US2285013A

US2285013A - Cutlery

Info

Publication number: US2285013A
Application number: US399355A
Authority: US
Inventors: Joseph E Burns
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1941-06-23
Filing date: 1941-06-23
Publication date: 1942-06-02
Anticipated expiration: 1959-06-02

Description

J. E. BURNS June 2, 1942.

CUTLERY Filed June 23, 1941' Patented June 2, 1942 STTES FFICE 4 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in cutlery and more particularly to bladed instruments formed of flat resilient sheet material.

An object of this invention is to provide an article of cutlery formed of sheet material having blade and handle portions and an integral reinforcing means extending along one ed e to stiffen the blade and handle portions against relative bending.

Another object of the invention is the formation of an article of cutlery having a blade and handle portion formed of sheet material with integral reinforcing means along the back edge of the blade and both edges of the handle to reinforce the same, permitting the article to be more easily manufactured and providing for the nesting or neatly stacking of a plurality of the articles.

A further object of the invention is the provision in a knife or the like formed of sheet material having a tapered handle and a blade with a curved back in which reinforcing means for the handle and the back of the blade are formed by bending the edge of the body along the back of the blade and the handle angularly to form said reinforcing means.

A still further object is the provision in a knife construction in which the blade and handle portions are reinforced against bending by integral reinforcing means stamped from the edge of the body of the knife to form a trough-shaped handle for permitting nesting of the knives in superposed relation.

Other and further objects of the invention will be hereinafter described, and the novel features thereof defined by the appended claims.

In the drawing:

Figure l is a perspective view of a knife constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2 is a top edge view looking towards the back of the knife as shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an edge view looking towards the cutting edge of the knife;

Figure 4 is an end view of the knife;

Figures 5, 6 and 7 are views taken respectively on the lines 55, 6-5 and 1-4 of Figure 2 looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 8 is an enlarged cross sectional view through the blade portion of the knife, and showing more particularly the nesting of a plurality of knives; and

Figure 9 is a side view of the knife embodying my invention and showing a slightly modified form of blade.

Like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several figures of the drawing wherein I denotes a knife generally formed of fiat sheet material in any suitable manner such as by stamping, and having a blade portion 2 and handle portion 3. Along the rear edge 4 of the blade 2 and the handle portion 3 is formed an angularly bent reinforcing flange 5. This flange extends from the rear extremity of the knife substantially to the tip 8 and is tapered at 5a from the handle portion toward the tip. The rear edge 4 of the blade 2 is preferably slightly curved longitudinally to effect a stiffening of the tapered portion 5a of the laterally bent flange, and also to permit the formation of the blade in the more or lessconventional curved back design. The cutting edge of the blade as indicated at 1 may be serrated in the conventional manner to facilitate the cutting operation as in the case of a bread knife and the like.

A second laterally bent reinforcing flange 8 is formed along the opposite edge of the handle, and this flange as well as the flange 5 extending from the tip of the blade along the other edge of the handle, is flared slightly outwardly. The ends of these two flanges are curved at the end of the handle as indicated at 9 and Ill. The outward flaring or angular disposition of the two flanges 5 and 8 provides a trough-shaped opening II as best seen in Figure 8, which permits a plurality of the knives to be neatly and conveniently nested.

Referring to Figure 9, this discloses a knife with a considerably shorter blade in which the cutting edge I is curved permitting the knife to be more easily manipulated and a greater portion of the cutting edge to be utilized, whereas in the more conventional shape of blade, as disclosed in Figure 1, when used as a table knife the tip portion is mainly used for cutting.

In disposing the laterally bent flange 5 along the back edge of the blade and at an angle to the face of the blade, this flange not only nests against the corresponding flange 5 of a superimposed knife as shown in Figure 8 when the knives are packed for shipment or storage, but in bread knives or large slicing knives also acts as a sort of lateral deflector when a knife is used for slicing, and more or less separates or deflects the slices as the knife passes through the material being out.

In bread or large slicing knives the reinforcing flange between the side of the knife blade and the outer edge of the flange may be somewhat curved in cross section. This would increase the deflecting elTect of the blade on the material being sliced, reducing the tendency of the reinforcing flange to strike or hang on the top of the sliced material and also stiffening the lateral reinforcing flange against bending.

In forming my improved knife, I preferably employ a sheet of flat resilient material such as stainless steel stamp-ed out in a blank which includes the reinforcing flange 5 along one edge and the handle reinforcing flange 8 along the other edge. The blank is preferably notched as indicated at 12 in Figure l to permit the flange 8 to be bent laterally with respect to the cutting edge of the blade. The flanges 5 and 8 are thereafter bent laterally from the same side of the knife, or otherwise as preferred, to form the finished knife as shown in Figure 1 with the trough-shaped opening I I between the flanges 5 and 8 on the handle. For some purposes, the flanges 5 and/or 8 may be bent in the opposite direction from that shown in the drawing.

Ihe corners formed between the side of the blade and. handle portions and the laterally bent reinforcing flanges 5 and 8 are preferably rounded slightly to form a smooth curved surface in order to reduce the tendency of grease or food particles from accumulating in these corners, and the entire surface of the knife and flange may thus be more easily washed and kept in a clean and sanitary condition.

While the specific details have been herein shown and described, the invention is not confined thereto, as changes and alterations may be made without departing from the spirit thereof as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In an article of cutlery formed of sheet material, abody comprising an integrally formed blade and handle portion having an angularly disposed integral reinforcing flange extending along one edge of the blade and handle portions to substantially the opposite ends of the body, and a second laterally bent reinforcing flange extending along the edge of the handle portion of the body opposite to the first-mentioned reinforcing flange, said flanges extending laterally away from the same side of the body and flaring away from each other to form a trough-shaped opening in the handle portion.

2. In an article of cutlery, a body formed of resilient sheet material having a blade at one end and a handle portion at its other end, an elongated reinforcing flange projecting angularly from one edge of the blade and handle portions of the body and curved longitudinally along the blade portion of the body.

3. In a bladed instrument formed of resilient sheet material, a body having an integral blade and handle portion and an integral elongated tapered flange formed along one edge of the handle and blade portions of the body and curved longitudinally along the back of the blade portion.

4. In an article of cutlery formed of sheet material, a body having integral cutting blade and handle portions, one edge of said body being bent laterally along the blade and handle portions to form an angularly disposed reinforcing flange extending substantially the full length of the body, said handle portion being bent along its edge opposite to the aforementioned flange to provide a second reinforcing flange along the handle, both of the flanges projecting from the same side of the body to form a trough-shaped opening in the handle between the said flanges.

JOSEPH E. BURNS.