Patent Application
20190275658
The present application relates generally to electronic modules. More particularly, the present application relates to an electronics module with a housing shaped to the internal contours of a power tool handle.
Structural stability is an important feature for a power tool. Power tools, such as power drills, are often dropped or otherwise handled with little caution. To test the strength of a power tool, so-called “drop tests” are performed where a tool is dropped from a specific height and then it is determined whether the tool cracked or otherwise failed. The results of these drop tests are then used to quantify the structural stability of the power tool.
For many tools, the handle of the tool is the point of failure. This is because the handle is often smaller at the bottom to better fit the ergonomics of a user's hand. By shaping the handle this way, however, the power tool sacrifices structural stability at the bottom of the handle to provide the ergonomic benefit. Most power tools also include batteries connected to the bottom of the handle, meaning the inside of the handle includes electronics connecting, for example, the battery to the motor and trigger.
The present invention relates broadly to an electronics module with a housing that is shaped to conform to the internal geometry of the handle of the power tool. The housing can be made of a strong material such as metal or a high density polymer so as to provide additional structural stability to the power tool handle while at the same time enclosing the electronics. The electronics can further be submerged by a potting compound to provide additional vibrational dampening and impact resistance when the tool is dropped.
In particular, the present invention includes a tool having a motor, a battery that provides power to the motor, electrical components between the battery and the motor, and a housing enclosing the electrical components. The housing has an external geometry and an internal opening adjacent the electrical components, with potting compound disposed within the opening. The tool further includes a handle having an internal geometry, where the external geometry of the housing generally conforms to the internal geometry of the handle.
Further disclosed is an electronics module for a tool having a motor, a battery that provides power to the motor, and electrical components between the battery and the motor, and a handle having an internal geometry. The electronics module includes a housing enclosing the electrical components. The housing has an external geometry and an internal opening adjacent the electrical components, with potting compound disposed within the opening. The external geometry of the housing generally conforms to the internal geometry of the handle.
For the purpose of facilitating an understanding of the subject matter sought to be protected, there are illustrated in the accompanying drawings embodiments thereof, from an inspection of which, when considered in connection with the following description, the subject matter sought to be protected, its construction and operation, and many of its advantages should be readily understood and appreciated.
While this invention is susceptible of embodiments in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings, and will herein be described in detail, a preferred embodiment of the invention with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the broad aspect of the invention to embodiments illustrated. As used herein, the term “present invention” is not intended to limit the scope of the claimed invention and is instead a term used to discuss exemplary embodiments of the invention for explanatory purposes only.
The present invention broadly comprises an electronics module with a housing having a shape that generally conforms to the internal geometry of a handle of a tool. In some embodiments, the housing is made of a strong material such as metal or a high density polymer to stabilize the handle and enclose electronics within the handle. The module can further include a potting compound provided within openings of the handle to provide additional vibrational dampening and impact resistance.
As shown,
The housing 145 can be a typical clamshell housing, as shown, or can be any other housing or enclosure that encases the electrical components 140. In an embodiment, the housing 145 can be opened (similar to the clamshell housing shown in
The handle 135 can also include heat sink fins 160 extending external to the housing 145 from the housing 145 and within an open area of the handle 135. In some embodiments, the heat sink fins 160 are integral with the housing 145 and the housing 145 contacts the electrical components 140 or is thermally coupled to the electrical components 140 to dissipate heat from the electrical components 140.
As shown in
As discussed herein, the housing 145 may be made of metal or a high density polymer. However, the housing 145 may be made of any material that provides increased protection to the electrical components 140 and that provides increased structural stability to the handle 135. The housing 145 may be any metallic, polymeric, or composite material that provides such benefit.
As used herein, the term “coupled” and its functional equivalents are not intended to necessarily be limited to direct, mechanical coupling of two or more components. Instead, the term “coupled” and its functional equivalents are intended to mean any direct or indirect mechanical, electrical, or chemical connection between two or more objects, features, work pieces, and/or environmental matter. “Coupled” is also intended to mean, in some examples, one object being integral with another object.
The matter set forth in the foregoing description and accompanying drawings is offered by way of illustration only and not as a limitation. While particular embodiments have been shown and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made without departing from the broader aspects of the inventors' contribution. The actual scope of the protection sought is intended to be defined in the following claims when viewed in their proper perspective based on the prior art.
