AU2004210012A1 - Pencil shaving device - Google Patents

Description

WO 2004/069558 PCT/AU2004/000146 PENCIL SHAVING DEVICE Technical Area The invention relates to the area of pencil shaving devices and in particular, to a pencil shaving device providing a means of shaving pencils for the purposes 5 of labelling. Background to the Invention The concept of labelling pencils for school children for use at pre-school, primary school or secondary school is one which has been around for decades. Conventionally, labels were made using sticky tape or stickers however, this 10 proved to be quite unsatisfactory as the labels would often fall off and then the pencils would be lost or taken by others. Attempts to solve this problem have involved holding the pencil, cutting or shaving off a portion of the non-writing end of the pencil with an open razor blade or knife, and then scribing a name on the cut or shaved portion of the 15 pencil. This method is not only time consuming due to the care which must be taken when using a blade or knife, but extremely dangerous to the user. In addition, previous attempts have failed to produce satisfactory results, often resulting in an uneven cut or shaved portions, or else having a cut or shaved portion that is too large whereby, the internal graphite is exposed to the surface 20 of the pencil.

WO 2004/069558 PCT/AU2004/000146 -2 Outline of the Invention It is an object of the present invention to overcome or substantially ameliorate the problems of the prior art by providing a pencil sharpening device that is adapted to provide a cut or shaved portion on a pencil surface for labelling of the 5 pencil. The invention provides, a device for pencil shaving having a body member, a bore which is adapted to receive a pencil, at least one aperture or opening, and a cutting means whereby, when there is a manual insertion of a pencil into the said bore and subsequent withdrawal of the pencil from the said bore, a portion 10 of the pencil is shaved off by the said cutting means. It is preferred that the bore be a hollowed cavity created within the body member which may be tapered at one end. It is preferred that the bore be provided with at least one aperture or opening. It is further preferred that a back end of the bore can have a width that is greater 15 or less than the diameter of a pencil to determine how far the pencil is able to pass through the bore of the body member. It is preferred that the cutting means be provided with a blade that is positioned at an angle suitable to cut or shave the surface of the pencil as it is withdrawn from the pencil shaving device 20 It is also preferred that the body member be provided with ramps made of a resilient material or other suitable material, or other means adapted to guide the pencil and ensure a clean cut is achieved.

WO 2004/069558 PCT/AU2004/000146 -3 In order that the invention be more readily understood we will describe by way of non-limiting examples specific embodiments of the device made in accordance with the invention. Brief Description of the Drawing Figures s Figure 1 is a side perspective view of the pencil shaving device according to a preferred embodiment of the invention. Figure 2 is an exploded view of the pencil shaving device. Figure 3 is a side sectional view of the pencil shaving device according to a preferred embodiment of the invention. 10 Description of an Embodiment of the Invention Figures 1 to 3 show a preferred embodiment of the invention as it relates to a pencil shaving device. In this embodiment of the invention, the pencil shaving device 8 has a body member 1 having an upper 13, lower 14 and intermediate portion 15 of a is suitable construction, and can be made from any resilient material such as wood, fibreglass, plastic or the like. The body member 1 can have any suitable width or diameter such that, the device according to the invention can be comfortably handled or gripped by a human hand of any size, including children. The body member 1 can also be of any suitable length such that is adapted to receive 20 pencil shafts of varying lengths. The body member 1 is provided with a bore 3. The bore 3 is a hollowed cavity WO 2004/069558 PCT/AU2004/000146 -4 entry end 5 of the bore, has an internal width which is greater than the diameter of the pencil to be shaved or cut. The front entry end 5 is provided with a first aperture or opening 6 which is adapted to provide a means for receiving the shaft of the pencil into the body member. s It is envisaged that the back end 4 of the bore may have provided a second aperture or opening 7 such that, a pencil shaft to be shaved or cut can be inserted through the entire body member 1. In this way, the pencil shaving device is not only able to accommodate pencils of various lengths, but also provide a means whereby the pencil is able to be labelled anywhere along the 10 shaft as desired by the user. The bore 3 is formed such that, the back end 4 has a square cross-sectional construction or shape, and the front entry end 5 has a rectangular cross sectional construction or shape. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the corners of the bore 3 are formed so that, they are rounded. 15 The bore 3 may be provided with at least one extension 18 along its side to give rigidity to the construction of the pencil shaving device. Provided along the base of the intermediate portion 15 and thus, base of the bore 3, are two (2) ramps 20 which further assist in guiding the pencil through the pencil shaving device 8. It is envisaged that these ramps 20 are made of a 20 resilient material or other suitable material, which is able to be depressed as the pencil shaft passes through the device 8, whilst also providing sufficient and even support and force as the pencil is being withdrawn to ensure that the surface of the pencil shaft remains in close contact with the blade edge 12 to produce a clean cut.

WO 2004/069558 PCT/AU2004/000146 -5 In a first embodiment of the invention, the back end 4 of the bore 3 may have an internal width that is greater than the diameter of any pencil shaft to be received by the body member 1 such that, when the pencil shaft is manually inserted through the first aperture or opening 6, the pencil shaft can be allowed to slide 5 through the bore 3 and the entire body member 1 and out through the second aperture or opening 7, enabling the user to have a personal choice in the length of the pencil to be shaved or cut by the pencil shaving device 8. When the pencil shaft is at this position, the bore 3 of the body member 1 can then stabilize the pencil and provide a means for the allowing the inserted pencil shaft to be 10 pivoted within the bore 3 by the user. In a second embodiment of the invention, the back end 4 of the bore 3 may have an internal width which is less than the diameter of any pencil shaft to be received by the body member 1 such that, when the pencil shaft is manually inserted through the first aperture or opening 6, the pencil shaft will eventually 15 reach a position somewhere along the back end 4 of the bore 3 where the diameter of the back end 4 is such that, the pencil shaft must is prevented from entering further into the body member 1. When the pencil shaft is at this position, the bore 3 of the body member 1 can then stabilize the-pencil and provide a means for the allowing the inserted pencil shaft to be pivoted within the bore 3 20 by the user. Positioned toward the back end 4 of the bore 3, is a cutting means 10. The cutting means is provided with a blade 11 which may be made from any material such as stainless steel. The blade is located between an upper notch 16 provided on the internal wall of the upper portion 13 and a lower notch 17 25 provided on the upper edge of the intermediate portion 15 of the body member 1. The edge of the blade 11 may be positioned at an angle to the longitudinal direction of the bore 3 pointing in a downward direction toward the back end 4 WO 2004/069558 PCT/AU2004/000146 -6 The upper portion 13 of the body member 1 is provided with a third aperture or opening 21. The third aperture or opening 21 is recessed such that, as the pencil is withdrawn and a cut portion is being formed, the newly creating shaving is led to slide upwardly and out from the third aperture or opening 21. 5 The pencil shaving device 8 according to the invention, is adapted to receive a pencil that is commercially available and is preferably made from wood or any other material that is capable of being cut by such a blade 11. In practice, a pencil shaft is manually inserted through the first aperture or opening 6 of the bore 3 of the body member 1, which is positioned at the front 10 entry end 5 of the bore 3. It should be noted that throughout the specification, the shaft refers to the non-writing end of the pencil whose end is generally flush in construction and does not have any exposed graphite. Once the pencil shaft has been inserted through the bore 3 of the body member 1, whether it be through the entire bore 3 or most of the bore 3 depending on the 15 type of pencil shaving device 8 being used, the pencil shaft is then manually pivoted within the bore 3 by the user, through an angle of less than ninety (90) degrees, to a position where the pencil shaft is able to make contact or abut the blade 11 positioned inside the bore 3. Whilst the pencil shaft is in contact with or abutting the blade 11, it is manually 20 withdrawn by the user from the body member 1 back out through the first aperture or opening 6 of the bore 3. The action of moving the contacted or abutted pencil shaft across the blade edge 12 as it is being withdrawn from the body member 1 results in a cutting, shearing or shaving of a portion of the material of the pencil shaft. The result is a cut or shaved region having flat 25 surface which is suitable for writing, marking or labelling by the user.

WO 2004/069558 PCT/AU2004/000146 -7 Marking of the cut pencil may be achieved by writing, marking or labelling of the cut region of the pencil by any suitable means including a biro pen, pencil, texta or adhesive label. Whilst we have described herein specific embodiments of the invention, it is to 5 be understood that other embodiments of the invention will exhibit any number of and any combination of the features previously described, and any and all such variations and modifications can be made in the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. 10 15

Claims (16)

1. A device for shaving pencils having a body member, a bore which is adapted to receive a pencil, and a cutting means whereby, when there is a manual insertion of a pencil into the said bore and subsequent 5 withdrawal of the pencil from the said bore, a portion of the pencil is cut or shaved off by the said cutting means.

2. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the bore can be a hollowed cavity created within the body member.

3. A device as claimed in claim 2 wherein provided along the base of the 10 bore is at least one ramp adapted to guide the pencil through the device.

4. A device as claimed in claim 3 wherein the or each ramp is made of a resilient or other suitable material, or other means adapted to provide sufficient and even force against the pencil to ensure the pencil remains in close contact with the cutting means. 15

5. A device as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the bore can be tapered at one end.

6. A device as claimed in claim 5 wherein the bore is provided with at least one aperture or opening.

7. A device as claimed in claim 6 wherein a first aperture or opening is 20 located at a front end of the bore.

8. A device as claimed in claim 6 or claim 7 wherein a second aperture or WO 2004/069558 PCT/AU2004/000146 -9

9. A device as claimed in claims 6 to 8 wherein a third aperture or opening is located on an upper portion of the body member.

10. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the back end of the bore can have an internal width that is greater than the 5 diameter of any pencil such that the pencil can pass through the entire bore of the body member.

11. A device as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the back end of the bore can have an internal width that is less than the diameter of any pencil such that the distance for which the pencil can pass through 10 the bore is limited.

12. A device as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the cutting means is positioned on an internal wall of the bore.

13. A device as claimed in claim 12 wherein the cutting means is provided with a blade. 15

14. A device as claimed in claim 13 wherein the blade is angled such that it is adapted to cut or shave a portion off of the surface of the pencil as it is withdrawn from the device.

15. A device as claimed in any preceding claim wherein there are provided extensions positioned on either side of the device to give rigidity to the 20 device.

16. A device for shaving pencils substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.