US3310452A

US3310452A - Portable tape applicator

Info

Publication number: US3310452A
Application number: US374556A
Authority: US
Inventors: Daniel W Hartley; John E Day
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1964-06-01
Filing date: 1964-06-01
Publication date: 1967-03-21
Anticipated expiration: 1984-03-21

Description

March 21, 1967 D w, HARTLEY ET AL 3,310,452

PORTABLE TAPE APPLICATOR Filed June 1, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet l w n3 3 3 7 3 N m 3 mm mm L: 5 m m INVENTORS DAN/EL W. HAR TLEY JOHN E. DA Y, 5R.

ATTORNEY March 1967 D. w. HARTLEY ET AL 3,310,452

PORTABLE TAPE APPLICATOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 1, 1964 INVENTORS DAN/EL W. HARTLEY JOHN E. DAY SR.

ATTORNEY 3,310,452 PORTABLE TAPE APPLICATOR Daniel W. Hartley, 3G4 Mosstree Road, and John E. Day, S1'., 400 Arant St., both of North Charleston, $.61. 29406 Filed .Iune 1, 1964, fier. No. 374,556 9 Claims. (Cl. 6-523) This invention relates to an improved portable apparatus for dispensing pressure sensitive tape from a hollow cylindrical tape supply roll and for directly applying the tape upon a fixed surface.

Various types of portable tape applicators have been proposed in the prior art for dispensing pressure sensitive tape and for applying the same to a fixed surface. In general the known devices are bulkygin size and heavy in weight and do not readily lend themselves to certain applications wherein the tape must be accurately applied to relatively inaccessible surfaces orto surfaces of unusual contour or configuration. For example, in the masking of chrome trim strips prior to the painting of an automobile, the known devices do not readily permit the application of tape to the lower portions of the vehide, or to surfaces of unusual contour (for example, the chrome trim strips around the windshield or the doors).

The primary object of the present invention is to provide an improved portable tape applicator of inexpensive, light-weight durable construction that affords extremely rapid, accurate application of the tape to various types of fixed surfaces.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a tape applicator including a frame having a handle at one end and a pair of parallel, horizontal, longitudinallyspaced transverse outer rollers at the other end. Means are provided for continuously maintaining the outer periphery of a hollow cylindrical tape supply roll in vertically supported engagement with the rollers, whereby the free end of the tape is guided back upon the lower surfaces of the rollers and is pressed thereby onto the work. In accordance with an important feature of the invention, the rollers are provided with annular flanges spaced from the frame a distance equal to the width of the tape, whereby the tape is accurately guided on the rollers during application to the work. The flanges further serve to prevent axial displacement of the supply roll relative to the frame, and also to engage the edge of the work for guiding of the applicator during the tape applying operation.

According to another object of the invention, the tape supply roll is continuously maintained in engagement with the pair of longitudinally spaced outer rollers by a'downwardly-biased vertically-movable additional roller that engages the inner periphery of the supply roll. Means including a longitudinally-arranged U-shaped support rigidly connected with the handle frame and a longitudinally extending horizontal rod associated with the inner roller serve to positively maintain said inner roller parallel with the outer rollers as the thickness of the supply roll decreases during dispensing of the tape thereform.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a portable tape applicator of the type described above including horizontally pivotable cutter means having a knife edge that is displacable from a sheathed, retracted position remote from the outer rollers to a severing position adjacent, generally parallel with and directed away from that outer roller which is nearest the handle. Consequently, during application of the tape to a fixed surface, the to-ol is easily manipulated to form a loop in the tape into which the knife edge is inserted, whereupon sharp displacement of the tool in the tape applying direction causes severing-With a minimum amount of wasteof a United States Patent O 3,316,452 Patented Mar. 21, 1967 length of tape that has been applied to the work from the supply roll.

As indicated above, the applicator of the present invention is particularly suitable for applying pressure sensitive masking tape to the chrome trim strips of automobiles prior to the painting thereof. As a result of experimental testing, the tool of the present invention has proven to be extremely eflicient in operation, and owing to the portability of the applicator, the flange means for accurately guiding the tape and the tool, and the improved tape severing means, the time required for preparing an automobile for painting has been greatly reduced over the conventional time-consuming manual masking techniqueS.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a study of the following specification when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of the applicator illustrating the manner in which the pressure sensitive tape is dispensed from a supply roll and is applied to a fixed surface;

FIGURE 2 is a right-hand end view of the applicator of FIGURE 1 with the supply roll removed;

FIGURE 3 is a detailedelevational view of the other side of the applicator of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIGURE 3 with the cutter element in the retracted position; and

FIGURE 5 is a bottom view of the applicator with the cutter element in the tape severing position.

Referring to the' drawing, the tape applicator 2 includes a rigid handle 4 secured to mend of a horizontal metal bar or frame member 6. Rotatably connected with the other end of the bar 6 on one side thereof are a pair of horizontal, longitudinally-spaced

outer rollers

8 and 10. Rigidly secured to the upper surface of the bar 6 intermediate the

outer rollers

8 and 10 is a vertical rod 12 upon the threaded .upper end of which is mounted a nut 14. Slidably mounted upon the lower portion of rod 12 is a sleeve 16 that rotatably supports a horizontal inner roller 18 that is adjacent and parallel with the outer rollers 8 and 1t Coil spring 20 is mounted concentrically on rod 12 between nut 14 and sleeve 16 and continuously biases the sleeve downwardly toward the bar 6.

Secured at each end to the upper surface of bar 6 on opposite sides of the rod 12 is a generally U-shaped rigid support rod 24. On the side remote from rollers 8, 1t) and 18, the support 24% is engaged by a rigid horizontal rod 26 the center portion of which is secured to sleeve 16. The rod 26 cooperates with the vertical legs of support 24- to prevent rotation of sleeve 16 on rod 12 and to maintain the inner roller 18 parallel with

rollers

8 and 10.

Each of the rollers is formed of a hard material-such as synthetic plastic, metal or the likeand includes at its free end an annular flange 28. The rollers are journalled on bolts 29 that are threadably connected at one end with the bar 6 and the sleeve 16, respectively. Preferably the rollers are covered with a layer 30 of a resilient material, such as rubber, to effect frictional contact with the supply roll and the tape dispensed therefrom.

As shown in FIGURE 1, the hollow cylindrical tape supply roll 34 is mounted on the frame 2 by means .of the inner and outer rollers that engage the inner and outer peripheries of the supply roll, respectively. Owing to the biasing action of spring Ztl, roller 18 is biased downwardly to continuously maintain the supply roll in engagement with the outer rollers 8 and 19. At one end the

outer rollers

8 and 10 abut the bar 6 and the inner roller 18 abuts sleeve 16. The annular flanges 28 at theother end of the rollers are spaced from the bar and the sleeve, respectively, a distance equal to the thickness of the tape. According 1y, when the supply roll is mounted on the frame as shown in FIGURE 1, the roll is supported between the inner and outer rollers on the one hand, and between the flanges and the bar and sleeve on the other, whereby the roll is firmly maintained against lateral and axial displacement relative to the frame. Furthermore, the U-shaped support 24 may be positioned adjacent the roller-supporting side surface of bar 6 to afford additional lateral support of the supply roll 34.

Pivotally connected by pivot pin 36 with the lower surface of bar 6 is a generally L-shaped cutter element 38 that carries at its free end a knife edge 40. The cutter element 3% is manually pivotable from a retracted position (FIGURE 4) to a tape shearing position (FIGURE 5) in which the knife edge 40 is adjacent and spaced from the outer roller 8. When the cutter element is in the retracted (FIGURE 4) position, the knife edge portion is housed within a protective sheath or guard 42 of generally U-shaped configuration that i rigidly secured to the lower surface of bar 6. As shown in FIGURE 5, when the cutter element is in the shearing position, the knife edge 4'1) is arranged at an acute angle a relative to a line parallel with the roller axes. Cutter element 38 is biased toward the retracted position by spring means 44. As shown in FIGURE 1, the cutter element is pivotable in a plane parallel with and slightly above the lower surface of bar 6.

Rigidly connected with the bar 6 on the side remote from the outer rollers is a lateral extension 46 having a short horizontal first portion 46a, a vertical second portion 46b, and a horizontal third portion 46c. This lateral extension affords means for manually biasing the frame downwardly to press the

outer rollers

8 and 10 upon the tape as it is applied to the work.

OPERATION Assume that the supply roll 34 is mounted upon the applicator frame as shown in FIGURE 1 and that it is desired to apply the tape upon a fixed surface 50 (for example, the chrome trim strip of an automobile that is to be painted).

The free end of the tape is withdrawn from the supply roll 34 and is guided backwardly upon the outer rollers 8 and 10 (the adhesive side of the tape being directed downwardly toward the work). The operator presses downwardly upon handle 4 with one hand and upon lateral extension 46c with the other to cause the outer rollers to press the tape upon the surface 50. The tool is then drawn to the left (as indicated by the arrow in FIGURE 1) to progressively apply the tape to the work.

During this application of the tape, the withdrawn tape length is guided on the

outer rollers

8 and 10 by the flanges 28. In the event that the difference between the radii of the flanges 28 and the outer rollers exceeds the thickness of the tape, the flanges may be caused to engage the lateral edge surface of the work and to accurately guide the tool during its longitudinal travel. It is apparent that as the thickness of the supply roll decreases during the dispensing of the tape therefrom, roller 18 is displaced downwardly by spring 20 to maintain the outer periphery of the supply roll in engagement with the rollers 8 and 0. Owing to the frictional engagement between the resilient roller cover surfaces and the tape and the supply roll, the rollers rotate about their axes and the supply roll revolves relative to the frame as the tape is applied to the work during longitudinal travel of the applicator.

While all of the rollers have been illustrated as being provided with annular flanges 28, it is apparent that in certain cases it may be desirable to .omit the flanges from one or more of the rollers. For example, when the tape is to be applied to a portion of a surface spaced from the edge thereof, it may be desirable to omit the flange 28 from the forward pressing roller 10. In this event, the fiangeless roller may consist wholly of a resilient material, such as rubber, for efficient pressing of the tape upon the work.

Upon completion of the taping operation, the tool is displaced slightly further to the left to remove an additional length of tape from the supply roll, whereupon the tool is shifted to the right to form the additional length into a small loop spaced to the left from roller 3. The cutter element is then pivoted to the FIGURE 5 shearing position within the loop so formed, whereupon the tool is sharply drawn to the left to effect severing of the tape by the knife edge 4%. Owing to the angular inclination of the knife edge, the tape is'progressively severed in the transverse direction by the knife edge during cutting.

It should be noted that the bar portion of the handle frame may be formed of suitable hard materials other than metal (for example, a synthetic plastic material, wood or the like).

An additional advantage resulting from the provision of the resilient covers on the rollers is the enlarged deformable pressing surface available for uniformly pressing the tape upon contoured work surfaces. Futhermore, the flanges on the rollers insure that the tape edge is spaced slightly from the edge of the chrome trim strip being masked. Thus, the tape never engages the body surface, and upon subsequent application of the paint, the paint flows slightly beneath the edge of the trim strip as is desired to prevent rusting. Subsequent removal of the tape will therefore cause no peeling of paint from the automobile body, and there will be no binding or tearing of the tape during removal thereof.

While in accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes the preferred form and embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modificatrons maybe made in the apparatus described without deviating from the invention set forth in the following claims. I

We claim:

Apparatus for dispensing and applying pressure sensit ve tape from a hollow cylindrical supply roll, comprising handle means including at one end a horizontal rigid bar portion;

a pair of horizontal parallel outer rollers on one side of and rotatably connected with said bar portion, said outer rollers being normal to and longitudinally spaced with respect to said bar portion;

an inner roller parallel with, intermediate and generally above said outer rollers;

means connecting said inner roller with said handle means for vertical parallel movement relative to said outer rollers; and

spring means biasing said inner roller downwardly toward said outer rollers, whereby when the inner and outer rollers are placed in engagement with the inner and outer peripheries of said tape supply roll, said inner roller maintains said supply roll in peripheral engagement with the outer rollers.

2. Apparatus for dispensing and applying pressure sensitive tape from a hollow cylindrical supply roll, comprising handle means including at one end a horizontal rigid bar portion;

an inner roller parallel with, intermediate and generally above said outer rollers, at least one of said rollers having an annular flange thereon spaced from said bar portion .a distance equal to the width of the tape;

spring means biasing said inner roller downwardly toward said outer rollers, whereby when the inner and outer rollers are placed in engagement with the inner and further wherein the difference between the radii of each of said flanges and the associated outer roller is greater than the thickness of the tape, whereby said flanges atfords means for guiding said applicator relative to the edge of the work surface upon which the tape is applied.

5. Apparatus as defined in claim 4 and further including longitudinally spaced vertically arranged roll support means connected with the upper surface of said bar portion for laterally supporting the supply roll when said roll is mounted between said inner and outer rollers.

6. Apparatus as defined in claim 5 wherein said roll support means comprises a rigid U-shaped element the legs of which are vertical and are connected at their lower extremities with said bar portion, and further wherein said means connecting said inner roller with said handle means comprises a vertical rod secured at its lower end to said bar portion intermediate the legs of the said tape support, a sleeve slidably mounted on said rod, said inner roller being normal to and rotatably connected with said sleeve, and means connected with said sleeve and cooperating with said legs to continuously maintain said inner roller parallel with said outer rollers.

7. Apparatus as defined in claim 6 and further including an abutment connected with the upper end of said vertical rod, said spring means being mounted on said rod intermediate said abutment and said sleeve.

8. Apparatus as defined in claim 2, and further including a cutter element pivotally connected with said handle means, said cutter element including a knife edge that is movable from a retracted position remote from said rollers to a tape shearing position adjacent, generally parallel. with, and directed away from the outer roller that is near est the handle of said handle means.

9. Apparatus as defined in claim 2, wherein said handle means further includes a rigid horizontal extension normal to said bar portion, said extension being connected with said bar portion on the side thereof remote from said outer rollers.

No references cited.

EARL M. BERGERT, Primary Examiner.

D. S. DRUMMOND, Assistant Examiner.

Claims

1. APPARATUS FOR DISPENSING AND APPLYING PRESSURE SENSITIVE TAPE FROM A HOLLOW CYLINDRICAL SUPPLY ROLL, COMPRISING HANDLE MEANS INCLUDING AT ONE END A HORIZONTAL RIGID BAR PORTION; A PAIR OF HORIZONTAL PARALLEL OUTER ROLLERS ON ONE SIDE OF AND ROTATABLY CONNECTED WITH SAID BAR PORTION, SAID OUTER ROLLERS BEING NORMAL TO AND LONGITUDINALLY SPACED WITH RESPECT TO SAID BAR PORTION; AN INNER ROLLER PARALLEL WITH, INTERMEDIATE AND GENERALLY ABOVE SAID OUTER ROLLERS; MEANS CONNECTING SAID INNER ROLLER WITH SAID HANDLE MEANS FOR VERTICAL PARALLEL MOVEMENT RELATIVE TO SAID OUTER ROLLERS; AND SPRING MEANS BIASING SAID INNER ROLLER DOWNWARDLY TOWARD SAID OUTER ROLLERS, WHEREBY WHEN THE INNER AND OUTER ROLLERS ARE PLACED IN ENGAGEMENT WITH THE INNER AND OUTER PERIPHERIES OF SAID TAPE SUPPLY ROLL, SAID INNER ROLLER MAINTAINS SAID SUPPLY ROLL IN PERIPHERAL ENGAGEMENT WITH THE OUTER ROLLERS.