Technical Field

This invention relates to writing instruments and in particular to a mounting clip of enhanced appearance and pocket gripping characteristics. The clip prefer¬ ably includes an arrangement for mounting the clip that allows substantial, elastic movement in the clip in order to engage pockets of a wide range of thicknesses. Background Art

Writing instruments such as ^' ball point pens, mech¬ anical pencils and fountain pens, usually include an elongate body in which the writing medium is housed. Provisions for retaining a personal writing instrument in a user's pocket is usually provided in the form of a resilient clip attached to the body at a suitable loca¬ tion. Frequently the clip is rigidly mounted to the top end of the body and includes a resilient arm that extends downwardly and overlies a portion of the body periphery.

In most instances, the arm is constructed of a resilient material such as tempered steel and is formed with a spring bias that urges the arm towards the writ¬ ing instrument body. The distal end of the arm usually includes a claw or nub that is positioned between the tip of the clip and the pen body so that essentially point contact between the arm and the body occurs at the claw. The claw also acts as a spacer which spaces the remainder of the arm of the clip away from the body thereby defining a gap or clearance space for the user's pocket.

Thus, the clip in most writing instruments over- lies the periphery of the writing instrument body. The

arm portion of the clip must be capable of elastic defor¬ mation in order to engage the user's pocket. For most applications, this typical construction is satisfactory since materials which are inherently resilient, from which the clip can be formed, are readily available. It has been found that it would be desirable to form the clip from a rather non-resilient material for some applications. For example, high quality writing instruments often include bodies that are constructed of a precious metal or other exotic material. It is desirable in a prestigious item to construct the clip itself of precious metal as- well. It is believed that in many expensive, high quality writing instruments available today, the clip unlike the writing instrument body is constructed of a non-precious metal since arm resiliency is required.

In most inexpensive writing instruments, the end of the clip extends beyond or along the periphery of the writing instrument body and tends to detract from it. Further, a pocket formed from a thick material such as an inside coat pocket may permanently deform if the clip arm cannot withstand the extreme deformation that is necessary in order for the pocket material to be received between the underside of the arm and writing instrument body.

To be a fully acceptable prestige product in the market place, the clip of the writing instrument must be able to engage both shirt and coat pockets or, in other words, the clip and mounting arrangement must be able to receive both thick and thin fabrics without causing damage to the clip or resulting in an inadequate engagement. Prior clips have often suffered in this respect.

Disclosure of the Invention

The present invention provides a new and improved apparatus by which a writing instrument can effectively and repetitively engage a user's pocket without requir- ing the use of a resilient material for a clip arm. In addition, the present invention provides a clip construc¬ tion and clip location that enhances the external appear¬ ance of the pen and in addition improves the engagement between the writing instrument and the user's pocket. According to one embodiment of the invention, the clip arm is mounted to the upper portion of the writing instrument. Instead of overlying and extending beyond the periphery of a writing instrument body of relatively uniform cross sectional configuration end to end as found in the prior art, the instrument of the present invention has a clip- rm mounted within a recess formed in the body of the writing instrument. With the dis¬ closed construction, the peripheral surface of the clip arm conforms to the periphery of the unrecessed portion of the writing instrument body, providing an esthetically pleasing appearance. The recessed arrangement enhances the engagement between the writing instrument and a pocket bringing the arm into generally line, rather than point, contact with a pocket making it more secure. when mounted in a shirt, the arrangement reduces unsightly wrinkling often caused by the prior clip constructions.

According to the preferred embodiment, elastic deformation of the clip arm itself is not relied upon in order to engage the user's pocket. As a result, the retaining clip can be constructed of a non-resilient, precious metal or other material without reducing its capability repetitively to engage pockets of a wide range of thicknesses.

According to the preferred and illustrated embodi- merit, the clip comprises a retaining arm extending long-

itudinally along the body of the writing instrument. The clip is secured to the writing instrument body, by a mounting arrangement which allows movement in the retaining arm towards and away from the body to accommo- date a user's pocket. Unlike the prior art, the arm itself is not required to deform away from the body in order to receive the pocket material. In the preferred construction, the mounting arrangement includes at least one, but preferably two, resilient elements which are elastically deformable to accommodate movement in the retaining arm.

With the present invention, the retaining arm can be constructed of a non-resilient material such as a precious metal without sacrificing the ability to engage a thick fabric pocket, such as that found in an inside coat pocket. In fact, with the preferred embodiment, the retaining arm is capable of substantial lateral movement and it is believed the extremes of movement provided by the retaining arm of the present invention without exceeding the elastic limit of the arm and caus¬ ing permanent deformation are greater than that provided by the standard configuration, in which the arm itself provides the necessary resiliency.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the mounting arrangement comprises a ϋ-shaped member having two resilient elements in the form of two downwardly depending, resilient legs. Tre legs are constructed of a resilient strip stock such as spring steel. The clip is suitably fastened to the retaining arm such as by adhesive bonding or welding. The legs of the ϋ-shaped • member are then suitably secured to the pen and in effect form a pair of parallel leaf spring elements. When the retaining arm is moved away from the body, movement in the arm is accommodated by bending of the spring elements. The deformation being elastic, causes the clip to return

to its normal position, adjacent the body, when released. In other words, the arm is continually biased towards the writing instrument body so that a retaining engage¬ ment force is applied to the pocket when engaged. In the illustrated embodiment, the clip of the present invention is shown as part of a ball point pen having a non-circular cross section. In particular, the illustrated pen i.s triangular in cross section and defines three symmetrically spaced corners forming (in cross-section) , apices of a triangle. In the illustrated embodiment, a portion of one of the corners has a recess in which the pocket clip of the present invention is mounted. Preferably, the recess extends longitudinally from the top of the pen and terminates in an arcuate surface that merges with the peripheral surface of the writing instrument body. . The clip comprises an arm portion sized to fit within the recess and which is also substantially triangular in cross section so that in the clip's normal position it appears as a continua- tion of the longitudinal edge of the instrument body. In the preferred embodiment, a plate extends substan¬ tially 90° from the top end of the clip arm and is also triangularly shaped so that when fitted to the top of the pen, the plate conforms to the periphery of the writing instrument body.

According to a feature of the invention, to facili¬ tate the securing of the U-shaped member to the pen, the legs of the member are first secured to an insert which is then suitably secured in a bore formed at the top of the pen. With this arrangement, a stable and reliable mounting is insured and reduces manufacturing costs. In addition, it allows the writing instrument body to be formed from any material desired such as wood, which in and of itself may not be suitable for retaining the legs of the U-shaped member directly.

According to another feature of the invention, the legs of the U-shaped member are formed from flat strip material so that bending motion in the legs is substan¬ tially restricted to one plane of motion. Deformation in the legs in other directions is substantially resisted. In short, with the present invention, motion in the clip arm toward and away from the body is permitted whereas side to side motion in the clip arm is resisted. According to still another feature of the invention, abutments may be formed immediately adjacent one side of the legs of the U-shaped member to define a path of motion for the legs. With the abutment on the clip side of the legs, substantially uniform lateral motion in the overall clip arm is permitted toward and away from the body. With the abutment formed on the side opposite the clip side of the legs, pivotal leg motion is permitted in the clip arm thereby allowing the remote or distal end of the clip to move laterally from the writing instrument body a greater distance than the top end of the arm.

The present invention thus provides a new and im¬ proved writing instrument clip which has superior pocket gripping. The preferred arrangement allows substantial, elastic motion in a clip arm. The disclosed mounting arrangement for the clip arm enables the clip to accom¬ modate a wide range of pocket thicknesses and in addition enables the clip to be positioned in a recess in a writ¬ ing instrument body without sacrificing the utility of the clip.

Additional features will become apparent and a full understanding of the invention obtained by reading the following detailed description made in connection with the accompanying drawings.

Brief Description of Drawings

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a writing instrument embodying the present invention;

Figure 2 is another side elevational view of the writing instrument, rotated 90° from the position shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a sectional view of the writing instru¬ ment as seen from the- plane 3-3 in Figure 5;

Figure 4 is an enlarged, fragmentary side view of the writing instrument with portions broken away to show details of a clip mounting arrangement constructed in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the inven¬ tion;

Figure 5 is an enlarged, fragmentary view of the writing instrument, rotated 90° from the position shown in Figure 4; and,

Figure 6 is a fragmentary side view of the clip mounting arrangement.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention Figures 1 and 2 illustrate the overall construction of a writing instrument embodying features of the present invention. The writing instrument disclosed is a ball point pen having a retractable refill. It should be understood, that the invention is adaptable to various other types of writing instruments, such as mechanical pencils and fountain pens and should not be restricted to a ball point pen.

The disclosed pen comprises an elongate body 10. A rotatable tip 12 is mounted at .the bottom of the body 10 and is operatively connected to a refill actuating mechanism. Relative rotation of the body 10 and tip 12 produces axial motion in an ink cartridge, the writing tip of which is indicated by the reference character 14. In short, rotation of the tip 14 produces retrac- tion and extension of the ink cartridge.

As' seen best in Figure 3, the overall pen body is triangular in cross section, defining three symmetrically spaced apices or corners, lOa-lOc. The corners define edges which in the case of the corners 10a, 10b extend the entire length of the pen body 10. In the illustrated embodiment, the rotatable tip 12 is also triangular in cross section and also includes three symmetrically spaced apices. However, the tip 12 tapers from the juncture with the body 10 to the opening through which the end of the ink cartridge extends. An example of an actuating mechanism for retracting and extending the ink cartridge is illustrated in patent application Serial

No. , filed and entitled .

As seen in the Figures, the corner 10c of the pen body 10 does not extend the full length of the body. A portion of the corner is cut away to define a recess 20 that extends from the top of the pen to a point desig¬ nated by the reference character 22, located above the midpoint of the body. In the preferred and illustrated embodiment, the recess 20 includes an arcuate surface 20a that merges into the remainder of the corner 10c of the pen body.

According to the invention, a retaining clip arrange¬ ment 30 is positioned in the recess. More particularly, the clip 30 comprises a downwardly extending clip arm 32 that extends substantially the full length of the recess 20 and terminates at the arcuate surface 20a. The clip arm 32 includes a claw 32a at its distal end which serves as an engagement point for the arm and also spaces the arm 32 away from the body of the pen to define a clearance 34. A plate 36 extends laterally and substantially 90° from the top or proximal end 32b of the clip arm. The plate 36 is triangular in shape and conforms to the overall periphery of the pen body 10 so that when positioned at the top of the pen, the

plate 36 appears as a short continuation of the body 10.

Referring to Figure 3, the clip arm 32 is also triangular in cross section so that as viewed from the top (as seen in Figure 3) it appears to form an apex of the triangular body 10. As seen in Figure 4, with the clip in its position adjacent the pen body, it appears as a continuation of the corner 10c of the body 10 with a slight gap present between the end of the clip arm 32 0 and the point 22 where the recess 20 merges with the corner 10c. It should be obvious that the shape and construction of the arm 32 adds to the sleek and classic appearance of the overall pen body, giving it a smooth uninterrupted look. 5 It is believed that the location of the arm in the recess 20 provides a more secure engagement with the user's pocket. Pocket fabric located between the under¬ side of the arm 32 and the recess 20 is forced to a position that is spaced inwardly from the plane defined 0 by the rest of the pocket. As a result, much more of the pocket fabric is engaged by the writing instrument body (in the vicinity of the recess 20) and the clip arm 32. This added contact frictionally resists rela¬ tive sliding movement between the pocket and the writing instrument. With the disclosed construction, however, the pocket fabric is not deformed in an unsightly manner by the engagement. In short, the disclosed construction effects a writing instrument-to-pocket engagement that is substantially more secure than is achieved with the _Q normal clip arm construction in which the engagement force is exerted through substantially line or point contact between a claw formed at the end of the clip arm and the writing instrument body.

According to a feature of the invention, the clip ₅ 30 is mounted to the pen body 10 by a resilient mounting

means indicated generally by the reference character 40 in Figures 4 and 6. In the preferred and illustrated arrangement the mounting includes a U-shaped member 42 defined by a pair of downwardly depending resilient legs 42a joined together by a cross-piece 42b. The mounting member 42 is suitably fastened to the underside of the plate 36. For example, the cross-piece 42b can be welded, soldered or bonded by adhesive to the end plate 36. In the preferred arrangement, the lower ends of the legs 42a are secured to a plug-like insert 44. The exposed portion of the legs 42a between the insert 44 and the underside of the plate 36 are elastically deformable to accommodate motion in the retaining clip 30. It should be noted that the legs 42a can be directly secured to the top of the pen. However, by using the insert 44, the pen body 10 can be constructed of virtually any durable material including wood. By using the insert, materials that otherwise could not provide a suitable anchoring engagement for the legs 42a can still be used. As seen in Figure 4, with the illustrated construction, a short bore, preferably a blind bore 46 is formed at the top of the pen body 10. The insert 44 with the clip arm attached is then inserted into the bore 46 and suitably secured therein, as by an adhesive or other bonding process.

As seen in Figure 3, the legs 42a are preferably formed from a flat strip stock such as spring steel. The legs 42a are preferably parallel and equal, and, as seen best in Figure 3, form a pair of parallel leaf springs that extend upwardly from the insert 44. With the preferred construction, bending motion in the direc¬ tion orthogonal to the planes of the leaf springs is readily accommodated. Bending ^" motion, however, in a direction other than a direction orthogonal to the planes

of the leaf springs, such as motion in a direction para¬ llel to the planes, is substantially resisted.

According to another feature of the invention, motion in the legs 42a can be further restricted by the use of abutments 47, 48 illustrated in phantom in Figures 4 and 6. Turning first to Figure 4, the abutments 47 are shown on the clip side of each of the legs 42a. With the abutments 47 placed as shown, bending motion in the legs 42a towards the right, as viewed in Figure 4, is restricted. As a result, when the clip arm 32a engages a pocket, movement of the distal end of the clip arm produces pivotal-like motion at the top of the clip arm assembly 30. In short, the legs 42a bend towards the left as viewed in Figure 4 to accommodate the move- ment in the clip arm.

On the other hand, if the abutments are placed as shown in Figure 6, that is, on the left side of the mounting legs 42a, the legs can only bend towards the right. With this arrangement, when the clip arm engages a pocket, the overall arm moves laterally towards the right, as viewed in Figure 4, to provide clearance for the pocket.

It should be apparent that the abutments provide means for controlling movement in the clip arm assembly 30. However, it should be recognized that the abutments need not be employed if restricted movement in the arm is not desired. Without the abutments, the clip arm assembly 30 will move both laterally and pivotally when engaging a pocket. In addition, it should be recognized that a mounting member having only one resilient leg (not shown) is also contemplated by the present inven¬ tion.

The present invention provides a novel arrangement for mounting a clip assembly which enables elastic motion in a clip arm without requiring the arm itself to be

resilient. Moreover, the invention enables the clip arm to be located within a recess in a writing instru¬ ment body.

Although the invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity, it should be understood that those skilled in the art can make various changes to it without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.