Portable power tool with a guide channel

A portable power tool has at least one housing part (10) and a guide channel (12) for carrying chips and/or abrasive particles away from a working area (14). At least one wall region (16) of the guide channel (12) is movable relative to the housing part (10) for cleaning purposes.

RELATED ART

The present invention is directed to a portable power tool with a guide channel for carrying chips and/or abrasive particles away from a working area.

It has already been provided to equip a portable power tool—which includes at least one housing part—with a guide channel to carry away chips and/or abrasive particles. The guide channel is integrated in a housing and is usually formed of several housing parts, each of which includes a wall region of the guide channel. Generic portable power tools can include suction or blower units which are formed by a ventilator which is rotatably driven around an axis of rotation which extends in parallel with a stream of air in the guide channel.

ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a portable power tool with at least one housing part and a guide channel for carrying chips and/or abrasive particles away from a working area.

It is provided that at least one wall region of the guide channel is designed such that it is movable relative to the housing part for cleaning purposes. This makes it much easier to clean the guide channel. Chips which clog or contaminate the guide channel can be removed easily and conveniently, since a clogged and/or contaminated region can be accessed easily by moving the wall region. As a result, with portable power tools in particular which are designed for woodworking, comfort can be increased considerably, since resin residue can be removed easily from the movable wall region or a wall region of the guide channel which is complementary to the movable wall region. The wall region can enclose a subsection of the guide channel around the circumference, or it can be designed as a side wall. Embodiments of the present invention are particularly advantageous in which the wall region extends at least substantially along an entire length of the guide channel.

In this context, “movable” should be understood to mean manual movability in particular. The term is intended to also mean “detachable”, “manually detachable”, and “pivotable”.

Particularly reliable and comfortable movability with a guide having a simple design can be attained when the portable power tool includes a hinge element for opening the wall region away from the housing part.

To fix a closed configuration of the guide channel in place, the portable power tool can advantageously include a manually detachable fixing element and, in particular, a snap-in connection between the wall region and the housing part.

The ejected chips and/or the ejected abrasive particles can be prevented from disturbing the comfort of the operator of the portable power tool when the guide channel for ejecting chips is provided in a direction which is opposite to a working direction. In addition, a handle element for guiding the portable power tool is advantageously located outside of an ejection range of the guide channel and, in fact, above the guide channel or on a top side of the portable power tool in particular.

A refinement of the present invention provides that the guide channel includes a connecting element for connecting a collecting container for the chips and/or abrasive particles. The chips can be collected directly in the collecting container.

The guide channel can be opened when the housing part is fixedly connected with a further wall region of the guide channel and/or forms a further wall region.

The present invention is also directed to a portable power tool with a guide channel for carrying chips and/or abrasive particles away from a working area, and with a blower unit—which is driven such that it can rotate around an axis of rotation—for driving a stream of air in the guide channel.

It is provided that the axis of rotation extends at least substantially orthogonally to a direction of flow of the stream of air in the guide channel. A blower unit with a particularly flat design can be attained, which can produce a flow profile which is homogeneous across a width of the guide channel, particularly in guide channels having a flat design. It can also be attained that the blower unit is suspended on or supported on the blower unit outside of the guide channel, so that the guide channel cannot become clogged in a region where it is suspended or supported.

In this case, “substantially orthogonal” also refers to an angle of inclination which deviates from the perpendicular by less than 30° or which can be realized by moving the suspension of the blower unit out of the guide channel.

Particular advantages can result in the context of planers which include a knife shaft for planing a workpiece, since particularly large chips are produced in this case. As such, the tendency for the guide channel to become clogged is particularly great. In addition, a flat guide channel complements the cylindrical, linear shape of the knife shaft in a particularly advantageous manner.

It can be ensured that the blower unit is always activated when the knife shaft rotates when the blower unit is connected with the knife shaft via a transmission element. In a manner which has a simple design and is economical, the transmission element can be designed as a transmission belt, although designs with transmission gears are also feasible.

When the blower unit includes at least one blade which extends orthogonally to the direction of flow, a flow which is homogeneous across a width of the guide channel can be attained, and a mechanical forwarding of the chips via the blades can advantageously support the stream of air via its convective transport work.

The volume of chips obtained during machining can be reduced when the blade includes at least one sharp edge designed to fragmentize chips.

The energy stored in a cooling air flow of an electric motor of the portable power tool could be fully utilized if the blower unit were driven by the cooling air flow of the electric motor.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

FIGS. 1 and 2show a portable power tool designed as a hand-guided planer, with a guide channel12for guiding chips away from a working area14of the portable power tool into an outer space and/or into a collecting container26—which is designed as a collecting bag—of the portable power tool. The portable power tool includes a multiple-component housing with an upper housing part44and a lower housing part10. Housing parts10,44are pivotably connected with each other via a hinge element18, and they each include a wall region16,28of guide channel12. Upper wall region16is integrally moulded with upper housing part44, while lower wall region28is integrally moulded with lower housing part10. As a result, upper wall region16is movable and/or pivotable relative to lower housing part10via hinge element18. Using hinge element18, an operator can open upper housing part44, including wall region16, away from lower housing part10.

A power supply cord56and a switch54for turning the planer on and off are located on upper housing part44. An electric current is carried by power supply cord56via switch54through a not-shown contact element into lower housing part10and/or into an electric motor52which is located in lower housing part10, and, in fact, such that an electric circuit is isolated by the contact element when the housing is open.

When housing parts10,44are in the closed state, in which housing parts10,44are locked in position via a snap-in connection, guide channel12is limited by wall regions16,28. Wall regions16,28each form approximately one-half of a wall of guide channel12.

Guide channel12extends from a working region14—which is located in a front region of housing part10relative to a working direction22—linearly through the portable power tool and opens toward the back, relative to working direction22, so that guide channel12is provided for ejecting chips in a direction20which is opposite to a working direction22. Both wall regions16,28extend across the entire length of guide channel12. Guide channel12arches over electric motor52, which is located transversely to the guide channel. In a rear end region, guide channel12includes a connecting element24—which is designed as an annular groove—for connecting collecting container26. Collecting container26has a stiff edge which engages in connecting element24when guide channel12is closed, so that connecting element24fixes collecting container26in position in a form-fit manner when the housing is closed.

A cylindrical knife shaft38for removing chips—which are composed of a wood-like material, in particular—is located in working area14, and is driven via a drive belt46by electric motor52of the portable power tool (FIG. 4).

Drive belt46runs on a twin belt pulley48which is non-rotatably connected with knife shaft38, and on which drive belt46and a further transmission element50designed as a drive belt runs. Transmission element50transfers a rotary motion of knife shaft38to a blower unit32designed as a cross-flow fan. Blower unit32is rotatably driven via transmission element50around an axis of rotation30which extends parallel to an axis of rotation of knife shaft38. Axis of rotation30extends orthogonally to a stream of air34guided in guide channel12and/or to a direction of flow36of stream of air34.

Axis of rotation30of blower unit32is displaced downward from the center of guide channel12, so that air flow34is driven by blower unit32in direction of flow36. Blower unit32is located above knife shaft38, displaced slightly to the rear (FIG. 3).

Cylindrical blower unit32includes a large number of blades40distributed evenly around its circumference, each of which has a sharp edge42which points toward the front and, when it engages in stream of air34, fragmentizes the chips, to make it easier to transport the chips in stream of air34via convection.