The disclosure is relates generally to accessories for power tools, and, in particular, to hooks and hanging elements for suspending power tools.
Suspension accessories, such as hooks, have been incorporated into various power tools to enable the power tool to be suspended on another hook, ledge, rod, or other similar type of object provided on a wall, bench, or belt of an operator. Such a suspension accessory provides a convenient way to stow a tool, temporarily or otherwise, when not in use. However, a suspension accessory, such as a hook, must necessarily extend outwardly from the tool to be of use. As a result, a hook or similar type of structure can inadvertently come into contact with other objects and interfere with the use of the tool.
For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the disclosure, reference will now be made to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings and described in the following written specification. It is understood that no limitation to the scope of the disclosure is thereby intended. It is further understood that the present disclosure includes any alterations and modifications to the illustrated embodiments and includes further applications of the principles of the disclosure as would normally occur to one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure pertains.
The present disclosure is directed to a dual axis hook assembly for use with power tools. The hook assembly can be incorporated into the housing of the power tool to enable the tool to be suspended from a hook or rod when not in use. The hook assembly has a dual axis design that enables the hook element to be positioned close or adjacent to the body of the tool to minimize possible interference with use of the tool. When the tool is not being used, the hook element can be extended outwardly from the body of the tool and oriented in a plurality of directions to facilitate the hanging the tool.
One embodiment of a power tool 10 equipped with a dual axis hook assembly 12 in accordance with the disclosure is depicted in
Referring to
The hook assembly includes a hook 18 and a support 20. The hook 18 has a shank portion 22 and a hook portion 24. The shank portion 22 comprises a straight, longitudinal section that is used to attach the hook 18 to the support 20 on the tool housing 14 and that defines one axis A of rotation for the hook assembly 12. The hook portion 24 extends in a radial direction from one end of the shank 22 and has suitable hook shape for use in suspending the tool.
Referring to
The passage 30 is sized and shaped complementary to the shank portion 22 of the hook 18 and is configured to allow rotational and axial movement of the shank portion 22 within the passage 30. Referring to
The hook retaining portion 26 may be configured to releasably retain the shank 22 at a plurality of discrete angular positions in relation to the retaining portion 26 and the passage 30. This configuration provides flexibility in orienting the hook member 18 to suspend the tool at a preferred position and/or orientation and to maintain the tool in this position while suspended. In one embodiment, the discrete angular positions for the hook member 18 are enabled using detents.
Referring to
A biasing member 44, such as a compression spring, machined spring, a spring with shape forming alloy or material, is used to bias the protruding portions pin 36 into the notches 42. The spring 44 is positioned around the shank 22, between the collar structure 40 and the hook retaining portion 26, to bias the shank 22 in the direction C (
The number of notches 42 used and the positioning of the notches 42 about the opening 34 to the passage 30 control the number of discrete angular positions for the hook member 18 about the axis A. In
Referring now to
The hook retaining portion 26 of the support member 20 is configured to rotate about axis B so the hook member 18 can be moved to one or more extended positions where clearance is provided for the hook member to be rotated without obstruction about the axis A. Referring to
In one embodiment, the first end portion 50 of the bushing 46 is pressed or keyed into a recess 60 provided in a first portion 62 of the housing 14. The first portion 14 of the housing 14 defines an opening 62 through which the shaft portion 28 extends prior to reaching the bushing 46. The first portion 60 of the housing also includes a planar outer surface portion 66 that provides a support surface against which the hook retaining portion 26 of the support member 20 is allowed to rotate.
The second end portion 54 of the bushing 46 is supported by a second portion 68 of the housing 14, and a fastener structure 70 (
A biasing member 74, such as a compression spring, machined spring, a spring with shape forming alloy or material, is used to bias the protruding portions of the pin 70 toward and into the notches 72 provided in the second end portion 54 of the bushing 46. In the embodiment of
The first and second openings 52, 56 are sized to rotatably and translatably receive the differently sized sections 76, 78 of the shaft 28. As seen in
In one embodiment, four evenly spaced notches 72 are provided in the second end portion 54 of the bushing 46. The notches 72 enable the hook retaining portion 26 to be retained in the stowed position (
As mentioned above, one or more dual axis hook assemblies may be incorporated into the housing of a power tool at various locations depending on the type of tool, the weight distribution of the tool, the location of the handle, and other factors. In the embodiment of
While the disclosure has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, the same should be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character. It is understood that only the preferred embodiments have been presented and that all changes, modifications and further applications that come within the spirit of the disclosure are desired to be protected.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/862,820 entitled “DUAL AXIS HOOK ASSEMBLY FOR A POWER TOOL” by Francis et al., filed Aug. 6, 2013, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
1806528 | Fegley | May 1931 | A |
2737985 | Friedrich | Mar 1956 | A |
3317174 | Wilkerson, Jr. | May 1967 | A |
3805639 | Peter | Apr 1974 | A |
3886658 | Wikoff | Jun 1975 | A |
4406064 | Goss | Sep 1983 | A |
4787145 | Klicker | Nov 1988 | A |
4895336 | Lieberman | Jan 1990 | A |
5265312 | Okumura | Nov 1993 | A |
5743451 | Kahn | Apr 1998 | A |
5850698 | Hurn | Dec 1998 | A |
5924667 | Grahn | Jul 1999 | A |
6056668 | Nagashima | May 2000 | A |
6321622 | Tsuge | Nov 2001 | B1 |
6502949 | Horiyama | Jan 2003 | B1 |
6679406 | Sakai | Jan 2004 | B2 |
6722046 | Evenson | Apr 2004 | B2 |
6892459 | Okumura | May 2005 | B2 |
7111364 | Bader | Sep 2006 | B2 |
7455001 | Waters | Nov 2008 | B1 |
7681661 | Sakai | Mar 2010 | B2 |
8308034 | Shibata | Nov 2012 | B2 |
8443913 | Nagasaka | May 2013 | B2 |
8534375 | Matsumoto | Sep 2013 | B2 |
8573322 | Nagasaka | Nov 2013 | B2 |
8833485 | Svennung | Sep 2014 | B2 |
20040035274 | Fasnacht | Feb 2004 | A1 |
20040148786 | Achterberg | Aug 2004 | A1 |
20050200087 | Vasudeva | Sep 2005 | A1 |
20060070761 | Vahabi-Nejad | Apr 2006 | A1 |
20060117580 | Serdynski | Jun 2006 | A1 |
20080000939 | Walsh | Jan 2008 | A1 |
20080148915 | Nickels | Jun 2008 | A1 |
20080185410 | Oomori | Aug 2008 | A1 |
20090134191 | Phillips | May 2009 | A1 |
20110289786 | Bijsterveldt | Dec 2011 | A1 |
20120292472 | Segura | Nov 2012 | A1 |
Entry |
---|
International Search Report and Written Opinion corresponding to PCT Application No. PCT/US2014/049893, mailed Nov. 18, 2014 (15 pages). |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20150040408 A1 | Feb 2015 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
61862820 | Aug 2013 | US |