Patent Application
20140187338
1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a torque-transferring apparatus and, more particularly, to a flexible torque-transferring apparatus.
2. Related Prior Art
As disclosed in Taiwanese Patent Publication Nos. M357344 and M370471 and US Patent Application Publication No. 20110303053, a conventional flexible torque-transferring apparatus includes at least one joint consisting of a ball and a socket. The ball includes is formed with six arched while the socket includes six planar facets formed on the inside. The ball is placed in the socket so that the axis of the former can be pivoted relative to that of the latter. One of the arched facets of the ball is in contact with a corresponding one of the planar facets of the socket. Thus, torque can be transferred via the joint while the angle of the joint can be changed.
As disclosed in Patent Application Nos. GB217368, U.S. Pat. No. 4,730,960 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,952,986, a conventional flexible torque-transferring apparatus may include a flexible sheath around at least one joint. The flexible sheath protects but does not interfere with the joint.
In these conventional flexible torque-transferring apparatuses, the ball is inevitably rotatable in the socket since only one of the arched facets of the former is in contact with the corresponding one of the planar facets of the latter in operation. Hence, the ball is provided with a spring-biased detent for contact with another planar facet of the socket to limit the rotation of the ball in the socket.
The present invention is therefore intended to obviate or at least alleviate the problems encountered in prior art.
It is the primary objective of the present invention to provide a reliable flexible torque-transferring apparatus.
To achieve the foregoing objective, the flexible torque-transferring apparatus includes a first end element, a second end element and a flexible connector for interconnecting the first and second end elements. The flexible connector includes a plurality of joints, each including a ball and a socket. The ball includes an end facet, a plurality of arched facets extending from the end facet, and a plurality of edges, each extending between two adjacent ones of the arched facets. The socket includes a cavity defined therein and a plurality of curved facets formed in the cavity. Each of the curved facets includes two ridges in contact with two portions of a corresponding one of the arched facets when the ball is placed in the socket.
In another aspect, the first end element includes an insert extending from a ball. The ball of the first end element is placed in the socket of one of the joints. The insert is inserted in a cavity defined in a portion of a wrench.
In another aspect, the second end element includes a receptacle formed together with a socket. The socket of the second end element receives the ball of one of the joints. The receptacle receives a nut or a head of a screw.
Other objectives, advantages and features of the present invention will be apparent from the following description referring to the attached drawings.
The present invention will be described via detailed illustration of five embodiments referring to the drawings wherein:
Referring to
The flexible connector 30 includes a flexible sheath 34 for protecting, without interfering with, a plurality of links 38 pivotally connected to each other. Each of the links 38 includes a ball 41, a socket 51 and a neck 44 extending from the ball 41 to the socket 51. The ball 41 of each link 38 is pivotally placed in the socket 51 of adjacent link 38 so that they together form a joint 32.
The ball 41, the neck 44 and the socket 51 are preferably made different parts of a single element. The ball 41, the neck 44 and the socket 51 may however be elements that are formed separately and then joined together by proper means.
The ball 41 includes a hexagonal end facet 43, six arched facets 42 and six edges 45. Each of the arched facets 42 extends from the hexagonal end facet 43 to the neck 44. Each of the edges 45 extends between two adjacent ones of the arched facets 42.
The socket 51 includes a cavity 52 defined therein. An internal side of the socket 51 (or “the wall of the cavity 52”) includes six curved facets 53 and six grooves 54, each extending between two adjacent ones of the curved facets 53. As shown in
The insert 12 is formed together with or connected by proper means to a ball 41 via a neck 44. The insert 12, the corresponding ball 41 and the corresponding neck 44 together form an end element 14.
The receptacle 20 is formed together with or connected by proper means to a socket 51. The sockets 20 and the corresponding socket 51 together form another end element 24.
The flexible sheath 34 may be a metal hose. An end of the flexible sheath 34 is fit on the end element 14 by a collar 36. Another end of the flexible sheath 34 is fit on the end element 24 by another collar 36. With the flexible sheath 34, the links 38 and the elements 12 and 24 are kept connected to one another.
Referring to
In operation, torque is transferred to the end element 14 from the end element 24 via the flexible connector 30, or vice versa, while the flexible connector 30 can be curved. Each of the arched facets 42 can be in contact with the peaks 59 of a corresponding one of the curved facets 53. Hence, the rotation of the ball 41 about its axis in the socket 51 is limited. By the neck 44, the pivoting of the axis of the ball 41 relative to the axis of the socket 51 is limited. The edges 45 are placed in the grooves 54 so that the edges 45 are kept from causing any damage to the socket 51.
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The present invention has been described through the detailed illustration of the embodiments. Those skilled in the art can derive variations from the embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. Hence, the embodiments shall not limit the scope of the present invention defined in the claims.
