GB2461337A

GB2461337A - Razor with adjustable guard for blade

Info

Publication number: GB2461337A
Application number: GB0812065A
Authority: GB
Inventors: William James Herbert Jenkins
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2008-07-02
Filing date: 2008-07-02
Publication date: 2010-01-06
Anticipated expiration: 2028-07-02
Also published as: GB0812065D0; GB2461337B

Abstract

A razor head 1 comprises a housing 25 containing a blade 2, 4, 6 with a cutting edge and a retractable blade guard 24 that is movable, preferably by sliding, within the housing to adjust an exposed length of the cutting edge of the blade. The housing may contain: a retaining portion 26 at one or both ends of the blade, into which the guard is retractable; a first shelf aligned with the cutting edge of the blade for supporting the guard; and a second shelf aligned with the first shelf so that the guard is restrained to move along a channel defined by the shelves. The housing may be modular with a blade module containing the blade and a guard module containing the guard. The guard preferably has markers 28, 30 that are visible from the rear of the head and that indicate the positions of the leading and/or trailing edges of the guard. The housing may have end markers 8, 10, 12, 14 that are visible from the rear of the head to indicate one or both ends of the cutting edge of the blade. Cutting markers 16, 18, 20, 22 may also be provided to indicate the location of the blade cutting edges.

Description

Shaving razor The invention relates to a razor for shaving facial and body hair.

Conventional safety razors for shaving facial and body hair comprise one or more razor blades held in a housing which protects the user from accidental cutting. However, the housing of such razors oan obscure a user's view of the cutting location when the razor is in use. This can make accurate shaving difficult.

WO 01/07214 describes a manual shaving device which includes a razor head with razor blade strips positioned between a pair of large-area non-shaving pressure-applying pads, called glides. The glides serve as pressure pads to allow significant non-shaving forcesto be applied to the pliable skin and sub-cutaneous bQdy tissue near the blade edges to re-shape the skin to be shaved to match the razor blade profile more closely. The length of exposed razor blade edge may be shortened by placing an external end cap over the end portion of the razor blade structure to cover one or both ends of the blade. The end caps are non-shaving protective glide structures which perform the same function as the glides described above.

At its most general, the invention proposes a razor head with an internal adjustable blade guard. This provides a compact means for controlling the length of an exposed portion, i.e. provides a means for varying the effective length, of a cutting edge of a bla'de. In other words, the length of the cutting edge of the blade can he adjusted without affecting the width of the razor head.

According to a first aspect of the invention, there may be provided a razor head comprising a housing containing: (i) a blade with a cutting edge and (ii) a retractable blade guard that is movable within the housing to adjust an exposed length of the cutting edge of the blade. This enables a user to vary the length of the exposed cutting edge of the blade in a compact manner, without affecting the width of the razor head, and provides a means for selecting the width of a strip of hair to be uncut during shaving. Thus, the user can accurately shave a desired width of hair. This is particularly useful when shaving facial hair, for example when shaving sideburns or a goatee beard.

The bLade guard may be slidably mounted in the housing to permit the exposed length of the blade to be adjustable over a continuous range of lengths.

The housing may have a retaining portion and the blade guard may be retractable into this retaining portion to allow the blade guard to be moved clear of the cutting edge of the blade. The blade guard may be totally received in the retaining portion. The housing may have a retaining portion at one or both ends of the exposed blade. The retaining portion may be sized to accommodate various widths of blade guard.

The housing may contain a first internal shelf aligned with the blade for supporting the blade guard. This may enable the blade guard to be slid into and out of the housing. The housing may also contain a second internal shelf which is aligned with the first internal shelf, such that the blade guard is constrained to move along a channel defined by the first and second internal shelves.

This determines the path of movement of the blade guard and so that it is movable over the cutting edge of the blade.

The blade guard may be movable clear of the retaining portion of the housing, so that there are two exposed cutting areas on either side of the blade guard. The leading and trailing edges of the blade guard define the edges of these exposed cutting areas. The blade guard may have markers, which are visible from the rear of the razor head and which indicate the position of one or both of the leading and trailing edges of the blade guard.

Therefore, the -markers can indicate the edges of the exposed cutting areas. The blade guard may also have a tab which projects from the housing, e.g. through a slot in the housing, to permit a user to move the blade guard within the housing. This tab may be gripped by a user to adjust the position of the blade guard and vary the -exposed length of the blade. In one embodiment, the tab may be level with the leading edge of the blade guard so that it also performs the function of the marker, i.e. to give a visible indication of an end of the exposed length of the blade. By projecting from the housing, the tab may be visible from behind the razor head, i.e. visible when the blade is in contact with the skin. The tab may therefore be a cutting marker arranged to indicate the position of an end of the exposed length of the blade.

The blade guard may also have a tab which is level with its trailing edge and which projects from the housing, e.g. through a slot in the housing. This tab may also he visible from the rear of the razor head and may project from the housing, so that it is visible from behind the razcr head, i.e. visible when the blade is in contact with the skin. Therefore, this tab may be a cutting marlcer arranged to indicate the position of an exposed length of the blade. These cutting markers, i.e. the tabs which are level with the leading edge and the trailing edge of the blade guard, may facilitate an accurate prediction of the position of the boundary between an exposed part and a covered part of the cutting edge of the blade. This may be particularly useful when shaving facial hair into particular styles, such as sideburns and goatee beards. The blade guard may also have a tab (or tabs) provided on opposite sides of the housing, such that each tab is level with the leading edge and/or the trailing edge of the blade guard.

The housing may have a slot and the tab (or tabs) may project from the housing through the slot, so that it is constrained to move within the slot. The slot may extend along the entire length of the cutting edge of the blade.

This allows the blade guard to be slid along the entire length of the cutting edge of the blade so that any portion of the cutting edge of the blade may be covered by the blade guard. In addition, the blade guard can be moved to or near the centre of the cutting edge of the blade, so that portions of the cutting edge are exposed on either side of the blade guard, i.e. the exposed length of the blade may comprise two separate parts with the blade guard in between. This allows hair to remain uncut in the middle of the blade, but to be cut on either side. The slot may extend into the retaining portion of the housing so that a blade guard with a tab level to its trailing edge is fully retractable into the retaining portion of the housing.

The blade may be biased against the blade guard to maintain it in contact with the blade guard. Any suitable biasing means may be used. For example, the blade may be mounted on a spring that urges it towards the blade guard. This may permit the razor to maintain a close shave, so that only the width of the blade guide separates the blade from the surface of the skin.

The razor head may have more than one blade guard. In one embodiment, the housing may contain two blade guards, the blade guards being mounted at opposing ends of the cutting edge of the blade. This may provide greater variability for selecting the position of the exposed length (or lengths) of the cutting edge of the blade. For example, both blade guards may be moved to or near the centre of the cutting edge of the blade, so that portions of the cutting edge are exposed on either side of the blade guards. Each blade guard may have a tab (or tabs) level with its leading edge and/or its trailing edge, as described above.

The blade, guard may be made of various widths and made of various thin materials, such as a thin sheet of aluminium, stainless steel, plastic or other material that will not.corrode easily. The blade guard may be narrower than the housing so that it can be fully retracted intQ the housing.

The housing may be modular and may have a blade module which contains the blade and a detachable blade guard module which contains the blade guard(s) -This permits different blade guard modules, e.g. of different widths, to he attached to the razor head.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there may be provided one or more position indicators for the cutting plane of the blade, the position indicator(s) being visible from the rear of the razor head. This may indicate to a user where the blade will cut to aid accurate shaving.

The razor head may comprise a housing which contains a blade with a cutting edge and a cutting marker which is level with the cutting edge of the blade and which is visible from the rear ofthe razor head. The cutting marker may be a tab which projects from the razor head or a stripe on the rear of the razor head, which may be coloured to aid visibility. This means that the cutting marker is visible to the user from the rear of the razor head when it is in use, thus indicating to the user where the blade will out. The razor head may have two tabs, which act as cutting markers, provided on opposite sides of the housing, with each tab being level with a respective end of the cutting edge of the blade. This may provide a user with information about the position and orientation of the cutting plane of the blade. The razor head may have one or more tabs acting as cutting markers in combination with the stripe described above.

The first and second aspects of the invention may be combined to provide a razor head that has features of both these aspects.

The razor head described above may have end markers which are visible from the rear of the razor head and which indicate one or both ends of the cutting edge of the blade. This allows a user to determine the position of the ends of the cutting edge of the blade and permits accurate shaving. The end markers may he tabs which project from the razor head. If the razor head also has a cutting marker which is level with the cutting edge of the blade, as described in the second aspect of the invention, the user will be able to determine the exact position of the cutting edge of the blade on the skin, facilitating very accurate shaving.

The razor head described above may have more than one blade. specifically, the razor head may have one, two, three, or three or more blades. Such a razor head may have a cutting marker that is level with the cutting edge of at least the upper blade and the lower blade to indicate where each blade will cut.

There nay be provided a razor including the razor head according to either or both of the first and second aspects described above attached to a handle. The handle may be attached centrally to the rear of the razor head.

The handle may be curved at its end attached to the razor head. This curvature may elevate the handle from the razor head to improve visibility of the cutting and/or end markers when the razor is in use and may provide sufficient clearance so that the entire lower border of the razor head, and therefore the blade guard tabs, may he visible to a user. The razor head may be modified to attach to known handles.

Acoording to a third aspect of the invention, there may be provided a]cit including the razor head according to the first and/or second aspects described above and a handle attachable to the razor head. The handle may be attachable to the centre of the rear of the razor head and may be curved at its end attachable to the razor, so H that when the handle is attached to the razor head, the curvature elevates the handle from the razor head to improve visibility of the cutting and/or end markers when the razor is in use.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described in detail, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional safety razor in use to shave facial hair.

Fig. 2 is a front view of a razor head, which is an embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 3 is a front and side view of an embodiment of the razor head of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a front and side view of another embodiment of the razor head of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a cross-section through another embodiment of the razor head of Fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is a rear and side view of a razor, including the razor head of Fig. 2, which is an embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the razor of Fig. 6 in use to shave facial hair.

Fig. S is a perspective view of the razor of Fig. 6 in use to shave a sideburn.

Figure 1 shows a conventional safety razor in use to shave facial hair. As the housing obscures the user's view of the razor blade, the user cannot accurately predict where the blade will cut.

Figures 2 and 3 show one embodiment of a razor head 1 according to the invention. The razor head 1 has three parallel blades 2, 4 and 6. End markers 8, 10, 12 and 14 are tabs (which are thin flat rectangular strips) which project from the razor head 1, so that they are visible 1 -from the rear of the razor head 1, and indicate the ends of the blades 2, 4 and 6. Cutting markers 16 and 20 are tabs which are level with the cutting edge 17 of the upper blade 2 and indicate the position of the cutting edge 17 of the upper blade 2 to the user. Cutting markers 16 and 20 project from the razor head 1 and are visible from the rear of the razor head 1. Cutting markers 18 and 22 are tabs which are level with the cutting edge 19 of the lower blade 6. They project from the razor head 1 and are visible from the rear of the razor head 1 to indicate the position of the cutting edge 19 to the user. A blade guard 24, which is a thin flat rectangular strip of material which can cover the blade, is slidably mounted in a housing 25, which has a retaining portion 26 located at one end of the blades 2, 4 and 6. A second blade guard may be mounted in a second retaining portion 27 located at the opposite end of the blades 2, 4 and 6. Blade guard 24 has been slid out of the retaining portibn 26 to cover a portion of each of the blades 2, 4 and 6. The blade guard 24 has tabs 28 and 30 which project from the razor head 1, so that they are visible from the rear of the razor head, and are level with each end of the leading edge 32 of the blade guard 24. This indicates the position of thc end of the exposed portion of the blades 2, 4 and 6, such that the tabs 28 and 30 act as cutting markers. The tabs 28 and 30 are attached to the blade guard 24 and can be gripped by the user to slide the blade guard 24 from the retaining portion 26 of the housing 25 to vary the length of the exposed portions of the blades 2, 4 and 6.

As can be seen in Figure 3, tab 28 is attached to the blade guard 24 and is level with the leading edge 32 of the blade guard 24. Tab 28 projects from the razor head 1 through a slot 36 in the razor head 1. This enables a user to grip the tab 28 and slide it along the slot 36 to move the bladc guard 24 over the cutting edges. 17 and 19 of the upper and lower blades 2 and 6 respectively to adjust the length of the exposed portions of the blades 2, 4 and 6. A second channel 38 extends from the retaining portion 27 of the housing 25 at the opposite end of the blades 2, 4 and 6 to allow a user to slide a blade guard (not shown) Qut of the retaining portion 27.

End marker 14 and tab 28 are in different planes so that end marker 14 does not obstruct movement of tab 28 along slot 36. similarly, end marker 8 and tab 30 are also in different planes.

In the embodiment shown in Figure 4, the slot 36 extends along the length of the razor head 1. The tabs 28 and 30, which are each level with the leading edge 32 of the blade guard 24 and which project from the razor head 1, can be slid along the length of the slot 36 by a user to move the blade guard 24 over the entire length of the cutting edges 17 and 19 of the upper and lower blades 2 and 6 respectively. In this Figure, the blade guard 24 has been slid out of the retaining portion 26 of the housing 25 so that it covers a central portion of the cutting edges 17 and 19 of the upper and lower blades 2 and 6 respectively. Additionally, tabs 29 and 31 are level with the trailing edge 33 of the blade guard 24 and project from the razor head 1, so that they are visible from the back of the razor head 1. Therefore1 tabs 28, 29, 30 and 31 indicate to a user where the blades 2, 4 and 6 will cut. Both tabs 28 and 29 are in a different plane from end marker 14 so that end marker *l4 does not obstruct the movement of tabs 28 and 29 along slot 36.

Similarly, tabs 30 and 31 are in a different plane from end marker 8. A second blade guard (not visible) has been fully retracted into retaining portion 27 of the housing 25. Tabs 35 and 37 are level with the leading edge of this blade guard and tabs 39 and 41 are level with the trailing edge of the blade guard. Tabs 35, 37, 39 and 41 project from the razor head 1 through slot 36. slot 36 extends into retaining portions 26 and 27 so that the tabs 39 and 41 level with the trailing edge of the fully retracted blade guard (not visible) can project through the slot 36 from the housing 25 when the blade guard is in this fully retracted position.

In the embodiment shown in Figure 5, the razor blade has five blades 2, 52, 4, 54 and 6 mounted on springs 42, 44, 46, 48 and 50, respectively. The springs 42, 44, 46, 48 and 50 urge the blades 2, 52, 4, 54 and 6 towards the blade guard 24. Each end of the blade guard 24 is supported in the housing of the razor head 1 between internal shelves 56 and 58 and internal shelves 60 and 62 respectively. Tabs 28 and 30, which are attached to the blade guard 24, project from the razor head 1 and can be gripped by a user to slide the blade guard 24 between internal shelves 56 and 58 and internal shelves 60 and 62 to adjust the length of the exposed portion of the blades 2, 52, 4, 54 and 6. Figure 5 also shows that a handle 34 is attached to the razor head 1. The handle 34 is detachable from the razor head 1 and may be removed. The handle 34 is attached to the razor head 1 by an attachment means 40 and is curved at its end attached to the razor head 1. There is a pivot hinge 43 at the attachment means 40. Figure 6 is a rear and side view of a razor, including the razor head of Fig. 2, which is an embodiment of the invention.

Figure 6 shows the razor head 1 attached to a handle 34, which is detachable from the razor head 1. The handle 34 is attached centrally to the rear of the razor head 1. As can be seen in Figure 6, the end of the handle 34 which is attached to the razor head 1 has a near 90° curve to elevate the handle 34 from the razor head 1. This provides sufficient clearance so that the entire lower border of the razor head, and therefore the blade guard tabs, may be visible to a user.

Figure 7 shows a razor 68 according to the invention in use to shave facial hair. The razor 68 has a razor head 1 attached to a handle 34. Cutting markers 16, 18, 20 and 22 projeot laterally from the razor head and are visible from the rear of the razor head. These cutting markers 16, 18, 20 and 22 are level with the cutting edge of each of the upper and lower blades (not shown) and indicate the position of the cutting edges of the blades tP the user. End markers 8, 10, 12 and 14 also project from the razor head, such that they are visible from the rear of the razor head, to indicate the position of each end of the cutting edges of the blades to the user. A blade guard 24 is mounted in a housing 26 at one end of the blades and has been slid out of the retaining portion 26 of the housing 25 to cover a portion of the blades. Hair in contact with the portion of the blades covered by the blade guard 24 will remain uncut. The width of this uncut hair 70 is adjustable by the position of the blade guard 24. In Figure 7, this uncut hair 70 is a sideburn of a selected width. Tabs 28 and 30 project from the razor head 1 and are visible from the rear of the razor head 1.

These tabs 28 and 30 are level with the leading edge of the blade guard 24 and allow the user to determine accurately the border between cut and uncut hair.

Similarly, end markers 8, 10, 12 and 14 and cutting markers 16, 18, 20 and 22 allow the user to determine the exact position of the outting edges of the upper and lower razor blades to ensure accurate shaving of hair.

Figure 8 also shows a razor 68 according to the invention in use to shave facial hair. The blade guard 24 has been slid out of a retaining portion 26 of the housing 25 to cover a central portion of the cutting edges of the blades. Hair under the portion of the blades covered by the blade guard 24 will be uncut and this is shown as sideburn 72 in Figure 9. Hair either side of the sideburn 72 will he cut, resulting in a single strip of uncut hair 72 flanked by two strips of shaved hair 74 and 76.

Claims

Claims 1. A razor head comprising a housing containing: (i) a blade with a cutting edge and (ii) a retractable blade guard that is movable within the housing to adjust an exposed length of the cutting edge of the blade.
2. A razor head according to claia 1, wherein the blade guard is slidably mounted in the housing.
3. A razor head according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the housing has a retaining portion at one or both ends of the blade, wherein the blade guard is retractable into the retaining portion.
4. A razor head acoording to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the housing contains a first internal shelf aligned with the cutting edge of the blade for supporting the blade guard.
5. A razor head according to claim 4, wherein the housing contains a second internal shelf which is aligned with the first internal shelf, wherein the blade guard ith constrained to move along a channel defined by the first and second internal shelves.
6. A razor head according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the housing is nodular with a blade module which contains the blade and a detachable blade guard module which contains the blade guard.
7. A razor head according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the blade guard has markers which are visible from the rear of the razor head and which indicate the position of one or both of the leading and trailing edges of the blade guard.
8. A razor head according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the blade guard has a tab which projects from the housing.
9 A razor head according to claim 8, wherein the tab is level with the leading edge of the blade guard to indicate an end of the exposed length of the cutting edge of the blade.
10. A razor head according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the housing has a slot and the tab projects from the housing through the slot and is constrained to move within the slot.
11. A razor head according to claim 10, wherein the slot extends along the length of the housing.
12. A razor head according to any one of claims 8 to 11, wherein the blade guard has two tabs provided on each side of the housing, wherein each tab is level with the leading edge of the blade guard.
13. A razor head according to any one of claims 8 to 12, wherein the blade guard has a tab which projects from the housing and is level with the trailing edge of the blade guard.
14. A razor head according to claim 13, wherein the housing has a slot and the tab which is level with the trailing edge of the blade guard projects through the slot and is constrained to move with the slot.
15. A razor head according to claim 14, wherein the slot S extends along the length of the cutting edge of the blade.
16. A razor head according to claim 14 or claim 15, wherein the housing has a retaining portion, such that the blade guard is retractable into the retaining portion and the slot extends into the retaining portion of the housing.
17. A razor head according to any one of claims 14 to 16, wherein the blade guard has two tabs provided on each side of the housing, wherein each tab is level with the trailing edge of the blade guard.
18. A razor head according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the blade is biased against the blade guard.
19. A razor head according to claim 18, wherein the blade is mounted on a spring that urges it towards the blade guard.
20. A razor head according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the housing contains two blade guards, mounted at opposite ends of the cutting edge of the blade.
21. A razor head according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein razor head has an end marker which is visible from the rear of the razor head and which indicates one or both ends of the cutting edge of the blade.
22. A razor head according to claim 21, wherein the end marker is a tab which projects from the razor head.
23. A razor head according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the razor head has a cutting marker which is level with the cutting edge of the blade and which is visible from the rear of the razor head.
24. A razor head according to claim 23, wherein the cutting marker is a stripe which is level with the cutting edge of the blade and which is visible from the rear of the razor head.
25. A razor head according to claim 23 or claim 24, wherein the cutting marker is a tab which projects from the razor head.
26. A razor head according to any one of claims 23 to 25, wherein the razor head has two tabs provided at opposite ends of the housing, wherein each tab is level with a respective end of the cutting. edge of the blade.
27. A razor head comprising (i) a housing which contains a blade with a cutting edge and (ii) a cutting marker which is level with the cutting edge of the blade and which is visible from the rear of the razor head.
28. A razor head according to claim 27, wherein the cutting marker is a stripe which is level with the cutting edge of the blade and which is visible from the rear of the razor head.
29. A razor head according to claim 27 or claim 28, S wherein the cutting marker is a tab which projects from the razor head.
30. A razor head according to claims 29, wherein the razor head has two tabs provided at opposite ends of the housing, wherein each tab is level with a respective end of the cutting edge of the blade.
31. A razor head according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the housing contains more than one blade.
32. A razor inoluding the razor head of any one of the preceding claims attached to a handle.
33. A razor according to claim 32, wherein the handle is attached centrally to the rear of the razor head.
34. A razor according to claim 32 or 33, wherein the handle is curved at its end attached to the razor head.
35. A kit including the razor head of any one of the preceding claims and a handle attachable to the razor head.
36. A razor head substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated in accompanying Figures 2 to 5.
37. A razor substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated in accompanying Figures 6 to 8.