Fingernail saving nut tool
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Accused Products
Abstract
The inventions relate generally to manual devices operable to grasp and open shelled foods such as nuts, some of which particularly relate to a tool or utensil with tips configured to be inserted into the crack of a nut, and through hand pressure open a nut through separation of the inserted tips by way of pivoting arms, whereby the tool is biased so the tips are brought substantially together for insertion in the absence of manual pressure. Certain exemplary tools include grasping surfaces, cracking jaws and pull-tab openers, as well as biasing devices such as springs in combination with pins, or flexible hinges. Tips may be chisel-pointed, round-pointed, molded from plastic or fashioned in metal. Detailed information on various example embodiments of the inventions are provided in the Detailed Description below, and the inventions are defined by the appended claims.
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Citations
29 Claims
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1-8. -8. (canceled)
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9. A fingernail-saving nut utensil for splitting nut shells and for manipulating nut meat into a person'"'"'s mouth, comprising:
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a pair of articulating arms;
a pivot providing a range of motion of one of said arms relative to the other;
a pair of nut insertion tips in communication with said arms, said tips adapted to be inserted into the crack in a nutshell, said tips further having sufficient strength to withstand separation pressure;
a biasing device in communication with said arms, said biasing device providing a return force to said arms whereby said arms take a normal position in the absence of manual pressure;
a pair of opposed serrated grasping surfaces in communication with said arms, said grasping surfaces configured to hold a nut meat object therebetween under force provided by the return force of the biasing device;
handle portions in communication with said arms, said handle portions providing a grasping area of said tool, whereby a squeezing pressure may be applied and further whereby said arms may be articulated through their range of motion thereby manipulating the separation of said tips and said grasping surfaces;
whereby in the normal position said tips are brought substantially together;
and whereby with the application of manual squeezing pressure to said handle portions, said tips and said opposed grasping surfaces separate. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16)
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14. (canceled)
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17. A fingernail-saving nut utensil for splitting nut shells, for manipulating nut meat into a person'"'"'s mouth and for opening beverage containers having pull-tabs, comprising:
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a pair of articulating arms;
a pivot providing a range of motion of one of said arms relative to the other;
a pair of nut insertion tips in communication with said arms, said tips adapted to be inserted into the crack in a nutshell, said tips further having sufficient strength to withstand separation pressure;
a biasing device in communication with said arms, said biasing device providing a return force to said arms whereby said arms take a normal position in the absence of manual pressure;
a pair of opposed grasping teeth in communication with said arms, said teeth configured to hold a nut meat object therebetween under force provided by the return force of the biasing device;
handle portions in communication with said arms, said handle portions providing a grasping area of said tool, whereby a squeezing pressure may be applied and further whereby said arms may be articulated through their range of motion thereby manipulating the separation of said tips and said teeth;
a pop-top opener incorporated to one of said arms, said opener including a slot and a crook portion pointed to pass under a pull tab, whereby through rotation of said tool leverage may be applied to the pull tab;
whereby in the normal position said tips are brought substantially together;
and whereby with the application of manual squeezing pressure to said handle portions, said tips and said opposed teeth separate. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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21. A tool for separating nut shells by the application of manual squeezing pressure, comprising:
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a pair of separating tips adapted to be inserted into a crack in the shell of a nut, said tips further having sufficient strength to withstand separation pressure;
a pivoting mechanism;
handle portions providing for manual grasping of said tool, whereby a squeezing pressure may be applied;
arms in communication with said pivoting mechanism, handle portions and said pointed teeth, whereby said arms are configured to articulate the separation of said tips by manual pressure applied to said handle portions;
a biasing device in communication with said arms, said biasing device providing a force separating said handle portions from each other toward a normal position, whereby said tips are brought substantially together in the absence of squeezing pressure; and
a pair of concave nutcracking jaws disposed near said pivot point. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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Specification