Breakaway lug drive coupler of rotary knife
AssigneeHantover, Inc.
InventorClark A. Levsen
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A rotary knife assembly includes a rotary knife with a spinning blade, a motor operable to power the rotary blade, and a flexible drive cable connected between the motor and knife to transmit rotational power to the blade. The assembly includes a safety release feature drivingly intercoupled between the motor and drive cable so as to drivingly disconnect the cable and knife from the motor when excess torque is experienced. The safety release feature is in the form of a breakaway drive lug operable to normally transmit rotational power from the motor to the knife. In the event of binding of the knife or kinking of the drive cable, excess torque serves to break the drive lug in order to disengage the motor from the knife.
Claims20
A rotary knife assembly, comprising:
- a motor including a rotatable drive shaft;
- a rotary knife including a shiftable blade operable to be powered by said motor;
- an elongated, flexible drive cable having proximal and distal ends, with said proximal end drivingly connected to said rotary knife;
- and
- a drive connection assembly operably coupled between said motor drive shaft and said distal end of said cable, so that the drive cable is operable to transmit rotational power from the motor to the blade,
- said drive connection assembly including safety release structure operable to disengage said motor from said drive cable when excess torque is applied to the safety release structure corresponding with binding of the knife or kinking of the drive cable,
- said safety release structure including a breakaway drive lug having opposed end sections and an intermediate breakaway section,
- said end sections being operably coupled with the drive shaft and the drive cable, respectively,
- said breakaway section operable to break when the excess torque is applied to said drive lug.
A breakaway drive lug for a rotary knife assembly including a motor having a rotatable drive shaft, a rotary knife including a shiftable blade powered by the motor, an elongated flexible drive cable having one end thereof operably coupled with said knife, and a drive connection assembly coupled between the motor drive shaft and the end of said cable remote from said knife, said drive lug comprising:
- an integral aluminum body presenting a pair of opposed end sections and an intermediate breakaway section,
- said end sections being configured for operable connection with the drive shaft of the motor the drive cable, respectively,
- one of said end sections comprising an elongated segment having a non-circular cross-section, and the other of said end sections comprising an annular segment having a non-circular central passageway,
- said intermediate breakaway section having a cross-sectional area less than the cross-sectional areas of adjacent portions of the end sections such that, when excess torque is applied to the drive lug, the breakaway section will fail and the end sections will be drivingly disconnected.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.