US2992582A - Pressure-sensitive tape dispenser - Google Patents

Description

July 18, 1961 c. CASTELLI PRESSURE-SENSITIVE TAPE DISPENSER Filed March 31, 1958 ATTORN EY United States Patent The present invention relates to dispensers for pressuresensitive adhesive tape,'more particularly to dispensers wherein the tape in roll form is carried on a core which is mounted for ready removal from the dispenser and replacement therein.

Dispensers have been provided for pressure-sensitive adhesive tapes, such as cellophane tape, which are highly functional and eflicient, and at the same time, extremely simple and inexpensive. Typical of these is a dispenser formed from a single piece of sheet metal folded to provide opposed side walls and an end wall connecting them. At the opposite end of the dispenser, a front wall with a serrated cutting edge facing away from the roll is provided. This may be an extension of one or both of the side walls or an additional piece of meal secured thereto. In order to hold the end of the tape in position for dispensing, a flat portion, or platform, adjoining the cutting edge is provided. This platform is spaced from the tape roll and those portions of the side walls between the rear of the platform and the roll are depressed to allow the tape extending over the platform to be picked up by the fingers; Dispensers of equivalent construction also have been molded from inexpensive plastic materials.

Such a dispenser is operated by picking up the end of the tape, drawing it over the platform and the serrated cutting edge, and then pulling it down over the cutting edge in such a way that the tape is torn along the serra tions. The end of that portion of the tape which is at tached to the roll remains adhered to the platform just inside the cutting edge, thereby providing a length of tape which may be lifted readily from the platform and drawn out to the desired length for future dispensing.

In dispensers of this type the top and bottom are left open for easy access to the roll and to save material, and the roll is wound upon a core which may be mounted on annular flanges or flange portions struck-in from the opposed side walls of the dispenser to act as hub means for the roll. Thus, if desired, the roll may be removed from the dispenser by spreading the walls to pull the struck-in flanges out beyond the edges of the core. A new roll of tape then may be installed in the dispenser merely by reversing this operation. The dispenser may be designed to be disposed of after the original roll is used up or it may be designed to be re-usable with new rolls, in which case a construction wherein the walls are not connected at the rear of the dispenser is desirable.

Unfortunately, problems have arisen in dispensing plastic tapes such as those made from vinyl polymers or copolymers and similar materials, from dispensers of this type. Vinyl tapeis relatively soft and strechable and tends to pull out of shape when drawn down over a serrated edge for tearing with the result that it is difficult to tear and the end of the tape is distorted so that an irregular edge is left.

The present invention contemplates a dispenser of the type described which is particularly suitable for dispensing vinyl tapes and tapes of similar materials. This dispenser includes means for severing the tape without the necessity for stretching it, thereby avoiding the above-described diflicu'lties. At the same time, the dispenser of this invention includes the important advantages of the prior art cellophane tape dispensers, i.e., the dispenser may be stamped from one or two pieces of metal or molded from 2,992,582 Patented July 18, 1961 "ice an inexpensive plastic material, the dispenser may be designed so' that tape rolls may be removed from and replaced in the dispenser with ease, and the like. The tape severing means of this invention comprises a tape cutter which works in conjunction with means, such as a slot, in or on the tape severing platform for cutting directly through the tape. The tape cutter is mounted on a tape severing arm, which in turn is removably mounted for rotation on the hub of the dispenser. Thus, if the dispenser'is designed to be re-usable, spent cores and/or tape rolls may be removed easily and/or installed in the dispenser merely by removing the tape severing arm and then spreading the sides of the dispenser as described above in connection with the prior art cellophane tape dispensers. Otherwise, the tape severing arm may be re moved as just described and installed on a new dispenser with a full roll of tape as often as it is desired to use a new dispenser.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the tape severing arm is held on the hub by opposed resilient ears depending from the rear of the arm. The distance beween the tips of the cars is less than the distance across the Widest portion of the hub and the ears are sufficiently resilient that the tips are spread and snapped down around the hub in rotatable engagement therewith when the rear end of the arm is pressed down over the hub. Preferably, the hub comprises opposed annular flanges or flange portions extending inwardly from opposite sides of the dispenser and the ears are in two pairs, each attached to opposed sides of the rear end of the tape severing arm. 'The tape severing arm may be removed readily from the dispenser merely by pulling upwardly upon the rear end of the arm with suflicient force to spread the tips of the ears to clear the hub. Other and further advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description and claim taken together with the drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a view in perspective of a dispenser according to one embodiment of this invention;

FIGURE 2 is a somewhat enlarged side view partly in section andpartly in elevation of the dispenser of FIG. 1;

FIGURE?) is a partially cut away end view partly in section and partly in elevation of the dispenser of FIG. 2 taken along the line 33 thereof;

' FIGURE 4 'is a top plan view of the dispenser of FIG. 2;

FIGURE 5 is a greatly enlarged sectional view showing a portion of the structure of the front end of the dispenser of FIGS. land 2; and

FIGURE 6 is a view in perspective of the tape severing arm and cutter of the dispenser of FIG. 1.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown one embodiment of a dispenser according to this invention which comprisesopposed side walls 11 and front and rear end walls 12 and 13, respectively. The side walls 11 and the rear wall 13 all are formed from the same sheet of material which in this case is a thin sheet metal which is conventional in dispensers of this general type. A tape roll 14 carried on a core 15 is mounted for rotation on annular flanges 16 extending inwardly from the opposite sides 11 of the dispenser. The flanges 16 fit inside the core 15 of the roll and act as hub means therefor. As shown in detail in FIG. 5, the front wall'lZ of the dis penser is shaped from a separate piece of material which has crimped flanges 17 along its vertical edges which dovetail with similar crimped anges 18 at the front edge of each of the side walls 11. The front wall 12 is inclined away from the tape roll 14 in an upward direction and terminates in a bent over portion which serves as a platform 19. at the top of the front wall. The sides 11 of the dispenser are relatively high and more or less co-extensive with the sides of the tape roll 14 adjacent the rear wall 13 of the dispenser, and are relatively low and depressed below the platform 19 adjacent the front wall thereof. The dispenser is crimped to form beads 20 extending along the top and bottom of the side and rear end walls. The beads eliminate sharp edges and add to the rigidity of the dispenser structure. Similarly, the platform 19 has shallow depending flanges 21 around its edges to improve its rigidity.

A tape severing arm 22 carrying a V-shaped serrated tape cutter 23 also is mounted for rotation on the flanges or hub means 16. The tape cutter 23 extends downwardly from the outer end of the tape severing arm 22 which, in turn, is positioned so as to come into contact with the platform 19 when the tape severing arm is rotated in a path substantially concentric with the tape roll 14. Means is provided in the form of a slot 24 in the platform for cooperating with the tape cutter 23 for severing a length of tape. The tape cutter 23 and the slot 24 are located with respect to one another and the tape severing arm 22 is mounted in such a way, that when the arm is rotated into and out of contact with the platform 19,'the cutter 23 enters and leaves the slot. The inner end of the tape severing arm 22 comprises a transverse portion 25 above the tape and opposed flanges 26 depending from the sides of said transverse portion. Each of these flanges 26 terminates in hub engaging means for rotatably mounting the tape severing arm 22 on the inwardly projecting annular flanges 16. As is shown most clearly in FIGS. 2 and 6, each of the hub engaging means comprises opposed ears 27 adapted to extend around a major portion of the periphery of the annular flanges 16; the angle at subtended by said peripheral portion being substantially greater than 180. The cars 27 are shaped from material which is sufficiently resilient to allow the tape severing arm to be snapped into position on the dispenser merely by pressing the rear end of the arm downwardly so that the ears snap around the annular flanges 16 and then removed therefrom by pulling the same end of the dispenser upwardly to spread the (lugs 27 so that they again pass over the annular flanges It will be seen that a roll of tape or a spent tape core may be removed from the dispenser by first removing the tape severing arm, as described above, spreading the sides 11 of the dispenser to pull the annular flanges 16 outside the edges of the tape core 15, and then lifting the roll or the core out through the top, or for that matter, the bottom, of the dispenser. Preferably, the roll or core is removed from the top of the dispenser since the tops of the upstanding sides of the dispenser which present the annular flanges 16 are more free to move outwardly or away from one another with less resistance from the structure of the dispenser than are the bottoms of these same sides.

An upwardly extending projection 31 or rounded flange is provided at the rear of the transverse portion 25 of the tape severing arm 22 and the arm is inclined upwardly somewhat from the transverse portion 25 to the tape cutter 23. The transverse portion 25 with the projection 31 at one end and the portion extending upwardly to the cutter 23 at the other acts as a finger rest and controlling device which is useful in operating the dispenser as will be described more fully hereinafter.

In operation, the tape severing arm 22 is rotated counter-clockwise, with respect to FIG. 2, to lift the tape cutter 23 out of the slot 24 in the platform and out of the way of a length 32 of tape extending from the roll 14 to the platform 19. In this first position of the tape severing arm, the tape 32 extending from the roll to the platform may be picked up by the fingers and tape may be withdrawn from the roll 14 by pulling on the length 32 and causing the roll to rotate on the annular flanges 16. When a desired length is withdrawn,

the tape is pulled down into contact with the platform 19 in such a way that the desired length is positioned beyond the slot 24 in the platform and the tape is adhered to the platform 19 on both the front and the back edges of the slot. Then the tape severing arm 22 is rotated in the opposite direction about the annular flanges 16 so that the tape cutter 23 comes into contact with the tape adhered to the platform 19 and then enters the slot 24 in the platform. In the course of the movement of the tape severing arm and the cutter 23 to this second position in which the cutter is fully inserted in the slot 24 in the platform, the cutter acts in cooperation with the edges of the slot to sever the tape. 'Since the tape is adhered to the platform in front and in back of the slot 24, there is practically no room for the tape to stretch and distort as it is being cut and both edges of the tape, i.e., the trailing edge of the cut length and the leading edge remaining attached to the roll, are regular and straight. It is an advantage of the dispenser of this invention that it may be held in one hand positioned on the finger rest provided by the transverse portion 25 of the tape severing arm 22 and adjacent parts of the arm with the thumb of that hand, and except for withdrawing the desired length of tape from the roll, the dispenser may be operated completely by the hand holding the dis penser.

The cutting edge of the tape cutter 23 is serrated and in the shape of an inverted V which is wider than flie tape to be cut. However the cutting edge may be in any one of several shapes or forms. For instance, it may be smooth and knife-like, having a straight edge, a V, or pointed edge, or even an inverted V shaped edge. It may consist of several sharp points or prongs, or it even may be inclined fro-m one side of the tape to the other.

Having now described the invention in specific detail and exemplified the manner in which it may be carried into practice, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that innumerable variations, applications, modifications, and extensions of the basic principles involved may be made without departing from its spirit or scope.

The claims are:

A dispenser for an annular roll of normally tacky and pressure-sensitive adhesive tape comprising a pair of opposed parallel side walls spaced to accommodate a roll of such tape, said side walls having opposed inwardly projecting annular hub portions for rotatably supporting the roll between the side walls, said hub portions projecting only partially into the hollow portion formed by the annular roll of tape and said side walls being sufficiently resilient that they may be flexed outwardly to move the inner extremities of said hub portions beyond the sides of the tape roll to allow removal of the tape roll from the dispenser, a platform located more radially remote from said hub than are the peripheral portions of said walls adjacent said roll and the periphery of said roll and to which a dispensed length of tape pulled from the roll will adhere when the adhesive side thereof and the platform are brought into engagement, means associated with the platform to cooperate in severing a length of tape adhered thereto, a tape severing arm slidably mounted on said hub for rotation in a path substantially concentric with said roll from one position permitting withdrawal of a length of tape from the roll and its engagement with the platform to a second position, a tape cutter at the outer end of said arm for engagement with said platform when said arm is moved into said second position, said tape cutter in its movement to said second position acting in cooperation with said means on the platform to sever the tape adhered thereto, and hub engaging means depending from the inner end of said arm for embracing said annular hub and rotatably mounting said arm thereon between tape roll and the respective side walls, said hub engaging means comprising opposed resilient ears adapted to extend around the widest 5 part of said hub portions, the distance between the tips of said ears being less than the distance across the widest part of said hub portions, whereby the tape severing arm normally is held on the hub portions but may be removed therefrom and replaced thereon by resiliently flexing the ears to increase and decrease the distance between their tips, thereby allowing the arm to be removed and replaced easily on the hub portion of the dispenser when it is desired to place a new roll of tape therein.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Schulz Feb. 10, 1914 Lemaster May 11, 1937 Alliss Mar. 10, 1942 Martin Feb. 12, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS France May 6, 1957

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