Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
WO 95/00334 PCT/L1S94/06585
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CORRECTION TAPE DISPENSER
This invention relates to a correction
tape dispenser for laying down a strip or band
of correction composition onto a surface, most
usually paper, e.g. to cover markings thereon to
facilitate the correction of a mistake.
There are known correction tape
dispensers which have supply and take-up spools
for the tape mounted within a case to rotate
about parallel axes with the supply spool being
coupled to drive the take up spool through a
slipping clutch arrangement. The case may be
adapted to be held directly in the hand of the
user, or it may form a cartridge which is
inserted into a re-usable outer housing. A
length of tape extending between the spools is
guided to pass out of the casing and arouad an
applicator head or tip having a relatively sharp
edge which is used to press the tape against the
surface onto which the correction strip is to be
applied. The tape consists of a ribbon, e.g. of
plastics or paper, on one side of which is
carried a coating of the correction composition,
this coating being on the outer side of the
ribbon when it passes around the tip. In use,
the device is held in the hand and the tip is
pressed down onto the paper surface so that its
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edge presses the tape agaii~st the surface across
the full width of the tap's': ~ The correction
composition has an ad~e.sive quality and has
greater adhesion to 'the paper than to its
carrier ribbon, so that when the tip is
displaced across the paper surface in a
direction perpendicular to the tip edge, the tip
slides with respect to the ribbon causing tape
to be drawn off the supply spool. The
consequent rotation of the supply spool rotates
the take-up spool so that a substantially
constant tension is maintained in the tape and
the take-up spool reels in the spent ribbon over
which the tip has passed and from which the
correction composition coating will have been
deposited onto the paper surface. In this way a
continuous strip of the correction composition
is laid down onto the paper, this strip having a
length according to the distance travelled by
the dispenser tip.
The known correction tape dispensers
operate satisfactorily as far as laying down the
correction strip is concerned. However, they do
require some practice to ensure that the tip
edge is applied correctly against the paper, and
the necessary orientation of the tip is
maintained throughout the entire stroke of the
tip across the paper surface. In particular,
the tip edge must at all times lie flat against
the paper surface for pressing the tape
substantially uniformly against the paper across
the full width of the tape. In the prior art
correction tape dispensers currently available
the applicator tip is substantially rigid with
the dispenser body so that the user must hold
the dispenser and maintain it at a precise
orientation with respect to the paper in the
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course of laying down a strip of the correction
composition. This-drawback is exacerbated by
. the fact that the dispensers are generally
arranged so that they must be held in an
unnatural attitude relative to the paper due to
the configuration and orientation of the body
having regard to the direction of the tip edge.
In US-A-4671687 there is proposed a
correction tape dispenser with a tape applying
tip which is pivotally connected to a body part
to allow the tip to pivot about an axis which is
transverse to the length of the tip edge.
However, the pivot axis is defined at a
substantial distance from the edge, where the
tip is joined to the body.
The present invention aims to
alleviate the drawback explained above and
provides a correction tape dispenser having an
applicator tip with an edge for pressing the
tape against a surface, wherein the tip
comprises a part connected to a supporting
member by means permitting rocking pivotal
movement of the tip about an axis extending
transversely of the tip and crossing the tip
edge at least in close proximity thereto.
With the axis of the tip movement in close
proximity to the edge, that is intersecting or
very nearly intersecting the edge, an effective
self-alignment between the tip edge and the
paper can be achieved, thereby making it easier
to ensure that the edge is not only initially
applied flat against the paper surface, but is
also maintained in this flat orientation when
stroking the tip along the paper surface as the
axis of the tip movement lies substantially in
the plane of the paper.
The axis is preferably substantially
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perpendicular to the direction of the tip edge,
i.e. generally aligned with the direction in
which the tip is moved in us~;,;'vand in a specific
embodiment the pivot axis intersects the edge at
a point substantially midway along it.
Conveniently the tip is journalled for pivot
movement by a shell bearing, but other forms of
pivot are possible.
A full understanding of the invention
will be gained from the following detailed
description of an exemplary embodiment,
reference being made to, the accompanying
drawings, wherein:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a
tape dispenser according to the invention in use
and with a forward end of the dispenser body
shown cut away for ease of illustration;
Figure 2 is a front elevation of the
dispenser with the body shown in section;
Figure.3 is a side view of the distal
end portion of the dispenser;
Figure 4 is an enlarged side elevation
of the dispenser tip; and
Figures 5A, 5B and 5C are cross-
sections through the tip showing the normal tip
position and the two extreme pivotal positions
of the tip, respectively.
The correction tape dispenser shown in
the drawings has a casing or body 1 in which are
housed tape supply and take-up spools 2 and 3.
The spools are rotatable about their respective
parallel axes and as well known in the art are
coupled by a slipping drive mechanism, as
illustrated in the form of pulleys 4, 5 around
which a drive belt 6 is traiaed, so that
rotation of the supply spool 2 in response to
tape 8 being drawn therefrom causes the take-up
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spool 3 to rotate to reel in the tape to prevent
the tape becoming slack between the spools. The
tape 8 itself can be conventional having a layer
of correction composition coating one side of a
carrier ribbon.
Mounted in the body to protrude
through the forward end thereof is a tip
assembly consisting of a tip supporting member 9
and a separate part 10 forming the tip itself.
10~ Provided on the member 9 are tape guiding
rollers or pegs 12 around which the tape is
guided in passing to and from the tip 10,
thereby enabling the dispenser body to be held
at a more usual writing angle with respect to
the paper in use of the dispenser.
The tip 10 defines the tape
application edge 15 around which the tape 8
passes and by means of which the tape is pressed
against the paper surface for transferring a
strip of correction composition from the carrier
ribbon onto the paper. A pair of guide wings 16
is provided on either side of the tip to assist
in guiding the tape with respect to the edge 15,
and to maintain the tape in correct cooperation
with the edge during use. The portion of the
tip directed away from the edge is bifurcated to
define a slot 18 which is coplanar with the edge
15 and in which is received a flat tongue formed
by the end portion of the support member 9. The
free end edge of the tongue has a part-
cylindrical bearing surface 19 which matches a
complementary bearing surface 20 defined by the
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bottom end wall of the slot 18. The bearing
surfaces are centred on an axis P which bisects
the line of the edge 15. The bearing surface
together define a shell bearing enabling fee
pivotal movement of the tip 10 relative to the
support member, and hence the body of the
dispenser, about the axis P. At their ends the
bearing surfaces are provided with stop faces
21, 22 which come into abutment to limit the
pivotal movement of the tip, as depicted in
Figures 5B and 5C which show the two extreme
pivotal positions. The allowed pivotal movement
may be a few degrees e.g. 3° - 5° to either side
of the normal central position illustrated in
Figure 5A, but could be made larger say up to
10° either side if required. Provided the
dispenser body is held approximately in the
correct orientation when the tip is applied to
the paper surface, the tip edge will align
itself automatically to be flat agaiast the
surface, with the tape 8 being interposed
between the tip edge and the paper. When the
tip is displaced across the paper in the
direction perpendicular to the edge, the
pressure exerted through the tip causes the
correction composition to adhere to the paper
surface while the tip slides along the tape
ribbons causing fresh tape to be drawn from the
supply spool 2 and laid down iamiediately in
front of the moving tip. The ribbon over which
the tip has passed is drawn back iato the body
and reeled up on the take-up spools having left
the correction composition previously carried
thereby on the paper. It is possible for the
body of the dispenser to rock slightly during
the displacement, Without upsetting the flat
alignment of the tip edge with the paper, due to
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the pivotal connection of the tip with the pivot
axis lying essentially in the plane of the paper
.. and thereby use of the dispenser is greatly
facilitated.
Modifications to the tape dispenser
are of course possible without departing from
the inventive concept. For example many other
ways of pivotally connecting the tip 10 to the
supporting member 9 are possible besides that
illustrated and described above and alternative
pivots will occur to skilled readers.
Furthermore, the invention is applicable to all
tape dispensers irrespective of the particular
configuration and orientation of the dispenser
body relative to the tip edge. If desired a
light spring could be provided to bias the tip
to the central position shown in Figure SA
although this can be ensured by the tension in
the tape.
