Coating implements with material supply – Material flows through porous tool – Wick feed from within reservoir to tool
Patent
1994-10-12
1998-09-29
Bratlie, Steven A.
Coating implements with material supply
Material flows through porous tool
Wick feed from within reservoir to tool
401 18, 401206, B43K 802, B43K 812
Patent
active
058137874
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
This invention relates to nib units, especially for felt and fibre tip marker pens, though the invention is also of value in the field of technical pens.
Felt and fibre tip marker pens have found widespread acceptance in a variety of fields of use. They are available commercially in a substantial number of shapes and sizes depending upon the intended use. Common to all of them, however, is some form of ink reservoir adapted to enable ink to feed to a tip or nib formed of felted or laid fibrous material, the latter particularly in the case of smaller size nibs. The nib is protected against drying out, and inadvertent contact with other surfaces when the pen is not in use, by an end cap. The reservoir may be provided with a small passage to atmosphere, to keep the ink in the reservoir under atmospheric pressure irrespective of changes in its volume.
The size of the nib is an important consideration for felt and fibre tip pens. It determines the stroke width of a line drawn with the pen. The stroke width is usually chosen in line with the intended use of the pen, wide nibs being used for writing large inscriptions, e.g. on the outsides of parcels, or colouring in large areas when making artwork, and narrow nibs being used for fine artistic graphic work or for normal fine handwriting.
The particular selection of felt and fibre tip marking implement may depend on a variety of considerations. In the professional use of such markers for creating artwork, however, a major consideration is the availability of the marker in a given colour. There are several commercially manufactured ranges of coloured markers available in a wide variety of colours. Some of these are available as so-called "double-ended" markers, with a relatively-wide nib at one end and a relatively-narrow nib at the other, each with its respective end cap.
Ranges of such markers, commonly referred to as art markers, are purchased by graphic artists and commercial artists in particular, because of their availability in a wide range of colours.
Such artists sometimes find that in order to secure a specific effect, in particular to secure a desired very fine line, for use in detailed work, even the thinnest nib available is too wide for such use. The nibs of such markers are, however, often made of a parallel-oriented nylon, polyester or acrylic fibre compact, which has a relatively firm texture and which can be sharpened, as by using a craft knife, to give a considerably thinner nib.
The problem with such a thin nib is that while it may give entirely satisfactory results, the marker, once it has undergone surgery in this fashion, cannot be reinstated to its former condition and must often be discarded. This is clearly unsatisfactory.
GB-A-1 005 487 discloses a marking instrument having an ink container with a wick, and an interchangeable tip engageable on the container and including a marking element of which one end may be used for marking, and of which the other end contacts the wick so as to receive ink.
Pens offering a choice of nib sizes or point types, using capillary forces to transfer ink from one nib to another, are disclosed in various patent specifications.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,026,189 discloses a broad marker pen nib having a relatively-movable coaxial thin nib when can be caused to project through and beyond the tip of the broad nib.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,610,556 describes a multi-tip writing instrument. The nib units are interchangeable, and are all intended to be mounted in head-to-tail connection with a generally-axial ink flow. The nibs may be of the metal, ball or fibrous type, but there is no grading of nib sizes so that the ink flow is from broad to medium to fine.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,572,954 discloses a fibrous-tipped pen with a detachable head fitted with a metal nib or a ball. There is no disclosure of the extra nib being of the fibrous type, or of any provision for accommodating wear of the main nib.
Other specifications of different degrees of relevance include:
JP 54-12 533 discloses a cap carrying a fibrous auxiliary nib tapering to a poi
REFERENCES:
patent: 3572954 (1971-03-01), Cheron
patent: 4913175 (1990-04-01), Yokosuka et al.
Dowzall Martin Edward
Houssian Vazgen John
Bratlie Steven A.
Esselte UK Limited
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