AU2007288059A1

AU2007288059A1 - Lever clip mechanism

Info

Publication number: AU2007288059A1
Application number: AU2007288059A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Xitao Deng
Original assignee: Leco Stationery Manufacturing Co Ltd
Current assignee: Leco Stationery Manufacturing Co Ltd
Priority date: 2006-08-15
Filing date: 2007-03-06
Publication date: 2008-02-28
Also published as: CN101125502A; EP2052872A1; WO2008022509A1; AR061682A1; TW200836938A

Description

CERTIFICATE OF TRANSLATION 1, Zheng CHEN am the translator of the specification of international patent application number PCT/CN2007/000718, including any amendments made during the international phase under the Articles of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT). I certify that, to the best of my knowledge, the accompanying English language document is a true and complete translation of said patent specification. Signed:_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Dated: _ Lever Arch Mechanism Field of the Invention 5 This invention relates to a lever arch mechanism. Background of the Invention A lever arch mechanism is stationery widely used for retaining pages such as loose-leaf pages. Chinese Patent No.01124645.6 owned by the present applicant 10 disclosed a lever arch mechanism comprising a substantially flat substrate; two first ring members separated from each other and having an end fixedly attached onto one longitudinal side of the substrate, the first ring members extending generally vertically upwards from the substrate and bent slightly at their other end to form a bending portion; two second ring members separated from each other and having an end 15 movably attached onto the other longitudinal side of the substrate, the second ring members extending generally vertically upwards from the substrate and bent slightly at the other end to form the other bending portion, thereby forming a closed loop by engagement with the bending portion on the other end of two first ring members when the lever arch mechanism is closed, two second ring members connected integrally 20 with each other at their ends near the substrate by a connecting portion to allow two second ring members move together, the connecting portion having a generally U-shaped bending portion bent at its middle portion towards the center of the substrate; a generally upstanding projection formed at the center of the substrate by cutting the substrate and bending the cut portion upwards; a leaf spring with one end 25 attached in a groove cut in the substrate adjacent the other longitudinal side and the other end abutting resiliently against the underside of the generally U-shaped bending portion of the connecting portion, the leaf spring pushing the connecting portion away from the substrate plane to allow two second ring members move together and away from two first ring members fixedly attached, thus opening the lever arch mechanism; and a lever rotatably attached onto the projection and having a roller on the end that is mounted onto the protrusion. By pressing and rotating the lever downward, the roller 5 may resist against the upward pushing force of the leaf spring and move along a direction away from the lever handle to a position where the connecting portion presses against the substrate, thereby moving two second ring members together to a position where two second ring members contact with two first ring members that are attached fixedly to form a close loop respectively. By rotating the lever upward and 10 away from the substrate, the roller may move along a direction towards the lever handle to a position where it is possible to release the pressing against the connecting portion, so that the connecting portion may move away from the substrate under the action of the upward pushing force of the leaf spring, thereby moving two second ring members together and away from two first ring members to form an opened loop 15 respectively. As a result, the lever arch mechanism is opened. In the conventional lever arch mechanism, the lever arch mechanism may be closed by pressing and rotating the lever downward, and the lever arch mechanism may be opened by rotating the lever upward and away from the substrate. In this case, when the lever arch mechanism is opened, the lever is at an upward-raised position 20 and occupies a gap between two ring members facing to each other, thereby interfering with accessing loose-leaf pages and resulting in much inconvenience for accessing loose-leaf pages. Accordingly, there is a need for an improved lever arch mechanism. 25 Summary of the Invention The present invention is proposed in consideration of the conventional lever arch mechanism. 2 Therefore, one object of the invention is to provide a lever arch mechanism in which the lever does not occupy the gap between two ring members facing to each other when the lever arch mechanism is opened, thereby facilitating accessing loose-leaf pages. 5 According to the invention, a lever arch mechanism is provided, comprising: a flat substrate; two first ring members attached fixedly onto the substrate, two first ring members being separated from and parallel with each other; a ring assembly attached movably onto the substrate, the ring assembly 10 comprising two second ring members separated from and parallel with each other, two first ring members and two second ring members being disposed in such a way that they face to each other respectively so that the respective ring members facing to each other form a closed loop when the ring assembly moves; an elastic member with one end attached onto the substrate and the other end 15 abutting against the ring assembly, the elastic member pushing the ring assembly away from the substrate by its elastic force; a projection extending upwards from the substrate; and a lever mechanism attached rotatably onto the projection for contacting the ring assembly, the lever mechanism being used to press the ring assembly onto the 20 substrate or move the ring assembly away from the substrate for closing or opening the lever arch mechanism; wherein the lever mechanism is arranged to close the lever arch mechanism by rotating the lever mechanism upwards and away from the substrate and open the lever arch mechanism by rotating the lever mechanism downwards and toward the 25 substrate. In the lever arch mechanism according to the invention, since the lever mechanism is arranged to close the lever arch mechanism by rotating the lever mechanism 3 upwards and away from the substrate, and to open the lever arch mechanism by rotating the lever mechanism downwards and toward the substrate, the lever mechanism is more close to the substrate when the lever arch mechanism is opened, thereby substantially not occupying the gap between two ring members facing to each 5 other and being very convenient for accessing the loose-leaf pages. Brief Description of the Drawings Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a lever arch mechanism according to a first embodiment of the invention; 10 Fig.2 is a perspective view of the lever arch mechanism according to the first embodiment of the invention in a closed state; Fig.3 is an other side perspective view of the lever arch mechanism according to the first embodiment of the invention in a closed state; Fig.4 is a bottom perspective view of the lever arch mechanism according to the 15 first embodiment of the invention in a closed state; Fig.5 is a perspective view of the lever arch mechanism according to the first embodiment of the invention in an opened state; Fig.6 is an other side perspective view of the lever arch mechanism according to the first embodiment of the invention in an opened state; 20 Fig.7 is a bottom perspective view of the lever arch mechanism according to the first embodiment of the invention in an opened state; Fig.8A is a perspective view of the ring members of the lever arch mechanism according to the first embodiment of the invention; Fig.8B is a side view of the ring members of the lever arch mechanism according 25 to the first embodiment of the invention; Fig.8C is an enlarged view of the circled portion in Fig.8B; Fig.9 is an exploded perspective view of the lever arch mechanism according to a 4 second embodiment of the invention; Fig. 10 is a perspective view of the lever arch mechanism according to the second embodiment of the invention in a closed state; Fig. 1 is an other side perspective view of the lever arch mechanism according to 5 the second embodiment of the invention in a closed state; Fig. 12 is a bottom perspective view of the lever arch mechanism according to the second embodiment of the invention in a closed state; Fig. 13 is a perspective view of the lever arch mechanism according to the second embodiment of the invention in an opened state; 10 Fig. 14 is an other side perspective view of the lever arch mechanism according to the second embodiment of the invention in an opened state; and Fig. 15 is a bottom perspective view of the lever arch mechanism according to the second embodiment of the invention in an opened state. 15 Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments Figs. I to 7 show a lever arch mechanism 100 according to a first embodiment of the invention. The lever arch mechanism 100 according to the invention comprises a generally flat substrate 101. Two first ring members 103 that are separated from and parallel with each other are attached fixedly onto a longitudinal side of the substrate 20 101. Two first ring members 103 substantially extend vertically upwards from the substrate 101 and are bent slightly at their free ends to form a bending portion respectively. A ring assembly 105 is attached movably onto the other longitudinal side of the substrate 101. The ring assembly 105 comprises two second ring members 105a that are separated from and parallel with each other and a connecting portion 105b for 25 connecting integrally two second ring members 105a. Each of two second ring members 105a has a bending portion formed on its free end respectively to allow two second ring members 105a of the ring assembly 105 to engage with the corresponding 5 one of two first ring members 103 that are attached fixedly onto the substrate 101 to form a closed loop. Two second ring members 105a of the ring assembly 105 are connected integrally with each other at their other ends near the substrate 101 by the connecting portion 105b. The connecting portion 105b has a generally U-shaped 5 bending portion 105c bent substantially horizontally at its middle towards the center of the substrate, and the middle of the bending portion 105c protrudes slightly upward to form a protrusion 105d. The first ring members 103 and the ring assembly 105 have a generally circular or elliptical cross section respectively, and are made from suitable materials such as steel. The ring assembly 105 is attached movably onto the substrate 10 101 by two turned-over portions 107. Two turned-over portions 107 are formed on one side of the substrate 101 provided with the ring assembly 105 by cutting or punching the substrate and turning the cut or punched portions of the substrate over. A generally upstanding projection 109 is substantially formed in the middle of the substrate 101 by cutting or punching the substrate 101 near the ring assembly 105 and 15 bending the cut or punched portions of the substrate upwards from the substrate. A cutout Ill is left in the substrate 101 because the projection 109 is bent upwards. An elongated slot 113 is formed in the longitudinal side of the substrate provided with the ring assembly 105, and its function will be described later. One or more holes 115 may also be formed in the substrate for attaching the lever arch mechanism onto such 20 as those of files or notebooks. The lever arch mechanism 100 according to the invention further comprises a lever 117. The lever 117 comprises a lever body 117a, a lever head 117b extending obliquely and downwards from one end of the lever body 117a and a lever handle (operation end) 11 7c extending obliquely and downwards from other end of the lever 25 body 117a. The lever arch mechanism 100 according to the invention also comprises a roller 119 which is preferably made from plastics. The roller 119 is attached onto the free end of the lever head 11 7b through a pin shaft 121. 6 In the assembled lever arch mechanism 100, two first ring members 103 are mounted fixedly on one longitudinal side of the substrate 101 by a connection such as rivets, welding or any other known connection means. Two ends of the connecting portions 105b of the ring assembly 105 are fixed movably by two turned-over portions 5 107 so that the ring assembly 105 is attached movably onto the substrate 101. The U-shaped bending portion 105c of the connecting portions 105b substantially locates near the projection 109 to movably attach the ring assembly 105 onto other longitudinal side of the substrate 101 so that two second ring members 105a of the ring assembly 105 align with two first ring members 103 attached fixedly. The lever 10 117 provided with the roller 119 is attached rotatably onto the projection 109 at a joint 1 17d between the lever body 11 7a and the lever head 11 7b by a fastener 123 such as a rivet so that the roller 119 may move substantially on the bending portion 105c of the ring assembly 105. A leaf spring 125 is bended slightly into a generally arcuate shape, with one end of the leaf spring 125 inserted into the elongated slot 113 of the substrate 15 101 to be retained on the substrate 101, with other end located below the bending portion 105c of the ring assembly 105 and abutting resiliently against the bending portion 105c of the ring assembly 105 for pushing the bending portion 105c of the ring assembly 105 upwards by its resilience. Of course, the mounting position of the leaf spring 125 is not limited to the illustrated position as long as the leaf spring 125 20 can abut against the underside of the bending portion 105c. Further, the shape of the leaf spring 125 also is not limited to the illustrated shape as long as the leaf spring 125 can abut against the underside of the bending portion 105c to generate an upward pushing force. In the opened state of the lever arch mechanism shown in Fig.5, by grasping the 25 lever handle 117c to rotate the lever 117 upwards and away from the substrate, the lever head 117b may rotate counterclockwise around the fastener 123 from the state shown in Fig.5, thereby moving the roller 119 mounted onto the lever head 117b to 7 the protrusion 105d along the bending portion 105c of the ring assembly 105 in a direction towards the lever handle 117c, and pressing the connecting portion 105b onto the substrate 101 against the upward pushing force of the leaf spring 125. As a result, two second ring members 105a of the ring assembly 105 move together to a 5 position where they contact with two opposite first ring members 103 to form closed loops for retaining loose-leaf pages, as shown in Fig.2. In contrast, in the closed state of the lever arch mechanism shown in Fig.2, by grasping the lever handle 117c to rotate the lever 117 downwards and towards the substrate, the lever head 117b may rotate clockwise around the fastener 123 from the state shown in Fig.2, thereby 10 moving the roller 119 mounted onto the lever head 117b from the protrusion 105d along the bending portion 105c of the ring assembly 105 in a direction away from the lever handle 1 7c, and releasing the pressing of the connecting portion 105b onto the substrate 101. As a result, the connecting portion 105b moves away from the substrate 101 under the action of the upward pushing force of the leaf spring 125 so that two 15 second ring members 105a of the ring assembly 105 move from two first ring members 103 to form opened loops for accessing loose-leaf pages. In order to ensure the lever arch mechanism to be opened and closed appropriately, two stoppers 127a and 127b are formed on the projection 109 for limiting respectively the rotation ranges of the lever head 117b when the lever arch mechanism is closed 20 and opened. Preferably, the stopper 127b limits the lever head 117b to a position where the lever arch mechanism is in the closed state. In order that the gap between two ring members facing to each other of the lever arch mechanism in the opened state is as large as possible for facilitating accessing loose-leaf pages, as shown in Figs. 8A-8C, a recess 105e is preferably formed on the 25 bending portion 105c of the ring assembly 105 at one side of the protrusion 105d to which the roller 119 will move. The recess 105e accommodates the roller 119 when the lever arch mechanism is opened. Both sides of the protrusion 105d may be 8 provided symmetrically with recesses 105e for facilitating machining. Figs.9 to 15 show the lever arch mechanism 200 according to a second embodiment of the invention. The structure of the lever arch mechanism 200 according to the second embodiment of the invention is substantially similar to that of 5 the lever arch mechanism 100 according to the first embodiment of the invention except the shape of the lever. Parts of the lever arch mechanism 200 according to the second embodiment corresponding to parts of the lever arch mechanism 100 according to the first embodiment are indicated by the same reference numerals, plus 100". The description for the same parts will be omitted. 10 In the lever arch mechanism 200 according to the second embodiment of the invention, the lever 217 comprises a lever body 217a, a lever head 217b extending obliquely and upwards from one end of the lever body 217a and a lever handle 217c extending obliquely and upwards from other end of the lever body 217a. The roller 219 is attached onto a joint 217d between the lever body 217a and the lever head 217b 15 by a pin shaft 221. The lever 217 provided with the roller 219 may be mounted at the free end of the lever head 217b onto the projection 209 by a fastener 223. In the opened state of the lever arch mechanism shown in Fig. 13, by grasping the lever handle 217c to rotate the lever 217 upwards and away from the substrate, the lever head 217b may rotate counterclockwise around the fastener 223 from the state 20 shown in Fig. 13, thereby moving the roller 219 mounted onto the lever head 217b to the protrusion 205d along the bending portion 205c of the ring assembly 205 in a direction towards the lever handle 217c, and pressing the connecting portion 205b onto the substrate 201 against the upward pushing force of the leaf spring 225. As a result, two second ring members 205a of the ring assembly 205 move together to a 25 position where they contact with two opposite first ring members 203 to form closed loops for retaining loose-leaf pages, as shown in Fig. 10. In contrast, in the closed state of the lever arch mechanism shown in Fig. 10, by grasping the lever handle 217c 9 to rotate the lever 217 downwards and towards the substrate, the lever head 217b may rotate clockwise around the fastener 223 from the state shown in Fig. 10, thereby moving the roller 219 mounted onto the lever head 217b from the protrusion 205d along the bending portion 205c of the ring assembly 205 in a direction away from the 5 lever handle 217c, and releasing the pressing of the connecting portion 205b onto the substrate 201. As a result, the connecting portion 205b moves away from the substrate 201 under the action of the upward pushing force of the leaf spring 225 so that two second ring members 205a of the ring assembly 205 move from two first ring members 203 to form opened loops for accessing loose-leaf pages. 10 In the lever arch mechanism according to the invention, since the lever is arranged to close the lever arch mechanism by rotating the lever upwards and away from the substrate, and to open the lever arch mechanism by rotating the lever downwards and toward the substrate, the lever is more close to the substrate when the lever arch mechanism is opened, thereby substantially not occupying the gap between two ring 15 members facing to each other and being very convenient for accessing the loose-leaf pages. Although the preferred embodiments of the invention were described in detail taken in conjunction of the accompanying drawings in a non-limiting sense, it should be understood that various changes and modifications could be made without 20 departing from the scope defined by accompanying claims of the invention. For example, a cam rather than the roller may be mounted at the end of the lever. Further, a concave and a convex may be provided on the free ends of the opposite ring members for preventing the ring members engaging with each other from disengaging. It is intended that all of the changes and modifications should fall into the protection 25 scope of the invention. 10

Claims

1. A lever arch mechanism comprising: a flat substrate; two first ring members attached fixedly onto the substrate, two first ring members being separated from and parallel with each other; a ring assembly attached movably onto the substrate, the ring assembly comprising two second ring members separated from and parallel with each other, two first ring members and two second ring members being disposed in such a way that they face to each other respectively so that the respective ring members facing to each other form a closed loop when the ring assembly moves; an elastic member with one end attached onto the substrate and the other end abutting against the ring assembly, the elastic member pushing the ring assembly away from the substrate by its elastic force; a projection extending upwards from the substrate; and a lever mechanism attached rotatably onto the projection for contacting the ring assembly, the lever mechanism being used to press the ring assembly onto the substrate or move the ring assembly away from the substrate for closing or opening the lever arch mechanism; wherein the lever mechanism is arranged to close the lever arch mechanism by rotating the lever mechanism upwards and away from the substrate and open the lever arch mechanism by rotating the lever mechanism downwards and toward the substrate.

2. The lever arch mechanism of claim 1, wherein the lever mechanism comprises a lever and an abutting portion attached onto the lever and contacting the ring assembly, the abutting portion moving on the ring assembly in a direction toward the operation I I end of the lever mechanism when closing the lever arch mechanism, and the abutting portion moving on the ring assembly in a direction away from the operation end of the lever mechanism when opening the lever arch mechanism.

3. The lever arch mechanism of claim 2, wherein the lever comprises a lever body, a lever head extending downwards from one end of the lever body, and a lever handle extending from other end of the lever body.

4. The lever arch mechanism of claim 3, wherein the lever is attached rotatably onto the projection at a joint between the lever body and the lever head.

5. The lever arch mechanism of claim 3, wherein the abutting portion is attached onto the free end of the lever head.

6. The lever arch mechanism of claim 3, wherein two stoppers are formed on the projection for limiting the rotating ranges of the lever head respectively when closing the lever arch mechanism and opening the lever arch mechanism.

7. The lever arch mechanism of claim 2, wherein the lever comprises a lever body, a lever head extending upwards from one end of the lever body, and a lever handle extending from other end of the lever body.

8. The lever arch mechanism of claim 7, wherein the lever is attached rotatably onto the projection at the free end of the lever head.

9. The lever arch mechanism of claim 7, wherein the abutting portion is attached onto a joint between the lever body and the lever head. 12

10. The lever arch mechanism of claim 7, wherein two stoppers are formed on the projection for limiting the rotating ranges of the lever head respectively when closing the lever arch mechanism and opening the lever arch mechanism.

11. The lever arch mechanism of claim 2, wherein the abutting portion is a cam.

12. The lever arch mechanism of claim 2, wherein the abutting portion is a roller.

13. The lever arch mechanism of claim 1, wherein two second ring members connect integrally with each other by a connecting portion, the connecting portion comprising a bending portion bent toward the center of the substrate.

14. The lever arch mechanism of claim 13, wherein the middle of the bending portion projects upwards to form a protrusion.

15. The lever arch mechanism of claim 14, wherein a recess is formed on the bending portion at least at one side of the protrusion.

16. The lever arch mechanism of claim 1, wherein the elastic member is a leaf spring.

17. The lever arch mechanism of claim 1, wherein the elastic member is a spring wire.

18. The lever arch mechanism of claim 1, wherein a convex or a concave is formed at the free end of one of two ring members facing to each other, and a mating 13 concave or a mating convex is formed at the free end of the other one of two ring members facing to each other. 14