Abstract:
An automatically restorable universal connector includes at least two members pivoted with each other, each of the two members formed with a pivot end which is provided with a locking portion; a pivot shaft extended through the two members; and a restoring member mounted between the two members and having two ends each locked and positioned in the locking portion of each of the two members, so that the two members can be restored automatically, thereby facilitating operation of the universal connector.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0002]    The present invention relates to a universal connector, and more particularly to an automatically restorable universal connector, wherein the restoring member may efficiently provide an automatic restoring function to the locking member and the mounting member, thereby greatly facilitating operation of the automatically restorable universal connector.  
           [0003]    2. Description of the Related Art  
           [0004]    A conventional universal connector in accordance with the prior art shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 comprises a locking member  70 , a mounting member  74 , a connecting member  72  pivoted between the locking member  70  and the mounting member  74 , and a restoring spring  80  mounted on the outside of the locking member  70 , the mounting member  74 , and the connecting member  72 .  
           [0005]    However, the restoring spring  80  is mounted on the outside of the locking member  70 , the mounting member  74 , and the connecting member  72 , thereby greatly enlarging the volume of the universal connector. In addition, the user is easily clipped by the restoring spring  80 .  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0006]    The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the disadvantage of the conventional universal connector.  
           [0007]    The primary objective of the present invention is to provide an automatically restorable universal connector, wherein the restoring member may efficiently provide an automatic restoring function to the locking member and the mounting member, thereby facilitating operation of the automatically restorable universal connector.  
           [0008]    In accordance with the present invention, there is provided an automatically restorable universal connector, comprising:  
           [0009]    at least two members pivoted with each other, each of the two members formed with a pivot end which is provided with a locking portion;  
           [0010]    a pivot shaft extended through the two members; and  
           [0011]    a restoring member mounted between the two members and having two ends each locked and positioned in the locking portion of each of the two members, so that the two members can be restored automatically.  
           [0012]    Further benefits and advantages of the present invention will become apparent after a careful reading of the detailed description with appropriate reference to the accompanying drawings. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0013]    [0013]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an automatically restorable universal connector in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the automatically restorable universal connector as shown in FIG. 1;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 3 is a front plan cross-sectional view of the automatically restorable universal connector as shown in FIG. 1;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 4 is a schematic operational view of the automatically restorable universal connector as shown in FIG. 1 in use;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged view of the automatically restorable universal connector as shown in FIG. 3;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 6 is a front plan cross-sectional view of an automatically restorable universal connector in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of an automatically restorable universal connector in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional assembly view of the automatically restorable universal connector as shown in FIG. 7;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a conventional universal connector in accordance with the prior art; and  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional assembly view of the conventional universal connector as shown in FIG. 9. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0023]    Referring to the drawings and initially to FIGS.  1 - 5 , an automatically restorable universal connector in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention comprises a locking member  10 , a connecting member  20 , and a mounting member  30 .  
         [0024]    The locking member  10  includes a locking head  12  that may be inserted into a socket (not shown), and a fork-shaped recessed pivot arm  11  defining a shaft hole  110 . A locking portion  111  (such as a locking hole) is formed on the surface of the fork-shaped recessed pivot arm  11 .  
         [0025]    The mounting member  30  includes a mounting head  32  defining a locking recess  320  for insertion of a drive head (not shown) of a tool (not shown) such as a socket wrench, and a fork-shaped recessed pivot arm  31  defining a shaft hole  310 . A locking portion  311  (such as a locking hole) is formed on the surface of the fork-shaped recessed pivot arm  31 .  
         [0026]    The connecting member  20  is pivotally mounted between the locking member  10  and the mounting member  30 , and has a first end pivotally mounted on the pivot arm  11  of the locking member  10 , and a second end pivotally mounted on the pivot arm  31  of the mounting member  30 .  
         [0027]    The first end of the connecting member  20  is formed with a shaft hole  23 , and a pivot shaft  42  is extended through the shaft hole  110  of the pivot arm  11  of the locking member  10  and the shaft hole  23  of the first end of the connecting member  20 , so that the first end of the connecting member  20  is pivoted on the pivot arm  11  of the locking member  10 .  
         [0028]    The shaft hole  23  of the first end of the connecting member  20  has an opening end formed with a receiving chamber  24  having a diameter greater than that of the shaft hole  23 . The receiving chamber  24  has a wall formed with a locking portion  240  (such as a locking hole).  
         [0029]    A restoring member  54  (such as a torsion spring) is mounted on the pivot shaft  42 , and is received in the receiving chamber  24 . The restoring member  54  is formed with a press portion  56  biased between the wall of the receiving chamber  24  and the surface of the pivot arm  11  of the locking member  10 . The restoring member  54  has a first end formed with a bent locking end  55  locked in the locking portion  240  of the receiving chamber  24 , and a second end formed with a bent locking end  57  locked in the locking portion  111  of the pivot arm  11  of the locking member  10 , thereby providing a restoring effect.  
         [0030]    The second end of the connecting member  20  is formed with a shaft hole  21  that has an axial direction vertical to that of the shaft hole  23 , and a pivot shaft  40  is extended through the shaft hole  310  of the pivot arm  31  of the mounting member  30  and the shaft hole  21  of the second end of the connecting member  20 , so that the second end of the connecting member  20  is pivoted on the pivot arm  31  of the mounting member  30 .  
         [0031]    The shaft hole  21  of the second end of the connecting member  20  has an opening end formed with a receiving chamber  22  having a diameter greater than that of the shaft hole  21 . The receiving chamber  22  has a wall formed with a locking portion  220  (such as a locking hole).  
         [0032]    A restoring member  50  (such as a torsion spring) is mounted on the pivot shaft  40 , and is received in the receiving chamber  22 . The restoring member  50  is formed with a press portion  52  biased between the wall of the receiving chamber  22  and the surface of the pivot arm  31  of the mounting member  30 . The restoring member  50  has a first end formed with a bent locking end  51  locked in the locking portion  220  of the receiving chamber  22 , and a second end formed with a bent locking end  53  locked in the locking portion  311  of the pivot arm  31  of the mounting member  30 , thereby providing a restoring effect.  
         [0033]    Accordingly, the automatically restorable universal connector of the present invention has the following advantages.  
         [0034]    The restoring members  50  and  54  are initially received in the receiving chambers  22  and  24  respectively, and the locking ends  51  and  55  of the restoring members  50  and  54  are locked in the locking portions  220  and  240  of the receiving chambers  22  and  24  respectively. After all of the parts are assembled, the locking member  10  and the mounting member  30  may be rotated slightly, so that the locking ends  53  and  57  of the restoring members  50  and  54  may be locked in the locking portions  311  and  111  of the pivot arms  31  and  11  of the mounting member  30  and the locking member  10  respectively, so that the automatically restorable universal connector may have an automatic restoring function. Thus, the automatically restorable universal connector can be assembled easily.  
         [0035]    In addition, the restoring members  50  and  54  may efficiently provide an automatic restoring function to the locking member  10  and the mounting member  30 , thereby facilitating operation of the universal connector.  
         [0036]    Further, the press portion  52  of the restoring member  50  is biased between the wall of the receiving chamber  22  of the connecting member  20  and the surface of the pivot arm  31  of the mounting member  30 , while the press portion  56  of the restoring member  54  is biased between the wall of the receiving chamber  24  of the connecting member  20  and the surface of the pivot arm  11  of the locking member  10 , thereby providing a damping effect, so that the locking member  10 , the connecting member  20  and the mounting member  30  will not be detached or loosened from each other.  
         [0037]    Referring to FIG. 6, in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention, the automatically restorable universal connector comprises a wrench  60  pivoted with a connecting head  70  only. The pivot shaft  40  is extended through the shaft hole  610  of the fork-shaped pivot arm  61  of the wrench  60  and the shaft hole  71  of the connecting head  70 , so that the connecting head  70  is pivoted on the pivot arm  61  of the wrench  60 . The end of the shaft hole  71  is formed with a receiving chamber  72  for receiving the restoring member  50 . The receiving chamber  72  is formed with a locking portion  720  for locking the locking end  51  of the restoring member  50 , and the pivot arm  61  of the wrench  60  is formed with a locking portion  611  for locking the locking end  53  of the restoring member  50 .  
         [0038]    Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention, each of the locking portions  111 ,  220 ,  240  and  311  has a slit-shape, thereby facilitating insertion of the locking ends  57 ,  53 ,  55  and  51 .  
         [0039]    Although the invention has been explained in relation to its preferred embodiment as mentioned above, it is to be understood that many other possible modifications and variations can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. It is, therefore, contemplated that the appended claim or claims will cover such modifications and variations that fall within the true scope of the invention.