TAPE DISPENSER

Abstract

A tape dispenser for use on a belt is described. The tape dispenser has a back panel with a belt attachment, a tape receiving reel attachment and a blade connection. A tape receiving reel is rotatably connected to the tape receiving reel attachment. A cutting assembly is attached to the blade connection. The cutting assembly has a first cutting blade and a second cutting blade. The first cutting blade is positioned on a top of the cutting assembly and the second cutting blade is positioned on a bottom of the cutting assembly.

Description

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present application relates generally to a tape dispenser, more particularly it relates to a masking tape dispenser.

BACKGROUND

This section provides background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the invention. It should be understood that the statements in this section of this document are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.

It is common for painters in many different industries, such as the automotive, commercial and industrial painting industries, to use tape to tape to cover areas that do not require paint or that have already been painted and need to be protected due to color changes. Some areas that might require tape include door panels, hoods, fenders, various other car parts, light switches, crown moldings, baseboards, ceilings, floors, industrial truck parts, oil rig equipment, other industrial equipment such as caterpillars, plow graders and tractors, and other surfaces to which paint may be applied. Taping generally requires the use of both hands and it can be challenging for a painter to hold on to a roll of tape and properly tape off surfaces. Many workers have developed their own method of dealing with the roll of tape while placing the desired length of tape where it needs to be. Some methods include holding the roll of tape in their mouths, placing the roll of tape around their wrist (if their wrists are small enough), placing the roll of tape under their arm, or setting the roll of tape down and picking it up as needed so they can work with both hands. Tape adhesives are not generally palatable or healthy to ingest and workers can end up with friction burns on their wrists from the tape roll rotating around their wrist as they work. When working on ladders or on higher surfaces, dropping a roll of tape can be dangerous as a worker may lose their balance attempting to catch the roll of tape. It can also be time consuming when the worker must descend and ascend to the correct height to pick up dropped rolls of tape.

BRIEF SUMMARY

There is provided a tape dispenser that is attachable to a belt. A back panel has a belt attachment, a tape receiving reel attachment and a blade connection. A tape receiving reel is rotatably connected to the tape receiving reel attachment. A cutting assembly is attached to the blade connection of the back panel. The cutting assembly has a first cutting blade and a second cutting blade. The first cutting blade is positioned on a top of the cutting assembly and the second cutting blade is positioned on a bottom of the cutting assembly.

In one embodiment, the tape receiving reel has a tapered outer edge such that the outer edge is smaller in circumference than the inner edge. This allows the tape to be dispensed to be more easily placed on the tape receiving reel.

In one embodiment, the tape receiving reel is connected to the tape receiving reel attachment by a retaining screw. A washer is positioned between the tape receiving reel and the retaining screw to prevent unscrewing or the retaining screw when the tape reel rotates. The washer may be a keyed washer having a keyed lower surface corresponding to a keyed top of the tape receiving reel attachment.

In one embodiment, the tape receiving reel has a stop on an inner edge. This prevents the tape roll from rubbing on the back panel as the tape and tape receiving reel rotate. This can improve the longevity of the tape dispenser as it can prevent tape residue and friction from causing damage.

In one embodiment, the first cutting blade and the second cutting blade are serrated. The serrated blades may have ten slanted teeth per inch. The slant of the cutting blades may be effective in the cutting of the tape.

In one embodiment, the first cutting blade and the second cutting blade are positioned along the same axis.

In one embodiment, a low friction flanged bushing is positioned between the tape receiving reel and the tape receiving reel attachment. A self-lubricating bushing may help increase the longevity of the tape dispenser as it limits friction between the tape receiving reel and the tape receiving reel attachment.

In one embodiment, a low friction flanged bushing is positioned between the washer and the tape receiving reel. A self-lubricating bushing may help increase the longevity of the tape dispenser as it limits friction between the washer and the tape receiving reel.

In one embodiment, the first cutting blade and the second cutting blade are positioned within a safety guard. The safety guard helps to prevent the first cutting blade and the second cutting blade from causing injury to the user or damage to clothing.

In one embodiment, the back panel is curved such that it conforms to a user's hips or waist.

In one embodiment, the belt attachment is a pair of receiving loops through which a belt may be slid.

In another embodiment, the belt attachment is a fastening aperture through which a fastener passes to attach the back panel to a user's belt.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features will become more apparent from the following description in which references are made to the following drawings, in which numerical references denote like parts. The drawings are for the purpose of illustration only and are not intended to in any way limit the scope of the invention to the particular embodiments shown.

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a tape dispenser.

FIG. 2 is a front plan view of the tape dispenser.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the tape dispenser.

FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view of the tape dispenser.

FIG. 5 is a rear plan view of the tape dispenser.

FIG. 6 is a top plan view, in section, of the tape dispenser.

FIG. 7 is a top plan view of the tape dispenser.

FIG. 8 is a side elevation view of the tape dispenser.

FIG. 9 is a side elevation view, partially in section, of the tape receiving reel.

FIG. 10 is a top plan view, partially in section, of the tape dispenser with the tape receiving reel removed.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the tape dispenser with the tape receiving reel removed.

FIG. 12 is a bottom perspective view of the tape receiving reel.

FIG. 13 is a top perspective view of the tape receiving reel.

FIG. 14 is an exploded view of the connecting parts between the tape receiving reel attachment and the tape receiving reel.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

A tape dispenser, generally identified by reference numeral 10, will now be described with reference to FIG. 1 through FIG. 14.

Referring to FIG. 1, a tape dispenser 10 is designed to be positioned on a belt of a user, not shown. Referring to FIG. 4, tape dispenser 10 has a back panel 12 with a belt attachment 14. Back panel 12 may be curved such that it conforms to a user's hips or waist. In the embodiments shown in FIG. 6, belt attachment 14 is a pair of receiving loops 16a and 16b that allow a user's belt, not shown, to pass through them to secure tape dispenser 10 to the user's belt. Receiving loops 16a and 16b each have two apertures 18 and 20 and a central divider 22 such that when used, the user's belt slides through the first aperture 18 over central divider 22 and back through second aperture 20. This prevents the user's belt from interfering with the remainder of tape dispenser 10 and keeps belt positioned to a rear 24 of back panel 12. Referring to FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, belt, not shown, is positioned within back panel 12 such that back panel 12 makes direct contact with the user when placed around their waist or hips. Belt attachment 14 may also include a fastening aperture 25 through which a fastener, such as a screw, passes to attach back panel 12 to a user's belt. Receiving loops 16a and 16b may be used in conjunction with fastening aperture 25 and a fastener to secure tape dispenser 10 to a user's belt. Referring to FIG. 10 and FIG. 11, a tape receiving reel attachment 26 and a blade connection 28 are positioned on a front surface 30 of back panel 12.

Referring to FIG. 9, a tape receiving reel 32 is rotatably connected to tape receiving reel attachment 26. In the embodiment shown, tape receiving reel 32 to connected to tape receiving reel attachment 26 by a retaining screw 34. Referring to FIG. 3, a washer 36 is positioned between tape receiving reel 32 and retaining screw 34 to prevent unscrewing of retaining screw 34 when tape receiving reel rotates. Referring to FIG. 12 and FIG. 13, to facilitate placement of a tape roll, not shown, on tape receiving reel 32, tape receiving reel 32 has a tapered outer edge 38. As a result, tapered outer edge 38 has a smaller circumference than inner edge 40. Referring to FIG. 3, tape roll 100 is maintained on tape receiving reel 32 through a friction fit. In the embodiment shown, a stop 42 is positioned on inner edge 40 of tape receiving reel 32. Stop 38 helps to prevent tape roll 100 from rubbing on back panel 12 as the tape roll 100 and tape receiving reel 32 rotate. This helps to ensure that tape receiving reel 32 turns unobstructed by flue residues on the sides of tape roll 100.

Referring to FIG. 7, a cutting assembly 44 is attached to blade connection 28. Referring to FIG. 8, cutting assembly 44 has a first cutting blade 46 and a second cutting blade 48. First cutting blade 46 is positioned on a top 50 of cutting assembly 44 and second cutting blade 48 is positioned on a bottom 52 of cutting assembly 44. In the embodiment shown, cutting assembly 44 and blade connection 28 are positioned on a side edge 54 of back panel 12. Referring to FIG. 1, cutting assembly 44 is sized such that the diameter of tape receiving reel 32 is substantially the same as the height of cutting assembly 44. Cutting assembly 44 is positioned such that cutting assembly 44 and the vertical diameter of tape receiving reel 32 are substantially lined up. This places first cutting blade 46 and second cutting blade 48 in a position that allows for easy cutting of tape regardless of whether a new tape roll is being cut or a tape roll is almost depleted. In the embodiments shown, first cutting blade 46 and second cutting blade 48 are serrated and have ten slanted teeth per inch. The slant of the serrated teeth may help in the cutting of the tape. It will be understood by a person skilled in the art that different types of cutting blades may be used. Referring to FIG. 3, first cutting blade 46 and second cutting blade 48 are positioned along the same axis 47. In the embodiment shown, axis 47 is substantially vertical, however it will be understood by a person skilled in the art that axis 47 may be angled. This allows tape dispenser 10 to be rotated 180 degrees and have the same positioning and angle of cutting blade. By allowing a 180 degree rotation, tape dispenser 10 may be worn on either the left or ride side of a user's body, making it usable by both left and right handed individuals. To protect users from first cutting blade 46 and second cutting blade 48, a safety guard 58 may be provided. Safety guard 58 holds first cutting blade 46 and second cutting blade 48 securely in place and prevents the user's hands and forearms from coming into contact with the sharp edges. Referring to FIG. 2, in the embodiment shown, safety guard 58 is held in place using screws 60.

Referring to FIG. 6, to assist with rotation of tape receiving reel 32 on tape receiving reel attachment 26, low friction flanged bushings 56a and 56b are provided. Low friction flanged bushings 56a and 56b are preferably self-lubricating. Bushing 56a is positioned at the inner edge 40 between tape receiving reel 32 and tape receiving reel attachment 26. Bushing 56b is positioned between washer 36 and a top of tape receiving reel 32. In the embodiment shown, bushing 56b contacts a portion of tape receiving reel 32. Bushings 56a and 56b can help to increase the longevity of tape dispenser 10 as it reduces friction wear between tape receiving reel 32 and tape receiving reel attachment 26. Suitable bushings may include GFI-1618-08 and GFI-0808-02 bushings or any other bushings known to a person skilled in the art.

Referring to FIG. 14, the possible positioning of low friction flanged bushings 56a and 56b is illustrated. In the embodiment shown, two tape receiving reels 32 are illustrated. This is done to show how the different bushings 56a and 56b are used, however it will be understood that there is only a single tape receiving reel 32. In the embodiment shown, bushing 56a is inserted into a central aperture 62 of tape receiving reel 32 such that flange 64a of bushing 56a contacts a bottom 66 of tape receiving reel 32. Bushing 56b is slid from bottom 66 of tape receiving reel 32 through central aperture 62 such that the flange 64b contacts a top 68 of central aperture 62. As can be seen in the embodiment provided, central aperture 62 has a larger opening at bottom 66 of tape receiving reel 32 than at top 68 of tape receiving reel 32. Once bushing 56a and bushing 56b are positioned correctly, tape receiving reel 32 is placed on tape receiving reel attachment 26 by sliding tape receiving reel attachment 26 into central aperture 62. A shoulder 70 adjacent top 72 of tape receiving reel attachment 26 contacts bushing 56b. Bushing 56a may contact back panel 12. Washer 36 is positioned on top 72 of tape receiving reel attachment 26. In the embodiment shown, washer 36 has a keyed lower surface 74 that corresponds to a keyed top 72 of tape receiving reel attachment 26. Retaining screw 34 is screwed into an aperture 76 in top 72 of tape receiving reel 26 to hold tape receiving reel 32, bushings 56a and 56b and washer 36 in position.

Any use herein of any terms describing an interaction between elements is not meant to limit the interaction to direct interaction between the subject elements, and may also include indirect interaction between the elements such as through secondary or intermediary structure unless specifically stated otherwise.

In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be one and only one of the elements.

It will be apparent that changes may be made to the illustrative embodiments, while falling within the scope of the invention. As such, the scope of the following claims should not be limited by the preferred embodiments set forth in the examples and drawings described above, but should be given the broadest interpretation consistent with the description as a whole.

Claims

1. A tape dispenser, comprising:

a back panel having a belt attachment, a tape receiving reel attachment and a blade connection;

a tape receiving reel rotatably connected to the tape receiving reel attachment;

a cutting assembly attached to the blade connection of the back panel, the cutting assembly having a first cutting blade and a second cutting blade, the first cutting blade being positioned on a top of the cutting assembly and the second cutting blade being position on a bottom of the cutting assembly.

2. The tape dispenser of claim 1 wherein the tape receiving reel has a tapered outer edge such that the outer edge is smaller in circumference than an inner edge.

3. The tape dispenser of claim 1 wherein the tape receiving reel is connected to the tape receiving reel attachment by a retaining screw, a washer is positioned between the tape receiving reel and the retaining screw to prevent unscrewing of the retaining screw when the tape receiving reel rotates.

4. The tape dispenser of claim 3 wherein the washer is a keyed washer having a keyed lower surface corresponding to a keyed top of the tape receiving reel attachment.

5. The tape dispenser of claim 1 wherein the tape receiving reel has a stop on an inner edge.

6. The tape dispenser of claim 1 wherein the first cutting blade and the second cutting blade are serrated.

7. The tape dispenser of claim 6 wherein the first cutting blade and the second cutting blade have ten slanted teeth per inch.

8. The tape dispenser of claim 1 wherein the first cutting blade and the second cutting blade are positioned along the same axis.

9. The tape dispenser of claim 1 wherein a low friction flanged bushing is positioned between the tape receiving reel and the tape receiving reel attachment.

10. The tape dispenser of claim 3 wherein a low friction flanged bushing is positioned between the washer and the tape receiving reel.

11. The tape dispenser of claim 1 wherein the first cutting blade and the second cutting blade are positioned within a safety guard.

12. The tape dispenser of claim 1 wherein the back panel is curved such that it conforms to a user's hips or waist.

13. The tape dispenser of claim 1 wherein the belt attachment is a pair of receiving loops through which a belt may be slid.

14. The tape dispenser of claim 1 wherein the belt attachment is a fastening aperture through which a fastener passes to attach the back panel to a user's belt.