Two Plane Protractor and Display Device
First Claim
1. A two plane protractor for use in combination with a pair of trim pieces to determine miter and bevel angles for installing adjoining pieces of molding and trim, said device comprising:
- a base;
a pair of wall angle measurement arms pivotably mounted to said base and interconnected to one another through a gear assembly that allows said wall angle measurement arms to be angularly adjusted in unison relative to one another in a first degree of freedom;
a pair of spring angle measurement arms attached respectively to said wall angle measurement arms for rotating in a second degree of freedom about respective longitudinal axes of said wall angle measurement arms, each spring angle measurement arm for attaching to and holding a respective trim piece;
a first sensor for measuring angular displacement between said first and second wall angle measurement arms, which represents the wall angle of two adjoining walls with which said wall angle measurement arms are respectively engaged;
a second sensor for measuring rotational tilt of one of at least one said spring angle measurement arms about said longitudinal axis of said wall angle measurement arm to which said spring angle measurement arm is attached, which measured rotational tilt represents the spring angle between a ceiling and a pair of adjoining walls with which the trim pieces held by said spring angle measurement arms are respectively engaged;
a processor for calculating bevel and miter angles based upon the sensed wall and spring angles; and
an electronic display communicating with said first and second sensors and said processor for displaying the measured wall and spring angles and calculated bevel and miter angles.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A two plane protractor for installing adjoining pieces of molding and trim includes a first pair of wall angle measurement arms interconnected to one another through a gear assembly that allows the wall angle measurement arms to be angularly adjusted in unison relative to one another in a first degree of freedom. A pair of spring angle measurement arms are attached respectively to the wall angle measurement arms for rotating in a second degree of freedom about respective longitudinal axes of the wall angle measurement arms. A first sensor measures angular displacement between the first and second wall angle measurement arms and a second sensor measures rotational tilt of at least one spring angle measurement arm. A microprocessor calculates bevel and miter angles based upon the measured wall and spring angles. An electronic display digitally indicates calculated bevel and miter angles and graphically depicts icons simulating trim pieces and suggested placement on a compound miter saw for cutting the calculated bevel and miter angles.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A two plane protractor for use in combination with a pair of trim pieces to determine miter and bevel angles for installing adjoining pieces of molding and trim, said device comprising:
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a base; a pair of wall angle measurement arms pivotably mounted to said base and interconnected to one another through a gear assembly that allows said wall angle measurement arms to be angularly adjusted in unison relative to one another in a first degree of freedom; a pair of spring angle measurement arms attached respectively to said wall angle measurement arms for rotating in a second degree of freedom about respective longitudinal axes of said wall angle measurement arms, each spring angle measurement arm for attaching to and holding a respective trim piece; a first sensor for measuring angular displacement between said first and second wall angle measurement arms, which represents the wall angle of two adjoining walls with which said wall angle measurement arms are respectively engaged; a second sensor for measuring rotational tilt of one of at least one said spring angle measurement arms about said longitudinal axis of said wall angle measurement arm to which said spring angle measurement arm is attached, which measured rotational tilt represents the spring angle between a ceiling and a pair of adjoining walls with which the trim pieces held by said spring angle measurement arms are respectively engaged; a processor for calculating bevel and miter angles based upon the sensed wall and spring angles; and an electronic display communicating with said first and second sensors and said processor for displaying the measured wall and spring angles and calculated bevel and miter angles. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 19)
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17. A two plane protractor device for determining miter and bevel angles to install adjoining pieces of molding and trim, said device comprising:
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a pair of wall angle measurement arms pivotally interconnected to one another and angularly adjustable in a first degree of freedom; a pair of spring angle measurement arms attached respectively to said wall angle measurement arms for rotating in a second degree of freedom about respective longitudinal axes of said wall angle measurement arms; a first sensor for measuring angular displacement between said first and second wall angle measurement arms, which angular displacement represents the wall angle of adjoining walls with which said wall angle measurement arms are respectively engaged; a second sensor for measuring rotational tilt of at least one said spring angle measurement arm about said longitudinal axis of said wall angle measurement arm to which said spring angle measurement arm is attached, which measured rotational tilt represents the spring angle of a ceiling and a pair of adjoining walls with which said spring angle measurement arms are respectively engaged; a processor for calculating bevel and miter angles based upon the sensed wall and spring angles; and an electronic display communicating with and responsive to said processor for displaying calculated bevel and miter angles and depicting graphic icons that simulate at least one of suggested positioning of a trim piece on a compound miter saw and suggested angular adjustment of a compound miter saw. - View Dependent Claims (18)
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20. A two plane protractor device for determining miter and bevel angles to install adjoining pieces of molding and trim, said device comprising:
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a pair of wall angle measurement arms pivotally interconnected to one another and angularly adjustable in a first degree of freedom; a pair of spring angle measurement arms attached respectively to said wall angle measurement arms for rotating in a second degree of freedom about respective longitudinal axes of said wall angle measurement arms; a first sensor for measuring angular displacement between said first and second wall angle measurement arms, which angular displacement represents the wall angle of adjoining walls with which said wall angle measurement arms are respectively engaged; a second sensor for measuring rotational tilt of at least one said spring angle measurement arm about said longitudinal axis of said wall angle measurement arm to which said spring angle measurement arm is attached, which measured rotational tilt represents the spring angle of a ceiling and a pair of adjoining walls with which said spring angle measurement arms are respectively engaged; a processor for calculating bevel and miter angles based upon the sensed wall and spring angles; and an electronic display communicating with said first and second sensors and said processor for displaying the measured wall and spring angles and calculated bevel and miter angles.
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Specification