Patent Application
20070137416
This invention was the subject matter of Document Disclosure Program Registration No. Please fill in the registration number as Sturm & Fix, LLP, does not have it on file, filed in the United States Patent and Trademark Office on date of filing, 2004.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of automotive shift constructions in general and in particular to a universal adapter insert for connecting a variety of gear shift knobs to a standard gear shift rod.
2. Description of Related Art
As can be seen by reference to the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,284,400; 4,791,826; 6,421,881; 3,900,220, and 4,984,931, the prior art is replete with myriad and diverse gear shift knob and knob adapter arrangements.
While all of the aforementioned prior art constructions are more than adequate for the basic purpose and function for which they have been specifically designed, they are uniformly deficient with respect to their failure to provide a simple, efficient, and practical universal shift knob insert that permits a variety of different gear shift knobs to be mounted on a standard gear shift rod.
As most people in the custom automotive accessory industry are aware, there is a large number of custom made gear shift knobs that are purchased as an after-market item and include a smooth hollow cylindrical plastic collar that is press fit over a gear shift rod and loosens over time creatting a potentially hazardous situation for the operator of the vehicle.
As a consequence of the foregoing situation, there has existed a longstanding need among vehicle customizers and their suppliers for a new and improved universal shift knob adapter insert that is specifically designed to provide a secure connection between a threaded gear shift rod and a wide variety of customized gear shift knobs, and the provision of such an adapter insert is the stated objective of the present invention.
Briefly stated, the gear shift knob insert that forms the basis of the present invention comprises a machine aluminum cylindrical collar member having a threaded hollow interior wherein, the exterior of the cylindrical collar member is provided with a plurality of peripheral recesses dimensioned to receive the standard set screw that is normally provided on the hollow skirt portion of the customized gear shift knobs available as an after-market item.
As will be explained in greater detail further on in the specification, the threaded hollow interior of the cylindrical collar member will be provided with a range of several different thread pitches to accommodate the different thread pitches that are employed on the threaded gear shift rods produced by the major car manufacturers on both domestic and foreign vehicles so that the cylindrical collar member can be securely fastened thereto in a well recognized fashion.
These and other attributes of the invention will become more clear upon a thorough study of the following description of the best mode for carrying out the invention, particularly when reviewed in conjunction with the drawings, wherein:
As can be seen by reference to the drawings, and in particular to
As can be seen by reference to
Turning now to
In addition, as can best be appreciated by reference to
At this juncture it should be noted that in the preferred embodiment of the adapter insert 10, the machined aluminum collar member 20 has a height of approximately 1″, a diameter of approximately 0.625 inch and the preferred range of threaded pitches on the interior 22 of the collar member 20 will be between 10×1.25 to 12×1.5 inclusive to accommodate a variety of different makes of vehicles.
By now it should be appreciated that the adapter insert 10 that forms the basis of the present invention provides a stable, rigid, mounting platform for a gear shift knob 100 relative to a gear shift rod 50 that will have an extremely long and useful life when compared to the simple plastic sleeves that are standard equipment on virtually all after-market customized gear shift knobs 100.
Although only an exemplary embodiment of the invention has been described in detail above, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention as defined in the following claims.
Having thereby described the subject matter of the present invention, it should be apparent that many substitutions, modifications, and variations of the invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that the invention as taught and described herein is only to be limited to the extent of the breadth and scope of the appended claims.
