Cutlery – Manicure – Nippers
Reexamination Certificate
1998-02-18
2001-01-16
Peterson, Kenneth E. (Department: 3724)
Cutlery
Manicure
Nippers
C030S124000, C132S075500
Reexamination Certificate
active
06173497
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an improved nail clipper and to an improved nail trimming retention device.
2. Discussion of Background Information
Conventional nail clippers of the prior art have a single lateral lever or handle that pivots about a fulcrum during operation, connected with a pair of cutting-edge equipped spring arms designed for finger-tip pressure operation. The lateral lever or handle may be equipped with a protrusion or “toe” that presses against the spring arm to drive the cutting edges into contact during operation. The lateral lever and the handle are in alignment during the cutting stroke. This may impede the comfort or convenience of the user. Further, the use of a single pivoting lateral lever may require excessive movement of the handle to perform the cutting operation.
French Patent 2 603 467 discloses an improved nail clipper utilizing two lateral levers. However, the cutting jaws cannot be rotated relative to the lateral levers because an external casing would prevent such rotation. Again, the requirement that the lateral levers and the cutting jaws be in alignment during operation may impede the comfort or convenience of the user.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,063,666 describes a nail clipper with two lateral handles, and a jaw pincer member formed by a short upper body and a long lower body, which also serves as one of the lateral handles. The jaw pincer member has cutting edges that are parallel, rather than perpendicular, to the longitudinal direction of the handle. Nevertheless, the angle between the cutting edges and the handles cannot be changed during operation, as the open end portion of the jaw pincer member remains fixed perpendicular to the nail clipper handles.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,890,706 discloses a combination manicuring device having two sets of lateral blades. The shorter blades are used as cuticle cutters and the curved longer blades are used as nail cutters. The blades, as well as the file implements and tips, are all unitary with the leaves, and the leaves are secured at one end by spot welds. The secured end also serves as a handle, as is generally the case with prior art nail clippers. Here again, however, independent movement of the jaw pincers, relative to the lateral handles or levers, is not accomplished.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,117,591 discloses an improved nail clipping implement featuring a nail retaining clamping device to secure a nail trimming in position for the duration of a cutting operation. Thin internal blades made of a resilient material are used for achieving the nail retaining function. This solution is not totally reliable, and it is expensive and complicated, requiring substantial manufacturing precision of the thin blades. Moreover, this nail clipping implement also does not permit the nail clipper handle to be moved independently of the jaw pincers during operation.
Accordingly, an object of this invention is to provide an improved nail clipper which permits both lateral handles of the nail clipper handle to be moved independently of the jaw pincers during operation. Further, an object of this invention is to provide a more practical, less expensive and more reliable method of entrapping nail fragments in conjunction with such a nail clipper.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The improved nail clipper of this invention include two elongated, biased apart jaw members made of spring steel that form a substantially Y-shaped, resilient central pincer member. The jaw members are spot welded and/or riveted together, and are provided with opposed, turned-up and down, cutting edges or blades, having the requisite curvature and clipping ability.
Alternatively, the central pincer member may be a one-piece, resilient, substantially U-shaped member, and also be provided with opposed, turned-up and down, cutting edges or blades, having the requisite curvature and clipping ability.
According to another aspect of the invention, the central jaw member also is substantially U-shaped, and includes two substantially rigid, separate jaw members that are hingedly connected to each other. The jaw members are provided with opposed cutting edges, and are biased apart with a coil spring positioned around the transverse assembling pin.
The first and second jaws members of the nail clippers of the present invention are each provided with aligned, substantially circular bores at their open end portions near the cutting edges. A transverse assembling pin, with a machined central recess (i.e., an under cut portion) and hooked ends, passes through, and can rotate in, these bores. A pair of symmetrical levers or handles provided with a substantially U-shaped notch at their front ends, where they have a cross bar that is hingedly coupled to the hooked ends of the transverse assembling pin.
The lateral levers or handles of the present invention do not generally require the cam-like projection or “toe” with which the handles of prior art nail clippers are provided. The removal of this toe facilitates a more comfortable grip of the nail clipper, as it reduces the angle between the lateral levers and the jaw pincer member, when the handles are positioned at a ready position at the beginning of a cutting stroke. The length of the small tip or notch of the lateral handles or levers may be reduced in order to increase the mechanical advantage of the handles. This reduction of the small tip's length is possible because the cutting edges of the nail clipper of this invention, during a cutting stroke, need to travel a shorter distance than the cutting edges of nail clippers of the prior art, such as half as far, because both jaws of the nail clippers are movable.
According to another aspect of the invention, a coil spring is inserted on the transverse assembling pin, with which it is substantially coaxial, in order to compensate for the lack of resiliency of the jaw members. The coil spring pushes apart the substantially rigid jaw members.
According to the present invention, the lateral handles may be of standard shape or may be provided with ergonomically advantageous features, such as a tear-drop shaped. The lateral handles always remain aligned with each other, independently of their angle of rotation with respect the jaw pincer member. As the lateral handles are pressed toward each other, the cutting edges of the jaw pincer member are urged toward each other, until their cutting edges make contact and a nail inserted therebetween is clipped. The lateral levers can be rotated about the axis of the transverse assembling pin, and they can be positioned and deployed at the ready position where they form an acute angle with respect to the jaw pincer member, or at a closed position, ready for storage. At this latter position, the nail clipper occupies less space. It is understood that the jaw pincer member can be rotated about the axis of the transverse clip and operated at any angle with respect to the lateral levers, which in all instances remain aligned with each other, including during the cutting stroke.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, the nail clipper is provided with high mechanical advantage and is especially designed for clipping toe nails.
This invention also provides alternative devices for catching and holding nail clippings. Further, these devices for entrapping clipped nail fragments preferably use an elastic material (e.g., a plastic material) that is positioned at the end portion of the jaw members, such that when the jaw members come into contact at the end of a cutting stroke, the just-clipped nail fragment is immobilized and remains entrapped as long as the lateral levers are pressed toward each other.
The present invention provides a nail clipper that includes two elongated jaw members having opposed, spaced apart cutting blades at a first end, where the two jaw members are connected at a second end to form a substantially Y-shaped, resilient central pincer member, where the two jaw members having aligned openings; a transverse assembling pin with hooked first and second ends; and two symmetr
Greenblum & Bernstein P.L.C.
Peterson Kenneth E.
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