US2301364A - Pencil with booklet - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 10, 1942. M. BRUCK ET Al. 2,301,364

PENCIL WITH BOOKLET -Filed-Jan. 25, 1941 Ma/zam Patented Nov. 10, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PENCIL WITH BOOKLET Michael Bruck, New York, and Herman Treibitsch, Astoria, N. Y.

Application January 23, 1941, Serial No. 375,578

(Cl. 1Z0-84) trated which comprises a tubular shell I and a Claims.

The present invention relates to a pencil with booklet. Whereas pencils are known in the art which are in combination with a single card 'or strip of paper housed in the pencil casing when not in use, difficulties arise if one tries to substitute a booklet, such as a notebook, multiple sheet calendar, indexed address book, or the like for the one sheet of the well-known device. An object of our invention is to provide a pencil with a booklet which may be Wound on a mandrel or the like, arranged coaxially with the pencil casing. Another object is to provide means whereby the pencil point may be projected with the aid of a member moved in one manner relatively to parts of the device, and the booklet may be wound on said mandrel by another relative movement in which said member participates. Our invention also aims to provide a booklet for the indicated purpose which comprises sheets of unusual thinness in combination with greater resistance to tear.

The invention consists mainly in a booklet secured at its back to a mandrel rotatable in the pencil casing so that it may be pulled forth through a slot in the latter and be wound on the mandrel when not in use. The invention further consists in certain means to prevent' front edges of booklet sheets from being caught and retained in the casing when the booklet is pulled out, and in other means for operating the mechanism for projecting the pencil point and for retracting the booklet. The invention also consists in a booklet having sheets of a particular composition.

Further objects and details of our invention will be apparent from the description given hereinafter and the accompanying drawing illustrating several embodiments thereof by way of example. In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal cross-section of a pencil with booklet according to the invention,

Fig. 2 is a, cross-section along line 2-2 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 2a is an elevation of the top of the shell,

Fig. 3 is an elevation of a portion of the booklet of Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is an elevation of a portion of a sheet thereof,

Fig. 5 is a top view of a portion of the booklet cover, i

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal cross-section of a modiiled embodiment, and

Fig. 7 is a cross-section along line l--l of Fig. 6.

, In the embodiment of Fig. 1, a pencil is illusmechanism generally denoted by 2 for holding and projecting 'the pencil point 3. The shell I is tapered at its lower end 4 and has an apertured bottom 5. A longitudinal slot 6 is provided in the wall of the shell, and the portion on top of the slot is slitted as clearly shown at I in Fig. 2a. 'I'he slitted portion 8 is set olf with respect to the main portion of the shell so as to receive thereon a ring 9 holding the slitted portion together. The top end of the shell is interiorly threaded as indicated at I0. A tubular mandrel II is rotatably mounted within the shell I and guided in the bottom portion 5. The mandrel has a collar I2 interiorly of the shell. A flanged piece I3 is screwed into the threading I0. It engages the upper face of collar I2 and is provided with a central aperture I4 in which the mandrel is rotatable. The mandrel is provided with a hollow head I5 secured thereto after the member I3 has been mounted on the mandrel, whereby the latter is prevented from moving in axial direction-relatively to the shell when the member I3 is connected to the shell. A cap is removably attached to the head I5 by a tight t. The aforementioned mechanism 2 for projecting the pencil point is of a well-known structure and not per se part of the invention. A detailed illustration of its co-operating elements is unnecessary for that reason. In comprises mainly two parts I1 and I 8 rotatable with respect to each other. Part I8 is inserted into the mandrel II and held in position by an indentation I9 of the mandrel. A booklet 20 comprising a plurality of sheets 2|, a top cover 22, and a bottom cover 23 is secured, near its back 24, to the mandrel II opposite the slot 6 whose length is slight- 1y larger than the height and whose width is slightly wider than the thickness of the booklet. The latter is passed with its front portion through the slot Ii. The front edge of its top cover is Wound about a wire 25 and secured thereto, and a slitted tube 26 is fitted over the covered wire so as to constitute a, stop preventing the front edge of the cover from slipping into the interior of the shell, and simultaneously a grip for pulling outthe booklet. However, there is the danger that the bottom cover and some or even all the sheets between the covers will be caught inside the shell and, thus, prevented from following the top cover 22 through the slot 6. We have found that this danger can be avoided by one of two measures or by both of them utilized simultaneously. The rst measure consists in making the bottom cover sufficiently wide to be well within the slot when the stop 26 of the top cover bears against the outer edge of the slot thereby preventing the booklet from being further pulled inward by rotation of the mandrel. The width of the sheets 2| is preferably of smaller width than the covers so. that the stop 26 is able to close the slot as clearly shown in Fig. 2. According to the second measure, the slot has a particular shape in that the walls 21 and 28 of the slot are substantially tangential with respect to the inner cylindrical surface of the shell. Thereby, a sharp interior edge 23 is formed on the side oi' the lower booklet cover. This edge tends to direct the lower cover with the sheets on top of it into the slot so that they will follow when the top cover is pulled out.

The device may be used in the following manner: By turning part i1 relatively to the shell, the pencil point will be projected or withdrawn because a relative rotation of the mandrel is prevented in the one direction by the stop 26 and inthe other direction by the braking action of the booklet i! a torque is exerted at its back tending to unwind it. When the booklet is pulled ont the pencu mechanism n and ls win tum as an entirety together with the mandrel so that this mechanism will not be operated. The same is true when the booklet is pulled inside the shell by turning the tightly tting cap I6 and thus the mandrel Il relatively to the shell I.

A particular problem arises in connection with a booklet for a pencil of the type described as it is imperative to use a very thin sheet material which, nevertheless, is sulciently strong in order to withstand the stresses occurring by frequent use. We have found that conventional paper is not very satisfactory in this respect. For this reason, We prefer to make the covers and sheets of the booklet of an artificial cellulosic matter such 'as cellophane which may be obtained in very thin sheets of high resistance to tear. Such material, being transparent, is used as a foundation to which we apply an also very thin layer of an opaque, preferably white or light ink, for instance by printing. Such layer may be provided on only one side or on both sides of a sheet and oers a writing surface on the originally glossy foundation. However, care must be taken that all the edges of each sheet are straight because any incision or inwardly directed corner of an edge so diminishes the resistance that a sheet can be easily ripped starting from such incision or corner. Hence, it

, would not do to shape the front edge of a sheet with an index tab as conventional in, e. g., address books. Therefore, if the booklet according to the invention is provided with index tabs in alphabetic order or otherwise, we make the front edge of a sheet of cellophane-like material straight and shape the imprinted opaque layer so as to include the desired tab. If, then, the sheets of the booklet are superimposed upon each other, the tab of any lower sheet will be visible through that portion of the sheet on top of it which is not covered by the layer of ink. This is illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4 of the drawing, the latter showing a portion of a sheet with a tab, in fact the B tab of an alphabetic index. The sheet is made of the foundation 30 of the mentioned transparent cellulosic material covered by the layer 3l of white opaque ink. The upper right-hand corner 32 of the layer is shaped to form the tab for the letter B. In Fig. 3 showing sheets with the letters A, B, and C one on top oi' the other, the letter B is visible through the transparent portion 34 of the sheet with the letter A whose smaller tab 33 covers only the upper portion of the tab 32 of the B sheet. Similarly, the letter C of the third sheet is visible through both the transparent portions 30 and 34 of the B and A sheets respectively.

In the foregoing, the combination of a booklet with a pencil has been described in which the pencil mechanism comprises two parts rotatable in relation to each other in order to project the pencil point. In Fig. 6 another embodiment of our invention is shown in which the pencil mechanism comprises two parts movable in axial direction in relation to each other for the same purpose. These two parts are denoted with 40 and 4I respectively. Part 40 is secured to the lower end of a shell 42 and part 4I is attached to a tubular member 43 axially guided in the shell at 44. A spring 45 tends to hold the part 4l and member 43 in an upper end position. The type of mechanism 40, 4I is not a part of the present invention, and as it is well known in the art a detailed description is not required. In its upper portion, shell 42 is provided with a longitudinal slot 46 similar to slot 6 of Fig. l. A mandrel 41 is arranged inside the shell so as to bear with its fiange 48 on an inner collar 49 of the shell. A cap screw 50 with a central opening 50' is screwed on the shell at 5I so as to engage, with its portion 52, the tubular mandrel 41 to which the booklet 20 is attached similarly to the structure of Fig. 1. Another tubular member 53 is arranged within the mandrel and splined in relation thereto by means such as keys 56 so that member 63 may be moved in an axial direction relatively to mandrel 41. It has a lower collar 54 to limit its upward movement, and engages the top of the member 43. Its upper end extends through the opening 5U of the cap screw 5D, and a top cap 55 may be detachably connected thereto. Thus, it will be clear that by pressure exerted on cap 55, member 53 and thereby 43 and 4i may be shifted in axial direction relatively to the shell 42 and part 40 to project the pencil point. The named parts will be returned to their original position by spring 45. On the other hand, by turning cap 55, and with it member 53 and mandrel 41, the booklet 20 may be wound on the mandrel 41 without causing a relative movement of the parts 40 and 4l. It will be noticed that in both embodiments illustrated in Figs. l and 6, there is a member capable of being moved selectively and relatively to two other members in order to project the pencil and to withdraw the booklet into the cases. In both instances the central members are made hollow for the reception of spare leads, or as a casing for other matter useful in connection with writing utensils such as an eraser; or even for other matter, e. g., for pills, the user desires to have handy.

Although we have described only certain embodiments of our invention in which a booklet is combined with a pencil, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that a booklet of the type hereinbefore described may be connected with an article other than a pencil, e. g. with a portion of a hollow cane, provided such article comprises -a shell fit to receive therein the booklet and parts required to wind it on an interior mandrel. Thus, many modifications and alterations of the illustrated embodiments may be made without departing from the essence of our in vention, the scope of which, therefore, shall be limited only by the appended claims.

What we claim is:

1. In an article comprising a tubular shell, the

combination of a 'mandrel rotary in said shell, a longitudinal slot in said shell, a booklet including a plurality of leaves and a top and a bottom cover, said booklet being inserted in said slot and, at its back, attached to said mandrel, a stop attached to the front edge of said top cover, so as to prevent it from passing into the interior of the shell when the mandrel is rotated to wind the booklet thereon, and the bottom cover having a width so as to stay in engagement with said slot when the stop prevents further winding of the booklet.

- 2. In an article comprising a tubular shell, the combination of a mandrel rotary in said shell, a longitudinal slot in said shell, a booklet including a plurality of leaves and a top and a bottom cover, said leaves being smaller in width than said covers, said booklet being inserted in said slot and, at its back, attached to said mandrel, a stop attached to the front edge of said top cover, so as to prevent it from passing into the interior of the shell when the mandrel is rotated to wind the booklet thereon, and the bottom cover having a width so as to stay in engagement with said slot when the stop prevents further winding of the booklet.

3. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cross-section of the slot has one ank substantially tangential to the inner shell cylinder, the other flank being formed with a sharp inner edge directed towards said first-mentioned flank.

4. In a device of the character described, the combination of two coaxial members rotatable relatively to each other, one of said members being a mandrel and the other one a slotted shell surrounding said mandrel and being adapted to 'part being secured to one of said members and said second part being movable relatively thereto, whereby said booklet will be wound on said mandrel by turning the latter relatively to said shell, and the pencil point will be projected by a relative movement between said mandrel and said second part of said mechanism.

5. In a device'of the character described, the combination of a rotatable tubular mandrel, a slotted shell coaxially surrounding said mandrel and being adapted to receive therein abooklet wound on said mandrel and projecting through the slot of the shell, a mechanism for advancing a pencil point, said mechanism being coaxial with said shell and including two parts, one of which being secured to said shell and the other one being arranged interiorly of said shell and axially movable relatively thereto, and an elongated member interiorly of said mandrel and connected therewith for common rotation but axially movable in relation thereto, said elongated member being in engagement with said other part of said mechanism, whereby said booklet will be wound on said mandrel by turning said elongated member relatively to said shell, and the pencil point will be projected by axially shifting said elongated member relatively to said shell.

MICHAEL BRUCK. HERMAN TREIBITSCH.

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