Cutlery – Cutting tools – Plural cooperating blades
Reexamination Certificate
1999-08-09
2001-02-13
Payer, Hwei-Siu (Department: 3724)
Cutlery
Cutting tools
Plural cooperating blades
C030S090100, C030S092000, C030S249000, C030S251000, C030S252000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06185825
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to new, improved cable and wire cutters. More particularly, it concerns cable and wire cutters of unique design that permit the cutting to be performed more easily and quietly than with prior known types of such cutters.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The construction of prior art cable and wire cutters has depended upon the positioning of two cutting members adjacent a solid pin upon which such members pivot. The diameter of the pivot pin must be sufficiently large to carry the load caused by the shearing action of the cutting members. The result is that the work piece being cut is located a significant distance from the pivot point and this, in turn, requires long handles or force multipliers to develop the force in the cutting members necessary to cut the work piece. Thus, the mechanical advantage of a simple cutter is the distance from the pivot point to the point of applied force, roughly the handle length, divided by the length from the center of the work piece to the center of the pivot, e.g., see U.S. Pat. No. 5,826,338. As the distance from the center of the work piece to the center of the pivot point increases, both the force required to make the cut and the load on the pivot increase.
In order to reduce the length of handles required to develop the force necessary to cut cables and wires, so-called compound cutters comprising force multipliers, e.g., gear or cam systems have been developed as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,378,636, 4,677,748, 5,184,404 & 5,689,888.
The present invention has provided an improvement in the art of construction of cable and wire cutters by the discovery of a new design that locates the cutting surfaces extremely close to their pivot point.
OBJECTS
A principal object of the invention is the provision of cable and wire cutters that are substantially different from previous styles of such cutters that have been built in the past.
Further objects include the provision of cable and wire cutters that:
(1) Have the ability to get their cutter notches closer to the pivot point of the two opposing cutter blades then has been possible with related cutters of the prior art.
(2) Locate the opposing cutting surfaces within the pivot joint of the cutters.
(3) Are capable of cutting wire or cable without creating any appreciable snipping sound or like noise so that use of the new cutters does not compromise night security.
(4) Operate in cutting cable to bring the cutting surfaces against the cable in a manner that does not squash the cut ends of the cable.
(5) Have one of the cutting members of the cutter serve as the pivot element thereof.
(6) Have the pivot element thereof with a diameter greater than the cable or wire to be cut by the cutter.
(7) Are of a design that allows them to be combined with a knife or other tool readily to make combination tools.
(8) Are capable of being combined with gears, cams or like power multiplying mechanisms.
(9) Can be structured in a “pull-to-cut” configuration to provide maximium cutting force to the work piece at the start of the cut.
(10) Function when used to cut cable or wire with a shearing action as opposed to a crushing action.
Other objects and further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed descriptions given herein; it should be understood, however, that the detailed descriptions, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent from such descriptions.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The objects are accomplished in accordance with the invention by the provision of cable and wire cutters of new design comprising an outside cutter member containing an arcuate cavity within which an inside cylinderical cutter member rotates about a common pivot axis so separate cutting slots in the outside and inside cutter members cross during the cutting operation within the circumference of the inside cutter. Such construction remarkably improves the mechanical advantage in the new cutter as compared to the prior art because cutting of the work piece occurs closer to the common pivot axis of the cutting slots than has been possible with prior known cable and wire cutters.
The new cable and wire cutters of the invention basically comprise a first cutter member, a second cutter member and force means to rotate the first cutter member relative to the second cutter member about a common pivot axis to cut a work piece.
The first cutter member contains an arcuate cavity defined by a first periphery that is at least partially circular having a first radius “A”. One end of the radius “A” is at the common pivot axis.
There is a first slot, sized to receive the work piece, in the first cutter member that extends through the first periphery into the arcuate cavity radially toward the pivot axis.
The second cutter member comprises a cylinderical part defined by a circular second periphery having a second radius “B” nearly equal to radius “A” with one end of the radius “B” being positioned at the common pivot axis.
There is a second slot, sized to receive the work piece, in the cylindercial part that extends through the second periphery radially toward the common pivot axis.
Retaining means holds the cylinderical part in the arcuate cavity for rotation about the pivot axis via the force means to pass the first slot across the second slot to cut the work piece.
To rephrase the above in a broad sense, the new cable and wire cutters of the invention comprise a first cutter member and a second cutter member. The second cutter member has a circular periphery defined by a given radius and a given inside end, which circular periphery is greater than the periphery of cable or wire to be cut by said cutter. Also, the first cutter member has a partially circular cavity defined by another radius slightly longer than the given radius and another inside end. Further, the given inside end is coincident with said another inside end whereby the partially circular cavity of the first cutting member serves as the pivot element for the second cutter member. As a result, the pivot element is extremely robust and is located very close to the position at which cutting of the cable or wire occurs whereby a smaller force needs to be applied to the cutter members in order for them to cut the workpiece than has been required in prior know cutters capable of handling a given size of cable or wire.
In a first embodiment of the new cutters, the force means comprises a first handle extending from the first cutter member plus a second handle extending from the second cutter member and the first handle is moved toward the second handle to rotate the first slot across the second slot to cut the work piece. Preferrably, the first handle is essentially straight and defined by a first inner end attached to the first cutter member, a first outer end and an elongated midsection integrally joining the first inner end to the first outer end while the second handle is essentially straight and defined by a second inner end attached to the second cutter member, a second outer end and an elongated midsection integrally joining the second inner end to the second outer end.
In a second embodiment of the new cutters with a “pull-to-cut” configuration, the force means comprises a first handle extending from the first cutter member plus a second handle extending from the second cutter member and the first handle is moved away from the second handle to rotate the first slot across the second slot to cut the work piece. Preferably, the first handle is U-shaped defined by an first arcuate inner end attached to the first cutter member, an first arcuate outer end and an elongated midsection integrally joining the first acurate inner end to the first arcuate outer end while the second handle is U-shaped and defined by a second arcuate inner end attached to the second cutter member, a second arcuate outer end and an elongate
Knight's Armament Company
Palmer Carroll F.
Payer Hwei-Siu
LandOfFree
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