VectorPaint binder-clip diagrams: return both wire handles to their own jaws

English translation of the Chinese original, translated on 2026-11-13. Original publication dates, attribution, code and version notes are retained.

A black binder clip has two wire handles, each with two legs attached at one jaw. Organise outlines, folded faces and hidden portions in a slightly elevated closed-state view. This is no gripping-force test or force animation, and one patented variation does not represent every clip on sale.

Fix the body and handle counts

On a 1400×1400 canvas separate body, front handle, rear handle, reflections and guides. The binder-clip patent’s structural description distinguishes a body, jaws and a pair of two-legged handles. Use it for component identity, not copied accessories or manufacturing dimensions. Declare one folded body, two handles and four mounting ends before decoration. If duplication changes the count, repair the groups rather than inventing a more advanced mechanism.

Build folded faces rather than a solid triangle

Draw an upper connecting fold and two sloping faces whose lower lips approach the same mouth region. A roughly triangular side silhouette indicates viewpoint; it must not turn the interior into solid metal. Use tone to distinguish faces, not to measure material thickness. Before handles, inspect the common upper connection. If the body resembles separate black boards, repair the folded continuity rather than using handles as an invented structural bridge.

Trace each handle as a continuous U-shaped wire

Use one open U-shaped centreline for the front handle. Its two lower legs terminate at left and right mounting positions on the front jaw, joined by a raised end. Do not close the U into an oval or split its legs into separate handles. Indicate small end bends returning toward their mounts and inspect turn directions enlarged. After setting consistent stroke, retain negative space inside bends. Highlights cannot replace missing wire. These are drawn paths, not instructions to remove real handle ends. Each handle has one outer connection joining its legs. Reflection spots are not mounting ends. Label handles A/B if useful so their identities survive a colourless version.

Return both ends to the same jaw

Mark two mounts on the front lip and attach one front-handle leg to each, never one leg to each opposing jaw. Small dark edges or curls may indicate mounting without claiming invisible detail. Give the rear handle its own two mounts on the rear lip. Four mounting points cannot become one hinge merely because their projections overlap. Different handle angles or small leader labels may clarify depth, but the rear handle must not float outside the body.

Keep hidden rear-wire portions in an audit copy

Place the rear handle behind the body, omitting short occluded runs from the finished solid-line view. In an audit copy, use thin dashed portions to show continuity and label them as a drawing convention, not another wire. Hide the body and trace between rear mounts, then restore occlusion and check for penetration of the front face. Decide whether the finished view uses solid visibility or explanatory dashes; both must not imply four handles. Name audit and delivery groups and save their visibility states.

Treat inserted paper as a separate version

The main drawing is closed and empty. To add paper, save another version, insert a thin rectangular stack between the lips and redraw the mouth gap. Paper must not pierce the upper fold or sit outside while labelled clamped. Its thickness is pictorial, not a page-capacity measurement, and this opening state must not overwrite the original. Preserve handle mounts before checking paper/body occlusion. An occluded mount remains hidden; do not attach wire to paper merely to make four endpoints visible.

Troubleshoot false counts from duplicates and highlights

At reduced scale, count the U-shaped handles. Three suggest an unhidden duplicate; four disconnected rods suggest missing upper bends. Count with highlights hidden and visible: the count must not change. Enlarge mounts in an exported PNG to inspect gaps and crossed-side attachments caused by order or stroke. Background may be a legitimate handle opening rather than missing material. Avoid merging everything just to simplify selection, as separate front and rear mounts will become harder to repair.

Reopen and audit both handle routes

Save, leave the canvas and reopen. Hide reflections and the paper-version group, then trace the front handle from left to right front mount and the rear handle between rear mounts. Preserve one folded body without an extra axle. Open actual exports and inspect handle count, four endpoint identities, occlusion and negative space at intended size; uninspected formats remain unverified. Include a labelled audit copy so another reader can identify every leg’s attachment rather than merely recognise a black clip.