GB2428214A - Hole punch comprising a folded sheet and punch heads - Google Patents

Abstract

The punch 10 is formed form a single sheet of metal or plastic folded or bent several times back under itself to form superposed leaves. The punch 10 includes a paper receiving gap 18 between a platform 40 and a shelf 30, that is solidly connected 28 to punch head 16 carrying leaf 12. Preferably the sheet also forms a floor 50 enclosing a waste storage chamber 20. Preferably punch heads 16, mounted in a stiffening longitudinal ridge 14 along the actuating leaf 12, pass through guide passages in a raised longitudinal ridge 34 on the guide shelf 30. When the actuating leaf 12 is depressed the heads 16 enter dies 42 in the platform.

Description

PUNCH

This invention relates to a punch, particularly to a paper punch of the kind used to punch single or multiple holes in one or more sheets of paper or like materials, such as shearable plastics sheet. The punched holes are typically used to allow papers to be assembled and retained together using split brass pins or the like, or treasury tags, or to be held in two-, three- or four-ring loose- leaf binders.

Paper punches for these purposes are well known. They are widely used. They tend to be bulky and solidly made for durability and reliable performance. From the point of view of a user, especially that of a user who works with papers while travelling, or at least not in a permanent office space, a paper punch designed for desk use is often not available when it is needed.

It is an object of this invention to provide an effective paper punch that can be made inexpensively, as a portable product, and that may even be regarded as disposable, or incorporated individually into binders and folders destined for the filing of paper sheets.

According to the present invention, a paper punch comprises a die on a die platform; a guide shelf over the die on the platform and spaced therefrom to provide a paper-receiving gap for accommodating a sheet to be punched; a punch head guide passage in the guide shelf in alignment with the die on the die platform; an actuating leaf over the guide shelf, said leaf carrying a punch head extending into the guide passage in alignment with the die; the actuating leaf and the guide shelf extending laterally away from the punch head and guide passage and being solidly connected together remotely therefrom; and at least part of the actuating leaf, the guide shelf, and any connecting structure between them, being sufficiently resilient to permit the actuating leaf to be advanced towards the guide shelf sufficiently far that the punch head passes through the guide passage and into the die, punching through any paper sheet in the paper-receiving gap.

In this specification, for clarity, the term "punch" is used to mean the whole operative tool, while the term "punch head" is used to refer to the element that penetrates a sheet and enters the die, normally with a sufficiently close fit within the die as to shear a disc (or potentially any other shape) of paper from the sheet. References to paper and to discs herein should however be interpreted as extending to like shearable sheet materials, and other shapes of waste paper cuttings or shearings, without distinction.

As will be further explained below, the punch according to this invention can be made without the use of bearing surfaces between its moving parts, and indeed needs no pivots, hinges, rockers or rollers to permit or transmit force and motion. Instead, the resilience of the structure itself can be sufficient for the operation of the punch, behaving as a leaf spring that is flat or curved or folded. The only source of friction between relatively moving parts may be at the interface between the punch head and the die. Accordingly, there is no need for wear-resisting surfaces elsewhere, allowing economy of manufacture as a result.

While the actuating leaf and the guide shelf may be originated as separate pieces which are later fastened together by riveting, welding or the like, they are preferably formed together in one single piece; and while this piece can be formed in a variety of ways, for example by moulding, casting or extrusion, it is preferably formed by bending a single piece of sheet material back over itself, often but not necessarily through 180 .

The resilience which permits flexure and advance of the punch head on the actuating leaf through the guide passage in the guide shelf may be provided in the region of the bend, or in the respective sheets, or both. It is not necessarily desirable to confine the resilience to a narrow line along a single sharp fold, because of the risk of fatigue and weakening of the material along that line over many cycles of use. A broad radius bend is desirable in the actuating connection between the actuating leaf and the guide shelf.

Preferably, the guide shelf and the die platform are formed in one single piece, although they can in principle be made separately and fastened together by riveting or welding or the like.

Again, while the single piece can be formed in a variety of ways, including moulding, casting and extrusion, it is preferably formed by folding a single piece of sheet material back over itself, through a net 1800, leaving a paper-receiving gap between the superposed sheet portions. The paper-receiving gap is closed at one side by the fold, and should be left open at the opposite side for the reception of the sheet or sheets to be punched; the position of the fold in relation to the position of the die on the die platform may be chosen to allow the fold to function as a paper stop at a desired distance from the die, so that the punched hole appears at a desired distance from the edge of the paper sheet.

It is not necessary to provide any flexing between the guide shelf and the die platform below it, but any such flexing may, in use, serve to grip the paper sheet or sheets while the punch head advances into the die, when the actuating leaf is pressed towards the die in a punching operation.

Preferably, a further leaf is provided below the die platform forming the floor of a storage chamber for catching punched paper waste expelled from the lower end of the die. Preferably this storage chamber is provided with a removable plug to permit or assist periodic emptying.

While the die platform and storage chamber floor may be separate pieces fastened together by riveting, welding or the like, they are likewise preferably formed in one single piece, which can be formed by moulding, casting or extrusion, but again is preferably formed by bending or folding a single piece of sheet material back over itself through about 1800. Preferably, there is closure between the floor and the underside of the die platform on two opposite sides of the punch, whereby to form a rigid supporting floor for the whole apparatus. These two opposite sides, together with the die platform above and the floor below, form a box section into which the punched waste is received, and the two open ends may be closed by removable plugs.

Preferably, the die lies within the die platform, which has no protrusions into the paper-receiving gap.

Advantageously, a portion of the guide shelf surrounding the punch guide passage is raised away from the paper-receiving gap.

This raising may be accomplished during manufacture by any convenient deformation process such as by pressing or by bending.

Raising this surrounding area has the effect of raising the punch guide passage itself, which in turn allows the operative, cutting end of the punch head, which extends at least into the guide passage at all times and may project through the passage even when the punch is fully open, to be held clear of the paper-receiving gap to allow the unobstructed insertion of paper sheets for punching.

Preferably, the raised area around the punch guide passage extends as a continuous ridge substantially parallel to an extended connection between the guide shelf and the actuating leaf above, or substantially parallel to an extended connection between the guide shelf and the die platform below. In the case where these connections are formed by extrusion or by deformation such as bending and folding, and extend the length of the punch, the ridge may be formed by extrusion or bending or folding in a similar manner, and extend the length of the punch also. Forming the guide shelf as a non-planar sheet serves to strengthen it, and to provide rigidity around the guide passage.

It is particularly preferred to provide multiple dies on the die platform, multiple punch guide passages in the guide shelf in alignment with the respective dies, and multiple punch heads on the actuating leaf extending into the respective guide passages in alignment with the dies. In such a case, a continuous ridge as aforesaid may include all the punch guide passages.

The actuating leaf may be provided with a raised portion around the or each punch head, and in the case of multiple punch heads all these raised portions may similarly be combined into a single continuous ridge. Such a ridge is desirably at least as high as any ridge on the guide shelf, and at least as broad as any such ridge, so that the ridge or any other raised portions around the guide passages in the guide shelf are acconm- todated within the underside of the raised portion or portions of the actuating leaf when the punch heads enter the dies. A longitudinal ridge on the actuating leaf is of particular value in a multi-hole punch, since it provides valuable stiffening which allows one-handed operation of all punch heads simultaneously.

In further aspects of the invention, the punch is provided with means for attaching or affixing it to a carrier. Suitable means include clips, hooks, adhesive pads or patches, pads or patches of hooks or loops for use in hook and loop fastenings, or spaced holes for engaging the rings of a looseleaf binder or for being engaged by corresponding strip or spring fasteners or the like, of the various kinds that are well known in the art. A clip may be formed as yet a further leaf in the paper punch, below the previous lowermost leaf, such as the floor enclosing the storage space. It may be formed by extrusion or bending or folding or in any other convenient way similar to those described above. A strip with spaced-apart holes for engagement in paper filing binders and the like may be formed as a simple extension of the lowermost leaf or layer of the paper punch, the holes being formed in it in any appropriate way.

The invention further extends to the combination of a punch as set out herein and a paper filing binder to which the punch is/or may be attached by one or more clips, binding rings and the like, or attached to a cover of such a binder.

Embodiments of the invention are illustrated, by way of example only, in the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is an overall perspective view of a two-hole paper punch in accordance with the invention; Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view through the punch of Figure 1 in the region of a punch head; Figure 3 shows a variation provided with a binding strip in use for retaining the punch in a folder or binder; Figure 4 shows a variation provided with a clip in use for clipping the punch to the edge of a cover of a ring binder; and Figures 5a and 5b are underneath and side views respectively of a further variation provided with a pocket clip or adhesive base.

In the general view shown in Figure 1, a punch 10 is shown with an upper actuating leaf 12, the full length of which is formed with a stiffening raised ridge 14 carrying two punch heads 16 at the correct 80mm spacing for punching holes in paper or other shearable sheets of material for acceptance in a conventional two-ring or four-ring binder. A waste chamber 20 with a removable end plug 22 can be seen below the actuating leaf, spaced from it by a paper- receiving gap 18 into which sheets to be punched can be inserted.

The punch 10 is largely formed by the deformation of one single sheet of sheet metal, typically steel, of a thickness to allow sufficient rigidity for the purposes described herein, while retaining sufficient resilience to act as a spring where required to do so. Other materials may however be employed, such as plastics with the appropriate physical properties, and these may be formed into shape according to their own characteristic properties, such as thermosoftening. Although extrusion or casting may be appropriate in some instances, the description herein will refer to deformation, folding and bending as if a flat sheet were the starting condition.

The only elements of the punch that are not part of this unitary structure are the two punch heads 16 and the plugs 22 at each end of the waste chamber 20. Thus, it can be seen from the start that a punch according to the invention may have a very simple and economical construction.

Figure 2 shows this more clearly. It is a cross-sectional view taken on the line A-A shown in Figure 1. The plurality of bends and folds in the original rectangular sheet from which the punch is formed can be seen, as can the resulting folded sinuous cross- sectional shape with four principal leaves or layers.

The uppermost leaf is actuating leaf 12, which a user will press down by hand when punching a paper sheet. At one side of the punch this terminates in a downwardly bent lip 24, to provide a smooth edge. The next bends define a raised portion 26 of the actuating leaf, which forms the stiff ridge 14 holding the two punch heads 16, which may be pressed, screwed, or in any other convenient way securely located in position, or even moulded integrally with the actuating leaf.

The side of the actuating leaf opposite to lip 24 extends laterally until it turns downwardly and merges into a connection 28 with guide shelf 30, the next leaf below the actuating leaf. The connection 28 is the sole connecting structure between these two leaves, and is formed as a broad radius bend, solidly connecting them together in one piece. Alternatively, two separate pieces could be solidly connected by screw fastenings, rivets, welding, brazing or the like.

Guide shelf 30 has a raised portion 32 which is extended into a continuous guide shelf ridge 34 below the actuating leaf ridge 14.

Ridge 34 includes two punch head guide passages 36 which permanently receive the respective punch heads 16.

At the side of the punch below lip 24, guide shelf 30 terminates in a complex 1800 fold 32, consisting of turns of one right angle downwards, a further two right angles upwards, and then one right angle back under the guide shelf. Of course, during manufacture these deformations would be made in a more convenient order. In this layer or leaf of the sinuously folded cross-section, the sheet material acts as a die platform 40, which is entirely flat, and is spaced from the underside of guide shelf 30 by a narrow paper-receiving gap 18, which is however augmented by additional space 19 under the guide shelf ridge 34 to accommodate the lower ends 44 of the punch heads 16. The paper-receiving gap functions to limit the thickness of paper that can be fed into the punch, so that the punch is not presented with a thickness beyond its capabilities.

Die platform 40 contains two dies 42 wholly within its thickness, and there is no protrusion on the upper surface of the die platform to interfere with the free movement of paper in the paper-receiving gap. The dies 42 are aligned with the punch heads 16, which are provided with lower operative cutting ends 44 curved or otherwise shaped for effective shearing engagement with the dies 42, as generally known in the art.

Along the side of the punch immediately below actuating connection 28, a further broad radius bend 48 is formed to constitute a closure along one side of punch paper waste storage chamber 20 into which paper discs (not shown) are discharged on being punched out of their original sheets by the punch heads 16, and through the dies 42. The two broad radius bends 28,48 form a radiused entry into the open side of the paper-receiving gap 18, and being rounded form convenient entry guides for the edges of sheets to be punched. The opposite side of the paper-receiving gap is closed by the complex fold 32, which forms a convenient paper stop, ensuring that the sheets are punched at a preset distance in from the edges.

After the bend 48, which like bend 28 is a 180 reversal in the extent of the sheet from which the punch is formed, the sheet continues to extend back under the punch and forms a floor 50 to the waste storage chamber 20. The sheet finally terminates below the downwardly extending portion of the complex fold 32, which thus forms a side closure to the waste chamber on the opposite side to the bend 48, and braces the floor 50 to form a supporting base for the whole punch. Plugs 22 of suitable rubber or plastics material or the like close the opposite ends of the waste storage chamber.

Figure 3 illustrates a variation of the punch, and how it may be used. In this case, floor 50 is extended to form a narrow filing strip 52, in which are formed two binder holes 54 18mm apart, the standard separation for two-hole binding. Spirally wound spring binding wires or rings 56 of any conventional kind retain the punch in a filing folder 58, where it can be kept always ready for use.

A paper sheet 60 is shown positioned in the punch, its leading edge 62 against the paper stop formed by fold 32 along the closed side of the paper-receiving gap, ready to be punched by downward manual pressure on actuating leaf 12, stiffened by ridge 14 against flexing along its length. The actuating connection 28 between the actuating leaf 12 and the guide shelf 30 forms a resilient curved leaf spring and allows the punch heads to penetrate the paper sheet and pass into the dies 42, shearing and punching out the paper to form the desired filing holes, and on release of the manual pressure the actuating leaf resiliently rises and draws the punch heads clear of the dies, their cutting ends recessed into space 19 under the raised portion 32 of the guide shelf, to allow the punched paper to be withdrawn. Actuating leaf ridge 14 is higher and broader than the guide shelf ridge 34, so that the latter forms no obstruction to the downward movement of the actuating leaf. Both ridges are substantially parallel to the side edges of the punch 10 and to the several folds and bends located along these edges.

Figure 4 shows a further variation in which the floor 50 of the punch 10 is turned back yet again, by at least 180 ,this time to form a spring edge clip 62 for affixing the punch to an edge of a looseleaf ring binder cover 64.

Figures 5a and 5b show a variation in which a separately manufactured pocket clip 66 is affixed to one end of floor 50. The outer surface of floor 50 may be provided with an adhesive coating or double-sided adhesive tape or other means for affixing the punch 10 to a convenient surface, as an alternative to the use of pocket clip 66.

Claims (18)

1. A paper punch comprising: a die on a die platform; a guide shelf over the die on the platform and spaced therefrom to provide a paper-receiving gap for accommodating a sheet to be punched; a punch head guide passage in the guide shelf in alignment with the die on the die platform; an actuating leaf over the guide shelf, said leaf carrying a punch head extending into the guide passage in alignment with the die; the actuating leaf and the guide shelf extending laterally away from the punch head and guide passage and being solidly connected together remotely therefrom; and at least part of the actuating leaf, the guide shelf, and any connecting structure between them, being sufficiently resilient to permit the actuating leaf to be advanced towards the guide shelf sufficiently far that the punch head passes through the guide passage and into the die, punching through any paper sheet in the paper-receiving gap.

2. A punch according to claim 1 wherein the actuating leaf and the guide are formed together in one single piece.

3. A punch according to claim 2 wherein the actuating leaf and the guide shelf are formed by bending a single piece of sheet material back over itself.

4. A punch according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the guide shelf and the die platform are formed in one single piece.

5. A punch according to claim 4 wherein the guide shelf and the die platform are formed by folding a single piece of sheet material back over itself through a net 180 , leaving a paper-receiving gap between the superposed sheet portions.

6. A punch according to any one of the preceding claims comprising a further leaf below the die platform, forming the floor of a storage chamber for punched waste from the die.

7. A punch according to claim 6 wherein the die platform and storage chamber floor are formed in one single piece.

8. A punch according to claim 7 wherein the die platform and storage chamber floor are formed by bending or folding a single piece of sheet material back over itself through about 1800.

9. A punch according to claim 7 or claim 8 wherein there is closure between the floor and the underside of the die platform on two opposite sides of the punch, whereby to form a rigid supporting floor.

10. A punch according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the die lies within the die platform.

11. A punch according to any one of the preceding claims wherein a portion of the guide shelf surrounding the punch guide passage is raised away from the paper-receiving gap.

12. A punch according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the die platform is provided with multiple dies, the guide shelf is provided with multiple guide passages in alignment with the respective dies, and the actuating leaf is provided with multiple punch heads extending into the respective guide passages.

13. A punch according to claim 12 wherein a continuous portion of the guide shelf surrounding the several punch guide passages is raised away from the paper-receiving gap and extends as a continuous ridge along the guide shelf.

14. A punch according to claim 13 wherein the continuous ridge along the guide shelf is substantially parallel to an extended connection between the guide shelf and the actuating leaf above, or substantially parallel to an extended connection between the guide shelf and the guide platform below.

15. A punch according to any one of claims 12 to 14 wherein the actuating leaf is provided with a raised portion around each punch head combined into a single continuous ridge along the actuating leaf.

16. A punch according to any one of the preceding claims provided with a clip for attaching or affixing it to a carrier, the clip being formed by bending or folding sheet material constituting the previous lowermost leaf of the punch back under itself by at least 1800.

17. A punch according to any one of the preceding claims in combination with a paper filing binder to which the punch is attached.

18. A paper punch substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in any of the accompanying drawings.