Blade for Blade Exchangeable Razor

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an improvement in a blade for a blade exchangeable razor used, for example, by a hairdresser.

2. Description of the Prior Art

A blade exchangeable razor is widely utilized since a goodlooking and natural hair style can be obtained when hair is cut or trimmed by using such a razor.

A prior art blade exchangeable razor provided with a comb-type edge, as shown in FIG. 8, is constructed in a manner that a blade 31 having a back support 30 is inserted into a blade holder 32 from the front thereof, and a guard 34 having an edge 33 is further mounted from the front end of the blade holder 32.

This type of razor, however, has a drawback that the haircutting cannot be done smoothly due to a relatively large thickness of the edge portion which is caused by the construction where the blade 31 with the back support 30 is inserted into a gap formed in the blade holder 32 and the guard 34 with the edge 33 is further mounted thereover. Another defect is encountered that cut hair enters between the blade holder 32 and the back support 30, which makes the razor difficult to use.

In view of the above-mentioned problems encountered in the conventional razors, it is an object of the present invention to provide a blade for a blade exchangeable razor which is capable of providing smooth haircutting.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an easy-to-use blade for a blade exchangeable razor which prevents cut hair from entering between a blade holder and a back support.

To achieve the above objects, the present invention provides a blade comprising a thin blade portion 8 and a back support 9 which is adapted to be exchangeably mounted in a blade holder of a razor, wherein the thin blade portion 8 is closely inserted between both side plates 9a and 9b of the back support 9, two lower ends 14 of a blade holder are closely placed to each other, and a pair of protrusions 12 are formed longitudinally on the respective side plates 9a and 9b of the back support 9.

The present invention also provides a blade comprising a thin blade portion 8 and a back support 9 which is adapted to be exchangeably mounted in a blade holder of a razor, wherein one side plate 9a of the back support 9 for fixing the blade thin blade portion 8 extends to a midway point of the thin blade portion 8 while the other side plate 9b extends to a position beyond an edge 10 such that the lower end of the side plate 9b covers the edge 10 with a constant gap therebetween, thereby forming a comb-type edge 11.

As described above, since the pair of protrusions 12 formed longitudinally on the side plates 9a and 9b of the back support 9 are located proximal to the lower ends 14 of the blade holder, hair cut by the edge 10 moves away from the blade holder 13 by the action of the protrusions 12, thereby preventing the cut hair from entering between the back support 9 and the blade holder 13.

Also, the protrusions 12 are formed at positions closer to the edge 10 of the thin blade portion 8, that is, at positions in the lower half of the thin blade portion 8, thereby making cut hair smoothly move toward the protrusions 12.

The thickness of the cutting portion of the razor is the sum of the thickness of the thin blade portion 8 and that of the blade holder 13, which is thinner than a conventional razor which comprises a combination of individual back support and comb-type edge. Since the finish of hairdressing is largely related to the thickness of the cutting portion of a razor, the blade of the present invention having an extremely thin cutting portion can provide a natural finish of hairdressing.

Further, the comb-type edge 11 is formed integrally with the back support 9, so that insertion of the blade into the blade holder 13 is the only process to use a razor having the comb-type edge 11. Furthermore, the comb-type edge 11 is located close to the thin blade portion 8, which provides an easy-to-use razor and satisfactory hairdressing.

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 8 is a front view showing a prior art blade with a comb-type edge;

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a blade for a blade exchangeable razor according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the blade shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the blade shown in FIG. 1 when it is held by a blade holder;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a blade for a blade exchangeable razor in another construction;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the blade shown in FIG. 4 when it is held by a blade holder;

FIG. 6 is a side view of the blade shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a blade and a blade holder.

A first embodiment of the present invention will hereinafter be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

A blade 7 of the invention, as shown in FIG. 2, comprises a rectangular thin blade portion 8 and a back support 9. The back support 9 is formed of a curved top portion 9c and a pair of side plates 9a and 9b extending to form a U-shape as a whole. The side plates 9a and 9b of the back support 9 are respectively formed with a pair of outwardly protruding protrusion 12a and 12b in the longitudinal direction. One 12a of the protrusions has a longitudinally extending upper end 26a and a longitudinally extending lower end 26b, and the longitudinally lower end 26b terminates before the cutting edge of the thin blade portion 8, and the other protrusion 12b has a longitudinally extending upper end 26c and a longitudinally extending lower end 26d, and the lower end of the other protrusion 12b extending beyond the cutting edge 10 of the thin blade portion 8 such that the lower end 26d of the other protrusion cover the cutting edge 10 with predetermined gaps in the associated side plate 9b to thereby form a comb-type edge 11 adjacent the cutting edge 10. These protrusions 12 are placed at positions near an edge 10, that is, at positions in the lower half of the thin blade portion 8, and also close to lower ends 14 of a blade holder. Here, "the protrusions 12 are close to the lower ends 14 of the blade holder" includes a case where the protrusions 12 are in contact with the lower ends 14 of the blade holder (as shown in FIG. 3) and a case where a slight gap is interposed between the protrusions 12 and the lower ends 14 of the blade holder (as shown in FIG. 5).

The protrusions 12 are formed substantially in a hemisphere or triangular shape and made hollow. The thin blade portion 8 has its top end brought in contact with the top portion 9c of the back support 9 and its central portion also brought in contact with base ends of the protrusions 12 in a sandwich manner, such that the thin blade portion 8 is supported by both side plates 9a and 9b of the back support 9.

Next, a blade according to a second embodiment of the invention will be described. A blade 7, as shown in FIG. 4, comprises a thin blade portion 8 supported by side plates 9a and 9b of a back support 9 in a sandwich manner. One of the side plates 9a extends to a midway point of an edge 10 of the thin blade portion 8 while the other side plate 9b extends to a position beyond the edge 10 such that the lower end of the side plate 9b covers the edge 10 with a constant gap therebetween, thereby forming a comb-type edge 11 (see FIG. 5). The blade 7 is exchangeable and mounted in a blade holder 13 by sliding the same into the blade holder 13 from the front side thereof (see FIG. 7).

Incidentally, although the blade holder 22 shown in FIG. 3 comprises a blade mounting plate 20 and a separate side plate 21, while the blade holder 13 is shown in FIG. 5 is integrally formed, the blade holder may be constructed in various different manners.

Also, the blade 7 is manufactured using a thin tape-shaped metal plate wound in a roll form. Respective manufacturing processes may be executed on this tape-shape metal plate, and individual blades may be cut in the final stage.

Various other modifications of the illustrative embodiment, as well as other embodiments of the present invention, will be apparent to any person skilled in the art upon reference to the above description. It is therefore contemplated that the appended claims will cover any such modifications of embodiments as fall within the true scope of the invention.