Patent ID: 7857824

Claim:
A safety scalpel blade assembly adapted for attachment to a handle of the type which has a blade carrier in the form of a finger, the assembly comprising a scalpel blade which can be of conventional manufacture, the scalpel blade having a slot to allow the blade to be attached to the blade carrier on the handle, and a guard which extends at least about the cutting edge of the blade, the guard having attachment means to lock the blade to the guard as the assembly is being attached to the handle and which releases the blade from the guard when the blade is attached to the blade carrier on the handle, and a removable tab on the guard having a portion which can be gripped by a person, a slot formed in said guard, said removable tab comprising a head portion, a tail portion, and a lip defined between said head portion and said tail portion, the head portion of said tab extending forwardly of the blade assembly, the tail portion extending rearwardly at least partially into the slot in said guard, and the lip extending downwardly from said head portion to prevent the cutting edge of said blade from becoming exposed prior to removal of the tab, said head portion of said tab being gripped by a person to remove said head and free said tail portion from the slot in the guard to expose the cutting edge of said blade.