US1242615A - Folding shoe-horn. - Google Patents

Description

J. L. SOMMER.

FOLDING SHOE HORN. APPLICATION man FEB. I0, 1915.

Lfigfil 5. Patented Oct. 9,1917.

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' blade without interferingwith the use of.

TED S E m z roniviL. SOMMER, or NE ARK, NEW JERSEYIAsSIGNOR 'ro'J. nso MER MANUFAC- TUBING oo nconronar oiv on NEW. JERSEY.

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To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN L. SoMMnR,a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Folding Shoe-Horns, of which the following is a specification. 1 v

The objects of this invention are to provide a shoe horn which can be folded into small compass when not in use; to'secure a strong hinged connection of the handle and the shoe horn; to resiliently hold the parts in open or closed position; to employ a spring for this purpose which is easily con-- structed and readily applied; to utilize the spring to limit movement of the handle as the same is folded onto the horn; to secure simplicity of construction and operation, and to obtain other advantages and results as may be brought out in the following description.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which like numerals of reference indicate the same parts throughout the several views,

Figure 1 is a side view'of a folding shoe horn constructed in accordance with my invention and open ready for use;

- Fig. 2 is a similar view showing a certain side plate cut away;

Figs. 3 and 4 are views similar to Fig. 2, showing the device in partially closed and entirely closed positions respectively;

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section on line AA 0f Fig. 1;

Y Fig. 6 is a similar section of the device closed, and r Fig. 7 is a detail spring.

In the specific embodiment of the invenperspective view of the tion illustrated in said drawings, the reference numeral 1 indicates a shoe horn blade having a large rounded end 2 and a smallend' 3, with the longitudinal edges 4 converging from said large end to the small one. Preferably the blade is transversely concave between its longitudinal converging edges, as is common in shoe horns, and also said blade curves longitudinally with its side which is transversely concave longitudinally convex and its side which is transversely convex longitudinally concave.

A handle member 5 is hinged flatw'ise" Specification of Letters Patent. :QPat'ented Oct. 9, 191 7. Application filed February 10,1915. Serial No.'7,241.

upon thenarrow end 3 of theblade 1,..at the longitudinally concave side. thereof, and preferably the oppositeedges 6, f said handle .member converge toward its, free end substantially in alinementwith the converging edges l, 4 of the blade, as shown.

Said handlemember'is adapted thereby to.

4 of the horn, preferablyv integrally. It

will be noted .that the side plate 8 is upon the side of the blade which is longitudinally concave, so that the opposite side will pre. sent a smooth surface against which ones heel may slide in the use of the device. As shown, the side plate .8 preferably extends only a small portion of the length of the blade 1, andis adapted at its inner end, or end nearest. the large end 2 of theblade, to engage onesshoe in use and limit sliding .of the device down into the shoe as the footis slid inward. The hinge pin 7 extendsthroughboth the side plate -8 and the blade 1, and carries the handle member intermediate thereof, so that'said handle member is securely ,mounted and prevented from anymaterial lateral movement, and yet sinceithe side plate .8. is connected to the blade at one longitudinal edge only the handle member may be swung through 180, from extended position as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 to folded position as shown in'FigL- Preferably the handle member 5 is con structed to have some other utility'in addition toits function as a handle, and-to this end .I have shown the same; providing a hook 10 at its free end whereby the-same may be used as a button hook, but obviously sides of its :hinge pin-7, forming opposite notches 11, 12 thereat, and by virtueof these notches 11, 12 transverse shoulders are formed facing toward the pivot end of said handle member, the parts being so po-- sitioned and proportioned that one of these shoulders acts as a stop 13 adapted to engage the end of the web 9 when the handle vention. To this end the longitudinal'edge l'of the blade and the corresponding edge of the side plate 8 are slotted, as at 14 adjacent the inner end of the side plate, said slot extending through the web 9 of the side plate. A'leaf spring 15 is provided, which is narrow enough to be inserted edgewise between the said plate and blade through the slot 14, and at its outer end the spring is provided with a head 16 adapted to lie in said slot 1 1 and limit the inward movement of said spring. In assembling the device, the spring is inserted through said slot, and then pressed orbent toward the connecting portion or web 9 of the side plate, so that its free end extends toward the adjacent or small end of the blade. The handle member is then mounted in position withthe leaf spring between the notched end of said member and the web 9 of the side plate. The slot 1a is narrow enough, with respect to'the head 16 of the spring, so that the spring is necessarily'bent when thus assembled, and presses resiliently against said end of the handle member. Furthermore, the notches provide substantially straight edges longitudinally of the handle member, so that the leaf spring will'seat thereagainst and will resiliently resist any tendency to swing the handle member. This construc tion affords a neat and highly efiicient means for holding the handle member in position, and is easily manufactured and assembled.

A. closingstop is provided at the opposite side of the narrowed end of the handle member from the stop 13 above described, said closing stop being here shown as the shoulder 17 formed by cutting thenotch 11 and is adapted to engage the spring inter mediate of its ends when the handle member is swung'into closed position. At the same ime, the free end of the spring engages the longitudinal edge of the notch, so that said spring operates not only to resiliently resist the opening of the handle member, but also resiliently limits the inward movement thereof, so as to retain the handle member longitudinally of the horn in proper closed position. t is to be noted that when so closed, the' handle member lies closely adj acent the blade, in contact therewith, and the hook lO is entirely protected so as not to engage and tear ones clothes when carried in the pocket or the like.

Obviously detail modifications may be made in manufacturing my improved folding shoe horn without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself except as required by the following claims when construed in the light of the prior art.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim is:

1. In a folding shoe horn, the combination with a blade having a side plate at one end of one of its lateral edges substantially parallel to the body of the blade,-said side plate being shorter than the blade and exposing its other end for use, a handle member hingedly mounted between said side plate and the body portion of the blade and adapted to be swung into open or closed position, and a leaf spring supported between the body of the blade and the side plate adapted to engage said handle member and resiliently retain the same in either open or closed position.

2. In a folding shoe horn, the combination with a longitudinally curved blade having a side plate at one end of itself on the con cave side'thereof and connected thereto by a transverse web along one longitudinal edge of the blade, said side plate being shorter than the blade and exposing its other end for use, a handle member hingedly mounted between said side plate and the body portion of the blade and curved in the same'direction and upon substantially the same radius of curvature as said blade, whereby inclosed position said handle member may be folded to lie closely adjacent the blade.

3. In a folding shoe horn, the combination head in said slot too large to pass between said blade and plate throughsaid slot and engaging at its opposite end the said-handle to resiliently retain the same in either eX- tended or closed posltion.

JOHN LfSOh IWER. V

lVitnesses:

JOHN T. MORLOOK, CHARLES MUN'IRIGK.

(Easier. of this patent may be obtained. for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I0. (2.

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