Abstract:
Embodiments of a power hand tool of the type which has a main body portion, a front nose portion with a tool element extending forwardly from, a handle grip below the main body portion and an operating trigger adjacent the handle grip, further comprising a stand attached to the nose portion configured to pivot between retracted and extended positions, a means for biasing the stand toward its extended position, and a release mechanism adjacent the handle grip configured to hold the stand in its retracted position, and release the stand responsive to manipulation by a user.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention generally relates to powered hand tools, and more particularly, to glue guns.  
         [0002]     Glue guns that dispense molten thermoplastic materials are well known to those who are active in the arts and crafts. Many glue guns have a the general shape of a hand gun and therefore have a housing that comprises a barrel portion and a pistol grip configured to be gripped with one hand while the user uses a trigger which controls the heating circuitry and also presses a block of adhesive through a sleeve and into the melting chamber and also force molten thermoplastic material out of the melting chamber through the nozzle.  
         [0003]     Because the material that flows from the nozzle is hot, the nozzle itself can become hot during use, so that if the gun is placed on a support surface, there is a danger that it could burn or otherwise damage the surface or other materials that may be on the surface. For this reason, such glue guns are often provided with legs or stands that enable the guns to rest on a support surface in an upright position with the nozzle spaced from the surface. Many of such leg or stand configurations are not aesthetically pleasing or demonstrate appreciable ergonomic advantages.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004]     Embodiments of a power hand tool of the type which has a main body portion, a front nose portion with a tool element extending forwardly from, a handle grip below the main body portion and an operating trigger adjacent the handle grip, further comprising a stand attached to the nose portion configured to pivot between retracted and extended positions, a means for biasing the stand toward its extended position, and a release mechanism adjacent the handle grip configured to hold the stand in its retracted position, and release the stand responsive to manipulation by a user. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0005]      FIG. 1  is a left plan view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention and illustrating the stand in its extended position;  
         [0006]      FIG. 2  is a right plan view of the preferred embodiment with the stand in its retracted position, and shown with portions removed to illustrate a portion of the release mechanism;  
         [0007]      FIG. 3  is a upper right partial perspective of a portion of the preferred embodiment, and particularly illustrating the release mechanism of the present invention;  
         [0008]      FIG. 4  is a lower right partial perspective of a portion of the preferred embodiment, and particularly illustrating the release mechanism of the present invention;  
         [0009]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the stand portion of the preferred embodiment;  
         [0010]      FIG. 6  is a rear end view of the stand shown in  FIG. 5 ;  
         [0011]      FIG. 7  is a cross section taken generally along the line  7 - 7  in  FIG. 6 ;  
         [0012]      FIG. 8  is a perspective view of the spring that biases the stand shown in  FIG. 5  toward its extended position;  
         [0013]      FIG. 9  is a perspective view of a portion of one segment of the housing illustrating a portion of the release mechanism of the preferred embodiment. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0014]     The preferred embodiment is a glue gun of the type which dispenses molten adhesive as a result of being heated by a heating element in the glue gun, and has a trigger mechanism which dispenses generally molten adhesive through a nozzle at the front of the glue gun. The preferred embodiment of the present invention has a retractable stand near the front or nose portion of the glue gun, which stand can be pivoted between a retracted and extended position. The stand is normally biased toward the extended position and includes a release mechanism which can be easily activated by a user of the glue gun. When the stand is in its extended position, the glue gun can be placed on a support surface and have the nozzle spaced from the support surface so that it is generally incapable of damaging the surface due to the high temperature of the nozzle during operation. While the preferred embodiment is shown in the environment of a glue gun, it should be understood that the invention can be implemented in other tools, such as a soldering iron, for example.  
         [0015]     Turning now to the drawings, and particularly  FIG. 1 , a glue gun, indicated generally at  10 , is illustrated and has a main body or barrel shaped housing  12 , a front nose portion  14  that has a generally cylindrical shape and a nozzle structure  16  from which a heated adhesive is dispensed during operation of the glue gun. The glue gun  10  also has a handle or pistol grip  18  and a trigger  20  that controls the operation of the glue gun. The operation of the heating element and dispensing aspect of the glue gun  10  is not in and of itself a part of the present invention and therefore will not be discussed in further detail. The pistol grip  18  has a heel portion  22  that is generally flat and is a part of the glue gun that will support it in an upright rest position when it is placed on a support surface.  
         [0016]     The glue gun  10  has a stand, indicated generally at  30 , which is pivotally connected to the barrel or main housing at pivot point  32  as shown in  FIG. 1 , with a similar pivot point  34  being located on the opposite side of the nose portion  14  as shown in  FIG. 2 . Also, the stand  30  is shown in an extended position in  FIG. 1  and a retracted position in  FIG. 2 . The configuration of the stand is such that when it is in a retracted position, it generally conforms to the general shape of the main housing  12  and the nose portion  14  and does not appreciably protrude from these items in a manner that would interfere with the operation of the glue gun or detract from its appearance.  
         [0017]     Turning to  FIGS. 5, 6  and  7 , the stand is shown to have a pair of elongated legs  36  and  38 , the outer end of which have pivot ends  40  and  42 , each of which has respective apertures  44  and  46  for fitting around a raised cylindrical portion of the housing where a screw  48  and washer  50  are used (See  FIGS. 1 and 2 ) to attach the pivot ends  40  and  42  to the nose portion  14  of the housing  12 . The elongated legs  36  and  38  are interconnected by a curved bridging portion  52  located at the free end of the stand  30  with the surfaces  54  defining a foot portion that is configured to contact a support surface when the stand is extended in position and placed on a support surface.  
         [0018]     Since the stand is retractable and extendable and is normally biased toward its extended position, a release mechanism is provided to hold the stand in its retracted position until it is desired to be released and moved to its extended position. The stand therefore has a clip  56  that is formed together with a neck  58  and extends from the center of the bridging portion  52  as is best shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 . The clip has a sideways sloped end portion  60  that is configured to contact a cooperating release member when the stand  30  is returned to its retracted position so that it will automatically be held in place. In that regard, an under cut shelf  62  provides a surface which the member can engage and hold the stand in its retracted position.  
         [0019]     As shown in  FIG. 7 , the aperture  44  in the pivot end  40  has an annular recess  64  that also extends in the form of a groove  66  inwardly along the leg  36 . The groove  66  is configured to receive a spring, indicated generally at  68 , and more particularly a straight end portion  70  thereof The spring  68  is a torsion spring that also has a transverse opposite end  72  that is configured to engage an opening in the housing. The torsion spring  68  is therefore positioned to provide a biasing force tending to urge the stand  30  from its retracted position shown in  FIG. 2  to its extended position shown in  FIG. 1  when it is released during operation.  
         [0020]     A release mechanism, indicated generally at  80 , is configured to hold the stand in its retracted position and release the same so that it can be extended. The release mechanism  80  comprises an elongated member  82  that has a left end portion  84  as well as a right end portion  86 , both end portions of which extend through an opening in the housing  12 , such as opening  87  as shown in  FIGS. 4 and 9 . In this regard, it should be understood that the housing  12  is preferably manufactured in two complementary clam shell sections that are attached to one another during the assembly process. Therefore, the left section in which enables the left end  86  to protrude as shown in  FIG. 1  has an opening similar to the opening  86  which is formed in the right section.  
         [0021]     The member  82  also has a generally centered transverse extension  88  that is configured to engage the shelf  62  when the stand is in its retracted position. As shown in  FIG. 3 , the extension is positioned so that when the stand  30  is moved toward its retracted position, the sloped surface  60  will engage the left edge of the extension  88  and force the member  82  to the right as shown in  FIG. 3  until it clears the clip  56 . The member  82  will then move back to the left to its default, i.e., locked position as shown in  FIG. 3  wherein the upper surface of the extension  88  engages the shelf  62 .  
         [0022]     The member  82  also has a preferably integrally formed boxlike structure  90  on the underside of the member  82  which has openings  91  on opposite ends thereof, only one of which is visible in  FIG. 4 . Inside of the boxlike structure  90  is a spring  92  which is held captive by end wall  94 . The spring  92  is sized so that it can be compressed a sufficient amount to enable the member  82  to move laterally a sufficient distance to enable the transverse extension  88  to clear the clip  56  and hold the stand in its retracted position.  
         [0023]     As shown in  FIG. 9 , the housing  14  has a tab  96  adjacent the opening  86  that is configured to be inserted into the opening  91  in position to engage the end of the spring  92 . Since there is a tab  96  located on both housing  12  sections, it should be understood that the  92  spring can be compressed from either direction. The operation of the spring has the effect of returning the member  82  to its nominal or default position after a user has pushed one end or the other of the slideable member  82  to release the stand  30 .  
         [0024]     It should be apparent from  FIGS. 1 and 2  that a user can operate the glue gun in a normal manner with the stand in its retracted position, and can push either end  84  or  86  with a finger or thumb of the hand in which is being used to hold the gun. Such one handed operation makes it very convenient for the user to manipulate the member  82  and release the stand  30  so that it can move to its extended position thereby enabling the gun to be held upright on a supporting surface such as a table or the like. In this regard, the dashed line shown in  FIG. 1  extends from the heel portion  22  to the foot portions  54  of the stand and in this position the nozzle  16  is spaced away from the support surface as is desired. When the gun is to be used again, the user can lift it up and use their opposite hand to push the stand back in its retracted position and it will click into its locked position in the manner as previously described.  
         [0025]     From the foregoing it should be understood that a very convenient and aesthetically pleasing stand has been shown and described which is easily operated. It should also be understood that while a glue gun has been shown and described, an embodiment of the stand could be implemented in a soldering iron or other device, tool or implement where an upright rest position is a desirable feature.  
         [0026]     While various embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it should be understood that other modifications, substitutions and alternatives are apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art. Such modifications, substitutions and alternatives can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, which should be determined from the appended claims.  
         [0027]     Various features of the invention are set forth in the following claims.