US2634475A

US2634475A - Quick-release screw clamp

Info

Publication number: US2634475A
Application number: US237757A
Authority: US
Inventors: Browne Jack
Original assignee: DIVING EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLY CO
Current assignee: DIVING EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLY CO
Priority date: 1946-02-28
Filing date: 1951-07-20
Publication date: 1953-04-14
Anticipated expiration: 1970-04-14

Description

April 14, 1953 J. BROWNE 2,634,475

QUICK-RELEASE SCREW CLAMP Original Filed Feb. 28, 1946 Jack Eran/n2 Patented Apr. 14, 1953 2,634,475 QUICK-RELEASE SCREW CLAMP Jack Browne, Shorewood, Wis., assignor to Diving Equipment and Supply 00., Milwaukee, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Original application February 28, 1946, Serial No. 650,916. Divided and this application July 20, 1951, Serial No. 237,757

1 Claim. (Cl. 24-135) This invention relates to clamps and has more particular reference to quickly releasable clamps. Clamps of this type have a wide variety of uses but are particularly well suited for use with diving dress such as shown and described in my copending application Serial No. 650,916 filed February 28, 1946, now Patent No. 2,569,451 and of which this application is a division.

In the aforesaid copending application entry into the diving dress is effected through a relatively large opening in the back. The back of the shirt portion surrounding the large opening therein has considerable fullness, and after the diver is inside the suit the fullness is bunched or folded together upon itself and conveniently closed with a fluid tight seal by the clamp of this invention.

It is the general purpose of the invention to provide a clamp having fixed and movable jaws brought into clamping engagement by means of a screw but which may be quickly separated to release the same from their clamping positions without actuation of the clamping screw.

More specifically it is an object of this invention to provide a clamp wherein the fixed jaw comprises the bight of a U-shaped bail while the movable jaw comprises a pressure block received between the legs of the bail and constrained thereby to sliding motion toward the fixed jaw upon actuation of a screw connected with the pressure block and threaded into a latch bar having a quickly releasable connection with the legs of the bail by which it is releasably locked thereto.

Another object of this invention resides in the provision of cam type hooks on the latch bar formed by notches opening to the opposite side edges of the bar and in which reduced portions of the legs of the bail are receivable, the hooks camming the legs of the bail toward one another during engagement of the hooks with the reduced portions of the legs of the bail so that the legs of the bail must likewise be flexed together before disengagement of the latch bar from the legs of the bail can be effected. In this way, the resiliency of the legs of the bail is used to hold the latch bar in position on the clamp to facilitate its application to the articleto be clamped.

With the above and other objects in view, which will appear as the description proceeds, this invention resides in the novel construction and arrangement of parts substantially as hereinafter described, andwmore particularly defined by the'appended claims, it being understood that such changes in the precise embodiment of the hereinafter disclosed invention may be made as come within the scope of the claim.

The accompanying drawing illustrates one complete example of the physical embodiment of the invention constructed in accordance with the best mode so far devised for the practical application of the principles thereof. and in which:

Figure l is a perspective view of the clamp of this invention;

Figure 2 is a cross sectional view taken through Figure 1 along the plane of the line 2-2;

Figure 2a, is a view similar to Figure 2 but showing the manner in which the legs of the clamp are momentarily cammed together by the act of engaging the latch bar with the same; and

Figure 3 is a cross sectional view taken through Figure 1 along the plane of the line 3-3.

Referring now more particularly to the accompanying drawing in which like numerals designate like parts throughout the several views, the clamp of this invention comprises generally fixed and movable jaws 5 and 6, respectively, a screw 1 for propelling the movable jaw toward the fixed jaw, and a latch bar 8 in which the screw is threaded, for quickly releasing the movable jaw.

The fixed jaw 5 preferably comprises the bight of a U-shaped bail, and extends transversely across and rigidly joins the legs ill of the bail to hold the same in opposite spaced apart substantially parallel relationship. While the U- shaped bail is preferably, although not necessarily, bent up from round bar stock of substantial thickness to insure rigidity of the bight or fixed jaw 5, it is nevertheless important that the legs ill have a length such as to enable them to be flexed slightly toward one another for a purpose to be hereinafter more fully described.

The movable jaw or pressure block 6 is in the nature of a crosshead slidably confined between the legs I!) by means of tongue and groove connections which in the present case are readily provided by grooves l2 in the opposite side edges of the block to receive the inner cylindrical surfaces of the legs ll! of the ball, with a slight amount of clearance between the inner sides of the legs and the bottoms of the grooves. At itsbottom the block is preferably made concave as indicated at [3, although it may have any desired shape to suit the type of article to be clamped between itand the stationary jaw 5.

The pressure applying screw '1 is joined to the movable jaw B by a connection precluding axial motion of the jaw relative to the screw but permitting the screw to rotate freely with respect to the jaw. For this purpose the screw has its end portion turned down to provide an annular shoulder 14.:toengage the fiattopsurface of the, block and a spool. shaped extremity I5 rotatablyreceived in a bore l6 opening to the top of the block medially between the grooved side edges of the block. The neck I! provided by the groove.

which the. opposite ends of the latch bar are re.

ceived to hold the same against motion lengths wise of the legs of the clamp. While. not essential, the inner shoulder preferably is chamfered slightly as indicated in Figure 1'.

The. latch bar 8 is threaded onto the pressure screw '1, which passes through the mid portionof the bar. Hence, when the ends of the latch bar are engaged between the

shoulders

29 and 2| on the outer ends of the legs i ii of the clamp, the; screweis in. effect connected to the legs of the clamp, and when turned by its handle 22, clock= wise with a right hand thread on the screw as seen in Figure 1, the screw propels the movable jaw 6 toward the stationary jaw 5. Clamping reaction of the, movable jaw, of course, is carried back to the outer shoulders 21 on the legs of the clamp, through the screw and the, latch bar.

One of the features of the clamp of this invention, however, resides in the readily releasable connection provided between the ends of the latch bar and the legs of the clamp at. their turned down portions !9. Part of this connection is provided by the engagement of the. shoule ders 2.11 and 21 at the ends of the reduced portion IS with the opposite faces of the bar to preclude motion thereof lengthwise of the legs lu It is also important, however, that, this readily releasable connection provide assurance against accidental movement of the ends of the bar out of the. spaces between the

shoulders

20 and 2|,

For this purpose, the bar is provided with hooks 23. on its opposite ends, formed by notches 24 opening laterally to the opposite side edges of thebar. These hooks are so shaped and spaced radially from the axis of the screw 1 that'they must. be snapped over the reduced portions 19 on the legs It during clockwise rotation of the bar 8 upon the screw, with the movable jaw it, of course, properly engaged between the. legs IQ. Accordin ly, the outer extremities of the hooks 23 are curved back slightly toward the screw 1 and have cam surfaces 25 thereon. to engage the outer surfaces of the reduced portions is as the ends of the latch bar are simultaneously swung 7 having reduced neck portions near th Thus, when the latch bar is in its operative position in which its opposite ends are hooked around the reduced portions [9 on the legs of the bail, between the

shoulders

20 and 2| defined thereby, the reduced portions l9 are disaligned; from; the exits of the; apertures 26 provide by the, notches 24, with the result that the latch bar cannot be accidentally swung out of its operative position. Release of the latch bar, of course may be readily accomplished by grasping the outer end portions of the legs of the bight and pressing themtoward one another, such flexure of the legs being possible by reason of the clearance between them and the opposite grooved sides of the movable jaw 6 between the legs.

The clamp Of this invention can be very quickly released from any article clamped thereby merely by swinging the latch bar in a counterclockwise direction, while pressure is exerted on the legs of the bail to align the turned down portions 19 with the exits. from the aperture 26. With the latch bar unhooked from the legs at; the. U-shaped ball the movable jaw Bmay be slidaway from the stationary jaw 5, and in fact lie-s moved completely from the legs of the bight aslong as. the legs are of uniform diameter or no, greater at their outer extremities than along the areas thereoi normally embracing the movable,

It is. noteworthy that the notches 2 4 in the latch bar open to those side edges, thereof: which require clockwise rotationof the bar on themes sure screw 1 for engagement on the hooked ends. of the latch bar around the turned down portions, 19 of the legs of the bail. With thisdisposition of the notches, the clockwise rotation of thepresa sure screw to propel the jaw 6 toward the stationa v jaw 5 tends t ld the latc ba p operly engaged around the turned down portions, l. 9..

Wherever there is danger of injuring the article or other means clamped between the jaws .5 and '6, it is desirable to employ some means, for proe tecting the clamped means or material. This, is. especially true for use of the clamp of this invention with diving suits to close the entrance p n n t t e suits, and. where the waterproof. material from which th suit is made may be. damaged or out if itis contacted directly by both the stationary and movable jaws of. the clamp, To. preclude such damage. a leather strap 2'8 having apertures 23 therein to receive the legs of the U-shap d bail, may be interposed b t een thev sta y d m v b laws. as. illustrated in Fig: ure

m t for go n description. taken together with the, accompanying drawing it will be, readily apparent to those skilled in the art, that this invention provides a strong clamping device which may be quickly applied to or released from the material .or other means to be. clamped.

What I claim as my'invention is:

A quickly releasable clamp comprising: a U-shaped bail having straight substantially par-@- allel legs resiliently flexible toward one another; a pressure block having elongated substantially parallel grooves in two opposite side edges thereof substantially conformin in shape to the inner sides of the legs or the bail'and in which the inner sides of the legs or" the bail are received to constrain the pressure block to translatory sliding movementalong the length of the legs and provide a detachable connection between the bail and the lock by'which th block; may be readily slid 01% of and onto the legs of the bail; said legs ends providing spaced opposing shoulders on each leg; a crosspiece; a hook on each end of the crosspiece to hook around the reduced neck portions of the legs, said hooks defining a pair of notches having their mouths opening laterally to opposite marginal edges of the crosspiece, and the notches having their inner portions offset away from one another with respect to their mouths, so that upon rotation of the crosspiece about an axis parallel to and midway between the legs the legs are cammed toward one another as their reduced portions enter the mouths of the notches, Whereby the legs must be flexed together upon engagement and disengagement of the crosspiece with the legs, and said crosspiece having a, thickness so as to be freely received between said opposing shoulders on each of the legs when the reduced neck portions thereof are engaged in the notches of the crosspiece; a screw threaded in a hole in the crosspiece with its axis parallel to and medially between the legs when the crosspiece is in engaged position upon the reduced neck por- 6 tions of the legs; and a freely rotatable but nonlongitudinally movable connection between the screw and the pressure block by which the latter may be propelled toward the bight of the U-shaped bail upon rotation of the screw in one direction in said crosspiece.

JACK BROWNE'.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 475,115 Inglesby May 17, 1892 480,810 Downie Aug. 16, 1892 2,147,160 Hagist Feb. 14, 1939 2,265,911 Landmeier Dec. 9, 1941 2,506,010 Berkenmaier May 2, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 853,787 France Mar. 28, 1940