US2610612A - Writing instrument - Google Patents

Description

Spt. 16, 1952 P. MARTIN WRITING INSTRUMENT Filed March l1, 1949 QW QW A,

INVENToR. Y

.resume Patented Sept. 16, 1952 `UI\I-I..'I`I .ID STATES TENT OFFICE 'l astucia 'wRiTiG iNsTRUMENr. y ,."L'ynn R'Martin, Fort Madison, Iowa, assigner to A. -Sheaer Pen '.Company,A Fort Madison, lowaya "corporation of Delaware v1inputum March. 11, 1949, serial No. 80,931

'This y.inv@nticn rentes# tot writing sac which contaihsthejink'supplied to the'pen point through a suitable 'feed means Inv order to ill" pe'ri'sof this ltype a1 suitablezpresser bar has genereuyrbeenp'royiued which isy actuated by aievie'r mounted on the meterme-instrument. 'presser bar uponfjmovement vof the lever collapses fthe link sac." 'The vpenpoint is Vthen in'- serted'iiit'a ,body of "ink, the leverv and presser bar reieaseu, and' tine inltgis vthereto' drawn into the 'Sac' .fryfth'tildellCy Of the flexible Sact slnorally distende'd condition. The use o'fpresser bas of this type for'dea'ting c'ollapsible i-'iik sacs in fountain 'pens has not been entireiy. .satisfactory Vfor fthe reason that: the operat'ngilve'r' is unsightly in appearance and for the reason that sometimes the lever becomes accidentally displaced so that ink is rdischanged accidentally from. 'the pen' when not vso intended by the user. Also Vthe presser bar actvatedlling-themas .ha-li been ,d'Sad'VatagOuS Sillc tjS notfpractically possible completely to collapse rthe ink- .sac .in order to permit a full Yload vof Finir to be drawn up r`into the sac dur-ingthelllingoperation.

y Accordingly .it been propc'i'sedl in the'pastjto utilize .air vpressure .to deflate the ysac `prior to ,-'f'illing". ne prior` art .device 'ii/hichv hasjseen somefcommercialhuse is. one" in which the ink saaie-contained .Within acl'iainber formedby a pair .offtelescoping.tubular members. .In V.this type of Vvcclnetruction Ythe chamber 'is substantially sealedn from the atmosphereV except for asmall vent placed in the top of one of the telescoping tubes. The devicewas filled by extending one of the tubular-members,Y placing. the linger over the vent hole, telescoping -the members whereby the .-sac--wasfdeiated by compressing air in the chambenifnserting-the pen point into a body of inln and tlienwemoving theifingerzfrom the vent, thereby relieving the pressure in the chamber permitting the sac to become jdistended by its vnatural.resiliency and to suck vup'fa charge of ,into the sac reservoir.'

Pens .of this.: char- 'actergzwere vnot entirely ksatisfactory Afrom Va corn'-s in'ercial. viewpoint' for the reason that sometimes vvtheoperator neglected to' place his'nger 'over Athe tentait the pr'cpei-til'me lduring fthe nlling opere 'ottima (ci. 12o-ero I linstrurnents andin'cre' particularly to"selfllin'g' fountain 2 completely close thejvent and the 'sac was onliT partiallyoollapsed, `resulting in only partialjnlling of the rservoir.` y y In order to-remedy these rlast 'mentioned `diiiculties, otherpriorrart linvestigators have proposed means for automatically` venting'V the reser- Voir at the proper time lduring the filling oper= ation. Irl-Iowever,` these proposed'means have in.- volved a more or' lessv complex arrangement of valves and 'other mc'iving 'parts which rendered j the commercial construction of such devices not feasible. l Y f --Acc'ordinglyt it is one object of this invention to provide a self-filling 'fountain pen4 which utilizes air pressure for donating the sac.

A further object ci this invention-'is theprovision of `anautomatic selfelling 'fountain pen of Vthe air lpressuref typc-nv-Wlfierein av minimum of moving parts and. auxiliary valves areerntic'yedJ. A. L Aiurther object of this invention is the pro=I vision 'of a lling ldevicejfo; a vfountain pen which may lbejreadily constructed and easily assembled for largeqscalercommefrical manufacture. l

`A still further object of Athis linvention `the provision of a foolproof" filling device Whichjre- Quiros' no skill orspecial care on fthe part of the-operator to render it completely'effective at all tiniest i 'sA stul'ffurtnerobjeet of Athis invention isv theV provision 'cia fountain benin which'a cartridge Klo 'comprising a penr and ink reservoir section is readily separable'from the compression unit'in order top'iovlde for ease ci' :disassembly'and for c. independent replacement of'parts.

y atmosphere except throug'lia passageway between said' tubular i'rnembeits,4 'an airiiow r'estricting memberin' thepfassageway, and a pair of spaced means on one oslid tubular members for .by-apa'ssing the airflow Vr'est-,rictir'ig member whereby thechamoer isfireely vented tol the atmosphere between the" 'tubular members when the tubular members are telescopically'moved respectively to a distended or extended position `andto afre'turned or retracted position. 4In this ln-anri'ei the' cellapsible -inlrl rcservoiris deiiated by compressed air when the telescopic members are pushed together but, when the return position is reached, the chamber is automatically vented by the by-passing means to relieve the air pressure so that the sac immediately reinfiates by virtue of its natural tendency to assume the distended condition. The sac then readily lls with ink if the pen has been inserted in a suitable body of ink at this point in the operation.

More specically the present invention contemplates a fountain pen having a barrel, an

ink feed means supported in a forward portionk of the barrel, an ink sac disposed within the barrel, a tube telescopically slidable within the barrel adapted to form a chamber about the ink sac, said tube being opened at its forward end to receive said ink sac and closed at its rear ward end to prevent venting of said chamber through said rearward end, the barrel having an interior annular groove adjacent the rearward end thereof and an annular packing gland received within said annular groove providing an air ilow restricting means between the tube and the barrel, means such as a longitudinally eX- tending groove providing an area of reduced cross section on the tube adjacent the rearward end thereof of suiiicient length to span the packing gland whereby the chamber is freely vented to the atmosphere between the barrel and the tube when the latter is moved to its full forward position, and means adjacent the forward end of said tube for venting said chamber when the tube is moved to its full rearward or extended position.

In accordance with a preferred modification of this invention, the tube is provided with an enlarged head portion having a substantial longitudinal dimension such that when the barrel and tube are fully extended the tube will not have a tendency substantially to wobble within the barrel. Another feature of the herein described invention is the provision of a protecting sheath for the ink sac within the barrel. This protecting sheath is provided with openings to permit free access of air to the sac to permit its ready collapse upon compression of the tubular member. The sheath is attached to the ink feed means or gripping section of the pen so that it may be readily removed for access to the col-V lapsible sac. preferably mounted in a forward Section' of the barrel by means of a gripping section for the pen. The gripping section isthreadably engaged with the barrel and is separable therefrom whereby the barrel and the compression unit may be readily separated from the sheath, the ink sac and the feed means. This construction permits of ready separation and interchangeability of the elements.

For a more complete understanding of this invention, reference is now made to the drawing, wherein Fig. 1 is a broken longitudinal sectional view of a complete writing instrument constructed in accordance with one embodiment of this invention and showing the lling device in an inoperative or stand-by condition;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary sectional view of the writing instrument shown in Fig. 1 illustrating the operation of the filling device with the tubular member moved to its full extended'or rearward position;

Fig. 3 is similar to Fig. 2 except that it shows the tubular member being telescoped into the In addition the ink feed means isA barrel with the resulting pressure collapse of the ink sac; o

Fig. 4 is an enlarged broken detail view of the filling device in the position indicated in Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the device taken along the line 5'5 of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 6'-6 of Fig. 4.

With particular reference to the drawings and more specically to Fig. 1, a writing instrument is provided having a barrel portion I0 and the usual cap I2 and pocket clip I4. Mounted forwardly of the barrel I0 and threadably engaged therewith is a gripping portion or section I6 having the usual pen point I8 and feed means 20 mounted in slip-nt relationship thereto. The gripping section I6 is provided with an axial bore 22 which communicates with a collapsible ink sac 24 adhesively or otherwise secured to a projection 26 extending rearwardly of a reduced rear portion 28 of the gripping section I6. Suitable ink feed passageways (not shown) are provided through the bore 22 and the ink feed means 20 in the manner that is well known in the art in order to supply ink to the pen I8 from the sac 24. The gripping section I6 together with the pen I8, the feed means 20, the collapsible sac 24 and an associated sac protecting sheath 30 constitute a removable cartridge which may be separated from the barrel I0 by unscrewing the gripping section from the barrel at threads 36 (Fig. 1). The sheath 30 is provided with lateral vents 32 and an end vent 34 and is slip-fitted in a removable manner over the rear end 28 of the gripping section I6 so as to provide ready access to the collapsible sac 24 in the event that such access is desired. The gripping section I6 is provided with an annular groove 35 for receiving three spaced detents 31 (one only of which is shown in Figs. l and 3) on the sheath 30. The forward end of the sheath is also provided with an annular depression 39 so that, after the sac 24 has been shellacked on the projection 26 of the section I6, the annular depression 36 further tightens the sac on the projection 26 with the detents 31 snapping into position within the groove 35. To remove the sheath from the section, it is only necessary to rook it slightly while pulling to disengage the detents from the channel or groove 35. lf it is desired to remove the ink feed means and the pen from the gripping section I6 it is then only necessary to remove the sac 24 from the rear end of the gripping section and thereafter punch the feed means 20 and the pen I8 from the bore 22. The various parts of the cartridge may be reassembled in the reverse order. As shown in Fig. 1, a threaded collar 36 is secured to the gripping section I6 for removable attachment of the cap I2 thereto in a manner that will be readily understood.

The compression unit for the fountain pen of this invention comprises the barrel I0 and a tube 40 having an open forward end and a closed rearward end mounted in telescopic relationship to the barrel between the inner side wall of the barrel I0 and the outer side wall of the sleeve 36. The rearward endof the telescopically mounted tube 40, as will be most apparent from Fig. 2, is completely closed so that no venting can occur therethrough. A suitably threaded cap member 42 is secured to the rearward end of the tube 40 by means of a screw44, a gasket 46 being provided to prevent possible air leakage at this point. Cap 42 is provided with threads 48 which are adapted to engagethreads 50 in the rearward end of barrel I0 when the tube 40 is moved to and aside-,1e

v 5.v iseeinfe1c1-finthe;returnedgoifariorrnalstand-by conv Ehe tube 4l! .Lis loosely `mounted between the innersidej Wall ,of the .barrel il) and lthe outer .side- Wall of the sheathrr vin ,order to k,lerende dition indicated in ,Eig-s-.f 1 .and 4.-

an an ular `passageway `for the vmovementof Y.air

into and out of `thechambel" enclosing the sheath 13g-[andi the sac24 and Vformed by the barrelld and the'rtube 40 A,'IlillS. when ythe .tubeflljsl'ew cipro/catedr Wthinthe barrel IE, the chamber is considerably yvaried in. size ,and thjesole, .means .is vextend d member is in;, the fully extended position the ere, e; aok. .geland athusaeain vventinaille @liar-n er to :the ,atmosphere Thus any yacuum y @levelled Y through the .groove Sie ime that the compression stroke isgcom en ed s above described.VV in addition, Y

y tubularrneinber-D isprovided Withhone or more provide'dlfor vthe-entry and .expulsion or` .a'fir into f for irnitng.therearwardmovement of the tube `1li ithfrespect.tothebarrel lill.. Y. VAlso A the head er-. larges portions zoritneitute et 'has .a sus stantial'lcngitudinal"dimension so that 'when the tube '-isinitle 'ully extended position as `Shown iI1`F1`g. Q2 'it wlillgnot Vhave av tendencyexoessively to .wobble;With respetto the barrel l e Thus a substantially 'Straight linejax'el .relationship is always ,maintained betweenthetube ed and the barrel l Yte permit the operator toreadiiy returnthe'tubel topostion without bending or binding thesegrespective. `elements.. It. will be noted'that'the header. enlarged portion 152 does net t l tightly Within th'ebarrel vIl! and the free passage of. air between ,-th'e-heedittend the'barrel jl'is always permitted when thetube di) is re-I ciproeated vin either direction..

'In Order't-o .provide means kf0.1#foreratvelrv sealu ingthechamber containing the inkgsac during theY compression stroke of the jplston or tubular member 43, there iis provided'a ring packing gland E4 seatedwithin an annullY groeve-56pm? The packing gland is thus ied AWith respect to the `vbarrel -1 I iandithe tubular 'member d isfslidabler therethrough yas `wil1be ,well understood The function of ,this iplacling glandgis [to ISeal orf the chamber during the kc :ornprsesion 'stroke of lthetubular member so 'that'the ;air-pi issn/re builtiup Vduring this operation will collapse the sac in the mannerjindicated'inFig. fmHQWever, inf order to Vrelieve thepres'sure v,within Ythe @chamf beraft'er the ztubular member has ybeen moved to its forward vpositlcyn;tl'n'is'permitting dthe sac to expand, there-s provided "in thetubular m ernber-one or more grooves -58jinjthe rear-end thereofg.- W These grooves; preferably* extendv long itudir nally and fareoof suicient length to span ,the

packing'glandf When-,the tubular members@ isbecome distended ;by its naturalY resilien it draws ajfullcharge o'jinkinto itself pen VIii andthe'inkfeedmeans 2Q are immersed in a suitable liquid vink .supply during fthe iill'ing operation. i

e One or Vmore longitudinally'eXtendinggrooves 50 are also provided onJ-'anforwaroljend of: the tubular memberfd so that when "the" tubular videdadiacenttherearwardi'endoi the-barrette.

vent holes! E! iny the groeve, 0r `grooves these ven h esalso,beingfpostioned sothatthey `are ,mernberls hilly extended.. 1r A ed, thegroovesli maybe omitted, thetune.le o, thereof:benasuppnee by the. vent hele el,v AI nsiicliet casev anyY vacuum created in the chamber will, upon Vifiill extension of the tubular member, be'dispelledthrough the vent holes el andthe annularpassageway between :the tubular me'rnbell 411 andthe.sheathv k3l).A

y llhe procedure Vfollowed for discharging and nllingofthepengwill be apparent from the above description.AlS ofthe foregoing description makes it cleanhow .thefvarious `parte .maybe readily` as! semble, o vprolduce' ahighl-y. satisfactory .coma mercial article,--.Thesheath, 30'- for.Y the ink. sae 24,-is provided-gto yprevent,the collapsejof; the sac in a longitudinalldirection (i. e. in the mannerA of an accordioh-eand yalso-to prevent contact of the 4sac-With the;tubular mernberda If such contact were permittedmthe frictionallengagement of thetubular member4 Withthe sacduring the nllingV operation lwould khave a tendency to twist,

stretch,` o r- 4bendy 'el- 1e sac `resulting in undue Wear and.wouldl prematurely expel,. any.unused,inkfthat maybecontainediwithin theY reservoir, Also the slieath'byyirtue of its Snugtamund the 2 4Y v serves :to prevent. 'the @collapsible f sac from being pulled out of shape When a suction or vacuurn ,is vvapplied in the. chamber upon tlie--withdravvalY fit-the tubular member 450 Vto the extended position., As pointed vout above,.the sheath by Vrtueof the annular-,depression 39 tends to tightn en-theiit of thesac 241m the rear portici or. thegg'ripping Section I6 by a squeezing action. The openings 32and 34` in the sheath 3@ are neem essary in order to provide free access of the compressed air to the sac to permit ofthe coln lapsing operation. The sheath 30Vhas been shown in AY'thefform of a-rnetalis'leeve. However, it Willr plastiaor, in tacit4 anyimaterial that is sufficientu ly rigidto holdA the: s ac fromcollapsing when not intended-.Wine1155131 Itf-:Will-,be-noted that the `barrel il! vis provided with avent ifiedjacent the `rear end thereof be= tweenthe packing gland 54 and the rlower klimit of the g cap 42 when the latter is; fullyA screwed into @theirear end of: the barrel i le, to the fully retracted lposition- :sliewnin Figs. 1 and fl. VThis ventje provided so that. when the cap 4?; is screwed on to the-.barrel lll a pressure'will not form within lthe ychamber"'-Wliich would cause a partial Vexpulsion of the inkfromthe sac. The vent .62T also serves to permit the airchamber to' "breatheA When'the instrument is assembled ready ,for use,- thus' preventing leakage of the pen uponluctuation of atmospheric-pressure or temperature conditions, as lsv/ell known in the art.-

`Itrwill be understood that thegpacking gland 54 may' be formed-of any material which will serveY asY a means for Yrestricting the passage of air through the annular passageway Vformed between the tubular memberd and the barrelfld For example, the packing gland maybe formed created-.Whenthetubular member all' v aci 0,612

of rubber, felt, -nylon or other suitable'material. As a matter of fact, the packing gland itself may be dispensed with and a suitable shoulder or ridge may be provided to form'the desired air flow restricting means in the passageway. It is not necessary that the seal formed by the air restricting means be perfect.A Itshould be sufficiently loose so as to permit free reciprocation of the tube 40 but suiiiciently tight to permit the desired pressure tobuild up on a normal compression stroke'so as to substantially completely collapse the ink sac'immediately prior to filling. If desired, a suitable lubricant maybe employed to avoid any possible undesired frictional resistance in the reciprocation of the tubular member 40 through the packing gland.

In the foregoing a preferred embodiment of this invention has beendescribed. However, it will be apparent that' certain modifications may be made. For example, the ink sac need not be received within the tube 40 but may be remote therefrom. Also, if desired, the tube 40 may be of increased diameter so that it slides over the barrel I instead of within it. In such a construction the anular packing gland `B may be mounted in fixed relationship to the inside wall of the tube 40 adjacent its forward end and suitably spaced longitudinally extending grooves adapted to span the gland or other vent means to by-pass the gland may be provided in the walls of the barrel I0 as will be understood.

Longitudinally extending grooves 58 have been specifically shown for venting the chamber when the tubular member 4I! is movedto a returned position. If desired, however, such venting means could take the form of a reduced cylindrical portion of the tubular member in the embodiment shown.v

While a particular embodiment of this invention is shown above, it will be understood, of course, that the vinvention is not to be limited thereto, since many modifications may be made, and it is contemplated, therefore, by the appended claims, to cover any such modications as fall within the true spirit and scope of this invention.

I claim:

l. A compression unit for collapsing an ink sac in a writing instrument which comprises a rst tubular member open at its rearv end, a second tubular member telescopically mounted through the rear end and within said rst tubular member, said second tubular member having a open forward end and a closed unvented rearward end, means on the forward end of said iirst tubular member for securing an ink sac and feed means for a writing instrument, a packing gland vintermediate said tubular members retained in an annular groove adjacent the rear end of said first tubular member, means deiining a longitudinally extending groove adjacent the rear end of the outer surface of said second tubular member adapted lto spansaid packing gland to provide free passage of air between said tubular members when positioned in a relatively telescoped position, means at the rearward end of said first tubular member for removably securing said second tubular member in said telescoped position, said rst tubular member hav-` ing a vent positioned in the side wall thereof between -said last mentioned means and said packing gland, and means defining an aperture in the forward end of said second tubular member for by-passing the packing gland when said tubular members are positioned in a telescopically extended position.

2. l'nia fountain pen, the combination of a barrel, an ink sac disposed within said barrel, ink feed means supporting said ink sac secured to a forward end of said barrel, a tube telescopioally slidable within said barrel adapted to form a chamber about said ink sac, said tube being open at its forward end to receive said ink sac and closed atits rearward end to prevent venting of said chamber through said rearward end, said barrel havingan interior annular groove adjacent the rearward end thereof, an annular packing gland received within said annular groove providing an air flow restricting means between said tube and said barrel, means forming an exterior longitudinally extending groove on said tube adjacent the rear end thereof and of suiiicient length to span said gland whereby said chamber is freely vented to the atmosphere between said barrel and saidtube when .the latter is positioned in a forward positionmeans including an aperture in theforward end of said tube for by-passing said packing gland andventing said chamber when said tube is in a rearward position, threadedl means cooperating between the rearward ends of' said barrel and said tube for securing said tube in said forward position, and means between said annular groove and said threaded means forming a vent in said barrel.

3. In a fountain pen, the combination of a barrel, an ink sac disposed within said barrel, ink feed means supporting said ink sac secured to a forward end of said barrelfa tube telescopically slidable within said barrel adapted to form a chamber about said ink sac, said tube being open atV its forward end to receive said ink sac and closed at its` rearward end `to prevent venting of said chamber through said rearward end, said barrel having an interior annular groove adjacent the rearward end thereof, an annular packing gland received within said annular groove providing an air flow restricting means between said tube and said barrel, means forming exterior longitudinally extending grooves on said tube adjacent the opposite-ends thereof and of sumcient length to span said gland whereby said chamber is freely vented to the atmosphere between said barrel and said tube when the latter is positioned respectively in afforward position and in a rearward position, threaded means cooperating between the rearward ends .of said barrel and said tube for securing said tube in said forward position, means between said annular groove and said threadedmeans forming a vent in said barrel, and stop means for preventing axial separation of said tube and said barrel, said stop means including a substantially rigid portion of increased diameter-formed at the forward endA of said tube extending for a Vsubstantial longitudinal distance thereof whereby relative wobbling of said tube with respectto said barrel is substantially prevented when said tube is in the rearward position.

4. A compression unit for collapsing an ink sac in a writing instrument which comprises a first tubular member open at its rear end, a second tubular memberV telescopically mounted through the rear end and within said firstl tubular member, said second tubular member having an open forward end'and a closed unvented rearward end, means on the forward end Aof said first tubular member for securing an ink sac and feed means for a writing instrument, an annular air flow restricting member intermediate said tubular members secured to and'within said first tubular member adjacent the rear end thereof,

means defining an inwardly extending deformation adjacent the rear end of the outer surface of said second tubular member adapted to span said air flow restricting member to provide free passage of air between said tubular members when positioned in a telescopically retracted position, means at the rearward end of said first tubular member for removably securing said second tubular member in said retracted position, said first tubular member having a vent positioned in a side wall thereof between said last mentioned means and said air flow restricting member, and means in the forward end of said second tubular member for by-passing the air flow restricting member when said tubular members are positioned in a telescopically extended position.

5. In a fountain pen, the combination of a barrel, anink sac disposed within the barrel, ink feedA means supporting said ink sac secured to a forward end of said barrel, a tube telescopically'slidable within said barrel adapted to formV a chamber about said sac. said tube being open at its forward end to receive said sacV and closed at its rearward end to prevent venting of said chamber through said rearward end, an annular air flow restricting means positioned between said tube and said barrel yand secured to said barrel adjacent the rear end thereof, means defining an inwardly extending deformation adjacent the rear end of said tube adapted to span said air ow restricting member whereby said chamber is freely vented to the atmosphere between said barrel and said tube when the latter is positioned in a forward position, means in the forward end of said tube for by-passing said air fiow restricting member and venting said chamber when said tube is in a rearward position, means cooperating between the rearward ends of said barrel and said tube for securing said'tube in said forward position, and means between said last mentioned means and said air flow restricting means forming a vent in said barrel.

6. A compression unit for collapsing an ink sac in a writing instrument which comprises a first tubular member open at its rear end, a

ysecond tubular member telescopically mounted through the rear end and within said first tubular member defining an annular air passageway therebetween, said second tubular member having an open forward end and a closed unvented rearward end. means on the forward end of said first tubular member for supporting an ink sac and feed means for a writing instrument, an annular ow restricting member in said passageway intermediate said tubular members supported by and within said first tubular member adjacent the rear end thereof, means defining an inwardly extending deformation adjacent the rear end of the outer surface of said second tubular member adapted to span said air iiow restricting member to provide free passage of air through said annular passageway and to bypass said air flow restricting member when said tubular members are positioned in telescopically retracted position, means for removably securing said secondv tubular member in said'retracted position. said annular passageway having a Vent positioned in a wall thereof rearwardly of said air iiow restricting member, and means in said second tubular member forwardly of said deformation for by-passing the air flow restricting member when said tubular members are positioned in a telescopically extended position.

LYNN P. MARTIN.

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

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