Stapler

Abstract

A stapler modified to feed reinforcing tape to one or both sides of the material being stapled, prior to stapling. The stapled reinforcing tape is cut after stapling by a cutter pivotally attached to the stapler.

Description

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It has been found that the stapled area of stapled material is easily damaged. The top and bottom surface often become torn or separated from the staple after being used or after a long period of time, especially when the staple has become rusted and the paper is thin or of poor quality. Also, in stapled documents of only a few pages, such as memoranda, and the like, in which the staple is removed and replaced from time to time, the stapled area rapidly becomes unusable.

This invention provides a roll of reinforcing tape disposed to cover one or both of the outer surfaces of the stapled area of the article being stapled. The reinforcing tape is contained in a tape supply and fed therefrom cutter blade the stapling position. The stapled tape is cut by means of a cutter pivotally mounted on the stapler.

The invention may be more readily understood by referring to the accompanying drawing.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a stapler with reinforcing tape according to the invention, with a portion being in section;

FIG. 2 is a view, taken along lines 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a view, taken along lines 3-3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a view in section taken along lines 4-4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a partial view, in section, taken along lines 5-5 of FIG. 1; nd

FIG. 6 is a partial view, taken along lines 6-6 of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIG. 1, a stapler is shown comprising a base 13 carrying a baseplate 12 having two upstanding flanges 10 to which a staple magazine 11 and an actuating lever 9 are pivoted. The actuating lever carries a resilient element 8 to which a staple driver 7 is connected and which serves to return and maintain the magazine 11 and actuating lever 9 in normal spaced relation relative to plate 12. The magazine 11 contains a staple guide 40 and a staple feed spring 41. The actuating lever 9 carries a hand or finger pad 39, and baseplate 12 may have a staple remover 42 secured thereto. The plate 12 carries staple-clenching means 20. All of the foregoing elements are conventional and interact in a well-known manner to feed and set a staple upon manual depression of the pad 39 on lever 9.

A tape holder 14 having an openable cover is attached to the base 13 by a hinge 15. A supply of reinforcing tape 16 in the tape holder 14 passes through a slot (not shown) in the tape holder 14 into the base 13, and through an outlet slot 17, shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

A spring strip 18, shown in detail in FIG. 3, is disposed beneath the magazine 11 by having its back end secured to the lower face thereof and its forward end free to move relative thereto. The spring strip 18 has a tape receiving slot 19 formed therein, through which the tape 16 passes (FIG. 1). FIG. 4 illustrates, in section, the relative construction and disposition of the spring strip 18 with respect to the remaining portions of the stapler of FIG. 1. The spring strip 18 stops short of the staple driver 7 to permit free passage of the staple, and the end of the tape is passed between the side guides shown. Between the staple clenching means 20 and the slot 17 there is a tape guide 21, which forms a horizontal slot on the baseplate 12, as shown in cross section in FIG. 4, The tape 16, after passing upward through slot 17, passes through the tape guide 21 and over the staple-clenching means 20. During stapling, the tape 16 is stapled to the bottom of the material being stapled.

The tape 16 may be a double tape. After passing upward through the slot 17 on the base, the two tapes are then separated, one passing through the tape-receiving slot 19 in spring strip 18, and the other through tape guide 21. In such a tape embodiment, tape is stapled at both the top and bottom of the material being stapled.

A pair of supports 22 (FIG. 6) extend from one end of the actuating lever 9. A bracket 23 is pivotally attached between the supports 22 by an axle 24. As shown in the FIGS. 1 and 6, a cutter blade 25 and a handle 26 are attached to the bracket 23 at right angles to one another. A spring 27, on the axle 24, normally urges the cutter blade 25 away from the baseplate 12, into the position shown in FIG. 1. The handle 26 is substantially perpendicular to the actuating lever 9 in this position, so that the cutter blade 25 and handle 26 do not obstruct the staple area in the event the stapler should become jammed. Rotation of the handle 26 also rotates the cutter blade 25, as shown by the dotted lines of FIG. 1. Two stops 28, located on the sides of the bracket 23, engage the lower edges of the supports 22 to limit rotation of the cutter in a counterclockwise direction, when the handle 26 is depressed to a position substantially above a cutting slot 30, to be later described. A bar 29, extending between the supports 22, is engaged by the center portion of the spring 27 whose ends engage the bracket 23 to bias it and the cutter blade 25 into the position of FIG. 1. The cutter blade edge may be in the form of teeth or a curved blade, if desired, for more effective cutting.

In the baseplate 12 there is a cutting slot 30, shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, to receive the cutter blade 25. After the blade enters the slot 30, and the staple magazine 11 touches the baseplate 12, the than lower edge of the bracket 23 contacts the baseplate 12 to prevent stapling during cutting.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, spring strip 18 carries two depending pins 31 having ratchet teeth on their forward faces. A pair of holes 32 on the baseplate 12 permit the pins 31 to pass through the baseplate 12 to engage a lock plate 33a (FIG. 5). A pair of actuating rods 33, slidably engaging four supports 34, are connected between the lock plate 33a and two bellcranks 35, whose fulcrums pivot on a rod 36. A spring 37 normally urges the lock plate 33a toward the teeth on the pins 31.

A lock 38, of any conventional design, which when released permits access to load staples and the like in the device, retains the tape holder 14 in the operative position unless released.

In operation, staples (not shown) are ejected from and driven by the staple driver 7 when the actuating lever 9 is compressed against the staple magazine 11. Tape 16 is positioned on either the staple-clenching means 20 or the spring strip 18, or on both, as desired. The tape or tapes are then stapled with the material being stapled, coincidental with stapling, by a single staple. Meanwhile, the spring strip 18 also moves toward the base 13, causing the pins 31, to extend further through holes 32 on the baseplate 12 and engage the lock plate 33a. The spring strip 18 is thereby locked in its down position. The teeth of the depending pins may have varied spacing, according to the different thickness of the material to be stapled. When the actuating lever 9 is released, the spring strip 18 is held in its down position to avoid extending the upper tape, if used, The stapled material, with the tape attached, is then removed from the stapler to the extent necessary to clear the cutting slot 30. The handle 26 is then rotated to place the cutter blade 25 in cutting position with the stops 28 engaging the lower edges of the supports 22. The actuating lever 9 is then again compressed against the staple magazine 11 and the cutter blade 25 passes through the tape as the blade enters the cutting slot 30, thereby severing the stapled tape from the remaining tape supply 16. The cutter blade 25 then engages the bellcrank 35, causing the locking plate 33a to disengage from the ratchet teeth of pins 31. The length of the cutter blade 25 is selected so as to permit the teeth of pins 31 to clear the locking plate 33a prior to release of the bellcrank 35 by the cutter blade. When the compressive force, preferably applied to the handle 26, is released, the entire assembly returns to the position shown in FIG. 1, and is ready for another stapling operation.

While a particular embodiment of a stapler has been shown, such is for purposes of illustration only. The invention may be used generally with any stapler, inasmuch as such structural modifications as may be necessary will be apparent to those skilled in the art in order to permit such usage.

Claims

I claim:

1. In a stapler having a base with staple-clenching means thereon, a staple magazine pivotally mounted on said base, and an actuating lever pivotally mounted on said base above said magazine and carrying a staple driver above said staple-clenching means driving a staple from said magazine through material to be stapled and against said staple-clenching means, the combination therewith of:

a source of reinforcing tape;

means passing said tape from said source between said staple-clenching means and said staple magazine so that it will be stapled to a surface of the material being stapled;

a cutter blade pivotally mounted on said actuating lever and rotatable relative thereto;

and means in said stapler base alignable with said cutter blade and cooperating therewith to sever the stapled portion of the tape from the tape source when said cutter blade is rotated relative to said actuating lever into alignment with said cooperating means and said actuating lever is moved toward said base.

2. The combination of claim 1, and in which the tape source is a holder pivotally attached to the stapler base remote from the cutting position and in which the tape-passing means includes a tape inlet in the stapler base adjacent the holder for receiving tape from the holder, and a tape outlet disposed between the inlet and the stapling position.

3. The combination of claim 1, and including:

a spring strip mounted beneath said staple magazine at one end adjacent the magazine pivot, said passing means passing said tape above said spring strip;

locking means connected between the spring strip and the stapler base and having an unlocked state in which the spring strip is positioned adjacent the staple magazine and a locked state in which the spring strip is held adjacent the stapler base, said locking means being operable, when staples are driven from the staple magazine, to lock the spring strip in its locked position; and

means operable in response to the operation of the cutting means to unlock said locking means.

4. The combination of claim 2 in which the tape-passing means includes a tape guide on the stapler base between the stapler base tape outlet and the stapling position.

5. The combination of claim 3 in which the tape-passing means includes a tape-receiving slot formed in the spring strip for receiving tape from the stapler base tape outlet and the spring strip is adapted to guide tape from the stapler base tape outlet which passes through the spring strip tape slot past the stapling position and the cutting position in sequence.

6. The combination of claim 3 in which the tape-passing means includes a tape guide on the stapler base between the stapler base tape outlet and the stapling position and a tape-receiving slot formed in the spring strip for receiving tape from the stapler base tape outlet, and the spring strip is adapted to guide tape from the stapler base tape outlet which passes through the spring strip tape slot past the stapling position and the cutting position in sequence.

7. The combination of claim 3, and in which the locking means includes:

a pair of ratchet pins attached to the spring strip and extending toward the stapler base;

a pair of apertures disposed in the stapler base so as to receive the ratchet pins during staple drive;

a locking bar disposed within the stapler base and operable to be moved between a first position, in which the locking bar engages the ratchet pins to place the locking means in its locked state and a second position in which said locking bar is disengaged from said ratchet pins to place the locking means in its unlocked state;

means for normally urging the locking bar into its first position; and

said means to unlock the locking means including a member operable upon contact with the cutting means to overcome said urging means and move the locking bar into its second position.

8. The combination of claim 7, and in which the tape-passing means includes a tape guide on the stapler base between the stapler base tape outlet and the stapling position.

9. The combination of claim 7, and in which the tape-passing means includes a tape-recording slot formed in the spring strip for receiving tape from the stapler base tape outlet and the spring strip is adapted to guide tape from the stapler base tape outlet which passes through the spring strip tape slot past the stapling position and the cutting position in sequence.