Hand drill attachment

• US 6,926,473 B2
• Filed: 06/19/2001
• Issued: 08/09/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Actuant Corporation (Enerpac Tool Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Actuant Corporation (Enerpac Tool Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Luebke, Thomas M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pierce, William M.
• Application Number:
  US09/884,518
• Publication Number:
  US 20010053313A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,512 Days
• Field of Search: 110/816, 110/124, 110/241.R
• US Class Current: 408/16
• CPC Class Codes: B25F 5/00 Details or components of portable power-driven tools not particularly related to the operations performed and not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: B25F 5/02 Construction of casings, bodies or handles B25F5/006, B25F5/008 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 3/15 specially adapted for use during transport, e.g. by a person, vehicle or boat
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 408/21 with signal, indicator, illuminator or optical means
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 408/65 Means to drive tool
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 408/96 Miscellaneous

Abstract

A power hand drill has a subsurface object locator for detecting the presence of an object beneath a surface being probed with the locator. The drill has a housing with a flat accessory mounting surface having a pair of attachment tabs. The locator has a locator housing with a flat base and a pair of key hole slots engaged with the tabs for detachably mounting the locator housing to the accessory mounting surface of the drill housing. The locator includes sensing circuitry contained within the locator housing for detecting subsurface objects and has an object indicator mounted to the locator housing and connected to the sensing circuitry for indicating the presence of a subsurface object. A contoured surface on the locator housing provides a handrest for gripping when operating the drill.

Claims

1. A subsurface object locating accessory for use with a hand drill having a drill housing, the accessory comprising:

an accessory housing having a substantially flat surface for sliding across a wall surface and an attachment member located adjacent the substantially flat surface and including a keyhole slot having an enlarged area and a narrowed area sized and dimensioned to receive a projecting attachment member in the drill housing for detachably mounting the accessory housing to the drill housing;

sensing circuitry contained within the accessory housing for detecting subsurface objects probed by said accessory; and

an object indicator connected to the sensing circuitry for indicating the presence of a subsurface object.

2. The drill accessory of claim 1, wherein the accessory housing has two laterally spaced key hole slots, each of the keyhole slots being sized and dimensioned to receive an attachment member in the drill housing.

3. The drill accessory of claim 2, wherein the substanially flat surface of the accessory housing comprises a base plate, the key hole slots being defined in the base plate.

4. The drill accessory of claim 3, wherein the base plate is sized and dimensioned to be received in a mounting plate in the drill housing, the key hole slots in the base plate being removably attachable to a corresponding attachment member in the drill housing.

5. A hand drill including a detachable subsurface object locator accessory for detecting the presence of an object beneath a surface being probed with the locator, comprising:

a drill housing defining an accessory mount having a mounting surface for receiving a substanially flat surface and including a first attachment member;

a locator housing having a substanially flat bottom surface for sliding along a surface to be probed, the substanially flat bottom surface including a second attachment member engaged with the first attachment member for detachably mounting the locator housing to the accessory mounting surface of the drill housing;

sensing circuitry contained within the locator housing for detecting subsurface objects; and

an object indicator connected to the sensing circuitry for indicating the presence of a subsurface object.

6. The hand drill of claim 5, wherein the second attachment member is a slot.

7. The hand drill of claim 6, wherein the first attachment member is a projecting attachment tab sized and dimensioned to be received in the slot.

8. The hand drill of claim 6, wherein the slot comprises a keyhole slot.

9. The hand drill of claim 7, wherein the second attachment member comprises a key hole slot having an enlarged area and a narrowed area, and the projecting attachment tab of the first attachment member is smaller than the enlarged area of the key hole slot in the second attachment member and larger than the narrowed area of the key hole slot in the second attachment member.

10. A hand drill including a detachable subsurface object locator accessory for detecting the presence of an object beneath a surface being probed with the locator, comprising:

a drill housing defining an accessory mount having a mounting surface for receiving a substantially flat surface and including a projecting attachment tab;

a locator housing having a substantially flat bottom surface for sliding along a surface to be probed, the substantially flat bottom surface including a slot sized and dimensioned to engage with the projecting attachment tab for detachably mounting the locator housing to the accessory mounting surface of the drill housing;

sensing circuitry contained within the locator housing for detecting subsurface objects; and

an object indicator connected to the sensing circuitry for indicating the presence of a subsurface object.