One Piece Marker Body With Hermetically Sealed Removable Cap

Abstract

Hermetically sealed plastic marker body includes a nib-holding portion with a removable closure cap projecting therefrom and separated therefrom by a severable reduced wall thickness segment. In preferred embodiments, the removable closure includes mating recesses or other shapes to fit over the nib-holding body portion, thus acting as a removable cap, and over another portion of the body acting as a storage holder for the cap when not used to cover the nib-holding portion.

Description

This invention pertains to plastic marker bodies such as are used in instrument and ordinary writing pens having an interior space with an ink supply means, and a fibrous ink delivery and writing means, usually referred to as a nib. More particularly, this invention relates to such markers and marker bodies therefor including hermetically sealed closure caps for the nib-holding portion of such bodies.

Plastic marker bodies having fibrous or other types of capillary ink storage means in contact with a capillary ink delivery means, such as a fibrous nib, which is held by a portion of the body and projects therefrom to be brought into contact with a paper or other record form, have traditionally included some physical closure means to cover the exposed nib after manufacture and prior to use, and also between uses, in the case of intermittently usable markers. Invariably, to applicant's knowledge, this closure means has comprised a removable friction fit cap covering the part of the marker body provided to hold the nib. Such caps have contributed to the expense of the marker body since they constituted separately formed pieces and required a separate assembly operation to assemble the cap onto the marker body during manufacture of the marker In addition, because such caps are typically friction fit, they do not always provide an hermetic seal and therefore, in some cases, permit a certain amount of atmospheric contamination or ink loss.

It is an object of this invention to obviate these difficulties and provide an economically manufacturable closure cap which requires no separate assembly operation during manufacture of the marker.

More particularly, it is an object of this invention to provide such a cap which hermetically seals the marker body and the assembled nib and ink storage means after manufacture.

Still further, it is another object of this invention to provide such a cap which also may be reused as a friction fit cap similar to those caps taught in the prior art.

Having these objects in mind, applicant's invention consists of a one piece integrally formed closure cap made as part of the marker body during the manufacture thereof and separated from the body of the marker by a severable, reduced wall thickness segment.

In a preferred embodiment of this invention, the closure includes a recess adapted to act as a removable cap for the nib-holding part of the marker body after it has been initially removed by severance of the reduced wall thickness segment connecting the cap to the main marker body.

In a further preferred embodiment, the removable closure also includes a means for mating with and being held by another part of the marker body for storage during use of the marker.

This invention may be better understood by reference to the detailed description which follows, taken in conjunction with the appended claims and the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view, partially in section, of a preferred embodiment of a marker body in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is an end view of the marker body shown in FIG. 1.

Referring more specifically to FIG. 1, there is shown a marker body 10, generally composed of a plastic material, having a portion 12 adapted to hold an ink delivery means or fibrous nib 14 (shown in phantom). Attached to body portion 12 and integrally formed therewith is a severable reduced wall thickness segment 15 and closure cap 16. The space 18 within marker body 10 comprises an interior storage chamber for holding an ink supply, such as an ink saturated fibrous body (not illustrated).

In a preferred form of this invention, as illustrated in FIG. 1, closure cap 16 also includes a recess 20 corresponding generally in cross-sectional shape and size to nib-holding body portion 12. In another form of preferred embodiment of the present invention, marker body 10 also includes a second portion 22, consisting of a projection at the rear end of marker body 10 corresponding in cross-sectional dimensions to nib-holding marker body portion 12.

As will be immediately apparent to those familiar with this art, marker body 10, including its various appendages, comprises an economically manufacturable marker body with an integral hermetically sealed nib-covering cap. Such an hermetically sealed cap obviates the need for the manufacture of a separate cap, as has been common in the prior art, and also obviates the need for a separate manufacturing operation in which the cap is assembled with the body. In addition, marker body 10, apart from the rear end thereof which includes projecting body portion 22 and which is necessarily formed as a separate piece, comprises a single manufacturable component inherently reducing the cost of the marker and simplifying its manufacture. The rear end of marker body 10, from which body portion 22 projects, is, of course, inserted in marker body 10 after nib 14 and the ink reservoir have been assembled with marker body 10.

Following manufacture of a marker using the marker body of this invention, the marker may be retained in storage for a long period of time without appreciable loss of ink due to the hermetic seal of closure cap 16. When the marker is ready for use, closure cap 16 is removed by simple physical impact or twisting of closure cap 16, severing segment 15, thus exposing nib 14 and readying the marker for use. If the marker is not designed for intermittent use, closure cap 16 may then be discarded. If the marker is, however, used for intermittent applications wherein it is desirable to cover nib 14 between uses, closure cap 16 may be then used as a reusable closure cap, in accordance with the design of the preferred embodiment of this invention, simply by mating the recess 20 of the closure cap 16 with the nib-holding body portion 12 of marker body 10.

In accordance with a further preferred embodiment of this invention, closure cap 16 may be stored, when the marker is in use, by the friction fit mating of closure cap 16 with another part of marker body 10, such as projection 22 which mates with and is friction fit with the recess 20 of closure cap 16. Obviously, other shapes of recesses and mating members may be used for this storage purpose.

Having thus described the invention with respect to particular embodiments thereof, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is applicable to a variety of other forms of marker and marker bodies and the appended claims are intended to cover all such variation and modification of the disclosed invention which would be obvious to those skilled in the art.

Claims

I claim:

1. In a plastic marker body having an interior space for holding an ink supply and a body portion for holding a marker nib which extends into said interior space, the improvement consisting of a closure on said nib-holding body portion, said closure consisting of an integral extension of said body portion and separated therefrom by a wall segment of said body having substantially less wall thickness than the walls of said nib-holding body portion and integral closure adjacent said segment, said closure adapted to be separated from said body portion by severing said body portion at said reduced wall thickness segment, wherein said closure includes a recess corresponding in cross-sectional shape and size to the outer shape and size of said nib-holding body portion, said recess being adapted, after severing of said reduced wall thickness segment, to fit over said body portion permitting use of said closure as a removable cap for said body portion.

2. The improved plastic marker body of claim 1, wherein said closure includes means for mating with and being held by a second portion of said marker body.

3. The improved plastic marker body of claim 2, wherein said closure mating means comprises a recess friction fittable over a second portion of said marker body.