US3238927A - Fountain pen - Google Patents

Description

March 8, 1966 G. A. RuBlssow FOUNTAIN PEN Filed July 20, 1964 INVENTOR United States Patent 3,238,927 FOUNTAIN PEN George A. Rubissow, 420 Riverside Drive, New York 25, N.Y. Filed July 20, 1964, Ser. No. 383,897 12 Claims. (Cl. 120-46) This specification is a continuation-in-part of the USA. application for Letters Patent Ser. No. 107,877, filed March 15, 1961 under the title: Free Piston Fountain Pen, now Patent Number 3,147,741, granted September 9, 1964.

A free piston magnetic piston armature slidably mounted in a barrel of a fountain pen is known in US Patent No. 2,734,485, but this known embodiment is not operatable because the piston easily sticks in the barrel and the force of the magnet is insufficient to unstick it and to move it to-and-fro as required.

The present invention is an ideal most economical and practical solution of a fountain pen operated with a free magnetically attractable piston-like pusher which however does not touch at all the inner surfaces of the barrel or casing of the fountain pen for purposes of producing a tightness needed for a suction or pumping effect in the barrel. This free pusher according to this invention is attached to the closed end of the ink receiver which is easily bendable and easily collapsible in the longitudinal direction. The other open end of the ink receiver is hermetically sealably attached to the pen holding member or to the barrel (casing) of the fountain pen and thus establishes an interconnection between the inner space of the ink receiver and the channelling means of the pen holding member.

Like references refer to like subjects in the accompanying figures.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional simplified longitudinal sideview of one embodiment of this invention.

FIGS. 2 and 3 are cross-sectional plan views of FIG. 1 in the planes IIII and IIIIII.

FIGS. 4, 5, 6 and 7 are diagrammatical cross-sectional side views with parts broken out of another embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 8 is a plan cross-sectional view of an ink receiver of another embodiment of this invention.

On FIGS. 1 to 7 are shown main embodiments of this invention using a magnetically attractable loose free piston like pusher 19 or 20 or 22D, i.e. a piston-like pusher which does not require any pistons tightness in respect to the inner surface C of the cylinder of the casing 10 of the fountain pen in which it can move limitedly to-andfro in the longitudinal direction in order to produce pumping suction or evacuation effects of the ink. This loose pusher according to this invention is made from a magnetically attractable material (such as iron, some of aluminum alloys, etc.) and is attached to the closed end 16A of the thin walled receiver 16, elastic or non-elastic easily collapsible in the longitudinal direction i.e. in the direction of the longitudinal symmetry axis of the casing 10. Such ink receiver could be made from a material of the group of latex or rubber composition artificial or natural, for instance such as used in making male-contraceptives, or made from a fish skin bladder, or made from any natural or artificial plastics or resins offering the required characteristics, or from any other suitable material.

When above it was stated that the material can be elastic or non-elastic the word elastic in relation to this invention means that it will permit easy collapsing or bending. According to this invention it is not necessary that the ink receiver has an elasticity necessary for pumping of ink due to such elasticity, nor is it necessary that the ink receiver, according to this invention, be stretchable or expandable. Obviously, the ink receiver according to this invention could be stretched and expanded as does latex, but such capacities for expansion are not used and only the bending and the easily collapsing capacities are used. Once the fountain pen is filled with the ink the pressure of ink upon the thin walled ink receiver is so minimal, that the expansion of these walls will not occur. The thickness 17 of such wall of the ink receiver 16, according to this invention, could be very thin, and by way of example only, excellent results are obtained with a thickness 17 of a wall substantially equal to that of a male contraceptive.

The open end 163 or 16CB of the ink receiver could be mounted in any known way for instance upon a support ring 13 and sealed to it. The inside volume 16V of the receiver 16 is the volume of the ink which it could hold. This receiver 16 may if desired be provided, according to this invention, with concentric reinforcement rings 18 spaced at a desired distance 16D one from another and made from a very thin wire of a rigid material, for instance metal, glass or plastic. (If made from steel wire of mm. diameter, even then 15 of such rings pressed together longitudinally one to another will occupy only 1 mm. width in total.) The number of rings could be as many as desired and they should have a suitable resiliency, i.e. a suitable diameter of their cross-section so that the ink receiver will not collapse in the radial direction, but at the same time will easily collapse in the longitudinal direction along axis XX. Instead of rings 18 a continuous spiral 188 could be used as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. If desired the spirals longitudinal spring resiliency could be so chosen that it will not exceed the longitudinal self-collapsing quality of this ink receiver needed for its collapsing action. Such rings or spiral could be embedded into the walls of the ink receiver.

The loose free piston 19 could be attached either inside of the ink receiver 16 or 16C, FIGS. 1 and 6 at its bottom part 16A or 16CA or could be placed outside of it and be attached to the outside part 16A or 16CA of the ink receiver 16 as shown on FIG. 1 by 20 or on FIG. 6 by 22B. Both pistons 19 and 20 could be used simultaneously.

The magnetic action could be provided by making this loose free piston of a magnetically attractable material, such as iron, aluminum alloys, etc.

A magnet 12 which when placed outside of the fountain pen as shown by 12A in dotted lines will force the piston 19 or 22 or both to follow the movement of the magnet 12A in the direction of the arrow 23, and thus will compress the easily collapsable ink receiver 16 in the longitudinal direction and thus will empty it from ink or from air. Immersing then the pen nib into an ink bottle, and moving at the same time the magnet in the direction of the arrow 24 (opposite to the arrow 23) the magnet will thus pull the loose free piston-pusher from its postion of 19A shown in dotted lines, back to its position 19 and thus perform the pumping action and fill the ink receiver with the ink.

To avoid that the downward urge of the free piston-like pusher such as 19 or 20 or 223 produces an undersirable too rapid flow of the ink from the ink receiver 16, the weight (a) of this piston, the collapsing and bending qualities (b) of the ink receiver and the resiliency spring reaction effect (c) of the reinforcement means, if and when such are used or are made in a form of a spiral, should be so chosen that the total sum of this a+b+c=Z will give a necessary resulting force Z, which will be of such magnitude that it will not allow the undesirable too quick flow out of the ink from the ink receiver 16 during the writing or during the holding of the fountain pen downward i.e. with the nib directed downward.

If the spiral coil type spring 185 FIGS. 6 and 7 of reinforcing means is not used then the value of will be equal zero, thus a+b+c=a+b=z.

This invention thus permits to have a magnetically operated pusher to work as piston although it is not a piston as such, but is only a pusher for the ink receiver 16 to which it is attached.

When the pusher 19 attached to the closed end of the ink receiver inside of the ink receiver 16, it will not touch during its to-and-fro movement the inner surface 100 of the casing because the ink receivers thin walls are interposed between them.

When the pusher is attached to the closed end of the ink receiver outside of the ink receiver, then such a pusher could if desired be provided with at least one row of ball-bearings. Two such rows 21A and 21B are shown on FIGS. 1 and 3. Three or four balls 22 per each hearing are sufficient. The balls are rolling freely on the rolling surface of the inner bearing ring 21 and at the same time on the inner surface 10C of the casing 10 and this will reduce considerably the friction engagement between the pusher and the inner surface 10C of the casing 10, and thus even a very small magnetic force of even substantially a weak magnet will be suflicient to move to-and-fro such a pusher inside of the casing and thus compress or decompress longitudinally the ink receiver.

Any type of ball bearings could be used. The balls and the bearing rings could be made of plastic, glass, metal, etc. The pusher and if desired the bearing rings could be made of a magnetically attractable material or each be a magnet.

The magnet 12 (or a piece made from a magnetically attractable material) could be placed inside of the safety cap 11 at its closed end 11B, or any any convenient place.

The reinforcement means such as rings or spiral could be entirely eliminated.

The loose free piston itself could be as well a magnet and then it could be moved to-and-fro in the casing either by a magnet, in which case one magnet will attract another one, or by a simple piece of iron or another magnetically attractable material which will attract such magnet i.e. a loose free piston. The fountain pen casing 10 should for this embodiment preferably be provided with at least one vent 25 to permit free air from the atmosphere to penetrate inside of the casing 10 and to prevent the undesired expansion of the air inside of the casing between the inner wall 10C of the casing and the outer walls of the ink receiver 16. Such a fountain pen will not leak and its functioning will be very easy and it will be durable.

In order to avoid friction, lubricating means such as powdered talcum could be used between the ink receiver 16 and the inner walls 10C of the casing. The free end of the ink receiver could be provided with a few hairs 26, FIG. 8 made out of either pure hair or of very thin rubber and spread like a cats whiskers to avoid friction.

All herein described embodiments of piston-like pusher could be used not only for a fountain pen but as well for instance for the operation of any conventional pump or other machinery or instruments, and will give a good result. Although this application refers to the fountain pen, the particular structure of this piston does as well cover all types of its application and for any use other than for a fountain pen.

What I claim is:

1. A magnetically operated fountain pen comprising a casing, a pen holding member, a nib, mounted upon it, a safety cap, ink channelling means provided in said penholder member, an easily collapsable in longitudinal direction thin walled ink receiver made from a material of the group of natural or artificial rubber, latex, plastics, resins, fish skin bladders and other suitably easily bendable substances, said ink receiver having an open and a closed end, said openend being sealably mounted in communication with said channelling means, said closed end having at least one piston-like-pusher made of magnetically attractable material being affixed to it, the longitudinal resiliency of said ink-receiver being such that it will permit a self-collapsing of said ink-receiver in the longitudinal direction along its symmetric axis whereby when a magnet is placed and moved to-and-fro along the outside of said casing said pusher will also be respectively moved to-and-fro following the corresponding movements of said magnet.

2. A magnetically operated fountain pen as set forth in claim 1 wherein said pusher is attached inside of said inkreceiver to said closed end.

3. A magnetically operated fountain pen as set forth in claim 1, reinforcement means being provided for said ink-receiver around its periphery to control its collapsing effect.

4. A magnetically operated fountain pen as set forth in claim 1, said pusher being attached inside of said inkreceiver to said closed end, said pusher being provided with at least one row of ball bearing means, each row having only an inner bearing ring upon which the balls of said ball-bearing means roll whereby at the same time roll on the inner surface of said casing, forming thus the outer bearing ring.

5. A magnetically operated fountain pen as set forth in claim 1, one part of said pusher is attached to the inside surface of said closed end while another part of said pusher is attached to the outer surface of said closed end, said another part being provided with at least one row of ball bearing means, each row having only an inner bearing ring upon which the balls of said ball-bearing means roll, while at the same time they roll on the inner surface of said casing, thus forming the outer bearing ring.

6. A magnetically operated fountain pen as set forth in claim 3, said reinforcement means being concentric cir-- cles made of rigid material and spaced at predetermined longitudinal distance between them.

7. A magnetically operated fountain pen as set forth in claim 3, said reinforcement means being a spiral surrounding the periphery of said ink-receiver and attached to it.

in claim 3 wherein said reinforcement means are embedded in the walls of said ink-receiver.

9. A magnetically operated fountain pen as set forth in claim 1, lubrication means are provided between the outer surface of said link-receiver and the inner surface of said casing to reduce the friction engagement between the atmosphere.

12. A magnetically operated fountain pen as set forth in claim 1, the diameter of said pusher being substantially smaller than the inner diameter of said casing.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 848,023 3/1907 Fuller -46 2,492,058 12/1949 OConnor l2046 X 2,734,485 2/1956 Millas 120-47 3,147,741 4/1963 Rubissow l204 EUGENE R. CAPOZIO, Primary Examiner. JEROME SCHNALL, Examiner.

EMANUEL HOROWITZ, Assistant Examiner.

8. A magnetically operated fountain pen as set forth

Claims (1)

1. A MAGNETICALLY OPERATED FOUNTAIN PEN COMPRISING A CASING, A PEN HOLDING MEMBER, A NIB, MOUNTED UPON IT, A SAFETY CAP, INK CHANNELLING MEANS PROVIDED IN SAID PENHOLDER MEMBER, AN EASILY COLLAPSABLE IN LONGITUDINAL DIRECTION THIN WALLED INK RECEIVER MADE FROM A MATERIAL OF THE GROUP OF NATURAL OR ARTIFICIAL RUBBER, LATEX, PLASTICS, RESINS, FISH SKIN BLADDERS AND OTHER SUITABLY EASILY BENDABLE SUBSTANCES, SAID INK RECEIVER HAVING AN OPEN AND A CLOSED END, SAID OPEN END BEING SEALABLY MOUNTED IN COMMUNICATION WITH SAID CHANNELLING MEANS, SAID CLOSED END HAVING AT LEAST ONE PISTON-LIKE-PUSHER MADE OF MAGNETICALLY ATTRACTABLE MATERIAL BEING AFFIXED TO IT, THE LONGITUDINAL RESILIENCY OF SAID INK-RECEIVER BEING SUCH THAT IT WILL PERMIT A SELF-COLLAPSING OF SAID INK-RECEIVER IN THE LONGITUDINAL DIRECTION ALONG ITS SYMMETRIC AXIS WHEREBY WHEN A MAGNET IS PLACED AND MOVED TO-AND-FRO ALONG THE OUTSIDE OF SAID CASING SAID PUSHER WILL ALSO BE RESPECTIVELY MOVED TO-AND-FRO FOLLOWING THE CORRESPONDING MOVEMENTS OF SAID MAGNET.

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