In 1915, Tokuji Hayakawa invented a mechanical pencil, which was named "Every-Ready Sharp Pencil" for export. At first, this new writing instrument was not recognized in Japan. It was not until the export orders surged that it was recognized abroad, and the domestic demand in Japan increased rapidly. Hayakawa also expanded with sales of mechanical pencils.

Mechanical pencils became popular in Japanese schools in the late 1970s, and were mass-produced by Japan's Sharp Corporation. Before using the mechanical pencil, a thin refill (commonly known as lead) made of graphite should be placed, and the back cover should be closed after the refill is placed. to prevent the refill from falling out. There is a spring in the mechanical pencil, and pressing the cover at the back can make the refill stick out from the front end with a fixed length, and write fonts of the same thickness.

In order to maintain smooth writing, wooden pencils need to be rolled frequently, and the appearance of mechanical pencils is in line with people's needs for ease of use. Mechanical pencils, as the name suggests, are pencils that do not need to be sharpened and can be automatically or semi-automatically cored.

In the mid-19th century, mechanical pencils appeared as handicrafts in Europe. Commercial production began in Germany at the end of the 19th century, but the lead core still needed to be sharpened manually, and the output was limited. In 1903, Japan began to use machinery to manufacture mechanical pencils, which have a simple structure and are all rotary. In the 1940s, the American Parker Company first produced 0.9mm rotating mechanical pencils, and the lead did not need to be sharpened manually. In 1965, Japan successfully developed 0.5mm and 0.7mm synthetic resin fine lead cores, and developed a new three-jaw chuck, which replaced the traditional metal three-jaw chuck. In the same year, Japan Baile Fountain Pen Co., Ltd. produced the pulsating fine-core mechanical pencil for the first time.

In the 1970s, two-click, double-click, and swing-click structure-core mechanical pencils were successively developed. In 1979, the Faber-Cast Pencil Factory (Faber-Castell) in the Federal Republic of Germany launched the first self-compensating mechanical pencil tk-matic. Around 1980, a plastic two-jaw chuck was successfully developed, which reduced the manufacturing cost of pencils.

In 1980, my country also developed the first fine-core mechanical pencil with a 0.5mm lead lead in China, the Samsung 700.