Patent Application
20080314949
The present invention relates to a bit-carrying device and, more particularly, to a bit-carrying device capable of carrying a plurality of bits or the like.
It is well known to engage a bit of a tool with a slot or groove in a head of a screw and to turn the tool for tightening or loosening the screw. Screws have many types of grooves in the head, and the bits of tools have corresponding specifications in cross-sections including rectilinear, cruciform, hexagonal, etc. To avoid troublesome carriage of many tools, a tool of the type having a handle and a bit removably coupled with the handle has been proposed so that the user may carry a single handle and a plurality of bits of various types and/or sizes.
It is therefore a need in a bit-carrying device that allows easy removal and mounting of bits from and to the bit-carrying device.
The present invention solves this need and other problems in the field of bit carriage by providing, in a preferred form, a bit-carrying device including an axle and a plurality of sleeves each including a longitudinal through-hole mounted around an outer periphery of the axle. Each sleeve includes at least one coupling portion on an outer circumference thereof for coupling with a bit. A handle is mounted to an upper end of the axle for easy carriage. The longitudinal through-hole of each sleeve includes an inner periphery in frictional contact with the outer periphery of the axle to prevent relative rotation therebetween. Each sleeve can be forcibly turned relative to the axle to a desired position.
The present invention will become clearer in light of the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment of this invention described in connection with the drawings.
The illustrative embodiment may best be described by reference to the accompanying drawings where:
All figures are drawn for ease of explanation of the basic teachings of the present invention only; the extensions of the Figures with respect to number, position, relationship, and dimensions of the parts to form the preferred embodiment will be explained or will be within the skill of the art after the following teachings of the present invention have been read and understood. Further, the exact dimensions and dimensional proportions to conform to specific force, weight, strength, and similar requirements will likewise be within the skill of the art after the following teachings of the present invention have been read and understood.
Where used in the various figures of the drawings, the same numerals designate the same or similar parts. Furthermore, when the terms “lower”, “upper”, “end”, “longitudinal”, “axial”, “radial”, “circumferential”, “horizontal”, “vertical”, “outward”, and similar terms are used herein, it should be understood that these terms have reference only to the structure shown in the drawings as it would appear to a person viewing the drawings and are utilized only to facilitate describing the invention.
A bit-carrying device according to the preferred teachings of the present invention is shown in
A plurality of sleeves 32 are mounted around the axle 31 and stacked one another in a longitudinal direction of the axle 31. Each sleeve 32 includes a longitudinal through-hole 320 allowing it to be mounted around the outer periphery 313 of the axle 31. At least one coupling portion is formed on an outer circumference of each sleeve 32 for mounting tools such as bits, sockets, etc. Forms of the coupling portions include stubs 321a extending radially outward from the outer circumference of the sleeve 32, horizontal tubes 321b extending radially outward from the outer circumference of the sleeve 32, and vertically extending tubes 321b on the outer circumference of the sleeve 32. Coupling portions of other shapes would be within the skill of the art. In the preferred form shown, each sleeve 32 includes two or three coupling portions for coupling with a coupling hole 21 of a bit 2 or a shank 22 of a bit 2. Accordingly, a user may carry a plurality of bits 2 of various types, sizes, and/or specifications. In the most preferred form shown, each sleeve 32 is made of elastomeric material such as rubber. The longitudinal through-hole 320 of each sleeve 32 has a substantially hexagonal inner periphery. The inner periphery of the longitudinal through-hole 320 of sleeve 32 is in frictional contact with the outer periphery of the axle 31 to prevent relative rotation between the sleeve 32 and the axle 31. Nevertheless, the sleeve 32 can be turned with a force sufficient to overcome the friction between the sleeve 32 and the axle 31. Thus, any one of the sleeves 32 can be turned through an angle to a position allowing easy mounting or removal of the bits 2 to and from the sleeve 32 (see
The user may add or remove sleeves 32 to or from the axle 31 in response to the number of bits 2 required. The sleeves 32 stack one another, with the bottommost sleeve 32 resting on the flange 315 on the lower end 312 of the axle 31. A handle 33 is coupled with the upper end 311 of the axle 31 to prevent the sleeves 32 from disengaging from the axle 31. In the preferred form shown, the handle 33 includes a resilient hook 331 on a bottom thereof for releasably coupling with the axial hole 314 in the upper end 311 of the axle 31. The handle 33 includes a resilient clip 332 extending from a side thereof for coupling with a belt 4 of a user (see
Thus since the invention disclosed herein may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or general characteristics thereof, some of which forms have been indicated, the embodiments described herein are to be considered in all respects illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the invention is to be indicated by the appended claims, rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are intended to be embraced therein.
