WO2005042210A1

WO2005042210A1 - Driver screw holder

Info

Publication number: WO2005042210A1
Application number: PCT/KR2004/002758
Authority: WO
Inventors: Hong-Kun Lee
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2003-11-01
Filing date: 2004-10-29
Publication date: 2005-05-12
Anticipated expiration: 2006-05-01
Also published as: KR20050042366A; KR100543339B1

Abstract

Provided is a screw holder that can hold a screw automatically, can hold the screw firmly, can be positioned in a standby state when the driver is not in use, can be readily separated from the driver, and can be used as an ordinary driver. The screw holder includes a driver having a recessed groove on a side of the driver, a moving cylinder spaced a predetermined distance apart from the driver, a magnet that holds a screw head engaged to the driver by a magnetic force, a wearing protection plate that reinforces the strength of the magnet, a guide that guides the driver toward a pathway for moving back and forth, a returning element that applies a returning force in a forward direction of the moving cylinder, a half-stopper that is loosely engaged to the recessed groove of the driver, and a supporting guide that supports the half-stopper. Therefore, the screw holder can increase a holding force of a screw, can be used as an ordinary driver, can be firmly engaged to any size and head of a screw since it is engaged by a magnetic force and mechanically, can further hold the screw firmly not to fall down, and can prevent wearing and damage of the magnet.

Description

DRIVER SCREW HOLDER

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a screw holder of a driver, and more particularly, to a screw holder that can hold a screw automatically, can hold the screw firmly, can be positioned in a standby state when the screw driver is not in use, can be readily separated from the screw driver, and can be used as a screw driver without a screw holder. BACKGROUND ART Screw drivers are tools necessary for tightening or releasing bolts or screws. Screw drivers are classified into plus-shaped screw drivers and minus-shaped screw drivers according to the shape of a recessed tip, and into magnetic screw drivers and non-magnetic screw drivers according to the magnetism of their tip. Recently, dual-sided screw drivers, that is, screw drivers having a plus-shaped screw driver formed at one end and a minus-shaped screw driver formed at the other end of the screw drivers, which can be alternately inserted into a holder or accommodated a bit, have been developed and are widely used. Most of the screw drivers are magnetic and can easily hold a screw or a bit. Also, some magnetic screw drivers use a screw supporter. However, the magnetic force to hold a screw is relatively small since a driver end part of the conventional driver, which is magnetized, is totally fixed on the driver as one body. Also, the conventional magnetic screw drivers can be engaged only to specific screws. That is, if the screw head is shallower or deeper than the head of a screw driver to tighten the screw, the screw driver can not hold the screw with magnetic force. Also, a bit for the conventional screw driver is inconvenient to use in a narrow hole or gap since the driver end part that fixes the screw head can not be separated. Also, the conventional magnetic screw driver can not perform an iron-rich action that a magnet is moving in a direction toward an iron-rich side or a side having a greater contact area between the magnet and iron composition of the screw than a smaller contact area. Generally, a magnetic body for holding a screw is easily worn or damaged by the contact with the screw due to the force applied to the screw.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a screw holder according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a screw holder according to another embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a screw holder according to still another embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a screw holder according to yet another embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a screw holder according to yet another embodiment of the present invention; FIGS. 6 through 9 are cross-sectional views illustrating successive supporting states of a screw by magnetic force of the screw holder of FIG. 1 ; FIGS. 10 through 12 are cross-sectional views illustrating stepwise supporting state of a screw by the screw holder of FIG. 1 , when a diameter of a screw hole is less than that of the moving cylinder; FIGS. 13 through 19 are cross-sectional views illustrating various shapes of the moving cylinder and a wearing protection plate of the present embodiments; FIGS. 20 through 22 are cross-sectional views illustrating a method of using a dual sided screw driver used in conjunction with the screw holder according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIGS. 23 through 25 are cross-sectional views illustrating a method of using a one sided screw driver used in conjunction with the screw holder according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIGS. 26 through 31 are cross-sectional views illustrating various shapes of screw drivers used in conjunction with the screw holder according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIGS. 32 through 33 are cross-sectional views illustrating a screw holder according to yet another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Technical Goal of the Invention The present invention provides a screw holder having increased magnetic and mechanical screw holding force, reduced manufacturing cost and increased productivity due to its simple structure, and can be used as a screw driver without a screw holder by automatically or manually separating or moving backward a moving cylinder when using the screw driver having the screw holder in a narrow hole or a gap. The present invention also provides a screw holder that uses the characteristics of a magnetic that moves toward an iron-rich side or a large contact area within a predetermined span, that is, when the screw holder is not in use, an end of the driver is exposed to the outside by the magnetic force, but, when the driver holds a screw, the driver can contact in tight with the head of the screw due to the magnetic force by moving the screw holder forward automatically and, after holding the screw, the screw holder further can firmly hold the screw by pegging force between the screw and the driver. The present invention also provides a screw holder that can improve the durability of products by preventing the damage or wear of the magnet by reinforcing the weak magnet using a wear protection plate.

Disclosure of the Invention The present invention also provides a screw holder comprising: a driver having a recessed groove on a side; a moving cylinder spaced a predetermined distance apart from the driver so that the moving cylinder can move back and forth with respect to the driver, and formed to surround a driver end part of the driver; a magnet that supports a screw head engaged to the driver and is fixedly mounted on an inner end of the moving cylinder; a wearing protection plate that reinforces the magnetic force of the magnet and is formed to surround the contacting area of the magnet with the screw head; a guide that guides the driver along a path for moving the driver back and forth and is mounted to move in an inner central portion of the moving cylinder; a returning element that applies a returning force in a forward direction of the moving cylinder if the moving cylinder is moved backward by being blocked by a screw hole part when a screw engaged to the driver is inserted into a screw hole having a diameter less than the moving cylinder and is installed between the magnet and the guide; a half-stopper which is loosely engaged to the recessed groove of the driver, is installed inside of the moving cylinder to be easily separated from the driver when the half-stopper is pulled by a force greater than a predetermined force, can be used as an ordinary driver by moving the moving cylinder to an inner side of the driver by applying a force greater than a predetermined force, performs as a stopper so that the elastic force by the returning element can be supported when the moving cylinder moves backward by being blocked by a screw hole part, and is freely moved back and forth within a predetermined distance when the moving cylinder holds a screw by a magnetic force; and a supporting guide that supports the half-stopper and by which the depth of the supporting guide can be controlled.

Effect of the Invention As described above, when using the screw holder according to the present invention, the holding power of a screw is increased. Manufacturing cost can be reduced and productivity can be increased. The driver having the screw holder can be used as a screw driver without a screw holder by moving the moving cylinder backward automatically or manually when working in a narrow hole or a gap. The driver and the moving cylinder can be readily separated. The driver is mechanically firmly engaged to any type of screw head and size by a magnet that moves forward automatically when holding a screw. After holding the screw, the screw is further firmly held since the screw is moving backward together with a moving cylinder. The axis of the driver and the screw can be aligned. Wearing and damaging of the magnet can be prevented by reinforcing the strength of the magnet with a wearing protection plate.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The present invention will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings in which embodiments of the invention are shown. Referring to FIG. 1 , a screw holder, which holds a screw firmly, comprises a driver 1 , a moving cylinder 2, a magnet 3, a wearing protection plate 4, a guide 51 , a returning element 13, a half-stopper 6, and a supporting guide 5. The driver 1 has a "U" type recessed groove 7 on a side thereof. As depicted in FIGS. 1 through 3, the driver 1 can be a dual sided driver 1. Also, as depicted in FIGS. 4 and 5, the driver 1 can be a bit type driver in which a driver end part can be replaced by interposing a magnet between the driver end part and the driver 1. In the case of FIGS. 4 and 5, the recessed groove 7 can be formed on a bit holder 52 in which a bit is mounted. Even though it is not shown, the length of the backward motion of the moving cylinder 2 can be controlled by inserting an additional nut into a screw formed on a rear portion of the bit holder 52. Also, the moving cylinder 2 of FIG. 1 is formed to surround the driver end part of the driver 1 and is spaced apart a predetermined distance from the driver 1 so that the moving cylinder 2 can move back and forth by a predetermined distance with respect to the driver 1. Also, the magnet 5 is mounted on an inner driver end part of the moving cylinder

2 and magnetically supports a screw head engaged to the driver 1 using an iron-rich action that a magnet is moving in a direction toward an iron-rich side or a side having a greater contact area between the magnet and iron composition of the screw than a smaller contact area. That is, as depicted in FIG. 6, when the driver 1 is not in use, the moving cylinder 2 is moved backward to the driver 1 by the magnetic force of the magnet 5. However, when a screw 9 approaches to the driver end part of the driver 1 , as depicted in FIG. 8 the moving cylinder 2 is moved in a direction toward the screw 9 by the magnetic force of the magnet 5 and contacts the screw 9 which includes larger amount of iron composition than the driver 1. As depicted in FIGS. 8 and 9, the moving cylinder 2 is moving backward together with the screw 9 toward the driver 1. This is the iron-rich action. The wearing protection plate 4 is formed to surround the contact area of the magnet 3, is formed of a thin material to avoid a reduction of magnetic force and damage and wearing of the magnet 3, and is fixed on an driver end part of the moving cylinder 2 to fix the magnet 3 on the moving cylinder 2. Therefore, the wearing protection plate 4 can prevent the wearing and damage of the magnet 3 by preventing a direct collision between the magnet 3 and a screw or an obstacle when the driver 1 is rotated with a large force or there is an obstacle, thereby increasing durability of the magnet 3. As depicted in FIGS. 13 through 19, the moving cylinder 2 and the wearing protection plate 4 can have various shapes. Also, the moving cylinder 2 and the wearing protection plate 4 can be manufactured in many different ways. As depicted in FIG. 13, the moving cylinder 2 in which the wearing protection plate 4 is omitted can be used. In this case, the moving cylinder 2 can be plated by a wear resistive material. As depicted in FIG. 14, the wearing protection plate 4 can be forcibly inserted into a gap between the magnet 3 and the moving cylinder 2. Or, as depicted in FIG. 15, the moving cylinder 2 can be protruded a predetermined distance with respect to the wearing protection plate 4. Besides the above configurations, as depicted in FIG. 16, the screw holder according to the present invention can be fixed or installed on an driver end part of the moving cylinder 2, and an adapter 10 having an outer cylindrical shape corresponding to the shape of screw heads can further be included so that the screw holder can be used with various screw heads. As depicted in FIG. 17, the wearing protection plate 4 can be manufactured in one body with the moving cylinder 2 and then, the wearing protection plate 4 can be formed by bending an end of the moving cylinder 2. Alternately, as depicted in FIG. 18, the wearing protection plate 4 can be formed by bending an end of the moving cylinder 2 at the same time when wearing protection plate 4 is forcibly inserted into a gap between the moving cylinder 2 and the magnet 3. As depicted in FIG. 19, an outer cylinder 11 for reinforcing the strength of the screw holder can be mounted on an outer side of the moving cylinder 2 of FIG. 18. On the other hand, as depicted in FIG. 1 , the guide 51 that provides a path for the driver 1 to move back and forth is mounted on an inner central portion of the moving cylinder 2 and supports the returning element 13 and the half-stopper 6. Also, the returning element 13 according to the present invention is mounted between the magnet 3 and the guide 51. The returning element 13 applies a restoration force in a forward direction of the moving cylinder 2 when the moving cylinder 2 is moving backward due to a screw hole part 12 as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 when a screw engaged to a driver 1 is inserted into the screw hole part 12 having a diameter less than that of the moving cylinder 2. That is, as depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2, the returning element 13 is preferably a non-magnetic coil spring or, as depicted in FIG. 3, a magnet. The returning element 13 prevents the moving cylinder 2 from moving inward of the moving cylinder 2 beyond a certain limit. Also, as depicted in FIG. 11 and 12, the returning element 13 prevents the magnet from wearing and damaging by the screw hole part 12. As depicted in FIG. 10, the returning element 13 returns the moving cylinder 2 backward and the half-stopper 6 makes the moving cylinder 2 locate at a predetermined distance from an end of the driver 1 when there is no screw hole part 12. Also, as depicted in FIG. 8, the half-stopper 6 performs as a stopper for the returning element 13 using its elastic force when the moving cylinder 2 can be moved freely while the moving cylinder 2 holds a screw head, and as depicted in FIG. 11 , when the moving cylinder 2 is moving backward by blocking the screw hole part 12. Also, the half-stopper 6 is mounted on an inner side of the moving cylinder 2 to be able to use the driver 1 as an ordinary driver by moving the moving cylinder 2 to an inner side of the driver 1 by applying a force greater than a predetermined force as depicted in FIG. 22, or to completely separate the moving cylinder 2 from the driver 1 as depicted in FIG. 21. Also, the half-stopper 6 is loosely engaged to the recessed groove 7 of the driver 1. As depicted in FIGS. 1 through 3, the half-stopper 6 engaged loosely to the recessed groove 7 can be an open C type ring spring 61 , an end of which is open, or, as depicted in FIGS. 4 and 5, can be a ball 15 which is loosely engaged to the recessed groove 7 and a leaf spring 16 that elastically supports the ball 15. The supporting guide 5 supports the half-stopper 6, controls the screwing depth of a screw, and can be fixed on the moving cylinder 2 or the location of the moving cylinder 2 can be controlled by adjusting the location adjustment screw 20. A method of using the screw holder according to the present invention will now be described. As depicted in FIG. 20, the moving cylinder 2 can be moved back and forth by a predetermined distance by the half-stopper 6 within a predetermined range of force when the moving cylinder 2 on which the recessed groove 7 is formed is mounted on the driver 1. Next, as depicted in FIG. 21 , if a force greater than a predetermined force is applied to the moving cylinder 2 in a frontal direction, the half-stopper 6 can be separated from the recessed groove 7, and then, the moving cylinder 2 can be completely separated from the driver 1. As depicted in FIG. 22, when a force greater than a predetermined force is applied to the moving cylinder 2 in a backward direction, the half-stopper 6 can be separated from the recessed groove 7, and then, the moving cylinder 2 can be moved to a desired location of the driver 1. The screw holder according to the present invention can be applied to a bit holder moving cylinder 2 as depicted in FIGS. 23 through 25. As depicted in FIG. 23, the moving cylinder 2 can be moved back and forth by a predetermined distance by the half-stopper 15 (ball) and 16 (spring) within a predetermined range of force when the moving cylinder 2 is engaged to a driver bit holder 52 on which the recessed groove 7 is formed. Also, as depicted in FIG. 25, when a force greater than a predetermined force is applied to the moving cylinder 2 in a backward direction, the half-stopper 15 and 16 can be separated from the recessed groove 7, and then, the moving cylinder 2 can be moved to an inner side of the driver bit holder 52 to locate the driver 1 in a desired position. As depicted in FIG. 26, the screw holder according to the present invention can be applied to various types of drivers including a minus-shaped driver 17 and, as depicted in FIG. 27, to a plus-shaped driver 18. As depicted in FIG. 28, the screw holder according to the present invention can be applied to an ordinary driver 1 , one end of which is a plus-shaped driver 18 and the other end of which is a minus-shaped driver 17. As depicted in FIG. 29, the screw holder according to the present invention can be used in combination with a motor operated device 19, and, as depicted in FIG. 30, the back and forth motion can be increased by slightly inserting the driver 1 into the motor operated device 19. Or, as depicted in FIG. 31 , an excessive backward motion of the moving cylinder 2 can be prevented by deeply inserting the driver 1 into the motor operated device 19. As depicted in FIGS. 32 and 33, a location adjustment screw 20 for adjusting an initial depth of the moving cylinder 2 is installed on the moving cylinder 2, and a plurality of fixing holes 201 and 202 are formed on the bit holder 52 so that the fixing holes 201 and 202 can be coupled selectively with the location adjustment screw 20. Also, as depicted in FIG. 32, if the location adjustment screw 20 is coupled with the lower fixing hole 202, the initial depth of the moving cylinder 2 is shallow.

Therefore, this adjustment of the driver 1 is suitable for a screw having a deep screw groove formed on the head of the screw since the driver end part of the driver 1 is exposed relatively greater. Also, as depicted in FIG. 33, if the location adjustment screw 20 is fixed coupled with the upper fixing hole 201 , the initial depth of the moving cylinder 2 is deep.

Therefore, this adjustment of the driver 1 is suitable for a screw having a shallow screw groove formed on the head of the screw since the driver end part of the driver 1 is exposed relatively less. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes to the kinds and shapes of driver, the shape of half-stoppers, the shape of bits, and the shape of recessed grooves may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, although a plus-shaped driver and a minus-shaped driver are described in the present embodiments, the present invention is not limited thereto and can be applied to spanners, wrenches, or drill tips. Therefore, the scope of the invention is defined not by the detailed description of the invention but by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A screw holder comprising: a driver having a recessed groove on a side; a moving cylinder that is spaced a predetermined distance apart from the driver so that the moving cylinder can move back and forth with respect to the driver and is formed to surround an driver end part of the driver; a magnet that supports a screw head engaged to the driver and is fixedly mounted on an inner end of the moving cylinder; a wearing protection plate that reinforces the strength of the magnet and is formed in to surround the contacting area of the magnet with the screw head; a guide that guides the driver along a path for moving the driver back and forth and is mounted to move in an inner central portion of the moving cylinder; a returning element that applies a returning force in a forwarding direction of the moving cylinder if the moving cylinder is moved backward by being blocked by a screw hole part when a screw engaged to the driver is inserted into a screw hole having a diameter less than the moving cylinder and is installed between the magnet and the guide; a half-stopper which is loosely engaged to the recessed groove of the driver, is installed inside of the moving cylinder to be easily separated from the driver when the half-stopper is pulled by a force greater than a predetermined force, can be used as an ordinary driver by moving the moving cylinder to an inner side of the driver by applying a force greater than a predetermined force, performs as a stopper so that the elastic force by the returning element can be supported when the moving cylinder moves backward by being blocked by a screw hole part, and is freely moved back and forth within a predetermined distance when the moving cylinder holds a screw by magnetic force; and a supporting guide that supports the half-stopper and by which the depth of the supporting guide can be controlled.

2. The screw holder of claim 1 , wherein the magnet is operated using an iron-rich action such that, when the driver is not in use, the moving cylinder is moved backward by the magnetic force of the magnet toward the driver which contains iron composition, however, when a screw approaches to the driver end part of the driver, the moving cylinder is moved toward the screw by the magnetic force and contacts the screw which has a greater composition of iron than the driver, and, when the screw is adhered by the magnetic force, then the moving cylinder is moved backward together with the screw to the driver direction.

3. The screw holder of claim 1 , wherein the wearing protection plate is formed of a thin material to avoid a loss of magnetic force and wearing and damaging of the magnet, and is fixed on a driver end part of the moving cylinder.

4. The screw holder of claim 1 , wherein the returning element is a non-magnetic coil spring or a magnet placed in a guide to apply a repulsion force to the moving cylinder to move it backward and to locate it at a predetermined distance from an end of the driver by the half-stopper when there is no screw hole part, wherein the returning element prevents the moving cylinder from moving inward of the moving cylinder beyond a certain limit and prevents the magnet from wearing and damage by a mechanical force between the moving cylinder and the screw hole part.

5. The screw holder of claim 1 , wherein the half-stopper loosely engaged to the recessed groove is a C type ring spring, an end of which is open, or is a ball/protrusion that is loosely engaged to the recessed groove and a leaf spring that elastically supports the ball/protrusion.

6. The screw holder of claim 1 further comprising an adapter having an outer cylindrical shape corresponding to the shape of screw heads so that the screw holder can be applied to various screw heads and can be fixed or installed on a driver end part of the moving cylinder.

7. The screw holder of claim 1 further comprising a location adjustment screw for adjusting the initial depth of the moving cylinder and the location adjustment screw is selectively screw coupled with one of fixing holes formed parallel to each other on the guide.