Staple puller with pliers for removing stragglers
OwnerLawson A. Woodinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A staple puller includes a pair of pivotably connected jaw members that are made from sheet metal. The jaw members have teeth that are configured to hook under a staple and pull it from a stack of pages. But sometimes one leg of a staple remains embedded in the stack after the other leg is pulled free, thus producing a “straggler” that may be difficult to remove if the stack is relatively thick. Accordingly, one of the jaw members is provided with a bent flange that cooperates with an edge of the other jaw member in the manner of pliers so that a straggler can be gripped and pulled out.
Claims13
A staple puller for removing a wire staple from a stack of pages, comprising:
- a first jaw member having a first side wall with a front end portion and a back end portion, the front end portion of the first side wall having a first tooth that is configured to slide under the staple, the first side wall also having a first clamping surface;
- a second jaw member having a second side wall with a front end portion and a back end portion, the front end portion of the second side wall having a second tooth that is configured to slide under the staple, the second side wall also having an edge that provides a second clamping surface;
- and
- means for pivotably connecting the first and second jaw members so that they are movable with respect to one another between an open position and a closed position, the first and second teeth being disposed side-by-side in the closed position and the first and second clamping surfaces facing one another in the closed position so as to permit the wire of the staple to be gripped between the clamping surfaces if the staple has been removed only partially from the stack of pages,
- wherein the first side wall has a slot and a flange at an edge of the slot, the flange providing the first clamping surface;
- and
- wherein the first side wall has a major portion that includes the first tooth and that lies substantially in a plane, and the flange extends transverse to the plane so as to overlap the second clamping surface when the jaw members are in their closed position.
An improved staple puller of the type that includes first and second jaw members that are made from sheet metal, and means for pivotably connecting the first and second jaw members so that they are movable between an open position and a closed position, the first jaw member having side walls with teeth and the second jaw member having side walls with teeth, the teeth of the first jaw member being disposed between the teeth of the second jaw member when the jaw members are in their closed position, wherein the improvement comprises:
- at least one of the side walls has a bent flange that provides a clamping surface, the clamping surface provided by the flange being aligned with an edge of another of the side walls so as to overlap said edge when the jaw members are in their closed position.
An improved staple puller of the type that includes first and second jaw members that are made from sheet metal, and means for pivotably connecting the first and second jaw members so that they are movable between an open position and a closed position, the first jaw member having side walls with teeth and the second jaw member having side walls with teeth, the teeth of one of the jaw members being disposed between the teeth of the other of the jaw members when the jaw members are in their closed position, wherein the improvement comprises:
- the first jaw member has an edge that provides a first clamping surface, and
- the second jaw member has a closed slot that is surrounded on all sides by sheet metal, and a flange at an edge of the slot that is bent outward from the sheet metal adjacent the slot such that a side of the flange provides a second clamping surface that overlaps the first clamping surface when the jaw members are in their closed position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.