Abstract:
A height adjustment lock system is disclosed. The system allows one to easily adjust the length of a pole or a handle. Such adjustment is useful with cleaning and maintenance devices as well as with tools and other implements. The height adjustment lock system has a locking handle that is movably attached to a braking cylinder. A multi section pole or handle is engaged with the braking cylinder. Movement of the locking handle causes the braking cylinder to frictionally retain the sections in a selected position, and further movement of the locking handle in an opposing direction causes the braking cylinder to release the sections for further height or length adjustment.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0002]    This invention relates generally to cleaning and maintenance devices, and more specifically to a height adjustment lock system for changing the length of a pole handle of a cleaning or maintenance device. 
         [0003]    2. Description of Related Art 
         [0004]    Many cleaning and maintenance devices are attached to handles or poles to facilitate the use and operation of the device. Oftentimes these poles or handles require length adjustment to best accommodate the user or a specific use of the device. While length adjustment can be accomplished by cutting the pole or handle to the desired length, this is not always practical as the device may be used by multiple people, all of whom may have a different length requirement. In addition, a given task may dictate a desired length, and it may be necessary to change the length of the pole or handle depending on the task that one is engaged in. 
         [0005]    Devices that incorporate poles or handles can range from cleaning devices such as, but not limited to, brooms, mops, dusters, and squeegees to tools such as pruners, saws, light bulb changers, fish nets, and the like. Other devices such as ski poles, hiking poles, canes, and various other items could also benefit from an adjustable pole or handle. 
         [0006]    What is needed is a device that, when used in conjunction with a pole or handle for a cleaning or maintenance device, allows one to easily adjust the height of the pole or handle to best fit the needs and size requirements of the user. 
         [0007]    It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a height adjustment lock system. 
         [0008]    These and other objects of the present invention are not to be considered comprehensive or exhaustive, but rather, exemplary of objects that may be ascertained after reading this specification and claims with the accompanying drawings. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0009]    In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a height adjustment lock system comprising a braking cylinder for receiving an upper pole section and a lower pole section; the braking cylinder having a brake shoe retainer for receiving a brake shoe; the lower pole section capable of being slidably engaged within the braking cylinder; the brake shoe having a shape conformal to a surface of the lower pole section and a frictional surface capable of engaging with and retaining the lower pole section; a locking handle hingably coupled to the braking cylinder where the locking handle comprises a brake shoe pusher capable of applying force to the brake shoe when the locking handle is moved and further comprising a retainer for retaining the locking handle to the braking cylinder. 
         [0010]    The foregoing paragraph has been provided by way of introduction, and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention as described in this specification, claims and the attached drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]    The invention will be described by reference to the following drawings, in which like numerals refer to like elements, and in which: 
           [0012]      FIG. 1  is a plan view of the height adjustment lock system in an open position; 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  is a plan view of the height adjustment lock system in a closed position; 
           [0014]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the height adjustment lock system in use; 
           [0015]      FIG. 4  is an exploded view of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0016]      FIG. 5  is a side view of a locking handle of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0017]      FIG. 6  is a side view of the locking handle of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0018]      FIG. 7  is a rotated plan view of the locking handle of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0019]      FIG. 8  is a bottom plan view of the locking handle of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0020]      FIG. 9  is a perspective view of the locking handle of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0021]      FIG. 10  is a top plan view of the locking handle of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0022]      FIG. 11  is a perspective view of a braking cylinder of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0023]      FIG. 12  is a side plan view of the braking cylinder of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0024]      FIG. 13  is a rotated plan view of the braking cylinder of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0025]      FIG. 14  is an opposing side plan view of the braking cylinder of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0026]      FIG. 15  is a bottom plan view of the braking cylinder of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0027]      FIG. 16  is a top plan view of the braking cylinder of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0028]      FIG. 17  is an outer plan view of a brake shoe of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0029]      FIG. 18  is a side plan view of a brake shoe of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0030]      FIG. 19  is a rotated side plan view of a brake shoe of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0031]      FIG. 20  is an end plan view of a brake shoe of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0032]      FIG. 21  is an opposing end plan view of a brake shoe of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0033]      FIG. 22  is an outer perspective view of a brake shoe of the height adjustment lock system; 
           [0034]      FIG. 23  is an inner perspective view of a brake shoe of the height adjustment lock system; and 
           [0035]      FIG. 24  is a perspective view of a stop plug of the height adjustment lock system. 
       
    
    
       [0036]    The attached figures depict various views of the Height Adjustment Lock System in sufficient detail to allow one skilled in the art to make and use the present invention. These figures are exemplary, and depict a preferred embodiment; however, it will be understood that there is no intent to limit the invention to the embodiment depicted herein. On the contrary, the intent is to cover all alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by this specification, claims and drawings. 
       DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0037]    A Height Adjustment Lock System is described and depicted by way of this specification and the attached drawings and claims. 
         [0038]    For a general understanding of the present invention, reference is made to the drawings. In the drawings, like reference numerals have been used throughout to designate identical elements. 
         [0039]    The height adjustment lock system has a locking handle that is movably attached to a braking cylinder. A multi section pole or handle is engaged with the braking cylinder. There may be two or more sections, with the slideable interaction of a pair of sections being capable of incorporating a height adjustment lock system of the present invention. Movement of the locking handle in a closed or engaged position causes the braking cylinder to frictionally retain the sections in a given position, and further movement of the locking handle in an opposite open or disengaged position causes the braking cylinder to release the sections for further height or length adjustment. 
         [0040]    Referring to  FIG. 1 , a plan view of the height adjustment lock system  100  in an open position is shown. The height adjustment lock system may be made from any suitable rigid or semi-rigid material, for example, a plastic. Examples of suitable plastics include acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, polytetrafluoroethylene, and the like. Bioplastics may also be used in some embodiments of the present invention. In addition, reinforced plastics, metals, wood, or other materials that may be suitably formed may also be used. The various components of the height adjustment lock system  100  may be made by injection molding, blow molding, machining, extruding, or the like. 
         [0041]    The height adjustment lock system comprises a braking cylinder  101  for receiving an upper pole section  113  and a lower pole section  111 . The braking cylinder  101  has at least one brake shoe retainer (not seen in  FIG. 1 , see  FIG. 11 ) that retains a brake shoe  105 . The brake shoe  105  has a shape that is conformal to a surface of the lower pole section  111  and further has a frictional surface that is capable of engaging with and retaining the lower pole section  111 . The braking cylinder  101  may, in some embodiments of the present invention, have a handle  117  for ease of use. The lower pole section  111  is capable of being slidably engaged within the braking cylinder  101 , and the upper pole section  113  being retained by the braking cylinder  101 . A locking handle  103  is hingably coupled to the braking cylinder  101  where the locking handle  103  comprises a brake pad pusher (see  FIG. 8 ) capable of applying force to the brake shoe when the locking handle is moved and further comprising a retainer for retaining the locking handle to the braking cylinder. In some embodiments of the present invention, the locking handle  103  has a flare  107  to facilitate ease of use. An upper hinge edge  109  provides a finite range of motion for the locking handle  103 . In some embodiments of the present invention, an upper flange  115  is present. Each of these various components and their interaction will be further described herein. 
         [0042]    While  FIG. 1  depicted the height adjustment lock system in an open position where the brake shoes are not binding and retaining the lower pole section,  FIG. 2  in the alternative depicts a plan view of the height adjustment lock system in a closed position where the brake shoes are binding and retaining the lower pole section, thus setting the height of the poles in a fixed position, ready for use. In use, the height adjustment lock system  100  will have the locking handle  103  in the closed or binding position. As an example of a possible use for the height adjustment lock system  100 ,  FIG. 3  is an example of the height adjustment lock system  100  in use with a broom head. 
         [0043]      FIG. 4  is an exploded view of the height adjustment lock system  100  showing its various components. The braking cylinder  101  can be seen with a first brake shoe  105 A and a second brake shoe  105 B. The upper pole section  113  fits in, and is secured by, the braking cylinder  101  by friction or with the addition of an adhesive, hardware or other features. The locking handle  103  can also be seen with the lower pole section  111  and a stop plug  401 . 
         [0044]      FIG. 5  is a side view of a locking handle  103  of the height adjustment lock system. The locking handle  103  may be made from any suitable rigid or semi-rigid material, for example, a plastic. Examples of suitable plastics include acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, polytetrafluoroethylene, and the like. Bioplastics may also be used in some embodiments of the present invention. In addition, reinforced plastics, metals, wood, or other materials that may be suitably formed may also be used. The locking handle  103  may be made by injection molding, blow molding, machining, extruding, or the like.  FIG. 6  is a side view of the locking handle of the height adjustment lock system. The locking handle  103  is generally cylindrical and capable of receiving the braking cylinder  101 . The locking handle  103  may, in some embodiments of the present invention, have a varying diameter, with one end being larger than the other. An oblique or angled cutaway may be present to better accommodate opening and closing of the overall height adjustment lock system. A handle flare  107  may be provided to facilitate ease of operation. An upper flange  115  may also be present. 
         [0045]      FIG. 7  is a rotated plan view of the locking handle of the height adjustment lock system and  FIG. 8  is a bottom plan view of the locking handle of the height adjustment lock system. Several inner features of the locking handle  103  can be seen. A first hinge pin  801  and a second hinge pin  803  are attached to, or integral with, the locking handle  103  and protrude inward in order to engage with mating openings or features on the braking cylinder  101 . In some embodiments of the present invention, the hinge pins are generally circular or cylindrical to accommodate rotation and movement of the locking handle  103 . Also seen in  FIG. 8  is a first brake shoe pusher  805  and a second brake shoe pusher  807 . The brake shoe pushers are attached to, or integral with, the locking handle  103  and protrude inward to engage with each brake shoe  105  and push that brake shoe inward to frictionally bind or retain the lower pole section  111  (see  FIG. 1 ). Each brake shoe pusher may be a protrusion, finger or strut that rides along and provides pressure to the outer surface of each brake shoe  105  which in turn creates frictional binding of the brake shoe with the lower pole section  111 , thus locking the pole sections in place. 
         [0046]      FIG. 9  is a perspective view of the locking handle of the height adjustment lock system showing a first braking cylinder retainer  901 . Such a retainer is a feature along the inner portion of the locking handle  103 . This feature serves to grasp or otherwise retain the locking handle in a closed position with the braking cylinder  101  and may, in some embodiments of the present invention, be a groove or ridges that receive the braking cylinder  101  or a locking feature of the braking cylinder  101 . 
         [0047]      FIG. 10  is a top plan view of the locking handle of the height adjustment lock system. The hinge pins and brake shoe pushers can be clearly seen. 
         [0048]      FIG. 11  is a perspective view of a braking cylinder  101  of the height adjustment lock system. The braking cylinder  101  may be made from any suitable rigid or semi-rigid material, for example, a plastic. Examples of suitable plastics include acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, polytetrafluoroethylene, and the like. Bioplastics may also be used in some embodiments of the present invention. In addition, reinforced plastics, metals, wood, or other materials that may be suitably formed may also be used. The braking cylinder  101  may be made by injection molding, blow molding, machining, extruding, or the like. 
         [0049]    In use, the braking cylinder  101  is coupled to the locking handle  103  with hinge pins and related receivers.  FIG. 12  is a side plan view of the braking cylinder  101  of the height adjustment lock system  100 . The braking cylinder  101  is generally cylindrical, and retains an upper pole section and allows a lower pole section to slide through the braking cylinder. A first hinge pin receiver  1101  and a second hinge pin receiver  1103  can be seen. Each hinge pin receiver is shaped to accommodate a related hinge pin of the locking handle  103  and may be, in some embodiments of the present invention, generally circular. A first hinge pin guide slot  1105  and a second hinge pin guide slot  1107  allow for ease of assembly and fitting of the braking cylinder  101  to the locking handle  103 . A first brake shoe retainer  1109  and a second brake shoe retainer  1111  can be seen as openings on each side of the braking cylinder  101 . In some embodiments of the present invention, the openings are generally rectangular, and may have angled, chamfered, beveled, channeled, or otherwise modified edges to ensure alignment and retention of a brake shoe such as the brake shoe depicted in  FIGS. 17-23 . A first slot  1115  and a second slot  1113  can also be seen along the inner surface of the braking cylinder  101 . To prevent over-travel of the lower pole section  111  (see  FIG. 1 ), a stop flange  1117  is located along the inner all of the braking cylinder  101 . The stop flange  1117  may be a ridge, bevel, ring, or other structure that effectively changes the inner diameter of the braking cylinder  101  so that the lower pole section  111  with the stop plug  401  engaged will not pull out of the outer pole section or braking cylinder. A feature or features to engage with the braking cylinder retainer  901  of the locking handle  103  can also be seen as a first lock feature  1119  and a second lock feature  1121 . Each lock feature is a protrusion from the braking cylinder  101  and may be curved or otherwise convex. In some embodiments of the present invention, each lock feature has raised lines that may intersect or otherwise cooperate one with the other. 
         [0050]      FIG. 13  is a rotated plan view of the braking cylinder  101  of the height adjustment lock system  100 . In some embodiments of the present invention, a parabolic or curved edge  1301  facilitates assembly of the upper pole section  113  (see  FIG. 1 ) with the braking cylinder  101 . 
         [0051]      FIG. 14  is an opposing side plan view of the braking cylinder  101  of the height adjustment lock system  100  showing a beveled edge in the brake shoe retainer  1109 . 
         [0052]      FIG. 15  is a bottom plan view of the braking cylinder  101  of the height adjustment lock system  100  and  FIG. 16  is a top plan view of the braking cylinder  101  of the height adjustment lock system  100 . 
         [0053]    For a complete understanding of the present invention, the brake shoe  105  will be further described by way of  FIGS. 17-23 . Two brake shoes will be described herein, however, one brake shoe or more than two brake shoes may also be employed. In the example provided herein, the brake shoe is generically referred to as  105 , wherein the designator  105 A and  105 B are provided to describe a first brake shoe and a second brake shoe respectively. 
         [0054]      FIG. 17  is an outer plan view of a brake shoe  105  of the height adjustment lock system  100 . The brake shoe  105  may be made from any suitable rigid or semi-rigid material, for example, a plastic. Examples of suitable plastics include acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, polytetrafluoroethylene, and the like. Bioplastics may also be used in some embodiments of the present invention. In addition, reinforced plastics, metals, wood, or other materials that may be suitably formed may also be used. The brake shoe  105  may be made by injection molding, blow molding, machining, extruding, or the like. 
         [0055]    The brake shoe  105  may have a recess or plurality of recesses  1701  that may be rectangular, square, circular, or the like. A step  1703  may be present on the outer surface of the brake shoe  105  to facilitate engagement with the brake shoe pusher of the locking handle and an edge  1705  may also be present. The overall shape of the brake shoe  105  may be, for example, rectangular or square in two dimensions and may have a curve that conforms to the curve of the lower pole section. 
         [0056]      FIG. 18  is a side plan view of a brake shoe  105  of the height adjustment lock system  100 . A groove  1801  can be seen that engages with an edge or bevel of the brake shoe retainer of the braking cylinder  101 . Along the inner curved surface of the brake shoe that makes contact with the lower pole section, a frictional surface  1803  is present. While the frictional surface  1803  may simply be made from the same material as the brake shoe  105 , an overlay or a friction altering overmolded material may be used. The frictional surface  1803  may be a soft durometer material and may be formed from an elastomeric material such as a thermoplastic elastomer, and may be attached to the brake shoe  105 , using bonding techniques such as chemical bonding, thermal bonding, mechanical bonding, or other such techniques that are known to those skilled in the art. The frictional surface  1803  may also be attached to the brake shoe  105  through a coinjection molding process, such as the coinjection molding process described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,562,276 entitled “Process for Forming a Multilayer, Coinjected Article”, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein. The outer surface of the brake shoe  105  may also, in some embodiments of the present invention, be formed as an apex  1805  as seen in  FIG. 18 . 
         [0057]      FIG. 19  is a rotated side plan view of a brake shoe of the height adjustment lock system and  FIG. 20  is an end plan view of a brake shoe of the height adjustment lock system.  FIG. 21  is an opposing end plan view of a brake shoe of the height adjustment lock system that clearly shows a retention groove  1801  for engaging with a mating feature on the corresponding brake shoe retainer. 
         [0058]      FIG. 22  is an outer perspective view of a brake shoe of the height adjustment lock system and  FIG. 23  is an inner perspective view of a brake shoe of the height adjustment lock system that shows the frictional surface  1803  that binds with the lower pole section  111  (see  FIG. 1 ). 
         [0059]    Lastly,  FIG. 24  is a perspective view of a stop plug  401  of the height adjustment lock system. The stop plug  401  attaches to the lower pole section  111  and retains the lower pole section  111  within the braking cylinder  101  using the stop flange  1117  of  FIG. 11 . The plug body  2401  has a flange  2403  and a pin  2407  attached to or molded with a live hinge  2405 . There may be two pins and related live hinges that each insert into a hole in the wall of the lower pole section  111  as seen in  FIG. 4 . 
         [0060]    The stop plug  401  may be made from any suitable rigid or semi-rigid material, for example, a plastic. Examples of suitable plastics include acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, polytetrafluoroethylene, and the like. Bioplastics may also be used in some embodiments of the present invention. In addition, reinforced plastics, metals, wood, or other materials that may be suitably formed may also be used. The stop plug  401  may be made by injection molding, blow molding, machining, extruding, or the like. 
         [0061]    Other configurations, orientations, arrangements, as well as various sizes and geometries are considered to be within the scope and content of the present invention. 
         [0062]    Modifications, additions, or deletions may be made, and are considered to be within the spirit and broad scope of the present invention and the various embodiments described and envisioned herein. 
         [0063]    It is, therefore, apparent that there has been provided, in accordance with the various objects of the present invention, a height adjustment lock system. While the various objects of this invention have been described in conjunction with preferred embodiments thereof, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications, and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and broad scope of this specification, claims and the attached drawings.