width or border.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring to
FIGS. 1-5
, a multi-receptacle blade holder tool
1
consisting of a body
10
generally rectangular in cross section, having a handle portion
12
and a rounded multi-receptacle end
14
. The end
14
includes a clamping means
16
comprised of a relief channel
18
which bifurcates end
14
into two portions or legs
16
a
and
16
b
which generally form clamping means
16
. The end
14
also includes a plurality of receptacle slots
20
arranged in a stacked configuration for receiving and clamping in place typical #
11
hobby blades
34
. As seen in
FIG. 3
, the slots
20
consist of an opening
20
a,
a wide slot portion
22
to accommodate blade shoulder
36
, and a narrow slot portion
24
to accommodate blade shank
38
and end wall
24
c
which limits the insertion of blade
34
to a predetermined distance. The slots
20
are further defined by upper and lower surfaces
26
a
and
26
b,
respectively, which are spaced in tight tolerance to blade
34
's thickness to ensure a secure fit when a blade is clamped into position. The slots
20
which are also bifurcated by channel
18
include two opposing clamping surfaces
24
a
and
24
b
at the narrow portion
24
of slot
20
. Leg
16
a
has a counter-sunk threaded bore
28
a
while leg
16
b
has a non-threaded bore
28
b
. A flat head machine screw
30
a
is threaded into bore
28
a
until it is fully tightened and flush with outer surface
16
c
of leg
16
a.
It passes through bore
28
b
of leg
16
b
with no engagement and protrudes perpendicularly from surface
16
d
of leg
16
b.
A thumbnut
30
b
is threaded onto the protruding threads of screw
30
a
until it contacts surface
16
d
of leg
16
b.
To use the blade holder
1
, a blade
34
is then inserted into receptacle slot
20
until the end of blade shank
38
c
contacts end wall
24
c
of slot
20
. When thumbnut
30
b
is tightened further, shown as force arrow A, it begins to pinch legs
16
a
and
16
b
together, shown as force arrows B, as they flex at areas
18
a
and
18
b
facilitated by relief channel
18
and relief bore
19
. When this flexing occurs, blade
34
is clamped between surfaces
24
a
and
24
b
at edges
38
a
and
38
b
of blade shank
38
. This clamping method is capable of holding a single blade or multiple blades in any number of positions to achieve many different desired tool configurations. The blade holder
1
is purposefully designed to have smooth friction free surfaces and radius edges for a comfortable feel and more importantly to protect any adjacent surfaces, structures or materials from damage when blade holder
1
is in use.
As can be seen in
FIGS. 6 and 7
, the blade holder
1
is purposefully designed to be symmetrical and to be able to hold blades
34
in either a right or left handed configuration. This combined symmetry allows the blade holder
1
to be used by right and left handed users without sacrificing functionality or ergonomics. It also allows the blade holder
1
to perform opposite or symmetrical cutting operations by simply loosening thumbnut
30
b,
flipping blade
34
over, and re-tightening thumbnut
30
b.
Illustrated in
FIG. 8
the blade holder
1
has two smooth guiding surfaces
32
a
and
32
b
which are parallel with slots
20
. This parallel orientation of the slots
20
and the guiding surfaces
32
a
and
32
b
allows the blade
34
to be maintained at a predetermined precise distance D from surface
40
a
of structure
40
. This distance remains constant even when the holder is slid about the surface
40
a
of structure
40
.
FIG. 9
shows that the receptacle slots
20
are arranged in a stacked configuration and evenly spaced at relatively small increments to facilitate a high degree of distance adjustability d
1
-dn between the blade
34
(not shown) and the guiding surfaces
32
a
and
32
b.
As can be demonstrated in
FIG. 10A
the purposefully designed exposure of the entire sharp edge
34
b
of blade
34
allows the user to skillfully manipulate the depth that the blade
34
penetrates sheet material
44
. This on the fly adjustability allows the user to utilize the entire sharp edge
34
b
of blade
34
while performing a cutting operation enabling the use of a sharper less used portion of blade edge
34
b
if difficulties due to dulling of a particular area of blade edge
34
b
are encountered during a cutting operation.
Another feature demonstrated in
FIG. 10B
is how the purposefully designed rounded receptacle end
14
of blade holder
1
along with the exposure of the entire sharp edge
34
b
of blade
34
allows the user to greatly vary the angle of attack of blade
34
. without interference that would be encountered with a square ended trimmer. when severing sheet material
44
. This feature is especially important when structure surface
40
a
is short or shallow. as shown in
FIG. 10B
, allowing only the small end portion of guiding surface
32
a
or
32
b
to be utilized during a cutting operation. This ability to vary the angle of attack of blade
34
also allows the user to precisely trim into corners and around obstacles in circumstances such as illustrated in FIG.
10
B.
In both circumstances illustrated in
FIGS. 10A and 10B
, the ability to utilize the entire sharp edge
34
b
greatly increases the usable life of blade
34
, compared to trimmer tools that only utilize the sharp point
34
c
of blade
34
, which dulls very quickly.
Shown in
FIG. 11
the blade holder
1
is being used to sever sheet material
44
at a precise predetermined overlap distance D from the outside intersection
41
of two surfaces
40
a
and
40
b
of structure
40
. Blade holder
1
is slidingly guided along surface
40
a
of structure
40
trimming sheet material
44
which extends from surface
40
b
past the line of intersection
41
extending relatively perpendicular in relation to surface
40
a,
guiding surfaces
32
a
and
32
b
, and cutting plane of blade
34
. Once trimmed, the sheet material
44
can be finally applied to surface
40
a
to provide an aesthetic and functional uniform line of overlap.
Shown in
FIG. 12
the blade holder
1
is being used to sever sheet material
44
at a predetermined distance D from the inside intersection
42
of two surfaces
40
c
and
40
d
of structure
40
. This is achieved by slidingly guiding the blade holder
1
using one of the guiding surfaces
32
a
or
32
b
along structure surface
40
c
allowing tip
34
c
of blade
34
to pierce and sever sheet material
44
taking care not to penetrate too deeply into structure surface
40
d
. Once trimmed, the sheet material
44
can be finally applied to surface
40
d
to provide an aesthetic and functional uniform line of overlap.
A similar cutting operation is depicted in
FIG. 13
where blade holder
1
can be slidingly guided tangentially on curved or rounded corner of structure
40
, trimming sheet material
44
at a precise predetermined distance D of overlap. Once trimmed, the sheet material
44
can be finally applied to corner
40
c
to provide an aesthetic and functional uniform line of overlap.
Some other cutting operations are illustrated in
FIGS. 14-16
. Pin-striping can be cut from sheet material
44
with blade holder
1
in any number of ways by selectively configuring blades
34
to cut the desired width and number of stripes
50
. By using a suitable cutting surface
48
, these stripes
50
can be made linear such as with a straightedge
46
, or as shown in
FIG. 15
, more organic freehand curves
52
. This multiple blade configuration could also be used, with or without the use of a template (not shown), to cut designs, letters, numbers or shapes
54
, for example, from sheet material
44
with a uniform width or border as illustrated in FIG.
16
.
Blade holder
1
can also be used simply to hold a single blade
34
, as shown in
FIG. 1
, to perform any variety of cutting tasks.
Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been explained in detail, hereinabove, the present invention should not be limited to this embodiment alone, but various modifications and changes can be made thereto without departing from the scope of the invention defined in the appended claims.
Claims
- 1. A sheet material cutting tool comprising:a body defining a bottom guide surface; a front surface; a channel extending transversely to said bottom guide surface and intersecting said front surface; a first leg and a second leg straddling said channel and each forming a portion of said bottom guide surface; at least one slot defined by said first and second legs and transversely intersecting said channel, said slot being parallel to said bottom guide surface and shaped to receive the shank of a blade; and closure means actuatable to produce a force clamping the shank between said legs.
- 2. A tool according to claim 1 wherein said front surface is convex and, radially intersected by said slot.
- 3. A tool according to claim 2 wherein said front surface is symmetrical around said slot.
- 4. A tool according to claim 3 wherein said body comprises a top guide surface parallel to said bottom surface.
- 5. A tool according to claim 4 wherein said first and second legs define a cavity for receiving the shank and said slot includes a rear portion extending rearwardly of said cavity.
- 6. A tool according to claim 5 wherein said closure means comprises a tightening mechanism extending between said first and second legs and through said rear portion of said slot.
- 7. A tool according to claim 6 wherein said cavity is rectangular.
- 8. A tool according to claim 7 wherein said slot further includes a fan-shaped portion extending between said cavity and said front surface.
- 9. A tool according to claim 8 wherein said slot further includes a transversely enlarged opening terminating an inner end of said rear portion and extending between said top surface and said bottom surface.
- 10. A tool according to claim 1 wherein said tool comprises a plurality of said slots.
- 11. A tool according to claim 10 wherein said front surface is convex and, radially intersected by said slots.
- 12. A tool according to claim 11 wherein said front surface is symmetrical around said slots.
- 13. A tool according to claim 12 wherein said body comprises a top guide surface parallel to said bottom surface.
- 14. A tool according to claim 13 wherein said first and second legs define a cavity for receiving the shank and said slots include a rear portion extending rearwardly of said cavity.
- 15. A tool according to claim 14 wherein said closure means comprises a tightening mechanism extending between said first and second legs and through said rear portion of said slots.
- 16. A tool according to claim 15 wherein said cavity is rectangular.
- 17. A tool according to claim 16 wherein said slots further include a fan-shaped portion extending between said cavity and said front surface.
- 18. A tool according to claim 17 wherein said slots further include a transversely enlarged opening terminating an inner end of said rear portion and extending between said top surface and said bottom surface.
- 19. A tool according to claim 10 wherein said slots are uniformly spaced apart.
- 20. A tool according to claim 19 wherein said front surface is convex and, radially intersected by said slots.
US Referenced Citations (6)