US3761121A

US3761121A - Gripping tool with rotatable head

Info

Publication number: US3761121A
Application number: US00162136A
Authority: US
Inventors: A Reid
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1971-07-13
Filing date: 1971-07-13
Publication date: 1973-09-25
Anticipated expiration: 1990-09-25

Abstract

A gripping tool includes a shaft, a handle secured to one end of the shaft, and a tool head mounted for universal rotation at the opposite end of the shaft. The head includes a pair of resilient extending arms defining a gripping area into which a gripping projection extends from each arm. The tool is particularly suited for dragging standard gas cylinders over hilly terrains, the gripping projections being arranged to engage standard openings in the cylinder cap. The handle includes a freely rotatable grip extending perpendicular to the shaft.

Description

United States Patent [191 [111 3,761,121 Reid Sept. 25, 1973 GRIPPING TOOL WITH ROTATABLE HEAD [76] Inventor: Alfred E. Reid, Prospect St., pnfinary g f 3? g e:

Bethlehem NH 03574 Assistant xammero nny erry Att0rneyRose & Edell [22] Filed: July 13, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 162,136

[57] ABSTRACT [52] U.S. Cl. 294/26, 294/19 R, 294/99 R [51] Int. Cl. B65g 7/12 A gripping includes a Shaft, a handle secured to [58] Field of Search 294/4, 15, l6, 19 R, one end f the shaft, and a tool head mounted for 294/221 31,5315 99 R; versal rotation at the opposite end of the shaft. The

280/47-1 1! 47-15; 306/2 3 head includes a pair of resilient extending arms defining a gripping area into which a gripping projection ex- [561 References Clted tends from each arm. The tool is particularly suited for UNITED STATES PATENTS dragging standard gas cylinders over hilly terrains, the 3,265,430 8/1966 Jenkins 294/19 A pp g pwiections being arranged to engage Standard 2,589,612 3/1952 Herrington 294/99 R openings in the cylinder cap. The handle includes a 2,271,901 2/1942 Smith et a1 294/26 freely rotatable grip extending perpendicular to the 2,449,680 9/l948 Wak et al. 294/104 X haft 2,843,414 7/1958 Findiesen 294/4 Great Britain 294/22 5 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures PATENTED SEP25 I973 ATTORNEYS 1 GRIPPING TOOL WITH ROTATABLE HEAD BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to grappling instruments and, more particularly, to a tool for seizing and holding standard gas cylinders in order that they may be safely dragged across snow or a similar low-friction surface.

Prior art approaches to moving gas cylinders (such as standard hundred pound propane cylinders) over snow-covered ground have taken advantage of the countour of the cylinder itself. Specifically, the cylinder countour acts as a runner in the snow, permitting a rope or similar implement to be employed to drag the cylinder like a sled. The main problem with this type of approach occurs on hilly terrain where the cylinder tends to roll in a direction generally perpendicular to the direction in which it is being dragged. Under such circumstances the relatively heavy cylinder builds up significant rolling momentum and tends to unscrew the cylinder cap or tear the rope or other implement loose from the grip of the individual who is hauling the cylinder. Often if the individual does not let loose of his grip he is subject to being injured. For example, once the cylinder begins to roll the hauling rope begins to bind until it either breaks or exerts considerable torque on the hand, wrist and arm of the hauler. If a rigid bar-like member, rather than a rope, is employed, a sudden torque can actually break the haulers wrist if he does not release his grip. Moreover, if the hauler permits the implement to rotate in his hand he becomes subject to severe flesh burns.

Certain prior art gripping tools for liquid and gas cylinders take the form of a simple rod with a hook at one end for engaging gripping holes in the cylinder cap. Frequently the hook inadvertently actuates the wheel on the cylinder valve, opening the valve and spraying the pressurized contents all over the area, particularly on the feet and legs of the operator. Since the temperature of liquid propane, for example, is about -44 F, the operator is often the victim of severe feeze burns.

Inadvertent actuation of the cylinder valve is also possible if the cap unscrews from the cylinder when the latter begins rolling. The rolling uncapped cylinder has been known to strike objects which actuate or break the valve, causing a severe fire hazard and the real possibility of an uncontrolled jet-propelled cylinder causing untold damage.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an instrument suitable for an individual to safely drag or haul cylindrical objects across low-friction surfaces.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a tool with which gas cylinders may be dragged along snow-covered ground without danger to the operator. Specifically, the present invention is intended to avoid danger to the operator on hilly terrain where the cylinder tends to roll.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, a tool for hauling gas cylinders includes a handle, a gripping head and a shaft interconnecting the handle and head. The shaft and head are rotatably joined by means of a universal joint to permit the head to pivot in any direction. The head includes two spaced resilient arms having respective gripping studs extending generally toward one another. The distance between the studs is slightly less than the diameter of the cap of a standard gas cylinder so that the resilient arms may be spread as the tool head slides over the cylinder cap. The tool head is pushed over the cap until the standard gripping holes in the cap are engaged by the studs, at which point the resilient arms push the studs into the gripping holes. Any tendencyof the cylinder to roll during hauling causes the tool head to rotate relative to the shaft and handle, producing no rotation of the shaft and permitting the hauler to retain his grip without danger. In addition, the handle includes a rotatably mounted grip which prevents the hauler from suffering flesh burns and scrapes on his palm when the cylinder tends to roll;

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The above and still further objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description of specific embodiments thereof, especially when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the tool of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side plan view of the tool of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic illustration of the tool of FIG. 1 utilized to haul a standard gas cylinder.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring in detail to the accompanying drawings, the tool of the present invention comprises a head 10, a handle 1 l, and a shaft 13 joining the head and handle. Head 10 includes a universal joint or ball joint 15 of the same general type utilized in automotive vehicles. Ball joint 15 includes a main body portion and a forwardly (i.e. to the left in FIGS. 1 and 2) projecting stud 17 which is welded to or otherwise fixedly secured to shaft 13 in coaxial relation. As is well known, stud 17 is rotatable about its longitudinal axis within the body portion of ball joint 15. A grease fitting 16 is provided for lubrication of the ball joint as necessary.

Opposite sides of ball joint 15 are milled flat to smoothly abut

respective brackets

18 and 19. These brackets are generally rectangular, although this configuration may be varied, and extend rearwardly of ball joint 15 (i.e. to the right in FIGS. 1 and 2). A pair of

resilient arms

20, 21 are secured to respective facing surfaces of brackets l8, 19, by means of bolts 22, or the like, and washer plates 23.

Arms

20, 21 are resilient, preferably being made from strongly tempered spring steel, and extend rearwardly (i.e. to the right in FIGS. 1, 2) of universal joint 15 and

brackets

18, 19. A pair of

gripping studs

24, 25 extend generally toward one another from

respective arms

20, 21. Specifically, stud 24 is secured to arm 20 proximate the end of the arm and extends generally toward arm 21; stud 25 is secured to arm 21 proximate the end of that arm and! extends generally toward arm 20.

Studs

24, 25 are preferably angled slightly (about 9% from normal to the arms) so as to point slightly forward (i.e. to the left in FIG. 1).

Handle 11 is generally D-shaped and is preferably made from a section of cold rolled steel. The ends 27, 28 of the handle section are located at the mid-point of the arcuate portion of the D and project outwardly therefrom toward head 10. Shaft 13 comprises a steel tube which at one end 29 receives handle ends 27, 28. End 29 of shaft 13 is flattened to prevent handle 11 from rolling with the shaft. The handle and shaft ends are preferably welded together. A cylindrical grip 31 surrounds a bushing 32 which in turn surrounds the straight action of the D-shaped handle 11. Grip 31 freely rotates about bushing 32 and the handle.

As best illustrated in FIG. 3, head is adapted to engage the standard gripping holes provided in the cap of the standard gas bottle or cylinder, such as hundred pound propane cylinders. Specifically, a gas bottle 35 includes a cap 36 having standard opposed gripping holes or

openings

37, 38. The spacing between

arms

20, 21 when the latter are unflexed is preferably slightly less than the diameter of cap 36. As head 10 is pushed over cap 36,

studs

24 and 25 are contacted by the cap which acts to spread

arms

20, 21 further apart. Pushing of the head onto the cap continues until studs 24, 25 enter

openings

37, 38, respectively, at which

time arms

20, 21 snap closer toward one another and engage the cap. Cylinder 35 may now be pulled in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 3 without fear of

studs

24, 25 disengaging cap 36. To remove the tool from the cylinder, the head is once again pushed (opposite the hauling direction) toward the cylinder body until

studs

24, 25

disengage openings

37, 38. This is readily achieved because of the slight angle (i.e. from normal to the arms) made by the studs which permits them to slide out of

openings

37, 38. The sliding of the studs in this manner tends to spread

arms

20, 21 further apart until the studs completely

clear openings

37, 38, at which point head 10 may be removed from the cylinder.

An important advantage of the present invention resides in the fact that head 10 is freely rotatable relative to handle 11 and shaft 13. When a bottle or cylinder 35 is being hauled over hilly terrain and tends to roll in a direction normal to the hauling direction, no torque is exerted on either the shaft or the handle; therefore the hauler is not in any danger of having his wrist broken by the heavy rolling cylinder. The hauler can, therefore, prevent the cylinder from rolling away simply by holding on to handle 11. The cylinder, thus restrained at its forward end (i.e. at cap 36) by the tool, is forced to swing an arc about the hauler rather than roll down hill. Grip 31, by being rotatable about the handle proper, permits the hauler to maintain his grip even as the arc is swung; if grip 31 did not freely rotate, the handle would tend to rotate in the haulers hand, causing friction burns and possible skin tearing. The hauler can therefore prevent the cylinder from rolling away without endangering himself.

In the preferred embodiment the ball joint is preferably a 360 universal joint such as utilized in automotive vehicles. By way of example only, a typical tool might have the following dimensions and characteristics: Cap 36 on the gas bottle is usually between 3% to 4 inches, so that the spacing between

unflexed arms

20, 21 would normally be less than this. The arms are replaceable if broken and, as mentioned above, are preferably spring steel, tempered to a hardness of 58 Rockwell, and are approximately /8 inch wide (i.e. from top to bottom in FIG. 2). The

gripping studs

24, 25 are set at about 9 relative to normal to permit easy push on" and push off" operation of the tool. The

overall length of the tool is about 34% inches. The handle core 33 is preferably if! inch cold rolled steel and fits about 1% inches into shaft 13. Grip 33 is preferably 4% inches long. Shaft 13 has a inch inside diameter.

The total disclosed above has been described as having utility in dragging gas bottles over low friction surfaces such as snow. To this end,

studs

24, 25 serve the particular function described. The concept disclosed, however, has broader utilization, in that the universally rotatable head permits a rotating body to be hauled or otherwise moved by a shaft and handle without causing rotation of the shaft or handle.

While I have described and illustrated specific embodiments of my invention, it will be clear that variations of the details of construction which are specifically illustrated and described may be resorted to without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A tool for seizing and dragging a standard pressurized gas cylinder of the type having a cap with two diametrically opposed openings, said tool including:

a shaft having a longitudinal axis and first and second ends;

a handle secured to said first end of said shaft, said handle including a straight section extending generally perpendicular to said longitudinal axis and a grip surrounding and rotatable about said straight section; tool head including a universal ball joint having a stem secured to said second end of said shaft such that said tool head is universally rotatable relative to said second end, said tool head also including a pair of extending resilient arms defining a gripping area therebetween, said arms being spaced when unflexed by a distance smaller than the diameter of the cap of said gas cylinder, each arm including at least one projection configured to engage a respective one of said opposed openings in said cap when said arms are unflexed.

2. The tool according to claim 1 wherein said projection extends into said gripping area at an angle toward said ball joint of approximately between 9 and 10 relative to the perpendicular to said arms, said projection having a sufficiently smooth surface to permit it to slide out of said opening in said cap when said tool head is pushed toward said gas cylinder.

3. The tool according to claim 2 wherein handle includes: a straight section extending perpendicular to said shaft; and a hollow cylindrical grip surrounding and freely rotatable about said straight section.

4. The tool according to claim 2 wherein said arms are separable from said tool head and replaceable.

5. The tool according to claim 1 wherein said ball joint includes a casing which is milled flat on opposite sides, said tool head further comprising first and second brackets each having a flat surface abutting and secured to a respective one of said opposite casing sides, and means for removably securing each of said arms to a respective bracket.

Claims

1. A tool for seizing and dragging a standard pressurized gas cylinder of the type having a cap with two diametrically opposed openings, said tool including: a shaft having a longitudinal axis and first and second ends; a handle secured to said first end of said shaft, said handle including a straight section extending generally perpendicular to said longitudinal axis and a grip surrounding and rotatable about said straight section; a tool head including a universal ball joint having a stem secured to said second end of said shaft such that said tool head is universally rotatable relative to said second end, said tool head also including a pair of extending resilient arms defining a gripping area therebetween, said arms being spaced when unflexed by a distance smaller than the diameter of the cap of said gas cylinder, each arm including at least one projection configured to engage a respective one of said opposed openings in said cap when said arms are unflexed.

2. The tool according to claim 1 wherein said projection extends into said gripping area at an angle toward said ball joint of approximately between 9* and 10* relative to the perpendicular to said arms, said projection having a sufficiently smooth surface to permit it to slide out of said opening in said cap when said tool head is pushed toward said gas cylinder.