Patent Application
20220314405
The present invention relates to a wrench and a method for manufacturing the same.
A hand tool, such as a ratchet wrench or a torque wrench, capable of adjusting rotational angle and torque setting value is usually used to tighten or loosen fasteners. In assembling the hand tool, an interior of a main body of the hand tool is filled with lubricating oil after assembling a ratchet member and a ratchet tooth therewithin so that a driving member of the hand tool is smoothly rotated. An opening of the interior of the main body is covered with a cover, and a sealing ring is disposed between the cover and the main body so as to prevent the ratchet member and the ratchet tooth from being damaged due to dust or impurities.
However, during operation, the sealing ring is easy to displace relative to the main body and the cover, which results in poor sealing effect and is easy to pollute the interior of the main body.
The opening may be sealed with glue filled between the cover and the main body. However, since the glue may be squeezed to deform by the cover and the main body before curing, a shape of the glue cannot be effectively controlled, which is also results in poor sealing effect.
The present invention is, therefore, arisen to obviate or at least mitigate the above-mentioned disadvantages.
The main object of the present invention is to provide a wrench and a method for manufacturing the same, wherein the wrench includes a covering member on which a first washer and a second washer are integrally formed. Therefore, the first washer and the second washer can be accurately positioned on the main body during assembling, and the first washer and the second washer respectively have a fixed shape. In addition, shapes of the first washer and the second washer are designable and the first washer and the second washer can be formed on designated positions of the covering member by transfer molding according to structural requirements, which provides good sealing effect and allows diverse designs of the wrench.
To achieve the above and other objects, the present invention provides a wrench, including: a main body and a covering member. The main body includes a head portion and a handle, and the head portion has a receiving groove. The receiving groove has a driving member and a restriction member disposed therewithin, the restriction member is abutted against the driving member, and the driving member is rotatable relative to the head portion. The covering member covers the receiving groove and includes a through hole. One of the main body and the covering member has a first washer and a second washer integrally disposed thereon, and the first washer and the second washer are abutted against and between the main body and the covering member.
To achieve the above and other objects, the present invention further provides a method for manufacturing the wrench as described above, including following steps of: preparing a main body including a head portion and a handle; forming a receiving groove on a side of the head portion; rotatably assembling a driving member within the receiving groove; assembling a restriction member within the receiving groove and abutting the restriction member against the driving member; preparing a covering member; forming a through hole on the covering member; integrally forming a first washer and a second washer on one of the main body and the covering member by transfer molding; covering the receiving groove of the head portion with the covering member; and abutting the first washer and the second washer against and between the main body and the covering member.
The present invention will become more obvious from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, which show, for purpose of illustrations only, the preferred embodiment(s) in accordance with the present invention.
Please refer to
The main body 1 includes a head portion 11 and a handle 12, and the head portion 11 has a receiving groove 13. The receiving groove 13 has a driving member 2 and a restriction member 3 disposed therewithin, and the restriction member 3 is abutted against the driving member 2 and the driving member 2 is rotatable relative to the head portion 11. In this embodiment, the wrench is a ratchet wrench, and the driving member 2 includes a ratchet wheel. In other embodiments, the wrench may be a torque wrench or other types of wrenches.
The covering member 4 covers the receiving groove 13 and includes a through hole 41. One of the main body 1 and the covering member 4 has a first washer 42 and a second washer 43 integrally disposed thereon, and the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 are abutted against and between the main body 1 and the covering member 4. In this embodiment, the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 are integrally formed on a side of the covering member 4 facing the receiving groove 13. Since the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 are integrally formed on the covering member 4, the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 are unmovable relative to the covering member 4 when the covering member 4 is assembling to the head portion 11 to cover the receiving groove 13. Therefore, the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 can effectively seal up gaps between the head portion 11 and the covering member 4, which prevents dust and impurities from entering the receiving groove 13. The wrench is durable to use and easy to assemble. In this embodiment, the covering member 4 is mounted to the head portion 11 by two fasteners 15. In other embodiments, the covering member may be directly engaged or in tight-fit with the head portion.
Specifically, the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 are integrally formed on the covering member 4 by transfer molding. The first washer 42 surrounds an edge around the through hole 41, and the second washer 43 surrounds an outer peripheral edge of the covering member 4. In this embodiment, the covering member 4 is made of metal (or hard plastic), which allows the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 which are made of plastic or rubber to be integrally formed on the covering member 4 by transfer molding. Therefore, the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 are not easy to slide relative to the covering member 4 when the covering member 4 is assembled to the main body 1. With transfer molding technology, shapes of the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 are designable to meet various structural requirements, and the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 can be formed on designated positions of the covering member 4, which allows diverse designs of the wrench.
Moreover, the first washer 42 is abutted against and between the driving member 2 and the covering member 4. The main body 1 includes an annular wall 14, and the annular wall 14 defines the receiving groove 13. The second washer 43 is abutted against and between the annular wall 14 and the covering member 4.
The driving member 2 includes a rotating portion 21 and a driving portion 22 connected with each other, and the driving portion 22 penetrates through the through hole 41. A side of the rotating portion 21 facing the covering member 4 has a first annular groove 23, and the first washer 42 is disposed within the first annular groove 23.
The present invention further provide a method for manufacturing the wrench as described above, including following steps of: preparing a main body 1 including a head portion 11 and a handle 12; forming a receiving groove 13 on a side of the head portion 11; rotatably assembling a driving member 2 within the receiving groove 13; assembling a restriction member 3 within the receiving groove 13 and abutting the restriction member 3 against the driving member 2; preparing a covering member 4; forming a through hole 41 on the covering member 4; integrally forming a first washer 42 and a second washer 43 on one of the main body 1 and the covering member 4 by transfer molding; covering the receiving groove 13 of the head portion 11 with the covering member 4; abutting the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 against and between the main body 1 and the covering member 4. In this embodiment, the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 are integrally formed on a side of the covering member 4 by transfer molding.
With the method as described above, the covering member 4 on which the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 are integrally formed is manufactured. The first washer 42 and the second washer 43 are not easy to move relative to the covering member 4 during assembling so that the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 can effectively seal up the gaps between the head portion 11 and the covering member 4, which prevents dust and impurities from entering the receiving groove 13. The wrench is durable to use. The method of the present invention allows a washer with a particular shape to be applied on a designated position of a hand tool, and the method also can be used to manufacture a washer fitting an inner structure of the hand tool, which provides good sealing effect and allows diverse designs of hand tools.
Specifically, the method further includes steps of: preparing a first mold 51 and a second mold 52; biasing the first mold 51 and the second mold 52 against the covering member 4; and injecting a raw material (such as melted rubber or plastic) between the first mold 51 and the second mold 52 to form the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 on a side of the covering member 4 by transfer molding. The first washer 42 and the second washer 43 can be formed on the covering member 4 in designated shapes according to mold cavities between the first mold 51 and the second mold 52. The first washer 42 and the second washer 43 respectively have a fixed shape and are deformed when urging by the covering member 4 and the main body 1 so as to provide preferable sealing effect. Shapes of the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 can be changed before curing according to shapes of the covering member 4 and the main body 1 so as to be suitable for the covering member 4 and the main body 1 with different specifications. Relative to a conventional assembling method, the first washer 42 and the second washer 43 of the present invention can be directly molded on the covering member 4 in designated shapes according shapes of the mold cavities between the first mold 51 and the second mold 52, which provides good sealing performance and allows the washers to be molded in designated positions.
Please refer to
Please refer to
Please refer to
Moreover, an end of the rotating portion 21 of the driving member 2A remote from the driving portion 22 has a pillar 25 protrudingly disposed thereon. The head portion 11A has a top plate 111, and the pillar 25 is rotatably disposed within the top plate 111. A fourth washer 72 is integrally formed on an outer circumferential wall of the pillar 25 by transfer molding, and the fourth washer 72 is abutted against and between the pillar 25 and the top plate 111 so as to prevent dust and impurities from entering the head portion 11A.
Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described in detail for purposes of illustration, various modifications and enhancements may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be limited except as by the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 110111900 | Mar 2021 | TW | national |
