US2544329A - Trigger release toggle clamp - Google Patents

Description

March 6, 1951 J/A. KIRK 2,544,329

TRIGGER RELEASE TOGGLE CLAMP Filed Feb. 21, 1947 Patented Mar. 6,

James A. Kirk, East Walpole, Mass, assignon to. James AgKirh and George E. Young, copart-i ners;X doin husiness as. Kirk Qt liming: Ma hine Gothas Walpole Mass 7 en age naw 21, we than can 1 This, invention relates to a toggle clamp of the type adapted, to be held in the hand and to grip small work pieces; Itis an' object of the invention, to provide a clamp of this variety having a trigger release by the actuationof which the toggle lock can be readily broken to release an article gripped by the clamp.

'5 Another object of the invention is to provide aclamp soshaped as to. facilitate the manipulatron thereof, the shape including a hand grip which may be in the form of a conventional pis :o'l' g ip-adapted to fit in the hand of the operaor. v f- For-a more complete understandingof the in.-.. vent-ion; reference may be had to the following description thereof, "and to the drawing, of which?- j I j Figure l, is a side elevation oi an embodiment of the invention, a portion being; broken away to show-in section; I 7 Figure 2 is a front end elevation of the same;

Figure 3 is a front end elevation of a modified form of the invention;

Fi e 4 is a section on the. line 44 of Fi ure 1;

Figure; 5 is a side, elevation of the. clamp shown in Figure 1, the clamping jaws being open;

Figure 61s, a fragmentary side. elevation of another modified form of the invention; F Figure 7 is an elevation of a pair of toggle pliers havinga toggle release device thereon. As shown inFigures l and 5, theinvention; may

embodied in a device which includes a member l6 havinga bore theiethrough. Integral with this; member is a work engaging jaw l2; and a hand grip H which may be in the formoifa conventional' pistol -grip.- ooperating with the clamp jaw l2 isan opposing jaw l6 which is on an end of a rod :l8. This rod fits slidably in the bore of the clamp member Ill and projects from the further end thereof. The projecting portion 20 is screw threaded- Mounted on the screw thread d portion 2|] is an internally threaded sleeve 22 and a lock nut 24. Projecting down from the sleeve 22 are a pair of ears 26 which are pivotally connectedto a toggle link 28 as at 36. A second togglelink 32 is pivoted at 34 to the clamp member' HL the link 32 being composed preferably of two parallel strips which are 9h .either side of the member ID. The toggle links 28 and 32 are pivotally connected to each other at 36 to form a toggle joint.

The toggle link 28 is made with an elongated extension 40 which projects beyond the toggle joint 36 and is shaped to fit against the handle Claims (01:. infi ld) gr p 14 so ast act as n, ratin l v r to. close the toggle. As is evidentfrom Figures. l and 5 the fingers or the hand inwhich the hand grip i4 is grasped can convenientlyextend about. the operating'lever 46iwhich can then be, actuated to rock the toggle link 28 so as to close the, toggle'. that is, to cause the toggle pivot 36 to move. up across the line of centers of the pivots 36 and 34. Such movement of the toggle results in forcing the sleeve 22 toward the right. This in turn forces the rod I58 and] they clamp jaw F6 to. the right, thus causingth e jaw 1.6 tofmove toward the jaw I2. In this way a work; piece can be enemy; and easily clamped'between the jaws "i6 and [2; with a firm grip. In'oider to adjust. the space/between the jaws wand IE2; tov aeoommoa date work pie'ce's'of diiierent sizes, the jaw I16 and the rod [8 may be rotated. The threaded eh'gagem-cnt'between the end portion, 20 of the rod i8 and the sleeve 22 results in axial adjustmeht of'the rod to the right or to the left. The lock" nut 24 is then set up against. the outerend of'the sleeve 22so as to lock the rod l8 against rotation and also to take the forward thrust; of the sleeve when the toggle is closed. As ind-i.- cated in Figure 2, the jaws l6 and F2 are pretenably circular so that adjustments between the jaws can be made toa vjery fine degree. by ad, justive rotation or? the jaw l6 through small an.-

gles." If preferred, the work engaging; jaws may be of square shape as indicated at 42 in Figure 3 or maybe of any other preferred shape. Where a square shape is employed, adjustments of the spacing'between the jaws must be by quarter turns of-thejaw 42 if the-rodwhich carriesthe jaw is in screw threaded engagement with the sleeve 22 as shown inFigure 1. Such threaded engagement with the sleeve is, however, not essential. If the sleeve is not threaded, it has a limited range of, movement with respect to the rod [8, its movement toward the adjacent end of the rod being limited by the nut 24, in which case the adjusting can be done by means of the nut 24 without rotation of the rod l8.

One of the further objects of the invention is to provide means forfacilitating the opening of the clamp by breaking the toggle when it is desired to release the work piece gripped therein. For this purpose the toggle link 32 is extended beyond the joint 36, the extension 44 being shaped v to act as a releasing lever. For this purpose the parallel strips constituting the link 32 are joined at a point beyond the link 28, the extremity being shaped as at 46 into the form of a trigger on which can be hooked the forefinger of the operators hand. For this purpose the extension 44 is bent or curved downward so that the trigger will extend roughly parallel to the operating lever 49. Thus, when the lever 40 is pulled toward the left, the toggle is moved to its closed position and when the trigger 46 is pulled toward the left the toggle is broken as in Figure 5. This provides for a rapid operation of the toggle clamp when it is being used, for example, to hold a succession of simi-- lar articles upon which a given operation is to be performed. For articles of a uniform size, no adjustment of the spacing between the jaws l6 and I2 need be made after the spacing has been adjusted to the first such article.

Instead of extending the link 32 to form a trigger 46 as shown in Figures 1 and 5, a short link 48 may be employed as shown in Figure 6, the toggle breaking device in this case consisting of a trigger 59 which is the long arm of a bell crank pivoted as at 52 to the operating lever 40. The short arm 54 of the bell crank engages against the forward surface of the handle grip 56 so that when the trigger 59 is pulled, the arm 54 pushes against the hand grip 59 and forces the lever 49 away therefrom, thus breaking the toggle.

Figure 6 also illustrates a clamping device by which the trigger clamp can be mounted on a table or shelf so that it need not be supported by the-hand of the operator. In such case, the hand grip S is'provided with a suitable opening into which can project from below a bolt 58 to receive thereon a nut 99. The bolt 58 projects vertically from a block 62 which is the upper j aw of a suit able screw clamp 64 by which the device is clamped to the edge of a table 66 or the like. By removing the nut 69, the toggle clamp can readily be detached fromthe supporting-clamp so as to be used as a hand clamp.

- The toggle breaking device illustrated in Figure 6 is shown in Figure 7 as applied to a pair of toggle pliers, the pliers themselves being old in the art. As shown, the trigger 50 is pivoted as at 52 to an extension 19 of a toggle "link I2 which is pivotally connected as at 14 to another toggle link'16, the latter being pivoted as at 18 to one of the clamp members 89. The short arm 54 of the bell crank of which the trigger 59 is a part bears against an edge surface of the clamp member 89 so that when the trigger 5|] is pulled, it forces the lever away from the clamp member 80 so as to break the toggle joint. The other clamp member 82 is pivoted to the clamp member 80 as at 84 and is pivotally connected to the link 12 as at 86, the structure and operation of this form of toggle clamp being well known.

I claim:

1. A toggle clamp comprising a member having a bore therethrough, a rod extending slidably and rotatably through said bore, clamp jaws on said member and rod respectively, a sleeve screw-threaded on a projecting portion of said rod remote from said jaws, a toggle joint connecting said member and sleeve, said joint consisting of toggle links pivoted respectively to said member and said sleeve and pivoted to each other, and an extension on one of said links beyond the common pivot serving as an operating lever.

2. A toggle clamp comprising a member havinga tubular portion with a circular work-engaging jaw at one end thereof and a hand grip projecting laterally therefrom, a rod slidably and rotatably fitted in said tubular portion, said rod having on one end thereof a circular work-engaging jaw opposed to the jaw on said member, a sleeve on and in screw-threaded engagement with said rod beyond said tubular portion of said member, a knurled lock-nut on said rod beyond said sleeve, and toggle means connected to said member and sleeve and operable to push said sleeve so as to draw said jaws closer together.

3. A toggle clamp comprising-a member having a clamping jaw and a handle portion having a-size and shape like a pistol grip, an elongated axially movable member arranged with respect to the handle as a pistol barrel to its grip, said elongated member having a clamping jaw movable therewith toward and from the first said jaw, toggle means for operating said jaws, said toggle means comprising two levers each pivoted at one end to said members respectively and pivoted to each other to form a toggle joint, the other end portion of one said lever being movable into juxtaposition with said handle to straighten the toggle, the other end portion of the other said lever resembling a pistol trigger in its shape and position relative to said handle.

JAMES A. KIRK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 495,793 Fletcher Apr. 18, 1893 r 514,752 Humphrey Feb. 13, 1894 952,079 McIntire Mar. 15, 1910 1,875,736 Johnson Sept. 6, 1932 2,112,193 Geddes Mar. 22, 1938 2,391,604 Wallace Dec. 25, 1945 2,453,041 Sharp Nov. 2, 1948

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