Rotary tool

• US 20110120738A1
• Filed: 11/23/2010
• Published: 05/26/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/25/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Electric Works Power Tool Company Limited
• Inventors: Ikeda, Masaki, Miwa, Tatsuya
• Granted Patent: US 8,689,900 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 173/2
• CPC Class Codes: B23B 45/02 driven by electric power
• CPC Class Codes: B25F 5/001 Gearings, speed selectors, clutches or the like specially adapted for rotary tools

Abstract

A rotary tool includes an externally operable operation switch; a motor serving as a power source; a power transfer block for transferring the rotation of the motor; a load detection unit for detecting an amount of load of the motor; and a control unit for controlling the motor. The control unit is configured to perform an operation control by which the motor is controlled so that a rotation speed of the motor is increased in proportion to the operation amount of the operation switch and a feedback control by which the rotation speed of the motor is controlled depending on the detection result of the load detection unit. The control unit inhibits the feedback control during the time when the operation amount of the operation switch is equal to or less than a threshold and performing the feedback control only when the operation amount of the operation switch is greater than the threshold.

Claims

1. A rotary tool, comprising:

an externally operable operation switch;

a motor serving as a power source;

a power transfer block for transferring the rotation of the motor;

a load detection unit for detecting an amount of load of the motor; and

a control unit for controlling the motor,

wherein the control unit is configured to perform an operation control by which the motor is controlled so that a rotation speed of the motor is increased in proportion to the operation amount of the operation switch and a feedback control by which the rotation speed of the motor is controlled depending on the detection result of the load detection unit, the control unit inhibiting the feedback control during the time when the operation amount of the operation switch is equal to or less than a threshold and performing the feedback control only when the operation amount of the operation switch is greater than the threshold.

2. The rotary tool of claim 1, further comprising a battery unit for supplying electric power to the motor and a residual power detection unit for detecting a residual power amount of the battery unit, the control unit being set not to perform the inhibition of the feedback control if the residual power amount detected by the residual power detection unit is greater than a threshold value.

3. The rotary tool of claim 1, further comprising a temperature detection unit for detecting a temperature of the power transfer block, the control unit being set not to perform the inhibition of the feedback control if the temperature detected by the temperature detection unit is greater than a threshold temperature.

4. The rotary tool of claim 1, wherein the control unit includes a high-speed mode and a low-speed mode in which a rotation speed of the motor is greater in the high-speed mode than in the low-speed mode for a same pulling amount of the operation switch, the control unit being set not to perform the inhibition of the feedback control when in the high-speed mode.