Patent Application
20240408725
The field of the invention is socket holders for use with socket wrenches.
The background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided in this application is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
Socket holders have typically made either as a single piece of multiple pieces linked together by a rigid structural member. Existing socket holders can be cost effectiveness, easy to manufacture, and an able to keep all sockets together. But despite those benefits, socket holders that are designed with a rigid structural member fail to benefit from major advantages that can be conferred by the use of socket wrench holders that are designed to hold a single socket each.
When using a socket wrench, a person typically has to eyeball bolt head sizes and then test individual sockets until a fit is found. This requires a user to pull individual sockets off a holder one at a time, which can be difficult and frustrating. To keep sockets in place, socket holders make the process of removing a socket somewhat tedious and sometimes outright difficult. Thus, finding the right socket is made needlessly difficult. Moreover, ordinary socket holders cannot be slung over a shoulder, and finding a place to store a large, rigid member having many socket holders can be difficult.
If socket holders were individualized for each socket size, then each socket could be press against a bolt head to test for fit before even taking it off the holder. But individualized socket holders can result in lost sockets more easily than a large socket holder that holds all sockets together. Thus, there exists a need for individualized socket holders that are also connected to each other in some way to prevent loss.
The present invention provides apparatuses, systems, and methods directed to individualized socket holders that can be strung together by a flexible member. In one aspect of the inventive subject matter, a socket holder comprises: a base; a cylindrical portion disposed on a top surface of the base, where the base comprises a through hole and a bottom surface; and where the cylindrical portion has a set of radially disposed ridges.
In some embodiments, the set of radially disposed ridges are configured to mate with a socket by a pressure fit between the set of radially disposed ridges and an interior portion of the socket. The base can also have a first surface on a first side, a second surface on a second side, a third surface on a third side, and a fourth surface on a fourth side, where the through hole passes through the third surface and the fourth surface.
In some embodiments, the first surface, the second surface, and the bottom surface are all concave, and in some embodiments, a radially disposed ridge from the set is disposed at an end of the cylindrical portion. That radially disposed ridge can also include a tapered surface.
In another aspect of the inventive subject matter, a socket holder set includes: a first socket holder, a second socket holder, and a flexible member; the first socket holder has a first base and a first cylindrical portion disposed on the first base, where the first base has a first through hole; the second socket holder having a second base and a second cylindrical portion disposed on the second base, where the second base comprises a second through hole; and where the flexible member passes through the first through hole and the second through hole. In some embodiments, a first end of the flexible member couples with a second end of the flexible member.
In another aspect of the inventive subject matter, a socket holder comprises: a base; a cylindrical portion disposed on the base, where the cylindrical portion is sized and dimensioned to mate with a socket; and where the base comprises a through hole. In some embodiments, the cylindrical portion has a set of radially disposed ridges that are configured to mate with a socket by a pressure fit between the radially disposed ridges and an interior portion of the socket. The cylindrical portion can have a set of radially disposed ridges, and one of those ridges can be disposed at an end of the cylindrical portion. In some embodiments, that ridge at the end of the cylindrical portion has a tapered surface to improve mating with a socket.
In some embodiments, the base also has a first surface on a first side, a second surface on a second side, and a bottom surface. The first surface, the second surface, and the bottom surface can all be concave. The base can also have a third side and a fourth side that the through hole passes through.
One should appreciate that the disclosed subject matter provides many advantageous technical effects including improved storability, improved mobility, and improved usability while preserving function. Various objects, features, aspects and advantages of the inventive subject matter will become more apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments, along with the accompanying drawing figures in which like numerals represent like components.
The following discussion provides example embodiments of the inventive subject matter. Although each embodiment represents a single combination of inventive elements, the inventive subject matter is considered to include all possible combinations of the disclosed elements. Thus, if one embodiment comprises elements A, B, and C, and a second embodiment comprises elements B and D, then the inventive subject matter is also considered to include other remaining combinations of A, B, C, or D, even if not explicitly disclosed.
As used in the description in this application and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “a,” “an,” and “the” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description in this application, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
Also, as used in this application, and unless the context dictates otherwise, the term “coupled to” is intended to include both direct coupling (in which two elements that are coupled to each other contact each other) and indirect coupling (in which at least one additional element is located between the two elements). Therefore, the terms “coupled to” and “coupled with” are used synonymously.
In some embodiments, the numbers expressing quantities of ingredients, properties such as concentration, reaction conditions, and so forth, used to describe and claim certain embodiments of the invention are to be understood as being modified in some instances by the term “about.” Accordingly, in some embodiments, the numerical parameters set forth in the written description and attached claims are approximations that can vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained by a particular embodiment. In some embodiments, the numerical parameters should be construed in light of the number of reported significant digits and by applying ordinary rounding techniques. Notwithstanding that the numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the broad scope of some embodiments of the invention are approximations, the numerical values set forth in the specific examples are reported as precisely as practicable. The numerical values presented in some embodiments of the invention may contain certain errors necessarily resulting from the standard deviation found in their respective testing measurements. Moreover, and unless the context dictates the contrary, all ranges set forth in this application should be interpreted as being inclusive of their endpoints and open-ended ranges should be interpreted to include only commercially practical values. Similarly, all lists of values should be considered as inclusive of intermediate values unless the context indicates the contrary.
In some embodiments, the ridges can be formed from the same material as the socket holder as described above. In some embodiments, the ridges can be formed from a different material, including any of the materials described above. For example, the socket holder body can be made from a first material (e.g., metal, plastic) while the ridges can be made from a second material (e.g., rubber, plastic). In some embodiments, the ridges can be created during an overmolding process such that an overmolded softer coating is what also creates the ridges on the cylindrical portion of a socket holder. By making the ridges out of a material such as a rubber or a plastic, a socket holder of the inventive subject matter can experience improved coupling with a socket.
Socket holder 100 is shown having ten total ridges 102. A socket holder of the inventive subject matter can have as few as two ridge (e.g., one at the top and one near the base). There is no maximum number of ridges, but there should be at least some amount of space between each ridge, as the purpose of the ridges is to create a pressure fit between socket holder 100 and a socket that is coupled thereto while still making it possible for a user to separate the socket without too much effort. The first ridge (i.e., the ridge closest to the tip of the cylindrical portion) features a tapered surface 110. Tapered surface 110 is intended to facilitate coupling socket holder 100 to a socket by making it easier to line up the cylindrical portion of the socket holder with the opening on the back side of a socket.
The bottom portion, or base, of socket holder 100 has several features, including a through hole 104, a bottom surface 106, and side curved surfaces 108.
Through hole 104 is included so that a lanyard, piece of webbing, or some other flexible member can pass therethrough. By allowing for a flexible member to pass through through hole 104, multiple socket holders of the inventive subject matter can be strung together. This creates a unique advantage over rigid socket holders: users can test whether a socket fits a bolt without removing it from the socket holder by just grabbing the socket holder and pressing the attached socket onto a bolt. Every other socket holder that is also connected by the flexible member can either be held aside or allowed to dangle. Additionally, by connecting socket holders together by a flexible member that, e.g., is tied off to form a loop, a single socket cannot be lost-instead, the only way to lose a socket is if the entire string of sockets is lost together. By having all the socket holders strung together, they are also much easier to spot if misplaced.
Including multiple socket holders on a single string can have other advantages, including improved storability and improved mobility. Many existing socket holders are either formed as a single piece or as individual pieces linked together by a solid structural member. This kind of configuration means that a set of socket holders often features a large rigid member that can be cumbersome for storage purposes. By stringing together socket holders along a flexible member, it is much easier to find enough storage space in a toolbox, a drawer, etc.
Another advantage of allowing socket holders of the inventive matter to be strung together along a flexible member is that socket holders can be converted into a wearable string, which frees up a user's hands. For example, if a person must ascend a ladder with their socket set, embodiments of the inventive subject matter make it possible to sling the flexible member over the user's shoulder such that the user can use both hands to climb the ladder while also bringing with them the entire socket set that is looped onto the flexible member. These advantages do not exist in any type of socket holder that features a rigid structural element holding multiple socket holders together.
As seen in
Like the embodiment above, socket holder 200 also includes through hole 208. Through hole 208 allows socket holder 200 to be coupled with other socket holders via flexible member, also as described above. This allows a user to create a string of socket holders that are all easily accessible. Socket holder 200 again features a tapered ridge 210 at the tip of the cylindrical portion, as seen best in
Finally,
Thus, specific systems and methods directed to socket holders have been disclosed. It should be apparent, however, to those skilled in the art that many more modifications besides those already described are possible without departing from the inventive concepts in this application. The inventive subject matter, therefore, is not to be restricted except in the spirit of the disclosure. Moreover, in interpreting the disclosure all terms should be interpreted in the broadest possible manner consistent with the context. In particular the terms “comprises” and “comprising” should be interpreted as referring to the elements, components, or steps in a non-exclusive manner, indicating that the referenced elements, components, or steps can be present, or utilized, or combined with other elements, components, or steps that are not expressly referenced.
