Tool and method for garbage disposal installation
First Claim
1. A combination of a generally cylindrical snap-ring having two ends, a sink flange of an in-sink garbage disposal system having a tailpiece with a tailpiece outer diameter, and a tool for installing the snap-ring in a groove of the tailpiece, the tool comprising:
- a generally cylindrical main portion having a top end comprising a contoured upper surface adapted to mate with a bottom end of the tailpiece, an outer cylindrical surface with an outer diameter; and
a protrusion extending radially outward from the outer cylindrical surface;
wherein the snap-ring is mounted onto the tool by at least one end of the snap-ring being forced against a surface of the protrusion to retain the snap-ring on the tool while the snap-ring is moved to a mounted position wherein the snap-ring coaxially extends around the main portion;
wherein, upon said mating of the contoured upper surface with the bottom end of the tailpiece, the snap-ring is slideable upward away from the protrusion, onto the tailpiece, and into the groove.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A tool aligns a snap-ring with a sink-flange tailpiece of a garbage disposal, and is used to slide the ring up along the tailpiece outer surface to a groove. The tool expands the snap-ring, prior to installation on the tailpiece, by an expansion mechanism, to a diameter that is slightly larger than the outer diameter of the tailpiece. The tool receives a stack of conventional disposal components on the tool top end, so the user with one hand can raise the tool and the stack to the tailpiece, and the fingers and thumb of the one hand can push the expanded snap-ring upward to reach and snap into the groove. The expansion mechanism may be a tapered tool bottom end, an expander tab, and/or an adaptation wherein the tool is reduced in diameter to fit inside a relaxed snap-ring and then increased in diameter to expand the snap-ring.
9 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A combination of a generally cylindrical snap-ring having two ends, a sink flange of an in-sink garbage disposal system having a tailpiece with a tailpiece outer diameter, and a tool for installing the snap-ring in a groove of the tailpiece, the tool comprising:
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a generally cylindrical main portion having a top end comprising a contoured upper surface adapted to mate with a bottom end of the tailpiece, an outer cylindrical surface with an outer diameter; and a protrusion extending radially outward from the outer cylindrical surface; wherein the snap-ring is mounted onto the tool by at least one end of the snap-ring being forced against a surface of the protrusion to retain the snap-ring on the tool while the snap-ring is moved to a mounted position wherein the snap-ring coaxially extends around the main portion; wherein, upon said mating of the contoured upper surface with the bottom end of the tailpiece, the snap-ring is slideable upward away from the protrusion, onto the tailpiece, and into the groove. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A combination of a generally cylindrical snap-ring having two ends and extending around an open center space, a sink flange of an in-sink garbage disposal system having a tailpiece with a tailpiece outer diameter, and a tool for installing the snap-ring in a groove of the tailpiece, the tool comprising:
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a generally cylindrical, hollow main portion formed by a curved wall an outer cylindrical surface, the main portion having a top end comprising a contoured upper surface adapted to mate with a bottom end of the tailpiece, and a slit through the curved wall to form two wall ends; wherein the tool is flexible to an extent that is it movable into a reduced diameter configuration so that the tool is insertable into the center space of the snap-ring; and wherein the tool in the center space is expandable into an enlarged diameter configuration, with the snap-ring coaxially extending around the main portion, so that the snap-ring is forced to expand to an enlarged diameter that is larger than the tailpiece outer diameter; wherein, upon said mating of the contoured upper surface with the bottom end of the tailpiece, the snap-ring is slideable upward onto the tailpiece and into the groove. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification