Ratchet screwdriver with actuator cap and method
AssigneePilling Weck Incorporated
InventorsHua Gao, James Rinner
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A ratchet screwdriver having a base assembly including a handle and an insert, and having a can rotatable on the base assembly, and there is pawl mechanism which is controlled by the cap. There is an intervening member in the form of a detent to serve as a stop for restricting the axial movement of the cap relative to the base assembly, so the cap cannot be removed from the base assembly until the detent is released. The detent, or other parts of the screwdriver, can serve as a rotation stop for the can which has selective positions for setting the ratcheting position of the screwdriver.
Claims4
A method pertaining to a ratchet screwdriver having an elongated axis for controlling rotational and axial movement of a cap on a ratchet screwdriver which has a base assembly and a pawl mechanism and a cap axially movable and rotatable on the base assembly and operative to actuate the pawl mechanism upon rotation of the cap, the steps comprising:
- interposing a movable restrainer between said base assembly and said cap and having said restrainer movable radially relative to said axis for restraining said cap against both rotational and axial movement relative to said base assembly when said restrainer is in a first position relative to said base assembly,
- applying a spring against said restrainer for yieldingly urging said restrainer into said first position, and
- providing in the screwdriver an access opening in communication with said restrainer and depressing said restrainer radially relative to said axis and against said spring for urging said restrainer away from said first position and into a second position to thereby release and remove said cap from both the rotation and axial movement restriction relative to said base assembly.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.