Abstract
A knife including a housing and a blade carrier, in which a blade can be fastened and which is movable in the housing between a safety position in which the blade carrier is arranged in a rear position such that the blade does not project beyond protective components formed by the housing and at least one cutting position in which the blade projects beyond the protective components. A spring mechanism is arranged between the housing and the blade carrier and loads the blade carrier into the safety position. The blade carrier includes first locking element releasably engageable with second locking element on the housing to lock the blade carrier in at least one safety position and/or in at least one cutting position.
Claims
1-18. (canceled)
19. A knife, comprising: a housing; a blade carrier, in which a blade is fastenable, the blade carrier being movable in the housing between a safety position in which the blade carrier is arranged in a rear position so that the blade does not project beyond the housing and at least one cutting position in which the blade projects beyond the housing; and a spring mechanism arranged between the housing and the blade carrier so as to load the blade carrier into the safety position, wherein the blade carrier comprises first locking means releasably engageable with second locking means on the housing to lock the blade carrier in the safety position and/or the at least one cutting position.
20. The knife according to claim 19, wherein the first locking means includes at least one latch movable between a latch position and a release position.
21. The knife according to claim 20, wherein the latch is guided on a curved path.
22. The knife according to claim 21, wherein the latch is guided on a circular path.
23. The knife according to claim 19, wherein the second locking means comprise at least one latch seat.
24. The knife according to claim 19, further comprising an actuator, wherein the housing comprises a slot-like lateral opening that extends parallel to a direction of movement of the blade carrier, and wherein the lateral opening is penetrated by a connection between the blade carrier and the actuator.
25. The knife according to claim 24, wherein the second locking means are arranged adjacent to the lateral opening and offset in the direction of movement of the blade carrier.
26. The knife according to claim 19, wherein the second locking means are arranged on the housing so as to be externally visible.
27. The knife according to claim 19, further comprising a securing device configured to lock the first locking means.
28. The knife according to claim 19, wherein the first locking means comprise a pressure piece connected for movement to the blade carrier and loaded by spring means against a securing surface of the blade carrier.
29. The knife according to claim 28, wherein the securing surface includes at least one positioning region for the pressure piece.
30. The knife according to claim 29, wherein the at least one positioning region includes a first position region separated from a second position region by a step that must be overcome during movement between the first position region and the second position region.
31. The knife according to claim 29, wherein the pressure piece is a metal part.
32. The knife according to claim 19, wherein the housing forms guide means for guiding the blade carrier.
33. The knife according to claim 19, wherein the housing comprises a guide rail in which the blade carrier is guided.
34. The knife according to claim 33, wherein the housing comprises a sleeve region in which the guide rail is at least partially received.
35. The knife according to claim 34, wherein the second locking means are formed in the sleeve region or in the guide rail.
36. The knife according to claim 34, wherein the guide rail is a metal part.
37. The knife according to claim 19, further comprising a spring end connected to first coupling means engageable with second coupling means of the blade carrier.
Description
[0030] In the figures:
[0031] FIG. 1 shows a side view of the knife in the safety position,
[0032] FIG. 2 shows a side view in a first cutting position, wherein the locking device is in the release position,
[0033] FIG. 3 shows a side view according to FIG. 2, wherein the locking device is set in the latch position,
[0034] FIG. 4 shows a side view in a second cutting position, wherein the locking device is in the release position,
[0035] FIG. 5 shows a side view according to FIG. 4, wherein the locking device is in the latch position,
[0036] FIG. 6 shows an exploded illustration of the knife, wherein the sleeve region of the knife is not shown,
[0037] FIG. 7 shows an exploded illustration of the blade carrier,
[0038] FIG. 8 shows a perspective illustration of the knife, wherein the sleeve region is not shown and the blade carrier is dismounted from the guide rail,
[0039] FIG. 9 shows a side view of the knife according to FIG. 8,
[0040] FIG. 10 shows a section view according to the sectional line A-A in FIG. 9,
[0041] FIG. 11 shows a side view of the knife according to FIG. 1, wherein the sleeve region is not shown and the locking device is in the release position,
[0042] FIG. 12 shows a sectional view according to the sectional line B-B in FIG. 11,
[0043] FIG. 13 shows a side view of the blade carrier and the carriage,
[0044] FIG. 14 shows a sectional view according to the sectional line C-C in FIG. 13,
[0045] FIG. 15 shows a side view of the knife according to FIG. 4, wherein the sleeve region and the locking part are not shown,
[0046] FIG. 16 shows a sectional view according to the sectional line D-D in FIG. 15,
[0047] FIG. 17 shows a sectional view according to the sectional line E-E in FIG. 5,
[0048] FIG. 18 shows a sectional view according to the sectional line F-F in FIG. 4.
[0049] A knife as a whole is designated with the reference numeral 10 in the figures. The knife comprises a housing 11 with a sleeve region 12 and a guide rail 13 which is partially surrounded by the sleeve region 12.
[0050] FIG. 1 shows a side view of the knife. It can be seen that the guide rail 13 is designed to be C-shaped and has folds 24a and 24b with free ends 40a and 40b forming a lateral opening 23 between them. When a blade 16 is fully inside the guide rail 13, a cutting edge 39 is inaccessible to the user. The blade 16 is guided between a wall 24 and the folds 24a and 24b.
[0051] The housing 11 further comprises the sleeve region 12, which forms a grip region on which the knife 10 can be gripped. The sleeve region 12 omits the lateral opening 23 and a range of movement of an actuator 15 for a blade carrier 14 in which the blade 16 is mounted. Adjacent to the free end 40a, a plurality of second locking means 18 is formed in the sleeve region 12 of the housing 11 offset along the lateral opening 23. In the present example, the second locking means 18 are in the form of recesses 32. The recesses 32 have opposing abutment surfaces 41a, 41b.
[0052] At a rear end region 25, the housing 11 has a closing part 21 with which a rear opening of the guide rail 13 (not shown in FIG. 1) can be closed. The closing part 21 forms swivel joints 30a and 30b with the housing 11. In this way, the closing part 21 can be pivoted between a closed position, in which access to the rear opening is blocked, and an open position, in which the rear opening is passable. By means of a housing latch 22 of the closing part 21, which cooperates with locking means on the sleeve region 12, the closed position can be locked and unlocked.
[0053] In the guide rail 13 the blade 16 and a part of the blade carrier 14 are guided movably in the directions x1 and x2. By means of the actuator 15, which is connected to or formed by the blade carrier 14, the blade carrier 14 can be adjusted by the user in the directions x1 and x2 relative to the housing 11. During movement, the blade carrier 14 is guided by the guide rail 13. In this waydepending on how far the blade carrier 14 is moved in the direction x1different blade exit lengths l can be set, wherein l denotes the blade length that projects beyond a front edge 42 of the guide rail 13 (see FIGS. 2 to 5). The blade 16 exits from a front opening 20 at a front end region 19 of the housing 11.
[0054] A spring 26 (not visible in FIG. 1, see FIG. 2) loads the blade carrier 14 in the direction x2 into the safety position shown in FIG. 1, in which a cutting edge 39 of the blade 16 is not accessible to the user. The spring 26 is attached to the housing 11 by an attachment 27 and forms an attachment 28 with a carriage 29. The attachment 28 and the carriage 29 cannot be seen in FIG. 2. As soon as the force applied by the user in the direction x1, which holds the blade carrier 14 in a cutting position, decreases, the blade carrier 14 is pulled by the spring 26 in the direction x2 into the safety position.
[0055] A locking device comprising first locking means 17 of the blade carrier 14 and second locking means 18 of the housing 11 can be used to lock the blade carrier 14 in one of a plurality of locking positions relative to the housing 11. The first locking means 17 comprise a latch 31 movable between a latch position and a release position. In the latch position, the latch 31 is engaged with one of the recesses 32. In the latch position, movement of the blade carrier 14 in one of the directions x1 and x2 is not possible. In the release position, the latch 31 is out of engagement with the recesses 32.
[0056] Since the recesses 32 are located to the side of the path of movement of the blade carrier 14, the latch 31 only has to cover a short distance between the latch position and the release position. As can be seen in the figures, the latch 31 has a curved longitudinal center axis and is movable along a correspondingly slightly curved path between the latch position and the release position. This has the advantage that the latch 31 can be moved in an ergonomically advantageous way and gives a peculiar visual impression.
[0057] According to FIG. 1, the blade carrier 14 is arranged in the safety position. The locking device is in the latch position. This means that the blade carrier 14 cannot be moved in the direction x1 into the cutting position. A movement in the direction x2 is not possible from the safety position anyway, as stop means of the blade carrier 14 as well as of the closing part 21 prevent this as long as the closing part 21 is in the closed position. In order for the blade carrier 14 to be movable, the latch 31 must be moved to the release position as shown in FIG. 2.
[0058] The locking device 50 (see FIGS. 17 and 18) comprises a securing device 62 for the latch 31 in the latch position. This prevents the latch 31 from unintentionally moving from the latch position to the release position. The securing device 62 comprises a pressure piece 33 which is loaded by a spring 35 in the direction z1 against a securing surface 36. The securing surface 36 comprises position regions 37 and 38, which are separated from each other by a step 43. The pressure piece 33 is motion-connected to the latch 31 so that it moves from the position range 37 to the position range 38 (see FIG. 18) when the latch 31 moves from the latch position to the release position. In doing so, the pressure piece 33 must overcome the step 43 while moving in the direction z2 against the spring force of the spring 35, for which an increased amount of force is necessary when adjusting the latch 31. This prevents unintentional movement.
[0059] In FIG. 6, the guide rail 13 of the housing 11, the blade carrier 14 and a carriage 29 are shown in perspective. The sleeve region 12, the closing part 21 and the blade 16 are not shown in FIG. 6. The carriage 29 comprises a driver 53 which forms a coupling element which cooperates with a coupling element of the blade carrier 14. The attachment 28 formed on the carriage 29 allows an end region of the spring 26 to be attached to the carriage 29. A slot 54 can be seen in the guide rail 13, the function of which is explained below.
[0060] FIG. 7 shows an exploded illustration of the blade carrier 14. The blade carrier 14 comprises an upper part 44 and a lower part 45. The upper part 44 has the actuator 15. Furthermore, the latch 31 and the pressure piece 33 are movably mounted in the latch seat 34 on the upper part 44. The spring 35 for loading the pressure piece 33 is not shown in FIG. 7. Retaining means 46, here in the form of latching arms, are also held on the upper part 44 and cooperate with the lower part 45.
[0061] A projection 47 of the upper part 44 comprises abutment surfaces 52, of which only one abutment surface 52 can be seen in FIG. 7. The abutment surfaces 52 engage under the folds 24a and 24b to prevent pivotal movement of the upper part 44 relative to the lower part 45 when the blade carrier 14 is in the guide rail 13.
[0062] The lower part 45 comprises mating retaining means 48, here in the form of a detent axle, designed to engage with the retaining means 46 to pivotally hold the upper part 44 together with the lower part 45. The lower part 45 is provided with a recess 49 for receiving the projection 47. Form-fitting means 51 are formed to positively retain the blade 16 on the lower part 45. In this exemplary embodiment, the form-fitting means 51 are in the form of a pin which is adapted to engage a recess in the blade 16.
[0063] The blade 16 may be held between a support surface 55 of the lower part 45 and a surface of the upper part 44 (not shown) when the blade carrier 14 is in a retaining position. The movement of the blade carrier 14 into a change position is only possible if the blade carrier 14 has previously been removed from the guide rail 13.
[0064] In FIG. 8, the carriage 29 is held on an underside of the guide rail 13 in such a way that the driver 53 engages through the slot 54 and projects into the path of movement of the blade carrier 14. The slot 54 defines the path of movement of the driver 53 and thus also of the carriage 29 connected to the driver 53. The blade carrier 14 can be inserted into the guide rail 13 in the direction x1 through an opening 56 at the rear end region 25 of the guide rail 13. If a driver surface of the blade carrier 14 comes into contact with the driver 53, the spring 26 is tensioned when the blade carrier 14 moves further in the direction x1 and a force acts on the blade carrier 14 in the direction x2.
[0065] According to FIG. 9, the carriage 29 is mounted on the guide rail 13. For the sake of clarity, the sleeve region 12 of the knife 10 is not shown. The blade carrier 14 is dismantled and can be pushed into the guide rail 13 in the direction x1. The abutment surfaces 52 of the blade carrier 14 then engage under guide surfaces 57 of the guide rail 13 (see FIG. 10) and prevent movement of the blade carrier 14 into the open position.
[0066] FIG. 10 shows the driving surface 58 on the blade carrier 14, which interacts with the driver 53 of the carriage. The carriage 29 is configured to slide along a lower surface 59 of the guide rail 13. FIG. 10 shows the first attachment 27 by means of which the spring 26 is connected to the guide rail and the second attachment 28 of the spring 26 to the carriage 29. It is conceivable that the spring 26 is tensioned when the driver 53 moves in the direction x1. In the present example, the attachment 27 is formed by a hook element of the guide rail, into which an eyelet of the spring 26 is hooked. The attachment 28 is formed by a hook element of the carriage 29, to which an eyelet of another end region of the spring 26 is hooked.
[0067] According to FIG. 11, the blade carrier 14 is mounted in the guide rail 13. The blade 16 is shown in broken lines. The blade 16 (see FIG. 12) also slides on the guide surface 57. At the front end region 19, the distance between an inner surface 60 of the guide rail 13 and the lower surface decreases in order to guide the blade 16 in this region.
[0068] In FIGS. 13 and 14, only the blade carrier 14 and the carriage 29 are shown enlarged.
[0069] In FIGS. 15 and 16 the blade carrier 14 is in the foremost position, so the blade 16 has the maximum exit length l. The driver 53 is moved to an end region 63 of the slot 54 opposite the end region 61. It can be seen that the spring 26 is positioned below the lower surface 59.
[0070] The locking device can be seen in FIGS. 17 and 18. In FIG. 17, the latch 31 is engaged with one of the recesses 32 in the latch position. The pressure piece 33 is against the safety surface 36 of the blade carrier 14 by the spring 35. To move the latch 17 into the release position in the direction y1, the pressure piece 33 must be moved from the position region 37 to the position region 38 and thus overcome the step 43, which requires an increased exertion of force. According to FIG. 18, the latch 17 is in the release position. The pressure piece 33 is in contact with the position region 38. The movement of the latch 17 into the latch position in the direction y2 can be carried out without increased exertion of force because the pressure piece 33 is moved down the step 43.
[0071] The function of the knife 10 will be described in the following. To move the blade 16 from the safety position according to FIG. 1 to any cutting position, the latch 31 must be moved to the release position and the blade carrier 14 must be moved against the spring force of the spring 26 in the direction x1 until, for example, one of the positions according to FIG. 2 or FIG. 4 is reached. Then the latch 31 can be adjusted in the direction y2 to the latch position by moving it into engagement with a recess 32.
[0072] Since the recesses 32 can be seen by the user, it can also be visually determined whether the latch 31 is in the latch position. In addition, the user receives haptic feedback when the pressure piece 33 moves down the step 43 when the latch 31 is moved from the release position to the latch position.
[0073] In order to be able to change the blade, the blade carrier 14 is first moved to the safety position as shown in FIG. 1 and the latch 31 is moved to the latch position. The blade 16 is then received in the guide rail 13 of the housing 11 in such a way that the user cannot come into contact with the cutting edge 39. The housing latch 22 is opened and the closing part 21 is swivelled away relative to the housing 11 so that the rear opening 56 of the guide rail 13 is no longer blocked by the closing part 21.
[0074] The blade carrier 14 can then first be unlocked by moving the latch 31 to the release position and then removed from the guide rail 13 via the rear opening 56 (see FIG. 10). Since the driving surface 58 of the blade carrier 14 and the driver 53 of the carriage 29 constitute coupling elements that readily allow the driving surface 58 to be disengaged from the driver 53 in the direction x2, the blade carrier 14 can be removed from the housing 11 while the carriage 29 remains attached to the housing 11. The driver 53 is moved by the spring 26 to the end region 61 of the slot 54.
[0075] After changing the blade, assembly is carried out in reverse order, wherein the blade carrier 14 with the blade 16 is inserted into the guide rail 13 and the latch 31 is moved into the latch position. The closing part 21 is then swivelled back into a closed position in which the rear opening 56 is blocked. The housing latch 22 automatically latches onto the housing 11 in the closed position. The knife is then ready for use again.
