Disposable shaving razor made of cardboard

Abstract

A disposable shaving razor comprises: a blade-holding head (20) comprising a front wall (21), a longitudinal seat (S) open posteriorly to the front wall, and at least one housing (M1) open anteriorly to the front wall, a handle (10) comprising a handle grip (11), an arm (12) and an appendage (13) coupled inside the longitudinal seat (S) of the blade-holding head in anti-rotational prismatic coupling mode; at least one blade (30) suitable for being housed in the seat (S1) of the blade-holding head in such a way that a cutting edge (30a) of the blade projects anteriorly from the front wall (21) of the blade-holding head, and fixing means (M2) fixing the blade (30) into said housing (M1) of the blade-holding head; wherein said handle (10) is entirely made of cardboard, and said blade-holding head (20) is entirely made of cardboard.

Description

[0001] The present patent application for industrial invention relates to a disposable shaving razor made of cardboard.

[0002] It is well known that most disposable razors available on the market are made of plastic material and at the end of their useful life they are disposed of in the undifferentiated waste.

[0003] The disposable razors have a significant environmental impact for a twofold reasons: they are made of a plastic material, generally ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene), derived from petroleum (and therefore from a non-renewable source), and at the end of their useful life they are disposed of in the undifferentiated waste, given the difficulty and the low economic convenience of separating the plastic body of these razors from the metal blade in order to dispose of them separately.

[0004] Another embodiment of disposable razors provides for selling each razor as a two-dimensional structure, namely a plastic or pre-cut cardboard sheet provided with folding lines. Thanks to the provision of the folding lines, such a pre-cut sheet can be "shaped" by the end user to take on the typical three-dimensional form of a razor.

[0005] GB2260927A describes a solution aimed at providing a shaving razor that can be sold on the market and stocked as a simple cardboard or plastic card having a significantly smaller volume compared to a razor in its typical three-dimensional shape. However, such a solution is not satisfactory in terms of environmental sustainability. In particular, its limitations derive from the fact that the invention in question is normally implemented by providing that the pre-cut sheet with folding lines is made of plastic material and also a similar sheet is irreversibly provided with a metal blade that is to be disposed of in the undifferentiated waste. Furthermore, the three-dimensional structure given by the end user by suitably folding a respective pre-cut sheet is not particularly reliable during use, as it is poorly able to resist the stress that any razor has to withstand in contact with the user's face.

[0006] US4712301A describes a razor according to the preamble of claim 1. In fact, the handle and the blade-holding head of the razor are made of plastic.

[0007] US1875990A describes a razor obtained from a cardboard sheet that is folded into a U-shape. A blade, a spacer and a protective plate are placed between the two folded edges of the cardboard sheet and a clip firmly secures the blade, the spacer and the protective plate between the two edges of the cardboard sheet. Such a razor does not have a cardboard head that is coupled to an attachment of the handle.

[0008] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a razor that can be appropriately disposed of in the paper and cardboard recycling bin, it being a paper product.

[0009] Another purpose of the present invention is to provide a razor with a sufficiently robust and reliable structure, such that the user does not have to use it in a different, perhaps more delicately way compared to a traditional disposable razor made of plastic materials.

[0010] Yet another purpose of the present invention is to provide a razor having a modular structure that is more practical and advantageous in terms of construction, wherein the handle and the blade-holding head are produced separately and then are joined by means of an extremely stable prismatic coupling.

[0011] These objectives have been achieved in accordance with the characteristics listed in the attached independent claim 1.

[0012] Advantageous embodiments of this invention appear from the dependent claims.

[0013] The razor according to the invention comprises a handle and a blade-holding head made of cardboard and is preferably provided with a paper blade. Precisely because it is devoid of any plastic or metal component, such a razor can be entirely disposed of in the paper and cardboard bins at the end of its life cycle.

[0014] Furthermore, the new razor according to the invention can be made in an alternative version to the one indicated above; that is to say, it can be provided with a conventional metal blade instead of the aforementioned paper blade, which is perhaps more suitable for a tough beard. In such a case, the metal blade can be easily removed from the cardboard blade-holding head of the razor. The user can easily disassemble the razor and then dispose of the supporting structure of the razor in the paper waste and the respective blade in the metal waste.

[0015] For greater explanatory clarity, the description of the invention continues with reference to the attached drawings, which are for illustrative and by no means limiting purposes only, wherein: Fig. 1 is an axonometric view of the new razor in question; Fig. 2 is a sectional view along the plane II-II of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is an exploded view of the razor in Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a central portion of the blade-holding head of the razor according to the invention; Fig. 5 is an axonometric view of one of the blades suitable for being mounted on the blade-holding head shown in Fig. 4; Fig. 6 shows a cutting edge of one of the blades suitable for being installed in the razor according to the invention.

[0016] With reference to the Figures, the razor according to the invention is described, which is comprehensively indicated with reference numeral 1.

[0017] The razor (1) comprises a handle (10) and a blade-holding head (20) suitable for being mounted on the handle (10).

[0018] The handle (10) and the blade-holding head (20) are entirely made of rigid cardboard and are suitable for being coupled by means of an extremely stable anti-rotational prismatic coupling.

[0019] The blade-holding head (20) has a C-shaped cross-section with a front wall (21) from which an upper edge (22) and a lower edge (23) protrude posteriorly.

[0020] Each edge (22, 23) comprises: a first wing (22a, 23a) projecting from the front wall (21); a second wing (22b, 23b) connected at 90° to the first wing (22a, 23a); a projection (22c, 23c) that juts out at 90° from the second wing (22b, 23b) towards the front wall (21).

[0021] The two edges (22, 23) and the front wall (21) form a longitudinal housing (S) accessible through a longitudinal opening (IN) defined by the two projections (22c, 23c) of the edges (22, 23).

[0022] The first wing (22a) of the upper edge (22) has a higher length than the first wing (23a) of the lower edge (23), even if the second wings (22b, 23b) are perfectly coplanar. In fact, the front wall (21) is inclined with respect to a line orthogonal to the edges (22, 23).

[0023] A distance (D) is provided between the inner surface of the front wall (21) and the inner surface of the second wing (22b) of the upper edge (22), said distance (D) being higher than a distance (D1) between the surface of the front wall (21) and the inner surface of the second wing (23b) of the lower edge (23).

[0024] The handle (10) comprises: a hand grip (11) having the shape of an elongated rod; an arm (12) projecting substantially at 45° from the handle (11); an appendage (13) located at one end of the arm (12).

[0025] The appendage (13) is suitable for realizing a prismatic coupling with the blade-holding head (20) following a lateral insertion in the seat (S) of the blade-holding head.

[0026] The appendage (13) sectionally comprises a wedge-shaped side (13a) arranged edgeways and suitable for engaging in the center of the seat (S) of the blade-holding head (20). The wedge-shaped side (13a) has an upper longitudinal groove (13a') and a lower longitudinal groove (13a"), respectively suitable for accommodating the projections (22c, 23c) of the edges (22, 23) of the blade-holding head (20).

[0027] The side (13a) has a longitudinal shelf (13b) joined with the arm (12) of the handle (10). The shelf (13b) is suitable for engaging in the opening (IN) provided on the blade-holding head (20).

[0028] Such a prismatic coupling ensures a stable connection between the handle (10) and the blade-holding head (20). However, for greater security, a layer of glue may be applied in a central section of the longitudinal seat (S) of the blade-holding head (20) where the shaped appendage (13) of the handle (10) is to be firmly fixed.

[0029] The blade-holding head (20) has at least one housing (M1) suitable for housing a blade (30).

[0030] The razor (1) comprises fixing means (M2) (Fig. 2) for fixing the blade (30) in the housing (M1) of the blade-holding head. The fixing means (M2) are applied posteriorly the front wall of the blade-holding head before coupling the blade-holding head (20) with the handle (10).

[0031] The Figures show an embodiment in which the blade-holding head (20) has two housings (M1) to house two blades (30). Each blade (30) has a rectangular shape with a cutting edge (30a) inclined by an angle comprised between 10° and 40°. The cutting edge (30a) has a flute-beak shape.

[0032] Each housing (M1) comprises a longitudinal, sloping notch (21a) made in a front surface of the front wall (21). The depth of the slots (21a) is such as to house the blades (30), so that the cutting edge (30a) of the blades (30) slightly protrudes from the front wall (21) of the blade-holding head.

[0033] The blade-holding head (2) comprises holes (21a') passing through the front part (21) of the blade-holding head and communicating with the notches (21a).

[0034] The blade (30) comprises holes (30b) that are located in correspondence with the holes (21a') of the blade-holding head.

[0035] The fixing means (M2) comprise adhesive that passes through the holes (21a') of the blade-holding head and the holes (30b) of the blades to firmly fix the blades (30) in the notches (21a) of the blade-holding head, so as to prevent each blade (30) from slipping out of its respective notch (21a) during use. The adhesive is injected from the back of the front wall of the blade-holding head into the holes (21a') of the blade-holding head and flows into the holes (30b) of the blades. Quick-setting glue is used, preferably a cyanoacrylate-based glue.

[0036] In order to facilitate the centering of the holes (30b) of the blade with the holes (21a') of the blade-holding head, before injecting the glue, pins can be inserted from the back of the front wall of the blade-holding head, respectively into the holes (21a') of the blade-holding head and into the corresponding holes (30b) of the blade.

[0037] The blades (30) are preferably paper blades that can be disposed of in paper waste, together with the entire razor (1), without the need to extract the blades (30) from the blade-holding head (20).

[0038] With reference to Fig. 6, the paper blades (30) have a thickness of 300 µm, and are made from paper sheets with a weight comprised between 60 and 350 g / m 2< .

[0039] In the event that the blades (30) are made of metal and cannot be disposed of together with the razor (1), said blades (30) can be pulled out from the notches (21a), possibly after forcedly widening the notches (21a).

[0040] The handle (10) and the blade-holding head (20) are made of rigid cardboard preferably using two or three-wave corrugated cardboard of marine type. The choice of using two or three-wave corrugated cardboard with a remarkable self-supporting capacity is justified by the fact that this type of corrugated cardboard creates a stable and reliable prismatic coupling between the handle (10) and the respective blade-holding head (20), as well as between the blade-holding head (20) and the blades (30) supported by it. The marine corrugated cardboard is less subject to deterioration in contact with water, and prevents the razor (1) from getting damaged both when the user is shaving his face - when it comes into contact with the shaving foam and the user's moist skin - and during the final rinsing that is normally carried out by the user under a jet of running water or by immersion.

Claims

1. Disposable shaving razor comprising: - a blade-holding head (20) comprising a front wall (21), a longitudinal seat (S) open posteriorly to the front wall, and at least one housing (M1) open anteriorly to the front wall, - a handle (10) comprising a handle grip (11), an arm (12) projecting from the handle grip (11), and an appendage (13) at the end of said arm (12); said appendage (13) of the handle being suitable for coupling inside said longitudinal seat (S) of the blade-holding head in anti-rotational prismatic coupling mode; - at least one blade (30) suitable for being housed in said at least one seat (S1) of the blade-holding head in such a way that a cutting edge (30a) of the blade projects anteriorly from the front wall (21) of the blade-holding head, and - fixing means (M2) fixing said blade (30) into said housing (M1) of the blade-holding head, characterized in that said handle (10) is entirely made of cardboard, and said blade-holding head (20) is entirely made of cardboard.

2. The razor according to claim 1, wherein said at least one blade (30) is made of paper.

3. The razor according to claim 2, wherein said at least one blade (30) has a thickness of 300 µm and is made of paper sheets with weight comprised between 60 and 350 g / m2.

4. The razor according to claim 2, wherein said at least one blade (30) has a cutting edge (30a) inclined by an angle comprised between 10° and 40°.

5. The razor according to claim 1, wherein said at least one blade (30) is made of metal.

6. The razor according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said front wall (21) of the blade-holding head (20) is connected with an upper edge (22) and a lower edge (23) that define said longitudinal seat (S) and a rear opening (IN) of said longitudinal seat (S).

7. The razor according to claim 6, wherein each of said edges (22, 23) comprises: - a first wing (22a, 23a) projecting from the back of said front wall (21); - a second wing (22b, 23b) joined at 90° with the first wing (22a, 23a); - a projection (22c, 23c) projecting at 90° from the second wing (22b, 23b); wherein said second wings (22b, 23b) are coplanar; said appendage (13) of the handle (10) comprises: - an edge (13a) suitable for engaging in the seat (S) of the blade-holding head (20); wherein said edge (13a) is provided with an upper longitudinal groove (13a') and a lower longitudinal groove (13a"), respectively suitable for accommodating the projections (22c, 23c) of the edges (22, 23) of the blade-holding head (20); - a shelf (13b) projecting posteriorly from the edge (13a) for joining with said arm (12) of the handle (10); wherein said shelf is suitable for engaging in said rear opening (IN) of the seat (S) of the blade-holding head (20).

8. The razor according to claim 6, wherein said first wing (22a) of the upper edge (22) of the blade-holding head (20) has a length higher than that of the first wing (23a) of the lower edge (23); wherein a distance (D) between an inner surface of said front wall (21) of the blade-holding head (20) and an inner surface of the second wing (22b) of said upper edge (22) is higher than a distance (D1) between an inner surface of said front wall (21) and an inner surface of the second wing (23b) of said lower edge (23); wherein said edge (13a) of the appendage (13) of the handle (10) has a substantially wedge-shaped profile.

9. The razor according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said housing (M1) of the blade-holding head (20) comprise a longitudinal sloping notch (21a) made on a front surface of said front wall (21) of said blade-holding head (20); wherein said notch (21a) accommodates said blade (30) in such a way that the cutting edge (30a) of the blade projects from the front wall (21).

10. The razor according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the blade-holding head (2) comprise holes (21a') passing through the front wall (21) of the blade-holding head (20) and communicating with the notches (21a); the blade (30) comprises holes (30b) provided in correspondence with the holes (21a') of the blade-holding head; and the fixing means (M2) comprise an adhesive that passes through the holes (21a') of the blade-holding head and the holes (30b) of the blades to firmly fix the blades (30) in the notches (21a) of the blade-holding head.

11. The razor according to claim 11, comprising pins arranged in said holes (21a') of the blade-holding head and holes (30b) of the blades.

12. The razor according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the cardboard used to make the handle (10) and the blade-holding head (20) is marine-type corrugated cardboard with at least two waves.

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