Knife sharpening device

Abstract

A knife sharpener for the manual sharpening of knives that includes a knife clamp, a honing bar extending in a first direction, an upright support, a base, and a sleeve that is configured to receive a knife having a blade. The knife clamp is configured such that the sleeve is selectively mated within the knife clamp to fixedly secure the knife blade therein along a second direction when the knife clamp is closed.

I claim: 
     
         1 . A blade sharpening device comprising:
 a handle clamp,   a honing bar extending in a first direction,   honing guide   a sleeve that is configured to receive a portion of a knife comprising a blade and blade handle, said sleeve configured such that the sleeve is selectively mated through at least one feature of the knife, with said knife and a clamp being configured such that said sleeve is selectively mated through the at least one knife feature to fixedly secure the knife and sleeve therein along a second direction when the clamp is closed, the second direction being orthogonal to the first direction.   
     
     
         2 . The knife sharpener of  claim 1 , wherein said sleeve member defines first and second upper protrusions that are received in corresponding first and second apertures disposed on said distal end of said first clamping member, and a single protrusion downwardly projecting through a corresponding third aperture disposed on said distal end of said second clamping member. 
     
     
         3 . The blade sharpener of  claim 1 , wherein the clamp is configured to clamp onto one of a blade or blade handle. 
     
     
         4 . The knife sharpener of  claim 3 , wherein the clamp is configured to clamp onto the blade of the knife. 
     
     
         5 . The blade sharpener of  claim 1 , further comprising guide plates that are orthogonal to the honing bar. 
     
     
         6 . The blade sharpener of  claim 5 , wherein the guide plates define holes that receive the honing bar allowing for vertical adjustments of the honing bar. 
     
     
         7 . The blade sharpener of  claim 6 , further comprising a honing guide that comprises a stone and a honing guide bar. 
     
     
         8 . The blade sharpener of  claim 7 , wherein the honing guide bar is configured to slide on the honing bar while the stone is configured to slide on the blade edge. 
     
     
         9 . A sleeve comprising:
 a body configured to receive a device portion comprising one of: a blade or blade handle, the body configured to include a body feature comprising at least one of the group of: protrusions, indentions, ridges, holes, and curves, which mates to at least one of a clamping jaw of a clamp,   wherein the body is configured to receive the device portion using the body feature in such a manner that when the device portion is repeatedly reinserted-into the sleeve, a blade connected to the device portion is positioned in the same location each instance of being clamped.   
     
     
         10 . A method for repeatable, precise placement of a blade in locking position using a blade sharpening device comprising: a blade clamp, a honing apparatus bar extending in a first direction, and a honing guide, the method comprising:
 heating a low melting point polymer material to a predetermined temperature so that the low melting point polymer material is in a softened moldable phase;   placing the heated polymer material on at least one side of the blade or a blade handle attached to the blade;   clamping the heated polymer material onto the blade or the blade handle while the heated polymer material in a softened moldable phase, thereby forming the softened moldable polymer to surface features of the blade or the blade handle and the surface features of the clamp;   maintaining clamping of the clamp to the softened moldable polymer while the softened moldable polymer cools to a predefined temperature, thereby facilitating the return of the heated moldable polymer to a rigid phase polymer; and   removing the clamp.   
     
     
         11 . A blade sharpening device comprising:
 a clamp being configured to fixedly secure a knife so that when the clamp is closed, a blade of the knife define a plane; and   a rotatable dial that is configured to rotate a honing guide point relative to the clamp, wherein the movement of the honing guide point has a directional movement vector in a direction orthogonal to the plane thereby allowing the honing guide point to move in a first direction.   
     
     
         12 . The blade sharpener of  claim 11 , wherein the honing guide point is located on a honing bar that extends from or rests on the rotatable dial in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction. 
     
     
         13 . The blade sharpener of  claim 11 , wherein the honing guide point is located on the rotatable dial. 
     
     
         14 . The blade sharpener of  claim 11 , further comprising: a honing bar whereby the honing guide point is located on the honing bar,
 wherein the rotatable dial is configured to rotate thereby moving the honing bar relative to the clamp so that the movement of the honing bar allows the honing bar to move in the second direction.