Patent Publication Number: US-6910677-B1

Title: Portable power jack device

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to a jack for use in connection with raising and lowering a vehicle. The portable power jack device has particular utility in connection with quickly and safely raising a vehicle wheel off the ground to change a flat tire. 
   2. Description of the Prior Art 
   Anyone who has changed a flat tire knows the hassle and potential for serious injury involved with jacking up a car along the side of the road. There can be trouble in getting the jack assembled and in place under the vehicle&#39;s frame or axle, as well as the possibility of injuring the hands or fingers in operating the jack. Then there is the safety concern of the vehicle falling off the jack while the tire is being changed. Power driven jacks are desirable since they allow the person changing the tire to stand out-of-the-way of the vehicle while raising the tire off the ground and require very little physical exertion in raising or lower the vehicle. 
   The use of power jacks is known in the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,230 to Levine discloses an electrically powered automobile jack and nut remover that is powered from an automobile battery. However, although the Levine &#39;230 patent discloses a device that is similar in function, the structure has distinctive differences from that of the present invention. For example, the Levine &#39;230 patent does not disclose a unit positioned on a flat stable platform for providing a safer working environment. 
   U.S. Pat. No. 6,299,138 to Huang et al. discloses a direct drive electromotive jack device for releasing torsional force that can be use to raise and lower a motor vehicle. However, although the Huang &#39;138 patent, like the Levine &#39;230 patent, discloses a device that is similar in function, it is distinctively different in structure from that of the present invention and in particular does not disclose a unit positioned on a flat stable platform for providing a safer working environment. 
   Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,657,964 to Yoshida discloses an electric power tool for driving a jack. This electric drive unit can be used with available scissor-jacks for raising and lowering an object, such as an automobile. However, the Yoshida &#39;964 patent discloses a device that is different in structure from that the Levine &#39;230 patent, and does not disclose a contained portable unit, including a jack, positioned on a flat stable platform for providing a safer working environment, but only the electrical drive portion of the unit. 
   Also, U.S. Pat. No. 6,029,950 to Yeh discloses a jack assembly with a gear box drive for use in raising and lowering an object, such as an automobile. The device can be coupled to a power unit or driven manually. However, the Yeh &#39;950 patent discloses a device that is different in structure from that of the present unit, and does not disclose a contained portable unit, including a drive motor, positioned on a flat stable platform for providing a safer working environment, but only scissor jack with gear box portion of the unit. 
   Lastly, U.S. Pat. No. 3,977,278 to Jackson discloses apparatus that may be of general interest and pertinent to the construction and design of the present invention. The Jackson &#39;278 patent discloses an automotive electric impact wrench that has electrical, rotational, and portable characteristics similar to that of the apparatus of the present invention. However, the Jackson &#39;278 patent is different in both function and structure from that of the present invention and does not does not disclose a portable automotive power jack with all the components positioned on a flat stable platform for providing a safer working environment. 
   While the above-described devices fulfill their respective, particular objectives and requirements, the aforementioned patents do not describe a portable contained power jack device that allows the quick and safe raising and lowering of a vehicle while standing at a safe distance. 
   Therefore, a need exists for a new and improved portable power jack device that can be used for raising and lowering an object while standing at a safe distance from the object. In this regard, the present invention substantially fulfills this need. In this respect, the portable power jack device according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in doing so provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of providing a fast, safe, and convenient device for raising and lowering an object, such as an automobile. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of power jacks now present in the prior art, the present invention provides an improved portable power jack device, and overcomes the above-mentioned disadvantages and drawbacks of the prior art. As such, the general purpose of the present invention, which will be described subsequently in greater detail, is to provide a new and improved portable power jack device and method that has all the advantages of the prior art mentioned heretofore and other novel features that result in a portable power jack device that is not anticipated, rendered obvious, suggested, or even implied by the prior art, either alone or in any combination thereof. 
   The device of the present invention will allow the corner of a vehicle to be quickly and safely raised without a manual struggle so a flat tire can be changed. This motorized jack will be particularly useful to female and elderly motorist who may have difficulty operating a typical manual jack, as well as do-it-yourselfers who rotate tires, perform brake service, and apply tire chains. Other attractions of this device include ease of use, safety, convenience, and speeding up the job of changing a flat tire. 
   To attain this, the present invention essentially comprises a battery driven reversible motor and speed reduction gear assembly coupled to a worm-screw scissor jack, all mounted on a flat, stable platform (base plate). The device can be powered from a rechargeable battery or from a vehicle&#39;s battery. A controller unit extended by means of a cable is used to raise and lower the vehicle while the user stands out-of-the-way in a safe location. The device also has a light for illuminating the work area for nighttime application. 
   In use, it can now be understood that the lift plate on top of the scissor-jack is placed under the frame or axle of a vehicle close to the flat tire, the power switch is turned ON, and the user walks away to a safe distance from the vehicle with the controller unit in his/her hand. The UP button on the controller unit is then pressed to enable the motor and speed reduction gear, which is coupled to the worn-screw of the scissor-jack, to turn slowly, thereby lifting the corner of the vehicle up until the flat tire is off the ground. The flat base plate provides a stable support under the frame or axle while the tire is being changed. Once the tire is changed, the user once again moves away from the vehicle and presses the DOWN button on the controller unit until the tire is back solid on the ground. The power switch is then turned OFF and the device is removed from underneath the vehicle. If conditions warrant, the work area can be illuminated with the light, which is turned ON and OFF with the light switch. 
   There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. 
   There are, of course, additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims attached. 
   Numerous objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon a reading of the following detailed description of presently preferred, but nonetheless illustrative, embodiments of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In this respect, before explaining the current embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of descriptions and should not be regarded as limiting. 
   As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention. 
   It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved portable power jack device that provides in the apparatuses and methods of the prior art some of the advantages thereof, while simultaneously overcoming some of the disadvantages normally associated therewith. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved portable power jack device that may be easily and efficiently manufactured and marketed. 
   An even further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved portable powerjack device that has a low cost of manufacture with regard to both materials and labor, and which accordingly is then susceptible of low prices of sale to the consuming public, thereby making such power jacks economically available to the buying public. 
   Lastly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved method for quickly and safely raising and lowering a vehicle wheel off the ground to change a flat tire. 
   These together with other objects of the invention, along with the various features of novelty that characterize the invention, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there is illustrated preferred embodiments of the invention. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The invention will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein: 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the portable power jack device constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention. 
       FIG. 2  is a side view of the power drive end of the portable power jack device of the present invention. 
       FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the power drive end of the portable power jack device of the present invention. 
       FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional side view of the power drive end of the portable power jack device of the present invention. 
       FIG. 5  is a perspective view showing the controller unit and battery pack of the portable power jack device of the present invention. 
   

   The same reference numerals refer to the same parts throughout the various figures. 
   DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
   Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to  FIGS. 1–5 , a preferred embodiment of the portable power jack device of the present invention is shown and generally designated by the reference numeral  10 . 
   In  FIGS. 1 ,  2 , and  3  the new and improved portable power jack device  10  of the preferred embodiment of the present invention, which provides a fast, safe, and convenient device for raising and lowering an object, is illustrated and described in an overall perspective view, a side view, and a perspective view of the power drive end of the device, respectively. More particularly, the portable power jack device  10  comprises a solid metal base plate  12 , having a flat stable bottom surface for contact with the ground, a scissor-jack  14  mounted at one end and a motor/gear assembly, enclosed in a housing  20 , mounted at the opposite end with the drive shaft  26  of the gear assembly being coupled by coupler  38  means to the input coupler of said scissor-jack  14 . The scissor-jack operational mechanism uses a worm screw  16  to raise and lower a flat lift plate  18  that supports the frame or axle of a vehicle. A battery housing  22  with removable end cap  24  is mounted adjacent to the motor/gear housing  20  for containing rechargeable batteries for supplying power to the motor. A handle  27  is provided for convenience in handling and carrying the power jack device. Built into the handle  27  in a user-friendly location are an ON/OFF switch  28 , a light  32  and light switch  34  for illuminating the work area, and a controller unit receptacle  30  for interfacing with the cable  36  from a controller unit. 
     FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional side view of the power drive end of the portable power jack device of the present invention showing more details of the power unit portion of the device. More particularly, this shows the reversible motor  40  coupled to the speed reduction gears  42 , with output drive shaft  26 . The drawing also better illustrates the user-friendly locations of the ON/OFF switch  28 , the controller unit receptacle  30 , the light  32 , and light switch  34 . A rechargeable battery pack  44  is installed in the battery housing  22  and contained by an end cap  24 . 
   Finally,  FIG. 5  is a perspective view showing the controller unit  46  and battery pack  44  of the portable power jack device  10  of the present invention. The controller unit  46  has a cable  36  with a cable connector  48  mounted on the end for interfacing with the controller unit receptacle  30  on the handle  27  of the device. The controller unit cable  36  is at least 10-feet long to allow a user of the portable power jack device to stand at a safe distance when raising and lowering a vehicle. Also, the battery pack  44  is inserted into the battery cavity and contained in place by means of the end cap  24  being screwed into provided threads in the battery housing  22 . 
   In use, it can now be understood that the lift plate  18  on top of the scissor-jack  14  is placed under the frame or axle of a vehicle close to the flat tire and the user walks away to a safe distance from the vehicle with the controller unit  46  in his/her hand. The power switch  28  is turned ON and the UP button on the controller unit  46  is pressed to enable the motor  40  and speed reduction gear  42 , which is coupled to the worn-screw  16  of the scissor-jack  14 , to turn slowly, thereby lifting the corner of the vehicle up until the flat tire is off the ground. The flat base plate  12  provides a stable support under the frame or axle while the tire is being changed. Once the tire is changed, the user once again moves away from the vehicle and presses the DOWN button on the controller unit  46  until the tires is back solid on the ground. The power switch  28  is then turned OFF and the device is removed from underneath the vehicle. If conditions warrant, the work area can be illuminated with the light  32 , which is turned ON and OFF by means of the light switch  34 . 
   While a preferred embodiment of the portable power jack device has been described in detail, it should be apparent that modifications and variations thereto are possible, all of which fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention. With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention. For example, the power jack device can be made in various sizes for use with compact cars, large cars and pickup trucks, and large trucks. Optionally, the power jack device can be powered from a vehicle battery by means of connecting batteries cables to the battery. 
   Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.