SHELLFISH SHUCKING KNIFE

Abstract

Present embodiments relate to a shellfish shucking knife preferably having multiple blades, including at least a hinge blade and a muscle-cutting blade.

Claims

1. A shellfish shucking knife comprising: an elongated handle sized to fit in a user's hand; and an elongated blade connected to the elongated handle, the elongated handle and the elongated blade having an axis, wherein the elongated blade includes: a proximal end adjacent the elongated handle and a distal end, a cutting edge and a non-dominant hand edge opposite the cutting edge, a hinge blade extending from the cutting edge generally orthogonal to the axis, a primary muscle blade along the cutting edge, distal to the hinge blade, a secondary muscle blade along the non-dominant hand edge, and a side shucking blade at the distal end.

2. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the elongated handle comprises two mirror image parts that are secured together with a portion of the elongated blade therebetween.

3. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the elongated handle includes a power grip pad, a thumb pad, and a finger guard, the finger guard adjacent the proximal end of the elongated blade.

4. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 2, wherein a portion of the finger guard is configured to form a kick stand.

5. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the hinge blade extends from the cutting edge at an angle of about 70 degrees to about 135 degrees relative to the axis.

6. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the hinge blade extends from the cutting edge at a distance of about 10 mm to about 65 mm above the elongated handle.

7. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the hinge blade extends from the cutting edge at a distance of about 35 mm above the elongated handle.

8. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the hinge blade extends about 4 mm to about 25 mm from the axis.

9. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the hinge blade extends about 13 mm from the axis.

10. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the hinge blade extends about 2.25 mm to about 6.5 mm along the cutting edge.

11. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the hinge blade extends about 3.5 mm along the cutting edge.

12. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the hinge blade has a thickness of about 0.4 mm to about 2.25 mm.

13. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the hinge blade has a thickness of about 1.2 mm.

14. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the primary muscle blade has a length of about 25 mm to about 75 mm.

15. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the primary muscle blade has a length of about 60 mm.

16. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the side shucking blade is formed where the primary muscle blade and the secondary muscle blade meet.

17. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the side shucking blade has a thickness of about 0.1 mm to about 0.75 mm.

18. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the side shucking blade has a thickness of about 0.3 mm.

19. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the side shucking blade has a half circle shape.

20. The shellfish shucking knife of claim 1, wherein the side shucking blade has an elliptical, parabolic, or oval shape.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] The foregoing summary, as well as the following detailed description, will be better understood when read in conjunction with the appended drawings. For the purposes of illustrating a shellfish shucking knife according to the present invention, there are shown in the drawings certain embodiments. It should be understood, however, that the application is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown. In the drawings:

[0027] FIG. 1 shows a front view of a shellfish shucking knife according to various embodiments of the present invention;

[0028] FIG. 2 shows a back view thereof;

[0029] FIG. 3 shows a left side view thereof;

[0030] FIG. 4 shows a right side view thereof;

[0031] FIG. 5 shows a top view thereof;

[0032] FIG. 6 shows a bottom view thereof;

[0033] FIG. 7 shows a perspective view thereof; and

[0034] FIG. 8 shows an exploded perspective view thereof.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] Oyster knives currently on the market present several issues for kitchen chefs, raw bar shuckers, and at-home seafood lovers. These issues are related to safety, ergonomics, and efficiency (including speed of shucking and avoiding damage to the shellfish being shucked).

[0036] Current oyster knives, for example, require the user to apply a large amount of pressure to open the oyster. Because traditional oyster knives are only linear, the pressure is directed directly into the shell. This can result in the user smashing their hand into the jagged shell or stabbing themselves with the tip of the blade. Furthermore, the large amount of pressure can also cause the bottom shell, also known as the serving shell, to break and render the oyster inseverable. Additionally, this pressure can also cause the user to insert the blade too deep into the oyster shell and puncture the oyster, which will also cause the oyster to be inseverable. When the oyster shucker cuts themselves or damages the oyster shell or oyster meat, this leads to a loss in time and money and becomes an inefficient process. Lastly, current oyster knife ergonomics put strain on the user's wrist causing repetitive strain injury.

[0037] As shown in FIGS. 1-8, a shellfish shucking knife according to embodiments of the present invention has two main components, a shucking handle assembly [12] and a shucking blade [13]. The shellfish shucking knife is constructed with a handle having two parts, top and bottom (or two sides; reference to top and bottom being for convenience) [2,3], which are mirror images of each other, that sandwich together the shellfish blade [13]. Barrel nut screws [5,6,7,8] are inserted, in two locations, through the top and bottom handle [2,3], pass through the blade [13], and are tightened to hold each of the components in place.

[0038] At the end of the shucking handle is a hook hole [1] for storage purposes. The handle has two main locations for the hand, a power grip pad [4] and a thumb pad [9] creating a modified power grip. The power grip pad [4] is for all four fingers to wrap around the handle and encompasses but is not limited to approximately two-thirds of the handle, from the bottom of the handle [12] to the bottom of the thumb pad [9]. The exact size or portion of the handle [12] comprising the power grip [4] need not be exactly two-thirds of the handle [12], but preferably accommodates a user's four fingers. The thumb pad [9] encompasses the remaining one-third of the handle [12], against which the thumb can rest. A finger guard [10] envelops the thumb and protects the user from cutting themselves. Furthermore, the form of the finger guard [10] can act as a kick stand [11] on which the shellfish shucking knife can be placed. The kick stand [11] allows the knife to sit on the table, keeping the blade above the working surface and away from possible contamination of the working surface.

[0039] The shellfish shucking blade [13] extends in line from the shellfish shucking handle. A hinge blade [14] protrudes from the elongated portion of the shellfish shucking blade [13], at a generally perpendicular angle though can be effective at other angles ranging from about 70 degrees to about 135 degrees with respect to the longitudinal axis of the elongated portion of the blade [13] and handle [12] (zero degrees being the axis towards the handle [12]). In the exemplary embodiment, the hinge blade [14] protrudes from the blade at approximately 35 mm above the top of the handle though can be effective at other distances ranging from about 10 mm to 65 mm above the handle [12]. In the exemplary embodiment the hinge blade [14] projects from the shellfish shucking blade about 13 mm though can be effective at other distances ranging from about 4 mm to 25 mm with respect to the longitudinal access to the elongated portion. In the exemplary embodiment, the run of the of the hinge blade [14] (i.e., the distance along the length of the blade [13]) is approximately 3.5 mm though can be effective at other distances ranging from about 2.25 mm to 6.5 mm, and the rise of the hinge blade [14] is approximately 1.2 mm but can be effective at other distances ranging from about 0.4 mm to 2.25 mm.

[0040] On the opposing side of the hinge blade is the non-dominant hand position [18]. The non-dominant hand position [18] is used to apply pressure and give the user more precision while inserting the hinge blade [14] into an oyster. An exemplary method of using the shucking knife of the present invention includes placing the oyster in the palm of the non-dominant hand, and placing the hinge blade [14] in the hinge of the oyster, with the user's non-dominant fingers wrapping around the blade [13] to a non-dominant hand position [18] to apply pressure and insert the hinge blade [13] into the hinge of the oyster. To separate the top and bottom shell of the oyster, the user, still applying pressure with their non-dominant hand, can twist their dominant forearm clockwise and/or counterclockwise in conjunction with applied pressure, using the thumb pad [9] and power grip pad [4]. Once the top and bottom oyster shells have been slightly separated, the blade [13] can be inserted into the oyster using the primary muscle blade [15] to cut the top abductor muscle and detach the top shell.

[0041] The hinge blade [14] transitions into an elongated primary muscle blade [15]. In the exemplary embodiment the length of the primary muscle blade [15] is approximately 60 mm but can be effective at other distances ranging from about 25 mm to 75 mm. The primary muscle blade [15], which is a combination of the pitch and elongated curvature, can slide along the underside of the top oyster shell and sever the top oyster abductor muscle from the shell, which detaches the top shell of the oyster.

[0042] The primary muscle blade [15], in conjunction with being able to cut the top muscle, can also be used to open clams. The primary muscle blade/clam blade [15] uses the same ergonomics as shucking an oyster. The clam is placed in the non-dominant hand. The fingers of the non-dominant hand wrap around the blade [13] to the non-dominant hand position [18] and instead of inserting the hinge blade where the two clam shells meet, the primary muscle [15] blade is placed where the two clam shells meet. The non-dominant hand applies pressure to separate the clam's shells, and twisting the blade [13] further opens them. The primary muscle blade [15] is used to cut the top and bottom muscle of the clam, at which point it is ready to be served.

[0043] In the exemplary embodiment, a side shucking blade [17] located at the distal end of the blade [13] is formed where the primary muscle blade [15] and secondary muscle blade [16] meet. The secondary muscle blade [16] is formed along and toward (approximate) the distal end of the non-dominant hand edge [18]. The side shucking blade [17] is intended to be used to enter the oyster anywhere but the hinge of the oyster. In the exemplary embodiment, the form of the side shucking blade [17] approximates a half circle though can be effective in other geometric shapes, such as elliptical, parabolic, oval and the like. In the exemplary embodiment, the form of the side shucking blade [17] has a thickness of approximately 0.3 mm though can be effective ranging from about 0.1 mm to 0.75 mm. To side shuck, the side shucking blade [17] is placed where the two shells meet. Slight pressure is applied and minimal twisting of the user's forearm in a clockwise and counterclockwise motion will allow the side shucking blade to be inserted. Once inserted, the top muscle can be cut with the primary abductor muscle blade [15], and the top shell can then be removed.

[0044] Once the top shell of the oyster (or other shellfish) is removed, the oyster is exposed, but is still attached to the bottom shell by the bottom abductor muscle. The secondary muscle blade [16] can then be used to scrape along the bottom shell's curvature, a cup-like form, to fully detach the oyster, which is then ready to be served.

[0045] While there have been shown and described fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to the preferred and illustrative embodiments thereof, it will be understood that omissions and substitutions and changes in the form and details of the disclosed invention may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention. Moreover, as is readily apparent, numerous modifications and changes may readily occur to those skilled in the art. For example, various features and structures of the different embodiments discussed herein may be combined and interchanged. Hence, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described and, accordingly, all suitable modification equivalents may be resorted to falling within the scope of the invention as claimed. It is the intention, therefore, to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the claims appended hereto.