US2497418A - Rolling support for writing instruments - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 14, 1950 R, A, SCHROEDER, JR 2,497,418

ROLLING SUPPORT FOR WRITING INSTRUMENTS Filed 00%. 29, 1945 l/ I lA/VENTOR I Ru sseu. A.SCH-ROEDJE TTORA/Ey Patented Feb. 14, 1950 UNI-"TED STAT ES PAT EZNT OFFICE nonnme scream noa wm'rmc INSTRUMENTS Russell A. Schroeder, J r., St; Louis, Mo.

Application October- 29, 1945, Serial No;.-625,351.; 9. Claims. (Cl. 120-1011):

This invention relates to improvements: in roll ing=. support for. a. writing instrument,.. and more particularly to devices for adj ustably; holding as pen. or pencil in such manner. that'the writing;

implement may be manipulated for: drawing or:

writing; solely by movements of theshoulder or arm muscles of. the user.

In many casesof personal injury;,spastic or other types of paralysis, manual. or" digital. im

iering irom'manual impairment onloss; and: it-"' is: accordingly a general. objective-of. the present improvements to provide. an improved; design of. writing aid; particularly, but not-zexclusively; for? the assistance of service men; and OIrh'GYSZllSiIIgT;

artificial hands orarms; in. recovering writingskills. This: objective. is: highly successfully at.-

tained by the-exemplifying structureehereinafter described.

A further important'object oii'the invention is' attained in a universal rolling supporttfor a writ-- ing instrument, which conduoes to a minimum: efiort of manipulation incident to both large? and small ranges of movement over the :writing sur face.

Yet another objective importantly attained in the present development, is theprovision for a. universal rocking movementof a pen or pencil with respect to a horizontal subjacent support of the writing aid, and'in such mannenasitoprovide what may be termeda' fullfioatingepen support.

An additional and important object isattained inta novel formof connection: between a support and holding frame. for the writing instrument-,. such: that. there is attained a selfrreleasing lifting action of the. pen or..pencil. incident to re lease of; the slight. manual. writing pressure normallyemployed.

Yet another. object inthe designrofrthezpresenta.

interruptedzflush. surfacealong; the parting line assembly throughout, is thexuse-asiar as possible;

ofv readily obtainable. materials with; aminimum';

of processing and assembly. costs, such that. the; 1

device may be economically-produced; in reasons ablequantities and withalowproporti'on of. labor:

cost; Onetfeature: of-this purpose-indesignzisate 'tained byutilization. for: example; of" azstandardi ball: bearing race, asa-universallrolling;support 65 for-the-writingraid, to facilitate movements there? of in; any direction; and. with an almost total;

absence-of friction-at-rest:

Yet another valuable-objective of present im-- provements is: attained: in an improved adjustment. of-writing angle ofpen or pencil, this adjustmentbeing of a; type such as to require no tools and: no careful manipulative movements, and such that the angle of pen or. pencil to'thepaper: may be easily and quickly changed at will.

The foregoing and numerous other objects of the invention will more clearly. appear from the following. detailed description ofa presently preferred form of writingv aid, particularly when con-- sidered in. connection with. the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. l is anrisometricview showing the assembly in a-position of use;

Fig. 2 is: a somewhat enlargedsectional elevation, thesectioned portionsv ofthe structure. being taken along averticalmedian plane through the. bore of. the body which receives the writing implement;

Fig, 3 1s .an. elevation, partly insection, showing.

the rolling, and. supportingv assembly of Fig.- 2,

and-as taken along line 3---3= of that figure;

Fig. 4.; is a. fragmentary sectional view taken along line. 4.-4 .of Fig. 2, and

Fig. ffisfa similar fragmentary sectional view taken alongline .5--5' of Fig. ,21.

Referring, now by characters of reference to the drawing, the. supporting body for a pen or pencil is generally indicated at I0. By preference so as to provide a relatively low center of gravityof. the. assembly and a relatively large base of support topreclude casual tipping, the body l0 isof a general so-called bullet shape, being characteri'zed-by diminishing'horizontal sections from bottom totop. It is conveniently formed as a H, substantiallysolid element constituting, in effect,

a frame for receiving the writing instrument.

By'further preference the body Hlis constructed by molding; say of a thermoplastic or thermosetting materiaLior example, of a phenol-aldehyde composition: As a. convenience in molding and'castingthebody Hitis. formed of two parts, a-lower' section-ll and'an'upper'section l2, these body'componentsbeing detachably assembled asby threading in an annular zone I3,,preferablyin such: manner as to leave. a substantially unl tbetweenthe. sections:

Formed,as by suitable; or known coring pro tion; H: of. they body. Over the. major portion of itsitotallength', theLdiameter. of this bore substantially exceeds that. of; the writing instrument: designatedzbyfla. Asuitable shaping of. thebora:

I is indicated by Figs. 1 and 4. In an intermediate zone through which the part I5 of the bore merges withthe part IE thereof, the bore is somewhat more restricted, as shown by Fig. 5, so as to form a central fulcrum for the writing instrument P. Directed into an upper portion of bore I5 is a threaded passage i! for the reception of a set screw 20, preferably in the form of a wing screw, the wing head of which normally extends into a surface depression 2| therefonnear the upper portion of body section I2. Similarly, extending laterally into portion I6 of the pen bore is a threaded passage 22 occupied by a wing screw 23, the head of which extends into a lateral body recess in section l! of the body frame. From the structure last-described, it will appear that the fulcrum portion indicated at 25, in the bore I5I 6, constitutes a rocking center in such manner that by selectively threading up or unthreading the screws 25 and 23, the acute angularity of the writing instrument P, relative to the writing surface WS, may be varied within reasonable limits. Further, by slightly backing ofi both screws 20 and the depth of insertion say of pencil or pen P, in the body It may be varied to compensate, for example, for the usual wearing effect on a pencil or the like.

Proceeding now to a description of the provision for rolling support of the body Iii, it is a preference not only for best results, but for simplicity of assembly and for ease of service if ever required, to employ a standard ball bearing race generally indicated at 3B and comprising an annular ball retainer structure 3|. While the number of balls or other rolling elements is distinctly optional within reasonable limits, six thereof are shown and indicated at 32. A ball bearing race possesses a distinct advantage in use, in that it is characterized by total absence of any initial directioning requirement or resistance, thus enabling a full universal movement of the assembly in the plane of the writing surface. Further, among the various types of rolling support experimentally utilized for the present purpose, this form of bearing exhibits a minimum starting friction, and in use, oifers no noticeable resistance even to very minor movements of the writing aid. The advantage in production incident to their ready availability in quantity and at low costs, of bearings of this type, will at once be appreciated.

The primary supporting effect of the bearing race in: -..ing the retainer, is imparted to the body it: through an arrangement now to be described, and constituting a universally rockable or floating connection. Thus the vertical axis of the body Iii is enabled to be rocked, within narrow limits, in any direction from the vertical, and without any tendency to assume any one displaced condition. Thus the device is highly sensitive to slight tilting pressures, as for purposes of shading as by rocking the writing implement about its own axis, or in tilting it upwardly or downwardly.

This provision is effected by structure including a mounting annulus or washer 33 which normally occupies a horizontal plane parallel to the writing surface WS. Connection of the annulus 33 to the race 3!! is made through a plurality of evenly spaced ears, lugs or supports 34 which are conveniently welded or otherwise attached to the washer 33 at their upper ends, and are attached as by'welding to the ball retainer 3| at their re-- spective lower ends. if'deslred, as integral parts of the stock forming springs 36 are of light loading, and their lower ends abut the upper surface of the annulus 33 The lugs may be formed i preferably without interlocking engagement therewith, so that the body and the rolling support may be considered as journalled together, and easily relatively rotated.

Attachment of the parts last described to the body I 0 is preferably carried out by the provision of a collar 3! threadedly engaging the lower perimeter or base portion of the body I ll, specifically'the section Ii thereof, the zone of threading being indicated at 50. It will have appeared that the lower portion of section I I is formed to provide a circular sunken or undercut area, this countersunk portion being indicated at 4|. From this it results that there is provided a definite clearance between the top of the washer 33 and the circular surface of portion til at the bottom of the body so that, as will now appear, the rolling support assembly is cushioned against the bottom of the body to enable its universal rocking movement. Such movement is limited of course by the spacing between the Washer and surface Experiments have determined that a spacing say of in this zone is highly satisfactory.

As to assembly of the rolling base structure to the body B, it will now have become obvious that,

upon inversion of the body and location of springs 35 in the sockets 35 therefor, the rolling structure in inverted position is merely dropped into place, the collar 37 is passed over the race and ing aid as exemplified by the structure described,

are thought to have become apparent from the foregoing description of parts, but it may be noted that, considering a usual application of the device, most artificial arms are equipped with a pair of pivoted finger elements which may be convergently and divergently actuated by the user. These finger elements can readily be separated a distance to enable the insertion therebetween and hence a gripping action thereby, on the body element ii] of the present device. A pen or pencil P having been inserted in the bore I5I6, with the point say somewhat less than 1%" above the writing surface, the optimum angle of the writj ing instrument is adjusted by means of screws 2%) and 23. Particularly in the case of a pen, such as a fountain pen for example, the instrument P is rotated about its own axis in a manner to realize a normal presentation of the nib or point, to

the Writing surface. It should here be noted that the loading of springs 3%, collectively considered, is such as normally barely to overcome the weight of the body and writing instrument supported thereby. From this it results that, immediately the slight manual Writing pressure is removed from the device, springs 36 will serve to lift the pen or pencil from the paper, thereby obviating any hazard of casual and unintended markings thereon, due to inadvertent rolling action.

The manner ofmanipulationwill, now obvi-,,

ously, be dependent upon the nature of the written matter, legends, drawing, or other characters desired. It has been proved by a reasonable period of experimental hospital usage that but a short period of learning is necessary to enable handicapped persons to become practically normally proficient, and that the device as described serves fully to attain each and all of the several objectives expressed in and implied from the foregoing description.

Although the improvements have been described by making explicit reference to a presently preferred embodiment, the detail of description is to be understood as illustrative, rather than in any restrictive sense, numerous changes being possible within the scope and intended spirit of the claims hereunto appended.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a device for aid in writing, a body provided with means for holding a pen or pencil at an acute angle to a writing surface, and a body support consisting of an arrangement of spaced anti-friction, universally rotatable members normally in engagement with the writing surface, and a retainer for the rotatable members attached as a unit to, and journalled on the body.

2. In a writing aid, a holder for a pen or pencil, a ball bearing support for the holder consisting of anti-friction balls and a retained therefor, and means by which the holder and retainer are connected to permit both relative rotation and rocking displacement.

3. The combination and arrangement of elements as recited by claim 2, but further characterized in that the holder is formed to present a vertical axis and in which the holder is mounted on the ball retainer to permit a universal rocking movement of the holder inany direction, on the retainer, while the balls of the retainer remain in contact with a writing surface.

4. In a device for aid in writing, a body constituting a holder for pen or pencil, and provided with a substantially circular base area, a plurality of anti-friction balls, a retainer therefor, an annulus assembled to the retainer and a plurality of springs between the annulus and the base of the body, and further characterized by the addition of a collar threadedly related to the body and forming a holder for the annulus, whereby the collar serves to maintain the ball and retainer assembly assembled with the body.

5. In a device adapted for use as a writing aid, a body member, means coacting with the body member for clamping a pen or pencil in acuteangled relation to a writing surface therebeneath, a plurality of ball bearings for universal movement over a writing surface, a retainer coacting with the ball bearings to constitute therewith, a bearing race, a plurality of upstanding elements secured to the retainer, a normally horizontal washer secured to the upstanding elements and disposed substantially parallel to the writing surface, an attachment collar threadedly engaging the body and forming therewith an internal peripheral groove in a lower portion of the body, adapted to receive the washer, and of substantially greater depth than the thickness of the washer, a plurality of coil springs, the body being provided with a plurality of sockets extended upwardly of its lower surface, there being one socket for each of'said springs, the springs engaging the washer whereby to provide for a universal 6 rocking movement of the body on the washer, and hence with respect to the ball race and the writing surface.

6. In a device for aid in Writing, a body block characterized by a convexly curved exterior surface and of diminishing, substantially circular sections from its base to the top of the block, the block being provided with an acute angled bore, portions of which are of substantially greater sectional area than necessary to accommodate a pen or pencil, the bore being formed with a fulcrum in its intermediate portion, and a pair of set screws adapted to extend at selective distances into the bore, and selectively manipulable, in coaction with said fulcrum, to vary the angle of pen or pencil in the body block, and means providing an anti-friction rolling support for the body block.

7. In a writing aid, a substantially solid body of substantially bullet shape, and provided witha large bore for a pen or pencil, and extended at a distinctly acute angle to the writing surface, threaded clamping elements extended into the bore in spaced zones therealong, means forming a fulcrum internally of the bore, and coasting with said clamping elements to enable adjustment of angularity of the pen or pencil, and means providing a universally movable rolling support for the body, the support being normally in engagement with the writing surface therebelow.

8. In a writing aid, a body arranged for rolling movement over a writing surface, and provided with a normally sloping bore for the reception of a pen or pencil, the body being of a molded plastic construction and formed of two detachably connected sections, the bore being formed in and between the said sections with a part of said bore located in each section in such manner that, when the sections are assembled, they coact to form a continuous tabular cavity from one side to the other of the body assembly.

9. In a writing aid adapter for use by disabled persons, a body constituting a holder for a writing instrument, a rolling support for the body comprised of a plurality of anti-friction balls and a ball retainer in which the balls are universally movable in any direction along the plane of the writing surface, a plurality of coil compression springs, the body being provided with a series of sockets, one for each of said springs, and means providing a horizontal surface on the ball retainer engaged by said springs, the retainer and body being freely rotatable with respect to each other, and the body being susceptible of universal rocking movement over the retainer and hence with respect to a plane writing surface engaged by the anti-friction balls.

RUSSELL A. SCI-IROEDER, JR.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 338,239 Wyche Mar. 16, 1886 416,003 Logan Nov. 26, 1889 684,453 Muelberg Oct. 15, 1901 1,848,605 Conway Mar. 8, 1932 2,245,116 Rhatigan June 10, 1941 2,362,992 Dentzler Nov. 21, 1944

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