US1959940A

US1959940A - Cleaning device

Info

Publication number: US1959940A
Application number: US648876A
Authority: US
Inventors: Oscar S Tyrrell
Original assignee: Wallace Barnes Co
Current assignee: Wallace Barnes Co
Priority date: 1932-12-27
Filing date: 1932-12-27
Publication date: 1934-05-22
Anticipated expiration: 1951-05-22

Description

May 22, 1934- o. `s. T`YRRELL 1,959,9.40

CLEANING DEVICE Filed Dec. 27, 1952 INVENTOR.

@wn /f 5 A BY Ma/) .ATTORNEY.

Patented May 22, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CLEANING DEVICE Application December 27, 1932, Serial No. 648,876

1 Claim.

This invention relates to improvements in cleaning devices and is directed more particularly to devices adapted for cleaning relatively small bores such as the valve guides of internal combustion engines and the like. This application is a continuation in part of an application Serial No. 625,441, led by me July 28, 1932.

The principal objects of the invention are directed to the provision of a tool arranged to rotate within and clean the bores of valve guides, and it has as a specialV feature a cleaning head composed of a plurality of relatively flexible longitudinally extending cleaning elements. These elements are formed to have a plurality of angularly disposed cleaning or working edges so that a plurality of spaced cleaning or working edges are provided for each element.

A special object of the invention is the provision of means for adjusting the overall size of the head so that it may be used eiciently in the bores of .various sizes for the cleaning operation. According to another object of the invention a exible shank is provided for the tool which is distinguished from the usual rigid shank. In this way when the shank is embraced and rotated by a chuck of an electric drill or the like the cleaning head may be rotated on its true axis in the bore to be cleaned, with the chuck held in a non-aligned position with respect thereto. This is so it will not be necessary to hold the drill accurately and permits the driving of the tool where it is not possible to have the chuck disposed on the true axis of the rotating tool.

Various novel features and advantages of the invention will be hereafter more fully referred to in connection with the accompanying description of the preferred form of the invention which for purposes of disclosure is shown in the accompanying drawing, wherein;

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view with parts in section showing a tool embodying the novel features of the invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged front elevational View of one of the cleaning elements of the tool.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is an elevational view showing a modified form of the invention consisting of a yieldable shank for the tool shown in Fig. l, and

Fig. 5 is a sectional view on the line 5 5 of Fig. 4.

Referring now to the drawing more in detail the invention will be fully described.

The tool consists in general of a shank 2 which is adapted to be embraced in a rotating device such as the chuck of an electric drill orthe like and a cleaning head indicated generally by 4 at the upper end of the shank.

A base 6 is provided for'the head which yhas a center staff member 8 extending upwardly therefrom. The center member 8 may be secured to the base 6 in any suitable manner and it may be integral with the shank 2 which may extend through the base, if desired. The upperv side of the base is provided with a socket concentrically of member 8 so as to provide an annular recess around said member as shown in Figs.y 1 and 3.

The upper end of the center 8 is slotted as at l0 yand a collar `or cap 12 is slidable on the upper end of the center which carries a pin 14 extending through the slot 10, although the cap may be moved longitudinally of the center and held against rotation thereon. The cap 12 on its under side is provided with a depression as shown to form in conjunction withA the member 8 an annularfrecess around said member 8 like the recess in the base 6.V

A plurality of cleaning elements E which are preferably of spring-like material are off-set at their opposite ends to provide intermediate body portions 16 and end portions 18. These elements are preferably square in cross section and as shown in Fig. 3 are twisted intermediate their ends to provide a multiplicity of relatively sharp corner working edges arranged spirally thereof. In this way there are provided a plurality of angularly disposed working or cleaning edges 20 arranged in uniformly spaced relation longitudinally of each element.

The working edges on each element are spaced apart and extend angularly with reference to the length of the elements. This causes the edges to operate with a shearing action as the tool is rotated, whereby they clean a bore without injuring the surface thereof.

The annular recesses in the base and cap around the center 8 are arranged so that the ends of the cleaning elements therein abut one another and substantially ll up the recesses. That is, a sufcient number of cleaning elements are employed so that their ends in the cap and base practically ll up the recess wherefor the elements will not shift or assume an angular relation with respect to the axis of the tool. The ends of the elements are not fixed in the recesses to facilitate the free exing of the main body portions thereof while of course the elements at the same time may be easily inserted in and removed from the recesses when the cap is moved away from the base a distance to permit of this.

With the ends of the elements seated in the recesses as described the intermediate twisted portions thereof are held parallel to the axis of the tool and a multiplicity of obliquely disposed and uniformly spaced relatively short Working edges are presented along each element. As the tool is rotated in a valve guide bore the working edges of the elements engage the bore with a shearing action and any slight axial impulses produced do not tend to screw or feed the tool axially of the guide to an objectionable extent. It is not desirable that the tool feed along the guide appreciably during rotation as would likely occur where relatively few, long and more or less continuous working edges are presented which would tend to act as a screw and cut a thread in or mar the guide.

One or more nuts such as 20 are in threaded engagement withV the upper end of the member 8 and are adapted to exert pressure on and hold the cap 12 so as to expand the elements between the cap and the base. In that way the overall diameter of the tool or its diameter over the cutting elements may .be varied whereby the tool may be made of various sizes for working in bores of different diameters.

The overall diameter of the elements intermediate their ends is greater than the overall diameter at the ends thereof ,since they are offset wherefor there may be some space between the elements intermediate their ends. In this way foreign matter removed from a bore will not become jammed between the elements and interfere with their flexing.

By inserting rthe cleaning head l in a bore to be cleaned and by embracing the shank in the chuck of an electric drill or the like the tool may be rotated. With the multiplicity of working edges on each element and a large number of the elements, there are a large number of separate working edges which are brought into engagement with the surface of the bore simultaneously whereby the most efficient cleaning action is possible.

'I'he modification of the invention. shown in Fig. 4 will now be described. In this case a base 30 is provided with which may be associated the center, cleaning elements, cap and nuts already described. The shank in this case consists of a flexible member 32 and this element 32 or an end portion 34 fixed thereto as by welding or brazing indicated at 35 may be engaged in a chuck of a drill or other unit for rotating the tool.

The iiexible portion will preferably be formed by a closely wound coil spring of round wire as shown which has its end fixed in some suitable manner to the base 30 as by welding or brazing indicated by 33.

In this form of the invention and with the shank embraced in the chuck of a drill, the tool may be rotated as in the former case. It is not necessary and is sometimes impossible to hold the driving unit so that the axis of rotation thereof is directly in line with the axis of the tool since the shank may ex. This is advantageous in apparatus of this kind to accommodate any disaligmnent of the chuck and tool. The exible shank will readily flex to the desired degree and permit rotation of the tool without exerting sidewise pressure thereon in case the chuck and too-l are not in exact alignment.

Having described the invention in the form at present desired what it is desired to claim and secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

A tool for cleaning valve guide bores comprising in combination, a base, a center staff extending upwardly therefrom, a cap on the upper end of the staff slidable towards and away from said base, the said cap and base provided with recesses in adjacent faces thereof cooperating with said staff to form annular grooves opening towards one another, and a plurality of cleaning elements which are square in cross section and have intermediate offset portions and opposite end portions, the Opposite end portions of each element being disposed in the same plane and in substantial parallelism with theaxis of the staff and being nested in said grooves in abutting relation to substantially fill said grooves and prevent displacement of the elements, the said intermediate portions of the elements being offset outwardly from said end portions thereof and disposed in substantial parallelism with the axis of the stai and being twisted to provide a multiplicity of corner working edges which are substantially uniformly spaced longitudinally of the intermediate portions and disposed obliquely relative to the axis of the said staff, the said working edges of each element being presented outermost more than once in the length of each intermediate portion and adapted when the tool is rotated in the bore of a guide to shear foreign material therefrom.

OSCAR S. TYRRELL.