US2800042A

US2800042A - Miniature hand tool

Info

Publication number: US2800042A
Application number: US391269A
Authority: US
Inventors: Henry W Demler
Original assignee: AMP Inc
Current assignee: TE Connectivity Corp
Priority date: 1953-11-10
Filing date: 1953-11-10
Publication date: 1957-07-23
Anticipated expiration: 1974-07-23
Also published as: CH335330A; GB801437A; CH329888A; CH337898A; GB801438A; BE533170A; DE1763069U; GB801436A; CH337897A; FR1116167A; DE1102846B; DE1148612B

Description

y 1957 H. w. DEMLER 2,800,042

MINIATURE HAND TOOL Filed Nov. 10, 1953 5 Sheeis-Sheet l i -12 MIL-10 INVENTOR i u I .fi'nry Wflemler 1/0 46 4'8 160M216 28 6%; BY 0 (i5 I04 /J45 Ys July 23, 1957 H. w. DEMLER MINIATURE HAND TOOL 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 10,, 1953 INVENTOR Q ",9."

w... H ry W Demlr B! I filia Vilm "I A OR Lm y 1957 H. w. DEMLER 2,800,042

MINIATURE HAND TOOL Filed Nov. 10, 1953 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 47 INVENTOR '1 Henry WDmZer July 23, 1957 H. w. DEMLER 2,800,042

MINIATURE HAND TOOL Fild Nov. 10, 1953 5 SheetsSheet 4 INVENTOR Henr WDemZer ATTOR July 23, 1957 H. w. DEMLER- 2,800,042

MINIATURE HAND TOOL Filed Nov. 10, 1953 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 l4 \7 4/4 Ii? 89 36 IIIQ INVENTOR 88 Hnry W emlei' Un ted See Pe Toon HenryWfDemleij'Leb'auon; Pazyassignor to AMP lncorporatedya corporation of New Jersey Appiication'fibveinber 1'0. iysslsiriafNo. 391,269

6"Clfiili15; (Cl; 81""15) This invention relates to hand=operated crimping tools for crimping electrical connectors onto electrical conductors. Hand tools embodying the present invention can be usedto apply a variety of different types" of crimp to a variety of dilferent' types of connectors. However, the utility of the present'tool can be' most conveniently pointed out with reference to atypical applicatioiii ofthe-to'ol and will be so dscribediri thepresent specification.

Such a typical application is illustrated in Figures 16 and 17 of'the' accompanying drawings Wherein'the' nunierahlO- designates a connector c'omprisin'g' a tongue' portion 12' adapted to be secured to a" binding p'ost'or the like and a'b'arrel portion 14'. 'l -henuniieral 16: generally designates an insulated conductor with the insulation stripped from anendpo'rtion 18 thereof. The bare end 18 and adjacentinsulated; portion of conductor 16 'are inserted in'the barrel 14, after which th'ebarrel is c'rimpe'd to secure the connector to the end of conductor'l. As shown in Figure 17 the barrel 14 of the connector is crimped at two

points

20 and 22; The crimp'20 provides a connection between'the connector and the'b'are end '18 of conductor 16 and-the crimp 22seals'th'e banel'14- to the insulation of conductor 16.

The crimping of such a connector to aconductorcan be effected by either apower-op'era'ted or ah'and operated tool and tools of both types'have been previously'proposed. For fixed installations power-operated tools are generally preferred since they do not have thevpower limitations of'hand-o'perated tool's. Onthe other' hand, there are many cases where ready portability and/ or economy are of paramount importance and in' these situations a manually operated tool is preferred. The generalrequirements of such a hand-operated tool are: -(l)' that it be light in weight; (2) that'it be sufiicientl y strongs'tructurally to withstandtheusual crimping pressures; 3) that it be capable of delivering the desired relatively high crimping pressures by'a simple mechanical movement, e. g. the closure of a pair of handles and; (4) that it have a mechanical advantage such that thenecessary highcrimping pressure can be delivereld by application of relatively little manual force, e.- g. the force that can be conveniently applied by a Woman operator. i

It is evident that the simplest way of increasing the mechanical advantageof a crimping tool is to increase the length of the handlesaiid in a nnniheief previously proposed toolsthis' hasbe'eu done. However, an increase in the length of the handles also increases the weight of the tool which is undesirable. V 7

It is accordingly a priucipalobject of the present invention to provide a hand tool which in relation to its weight has a substantially iiighe'rmechaiiieal advantage than the tools that have previously been proposed. It is another object of the invention to rovide a hand tool thatis not only capable of developing desiredcriiriping pressures but is also relatively light in Weight and-easily operable with one hand; I

Itis evidentthat the force required toefiect acrim varies as a function of the exte'ht to which the crimping force need be appliedto-deform-th'e barrel 14:

2 operationhas proceeded. For example, in the initial stages of the crimping operationonly a relatively light 0n the dtherhand,-in the final stages-"of the crimping operationa relatively large force is required to insure a good electrical Contact between the barrel portion of the connector and the conductor. The ideal crimping tool from this standpoint would be one wherein the application of a'continuous uniform manually applied input force would produceat the 'crimping-diea force that varies in precise corr'espdndence Withtlie'forc'e requirements of the crimping operation. If, for example, the nature of the linkageused in the tool is such thait it develops a'maximurn' force at the die when'iti's only partially closed, then'a larger-and heavier tool mustbe used to'efiect a given crimp: In lilremanner, if the nature of the-tool linkage is such that when'it'is, for example; half-closed it de'vel'ops'at the die a-force that-is low in r'elation to the force required for the crimping operationg then a larger and heavier tool must be used t'o efie'ct afigiven crimp. It is accordingly 2.- further object of the present-invention to provide a tool having an actuating-linkage or such a character that the application of a constant input for'ceproduce's at the crimping die a force-displacement relationship which closely approaches the force displaceruent' requirements for crimping aconneotor; Other objects of the invention will be in part obviousand inpart pointed out hereafter.

The'many objects and advantages of the presentinvention'can best be understood'by reference to the accompanying drawings which il-lustratea handtool-incorporating a preferred embodiment of the invention and wherein:

Figure 1 is-a-side" elevation of the tool showing the general arrangement of the handles aud crimping head as well as the ratchet-mechanism interconnecting the handles;

Figure 2 is a top plan viewof the tool of Figure'l particularly showing the l'ocatinghead' of the connector locat ing' mechanism, portions of the crimping mold adjusting mechanism; 7

Figure 3 'is a side elevation of the tool showing the reverse side from that illustrated in Figure 1-;

Figure-4 is a bottom view of the tool of Figure l;

Figure S'is a-vertical section taken on the line 5-5 of Figurel and particularly showing-.thecrimping' molds;

Figure 6 is a vertical sectiontaken on the line 6-6 of Figure l and particularly showing the configuration of the crimping dies that are located at the forward end of the; reciprocating plunger;

Figure '7jis a-horizontal section taken on the line 77 of Figure 5 showing the reciprocating plunger in'ret-racted position and the locating head of the locato'r mechanism in fullyadvanced'position; V V

Figure8'is asection 'on line 88-ofFigu're -7 showing details of the crimping moldadjusting mechanism;

-F-igure- 9 is aperspective view-oia-portion of the crimping head showing the crimping mold and disassembled components .of the crimping mold adjusting mechanism; I v

Figures :10,- ll :and- 12 are vertical sections t aken on the lines 10-10, 11"-11,- and.1-2- 12 of Figure; 6 vrespesti'vely; H

Figure 10 particularly includes a-side view of. the reciprocating plunger and thecrimping molds anddies;

Figure 11 particularly illustrates the crimping ni'old adjusting mechanism p v Figure '12 particularly illustrates the details of the coniiector locating m 'echaiiis'in;

Figures 13, 14- and 15- comprise an exploded perspective View of the central portion 'of'the crimping head;

Fight-e13 shows the connector locator-nrechanism'stipporting block;

Figure -14 showst-he recipfocatorypliinge'r' with the criir'iping dies at-i-ts front end;

7 been crimped; and

V Figure 15 shows the plunger guide plate of the crimpcrimping molds and dies and showinga connector and V conductor in crimping position and also the manner in which the locator mechanism locates the 'connectorfor crimping; V k

Figure 1 9 is a view similar to Figure 18 but with the parts inlthe position theyoccupy' after a connector has Figure 20 is a view generally similar to Figure 18 dentation in the center thereof whichcooperates with the locating head of the locator mechanism to insure proper positioning of the connector for crimping.

Before proceeding to a detailed description of the structure shown in the drawingspit seems desirable to point out that in achieving the objectives of the present invention as outlined above two features of the present hand tool are particularly important. One of these is a manually operable quick-takeup link which moves the crimping die into engagement with the connector before the handles are closed to perform the crimping operation proper, so that. the full movement of the handles is available for performing the crimping operation itself, and so that a relatively wide angle between the handles can be used of this special linkage a force-displacement relation at V the leading. end of the plunger is obtained that more nearly approximates the theoretically'ideal relation for the crimping of the connector. 7

Referring to the drawings and more particularly to Figure 1 the tool there shown comprises a crimping head generally designated 24, a handle 26 effectively integral with head 24 and a handle 28 pivota'lly secured to the head 24. The

handles

26 and 28 are interconnected by a ratchet mechanism 30 which operates in such manner that once crimping of a connector has started the

handles

26 and 28 cannot again be opened until the crimping operation has been completed. Such ratchet mechanisms are known in the art and hence need not be described in detail herein. 7 a 1 Referring now particularly to Figures 7 and 14 of the drawings, longitudinally slideable in the crimping head 24 there is a reciprocable plunger 32 made up of the two

plates

34 and 36 which are secured together and are provided at their forward ends with the wire crimping die 38 and insulation crimping die 40, respectively. The die 38 is positioned to cooperate with a mold 42 formed 'but'showing'a tubular connector having a positioning in- T in the crimping head (see also Fig. 9) to crimp a portion 7, p

"of the connector onto the uninsulated end of the con- The die 40 is positioned to cooperate with a.

ductor. crimping mold 44formed in the crimping'head 24 to crimp a portion of the connector onto the insulation of the conductor. As best shown in Figures. 18 and 19,

the connector with the end of the conductorinserted' therein is positioned between the crimping dies and crimping mold and the plunger isadvanced toward the crimping molds to cause the dies 38 and 40 to cooperate with the crimping molds 42. and 44 to crimp the barrel portion 14 of the connector at two points as previously dehousing 46 that effectively forms part of the crimping head. Nested within the housing 46 there is a sub-assembly 47 that is particularly shown in exploded perspective view in Figures 1315. The sub-assembly 47 comprises in general a locator mechanism supporting block 48 (Figure 13), the plunger 32 (Figure 14) and the plunger guide plate 50 (Figure 15).

Portions of the plunger-actuating mechanism are also shown in Figure 14. Pivotally connected to the rear end of plunger 32 there is 'a quick-take-up link 52 that has a bifurcated upper end 54 which embraces the rear end ofthe plunger and is pivotally secured thereto by a pin 53. The handle 28, which is of generally U-shaped cross-section, terminates at its left end in a pair of

ears

28a and 28b that embrace boththe link 52 and the central portion of plunger 32. The

ears

28a and 28b are pivotally connected to the link 52 by a pin 56.

It has been previously pointed out that handle 28 at its left-end is .pivoted to the crimping head. a This pivotal connection is established by means of a pin 58 (see Figure 13) which is mounted in the block '48 and passes through ear 28b of handle 28, the plunger 32, ear 28a of handle 28 and plate 50. The plunger 32 (seeFigure 11) has a slot 59 formed therein to permit reciprocating movement of the. plunger with respect to pin 58. The assembled arrangement of the parts justdescribed is shown in Figures 6 and 7 of the drawings. 7

' Referring to Figures 6 and 9-11 of thedrawings and more particularly to Figures 10 and 11, the crimping molds 42' and 44 are formed in a crimping mold sup-*- porting block 60 that extends into the housing 46.

More specifically and as best shown in Figure 6 the inner end of the crimping mold block fits between the lowerpor a recess or track 68 formed in the block 60. As best shown in Figure 8 both the member 66 and track 68 have upper and lower walls that diverge inwardly in such manner as to prevent movement of member 66 other than the desired sliding movement along the track. The member 66 is positioned along track 68 to provide a desired clearance between the insulation-crimping die and insulation-crimping mold in a mannerthat will now be described.

Referring to Figure 8 aswell as to Figure 9, positioned within the'block 60 there is a mold position adjusting pin 70 having a knurled knob 72 at its lower end. At its upper end the pin 70 is provided with a laterally extending arm 74 adapted to engage one of a series of slots 76 formed in the top of block 60 in such manner that the pin is latched against rotation. A spring 78 interposed between the knob 72 and block 60 is biased to urge the pin 70 downwardly and thereby urge the arm 74 into one of the slots 76.

Near its upper end pin 70 is provided with two

flat surfaces

80 and 82 located at difierent distances from the center of the pin. As best shown in Figure 7 the pin is partially located within a recess 84 formed in the member 66. .The construction is such that the pin 70 acts as a stop to limit outward movement of member 66 and thus of mold 44. When the pin is in the position shown in Figure 7 the periphery of the pin is adapted to engage the inner edge of recess 84 and limit outward movement of member 66 when a connector is crimped. Inthis 1 position of pin 70 there is minimum clearance between die 40 and mold 44. If it is desired to increase the clearance between the insulation die and mold, the pin is moved manually upward by means of knob 72 to release arm 74 from one of the slots76, and then rotated that hand tools incorporating the present invention are capable of achieving the several objects set forth at the beginning of the present specification. By using the combination of quick-take-up link and special linkage described above a small light-weight hand tool can be constructed which develops a surprisingly high maximum crimping force. The quick-take-up link permits the use p of a relatively wide handle opening since it provides a means whereby the pivot 53 can be shifted to the left (as viewed in Figure 1) before an effort is made to close the handles. Also it permits the lost motion of the plunger to be taken up before starting movement of the handles occurs and hence a relatively large angular movement of the handles is available for a given displacement of the plunger. It has been found that by using the structure of the present invention hand tools can be made no more than 6" long which develop sur prisingly high and quite satisfactory crimping pressures.

It is of course to be understood that the foregoing description is illustrative only and that numerous changes can be .made in the, preferred embodiment described above without departing from the spirit of the invention.

For example, the quick-take-up link can be used in conjunction with a linkage other than the specific modified toggle linkage described and shown in the drawings. In like manner, by shifting the

pivots

53 and 56, an operative tool can be made without using the quick-takeup link. The pivot 58 can be spaced somewhat from the axis. of plunger 32, although preferred results have been obtained by locating pivot 58 at or close to the plunger axis, i. e. in substantial alignment with pivot 53 in the direction of movement of the plunger. Other modifications within'the scope of the invention Will be apparent to those skilled in the art. 7 V

I claim:

l. A pair of relatively movable crimping members each of which is provided with a crimping die, said dies being positioned to cooperate to crimp a connector placed therebetween when said crimping members are forced toward each other, the die associated with one of said crimping members being'formed on an adjustable support mounted in said'one crimping member for sliding movement toward and away from the other of'said dies, a die locating pin rotatably mounted in said one crimping member and having a series of flat surfaces located at difierent distances from the axis of said pin and selectively positionable by rotation of said pin to engage and limit sliding movement of said adjustable support, whereby said pin can be selectively rotated to 'vary' the crimping location of said adjustable support, and means for forcing said crimping members together to crimp a connector placed between said dies.

2. In a hand tool for crimping electrical connectors in combination, a crimping head having a first crimping die therein, a crimping member movably mounted in said head and having a second crimping die positioned to cooperate with said first dieto crimp a connector placed between said dies, said first die being formed on an adjustable support slidably mounted insaid'crimping head for movement toward and away from said second: die, means for applying power to said movable crimping g a member to force said second die toward said first die to crimp a connector placed between said dies, and a dielocating pin rotatably mounted in said head in the path of said adjustable support and positioned to engage and limit sliding movement of said support, said pin having a series of flat surfaces located at different distances from the axis of said pin whereby said pin can be selectively rotated to vary the crimping position of said first die.

3. A hand tool according to claim '1 and wherein said die-locating pin is provided with a laterally extending finger selectively engageable with one of a series of slots formed in said crimping head to insure proper positioning of said pin with respect to said adjustable support.

4. A hand tool according to claim 3 and wherein said die locating pin is axially biased by a spring to maintain said finger in one of said slots and permit axial movement of said pin against the biasof said spring when'it is desired to disengage said finger from said slot to adjust the rotational position of said pin.

5. In a hand tool for crimping electrical connectors in combination, a crimping head having a first crimping die therein, a crimping member movably mounted in said head and having a second crimping die positioned to cooperate with said first die to crimp a connector placed between said dies, means for applying power to said movable member to force said dies together to crimp a connector therebetween, and a connector-locating device mounted in said head for sliding movement therein, said locator device including a locating head having a projection extending therefrom and adapted to engage a notch in a connector to position the connector for crimping, spring-means effectively inter-posed between said crimping-head and locator-head to urge said locator-head into registry with said first die, and a manually operable member for retracting said locating head against the action of said spring-means.

.6. In a hand tool for crimping electrical connectors in combination, a crimping head having acrimping mold therein, a plunger mounted for reciprocating motion in said head and having a crimping die positioned to cooperate with saidv mold to crimp a connector placed in the path of said plunger, a pair of handles connected to said head and plunger and relatively movable to'reciprocatesaid plunger, and a connector-locating devicefor properly locating a connector between said die and mold,- said locating device including a shaft mounted for'axial sliding movement in said crimping head, a locator head at one end of said shaft, said head having a projection extending therefrom that is adapted to engage a notch in a connector to position the connector for crimping, a

compression-spring bearing at its ends against said crimp ing head and shaft and biased to urge said locator-head into registry with said crimping mold, and a finger-piece 'eifectively connected to said shaft for retracting said locator-head to permit insertion of a connector into said tool.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 455,183 Du Shane "June 30, 1891 1,613,715 Matson Jan. 11, 1927 2,329,385 Bratz Sept. 14, 1943 2,359,083 Carlson Sept. 26, 1944 2,544,329 Kirk Mar. 6, 1951 2,565,983 Nelson Aug. 28, 1951 2,574,811 Blumensaadt Nov. 13,1951

FOREIGN PATENTS 86,362 Austria May 15, 1921