Abstract:
A machine for piercing sheets of material with an adjustable apparatus, acting as a stop to the moveable cutting die thereby varying the amount of the punch pattern cut into a sheet of material being punched. The moveable cutting die is designed with a cutting surface so that the adjustable apparatus can vary the amount and pattern of that die cut by the cutting surface into the sheet of material. A frame holds the adjustable apparatus, the moveable punch cutting die and a hole aligned to the moveable cutting die with the hole allowing motion of the moveable cutting die. A slot in the frame extending partially through the frame accepts and restrains the sheet of the material. A hand actuated assembly activates the moveable cutting die moving the cutting die to where it contacts and cuts the sheet of the material in the slot.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]    This application is based on provisional application serial No. 60/426,141, filed on Nov. 13, 2002. 
     
    
     
       STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT  
         [0002]    Not Applicable  
         DESCRIPTION OF ATTACHED APPENDIX  
         [0003]    Not Applicable  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0004]    This invention relates generally to the field of arts and crafts specifically paper punching and more specifically to a machine for piercing sheets of material in a variety of patterns using an adjustable apparatus.  
           [0005]    The use of hand actuated paper punches has a long history of use both for business and for various types of arts and crafts. Paper punches are used to form shapes in paper by cutting away a section of the paper using a cutting die designed to make a smooth cut and further designed with a specific geometry for that cut. Along with the cutting die, paper punches use a matching hole on the other side of the paper being punched to allow the cutting die to pass completely through the paper while the hole and base of the frame with the hole hold and support that paper. The hole must be closely matched to the size and geometry of the cutting die to provide for a smooth cut. In addition, the cutting die must be manufactured with a set of edges that form the cutting surface and are located at an angle to the paper being punched to also insure a smooth cut.  
           [0006]    The initial use for paper punching was to punch circular holes in paper that was then mounted in binders with a corresponding rings to hold that paper. Such binders usually with three rings to hold the paper are in wide use throughout the world in business. Similar punches are used in schools to compile the work pages of students.  
           [0007]    Soon various artists realized that the cutting die or paper punches could be designed in various geometries and shapes to form special cutouts such as stars, circles and a myriad of other shapes and items. Currently there are a large variety of decorative paper punches used in a number of arts and crafts.  
           [0008]    The configuration of the punch itself changed. Initially, paper punches looked much like a pair of pliers where the mechanism was held in the hand and paper placed between the cutting die and the base and then the handles squeezed to punch the paper. A spring was placed between the handles to return the punch to the open position when the punching operation was completed. Three hole punches often used a lever to allow the user to push down on that lever and move the three cutting dies down and punch through the paper with a spring again returning the punch to the open position after the paper was punched.  
           [0009]    Then the punch configuration changed to a button attached to the cutting die and held along with the return spring in a frame. A slot was provided in the frame to insert the paper to be punched and the button was pushed down to punch the designed pattern into that paper.  
           [0010]    The next configuration for the paper punches uses a thumb-actuated lever to push down on the cutting die and punch out the pattern. This configuration is contained in U.S. Pat. No. 5,749,278.  
           [0011]    Both the push button punch and the thumb-activated lever punch are produced in a large variety of patterns by a number of suppliers. They are used in the arts and crafts industry in a number of applications. The punches vary in size as well as the pattern to be punched. As punches grew in size, it became more difficult to push on the push button to punch through the paper. Helper systems were developed to assist in the use of the larger punches and to make it easier to punch a large number of patterns. These helpers are hinged arms that hold the punch and provide more leverage to the user of avoid fatigue and to punch larger patterns.  
           [0012]    Although the punches were originally designed and are still labeled as paper punches, various users found that these punches could be used to punch patterns in a variety of materials in sheet form. These include: coated papers, plastic sheets, metallic foil sheets, special clays, leathers and others. As long as the material was in a sheet form thin enough to fit into the punch, it could be punched into the pattern designed into that punch.  
           [0013]    The major problem with all existing punches is the lack of flexibility. The punch can only punch out the designed pattern. The resulting piece can then be used as a decorative element in some type of craft and/or the resulting hole in the sheet of material could be the decorative element. There was no way, for example, that a flower pattern could be partially punched out of a sheet of material with the, petals cut out, but the center left in the sheet of material.  
         BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0014]    The primary object of the invention is to provide an adjustable decorative punch that partially punches out a pattern in a sheet of material when properly adjusted. This punch can also be adjusted to fully punch out the pattern as with existing punches. With this punch, it would be possible to partially punch out a flower pattern leaving the center attached to the sheet of material and the petal cut free. This would then provide a new and large variety of possible arts and crafts projects using this invention.  
           [0015]    Another object of the invention is to make the adjustable apparatus easy to use, precise and easily manufactured using the same materials as used to make existing punches.  
           [0016]    Another object of the invention is to allow the adjustable punch to be used with a variety of material types, thickness and qualities.  
           [0017]    A further object of the invention is to provide an adjustable apparatus that will work with all of the currently available punch configurations and could be provided as a retrofit kit to existing punches.  
           [0018]    Still yet another object of the invention is to provide a reliable and cost effective adjustable apparatus.  
           [0019]    Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following descriptions, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein, by way of illustration and example, an embodiment of the present invention is disclosed.  
           [0020]    There is disclosed a machine for piercing sheets of material with an adjustable apparatus that can be moved by hand where the adjustable apparatus acts as a stop to the moveable cutting die containing the punch pattern thereby varying the amount of the punch pattern cut into a sheet of material being punched. The moveable cutting die is designed with a cutting surface so that the adjustable apparatus can limit the amount of the sheet of said material cut by the cutting surface. The adjustable apparatus can also be moved to a position so that the designed pattern of said punch is cut fully out of a sheet of material by the movement of the moveable cutting die. There is a frame which holds the adjustable apparatus and the moveable punch cutting die with the moveable cutting die held in the top of the frame and a hole aligned to the moveable cutting die in the base of the frame.  
           [0021]    In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, there is disclosed an adjustable apparatus that can be added to existing decorative punches where the adjustable apparatus acts as a stop to the moveable cutting die containing the punch pattern.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0022]    The drawings constitute a part of this specification and include exemplary embodiments to the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. It is to be understood that in some instances various aspects of the invention may be shown exaggerated or enlarged to facilitate an understanding of the invention.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 1 is a cross sectional view of one variation of the invention showing a push button type of punch.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the variation of the invention shown in FIG. 1.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 3 is a side view of another variation of this invention with a punch assist device added to the push button type of punch.  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 4 is a cross section view of another variation of the invention with multiple slots for the sheet of material.  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 5 is a side view of another variation of the invention where the punch action is activated by a lever.  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the variation of the invention shown in FIG. 5.  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 7 is a side view of still another variation of the invention where the punch action is achieved by squeezing the handles held in the hand.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0030]    Detailed descriptions of the preferred embodiment are provided herein. It is to be understood, however, that the present invention may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but rather as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed system, structure or manner.  
         [0031]    A preferred embodiment of the invention is shown in FIG. 1 where the threaded push button  145  of a machine  100  also has a matching threaded ring  130  placed on this threaded push button  145  forming an adjustable stop  135 . The threaded ring  130  and the threaded push button  145  together comprise an adjustable apparatus. The threaded ring  130  can be rotated around the threaded push button  145  moving up and down the threaded push button  145  and thereby limiting the motion of the threaded push button  145 . As the threaded push button  145  is pushed downward using the top  110  it pushes down a moveable cutting die  140  with a cutting surface  142  designed to cut a particular pattern into a sheet of material held in the slot  181 . The cutting surface  142  is at an angle to the sheet of material to make a sharp and uniform cut through that sheet of material. The hole  185  at the lower portion  180  of the machine  100  matches the particular pattern of the moveable cutting die  140  which also assists in making a sharp and uniform cut. Because of the angles formed on the cutting surface  142  of the moveable cutting die  140  and the ability to use the threaded ring  130  to limit the motion of the push button  145 , it is possible to have the machine  100  only cut out a portion of the particular pattern designed into the cutting surface  142  of the moveable cutting die  140 . This leaves the sheet of material pierced with a part of the particular pattern of the cutting surface  142  of the moveable cutting die  140 . For example, if the particular pattern was a flower, then the sheet of material might have only the petals of that flower design cut into that sheet of material. The threaded adjustable ring  130  and the threaded push button  145  are manufactured so that the threaded adjustable ring  130  can be placed in a position so that the complete particular pattern can be fully punched out of the sheet of material if so desired.  
         [0032]    In the view shown in FIG. 1 can be seen more detail of the construction where a spring  141  is used to return the moveable threaded push button  145  to the original starting position following the piercing or punching of a sheet of material. Once that sheet of material is processed as desired, then it can be removed from the slot  181  by rotating the base  180  of the machine  100  using the hinge  170  thereby freeing up the sheet of material for easy removal. The slot  181  is designed to accept a variety of thickness of sheets of material while the cutting surface  142  of moveable cutting die  140  is designed to cut a variety of materials. The upper portion  160  and the lower portion  180  hold and align the moveable cutting die  140  and the matching hole  185  and form a frame. A housing  150  completes the machine  100  and secures the threaded push button  145  against the action of the spring  141 .  
         [0033]    It can be noted in FIG. 1, that the cutting surface  142  is manufactured with that cutting surface  142  at an angle to the sheet of material being processed. This feature is common to all such machines and is similar in operation to the angled cutting action seen in a pair of scissors as they are used to cut. The cutting surface  142  can be formed in a straight line at an angle to the sheet of material or as a curved surface at an angle to the sheet of material.  
         [0034]    The hole  185  in the lower portion  180  as illustrated in FIG. 1 is also critical to a smooth and sharp cut. That hole  185  must duplicate the pattern in the moveable cutting die  140  so that the cutting die  140  fits precisely into the hole  185  thereby providing the necessary shearing action like a pair of scissors.  
         [0035]    In operation a sheet of material is placed in the machine  100  and the top  110  of the threaded push button  145  depressed with the threaded ring  130  at its highest point on the threaded push button  145 . The amount of the machine  100  pattern cut into that sheet of material is monitored by slowly pushing down on the threaded push button  145  until the desired cut in that sheet of material is achieved. Then the threaded ring  130  is turned down along the threaded push button  145  until it stops any further downward motion of that push button  145 . It may take several iterations until the desired effect is achieved by the user. Once that final adjustment is made with the threaded ring  130 , then other sheets of material can be processed by the machine  100 . At any time, the threaded ring  130  can be moved to another position and a different amount of the pattern of the machine  100  cut into a sheet of material.  
         [0036]    Once a cut has been made, it is necessary to remove or move the sheet of material for another cut. Since the sheet of material may be only partially cut, removal is difficult with the cut portions of the sheet of material caught up in the hole. One solution as shown in FIG. 1 is a hinge  170  that can release the lower portion  180  of the machine  100  thereby making removal of the sheet of material easy. Another embodiment would be to make the base capable of being snapped apart to ease the removal of that sheet of material. Still another option would be no hinge  170  or no ability to snap apart the machine  100 . Then the user would carefully push down on the cut portion of the sheet of material and then remove it from the machine  100 .  
         [0037]    [0037]FIG. 2 shows an external view of the machine  100  where the key feature of the threaded push button  145  and the matching threaded ring  130  can be easily seen and compared with prior art paper punches which do not have such features.  
         [0038]    As prior art punches have been developed and gotten bigger, the craft industry has developed aids to make it easier to use such punches. These aids are important for large punches or for punching stronger sheets of material. Such aids consist of an assembly where the punch is placed inside and the assembly has a long base and a long moveable arm which the user uses to push down on the push button of a prior art punch. The long arm increases leverage and makes the prior art punch easier to use. FIG. 3 illustrates the concept of this invention applied to such an aid where an adjustable threaded element  310  is added to the aid  300  which has corresponding threads manufactured into that aid  300  thereby forming an adjustable apparatus. This machine  300  allows for conventional prior art punches to have an adjustable feature. In use the prior art punch is placed in the machine  300  and the moveable arm  320  pushed down on the prior art punch. The adjustable threaded element is then turned to form a stop to the motion of the moveable arm  310  thereby controlling the motion of the prior art punch and establishing the adjustable feature of his invention.  
         [0039]    [0039]FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the invention where a second slot  481  below the first slot  181  has been added to the machine  100  shown in FIG. 1 along with a second lower portion  480  below the first lower portion  180  and a second hole  485  below the first hole  185  thereby forming a new machine  400 . With this configuration, the first slot  181  can be used to hold a sheet of material where the pattern of the machine  400  is completely punched out while the second slot  481  is used to hold a sheet of material where the pattern is only partially punched and the machine  400  is used as described above in the operation of machine  100  with all of the features and options previously described.  
         [0040]    As the field of paper punches has evolved, a new style of punch has been developed. This style is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,749,278. This punch uses a thumb actuated lever to create the action of the punch. The adjustable apparatus of the invention can be seen in FIG. 4 where a threaded element  530  has been incorporated into a thumb actuated punch thereby forming machine  500 . A matching threaded portion  535  is incorporated into the housing  550  where the threads of that portion  535  match to those of threaded element  530  and thereby form the adjustable apparatus of the invention. In use a sheet of material is placed in the slot  581  and the lever  520  pushed down to actuate the punch. The threaded element  530  is then turned either up or down to form a stop to the action of the punch and cut the desired pattern into the sheet of material. As shown in FIG. 5 a hinge  570  is incorporated into machine  600  to allow for the lower portion  580  to be moved away from the housing  550 . This then makes removal of the sheet of material easier. As an option the punch could be manufactured with a snap apart lower portion  580  or with that lower portion  580  fixed to the housing  550 .  
         [0041]    [0041]FIG. 6 shows another view of the invention where a threaded part  560  is added as a retrofit to a previously manufactured thumb actuated punch. The operation of the machine  500  is otherwise identical to that described above.  
         [0042]    [0042]FIG. 7 shows another embodiment of the invention where the adjustable element  730  is incorporated into a punch where a sheet of material is placed into slot  750  and the upper handle  720  and the lower handle  725  are squeezed together rotating around hinge  770  pushing the cutting die  785  through a matching hole in the center support  790  and on through the sheet of material and a corresponding hole in the lower portion  780 . The adjustable element  730  is turned up or down to form the desired pattern in the sheet of material. That adjustable element  730  moves through a hole in the center support  790  when the upper handle  720  and lower handle  725  are squeezed and stops when it contacts the lower portion  780 . The adjustable element  730  and the lower portion  780  form the adjustable apparatus of this invention.  
         [0043]    While the figures have shown threaded elements to form the adjustable stops of this invention, there are other possible ways to form such stops as would be obvious to anyone skilled in the art. This could include items such as shims of various thickness which would be particularly appropriate for the thumb actuated punches.  
         [0044]    While the invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment, it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to the particular form set forth, but on the contrary, it is intended to cover such alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of th invention as defined by the appended claims.