US3376637A - Safety razor spider - Google Patents

Description

April 9, 1968 BOMBERO 3,376,637

SAFETY RAZOR SPIDER Filed Feb. 27, 1967 4 Sheets-Sheet l v IN VEN TOR THOMAS E BOMBERO BY 07m W 49 ATT'YS April 9, 1968 T. F. BQMBERO 3,376,637

SAFETY RAZOR SPIDER Filed Feb. 27, 1967 4 Sheets-Sheet ti INVENTOR THOMAS F. BOMBERO BY W,

April 9, 1968 T. F. BOMBERO 3,376,637

SAFETY RAZOR SPIDER Filed Feb. 27, 1967 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 IN VE N T0 R THOMAS E B'OMBERO BY 050M) Km 5 4 ATT'YS April 9, 1968 BOMBERO 3,376,637

SAFETY RAZOR SPIDER Filed Feb. 27, 1967 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTQR; THOMAS E BOMBERO W 152 ATT'YS.

United States Patent Ofi ice Patented Apr. 9, 1968 3,376,637 SAFETY RAZOR SPIDER Thomas F. Bomhero, Shelton, ConrL, assignor to Eversharp, Inc., Milford, Conn, a corporation of Delaware Filed Feb. 27, 1967, Ser. No. 618,789 14 Claims. (Cl. -605) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Safety razor of the sectional cap type having single ply cross braces on a center bar. Locating, interlocking tabs on the cross braces co-operate with recesses in the center bar, and either a snap-in lock on one tab or a mechanical deformation of one tab joins the cross brace to the center bar.

This invention relates to improvements in safety razors, and more specifically is directed to a new and improved spider construction. The construction of the present invention provides advantages and benefits in the form of reduced manufacturing costs, greater accuracy in razor manufacture while providing a more rigid assembly to increase resistance to damage when accidentally dropped. Other advantages will become apparent hereinafter.

In the past, safety razor spiders have been manufactured by various methods and techniques. In one commercially accepted form, sheet metal is folded to a double thickness to form a center bar. A separately formed cross brace portion is attached to arms which project downwardly at opposite ends of the center bar. Trim covers or caps are sometimes placed over the cross braces and joined thereto by soldering, cementing or the like. In one form, the cross braces are joined to the center bar by folding opposite margins of axially directed tabs over a V-shaped end, which end is formed to a V configuration by spreading the ends of the folded plies of the center bar. This type is illustrated in the patent to Nissen, Patent No. 3,050,852.

While prior art constructions have been satisfactory to date, the problems attendant with providing a good joint and the requirement of decorative trim covers adds to the cost of the finished product. The lateral stability of the prior art cross braces is also open to question.

The present invention contemplates the provision of a spider construction having a one-piece, single-ply center bar. Single ply cross braces requiring no trim covers or caps are easily joined to opposite ends of the center bar. This permits the razor caps to be easily assembled to the spider with assembly of the cross braces to eliminate the disadvantages of the prior art techniques.

In the first design, the cross braces are provided with bifurcated tabs which are positioned in interlocking relation with recesses formed at opposite ends of the center bar to provide good lateral stability. A snap-type locking means is provided on a second tab which co-operates with a second recess to maintain the first tab and, hence, the cross brace locked on the center bar. In a modified form, the snap-type locking means is replaced with a deforming step in which a part of the second tab is deformed into the recess on the center bar.

By forming the parts from a single ply material, greater economy in manufacture is achieved than was known with pieviously acceptable techniques. In addition to the economy obtained in manufacture, the present one-piece c0nstruction can be made with greater accuracy and strength to resist the abuse experienced in normal use. A greater appreciation and more complete understanding of the salient features of the present invention will become apparent on consideration of the objects and a detailed description of preferred embodiments of the invention.

It is an object of this invention to provide a new and improved safety razor spider construction.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a new and improved single ply safety razor spider construction having single ply cross braces attached at opposite ends.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a new and improved sheet metal safety razor spider construction which is economically manufactured with increased accuracy to improve the operational characteristics of the razor in which it is installed.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a new and improved joint construction for attachment of cross braces to safety razor spider center bars thereby permitting easy assembly of the sectional caps to the spider assembly.

Additional objects other than those stated will become apparent when reference is made to the following description and accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the safety razor of the present invention with parts of one of the sectional caps broken away to illustrate the location of the safety razor spider;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary side elcvational view of the center bar of the safety razor spider;

FIGURE 3 is a top plan view of one of the cross braces attachable to the center bar shown in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a side elevational view of the cross brace shown in FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 is a front elevational view brace shown in FIGURES 3 and 4;

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged, exploded, perspective view of the cross brace in position for assembly to the center bar (shown fragmentarily);

FIGURE 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the face of the center bar after the cross brace is assembled;

FIGURE 8 is a view similar to FIGURE 2 showing a modified end on the center bar;

FIGURE 9 is a top plan view of the cross brace used with the center bar shown in FIGURE 8;

FIGURE 10 is a side elevational view of the cross brace shown in FIGURE 9;

FIGURE 11 is a front elevational view of the cross brace shown in FIGURE 9;

FIGURE 12 is an end elevational view of the cross brace shown in FIGURES 35 and 9-11;

FIGURE 13 is an enlarged perspective view of the cross brace of FIGURES 9-11 in position for assembly to the center bar (shown fragmentarily) of FIGURE 8; and

FIGURE 14 is an enlarged top plan view of one end of the center bar after the cross brace has been assembled.

In FIGURE 1 is illustrated a perspective view of a double edge safety razor of the sectional or divided cap type. This design is also sometimes referred to as the clam-shell type and its operational characteristics are well known.

The safety razor includes a handle portion 10 mounting a platform or guard 11 having guard bar portions 12 and 13 at opposite sides. The guard and handle are joined together in a conventional manner and provide a support for a slotted double edge razor blade (not shown) of conventional design. The guard 11 is slotted as at 14 to receive a spider assembly indicated generally at '15.

The spider assembly includes a center bar 16 and cross braces (only one shown in FIGURE 1) at opposite ends to mount the cap sections 18 and 19. A spider stem 20 is joined to the center bar 16 by any suitable means and extends through the handle 10 for cooperation with an operating knob in a known manner. As is well known, the reciprocation of the spider stem 20 results in lugs on the of the cross 3 sectional caps 18 and 19 engaging the guard for opening and closing.

The safety razor spider assembly consists of a center bar having cross braces at opposite ends and may be formed in one of two ways, according to the present invention. One form of safety razor spider center bar is illustrated at 21 in FIGURE 2 and includes a spider stem attaching portion 22 and downwardly projecting arms 23 (only one shown) at opposite ends. Inasmuch as the center bar is symmetrical with respect to a vertical line through the center of the attaching portion 22, description will be limit-ed to the left hand end portion and arm 23 in the interest of brevity.

The outer end of the arm 23 is provided with a pair of axially opening recesses indicated generally by the reference characters 24 and 25. The upper-most recess 24 is provided with parallel side walls 26 and 27 which terminate to form a right angle with a bottom wall 28. The side wall 27 is of greater axial length than the side wall 26 for reasons to become apparent.

The lowermost recess includes an upper wall 30 and a lower wall 31. Each of these walls terminates to form a right angle with a vertical or bottom wall portion 32 at the inner end of the recess 25. The wall 30 also forms one side of an elongated opening 33 which extends to the outer end of the arm 23 from the recess 25. The lower wall 31 merges with a vertical shoulder 34, the upper end of which is defined by the lower wall 35 of the elongated opening. A guide portion 36 merges with the wall 35 for facilitating easy assembly of the cross brace. As noted previously, the center bar 21 is formed from single ply material permitting it to be accurately and economically fabricated by a single stamping operation or the equivalent.

Referring now to FIGURES 3-5, a cross brace 40 which is attachable to the arm 23 will be described. The cross brace 40 is provided with a pair of axially projecting pivot means 41 and 42 which are adapted for reception in apertures or cooperating pivot means formed in each of the caps 18 and 19, and serve to mount the caps for pivoting movement on the spider assembly in a known manner. The cross brace 40 also includes a pair of projecting tabs 43 and 44 which are joined to the main body 45. The upper tab 43 is provided with a bifurcated free end 46 which has a pair of axially projecting arms or tongues 47 and 48 extending from a bight or base portion 49. The upper tab 43 may be formed integral with the main body of the cross brace at stamping and, thereafter, folded to the projecting osition illustrated.

The lower tab 44 is also provided with a bifurcated free end 50 having spaced tongues 51 and 52 projecting from opposite sides of a bottom or bight portion 53. Also provided on the lower tab 44 is an aperture 54 which is located inter-mediate the bifurcated end 50 and the main body 45 of the cross brace 40.

As seen in FIGURE 6, during assembly, the upper tab 43 is aligned with the upper recess 24 and the lower tab 44 aligned with the lower recess 25. The bifurcated portions of each of the tabs is interlocked with the associated recesses so that the inner margins of the tongues overlappingly engage opposite sides of the center bar 21. Each of the bifurcated portions may be tapered to facilitate alignment with the recesses 24 and 25. When assembled, the inner wall portions of each of the tongues 47 and 48 and 51 and 52, respectively, on the cross brace snugly engage the opposite sides of the center bar 21 to provide good lateral stability.

As seen in FIGURE 7, when the cross brace 45 is fully inserted, the shoulder 34 interlocks with a side wall of the aperture 54 to hold the bight 49 of the upper tab 43 into engagement with the bottom wall 28 on the center bar. As the lower tab 44 enters the recess 25 during assembly, a guide 36 causes the wall 35 to be depressed to enlarge the elongated opening. The wall 35 resumes its normal position when the shoulder 34 is aligned with 4 the aperture 54. At that time, the shoulder 34 snaps into engagement to lock the cross brace to the center bar with no additional attaching or soldering necessary. An identical cross brace is installed in an identical manner on the opposite end of the center bar 21.

A modified form of center bar 60 is illustrated :in FIGURE 8. The center bar 60 includes a stem attaching portion 61 which is designed for attachment to tubular plastic types of spider stems. The center bar 60 is also symmetrical with respect to a vertical center line through the stem attaching portion 61 and in the interest of brevity, only the left-hand portion will be illustrated and described. The center bar 60 includes a downwardly pro- 1 jecting arm 62 which is provided at its outer, and lower margins with recesses 63 and 64. The recess illustrated at 64 is in the form of a circular aperture, but may also be polygonal or of any suitable shape.

The upper recess 63 is formed by an upper side wall 65 and lower side wall 66 of greater length which are interconnected by vertical bottom wall 67, forming a right angle with each. The lower wall 66 is longer than the upper wall 65 to provide support to the cross brace and also guide the same during installation.

The lower recess is disposed in line with a horizontal wall 68 on the lower part of the arm 62 which is adapted for engagement with the upper side of a lower tab on the cross brace. The wall 68 terminates at a vertical wall or shoulder 85.

The particular cross brace used in connection with the center bar 60 is indicated generally by reference 70 in FIGURES 9-12. As is evident, the cross brace 70 bears a marked similarity to the cross brace 40 described above and includes a main body 71'having pivot means 72 and 73 at opposite ends. The pivots 72 and 73 co-operate with suitable pivot means carried on the caps 18 and. 19 to provide for pivoting of the same between open and closed positions in response to axial shifting of the spider assembly. The cross brace 70 also includes an upper tab 74 and lower tab 75 which are structurally and functionally similar to the tabs 53 and 44 on the cross brace 40.

The upperv tab 74 is bifurcated at its free end forming a bight portion 76 between a pair of tongues 77 and 78; The tongues 77 and 78 are spaced a sufiicient distance to receive the center. bar snugly between their oppositely facing walls.

The free end of the lower tab 75 is also bifurcated, having a bight portion 80 disposed between tongues 81 and 82, the latter being received on opposite sides of the lower part of the arm 62 with the free end portions of each tongue in alignment with the recess 64 when the cross brace 70 is fully attached to the center bar 60.

Between the bight portion 80-and the main body 71 of the cross brace 70 is provided a pair of raised guides 83 t and 84 which are adapted to engage opposite faces of the arm 62 above the side wall 68. The guides 83 and 84 may be formed by striking up a part of the metal out of the tab 75 during formation of an aperture. Similar guides may be provided on the cross brace 40 if desired.

The view of FIGURE 13 shows the cross brace 70 positioned for assembly to the center bar 60. During assembly, the cross brace 70 is moved into alignment so that the bight 76 on the tab 74 engages the bottom wall 67 on the recess 63. The side wall 66 engages the underside of the tab 74 to provide good lateral stability while the tongues 77 and 78 have oppositely facing side wall portions engaging opposite faces .of the center bar 60 to assist in providing lateral stability and over-all rigidity. The guides 83 and84 engage opposite sides of the center bar 60 immediately above the side wall 68. The free ends of the tongues 81 and 820m the lower. tab 75 are aligned with the recess 64 and, as shown in the enlarged view of FIGURE 14, are deformed inwardly into the recess to bring the bight 80 tightly against the shoulder 85 on the arm 62. At this time, the bight 76 on the upper tab is in tight engagement with the bottom wall 67 in the recess 63 to firmly and interlockingly mount the cross brace 70 on the center bar 60.

The unique manner of attaching the cross braces to the center bar contributes to a novel cap and spider assembly. The caps 18 and 19 in FIGURE 1 are disposed in parallel relation to the center bar 60. The cross braces are aligned with the center bar so that the pivots 72 and 73 are aligned with co-operating pivot openings formed in the caps 18 and 19. The cross braces are then moved toward the center bar to join the cross brace to the center bar. The pivots enter openings on the sectional caps 18 and 19 to mount the caps on the cross braces simultaneously with the cross braces being attached to the center bar 60. This permits the sectional or half-caps to be hoppered as well as automatically fed and does not require the cross braces to be sprung or distorted to assemble the sectional caps. The center bar and cross braces can also be fed automatically because of the constiuction.

The outwardly facing end portion of the cross brace 70 is shown in full elevation in FIGURE 12. As shown, the outer margin may be chamfered, as at 90, to provide a decorative effect. Inasmuch as the cross brace is formed from a single ply stamping, it eliminates the soldering of decorative covers thereon without the loss of the decorative effect. The cross brace 40 is identical in appearance to the cross brace 70 as shown in FIGURE 12. The pivots 72 and 73 on the cross brace may be formed by any method such as folding a part of the stamped cross brace at right angles to the main body in the same manner that the tabs 74 and 75 are formed. Obviously, any other equivalent means of providing a pivot is acceptable.

In summary, the unique construction and assembly technique of the center bar and cross braces permits the parts to be formed from a single blanking operation, rather than multiple progressive folding and forming operations which were required in the past. It follows that the simpler blanking operation permits closer tolerances to be held on all parts even though manufacture is more economical. Since the center bar is formed of easily worked material such as brass, as an alternative, the center bar of FIGURES 2-6 may be formed with the locking shoulder 34 in an open condition, and thereafter closed at assembly when the cross brace is in position and, thus, interlocking it with the center bar. Such closure is readily accomplished by a punch or the equivalent engaging the lower part of the arm and moving the shoulder 34 into the opening 54.

The cross braces of the present invention permit the sectional caps to be assembled without forcing or deforming the ends of the spider as was done in certain prior art types of razors, thereby providing for greater accuracy in the finished razor assembly. As noted previously, the additional step of soldering a decorative cover is also eliminated.

Upon a consideration of the foregoing, it will become obvious to those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made without departing from the invention embodied herein. Therefore, only such limitations should be imposed as are indicated by the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A spider assembly for a safety razor of the sectional cap type comprising a center bar having a cross brace disposed at opposite ends for pivotally mounting sectional caps thereon, means joining each of said cross braces to each of said opposite ends of said center bar, said joining means including first and second recess means formed in said center bar, a bifurcated tab means formed on said cross brace, said bifurcated tab means being received in said first recess means :and having opposite margins in overlapping relation with opposite faces on said center bar, and second tab means carried on said cross brace engaging at least a part of said second recess means to rigidly attach said cross brace thereto.

2. The spider construction of claim 1 wherein said second tab means on said cross brace includes an aperture formed therein and said part of said recess means includes a portion of a side wall of said aperture being engaged by a side wall portion of said second recess means when said first bifurcated tab means is bottomed in said first recess means.

3. The spider construction of claim 2 wherein said second tab means is provided with a bifurcated free end with portions thereof overlying said opposite faces of said center bar to provide additional lateral support.

4. The spider construction of claim 1 wherein said second tab means is bifurcated forming spaced tongues which have the free ends thereof deformed into opposite sides of said second recess means when said first bifurcated tab means is positioned in said first recess means.

5. The spider construction of claim 4 wherein said second tab means includes a pair of raised guides formed in said tab means and engageable with said opposite faces of said center bar.

6. The spider construction of claim 1 wherein said second tab means on said cross brace is provided with an aperture and said second recess means includes an elongated opening extending to the outer end of said center bar, a shoulder formed by the intersection of a wall of said elongated opening and a side wall of said second recess means, a side wall portion of said aperture engaging said shoulder when said first bifurcated tab means is located in said first recess means to thereby lock said cross brace to said center bar.

7. The spider construction of claim 1 wherein said second tab means includes spaced tongues having side wall portions thereof disposed along said opposite faces of said center bar and having the free end portions thereof deformed into said second recess means to lock said cross brace to said center bar.

8. In a safety razor of the sectional cap type wherein a cross brace is mounted on opposite ends of a center bar to mount sectional caps thereon, the improvement comprising each cross brace being provided with bifurcated alignment means snugly but slidingly receiving an end portion of said center bar therebetween to prevent relative lateral movement between the cross brace and center bar, and separate interlocking means formed on each cross brace and end portion of said center bar and being interengaged to prevent longitudinal separation therebetween.

9. The improvement in safety razors of claim 8 wherein said separate interlocking means comprises a bifurcated tab formed on said cross brace snugly receiving said end portion of said center bar.

10. In a safety razor of the sectional cap type wherein a cross brace is mounted on opposite ends of a center bar to mount said sectional caps thereon, the improvement comprising joining means for attaching each of said cross braces to said opposite ends of said center bar, said joining means including first and second recess means formed in said center bar, a first and second tab means formed on said cross brace, said first tab means being bifurcated at its free end and being positioned in said first recess with opposite margins thereof in overlapping engagement with opposite sides of said center bar, and second tab means carried on said cross brace and having a part thereof engaging said second recess means formed in said center bar rigidly to attach said cross brace to said center bar.

11. The spider construction of claim 10 wherein said second tab means on said cross brace includes an aperture formed therein, a part of a side wall of said aperture being engaged by a side wall portion of said second recess means when said first bifurcated tab means is bottomed in said first recess means.

12. The spider construction of claim 11 wherein said second tab means is provided with a bifurcated free end having oppositely facing wall surfaces overlying opposite faces of said center bar.

13. The spider construction of claim 10 wherein said second tab means is bifurcated at the free end to form a pair of spaced tongues, each of said tongues having a part thereof deformed into opposite sides of said second recess means when said first bifurcated tab means is bottomed in said first recess means.

14. The spider construction of claim 13 wherein said second tab means includes a pair of raised guides formed Q a in said tab means and engageable with opposite faces of said center bar.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,050,852 8/1962 Nissen; 30--60.5

MYRON C. KRUSE, Primary Examiner.

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