Industrial safety pull hook

An elongated shank is provided having a first handle end and a second hook end including a rigid, reversely turned and inclined hook defining terminal end projecting outward to one side of the shank and toward the first end thereof. The handle includes mounting structure thereon intermediate the handle and hook defining a guide passage closely spaced outward of and paralleling the aforementioned one side of the shank and through which an elongated pull member is lengthwise reciprocated. A first end of the pull member corresponding to the first handle end includes a finger-engageable portion for manually engaging the pull member and lengthwise displacing the latter in a first direction away from the hook and the second end of the pull member includes a laterally outwardly inclined end member thereon projecting outwardly from the side of the pull member remote from the shank and oppositely inclined relative to and toward the hook. The terminal ends of the end member and hook are engageable with each other to limit shifting of the pull member in the second direction toward the hook and spring structure is operatively connected between the pull member and the shank yieldingly biasing the pull member in the second direction. The abutting free terminal ends of the end member and hook define an included angle of generally 90.degree. opening toward the shank and substantially bisected by a plane disposed normal to the shank.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
In the manufacturing industry it is often necessary for objects to be 
engaged and pulled in specific directions and to be further manipulated 
from a remote location, for safety purposes. Accordingly, a need exists 
for an industrial pull hook which may be manually operated to engage and 
pull objects from remote locations. 
Various different forms of pull hooks including some of the general 
structural and operational features of the instant invention heretofore 
have been provided such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,182,790, 
2,983,243, 3,374,022, 3,582,124, 3,727,963 and 4,240,658. However, these 
previously known forms of pull hooks are not specifically designed to 
perform the intended function of the instant invention. 
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
The pull hook of the instant invention includes an elongated shank having a 
loop-type handle on one end and a second rigid reversely turned and 
inclined hook-defining terminal end on the second end thereof. The hook is 
inclined back toward the handle end of the shank and projects outwardly to 
one side of the shank. In addition, longitudinally spaced guides are 
carried by the shank and project outwardly of the aforementioned one side 
thereof. The guides have aligned bores formed therethrough generally 
paralleling the shank and an elongated pull member is slidably received 
through the bores and includes a finger-engageable portion on its end 
adjacent the handle end of the shank and an inclined rigid terminal end on 
the end thereof adjacent the hook. The hook and inclined terminal end of 
the pull member are oppositely inclined approximately 45.degree. relative 
to the shank and the free ends of the hook and terminal end are engageable 
with each other to limit shifting of the pull member toward the hook. 
Also, the end of the pull member closely adjacent the terminal end thereof 
includes an outstanding guide member projecting toward and guidingly 
engaged with the shank to prevent angular displacement of the pull member 
about its longitudinal axis relative to the shank. The pull member 
includes a coiled compression spring disposed thereabout with one of its 
opposite ends engaged with the guide member and its other end engaged with 
the adjacent guide carried by the shank. The spring serves to yieldingly 
bias the pull member toward the hook. Finally, the included angle defined 
between the terminal end and the hook opens toward the hook end of the 
shank and is bisected by a plane disposed substantially normal to the 
shank. 
The main object of this invention is to provide a manually operable 
apparatus by which objects may be engaged and pulled from remote 
locations. 
Another object of this invention is to provide a tool of the type described 
immediately above and which may be utilized in various industrial 
situations for engaging and pulling many different objects. 
A final object of this invention to be specifically enumerated herein is to 
provide an industrial safety pull hook in accordance with the preceding 
objects and which will conform to conventional forms of manufacture, be of 
simple construction and easy to use so as to provide a device that will be 
economically feasible, long lasting and relatively trouble free in 
operation. 
These together with other objects and advantages which will become 
subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation 
as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to 
the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals 
refer to like parts throughout.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
Referring now more specifically to the drawings the numeral 10 generally 
designates a pallet used as a support for an object 12 equipped with a 
handle 14. The object 12 is disposed on the pallet 10 and the latter may 
be supported from a mobile support (not shown) of any kind such as a 
conveyor. 
When it becomes necessary to pull the object 12 from the pallet 10 this can 
be done safely only by a workman disposed at a remote location. 
Accordingly, the safety pull hook of the instant invention and generally 
referred to by the reference numeral 16 has been designed for this 
purpose. 
The pull hook 16 includes an elongated shank 18 including first and second 
ends 20 and 22. The first end 20 is provided with a loop type handle 24 
and the second end 22 is equipped with an integral reversely bent hook 26 
whose free end is inclined toward the handle end of the shank 18. The free 
end of the hook 26 is inclined approximately 45.degree. relative to the 
shank 18. 
The hook 16 also includes an elongated pull member in the form of a second 
shank and the second shank or pull member 28 includes a first handle end 
30 and a second end 32 remote from the first end 30. 
A pair of guide plates 34 and 36 are rigidly supported from the shank 18 at 
points spaced longitudinally there along intermediate the first and second 
ends 20 and 22 thereof. The guide plates 34 and 36 project outwardly from 
the same side of the shank 18 from which the hook 26 projects and include 
aligned bores 38 and 40 formed therethrough. The pull member or second 
shank 28 includes a mid-portion 42 which is slidably received through the 
bores 40 and the second end of the pull member 28 includes an inclined 
laterally outwardly projecting end member 44 thereon. Still further, the 
second end of the pull member 28 includes a guide plate 46 rigidly 
supported therefrom and the guide plate 46 projects toward the shank 18 
and has a bore 48 formed therethrough in which the second end 22 of the 
shank 18 is slidably received. 
A coiled compression spring 50 is disposed about the shank 18 intermediate 
the guide plates 36 and 46 and serves to yieldingly bias the pull member 
or shank 28 toward the hook 26. However, the free end of the end member 44 
is abuttingly engageable with the free end of the hook 26 to limit 
movement of the pull member 28 toward the hook 26 to that position of the 
pull member 42 illustrated in solid lines in FIG. 2. Of course, when the 
pull member 42 is longitudinally shifted to the phantom line position 
thereof illustrated in FIG. 2, the free end of the end member 44 is 
retracted away from the free end of the hook 26 in order to open the 
latter, the hook 26 being closed by the end member 44 when the latter is 
in the solid line position thereof illustrated in FIG. 2. 
Not only does the guide plate 46 serve as an abutment for the adjacent end 
of the compression spring 50, but the guide plate 46, in conjunction with 
the guide plates 34 and 36, serves to operably support the pull member 28 
from the shank 18 against angular displacement of the pull member 28 about 
its longitudinal axis relative to the shank 28. 
It will also be noted from FIG. 2 of the drawings that the included angle 
formed by the abutting free ends of the hook 26 and the end member 44 is 
approximately 90.degree. in angular extent and substantially bisected by a 
plane disposed normal to the longitudinal extent of the shank 18. Thus, 
when the handle 14 of the object 12 is to be released by the hook 26, it 
is not necessary that the hook 26 be opened by manual retraction of the 
pull member 28 away from the hook 26. Rather, a lateral force directed 
upon the hook end of the shank 18 may be accomplished such that the handle 
14 wedges between the free ends of the hook 26 and the end member 44 in 
order to open the hook 26 sufficiently to release the handle 14. 
The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the 
invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily 
occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the 
invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and 
accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted 
to, falling within the scope of the invention.