Pliers with jaw spacing and load measuring readings

• US 6,739,068 B1
• Filed: 01/06/2003
• Issued: 05/25/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 01/06/2003
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Tecomet, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Pilling Weck Incorporated (Teleflex Incorporated)
• Inventors: Rinner, James A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Fulton, Christopher W.
• Application Number:
  US10/336,677
• Time in Patent Office: 505 Days
• Field of Search: 337/83, 337/84, 337/92, 337/94, 337/97, 337/98, 338/00, 338/01, 338/06, 338/07, 338/13, 338/15, 335/12, 335/42, 712/5, 606/57
• US Class Current: 33/783
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/025 Joint distractors
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/2804 with two or more pivotal connections A61B17/29 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/2812 with a single pivotal connection A61B17/29 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0256 for the spine
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/061 for measuring dimensions, e.g. length
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/064 for measuring force, pressure or mechanical tension

Abstract

A pliers with two handles and two jaw portions, all pivoted together. Two readable combinations, each having a scale and a pointer, are on the handles to respectively reveal the amount of pivot and the force applied to a workpiece. A parallel linkage assembly can be attached to the jaw portions for contacting the workpiece, and, because of the parallelism, the location of the contact with the workpiece is not critical to the readings.

Claims

1. Pliers with jaw spacing and load measuring readings, comprising:

two jaws movable toward and away relative to each other,

a first handle and a second handle pivoted together and operative on said jaws for moving said jaws in response to force on said handles for pivoting said handles,

a graduated scale on said first handle for movement therewith and extending to said second handle,

a marker on said second handle adjacent said graduated scale for revealing a pivoted relationship between said handles and thus reveal a spacing between said jaws,

a resilient portion included in said second handle for movement of said second handle relative to said first handle and in addition to the aforementioned pivoting of said handles and in response to force on said second handle and thereby on said jaws, and

a combination of a scale and pointer on said second handle for measuring the additional movement.

2. The pliers with jaw spacing and load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 1, including:

said scales being disposed offset from each other whereby said scales and said marker and said pointer can all be simultaneously viewed while the pliers remain in one position.

3. Pliers with jaw spacing and load measuring readings, comprising:

two jaws movable toward and away relative to each other,

a first handle and a second handle pivoted together and operative on said jaws for moving said jaws,

a graduated scale on said first handle for movement therewith and extending to said second handle,

a marker on said second handle adjacent said graduated scale for revealing a pivoted relationship between said handles and thus reveal a spacing between said jaws,

a resilient portion included in one of said handles for movement of said one of said handles in addition to the pivoting of said handles and in response to force on said handles and thereby on said jaws, and

a combination of a scale and pointer on said one of said handles for measuring the additional movement.

4. The pliers with jaw spacing and load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 3, including:

said scales being disposed offset from each other whereby said scales and said marker and said pointer can all be simultaneously viewed from the handle end of the pliers from one viewing perspective.

5. The pliers with jaw spacing and load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 3, wherein:

said one of said handles has a length and said resilient portion extends along said length and has a first end connected adjacent said jaws and a second end distal from said first end, for flexing said resilient portion in response to forces on said handles, and

said pointer is anchored adjacent said first end and extends to adjacent said second end where said pointer is free to remain in position upon flexing said resilient portion.

6. The pliers with jaw spacing and load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 3, including:

a threaded member connected between said handles for threadedly controlling the movement between said handles.

7. The pliers with jaw spacing and load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 3, including:

said jaws being in a parallel linkage assembly on said handles for parallel movement of said jaws relative to each other and in response to pivoting of said handles.

8. Pliers with load measuring readings, comprising:

two jaws movable toward and away relative to each other,

a first handle and a second handle pivoted together for initial movement therebetween and being operative on said jaws for movement of said jaws,

a resilient portion included in one of said handles for movement of said one of said handles in addition to the initial movement and in response to force on said handles and thereby on said jaws, and

a scale and pointer combination on said one of said handles for measuring the additional movement.

9. The pliers with load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 8, wherein:

there is a marker on one of said handles and is disposed relative to the scale of said combination and the pointer of said combination is restrictively guided on said one of said handles and is thereby aligned relative to said marker.

10. The pliers with load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 8, including:

a threaded member connected between said handles for threadedly controlling the movement between said handles.

11. The pliers with load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 8, including:

said jaws being in a parallel linkage assembly on said handles for parallel movement of said jaws relative to each other and in response to the movement of said handles.

12. The pliers with load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 8, including:

an additional pointer and scale operative between said handles for revealing the amount of movement between said handles.

13. Pliers with load measuring readings, comprising:

two jaws movable toward and away relative to each other,

a first handle and a second handle connected for pivotal movement and being operative on said jaws for movement of said jaws,

one of said handles having a first length rigidly connected with one of said jaws and having a second length extending beyond said first length and being of resilient material for moving relative to said first length beyond said pivotal movement and doing so in response to force on said one of said handles,

a pointer on said first length and extending beyond said second length to a distal end of said pointer, and

a scale on said one of said handles adjacent said pointer distal end for measuring the force transmitted through said resilient material.

14. The pliers with load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 13, wherein:

said pointer is restrictively mounted on said one of said handles at said first length thereof for restrictive alignment with said scale and said pointer is of a length equal to the length of said resilient member.

15. Pliers with load measuring readings, comprising:

two jaws movable toward and away relative to each other,

handles pivoted together for initial relative movement therebetween and being operative on said jaws for movement of said jaws into contact with a workpiece,

said handles being capable of additional relative movement while in contact with said workpiece, and

an indicator on said handles for measuring the additional movement.

16. The pliers with load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 15, wherein:

said indicator includes a pointer on one of said handles and a scale on the other of said handles and said pointer and said scale are restrictively mounted for alignment therebetween for zero setting thereof.

17. The pliers with load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 15, including:

a threaded member connected between said handles for threadedly controlling the movement between said handles.

18. The pliers with load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 15, including:

said jaws being in a parallel linkage assembly on said handles for parallel movement of said jaws relative to each other and in response to the movement of said handles.

19. The pliers with load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 18, including:

flat blades on said assembly for engaging the workpiece.

20. The pliers with load measuring readings, as claimed in claim 15, including:

a pointer and scale operative between said handles and in addition to said indicator for revealing the amount of movement between said handles.

21. A method of making load measuring readings on a workpiece and with a pliers instrument which has an pivoted assembly of two handles and two jaws pivoted together at a pivot point and with both said handles and both said jaw extending away from said pivot point, comprising the steps of:

articularly connecting a linkage assembly of a plurality of links to said jaws to extend from said jaws and away from said pivot point and with two of said links being parallel to each other and each having a first end pivotally connected to said jaws and each having a portion extending away from said first end,

contacting the workpiece with said portions at any location along the extent of said portions,

pivoting said jaws and thereby moving said two links relative to each other while retaining the parallel relationship between said links and thereby produce only one amount of force on the workpiece regardless of the location of the contact by said portions on the workpiece, and thereby circumventing the torquing action otherwise inherent in the pivoting of said jaws, and

providing a scale and pointer on said handles and reading the indication on the scale and pointer to thereby determine the amount of force being applied when said jaws contact the workpiece.

22. The method of making load measuring readings on a workpiece, as claimed in claim 21, including the step of:

causing said handles to flex under the force on said workpiece and moving said pointer in response to the amount of flexing and reading the total amount of force indicated by said pointer on said scale.

23. The method of making readings on a workpiece, as claimed in claim 21, including the step of:

actuating a scale and marker on said handles and reading the spacing between said jaws when said jaws are in contact with the workpiece.