Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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TITLE: BLADE SHARPENING HOLDER
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to tool holders. Particularly, the
present invention relates to blade sharpening holders. More particularly, the
present
invention relates to honing guides and tool grinding rests.
Description of the Prior Art
When sharpening a cutting edge on a tool, it was common to use jigs to hold
the tool to be sharpened at a predetermined angle to a grind stone. Typically,
the
grind stones were water cooled. The grinding jigs usually included a roller
which
supported a plate upon which the tool was secured. The support plate and
roller held
the tool at a selected angle against the stone surface. As the stone was
moved, the
cutting edge was ground to the selected angle. The initial setting of the tool
in the jig
was critical to the success of the operation.
The present use of such guides is now customarily limited to flat bench
stones. The skilled artisan, however, differentiates between grinding and
honing.
Grinding is considered as defining the basic edge and honing as refining the
basic
edge to the finished sharp edge. In the normal sharpening process, the edge to
be
sharpened is initially passed over the coarse stone at a selected angle. This
process
leaves a ragged edge of the desired angle. The bevel is then refined over a
stone of
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finer particles. Since such stones cut more slowly, the work is done on the
part of the
bevel which intersects with the face of the tool to provide a micro-bevel.
The micro-bevel selected should be a function of the tool material, the
material to be cut and the intended use. Ideally, the bevel angle should be no
greater
than is necessary to prevent the edge from breaking down so that the wedging
action
of the tool is minimized as the edge enters the material to be cut.
When manually sharpening a tool's cutting edge, the skilled artisan uses a
variety of methods including oil stones, water stones, sandpaper, loose grit
or paste
on glass, etc. Honing stones are typically rectangular shaped. When using an
oil
stone, typically a small amount of honing oil, which is a lightweight oil, is
usually
placed on the honing stone. The skilled artisan then pulls or pushes the
cutting edge
over the honing stone at the desired angle as if the cutting edge were
scrapping the
surface of the honing stone, i.e. the cutting edge is pushed or pulled over
the honing
surface in a perpendicular fashion. Several blade holders to facilitate manual
sharpening of a cutting edge over a honing surface have been devised.
U.S. Patent No. 4,733,501 (1988, McLean) discloses a honing guide. The
honing guide includes a tool support plate mounted above a surface-engaging
roller.
The surface engaging roller is mounted eccentrically so that the height of the
tool
support plate may be varied to provide a range of honing angles without
unclamping
the tool from the guide.
U.S. Patent No. 5,472,375 (1995, Pugh) discloses a blade sharpening angle
guide. The blade sharpening guide includes an elongated curved block having a
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longitudinal slot therethrough. The longitudinal slot releasably holds a knife
blade
with the blade cutting edge extending a distance outside the slot.
U.S. Patent No. 6,030,281 (2000, Cozzini et al.) discloses a sharpening
apparatus. The sharpening apparatus includes a base member on which a
sharpening
stone is positioned. A slidable blade guide member is slidably connected to
the base
member and includes a guide surface that is disposed at an angle relative to
the upper
surface of the sharpening stone and a mounting mechanism for removably
mounting a
spatula against the guide surface such that the scraping edge of the spatula
is in
engagement with the sharpening stone. The slidable blade guide member is
manually
slidable back and forth to sharpen the scraping edge of the spatula. A fixed
blade
guide member is also attached to the base member. The fixed blade guide member
includes a horizontal slot that is adapted to receive the shaft of a grill
scraper. The
fixed blade guide member is adapted to provide guided back and forth sliding
movement of the grill scraper within the slot and engagement with the
sharpening
member to sharpen the scraping edge of the grill scraper.
The above-described devices require the cutting edge of the tool to move over
and against the sharpening/honing stone in a "scraping" motion. In other
words, the
motion of the cutting edge to the stone surface is similar to the action used
with a
scraper/tool. The motion of the cutting edge of the cutting tool against the
honing
stone surface is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cutting edge. A
disadvantage of this type of action is that the honing stone surface develops
a concave
shape with use thus shortening the useful life of the honing stone. Another
disadvantage is that the concave surface of the honing stone produces a
cutting edge
that is inconsistent since the cutting edge angle changes as the cutting edge
moves
through the concavity in the stone surface. Yet another disadvantage is that
only a
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portion of the honing stone is used since the holder must be on the stone at
the
beginning of the honing process in order to insure that the cutting edge is
positioned
correctly relative to the honing surface.
Therefore, what is needed is a sharpening holder for use in manually
sharpening a cutting edge that does not cause the development of a concave
surface in
the honing stone with extended use. What is further needed is a sharpening
holder
that allows the use of substantially the entire surface area of the honing
stone. What
is also needed is a sharpening holder that does not use a "scrapping" action
of the
cutting edge over the honing surface in order to sharpen the cutting edge.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a sharpening holder that
allows a user to use substantially the entire surface area of the honing stone
surface
when manually honing a cutting edge. It is another object of the present
invention to
provide a sharpening holder that does not cause the development of a concave
honing
surface in a honing stone when a cutting edge is sharpened using the
sharpening
holder. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a
sharpening holder
that does not rely on "scrapping" the cutting edge into the honing surface to
achieve
sharpening of the cutting edge.
The present invention achieves these and other objectives by providing a
sharpening holder that has a body, an adjustable clamping component, and a
plurality
of roller members. In one embodiment of the present invention, the body has a
first
end, a second end and an opening through the body between the first end and
the
second end, and the opening has a tool support surface. The adjustable
clamping
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component has a fastening plate positioned within the opening of the body. The
fastening plate has a tool engaging surface to hold the tool to be sharpened
against the
tool support surface of the body. The plurality of roller members are attached
to a
lower portion of the body below the opening and adjacent the second end where
the
plurality of roller members are configured to allow the body to roll sideways
on the
honing surface causing the cutting edge to move parallel to the honing surface
instead
of perpendicular to the honing surface. More specifically, the axis of
rotation of the
plurality of roller members is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the
cutting
edge to be sharpened. The plurality of roller members may also be configured
to
allow the body to roll through an arc on the honing surface to provide
"parallel" like
sharpening of a curved cutting edge.
The adjustable clamping component also includes an adjustable fastener for
holding the fastening plate against the tool/blade inserted in the opening of
the body.
The plurality of roller members is attached to a lower portion of the body
below the
opening and adjacent the second end of the body. The plurality of roller
members
may be permanently attached or, preferably, removably attached. Optionally, a
raceway may be used to house the plurality of roller members. The raceway is
preferably formed at an angle to the bottom of the body and may be
incorporated into
a body extension that extends below the body adjacent the second end. It
should be
noted that the use of a raceway is optional, especially when wheels or
cylindrical
rollers or tapered rollers are used since these could be attached to an angled
surface
on the bottom of the body or at the second end of the body. If a body
extension is
used, the body extension may be integrally formed with the body or may be a
separate
component that is attached to the body.
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In another embodiment of the present invention, the body is cylindrically
shaped with an elongated recess or an elongated opening that extends along a
major
portion of cylindrical body. The elongated recess or elongated opening has a
cutting
tool receiving surface with an adjustable clamping mechanism that includes a
fastening plate or a plurality of tool fasteners such as, for example, hold-
down screws
for securely and removably holding a cutting blade in the body of the
sharpening
holder. A plurality of roller members are rotatably connected in a raceway
formed
into the surface of the body in a longitudinal direction. The raceway is
formed at an
angle to the cutting tool receiving surface. The rotational axis of the
plurality of
roller members is perpendicular to the raceway, which is also perpendicular to
the
cutting edge of a cutting blade mounted in the sharpening holder so that the
rolling
direction of the plurality of roller members is parallel to the longitudinal
axis of the
cutting edge.
In the embodiment with an elongated opening, the fastening plate of the
adjustable clamping mechanism includes a plurality of through openings along
the
peripheral ends that are sized to receive skew angle pins. The plurality of
through
openings are located to provide a preset or indexed skew angle for a tool
blade having
a cutting edge with a skew angle. The bottom surface of the fastening plate
has a
concave V-shape to more easily align various sizes and shapes of cutting
tools. The
top surface of the fastening plate also includes a plurality of skew angle
indicia
disposed onto is formed into the top surface. The skew angle indicia are also
preset
or indexed skew angle indicators. Additionally, there is included an optional
fine
adjustment component, preferably a roller, mounted at an end of the body so
that the
roller engages the peripheral edge of the fastener plate to allow for fine
skew angle
adjustment.
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An angle dock can optionally be included in any embodiment of the present
invention. The angle dock for the embodiment of the sharpening holder having a
cylindrical body is a docking plate with one end being thicker than the rest
of the
plate. The thicker end has a curved surface shaped to accommodate the
cylindrical
surface of the sharpening holder and a channel formed into the surface of the
plate
next to the curved surface. The docking channel extends the width of the
docking
plate parallel to the curved surface. The docking channel is sized to
accommodate
the plurality of roller members of the sharpening holder while the curved
surface of
the angle dock accommodates the cylindrical surface of the body of the
sharpening
holder. Disposed on the surface of the angle dock and spaced from the docking
channel is a plurality of parallel linear indicia positioned to index specific
cutting
edge angles. The angle dock is used to accurately position in the sharpening
tool of
the present invention a particular cutting blade with a predefined cutting
edge angle to
provide the correct honing angle for sharpening. For example, a cutting blade
having
a 300 cutting edge angle is placed in the tool so that the cutting edge of the
cutting
tool extends from the sharpening tool. The longitudinal edge of the cutting
edge is
aligned with the 300 angle indicator on the angle dock. Once aligned, the
clamping
mechanism is tightened to lock the blade into the sharpening tool for honing
of the
cutting edge. Although a cutting tool may be positioned in the sharpening tool
and
secured thereto with the adjustable clamping mechanism so that the cutting
edge
extends the approximate distance away from sharpening holder for the desired
cutting
edge honing angle, the angle dock makes setting the cutting edge easier and
more
accurate.
Another optional feature of the present invention includes a sharpening holder
sled. The sled is used to slidingly move the sharpening holder over the honing
stone
surface instead of engaging the plurality of roller members. Preferably, the
sled has
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one or more sled ears that are integrally connected to the sled and extends
away from
a top surface of the sled. The sled ear has a through opening sized to
accommodate
an axle of a roller member. The sled ear is also preferably sized to replace a
single
roller member. This allows the use of the sled by removing only a quantity of
roller
members from the raceway of the body equal to the number of sled ears on the
sled.
The sled ear also preferably extends sufficiently so that the remaining roller
members
may or may not be removed from the body of the sharpening holder without
affecting
the use of the sled. The sled lets a user move the sharpening holder in a
parallel and
oblique sliding motion along its longitudinal axis, which is parallel to the
longitudinal
axis of the cutting edge, over the honing stone; a motion that is more
difficult to do
with the plurality of roller members. It should be noted that the sled may
also be
configured as a slide bar that is insertable within the raceway. The slide bar
may also
be formed as part of the body with a special coating or layer attached to the
surface of
the slide bar that allows the body to slide over a honing surface without
extensive
wear to the slide bar. In the insertable sled/side bar embodiment, the
sled/side bar
may have a simple shape such as a rectangular block that is insertable into
the
raceway of the body. The roller members would be completely removed and the
sled
inserted into the raceway and secured. The sled extends out of the raceway
approximately the same distance as the roller members. The portion of the sled
that
extends out of the raceway may also be wider than the raceway.
The unique feature of the present invention in all its embodiments is the
ability to sharpen the cutting edge of a blade or tool using a sideways motion
with the
sharpening holder that is parallel to the cutting edge of the blade or tool
when
manually sharpening a tool on a stationary honing stone surface, called herein
as a
"parallel sharpening motion." In other words, the rotational axes of the
roller
members are perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cutting edge. The
prior art
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devices require a sharpening motion that is perpendicular to the cutting edge
and,
those prior art devices that use roller members, the rotational axis of the
roller
members of the prior art is parallel to the cutting edge of the cutting tool.
The
parallel sharpening motion has the added advantage that it does not create a
concavity
in the honing stone surface with use over time like that created by prior art
devices.
Another feature of the present invention is the relationship of the cutting
edge
of a tool/blade mounted in the body to the plurality of roller members. The
plurality
of roller members is positioned preferably at a predetermined angle to the
bottom of
the body so that the distance between the cutting edge to be sharpened and the
points
of contact of the roller members with the honing stone surface is less than
one-half
the width of the honing stone. This feature provides another advantage of the
present
invention in that it allows sharpening over substantially the entire honing
stone
surface.
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In another aspect, there is provided, a sharpening holder for manually-
sharpening a
cutting edge to be honed over a honing surface, the holder comprising: a
cylindrical body
having a first end, a second end and an opening formed through the body
between the first
end and the second end, the opening having a tool support surface; an
adjustable clamping
component having a rotatable fastening plate positioned within the opening
wherein the
fastening plate has a tool engaging surface to hold the tool against the tool
support surface
and a top surface with skew angle indicia; and a plurality of roller members
disposed within a
longitudinal raceway formed in a lower portion of the body below the opening
wherein the
plurality of roller members are aligned parallel to the longitudinal axis of
the cutting edge to
be sharpened and wherein the axis of rotation of the plurality of roller
members is
perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cutting edge to be sharpened.
In another aspect, there is provided a method of manually-sharpening a cutting
edge
on a tool to be honed over a honing surface, the method comprising: mounting
the tool with a
cutting edge into a blade sharpening holder having a plurality of roller
members mounted to a
lower portion of the blade sharpening holder wherein the plurality of roller
members are
aligned parallel to the longitudinal axis of the cutting edge to be sharpened
and have an axis
of rotation perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cutting edge to be
sharpened;
adjusting a skew angle of a fastening plate that holds the tool; placing the
plurality of roller
members and the cutting edge of the tool onto a honing surface; and moving the
blade
sharpening holder along the honing surface causing the cutting edge of the
tool to engage the
honing surface wherein the plurality of roller members roll in a direction
wherein the axis of
rotation of the plurality of roller members is perpendicular to the
longitudinal axis of the
cutting edge to be sharpened.
In another aspect, there is provided a method of making a blade sharpening
holder for
hand-sharpening of a cutting edge to be honed over a honing surface, the
method comprising:
forming a cylindrical body with a tool support surface between a first end and
a second end
and a raceway in an outside surface of the cylindrical body between the first
end and the
second end; mounting a plurality of roller members in the raceway of the
cylindrical body
wherein the rotational axis of the plurality of roller members is
perpendicular to the
longitudinal axis of the cylindrical body wherein the plurality of roller
members are aligned
parallel to the longitudinal axis of the cutting edge to be sharpened and have
an axis of
rotation perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cutting edge to be
sharpened; and
forming an adjustable fastening component having a rotatable fastening plate
with a tool
engaging surface sized for placement over the tool support surface to hold a
tool having the
cutting edge wherein the tool is against the tool support surface and a top
surface with skew
angle indicia thereon.
In another aspect, there is provided a sharpening holder for manually-
sharpening a
cutting edge to be honed over a honing surface, the holder comprising: a body
having a first
end, a second end and an opening through the body between the first end and
the second end,
the opening having a tool support surface; an adjustable clamping component
having a
fastening plate positioned within the opening wherein the fastening plate has
a tool engaging
surface to hold the tool against the tool support surface; and a plurality of
roller members
connected to a lower portion of the body below the opening and adjacent the
second end
wherein the plurality of roller members are aligned parallel to the
longitudinal axis of the
cutting edge to be sharpened and roll in a direction wherein the axis of
rotation of the
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plurality of roller members is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the
cutting edge to be
sharpened.
In another aspect, there is provided a method of manually-sharpening a cutting
edge
on a tool to be honed over a honing surface, the method comprising: mounting
the tool with a
cutting edge into a blade sharpening holder having a plurality of roller
members mounted to a
lower portion of the blade sharpening holder wherein the plurality of roller
members are
aligned parallel to the longitudinal axis of the cutting edge to be sharpened
and have an axis
of rotation perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cutting edge to be
sharpened; placing
the plurality of roller members and the cutting edge of the tool onto a honing
surface; and
moving the blade sharpening holder along the honing surface causing the
cutting edge of the
tool to engage the honing surface wherein the plurality of roller members roll
in a direction
wherein the axis of rotation of the plurality of roller members is
perpendicular to the
longitudinal axis of the cutting edge to be sharpened.
In another aspect, there is provided a method of making a blade sharpening
holder for
hand-sharpening of a cutting edge of a tool to be honed over a honing surface,
the method
comprising: forming a holder body with a tool support surface between a first
end and a
second end; mounting a plurality of roller members to the holder body along a
lower portion
of the body adjacent the second end wherein the plurality of roller members
are aligned
parallel to the second end and configured to roll in a direction wherein the
axis of rotation of
the plurality of roller members is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of
the cutting edge of
the tool to be sharpened when the tool is mounted on the tool support surface
of the holder
body; and forming an adjustable fastening component having a fastening plate
with a tool
engaging surface sized for placement over the tool support surface to hold a
tool having the
cutting edge wherein the tool is against the tool support surface.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the present invention.
FIGURE 2 is a front view of the present invention showing the blade receiving
opening in the body of the sharpening holder with the plurality of roller
members.
FIGURE 3 is a side view of the present invention showing the body and roller
members.
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FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of the present invention showing the
fastening plate of the adjustable clamp component.
FIGURE 5 is a side view of the present invention showing the fastening plate
and the concave tool-engaging surface.
FIGURE 6 is a bottom view of the fastening plate of the present invention
showing the plurality of tool-holding grooves in the tool-engaging surface.
FIGURE 6A is an enlarged side view of a portion of the bottom of the
fastening plate of the present invention showing the plurality of tool-holding
steps in
the tool-engaging surface.
FIGURE 7 is a perspective view of the embodiment of the present invention
in Fig. 1 showing the positioning of the sharpening holder with a cutting edge
on a
honing surface.
FIGURE 8 is a side view of the embodiment of the present invention in Fig. 7
showing the positioning of the sharpening holder with a cutting edge on a
honing
surface.
FIGURE 9 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present
invention.
FIGURE 10 is a back perspective view of the embodiment shown in Fig. 9.
FIGURE 11 is a side view of the embodiment shown in Fig. 9.
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FIGURE 12 is a perspective view of fastening plate of the embodiment shown
in Fig. 9 showing skew angle selections.
FIGURE 13 is a perspective front view of the fastening plate shown in Fig.
12.
FIGURE 14 is a perspective view of the embodiment of the present invention
shown in Fig. 9 showing an angle dock component for setting the blade to be
sharpened to the proper honing angle for the blade.
FIGURE 15 is an enlarged perspective view of the angle dock component
shown in Fig. 14.
FIGURE 16 is a side view of the angle dock shown component shown in Fig.
15.
FIGURE 17 is a back perspective view of the present invention in Fig. 9
showing a honing sled attached by the axle of a rolling member.
FIGURE 18 is a perspective view of the honing sled shown in Fig. 17.
FIGURE 19 is a side view of the honing sled shown in Fig. 18.
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The preferred embodiments of the present invention are illustrated in Figs. 1-
19. Fig. 1 shows the sharpening holder 10 of the present invention with one
type of
blade 1 mounted for sharpening. Sharpening holder 10 has a body 20, an
adjustable
clamping component 30, and a plurality of roller members 40. Body 20 has a
first
end 22, a second end 23 and an opening 24 through body 20 between first end 22
and
second end 23. Body 20 also includes a tool support surface 25 within opening
24.
Adjustable clamping component 30 includes a fastening plate 32 and an
adjustable fastener 38. Adjustable fastener 38 engages fastening plate 32 and
imparts
a holding force so that fastening plate 32 secures the cutting blade 1 to the
tool
support surface 25. Although various adjustable fasteners may be used to
engage
fastening plate 32, adjustable fastener 38 is preferably a thumb screw that
engages
fastening plate 32 through a threaded opening 27 in a top surface 26 of body
20.
The plurality of roller members 40 are connected to a lower portion 28 of
body 20 below opening 24 and adjacent to second end 23. Each of the plurality
of
roller members 40 are freely rotatable and are aligned to provide body 20 with
a
sideways rolling action. Roller members 40 that are usable in sharpening
holder 10
include wheels, ball bearings, cylindrical rollers, tapered rollers, and the
like. An
important feature of the plurality of roller members 40 is that the roller
members 40
must be sufficiently exposed to allow body 20 to not only roll sideways but
also to
allow body 20 to pivot through a selected angular range with the pivot point
being the
points of contact of the roller members 40 with a honing surface of a honing
stone
(not shown). It should be understood that second end 23 of body 20 may extend
to up
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to and beyond roller members 40 a reasonable distance, if desired, without
affecting
the functionality of the present invention.
Turning now to Fig. 2, there is illustrated a front view of the present
invention. Opening 24 of body 20 and fastening plate 32 may be sized to
accommodate a variety of blades and tools having a cutting edge. The plurality
of
roller members 40 are positioned within a raceway 29 that extends along the
width of
body 20. The number of roller members 40 connected to body 20 depends on the
size
of the roller members 40 and the size of body 20, which, in turn, is dependent
on the
type and size of the blade or tool with a cutting edge that is going to be
sharpened and
the size of the honing stone surface. The width of body 20 should be shorter
than the
sharpening surface to allow sufficient sideways sharpening motion. The number
of
roller elements 40 used is chosen to provide stability to body 20 when it is
engaged
with the sharpening surface in the sideways sharpening motion. In the
preferred
embodiment, wheels are the roller members of choice.
Fig. 3 shows a side view of sharpening holder 10. As can be seen, the
preferred embodiment has body 20 with a body extension 21 that extends from
lower
portion 28 below opening 24 adjacent second body end 23. Raceway 29 is located
in
body extension 21. Each roller member 40 is supported by an axle 42 and all
roller
members 40 protrude out of raceway 29 a predefined distance. Body extension 21
is
structured to have a preset angle 0 relative to the bottom 28a of body 20.
Angle 0 is
preferably in the range of about 105 to about 125 . Even though body
extension 21
is shown as being integral to body 20, body extension 21 may be a separate
component that is attached to body 20.
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It is important to note that body 20 does not require the use of body
extension
21. Raceway 29 could easily be formed into bottom 28a adjacent second end 23
at
the preset angle 0. The only difference is that body 20 would be slightly
heavier due
to a thicker bottom portion 28 in order to accommodate raceway 29.
Turning now to Fig. 4, there is illustrated a perspective view of fastening
plate
32. Fastening plate 32 is sized to fit within opening 24 with the blade/tool
to be
sharpened. Fastening plate has a top plate surface 33 and a bottom plate
surface 34.
Top plate surface 33 is engaged by adjustable fastener 38 while bottom plate
surface
34 is the tool engaging surface to secure the blade or tool within the
sharpening
holder 10.
Fig. 5 is a side view of fastening plate 32 shown in Fig. 4. Top plate surface
33 includes an optional fastener recess 33a for receiving the engaging end of
adjustable fastener 38. Optional fastener recess 33a prevents fastening plate
32 from
inadvertently sliding while engaged by adjustable fastener 38, especially when
a
blade/tool is being sharpened. Bottom plate surface 34 also includes an
optional tool
engaging recess 35, which is preferably a V-shaped recess formed in bottom
plate
surface 34. Similar in purpose to optional fastener recess 33a, tool engaging
recess
35 prevents the blade/tool from slipping sideways when the sharpening is being
performed. Bottom plate surface 34 may also include a plurality of optional
bottom
plate grooves or parallel steps 34a, which are more clearly shown in Fig. 6
and Fig.
6A.
Turning now to Fig. 6, there is shown a bottom view of fastener plate 32.
Bottom plate surface 34 has a plurality of optional bottom plate grooves 34a,
which
are preferably formed in bottom plate surface 34. Optional bottom plate
grooves 34a
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also enhance the holding capability of fastener plate 32. The edges of the
blade/tool
to be sharpened preferably rest within the bottom plate grooves 34a, which
further
restricts any sideways movement of the blade/tool being sharpened. It has been
found
that the preferred spacing of optional bottom plate grooves 34a is 1/32 in.
Fig. 6A
illustrates an enlarged side view of a portion of the bottom plate surface 34
with a
plurality of parallel steps 34b.
Fig. 7 illustrates the use of the present invention with a planing blade I
mounted in sharpening holder 10 on a honing surface 2a of a honing stone 2.
Planing
blade 1 is placed through opening 24 below fastening plate 32 so that blade 1
rests
upon tool support surface 25 with the bevel cutting edge la facing towards the
honing
stone surface 2a. The blade 1 and sharpening holder 10 are adjusted so that
cutting
edge la contacts honing stone surface 2a. Fastener 38 is then turned to secure
blade 1
in sharpening holder 10. Once secured, sharpening of blade 1 is accomplished
by
rolling the sharpening holder 10 with the cutting edge la on honing stone
surface 2a
in the directions indicated by arrows 100.
Unlike prior art hand or manual sharpening tools and jigs, the present
invention moves the cutting edge 1 a in a motion that is parallel to the
cutting edge 1 a
and not perpendicular. More specifically, the axis of rotation of the
plurality of roller
members is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cutting edge to be
sharpened.
The advantage of the sharpening holder 10 and its method of sharpening is that
the
entire honing stone surface 2a can be used. Cutting edge la can be moved to
and
beyond the edges 2b of honing stone 2 without sharpening holder falling off of
honing stone 2. This motion and sharpening technique also eliminates the
formation
of a concavity in the honing stone surface 2a. In fact, it is typical that the
honing
stone surface 2a will develop a slight convex nature when tool sharpening is
CA 02619791 2008-02-01
performed using a sharpening holder of the present invention, which is not
detrimental to the cutting edge la or the useful life of the honing stone. In
fact, this
"parallel" sharpening technique lengthens the useful life of the honing stone
compared to stones where a sharpening jig that relies on a "perpendicular"
sharpening
technique is used.
Turning to Fig. 8, there is a side view of the embodiment in Fig. 7.
Sharpening holder 10 is pivoted about the contact point of the roller members
40 with
honing stone surface 2a so that cutting edge la makes contact with honing
stone
surface 2a. The distance between the cutting edge la and the plurality of
roller
members 40 depends on the bevel angle of the cutting edge la. The bevel angle
is
normally within a range between a knife blade and a scraper. The range is
typically
between about 21 (knife edge) and 32 (scraper). For wood planing blades, the
bevel
angle is about 27 .
As previously mentioned, sharpening holder 10 can be sized for the type of
tool or blade that is to be sharpened as well as the size of the honing stone
surface.
The sharpening holder 10 is preferably structured so that the distance "d"
illustrated
in Fig. 8 between the plurality of roller members 40 and the cutting edge la
is less
that one-half of the honing stone width. This allows the entire surface of the
honing
stone 1 to be used for sharpening, which in turn allows the entire surface of
the
honing stone 1 to wear evenly and to avoid the wear concavity caused by prior
art
sharpening holders and jigs.
It is also noted that the distance the cutting edge la extends out of
sharpening
holder 10 can also change the pivoting angle of sharpening holder 10 along the
contact points of the plurality of roller members with the honing stone
surface 2a.
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CA 02619791 2008-02-01
This allows the sharpening holder 10 to be used to sharpen blades or tools
with
cutting edges that differ from one blade or tool to another. The allowed
pivoting
angle of sharpening holder 10 is directly related to the size of the plurality
of roller
members 40 as well as the distance the roller members 40 extend from
sharpening
body 20.
Turning now to Figure 9, there is illustrated another embodiment of the
present invention. Fig. 9 shows the sharpening holder 100 of the present
invention.
Sharpening holder 100 has a body 120, an adjustable clamping component 130,
and a
plurality of roller members 140. Body 120 has a first end 122, a second end
123 and
an opening 124 through body 120 between and orthogonal to first end 122 and
second
end 123. Adjustable clamping component 130 includes a fastening plate 132, an
adjustable fastener 134, skew-indexing fastening plate pins 136, and fine-
adjustment
component 138 for more accurately setting the cutting tool skew angle.
Adjustable
fastener 134 engages fastening plate 132 and imparts a holding force so that
fastening
plate 132 secures a cutting blade to tool holder 100. Although various
adjustable
fasteners may be used to engage fastening plate 132, adjustable fastener 134
is
preferably a thumb screw that engages fastening plate 132 through a threaded
opening
127 in an outer circumferential surface 126 of body 120.
The plurality of roller members 140 are connected to a lower portion 128 of
body 120 below opening 124. Each of the plurality of roller members 140 are
freely
rotatable and have an axis of rotation that is perpendicular to the
longitudinal axis of
body 120 as well as the longitudinal axis of a cutting edge of a tool mounted
in
sharpening holder 100. As previously disclosed, roller members 140 that are
usable
in sharpening holder 100 include wheels, ball bearings, cylindrical rollers,
tapered
rollers, and the like. An important feature of the plurality of roller members
140 is
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CA 02619791 2008-02-01
that the roller members 140 must be sufficiently exposed to allow body 120 to
not
only roll but also to allow body 120 to pivot through an angular range with
the pivot
point being the points of contact of the roller members 140 with a honing
surface of a
honing stone (not shown). An optional notch 121 is formed into the body ends
122,
123 for accommodating electric planing blades, which are typically longer
along the
cutting edge than the width of the blade. Optional notch 121 allows electric
planing
blades to be mounted in body 120 when the sharpening holder 100 is shorter in
the
longitudinal direction than the length of the cutting edge of the electric
planing blade.
Turning now to Fig. 10, there is illustrated a rear view of the embodiment of
the present invention shown in Fig. 9. Opening 124 of body 120 and fastening
plate
132 may be sized to accommodate a variety of blades and tools having a cutting
edge.
The plurality of roller members 140 are positioned within a raceway 129 that
extends
along the longitudinal length of body 120. The number of roller members 140
connected to body 120 depends on the size of the roller members 140 and the
longitudinal length of body 120, which, in turn, is dependent on the type and
size of
the blade or tool with a cutting edge that is going to be sharpened and the
size of the
honing stone surface. For example, opening 124 may be only a recess with a
clamping mechanism such as a plurality of hold-down screws to hold a cutting
tool
such as the cutting blades of an electric or power planing device. As
recognized by
those of ordinary skill in the art, cutting blades on electric or power
planing tools
have typically longer cutting edges when compared to their transverse
dimension.
Thus, the transverse dimension or width of the electric planing cutting blades
does
not require sharpening holder 100 to have a through opening 124 but simply a
recess
or clamping slot sufficient to accommodate such cutting blades. The
longitudinal
length of body 120 should be shorter than the longitudinal honing stone
surface to
allow sufficient sharpening motion. The number of roller elements 140 used is
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CA 02619791 2008-02-01
chosen to provide stability to body 120 when it is engaged with the honing
stone
surface during the sharpening motion. In the preferred embodiment, wheels are
the
roller members of choice.
Figure 11 is a side view of sharpening holder 100. As can be seen, the
preferred embodiment has body 120 with a raceway 129 formed into body surface
126. As shown in this embodiment, an optional ledge 128 is formed parallel to
and
spaced from raceway 129 in order to provide a substantially flat surface for
placement
of the plurality of axles 142 that rotatably supports the plurality of roller
members
140. It should be understood that cylindrical opening may be formed into the
curved
surface of body 120 to accommodate the plurality of axles 142 instead of
providing
the optional ledge 128. Each roller member 140 is supported by an axle 142 and
all
roller members 140 protrude out of raceway 129 a predefined distance. The
plurality
of roller members 140 are positioned along body 120 such that the angle of the
roller
members 140 to the cutting tool support surface has a preset angle 0. Angle 0
is
preferably in the range of about 55 to about 75 .
Turning now to Figs. 12 and 13, there is illustrated a perspective view of
fastening plate 132. Fastening plate 132 is sized to fit within opening 124
with the
blade/tool to be sharpened. Fastening plate 132 has a top plate surface 133
and a
bottom plate surface 135. Top plate surface 133 is engaged by adjustable
fastener
134 while bottom plate surface 135 is the tool engaging surface to secure the
blade or
tool within the sharpening holder 100. Bottom plate surface 135 may optionally
include the plurality of grooves or steps previously disclosed in Figs. 6 and
6A.
Fastening plate 132 has several unique features. The features include arc-
shaped sides 132a along the width of fastening plate 132, a V-shaped bottom
plate
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CA 02619791 2008-02-01
surface 135 where the vertex of the V-shape extends along the width of the
plate, a
plurality of through openings 132b located along the arc-shaped sides, and a
skew-
angle scale 132c on the top plate surface 133. Arc-shaped sides 132a have an
arc
radius that allows fastening plate 132 to pivot about the rotational axis of
adjustable
fastener 134. This pivotal rotation coupled with the V-shaped bottom plate
surface
135 allows a user to mount a cutting edge having a skew angle on the cutting
blade of
the tool. The plurality of through openings 132b are positioned along the arc-
shaped
sides 132a to provide indexed/preset skew angles such as, for example, 200, 25
and
30 . The skew-angle scale 132c further provides a plurality of skew angle
indicia
such as, for example, 5 to 45 in 5 increments. The skew angle indicia,
which are
preferably indicator lines, are positioned to align with the longitudinal edge
of the
body opening 124. The arc-shaped sides 132a also provide a surface against
which
fine adjustment component 138 frictionally rotates. Fine adjustment component
138
provides the user with means for making fine adjustments to the skew angle for
skew
angles that lie between the 5 increments. Fine adjustment component 138 is
preferably a roller with a frictional surface that is capable of engaging the
arc-shaped
aide 132a to controllably rotate fastening plate 132 to a desired skew angle.
The
frictional surface has frictional characteristics imparted by the material of
the surface
or by the surface's shape such as, for example, a geared or toothed surface.
The configuration of fastening plate 132 is extremely versatile such that
sharpening holder 100 can be used to sharpen a wide variety of tools. This
tool
variety includes, but is not limited to, chisel style knives, skew knives
(pocket
knives), thickness planer blades, power planer blades, skew carving tools,
chisels,
hand plane blades, straight razors, drill bits, razor blades, micro tools (the
present
invention can scale down to work on microscopically small tools), narrow
chisels,
very wide chisels, boat slicks, medical instruments, dental instruments,
curets,
CA 02619791 2008-02-01
checkering tools, gun smith tools, surgical instruments, scalpels, scalpels
for
woodworking, scrapers for painters, putty knives, painters scrapers,
dissection tools /
knives even with stone edges, putting facets on gem stones, potters knives and
scrapers, gardening tools (hoe, madox etc.), scissors, machine part faceting,
farmers
knives, factory de-burring knives, and the like.
Turning now to Figure 14, there is illustrated the sharpening holder 100 of
the
present invention mounted on an angle dock 200. Angle dock 200 is used for
setting
the proper clamping position of a cutting blade 5 within sharpening holder
100.
Cutting blade 5 typically has a particular cutting edge angle. By aligning the
cutting
edge with the correct cutting angle indicia of angle dock 200 and fastening
the cutting
blade in the sharpening holder 100 insures the proper position for honing of
the
cutting edge of blade 5 at the proper angle. It should be understood that a
cutting
blade having a skewed cutting edge can be easily honed by adjusting the skew
angle
with the fastening plate 132. Figure 15 is a perspective view of the angle
dock 200.
Angle dock 200 has a radial surface 210 adjacent a back edge 202. Radial
surface
210 has an arc shape substantially similar to the circumferential surface 126
of body
120. Angle dock 200 also includes a dock raceway 204 sized to accommodate the
plurality of roller members 140. A plurality of honing angle indicators 206
are
disposed onto or formed into angle dock surface 203 parallel to dock raceway
204.
The placement of the plurality of honing angle indicators 206 are preset to
the honing
edge angles most commonly encountered on cutting edges of a cutting tool.
These
angles include, but are not limited to, 20 , 22 , 25 , 27 , 30 , 35 , 40 , and
45 . Figure
16 is a side view of the angle dock 200 with sharpening holder 100 containing
a
cutting blade 5 mounted thereon. As can be seen, the relationship of the
plurality of
roller members 140, the circumferential surface 126 of body 120 and the
placement
of the honing edge of blade 5 is more clearly illustrated. Angle dock 200
provides the
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CA 02619791 2008-02-01
advantages of (1) more accurately setting the cutting blade 5 in sharpening
holder 120
at the proper position for the particular honing angle in the cutting edge of
blade 5
and (2) a simple visual set-up and verification mechanism for setting the
blade to the
desired honing angle.
Figures 17, 18 and 19 illustrate the use of a sharpening holder sled 300. Fig.
17 is a rear view of sharpening holder 100 with sharpening holder sled 300. In
this
embodiment, sled 300 is connected to sharpening holder 100 using an axle 142
of
roller member 140. As seen in Figs. 18 and 19, sled 300 has one or more sled
ears
310 integrally connected to the top surface 302 of sled 300. Sled ears 310
have a
through opening 312 sized to receive axle 142 of roller member 140. Sled 300
optionally includes curved ends 304 and 304' that curve back out of the plane
of top
surface 302. As discloses previously, sharpening holder sled 300 may also be
configured as a slide bar that is insertable within the raceway. The slide bar
may also
be formed as part of the body with a special coating or layer attached to the
surface of
the slide bar that allows the body to slide over a honing surface without
extensive
wear to the slide bar. In the insertable sled/side bar embodiment, the
sled/slide bar
may have a simple shape such as a rectangular block that is insertable into
the
raceway of the body and secured thereto. The roller members would be
completely
removed and the sled/slide bar inserted into the raceway and secured. The
sled/slide
bar extends out of the raceway approximately the same distance as the roller
members. The portion of the sled/side bar that extends out of the raceway may
also
be wider than the raceway.
To attach sled 300 to sharpening holder 100, only roller members 140 where
sled ears 310 connect to sharpening holder 100 need be removed to accommodate
sled ears 310. The remaining roller members 140 may or may not be removed. The
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CA 02619791 2008-02-01
use of sled 300 allows the sharpening holder 100 to be moved in a parallel and
oblique sliding motion relative to the longitudinal axis of body 120 over the
honing
stone, which is more difficult to do with the plurality of roller members 140.
A sled
bottom surface 303 preferably has a low friction surface that is unaffected by
honing
oil, which is typically used when honing the cutting edge of a cutting tool.
Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been
described herein, the above description is merely illustrative. Further
modification of
the invention herein disclosed will occur to those skilled in the respective
arts and all
such modifications are deemed to be within the scope of the invention as
defined by
the appended claims.
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