Patent Publication Number: US-8123424-B2

Title: Ink feeder for felt-tip ink pen

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to an ink feeder, and more particularly to an ink feeder for a felt-tip ink pen. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     An ink pen is internally provided with an ink reservoir for storing an amount of ink therein. When using the ink pen to write, the ink in the ink reservoir is supplied to a felt tip of the ink pen via an ink feeder, so that a user can write with the felt tip. 
       FIG. 1  is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional view showing a conventional ink feeder mounted in a conventional felt-tip ink pen. As shown, the conventional ink feeder is usually a ring-shaped sponge  11  mounted around a felt tip  12 . The ring-shaped sponge  11  communicates with an ink reservoir  13  in the ink pen, so as to absorb ink from the ink reservoir  13  and then feeds the ink to the felt tip  12  for writing. 
     The above-described felt-tip ink pen with an ink feeder made of a ring-shaped sponge  11  has the following disadvantages in terms of its manufacture and use: (1) the ring-shaped sponge is a very soft and flexible member and accordingly, could not be handled along with other components using a machine on an automated production line to assemble the ink pen. For instance, it is impossible to keep the ring-shaped sponge non-deformed when it is clamped and delivered by a robot for the purpose of completing automated assembly of the ink pen. Therefore, the soft ring-shaped sponge must be manually handled during the assembly, and it is of course troublesome and time-consuming to do so. (2) When the ink feeder made of the ring-shaped sponge is saturated with ink, the absorbed ink tends to leak out of the ink pen to result in lowered writing quality. 
     Therefore, due to the above-mentioned reasons, the conventional felt-tip ink pen and the sponge-made ink feeder thereof is not ideal in terms of their applicability. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A primary object of the present invention is to provide an ink feeder for felt-tip ink pen that can be conveniently handled to allow automated assembly of a felt-tip ink pen. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide an ink feeder for felt-tip ink pen that does not cause ink leakage. 
     A further object of the present invention is to provide an ink feeder for felt-tip ink pen that has good applicability. 
     To achieve the above and other objects, the ink feeder for felt-tip ink pen according to the present invention is communicable with an ink reservoir in the ink pen, and includes a main body made of a rigid material and internally defining a feeding bore; a plurality of micro raised portions radially inward protruded from and equally spaced along an inner circumferential wall surface of the main body to together clamp a felt tip of the ink pen therebetween; and a plurality of ink feeding clearances each being formed between two adjacent ones of the micro raised portions and communicating with the feeding bore to enable feeding of ink to the felt tip via the ink feeding clearances. With the rigid main body thereof, the ink feeder along with other components can be handled with a machine to complete automated assembly of the ink pen. And, with the plurality of ink feeding clearances, the ink can be fed to the felt tip without the risk of causing any ink leakage. 
     Preferably, the felt-tip ink pen includes:
     a felt tip cap having a first end portion and a second end portion opposite to each other;   an upper sleeve having a first end portion and a second end portion opposite to each other; the first end portion of the upper sleeve being disposed in the second end portion of the felt tip cap; the second end portion of the upper sleeve upward projecting from the felt tip cap and being formed of a plurality of openings; and the second end portion of the upper sleeve also being provided at an upper end thereof with a stopper having a centered through hole;   a lower sleeve having a first end portion and a second end portion opposite to each other; the first and the second end portion of the lower sleeve being fitted in the first end portion of the felt tip cap and the first end portion of the upper sleeve, respectively, and the second end portion of the lower sleeve having an upper inner end formed into an upward expanded conical bore;   an ink guiding core having a stem and a plug, the plug having an outer diameter larger than that of the stem and being located at a middle section of the stem; the stem having a first end portion and a second end portion opposite to each other, the first and the second end portion of the ink guiding core being projected into and received in the second end portion of the lower sleeve and the centered through hole on the upper sleeve, respectively; and the plug having a first side and a second side opposite to each other, the first side being formed into a conical body for closely but detachably fitting in the conical bore of the lower sleeve;   a spring being disposed between the second side of the plug and the stopper of the upper sleeve;   a barrel being externally fitted around the second end portion of the felt tip cap, and internally defining an ink reservoir communicable with the openings on the upper sleeve; and   a felt tip having a first end portion and a second end portion opposite to each other; the first and the second end portion being clamped in place by the first end portion of the felt tip cap and the micro raised portions in the ink feeder, respectively; and the second end portion of the felt tip being abutted on the first end portion of the stem of the ink guiding core; and   the ink feeder being mounted in a lower end of the first end portion of the lower sleeve.   

     The spring provides sufficient elastic force to always push the ink guiding core downward, so that the conical body of the ink guiding core is normally in tight contact with the conical bore of the lower sleeve. However, when using the felt tip of the ink pen to write, the conical body of the ink guiding core will be pushed by the felt tip to move upward and away from the conical bore of the lower sleeve to thereby open the conical bore. At this point, ink in the ink reservoir is allowed to sequentially flow through the openings of the upper sleeve and the conical bore of the lower sleeve to the ink feeder. The ink flowed to the ink feeder would then attach to the tiny ink feeding clearances and be fed to the felt tip for writing. 
     Preferably, the main body of the ink feeder has a first end portion and a second end portion opposite to each other. The first end portion of the main body has a lower end formed into a radially outward extended flange for abutting on the lower end of the first end portion of the lower sleeve, so that the ink feeder and the lower sleeve are firmly connected to each other. 
     Preferably, the second end portion of the main body of the ink feeder has an upward tapered outer peripheral wall surface to form a conical surface, allowing the ink feeder to be more easily introduced into the first end portion of the lower sleeve. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The structure and the technical means adopted by the present invention to achieve the above and other objects can be best understood by referring to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and the accompanying drawings, wherein 
         FIG. 1  is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional view showing a conventional ink feeder mounted in a conventional felt-tip ink pen; 
         FIG. 2  is a bottom perspective view of an ink feeder for felt-tip ink pen according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is another perspective view of the ink feeder of the present invention in an upside-down position; 
         FIG. 4  is an exploded perspective view of an ink pen with which the ink feeder shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3  is used; 
         FIG. 5  is an assembled longitudinal sectional view of  FIG. 4 ; and 
         FIG. 6  is an enlarged view of the circled area in  FIG. 5 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Please refer to  FIGS. 2 and 3  that are two perspective views of an ink feeder  2  for felt-tip ink pen according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, being viewed from two different view angles. 
     As can be seen from  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the ink feeder  2  includes a main body  21 , a plurality of micro raised portions  22 , and a plurality of ink feeding clearances  23 . 
     The main body  21  is made of a rigid material, such as a plastic material, and has a first end portion  211  and a second end portion  212  opposite to each other. The first end portion  211  is formed at a lower end into a radially outward extended flange  213 . An outer peripheral wall surface of the second end portion  212  is upward tapered to form a conical surface  214 . The main body  21  internally defines a feeding bore  215 . 
     A plurality of micro raised portions  22  is radially inward protruded from and circumferentially spaced along an inner wall surface of the main body  21 . The micro raised portions  22  together clamp a length of a felt tip of the ink pen therebetween. An ink feeding clearances  23  is formed between any two adjacent micro raised portions  22  to communicate with the feeding bore  215 , so that ink can be fed to the felt tip via the ink feeding clearances  23 . 
     Please refer to  FIGS. 4 and 5  that are exploded perspective view and assembled longitudinal sectional view, respectively, of a felt-tip ink pen with the ink feeder  2  of the present invention, and to  FIG. 6  that is an enlarged view of the circled area in  FIG. 5 . 
     In a practical design of the felt-tip ink pen, there are included a felt tip cap  3 , an upper sleeve  4 , a lower sleeve  5 , an ink guiding core  6 , a spring  7 , a barrel  8 , and a felt tip  9 . 
     The felt tip cap  3  has a first end portion  31  and a second end portion  32  opposite to each other. 
     The upper sleeve  4  has a first end portion  41  and a second end portion  42  opposite to each other. The first end portion  41  is fitted in the second end portion  32  of the felt tip cap  3 . The second end portion  42  of the upper sleeve  4  upward projects from the felt tip cap  3 , and is formed of a plurality of circumferentially spaced openings  43 . A stopper  44  with a centered through hole  45  is provided at an upper end of the second end portion  42 . 
     The lower sleeve  5  has a first end portion  51  and a second end portion  52  opposite to each other. The first and the second end portion  51 ,  52  of the lower sleeve  5  are fitted in the first end portion  31  of the felt tip cap  3  and the first end portion  41  of the upper sleeve  4 , respectively. An upper inner end of the second end portion  52  of the lower sleeve  5  is formed into an upward expanded conical bore  53 . 
     The ink guiding core  6  includes a stem  61  and a plug  62 . The plug  62  has an outer diameter larger than that of the stem  61 , and is located near a middle section of the stem  61 . The stem  61  has a first end portion  611  and a second end portion  612  opposite to each other. The first end portion  611  is projected into and received in the second end portion  52  of the lower sleeve  5 , and the second end portion  612  of the ink guiding core  6  is projected into and received in the through hole  45  of the upper sleeve  4 . The plug  62  has a first side  621  and a second side  622  opposite to each other. The first side  621  of the plug  62  is formed into a conical body  623  for tightly but detachably fitting in the conical bore  53  of the lower sleeve  5 . 
     The spring  7  is disposed between the second side  622  of the plug  62  of the ink guiding core  6  and the stopper  44  on the upper sleeve  4 . When the ink guiding core  6  is upward pushed, the spring  7  provides an elastic force for the ink guiding core  6  to restore to an initial position. The spring  7  provides sufficient elastic force to push the ink guiding core  6  downward, so that the conical body  623  is normally in tight contact with the conical bore  53  of the lower sleeve  5 . 
     The barrel  8  is externally fitted around the second end portion  32  of the felt tip cap  3 . The barrel  8  internally defines an ink reservoir  81 , which is communicable with the openings  43  on the upper sleeve  4 . 
     The felt tip  9  is made of a fibrous material, and has a first end portion  91  and a second end portion  92  opposite to each other. The first and the second end portion  91 ,  92  are clamped in place by the first end portion  31  of the felt tip cap  3  and the micro raised portions  22  in the ink feeder  2 . The second end portion  92  of the felt tip  9  is abutted on the first end portion  611  of the stem  61  of the ink guiding core  6 . 
     The ink feeder  2  of the present invention is mounted in a lower end of the first end portion  51  of the lower sleeve  5  with the flange  213  abutted on the lower end of the first end portion  51  of the lower sleeve  5 . The conical surface  214  on the ink feeder  2  enables the ink feeder  2  to be more easily introduced into the first end portion  51  of the lower sleeve  5 . 
     Since the ink feeder  2  is made of a rigid material, it can be clamped and delivered with a machine without the risk of becoming deformed. Thus, the ink feeder  2  of the present invention and other ink pen components can be assembled together via a machine in an automated manner to largely save the time and labor needed to assemble the felt-tip ink pen. 
     When using the felt-tip ink pen to write, the first end portion  91  of the felt tip  9  is pressed against a paper, and the second end portion  92  of the felt-tip pen will be correspondingly pushed against the first end portion  611  of the stem  61  of the ink guiding core  6 , forcing the conical body  623  of the plug  62  of the ink guiding core  6  to move upward and away from the conical bore  53  of the lower sleeve  5  to thereby open the conical bore  53 . At this point, ink in the ink reservoir  81  is allowed to sequentially flow through the openings  43  of the upper sleeve  4  and the conical bore  53  of the lower sleeve  5  to the ink feeder  2 . The ink flowed to the ink feeder  2  would then attach to the tiny ink feeding clearances  23  between the inner wall surface of the ink feeder  2  and the felt tip  9 , so that the ink is temporarily stored in the ink feeder  2  for replenishing the felt tip  9  with ink when the latter is consumed during writing. That is, in the felt-tip ink pen, ink is fed from the ink feeding clearances  23  to the felt tip  9 , so that a user can write with the felt tip  9 . 
     The ink feeding clearances  23  is very tiny. As a capillary action thereof, the felt tip  9  is able to absorb the ink in the ink feeding clearances  23  for use. Therefore, the situation of leakage of ink due to a saturated ink feeder  2  can be avoided. 
     In addition to serve as ink feeding paths, the ink feeding clearances  23  on the ink feeder  2  also serve as paths to allow convection of air outside the ink pen and inside the ink reservoir  81 , enabling smooth flowing and feeding of ink in the felt-tip ink pen. 
     With the above arrangements, the ink feeder according to the present invention can be easily handled in the process of automated assembling the ink pen, and is not subject to ink leakage to thereby provide very good applicability. 
     The present invention has been described with a preferred embodiment thereof and it is understood that many changes and modifications in the described embodiment can be carried out without departing from the scope and the spirit of the invention that is intended to be limited only by the appended claims.