Abstract:
A bearing block can be secured to a fixture with quick release spring pins. The bearing block can also be secured to a shaft using a quick release spring pin. This facilitates the removal of the bearing block for repair or for cleaning whereby the bearing block can be removed without the necessity of tools or skilled labor. This thereby saves time in the removal, cleaning and reassembly or replacement of the bearing block and the device can be put back into service with significant time savings. This bearing block can be used in new designs or can be used to retrofit existing bearings and blocks.

Description:
FIELD 
     The present versions of these embodiments relate generally to the field of quick releases for bearing blocks that are used primarily in the food, dairy, pharmaceutical, meat and poultry processing industries. 
     BACKGROUND 
     These embodiments relate to quick release bearings, and more particularly to bearings that can be released quickly and easily to reconfigure, manufacture, maintain, disassemble, sanitize, reassemble a processing conveyor line or for cleaning of the line. 
     Conveyors are used to transport raw materials for processing and used to transport the packaged goods when processing is complete. Many times the product being transported spills, drips, food particulate sticks, and dust from food collects on the conveyors. The conveyors and related equipment must be cleaned and sanitized to maintain food safety and comply with good food manufacturing practices and cleanliness requirements. When product or lines change many times the conveyors and related processing equipment must be cleaned before the new product is run to prevent contamination of a first product with the second product. In industries where the product being processed or transported is liquid or not a dry ingredient, the lines must be cleaned every so many hours or days dependent upon the industry, materials or state and federal requirements. 
     Cleaning the lines and processing equipment many times means that the lines or conveyors must be completely disassembled and cleaned with a disinfectant or other cleaner. 
     Conveyors use bearings to transport the materials on the conveyor belts. Traditionally the bearings are mounted into blocks and the blocks are bolted or welded to a fixed point on the conveyor. A shaft rotates in the bearing blocks and this allows the conveyor to move the product, raw materials and packaged goods. 
     When the lines need to be maintained, changed or cleaned, one must remove the bearings and bearing blocks and clean any surfaces between the bearing blocks and their attachment points. This requires the use of tools and a mechanic and can be very time consuming to disassemble the bearings and blocks from the conveyor lines. Once the bearings and blocks are disassembled, they must then be cleaned or replaced according to the correct protocol, and then reassembled to get the conveyor line running again. This reassembly also requires tools and a mechanic which can be costly and time consuming. Since the conveyor lines only make money when they are running, any time savings in this maintenance and cleaning process allows more productivity and makes the equipment more productive. 
     Some times bearings will fail, and the conveyor line will not run or will not run safely. When this occurs the bearing must then be removed and replaced with a new bearing. Again a mechanic and tools are needed and this process can be costly and time consuming. 
     Traditional bearings and blocks are commonly affixed with bolts or have threaded rods to which are attached nuts to retain the bearings and blocks to the fixture or conveyor line. 
     It would greatly aid the food processing industry and other industries if a line could be stripped down or a failed bearing could be changed both quickly and easily without the need for a mechanic or tools. 
     For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a bearing quick release block. 
     SUMMARY 
     In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the bearings used in the traditional food processing industry and other industries there is a need for a bearing quick release block that could be disassembled without the need for tools. There is a need for both the replacement of a failed bearing and the disassembly of a bearing from a conveyor for cleaning and maintenance that does not require the use of tools or skilled labor. 
     A first objective of these embodiments is to provide a bearing and a mount block that can replace the traditional bearing and block that affix to conveyors and other processing equipment without the need for extensive modifications. 
     Another objective of these embodiments is to provide a bearing and a mount block that can replace the traditional bearing and block that can be removed without the need for tools. 
     Another objective of these embodiments is to provide a bearing block that can replace the traditional bearing and block, that can be removed or replaced without the need for skilled labor. 
     It is yet another objective of these embodiments to provide a bearing and a mount block that can expedite the removal of conveyor components for cleaning and/or maintenance so that the line can be cleaned and/or maintained, reassembled and running again quickly. 
     These together with other objectives of these embodiments, along with various features of novelty which characterize these embodiments, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed hereto and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of these embodiments, the operating advantages and the specific objectives attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings, descriptive matter and claims in which there is illustrated a preferred embodiment. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  shows a side view of one embodiment of the background art. 
         FIG. 2  shows a side view of another embodiment of the background art. 
         FIG. 3  shows a side view of one embodiment of the bearing block quick release. 
         FIG. 4  shows a side view of one embodiment of the spring pins in a mount surface. 
         FIG. 5  shows a side view of another embodiment of the spring pins in a mount surface. 
         FIG. 6  shows an edge view of one embodiment of the bearing block quick release attached to a fixture. 
         FIG. 7  shows a side view of one embodiment of the bearing block quick release partially assembled. 
         FIG. 8  shows one embodiment of the bearing block quick release attached to a fixture and a conveyor. 
         FIG. 9  shows one embodiment of the bearing block quick release partially assembled. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring to the drawings in detail wherein like elements are indicated by like numerals, there is shown in  FIG. 1  a background bearing block  12 . The bearing block  12  has a mount block  14  into which is affixed an inner race  18  an outer race  20  with balls  60  in between,  FIG. 6 . The inner race  18  has a shoulder  36  which extends from the outer surface of the bearing block  12 , best seen  FIG. 6 . The shaft  22  extends from the bearing block  12  and terminates near the end of the shoulder  36 ,  FIG. 6 .  FIG. 1  shows a pair of set screws  24  that are threaded into the shoulder  36  and into the shaft  22  to retain the shaft  22  fixed to the shoulder  36  of the inner race  18 . The balls  60  allow the shaft  22  to spin relative to the mount block  14 . The mount block  14  has a surface  38 . Into the surface  38  are drilled block holes  46 . The block holes  46  then typically have a threaded insert  44  lodged into the block holes  46 . The threaded inserts  44  can be pressed into the block holes  46 , be molded into the mount block  14  or be secured with adhesives. 
     Threaded studs  52  are then inserted into the block holes  46 . The threaded studs  52  are then inserted through the mount holes  50  in the mount surface  48  which is typically secured to the mechanical structure. Nuts  42  then secure the surface  38  of the mount block  14  to the mount surface  48 . This thereby secures the shaft  22  to the mechanical structure and for example and not by limitation, a conveyor belt can be looped over the shaft  22  to provide a method of transporting materials and finished products. 
     In the background embodiment of  FIG. 1 , one can appreciate that to remove the bearing block  12  in the event of failure or necessary cleaning, one must first remove the set screws  24  (and make sure that they don&#39;t get lost). Next one must remove the nuts  42  and then the bearing block  12  can be removed from the mount surface  48  of the mechanical structure. 
       FIG. 2  shows a similar background structure, with the bearing block  12  secured to the mount surface  48  with attachment bolts  58 . The bolts  58  are threaded into threaded inserts  44  which are secured in block holes  46 . Likewise to remove this bearing block  12  from the mechanical structure or mount surface  48 , one must first remove the set screws  24  and then the attachment bolts  58  are removed from the block holes  46  threaded inserts  44 . The mechanical structure can then be cleaned or the bearing block  12  can be replaced. 
       FIG. 3  shows the applicant&#39;s embodiments of the bearing block  12 . In this embodiment, the shaft  22  has a shaft hole  33  and is secured to the shoulder  36  of the inner race  18  with a shaft lock  34 . The shaft lock  34  is a quick release spring pin. The shaft lock  34  is inserted into a hole in the shoulder  18  into a co-linear shaft hole  33  and exits the inner race  18  from a co-linear hole on the opposite side of inner race  18 . The ball  32  is biased via a spring (not shown), away from the outer surface of the pin and withdraws into the shaft lock  34  when the shaft lock  34  is pulled perpendicular to the shaft  22  thereby allowing disassembly of the bearing block  12  from the shaft  22  without any tools. 
       FIG. 4  shows one embodiment of the mount surface  48 . In this embodiment, two spring pins  30  are secured in the mount surface  48  by welding or other methods. The pins  30  have a vertex  68  defined as the top of the pins  30 , see  FIGS. 4 ,  5 . These pins  30  have spring loaded balls  32  for insertion into the block holes  46  in the surface  38  of the mount block  14 . In  FIG. 3  is shown the top of the block hole  46  having a blind end  70  and an open end  72  at the bottom. Each block hole  46  has a sleeve  16  which is an open ended cylinder and which is press fit or molded into the block hole  46  or can be secured with adhesive. The sleeves  16  have an open top end  15  and open bottom end  17 . The bottom end  17  of the sleeves  16  is co-planar with surface  38 , or the bottom end  17  does not extend beyond the plane of surface  38 . At the bottom end  17  of the sleeves  16  is a taper  28 . The sleeves  16  are sized such that when they are inserted into the block holes  46 , there is a block cavity  26  between the top end  15  of the sleeve  16  and the blind end  70  of the block hole  46 , best seen  FIG. 3 . This cavity  26  is sized such that the ball  32  on the spring pins  30  resides in the cavity  26  thereby securing the mount block  14  to the mount surface  48 . When the ball  32  is inserted beyond the end of the sleeve  16 , the spring in the pin forces the ball further from the spring pin  30  outer surface. The ball  32  resists movement of the spring pin  30  from the sleeve  16  in the block hole  46 . 
     This allows the mount block  14  to be removed from the mount surface  48  by providing a force to the bearing block  12  such that the ball  32  compresses into the spring pin  30 . The ball  32  can then slide into the sleeve  16  and bearing block  12  can be removed from the mount surface  48 . No tools are thus required to remove the mount block  14  from the mount surface  48 . 
       FIG. 5  shows an alternative embodiment of the mount surface  48  with threaded spring pins  30  affixed. The spring pins  30  can be welded to the mount surface  48  or the spring pins  30  could be threaded into the mount surface  48 . This would thus allow the use of the spring pins  30  and mount block  14  to be used to retro fit an existing system that has an existing fixture and holes. Standard mount blocks  14  as seen in  FIGS. 1 &amp; 2  could thereby be replaced by a mount block  14  shown in  FIG. 3 , with the corresponding mount surfaces  48  shown in  FIG. 4  or  5 . 
       FIG. 6  shows a side view of one embodiment of the applicants bearing block  12  where the attachment of the shaft lock  34  can more clearly be seen affixed through the shoulder  36  and shaft  22 . The spring pin  30  can also be more clearly seen housed within the block hole  46  having a sleeve  16  where the ball  32  is located between the end of the sleeve  16  and the end of the block hole  46  or within the cavity  26 . 
     One can appreciate the ease at which bearing block  12  can be removed from the shaft  22  and the mount block  14  from the fixture  64 . The user can pull on the mount block  14  compressing the balls  32  into the spring pin  30 , the ball  32  slides into the sleeve  16  and the mount block  14  is removed from the spring pins  30 . The user can then grasp the tab  35  of the shaft lock  34  and pull, whereby the ball  32  compresses into the outer surface of the shaft lock  34 , into the shoulder  36  of the inner race  18 , through the shaft  22 , into the other side of the shoulder  36  of the inner race  18  to be removed. This thus frees the shaft  22  from being secured to the bearing block  12 . The shaft  22  can be removed from the bearing block  12 . The bearing block  12  can be replaced or sterilized as needed. No tools are necessary to remove this bearing block  12  from the shaft  22  and the fixture  64  and likewise no tools would be necessary to replace or reassemble it. 
     It will now be apparent to those skilled in the art that other embodiments, improvements, details and uses can be made consistent with the letter and spirit of the foregoing disclosure and within the scope of this application, which is limited only by the following claims, construed in accordance with the patent law, including the doctrine of equivalents.