ERGONOMIC DEVICE
An ergonomic instrument is comprised of an elongated body with a writing tip or tool at the lower end, and an upper end for supporting the base of the index finger. Arcuate arms extending up from the upper end of the body are arranged for being positioned on the sides of the index finger. A concave front groove is arranged along the front side of the body for cradling the tip of the index finger. Concave side grooves are arranged along the sides of the body for cradling the tips of the thumb and middle finger. Forwardly protruding ears are arranged between the front and respective sides for being pinched between the index finger and the thumb, and between the index finger and the middle finger.
The present application is a non-provisional of, and claims benefit of priority from, U.S. Provisional Patent Application 60/749,524, filed Dec. 12, 2005, expressly incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to ergonomic grips for hand-held instruments.
2. Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 6,637,962, expressly incorporated herein by reference, discloses an ergonomic pen having a wishbone-shaped body.
Conventional straight writing instruments such as ink pens, ball point pens, and pencils have straight and narrow cylindrical bodies. The lower portion of a typical writing instrument is arranged to be held between the tips of the thumb, index finger, and middle finger. The upper portion of the pen is arranged to rest between the bases of the thumb and index finger. The narrow round bodies of conventional writing instruments require a relatively firm grip to prevent them from slipping, and to push the pen onto the writing surface. Therefore, they are uncomfortable to use for long periods.
Many other alternative writing instruments that attempt to provide a better grip are known among the prior art. U.S. Pat. No. 336,540 to Wyttenbach and U.S. Pat. No. 340,382 to Smith each disclose a pen with a short tip and a pair of bifurcated arms extending from the tip. The arms rest on opposite sides of the index finger. The tip is round and suffers the same gripping problems as a conventional pen. U.S. Pat. No. 4,127,338 to Laybourne discloses a fingertip pen with a ring at an upper end for being positioned forward of the middle joint of the index finger. A curved depression on a top side is arranged for supporting the tip of the index finger. However, the tip is round and suffers the same gripping problems as a conventional pen.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,391,010 to Gorbunov discloses a pen with a ring arranged for being positioned around the base of the index finger. It includes a depression at the tip for supporting the tip of the index finger, but the depression is curved about an axis which is transverse to the axis of the pen. The index finger can thus slip sideways in the depression. The sides of the pen are cylindrical, and suffers the same gripping problems as a conventional pen. U.S. Pat. No. 5,885,018 to Sato discloses a pen with a round shaft attached on the lower surface of a curved plate. A partial ring is formed at the top end of the plate for gripping the finger forward of the middle joint. The shaft is about the diameter of an ink tube inside a conventional ballpoint pen. The plate is much wider than the shaft, which is so narrow that it cannot be gripped securely. The fingers can only grip the top and bottom surfaces of the thin plate.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,161,974 to Nakagawa discloses a pen with a ring. The axis of the ring is transverse to the axis of the pen for passing the index finger, which is held in a fully curled position. Only the thumb and the index finger are available for gripping the tip of the pen. Further, the tip is cylindrical, and suffers the same gripping problems as a conventional pen. U.S. Pat. No. Des. 246,904 to MacIntosh discloses a fingertip pen with a cylindrical tip, a concave upper body, and a ring attached to the upper body. The tip is round and suffers the same gripping problems as a conventional pen.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe objects of the present invention are to provide an ergonomic handle for a variety of hand-held devices, including a pencil, a highlighter, and a cutting tool. The design provides the advantages of requiring less gripping force to hold for improved comfort; securely cradles the tips of the thumb and fingers for preventing slipping; and can be pressed onto the writing surface by the base of the index finger.
The present ergonomic handle is comprised of an elongated body with a writing point at the lower end, and an upper end for supporting the base of the index finger. Arcuate arms extending up from the upper end of the body are arranged for being positioned on the sides of the index finger. A concave front groove with an arcuate cross section is arranged along the front side of the body, and curved about an axis parallel to the axis of the body for cradling the tip of the index finger and preventing it from slipping sideways. The upper end of the front groove is flared into the upper end of the body for cradling the lower side of the base of the index finger. The lower end of the front groove is rounded for preventing the index finger from slipping downward. Concave side grooves with arcuate cross sections are arranged along the sides of the body, and curved about axes parallel to the axis of the body for cradling the tips of the thumb and middle finger to prevent them from slipping forward. The body has a generally trapezoidal cross section wherein the front is wider than the rear, and the sides taper toward the rear. Forwardly protruding ears are arranged between the front and sides for being pinched between the index finger and the thumb, and between the index finger and the middle finger.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING
FIGS. 12A-G show various views of a sequential feed pencil embodiment of the invention.
A writing instrument also described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,637,962, expressly incorporated herein by reference, is shown in a front perspective view in
A pair of arms 12 and 13 extending up from the upper end of body 10 are arranged for being positioned on either side of the index finger. The upper ends of arms 12 and 13 are disconnected from each other for allowing the index finger to easily move in between them. Arms 12 and 13 are generally coplanar with body 10. Arms 12 and 13 are preferably arcuate arms that are curved about respective axes perpendicular to the axis of body 10.
A concave front groove 14 with an arcuate cross section is arranged along the front side of body 10, and curved about an axis parallel to the axis of body 10 for cradling the tip of the index finger and preventing it from slipping sideways. The upper end of front groove 14 has a flared portion 15 into the upper end of the body 10 for supporting the lower side of the base of the index finger. The lower end of front groove 14 has a rounded portion 16 for preventing the tip of the index finger from slipping downward. Concave side grooves 17 and 18 with arcuate cross sections are arranged along the sides of body 10, and curved about respective axes parallel to the axis of body 10 for cradling the tips of the thumb and middle finger to prevent them from slipping forward toward the index finger.
As shown in
The writing instrument is shown in use in
As shown in
As shown in
As shown in
Other types of liquids may also be dispensed in like manner, for example, eradicating fluid, fabric bleach, makeup, glue or other adhesive, lubricant, etc.
See, U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,659,672, 6,179,501, 6,004,057; 5,203,638; 5,174,814, 5,888,007, 6,075,070, 6,004,058, 5,964,931, 5,915,872, 5,261,755, 5,123,766, 5,056,949, 4,923,317, 4,917,521, 6,866,436, 6,946,023, expressly incorporated herein by reference.
Another embodiment of the invention provides a tape or film transfer dispenser, for example, highlighter tape (e.g., a transparent tinted film transfer), eradicating tape (e.g., an opaque film transfer), or message applicator (e.g., a transfer film with graphic or text, such as “sign here”). See, U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,461,068, 6,112,796, 5,820,728, 5,792,263, 5,714,035, 5,310,437, 5,393,368, 5,702,482, 5,076,883 and 4,913,946, expressly incorporated herein by reference. The transfer blade is preferably angled such that the edge is about 20-60 degrees inclined to the major axis of the handle, permitting an ergonomic holding angle. Likewise, the blade is preferably transparent, to facilitate viewing of the point of contact. In this embodiment, the film spool is preferably located proximal to the junction of the “Y” of the handle, and thus the design is “bulbous” in this section. The spool section preferably is distant from the tip, to permit comfortable holding.
FIGS. 12A-G show a second embodiment of the invention, which provides a sequential feed pencil. See, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,966,478, 5,292,202, 6,161,976, 3,790,291, 3,898,009 expressly incorporated by reference.
As shown in FIGS. 12A-G, the pencil includes a conduit 110 formed centrally within the body 10, having therein a set of stacked writing elements 112, each comprising a presharpened lead 114 surrounded by a ferrule 116, wherein the ferrules are stackable within the inner tube 114. The ferrule 116 is hollow in the rear, such that the lead 114 of a succeeding writing element 112 fits within the ferrule 116 of the preceding writing element 112. The ferrule 116 is friction fed into the conduit 110, such that pressure on the first lead 114′ does not cause the ferrule 116′ of the first writing element 112′ to recede into the conduit 110. In order to replace an exhausted or broken lead 114′, the first writing element 112′ is extracted from the tip, and pushed into the back of the conduit 110, forcing the next writing element 112 in line to advance to the first position.
The rear tips 118, 119 on the arms of the body 10 are each preferably formed of an eraser material, and are retained by a nub 120 which fits into a hollow space in the rear tip 118 or 119.
The blade 120 is, for example, an X-Acto® Hobby No. 11 Knife blade, although the blade itself is replaceable and does not limit the invention. A kit of blades may be provided with the handle.
A variety of tool attachment means 12 can be employed, to accommodate a wide variety of tools for use with the custom-fitted tool holder 8. Such tool attachment means for small hand tools are well known in the art, e.g. the X-Acto® series of holders or handles for various hobby knives and the like. Exemplary tool attachment means are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,867,912 (blade mounting swivel head), U.S. Pat. No. 5,405,206 (replaceable highlighter mount), U.S. Pat. No. 5,868,509 (frictional sleeves and the like), U.S. Pat. No. 5,791,705 (grooves and elastic bands; recess with frictional fit; and threaded couplings), and U.S. Pat. No. 4,906,109 (frictional sockets, horizontal or vertical). All these patents are incorporated herein by reference. A quick-release (e.g., quarter turn locking) collet may also be provided.
A variety of suitable small hand tools can also be used in the tool holders described above. The ergonomic body is designed to improve the user's fine motor control, so as to permit more precise work on small scale projects and/or to improve the performance of users who lack sufficient motor control to otherwise use such a tool. For example, the tool can be various sorts of knives, chisels and other cutting tools; surgical and dental instruments; scribes and other tools for scoring or cutting metal; styluses for marking upon the screens of computers and other electronic devices such as “personal digital assistants”; burnishing tools; brushes, airbrushes or other applicators for applying paints, stains, cosmetics or other marking materials; probes or electrodes for making electrical contact with electrical circuits or other apparatus; various marking media; and heated tools such as soldering irons, miniature torches or wood-burning tools.
Although the foregoing description is specific, it should not be considered as a limitation on the scope of the invention, but only as an example of the preferred embodiment. Many variations are possible within the teachings of the invention. Therefore, the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, not by the examples given.
Claims
1. An ergonomic instrument, comprising: an elongated body adapted for being held in a human hand, wherein said elongated body includes a longitudinal axis, a forward portion facing away from the hand, a rear portion facing the hand, top and bottom surfaces, the top surface adapted for supporting a base of an index finger, said body having pair of arms extending up from said rear portion of said body, and being positioned on opposite sides of the index finger, wherein a tip on the forward portion of the body has at least one of a marker tip, a collet for holding a tool, and a pencil lead feed.
2. The ergonomic instrument of claim 1, wherein said body is about as long as said index finger, so that a fingertip of said index finger is supported adjacent to and proximate said tip, on said top surface of said body.
3. The ergonomic instrument of claim 1, wherein said arms are symmetric and curved, such that they emanate from the body in approximately antiparallel directions, and terminate in parallel directions.
4. The ergonomic instrument of claim 1, wherein said tip comprises a porous marker.
5. The ergonomic instrument of claim 1, wherein said tip comprises a collet for holding a tool.
6. The ergonomic instrument of claim 1, wherein said tip comprises an aperture adapted to feed and retain a series of ferrules.
7. The ergonomic instrument of claim 6, wherein each ferrule comprises a presharpened pencil lead.
9. The ergonomic instrument of claim 1, wherein said tip comprises arms a collet for holding a tool, said collet having a screw-type locking mechanism.
10. The ergonomic instrument of claim 1, wherein said tip comprises arms a collet for holding a tool, said collet having a nut-type locking mechanism.
11. The ergonomic instrument of claim 1, wherein said tip comprises arms a collet for holding a tool, said collet comprising a quick-release mechanism.
12. The ergonomic instrument according to claim 1, wherein said tip comprises an element for placing a marking, and at least one arm comprises an element for erasing a marking placed by said tip.
13. The ergonomic instrument according to claim 1, wherein said tip comprises a pencil lead, and at least one arm comprises a replaceable eraser disposed at a distal portion thereof.
14. The ergonomic instrument according to claim 1, wherein said tip comprises a porous marker, further comprising a retainer for retaining a cap over said porous marker.
15. The ergonomic instrument according to claim 14, further comprising a second retainer for retaining said cap in a position different than over said porous marker.
16. The ergonomic instrument according to claim 1, wherein said tip comprises a collet for holding a sheet instrument, further comprising a sheet instrument having a knife edge held in said collet.
17. The ergonomic instrument according to claim 1, wherein said tip comprises a collet for holding a sheet instrument, further comprising a kit comprising a plurality of instruments, each having a knife edge, adapted to be held in said collet.
18. The ergonomic instrument according to claim 1, wherein at least one arm terminates in a nub, further comprising a rubber eraser having an indentation, said nub being adapted to engage said indentation to retain said eraser in position.
Type: Application
Filed: Dec 12, 2006
Publication Date: Aug 23, 2007
Applicant: PACIFIC WRITING INSTRUMENTS, INC. (Escondido, CA)
Inventors: Colin Roche (San Mateo, CA), Robert Ronsse (Escondido, CA)
Application Number: 11/609,670
International Classification: A46B 5/04 (20060101); A46B 5/02 (20060101);