Abstract:
The invention provides a portable knife holder having a mounting plate embedded with at least one magnet for holding a knife on a top surface of the mounting plate, and a strap attached to the mounting plate for mounting the mounting plate to a user or to an object.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention generally relates to a portable knife holder having a mounting plate embedded with at least one magnet for holding a knife on a top surface of the sheath. In particular, a strap is attached to the mounting plate for mounting the mounting plate to a moving object or a user. 
     2. Description of Related Arts 
     Currently, there are numerous examples for a sheath made of plastic or metal for storing a knife while not in use. U.S. Pat. No. 5,979,673 to Dooley teaches a magnetic cooking utensil holder which allows a user to temporarily secure hot pan lids to avoid placing the hot and sometimes soiled lids on a counter top. The holder is designed mainly for a pan lid rather than a knife so that it is bulky and stationary on a flat surface. U.S. Pat. No. 5,011,102 to Kiefer discloses a magnetic knife holder (see FIG. 8) with magnets  23  covered top and bottom by a cowling  11  which has a curved entry  13  to “clamp” the knife  10  to the magnets  23  which are mounted on a magnetic strap  14  as shown in FIG.  6 . However, it takes time to aim a knife at the curved entry, and the magnetic knife holder is heavy to carry around outdoors. 
     When a hunter, a fisherman, or a butcher is skinning or cutting the carcass of an animal, the task is to remove the skin, and separate sections of meat away from the carcass with a sharp knife in a safe and sanitized manner. The task entails continuous repositioning of an animal that could weigh hundreds of pounds: a two handed task. If an user uses any traditional sheath while cutting and adjusting the position of a subject carcass, it would be difficult for the user to clean or move around the sheath. What does the user do with the knife when the user has to handle the carcass with both hands? Most commonly, the knife often heavily soiled is stabbed back in the sheath directly, which can contaminate the sheath and make it irreparably dirty. It is also common for the user to lay the knife on the ground, which can get caught up in the animal parts, or get turned around with the blade facing a different direction than originally placed, or simply get lost. Additionally, it is common to stab the knife into the ground which can only further contaminate and dull the blade. 
     Currently, there is no portable knife holder facilitating easy and convenient use while the user is working and moving around, especially outdoors. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is a purpose of this invention to provide a portable and hands-free knife holder for holding a soiled knife easily and safely while the user is working and moving around. 
     It is another purpose of this invention to allow an outdoor user to carry a soiled knife easily and safely while the user is working and moving around. 
     It is still another purpose of this invention to provide a portable and hands-free knife holder that has very few parts, is easy to make, and is easy to clean and maintain. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The foregoing and additional features and characteristics of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description considered with reference to the accompanying drawings in which like reference numerals designate like elements and wherein: 
     FIG. 1A is a schematic diagram of a first embodiment of the invention as it is worn on a leg and holding a knife, with FIG. 1B showing a variation thereof; 
     FIG. 2 is a rear view of the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 shows a second embodiment of the invention; 
     FIG. 4 shows a third embodiment of the invention; 
     FIG. 5 is a longitudinal vertical section of the mounting plate taken on the magnetic seat of the embodiment of the invention illustrating the magnet assembly mounted on the magnetic seat; 
     FIG. 6 is a perspective view the mounting plate of FIG. 5 without any magnets mounted on the magnetic seat; 
     FIG. 7 is a perspective view the magnet assembly of FIG. 5; 
     FIG. 8 is an exploded view showing a knife holder of the prior art (U.S. Pat. No. 5,011,102) 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring to the FIG. 1A, a knife  50  (in broken outline) is placed on a mounting plate  20  of the knife holder  10 . The mounting plate  20  is attached to a mounting strap  30  so as to fasten onto a human leg  40  (in broken line). The mounting plate  20  is mounted to the mounting strap  30  at a 45 degree angle suitable for left or right handed people. 
     The mounting plate has a non-slip surface  26  made of rubber or other synthetic resin material that has beveled sides  26   a  so that the knife  50  rests within a range of bevels even if it pivots rather than the blade tip leaving the surface area. The surface  26  may also have a texture or slits/grooves  27  to allow the blood to drain so as to insure a continuous grip (see FIG.  1 B). 
     The mounting plate  20  shown in rear view in FIG. 2 has four buckles or bolts  21  which fasten a diamond-shaped leather backing  22  to the mounting plate  20  to form a slit  28  for inserting the mounting strap  30  underneath the diamond-shaped leather  22  so as to attach the mounting plate  20  to another object. The mounting strap  30  is a 1.5 inch×24 inch piece of elastic material, such as Spandex®, with 1.5 inch×6 inch hook-and-loop tabs  31  (see FIG.  3 ), such as Velcro®, at its ends for adhesion. Hook-and-loop surfaces facilitate any desired angle which enables the user to mount the knife holder to a work surface, a human arm, wrist, or leg. 
     In an other embodiment as shown in FIG. 3, rather than the diamond-shaped leather backing  22  on the back of the mounting plate  20  for a knife to slip through, one side of a pair of hook-and-loop surfaces  32   a  covers the back of the mounting strap  30  and another strip made from the corresponding side of the pair of hook-and-lop surfaces  32   b  is in the middle of the mounting plate  20 , which allows the user to mount the plate  20  to the mounting strap  30  at any selected angle. Since the hook-and-loop surfaces do not stretch as much a leather, it gives more strength to the mounting plate  20 . 
     In a third embodiment as shown in FIG. 4, the mounting plate  20  has the rear hook-and-loop surface  32   a  so as to attach the mounting plate  20  directly onto an object having the corresponding hook-and-loop surface  32   b  without the mounting strap  30  or the like. 
     As shown in FIG. 5, eight magnetic disks  24  are spaced evenly and mounted on a plate  23  to form a magnet assembly  28 , which then is placed inside a seat  25  pre-formed in the mounting plate  20  as shown in FIG. 6. A tape (not shown) is used to cover the mounted magnet assembly  28 . The tape then is covered underneath the diamond-shaped leather  22 . As such, the magnetic force is felt on the non-slip surface  26  of the mounting plate  20 . In other words, the magnets are spaced evenly throughout the area covered by the diamond-shaped leather  22 . 
     The knife holder  10  is strapped to one leg, for instance, at a height that would put the knife handle at arm&#39;s length so as to free up a hand of the user to work on something else than holding the knife. To mount the knife to the knife holder  10 , the user simply has to lower the knife  50  to the knife holder  10  to allow the blade to magnetically attach to the mounting plate  20 . When the user is ready to reuse the knife  50 , the user should only twist the knife handle slightly, while pulling away the handle from the knife holder  10  to release the blade from the magnetic force. The knife holder  10  can be washed thoroughly after use. 
     The magnets can be in any shape other than a disk, and they can be made from ferrous, ceramic, or similar magnetic material. The magnets can be oriented randomly, but preferably to adjoining magnets with the same polarity. As shown in FIG. 7, the plate  23  that holds the magnets into an assembly is as thin as 1 mm to provide sufficient support without adding too much weight. The thickness of the seat is kept as thin as 1 mm to reduce the gap between the knife  50  and the magnet assembly  28  but still sufficiently support the mounting plate  20 . The plate  23  can be made of aluminum, but preferably non-ferrous sheet metal and non-magnetic stainless steel. 
     The mounting plate  20  and the mounting strap  30  are made of an elastic and light material, such as rubber or plastic, so as to attach the knife holder to objects of different sizes. The knife holder of the invention has very few parts so as to be easily assembled and cleaned. 
     The principles, preferred embodiments and modes of operation of the present invention have been described in the foregoing specification. However, the invention which is intended to be protected is not limited to the particular embodiments disclosed. The embodiments described herein are illustrative rather than restrictive. Variations and changes may be made by others, and equivalents employed, without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Accordingly, it is expressly intended that all such variations, changes and equivalents which fall within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined in the claims, be embraced thereby.