Coating implements with material supply – Material flows through porous tool – With flow-regulator
Reexamination Certificate
2000-06-15
2001-04-10
Walczak, David J. (Department: 3751)
Coating implements with material supply
Material flows through porous tool
With flow-regulator
C401S263000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06213664
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to the field of instruments for marking cards or paper in certain geometric patterns with specific application to marking lottery cards, examination questionnaires and surveys.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Paper and card marking instruments, if writing pens and pencils are counted, have been devised and utilized from biblical times onward. Over the past century, commonly used quill pens were replaced by various types of fountain pens and ball point pens. In addition, lead pencils were developed and have been utilized since they were developed in the 1800's.
While such pens and pencils have been useful for writing and various types of marking purposes, because they are pointed, where one must mark an area with a geometric shape such as a circle, square, rectangle, or triangle, it is necessary for the user to scratch up and down, cross-ways or circularly in order to fill in an area on a card or paper which may require such a geometric marking. This may not only require some effort but, if the pen point is sharp, it could result in damaging the surface of the card or paper through scratching.
While for many years such inconvenience and possible damage to a card or paper was probably an insignificant problem, with computer readings of questionnaires, surveys, and lottery cards, the inconvenience of having to fill in even small geometric areas, on a card or paper, and the possibility of the areas being scratched by a sharp pen or pencil have become of great concern to many persons, particularly in view of the relatively recent popularity of various types of lotteries.
While various types of stamping markers have been devised, such as those illustrated and described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,045,593, 3,051,956, 4,452,142 and 4,649,820, such markers have been in the form of vertical elements which must be carefully aligned and then pressed down onto the area to be marked. It is usually difficult however, when looking down onto the card or paper to be marked to properly align the vertical marking pads exactly with the space to be marked—particularly where the spaces are small and disposed together. In addition, such prior art markers, because of their mechanisms, have been expensive.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The various problems encountered with prior marking devices, as described above, are obviated by the present invention which is constructed of an elongated tubular element, closed or closable at its upper end, and terminating at its lower end in a pad of a shape and area which corresponds with that to be marked, but is disposed at an acute angle to the axis of the tube.
The pad may be carried on the outer face of a small cap which, itself is disposed at the acute angle relative to the axis of the tube. Thereby, when the tube is held by the fingers of the person's hand in the manner of a writing pen or pencil, the user may see to place the pad on the exact location of the spot to be marked and when the pad has been dampened with ink-type fluid and is pressed down onto the card or paper surface, an effective mark may be made on the exact spot and without the necessity of moving the marker back and forth or from one side to another on the card or paper. The pad carrying cap may be removable from the end of the tube and replaced by a cap carrying a pad of a different geometrical shape. Thus, the pad marking could be varied between square, rectangular, triangular or circular.
The instrument itself may be constructed as a hollow pen or pencil to provide an axially extending reservoir which may be either in continuous communication with the marking pad for a limited use period, or preferably communication between the reservoir may be interdictable by valve means. The reservoir may be refillable at the upper end of the tube, when upper end comprises a removable cap or closure. Alternatively, the pad carrying cap may be removable to provide direct access to the reservoir for filling at the lower end of the tube.
In order to prevent the reservoir from being in constant communication with the pad from which evaporation of the ink type fluid may occur, it may also be desirable to provide some type of valve means to interdict communication between the lower end of the reservoir through a passage to the pad. Such a valve means may be in the form of a slideable element which may be disposed in an orifice which is transverse to the reservoir. This element may be provided with a lateral opening through it so that, when the element is moved in its orifice to dispose its opening coaxially with the tube reservoir, the fluid reservoir would be placed in communication with the dispensing pad. However, when the pad is sufficiently saturated to make the various markings, the valve means would be disposed in its blocking or interdictory position. The valve means could be biased into the latter position by a spring, or in the interest of reducing the cost of the manufacture of the device, the slideable element could be simply fitted sufficiently tightly within the tube orifice so that it would remain in whichever position it had last been pushed into.
It is also a feature of the present invention to configure the upper end of the instrument whether removable or not, as a scraper for use in those instances where a sharp edge may be called for in order to remove a plastic or other skintight overlay covering a number or word or other character of some significance. The upper end could also be formed to provide a mark removing capability, e.g. blotting or erasing.
REFERENCES:
patent: 2742660 (1956-04-01), Esley
patent: 3261515 (1966-07-01), Luedtke
patent: 4925327 (1990-05-01), Wirt
patent: 4961661 (1990-10-01), Sutton et al.
Belasco David A.
Jacobs Robert
Pavitt, Jr. William H.
Walczak David J.
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