Patent Grant
9302406
This application claims priority to Japanese patent application serial number 2011-062261, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to power tools, such as those used for trimming and grooving wooden workpieces.
2. Description of the Related Art
Power tools known as trimmers and routers have been used for trimming or grooving wooden workpieces. In general, this kind of power tools includes a base device and a tool unit that is also called a motor unit. The base device is adapted to contact with a workpiece, and may be placed on a workpiece. The tool unit is supported by the base device with the tool unit being positioned relative to the base device. Due to positioning of the tool unit relative to the base, the tool unit can be also positioned relative to the workpiece with which the base device contacts. The tool unit has a drive motor disposed therein for rotatably driving a spindle. A tool bit may be mounted to the spindle for machining a workpiece. A plurality of tool bits may be prepared for selectively mounted to the spindle depending a machining work to be performed.
The drive motor is disposed within a housing of the tool unit. The housing serves as an enclosure. Therefore, the housing is positioned relative to the workpiece while it serves as an enclosure for the drive motor. Various techniques relating to these functions are disclosed, for example, in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publications Nos. 2002-234001 and 2002-337073.
The housing of the tool unit may be formed of synthetic resin for ensuring insulation of the drive motor and the other electric components disposed within the housing. However, there is a possibility that the resin molded housing is deformed due to absorption of moisture or is flexed due to change of temperature. When this occurs, the configuration of the outer circumferential surface of the housing may be changed to cause such an event that the base device is caught by the outer circumferential surface of the tool unit when the tool unit is moved to slide relative to the base device. In such a case, the tool unit may not be smoothly slid.
On the other hand, the housing may be formed of metal in order to enable the base device to clamp uniformly around the outer circumferential surface of the housing. The metal housing may not be easily deformed as in the case of the resin housing when the base device clamps the housing. Therefore, the outer circumferential surface of the housing can be uniformly clamped. However, in the case of the metal housing, it is difficult to ensure insulation of the drive motor and the other electric components disposed within the housing.
Therefore, there has been a need in the art for a power tool that can ensure insulation of electric components disposed within a housing and can keep accuracy in size or configuration of an outer circumferential surface of the housing.
In one aspect according to the present teachings, a power tool has a tool unit and a base device. The tool unit has a housing having a drive device disposed therein. The base device has a clamp surface that can clamp a contact surface of the housing for supporting the tool unit. The housing may include an internal housing portion and an external housing portion positioned on an outer side of the internal housing portion. The external housing portion may define the contact surface of the housing. The internal housing portion may be made of a first material. The external housing portion may be made of a second material that is different from the material of the first.
Each of the additional features and teachings disclosed above and below may be utilized separately or in conjunction with other features and teachings to provide improved power tools. Representative examples of the present invention, which examples utilize many of these additional features and teachings both separately and in conjunction with one another, will now be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. This detailed description is merely intended to teach a person of skill in the art further details for practicing preferred aspects of the present teachings and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Only the claims define the scope of the claimed invention. Therefore, combinations of features and steps disclosed in the following detailed description may not be necessary to practice the invention in the broadest sense, and are instead taught merely to particularly describe representative examples of the invention. Moreover, various features of the representative examples and the dependent claims may be combined in ways that are not specifically enumerated in order to provide additional useful examples of the present teachings. Various examples will now be described with reference to the drawings.
In one example, a power tool includes a tool unit and a base device. The tool unit can perform a machining operation of a workpiece. The base device defines a base surface for contacting with the workpiece and is configured to support the tool unit with the tool unit positioned relative to the workpiece. The tool unit includes a housing and a rotary drive device disposed within the housing. The housing has an outer circumferential surface that includes a contact surface to be clamped by the base device. The housing includes an internal housing portion and an external housing portion that are integrated with each other to form a double housing structure. The internal housing portion is made of resin and is opposed to the rotary drive device. The external housing portion is made of metal and defines the contact surface of the housing. For example, the power tool may be used for a trimming operation or a grooving operation of a wooden workpiece.
Because the internal housing portion opposed to the rotary drive device is made of resin, it may be possible to provide an electrical and thermal insulation for the rotary drive device that may be an electric motor or an internal combustion engine. In addition, because the external housing portion that may be held by the base device is made of metal, it is possible to prevent or minimize potential deformation of the external housing portion, which may be caused due to absorption of moisture or due to change in temperature.
Therefore, it is possible to provide a reliable electrical and thermal insulation and to ensure accuracy in size and configuration of the contact surface of the housing. Hence, the tool unit can be smoothly moved relative to the base device during positioning of the tool unit.
The rotary drive device may be assembled into the internal housing portion in a first direction. The internal housing portion having the rotary drive device assembled therein may be assembled into the external housing portion in a second direction that is opposite to the first direction.
Therefore, the load applied to the internal housing portion during assembling of the rotary drive device into the internal housing portion may be opposite to the direction of application of the load to the external housing portion during the assembling operation of the internal housing portion into the external housing portion. Thus, the load may be dispersedly applied to the housing during the assembling operation, so that the strength of the housing can be ensured. As a result, it is possible to ensure accuracy in size and configuration of the contact surface of the housing also in this respect.
The rotary drive device may include a drive motor having a stator and a rotor. The stator may have a first end and a second end. The first end is positioned on the side of the base surface of the base device and the second end is positioned on the side opposite to the first end. The contact surface of the housing has a length, so that the stator is positioned substantially within the length of the contact surface.
With this arrangement, the stator may support the housing against a potential force applied by the base device when the base device clamps the housing at the contact surface. This may serve to accurately maintain the size and the configuration of the contact surface.
In this connection, the contact surface of the housing may have a first surface end and a second surface end along the length. The first surface end may be positioned on the side of the base surface of the base device and the second surface end may be positioned on the side opposite to the first surface end. The second surface end may be positioned proximal to the second end of the stator with respect to a direction along the length of the contact surface.
The contact surface of the housing may be finished by a machining operation. In particular, in the case that the external housing portion is a die-cast product, the contact surface may be machined to have a desired size and shape.
A representative example will now be described with reference to the drawings. Referring to
In this example, the power tool 10 is configured as trimmer that may be used for an edge cutting operation (trimming operation) and a grooving operation of a wooden workpiece W. The tool unit 15 is configured to be able to machine the workpiece W. The base device 60 is configured to support the tool unit 15. The tool unit 15 includes a drive motor 40 that serves to produce a rotational driving force for rotatably driving a spindle 41. A chuck device 58 can mount a tool bit B to an end portion of the spindle 41. The tool bit B may serves as a working tool for machining the workpiece W. The chuck device 58 may be a device known as a collet cone and may releasably clamp the tool bit B. Therefore, the tool unit 15 can perform a machining operation by the tool bit B that is rotatably driven together with the spindle 41.
The base device 60 will now be described. The base device 60 has a base surface 67 for contacting with the workpiece W. The base device 60 can support the tool unit 15 with the tool unit 15 positioned relative to the base device 60. The base device 60 generally includes a base section 61 for contacting with the workpiece W and a clamp structure section 71 that is integrated with the base section 61. The base section 61 is designed to allow the tool bit B of the tool unit 15 to protrude downward beyond the base surface 67 that defines a lower surface of the base section 61. The basesection 61 includes a flange 62 and a base 65. The flange 62 includes a central through-hole 63 extending therethrough in the vertical direction. The flange 62 is positioned within a horizontal plane. The base 65 is detachably attached to the flange 62 by means of screws or any other suitable fastening device (not shown) and may have a configuration similar to the flange 62 in plan view. The lower surface of the base 65 serves as the base surface 67. Therefore, the tool bit B mounted to the tool unit 15 can extend downwardly from the base surface 67 through the though-hole 63 of the flange 62 and through a corresponding though-hole formed in the base 65. The clamp structure section 71 has a substantially tubular configuration and extends upward from the flange 62. A parallel ruler (not shown) can be mounted to the clamp structure section 71 by means of a fastening device 59.
The clamp structure section 71 includes a C-shaped tubular member 72 integrated with the flange 62, and a clamp device 76 disposed at a front portion of the tubular member 72. A slit 73 is formed in the front portion of the tubular member 72. The clamp device 76 is operable to increase or decrease the width of the slit 73, so that the diameter of the tubular member 72 can be increased and decreased due to resilient deformation. As the diameter of the tubular member 72 decreases, the tubular member 72 clamps a contact surface 35 that is a part of the outer circumferential surface of the tool unit 15. The inner circumferential surface of the tubular member 72 serves as a clamp surface that clamps the contact surface 35 for supporting the tool unit 15 as will be explained later. As the diameter of the tubular member 72 increases, the tubular member 72 unclamps the contact surface 35 of the tool unit 15, so that the tool unit 15 can slidably move relative to the tubular member 72.
A window 74 is formed in the tubular member 72 at a position on the lower side of the slit 73 and in continuity with the slit 73. The window 74 is positioned to allow the operator to view the through-hole 63 through which the tool bit 13 protrudes downward. An elastomeric layer 75 is formed on the outer circumferential surface of the tubular member 72 and serves as a slip-preventing portion for preventing slippage of a hand(s) of the operator. The outer surface of the elastomeric layer 75 is convexed and concaved at suitable intervals. Due to the concave and convex configurations and the elasticity of the elastomeric layer 75, the operator can firmly grasp the elastomeric layer 75.
The clamp device 76 is disposed over the slit 73 of the front portion of the tubular member 72. The clamp device 76 generally includes a lever mechanism operable to increase and decrease the width of the slit 73, and a dial mechanism operable to move the tool unit 15 upward and downward relative to the base device 60. The clamp device 76 has an operation rod that is a part of the lever mechanism and also serves as a part of the lever mechanism. Therefore, after adjustment of the vertical position of the tool unit 15 relative to the workpiece W by the operation of the dial mechanism, the tubular member 72 can clamp the contact surface 35 of the tool unit 15 to fix the tool unit 15 in position.
The internal structure of the tool unit 15 will now be described with reference to
As shown in
As described above, the drive motor 40 is configured as a brushed motor. More specifically, the drive motor 40 includes a field 42, an armature 43, a commutator 44 and carbon brushes 45. The field 42 serves as a stator. The armature 43 serves as a rotor. As will be described later in detail, the field 42 and the armature 43 are disposed within the motor housing 21 of the housing 20. On the other hand, the commutator 44 and the carbon brushes 45 are disposed within the head housing 36.
The field 42 is fixedly mounted within the motor housing 21. The armature 43 and the commutator 44 are fixedly mounted to the spindle 41. The commutator 44 electrically contacts the carbon brushes 45 to supply an electric power to the armature 43 that generates a magnetic field to cause rotation of the armature 43 relative to the field 42, so that the spindle 41 rotates with the armature 43.
The field 42 includes a field body 421 and coils 422. The field body 421 is opposed to the armature 43. The coils 422 are would around the field body 421. The vertical length of the field body 421 is set to be substantially the same as the vertical length of the armature 43. The field 42 configured in this way may be fixedly attached to an internal housing portion 25 of the motor housing 21 by means of screws 54 or any other suitable fixing device.
Electric components including a controller 46, a capacitor 47, a terminal base 48, a speed-change controller 49, etc. may be disposed on the upper side of the commutator 44 and the carbon brushes 45. A switch 50 for switching on/off of a supply of a power source to the tool unit 15 is positioned proximal to the commutator 44 and the carbon brushes 45. The speed-change controller 49 can receive an operation input from a speed-change operation dial 491. The operation dial 491 is mounted to the head housing 36 and is exposed externally of the head housing 36 as shown in
An air-blow fan 53 is disposed within a space defined between the field 42 (or the armature 43) and the lower ball bearing 51. The fan 53 is fixedly mounted to the spindle 41, so that the fan 53 rotates with the spindle 41 and produces a stream of air flowing from the lower side toward the upper side within the housing 20. As shown in
As described previously, the housing 20 includes the motor housing 21 and the head housing 36 that are integrated together.
The field 42 and the armature 43 of the drive motor 40 are disposed within the motor housing 21. The base device 60 can clamp the contact surface 35 of the motor housing 21. The motor housing 21 has a double housing structure including the internal housing portion 25 and an external housing portion 31 that are integrated together. The external housing portion 31 has a cylindrical tubular shape and is fitted on the internal housing portion 25 to cover the outer circumferential surface of the internal housing portion 25. Therefore, the motor housing 21 has a two-layer structure in cross section, in which the internal housing portion 25 and the external housing portion 31 are coaxially positioned adjacent to each other in a radial direction.
The internal housing portion 25 disposed on the inner side of the motor housing 21 is opposed to the drive motor 40 in the radial direction. The internal housing portion 25 may be made of an insulation material, such as synthetic resin, having an electrical insulation property and also having a thermal insulation property. As shown in
On the other hand, the external housing portion 31 defines the outer circumferential surface of the motor housing 21 that is opposed to the base device 60 in the radial direction. The external housing portion 31 may be made of material that is different from the material of the internal housing portion 25. Preferably, the external housing portion 31 may be made of material having a mechanical strength higher than that of the material of the internal housing portion 25. For example, the external housing portion 31 may be made of aluminum. As shown in
Therefore, the outer circumferential surface of the external housing portion 31 includes the contact surface 35 having a uniform diameter. The contact surface 35 is adapted to be clamped by the inner circumferential surface (clamp surface) of the tubular member 72 of the base device 60 in surface-to-surface contact relationship therewith. When the motor housing 21 is inserted into the tubular member 72 before being clamped, the contact surface 35 can smoothly slidably move along the inner circumferential surface of the tubular member 72. The external housing portion 31 may be a die-cast product and the contact surface 35 may be finished into a vertically straight and smooth surface by a machining operation, such as a cutting operation of the die-cast product. Therefore, the contact surface 35 may have a true cylindrical shape that is accurately vertically straight and smooth.
The upper end of the contact surface 35 extends to a position proximal to the upper end of the field 42 on the side opposite to the workpiece W. More specifically, as shown in
As shown in
In this way, the motor housing 21 is assembled according the steps shown in
More specifically, in the step shown in
Thus, as shown in
According to the power tool 10 of the above example, the housing 21 has a double housing structure including the internal housing portion 25 and the external housing portion 31 integrated with each other. The internal housing portion 25 positioned on the inner side and radially opposed to the drive motor 40 may be made of resin, such as synthetic resin. Therefore, it is possible to electrically and thermally insulate the drive motor 40. In addition, because the external housing portion 31 may be made of aluminum, the contact surface 35 defined at the outer circumferential surface of the external housing portion 31 may not absorb moisture. Therefore, the contact surface 35 may not be deformed even in the even that the contact surface 35 has been wetted. In addition, potential change of configuration of the contact surface 35 due to change of temperature may be minimized. In this way, it is possible to ensure insulation of the drive motor 40 disposed within the housing 21 and it is possible to ensure accuracy in size or configuration of the contact surface 35 of the housing 21. As a result, the tool unit 15 can smoothly slide relative to the base device 60.
Further, the assembling direction (moving direction) of the drive motor 40 for assembling the drive motor 40 into the internal housing portion 25 and the assembling direction (moving direction) of the internal housing portion 20 for assembling the internal housing portion 20 having the drive motor 40 into the external housing portion 31 are opposite to each other. Therefore, the direction of the load applied to the internal housing portion 25 by the drive motor 40 during the assembling operation and the direction of the load applied to the external housing portion 31 by the internal housing portion 25 and the drive motor 40 during the assembling operation are opposite to each other. Therefore, the load can be dispersedly applied to the housing 21 during the assembling operation, so that the strength of the housing 21 can be ensured also in this respect.
Furthermore, because the bottom of the internal housing portion 25 and the bottom of the external housing portion 31 are positioned on opposite sides in the vertical direction, the clearance between the internal housing portion 25 and the external housing portion 31 at the open end of the internal housing portion 25 and that at the open end of the external housing portion 31 may be positioned at opposite ends of the housing 21. Therefore, it is possible to minimize potential movement of the internal housing portion 25 relative to the external housing portion 31 after the internal housing portion 25 has been fitted into the external housing portion 31.
Furthermore, the upper end of the contact surface 35 extends to a position slightly below the upper end of the field body 421, and therefore, substantially the entire field body 421 is positioned within the vertical length of the contact surface 35. Hence, the field 42 may support the housing 21 against a potential force applied by the base device 60 when the base device 60 clamps the housing 21 at the contact surface 35. This may serve to accurately maintain the size and the configuration of the contact surface 35.
Furthermore, because the contact surface 35 is finished by the cutting operation, the contact surface 35 may have an accurate true cylindrical shape.
The above example may be modified in various ways. For example, although the power tool 10 is configured as a trimmer used for trimming or grooving wooden workpieces, the above teachings may be also applied to any other power tools, such as routers.
Further, although the direction of assembling the drive motor 40 into the internal housing portion 25 and the direction of assembling the internal housing portion 25 into the external housing portion 31 are opposite to each other, it may be possible that these directions are the same.
Further, although the housing 21 has a double housing structure including the internal housing portion 25 and the external housing portion 31 in the above example, the housing 21 may have one or more additional housing portions (housing layers) provided between the internal housing portion 25 and the external housing portion 31.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-062261 | Mar 2011 | JP | national |
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3466973 | Rees | Sep 1969 | A |
| 3767948 | Batson | Oct 1973 | A |
| 6729414 | Cooper | May 2004 | B2 |
| 6886961 | Hara | May 2005 | B2 |
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| 20110229283 | Kato et al. | Sep 2011 | A1 |
| 20120045290 | Shibata et al. | Feb 2012 | A1 |
| Number | Date | Country |
|---|---|---|
| A-2002-234001 | Aug 2002 | JP |
| A-2002-337073 | Nov 2002 | JP |
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| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20120241048 A1 | Sep 2012 | US |
