Non-metallic body cutting tools
AssigneeNorton Company
InventorsKanishka Tankala, Rakesh Kapoor, Gary E. Johnson, Ronald D. Grieger
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A drill bit is provided with a cylindrical body portion fabricated from a plastic material. The body portion is fastened in concentric, end to end relation to a cylindrical cutter fabricated from a metallic material and having an array of cutting elements disposed thereon. The body portion and cutter are preferably tubular, wherein the cutting elements are disposed in an annular array, to facilitate core or crown drilling operations. The wall thickness of the tubular body portion may be increased relative that of the cutter to compensate for wear during drilling.
Claims44
A cutting tool adapted to cut a circular hole in a workpiece, the cutting tool comprising:
- a cutter of substantially cylindrical configuration including an array of cutting elements, said cutter having a cutting end and a coupling end;
- a shaft of substantially cylindrical configuration fabricated from a polymeric material, said shaft having a cutter engagement end and a drill engagement end;
- said cutter and said shaft adapted for concentric, end to end engagement with one another wherein said coupling end is substantially rigidly engaged with said cutter engagement end;
- said drill engagement end being adapted for operative engagement with a drill for rotation of said cutting tool about the concentric axis.
A polymeric body for a cutting tool adapted to cut a circular hole in a workpiece, the cutting tool having a cutter of substantially cylindrical configuration including an array of cutting elements, the cutter having a cutting end and a coupling end, said polymeric body comprising:
- a shaft of substantially cylindrical configuration having a cutter engagement end and a drill engagement end;
- said shaft adapted for concentric, end to end engagement with the cutter wherein said cutter engagement end is substantially rigidly engaged with the coupling end;
- said drill engagement end adapted for operative engagement with a drill for rotation of the cutting tool about the concentric axis.
A method of drilling a hole in a workpiece, comprising the steps of:
- (a) providing a cutting tool comprising:
- i) a cutter of substantially cylindrical configuration including an array of cutting elements, said cutter having a cutting end and a coupling end;
- ii) a shaft of substantially cylindrical configuration fabricated from a polymeric material, said shaft having a cutter engagement end and a drill engagement end;
- and
- iii) said cutter and said shaft adapted for concentric, end to end engagement with one another wherein said coupling end is substantially rigidly engaged with said cutter engagement end;
- (b) fastening said drill engagement end to a drill;
- (c) operating the drill to rotate said cutting tool about the concentric axis;
- and
- (d) engaging said cutting end with the workpiece.
A cutting tool adapted to cut a circular hole in a workpiece, the cutting tool comprising:
- a cutter of substantially cylindrical configuration including an array of cutting elements, said cutter having a cutting end and a coupling end;
- a shaft of substantially cylindrical configuration fabricated from a non-metallic material, said shaft having a cutter engagement end and a drill engagement end, said cutter and said shaft adapted for concentric, end to end engagement with one another wherein said coupling end is substantially rigidly engaged with said cutter engagement end;
- a connector concentrically and rigidly disposed on said drill engagement end, said connector being fabricated from a non-metallic material and having a metallic insert concentrically and rigidly disposed therein, said metallic insert adapted for operative engagement with the drill for rotation of said cutting tool about the concentric axis.
A cutting tool adapted to cut a circular hole in a workpiece, the cutting tool comprising:
- a cutter of substantially cylindrical configuration including an array of cutting elements, said cutter having a cutting end and a coupling end;
- a shaft of substantially cylindrical configuration fabricated from a non-metallic material, said shaft having a cutter engagement end and a drill engagement end, said drill engagement end being adapted for operative engagement with a drill for rotation of said cutting tool about the concentric axis;
- said cutter and said shaft adapted for concentric, end to end engagement with one another wherein said coupling end is substantially rigidly engaged with said cutter engagement end in a manner selected from the group consisting of bonding with an adhesive, melt lamination, mechanical interlocking, molding in-situ, welding, and combinations thereof.
A cutting tool adapted to cut a circular hole in a workpiece, the cutting tool comprising:
- a cutter of substantially tubular configuration including an array of cutting elements, said cutter having a cutting end, a coupling end, and an inner cutter diameter;
- a shaft of substantially tubular configuration fabricated from a non-metallic material, said shaft having a cutter engagement end, a drill engagement end, and an inner shaft diameter;
- said cutter and said shaft adapted for concentric, end to end engagement with one another wherein said coupling end is substantially rigidly engaged with said cutter engagement end;
- said drill engagement end being adapted for operative engagement with a drill for rotation of said cutting tool about the concentric axis, wherein during rotation of said cutting tool, said array of cutting elements defines a notional cylinder having a notional inner diameter;
- said inner cutter diameter being greater than said inner shaft diameter, and said inner shaft diameter being greater than said notional inner diameter;
- wherein clearance is provided between said notional inner diameter and said inner shaft diameter, and between said notional inner diameter and said inner cutter diameter, so that increase in said inner shaft diameter due to wear during core drilling operation of said cutting tool is compensated.
A non-metallic body for a cutting tool adapted to cut a circular hole in a workpiece, the cutting tool having a cutter of substantially cylindrical configuration including an array of cutting elements, the cutter having a cutting end and an other end, said non-metallic body comprising:
- a shaft of substantially cylindrical configuration having a cutter engagement end and a drill engagement end;
- said shaft adapted for concentric, end to end engagement with the cutter wherein said cutter engagement end is substantially rigidly engaged with the other end;
- a connector concentrically and rigidly disposed on said drill engagement end, said connector adapted to operatively fasten the cutting tool to a drill, said connector being fabricated from a non-metallic material and having a metallic insert adapted for threadable engagement with the drill for rotation of the cutting tool about the concentric axis.
A method of drilling a hole in a workpiece, comprising the steps of:
- (a) providing a cutting tool comprising:
- i) a cutter of substantially cylindrical configuration including an array of cutting elements, said cutter having a cutting end and a coupling end;
- ii) a shaft of substantially cylindrical configuration fabricated from a non-metallic material, said shaft having a cutter engagement end and a drill engagement end;
- and
- iii) said cutter and said shaft adapted for concentric, end to end engagement with one another wherein said coupling end is substantially rigidly engaged with said cutter engagement end;
- iv) wherein during rotation of the cutting tool, the array of cutting elements defines a notional cylinder having a notional outer diameter;
- v) the shaft having a peripheral shaft diameter less than the notional outer diameter;
- and
- vi) the cutter having a peripheral cutter diameter less than the notional outer diameter;
- vii) wherein radial clearance is provided between the workpiece and the shaft and between the workpiece and the cutter during cutting of the hole;
- (b) fastening said drill engagement end to a drill;
- (c) operating the drill to rotate said cutting tool about the concentric axis;
- and
- (d) engaging said cutting end with the workpiece.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.