US2744319A - Safety razor and blade assembly - Google Patents

Description

May 8, 1956 B. s. CUTLER SAFETY RAZOR AND BLADE ASSEMBLY Filed Jan. 17, 1952 a mi 2 J A a P 2,744,319? a SAFETY RAZOR AND BLADE ASSEMBLY Bertram S. Cutler, Green village, J. Applicaa n January 17, 1952, Serial No. 266,892

This invention relates toa safety razor and blade assembly therefor and more particularly to a neverr azor and blade assembly of a thin, easily mass produced type that is equivalent to the heavy, thick blade type in shaving quality and efiiciency. s 7

Safetyrazorsgenerallyspeaking may be said to fall'into one of two broad classifi'cationsthethin fleitible type of blade that has to be insertedfbyhand into a relatively complieated clamping assembly and the so-called injector] type wherein anarrow, thickei blade is inserted from a cartridge into a spring biasedclamping head. In the former type the blade has vto be handled manuan with v the. consequent danger" of ihjiiiy' to the user and damage tothe delicatecutting edges of the blade. The injector type razor has the serious drawback that for most models only one edge of the blade can be used as a cutting edge,- and each used blade presents a' problem from a disposal standpoint when a fresh blade is inserted.

I havenow discovered that vby providing a special," simple and inexpensive housing fora special, easily maniifactured blade, the respective disadvantages of each of the aboivetypes of safety razors may be overcome.

It is accordingly a primary object of the present invention to provide a safetyrazor' blade assembly of the type wherein the blade does not have to be touched by the hand of the user; It is another ,objeet' to provide a blade assembly which automatically retracts the blade within the housingwhen removedfiom the r'aior. M

It is another object of the present invention to provide a blade assembly of a self-protectingtype having two cutting edges. It is a still further objet to pr'ovide a blade assembly in which the blade can not be'femoVed from the razor without protecting' the edges thereof.

It is a still further objec'tjof the present invention to provide a safety r'aio 'r having an inexpensiveand disposable protective housing for the blade. 7 v a It is another object ofthe present invention to provide ari improvedsafety razor that is eirtiemely simple yet positive in operation, v

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a safety razor andblade assembly wherein the blade is supported closely adjacent the edge thereof for substantially the entire length thereof. I

Still another object resides in the provision of a blade and a related raior construction which a reasib1y be mass produced and which overcome certain disadvantages inherentin the various blade and razdr constructions heretofore known. I,

These and other and f: rthei objeets' will be in part apparent and in part pointed out as'the specification proceeds;

The principles of the invention will be more readily per of an illustrative embodiment in'whi ch:

ceived in connection with the following detailed drawings" Fig'ure Us a perspective view of'theheadportion'of a razor according to the present invention showingtl'ie' blade assembly in proper shaving position;

figure 2.} is an exploded perspective view of the head of' Figure 1sh6wing the componentparts' theieof,

2,744,319 Q l atente-d May 8, 1956 ure 4;

Figure 7 is a section taken on the line 77 of Figure 5;

I Figures 8 and 9 are enlarged sectional views taken on the line 9-9 of Figure 4, Figure 8 showing the blade assembly its initial unlocked position and Figure 9 showing the blade assembly partially broken away in the locked position shown in Figure 4.

Figures 1 and 2 generally indicate the razor at 10. It

. comprises a handle portion'12 on which is mounted a base plate assembly 14 which consists of a shaving platform 16 Welded or otherwise secured to a head supporting member 18 mounted on the handle 12 and which has on opposite edges thereof upstanding bent-over. lugs 20 which project through corresponding cutouts 22in shaving platform 16. Lugs 29 extendth'rough shaving platform 16 a distance sufficient to engage the blade assembly and securely position it upon the shaving platform as will be described herein. The raior and base plate assembly may be made of metal or any other suitable material, as is well known in the art..

The blade assembly generally indicated at 24 comprises a relatively narrow restartgularv blade 26 mounted in a protective housing 28, both of which are adapted to engage lugs 20 of head supporting member 18 toposition them properly on shaving platform 16. Housing 28-, which may be made of plastic or other suitable material, has a pair of cars or tabs 30 (see Figure 3) at the ends thereof which define a channel in which blade 26 is positioned. The clearance in the channel is made so that the blade maybe moved transversely therein but will normally remain in a fixed position due to friction.

Housing 28 is also provided with a pair of T-shaped cutouts 32, the tops thereof extending transversely of the housing and the stems thereof extending longitudinally toward the center. The cutouts are of such dimensions that they will fit over the bent over portion of lugs 20 at the position shown in Figure 8-, and will allow movement of said housing transversely of said lugs so as toengage securely bent-oyer portions 34 ofsaid lugs to position the blade assembly on said base plate assembly. In the illustrative embodiment shown, the housing is additionally provided with looking cam surfaces 36 on each side of the stern of cutouts 32. These cam surfaces act to wedge the housing and the blade against the shaving platform to position the blade assembly thereon. However, only the pair toward the cutting edge of the razor assembly are used at any one time.

Tabs 30 have a length corresponding to the width of cutouts 38 in shaving platform 16 so that the housing may be moved transversely thereof to uncover an edge of blade 26 for shaving. The front portions of the cutouts act as stops for the housing to position the blade assembly for removal and to ensure that the blade is properly re- 1 tracted therein upon removal from the shaving platform.

The blade itself is rectangular and preferably has two shavingedges 4t) and 42 and a pair of cutouts 44 which are positioned to receive bent-over portions 34 when the parts are assembled. These cutouts 44 are positioned to invention cutouts 44 and 32 of the blade and housing, respectively, are aligned as shown in Figure 5. The assembly is then placed over lugs 20 onto shaving platform 16. This operation is illustrated in Figure 8, the dotted lines showing the blade properly aligned in its normal position within the housing and the full lines show the blade assembly positioned on the shaving platform in the initial unclamped position with the blade edges still covered by the housing.

As shown in Figure 9, housing 28 is next moved away from the shaving edge of platform 16 to uncover the cutting edge of the properly oriented blade and to lock the blade and housing securely to the shaving platform. The razor is then ready for usein the customary manner. It should be noted that the shaving edge 42 in the present inventionis supported over its entire length closely adjacent the edge thereof by the protective housing. In addition edge 40 is safely covered by the housing during installation of the blade assembly.

When a new, shaving edge is desired, the housing is moved toward edge 42 of the blade until arrested by the ends of cutouts 33. In so doing it should be noted that blade 26 is automatically positioned within the protec tive housing so as to prevent injury to the user as well as to the cutting edges themselves. The blade assembly, which is now oriented in the position shown in full lines in Figure 8, is next lifted to the dotted line position, rotated in its plane 180 with respect to the shaving platform and replaced as described above. This time as the housing is moved away from the shaving edge of the shaving platform, blade edge 40 will be uncovered.

If this edge had already been used, the whole blade assembly would be disposed of and a new assembly positioned as described.

While there is given above a certain specific example of this invention and its application in practical use, it should be understood that it is not intended to be exhaustive or to be limiting of the invention. On the contrary, this illustration and the explanation herein are given in order to acquaint others skilled in the art with this invention and the principles thereof and a suitable manner of its application in practical use, so that others skilled in the art may be enabled to modify the invention and to adapt it and apply it in numerous forms, each as may be best suited to the requirement of a particular use.

I claim:

1. A safety razor comprising, a handle member, a shaving head supported by said handle member, said shaving head having a base member adapted to support a razor blade assembly thereon, lug portions adapted to engage a blade assembly when positioned on saidbase member, and a blade assembly comprising a blade having hole portions therein located so as to position said blade in proper shaving attitude about said lug portions on said base member and a protective housing for said blade of a width greater than said blade and having therein slot portions extending transverse to the cutting edge of said blade adapted to slidably engage said lug portions to clamp said blade firmly against said base member and to expose only one cutting edge thereof.

2. A blade assembly for use in a safety razor having a base plate and handle comprising; a generally rectangular blade having at least one shaving edge, a blade carrying member having a width at least as great as said blade and normally covering and protecting said shaving edge, guide means on said member for slidably positioning said blade in said carrying member for movement transverse of said shaving edge, positioning means in said blade for orienting said blade on said base plate, and corresponding positioning means in said blade carrying member to secure said assembly to said base plate so as to expose at least one shaving edge of said blade, said corresponding positioning means including an inclined surface carried on said member and an inclined surface carried on said handle, said surfaces so formed to engage each other to secure said assembly to said base plate when said member is shifted transversely relative to said blade to expose a shaving edge of said blade and adapted to disengage each other to unclamp said assembly when said member is shifted transversely to cover the shaving edge of said blade; whereby said blade is protected by said carrying member except when said member is clamping said blade on a shaving head.

3. In a razor blade assembly for use in a safety razor having a handle member and a base plate supported thereon, the combination of, a'protective blade-carrying housing of greater width than a blade and having blade guide means therein, a generally rectangular blade having two shaving edges retained by said guide means for movement transversely of said shaving edges, a pair of openings in said blade adapted to engage cooperating members on said base plate and properly position said blade thereon, and a pair of T-shaped slots in said housing adapted to engage cooperating members on said base plate to clamp said blade in operative position and to allow said housing to be moved relative to said blade to expose an edge of said blade.

4. A device as described in claim 3 wherein said guide means has a stop associated therewith to prevent removal of said blade.

5. A blade assembly for use in a safety razor of the type having a handle member, a shaving head portion supported by said handle member and carrying a pair of bent over lugs, said assembly including: a blade carrying member of greater widththan ablade and having thereon a blade carrying channel adapted to completely encompass therein a blade and permit movement of said blade transveresly of its cutting edges, a narrow double edged blade positioned in said channel for movement relative to said carrying member, a pair of slots in said blade positioned to engage the bent over lugs on said shaving head portion, and a pair of transversely oriented T-shaped slots in said carrying member adapted to cooperate with the bent over portion of the lugs to clamp said blade in operative position on said shaving head portion and to permit the exposure of one edge of said blade.

6. A device as described in claim 5 wherein said slots in said blade and said carrying member are centrally positioned relative to the edges thereof whereby said blade carrying member may be reversably mounted on said shaving head portion to expose the other edge of said double edged blade.

7. A safety razor comprising, a base plate mounted on a handle member and adapted to support thereon a blade assembly, a pair of upstanding ears positioned on said base plate having the ends thereof bent over toward each other, a blade assembly including a blade and a blade carrying member of greater width than said blade, a pair of slots in said blade adapted to engage the upstanding portion of said ears to thereby position said blade onsaid base plate, and a pair of T-shaped slots in said carrying member adapted to slidably engage said bent over cars so as to clamp said blade to said base plate and upon relative movement therewith transverse of the cutting edge of said blade to expose said edge.

8. A blade assembly for use in safety razors and the like comprising a generally rectangular blade portion having thereon at least one shaving edge, a protective housing for said blade portion for mounting said blade assembly in operative relation on a safety razor having therein a blade retaining portion, a pair of longitudinal slots in said blade portion, a pair of transverse T-shaped slots positioned in said protective housing so as to coincide at least in part with said blade slots and to engage corresponding mounting lugs on the safety razor whereby said blade is automatically positioned in a protected position within said housing during installation and removal of said blade assembly.

9. In a safety razor having a razor handle, a blade supporting platform adapted to be carried by said handle and to support a razor blade with an edge thereof'in shaving position, a protective housing wide enough to overlap every cutting edge of said blade and adapted to clamp said blade to said platform, and positioning means for positioning said blade and said platform and for holding them in fixed position said means including clamping means for clamping said housing and said blade tightly to i said platform or alternatively for releasing said housing,

said clamping means comprising a beveled surface carried by said housing and an opposing surface fixed relative to said beveled surface and engageable therewith to clamp said housing to said platform when said housing is moved transversely away from the shaving edge of said blade to expose it, said beveled surface disengageable from said fixed surface to unclamp said housing from said platform when said housing is moved transversely toward the shaving edge of said blade a sufficient distance for said housing to cover it whereby said blade and housing may be removed from said razor only when said blade is completely recessed within said housing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 991,878 Nicholls May 9, 1911 1,287,338 King Dec. 10, 1918 2,436,025 Steinbach Feb. 17, 1948 2,454,197 Muros Nov. 16, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS 47,827 Switzerland July 10, 1909 77,279

Switzerland Apr. 1, 1918

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