US2364461A - Adhesive tape dispensing device - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 5, 1944.

P. s. MADSEN ADHESIVE TAPE DISPENSING DEVICE Filed June 5, 1941 2 Shats-Sheet l Dec. 5,11944. P. s. MADSEN 4,

ADHESIVE TAPE DISPEN SING DEVICE Filed June 5, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Dec. 5, 1944 ADHESIVE TAPE DISPENSING DEVICE Paul S. Madsen, Bethany, Conn., assignor to The Seamless Rubber Company, New Haven, Conn, a corporation of Connecticut Application June 5, 1941, Serial No. 396,652

(cram-55.5)-

10 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in adhesive tape dispensing devices of a kind described in my application Serial No. 360,397, filed October 9, 1940, that is to say, those in which a roller or shaft acts as a support for rolls or spools of adhesive tape arranged side by side and of assorted widths, there being provided a cutting device for severing at the desired point the tape pulled down from a roll, and there also being provided a casing or enclosing structure which protects the rolls and the cutting mechanism from soiling and contamination when the device is not in use.

One of the objects of the present invention is the general improvement of dispensing devices of this type.

Another object is to provide an improved and simplified cutting mechanism.

A further object is to provide improvements in the mounting of the rolls and that of the cutting mechanism.

Another purpose I have'in view is to make the manipulation of the device in cutting ofi tape easier and more convenient than heretofore while at the same time providing a tape dispensing device having relatively few parts and which can be manufactured at low cost. I

To these and other ends the invention con sists in the novel features and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a tape dispensing device embodying my invention, showing the same as it appears supported upon a suitable supporting wall, with the casing opened for access to the tape rolls and cutting mechanism;

Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the device shown in Fig. 1, the depending lid 01' cover of the casing being partially broken away;

Figs. 3, 4 and are sections respectively on lines 3-43, 4-4, and 5-5 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a detailed enlarged section on line 5t of Fig. 3;

Fig. 7 is a detailed enlarged section on line 1-4 Fig. i;-

Fig. 8 is a detailed enlarged section taken on line 88 of Fig. 1, showing, however, the casing in the closed position; and

Fig. 9 is an enlarged section on line 99 f Fig. 1.

In the form of my device selected for illustrattion, which is a form well adapted for use in hospitals and in the omces of physicians, a plurality of rolls of adhesive surgical tape of assorted widths are mounted on a bracketedroller or shaft side by side so as to be freely rotatable thereon.

Associated with the roller or shaft is a cutting mechanism comprising a guideway or track in front of which are pendent the free ends of the tape rolls and to which a portion of the tape is adapted to be secured, in position fo cutting, by the adhesive material on the face of thetape. This guideway, comprising two members separated at a slight interval, has a sliding knife device projecting between the guide members adapted. to be moved in either of two directions for the purpose of cutting the tape. The shaft holding the rolls is mounted in aremovable manner in suitable bracket members and these bracket members together with the above mentioned gui'deway with its associated sliding knife re mounted in a box -like enclosing casing adapted to be mounted at a convenient height on a suitable supporting wall. This casing is provided at the front with a cover member or lid which in the open position depends from the lower part of the casing so as to provide convenient access to the tape rolls and the cutting mechanism.

In the drawings the roll-holding shaft is shown at H], the rolls of adhesive tape at l i, the guideway or track for the knife at it, and the sliding knife device at IS. The casing as a whole is indicated at M, and the same comprises a box-like body l5 open at the front, and a hinged lid or cover member It. This cover member is hinged to the casing body at points adjacent the lower margin of the latter, as indicated at ll. The shaft Ill is supported in brackets it provided within the body portion of the casing.

The casing can b conveniently formed of sheet metal. It is attached to a supporting wall such as indicated at it in Fig. 2, in any convenient manner, as by providing screws 20 which are screwed into the supporting wall and are engaged by keyhole slots provided in the rear wall 22 of the casing. I

The brackets 88 can be conveniently formed as metal plates of the required stiffness arranged transversely within the box structure at points spaced inwardly somewhat from the ends of the latter. These plates can be readilyfastened in place by means such as flanges 23 provided thereon at the rear thereof, said flanges being attached as by spot welding to the back wall of the vbox. Each of the plate-like brackets I8 is suitably cut away at the front as indicated at 24 to provide a mounting for the shaft In, this mounting including an angularly arranged seat or notch 25 into which the corresponding end portion of the shaft can be set from the front of the device and from which the shaft will not readily be displaced in ordinary use. It will be understood,

however, that when it is desired to remove the shaft from the brackets this can be very conveniently done.

The shaft l0 can be conveniently provided by cutting a rod of brass or like metal to the proper length. The diameter of this rod can be considerably less than that of the central openings provided in the tape rolls. Usually these tape rolls are provided with inner core or sleeve mem-- bers of paper or the like, one of such sleeves being indicated at 26 in Fig. 3. For mounting all of the rolls on the small-diametered rod, I prefer to provide a paper or like mounting sleeve 21 on the rod, in loosely embracing relation, in that part of the rod which is between the brackets I8. The rod is shiftable in the brackets lengthwise of the casing to a limited degree because I prefer to provide a rod of only slightly less length than the box so that if the rod is shifted lengthwise a small distance in one or the other direction one of its ends will abut against the corresponding end of the box. In this manner such endwise movement of the rod as would move it out of the brackets is prevented. Some shifting of the rolls relatively to the rod is permitted so as to facilitate the placing of the rolls in position within the casing.

The guideway l2 previously mentioned may advantageously comprise members which in cross section are flattened and elongated. In the particular form shown, the members are formed of sheet metal and there is an upper member 28 and a lower member 29 of this material. Preferably these members are bent so as toprovide thickened track members at their front edges. In the form shown, the upper member has an upwardly and rearwardly bent flange 28' and the lower member has a downwardly and rearwardly bent flange 2 9. These guide members 28, 29 are mounted in a suitable manner from the box-like structure, and in the case illustrated they are mounted from the end walls of thebox by means of supporting lugs or brackets 36. These brackets are of angular form, having upright portions 3| welded to the end walls of the box, and horizontal portions 32 extending between and welded to the end portions of the guide members 26, 29. The upper face of member 29 is placed against the lower face of part 32, and the lower face of member 28 is placed against the upper face of part 32, and the parts are then welded together or interconnected in some other suitable manner. It will be seen, therefore, that the horizon tal parts 32 of the brackets 30 serve to space apart the guide members 28, 29 at the required distance. It will be noted that the track comprising the parts 28, 29 is preferably located at the front lower part of the box, there being a small space 33 in between the track and the lower margin of the box, as indicated in Fig. 9; The front curved-over portions of the guide members, however, are located substantially flush with the margin of the front opening of the box. In this part of the box the same is shouldered to provide a forwardly extending rim 34 over which the cover member I6 is adapted to fit, and the rim 34 can advantageously have a reversely turn'ed edge, as indicated at 35.

The sliding knife device l3 which is mounted on and guided along the guideway, may advantageously comprise a holder 36 of Bakelite or other suitable molded plastic material, said holder being manipulable from the front of the device to slide it along the guideway and serving to hold or carry tape-severing means entering the space. between the members of the guideway. In this particular case, the holder is equipped with two knives 31 arranged in inwardly converging relation, as shown in Fig. 5. In this particular case these knives are so-called surgical knives of standard form procurable in the market, comprising thin narrow blades tapering to a point. The holder 36 is preferably made in two sections, namely a lower section 38 and an upper section 39. The knives 31 are received in suitably shaped inclined grooves 40 formed in the upper face portion of the lower section. These grooves together with the lower face of the upper section create seats for the body portions of the knives. As will be seen in Figs. 3 and 6, the lower section 38, where the same is grooved for the knives, extends forwardly beyond the upper section, as indicated at 4|, providin a grooved extension at each end of the holder into which a knife can be readily introduced from the front. leaving a portion of the butt of the knife exposed when the knife is in the fully assembled position. On the extension 4| small side shoulders are formed, as indicated at 42, to prevent lateral displacement of the knife;

Each section of the knife holder is provided with a middle rounded forward projection 43, and these projections in conjunction form a convenient' manipulating handle for the holder, which handle can be readily held between the thumb and forefinger in manipulatingthe holder. The two sections of the holder are held together by means such as rivets, there being end rivets 44 and an intermediate rivet 45. The rivet 45 serves as a means for anchoring a thin metal bar 46 which is rigidly fastened to the holder in a groove 41 and has a part of thin sharpened contour located between the members of the track or guideway between the inner ends of the knives. This member 46 projects inwardly past the rear edges of the track members and in that region it serves as a carrier for a leaf spring 48 the extremities 49 of which bear against the rear edges of the track members at the respective sides of the bar. In this particular form, the spring has a slot 50 which fits over the end of the bar, and a cotter pin 5| engaging a hole in the bar holds the .spring removably in place.

The points of the knives 31 are indicated at 52, and at 53 there is indicated an inclined sharpened edge on the knife leading to the point. One

of these edges 53 cuts toward the right and the.

other one toward the left.

The rivets 44 previously mentioned also serve as mountings for guide rollers carried by the holder and engaging the front edge portion of the track. In the device shown in the drawings these rivets serve as mountings for rollers 54 formed of Bakelite or the like and free to turn about the corresponding rivet shanks. The holder sections are cut away, as shown at 55, in order to provide recesses in which the major portions of the rollers are received, but the rollers extend inwardly past the holder to a slight degree and each of these rollers is provided with a peripheral guide rib 56 of such profile that the holder will be effectively guided by the flaring entrance portion at the mouth of the guide space between the upper and lower members of the'guide. The spring 48 bearing against the rear edges of the guide members serves to maintain the holder in a resilient manner against the front of the guide so that the holder will be effectively and easily i there being in this instance two of these springs.

Each spring 51 has one portion fastened inside the body, as indicated at 58, while the other end portion of the spring, indicated at 59, projects forwardly alongside the rim 34 previously mentioned. In this location the projecting end of the spring, which is curved, is adapted to be engaged by a thickened portion 60 at the edge of the lid or cover so as to retain the lid or cover in the closed position in a resilient manner. However, by exerting pressure on the upper part of the lid the springs can be readily released for opening the box, and upon opening, the lid will swing down to the position indicated in Fig. 2. The tape rolls and the knife device will then be readily accessible for manipulation.

When it is desired to obtain'a piece of adhesive surgical tape of given length for the purpose of bandaging a wound or the like, the appropriate tape roll is manipulated so that the de pending portion of tape will have that portion which is to be severed opposite the track or guideway. The tape is manipulated so that at the portion to be severed it will be pressed'against the thick rounded front edges of the guideway so as to adhere strongly thereto, thus effectively holding the tape' in position for cutting; The knife holder is then manipulated to sever the tape, being moved to the right or left as the case may be, so that the cutting edge of one or the other of the knives will come against one side edge of the tape and will move across and sever it by a shearing action. The portion of tape which has been severed will continue to adhere to the track or guideway, its adhesive contact with the lower member of the latter being maintained. Thus the separated portion will be held in position until the operator grasps its lower end to pull it off of the guideway and put it to use.

A very important advantage of the device arises from the fact that the operation of cuttingoif the tape to the required length can be performed by the physician or nurse by using one hand (which first pulls down the tape and in so doing aflixes it to the track, second, slides the knife, and third, pulls off the cut piece) leaving the other hand free, for other work.

Another important advantagearises from the fact that if the step of pressing the tape into adhesive contact with the guide by manual manipulation be omitted, the pressing action will nevertheless be effected. This is due to the provision of the rollers operating in advance of the knives and acted upon by the spring 48 or its equivalent. Each roller operates .to force the textile web against the guideway, and into the guideway to an extent, and to form a valley or creaselike formation in the web into which the knife in following will enter, thus facilitating the cutting action. The action of a pressing and creasing roller operating in advance of the knife enables the knife to be operated under optimum conditions.

Another feature of advantage arises from the simple form of track or guideway employed and the fact that the knife holder has a part extending through the guideway and also a part engaging the rear edge portion of the guideway so that the holder is pressed against the guideway from the rear as well as from the front. This enables a simple form of guide structure to be employed, having only two guide members for the knife holder.

In case one of the knives becomes dull, the

same can be readily withdrawn from the front of the holder simply by pullingit forwardly, and a new knife inserted. The wedge-like shape of the knives assists materially in holding them in operative position without the need of special fastenings.

The relative simplicity of the construction lends itself to sanitary cleanliness.

The casing or cabinet is of simple form and permits the tape rolls and the severing mechanism to be fully enclosed and protected from dirt and dust when the device is not in use. When it is desired to use the device it is simply necessary. to pull down the cover member in order to have the tape rolls and the severing mechanism completely accessible for manipulation.

It is of advantage that in the operative position the track or guideway is at the lower part of the box structure but well toward the front, the knife holder body preferably being wholly or substantially in front of the box but nevertheless adapted to be housed by a cover member or lid having an outer wall and side walls as in the example shown. When the device is in the open position the cover member is disposed below and also behind the knife holder body so as to be entirely out of the way.

While I have shown herein only one form of my dispensing device it is to be understood that the invention can be embodied in various other forms, and that various modifications and changes in the organization of parts and in the details can be made without departing from the principles of my invention or the scope of the claims.

What I claim is:

1. A dispensing device for adhesive tape in roll form, comprising a casing in which the rolls are rotatably supported side by side with their free ends of tape depending at the front of device, a

knife guide in the casing behind the ends of roll form, a casing of substantially rectangular cross section having a top wall, a rear wall, a bottom wall, and open at the front, a mounting shaft in said casing for a series of rolls arranged side by side, said mounting being so located that the free ends of tape from the-rolls depend at the front of the casing, a guide in the casing behind the ends of tape, a knife entering the guide, a manipulator for the knife in front of the guide outside of the casing, and a cover for the easing which in the closed position extends over and encloses said manipulator, said cover having an outer wall and side walls and being hinged to the casing at points below said guide and in its open position depending from the bottom wall of the casing.

3. In a dispensing device for adhesive tape in wound up rolls, a casing, a mounting therein for a plurality of rolls arranged side by side, said mounting being so located that the tape ends can hang down at the front of the casing, a knife for severing the tape, a track for guiding said knife having opposed parallel members one above the other, and supporting brackets for said track attached to the casing and having track-supporting portions entering the space between said track members, one track member being fastened to one face of said portion and the other track member being fastened to the opposite face.

4. A dispensing device for adhesive tape in roll form, comprising a mounting, a plurality of rolls of wound-up adhesive tape supported on said mounting side by side, said rolls having free ends of tape at the front of the device depending below the axes of the rolls, a guide at the front of the device behind the tape ends, a holder guided along said guide at the front of the latter and comprising separate upper and lower sections, a bar extending rearwardly from said sections through the guide, a leaf spring carried by the rear portion of said bar and having portions contacting the guide at the rear, and pointed knives removably held between the holder sections at the respective sides of the bar and arranged at an angle so as to be in inwardly-converging relation, said knives being insertable into the holder from the front of the latter.

5. A dispensing device for adhesive tape in roll form, comprising a mounting on which the rolls are rotatably supported side by side with their free ends of tape depending at the front of the device, a guide behind the tape ends, a knife holder at the front of the guide, a bar connected to the holder and extending through the guide and resiliently supported upon the rear surface of the guide, guide rollers carried by the holder at the respective sides of the bar and engaging the guide, and pointed cutting knives between the respective rollers and the bar having their inner ends within the guide.

6. A dispensing device for adhesive tape in roll form adapted to be supported on a suitable supporting wall and comprising a casing of substantially rectangular cross section closed at the top, bottom and rear portions but open at the front, brackets in said casing adjacent the respective ends thereof, a shaft removably mounted in said brackets in the interior of the casing, a series of rolls of wound-up adhesive tape arranged side by side on said shaft and having partially-unwound portions hanging down below the roll axes at the front of the device, an abutment arranged below the shaft and behind the hanging ends of tape, against which said ends are moved rearwardly for adhesive connection with the abutment by means of their adhesive material during the cutting operation, said abutment being in the form of a bridge spaced at its upper part fromthe top of the casing and at its lower part from the casing bottom, a. knife movable parallel to the shaft for severing the tape ends while held against said abutment, a manipula'tor for said knife connected thereto and located'at the front of said abutment, and a cover for the casing which in the closed position extends over and encloses said manipulator.

I. In a dispensing device for adhesive tape in wound-up rolls, a casing, a mounting therein for a plurality of rolls arranged side by side, said mounting being so located that the tape ends hang down below the roll axes at the front of the casing, supporting brackets attached to the easing walls adjacent the respective ends of the mounting and having angularly-disposed projecting track-supporting portions, track members comprising plates attached respectively to the upper and lower surfaces of said track-supporting portions and spaced apart by said portions, said plates-being extended forwardly from said brackets and having reversely-tumed and curved forward edge portions adapted to act as securing areas for securing the tape by its adhesive material, and a knife guided by said track members.

8. In a dispensing device for adhesive tape wound up in rolled form, the combination of a casing of substantially rectangular cross section having a rear wall adapted to be supported against a suitable support and having parallel upper and lower walls with free forward edges between which the front portion of the casing is left open, a shaft carrying a plurality of rolls of wound adhesiv tape arranged side by side, means for mounting said shaft from the end portions of the casing so that the rolls are supported substantially midway between the top wall and the bottom wall, the roll axis also being intermediate the rear wall and the front rim of the casing, a track comprising upper and lower members spaced slightly from each other mounted from the end walls of the casing so that the front parts of the track members are located substantially at the open front mouth portion of the easing but at a distance considerably below the center and in adjacency to the bottom wall of the casing although somewhat spaced from said bottom wall, said track being adapted to act as a cutting support for the tape behind the tape ends which depend from the rolls, a cutting knife projecting substantially horizontally and rearwardly from the front of the casing into the space between said track members and having a manipulator disposed in front and outside of the casing whereby the knife can be moved along the track, and a cover adapted to be set over the casing at the front and which, in closed position, extends over and encloses the manipulator.

9. In a dispensing device for adhesive tape Wound up in rolled form, the combination of a casing of substantially rectangular cross section having a rear wall adapted to be supported against a suitable support and having parallel upper and lower walls with free forward edges between which the front portion of the casing is left open, a shaft carrying a plurality of rolls of wound adhesive tape arranged side by side, means for mounting said shaft from the end portions of the casing so that the rolls are supported substantially midway between the top wall and the bottom wall, the roll axis also being intermediate the rear wall and the front rim of the casing, a track comprising upper and lower members spaced slightly from each other mounted from the end walls of the casing so that the front parts of the track members are located substantially at the open front mouth portion of the casing but at a distance considerably below the center and in adjacency to the bottom wall of the casing although somewhat spaced from said bottom wall, said track being adapted to act as a cutting support for the tape behind the tape ends which depend from the rolls, a cutting knife projecting substantially horizontally and rearwardly from the front of thecasing side of the casing whereby the knife can be moved along the track, and a coveradapted to be set over the casing at the front and which, in closed position, extends over and encloses the manipulator, said'cover being hinged to the free edge portion of the bottom wall of the casing and having an inoperative position in which it hangs down substantially vertically from the casing.

10. In a dispensing device for adhesive tape in wound up rolls, the combination of a casing of substantially rectangular cross section having a rear wall adapted to be placed against a suitable support and having substantially horizontal upper,

and lower walls provided with free forward edges between which the casing is left open, a shaft carrying a plurality of rolls of adhesive tape arranged side by side, means for mounting said shaft in the casing so that the axis of the rolls is intermediate the upper and lower walls of the casing and intermediate the rear wall and the open mouth or rim portion, supporting brackets attached to the walls at the ends of the casing and having angularly disposed projecting tracksupporting portions, track memberscomprising plates attached respectively to the upper and lower surfaces of said track-supporting portions and spaced apart by said portions, said plates being extended forwardly from said brackets and having reversely turned and curved forward edge portions adapted to act as securing areas for securing the tape by its adhesive material, the forward edge portions of said track members being located substantially at the openmouth portion ofthe casing in a location where they are spaced upwardly from the bottom of the casing to some extent but at a greater distance downwardly from the horizontal plane of the shaft, a knife projecting into the space between. the track members and adapted to sever the tape, and a manipulator for the knife, rigid therewith and located forwardly of the mouth portion of the casing.

, PAUL S. MADSEN.

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