WO2011161712A1

WO2011161712A1 - Modular tool for mechanical working

Info

Publication number: WO2011161712A1
Application number: PCT/IT2011/000215
Authority: WO
Inventors: Davide Zennaro
Original assignee: Edil Grondaie S.R.L.
Priority date: 2010-06-24
Filing date: 2011-06-23
Publication date: 2011-12-29
Also published as: IT1400869B1; ITTO20100545A1

Abstract

A modular tool (1) for mechanical working is described, comprising: a supporting member (3); a working tool (5, 7) interchangeable according to the type of working; and an adjustable connecting member (9) adapted to connect the working tool (5, 7) to the supporting member (3).

Description

MODULAR TOOL FOR MECHANICAL WORKING

The present invention refers to a modular tool for mechanical working, in particular for working on gutters.

The tool of the present invention will be described below, in a non-limiting example, in the field of bending metal straps and bus bars for gutters, with an additional example in the field of cleaning the gutters themselves.

In the field of bending metal straps and bus bars for gutters, currently there is no known tool that allows such operation, apart from the common pliers or tongs, that however perform wholly unsatisfactory bends, since they do not result as linear, but irregular next to the point of the metal strap or bus bar not caught by the bending pliers or tong.

Moreover, with the presence of obstacles (for example tiles) near the bus bars or metal straps of gutters to be bent, the difficulties of obtaining a satisfactory bending increase. In the field of gutter cleaning, currently there are small shovels equipped with a handle connected to the lower collecting part of the shovel in an offset way with respect to the center distance of the shovel itself: this in order to be able to slide the small shovel into the gutter, to remove debris or material contained therein, without interferring with the tiles always projecting for a section above the gutter itself. These small shovels however are not completely satisfactory, since the handle connection is rigid and does not allow adaptations to the various situations in which an operator is, when he works on gutters.

Documents US-Bl-6526619 and CH-A-108974 disclose modular tools according to the preamble of Claim 1.

Object of the present invention is solving the above prior art problems by providing a modular tool for mechanical working that can be easily used in any type of working by replacing every time the necessary working tool and that, once used, can be easily adapted to variable working conditions, adjusting the tool in its various working positions . The above and other objects and advantages of the invention, as will appear from the following description, are obtained with a modular tool as claimed in claim 1. Preferred embodiments and non- trivial variations of the present invention are the subject matter of the dependent claims.

The present invention will be better described by some preferred embodiments thereof, provided as a non-limiting example, with reference to the enclosed drawings, in which:

- Figure 1 is a front view of an embodiment of modular tool according to the present invention, suitable to be used for bending bus and metal straps, in an operating position thereof;

- Figure 2 is a front view similar to Figure 1, with the tool in another operating position thereof;

- Figure 3 is a side view of the tool of Figure

1;

- Figures 3a and 3b are respectively a top view and a side view of a variation of the tool of

Figure 1;

- Figure 4 is a front view of another possible example of use, not part of the present invention, of the modular tool, suitable to be used for cleaning gutters, in an operating position thereof;

- Figure 5 is a side view of the tool of Figure 4;

- Figures 6 and 7 are side views of the tool of Figure 4 in two operating positions thereof;

- Figures 8 and 9 are top views respectively corresponding to Figures 6 and 7; and

- Figures 10 and 11 are perspective views of another example, not part of the invention, of the modular tool in two operating positions thereof .

With reference to the Figures, a preferred embodiment of the modular tool 1 for mechanical working of the present invention is shown and described. It will be immediately obvious that numerous variations and modifications (for example related to shape, sizes, arrangements and parts with equivalent functionality) can be made to the described tool 1, without departing from the scope of the invention as appears from the enclosed claims .

The modular tool 1 for mechanical working of the present invention substantially comprises:

a supporting member 3;

a working tool 5, 7 interchangeable according to the type of working; and

- an adjustable connecting member 9 adapted to connect the working tool 5, 7 to the supporting member 3.

In an inventive way, as shown in Figures 1 to 3, the working tool 5, 7 is a tool 5 for bending slabs, bus bars, metal straps and tubes, in particular for gutters.

Such bending tool 5 is preferably composed of at least ^'two plate members 12, 14 of a substantially rectangular shape, mutually flanked and parallel, and obliquely arranged with respect to the longitudinal axis of the supporting member 3.

Alternatively, the bending tool 5 can be composed of a ring (not shown) for bending tubes, in particular tubes with a circular, pentagonal, hexagonal section or the like. Obviously, the cross section of the ring will be complying with the section of the respective tube to be bent.

As shown in Figures 3a and 3b, a variation of the bending tool 5 is made through a plurality (in the shown case, five) of cylindrical projections 6 arranged on at least two parallel and mutually offset rows, in which a row contains three projections 6, while the other row contains two projections 6. Many other arrangements are obviously possible, with different numbers of projections 6, adapted to allow a further bending in particular cases.

According to an application example shown in Figures 4 to 11, the working tool 5, 7 can be composed of a small shovel 7 for cleaning gutters.

In such case, the small shovel 7 can be further equipped with an holding member 18 of the material collected on a gutter. Such holding member 18 can be composed of at least one bulkhead 20 adapted to be opened during the collection, and to be closed at the end of the collection, to allow moving away the modular tool 1 from the gutter without losing the collected material.

The holding member 18 is preferably actuated by an actuating member 22 placed on the supporting member 3 and adapted to be driven by the fingers of a user's hand to open and close the holding member 18.

In particular, the actuating member 22 can be composed of a small lever connected to the bulkhead 20 by connecting means 24, for example a spring.

Preferably, as shown, the adjustable connecting member 9 is composed of at least two toothed members 50, 52 adapted to assume different mutual engagement positions, to allow the rotation of the adjustable connecting member 9 in a range varying from about 0° to about 360°, and of at least one tightening member 54 adapted to secure the operating position of the adjustable connecting member 9 once having established it after the above rotation .

The supporting member 3 is further commonly equipped with a gripping handle 4.

With the above modular tool 1, it is then possible to quickly and accurately operate, as described below.

For example, in particular for operating a modular tool 1 for bending slabs, metal straps, bus bars or tubes for gutters, the main process steps are :

- providing a slab, metal strap, bus bar or tube;

- rotating the adjustable connecting member 9 in a range between 0° and 360° to obtain the operating bending position when there are obstacles to bending;

- securing the adjustable connecting member 9 once having obtained its operating position; and

- bending the slab, metal strap, bus bar or tube .

Alternatively, in particular for operating a modular tool 1 for cleaning gutters, the main process steps are:

- inserting the small shovel 7 into a gutter and sliding it for cleaning the gutter by taking the foreign material contained therein;

- if there is an obstacle to sliding of the small shovel 7, rotating the adjustable connecting member 9 in a range between 0° and 360° to obtain the operating sliding position;

- sliding the small shovel 7 for cleaning the gutter .

Claims

Modular tool (1) for mechanical working comprising :

a supporting member (3) ;

a working tool (5, 7) interchangeable according to a type of working; and

an adjustable connecting member (9) adapted to connect said working tool (5, 7) to said supporting member (3) ,

characterised in that said working tool (5, 7) a tool (5) for bending slabs, bus bars, metal raps and tubes, in particular for gutters.

Modular ^' tool (1) according to claim 1, characterised in that said bending tool (5) is composed of at least two plate members (12, 14) of a substantially rectangular shape, mutually flanked and parallel, and obliquely arranged with respect to the longitudinal axis of said supporting member (3).

Modular tool (1) according to claim 1, characterised in that said bending tool (5) is composed of a ring for bending tubes, in particular tubes with a circular, pentagonal, hexagonal section or the like.

Modular tool (1) according to claim 1, characterised in that said bending tool (5) is composed of a plurality of cylindrical projections (6) arranged on at least two parallel and mutually offset rows.

Modular tool (1) according to claim 4, characterised in that said parallel and mutually offset rows are two, one row containing three projections (6) and the other row containing two projections (6).

Modular tool (1) according to claim 1, characterised in that said adjustable connecting member (9) is composed of at least two toothed members -(50, 52) adapted to assume different mutual engagement positions, to allow a rotation of said adjustable connecting member (9) between 0° and 360°, and of at least one tightening member (54) adapted to secure an operating position of said adjustable connecting member (9) once having established it after said rotation .

Modular tool (1) according to claim 1, characterised in that said supporting member (3) is further equipped with a gripping handle (4). Process for operating a modular tool (1) for mechanical working according to claim 1, characterised in that it comprises the steps of:

- providing a slab, metal strap, bus bar or tube;

- rotating said adjustable connecting member (9) in a range between 0° and 360° to obtain the operating bending position when there are obstacles to bending;

- securing said adjustable connecting member (9) once having obtained its operating position; and

- bending said slab, metal strap, bus bar or tube .