Patent Publication Number: US-2005126016-A1

Title: Blade

Description:
The present invention relates to a blade, and more particularly, a blade that is preferably non-metallic that has a variety of shapes and beveled edges to scrape, clean, and peel unwanted materials off scratchable or nonscratchable surfaces without scratching the surfaces.  
      There are prior blades, but none that have the configuration of the present invention, which allows the blade to be used with or without a blade holder. The majority of the prior art blades are made of metal, limiting their use on certain surfaces. Additionally, the majority of the prior art blades are made to be used in one type of holder, but not without a holder.  
      Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a new and novel blade without one or more of the limitations of the prior art. Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description that follows, and in part will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by the process particularly pointed out in the written description and claims, as well as the appended drawings.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the invention as embodied and broadly described herein, the invention is directed to a non-metallic blade that includes a middle portion having a thickness, and two outside portions, each of the outside portions having at least a portion having a thickness greater than the thickness of the middle portion and the middle portion being disposed between the two outside portions.  
      In another aspect, the invention is directed to a non-metallic blade that includes a first portion having a width, and at least one second portion having a width, the width of the first portion being generally the same as the width of the second portion.  
      It is to be understood that the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.  
      The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification. The drawings illustrate several embodiments of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of one embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 2  is a top view of the blade of  FIG. 1 ;  
       FIG. 3  is an end view of the blade of  FIG. 1 ;  
       FIG. 4  is an end view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 5  is a top view of the blade of  FIG. 4 ;  
       FIG. 6  is an end view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 7  is an end view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 8  is an end view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 9  is an end view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 10  is an end view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 11  is an end view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 12  is an end view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 13  is an end view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 14  is an end view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 15  is an end view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 16  is a top view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 17  is a top view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 18  is a top view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 19  is a top view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 20  is a top view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 21  is a top view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 22  is a top view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 23  is a partial cross section of the blade of  FIG. 22  along the lines  23 - 23 ;  
       FIG. 24  is a partial top view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 25  is a partial top view of another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention; and  
       FIG. 26  is a partial cross section of the blade in  FIG. 24 .  
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       FIGS. 1-3  illustrate one embodiment of the blade  100  according to the present invention. Blade  100  preferably has a middle portion  102  and two outside portions  104 . The middle portion  102  preferably has an opening  106  and two indents  108  on each side, but need not be present, especially if the blade  100  will not be used with a blade holder. The outside portion  104  of blade  100  also preferably has a beveled edge  110 . As will be discussed in detail below, the blade  100  preferably has two beveled edges  110 , which can have many different configurations.  
      The middle portion  102  has a width W 1  that is generally the same as the width W 2  of the two outside portions  104 . However, the middle portion  102  may have a width W 1  that is either smaller or larger than the width W 2  of the outside portions and still fall within the scope of the present invention. The middle portion  102  also has a height H 1  or thickness that is preferably smaller than the height H 2  or thickness at the tallest portion of the outside portion  104  as illustrated in  FIG. 3 . The middle portion  102  is between the two outside portions  104 , preferably with a shoulder  112  therebetween. The shoulder  112  allows the blade  100  to be inserted into and held in a holder that allows a user more leverage and control of the blade  100  than without the holder. However, it should be understood that the blade  100  need not be inserted into a holder to be used.  
      The beveled edges  110  are located along an outside edge of the outside portion  104  opposite the edge of the shoulder  112 . As noted above, the beveled edges  110  can have many different configurations and still fall within the scope of the present invention. As illustrated in  FIGS. 1-3 , the beveled edges  110  on the blade  100  are symmetrical about the axis A through the blade  100  and come to a sharp edge at point P that lies on the axis A. It should also be noted that the outside portion  104  of blade  100  preferable has relatively flat portions  114  between the beveled edges  110  and the shoulder  112 . The flat portions  114  may be bigger or smaller than illustrated in  FIGS. 1-3 , as illustrated in  FIGS. 4 and 5 , where blade  120 , which is generally similar to blade  100 , has little to no flat portion on the outside portions  122 . It should also be noted that the flat portions need not be the same size, but could be of different heights, widths, etc. Like blade  100 , blade  120  has a middle portion  124  that is about the same width as the outer portion  122  and is generally thinner than the outside portions  122  at their thickest points. The beveled edges  126  also comes to an edge or point P on the axis A through the blade  120 .  
      The beveled edges  110  and  126  preferably have an angle relative to the axis A of between about 1° and 90°, more preferably between 5° and 45°, and most preferably 5° and 20°.  
      Another embodiment of a blade  140  according to the present invention is illustrated in  FIG. 6 . It should be noted that the top view of blade  140 , as well as the other blades discussed below, would generally appear to be the same as that in  FIGS. 2 and 5 . Therefore, the top views of those blades have not been included here. However, as would be recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art, they would generally have the same configuration except as noted below.  
      The blade  140  preferably has a middle portion  142  and outside portions  144 . As with the other embodiments discussed above, the middle portion  142  of the blade  140  is between the outside portions  144  and is thinner than the thickest parts of the outside portions  144 . As with blade  100 , the outside portions  144  of blade  140  have relatively flat portions  146 . However, in this embodiment, blade  140  has a beveled edge  148  on only one side. The beveled edge  148  of blade  140  comes to a point P on one side of the axis A rather than coming to a point P on the axis as in the previous embodiments. This configuration of blade  140  means that one side has a relatively flat portion  150  along the entire width of the outside portion  144 .  
      Similar blades are illustrated in  FIGS. 7 and 8 . In  FIG. 7 , blade  160  has a middle portion  162  between two outside portions  164 . As with the other embodiments, middle portion  162  is thinner than the thickest portions of the outside portions  164  and is about the same width as those outside portions  164 . Blade  160  has a smaller relatively flat portions  166  than blade  140 . As with blade  140 , the point P for both of the outside portions  164  is on the same side of the axis A, rather than being on the axis.  
      In  FIG. 8 , blade  180  also has a middle portion  182  between two outside portions  184 . Similarly, middle portion  182  is thinner than the thickest portions of the outside portions  184  and is about the same width as the outside portions  184 . Blade  180  preferably has no relatively flat portions on the one side of blade  180  as the beveled edge  186 , meaning that the beveled edge runs the entire width of the outside portion  184  on the one side of the blade  180 . As with blade  160 , the point P for both of the outside portions  184  is on the same side of the axis A, rather than being on the axis.  
       FIG. 9  illustrates another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention. Blade  200  has a middle portion  202  between two outside portions  204 . The middle portion  202  is preferably thinner than the thickest portions of the outside portions  204 . The blade  200  also has two beveled edges  206 , which come to an edge or point P. However, in this embodiment, the two points P for the opposite sides of blade  200  are on opposite sides of the axis A that passes through the center of blade  200 . While the outside portions  204  have a relatively flat portion  208  on the side with the beveled edge  206 , there could be a smaller or larger relatively flat portion  208  and still fall within the scope of the present invention. For example, the outside portions  204  could be configured like those outside portions  144 , 184  on blades  140 , 180 , but with their respective points P on opposite sides of the axis A.  
      Blade  220  illustrated in  FIG. 10  is another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention. Blade  220  preferably has a middle portion  222  between two outside portions  224 . The middle portion  222  is preferably thinner than the thickest portions of the outside portions  224 . Outside portions  224  also have a beveled edge  226 , but also have a raised, flat portion  228  that is slightly higher than the rest of the outside portion  224  on the side of the blade  220  with the beveled edge  226 . This flat portion  228 , while about the same height as the thickest portions of the outside portions in the other embodiments, allows for a holder to engage the blade  220 , but still allows for a smaller overall profile of outside portions  224 .  
      Blade  230 , illustrated in  FIG. 11 , preferably has a middle portion  232  between two outside portions  234 . As with the prior embodiment, the outside portions  234  have beveled edges  236  that come to a sharp edge or point P on one side of the axis A. However, as noted above for blade  200 , the sharp edge or point P cold be on opposite sides of axis A. The majority of outside portions  234  are about the same thickness as the middle portion  232 , but each of the outside portions  234  have a shoulder  238  on both sides of blade  230 , rather than just on one side as with blade  220  and raised, flat portion  228 , making the beveled edges thinner than in the other embodiments.  
      Blade  240 , illustrated in  FIG. 12 , preferably has a middle portion  242  between two outside portions  244 . As with the blade  140  illustrated in  FIG. 7 , the outside portions  244  have beveled edges  246  that come to a sharp edge at point P on one side of the axis A. The beveled edges  246  are sloped from a flat, raised portion  248  on the outside portion  244  toward the edge at point P. It should be noted that while the blades with both edges on the same side of the axis A (e.g., blades  140 , 180 , 220 , 230 , 240 ), they could also have one of the sharp edges on each side of axis A as with blade  200 , illustrated in  FIG. 9 . It should also be noted that each of the embodiments in  FIGS. 1-15  have a shoulder (like shoulder  112 ) between the middle and the outside portions as indicated in  FIG. 3 .  
      Three more embodiments of blades according to the present invention are illustrated in  FIGS. 13-15  with these blades having relatively blunt edges rather than the sharp edges in the previous embodiments. For example, blade  260 , like the other embodiments, preferably has a middle portion  262  between two outside portions  264 . The outside portions  264  has a generally consistent thickness across the width of the outside portions  264 , which is thicker than the middle portion  262 . The outside edges  266  are generally perpendicular to the axis A through the blade  260 .  
      Blade  270 , illustrated in  FIG. 14 , also preferably has a middle portion  272  between two outside portions  274 , each of the outside portions  274  have a raised, flat portion  276  adjacent the middle portion  272 . The outside edges  278  are, like the previous embodiment, also generally perpendicular to the axis A through the center of the blade  270 .  
      The blade  280  in  FIG. 15  preferably has a middle portion  282  between two outside portions  284  as with blade  260 . However, blade  280  has rounded outside edges  286 , rather than the generally perpendicular edges  278  in the previous embodiment. While the rounded edges  286  are generally circular in configuration, they could be of any rounded shape, e.g., oval, elliptical, etc.  
      A top view of another embodiment of a blade  300  is illustrated in  FIG. 16 . The blade  300  has a similar configuration to that of blade  100  in  FIGS. 1-3 . That is, the blade  300  preferably has a middle portion  302  and two outside portions  304 . The middle portion  302  preferably has an opening  306  and two indents  308  on each side. The outside portion  304  of blade  300  also preferably has a beveled edge  310 . The outside edge of blade  300  however has serrations  312 , rather than the straight, smooth edge of the blade  100  in  FIGS. 1-3 . While the configuration of the blade  300  has the bevel on only a part of the outside portion  304 , the beveled edge could extend the width of the outside portion  304  as illustrated in  FIG. 4  on blade  120 , or it could extend for only a small portion of outside portion  304  (e.g., as with blade  160  in  FIG. 7 ).  
      Another blade  320  is illustrated in  FIG. 17  with a middle portion  322  and two outside portions  324 . Blade  320  is similar to the blade  300 , but has fewer serrations  326  than blade  300 . Any number, frequency, or depth of the serrations on the outside edges of the blades is within the scope of the present invention. The serrations  312 , 324  on blades  300 , 320  can be used on any of the other blades discussed within this application and still be within the scope of the present invention. Also, the beveled edges on opposite sides of the middle portions of each of the blades, as noted above with certain of the embodiments, can be on opposite sides or even the same side of the axis A through the blade and still fall within the scope of the present invention.  
      Another blade  330 , illustrated in  FIG. 18 , has at least one non-smooth edge. Blade  330  has, as with the other blades, a middle portion  332  and two outside portions  334 . However, blade  330  preferably has at least one edge with a saw-tooth edge  336 . The blade  330  also preferably has one smooth, straight edge  338 , although any configuration on either edge could be used. For example, the two edges could have one blunt edge (like edge  226 ) and one serrated edge (like serrations  312 ) or one blunt edge and one sharp, smooth edge.  
      Another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention is illustrated in  FIG. 19 . Blade  340  illustrates that the beveled edge  342  may have square serrations  344 , rather than the pointed serrations  326  or the saw-tooth serrations  336  in the previous two embodiments. The square serrations  344  may be used with any of the other of the blades that have been disclosed and described herein.  
      Another embodiment of a blade according to the present invention is also shown in  FIG. 20 . Blade  346  illustrates that the beveled edge  348  may have a wavy serrated edge  349 , rather than the pointed serrations  344 , the saw-tooth serrations  336 , or the square serrations  344  described above.  
      Blade  350  is illustrated in  FIG. 21  having a differently shaped configuration from the prior embodiments. Blade  350  preferably has a middle portion  352  and two outside portions  354 . The two outside portions  354  have a outside edge  356  having a length L 1  that is longer, while the outside portion  354  adjacent the middle portion  352  has the same length L 1  as the middle portion  352 . Blade  350  allows the user to get one of the comers of blade  350  into tight places to assist with the scraping, cleaning, and peeling of unwanted materials. The edges  356 , while shown to be straight, smooth edges, could also have any configuration, including one of the configurations of  FIGS. 13-18 . While blade  350  has an end profile similar to that in  FIG. 3 , blade  350  could have any of the profiles that have been described and shown in the present application ( FIGS. 1-20 ).  
      Another blade  360  according to the present invention is shown in  FIGS. 22 and 23 . The blade  360  generally has the same configuration as that of blade  100  in  FIGS. 1-3 , in that it has a middle portion  362  and two outer portions  364 , but it has a different configuration for the beveled edge  366 . As better illustrated in  FIG. 23 , the beveled edge  366  has two portions  368 , 370  having different angles relative to a center line through the blade. This configuration in blade  360  also allows the blade to be used to cut if the blade  360  is moved along the edge  366  due to the difference in height of two portions  368 , 370 .  
      Two other edge configurations that can be used with any of the blades are illustrated in  FIGS. 24-26 . Blade  380 , partially illustrated in  FIG. 24 , has at the beveled edge portion  382  a break in the leading edge. The blade  380  has a leading edge portion  384  that may have any of the configurations or profiles noted herein, e.g., straight, wavy, saw-toothed, serrated, etc. However, there is also a set back portion  386 , that has a leading edge behind that of the leading edge portion  384 . The overall configuration of this blade is a saw-tooth-like configuration, with a transition edge  388  between the leading edge portion  384  and the set back portion  386  at about a 90° angle. Similarly, blade  390  also has leading edge portion  394  on beveled edge portion  392 , with a set back portion  396 . The set back portion  396  in this embodiment of the blade  390  has a transition edge  398  that is at about a 45° angle relative to the leading edge portion  394 , although any angle could be used.  
      A cross section of one embodiment of the blade  380  is illustrated in  FIG. 26 . In the embodiment shown in  FIG. 26 , the set back portion  386  has a top  386   a  and bottom surface  386   b  that is on a different plane than that for the top and bottom surfaces of beveled edge  384 . However, bottom surface  386   b  (or even the top surface  386   a ) could also be coplanar with the beveled edge  384 . Also, the blade  380  is depicted as one side having a flat portion, but the blade  380  (and blade  390 ) could have any of the overall configurations as noted above.  
      The blades according to the present invention are preferably made from plastic. However, any non-metallic material could be used, including, for example, nylon, fiberglass, graphic, ceramic, or any composite materials.  
      It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the mechanism according to the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention cover the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.