Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6349619
-
Patent Number
6,349,619
-
Date Filed
Monday, September 11, 200024 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, February 26, 200222 years ago
-
Inventors
-
-
Examiners
Agents
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
-
International Classifications
-
Abstract
A ratchet tool includes a housing having an internal gear, a shank rotatably secured in the chamber of the housing and having two notches formed between a partition and two actuating surfaces for rotatably receiving two pawls, and a spring engaged between the pawls for biasing the pawls to engage with the internal gear. A control ferrule is rotatably engaged on the shank and includes two blocks for selectively disengaging the pawls from the internal gear. The actuating surfaces of the shank may be used for solidly engaging the pawls with the internal gear.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a tool. and more particularly to a ratchet driving tool.
2. Description of the Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 5,573,093 to Lee and U.S. Pat. No. 6,047,802 to Huang disclose two typical ratchet tools having a pair of pawls biased to engage with a gear or an internal gear, in order to control the driving direction of the ratchet tools. These kinds of ratchet tools may not sustain or may not be subjected with a great driving or rotational torque or force.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,000,302 to Chiang discloses a typical tool having a rotational driving head and having a button for indirectly controlling the rotational operation of the driving head via a pawl. The button may not be provided with a spring for biasing against the driving head or against the pawl.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages of the conventional ratchet tools.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a ratchet tool including a ratchet device for resisting a great rotational driving force or a driving torque and including a driving head that may be biased and positioned to the handle with a spring biased mechanism provided in a control button.
In accordance with one aspect of the invention, there is provided a ratchet tool comprising a housing including a chamber formed therein and including an internal gear provided therein, a shank rotatably secured to the housing and received in the chamber of the housing, the shank including a pair of notches formed therein and including a partition formed between the notches thereof, and including a pair of actuating surfaces, the notches of the shank being defined between the partition and the actuating surfaces respectively, a first pawl and a second pawl rotatably received in the notches of the shank respectively and engageable with the actuating surfaces of the shank, for engaging with the internal gear and for controlling a driving direction of the housing relative to the shank, means for biasing the first pawl and the second pawl to engage with the internal gear, and means for selectively disengaging the first pawl and the second pawl from the internal gear. The actuating surfaces of the shank is engaged with the pawls for solidly engaging the pawls with the internal gear.
The housing includes a driving stem and a screw hole, the shank includes a bore and a peripheral shoulder, a fastener is engaged in the bore of the shank and has a head engaged with the shoulder of the shank and threaded with the screw hole of the housing for rotatably securing the shank to the housing.
The shank includes a pair of bulges extended inward of the notches of the shank, the first and the second pawls each includes a cavity formed therein for receiving the bulges of the shank and for rotatably securing the first and the second pawls to the shank.
The partition of the shank includes an aperture formed therein, the biasing means includes a spring engaged in the aperture of the partition and engaged with the first and the second pawls.
The selectively disengaging means includes a control ferrule rotatably engaged on the shank and having two blocks engaged with the pawls respectively for disengaging the first and the second pawls from the internal gear when the control ferrule is rotated relative to the shank. A device is further provided for positioning the control ferrule to the shank at a selected angular position.
The control ferrule includes an annular flanges the shank includes a shoulder engaged with the annular flange of the control ferrule, the ratchet tool further includes a sleeve engaged on the shank and engaged with the annular flange of the control ferrule for positioning the control ferrule to the shank.
A seat includes a peripheral portion having a plurality of depression, the shank has an extension rotatably secured to the seat with a shaft, the shank includes a bore for receiving a ball, and means for actuating the ball to engage with either of the depressions of the seat and to position the shank to the seat at any selected angular position.
The shank includes a hole, the actuating means includes a button slidably received in the hole of the shank and having an opening for receiving the ball and for allowing the ball to be disengaged from the seat, the button includes an actuator extended inward of the opening thereof for engaging with the ball and for forcing the ball to engage with either of the depressions of the seat, and a first biasing means for biasing the actuator of the button to engage with the ball and to force the ball to engage with the seat.
A second biasing device may bias the ball to engage with the seat and includes a spring member secured to the button and engaged with the ball. The button includes a cavity formed therein, the spring member includes a leg engaged into the cavity of the button for securing the spring member to the button.
Further objectives and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from a careful reading of a detailed description provided hereinbelow, with appropriate reference to accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is an exploded view of a ratchet tool in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 2
is a partial cross sectional view taken along lines
2
—
2
of FIG.
3
:
FIG. 3
is a partial cross sectional view taken along lines
3
—
3
of
FIG. 2
;
FIG. 4
is a partial cross sectional view taken along lines
4
—
4
of
FIG. 2
;
FIG. 5
is a partial cross sectional view similar to
FIG. 4
, illustrating the operation of the ratchet tool;
FIG. 6
is a cross sectional view illustrating another application of the control button for the ratchet tool;
FIG. 7
is an exploded view illustrating a further application of the ratchet tool;
FIG. 8
is a partial cross sectional view similar to
FIGS. 4 and 5
, illustrating a still further application of the ratchet tool; and
FIG. 9
is a partial cross sectional view illustrating another application of the ratchet tool.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring to the drawings, and initially to
FIGS. 1-4
, a ratchet tool in accordance with the present invention comprises a seat
10
including a stud
11
extended therefrom and engaged in a cavity
16
of a tool handle
14
and including a stop flange
17
provided in the middle portion thereof for engaging with the tool handle
14
and for limiting the engagement of the stud
11
into the tool handle
14
. The seat
10
includes a substantially circular outer peripheral surface having a number of depressions
12
formed therein for positioning purposes, and includes a hole
13
formed therein for receiving a shaft
73
.
A driving stem
41
includes a tool device
42
, such as an engaging hole
42
, formed or provided in one end thereof for engaging with and for driving the fasteners or the tool extensions or the tool bits etc. The tool device may also be a tool extension provided or extended from the driving stem
41
for directly engaging with and for driving the fasteners, for example. The driving stem
41
includes a housing
40
formed or provided on one end thereof and having a chamber
43
and an internal gear
44
formed or provided therein, and having a screw hole
45
formed therein and communicating with the chamber
43
thereof.
A shank
20
includes a bore
24
formed therein for receiving a fastener
70
, and includes a shoulder. such as a peripheral shoulder
201
formed in the bore
24
thereof for engaging with the head
77
of the fastener
70
which is threaded with the screw hole
45
of the housing
40
and which is provided for rotatably securing the shank
20
to the housing
40
of the driving stem
41
. The shank
20
includes a pair of notches
21
,
22
formed therein and a pair of semi-spherical or semi-circular bulges
211
,
221
extended inward of the notches
21
,
22
respectively. A partition
203
is formed or defined between the notches
21
.
22
of the shank
20
and includes an aperture
25
formed therein for receiving a spring
26
therein. The notches
21
,
22
of the shank
20
are formed or defined between the partition
203
and a pair of actuating surfaces
202
of the shank
20
(
FIGS. 4
,
5
).
A pair of pawls
30
,
31
are received in the respective notches
21
,
22
and each includes a curved cavity
301
,
311
formed therein for receiving the bulges
211
,
221
of the shank
20
respectively and for rotatably securing the pawls
30
,
31
to the shank
20
. The pawls
30
,
31
each includes one or more teeth
302
,
312
formed or provided on the free end portion or on the outer peripheral portion thereof for engaging with the internal gear
44
of the housing
40
. The spring
26
is engaged between the pawls
30
,
31
for biasing the teeth
302
,
312
of the pawls
30
,
31
to engage with the internal gear
44
(
FIGS. 4
,
5
) and for controlling the driving direction of the driving stem
41
and the housing
40
by the shank
20
.
The shank
20
includes an extension
204
extended rearwardly therefrom and having a size or a diameter smaller than that of the shank
20
for forming or defining a peripheral shoulder
206
between the shank
20
and the extension
204
of the shank
20
. The extension
204
of the shank
20
includes a slot
207
formed therein and defined between a pair of legs
208
for rotatably receiving the seat
10
. The shank
20
includes a hole
28
formed therein, such as formed in the legs
208
for receiving the shaft
73
and for rotatably securing the shank
20
and thus the driving stem
41
to the tool handle
14
via the seat
10
. The shank
20
, such as the extension
204
of the shank
20
includes a blind hole
23
formed therein (
FIGS. 1
,
2
) for receiving a spring
72
and a button
80
. The shank
20
further includes an aperture
27
formed therein for receiving a spring-biased projection
71
therein.
A control ferrule
50
is rotatably engaged on the shank
20
and includes a peripheral or an annular flange
501
(
FIGS. 1
,
3
) formed therein and engaged with the peripheral shoulder
206
of the shank
20
. A sleeve
60
is engaged on the shank
20
and engaged with the annular flange
501
of the control ferrule
50
for rotatably securing the control ferrule
50
on the shank
20
. The sleeve
60
includes a hole
62
formed therein for receiving the shaft
73
and includes a screw hole
63
formed therein and opposite to the hole
62
for threading with the shaft
72
. The sleeve
60
includes a pair of channels
64
formed therein and aligned with the slot
207
of the extension
204
for allowing the shank
20
and the sleeve
60
to be rotated relative to the seat
10
. The sleeve
60
includes a hole
61
formed therein and aligned with the hole
23
of the shank
20
for slidably receiving the button
80
.
The control ferrule
50
includes three depressions
51
,
52
,
53
and a recess
54
formed in the inner peripheral portion of the annular flange
501
for defining a block
55
between the recess
54
and the depression
51
, and for defining another block
56
between the recess
54
and the other depression
53
. The blocks
55
,
56
are engaged with the pawls
30
,
31
(
FIGS. 4
,
5
) for disengaging the teeth
302
,
312
of the pawls
30
,
31
from the internal gear
44
of the housing
40
(
FIG. 5
) when the control ferrule
50
is rotated relative to the shank
20
. The spring-biased projection
71
may engage with either of the depressions
51
,
52
,
53
of the control ferrule
50
for positioning the control ferrule
50
to the shank
20
at the required relative position, and for retaining the engagement or the disengaging of the pawls
30
,
31
from the internal gear
44
of the housing
40
.
For example, as shown in
FIG. 4
, when the spring-biased projection
71
is engaged with the middle depression
52
of the control ferrule
50
, the blocks
55
,
56
are simply contacted with the pawls
30
,
31
and are not forced against the pawls
30
,
31
such that the teeth
302
,
312
of the pawls
30
,
31
are not disengaged from the internal gear
44
and such that both pawls
30
,
31
are biased to engage with the internal gear
44
simultaneously and such that the housing
40
and thus the driving stem
41
may be driven in both direction by the handle
14
via the seat
10
and the shank
20
and the pawls
30
,
31
.
As shown in
FIG. 5
, when the control ferrule
50
is rotated relative to the shank
20
to engage the spring-biased projection
71
with either of the side depressions
53
(or
51
) of the control ferrule
50
, the block
55
(or
56
) may disengage the teeth
312
(or
302
) of the pawls
31
(or
30
) from the internal gear
44
, and the other pawl
30
(or
31
) is remain engaged with the internal gear
44
, such that the housing
40
and thus the driving stem
41
may be driven in either of the directions by the handle
14
via the seat
10
and the shank
20
and the pawl
31
(or
30
). The spring
26
may be stably retained in the aperture
25
of the shank
20
and may be stably engaged with the pawls
30
,
31
.
A ball
81
is received in the bore
24
of the shank
20
for engaging with either of the depressions
12
of the seat
10
and for positioning the shank
20
to the seat
10
at the required angular position (
FIGS. 2
,
3
). The button
80
includes an opening
82
formed therein for receiving the ball
81
and for allowing the ball
81
to be disengaged from the depressions
12
of the seat
10
, such that the seat
10
may be rotated relative to the shank
20
. The button
80
includes an actuator
84
extended inward of the opening
82
of the button
80
. The actuator
84
may be biased by the spring
72
to engage with the ball
81
and to force the ball
81
to engage with either of the depressions
12
of the seat
10
and thus to position the shank
20
to the seat
10
at the required angular position (
FIGS. 2
,
3
).
A spring member
83
includes a leg
87
secured into a cavity
88
of the button
80
for securing to the button
80
. The spring member
83
may be engaged into the opening
82
of the button
80
for biasing the ball
81
against the seat
10
. When the button
80
is depressed inward of the shank
20
against the spring
72
, the actuator
84
may be disengaged from the ball
81
and the ball
81
may be received in the opening
82
of the button
80
, the spring member
83
may resiliently bias the ball
81
against the seat
10
for allowing the ball
81
to be moved and engaged with either of the depressions
12
of the seat
10
when the seat
10
is rotated relative to the shank
20
, such that the shank
20
may be rotated and adjusted relative to the seat
10
and thus the tool handle
14
to the required angular position. The actuator
84
may be biased by the spring
72
to force the ball
81
to engage with the seat
10
again and to position the shank
20
to the seat
10
at the required angular position again when the button
80
is released.
It is to be noted that the ball
81
may be biased to engage with the seat
10
by the spring member
83
and may retain the ball
81
to the seat
10
even when the seat
10
is rotated relative to the shank
20
. The provision and the engagement of the spring member
83
in the button
80
has not been disclosed in the prior arts. The pawls
30
,
31
may be received in the notches
21
.
22
of the shank
20
and may be rotatably secured to the shank
20
with the bulges
211
,
221
and may thus be solidly engaged with the internal gear
44
of the housing
40
or of the driving stem
41
, such that the driving stem
41
may be solidly driven by the shank
20
via the pawls
30
,
31
. The provision and the engagement of the actuating surfaces
202
of the shank
20
with the pawls
30
,
31
may solidly force the pawls
30
,
31
to engage with the internal gear
44
, such that a great torque or force may be transmitted through or between the internal gear
44
and the pawls
30
,
31
and the shank
20
.
Referring next to
FIG. 6
, the spring
72
may includes a limb
78
extended inward through a bore
85
of the button
80
and extended inward of the opening
82
of the button
80
for biasing against the ball
81
and for biasing the ball
81
against the seat
10
.
Referring next to FIG.
7
. the shank
20
may include the stud
11
directly extended therefrom, without the extension
204
of the shank
20
and without the seat
10
. A ring
90
may be engaged with the annular flange
501
of the control ferrule
50
for retaining the control ferrule
50
on the shank
20
.
Referring next to
FIG. 8
, the ratchet device may include two pairs of pawls
30
,
31
rotatably engaged with two pairs of bulges
211
,
221
of the shank
20
. and two springs
26
are provided and engaged with the two pairs of pawls
30
,
31
for biasing the pawls
30
,
31
to engage with the internal gear
44
.
Referring next to
FIG. 9
, the ratchet device including the provision or the rotational securing of the pawls
30
,
31
on the shank
20
with the bulges
211
,
221
of the shank
20
, may also be engaged in a driving head
40
′ of a wrench device and may also be biased to engage with the internal gear
44
of the wrench device.
Accordingly, the ratchet tool in accordance with the present invention includes a ratchet device for resisting a great rotational driving force or a driving torque. The ratchet tool includes a driving head that may be biased and positioned to the handle with a spring biased mechanism provided in a control button.
Although this invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity, it is to be understood that the present disclosure has been made by way of example only and that numerous changes in the detailed construction and the combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.
Claims
- 1. A ratchet tool comprising:a housing including a chamber formed therein and including an internal gear provided therein, a shank rotatably secured to said housing and received in said chamber of said housing, said shank including a pair of notches formed therein and including a part it ion formed between said notches thereof, and including a pair of actuating surfaces, said notches of said shank being defined between said partition and said actuating surfaces respectively, said shank including a pair of bulges extended inward of said notches of said shank, a first pawl and a second pawl rotatably received in said notches of said shank respectively and engageable with said actuating surfaces of said shank, for engaging with said internal gear and for controlling a driving direction of said housing relative to said shank, said first and said second pawls each including a cavity formed therein for receiving said bulges of said shank and for rotatably securing said first and said second pawl, to said shank, biasing means for biasing said first pawl and said second pawl to engage with said internal gear, and means for selectively disengaging said first pawl and said second pawl from said internal gear, said actuating surfaces of said shank being engaged with said first and said second pawls for solidly engaging said first and said second pawls with said internal gear.
- 2. The ratchet tool according to claim 1, wherein said housing includes a driving stem extended therefrom.
- 3. The ratchet tool according to claim 1, wherein said housing includes a screw hole formed therein, said shank includes a bore formed therein and includes a peripheral shoulder formed therein, a fastener is engaged in said bore of said shank and includes a head engaged with said peripheral shoulder of said shank and threaded with said screw hole of said housing for rotatably securing said shank to said housing.
- 4. The ratchet tool according to claim 1, wherein said partition of said shank includes an aperture formed therein, said biasing means includes a spring engaged in said aperture of said partition and engaged with said first and said second pawls.
- 5. The ratchet tool according to claim 1, wherein said selectively disengaging means includes a control ferrule rotatably engaged on said shank, said control ferrule includes a first block and a second block engaged with said first and said second pawls respectively for disengaging said first and said second pawls from said internal gear when said control ferrule is rotated relative to said shank.
- 6. The ratchet tool according to claim 5 further comprising means for positioning said control ferrule to said shank at a selected angular position.
- 7. The ratchet tool according to claim 5, wherein said control ferrule includes an annular flange, said shank includes a shoulder engaged with said annular flange of said control ferrule, said ratchet tool further includes a sleeve engaged on said shank and engaged with said annular flange of said control ferrule for positioning said control ferrule to said shank.
- 8. The ratchet tool according to claim 1 further comprising a seat including a peripheral portion having a plurality of depression formed therein, said shank including an extension extended therefrom and rotatably secured to said seat with a shaft, said shank including a bore formed therein, a ball received in said bore, and means for actuating said ball to engage with either of said depressions of said seat and to position said shank to said seat at any selected angular position.
- 9. The ratchet tool according to claim 8, wherein said shank includes a hole formed therein, said actuating means includes a button slidably received in said hole of said shank, said button includes an opening formed therein for receiving said ball and for allowing said ball to be disengaged from said seat, said button includes an actuator extended inward of said opening thereof for engaging with said ball and for forcing said ball to engage with either of said depressions of said seat, and a first biasing means for biasing said actuator of said button to engage with said ball and to force said ball to engage with said seat.
- 10. The ratchet tool according to claim 9 further comprising a second biasing means for biasing said ball to engage with said seat.
- 11. The ratchet tool according to claim 10, wherein said second biasing means includes a spring member secured to said button and engaged with said ball.
- 12. The ratchet tool according to claim 11, wherein said button includes a cavity formed therein, said spring member includes a leg engaged into said cavity of said button for securing said spring member to said button.
US Referenced Citations (8)