WO1997000404A1

WO1997000404A1 - Universal tool support system

Info

Publication number: WO1997000404A1
Application number: PCT/US1996/010430
Authority: WO
Inventors: Thomas S. Flynn
Original assignee: Flynn Thomas S
Priority date: 1995-06-14
Filing date: 1996-06-14
Publication date: 1997-01-03
Also published as: AU6179596A

Abstract

A structure to support and control a variety of tools (24) used to remove and/or apply materials to a surface, comprising a height-adjustable vertical mast or mounting post (10), mounted upon a base (12) by a connection member (14) that permits at least a limited hinging or articulation relative to the base (12). Attached to and carried by the mounting post (10) is at least one telescoping sleeve (16) enabling vertical extension and retraction of a tool arm (18) relative to the mounting post (10). The tool arm (18) may be angularly adjustable relative to its telescoping sleeve (16) by a sleeve/arm bracket (20), and terminates in a tool connection bracket (22) which may be axially adjustable. The tool connection bracket (22) is adapted to carry a surface tool (24) or tool head such as a sanding head. An operator control strut (26) is connected to the mounting post (10) and may include a handle or handle bar member (28), as well as operator controls for the operation of the telescoping sleeve(s) (16) and surface tool(s) (24). Additional control struts (26) may also be included.

Description

UNIVERSAL TOOL SUPPORT SYSTEM DESCRIPTION TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates generally to the field of removing and applying materials to a surface, and more particularly to an improved support system apparatus to support and control a variety of tools used in such activities. BACKGROUND ART Numerous tools are used to apply and/or remove materials to a surface. For example, pneumatic or electrically-powered sanding heads are used for surface preparation and the removal of paint and other coatings from walls, ceilings, floors and other surfaces. Such tools can be heavy and awkward for a worker to operate, especially for extended periods of time, and over large and sometimes difficult to reach surface areas. Operation of such tools also represents a significant potential for injury to the user. DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

The universal tool support system of this invention provides a structure to support and control a variety of tools used to remove and/or apply materials to a surface such as a wall or ceiling. The inventive apparatus includes a height-adjustable vertical mast or mounting post portion, mounted upon a base portion by a base connection member that permits at least limited hinging or articulation relative to the base portion. Attached to and carried by the mounting post is at least one telescoping sleeve portion enabling vertical extension and retraction of a tool arm portion relative to the mounting post. The tool arm portion may be angularly adjustable relative to its telescoping sleeve portion by a sleeve/arm bracket, and terminates in a tool connection bracket which may be axially adjustable. The tool connection bracket is adapted to carry a surface tool or tool head such as a sanding head.

An operator control strut is connected to the mounting post and may include a handle or handlebar member, as well as operator controls for the operation of the telescoping sleeve(s) and surface tool(s) (e.g., electrical, air pressure, water pressure, vacuum) . Additional control struts, in the form of connector shafts to operator body-worn brackets, may also be included.

The base portion may itself enable selective fore-aft and right-left (x-y) movement of the mounting post, as by movable plates within tracks. The base portion may further include springs, gas shocks, or other motion limiting features to help stabilize movement of the mounting post. The base portion may also include fixed or adjustable counterweights for stability.

Tools that may be carried by the inventive apparatus include sanding heads, surface preparation heads, drilling tools, nail guns, sand blasters, and/or any other appropriate tool.

Objects and advantages of the universal tool support system of this invention include: 1. The inventive system frees the worker from having to support any significant weight of the tool and associated apparatus. Instead, the weight is supported by the mounting post and base so virtually any possible injury to the worker's back is eliminated. The fatigue factor from holding the tool up is also greatly reduced, and hence the worker's productivity can be greatly increased.

2. Because the weight is taken off of the worker, it becomes practical to use heavier and more aggressive tools in many applications.

3. Lifting and lowering is provided by a powered (e.g. pneumatic) lift system rather being required by the worker. The pneumatic or other system can be set to raise and lower automatically. 4. Freeing up the worker's hands and arms from the effort of pushing and lifting allows the worker to use his hands and arms more effectively for precision tasks such as guidance of the tool and operation of the controls.

5. The invention makes work on a wide range of heights of overhead or vertical surfaces possible by a man standing safely and comfortably on the floor. 6. The invention allows the worker to use leg and hip muscles to push the tool against the wall, rather than using his arms and wrists which may be prone to injury from a vibrating tool.

7. The invention provides a shock absorber system between the worker and the tool.

8. The invention allows for more than one tool to be mounted on the support system at a time, and allows for easy change of tool at a given working height.

9. The invention allows the tool to be easily moved from place to place by movement of the worker's body with handle bar guidance, and then have the wheels locked securely in one place to work in that area.

10. The inventive system is completely modular so components can be configured in a number of ways for working on different kinds of surfaces. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the universal tool support system of this invention, illustrating the height-adjustable vertical mast or mounting post portion, base portion and base connection member, with a plurality of telescoping sleeve portionε, tool arm portions, sleeve/arm brackets, tool connection brackets and surface tools, and an operator control strut including a handlebar member and operator controls. BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Fig. 1 illustrates the height-adjustable vertical mast or mounting post portion 10, base portion 12 and base connection member 14, with a plurality of telescoping sleeve portions 16, tool arm portions 18, sleeve/arm brackets 20, tool connection brackets 22 and surface tools 24, and an operator control strut 26 including a handlebar member 28 and operator controls 30. The universal tool support system of this invention provides a structural apparatus to support a variety of tools for surface preparation, sanding, cleaning, drilling, cutting, and numerous other functions on overhead, vertical and floor surfaces. The weight of the tool itself is supported by the tool mounting post. The tool mounting post can be made of round, square, rectangular, or oval tubing and can be born on the base with one or more wheels. The base can be of tripod design with wheels on each tripod leg, or broader and heavier with weight low to the ground for stability. For work against walls the base can have rollers oriented toward the wall so that these rollers will make contact against the wall and provide ease of movement. The wheels can be caster-like in nature so they can move in any direction, and can have wheel locks for locking in place.

Alternatively, the base can also have two wheels and two resting legs similar to a walker device which can be moved around and then set in place. When working on uneven floors which are not hard and level, soft rubber wheels should be used. For hard level floors like concrete, hard casters should be used. The base can also have outriggers for further stability, or have tripod legs which can be telescoping to expand the size of the base for enhanced stability. The point at which the mounting post attaches to the base can articulate to provide some "lean" into a wall being worked on. The articulating base mount can be modular in design so that the post can be mounted to the base with or without an articulating base mount. The mounting post telescopes up and down by means of any number of telescoping systems, such as a double threaded screw or cable jack, or simply by sliding up and down and being pinned in place at a particular height as by a Unistrut kind of locking mechanism. The mounting post could be made of aluminum or similar light weight material. The modular nature of the mounting post also allows sections to be added or subtracted to it in order to provide the desired operating height. For example, when working on vertical surfaces, it is recommended to start high up on the work area and gradually work down.

A simple telescoping base may be more desirable than removing or adding sections. The latter approach may require taking time to lean the support system on its side or on the floor whenever removing or adding sections. This may be particularly awkward when the tool is heavy or when the floor is cluttered or wet. The following describes a relatively simple, inexpensive way to telescope one shaft inside another. A nylon cord is attached to the inside of the inner shaft and then is run through a pulley positioned on the inside of the inner shaft so that the cord bears against the top of the pulley and then travels easily through a typical hole in the inner shaft and onto the top of a pulley mounted on the outside of the inner shaft. The cord then travels through the inside of a pulley mounted on the top outside of the outer shaft. This pulley system will then assist in lifting or lowering everything above including the main central section with pneumatic cylinder and the tool mounted above.

In telescoping the shafts it should be possible to pull on the cord, raise or lower the inner shaft and then withdraw or insert a lockable pin into typical holes on the shafts in order to secure them at the desired height. The lowest hole of the inner shaft would be positioned so that there would always be sufficient overlap between the inner and outer shafts. This overlap should be in the range of 1/4 to 1/3 of the length of the inner shaft depending on the tolerance or tightness between the shafts. The shafts can be further secured to each other by various other means such as clamps common to camera mount tripods and other telescoping equipment or by something as simple as a hose clamp.

The main section would be mounted to the top of the inside section similar to the way the removable sections are mounted. This assumes an outer shaft which has an inside diameter close to the outside diameter of the existing 2 inch shaft. Removable sections would still be a useful alternative and practical for additional height. A further enhancement could include adding a crank to which the cord would be attached. This crank could also have catch as on boat winches which when set prevent the crank from unwinding.

A simplification would be to eliminate the pulleys and simply mount handles on both sides of the inner shaft. Since most tools (by themselves) are not prohibitively heavy, it should be possible to simply lift or lower and then secure the pin accordingly.

There are also other telescoping systems available in screw jacks, crank mechanisms, and other means.

The mounting post is designed so that tools can be mounted in various orientations all along the length of it. This can be accomplished by Unistrut type mounting or by clamping, cinching, bolting, or other appropriate means of attachment.

For mounting of a tool on a pneumatically lifted inner tube, a mounting sleeve may be appropriate on the inner tube to bring its outer dimension even with the dimension of the outer tube. The tool can be mounted directly to the inner tube as well, but an inner sleeve would allow the tool to be moved readily to the outer tube when the equipment is configured for working on areas close to the floor. More than one tool can be mounted on the post at once. For example, a two phase surface preparation process can have the tool support system deliver the first tool to the work area for the execution of the first phase, and then the first tool can be moved out of the way and the second can be moved into place for execution of the second phase.

The tool mounting apparatus or arm may have telescoping capability so if the tripod legs are telescoped in or out, the tool can be retracted in or extended out in order to align with the surface to be worked on.

For wall or vertical surface work, the tool should be mounted in relation to the base such that the tool is flush to the wall and essentially is the leading edge impinging against the wall. For ceiling or overhead work the tool will be mounted at the top of the mounting post and oriented toward the ceiling. Attached to the mounting post may be a handle bar apparatus which can be moved up and down on the mounting post to various heights for worker comfort and efficiency. The handle bar apparatus can telescope in and out as needed for appropriate working distance. Attached to the handle bar apparatus may be various controls to operate the pneumatic or electric driven lift system or to crank a telescoping lift system, to turn on or actuate the tool, and to regulate the appropriate functions such as vacuum and pressurized water. The handle bar apparatus also can have a shock absorber system and/or padded handle bars to isolate and absorb vibration and minimize transference of vibration to the operator's wrists.

In an alternate embodiment, for overhead work, the system may include a double triangle design whereby the mounting post is simply a vertical shaft running between a base with one or more wheels and the tool. The tool is also connected to the end of the connector shaft. Another rod is connected to the middle of the vertical post and to pivoting handle bars so that when the handle bars are pulled back the tool is lifted up as a result of shortening two of the angles in each of the two triangles.

The mounting post may have either internal to its shaft, or mounted to the side, a pneumatic, hydraulic or electric driven lift system which is capable of lifting the tool or entire post up and down.

The lift system may include a pneumatic cylinder which can project a shaft in and out over a range of approximately one to two feet. The pneumatic system can have controls such as threshold sensors to adjust the range. Human body mechanics would suggest a limited range. For broad expanses of area a range of a foot or less would be practical. For narrower areas a larger range would be more practical since the mounting post would not have to be telescoped down as frequently. A range (or throw) of 18 inches may be suitable.

The speed at which the shaft moves in and out and lifts and lowers the tool up and down is regulated by a valve to control the flow of air. The air pressure can be adjusted by means of a lever or rocker type handle grip similar to the accelerator control on a motorcycle. A five way pilot control spool valve or other appropriate means may be used to provide the pneumatic system the means to go out and then in (change directions) . The system may also have an automatic control whereby the shaft may continuously go in and out at a set speed whenever the system is on. Some or all of these controls can be mounted on the handle bar apparatus.

When the tool is oriented to do work against a ceiling, the lift can also maintain or ease off pressure and can lower the tool as needed relative to various factors including: the difficulty of the surface preparation, the uniformity of the ceiling height in relation to the floor height, the presence of obstructions to work around, and the rate of speed at which the tool is being moved across the surface.

For overhead work or higher vertical work, the pneumatic system would be oriented so the pneumatic cylinder shaft would rise upward and then retract down. For lower work the cylinder orientation could be reversed, (possibly by simply turning the mounting post upside down) so that the cylinder shaft pumps down toward the base as it pumps out from the cylinder. The sections of the mounting post can be modular in nature so a change in orientation could be accomplished by a quick connect kind of operation. The mounting post itself could be telescoping in nature where it consists of two shafts, one which slides inside of the other shaft. For lower work, a bracing collar would be attached around the base of the mounting post so that the worker by means of the connector shaft could apply pressure toward a lower mounted tool.

A system capable of raising and lowering a tool through a range of 18 inches 60 times per minute may require, e.g., a 3 horsepower compressor providing at least 50 pounds of air pressure or 88 pounds of lift. A ball screw or other electrically driven lift system may be used as an alternative to the pneumatic lift system. The tool head may also simply travel all the way up a shaft which was of a height which was sufficient to go to the top of a wall. The head may be driven by a chain along a track similar to a garage door track.

In one configuration the pneumatic lift is mounted to a smaller (2 foot long) mounting post and this post is mounted piggy-back style to a central supporting shaft (which is telescoping) anywhere along the length of the central supporting shaft in the bottom section. For working on the lowest section of the wall the mounting post is flipped upside down from its normal orientation so that the tool head can be pumped down toward the lower reaches of the wall. The inventive system may optionally include an apparatus worn by the worker to which a universal joint is mounted and attached to a connecting shaft. The worker wears an apparatus which can consist of either a shell- like structure which covers the chest and front abdomen, or a simple back brace or warehouse lifting brace. To either apparatus is affixed a universal joint. The εhell- like structure, which shall be referred to here as the breast plate, is analogous to the exoskeleton of an insect or crustacean in that it serves as a supporting structure on the external part of the body. The back brace may be a reduced version of this where plastic is affixed to the front part of the back brace material and the universal joint would be mounted on the plastic. The breastplate or back brace like apparatus is connected at the universal joint to one or more telescoping connector shafts to the bracing collars on the mounting post. Together these elements provide a meanε whereby the worker can apply preεεure to the tool with hiε body when the tool iε working againεt a wall εurface, and can εtabilize the tool when the tool iε being applied to a ceiling. Since the worker's handε and arms are not required for lift or preεεure, they are then free to operate controlε and guide the tool. The connector εhaft(ε) can be telescoped to a length equal to the distance from the bracing collar to the breast plate connecting joint and then fixed at that point by a εimple screw clamp or other appropriate means. Without the connector shaft, the tool could become unstable when several feet up the mounting post.

With the connector shaft, the tool can be kept at a fixed length and safe distance from the worker. At the same time the connector εhaft enhanceε ease of movement of the tool. By being connected to the front of the worker's body, the tool and mounting post will go where the worker goes.

The connecting joint on the breast plate can also be movable up and down the breast plate. Thiε can be accompliεhed by having the connecting joint being εet in a slot (or other appropriate means) whereby the connector joint can be moved up and down on the breast plate and then set at a deεired poεition for best bracing.

This sliding connector joint mechanism also provides the option of having the connector shaft connected to a bracing collar attached to the portion of the mounting shaft which moves up and down by pneumatic means, or to the tool itself. Hence as the tool went up and down the connecting joint could also slide up and down. At the same time the worker could shift forward and back as needed to maintain the desired presεure of the tool againεt a vertical εurface.

For overhead work, thiε feature would allow the connector shaft to be connected at or close to the tool itself. The back brace apparatus would be simpler and could be simply moved up or down for the appropriate position on the torso for applications where the height of the bracing collar on the mounting post remained fairly fixed.

One or more bracing collars may be attached to the mounting post in a manner which also allows the collars to be moved up and down the mounting post to any height appropriate for bracing againεt. Hence when the worker applies preεεure to this bracing collar, the tool (which is the leading edge of contact) is forced against the working εurface.

In an alternate embodiment, for work on floorε or the ground, the εyεtem iε modified to not include the mounting post, and the handle bars are connected to the connector εhaft. At the bottom of the connector shaft the tool can have wheels or rollers mounted underneath it for ease of movement along a surface. The entire εyεtem iε simpler and lighter in this inεtance so that the tool may be easily moved from place to place. At the same time the breastplate can help support or provide leverage againεt the tool and the working surface.

Claims

UNIVERSAL TOOL SUPPORT SYSTEM CLAIMS What iε claimed as invention is: 1. A tool support structure to support and control a variety of tools, said structure comprising: a height-adjustable vertical mounting poεt portion, mounted upon a base portion by a base connection member adapted to permit at least limited articulation relative to said base portion; at least one telescoping sleeve portion attached to said mounting post portion, enabling vertical extension and retraction of a tool arm portion relative to said mounting post, εaid tool arm portion adapted to be angularly adjustable relative to said telescoping sleeve portion by a sleeve/arm bracket, said tool arm portion terminating in a tool connection bracket adapted to carry a tool; and an operator control strut connected to εaid mounting poεt. 2. The tool support structure of claim 1 wherein said tool atm portion bears a tool connection bracket which which is axially adjustable.