Box cutter having a multi-piece handle and an exchangeable blade

Abstract

A box cutter (1) comprises a multi-piece handle (4) and a blade (7) which is exchangeably fastened to the handle (4) and extends through a slot (9) in an end-face handle surface (10). The handle surface (10) comprises at least one holding element (26) for detachably fastening at least one counter holding element (27), and an angular stop (16) having a lateral stop surface (8), wherein the at least one holding element (26) and the at least one counter holding element (27) are designed and arranged in such a way that the angular stop (16) can be fastened to the handle (4) in different positions.

Description

[0001] Description

[0002] The invention relates to a cardboard knife with a multi-part handle and a replaceable knife blade attached to the handle, which extends through a slot in the handle.

[0003] DE 38 00 632 A1 discloses a knife with a handle and a blade holder attached to the handle, as well as first and second guide plates attached to the blade holder, the guide plates enclosing an obtuse angle between them. The handle consists of a first and a second complementary section, the two sections being pivotally coupled to one another in a joint to enable a scissor-like movement of the two handle sections. The blade holder comprises first and second blade holder plates and a device for clamping a cutting blade between the two blade holder plates. One of the guide plates has a window opening and includes an elastically deflectable spring-loaded safety guard attached to the guide plate and protruding through the window opening.The safety guard retracts through the window when the guide plate is placed on a surface to be cut. Lateral adjustment of the cutting blade essentially parallel to the corresponding guide plate for setting the cutting distance from a stop edge is not provided.

[0004] US Pat. No. 4,503,612 A discloses a knife with a handle and a blade holder attached to the handle, as well as two guide plates aligned at an angle to each other. A spring-loaded safety guard is hinged to one of the guide plates, and the other guide plate determines the distance between a stop edge and a cut. The distance is not adjustable.

[0005] Furthermore, DE 100 49 240 C1 discloses a cutting device for floor coverings with a knife blade arranged on a base body and a stop edge provided on the underside of the base body. In the front area of ​​the base body, several panels are detachably attached to the base body for adjusting the cutting width, and the knife blade can be arranged between the panels as needed, parallel to the stop edge.

[0006] Furthermore, US 4606 124 A describes a knife with an adjustable blade, wherein the knife is associated with a pivoting stop that can be adjusted for cutting width and cutting depth. The entire knife is mounted on the stop in a replaceable manner.

[0007] For the purposes of the invention, a cardboard knife also includes a carpet knife, wallpaper knife or cutter

[0008] The invention is based on the object of creating a cardboard cutter of the type mentioned above that can be used relatively safely by both right-handed and left-handed people and enables a defined cut. According to the invention, this object is achieved in that the handle surface comprises at least one holding element for releasably securing at least one counterholding element and an angle stop having a lateral stop surface. The at least one holding element and the at least one counterholding element associated with a support surface of the angle stop are designed and arranged such that the angle stop can be secured to the handle in different positions.

[0009] The knife blade can be a hook blade, a trapezoidal blade, or a snap-off blade, with the trapezoidal blade being preferred but not limiting in the context of the present invention. The knife blade is securely held in the handle in a replaceable manner.

[0010] To cut open a sealed carton, the carton cutter is placed against the side of the carton and the tip of the blade is pressed into the carton until both the side stop and the support surface are in contact with the carton. The carton cutter is then moved across the carton in a pulling motion. After repeating the cutting process, the carton is opened along all sides, essentially removing a cut-out lid. By making further cuts along the carton's side edges, it can be divided into easily disposable carton sections.

[0011] When cutting using the usual pulling motion, a right-handed person will mount the angle stop so that the side stop surface is on the right side of the knife blade, and a left-handed person will mount the angle stop so that the side stop surface is on the left side of the knife blade. This conversion and the relatively safe use of the box cutter is possible due to the design and arrangement of the holding elements on the handle surface, which is aligned parallel to the support surface of the angle stop, and the counter-holding elements assigned to the support surface of the angle stop. In particular, the support surface and the reciprocally adjustable side stop surface offer a relatively high level of protection against injury and thus enable relatively safe handling of the box cutter. There is no need to provide a special box cutter for right-handed or left-handed people.

[0012] Of course, thanks to the precise guidance of the cardboard knife thanks to the stop surface and the side stop surface, straight cuts can also be made through other materials, such as plastic floor coverings, carpets, film packaging and the like.

[0013] Furthermore, the angle stop must also be mounted in such a way that the side stop surface extends to the right or left side of the handle, so that it has a limiting effect on the use of the box cutter, since the free end face of the handle, together with the frame-like angle stop surface, which is also referred to below as the support surface, forms an almost flat support when cutting.

[0014] In one embodiment, the angle stop comprises the support surface with a rectangular opening and the lateral stop surface, wherein the opening has the at least one counter-holding element that interacts with the at least one holding element that is formed on collar-shaped holding ribs that correspond to the opening and that have and delimit the slot. The holding ribs, which can also be referred to as holding extensions, have recesses that form the slot for the knife blade. The opening with the counter-holding elements and the holding ribs or holding extensions on the corresponding side of the handle with the holding elements corresponding to the counter-holding elements bring about a force-fitting and / or form-fitting fastening of the angle stop to the handle. The stop surface and the lateral stop surface of the angle stop are aligned essentially at right angles or obtuse angles to one another.The obtuse angle can be, for example, between 90° and 100°, preferably between 90° and 95° and particularly preferably about 90°.

[0015] According to a further development, the holding extensions or the holding ribs have a height that is slightly smaller than the thickness of the support surface of the angle stop and a length that is smaller than the length of the opening in the support surface of the angle stop. Holding extensions, which can also be referred to as holding ribs, extend from the handle surface with the opening for the knife blade and have an extension surface that is aligned parallel to a handle surface and in which the slot for the knife blade is provided. On the outer circumference of the extension surface, which is formed by the holding ribs, the holding elements are designed in the form of holding lugs that can be engaged by the counter-holding elements and can serve as clip-in lugs or sliding lugs, wherein the counter-holding elements can be inserted into recesses in the extension surface and can be connected to the holding elements designed as sliding openings on the long sides and an end face of the opening or via the end face orThe clip lugs and clip openings on the narrow side can be clamped or locked. Due to the dimensioning of the height of the holding extensions, referred to as holding ribs, or the extension surface, and the thickness of the support surface or the arrangement and alignment of the counter-holding elements, only the support surface of the angle stop rests on the workpiece when the box cutter is in use, and the extension surface does not affect the effective friction surface when the box cutter is used as intended.

[0016] The angle stop is expediently releasably attached to the handle in a direction pointing toward the handle surface and a subsequent sliding movement, and can be removed after a sliding movement relative to the handle. In a further embodiment, the angle stop is mounted such that its lateral stop surface is arranged on at least one side of the slot, either oriented counter to the shape of the handle on one or the other side of the slot, or oriented toward the handle.

[0017] The handle preferably comprises two detachably connected handle scales, which are fixed to one another by a screw and the other by means of the angle stop. Locking elements can of course be distributed around the circumference of the handle scales, which are to be brought into mutual engagement when the handle scales are joined. The two handle scales can be connected to one another by means of the locking elements in a form-fitting and / or force-fitting manner; for example, the locking elements can be designed as clip elements and / or as centering elements that align the handle scales with one another. The screw can be screwed directly into a hole in the handle in a known manner, or a metal sleeve with an internal thread can be inserted into one of the handle scales in a rotationally fixed manner, and the screw is screwed into it. The mounted angle stop ensures additional fastening of the two handle scales in the area of ​​the knife blade.

[0018] The handle preferably supports a slider which is detachably connected to the knife blade and by operating this slider the knife blade can be fully retracted into the handle and pushed out of the handle over the support surface of the angle stop. For example, an actuator can be formed onto the slider which protrudes through a corresponding cutout in one of the handle scales. To protect against injuries when the box cutter is not in use, the knife blade is moved into the handle by means of the slider arranged on it so that it does not protrude from the slot. By grasping the actuator of the slider, for example with a user's thumb, the knife blade is pushed out into the open and the box cutter can be used as intended. The slider expediently locks into the handle in at least one of its end positions.The slider can also be spring-mounted so that, for example, a locking mechanism between the slider and one of the handle shells can be released by pressing the actuator.

[0019] According to a further development, the distance between the knife blade and the side stop surface is variable by means of at least one spacer plate. The minimum distance between the knife blade and the side stop surface is set when the spacer plate is arranged on the side of the knife blade facing away from the side stop surface, and the maximum distance when the spacer plate is arranged on the side of the knife blade facing the side stop surface. It will be apparent to a person skilled in the art that multiple spacer plates, which may also have different thicknesses, can be arranged, wherein only one receptacle for the knife blade in the handle needs to be dimensioned accordingly. The distance between the knife blade and the side stop surface is preferably adapted to the thickness or wall thickness of the cardboard to be cut. The projection of the knife blade over the stop surface should also be dimensioned accordingly.The at least one spacer plate has a recess corresponding to a locking lug formed in one of the handle scales. Thus, the spacer plate is also fixed in the handle in a desired position, specifically such that its front edge, which is associated with the knife tip, ends approximately at the slot formed in the handle and does not protrude into the support surface. Naturally, an elongated hole is also provided in the spacer plate, through which a cam of the slider, engaging in a hole in the knife blade, slides when the knife blade is displaced.

[0020] To provide an ergonomically handled box cutter, the handle extends from the handle surface with an arcuate section and forms a handle section. Of course, the handle section can, for example, be rubberized or have a grip-friendly surface texture, at least in sections.

[0021] It is understood that the features mentioned above and those to be explained below can be used not only in the respective combinations specified, but also in other combinations. The scope of the invention is defined solely by the claims.

[0022] The invention is explained in more detail below using an exemplary embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawing.

[0023] It shows:

[0024] Fig. 1 is a first side view of the cardboard cutter according to the invention,

[0025] Fig. 2 is a first front view of the cardboard cutter according to Fig. 1,

[0026] Fig. 3 is a second front view of the cardboard cutter according to Fig. 1,

[0027] Fig. 4 a second side view of the cardboard cutter according to Fig. 1 ,

[0028] Fig. 5 a side view of the cardboard cutter according to Fig. 1 from below,

[0029] Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the cardboard cutter according to Fig.

[0030] 1 ,

[0031] Fig. 7 is an exploded view of the cardboard cutter according to Fig. 1 and

[0032] Fig. 8 is an exploded view of the cardboard knife according to Fig. 1 in an alternative embodiment. The cardboard knife 1 comprises a handle 4 composed of a first handle 2 and a second handle 3. The first handle 2 has a bore 5 for inserting a screw 21, which can be screwed into a metal bushing 22 with an internal thread, wherein the metal bushing is held in the second handle 3 in a rotationally secure manner. Of course, centering elements (not shown in detail) can additionally and / or alternatively be provided in order to align the two handles 2 and 3 with one another. Furthermore, detachable clip elements can additionally and / or alternatively be arranged, which connect the first handle 2 and the second handle 3 to one another.Between the two handle scales 2, 3, a knife blade 7 designed as a trapezoidal blade 6 is arranged in an exchangeable manner, which extends in a position of use through a slot 9 in a frontal handle surface 10 into the open.

[0033] In order to protect the knife blade 7 or a user of the cardboard knife 1 when not in use, a slide 11 detachably connected to the knife blade 7 and having an actuator 12 is mounted in the handle 4, wherein the actuator 12 projects into a corresponding recess in the first handle shell 2. To protect against injuries when the cardboard knife 1 is not in use, the knife blade 7 is relocated into the handle 4 by means of the slide 11 arranged thereon, so that it does not protrude from the slot 9. By grasping the actuator 12 of the slide 11, for example with a user's thumb, the knife blade 7 is pushed out into the open and the cardboard knife 1 can be used as intended. The knife blade 7 has a bore 14 into which the locking pin 15 of the slide is inserted. The slider 11 is expediently connected to the handle 4 at least in one of its end positions.The slider 11 can also be spring-mounted so that, for example, pressure on the actuator 12 can eliminate any rust between the slider 11 and one of the handle shells 2, 3. A receptacle 13 for the knife blade 7 is formed on the second handle shell 3. A spacer plate 17 is provided for variable spacing of the knife blade 7 from a lateral stop surface 8 of an angle stop 16, which further has a support surface 25 oriented at a right angle or obtuse angle to the lateral stop surface 8. It will be apparent to a person skilled in the art that more or fewer spacer plates 17 of the same or different thicknesses can be provided. Each spacer plate 17 has, on the one hand, an opening 18 for fixing to a fixing pin 19 of the second handle shell 3 and an elongated hole 20 for the locking pin 15 of the slider 11.

[0034] The spacer plate 17 is used to adjust the distance between the knife blade 7 and the side stop surface 8 according to the desired cutting path, which, for example, corresponds at least to the thickness of a cardboard box to be cut. The knife blade 7 can rest directly on the second handle shell 3 or on support webs or the like formed there, and the spacer plate 17 is located on the side of the knife blade 7 facing the first handle shell 2 in order to achieve a minimum distance between the knife blade 7 and the side stop surface 8. The knife blade 7 can rest on the spacer plate 17 accommodated in the second handle shell 3 in order to adjust a maximum distance between the knife blade 7 and the side stop surface 8.

[0035] From the handle surface 10, the handle 4 extends with an arcuate section 23, the handle section 24 of which has an approximately parallel course to the handle surface 10, wherein, for example, elastomeric elements and / or a surface structure can be assigned to the handle section 24.

[0036] To ensure that the cardboard cutter 1 can be used with both the left and right hand, or with a variable and adjustable side stop surface 8 as required, the handle surface 10 has holding elements 26 for releasably securing the angle stop 16, which has counter-holding elements 27. The counter-holding elements 27 of the angle stop 16 extend into a rectangular opening 28 in the support surface 25. Retaining ribs 29, which define the slot 9 for the knife blade 7 on the longitudinal side and have the holding elements 26, protrude into the opening 28. The holding ribs 29 are slightly shorter than the opening 28 and have a lower height than the thickness of the support surface 25 of the angle piece 16.

[0037] For assembly, the angle stop 16 is to be guided over the holding ribs 29 with its opening 28 in a direction pointing towards the handle surface 10 as shown in Fig. 5 to 9, and in a subsequent sliding movement the holding elements 26 come into operative engagement with the counter-holding elements 27 in order to releasably fasten the angle stop 16 to the handle 4 and to fix the two handle shells 2, 3 in the area of ​​the handle surface 10. The counter-holding elements 27, which in this case are designed as sliding lugs 30, are assigned to the long sides 31 of the essentially rectangular opening 28, and the holding elements 26 designed as sliding openings 32 are of course located at positions on the two holding ribs 29 that correspond to the sliding lugs. After a sliding movement relative to the handle 4, the angle stop 16 can be removed.The holding elements 26, designed as sliding openings 32, and the counterholding elements 27, designed as sliding lugs 30, are arranged such that the side stop surface 8 can be located either to the right or to the left of the knife blade 7. Furthermore, the angle stop 16 can be mounted with the side stop surface 8 aligned parallel to the handle 4, so that the side stop surface 8 has no effect when the box cutter 1 is used.

[0038] According to Fig. 8, the angle stop 16 is clipped to the retaining ribs 29 of the handle 4. The rectangular opening 28 of the angle stop 16, which in this case has relatively large radii in the corner areas, has a clip lug 34 as a counter-holding element 27 on each of its narrow end faces 33, wherein each of the clip lugs 34 has a longitudinal extension and can be inserted into an elongated clip recess 35 as a holding element 26. The clip recess 35 extends over the adjacent end faces 36 of the retaining ribs 29, which, in the assembled state, penetrate into the opening 16 and are held there by the angle stop 16.Of course, the clip lugs 34 as counter-holding elements 27 and the clip recesses 35 as holding elements 26 as well as the opening 18 and the holding ribs 29 are aligned and arranged such that the angle stop can be mounted with a side stop surface 8 extending into the open or a side stop surface 8 aligned parallel to the handle 4, which runs on the right or left side of the handle 4.

[0039] It will be apparent to a person skilled in the art that the angle stop 16 can also be reliably secured using a respective counterholding element 27, which is operatively connected to an associated holding element 26 due to the holding ribs 29 engaging in the opening 18. In order to be able to arrange a replacement knife blade 7' within the cardboard cutter 1, a pin 37 is assigned to the second handle shell 3, onto which the replacement knife 7' with its bore 14 can be inserted.

[0040] To cut open a sealed carton, the carton knife 1 is placed sideways against the carton and the tip of the knife blade 7 is pressed into the carton until both the side stop surface 8 and the support surface 25 of the angle stop 16 are in contact with the carton. The distance between the knife blade 7 and the side stop surface 8 is slightly wider than the wall thickness of the carton. To create a cut, the carton knife 3 is guided in a pulling motion across the carton, which, after repeating the cutting process, is open along all side edges so that a cut-out lid can be removed. By making further cuts along the side edges of the carton, it can be separated into easily disposed of carton sections.

[0041] train sign

[0042]

Claims

Patent claims 1. Cardboard knife (1) with a multi-part handle (4) and a knife blade (7) which is replaceably fastened to the handle (4) and extends through a slot (9) in a front handle surface (10), characterized in that the handle surface (10) comprises at least one holding element (26) for the releasable fastening of at least one counter-holding element (27) and an angle stop (16) having a lateral stop surface (8), wherein the at least one holding element (26) and the at least one counter-holding element (27) are designed and arranged such that the angle stop (16) can be fastened to the handle (4) in different positions.

2. Cardboard knife (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the angle stop (16) comprises a support surface (25) with a rectangular opening (28) and the side stop surface (8), wherein the opening (28) has the at least one counter-holding element (27) which cooperates with the at least one holding element (27), which is formed with collar-shaped holding ribs (29) corresponding to the opening (28), which have and delimit the slot (9).

3. Cardboard knife (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the holding ribs (29) have a height which is slightly smaller than the thickness of the support surface (25) of the angle stop (16) and a length which is smaller than the length of the opening (28) in the support surface (25) of the angle stop (16).

4. Cardboard knife (1) according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the opening (28) is provided with radii in its corner regions.

5. Cardboard knife (1) according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the angle stop (16) has at least one clip nose (34) as a counter-holding element (27), which engages in a corresponding clip recess (35) as a holding element (26).

6. Cardboard knife (1) according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the at least one clip nose (34) is assigned to an end face (33) of the opening (18).

7. Cardboard knife (1) according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the angle stop (16) has sliding lugs (30) designed as counter-holding elements (27) which engage in sliding openings (32) as holding elements (26), wherein the sliding lugs (30) are assigned to the longitudinal sides (31) of the opening (18) and the sliding openings (32) are assigned to the holding ribs (29) corresponding thereto.

8. Cardboard knife (1) according to one of claims 1 to 3 and 7, characterized in that the angle stop (16) is detachably fastened to the handle (4) in a direction pointing in the direction of the handle surface (10) and a subsequent sliding movement and is removable after a sliding movement relative to the handle (4).

9. Cardboard knife (1) according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the angle stop (16) is to be fastened in such a way that its side stop surface (8) is arranged on one or the other side of the slot (9) in a manner oriented counter to the course of the handle (4) or in the direction of the handle (4).

10. Cardboard knife (1) according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the handle (4) comprises two detachably connected handle shells (2, 3) which are fixed to one another on the one hand by means of a screw (21) and on the other hand by means of the angle stop (16).

11. Cardboard knife (1) according to one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the handle (4) supports a slider (11) detachably connected to the knife blade (7), by the actuation of which the knife blade (7) can be completely retracted into the handle (4) and pushed out of the handle (4) via the support surface (25) of the angle stop (16).

12. Cardboard knife (1) according to one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that the slider (11) is connected to the handle (4) at least in one of its end positions.

13. Cardboard knife (1) according to one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that the distance of the knife blade (7) to the side stop surface (8) is variable by means of at least one spacer plate (17).

Images