Patent Application
20060225257
This invention relates to a device referred to as a snap ring, and in particular, such a device which can be quickly and easily installed and removed.
Snap rings, normally circular in appearance, are commonly used in connection with a cylindrical shaft and serve to hold or retain other items against axial removal from the shaft. The other items may include, for example, bearing assemblies, pulley sheaves, parts which can engage other parts, and the like. One example of a conventional snap ring is a flat ring of metal having split adjacent ends. The ring is fitted into a circular groove in the shaft. Installation and removal of the ring requires separation of the split ends causing the inner diameter of the ring to expand and to allow removal.
The present invention comprises a snap ring in which the ring body is flat and has overlapping free ends. The ring has a central axis, and each of the free ends is provided with a grip member extending axially outwardly from the body of the ring body.
The grip members each preferably comprises a flat handle with an opening graspable by one hand of the fingers of the user. There are interlocking ledges near the ends of the ring, which slide over each other when the handles are grasped and the ring is compressed during installation in a compressed condition.
When in a locked position, the free ends of the ring body have a gap therebetween. In order to release the ring from a locked configuration, a flat implement such as a screwdriver is inserted into the gap, and the locked shoulders are easily pried away from each other, allowing the ring to spring open and increase in diameter, allowing removal.
As shown in the Figures, the snap ring of the present invention comprises a primary ring body 10, preferably having flat outer surfaces 12, with a circular opening having an inner circular diameter 14 around the central axis of the ring body. The entire outer surfaces 12 of the ring body need not be entirely flat, as long as the outer surfaces of the ring near the inner diameter 14 are flat and parallel, allowing the ring to be fitted into the groove of a shaft (not shown).
The primary ring body 10 has split or free ends as shown and overlapping portions extending outwardly and away from the ring body.
In more detail, the overlapping portions each comprise a handle 16, preferably forming an outwardly extending part of the ring body 10. The handle 16 preferably comprises a flat member or ear having an opening 20 therethrough. The opening 20 in the handle 16, or together the two openings, are sufficiently large to be grasped by two fingers (or a finger and thumb) by one hand of the user. In the alternative, pliers may be used for this purpose. This feature allows the user to compress the handles 16 from an untensioned condition into a compressed and locked condition in the process of installation.
The handles 16 have interengaging shoulders or ridges 22, such that when the ring is compressed, the portions 22 overlap and interengage in a locked position, as shown in the Figures.
When in a locked condition, the free ends of the ring body have a narrow gap 24 therebetween. In order to open the ring from a locked and compressed state, the end of a suitable implement such as the end of a screwdriver, is inserted into the gap 24 to allow separation of the locking portions, thereby causing the ring to spring open, causing an increase in the inner diameter 14, to allow removal of the ring.
The snap ring may be composed of a suitable material, including metals such as steel.
