Patent Publication Number: US-2016236266-A1

Title: Method of making folding hand tool set for bicycles

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a method of making tools for use in a folding hand tool set, and more particularly to a method of making the tools in a cost-effective manner, without sacrifice of quality. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Hand tools are typically discrete items that can be easily misplaced. To overcome this problem, various hand tool set holders have been developed in which a plurality of hand tools is secured in a moveable manner so as to avoid individual tools being lost. 
     One type of a hand tool set is illustrated in U.S. Design Pat. No. D542,111, in which each tool defines an engaging hole to be pivotally connected to a housing member of the hand tool set. Besides, each of the tools in the tool set has a predetermined generally flat shank portion to save the materials. It is understood that the tool was cut from a flat piece of metal blank with a constant thickness that is decided before the driving end or the working end is machined using a lathe. 
     Another type of a hand tool set is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 8,250,951. In this tool set, a tool is made from a hexagonal rod body with a 9-shaped connecting end to be pivotally connected to a housing member of the hand tool set. The tool includes a driving end formed on a proximal end of the rod body for performing a specific procedure and a connecting end formed on a distal end of the rod body by bending the distal end. The distal end is formed with a rectangular cross section prior to forming the connecting end. The connecting end is formed such that it extends in a path away from the body initially and towards the body at last and encloses a space. In short, the connecting end is generally formed by flattening, cutting and finally bending; however, the distal end is harden and becomes increasingly brittle during the flattening process, the further bending process of the harden distal end can easily break the end, causing a failure to form the connecting end. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new method for forming a tool for use in a folding hand tool set. 
     Briefly described, the method of this invention includes the following steps. Firstly, a metallic rod is provided. Next, a working end and a shank portion are formed on opposite ends of the metallic rod. The shank portion has a regular polygonal cross-section. The working end has a maximum external diameter (Z) is smaller than a maximum external diameter (Y) of the shank portion. Then, the shank portion is flattened into a flat, generally oblong shank portion by a stamping press, wherein the flattened shank portion has a thickness (X) more than or equal to a half of the maximum external diameter (Y) of the original shank portion. And the thickness (X) of the flattened shank portion is greater than the maximum external diameter (Z) of the working end. Finally, a hole is punched in an end of the flattened shank portion opposite the working end to complete the tool. 
     Preferred embodiments of the invention may have the following additional characteristics, either alone or in combination: 
     The step (d) further includes trimming the flattened shank portion, in which the trimming and the punching the hole are performed at the same time in a single punch process. 
     Alternatively, the step (c) further includes trimming the shank portion, in which the trimming and flattening the shank portion are performed at the same time in a single punch process. 
     The foregoing and other objectives, features, and advantages of the invention will be more readily understood upon consideration of the following detailed description of the invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a flow diagram of a method for making a tool for use in a folding hand tool set in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a metallic rod with a hexagonal cross-section; 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a metallic rod with a circular cross-section; 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the metallic rod of  FIG. 3 , being machined and shaped to include a working end and a shank portion; 
         FIG. 5  is a side view of the metallic rod shown in  FIG. 4 ; 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the metallic rod of  FIG. 4 , being flattened to transform the shank portion into a flat, generally oblong shank portion; 
         FIG. 7  is a side view of the metallic rod shown in  FIG. 6 ; 
         FIG. 8  is another side view of the metallic rod shown in  FIG. 6 ; 
         FIG. 9  is a perspective view of the metallic rod of  FIG. 6 , being punched to include a hole; 
         FIG. 10  is a perspective view of a folding hand tool set equipped with the tool of  FIG. 9 ; 
         FIG. 11  is a flow diagram of a method for making a tool for use in a folding hand tool set in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 12  is a perspective view of a semi-finished metallic rod for the method of  FIG. 11 , being machined and shaped to include a working end and a shank portion; 
         FIG. 13  is a side view of the metallic rod shown in  FIG. 12 ; 
         FIG. 14  is a perspective view of the metallic rod of  FIG. 12 , being flattened to transform the shank portion into a flat, generally oblong shank portion; 
         FIG. 15  is a side view of the metallic rod shown in  FIG. 14 ; 
         FIG. 16  is another side view of the metallic rod shown in  FIG. 14 ; 
         FIG. 17  is a perspective view of the metallic rod of  FIG. 14 , being punched and trimmed in a single punch process; 
         FIG. 18  is a flow diagram of a method for making a tool for use in a folding hand tool set in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 19  is a perspective view of a semi-finished metallic rod for the method of  FIG. 18 , being machined and shaped to include a working end and a shank portion; 
         FIG. 20  is a side view of the metallic rod shown in  FIG. 19 ; 
         FIG. 21  is a perspective view of the metallic rod of  FIG. 19 , being flattened and trimmed in a single punch process; 
         FIG. 22  is a side view of the metallic rod shown in  FIG. 21 ; 
         FIG. 23  is another side view of the metallic rod shown in  FIG. 21 ; 
         FIG. 24  is a perspective view of the metallic rod of  FIG. 21 , being punched to include a hole for assembly; 
         FIG. 25  is a view similar to the tool of  FIG. 24 , except that the tool is trimmed to include a rounded end; and 
         FIG. 26  is a side view of the tool of  FIG. 25 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
     With respect to  FIGS. 1-10 , there is shown a method of making a tool  10  (see  FIG. 9 ) for use in a folding hand tool set  100  (see  FIG. 10 ) in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention. The method includes the following steps  101 - 104 , as illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
     In step  101 , a metallic rod  10  or  11  is provided, as depicted in  FIG. 2 or 3 . As is shown, the metallic rod  10  may has a hexagonal cross section as in  FIG. 10  or a circular cross section as in  FIG. 11 . They are both suitable for being machined using a lathe which rotates the workpiece on its axis to perform various operations such as cutting, drilling, or deformation, to create an object which has symmetry about an axis of rotation. Thus, this type of the metallic rod  10  or  11  can be accessed and processed easily for mass production. 
     With respect to  FIG. 4 , in step  102 , the metallic rod  10  for example is then machined by the lathe to have a working end  11 , a shank portion  12  opposite the working end  11 , and a transition portion  14  interposed in between the working end  11  and the shank portion  12 . As shown in  FIG. 5 , the working end  11 , such as a hex-head key, has a maximum external diameter (Z), and the shank portion  12  has a regular polygonal cross-section and a maximum external diameter (Y). It is noted that the maximum external diameter (Y) of the shank portion  12  is greater than the maximum external diameter (Z) of the working end  11 . It is also noted that the regular polygonal cross-section implies that the metallic rod  1  or  2  can easily accessed and machined by the lathe in a known manner. It is appreciated that when the metallic rod  2  of  FIG. 3  is used, the regular polygonal cross-section of the metallic rod  2  is a circle with an infinite number of sides. 
     In step  103 , the shank portion  12  of the metallic rod  2  is flattened by a stamping press into a flat, generally oblong shank portion  12   a , as depicted in  FIG. 6 . With reference to  FIGS. 7 and 8 , the flattened shank portion  12   a  has a thickness (X) more than or equal to a half of the maximum external diameter (Y) of the original shank portion  12 ; and the thickness (X) of the flattened shank portion  12   a  is greater than the maximum external diameter (Z) of the working end  11 . This ensures that the density of the flattened shank portion  12   a  is strengthen during the flattening process, without excess stress generated so that no further decarburizing annealing process will be needed to release the stress. 
     In step  104 , the flattened shank portion  12   a  is punched a hole  13  in an end thereof and renumbered as  12   b , as depicted in  FIG. 9 . As shown, the tool  10  now has the working end  11 , the flattened shank portion  12   b  and the transition portion  14  between the working end  11 , the flattened shank portion  12   b . More specifically, the transition portion  14  includes a cylindrical section  141  proximate to the working end  11 , and a conical frustum  142  disposed in between the cylindrical section  141  and the flattened shank portion  12   b . Note that the cylindrical section  141  has a diameter greater than the maximum external diameter (Z) of the working end  11 . And the conical frustum  142  is tapered from the flattened shank portion  12   a  to the cylindrical section  141 . The tool  10  is now ready to be incorporated in the folding hand tool set  100 , as shown in  FIG. 10 . 
     With reference to  FIGS. 11-17 , there is shown a method of making a tool  10  (see  FIG. 17 ) in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention. The method includes the following steps  201 - 204 , as illustrated in  FIG. 11 . 
     In step  201 , a metallic rod  10  or  11  is provided. The metallic rod  10  or  11  is identical to that in  FIG. 2 or 3  in the first embodiment. In step  202 , the metallic rod  10  for example is then machined by a lathe to have a working end  11 , a shank portion  12  opposite the working end  11 , and a transition portion  14  interposed in between the working end  11  and the shank portion  12 , as shown in  FIG. 12 . As shown in  FIG. 13 , the working end  11 , such as a hex-head key, has a maximum external diameter (Z), and the shank portion  12  has a regular polygonal cross-section and a maximum external diameter (Y). It is noted that the maximum external diameter (Y) of the shank portion  12  is greater than the maximum external diameter (Z) of the working end  11 . It is also noted that the regular polygonal cross-section implies that the metallic rod  1  or  2  can easily accessed and machined by the lathe in a known manner. It is appreciated that when the metallic rod  2  is used, the regular polygonal cross-section of the metallic rod  2  is a circle with an infinite number of sides. 
     In step  203 , the shank portion  12  of the metallic rod  2  is flattened by a stamping press into a flat, generally oblong shank portion  12   a , as depicted in  FIG. 14 . With reference to  FIGS. 15 and 16 , the flattened shank portion  12   a  has a thickness (X) more than or equal to a half of the maximum external diameter (Y) of the original shank portion  12 ; and the thickness (X) of the flattened shank portion  12   a  is greater than the maximum external diameter (Z) of the working end  11 . This ensures that the density of the flattened shank portion  12   a  is strengthen during the flattening process, without excess stress generated so that no further decarburizing annealing process will be needed to release the stress. 
     In step  204 , the flattened shank portion  12   a  is punched a hole  13  in an end thereof and renumbered as  12   b , as depicted in  FIG. 17 . In particular, during the hole punching process, the flattened shank portion  12   b  is also trimmed. That is, the trimming and the punching the hole are performed at the same time in a single punch process. As shown in  FIG. 17 , the tool  10  now has the working end  11 , the flattened shank portion  12   b  and the transition portion  14  between the working end  11 , the flattened shank portion  12   b . More specifically, the transition portion  14  includes a cylindrical section  141  proximate to the working end  11 , and a conical frustum  142  disposed in between the cylindrical section  141  and the flattened shank portion  12   b . Note that the cylindrical section  141  has a diameter greater than the maximum external diameter (Z) of the working end  11 . And the conical frustum  142  is tapered from the flattened shank portion  12   a  to the cylindrical section  141 . The tool  10  is now ready to be incorporated in a folding hand tool set  100 , as shown in  FIG. 10  of the first embodiment. 
     With reference to  FIGS. 18-24 , there is shown a method of making a tool  10   a  (see  FIG. 24 ) in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention. The method includes the following steps  301 - 304 , as illustrated in  FIG. 18 . 
     In step  301 , a metallic rod  10  or  11  is provided. The metallic rod  10  or  11  is identical to that in  FIG. 2 or 3  in the first embodiment. In step  302 , the metallic rod  10  for example is then machined by a lathe to have a working end  11 , a shank portion  12  opposite the working end  11 , and a transition portion  14  interposed in between the working end  11  and the shank portion  12 , as shown in  FIG. 19 . As shown in  FIG. 20 , the working end  11 , such as a hex-head key, has a maximum external diameter (Z), and the shank portion  12  has a regular polygonal cross-section and a maximum external diameter (Y). It is noted that the maximum external diameter (Y) of the shank portion  12  is greater than the maximum external diameter (Z) of the working end  11 . It is also noted that the regular polygonal cross-section implies that the metallic rod  1  or  2  can easily accessed and machined by the lathe in a known manner. It is appreciated that when the metallic rod  2  is used, the regular polygonal cross-section of the metallic rod  2  is a circle with an infinite number of sides. 
     In step  303 , the shank portion  12  of the metallic rod  2  is flattened by a stamping press into a flat, generally oblong shank portion  12   c , as depicted in  FIG. 20 . In particular, during the flattening or stamping process, the flattened shank portion  12   c  is also trimmed. That is, the trimming and the flattening are performed at the same time in a single punch process. With reference to  FIGS. 22 and 23 , the flattened shank portion  12   c  has a thickness (X) more than or equal to a half of the maximum external diameter (Y) of the original shank portion  12 ; and the thickness (X) of the flattened shank portion  12   c  is greater than the maximum external diameter (Z) of the working end  11 . This ensures that the density of the flattened shank portion  12   c  is strengthen during the flattening process, without excess stress generated so that no further decarburizing annealing process will be needed to release the stress. 
     In step  304 , the flattened shank portion  12   c  is punched a hole  13  in an end thereof and renumbered as  12   d , as depicted in  FIG. 24 . As shown, the tool  10   a  now has the working end  11 , the flattened shank portion  12   d  and the transition portion  14  between the working end  11 , the flattened shank portion  12   d . More specifically, the transition portion  14  includes a cylindrical section  141  proximate to the working end  11 , and a conical frustum  142  disposed in between the cylindrical section  141  and the flattened shank portion  12   d . Note that the cylindrical section  141  has a diameter greater than the maximum external diameter (Z) of the working end  11 . And the conical frustum  142  is tapered from the flattened shank portion  12   d  to the cylindrical section  141 . The tool  10   a  is now ready to be incorporated in a folding hand tool set  100 , as shown in  FIG. 10  of the first embodiment. 
     Alternatively, as shown in  FIGS. 25 and 26 , during the flattening or stamping process in step  303 , the flattened shank portion  12   c  may be trimmed to include an rounded end  120  in such a way that after the hole punching process in step  304 , a tool  10   b  with the flattened shank portion  12   e  having a rounded end  120  is completed. 
     It will be apparent that various modifications may be made to the above specifically described structural arrangements without departing from the scope of the invention.