Knife sheath

A safety holster for a folding knife having a handle and a folding blade with the holster having a frame formed of side plates with an upper spacer and a lower pivotal blade sheath having an upwardly facing pocket for the tip of a folding blade with the pocket pivoting from a vertical upwardly facing position to a downwardly facing position to drawn the knife blade away from the knife handle to a use phase when the handle is drawn downwardly and permit the knife handle to be drawn upwardly without drawing the blade away from the handle.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to improvements in safety holders for folding 
knives having a handle and a folding blade and in particular a holster 
which retains and protects the blade in a carrying phase of operation and 
draws the blade away from the handle to open position as the handle is 
slid downwardly in a use phase. 
Prior developments in this field have provided knife supporting holsters or 
scabbards for safely carrying folding knives. These developments have 
enabled the user to carry a folding knife, such as from the user's belt, 
and to pull the knife from the scabbard with one hand with the scabbard 
operating to open the knife blade as the knife is being withdrawn. These 
knives may be generally called clasp knives and have a knife handle with a 
folding blade pivoted to the handle at one end. The blade is folded into 
the handle in a non-use safety position and is withdrawn from the handle 
to be open and parallel thereto when the knife is to be used. These knives 
are used for various purposes, and are frequently used by hunters or 
outdoorsmen who for convenience would like to carry the knife in a holster 
worn from the belt so that it is easily and readily accessible. If carried 
in a holster, it does not take space in the outdoorsman's pocket nor is it 
inaccessible as it would be if carried in a knapsack. 
When used by outdoorsmen, these folding knives can be of substantial size 
and can be used for multitudinous purposes. A knife is a favored tool for 
the outdoorsman both for all of the uses needed as well as for defensive 
purposes. Such needs must provide that the knife is carried in a safe 
manner so that the edge is not exposed and yet carried so that the 
outdoorsman can easily reach the knife with one hand. An added requisite 
is that the outdoorsman must be able to remove the knife from the holster 
in a manner so that the blade automatically opens and does so in a safe 
manner without the possibility of cutting the hand or clothing of the 
user. 
The prior art shows many attempts to provide a suitable holster for 
carrying a folding knife and various disclosures of holsters may be found 
in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,426,779, Morgan, Issued Jan. 24, 1984; 4,494,310, 
Slaughter, Issued Jan. 22, 1985; 4,525,928, Foster, Issued July 2, 1985; 
4,561,577, Moore, Issued Dec. 31, 1985; and 4,600,133, Maihos, Issued July 
15, 1986. While these patents show various approaches to the problem, each 
different from the other, it will be apparent to those versed in the art 
that there are features necessary or desirable to the sportsman, 
outdoorsman and hunter which are not provided. 
One important feature which the prior art does not provide is that it is 
advantageous if the folding knife can be withdrawn in a manner so that the 
blade is automatically opened, or alternatively at the option of the user, 
the knife can be withdrawn without the blade being opened. With this 
feature, depending upon the exigencies of the situation, the user can have 
the knife immediately ready for action or can withdraw the knife to hand 
to others or choose to open the knife in a conventional manner such as he 
might wish to do if he shifts the knife to his other hand. 
Another feature which would be highly advantageous which could be attained 
would be that the knife holster could be readily adapted in its existing 
construction for use at either the left or right hand side of the user for 
either a right of left handed person. A further very important feature to 
be attained is to provide a holster which allows for the blade to be 
automatically open when withdrawn from the holster, but which protects the 
blade substantially preventing it from cutting the user during the 
withdrawal operation. 
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide an improved 
folding knife holster which offers an improved construction permitting 
withdrawal of the knife from the holster with an automatic opening of the 
blade bu permitting the user to alternately at his option withdraw the 
knife in a manner such that the blade is automatically opened or withdraw 
the knife such that the blade remains closed and folded against the 
handle. 
A further object of the invention is to provide an improved knife holster 
wherein the blade edge and blade tip has maximum protection from injuring 
the user during the withdrawal operation. 
A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved knife 
holster of simplified yet completely reliable construction to insure 
safety and reliability of operation. 
FEATURES OF THE INVENTION 
In accordance with the principles of the invention, the structure embodies 
an elongated frame having side plates held apart by an upper spacer and 
having a lower pivotal blade sheath which is constructed in a manner so 
that it has a pocket receiving the blade of a knife. The blade tip is 
carried in the pocket and is essentially protected during the whole time 
that the blade is drawn downwardly by its handle from a knife carrying 
phase to a knife use phase. The blade protecting sheath is spring biased 
so that it will automatically move back to the recess position after the 
knife is withdrawn. The knife can also be withdrawn vertically upwardly 
with the blade moving out of the sheath without opening the blade giving 
the user the option of either use. The construction can be readily adapted 
to be carried on the belt of the user on either side for a right or left 
hand user and the knife is compact and completely secure in a vertical 
position fully accessible to the user. 
Other objects, advantages and features will become more apparent with the 
teaching of the principles of the invention in connection with the 
disclosure of the preferred embodiment thereof in the specification, 
claims and drawings in which:

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
As shown in FIG. 1, a safety holster 10 is provided for carrying a folding 
knife 11. The knife is of a well known type having a handle 14 with a 
folding blade 15 which pivots on the handle to move between a closed 
position where it is substantially carried while on the holster 10 for an 
open position where the blade is pulled to the fully opened position in 
alignment with the handle as the handle is pulled downwardly in the manner 
shown in FIG. 4 in the direction indicated by the arrowed line 14a. 
The holster has a vertical holster frame with holding means 17 on the frame 
for releasably retaining the handle of the knife on the frame during a 
carrying phase of operation. This holding means is in the form of a strap 
17 fixedly secured at 18, FIGS. 1 and 2, to the frame and releasably 
connected at 19 by a snap fastener. The snap fastener has a pressure 
closable button with one part of the button 17a on the frame, FIG. 4, and 
the other 17b on the strip. 
When the user wishes to withdraw the knife from the holster, the snap 17b 
is first pulled to release the strip 17 and thereby release the handle and 
the user grips the handle in his hand pushing it downwardly in the 
direction indicated by the arrowed line 14a to open the blade as 
illustrated in FIG. 4. 
At the lower end of the vertical holster is a blade sheath 20 which is 
pivotally mounted on the frame and has an upwardly opening blade receiving 
pocket 21. This pocket is shaped and sized to receive the tip of the blade 
in a safety carrying manner. The holster is pivoted on the frame by a 
cross fulcrum pin 22. 
The blade sheath 20 freely pivots between a position where it fits within 
the frame in the carrying phase in the manner shown in FIG. 1. The blade 
sheath also freely pivots downwardly from the frame in a use phase 
meanwhile pulling the blade 15 of the knife to open position. When the 
blade has been fully opened by the handle being pulled fully downwardly, 
the blade leaves the pocket 21 and the sheath springs back to its carrying 
position within the frame being urged thereto by a bias spring 23, FIG. 3. 
This bias spring is carried on the cross pin 22 and has one end 25 based 
and supported on the frame and the other end 24 engaging a support pin 
24a. It will be understood by those versed in the art that various other 
forms of springs may be employed for applying the bias and force to urge 
the sheath to its retracted carrying position. 
The holster frame 10 is preferably constructed of two shaped side plates 26 
and 27, FIG. 5 which are held in their spaced apart relationship by a 
fixed spacer 31. Cross pins such as screws or rivets clamp the side plates 
26 and 27 to the spacer 31. The side plates extend downwardly for the full 
height of the holster so as to provide the space in which the blade sheath 
pivots. 
The blade sheath is constructed by having spaced apart side plates 20a and 
20b held apart by rear and front spacers 31 and 32, FIG. 5. These spacers 
do not have the same depth as the plates 20a and 20b, and therefore 
provide the pocket 21 therebetween into which the blade 15 projects. The 
front spacer 32 may be formed of a soft non-dulling material so that it 
can be engaged by the blade without dulling the blade. A soft material 
such as rubber may be employed or a slippery material such as Teflon and 
other plastic materials may be used as will be understood by those versed 
in the art. 
The front and rear spacers 31 and 32 are held between the plates so as to 
provide the pocket 21 and may be held by pins, not shown, extending 
through the plates and spacers or by the plates 20a and 20b being cemented 
thereto. 
In operation, the user carries the holster 10 on his belt in a vertical 
position. It will be seen that by merely reversing the holding strap 17 so 
that the snap end is fixed to the frame and the other end is releasably 
snapped, that the holster frame may be used at either side of the user for 
either a left hand or a right hander. The supporting strap 13 which 
carries the frame on the belt will, of course, be also positioned at the 
other side of the frame for use at the other side of the body of the user. 
When the holding strap 17 is released, the user grasps the handle of the 
knife pulling it surely and swiftly downwardly in the direction indicated 
by the arrow 14a in FIG. 4. This draws the blade 15 to open position as 
the blade sheath pivots downwardly. When the knife is fully downward and 
the blade pulled out of the pocket 21 in the sheath, the sheath will pivot 
back to the position within the frame. 
If the user desires to withdraw the knife in a manner so that the blade is 
not opened, he follows the same initial procedure by releasing the strap 
17 and then lifts the handle 14 upwardly in the direction opposite the 
arrow 14a. This will merely slide the blade out of the pocket and allow it 
to move into the recess of the handle 14. 
When the user moves the knife from the carrying phase to the use phase as 
shown in FIG. 4 and use is complete, he merely inserts the tip of the 
blade 15 back into the pocket of the sheath, which is fully exposed in an 
upward direction, and then rotates the handle 14 downwardly until the 
handle is in the position shown in FIG. 1 against the frame. The strap 17 
is then snapped back into place so that the knife is fully add surely 
retained and held on the holster frame 10. 
The construction is fabricated from few parts which are very strong and 
rigid when in their relative position illustrated in the drawings. It will 
be understood by those versed in the art that while the side plates are 
preferably formed of aluminum or metal, they may be formed of a relatively 
rigid plastic and all parts may be formed of various substitutable 
materials and the preferred embodiment is illustrated by way of a 
preferred example. Thus, there has been provided a safety holster which 
meets the objects and advantages above set forth and provides a carrier 
for a knife holding it in the optimum vertical position ready for easy 
grasping to be removed from the carrying phase to the use phase either 
upwardly or downwardly to a folded blade or an open blade position.