EP3858560A1

EP3858560A1 - Cutting tool

Info

Publication number: EP3858560A1
Application number: EP20154313.9A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Peter Rudolf
Original assignee: Husqvarna AB
Current assignee: Husqvarna AB
Priority date: 2020-01-29
Filing date: 2020-01-29
Publication date: 2021-08-04
Also published as: EP4096880A1; PL4096880T3; CN115038561A; FI4096880T3; EP4096880B1; WO2021151546A1; CN115038561B

Abstract

A cutting tool (100) includes a first blade (102) and a second blade (104). The second blade (104) is pivotally coupled to the first blade (102). The first blade (102) and the second blade (104) together perform a cutting action. The cutting tool (100) includes a drive unit (130) operatively coupled to at least one of the first blade (102) and the second blade (104). The drive unit (130) is configured to selectively provide a supplemental motor force to assist a movement of at least one of the first blade (102) and the second blade (104). Further, the cutting tool (100) includes a rope (126) operatively coupled to the drive unit (130). The rope (126) provides force for a movement of the first blade (102). The cutting tool (100) is characterized in that an adapter (128) is operatively coupling the first blade (102) with the rope (126).

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a cutting tool. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to the cutting tool which allows ease of blade replacement for common users.

BACKGROUND

Cutting tools such as secateurs, loppers, rakes, pliers are used for performing cutting action using one or more blades. Put simply, such tools provide increased mechanical assistance and ease of operation to a common user to conveniently perform operations on objects such as branches having varying dimensions. Further, the cutting tools provide benefits such as trapping bypass cutting or simply "bypass" which allows pruning/cutting by the cutting tools while holding an object (i.e. branch) with one of the cutting edges.
However, there may be many instances where working with the cutting tools may wear the one or more blades. The cutting efficiency of the cutting tool may again be restored by replacing the one or more blades which undergoes wear or becomes blunt. The replacement of the blunt blade of conventional cutting tools may involve a cumbersome process along with a need of additional cost and weights. Such replacement action for the blade may seem highly complex and time consuming, particularly for the common user.
An example of a cutting tool is provided in US patent application 2016/0,219,793 (hereinafter referred to as '793 reference). The '793 reference provides a cutting tool. The cutting tool includes an enclosure. The cutting tool further includes a first blade and a second blade. The cutting tool further includes a dowel clamping piece. At least one of the first blade and the second blade is replaceable. The dowel clamping piece is taken out to pull at least one of the first blade and the second blade. However, the '793 reference falls short of providing a smooth and safe application with user-friendly replacement of blade(s) of the cutting tool.
Thus, there is a need of an improved cutting tool which allows ease of replacement of one or more blades of the cutting tool.

SUMMARY

In view of the above, it is an objective of the present invention to solve or at least reduce the drawbacks discussed above. The objective is at least partially achieved by a cutting tool. The cutting tool includes a first blade. The cutting tool further includes a second blade. The second blade is pivotally coupled to the first blade. The first blade and the second blade together perform a cutting action on an object placed between them. The cutting tool further includes a drive unit. The drive unit is operatively coupled to at least one of the first blade and the second blade. The drive unit is configured to selectively provide a supplemental motor force to assist a movement of at least one of the first blade and the second blade to perform the cutting action. The cutting tool further includes a rope. The rope is operatively coupled to the drive unit. The rope provides force for a movement of the first blade. The cutting tool is characterized in that an adapter is operatively coupling the first blade with the rope. Thus, the present disclosure provides a simple, convenient and user-friendly replacement of a blade (i.e. the first blade) of the cutting tool.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the adapter has an opening to removably fit the first blade with the adapter. The adapter allows on-demand replacement of the first blade through the opening of the adapter.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, a removable nut and/or screw is provided at the pivoted position of the first blade and the second blade. The removable nut and/or screw allows ejection of the first blade on disassembly of the removable nut and/or screw. So, the removable nut and/or screw provides a convenient arrangement to eject the first blade without any deformations of other parts of the cutting tool.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the drive unit includes a motor, a gearbox, a drum, a printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) and a battery to selectively provide the supplemental motor force. This supplemental motor force by the drive unit provides the mechanical advantage to assist cutting action by the blades.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the cutting tool includes a slider or trigger to activate or deactivate the drive unit. This allows to have a safe and convenient operation of the cutting tool with the provision of the slider or trigger.
Other features and aspects of this invention will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be described in more detail with reference to the enclosed drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a cutting tool, in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure;
FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of a drive unit within the cutting tool, in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure;
FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of an adapter of the cutting tool, in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure;
FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of the cutting tool of FIG. 1 after disassembly of a removable nut and/or screw, in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure; and
FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of the cutting tool during disassembly of a first blade, in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The present invention will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which example embodiments of the invention incorporating one or more aspects of the present invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. For example, one or more aspects of the present invention may be utilized in other embodiments and even other types of structures and/or methods. In the drawings, like numbers refer to like elements.
Certain terminology is used herein for convenience only and is not to be taken as a limitation on the invention. For example, "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "side", "longitudinal", "lateral", "transverse", "upwards", "downwards", "forward", "backward", "sideward", "left," "right," "horizontal," "vertical," "upward", "inner", "outer", "inward", "outward", "top", "bottom", "higher", "above", "below", "central", "middle", "intermediate", "between", "end", "adjacent", "proximate", "near", "distal", "remote", "radial", "circumferential", or the like, merely describe the configuration shown in the Figures. Indeed, the components may be oriented in any direction and the terminology, therefore, should be understood as encompassing such variations unless specified otherwise.
FIG. 1 illustrates a cutting tool 100. The cutting tool 100 of the present disclosure is illustrated as secateurs, however, the present disclosure may be readily applied to any cutting tool 100 such as, but not limited to, a lopper, shear, scissor etc. with two or more cutting edges. The cutting tool 100 includes one or more blades i.e. a first blade 102 and a second blade 104. The second blade 104 is pivotally coupled to the first blade 102. The first blade 102 and the second blade 104 together perform a cutting action on an object (generally branches and the like) placed between them.
The cutting tool 100 further includes a removable nut and/or screw 106. The removable nut and/or screw 106 is provided at the pivoted position of the first blade 102 and the second blade 104. The removable nut and/or screw 106 allows ejection of the first blade 102 (best illustrated through FIGS. 4 , and 5 ) on disassembly of the removable nut and/or screw 106. The removable nut and/or screw 106 provides a convenient arrangement to eject the first blade 102 without any deformations of other parts of the cutting tool 100. In some embodiments, the removable nut and/or screw 106 may be any one or more of a coupling nut, a flange nut, a hex nut, a lock nut, a slotted nut, a square nut, a wheel nut and the like.
Moreover, the cutting tool 100 includes one or more handles i.e. a top handle 108 and a bottom handle 110 which are operatively coupled with the second blade 104 and the first blade 102 respectively. In one embodiment the cutting tool 100 further includes a lid 132.
In some embodiments, the one or more blades i.e. the first blade 102 and the second blade 104 may be one or more of a clip point blade, a drop point blade, a gut hook blade, a hawkbell blade, a needle point blade, a straight back blade, a sheepsfoot blade, a spear point blade or any other blade as used or known in the art. Further, the first blade 102 and the second blade 104 may be made of steel or any other material as used or known in the art. Choice of the material for any of the first blade 102 and the second blade 104 will generally depend upon factors such as life, application, weight or other parameters related to the cutting tool 100. However, the present disclosure is not to be limited by the type of the first blade 102 and the second blade 104 in any manner.
During implementation, at least one of the first blade 102 and the second blade 104 may be a fixed blade while the other performs desired cutting action. Alternately or additionally, both the first blade 102 and the second blade 104 may be movable during the cutting action.
FIG. 2 illustrates the cutting tool 100 which includes a drive unit 130. The drive unit 130 includes a motor 112 and a gearbox 114. The drive unit 130 further includes a drum 116 comprising a clutch, a retraction spring and a winch. Further, the drive unit 130 includes a printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) 118 and a battery 120. In one embodiment the battery 120 is covered by the lid 132, as will be evident through combined reference to FIGS. 1 , 2 . The lid 132 may be assembled, disassembled to gain access to the battery 120. The lid 132 may be assembled or disassembled with the top handle 108 using any connection such as, but not limited to, sliding, snap-fits, magnetic coupling, push-fits and the like. The drive unit 130 may be operatively coupled to at least one of the first blade 102 and the second blade 104. The drive unit 130 is configured to selectively provide a supplemental motor force to assist a movement of at least one of the first blade 102 and the second blade 104 to perform the cutting action.
As illustrated in FIG. 2 , the cutting tool 100 could also include a slider or trigger to activate or deactivate the drive unit 130. In the depicted embodiment this slider or trigger is realized in top of the cutting tool 100 as slider or trigger 122, alternatively it as well could be realized as a slider or trigger. On engaging, moving or pressing the slider or trigger 122 the drive unit 130 gets switched on and off and thus the cutting tool 100 becomes convenient and safe to handle by common users. The drive unit 130 may be deactivated for instances which may require to save/extend battery life or allow uninterrupted operation of the power-assisted cutting tool 100, such as for low battery conditions. In such instances of the deactivated drive unit 130, it could be possible that the motor 112 will remain in a disengaged/OFF state leading to a purely user-based cutting action by the cutting tool 100, without any supplemental motor force. In one embodiment the slider or trigger 122 might also look the cutting tool 100 in a closed status.
In some embodiments, the slider or trigger 122 may be a button, a knob, a single pole single throw switch, a single pole double throw switch, a double pole single throw switch, a double pole double throw switch, a push-button switch, a toggle switch, a limit switch, a float switch, and the like. Alternately or additionally, a button, a knob, or any other switching means as used or known in the relevant art may be present in place of the switch 122.
In a preferred embodiment, all components of the drive unit 130 are housed in a single handle i.e. the top handle 108 as best illustrated in FIG. 2 with the cutting tool being in closed status. This helps in reducing the thickness, dimensions, ergonomic profile or spatial footprint of the bottom handle 110. This even allows the combined profile of the top handle 108, and the bottom handle 110 to be looked at as one part, particularly during closed state of the first handle 108, when at least a part of the second handle 110 at least partially encloses the back portion 111 of the first handle 108. This advantageous ergonomic profile can be seen with the side view of the cutting tool 100 of FIG. 2 . By this it also becomes possible to realize the first handle 108 as a slim bottom handle that allows the operation of the cutting tool even with small hands
FIG. 3 illustrates details with the bottom handle 110 (shown in the bottom of the drawing) and the top handle 108 (shown on the top of the drawing) of the cutting tool 100 in a closed position. The cutting tool 100 having a spring 124. The cutting tool 100 further includes a rope 126 transmitting the force from the drive unit 130 inside the top handle 108 into the bottom handle 110 and an adapter 128 inside of the bottom handle 110. The adapter 128 finds application for pre-fixing the spring 124 and the rope 126 with the bottom handle 110, without any direct engagement or contact of the spring 124 and the rope 126 with the bottom handle 110, as best illustrated in FIG. 3 . The first blade 102 is passing through the adapter 128. The piercing of the first blade 102 through the adapter 128 helps in securing or locking of the first blade 102 within the adapter 128, and/or the bottom handle 110 as per the requirement.
During implementation, a connection of the adapter 128 with the first blade 102 may be achieved by pushing, sliding, and piercing the first blade 102 through the adapter 128. The adapter 128 may be made up of one or more of a material like plastic, rubber, glass and the like. Additionally, or alternatively, the first blade 102 may slide, pierce, pass into the adapter 128. The adapter 128 allows the smooth movement or disassembly of the first blade 102 by simple pulling action on the first blade 102, after removal of the removal nut and/or screw 106 as illustrated in FIG. 4 . The removable nut and/or screw 106 may be disassembled by use of hand tools or by any other way convenient for the common user. On taking off the removable nut and/or screw 106, the first blade 102 may be disassembled from the cutting tool 100, as illustrated in FIG. 5 . Then, the disassembled first blade 102 allows its substitution with another blade which may be another first blade 102 (not shown), which may have a sharp cutting edge or any other desired feature. The substituted blade i.e. the another first blade 102, for the replaced first blade 102, may have different design, profile etc. with same basic features, or structure which may allow it to desirably engage with the adapter 128.
FIG. 5 illustrates the disassembling of the first blade 102 from the cutting tool 100. The first blade 102 may be removed or discarded by pushing, sliding the first blade 102 manually or by providing a button (not shown) which on pressing takes the first blade 102 out. In some embodiments, an indicator (not shown) may be provided. to confirm the configuration of the substituted blade (i.e. the another first blade 102), for the first blade 102. The indicator may indicate either that the first blade 102 is in a working state or not. The indications may be given by different ways like buzzing, flashing a light, change of color and any such techniques as known or used in the art.
In the drawings and specification, there have been disclosed preferred embodiments and examples of the invention and, although specific terms are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for the purpose of limitation of the scope of the invention being set forth in the following claims.

LIST OF ELEMENTS

100: Cutting Tool
102: First Blade
104: Second Blade
106: Removable Nut and/or Screw
108: Top Handle
110: Bottom Handle
112: Motor
114: Gear Box
116: Drum
118: Printed Circuit Board Assembly (PCBA)
120: Battery
122: Slider or Trigger
124: Spring
126: Rope
128: Adapter
130: Drive Unit
132: Lid

Claims

A cutting tool (100) comprising:
a first blade (102);

a second blade (104) pivotally coupled to the first blade (102), wherein the first blade (102) and the second blade (104) together perform a cutting action on an object placed therebetween;

a drive unit (130) operatively coupled to at least one of the first blade (102) and the second blade (104), wherein the drive unit (130) is configured to selectively provide a supplemental motor force to assist a movement of at least one of the first blade (102) and the second blade (104) to perform the cutting action; and

a rope (126) operatively coupled to the drive unit (130), wherein the rope (126) provides force for a movement of the first blade (102);

characterized in that:
an adapter (128) operatively coupling the first blade (102) with the rope (126).
The cutting tool (100) of claim 1, wherein the adapter (128) has an opening to removably fit the first blade (102) with the adapter (128).
The cutting tool (100) of any of the preceding claims, wherein a removable nut and/or screw (106) is provided at the pivoted position of the first blade (102) and the second blade (104), wherein the removable nut and/or screw (106) allows ejection of the first blade (102) on disassembly of the removable nut and/or screw (106).
The cutting tool (100) of any of the preceding claims, wherein the drive unit (130) comprising a motor (112), a gearbox (114), a drum (116), a printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) (118) and a battery (120) to selectively provide the supplemental motor force.
The cutting tool (100) of any of the preceding claims, wherein the cutting tool (100) comprises a slider or trigger (122) to activate or deactivate the drive unit (130).