WO2022261717A1

WO2022261717A1 - A marker and multi tool and components therefor

Info

Publication number: WO2022261717A1
Application number: PCT/AU2022/050604
Authority: WO
Inventors: Christopher RIGOPOULOS; Chin Yiu Leung; Karl VAUPEL; Sam Davies
Original assignee: Scottie Investments Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2021-06-16
Filing date: 2022-06-16
Publication date: 2022-12-22

Abstract

An extendible marking implement is described, with a utility knife style sliding thumb actu-ator for operation. Also described is a marker with a multi-chamber housing for dispensing leads and/or other marking elements. There is further described a marker having one or more external storage recesses for leads and other tool bits and tools. The arrangement of some embodiments is such that the utility knife style sliding thumb actuator is config-ured to slide along an elongate window towards a tip to extend the lead, pen, marker or other tool for marking a surface. The thumb actuator is also configured to slide in the elon-gate window back toward a top for retraction, loading a new marker element, or ejecting an old one. There is also described a marker lead which is a flattened octagonal cross sectional shape.

Description

A MARKER AND MULTI TOOL AND COMPONENTS THEREFOR

Technical Field

1. The present technology relates generally to markers, writing implements, and multi-tools.

Background

2. Marking and writing implements, including pencils and pens, are known. Mechani cal pencils, configured to extend a pencil lead out of a housing, are also known.

3. A disadvantage of known pencils and pens, mechanical or otherwise, is that their structure and components are fragile. Users are unable to press too hard on the page or writing surface, for fear of causing the leads or casings to break.

4. Also, there are many times, it seems, when all one needs is a pen, but all one can find about one’s person is a pencil. The opposite can also be true: too many nearby pens, and no pencils. Storing multiple kinds of writing implement on one’s body is impractical and takes up a lot of space in one’s pockets.

5. Furthermore, storing a plurality of pens and pencils in one’s pockets can add dis traction and inhibit movement. The plurality of implements can also create holes in the pockets and can fall through. If a person is on a building site and working at heights, a falling writing implement can injure a person below, and even cause a potentially fatal distraction to the person above.

6. Additionally, when using known mechanical pencils, it is not always easy to identify when a marking core, or lead, is nearly exhausted.

7. Known mechanical pencils also make it difficult to advance, and/or load, the lead.

8. In a pinch, known pencils and marking implements are sometimes used for pierc ing workpieces, turning fasteners, and like operations, resulting in broken leads, combined with other long term damage of the main body and other components.

9. It is also known that, mechanical pencil locking devices, which secure the lead in a mechanical pencil, are generally insecure and a hard press will not make a strong mark on a surface, but rather, merely retract the pencil, in an unintentionally-auto- matic fashion. 10. The present inventors seek to provide a marker which substantially ameliorates one or more of the abovementioned disadvantages, and/or which at least provides a useful alternative to known marking implements.

Summary

11. Broadly, the present technology provides a marker with an extendible marking im plement, with a utility knife or box cutter-style sliding thumb actuator for operation.

12. Broadly, the present technology also provides a marker with a utility knife or box cutter-style elongate window for indicating the length of lead remaining in the marker.

13. Broadly, the present technology additionally provides a marker with a multi-cham ber housing for dispensing leads and/or other marking elements.

14. Broadly, the present technology further provides a marker having a main body with offset peripheral lead chambers.

15. Broadly, the present technology further provides a marker having one or more ex ternal storage recesses for leads and other tool bits and tools.

16. The arrangement of some embodiments is such that the utility knife style sliding thumb actuator is configured to slide along an elongate window towards a tip to ex tend the lead, pen, marker or other tool for marking a surface. The thumb actuator is also configured to slide in the elongate window back toward a top for retraction, loading a new marker element, or ejecting an old one.

17. The arrangement of other embodiments is such that the thumb actuator includes a friction clutch or one or more movable plates or jaws with one-way operation such as with angled teeth, such that a new marker element can be fed in from the rear, pushing the depleted marker element from the elongate chamber. In accordance with one aspect of the present technology there is provided a marker including: a main body assembly including a top end portion and a tip end portion, the main body assembly comprising: at least one elongate chamber extending from the top end portion to the tip end portion for receiving and dispensing a marking element; an elongate aperture disposed on a side wall of the at least one elongate chamber and extending substantially between the top end portion and the tip end portion; and a carriage assembly at least partially disposed in the at least one elongate aperture for operatively connecting to the marking element for loading, unloading, extension and retraction operations on the marking element. In accordance with another aspect of the present technology there is provided a marker including: a main body assembly including a top and a tip, the main body assembly including: a spinal chamber extending between the top and the tip; and a plurality of elongate lead chambers for receiving and dispensing leads, the elongate lead chambers disposed adjacent the spinal chamber. In accordance with another aspect of the present technology there is provided a marker lead which is octagonal in cross sectional shape. In accordance with another aspect of the present technology there is provided a marker lead which is hexagonal in cross sectional shape. In accordance with another aspect of the present technology there is provided a marker lead which is a flattened octagonal cross sectional shape. In one embodiment the marking element includes a pencil lead. In one embodiment the marking element includes caulk. In one embodiment the marking element includes crayon. In one embodiment the marking element includes chalk. In one embodiment the marking element includes a pen assembly. In one embodiment the marking element includes a scribe. In one embodiment the marking element includes a screwdriver, drill bit, punch, or other suitable tool. In one embodiment the carriage assembly includes a carriage for carrying the marking element or ink module. In one embodiment the carriage is guided along the elongate chambers by for mations on the walls of the elongate chambers, or the walls of the elongate cham bers themselves. In one embodiment the carriage includes a clamp for clamping the marking ele ment. In one embodiment the clamp includes teeth to hold the marking element in the clamp. In one embodiment the clamp teeth are directional and face the tip to inhibit retrac tion and slip of the module in the clamp. In one embodiment the carriage assembly includes an actuator, configured to be operable by a thumb of a user, to operate the marking element. In one embodiment the actuator includes a lock for locking the carriage to the elon gate chamber at a selected position between the top and the tip. In one embodiment the lock is a friction lock configured to hold a brake shoe against a wall of the elongate chamber. In one embodiment the lock includes a toothed carriage plate. In one embodiment the lock includes a clutch configured to move the toothed car riage plate into and out of a cooperating recess to engage and release the carriage with the wall of the elongate chamber. In one embodiment the lock includes a biasing element to facilitate engagement of the plate, tooth, or other lug into the recess for automatic engagement of the lock. In one embodiment the top end includes a loader. In one embodiment the loader includes a tapered recess to facilitate guiding a marking element into the elongate lead chamber. In one embodiment the tapered recess facilitates release of the clamp so that a first clamp jaw and/or second clamp jaw adopts a loading position to receive the marking element. In one embodiment the side wall of the elongate lead chamber includes a plurality of the cooperating recesses to receive the toothed carriage plate. In one embodiment the toothed carriage plate includes directional or sprung teeth so that the actuator is not required to actively push the toothed carriage plate out of engagement with the cooperating recesses. In one embodiment there are four elongate recesses. In one embodiment the four elongate recesses are offset radially and tangentially so that there is provided an external recess in each external corner of the main body. In one embodiment there is a recess disposed in an external corner so as to re ceive a spare lead or tool or ink reservoir. In one embodiment there is a recess disposed between one or more elongate re cesses which is configured to receive marker elements or spare tools or other elongate elements. In one embodiment the recess is closed with a cap. In one embodiment each elongate recess includes a lead or a pen module. In one embodiment there are three pencil leads in three of the elongate recesses. In one embodiment there is provided one pen module. In one embodiment the type of the marker can be changed depending on the re quirement of each user. In one embodiment the top end includes a top end cap which is integral with the main body. In one embodiment the top end includes a top end cap which is fastened to the main body. In one embodiment the tip end includes a tip end cap which includes a lead in for the leads in the elongate chambers. In one embodiment the top and tip end caps are fastened together by a bolt pass ing along the main body. In this way the top and tip end caps hold together the main body assembly. In one embodiment the top and tip end caps are adaptors which include apertures for receiving the lead or pen module and an external section which conforms to the internal shape of the elongate chambers. In one embodiment the top and tip end caps are sleeves for receiving the lead or pen module. The sleeve may extend along the elongate chamber a selected amount, up to the full length. In one embodiment there is provided a key ring holder or belt loop attachment. In one embodiment the belt loop attachment or key ring holder is disposed on the top end cap. In one embodiment the cross sectional shape of the marking element leads is rec tangular. In one embodiment the cross sectional shape of the marking element leads is an ovoid. In one embodiment the cross section shape of the marking element leads is an oc tagon to provide strength and one or more sharp vertices to make fine markings. In one embodiment the cross section shape of the marking element leads is a flat tened octagonal shape to provide a combination of sharp corners and strong thick lines to facilitate construction marking. In one embodiment the cross section shape of the marking element leads includes a plurality of vertices to facilitate a plurality of different thicknesses of line marked on a marking surface. In one embodiment the cross sectional shape of the marking element leads is cross-shaped, or concave, or any suitable shape. In accordance with another aspect of the present invention there is provided a marker including: a main body assembly including a top and a tip, the main body assembly including a plurality of elongate housings with elongate chambers disposed therein, the one or more elongate housings being detachably connected to one an other for receiving and dispensing elongate marker elements. In accordance with another aspect of the present invention there is provided a marker including: a main body assembly including a top and a tip, the main body assembly including a plurality of elongate housings with elongate chambers disposed therein, the one or more elongate housings being connected to one another for re ceiving and dispensing elongate marker elements. In one embodiment the elongate housings include clips to detachably connect one housing to an adjacent housing. In one embodiment the elongate housings include magnets to detachably connect one housing to another housing. In one embodiment the elongate housings include snap fitting elements to detach ably connect one housing to another housing. In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention there is provided a chassis for a marker, the chassis including a plurality of elongate hollow chambers configured to receive a marker element and a carriage assembly operatively con nected thereto for carrying at least a portion of the marker element along the elon gate hollow chamber. In accordance with still another aspect of the present invention there is provided a chassis for a marker, the chassis including a plurality of elongate hollow chambers configured to receive a marker element and a drive assembly operatively con nected thereto for driving the marker element along the elongate hollow chambers. In one embodiment the main body includes a chassis as herein described. In one embodiment at least two elongate chambers share a common wall. In one embodiment one elongate chamber shares two common walls with other adjacent chambers. In one embodiment each elongate chamber is open along one elongate peripheral wall. The arrangement is such that each elongate chamber includes a plurality of elongate peripheral walls with one open wall along one side. The arrangement is such that there are three elongate peripheral walls. Each elongate chamber is like another, and to assemble the chassis, two or more like elongate chambers are dis posed side by side, one peripheral wall of one elongate chamber closes the open elongate chamber of an adjacent chamber. In this way there is a supportive or symbiotic relationship between the elongate chambers, where each one closes an other. This economises on material. This supportive or symbiotic relationship between the elongate chambers of the chassis may be most useful when the chassis is assembled from like elongate chambers, but the chassis may equally suitably be printed from an additive pro cess. In one embodiment the elongate chambers are formed from sheet metal or formed or extruded plastic or aluminium or sheets of carbon fibre or GRP or other polymer. In one embodiment each elongate chamber is formed from a sheet formed into a channel shape. In one embodiment the channel shape includes one leg longer than the other. In one embodiment the elongate chambers assemble to form a plurality of elon gate chambers, each one closing a wall of an adjacent chamber. In one embodiment the chassis includes four elongate chambers. In one embodiment the chassis includes four elongate chambers disposed around a central storage cavity. The marking element may be advanced along the elongate chamber by a threaded mechanism. A carriage may be utilised in the embodiment with the threaded mechanism. The threaded mechanism may include a rotating actuator disposed at the top end of the assembly, which is configured to drive a threaded spine, or threaded bore, on which the carriage is propelled by the rotation of the spine or bore. The marking element may be advanced along the elongate chamber by a push clutch mechanism, wherein a clutch actuator is disposed at the top end for advanc ing the marking element in an indexing fashion. In accordance with a still further aspect of the present invention there is provided an extensible marker pen module which is configured to adopt a retracted position in which a pen tip is disposed within a housing and a deployed position in which the pen tip is extended from the housing, wherein the marker pen module is config ured to advance and retract with a box cutter-style clutch mechanism. In one embodiment the pen module includes a reservoir for receiving ink for the marker pen. 92. In one embodiment the reservoir is operatively connected to a carriage for travers ing along the housing between the retracted and deployed positions.

93. In one embodiment the reservoir is operatively connected to the actuator for mov ing the pen module between the retracted and deployed positions.

94. In one embodiment the actuator is connected to the clutch lock as above de scribed.

95. In one embodiment the carriage includes an adaptor mount, which includes an outer periphery to conform to the internal walls of the elongate chamber, and one or more jaws to engage and support the external walls of the pen module or lead.

96. In one embodiment the adaptor mount includes teeth to keep the lead or pen mod ule from retracting through the adaptor mount.

Advantages

97. Advantageously, embodiments of the present technology provide a marker which is operated in a similar way to a utility knife or box cutter. That is, there is a direct relationship between the amount of movement of a thumb-actuated carriage and the movement of a marker element.

98. The marker is rugged of construction and can be used to mark construction ele ments such as timber or boards.

99. The thumb actuated carriage of an embodiment has a thumb actuator which is pressed to release a clutch, and then the actuator is slid to a selected position.

100. The clutch has a secure engagement between teeth on the actuator, and cooperat ing recesses.

101. It is also straightforward to see how much lead there is left in the chamber, be cause of the position of the thumb actuator and/or the carriage aperture.

102. If there is a tool in one of the chambers, say, a screw driver or punch, there is suffi cient axial and torque resistance in the main body to push a fastener and/or drive a screw.

103. If the user decides to change the nature of the marker element, the carriage adap tor is adaptable to any of the elements or other of the elements described in this specification, which makes the marker very flexible in terms of tasks able to be car ried out.

Clarifications

104. In this specification, where a document, act or item of knowledge is referred to or discussed, this reference or discussion is not an admission that the document, act or item of knowledge or any combination thereof was at the priority date:

(a) part of common general knowledge; or

(b) known to be relevant to an attempt to solve any problem with which this specification is concerned.

105. It is to be noted that, throughout the description and claims of this specification, the word 'comprise' and variations of the word, such as 'comprising' and 'comprises', is not intended to exclude other variants or additional components, integers or steps.

Brief Description of the drawings

106. In order to enable a clearer understanding, a preferred embodiment of the technol ogy will now be further explained and illustrated by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

107. Figure 1 is an isometric view of a marker with marking elements in a fully retracted position;

108. Figure 2 is an elevation view of the marker of Figure 1 showing one marking ele ment in front elevation, which is a pencil lead, crayon, or chalk in an extended po sition for marking;

109. Figure 3 is a different elevation view of the marker of Figure 2, showing the ex tended marking element in side elevation;

110. Figure 4 is an elevation view of the marker of Figure 2, showing a front elevation view of an ink pen module in an extended position for marking;

111. Figure 5 is a different elevation view of the marker of Figure 2, showing a side ele vation view of the ink pen module in an extended position;

112. Figure 6 is a section view through A-A (Figures 2 and 3) but with all the marker el ements in the retracted position;

113. Figure 7 is a section view of a housing body blank of the marker of Figure 1 ; 114. Figure 8 is a section view through C-C (Figure 6) showing one lead in side eleva tion in the retracted position while the front lead is shown in section view in the ex tended position;

115. Figure 9 is a section view through B-B (Figure 6) showing the actuator assembly clutches an engaged position;

116. Figure 10 is a section view through E-E (Figure 2) showing the arrangement of the chambers with marking elements therein;

117. Figure 11 is a detail view of a carriage in a loading position with a marking element being loaded into the clamp;

118. Figure 12 is an elevation section view of an ink module in a loading position;

119. Figure 13 is an isometric view of a marking element (pencil lead, crayon or chalk) being a flattened octagon; and

120. Figure 14 is a section view of the marking element shown in Figure 13.

Detailed description of an example embodiment

121. Referring to the drawings there is generally indicated at 10, an extendible marking implement with a utility knife or box cutter-style sliding thumb actuator assembly 20 for operation of a marking element 30. The arrangement is such that the utility knife or box cutter-style sliding thumb actuator assembly 20 is configured to slide along an elongate window 22 towards a tip 24 to extend the lead 31 , pen module 32, (or marker, scribe, punch, screw driver or other tool) for marking a surface. The thumb actuator assembly 20 is configured to slide in the elongate window back to ward a top for retraction (Figure 1 ), loading a new marker element (Figure 11 ), or ejecting an old one.

122. It is to be understood that in some aspects of the invention, there is a threaded ac tuator drive or push-clutch for extension and retraction of the marking element 30. So, some of the aspects of the invention are described in combination with other aspects.

123. As for the embodiment shown, the marker 10 includes a main body assembly 12 including a top end portion 23 and a tip end portion 24, and a housing 13 in the form of a chassis 14 with four elongate chambers 26, 27, 28 and 29 extending from the top end portion 23 to the tip end portion 24 for receiving and dispensing the marking element 30. There is an elongate aperture 35 disposed on a side wall 36 of the elongate cham bers 26, 27, 28, 29 and extending substantially between the top end portion 23 and the tip end portion 24, and there is a carriage assembly 40 at least partially disposed in the elongate aperture 35 for operatively connecting to the marking ele ment 30 for loading, unloading, extension and retraction operations on the marking element. The carriage assembly 40 includes a carriage 42 for carrying the lead 31 or ink module 32. In operation the carriage includes an adaptor 99 which is guided along the elongate chambers by the internal walls of the elongate chambers themselves. The carriage 42 includes a clamp 44 for clamping the marking element 30. The clamp 44 includes movable jaws 46 to hold the marking element in the clamp. The clamp jaws 46 include teeth 48 which are directional and face the tip to inhibit re traction and slip of the module in the clamp. The directional teeth are essentially the ends of the clamp jaws 46. The clamp 44 also includes retaining arms 49 which are directional and which are biased to spring outward. The retaining arms 49 include adaptor portions 99 to provide a snug fit against the internal walls of the chamber 26, 27, 28 or 29 and this is so that jiggle or play between the marking ele ment 30 and the internal walls of the chamber 26, 27, 28 or 29 is reduced. The carriage assembly 40 also includes an actuator 50, configured to be operable by a thumb of a user, to operate the marking element 30 in extending, retracting, loading and facilitating ejecting the element 30. The actuator 50 includes a lock 52 for locking the carriage 42 to the elongate chamber wall 36 at a selected position between the top and the tip. The lock 52 is a toothed lock or dog clutch 53 config ured to disengage and engage the teeth 54 on carriage 42 with cooperating teeth 37 on the elongate aperture 35. The lock 52 includes a clutch 53 configured to move the toothed carriage plate 43 into and out of cooperating recesses 37 to engage and release the carriage from elongate aperture 35. The lock 52 further includes a biasing element 55 to facilitate engagement of the teeth 54 into the cooperating recesses 37 for automatic engagement of the lock 52. The top end portion 23 includes a loader 60; it includes a tapered recess 62 to fa cilitate guiding the marking element 30 into the elongate lead chamber 26, 27, 28 and 29. There are four elongate chambers 26, 27, 28 and 29. The four elongate chambers are offset radially and tangentially so that there is pro vided an external recess 63 in each external corner of the main body assembly 12, and also the arrangement of chambers provides a central recess 69 for storage of spare marking elements. Inside each chamber 26, 27, 28 and 29 there is disposed a lead 31 or a pen mod ule 32. In the embodiment shown there are three pencil leads in three of the elon gate recesses and one pen module, but those proportions can vary depending on the user’s need. The invention is flexible in this respect, in that a user, when fin ished with a marker lead 31 , could replace it with a pen module 32. In that circum stance, the user merely inserts the pen module 32 in the same chamber, from the top end 23, into the chamber (say, chamber 26 or 27). The top end 23 includes a top end cap 67. The cap 67 is fastened to the chassis 14 of the housing 13 by friction and also with a central screw fastener 15 attached to a plug 17 in the central recess 69. The tip end 24 includes a tip end cap 65 which includes a lead 63 in for the leads 31 in the elongate chambers. The lead in 63 helps to lead the lead 31 to a fairly snug fit aperture at the tip end 24 for support of the lead 31 when writing or marking. The top cap 67 includes a key ring holder 61 or belt loop attachment in the form of a pair of catches 71 extending from a pair of adjacent walls. The two catches 71 provide a gap 73 to receive the key ring (not shown) or belt loop (also not shown). The catches 71 are flexible to allow a little bending to receive the loop or ring in be hind the catches 71 to a keeping bight 74. The cross section shape of the marking element leads can be any suitable shape, including rectangular, square, circular, ovoid, octagon, hexagon or the like to pro vide strength and one or more sharp vertices to make fine markings. But in the em bodiment shown in the drawings, the cross section shape of the marking element lead 31 is a flattened octagonal shape (figure 14) to provide a combination of sharp corners and strong thick lines to facilitate construction marking. The chassis 14 is in the form of four chambers 26, 27, 28 and 29. The chambers, as shown in Figure 7 and described above, are spaced from a centre and shifted tangentially from a radial point. This creates a centre hold 69 which in some em bodiments can be used for spare items, but also provides ridges 82 and recesses 83 on an outer wall, for improved handgrip on the main body 12. Indeed the re cesses 83 can be used for storage of items on the outside wall. 137. The construction of the chassis 14 is that the chambers 26, 27, 28 and 29 share common walls. For example, chamber 27 which started as a sheet bent into a three sided, open channel, shares a wall, which is 86, with chamber 26 to close the open side of the chamber 27. The chassis 14 may be formed by an additive pro cess, but in the embodiment shown in Figure 7, can be seen as being four formed sheets 84 assembled together. The four sheets 84 are formed into channels 85, one leg 86 longer than the other 87. This economises on materials, since one sheet relies on the adjacent sheet to close the open sided channel and form a chamber 26, 27, 28 and 29. This method may form six chambers, five chambers, eight chambers, or two or three chambers.

138. To hold the channels in place to form the chassis 14, the end caps 65, 67 include end cap channels (not shown). There may be also snap fit locks or tabs to grip or hold the ends of the channels 85 and hold the assembly together. There may be friction fit channels, or adhesive to hold the end caps 65, 67 onto the ends of the channels 85.

139. The ends of the channels 85 may include apertures or recesses to receive snap fit locks or tabs to grip or hold the channels together and hold the assembly together.

140. In the embodiment shown, there is a bolt 98 which extends from the end cap 65 to end cap 67 to hold the assembly together.

141. It should also be appreciated that the marker assembly 10 may be formed by hav ing two separate pencil or pen assemblies and detachably assembled together, by magnets or snap clips. This arrangement is not shown but could readily be formed using the description in this specification.

142. A pen module 32 is also provided, which includes an ink reservoir 38 with an end cap and a dispensing tube 39, and a directional seal element 41 for sealing around the dispensing tube 39. The pen module 32 fits in the chamber 26, 27, 28 or 29 just the same as a pencil lead 31 and the two are replaceable therein. This is part of the advantageous flexibility of at least some embodiments of the invention.

Assembly

143. To assemble, first the chassis sheets 84 are formed into channels 85. This is done either by bending, if they are sheet metal (or bendable plastic or other material), or by an additive process, in which the channels would be formed more directly. 144. The carriage assembly 40 is fitted in the elongate aperture 35, and the biasing ele ment and lock 52 are then fitted on the outside so that the teeth 54 are engaged with cooperating recesses on aperture 35.

145. The channels may be fastened together with welding or tabs or similar to form and keep the 4-chambered chassis 14, but in one example embodiment shown in the drawings in Figures 4,5, 6 and 7 and others, there is no welding between the chan nels but the top and bottom ends 45, 47 of the channels 85 are loaded into the top and/or the bottom caps 65, 67, located in place, and then a central bolt 98 is fitted to keep the caps 65, 67 tightly onto the ends of the channels 85 to keep the cham bers 26, 27, 28 and 29.

146. Then, the carriage assembly is moved to the top cap, and the jaws are opened, and the pen module 32 or pencil lead 31 is loaded into a selected chamber 26, 27, 28 or 29. The carriage adaptor holds the lead 31 or pen reservoir 38 in position in the chamber 26, 27, 28 or 29.

Operation

147. In operation the user retracts and extends the lead 31 or pen module 32 by actuat ing the lock 52 actuator. A user presses inward to the central hold (radially) which then disengages the teeth 54 from the elongate aperture 35. The user slides the actuator along the chassis 14 toward or away from the tip and writes or retracts the implements 31 , 32.

Clarifications

148. Modifications and improvements to the invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. Such modifications and improvements are intended to be within the scope of this invention.

Claims

CLAIMS.

1. A marker including: a main body assembly including a top end portion and a tip end portion, the main body assembly comprising: at least one elongate chamber extending from the top end portion to the tip end portion for receiving and dispensing a marking element; an elongate aperture disposed on a side wall of the at least one elon gate chamber and extending substantially between the top end portion and the tip end portion; and a carriage assembly at least partially disposed in the at least one elongate ap erture for operatively connecting to the marking element for loading, unloading, exten sion and retraction operations on the marking element.

2. The marker in accordance with claim 1 wherein there is further provided a marker lead which is rectangular, triangular, pentagonal, octagonal, hexagonal, or flattened octagonal in cross sectional shape.

3. The marker in accordance with claim 1 or 2 wherein the marking element includes a pencil lead, caulk, crayon, chalk, a scribe, screwdriver, punch, or pen assembly.

4. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the carriage assembly includes a carriage for carrying the marking element or ink module.

5. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the carriage is guided along the elongate chambers by formations on the walls of the elongate cham bers, or the walls of the elongate chambers themselves.

6. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the carriage includes a clamp for clamping the marking element.

7. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the clamp in cludes teeth to hold the marking element in the clamp.

8. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the clamp teeth are directional and face the tip to inhibit retraction and slip of the module in the clamp.

9. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the carriage assembly includes an actuator, configured to be operable by a thumb of a user, to op erate the marking element.

10. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the actuator includes a lock for locking the carriage to the elongate chamber at a selected position between the top and the tip.

11. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the lock is a friction lock configured to hold a brake shoe against a wall of the elongate chamber.

12. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the lock in cludes a toothed carriage plate.

13. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the lock in cludes a clutch configured to move the toothed carriage plate into and out of a coop erating recess to engage and release the carriage with the wall of the elongate cham ber.

14. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the lock in cludes a biasing element to facilitate engagement of the plate, tooth, or other lug into the recess for automatic engagement of the lock.

15. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the top end portion includes a loader.

16. The marker in accordance with claim 15 wherein the loader includes a tapered recess to facilitate guiding a marking element into the elongate lead chamber.

17. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the tapered recess facilitates release of the clamp so that a first clamp jaw and/or second clamp jaw adopts a loading position to receive the marking element.

18. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the side wall of the elongate lead chamber includes a plurality of the cooperating recesses to re ceive the toothed carriage plate.

19. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the toothed carriage plate includes directional or sprung teeth so that the actuator is not required to actively push the toothed carriage plate out of engagement with the cooperating re cesses.

20. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein there are four elongate recesses.

21. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the four elon gate recesses are offset radially and tangentially so that there is provided an external recess in each external corner of the main body.

22. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein there is a re cess disposed in an external corner so as to receive a spare lead or tool or ink reser voir.

23. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein there is an ex ternal recess disposed between one or more elongate chambers which is configured to receive marker elements or spare tools or other elongate elements.

24. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the external recess is closed with a cap.

25. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein each elongate chamber includes a lead or a pen module.

26. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein there are three pencil leads in three of the elongate chambers.

27. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein there is pro vided one pen module.

28. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the top end portion includes a top end cap which is fastened to the main body.

29. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the top end portion includes a top end cap which includes a lead in for the leads in the elongate chambers.

30. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the top and tip end caps are fastened together by a bolt passing along the main body.

31. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the top and tip end caps are adaptors which include apertures for receiving the lead or pen module and an external section which conforms to the internal shape of the elongate cham bers.

32. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein there is pro vided a key ring holder or belt loop attachment.

33. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the belt loop attachment or key ring holder is disposed on the top end cap.

34. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the main body assembly further includes a plurality of elongate housings with elongate chambers disposed therein, the one or more elongate housings being detachably connected to one another for receiving and dispensing elongate marker elements.

35. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the elongate housings include clips to detachably connect one housing to an adjacent housing.

36. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the top and the tip end caps include snap fitting elements to detachably connect to the elongate chambers.

37. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein at least two elongate chambers share a common wall.

38. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein one elongate chamber shares two common walls with other adjacent chambers.

39. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the chassis includes elongate chambers which include a plurality of elongate channels, each on being open along one elongate peripheral wall.

40. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein each elongate chamber includes a plurality of elongate peripheral walls with one open wall along one side.

41. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the elongate chambers are formed from sheet metal or formed or extruded plastic or aluminium or sheets of carbon fibre or GRP or other polymer.

42. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein each elongate chamber is formed from a sheet formed into a channel shape.

43. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the channel shape includes one leg longer than the other.

44. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the elongate channels assemble to form a plurality of elongate chambers, each one closing a wall of an adjacent chamber.

45. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the chassis includes four elongate chambers.

46. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the chassis includes four elongate chambers disposed around a central cavity.

47. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein he marking element is advanced along the elongate chamber by a threaded mechanism.

48. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein a carriage is utilised in the embodiment with the threaded mechanism. The threaded mechanism may include a rotating actuator disposed at the top end of the assembly, which is con figured to drive a threaded spine, or threaded bore, on which the carriage is propelled by the rotation of the spine or bore.

49. The marker in accordance with any one of the previous claims wherein the marking element is advanced along the elongate chamber by a push clutch mechanism, wherein a clutch actuator is disposed at the top end for advancing the marking ele ment in an indexing fashion.

50. A marker lead for a marker which is octagonal in cross sectional shape.

51. The marker lead in accordance with claim 50 wherein the octagon is a flattened oc tagonal shape to provide a combination of sharp corners and strong thick lines to fa cilitate construction marking.

52. The marker lead in accordance with claim 50 wherein the cross section shape of the marking element leads includes a plurality of vertices to facilitate a plurality of differ ent thicknesses of line marked on a marking surface.

53. The marker lead in accordance with claim 50 wherein the cross sectional shape of the marking element leads is cross-shaped, or concave, or any suitable shape.