1. Field of the Invention
The present application relates to methods and apparatus for detecting and determining wear in drain cleaning apparatus. More particularly, the present application relates to wear indicator methods and apparatus for enabling tool users to better detect and determine wear in the working elements of drain cleaning apparatus such as cables, commonly referred to as “snakes,” couplings used with sectional cables, and cutting or other attachments for the cables or snakes. Typically, such cables can be single integral cables, or selectively adjustable lengths formed by engaging two or more cable sections or portions together. The remaining useful life in those working elements can also be monitored over time by observing the one or more wear indicator apparatus and/or by using the described methods.
The claimed invention will be described in connection with the preferred embodiments. However, it is to be appreciated that the embodiments of the invention have use in equipment other than drain cleaning equipment, and in other applications such as in determining wear in working elements of any pipe or conduit cleaning apparatus, coring tools, boring apparatus, drilling tools, or other similar devices.
2. Description of Related Art
Drain cleaning tools operate in harsh environments. In many cases the drains are impacted with hardened debris such as tree roots, boiler scale, grease, and the like. In some cases, the chemicals are caustic. Also, the drain itself often includes hard walls, sharp edges at joints and tortuous turns along its tubing string. All of these factors and others cause the drain cleaning tools to wear during use.
Tools for cleaning drains include plumbers cables which are nearly always used with specialized tools integrated into or carried on the free or distal end thereof. One such simple tool is a bulb auger formed by the free end of the cable. Other specialized tools include removable hard tools such as chain knockers, augers such as funnel or hook augers, and cutters such as spade, saw tooth, spiral saw tooth or shark tooth cutters. Soft tools may be used with the cables as well. These typically include specialized brushes and the like for finish cleaning of passageways. The specialized tools are typically selectively connected to the distal working end of the cable using quick connect couplings or other similar mechanisms. Sectional drain cleaning cables include similar couplings on opposite ends thereof so that the cable can be easily carried to the job site in short sections then assembled end-to-end as needed to service the drain.
For best results, the cables are preferably rotated while within the target pipe or drain. Various prime mover devices have been used for this purpose including hand operated crank-type devices for homeowner applications and electric motor prime movers, such as sectional or drum machines, for larger or industrial applications. The latter include K-750 and K-1500 model drain cleaners available from Ridge Tool Company for example.
In a typical drum machine set up, a rotatable drum carries a reserve of the snake with a working portion of the snake extending from the drum often through a linear feed control device. The user selectively extends the snake into the clogged pipe using the linear feed control mechanism. The feed control is also used afterwards to retract the cable from the pipe. In a sectional machine, the pay out of cable is by hand. Regardless of the device, for best results, linear cable feeding typically occurs while the prime mover rotates the cable to help it auger through the obstruction. Further, the snake may be used in a mode of simply rotating within the pipe without linear motion for extended periods in order to generally open the pipe along the length of the snake by lateral movement thereof within the pipe as bends in the cable “sweep” past the inner walls of the pipe. This has the effect of “polishing” the initial cleaning operation performed during cable insertion. Thereafter, the operator may retract the snake out from the pipe workpiece and back onto the rotating drum by hand feed or by selectively operating the linear feed control. Special soft tools may be used as well on the end of the cable, such as a brush to polish the inner walls of the pipe.
Wear can be identified in a general sense by an inspection of the “flats” formed over time on the outside of the cable. Typically, the cables are made from round wire and, therefore, the outwardly directed circular bumps of new cables are rounded like the profile of the wire forming the cable. The use of wire having other cross sectional shapes is also known. However, by abrasion during use, the pronounced bumps tend to wear down. Obvious “flats” formed through use on the outside of the cable indicate that it is worn and should be replaced.
It is difficult, however, for an operator to determine an amount of acceptable wear sustained by a drain cleaning tool. Therefore, it is difficult to determine whether a drain cleaning tool should be replaced, and if not immediately replaced, how much useable life associated with the tool remains. As a result, it is common for tools to be prematurely replaced by diligent operators and for other tools to be overly used by inattentive or unaware operators.
Generally, as wear of the cable snake increases, the tendency for the snake to twist or kink increases. The excessively worn portion of the snake may also lose its rigidity and thus become excessively flexible in that region, thereby also contributing to a tendency for twisting or kinking. This causes a great deal of aggravation. Worse, a portion of an excessively worn cable can break off. This requires a large time investment in retrieving the broken portion of the snake from the pipe and causes further aggravation.
In other cases, portions of the specialized tool on the end of the cable break off during use if excessively worn. In general, the specialized tools simply lose effectiveness as they wear.
One solution is to replace the snake or snake portion at predefined regular intervals. However, this can be wasteful if the snake or portion thereof is not yet worn to a state of an imminent fracture.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a drain cleaning tool with a wear indicator to provide a visual indication of wear on the drain cleaning tool. The wear indicator may be in the form of a wear element wear indicator carried by the drain cleaning tool or a wear feature formed in, on or adhered to the drain cleaning tool.
Preferably, a wear indicator is provided on a drain cleaning tool in the form of a wear element wear indicator such as a disc for example on a flexible plumbers cable or a wear feature wear indicator such as a ridge, groove, dimple or coating on the flexible plumbers cable.
Still further, a wear indicator is provided on a drain cleaning tool in the form of a wear indicator on the connectors at the ends of sectional drain cleaning cable and/or on the couplings for connecting various operative tools to the cable.
Yet still further, it is preferred that a wear indicator is provided on a drain cleaning tool in the form of a wear indicator on a working member carried on the distal end of a plumbers cable.
Yet still further, it is preferred that a wear indicator is provided on a drain cleaning tool in the form of a wear indicator on couplings on opposite ends of sectional plumbers cable.
In accordance with one preferred embodiment, a flexible plumbers cable is provided having an elongate outer body member defining a longitudinal axis, and a resilient intermediate body carried by the outer body. The resilient intermediate body has along its periphery at least one wear detector prominence extending radially outwardly for wearing as the cable wears so that an operator may determine a wear condition of the plumbers snake. The outer body member is formed of a length of steel wire helically coiled in turns along the longitudinal axis. The wire thus formed then defines a hollow region which, in one form, may receive an inner body such as a plastic or metal carrier or form, or the wire may be wound directly onto the plastic or metal carrier. In another form, an inner body is not disposed or otherwise received in the hollow region of the cable. In its preferred form, the at least one wear detector prominence extends radially outwardly between at least one selected turn of the helically coiled outer body and has at least one color change in the radial direction. In that way, the color of the prominence changes as it wears together with the wear of the adjacent body member of the plumbers snake. This provides a visual indication of wear on the cable. The flexible cable may be of a single unitary construction such as having lengths of fifty (50), seventy five (75) or one hundred (100) feet or it may be in the form of a series of sectional cables, typically of seven and one half (7½), ten (10) or fifteen (15) foot lengths, selectively coupled at their ends.
In one aspect, the resilient intermediate body member is disk-shaped and includes a circular central body portion, and the at least one wear detector prominence is annular and carried on the intermediate body member. The wear detector prominence may be formed integrally with the central body portion. In one embodiment, the intermediate body of the flexible plumbers snake forms a slit extending radially through the central body portion and the at least one wear detector prominence, to enable portions of the body adjacent said slit to be spaced apart along said longitudinal axis for contouring the body into a helical coil in accordance with said steel wire along said horizontal axis.
In another preferred form, the resilient intermediate body member extends longitudinally within the outer body, and the wear detector prominence extends radially outwardly between a plurality of turns of the helically coiled outer body. The wear detector prominence is spiral shaped. Here the elongate hollow outer body has opposite proximal and distal ends, and the resilient intermediate body member may extend longitudinally within the outer body substantially entirely between the proximal and distal ends. As desired, the wear detector prominence may include a plurality of wear detector prominences carried by intermediate body member at locations spaced apart along said longitudinal axis or may be spiral shaped and extend substantially entirely between the proximal and distal ends of the elongate hollow outer body. In the former, the wear detector prominence can be useful as a length marker when provided on the cable at fixed regular intervals such as, for example, every ten (10) feet. In the latter, the wear detector prominence may be useful in identifying an amount of plumbers cable to be trimmed from the working end thereof because it has reached the end of its useful life.
In yet another form, the flexible plumbers snake further includes a plurality of resilient intermediate body members carried by the outer body at locations spaced apart along said longitudinal axis, each of the plurality of resilient intermediate body members having along its periphery at least one wear detector prominence extending radially outwardly including at least one color change in said radial direction. The resilient intermediate body members can be useful as well if provided on the cable at fixed regular intervals such as, for example, every ten (10) feet.
As desired, the at least one color change of the wear detector is a color gradient in said radial direction. The color gradient may include a one of a light to dark gradient in said radial direction and a dark to light gradient in the radial direction or any combination thereof. Further, the color gradient may include a green to yellow change in the radial direction, and a yellow to red change in the radial direction.
Preferably, portions of the wear detector prominence extending radially outwardly beyond the outer radial extent of the cable body is smooth in circumferential and longitudinal directions so it does not snag on the pipe workpiece during use.
The elongate hollow outer body of the flexible plumbers snake may be formed of a length of spring steel, and the wear detector prominence may be formed of a plastic material.
Still further, the plumbers snake may include an inner concentrically aligned flexible metal or plastic core disposed within the elongate hollow outer body and extending longitudinally thereof, the resilient intermediate body member being disposed between the metal core and the outer body.
The hollow outer body of the flexible plumbers snake may include a length of steel wire formed of a double wound coil with adjacent convolutions of the coil being in substantial abutment with one another. A wide variety of cable sizes, shapes and configurations now known or developed in the future can be used. The hollow outer body may receive plastic or metal carrier members singularly or in multiples thereof by the flexible plumbers cable being wound thereon.
In accordance with yet a further preferred embodiment, a tool for use on the distal end of a flexible plumbers snake is provided. The tool includes a body including a connection portion for selectively connecting the body of the tool with the distal end of the plumbers snake, a working member carried on the body, and a wear indicator on at least one of the body and the working member. The working member is configured for cleaning debris within an associated drain during use of the tool, and the wear indicator provides a visual indication of wear on the tool.
In its preferred form, the body defines a substantially cylindrical shaped outer surface, and the wear indicator is a formation defined on the outer surface. The formation is at least one of a raised protuberance formed on the outer surface or a recess formed on said outer surface.
In another form, the working member includes a blade having an edge for cutting the debris within the associated drain during use of the tool, and the wear indicator includes a formation defined on the blade. Here, the formation is at least one of a raised protuberance formed on the blade and a hole adjacent said edge and extending through the blade.
In accordance with yet a still further preferred embodiment, a flexible plumbers cable section is provided. The cable section includes an elongate outer body member defining a longitudinal axis, first and second coupling portions on opposite ends of the cable section, and a wear indicator on at least one of the first and second coupling portions. The outer body of the cable section is formed of a length of steel wire helically coiled in turns along the longitudinal axis. The first coupling portion is attached with a first end of the elongate outer body member and the second coupling portion is attached with a second end of the elongate outer body member opposite from the first end. The first and second coupling portions are selectively intermatable with each other to connect together multiples of the elongate outer body member provided with the first and second couplings portions on said opposite ends thereof. The wear indicator on at least one of the first and second coupling portions provides a visual indication of wear on the flexible plumbers cable section.
In its preferred form, the first coupling portion includes a first body, a first cable connection portion, and a male quick connect portion. The first body is substantially cylindrical shaped. The first cable connection portion is disposed on one side of the first body for coupling the first coupling portion with the first end of outer body member of the cable portion. The male quick connect portion is disposed on the other side of the first body and is configured for selective attachment with the second coupling member. Similarly, the second coupling portion includes a second body, a second cable connection portion, and a female quick connect portion. The second body is substantially cylindrical shaped. The second cable connection portion is disposed on one side of the second body for coupling the second coupling portion with the second end of outer body member of the cable portion. The female quick connect portion is disposed on the other side of the second body and is configured for selective attachment with the male coupling member.
In accordance with yet a still further preferred embodiment, a flexible plumbers cable is provided including an elongate outer body member defining a longitudinal axis, and a wear indicator member carried by the outer body member. The elongate outer body member defines a longitudinal axis and is formed of a length of steel wire helically coiled in turns along the longitudinal axis. The wear indicator member carried by the outer body member has along its outer periphery at least one wear detector prominence extending radially outwardly from the helically coiled outer body member.
In one form, the at least one wear detector prominence has at least one color change in the radial direction providing a visual indication of wear on the cable.
In another form, the wear indicator member carried by the outer body member is a hollow cylindrical member clamped to the outer periphery of the outer body member. The hollow cylindrical member may be a one of a steel clamp and a plastic clamp. Further, the hollow cylindrical member is a one of a metal clamp and a plastic clamp such as for example a pull tie clamp.
In still another form, the wear indicator member carried by the outer body member is a coating adhered to the outer periphery of the outer body member. The coating is a one of an epoxy and paint. Further, the epoxy may be a rubberized epoxy.
In one aspect, the wear indicator is a formation defined on at least one of the first and second outer surfaces of the first and second coupling portions.
In another aspect, the formation is a one of a raised protuberance, and a recess. The protuberances and/or recesses may be arranged to form symbols intelligible to human operators of the plumbers cable section.
The foregoing aspects and others will be pointed out more fully hereinafter in conjunction with the written description of the preferred embodiments of the invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:
With reference now to the drawings where the showings are for purposes of illustrating the preferred embodiments of the invention only and not for purposes of limiting same, a portable sewer cleaning machine 10 is shown in
The drive unit 16 of the sewer cleaning machine 10 includes an electric drive motor 30 which is adapted to drive an endless belt 32 which engages about the outer periphery of a drum housing 34 of the drum unit 14. Further in this respect, the motor 30 has a drive shaft 36 rotatable about drive shaft axis 38 and provided with a drive pulley 40 about which the belt 32 is trained, whereby the belt is driven in response to rotation of the shaft to rotate the drum housing 34. Preferably, the pulley and the portion of the belt exposed above the drum housing are covered for protective purposes by a suitable guard (not shown).
As is well known, drum housing 34 contains the coiled spring wire plumbers snake 26, and a guide tube 42 serves to guide displacement of the snake into and out of the housing 34 during use of the machine in a manner which provides for the snake to be coiled and uncoiled during its displacement relative to the housing. While the guide tube is illustrated and described herein as being a part of the drum unit, this is merely a possible arrangement of the tube and the tube could be supported adjacent its axially outer end for rotation, in which case it could be free of a mounted interconnection with the drum unit. Further the drum housing and hub could be provided as integral or separate components. Additionally, the particular cleaning apparatus 10 of
In accordance with the preferred embodiments of the present invention, the drain cleaning tool 24 includes at least one wear indicator 50 for generating a visual indication of an amount of wear sustained by the tool. The visual indication helps an operator to determine if the tool is new, if it can be further used, or whether it is at or near the end of its useful life. In one form, the wear indicator 50 is provided on the snake 26 as a wear element 52 carried on or by the cable or integrated into the body of the cable and, in another form, it is provided as a wear feature 54 on the cutting tool 28 or elsewhere in the drain cleaning system such as on the couplers at opposite ends of sectional or other cables or on the connector bodies of the tool 28 and cable. The embodiments of each will be described in greater detail below.
The wear disk 56 is preferably positioned in the gap 66 at a selected location therealong such as shown in the figure so that it is carried rotationally along with the cable 60 during use of the snake 26. In that way, the wear disk can be subjected to the same wear conditions as the body member 62 of the cable 60 so that the disk and cable wear at the same or similar way and rate.
As noted, the wear element is configured to provide a visual wear level indication to an operator using the sewer cleaning machine 10 in a manner to be described herein. The visual wear level indication developed by the wear element is used to infer the wear on the cable body member 62 because, as noted, the wear element and cable are subjected to the same conditions during use of the cable and, therefore, preferably, they wear at the same or similar way and rate. The wear disk 56 embodiment illustrated has all of these desirable characteristics. Essentially, the wear on the indicator 50 is observed and acts as a proxy for wear on the cable 26.
In its preferred form, the wear disk 56 has a generally circular shape and is formed of a resilient material such as nylon, plastic or from any other one or more materials having suitable chemical tolerance characteristics relative to various staining and caustic solutions typically encountered in sewer, drain, and other pipes. In addition, it is important for the wear disk 56 to be resilient yet bendable so that it can be twisted into shape in conformance with the helical gap 66 for installation onto the cable 60.
The installation of the disk 56 may be performed by hand, machine or otherwise after the cable 60 is provided or may be inserted into the cable during its manufacture such as by hand but preferable by machine. In the hand installation, the end user of the cable simply bends the cable by hand causing the gap between adjacent turns of the cable coil to spread apart and open providing an increased gap having a dimension large enough to accommodate the disk 56. Thereafter, the user simply inserts the disk into the hollow inner region of the cable to the position shown in
It is to be appreciated that certain cable configurations are more amenable in accommodating the disk after manufacture, such as in a retrofit of the wear indicator 50 onto an existing snake. These include snakes having cables with a large diameter or a large gap between adjacent convolutions of the wire. Retrofitting the wear indicator onto smaller cables of the type typically used in drum machines or hand tools is possible though slightly more difficult.
During manufacture, however, the disk 56 may be positioned adjacent the wire as it is formed and then wound into the coiled helix together with the wire. In one embodiment, the disk or wear element is elongate and makes multiple revolutions in the longitudinal direction of the cable. One form of this is shown in
The wear disk 56 is shown in
The wear detector prominence 82 is preferably formed integrally with the body 80 such as in an extrusion or molding process. However, the prominence 82 may be bonded to the body using an adhesive or snap fit, ultrasonic welding techniques, or the like. In any case, the wear detector prominence 82 is configured to provide a visual indication of wear to an operator of the sewer cleaning machine 10. In that regard, the prominence 82 has at least one color change in a radial direction R. Thus, as outer regions of the disk 56 are worn away by abrasion or the like during use, the operator can visually detect the color change and determine a wear condition of the cable 60 by inference based upon the observed current color of the wear detector prominence 82.
As a first example, the outer periphery 84 of the wear detector may be black, the inner portion 86 thereof may be white, and the portion therebetween may be provided to have a white to black color gradient in a radially outward direction R. As another example, the outer periphery 84 of the wear detector may be white, the inner portion 86 thereof may be black, and the portion therebetween may be provided to have a black to white color gradient in the radially outward direction R.
Although white and black colors are suggested by way of example, any colors may be used to provide a suitable color gradient in the radial direction. The gradient may be a smooth transition such as shades of gray, or may be provided as abrupt color changes in the radially direction R.
Preferably, and with particular reference to
In certain embodiments, it is important for the wear detector prominence 82 to experience a size reduction at the same rate as the cable 60 because wear on the wear disk 56 is used to infer wear on the cable 60. Essentially, the wear disk acts as a proxy for visual signs of wear on the cable 60 which, because of its material properties, would be very difficult to resolve visually. However, it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to wear indicators or wear elements undergoing wearing at the same rate at which the snake or cable wears. Although in certain applications this may be preferred, other applications may dictate other relative wear strategies. Generally, the size and/or geometry of a preferred embodiment wear indicator or wear element is dependent upon an overall wear rate of the wear indicator and the cable. However, due to the materials typically used for the wear indicators, the rate of wear for the indicators will typically be faster than that of the cable.
A preferred holding structure 100 for ensuring correspondence between the wear on the wear disk 56 and the wear on the cable 60 is illustrated in
In another form as shown in
In yet another form, as shown in
In yet another form, as shown in
In still yet another form, as shown in
It will be appreciated that in each of the preferred embodiments depicted in
One advantage of the continuous wear form 125 is that wear on it permits monitoring of wear over the entire length of cable directly. It may be possible to cause excessive wear in localized regions of the cable through use thereof in certain applications. In that event, the segment of the body portion 126 in the localized region would provide a visual indication to the operator of the condition. In this example, the wear form would become red in the localized region and may be either yellow or green in the remainder of the cable. Alternatively, a plurality of wear disks 56 could be provided along the length of the cable 60 at spaced apart locations such as, for example, every one (1) foot along the length of the cable.
It is to be appreciated that, in order to best provide a visual indication of an amount of wear on the cable, the wear detector prominence 132 is formed of a material having at least one color change in a radial direction R. In that regard, the wear detector prominence 132 may provide a black to white transition in a radially outward direction, a white to black transition, or one or more transitions between a set of selected colors. Preferably, an outer color band 136 is green in color to indicate a new cable or a cable having only small amounts of wear. A second color band 137 is provided radially inwardly of the outer color band 136 and is preferably yellow in color. The yellow second color band 137 indicates that the cable is worn though yet usable. Lastly, a red inner band 138 is arranged as shown to provide a visual indication that the cable is worn beyond its useful life.
Referring to
Turning next to
In the embodiment shown in
During use of the subject tool 150, an operator can readily observe changes in each of the wear indicators provided on the body 160. More particularly, with regard to the circular channel or groove 172 and the dimple 176, the operator can readily observe these features “disappearing” as the outer surface 170 of the body 150 wears away through abrasion, or the like. Similarly, an operator can observe the circular ring 174 and the tab 178 smoothing or flattening during use of the tool through abrasion, or the like.
In addition to the above, other wear indicators 152 are provided on the tool 150 as well. In that regard, a wear indicator in the form of a formation 180 defined on the blade 166 is provided as well. In a first form, the formation 180 is in the form of one or more holes 182 and 186 extending through the blade. In another form, the formation is a tab or protuberance 184 formed on the blade. The protuberance eventually wears away and is observable by the operator during use of the tool. It is to be noted that as the edge 168 wears during use of the tool, the distance between the hole 186 and the edge 168 reduces to a state where the hole 186 joins with and partially defines the edge 168. This is shown in an exaggerated fashion in
Specifically, in the embodiment of
A first wear indicator 240 is provided in the form of a circular groove 242 defined in the outer surfaces 226, 236 of the bodies 220, 230. A second wear indicator is provided in the form of a circular rib 244 extending radially outwardly from the surfaces of the bodies. Other wear indicators are provided on the bodies as well. In that regard, a dimple or recess 246 is provided as shown, and, further, a raised tab 248 is included. It is to be appreciated that one or more of the wear indicators provided on the bodies may be used as desired together, alone, or in various combinations thereof. Further, any of the wear indicators may be provided or arranged to form symbols intelligible to human operators of the tool, such, as, for example, to spell out “WEAR INDICATOR” or “RIDGE TOOL” wherein the operator's attention is drawn to the indicia/wear indicator during normal use of the tool 202.
During use of the subject tool, an operator can readily observe changes in each of the wear indicators provided on the bodies 220, 230. More particularly, with regard to the circular channels or grooves 242 and the dimple 246, the operator can readily observe these features “disappearing” as the outer surfaces of the bodies wear away through abrasion or the like during use. Similarly, an operator can observe the circular ring 244 and the tab 248 smoothing or flattening during use of the tool through abrasion, or the like. The dimples may be filled with a highly visible material such as a colored plastic material or paint so that the operator can readily observe changes in the size of the dimple caused by wear. Also, the ring and/or tab may be formed as a projection or may be bonded to the tool body such as by using a suitable adhesive for example.
Another aspect included by the present invention is the provision of a band 260. Excessive wear of the band 260 could be considered to be wearing that causes the band 260 to become detached from the snake or cable. This strategy may provide an economical and simple means for providing a wear indicator on a drain cleaning snake.
In the embodiment illustrated in
It will be understood that in no way is the present invention limited to the particular embodiment depicted in
In yet another aspect, the present invention provides a strategy by which a particular cross sectional configuration is used for the wire in a plumbers snake, which provides an indication of wear. For example,
It will be appreciated that any of the various features described herein which are associated with one embodiment, can be used or otherwise combined with one or more other features of other embodiments.
The invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments. Obviously, modifications and alterations will occur to others upon reading and understanding the preceding detailed description. It is intended that the invention be construed as including al such modification and alteration insofar as they come within the scope of the appended claims or the equivalents thereof.