Abstract:
A screw lid opener is disclosed which can be converted in an extremely simple manner from one lid radius to another With a screw lid opener having a lever-like handle with a clamping device thereon for holding a screw lid, the lid radius is set by three clamping cheeks for clamping on a screw lid. The clamping jaws are arranged at a distance from a center between the clamping jaws. In accordance with exemplary embodiments, at least one clamping jaw, whose distance from the center can be changed, is provided. This permits the conversion from one lid radius to another. Advantageously all three clamping jaws are embodied to be movable in the same way. With the same spectrum at various radii of lids, this results in a shorter travel for the individual clamping jaw.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application claims priority as a continuation application under 35 U.S.C. §120 to PCT/CH02/00163 filed as an International Application on 19 Mar. 2002 designating the U.S., the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND  
       [0002]     A kitchen tool is disclosed for opening screw lids of containers, such as jars and bottles.  
         [0003]     Often, screw lids are hard to open, in particular for older people. The force needed for opening is not available to some. The required friction between the hand and the rim of the lid can often not be achieved without aids.  
         [0004]     Therefore attempts have been made to create a screw lid opener, with the aid of which even children and oldsters can unscrew a lid from a vacuum-packed jar of preserves, for example.  
         [0005]     However, the conversion of known screw lid openers to a different radius of the screw lid is relatively complicated, so that children and women in particular avoid their use.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0006]     A screw lid opener is disclosed which can be converted in an extremely simple manner from one lid radius to another.  
         [0007]     With a screw lid opener having a lever-like handle with a clamping device thereon for holding a screw lid, the lid radius is set by three clamping cheeks for clamping on a screw lid. The clamping jaws are arranged at a distance from a center between the clamping jaws. In accordance with exemplary embodiments, at least one clamping jaw, whose distance from the center can be changed, is provided. This permits the conversion from one lid radius to another. Advantageously all three clamping jaws are embodied to be movable in the same way. With the same spectrum at various radii of lids, this results in a shorter travel for the individual clamping jaw.  
         [0008]     In this case, the movable clamping jaw is usefully arranged on a movable clamping jaw support, which is movably seated on a guide disk. Advantageously the clamping jaw support works together with a displacement disk, which can be turned in respect to the guide disk in such a way, that the distance of the clamping jaw from the center can be changed by means of a relative rotation between the displacement disk and the guide disk. Such a rotating movement is easily performed, so that even people who are clumsy in technical matters can perform the adaptation of the screw lid opener to a defined radius of the screw lid.  
         [0009]     For performing the rotating movement, a rotary handle can be connected with the displacement disk, or two handles, which can be pivoted in the manner of tongs in respect to each other, can be provided at the handle, whose relative movement, for example via a gear wheel drive, results in a relative movement between the guide disk and the displacement disk.  
         [0010]     The displacement disk can be connected with the handle, and the guide disk could be embodied to be rotatable in relation to the handle, or the opposite embodiment can be implemented. Therefore the guide disk is advantageously connected with the handle. By means of this a force can be transferred to the clamping jaws via the guide disk for unscrewing a screw lid.  
         [0011]     The clamping jaw support can be advantageously guided linearly in a guide rail on the guide disk. However, it can also be pivotably hinged to the guide disk.  
         [0012]     If the pivot element is hinged on the guide disk, the clamping jaw can be arranged on a toothed pivot element. The teeth of the pivot element are in engagement with the teeth of a gear wheel of the displacement disk. However, a guide element can also be provided on the clamping jaw support, which engages a helical guide element at the displacement disk. This permits a design wherein the clamping jaw support is adjustable, as well as such a one wherein it is translatorily displaceable.  
         [0013]     With a helical guide element it is possible to provide that the guide elements of several clamping jaw supports engage the same helical guide element. This permits a stronger embodiment of the groove walls of the helical guide element. However, for bringing the three clamping jaws uniformly together, a separate helical guide element is advantageously provided for each movable clamping jaw support.  
         [0014]     So that the displacement disk does not rotate in order to yield to the force of the action of the clamping jaws being pushed apart in the course of opening a lid, the gradient of the helix may not exceed a maximum gradient. If the helical guide element is guided at uniform distances from the adjoining turns of the helix, the gradient of the helical guide element decreases from the inside to the outside. So that the number of revolutions of the displacement disk for changing the clamping jaws from the smallest to the greatest radius is as small as possible, the helical guide devices are not guided with the smallest possible gradient from the inside to the outside. In spite of this, the gradient is advantageously less on the outside than on the inside. Since the lid diameters are standardized, the helical guide element can be flatter in the areas in which the clamping jaws have a suitable distance from the center for being able to grip a defined lid radius. No jamming between the guide element and the helical guide element need occur in the other areas, since they only need to be traversed for getting from one standard lid radius to the next. In this connection it is advantageous not to lay out the gradient to be constant.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0015]     The invention will now be represented in greater detail by way of exemplary embodiments. The exemplary embodiments are represented in the drawings which, however, should not be considered to be limiting. Shown are in:  
         [0016]      FIG. 1 , a plan view of an exemplary lid opener with pivotable clamping jaws;  
         [0017]      FIG. 2 , the same plan view as in  FIG. 1 , but with the clamping jaws in a narrower position;  
         [0018]      FIG. 3 , a lateral view of the lid opener in  FIG. 2 ;  
         [0019]      FIG. 4 , a perspective plan view of an exemplary embodiment with three displaceable clamping jaws;  
         [0020]      FIG. 5 , a perspective plan view of the lid opener in accordance with  FIG. 4 , but viewed from the opposite side;  
         [0021]      FIG. 6 , a perspective representation of the displacement disk with helical track and rotating handle;  
         [0022]      FIG. 7 , a perspective representation of an exemplary base element with the guide disk and handle;  
         [0023]      FIG. 8 , a perspective representation of an exemplary clamping jaw with spring element and claw,  
         [0024]      FIG. 9 , a perspective representation of the clamping jaw in  FIG. 8 , viewed from the opposite side;  
         [0025]      FIG. 10 , a perspective plan view of an exemplary clamping jaw support; and  
         [0026]      FIG. 11 , a second perspective plan view of the clamping jaw support in  FIG. 10 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0027]     A lid opener  11  in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention is represented in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . It has a handle  13  for turning a lid held in the lid opener and three clamping jaws  15 ,  17 ,  19 . The handle  13  is a part of a base element  23 . The handle  13  moreover includes a lever  21 , hinged on the base element  23 . Following the handle  13 , the base element  23  makes a transition into a support disk  25  (see  FIG. 3 ). The support disk  25  is a displacement disk  27  at the same time. For adjusting the clamping jaws, it has three helical guide elements  29  on its front. A guide disk  31  arranged in front of it is seated on the displacement disk  27  in the center of the helical guide elements  29 , and its shaft passes through the support disk  25 . A gear wheel is arranged on the shaft behind the support disk. On the far side of its hinge point, the lever  21  has a tooth arrangement which acts together with the gear wheel tooth arrangement of the guide disk  31 . In this way it is possible by pivoting the lever  21  to rotate the guide disk  31  in relation to the helical guide elements  29 , which results in a displacement of the clamping jaws.  
         [0028]     In another embodiment, the displacement disk  27  has the helical guide elements on its front, and on its back a gear wheel, which can be actuated by the handle. In this case the displacement disk  27  is rotatably seated on the support disk  25 , and the guide disk  31  is connected with the displacement disk in a manner fixed against relative rotation.  
         [0029]     However, in the represented case, the guide disk  31  is turned in relation to the displacement disk  27  when the lever  21  is actuated—as represented by the difference between  FIGS. 1 and 2 —. In  FIG. 1 , the lever projects at an angle away from the handle, and the clamping jaws are in a position wherein they are remote from each other, in which the largest possible circle can be covered. In  FIG. 2 , the lever  21  has been pivoted into a position parallel with the handle  13 , and the clamping jaws  15 ,  17 ,  19  are in a position closer to each other, in which only a small circle can be covered. The gear wheel connection between the lever  21  and the guide disk  31  is covered by a cover  33 .  
         [0030]     Three pivot levers  35 ,  37 ,  39  are hinged to the guide disk  31 . Each pivot lever has a clamping jaw  15 ,  17 ,  19 , which projects past the guide disk  31  toward the front. On the other side, each of the pivot levers  35 ,  37 ,  39  has a guide element, for example a bolt, which engages the helical guide element  29  (see, e.g.,  FIG. 6 ). Upon a relative rotation between the helical guide element  29  and the guide disk  31 , these guide elements are pivoted in the helical guides around the center of rotation of the pivot lever, and at the same time are forcibly moved away from the center of rotation or toward the center of rotation. The clamping jaws  15 ,  17 ,  19  are correspondingly pivoted together with the pivot levers.  
         [0031]     An exemplary embodiment is represented in FIGS.  4  to  11 .  FIG. 4  shows it from below. In  FIG. 4 , the clamping jaw  19  with the support element  45  is represented twice, namely in an outermost position  60  and an innermost position  50 .  FIG. 5  shows the same exemplary embodiment from the top. The base element  23  is made of one piece together with a handle  13 . In contrast to the base element of the first exemplary embodiment, the base element  23  constitutes the guide disk  31 . A displacement disk  27  is rotatably seated on it. The displacement disk  27  is provided with the rotatable handle  41 , which is connected, fixed against relative rotation, with the displacement disk  27  ( FIG. 5 ).  
         [0032]     The guide disk  31  has three radial guide slits  43 , which are connected with each other at the center. A support element  45  of the clamping jaws  15 ,  17 ,  19  is seated in each guide slit  43 .  
         [0033]     Each support element  45  ( FIGS. 10 and 11 ), has a retaining plate  47 , with which it extends behind the edge of the guide slit  43 . The connecting point of the three guide slits in the center has been widened in such a way ( FIG. 7 ), that the retaining plates  47  can be pushed through the guide disk  31  at the connecting point. But the guide slits  43  themselves are less wide than the retaining plate  47 .  
         [0034]     A bolt  49  projects from the retaining plate  47 , with which the support element  45  engages a helical guide element  29  in the displacement disk  27 . The support element  45  moreover has a translatory guide  51 , which is guided between the edges of the guide slit  43 , and a sliding plate  53  which rests on the guide path of the guide disk  37 . The clamping jaws  15 ,  17 ,  19  lie above the guide disk. The clamping jaws can snap into a holding column  55  at the support element  45 .  
         [0035]     Back to  FIG. 6 , in which the displacement disk  27  is represented. The displacement disk  27  has been put together from a helical guide disk  57  and a rotary grip disk  59 . Three concentric helical guide elements  29  have been formed in the helical guide disk  57 . Each helical guide element  29  is a helical groove. Thus, the three grooves alternatingly lie next to each other radially. The three helical guide elements are identical and are only arranged turned by 120 degrees in respect to each other. The lead of the represented helical turns is of the same size for an identical angular change. This has the result that the gradient of the helical guide element  29  decreases from the inside to the outside. However, the gradient can also be uniform, so that the lead increases from the inside to the outside. The gradient is advantageously decreasing and the lead increasing.  
         [0036]     Alternatively, there can also only be a single helical guide element  29  ( FIG. 12 ), which is engaged by all three support elements  45 . Advantageously, in the areas where the clamping jaws are arranged at a distance suitable for a standard screw lead dimensions (broken circular lines  65 ,  66 ,  67 ,  68 ), the guide element has a small gradient, and in the transition area from one lid diameter to the other a substantially greater gradient. As represented in  FIG. 12 , the lead of the helical guide element can be practically equal to zero over 240 degrees. Over the adjoining 90 degrees it can increase sufficiently so that one of the three clamping jaws  15 ,  17 ,  19  is moved sufficiently far toward the center so that clamping is achieved. The remaining 30 degrees are used for the transition to the next lid sizes. However, the transition area can also include more than 30 degrees, so that the areas with very small gradients are turned in respect to each other. No self-locking between the helical guide element  29  and the bolt  49  is required in the transition areas between the standard lid sizes. Therefore the lead can be of arbitrary size in this area.  
         [0037]     A similar stepping of the spiral guide element  29  is also possible with three spiral guide elements.  
         [0038]      FIG. 7  shows that the handle  13  and the guide disk  31  together constitute the base element  23 . The guide disk  31  is circular and has the three guide slits  43  for the support elements  45 . The translatory guides  51  are guided in the guide slits  43 . On both sides of the guide slits  43 , support ribs  61  have been formed. The displacement disk  27  rests on these with the helical guide element  29 .  
         [0039]     As can be seen from  FIGS. 4, 5  and  7 , two protrusions  71  exist on the guide disk  31 . The guides for the support elements  45  with the clamping jaws  15  are conducted past the contour circle of the helical guide disk  57  to the protrusions  71 . They rest on these two protrusions and on the handle shoulder in the outermost position  60  of the support elements  45 , and the bolt  49  extends into one of the helical guide elements  29  inside the contour circle of the helical guide disk  57 .  
         [0040]     The actual clamping jaws  15  are represented in  FIGS. 8 and 9 . They have been put together from a metallic claw  73  and a spring element  75  made of a plastic material, in which the claw  73  is supported. The spring element  75  can be clipped to the holding column  55  at the support element  45 . An S-shaped spring lip  77  has been formed on the spring element  75 , which resiliently gives when under load if the clamping jaw  79  is placed under load in the direction of the arrow  79  during the opening of a screw lid. For this resilient movement, the clamping jaw  15  is pivotable around the holding column  55 . The claw  73  has a curvature with teeth, with which it acts on the lid. This curvature has a center circle which is not concentric with the pivot center in the axis of the holding column  55 . Therefore the center circle of the curvature is pivoted along, namely in the direction toward the screw lid. A clamping effect between the claw  73  and the screw lid is assured by this.  
         [0041]     It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the present invention can be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The presently disclosed embodiments are therefore considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restricted. The scope of the invention is indicated by the appended claims rather than the foregoing description and all changes that come within the meaning and range and equivalence thereof are intended to be embraced therein.