US2832121A

US2832121A - Clamp with wedge means

Info

Publication number: US2832121A
Application number: US371892A
Authority: US
Inventors: Mulder Rudolf
Original assignee: FABRIEKEN VAN KLINKNAGELS EN S
Current assignee: FABRIEKEN VAN KLINKNAGELS EN S; N V Fabrieken Van Klinknagels En Schroefbouten P Van Thiel & Zonen
Priority date: 1952-08-18
Filing date: 1953-08-03
Publication date: 1958-04-29
Anticipated expiration: 1975-04-29

Description

April 29, 1958 R MULDER CLAMP WITH WEDGE MEANS Filed Aug. '5, 1953 INVENTOR.

'PuDoL MuLmzR United CLAMP W 1TH WEDGE MEANS Rudolf Mulder, Santpoort, Netherlands, assignor to Elly Estie, Santpoort, Netherlands, and N. V. Fabrieken van Klinknagels en Schroefbouten P. van Thiel & Zoned, Beck en Bonk, Netherlands, a corporation of the Netherlands Application August 3, 1953, Serial No. 371,8h2

Claims priority, application Netherlands August 18, 1952 3 Claims. (Cl. 24-251) The present invention relates to a clamp for pipes, more particularly for scafioldings, which clamp is provided with clamping parts arranged crosswise, in which parts pipes crossing each other at right angles, are adapted to be clamped by means of clamping pieces (clamping straps) and keys or wedges.

In actual practice it has been found that to the existing clamps of this type the drawback attaches that, for example if the clamps are to be applied close to each other, it is not always possible to properly drive home one or more of the wedges, because the space required for 1,-

wielding the hammer is lacking.

This invention is based on the recognition that this drawback is due to the fact that in the known clamps of the type indicated the wedges can only be driven home in one direction, for all of said wedges are single acting.

The above drawback is eliminated if according to the invention the Wedges permanently connected with the clamp are double acting, i. e. they can be driven home in the one or in the opposite direction at choice.

In a practical embodiment of the constructional principle on which the invention is based each wedge may be constructed according to the invention as two keys that taper wedge-like in the same direction said keys being separated by a longitudinal slot and being interconnected at the two ends of said slot; said two keys, therefore, I

together form one wedging member that is permanently connected to the coupling; each clamping part of the clamp may then be provided with an eye, according to the invention, which eye-at least partly-is located at the one side of a forked end of the corresponding clamp piece (clamping strap) of the clamp in the plane of the slot between the prongs of the fork, the double acting wedge concerned being connected to the eye passing through the slot, the arrangement being such that the wedge can be brought from a position for driving it home in the one direction into the position for driving it home in the opposite directon by turning it through 180 about the eye.

The forked end of the clamping piece (clamping strap) is then so dimensioned relatively to one end of the wedge that the wedge by turning it about the eye may be brought in a position such that the forked end of the clamping piece (the clamping strap) may pass the wedge so that said clamping piece admits of being opened.

With a clamp according to the invention it is, therefore, possible, by a simple manipulation with the wedges to bring these in the most suitable position for driving them home in the one or in the opposite direction, while also, as circumstances may require, the clamp can be mounted in reversed position about a pair of crossing tubes, without this presenting difiiculties as regards the driving home of the wedges; by correspondingly turning a wedge about its eye, said wedge can always be brought in the position in which it can be driven home in the desired direction.

The drawing illustrates the invention with a single emhodiment.

Patent Q Figure 1 shows, more or less schematically, a clamp comprising double acting wedges according to the invention.

Figure 2 shows a part thereof in plan view.

The clamp according to the drawing comprises two clamping parts 1 and 2 which form a cross and in which tubes 3 and 4 for example of a scaffolding, which cross each other at right angles, rest. Each tube is clamped in its associated clamping part by means of a clamping strap 5 and 6 respectively. These clamping straps are identical, so that only a description of the clamping strap 5 need be given. This strap has a forked end with prongs '7 and 3, between which an eye 9 of the clamping part 1 is located. Through the registering holes in the prongs and the eye a hinge pin 10 passes, the ends of which are secured in the prongs. The clamping strap 5 is also forked at its other end, the prongs 11 and 12 being located farther apart than the prongs at the first-named end of the strap.

Between the prongs 11 and 12 an eye 13 permanently secured to the clamping part 1, is located, the hole in the eye extending partly above said prongs. The reference numeral 14 designates a double acting wedge which con sists of two

wedge halves

16 and 17, which are separated by a longitudinal slot 15 and which have their ends interconnected.

The slot 15 has parallel

straight walls

18 and 19. The one end of the wedge designated by 2%) is a little narrower than the distance between the prongs l1 and 12, so that when the wedge is positioned as shown in Figure 2 the clamping strap can be opened.

From the lower half of Figure 1 it appears how the wedge can be driven home from the left hand or from the right hand side; by turning the wedge about the eye 13 it can \be brought from the position shown in full lines into the position shown in dotted lines in Figure l and conversely.

I claim:

1. A scaffolding clamp comprising two portions hinged to each other to clamp around a scafiolding member, one portion having a U-shaped aperture therein and the other portion having an eye thereon projecting through said U-shapcd aperture in the closed position of said clamp, and wedge means comprising a pair of wedges tapering in the same direction and positioned side by side with their adjacent edges substantially parallel and the nonadjacent edges tapering toward each other and being smooth, end portions connecting said wedges at the ends thereof to define a longitudinal slot therebetween, the end portion connecting the ends of said wedges where the non-adjacent edges are closest to each other being passed through said eye, whereby said wedge means may be driven through the eye to wedge the eye and the apertured member and the wedge means is always attached to said clamp.

2. In a scaffolding clamp having two portions hinged to each other to clamp around a scaffolding member, one portion having a U-shaped aperture therein and the other portion having an eye thereon projecting through the U-shaped aperture in the closed position of the clamp, that improvement comprising wedge means: consisting of a pair of wedges tapering in the same direction and positioned side by side with their adjacent edges substantially parallel and the non-adjacent edges tapering toward each other and being smooth, end portions connecting said wedges at the ends thereof to define a longitudinal slot therebetween, the end portion connecting the ends of said wedges where the non-adjacent edges are closest to each other being passed through said eye, whereby said wedge means may be driven through the eye to wedge the eye and the apertured member and the wedge means is always attached to said clamp.

3. The improvement as claimed in claim 2 in which 894,104 Batt July 2, 1908 the dimension of the end portion connecting the narrow 1,570,226 Bosco Jan. 19, 1926 ends of the wedges and the narrow ends of said wedges 1,660,708 Grant Feb. 28, 1928 are less than the width of the U-shaped aperture, whereby 2,477,696 Kohnke Aug. 2, 1949 the narrow end of said wedge means can pass through 5 FOREIGN PATENTS said U-shaped aperture.

343,865 Italy Oct. 16, 1936 References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 389,217 Glenn Sept. 11, 1888