Abstract:
An apparatus for sharpening a writing instrument, e.g. an electric pencil sharpener, is disclosed as including a body for receiving a pencil for sharpening, and a base, the base having a bottom surface to support the apparatus on a surface, and the body may be positioned relative to the base in a first configuration and at least a second configuration, and when the body is positioned relative to the base in the first configuration, a longitudinal axis of the body and an axis perpendicular to the bottom surface of the base subtend a first angle, and when the body is positioned relative to the base in the second configuration, these two axes subtend a second angle which differs from the first angle.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    Electrically operable pencil sharpeners have been made available for a long time. In most such electric pencil sharpeners, a motor is provided for driving a cutting element, e.g. a helical cutter or a razor cutter, to sharpen the end of a pencil inserted into a hole of the sharpener. In order to insert the pencil into the hole of the sharpener, the pencil has to be positioned in a vertical orientation. This is not comfortable to use.  
           [0002]    It is thus an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for sharpening a writing instrument in which the aforesaid shortcoming is mitigated, or at least to provide a useful alternative to the trade and general public.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0003]    According to the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for sharpening a writing instrument, including a body member and a base member, said body member being adapted to receive said writing instrument for sharpening, said base member having a bottom surface adapted to support said apparatus on a surface, wherein said body member is positionable relative to said base member in a first configuration and at least a second configuration, wherein when said body member is positioned relative to said base member in said first configuration, a longitudinal axis of said body member and an axis substantially perpendicular to said bottom surface of said base member subtend a first angle, and when said body member is positioned relative to said base member in said second configuration, said longitudinal axis of said body member and said axis substantially perpendicular to said bottom surface of said base member subtend a second angle which differs from said first angle. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0004]    Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of examples only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:  
         [0005]    [0005]FIG. 1 is a side view of an electric pencil sharpener according to a first embodiment of the present invention, in a first configuration;  
         [0006]    [0006]FIG. 2A is a side view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 1, with the pencil removed;  
         [0007]    [0007]FIG. 2B is a top view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 2A;  
         [0008]    [0008]FIG. 2C is a bottom view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 2A;  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 2D is a front view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 2A, showing part of its internal structure;  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 3 is a side view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 1 in a second configuration;  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 4A is a top view of an electric pencil sharpener according to a second embodiment of the present invention, in a first configuration;  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 4B is a bottom view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 4A;  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 4C is an exploded part-sectional side view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 4A;  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 4D is a side view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 4A in a second configuration;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 4E is a side view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 4A in a third configuration;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 5A is an exploded part-sectional side view of an electric pencil sharpener according to a third embodiment of the present invention, in a first configuration;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 5B is a top view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 5A;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 5C is a side view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 5A;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 5D is a bottom view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 5A;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 5E is an exploded part-sectional side view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 5A, in a second configuration;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 5F is a side view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 5E;  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 5G is a side view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 5E;  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 5H is a bottom view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 5E;  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 5I is a top view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 5A, in a third configuration;  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 5J is a side view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 5I;  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 5K is a front view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 5I; and  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 5L is a bottom view of the electric pencil sharpener shown in FIG. 5I. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0028]    An electric pencil sharpener according to a first embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIGS.  1  to  3 , and generally designated as  100 .  
         [0029]    The pencil sharpener  100  includes a body  102  and a base  104 . As shown in FIG. 2D, housed within the body  102  are a number of batteries  106  electrically connected to a motor  108 . In the conventional manner, when a pencil  110  is inserted through a hole  112  sufficiently downwardly, the pencil sharpener  100  will be activated, whereupon the motor  108  will move, via gear chains  114 , a helical cutter  116  to cut the pencil  110 . A receptacle  118  is releasably engaged with the body  102  for receiving debris cut out from the pencil  110 . The receptacle  118  may be detached from the body  102  for disposing of the debris collected therein. The base  104  includes a bottom  107  for supporting the pencil sharpener  100  on a surface  109 , e.g. a desk.  
         [0030]    At the lower end of the body  102  are two resilient hooks  120   a ,  120   b , each received within and engaged with a respective hole  122   a ,  122   b  at the bottom  107  of the base  104 . When the body  102  and the base  104  are engaged with each other in this position, i.e. with the hook  120   a  received within and engaged with the hole  122   a , and the hook  120   b  received within and engaged with the hole  122   b , the whole pencil sharpener  100  will be in the configuration as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2A. In this configuration, the longitudinal axis of the body  102  is generally parallel to an axis which is perpendicular to the bottom  107  of the base  104 . As shown in FIG. 1, the angle θ subtended between the two axes is substantially 180 20  . In this configuration, the pencil  110  has to be positioned vertically in order to be received within the hole  112  for sharpening. This may not be very comfortable to a user.  
         [0031]    The pencil sharpener  100  may be caused to assume the configuration shown in FIG. 3. In order to move to this configuration, the hooks  120   a ,  120   b  of the body  102  are disengaged from the respective holes  122   a ,  122   b , the body  102  is rotated by 180°, and the hook  120   a  is received within and engaged with the hole  122   b , whereas the hook  120   b  is received within and engaged with the hole  122   a . In this configuration, and as shown in FIG. 3, the angle α between the longitudinal axis of the body  102  and the axis perpendicular to the bottom  107  of the base  104  is an obtuse angle of less than 180°. To insert the pencil  110  into the body  102 , the pencil  110  can be held in the inclined manner as shown in FIG. 3, which is found to be more convenient to most users.  
         [0032]    An electric pencil sharpener according to a second embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIGS. 4A to  4 E, and generally designated as  200 . The pencil sharpener  200  allows for more degree of freedom, as will be apparent from the following discussion. The pencil sharpener  200  is of a structure very similar to the sharpener  100  discussed above, except that at the lower end of a body  202  are four resilient hooks  220  each received within and engaged with a respective hole  222  at a bottom  207  of a base  204 . When the body  202  and the base  204  are engaged in the configuration as shown in FIGS. 4A to  4 C, an angle α′ between a longitudinal axis of the body  202  and an axis perpendicular to a bottom  207  of the base  204  is an obtuse angle, i.e. between 90° and 180°.  
         [0033]    As in the case of the pencil sharpener  100  discussed above, the resilient hooks  220  may be disengaged from the holes  222 . The body  202  may then be rotated relative to the base  204  by 90°, whereupon the hooks  220  and holes  222  are again aligned for engagement. When the body  202  and the base  204  are thus engaged, the pencil sharpener  200  will assume the configuration as shown in FIG. 4D. In this configuration, the longitudinal axis of the body  202  and the axis perpendicular to the bottom  207  of the base  204  subtend an obtuse angle β′ which is larger than α′.  
         [0034]    The body  202  may again be disengaged from the base  204 , rotated another 90°, and subsequently engaged again with the base  204 , so that the pencil sharpener  200  will assume the configuration shown in FIG. 4E. In this position, the longitudinal axis of the body  202  is parallel to the axis perpendicular to the bottom  207  of the base  204 , so that an angle θ′ therebetween is 180°.  
         [0035]    By way of such an arrangement, three different degrees of inclination between the longitudinal axis of the body  202  and a support surface on which the pencil sharpener  200  rests are provided. Although four hooks  220  are here described, two diametrically opposed hooks  220  will suffice for releasably securing the body  202  with the base  204 .  
         [0036]    To be even more versatile, an electric pencil sharpener according to a third embodiment of the present invention is provided and generally designated as  300  in FIGS. 5A to  5 L. As in the case of the pencil sharpeners  100  and  200  discussed above, the pencil sharpener  300  also includes a body  302  and a base  304 . Within the body  302 , a motor  308  is housed for moving a razor cutter  316  to cut a pencil  310  inserted into the body  302 . As can be seen in FIG. 5A, the base  304  is generally hollow with an upper end  336  which is inclined relative to a bottom  307  at an acute angle φ. Near the top of the base  304  is an annular extension  330  which extends inwardly from an inner surface  332  into a cavity  334  of the base  304 . The annual extension  330  is parallel to the upper end  336 , and is thus also inclined relative to a bottom  307  at the angle φ.  
         [0037]    At the lower end of the body  302  are four radially outwardly extending fingers  340 . Each of these fingers  340  is secured via a screw  344  to a respective leg  342  extending downwardly from the bottom of the body  302 . As the fingers  340  are wider than the legs  342 , a recess  346  is formed. The annual extension  330  may then be received within the recesses  346  formed by the legs  346  and the fingers  340 . By way of such an arrangement, the body  302  may be rotated relative to the base  304  about an axis B-B (see FIG. 5A) which is perpendicular to the annular extension  330 , which is in turn parallel to the upper end  336  of the base  304 . Although four fingers  340  are shown in this example, it should be understood that two diametrically opposed  340  would suffice for the purpose.  
         [0038]    As shown in FIGS. 5A to  5 D, the body  302  is inclined to the bottom  307  of the base  304  by an obtuse angle α″ (see FIG. 5C). The pencil sharpener  300  may be rotated to assume the configuration shown in FIGS. 5E to  5 H, in which the body  302  is inclined to the bottom  307  of the base  304  by an obtuse angle β″ (see FIG. 5G) which is larger than the angle α″. The pencil sharpener  300  may be further rotated to assume the configuration shown in FIGS. 5I to  5 L, in which the body  302  is inclined to the bottom  307  of the base  304  by an obtuse angle θ″ (see FIG. 5J), which is 180°. It can be seen that, with the pencil sharpener  300 , the user may adjust the angle between the longitudinal axis of the body  302  and the axis perpendicular to the bottom  307  of the base  304  to be anywhere between α″ and θ″, i.e. 180°, thus allowing a much higher degree of freedom in use, to suit the specific need of the particular user.  
         [0039]    It should be understood that the above only illustrates examples whereby the present invention may be carried out, and that various modifications and/or alterations may be made thereto without departing from the spirit of the invention.  
         [0040]    It should also be understood that certain features of the invention, which are, for clarity, described in the context of separate embodiments, may be provided in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features of the invention which are, for brevity, described in the context of a single embodiment, may also be provided separately or in any appropriate sub-combinations.