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US 5,299,357 AGranted
Disposable surgical scalpel with safety guard
AssigneeAmerican Safety Razor Company
InventorsJeff W. Wonderley, Donald G. Strickland
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The scalpel includes a handle mounting a scalpel blade at one end and having a slot opening through and between its opposite sides. A guard, including two side members straddling the handle, is mounted for sliding movement between a protective position overlying the blade and a retracted position exposing the blade for use. The side members are connected by an element extending through the handle slot and one or more resilient fingers in the slot cooperates with the element to detent the guard in one of the positions. In a further form, the guard is slidable into a permanently locked position relative to the handle, thereby preventing reuse of the scalpel and inadvertent exposure of the blade.
Claims58
A surgical scalpel blade, comprising:
- an elongated scalpel handle comprising an upper and a lower edge, and a slot opening through and between opposite sides of the handle wherein at least one of said upper and lower edges is exposed so as to facilitate gripping the handle during use;
- a scalpel blade carried by said handle adjacent one end thereof;
- a guard movably mounted to said handle for sliding movement relative to said handle between a protective position covering said blade and a retracted position exposing said blade for use;
- said guard including side members located adjacent said opposite sides of said handle, said side members each having an inwardly extending flange which is positioned in said slot wherein said flanges are secured to one another so as to form an element, said element being movable along said slot in response to sliding movement of said guard relative to said handle between said protective and retracted positions;
- a locking member carried by said handle in said slot for engaging said element in said protective position of said guard relative to said handle for releasably maintaining said guard in said protective position thereof and movable to enable said guard to move from said protective position toward said retracted position;
- and
- means carried by said handle and cooperable with said element in the retracted position of said guard to releasably maintain said guard in said retracted position relative to said handle.
4 more elements
A surgical scalpel blade, comprising:
- an elongated scalpel handle comprising an upper and a lower edge, and a slot opening through and between opposite sides of the handle wherein at least one of said upper and lower edges is exposed so as to facilitate gripping the handle during use;
- a scalpel blade carried by said handle adjacent one end thereof;
- a guard carried by said handle for sliding movement relative to said handle in a first direction from a temporary protective position covering said blade into a retracted position exposing said blade for use and in a second direction opposite said first direction from said retracted position through said temporary protective position into a permanent protective position covering said blade;
- said guard having an element disposed in said slot and movable therealong in response to sliding movement of said guard relative to said handle in said first and second directions;
- a locking member carried by said handle in said slot for engaging and releasably detenting said element in said temporary protective position of said guard relative to said handle and movable to enable said guard to move in said first direction form said temporary protective position toward said retracted position and in said second direction into said temporary protective position;
- said locking member being movable to engage said element in said permanent protective position of said guard to prevent movement of said guard relative to said handle in said first direction thereby to permanently lock said guard in said permanent protective position.
3 more elements
A surgical scalpel blade, comprising:
- an elongated scalpel handle having elongated top and bottom edges and guide surfaces;
- a scalpel blade carried by said handle adjacent one end thereof;
- a guard carried by said handle for sliding movement relative to said handle between a protective position covering said blade and a retracted position exposing said blade for use;
- said guard having an element engageable with said guide surfaces of said handle and movable along said handle in response to sliding movement of said guard relative to said handle between said protective and retracted positions, said guard having discrete side members unconnected one to the other along at least one of said top and bottom edges of said handle, leaving said one edge free for engagement by a finger of a user of the scalpel;
- a locking member carried by said handle for engaging said element in said protective position of said guard relative to said handle for releasably maintaining said guard in said protective position thereof and movable to enable said guard to move from said protective position toward said retracted position;
- and
- means carried by said handle and cooperable with said element in the retracted position of said guard to releasably maintain said guard in said retracted position.
4 more elements
A surgical scalpel blade, comprising:
- an elongated scalpel handle comprising an upper and a lower edge, and a slot opening through and between opposite sides of the handle wherein at least one of said upper and lower edges is exposed so as to facilitate gripping the handle during use;
- a scalpel blade carried by said handle adjacent one end thereof,
- a guard carried by said handle for sliding movement relative to said handle between a protective position covering said blade and a retracted position exposing said blade for use;
- said guard including side members overlying said opposite sides of said handle, respectively, said guard carrying locking means disposed in said slot and movable along said slot in response to sliding movement of said guard relative to said handle;
- a locking member carried by said handle in said slot for engaging said locking means in said protective position of said guard relative to said handle for releasably locking said guard in said protective position thereof and movable to enable said guard to move from said protective position toward said retracted position;
- and
- means carried by said handle and cooperable with said locking means in the retracted position of said guard to releasably maintain said guard in said retracted position relative to said handle.
4 more elements
A surgical scalpel blade, comprising:
- an elongated scalpel handle having a slot opening through and between opposite sides of the handle;
- a scalpel blade carried by said handle adjacent one end thereof;
- a guard carried by aid handle for a sliding movement relative to said handle between a protective position covering said blade and a retracted position exposing said blade for use;
- said guard including side members overlying said opposite sides of said handle, respectively, each side member comprising at least one inwardly extending latching detent which is positioned in said slot for securing said member to said handle and at least one guide extending inwardly for guiding said guard and said handle relative to one another in response to sliding movement of said guard relative to said handle between said protective and retracted positions, said guides being disposed at longitudinally spaced positions relative to one another along said slot;
- a pair of longitudinally spaced locking fingers carried by said handle in said slot for engaging said guides, respectively, in said protective and retracted positions of said guard relative to said handle, one of said locking fingers being engageable with one of said guides to releasably maintain said guard in said protective position thereof, the other of said locking fingers being engageable with the other of said guides to releasably maintain said guard in said retracted position relative to said handle;
- and
- means extending into said slot from each of said side members and engageable with said handle for preventing displacement of said side members laterally outwardly in a direction away from said handle.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.