Patent Publication Number: US-6902216-B1

Title: Supplementary stretcher for laying carpet

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention relates to lay in order the carpet on the floor or to pave a tile on the wall and more particularly to a supplementary stretcher for laying carpet which helps the worker to evenly lay in order a carpet on the floor without wrinkles. 
   To lay a carpet in order on a floor must be plane without any wrinkle. However, once the wrinkles are found during the laying stage. The worker has to pull the edge of the carpet in order to eliminate the wrinkles. But it is difficult to stretch the carpet with the hands of a worker standing aside a wall. That&#39;s why a supplementary stretcher available in the market to help the worker to stretch the wrinkles in laying a carpet. This type of supplementary stretcher is composed of a head with tines and a handle to enable the worker to grasp with his hands or to stop against the end of the handle with his knees to push the stretcher moving forward and to utilize the tines to stretch the carpet to be tight to eliminate the wrinkles. Therefore, the stretcher provides much convenience to the worker. However, the length of its handle is limitative and could not adjust. So as to cause difficulty to the worker who stands at a corner of the walls or at a place where the worker could not reach. Further, its head is too big to pack for collection. Besides, the height of the workers are not so similar to each other especially between a man and a woman that they are not substantially fitting the handle at all. In such a circumstance, he or she could not properly apply the strength. 
   SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION 
   The present invention has a main object to provide a supplementary stretcher for laying carpet which has a flexible handle capable of adjusting the length of the stretcher to enable the head of the stretcher reaching to any where on the floor. 
   Another object of the present invention is to provide a supplementary stretcher for laying carpet in which the end of the handle is designed in accordance with the ergonomics and so as to fit any height of the men or women who squat to use their knees to operate the handle of the stretcher that saves their strength especially in changing the directions of the head. 
   Still another object of the present invention is to provide a supplementary stretcher for laying carpet in which the head is foldable and facilitates the user to carry or to pack for collection. 
   Further object of the present invention is to provide a supplementary stretcher for laying carpet in which the head is replaceable with a sucking disk that facilitate the worker to suck a tile to lay on a high place or a dead angle. 
   Accordingly, the supplementary stretcher of the present invention comprises generally a head with a plurality of tines on the bottom, a hollow interior handle pivoted to the head and having a detent means disposed therein for selectively positioning a sliding bar which has a plurality of serrations on underside engageable with the detent means and is slidable within the handle for adjusting the length of the handle and a push plate in cooperation with a soft plate connected to the free end of the sliding bar. Therefore the adjustable handle not only coinsides with the ergonomics but also fits to the height of men or women to conveniently work with their knees. Further, the head of the stretcher can be changing the directions to stretch the carpet at any dead corners. Besides, the head can be replaced with a sucking disk moving a tile to a high place. 
   The present invention will become more fully understood by reference to the following detailed description thereof when read in conjunction with the attached drawings. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is an exploded perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the supplementary stretcher of the present invention, 
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view to show the assembly of  FIG. 1 , 
       FIG. 3  is a sectional view indicating that the sliding bar is being pulling outward, 
       FIG. 4  is a sectional view indicating that the pressing plate is pressed down, 
       FIG. 5  is a sectional view indicating that the sliding bar is being pushed into the handle, 
       FIG. 6  is a sectional view indicating that the pushing plate is turned a certain angle relative to the plane of the sliding bar, 
       FIG. 7  is a perspective view indicating that the head is being folded up and positioned under the handle, 
       FIG. 8  is a sectional view indicating that steel balls are positioned at the pivotal portion, 
       FIG. 9  is a plane view indicating the connection structure of the pushing plate with the sliding bar and the folded up head, 
       FIG. 10  is an exploded perspective view indicating that the head is replaceable with a sucking disk, and 
       FIG. 11  is a perspective view indicating that the sucking disk is already connected with the front end of the handle. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
   With reference to  FIGS. 1  to  3  of the drawings, the preferred embodiment of the supplementary stretcher of the present invention comprises a flat head  10  having a plurality of tines  11  on underside and protected by a cap  12 , a lug  13  on the rear side including a pair of aligned through holes  14  for disposing herein a pair of steel balls  141 , a pair of springs  142  and a pair of screws  143  which close the outer end of the through holes  14  so that the springs  142  provide the elasticity to the steel balls, wherein the inner ends of the aligned through holes  14  has their diameter lesser than that of the steel balls  141  so as to prevent the steel balls  141  from escaped from the through holes  14  (as shown in FIG.  8 ), a pair of aligned screw holes  15  adjacent the aligned through holes  14 , a hollow interior handle  20  having an upper portion  201 , a bottom  202  connected by a plurality of screws  23 , a downward arcuate front end engaged within the lug  13  of the head  10  including a pair of aligned pivotal holes  21  engaged with the aligned screw holes  15  and secured by a quickly applied lock  150  which has a threaded shank  151  screwed into the aligned screw holes  15  and the pivotal holes  21  and a lateral handle  152 , a pair of positioning holes  22  engaged with the steel balls  141 , a groove  2011  in a top adjacent the rear end of the upper portion  201  of the handle  20 , a detent means  25  including a retaining frame  251  disposed in the rear portion of the handle  20  and a pressing plate  252  engaged within the groove  2011 , an elastic plate  26  secured to an upper inner wall of the handle  20  by a screw  261  with a free end engaged with the pressing plate  252  for providing elasticity to the pressing plate  252 , a sliding bar  24  slidably inserted into the rear end of the handle  20  having a plurality of serrations  241  on the underside retainable by the retaining frame  251  of the detent means  25 , a pushing plate  30  connected with a soft plate  32  by a plurality of screw  31 , an inverse U-shaped member  33  centrally formed on front surface including a pair of aligned screw holes engaged with a pair aligned through holes abutting the rear end of the sliding bar  24  and pivotally secured by a screw  331 , wherein the inverse U-shaped member  33  further has a spring  332  on inner center connected the rear end of the sliding bar for providing the resilience to restore the pushing plate  30  back to its original position. The sliding bar  24  further has a pair of concaves  242  and  243  under the aligned through holes for saving material and for permitting the movement of the screw  331  (as shown in FIG.  9 ). This arrangement aims to facilitate the pushing plate  30  to incline a certain angle relative to the sliding bar  24  in order to fit the height of the knee of a worker to push the pushing plate  30  when he is squatted. 
   Referring to  FIGS. 4 and 5  and  FIG. 3  again, in operation, first adjust the length of the handle  20  by sliding in or out of the sliding bar  24 , if slides the sliding bar  24  inward, one has to press the pressing plate  252  down and forward to straight the tilting retaining frame  251  to disengage the serrations  241  with the frame  251 , then release the finger to restore the retaining frame back into its tilting state due to the resilience of the elastic plate  26  so that a serration  241  is retained by the retaining frame  251  again and the sliding bar  24  is becoming stable, if slides the sliding bar  24  outward, one don&#39;t have to press the pressing plate  252  due to the tilting state of the retaining frame  251  which is disengageable with the serrations  241  but gives forth a snapped sound, finally removes the cap  12 , the stretcher is therefore operable. 
   Referring to  FIGS. 6 and 9 , since the workers laying a carpet are usually squatted to use their knees to push the stretcher moving forward. In order to fit the height of the workers, men or women, the pair of concaves  242  and  243  are therefore arranged in the rear end of the sliding bar  24  to permit the screw  331  to be movable there within so as to enable the pushing plate  30  changing a certain angle. This arrangement not only coinsides with the ergonomics but also saves the application of the strength for the workers. 
   Referring to  FIGS. 6 ,  7 ,  8  and  9 , to coinside with the ergonomics, the head  10  of the stretcher may be positioned horizontal or turned a angle centered on the quickly applied lock  150 . The pair of steel balls  141  ensure a stable straight position of the head  10 . When the stretcher is not in use, slides the sliding bar  24  into the handle  20  at first then strongly bend the head  10  downward to have its positioning holes  22  disengaged with the steel balls  141 . So that the head  10  is folded up under the handle  20  thus to reduce the volume of the stretcher. 
   Referring to  FIGS. 10 and 11  of the drawings, the head  10  may be replaced with sucking disk  40  which has a lug  43  engaged with the front end of the handle  20 . The lug  43  has also a pair of aligned through holes  44  engaged with the positioning holes  22  and a pair of aligned screw holes  45  engaged with the aligned pivotal holes  21 . Wherein the aligned through holes  44  each has a steel ball  441 , a spring  442  and a screw  443  disposed therein with the steel balls  441  partially engaged with the positioning holes  22  respectively. A quickly applied lock  450  has a threaded shank  451  screwed into the aligned screw holes  45  and the pivotal holes  21  and a lateral handle  452 . This sucking disk  40  is useful to suck and move a piece of tile or glass to a high place where the worker is not accessable. 
   Upon the afore discussions, the supplementary stretcher of the present invention can either adjust the length for its handle  20  or change the angle for its head  10  and its pushing plate to fit the ergonomics in order to save the strength for the workers and the head  10  may be replaced with a sucking disk  40  which is suitable to work for moving the tiles and/or the glasses to a high place. 
   Note that the specification relating to the above embodiment should be construed as an exemplary rather than as a limitative of the present invention, with many variations and modifications being readily attainable by a person of average skill in the art without departing from the spirit or scope thereof as defined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents.