GB2526137A

GB2526137A - Hand utensil handles

Info

Publication number: GB2526137A
Application number: GB1408670.6A
Authority: GB
Inventors: David John Bull
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2014-05-15
Filing date: 2014-05-15
Publication date: 2015-11-18
Also published as: GB201408670D0

Abstract

A handle 10, for a hand utensil, comprising; an elongate shaft 12 with a top 14 and a bottom 16 surface. Four axially disposed finger recesses 24, 26, 28, 30 are provided on the bottom surface and a thumb recess 32 is provided that is axially and radially displaced relative to two or more of the finger recesses. The thumb recess may be located on the top surface at the front end of the shaft. There may also be a thumb recess 34 located between the top and bottom surfaces. The shaft may comprise a textured grip (258, figure 4a.) The handle enables the user to hold an eating or drinking utensil without requiring the user to exert a strong grasp on the handle, and also prevents the users fingers slipping from the handle in use. The ergonomic handle may be useful in enabling the elderly, ill, weak or disabled, to grip utensils such as cutlery and cups.

Description

Hand Utensil Handles The present invention relates to handles for hand utensils.

Hand utensils such as cutlery, crockery, tools and garden implements are known which comprise a handle that the user may grasp to hold and to control the position of the utensil.

Knives, forks and spoons are examples of cutlery that are widely used for preparing, serving and eating food. Cutlery implements commonly comprise a functional part such as prongs (fork), a sharp edge (knife) or a concave oval or round (spoon) at the end of an elongate handle part that can be grasped by the user.

Cups and mugs that comprise handles are also well known. A handle on a cup or mug provides the user with an area to grasp that is remote from the cup containing liquid to drink. The provision of a handle makes the cup easier to pick up than gripping the cup itself and prevents burns to the hands if the liquid inside the cup is hot.

Persons who are elderly, ill or disabled are often weak, have poor dexterity and find it difficult to perform daily tasks such as using eating and drinking utensils.

We have now devised an improved handle for eating and drinking utensils.

The improved handle enables the user to hold the eating or drinking utensil without requiring the user to exert a strong grasp on the handle, and also prevents the user's fingers slipping from the handle in use.

According to the present invention, there is provided a handle for a hand utensil, the handle comprising an elongate shaft with top and bottom surfaces, wherein the shaft comprises four axially disposed finger recesses on the bottom surface and a thumb recess that is axially and radially displaced relative to two or more of the finger recesses.

Preferably, the shaft comprises front and rear ends.

Preferably, the finger recesses are equally spaced axially along the shaft. This arrangement is ergonomic and encourages the user's fingers to sit at evenly spaced positions along the shaft.

Preferably, the thumb recess is radially displaced on the top surface of the shaft at the front end. Preferably, the thumb recess is substantially opposite one of the finger recesses.

In an alternative embodiment, one or more thumb recesses are located between the top surface and the bottom surface at the front end of the shaft. Preferably, the thumb recess is substantially radially adjacent to one of the finger recesses.

The finger recesses and thumb recess enable more efficient contact and a better grip between the user's hand and the handle without requiring the user to exert a strong gripping force on the handle.

In a preferred embodiment, the handle has a thumb recess located on the top surface of the shaft and two further thumb recesses disposed radially between the top and bottom surfaces. The user therefore has a choice between one of three thumb recesses. Having a thumb recess on each side of the shaft between the top and bottom surface of the shaft also means that the handle will be suitable for both right and left hands of the user.

Preferably, the shaft is tubular and has substantially consistent height and width.

Alternatively, the shaft may be substantially cylindrical. The front end of the shaft comprising the thumb recesses may be raised with respect to the rear end.

Preferably, the shaft is dimensioned to fit in the main crease of a cupped hand.

Advantageously, the user is not required to tighten their hand around a narrow and shallow shaft as is the case with a conventional handle. The user is only required to cup their hand enough to close their fingers and thumb around the shaft. This alleviates the problems associated with loss of strength and dexterity often found with persons who are elderly or ill.

Preferably the shaft has rounded edges. Advantageously, this means that the handle is ergonomic and comfortable for the user to hold for sustained periods of time.

In use, it is envisaged that the user will hold the handle by cupping their hand around the shaft with their little, ring, middle and index fingers sitting in the four finger recesses and their thumb sitting in a thumb recess on the upper surface or either side surface of the shaft, depending on whether the handle is being held by the left or right hand of the user.

The finger recesses and thumb recess provide improved grip between the user's hand and the shaft. In particular, it is important to improve the grip for the thumb which acts as lever when using the handle to eat or drink.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the handle is part of a cutlery implement. It is envisaged that where the handle is used on a spoon, fork or knife, the functional portion of the cutlery implement will be located at a front end of the shaft.

The functional portion may be one or more prongs if the cutlery implement is a fork, a sharp edge if the utensil is a knife or a concave oval or round if the utensil is a spoon.

Preferably, the thumb recess is located at the front end of the shaft near the functional portion. Preferably, the finger recesses are nearer the rear of the shaft than the thumb recess In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the shaft is attached to a cup portion comprising an opening, preferably at both front and rear ends. In this embodiment, it is envisaged that the shaft will be positioned such that it extends substantially vertically adjacent a cup in its upright position with the front end of the shaft proximate the opening. The shaft may be attached to the cup by one or more attachment arms. Preferably, the shaft is attached to the cup with first and second attachment arms that extend towards the cup from the front and rear ends of the shaft respectively at an angle substantially perpendicular to the shaft. Preferably, the shaft is attached to the cup or mug such that it lies at a distance from the cup or mug suitable for the fingers of a hand to be inserted between the cup and the shaft.

Preferably, the lower side of the shaft comprising the finger recesses is positioned nearer the cup or mug than the upper side comprising the thumb recess, with the front end comprising the thumb recess nearest the top of the shaft when in the vertical position. This arrangement encourages the user to hold the handle of the cup in the correct orientation and at the appropriate angle for drinking from and makes the cup easier to lift in use.

The thumb recess may be positioned on the top surface of the shaft. Alternatively, the thumb recess may be positioned partially on the top surface and partially on an adjacent attachment arm.

Preferably, a further finger recess is located on the top surface at the rear end of the shaft and is axially displaced between two finger recesses located on the opposing surface.

Preferably, a further finger recess is located on the bottom surface of an attachment arm at the rear end of the shaft. The additional finger recesses provide the user with options of where to place their fingers for optimum comfort, grip and dexterity.

Also in accordance with the present invention, there is provided a utensil comprising a handle as hereinbefore defined.

The utensil may comprise an item of cutlery, a drinking vessel, an item of crockery, a hand tool or a garden implement.

Embodiments of the invention will now be described in detail, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure la is an illustration of a perspective view of a spoon comprising a handle according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure lb is an illustration of a side view of the spoon shown in figure la; Figure 2a is an illustration of a perspective view of the spoon shown in figures la and lb as viewed from a side, the handle being held by a human hand (left hand) in use; Figure 2b is an illustration of a perspective view of the spoon shown in figure 2a from an opposing side, the handle being held by a human hand (left hand) in use; Figure 3 is an illustration of a perspective view of the spoon shown in figures la and 2b as viewed from a side, the handle being held by a human hand (right hand) in use; Figure 4a is an illustration of a perspective view of a mug comprising a handle according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 4b is an illustration of a side view of the mug shown in figure 4a; Figure 5 is an illustration of a perspective view of the mug shown in figures 4a and 4b, the handle being held by a human hand (right hand) in use.

Referring to figures la and lb, there is shown a spoon 100 with a handle 10. The handle 10 comprises an elongate shaft 12 with top 14 and bottom 16 surfaces and front 18 and rear 20 ends. A spoon head 22 is located at the front end 18 of the shaft 12. The bottom surface 16 comprises four finger recesses 24, 26, 28,30 that are equally spaced along the shaft 12 from the front end 18 to the rear end 20 of the shaft 12. The top surface 14 comprises a thumb recess 32 opposite the finger recess 24 at the front end 18 of the shaft 12 that is axially displaced from the remaining three finger recesses 26, 28, 30. A further two thumb recesses 34, 36 are located adjacent the finger recess 24 and the thumb recess 32 on either side of the shaft 12.

The shaft 12 is substantially tubular and dimensioned to fit in the main crease of a cupped hand. As seen in figure 1 b, the front end 18 of the shaft comprising the thumb recesses 32, 34, 36 is raised relative to the rear end 20.

Referring to figures 2a and 2b, there is shown the spoon 100 with a handle 10 in use held by the left hand 38 of the user. In use, the user grasps their hand 38 around the shaft 12 so that the shaft 12 sits in the crease of their cupped hand and their index 40, middle 42, ring 44 and little 46 fingers sit in the four finger recesses 24, 26, 28, 30 respectively. The user's thumb 48 sits in the thumb recess 36. Alternatively, the user may choose to place their thumb 48 in the thumb recesses 32 or 34 (not shown).

The defined finger recesses 24, 26, 28, 30 and the thumb recesses 32, 34, 36 provide improved grip and prevent the user's hand 38 from slipping from the handle due to lack of strength. In particular, providing improved grip for the little finger 46 and the thumb 48 provides more purchase to prevent the spoon 100 slipping when weight e.g. food is placed on the spoon head 22. The thumb recesses 32, 24, 36 allows greater control of the spoon 100, thus alleviating problems with dexterity when the spoon 100 being used to eat.

Referring to figure 3, the spoon 100 with handle 10 is shown in use being held by the right hand 50 of the user. The user's fingers 40, 42, 44, 46 sit in the four finger recesses 24, 26, 28, 30 respectively. The user's thumb 48 sits on the top surface 14 of the shaft 12 adjacent the raised front end 18. Alternatively, the user's thumb 48 may sit in the thumb recesses 32, 34 or 36 (not shown).

Referring to figures 4a and 4b, there is shown a mug 200 with a handle 210. The handle 210 comprises an elongate shaft 212 with top 214 and bottom 216 surfaces and front 218 and rear 220 ends. The handle 210 is positioned adjacent an upright cup portion 251 such that it extends vertically adjacent the cup portion 251 with the bottom surface 216 facing the cup portion 251. The cup portion 251 is attached to the shaft 212 with attachment arms 252 that extend between the shaft 212 and the cup portion 251 from front 218 and rear 220 ends of the shaft 212 at an angle perpendicular to the shaft 212.

The bottom surface 216 comprises four finger recesses 224, 226, 228, 230 that are equally spaced along the shaft 212 from the front end 218 to the rear end 220 of the shaft 212. The top surface 214 comprises a thumb recess 232 opposite the finger recess 224 at the front end 218 of the shaft 212. The thumb recess 232 is be positioned partially on the top surface 214 and partially on an adjacent attachment arm 252.

Two further finger recess 254 and 256 are provided. The finger recess 254 is located on the top surface 214 of the shaft 212 and is axially displaced between the finger recesses 228 and 230 located on the opposing bottom surface 216. The finger recess 256 is located on the bottom surface of the attachment arm 252 that extends from the rear end 220 of the shaft 212. The user's little finger 246 can sit either in the finger recess 230 or further finger recesses 254 or 256 according to the user's preference.

The shaft 212 is substantially tubular and dimensioned to fit in the main crease of a cupped hand that is grasped around the shaft 212 in use. The shaft 212 further comprises a textured portion 258 on the top surface 214 to increase grip.

Referring to figure 5, the mug 200 is shown in use being held by the right hand 250 of the user. The user's fingers 240, 242, 244 sit in three of the finger recesses 226, 228, 230 respectively and the edge of the user's liftle finger 246 rests in the further finger recess 256. The user's thumb 248 sits in the thumb recess 232. Alternatively, the user's fingers ay sit in any combination of the finger recesses 224, 226, 228, 230, 254 or 256.

The defined finger recesses and the thumb recess provide improved grip and prevent the user's hand from slipping from the handle 210 due to lack of strength. In particular, the thumb recess 232 and little finger recesses 230, 256 provide more grip for the user's thumb and little finger respectively, which provides more purchase to prevent vertical rotation of the mug 200 in the user's hand 250 due to the weight of the fluid in the cup portion 251.

It will be appreciated that the above described embodiments are given by way of example only and that various modifications thereto may be made without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, the finger recess may be at varying axial locations along the shaft, with varying distances between each recess.

Embodiments of the present invention may have recesses of various sizes and may be disposed at various radial angles with respect to the shaft.

The recesses and/or shaft may comprise further grip' regions, for example, there may be raised portions or textured portions to further increase grip when the handle is in use.

It is envisaged that the handle as herein described may be used on any type of utensil or implement that is held by a user.

Claims

Claims 1. A handle for a hand utensil, the handle comprising an elongate shaft with top and bottom surfaces, wherein the shaft comprises four axially disposed finger recesses on the bottom surface and a thumb recess that is axially and radially displaced relative to two or more of the finger recesses.
2. A handle according to claim 1, wherein the shaft comprises front and rear ends and wherein the finger recesses are equally spaced axially along the shaft.
3. A handle according to claim 2, wherein the thumb recess is located on the top surface at the front end of the shaft, substantially opposite one of the finger recesses.
4. A handle according to claim 2, wherein the thumb recess is located between the top surface and the bottom surface at the front end of the shaft.
5. A handle according to any of claims 1-4, wherein the shaft is tubular and has substantially consistent height and width.
6. A handle according to any of claims 2-4, wherein the front end of the shaft comprising the thumb recess or recesses is raised with respect to the rear end of the shaft.
7. A utensil comprising a handle according to any of claims 1-6.
8. A utensil according to claim 7 further comprising a functional portion located at a front end of the handle.
9. A utensil according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the utensil is one selected form a range of: knife, fork, spoon.
10. A utensil according to claim 7 further comprising a cup portion with an opening, wherein the handle further comprises a front and rear end and is positioned such that the shaft extends substantially vertically adjacent the cup portion, wherein the front end of the handle is proximate the opening.
11. A utensil according to claim 10, wherein the handle is attached to the cup portion by one or more attachment arms that extend towards the cup portion at an angle substantially perpendicular the shaft.
12. A utensil according to claim 11, wherein the thumb recess is positioned in part on the top surface of the shaft and in part on an attachment arm.
13. A utensil according to any of claims 10 to 12, wherein the top surface of the handle comprises a further finger recess at the rear end, the further finger recess being axially displaced between two finger recesses located on the opposing bottom surface.
14. A utensil according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the handle comprises a further finger recess on a bottom surface of an attachment arm proximal the rear end of the handle.