Patent GB-647968-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to fountain pens
IPC: B43K5/02
Filed: 1947-11-28
Abstract: 647,968. Reservoir pens. PARKER PEN CO. Nov. 28, 1947, Nos. 31593 and 31594. Convention dates, July 17, 1946 and July 11, 1947. [Class 146 (iii)] [Also in Group XVI] A fountain pen adapted to be filled by capillary action comprises a pen body having an ink reservoir section and a feed section, a writing element, a capillary filler and ink reservoir element for filling the reservoir section by capillary action and including a porous mass of solid non-absorbent material which defines capillary ink storage spaces of sufficient capillarity to draw ink into said filler and ink reservoir section by capillary action and sufficient to retain the ink in said spaces when the pen is not in use, and ink feed means in said feed section defining a capillary passage or passages connecting, in ink feeding relation, the storage spaces and the writing element. The pen comprises a body 1, Fig. 1, which includes a front section 2 formed of hard rubber or a plastic material and a rear section 3 secured by a threaded joint 4. The section 2 has an ink reservoir chamber 7 containing a number of spherical beads constituting a capillary filler element 14. The beads may be formed of glass, hard rubber, metals or plastic materials. The spaces between the beads provide capillary storage spaces for ink which is drawn into the reservoir when the nib 10 is dipped into a source of supply. A pad 23 of glass, nylon, wire or felt may be interposed between the beads in the element 14 and the nib. The nib 10 is retained in the section 2 by a resilient metal ring 13. The beads may be formed as a unitary mass by fusing the beads at their points of contact or they may be inserted individually and arranged in a compact manner by shaking. A plug 17 and spring 19 retain the beads in position. The plug 17 comprises smaller beads having non-wettable surfaces. The glass beads comprising the filler element 14 have the wettability of their surfaces improved by an etching process (see Group XVI) other beads may be treated by projecting an abrasive entrained in water against their surfaces with sufficient force to roughen or pit them. Beads of methyl methacrylate resin may be incorporated with, or treated after their formation with, a material which increases their wettability. Air is supplied to the reservoir, to replace ink through a passage 21 and a vent 22 open to the atmosphere. The vent 22 also serves to equalize the pressure of air inside the reservoir with that outside. In a modification, Fig. 6, the nib 48 is provided with a feed bar 54 having capillary feed slots 58 and 57, the end of the feed-bar projecting into a reservoir 41 containing beads 59. The nib 48 is retained in position by a screwed bush 44 having feed slots 47. The beads 59 are retained in the reservoir by a plug 60 formed of small beads. The reservoir 41 is vented by a passage 62 at the rear of the plugs, the passage 62 communicating with the atmosphere through a narrow bore 65 in a screwed end plug 64. In a further embodiment, Fig. 19, the reservoir 231 may contain large beads 258 and smaller beads 256 forming a central core running 'longitudinally of the reservoir. The core may have an enlarged end 257 which surrounds a feed bar 250. The smaller beads 256 may be segregated from the beads 258 by a perforated tube (not shown) or they may be formed into a unitary mass by fusing the beads at their points of contact. Specification 634,735 is referred to.