Abstract:
A new elongated grooming tool with an elongated outer surface having protrusions located at one end and several blades attached to the second end is provided. The invention includes a version having retractable blades and a sliding actuator for activating and deactivating the blades.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
       [0001]    The present invention relates to a grooming tool for animals with hair or fur, specifically to a device for removing loose hair or fur. 
       2. Description of the Related Art 
       [0002]    Throughout this patent application, the term “fur” shall mean “hair” and/or “fur”. The problem of shedding and loose fur is long known. For a grooming tool to be effective, it must remove matted, loose and/or disconnected fur from the animal and fur that is still loosely connected to the animal&#39;s skin. 
         [0003]    Animals such as dogs and cats have coats that tend to molt or shed fur. A tool that can remove detached or almost detached fur, while leaving live, secure fur in place, is preferred to a brush, which is often ineffective and may be painful to the animal. 
         [0004]    Many pet owners and pet groomers employ combs, brushes and sticky devices similar to tools for removing lint from clothing. Some prior art inventions pass a toothed blade through a pet&#39;s fur coat to remove the detached hairs. Some have mounted a serrated blade to a handle, like the Furminator Pet Grooming Tool (disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,509,926 and incorporated herein by reference), for perceived better gripping and handling of the toothed blade. Other prior art inventions include an array of protrusions which can gather loose fur from the animal. 
         [0005]    However, the disclosed prior art inventions are unwieldy, ineffective and inefficient. Furthermore, the prior art inventions are bulky and difficult to control. In addition, the fur removal from the prior art having a blade requires a user to remove fur from the blade with the user&#39;s fingers, which may be dangerous to a user or animal if the user is not very careful or if an animal moves suddenly during the removal process. 
         [0006]    Thus, it can be seen that there remains a need for a grooming tool which is easier to handle, more effective and more efficient than existing grooming tools. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    Generally speaking, the present invention relates to a new elongated, cylindrical grooming tool with an elongated outer surface having protrusions located at one end and blades attached to the second end is provided. One embodiment of the invention includes a version having retractable blades and a sliding actuator. The tool is compact and easy to control because the body of the tool itself is used for the handle for the user and because multiple blades may be used simultaneously. The use of multiple blades in the same tool make this invention highly efficient. In addition, the ability to retract the blades makes fur removal both safe and effective. 
         [0008]    Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a grooming tool for pets, such as dogs and cats, which overcomes drawbacks of the prior art. 
         [0009]    Another object of the invention is to provide a compact and efficient grooming tool. 
         [0010]    Still other objects and advantages of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part be apparent from the specification and drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]    The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. The embodiments illustrated are examples. It is understood that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown, wherein: 
           [0012]      FIG. 1  is a top view of an embodiment of the invention. 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  is a side view of another embodiment of the invention. 
           [0014]      FIG. 3  is an end perspective view of an embodiment of the invention. 
           [0015]      FIG. 4  is a perspective schematic end view of an embodiment of the invention revealing the interior surface of the invention. 
           [0016]      FIG. 5  is a perspective schematic end view of an embodiment of the invention revealing the interior surface of the invention with the blades in a fully partially setting. 
           [0017]      FIG. 6  is a perspective schematic end view of an embodiment of the invention with the blades in a fully activated setting. 
           [0018]      FIG. 7  is a perspective schematic end view of an embodiment of the invention with the blades in a deactivated setting. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0019]    An improved grooming tool constructed in accordance with preferred embodiments of the invention is shown generally as a grooming tool  10  in  FIGS. 1-7 . Grooming tool  10  includes an elongated outer surface  12  having a first end  14  and a second end  16  generally opposite the first end  14 . 
         [0020]    A plurality of protrusions  18  is located at the first end  14 . At the second end  16  are one or more blades  20  having blade edges  22 . The blades  20  have a predetermined height. The blade edges  22  may be toothed or serrated, or have a specialized edge geometry or toothedness which is adapted specifically for the removal of fur. For example, a hacksaw blade edge shape may be used. The blades  20  extend along the length of the outer surface  12  of the grooming tool  10 . 
         [0021]    The outer surface  12  of the grooming tool  10  may also be ergonomically contoured for a user&#39;s hand. The outer surface may be generally cylindrical, oval, ergonomically advantageous or any other similar general shape. 
         [0022]    The blades  20  may be fixed to the outer surface  12  of the grooming tool  10 , or they may be removable from the outer surface  12  of the grooming tool  10 . They may be removable as a single attachment element for multiple blades, or individual or multiple blades may be separately detachable. As described below, the blades  20  may also emerge outwardly from outer surface  12  of the grooming tool  10 . 
         [0023]    As shown in  FIG. 1 , the protrusions  18  may be conical, pyramidal, or cylindrical in shape or have other known geometry. The protrusions  18  may form a line or be formed into an array. One array of rows is shown in  FIG. 4 , but other arrays known in the art are contemplated. There may be one, two three or more rows in the array, and the protrusions may be aligned in any type of pattern. For example, the array may spell a word or form an image. A protrusion  18  may have a blunted point, as shown or a sharp point. In the array, the protrusions may be approximately ⅛ to ½ inch in height. In addition, the distance between the protrusions may be approximately ⅛ to ½ inch in distance. The protrusion height may be approximately the same as the blade height. 
         [0024]    The grooming tool  10  may have one blade  20 . The grooming tool may alternatively have multiple blades  20 , such as the three blades shown in  FIG. 3 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , the grooming tool  10  may also have one or more central blades  24  and one or more outer blades  26 . The outer blades  26  may be angled away from a central blade  24 . 
         [0025]    In addition, the grooming tool  10  may have texture elements  28  on at least portions of its outer surface  12 . The texture elements  28  may be of any shape, such as the paws shown in the figures. 
         [0026]    In another embodiment, shown in  FIGS. 2-7 , the outer surface  12  of the grooming tool  10  has one or more blade slits  30  located at the second end  16 . One or more retractable blades  32 , having blade edges  34  such as those described above, may be connected to an adjustment mechanism  36  located in an interior region of the grooming tool  10 . The adjustment mechanism  36  manipulates the inward and outward direction of the blades  32  relative to the blade slits  30  upon the activation of an actuator  40 . As shown, the adjustment mechanism  36  may be attached to the inner surface  38  of the grooming tool  10 . 
         [0027]    The outer surface includes an actuator  40  in mechanical connection with the adjustment mechanism  36 . The actuator  40  as shown in  FIGS. 2-7  is a sliding mechanism, but other actuator mechanisms are known in the art, including electronic actuator mechanisms. The actuator  40  has a blade activation setting  42  for extending the blade and a blade deactivation setting  44  for retracting the blade. The actuator  40  may also have intermediate settings so that the blade edges  34  may be set to intermediate heights relative to the outer surface  12  of the grooming tool  10 . 
         [0028]    In another embodiment, the actuator  40  may comprise one or more sliding mechanisms located on one or more end surface  48  of the grooming tool  10 . 
         [0029]    The retractable blades  32  are located near the blade slits  30  and are movable perpendicular to the outer surface  12  of the grooming tool  10  through the blade slits  30  so that the blade edges  34  may extend beyond the outer surface  12  of the grooming tool  10  upon activation. 
         [0030]    The blade edges  34  may extend through the blade slits  30  to the outer surface  12  of the grooming tool brush  10  when the actuator  40  is at the blade activation setting  42 . The blade edges  34  may be set to lie below rims  46  of the slits  20  when the blade is retracted. 
         [0031]    In another embodiment of the invention, the blades  32  are connected to an adjustment mechanism  36  which in turn is connected to the inner surface  38  of the grooming tool  10 . The adjustment mechanism  36  is connected to one or more actuators  40  located on the outer surface  12  of the grooming tool  10 . In this configuration the blades  32  are movable in height relative to the outer surface  12  of the grooming tool upon activation of the actuator  40 . 
         [0032]    As shown in  FIGS. 6 and 7 , the grooming tool  10  may include at least one blade plate  50  located on the inner surface  38  of the grooming tool in fixed connection with one or more bases  52  of blades  32 , The blade plate  50  may be in movable connection with the adjustment mechanism  36  which is in movable connection with the actuator  40 . Thus, when the adjustment mechanism  36  is activated by the actuator  40 , the blade plate  50  is moved and adjusts the height of the blades  32 . 
         [0033]    In another embodiment, the grooming tool has an elongated generally cylindrical outer surface with a first end, and a second end opposite the first end. The grooming tool also has an inner surface. There are a plurality of protrusions located on the outer surface at the first end, and one or more blade slits extending through the outer surface located at the second end. One or more blades having blade edges are connected to an adjustment mechanism located on the grooming tool. The adjustment mechanism may be on the interior or exterior surface of the grooming tool. An actuator is mechanically connected with the adjustment mechanism. The actuator has a blade activation setting and a blade deactivation setting. The blades are located near the blade slits. The blades are movable perpendicular to the outer surface of the grooming tool through the blade slits. The blades edges extend through the blade slits when the actuator is at the blade activation setting. Outer blades may extend outwardly from one or more central blades. The blade edges may be set to lie below a rim of the blade slits when the actuator is at the blade deactivation setting. The actuator includes a sliding mechanism located on the outer surface of the grooming tool, and the blades are in mechanical connection with an adjustment mechanism connected to an inner surface of the grooming tool. The blades are movable in height relative to the outer surface of the grooming tool upon activation of the sliding mechanism. The adjustment mechanism comprises at least one blade plate located on the inner surface of the grooming tool in fixed connection with a base of one or more blades and in movable connection with the sliding mechanism. 
         [0034]    The invention is used as follows. The user moves the actuator on the grooming tool to move the blades to a predetermined height. The user then holds the elongated surface of the grooming tool. The user moves the blades from the grooming tool on an animal and remove fur from an animal. Fur may then be stuck to or in the blades. The user then moves the actuator on the grooming tool to the blade deactivation setting, lowering the blades so that they lie at or below the surface of the grooming tool. The user then wipes or blows the removed fur from the grooming tool. With the blades in the blade deactivation setting, the user may quickly and efficiently use the protrusions on the grooming tool on the animal to soothe the animal and remove additional fur. The user may alternatively use the protrusions before using the blades on the animal. The user may alternate sides of the grooming tool against the fur. Thus a user may use both the protrusion surface and the blades of the invention while holding it in one hand, so that the user may use the other hand to control the animal, if necessary. 
         [0035]    The user may use the grooming tool by moving the grooming tool through the animal&#39;s fur in the direction in which the fur grows. 
         [0036]    It will thus be seen that the objects set forth above, among those made apparent from the preceding description, are efficiently attained and, since certain changes may be made in carrying out the above method and in the article set forth without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description and shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense. 
         [0037]    It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween. A variety of modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.