Abstract: The cutter of my invention is a unitary device that does not require a utility knife, only a blade. The cutter exposes twice the blade length of a conventional utility knife, i.e., approximately 2.2 inches. The blade can be extended into the insulation over 4 inches. The cutter has a blade guard (to keep fingers out of the way, etc.). The cutter also has a safety mechanism to guard against accidental exposure of the blade (you have to grip the tool by the handle to allow the blade to be exposed). The cutter also has an added leverage point directly in front of the grip to increase the amount of pressure you can exert on the insulation. This cutter compresses and cut in one continuous motion, i.e. the same motion does both compressing and cutting.

Abstract: A cutting tool for cutting a sheet of compressible fibrous material. The cutting tool includes a blade which forms part of a cutting assembly which is mounted on a supporting base for movement between an upper position in which the blade is located above the material to be cut when the supporting base rests on the material which is to cut to a lower position in which the cutting blade extends below the supporting base. The cutting assembly is biased to the upper position and moved to the lower position by downward pressure from the hand of the operator which also causes the supporting base to compress the fibrous material so that when the cutting tool is moved longitudinally along the upper surface of the fibrous material, the material is cut by the blade.