Belt clip for hand-held power tools

The combination of a side-mounted belt clip and a power tool comprising:

• a housing with a barrel portion and a pistol grip portion, the barrel portion at least partially enclosing a rotary motor, the pistol grip portion having a switch which controls the rotary motor, the barrel portion having a first side portion, a top side portion, a second side portion opposite the first side portion, a bottom side portion, and a back side portion, the pistol grip portion attached to the bottom side portion;
• and
• a belt clip selectively detachably mountable by a user directly and independently to the first side portion of the housing to remain mounted to the first side portion while the drill/driver is used, all of the contact between the belt clip and the housing that occurs when the belt clip is mounted to the housing defining a tool mating surface on the belt clip whereby any point on the belt clip that is in contact with the housing when the belt clip is mounted to the housing lies on the tool mating surface, and
• wherein the tool mating surface is in contact with only the first side portion of the housing when the belt clip is mounted to the housing.

A drill/driver comprising:

• a housing with a barrel portion and a pistol grip portion;
• the barrel portion having a first side portion, a top side portion, a second side portion, a bottom side portion, and a back side portion, the barrel portion at least partially enclosing a rotary motor;
• the pistol grip portion attached to the bottom side portion, the pistol grip portion having a switch which controls the rotary motor;
• a belt clip mounted directly and only to the first side portion, the belt clip comprising a first and a second projection, the first projection extending away from the first side portion at a first end and attached to the second projection at a second end, the first projection spacing the second projection away from the first side portion, the second projection being spaced away from the first side portion and extending from the second end of the first projection in a direction generally adjacent to the first side portion, the second projection forming a receiving space between the belt clip and the first side portion.

A hand-held drill/driver comprising:

• a housing with a barrel portion and a pistol grip portion, the barrel portion at least partially enclosing a rotary motor, the pistol grip portion having a switch which controls the rotary motor, the barrel portion having a first side portion, a top side portion, a second side portion opposite the first side portion, a bottom side portion, and a back side portion, the pistol grip portion attached to the bottom side portion;
• at least one attaching means for mounting a belt clip on the housing, the at least one attaching means associated with a raised pad which is elevated from at least part of the housing immediately surrounding the raised pad to create a lip extending at least part way around the intersection of the raised pad and the housing, the raised pad being integrally formed on the first side portion of the housing;
• and
• a belt clip mounted directly to the housing by the at least one attaching means, the belt clip having a tool mating surface defined where the belt clip contacts the housing, the tool mating surface at least partially abutting the raised pad.

A hand-held power tool comprising:

• a housing;
• at least a first attaching means provided on the housing for selectively detachably mounting a belt clip to the housing and a second attaching means provided on the housing for selectively detachably mounting a belt clip to the housing;
• and
• a belt clip selectively detachably mountable by a user to the housing,
• the belt clip being selectively detachably mountable to the housing at a first position through the use of the first attaching means and without the use of the second attaching means, and
• the belt clip being selectively detachably mountable to the housing at a second position different from the first position through the use of the second attaching means and without the use of the first attaching means.

A hand-held power tool comprising:

• a housing;
• at least a first attaching means and a second attaching means provided on the housing for selectively detachably mounting a belt clip to the housing;
• and
• a belt clip selectively detachably mountable by a user to the housing,
• the belt clip being selectively detachably mountable to the housing at a first position through the use of the first attaching means;
• the belt clip being selectively detachably mountable to the housing at a second position different from the first position through the use of the second attaching means;
• wherein in each of the first position and the second position the belt clip defines a receiving space between the belt clip and the housing which receives an accommodating surface between the belt clip and the housing when the hand-held power tool is suspended from the accommodating surface.

A hand-held power tool comprising:

• a housing having a fastener receiving recess;
• a belt clip selectively detachably mounted to the housing through attachment of a belt clip fastener to the fastener receiving recess, the belt clip fastener being selectively detachable and reattachable by a user to the fastener receiving recess;
• one of the belt clip or the housing having an indexing projection extending therefrom;
• and
• the other of the belt clip or the housing having an indexing projection receiving recess which receives the indexing projection and laterally holds the indexing projection further restricting the movement of the belt clip when the belt clip is mounted to the housing.

A hand-held power tool comprising:

• a housing;
• the housing having a raised pad which is elevated from at least part of the housing immediately surrounding the raised pad to create a lip extending around the intersection of the raised pad and the housing;
• a belt clip mounted to the housing wherein all of the contact between the belt clip and the housing defines a tool mating surface on the belt clip whereby any point on the belt clip that is in contact with the housing lies on the tool mating surface, and the tool mating surface has a perimeter that encompasses only the tool mating surface;
• and
• wherein the lip lies along and extends around the entire perimeter of the tool mating surface.

A drill/driver comprising:

• a housing with a barrel portion and a pistol grip portion, the barrel portion at least partially enclosing a rotary motor, the pistol grip portion having a switch which controls the rotary motor;
• the housing having a central axis defined by a plane that approximately divides in half the barrel portion of the housing and the pistol grip portion of the housing with a first side of the housing on one side of the central axis and a second side of the housing on the other opposite side of the central axis;
• and
• a belt clip capable of suspending the drill/driver from a surface, the belt clip selectively detachably mountable by a user to the housing in a first position where the belt clip is on the first side of the housing and a second position where the belt clip is on the second side of the housing.

A hand-held power tool comprising a belt clip mounted to a housing of the hand-held power tool capable of suspending the power tool from a surface, the belt clip comprising:

• a tool mating surface defined where the belt clip contacts the housing;
• a first projection having a first end and an opposite second end, the tool mating surface being located on the first end, the first projection extending outwardly from the tool mating surface in a direction generally normal to the housing;
• a second projection extending longitudinally in a first direction from the second end of the first projection, the second projection being spaced from the housing by the first projection;
• the belt clip having a central axis defined by a plane that is generally parallel with the first direction, the central axis dividing approximately in half the first projection into a first portion on one side of the central axis and a second portion on the opposite side of the central axis from the first side, the tool mating surface being formed on the first portion and the second portion, the central axis also dividing approximately in half the second projection;
• and
• the first projection having at least a first concavely curved surface formed on the first portion, the valley of the first concavely curved surface extending generally in the first direction whereby when a user's finger is placed in contact with the first concavely curved surface and extends generally parallel to the first direction, the valley is in contact with the finger along a line that is parallel with the finger's longitudinal axis.