Gripping devices such as tweezers are often used to view, manipulate, and hold small objects. However, to view all sides of an object, such as a cylindrical object, a user often must either manipulate the tweezers or set an object down and re-grip it at a different orientation. This is cumbersome and often results in dropping the object. Further, some objects are best gripped in only a single orientation. And often times when coating/painting an object, setting the object down is not practical and could affect the quality of the coating.
The background discussion is intended to provide information related to the present invention which is not necessarily prior art.
The present invention solves the above-described problems and other problems by providing a gripping device that enables rotation of an object while maintaining hold of the object.
A gripping device constructed according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises a first arm, a second arm, and a tip. The second arm opposes at least a portion of the first arm and has a proximal end and a distal end operable to shift toward the first arm.
The tip is shiftably coupled to the distal end of the second arm so that the tip is operable to longitudinally shift between a retracted position in which the tip is relatively closer to the proximal end of the second arm and an extended position in which the tip is relatively farther from the proximal end of the second arm. The tip enables a user to engage an object and shift so that the object can be rotated while held by the gripping device.
A gripping device constructed according to another embodiment of the present invention comprises a first arm, a second arm, a first tip, and a second tip. The first arm has a proximal end and a distal end. The second arm has a proximal end and a distal end. The proximal end of the second arm is fixed relative to the proximal end of the first arm. The distal end of the second arm is spaced apart from and opposing the distal end of the first arm. The distal end of the first and second arms re operable to shift toward one another. The first tip is shiftably coupled to the distal end of the first arm so that the first tip is operable to longitudinally shift between a retracted position in which the first tip is relatively closer to the proximal end of the first arm and an extended position in which the first tip is relatively farther from the proximal end of the first arm. The second tip is shiftably coupled to the distal end of the second arm so that the second tip is operable to longitudinally shift between a retracted position in which the second tip is relatively closer to the proximal end of the second arm and an extended position in which the second tip is relatively farther from the proximal end of the second arm.
A gripping device constructed according to another embodiment of the present invention comprises a first arm, a second arm, a third arm, and a tip. The first arm has a proximal end and a distal end. The second arm opposes the first arm, and the distal end of the first arm is operable to shift toward the second arm. The third arm opposes the second arm. The tip is coupled to the distal end of the first arm so that the tip is operable to longitudinally shift between a retracted position in which the tip is relatively closer to the proximal end of the first arm and an extended position in which the tip is relatively farther from the proximal end of the first arm.
This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the detailed description. This summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. Other aspects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of the embodiments and the accompanying drawing figures.
Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the attached drawing figures, wherein:
The drawing figures do not limit the present invention to the specific embodiments disclosed and described herein. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the invention.
The following detailed description of the invention references the accompanying drawings that illustrate specific embodiments in which the invention can be practiced. The embodiments are intended to describe aspects of the invention in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention. Other embodiments can be utilized and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense. The scope of the present invention is defined only by the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.
In this description, references to “one embodiment”, “an embodiment”, or “embodiments” mean that the feature or features being referred to are included in at least one embodiment of the technology. Separate references to “one embodiment”, “an embodiment”, or “embodiments” in this description do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment and are also not mutually exclusive unless so stated and/or except as will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the description. For example, a feature, structure, act, etc. described in one embodiment may also be included in other embodiments, but is not necessarily included. Thus, the present technology can include a variety of combinations and/or integrations of the embodiments described herein.
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The slots 30, 32 are formed longitudinally between the proximal ends 22, 24 and the distal ends 26, 28. The slots 30, 32 may be formed so that they extend from outer surfaces 34, 36 to inner surfaces 38, 40 of the arms 14, 16.
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The attachment portions 46, 48 include protruding members 54, 56, or other protrusions/connecting structures, that extend into the slots (depicted in
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A gripping device 10A constructed in accordance with another embodiment of the invention is shown in
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In this description, references to “one embodiment”, “an embodiment”, or “embodiments” mean that the feature or features being referred to are included in at least one embodiment of the technology. Separate references to “one embodiment”, “an embodiment”, or “embodiments” in this description do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment and are also not mutually exclusive unless so stated and/or except as will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the description. For example, a feature, structure, act, etc. described in one embodiment may also be included in other embodiments but is not necessarily included. Thus, the current technology can include a variety of combinations and/or integrations of the embodiments described herein.
Although the present application sets forth a detailed description of numerous different embodiments, it should be understood that the legal scope of the description is defined by the words of the claims set forth in any subsequent regular utility patent application. The detailed description is to be construed as exemplary only and does not describe every possible embodiment since describing every possible embodiment would be impractical. Numerous alternative embodiments may be implemented, using either current technology or technology developed after the filing date of this patent, which would still fall within the scope of the claims.
Throughout this specification, plural instances may implement components, operations, or structures described as a single instance. Although individual operations of one or more methods are illustrated and described as separate operations, one or more of the individual operations may be performed concurrently, and nothing requires that the operations be performed in the order illustrated. Structures and functionality presented as separate components in example configurations may be implemented as a combined structure or component. Similarly, structures and functionality presented as a single component may be implemented as separate components. These and other variations, modifications, additions, and improvements fall within the scope of the subject matter herein.
As used herein, the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” “including,” “has,” “having” or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements is not necessarily limited to only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.
The patent claims at the end of this patent application are not intended to be construed under 35 U.S.C. § 112(f) unless traditional means-plus-function language is expressly recited, such as “means for” or “step for” language being explicitly recited in the claim (s).
Although the invention has been described with reference to the embodiments illustrated in the attached drawing figures, it is noted that equivalents may be employed and substitutions made herein without departing from the scope of the invention as recited in the claims.
The present application is a non-provisional application and claims priority of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/288,790 filed on Dec. 13, 2021, and entitled “GRIPPING DEVICE”, which is hereby incorporated in its entirety by reference herein.
This invention was made with Government support under Contract No.: DE-NA-0002839 awarded by the United States Department of Energy/National Nuclear Security Administration. The Government has certain rights in the invention.
Number | Date | Country | |
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63288790 | Dec 2021 | US |