Caliper force indicator with tactile or auditory feedback
First Claim
1. A force indicator arrangement for providing user feedback regarding a measuring force applied through a force actuator to a caliper jaw that moves along a caliper scale member along a measuring axis direction in a caliper, the force indicator arrangement comprising:
- an incremented member for being coupled to one of the caliper jaw and the force actuator, the incremented member comprising at least a first incremented section having a corresponding first increment marker;
an engaging member for being coupled to the other of the caliper jaw and the force actuator, the engaging member comprising an engaging feature arranged to engage the first increment marker when the engaging member and the incremented member are positioned at a first relative displacement; and
a compliant element for being positioned to couple forces between the force actuator and the caliper jaw to provide force on the caliper jaw along the measuring axis direction,wherein the force indicator arrangement is configured such that when it is coupled to the caliper jaw and the force actuator;
the force actuator moves with the caliper jaw along the caliper scale member;
when a force is applied to the force actuator to provide a force on the caliper jaw along the measuring axis direction, the compliant element deforms such that the force actuator undergoes a forced relative displacement relative to the one of the incremented member and the engaging member that is coupled to the caliper jaw, and generates a measuring force that depends on that forced relative displacement and is applied to the caliper jaw along the measuring axis direction; and
when the forced relative displacement includes the first relative displacement, at least one of the engaging or disengaging of the engaging member with the first increment marker results in at least one of a tactile or auditory feedback being produced to indicate a corresponding first respective measuring force.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A force indicator arrangement provides tactile or auditory feedback regarding a measuring force applied through a force actuator to a caliper jaw. The force indicator arrangement, coupled between the force actuator and the caliper jaw, includes an incremented member, an engaging member and a compliant element. The incremented member includes increment marker(s), and the engaging member is arranged to engage the increment marker(s) to produce tactile and/or auditory feedback (e.g., clicks) to indicate an amount of measuring force that is being applied arising from deformation of the compliant element. Different increment marker configurations may be provided to indicate different levels of measuring force. A set of interchangeable force indicator arrangements with different force sensitivities may be provided for use in different applications. A retrofitable force indicator arrangement may also utilize a fastening configuration that is compatible with existing mounting features on existing caliper jaws.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A force indicator arrangement for providing user feedback regarding a measuring force applied through a force actuator to a caliper jaw that moves along a caliper scale member along a measuring axis direction in a caliper, the force indicator arrangement comprising:
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an incremented member for being coupled to one of the caliper jaw and the force actuator, the incremented member comprising at least a first incremented section having a corresponding first increment marker; an engaging member for being coupled to the other of the caliper jaw and the force actuator, the engaging member comprising an engaging feature arranged to engage the first increment marker when the engaging member and the incremented member are positioned at a first relative displacement; and a compliant element for being positioned to couple forces between the force actuator and the caliper jaw to provide force on the caliper jaw along the measuring axis direction, wherein the force indicator arrangement is configured such that when it is coupled to the caliper jaw and the force actuator; the force actuator moves with the caliper jaw along the caliper scale member; when a force is applied to the force actuator to provide a force on the caliper jaw along the measuring axis direction, the compliant element deforms such that the force actuator undergoes a forced relative displacement relative to the one of the incremented member and the engaging member that is coupled to the caliper jaw, and generates a measuring force that depends on that forced relative displacement and is applied to the caliper jaw along the measuring axis direction; and when the forced relative displacement includes the first relative displacement, at least one of the engaging or disengaging of the engaging member with the first increment marker results in at least one of a tactile or auditory feedback being produced to indicate a corresponding first respective measuring force. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A force indicator arrangement for providing user feedback regarding a measuring force applied through a force actuator to a caliper jaw that moves along a caliper scale member along a measuring axis direction in a caliper, the force indicator arrangement comprising:
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an incremented member comprising at least a first incremented section having a corresponding first increment marker; an engaging member comprising an engaging feature arranged to engage the first increment marker when the engaging member and the incremented member are positioned at a first relative displacement; and a compliant element for coupling the incremented member to the engaging member, wherein the force indicator arrangement is configured such that when it is coupled to the caliper jaw and the force actuator; at least one of the engaging or disengaging of the engaging member with the first increment marker results in at least one of a tactile or auditory feedback being produced to indicate a corresponding first respective measuring force arising from deformation of the compliant element. - View Dependent Claims (19)
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20. A method for retrofitting an existing caliper with a force indicator arrangement, the existing caliper including a caliper jaw that moves along a caliper scale member along a measuring axis direction in the caliper, the method comprising:
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providing a force indicator arrangement comprising; an incremented member comprising at least a first incremented section having a corresponding first increment marker; an engaging member comprising an engaging feature arranged to engage the first increment marker when the engaging member and the incremented member are positioned at a first relative displacement; and a compliant element for coupling the incremented member to the engaging member, and coupling the force indicator arrangement to the caliper jaw using a fastening configuration that is compatible with existing mounting features on the caliper jaw; wherein the force indicator arrangement is configured such that when it is coupled to the caliper jaw; at least one of the engaging or disengaging of the engaging member with the first increment marker results in at least one of a tactile or auditory feedback being produced to indicate a corresponding first respective measuring force arising from deformation of the compliant element.
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Specification