US3570284A

US3570284A - Writing pen lock

Info

Publication number: US3570284A
Authority: US
Inventors: Grover E Hendricks
Original assignee: ROLAMECH PATENTS Ltd
Current assignee: ROLAMECH COMPANY Inc
Priority date: 1969-01-09
Filing date: 1969-01-09
Publication date: 1971-03-16
Anticipated expiration: 1988-03-16
Also published as: JPS4913054B1; GB1257819A; DE2000811A1

Abstract

A WRITING PEN HAVING LOCKING FIRST AND SECOND BARREL MEMBERS WHICH HOUSE AN INK CARTRIDGE. THE FIRST BARREL MEMBER HAS A LONGITUDINAL BORE THEREIN AND THE SECOND BARREL MEMBER INCLUDES AN INSERT PART SLIDABLY DISPOSED WITHIN THE LONGITUDINAL BORE OF THE FIRST BARREL MEMBER. AN INTERLOCK MEMBER IS SLIDABLY RECEIVED WITHIN THE INSERT PART OF THE SECOND BARREL MEMBER AND SERVES TO CAM A DETENT WHICH IS SEATED IN A LATERAL BORE IN THE INSERT PART OF THE SECOND BARREL MEMBER INTO A RECESS IN THE FIRST BARREL MEMBER AND THEREBY LOCK THE BARREL MEMBES TOGETHER.

Description

March 16, 1971 G E. HENDRICKS 3,570,284

WRITING PEN LOCK Filed Jan. 9, 1969 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 l N VENTOR. GROVE/Q E. HENDR/CKS 1] 1, L 141 (r A A TTO/QNE Y5 March 16, 1971 G. E. HENDRICKS WRITING PEN LOCK 2 Sheets-$heet 2 Filed Jan. 9, 1969 @LMM/b & MMam/ A 7' TOR/V5 Y5 United States Patent O 3,570,284 WRITING PEN LOCK Grover E. Hendricks, Niles, Mich., assignor to Rolamech Patents, Ltd., Chicago, Ill. Filed Jan. 9, 1969, Ser. No. 790,025 Int. Cl. A44b 17/00; E051) 73/00 US. Cl. 70-58 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A writing pen having locking first and second barrel members which house an ink cartridge. The first barrel member has a longitudinal bore therein and the second barrel member includes an insert part slidably disposed within the longitudinal bore of the first barrel member. An interlock member is slidably received within the insert part of the second barrel member and serves to cam a detent which is seated in a lateral bore in the insert part of the second barrel member into a recess in the first barrel member and thereby lock the barrel members together.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a writing pen having locking barrel parts which house an ink cartridge.

Writing pens, such as ball point pens, have wide utilization in banks, filling stations, department stores and in similar places where they are provided for use in the filling out of deposit slips, the writing of checks, and the signing of purchase receipts for credit card purchases. Many of these pens are taken or otherwise disappear when in use and must be replaced at additional expense. To reduce the incidence of pen loss, it is customary to anchor the pens to desks or pen holders by means of light-weight chains. But, even with this loss-preventive measure being taken, it is not uncommon to find pens which have been disassembled and parts thereof taken. This invention concerns a writing pen which is uniquely constructed so that it cannot be disassembled by the ordinary user.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a writing pen having locked barrel members which house an ink cartridge and which cannot be disassembled or separated by the ordinary user of the pen. The writing pen of this invention includes first and second engaging barrel members and a lock member slidably disposed within the barrel members. The lock member serves to cam an internally positioned detent into interlocking engagement with the first and second barrel members and thereby prevent their separation. When desired, the lock member can be shifted within the barrel members of the pen by means of a special tool so as to cause the detent to be freed from its interlocking engagement with the barrel members and thereby allow the barrel members to be separated. The pen can be attached to one end of a chain or cable which has its opposite end secured to a writing desk, pen holder, or similar anchoring means and is so designed that its interlocking parts are concealed from the pen user so as to provide no hint as to how its barrel members can be separated.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a writing pen having locking barrel members whose manner of disassembly is unknown to the user.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a writing pen which can be attached to a writing desk or similar object by a chain or cable and which contains concealed interlocking parts which prevents the pen user from disassembling the pen.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a writing pen which is of economical construction and which ice.

has concealed interlocking parts preventing disassembly of the pen without the aid of a special tool.

Other objects of this invention will become apparent upon a reading of the inventions description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the writing pen of this invention in use and attached by cable to a pen holder.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the writing pen of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary axial sectional view of the writing pen of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary axial sectional view of the writing pen of FIG. 1 illustrating the use of a special tool to disassemble the pen.

FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the writing pen of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary axial sectional view of the writing pen of FIG. 1 in modified form.

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary axial sectional view of the writing pen of FIG. 1 in modified form.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional View taken along line 8-8 of FIG. 7.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The preferred embodiments illustrated are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. They are chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its application and practical use to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention.

The embodiment of the pen of this invention illustrated in FIGS. 1-5 includes a first barrel member 10 and an engaging head or second barrel member 12 which cooperate to house an ink cartridge 14. First barrel member 10 is preferably tubular and has a longitudinal bore 16 which is defined in part by a rear end wall 18 and a tubular wall 19. The outer surface of wall 19, primarily for appearance, preferably tapers rearwardly from a forward end face 20 to a rear end face 22 of the barrel member 10. The inner surface of wall 19 is preferably interrupted by a circumferential recess or groove 24 formed adjacent to but spaced inwardly from forward end face 20.

Second barrel member 12 includes an outer part 26 and a coaxial insert part 34. Outer part 26 preferably has a rear end face 28, a straight portion 30 which extends forwardly from end face 28 and which has an outer diameter substantially equal to the outer diameter of first barrel member 10' at front end face 20 thereof, and a frustoconical portion 32 which tapers forwardly from straight portion 30 and which terminates in a forward tip 31. Insert part 34 of barrel member 12 extends rearwardly from end face 28 of outer part 26 and terminates in a rear end face 46. Insert part 34 preferably has an outer diameter which is slightly less than the inner diameter of longitudinal bore 16 of first barrel member 10 at its front end face 20 and is slidably received within bore 16. Barrel member 12 has a coaxial bore 38 therethrough which preferably includes a forward section 38a of one substantially uniform diameter and a rear coaxial section 38b of a larger substantially uniform diameter. Section 38a preferably extends through outer part 26 of barrel member 12, and section 38b preferably extends through insert part 34 of barrel member 12 and is separated from section 3801 by an annular shoulder 39. A lateral bore 36 is formed in the side wall of insert part 34 and is so spaced relative to rear end face 28 of outer part 26 thereof that it registers with groove 24 in barrel member 10 when rear end face 28 abuts front end face 20- of barrel member 10.

A lock member 40 is slidably disposed within bore 38 of barrel member 12 and preferably includes a rear part 42, which is positioned within enlarged section 3812 of bore 38 and which has a front face 44 and a rear face 45, and a coaxial forward end part 48, which projects forwardly from front face 44 of rear part 42 and which is received within section 38a of bore 38. The outer diameter of rear part 42 is preferably slightly less than the diameter of section 38b of bore 38 in barrel member 12. A recess or circumferential groove 50, preferably having beveled sides, is formed in the outer surface of rear part 42 of the lock member adjacent front face 44 thereof so as to be positioned forwardly of lateral bore 36 in barrel member 12 when face 44 of the lock member abuts face 28 of the barrel member 12 as shown in FIG. 3. With face 44 of the lock member abutting face 28 of barrel member 12, forward end part 48 of the lock member preferably extends forwardly within bore 38 in the barrel member and has its fowardmost end 52 terminating within bore 38 preferably just slightly inwardly of the forward tip 31 of the barrel member. Lock member 40 has an axial bore 49 therethrough.

A detent 54 is disposed within lateral bore 36 in barrel member 12. Detent 54 is preferably spherical, although it may be of some other configuration, such as cylindrical, and preferably has a diameter which is approximately twice the thickness of the side wall of barrel member insert part 34. The depth of groove 24 in barrel member and groove 50 in lock member 40 is preferably approximately one half of the diameter of detent 54.

Ink cartridge 14, which is housed within the

barrel members

10 and 12, is of a construction well known in the art and includes an ink-containing body part 56 which is positioned within longitudinal bore 16 of barrel member 10 and an elongated coaxial reduced forward head part 58 which terminates in a writing tip 60 and which projects through bore 49 of lock member 40.

Barrel member 10 also preferably has an axial bore 64 which extends from rear end face 22 to face 65 of end wall 18. Bore 64 is preferably of smaller diameter than bore 16 of barrel member 10 and receives one end 67 of a flexible attachment means, such as a cable 66. End 67 of cable 66 protrudes just inwardly beyond face 65 of end wall 18 into bore 16. A spherical stop 68 preferably is secured, as by crimping, to end 67 of cable 66 and serves to prevent cable end 67 from being withdrawn from barrel member 10. The opposite end of cable '66 is preferably attached to a pen holder 70 which has an inclined bore 72 formed therein for the receipt of the pen when it is not in use. Pen holder 70 may be bolted or otherwise anchored to a writing desk.

A biasing means, such as a helical spring 62, is positioned to the rear of ink cartridge 14 within bore 16 in barrel member 10. Spring 62 has one end engaging rear end face 63 of the ink cartridge 14 and its opposite end preferably engaging stop 68 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 and serves to urge ink cartridge 14 forwardly within bore 16 and against rear face 45 of lock member 40 which, in turn, is caused to abut barrel member 12 as illustrated in FIG. 3. With ink cartridge 14 so urged by spring 62 forwardly within bore 16 and lock member 40 abutting barrel member 12, writing tip 60 of the ink cartridge projects slightly beyond tip 31 of barrel member 12 and circumferential groove 50 in lock member 40 is positioned out of registry with lateral bore 36 in barrel member 12, thereby causing detent 54 disposed within bore 36 to be biased into groove 24 in barrel member 10 so as to prevent separation of the barrel members. Spring 62 is of sufficient stiffness so as to prevent writing tip 60 of the ink cartridge from being pushed rearwardly into barrel member 12 when the pen is used and yet is preferably sufficiently resilient so as to absorb any force transmitted directly to the writing tip should the pen be dropped and fall on its tip. By utilizing a substantially spherical stop 68 at end 67 of chain 66, the chain can twist relative to the pen and will not become fouled when the pen is used. As an alternative construction, spring 62 can be received over stop 6. and engage end wall 1 8.

To separate barrel member 12 from barrel member 10, lock member '40 need only be shifted rearwardly within barrel member 12 until groove 50 in the lock member registers with lateral bore 36 in barrel member 12 to permit detent 54 to seat within groove 50 as illustrated in FIG. 4. In order to shift lock member 40 rearwardly within barrel member 12, a tool 74 may be utilized. Tool 74 preferably includes a knurled grip part 75, which has an end face 76, and a cylindrical end part 78 which projects outwardly from face 76 and which has an outer diameter slightly smaller than the diameter of section 38a of bore 38 in barrel member 12. Cylindrical end part 78 of tool 74 has an axial bore =80 therein which is adapted to receive the writing tip 60 of ink cartridge 14. End part 78 of tool 74 is fitted over writing tip 60 of the ink cartridge and is inserted into bore section 38a of barrel member 12 where it abuts end 52 of lock member 40 and causes the lock member to be pushed or shifted inwardly into bore section 38a until groove 50 of the lock member is brought into registry with lateral bore 36 in the barrel member.

To lock

barrel members

10 and 12, end part 78 of tool 74 is inserted into barrel member 12. Lock member 40 is received within bore 38 of barrel member 12 with groove 50 of the lock member registering with lateral bore 36 in barrel member 12 and with detent 54 received within lateral bore 36 and seated in groove 50. Insert part 34 of barrel member 12 is then inserted into longitudinal bore 16 of barrel member 10 until end face 20 of barrel member 10 abuts end face 28 of barrel member 12. Tool 74 is then withdrawn from barrel member 12 to permit spring 66 in barrel member 10 to urge ink cartridge 14 and lock member 40 forwardly and thereby cause detent 54 to be cammed into groove 24 in barrel member 10.

Another embodiment of this invention is illustrated in FIG. 6. In this embodiment the heretofore described embodiment of FIGS. l-S is modified to the extent that an indentation or recess 82 for receiving detent 54 is substituted for circumferential groove 24. Not only are

barrel members

10 and 12 prevented from being separated but one barrel member cannot be rotated relative to the other barrel member when detent 54 is received within indentation 82.

Another embodiment of this invention is illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8. In this embodiment the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1-5 is modified to the extent that an indentation 82 is substituted for circumferential groove 24 and an aperture 84 is formed in tubular wall 19 of barrel member 10. Aperture '84 has its axis lying in the same transverse plane as the center of indentation 82 and is angularly spaced from indentation 82. Barrel members and 12 are separated with the aid of tool 74 in the same manner as that previously described for the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1-5. To reassemble and lock the barrel members, end part 78 of tool 74 is inserted into barrel member 12. Lock member 40 is fitted into bore 38 of barrel member 12 with groove 50 of the lock member registering with lateral bore 36. Insert part 34 of barrel member 12 is then inserted into bore 16 of barrel member 10 until end face 20 of barrel member 10 abuts end face 28 of barrel member 12. Detent 54 is then inserted through aperture 84 in barrel member 10 and into registering bore 36 where it seats in groove 50'. Tool 74 is then withdrawn from barrel member 12. Barrel member 12 is then rotated relative to barrel member 10 until lateral bore '36 in barrel member 12 registers with indentation 82 in barrel member 10 and the detent is cammed into indentation 82 by the spring urged forward movement of lock member 40.

What I claim is:

1. In a writing pen having first and second barrel members which house an ink cartridge, said first barrel member having a longitudinal bore therein defined by a tubular wall and an end wall, the inner surface of said tubular wall having a recess therein, said second barrel member having a longitudinal bore therethrough and including an insert part slidably received within the longitudinal bore in said first barrel member, said insert part having a lateral bore therein which communicates with the longitudinal bore in said second barrel member and which registers with the recess in said first barrel member, a lock member slidably received within the longitudinal bore in said second barrel member, said lock member having a recess therein and being shiftable between a lock position wherein its said recess is spaced from said lateral bore and a release position wherein its said recess is positioned in registry with said lateral bore, a detent disposed within said lateral bore and engaging said insert part, said detent having a portion which projects into the recess in said first barrel member when said lock member is positioned in its lock position, said ink cartridge engaging said lock member to urge said lock member into its lock position.

2. The writing pen of claim 1 wherein said recess in said lock member is a circumferential groove.

3. The writing pen of claim 1 wherein said ink cartridge abuts said lock member, and biasing means disposed with in the longitudinal bore in said first barrel member and engaging said ink cartridge to cause said lock member to be urged into its lock position.

4. The writing pen of claim 3 wherein said lock member includes a rear end part engaged by said ink cartridge and a front end part having a reduced outer diameter, said second barrel member having a forward tip, the longitudinal bore in said second barrel member having a minimum diameter at said forward tip, the front end part of said lock member being adapted for engagement by a tool means which longitudinally shifts said lock member from its lock position to its release position.

5. The writing pen of claim 4 wherein the front end part of said lock member terminates inwardly of said forward tip.

6. The writing pen of claim 3 wherein the end wall of said first barrel member has a bore therethrongh which communicates with the longitudinal bore in said first barrel member, a flexible attachment means having one end portion inserted through the bore in said end wall and into the longitudinal bore of said first barrel member, and a stop secured to said end portion within the longitudinal bore of said first barrel member and having a maximum transverse dimension which is greater than the diameter of the bore in said end wall.

7. The writing pen of claim 6 wherein said stop is substantially spherical and said biasing means engaging said ink cartridge is a helical spring disposed within the longitudinal bore of said first barrel member, said spring having one end engaging said stop and the other end engaging an end face of said ink cartridge.

8. The writing pen of claim 1 wherein the tubular wall of said first barrel member has a lateral bore therein adapted to receive with clearance said detent, and the recess in said first barrel member is an indentation having a center angularly spaced from and positioned within substantially the same transverse plane as the axis of said last mentioned lateral bore.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,991,825 2/1935 Strickland 58X 2,776,015 1/1957 Bielstein 5X 2,901,804 9/1959 Williams 24-211 3,014,745 12/1961 Kytta 292252 3,186,196 6/1965 Moberg 7034 MARVIN A, CHAMPION, Primary Examiner E. J. MCCARTHY, Assistant Examiner US. 01. X.R, 24-411; 401-495