Patent Publication Number: US-7900420-B2

Title: Hammer drill attachment and method

Description:
PRIORITY CLAIM 
     The present application claims priority of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/092,841 filed Aug. 29, 2008. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to hammer drill attachments and methods for installation of sheets of flooring in a hook and loop style flooring system and, more particularly, pertains to a new hammer drill attachment and method of operation thereof for pressure joining overlapping edges of flooring sheets on hook and loop subfloor systems. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     In the flooring industry, floors systems are now sometimes being installed by using subfloor systems with hook and loop elements and floor sheets that overlay the subfloor with complimentary hook and loop backing. When installed, the floor sheets are overlapped by a small amount (several millimeters or less). The floor sheets are then pressed onto the subfloor to remove the overlap and form a seam with the edges of the floor sheets abutting together without any noticeable gap, i.e. the floor sheet sections are joined. 
     Presently the floor sheets are pressed manually using a hand-held tool comprising a handle attached to a metal block with a flat bottom surface. The user presses the floor sheets by repeatedly pounding the hand-held tool onto the edges to form a seam. The present manual process of joining the seams of the floor sheets requires a person to crawl on hands and knees using brute force and is repetitive, arduous work that is very time consuming. An object of the present invention is to enable a person to stand upright and join the edges of flooring sections using a power-driven method and tool. 
     The various aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more fully apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon careful consideration of the Detailed Description of the Inventions with the accompanying drawings described below. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An object of the present invention is to provide a pressure joining tool and method for pressing edges of sheets of a flooring system overlying a hook and loop fastener style subfloor. The present invention provides a hammer drill attachment, mountable within the chuck of a hammer drill. The hammer drill attachment comprises a body having a longitudinally extending body with a shaft extending upwardly for mounting the attachment within the chuck. The body of the attachment has an angled body member attached to the shaft and extending downward toward a foot assembly having a foot pad means. The foot assembly is attached to the angled body member. 
     The hammer drill imparts vibration to the shaft when actuated, and the foot assembly vibrates to cause the foot pad means to repeatedly press against the edges of the overlapping sheets of a flooring system and to press the sheets together onto an underlying subfloor. 
     According to the invention, a person operates the tool by actuating the hammer drill while the person is standing upright. The person guides the foot pad means along the overlapping edges. As the foot vibrates along the seam, the flooring sheets are pressed together onto the subfloor into abutting relationship to form a tight and flush seam without any visible gap or overlap of flooring sheets. The process is repeated for each overlapping floor sheets until the flooring is installed on the substrate. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a side perspective view of a hand-held hammer drill in combination with a hammer drill attachment according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention shown in use by an operator for the installation of flooring sheets. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a hammer drill attachment shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a hammer drill attachment in accordance with an alternate operating position of present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective partial and exploded view of a body member with an attached bracket for receiving an axle shown as comprising a bolt. 
         FIG. 5A  is a partial perspective view of the hammer drill attachment operating on adjacent sections of floor covering material for pressure joining. 
         FIG. 5B  is a front partial perspective view of the combination of a hand-held hammer drill and the hammer drill attachment in operation. 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of a hammer drill attachment according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTIONS 
     Referring now the drawings, and in particular  FIGS. 1 through 6  thereof, a new hammer drill attachment embodying the principles and concepts of the present invention and generally designated by the reference numeral  10  will be described. What will also be described is a method for using a hammer drill  12  and the hammer drill attachment  10  in installation of flooring sheets having a hook or loop backing onto a substrate of subflooring having a hook or loop surface layer. The combination of a hammer drill  12  and a hammer drill attachment  10  forms a pressure joining tool for installation of flooring sheets and floor covering sections having hook and loop backing onto a subflooring surface for receiving the flooring sheets. 
     As illustrated in  FIGS. 1 through 6 , the hammer drill attachment  10  includes a shaft  14  for universal coupling to a typical hammer drill  12  via a chuck  16 . The chuck  16  has a plurality of jaws or other connection mechanism that secure the chuck around the shaft  14  of the hammer drill attachment  10 . The shaft  14  has a substantially cylindrical design and has a base end. The base end of the shaft  14  adjoins the body  18  of the attachment  10 , and the shaft is arranged to be positioned within the chuck  16  of said hammer drill  12 . The hammer drill  12  operates the shaft  14  of the hammer drill attachment  10  to longitudinally oscillate the hammer drill attachment. The operator exerts a pressing force or contact pressure to the hammer drill attachment  10  in the drill chuck  16  via the shaft  14  by holding a handle  20  of the hammer drill  12  while standing upright. 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the hammer drill attachment  10  in combination with the hand-held hammer drill  12  according to a preferred embodiment of the invention. As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , the base end of the shaft  14  adjoins the body member  40  of the hammer drill attachment  10 .  FIG. 6  illustrates an alternative embodiment with a fixed body member  18 . The body member  18  or  40  comprises a reinforced structural member that extends downwardly from the shaft  14  portion that connects the hammer drill attachment  10  to the hammer drill  12 . The preferred arrangement of the body member  18 ,  40  extends at an angle downwardly in longitudinal alignment with the shaft, and the body member  18 ,  40  terminates at an opposing end from the shaft  14 . A foot assembly  22  that is positioned in front of and away from a standing operator attaches to the opposing end of the body member  18 ,  40 . The body member  18 ,  40  may be reinforced by constructing the body member of sufficient width or thickness or structure, as well as of a sufficiently strong material. The body member  18 ,  40  is reinforced by construction of metal, such as steel, and being several times wider than the shaft  14  and of about the same width as the foot assembly  22 . 
     The foot assembly  22  illustrated in  FIG. 6  adjoins the body member  18  of the hammer drill attachment  10  and provides a reinforced structure for attachment of a foot pad means  24 . The foot pad means  24  is functionally arranged on the foot assembly  22  for pressure contact with the flooring sheets  32 ,  34  for joining overlapping edges  36 ,  38  of the flooring sheets. The foot assembly  22  includes a mounting plate  26  to which a left support member  28  and a right support member  30  are attached for reinforcement. The mounting plate  26  attaches between the support members  28 ,  30  by attaching to the bottom edges of the support members while the support members are separated in parallel relationship by a distance about the width of the body member  18 . The body member  18  attaches to the front edge of each left and right support members  28 ,  30  and may be welded to the support members. Or, as shown in  FIG. 1 , the body member  40  may be pivotally attached to the support members. The mounting plate  26  provides a base for the support members  28 ,  30  and a structural member to which the foot pad means  24  attaches by means for attaching, such as a nut and bolt combination  31 . The foot pad means  24  may comprise a foot pad or other pad-like body of material that is constructed of neoprene or rubber and the foot pad means  24  may be glued, bolted or otherwise attached onto the mounting plate  26  so as to provide the floor impacting bottom surface of the hammer drill attachment  10 . The foot pad means  24  vibrates against edges of overlapping floor sections  32 ,  34  when the hammer drill  12  is actuated and presses the edges onto the subfloor surface so that the edges join in adjacent abutting relation on the subfloor surface. 
     The body member  18  or  40  of the hammer drill attachment  10  and shaft  14  and foot assembly  22  align as shown in  FIGS. 1 ,  2  and  6  at an angle of about 10 to 40 degrees from vertical to improve the ergonomic function of the hammer drill attachment. The hand-held hammer drill  12  attaches to the hammer drill attachment  10  with such angle and height so that the operator can stand upright and hold the hammer drill by hand comfortably and without contorting the hand downward. The angle of the body member&#39;s alignment permits the foot pad means  24  to remain in front of the operator for control while the foot pad means remains with the flat surface of the pad parallel to the flooring surface. Upon operation, the alignment angle causes the foot pad means  24  to impart force in downward and forward directions. The pressure and direction of force installs the floor sections  32 ,  34  and joins them along a seam more efficiently by assisting movement of the hammer drill attachment  10 . 
     It may be desirable for ergonomic and functional needs to vary the angle of the body  40  and shaft  14  of the hammer drill attachment  10  with respect to the foot assembly  22 . An alternative embodiment of the invention is shown in  FIGS. 1-5B  in which the angle between the body member  40  and foot assembly  42  is adjustable. A pivotal joint is provided connecting the body  40  to the foot assembly  42 . The joint comprises an axle, which may comprise a bolt  44  or other axle member through a left support member  46  and right support member  48  and through an aperture provided on a bracket  47  attached to the body member  40 , wherein the joint pivotally retains the body member  40  between the support members  46 ,  48 . The angle of the body member  40  with respect to the foot assembly  42  varies by operator movement of the body member  40  on the hammer drill attachment  10 . The foot assembly  42  remains situated in a constant alignment with the floor surface and the foot pad means  24  remains parallel with the floor surface. 
     As the hammer drill  12  vibrates the hammer drill attachment  10 , the foot pad means  24  applies pressure to the overlapping edges  36 ,  38  of floor sections  32 ,  34  as in  FIGS. 5A and 5B . The pressure of the foot pad means  24  vibrations forces these overlapping section edges into adjacent alignment forming a smooth flooring seam  56  between the flooring sections  32 ,  34 , whereby the adjacent flooring sections are virtually joined horizontally edge to edge along the seam. 
     The invention includes a method for joining floor sections  32 ,  34  that are installed on a subfloor surface by hook and loop fasteners. Floor sections  32 ,  34  are arranged onto the subfloor surface with overlapping lengthwise edges  36 ,  38 . The hammer drill attachment  10  is attached to a hand held hammer drill  12 , and the operator holds the hammer drill. The hammer drill attachment  10  extends forward at an angle of about 10 to 40 degrees away from the operator&#39;s body, and the foot pad means  24  is positioned by the operator to rest flat and parallel to the floor surface. The operator initiates power from the hammer drill  12  to vibrate the hammer drill attachment  10  and impart vibrating force from the foot pad means  24  to the overlapping edges  36 ,  38  of the floor sections  32 ,  34 . The foot pad means  24  is initially situated over a first end of the overlapping edges  36 ,  38  of floor sections  32 ,  34  for movement toward the opposing end. As the foot pad means  24  vibrates, the overlapping edges  36 ,  38  of the floor sections  32 ,  34  are forced downward and into abutting edgewise relationship, whereby a seam  56  is formed between the abutting floor section edges without overlap and without any gap exceeding desired tolerances. The operator moves the vibrating foot pad means  24  along the overlapping floor section edges  36 ,  38 . The operator moves the foot pad means  24  by walking along the overlapping floor sections&#39; edges  36 ,  38  gradually until the sections of flooring being worked on are installed. Installation occurs by continuously forming the seam  56  between adjacent floor sections  32 ,  34  by removing the overlap of the edges  36 ,  38  by pressure. Thereby, the edges  36 ,  38  of floor sections  32 ,  34  abut to form a lengthwise seam  56  by pressure joining with the hammer drill attachment  10  using the steps described.