US2876739A - Paper sheathed pencils - Google Patents

Description

March 1o, 1959 rllllllll .IIIIIIIAw/.ll' "1,1115:

P. GAUTHIER PAPER sHEATHEn PENCILs Filed Feb. 6, 1956 INVENTOR Phila/ope Gazf/e ATTOR EYS ...Unid States Patt PAPER SHEATHED PENCILS Philippe Gauthier, Drummondville, Quebec, Canada, as-

signor to Blaisdell Pencil Company, Drummondville, v Quebec, Canada, a corporation of Pennsylvania Application February 6, 195s, seriai No. 563,525'

' 4 claims. (c1. 1z0- 35) This invention relates to improvements in paper sheathed pencils.

4 Such pencil comprises a rod or stick of marking material such as graphite or so-called lead, crayon or the like, and in addition such pencils may comprise rods of abradable rather than marking material, such as erasers,

and cosmetics such as eyebrow pencils, styptic sticks the pencil, i. e., expose a portion of the marking or abradable material, the outermost strip of the paper is unwound and removed.

Such paper pencils have been on the market for many years. Much research work has been devoted to the development of such pencils in which the strips of paper can be removed readily, i. e., by pulling olf quickly and easily and without involving laborious unwinding from the pencil. Where parallel rows of continuous score lines separate contiguous paper strips of such pencils, as the pencils inust have the necessary strengthto resist breaking and bending transversely of their length, the score lines must be relatively shallow-'and in addition to the strip being ditlicult to remove, it frequently fails to shear clean in electing sharpening or pointing of vthe pencil.' Use of paper sheaths in which contiguous strips are separated by closely spaced slots or slits frequently result in pencils which are weak transversely and which readily break or bend to an extent rendering the pencil undesirable or objectionable in use and also gives rise to added problems in winding of the paper on the rod or stick of marking or abrasive material due to the increased tendency of the paper to split during the winding. Efforts to counteract this splitting tendency by having the areas separating continguous slots or slits in the same row, of considerable length say 0.05 inch or longer, results in pencils which cannot be sharpened readily, but in which a strip must for that purpose be unwound slowly, laboriously and carefully.

It is accordingly among the Vobjects of this invention to provide a paper pencil which is comparatively strong, i. e., will not break or bend unduly transversely when subjected to normal stresses in use, which may readily be wound without likelihood of splitting during such winding and from which the strips can readily and quickly be removed to sharpen the pencil; for example, they can be pulled olf quickly and cleanly and need not be laboriously unwound, and which provides a conical end when sharpened which affords a better grip than paper pencils heretofore known and which permits of a more comortable and firmer handling of the pencil by the user.

According to the invention, the sheathing paper has ICC the contiguous strips, each desirably about s of an inch wide separated by rows of spaced score line segments, each from lg of an inch to g, preferably about 1A@ of an inch in length and each score line segment in a row is separated from the next score line segment in the same row by a distance within the range of .008 to .015 inch.

This range of dimensions of the score line segments and their spacing in each row are critical, because it is only by having the length of the score lines and their spacing conform to the above noted requirements that a pencil results which is relatively strong in that it resists breaking and bending transversely and which permits the depth ofthe score line segments to be relatively great, i. e., the thickness of the sheet `remaining between the back thereof and the bottom of the score line segment may be between .0005 and .00075 inch, so that the pencil can be readily sharpened or pointed by pulling olf a strip. There inherently results by the present invention a novel-and improved conical end when a strip is pulled off for sharpening, inasmuch as small projecting portions or ears are automatically formed in spaced relation on the exposed edge of the strip on such conical end and they extend from an overlapping convolution over the immediately underlying convolution, thus providing a conical end which affords a better grip and hence permits a iirmer and more convenient holding than the ridged conical end produced in the sharpening of prior known paper pencils.

In the specification and claims, the expression score line means a narrow depression in the sheet, extending from the outer face thereof inwardly for part only of the thickness of the sheet.

In the accompanying drawings, in which is shown one or more of various possible embodiments of the several features of the invention,

Fig. l is a side elevational view of a pencil embodying the invention (in the interest of clarity of illustration the details of the structure of the conical end of the pencil have not been shown in this ligure),

Fig. 2 is a greatly enlarged fragmentary side elevational view of the conical end of the pencil,

Fig. 3 is a plan diagrammatic view of the sheathing paper employed in making the pencil of this invention (the scale being too small to permit showing the spacing between the successive score lines in each row for which reason these successive score lines are represented by full lines),

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary plan view on a Igreatly enlarged scale showing the spacing between the successive score lines of each row defining the side edges of contiguous strips and in the case of a portion of a pair of contiguous strips showing the shape or configuration of the ears when one strip is removed to sharpen the pencil,

Fig. 5 is a sectional view on a greatly enlarged scale, taken along line 5-5 of Fig. 4, and

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5, taken along line 6 6 of Fig. 4.

Referring now to the drawings 10 indicates a pencil composed of a rod or stick of marking or abrasive material 11 sheathed in a sheet of paper 12 which, as shown in Fig. 3, is in the shape of a parallelogram, the angles of which depart but slightly from right angles.

According to the invention, the sheathing sheet 12 has a plurality of parallel rows of spaced score line segments 14 which define strips 1S therebetween, each about @is of an inch in width. The score line segments 14 are preferably all of the same length, each from 1/32 to g of an inch, preferably of an inch in length and the thickness of the sheet remaining between the back thereof and the bottom of the score line segments 14 is between .0005 and .00075 inch which is considerably less than the thickness ofthe sheet itself. The spaces 16 between the score line segments i4 of each row are all preferably of the same length within the range of .008 to .015 inch. The sheathing sheet 12 may be rolled around the marking material 11 with the exterior layer 18 adhesively secured to the immediately underlying layers and treated with a paint, varnish or enamel of any desired color. Preferably, but not necessarily, cutouts or depressions 19 are formed in the outer layer 1S aligned with `each row of score lines 14 to facilitate sharpening and serv ing as a guide by which the width of the strips I may be gauged.

When the sheathing sheet l2 is wound about the rod or stick of marking or abrasivey material 11, each strip 1'5 is disposed on the marking material 11 in theform of a spiral coil 21, best shown in Fig. 2. The spiral coils formed by the strips 15 of the sheet 12 are thus disposed along the length of the stick of marking material 11 in side by side contiguous relationship. To effect sharpening of the pencil, it is only necessary to remove the leading spiral coil 21 thus exposing a fresh portion of the marking or abrasive rod or stick 11. For this purpose, in the embodiment of the invention shown in the drawing, the pencil is provided with a exible element 22, such as a thread extending the length thereof and having one end exposed near the tip of the pencil so that it may readily be gripped between the lingers and moved to cut through the outer layer 18 to facilitate unwinding or tearing of one of the spiral strips 15.

By having the rows of spaced score line segments 14 dimensioned as hereinabove described, when a coil 2l is removed, ears 23, best shown in Figs. 2 and 4, antomatically form on the exposed edge 24 of the helix or spiral coil left on the pencil to form the conical sharpened end thereof. These ears are in the form of small projections formed from the spaces 16 between adjacent score lines 14 which extend from theexposed edge 24 and across the immediately underlying convolution, as best shown in Fig. 2. These ears 23, accordingly result in a conical end affording a better grip, which can be more comfortably and firmly held by the user.

The combination of the score line segments 14 and the spaces 16 between the score line segments provides a paper pencil that is relatively strong in that it resists breaking and bending transversely of its length. The score line segments 14 may be of considerable depth so that the pencil can be sharpened readily and quickly by pulling oi the leading coil 21 to expose a fresh portion of the stick 1l and the resultant conical end is more easily gripped firmly without resultant inconvenience to the user.

In the claims, the term rod of abradable material is generic to marking material, erasers, cosmetics, such as eyebrow pencils, mascara and styptic material.

tAs changes could be made in the above article, and different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope of the claims, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A pencil comprising a rod of abradable material, a sheath for said rod composed of a spirally `Wound paper sheet forming parallel strips each approximately of an inch wide, said strips being formed by parallel rows of spaced score line segments, each score line segment in each such row being of substantially the same length within the range of 1,532 -to @X32 of an inch andthe spaces between contiguous score line segments in each row being of substantially the same length and within the range of .008 to 0.15 inch and each score line-segment being of a depth spaced by between .0005 and .00075 inch from the inner face of the strip.

2. The combination recited in claim l in which the spaces between contiguous score lines in each row `are not greater than .00S inch long and the length ofieach score line is about 1A@ inch long` 3. A paper sheath for winding about a rod of abrad able material to form a paper pencil, said sheath having parallel rows of spaced score line segments extending thereacross and the score line segments in each row vhaving a length within lthe range of )7&2 to @$2 of an inch and being spaced apart a distance of from .008 to 0.15 inch, the thickness of thefsheath remaining between the back thereof and the bottom of each score line segment being within the range of .0005 and .00075 inch.

4. The combination recited in claim l in which the spirally wound strip delines the conical end of said pencil and has projecting from the exposed edges thereof a series of spaced ears bridging the space between -each overlying convolution and the immediate underlying convolution.

References Cited in the iile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 549,952 Blaisdell Nov. 19, 1895 1,756,953 OSullivan May 6, 1930 1,761,407 OSullivan June 3, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT O FFICE CERTIFICATE 0F coRRECTioN Patent No., 2,876,739 March lO, 1959 Philippe cfcmfhierV In the granty lines 2 and 3, for "assigner to Blaisdell Pencil Company, of Drlmlmondville, Quebec, Canada, a corporation of Pennsylvania," read Signed and sealed this 14th day of June' 1960,

(SEAL) Attest:

KARL E., XLINE ROBERT C. WATSON Attesting Officer Cnm'nissione of Feiten@

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