Patent Publication Number: US-5897109-A

Title: Quickly adjustable vise

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to an improved vise which may be quickly moved to securely clamp the work piece to be processed. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     A typical vise generally includes a fixed jaw, a movable jaw attached to an end of a screw rod, and a handle attached to the other end of the screw rod. Rotational movement of the handle causes longitudinal movements of the screw rod and the movable jaw so as to release or clamp a workpiece between the jaws. Nevertheless, it is time-consuming to move of the movable jaw to clamp the workpiece as the movable jaw is merely moved by a pitch of the screw rod upon each rotation of the handle. The present invention is intended to provide an improved vise which mitigates and/or obviates the above problems. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A vise in accordance with the present invention comprises a fixed body mounted to a working table. The fixed body includes a compartment defined therein, a longitudinal bore extending therethrough and partially communicating with the compartment, and a transverse bore defined in two lateral sides thereof and communicating with the compartment. 
     A shaft is pivotally mounted in the longitudinal bore. The shaft includes a notch defined in a mediate portion thereof to form a reduced eccentric section. A positioning block is mounted in the compartment of the fixed body and includes a hole in alignment with the transverse bore. A portion of a periphery which defines the hole has a threading defined therein. An adjusting screw rod is extended through the transverse bore of the fixed body and the hole of the positioning block. The adjusting screw rod includes a first end to which an operative handle is attached and a second end to which a movable jaw is fixedly attached. 
     A biasing means is provided for biasing the positioning block toward the transverse bore for releasably engaging with the reduced eccentric section of the shaft. A pivoting means is provided for pivoting the shaft between a first position in which the shaft engages with the positioning block such that the adjusting screw rod disengages from the threading of the positioning block and a second position in which the shaft disengages from the positioning block such that the adjusting screw rod engages with the threading of the positioning block. 
     The fixed body includes a screw hole defined in an upper side thereof and communicated with the longitudinal bore, and the shaft includes an annular groove defined in a periphery thereof. A screw is extended through the screw hole and into the annular groove to prevent undesired longitudinal movement of the shaft. Preferably, the shaft has an end extending beyond the fixed body, and the pivoting means includes a handle attached to the end of the shaft. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, the positioning block includes a protrusion formed on an upper side thereof and extendible into the longitudinal bore. 
     The positioning block may include a recess defined in an underside thereof, and the biasing means includes a spring having an upper end received in the recess and a lower end securely attached to the working table. 
     Other objects, advantages, and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vise in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the vise in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the vise in accordance with the present invention, the upper end of the vise is omitted for clarity; 
     FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view taken along line 4--4 in FIG. 3; 
     FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 3, illustrating operation of the vise; and 
     FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view taken along line 6--6 in FIG. 5. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a vise in accordance with the present invention generally comprises a fixed body 10 which can be mounted to a working table 50 (FIG. 3) by bolts 18 extending through holes 111 defined in each of two sides 11 and 12 thereof. The fixed body 10 includes a compartment 15 (FIG. 3) defined therein, a longitudinal bore 13 extending therethrough and partially communicating with the compartment 15, and a transverse bore 14 defined in two lateral sides thereof and communicating with the compartment 15. A substantially L-shaped seat 16 is formed on a side of the fixed body 10, and a screw hole 17 is defined in an upper side of the fixed body 10 and communicates with the longitudinal bore 13, as shown in FIG. 2. 
     Still referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, and further to FIG. 3, a shaft 20 is pivotally mounted in the longitudinal bore 13 and having an end extending beyond the fixed body 10. The end of the shaft 20 includes a threaded hole 23 for engaging with a threaded stud 241 of a handle 24. The shaft 20 further includes a notch 21&#39; defined in a mediate portion thereof to form a reduced eccentric section 21, and an annular groove 22 is defined in a periphery of the shaft 20. A screw 19 is extended through the screw hole 17 and into the annular groove 22 to prevent undesired longitudinal movement of the shaft 20. 
     A positioning block 30 is mounted in the compartment 15 of the fixed body 10 and includes a hole 32 in alignment with the transverse bore 14. A portion of the periphery defining the hole 32 (preferably an upper portion, see FIGS. 2 and 3) has a threading defined therein, which will be described later. The positioning block 30 includes a protrusion 31 formed on an upper side thereof and extendible into the longitudinal bore 13. Defined in an underside of the positioning block 30 is a recess 34 for receiving an end of an elastic means, e.g., a spring 35 the other end of which is attached to a bolt 36 mounted to the working table 50 for biasing the positioning block 30 upwardly toward the longitudinal bore 13. 
     Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, an adjusting screw rod 40 is extended through the transverse bore 14 and the hole 32 and includes a first end to which an operative handle or handle wheel 41 is attached and a second end to which a movable jaw 42 is fixedly attached. 
     In use, referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, when the handle 24 is in a first position in which the notch 21&#39; faces the compartment 15 and thus receives the protrusion 31 of the block 30 (under the action of the spring 35), the screw rod 40 does not engage with the threading in the hole 32 such that the screw rod 40 may be quickly moved along a longitudinal direction of the screw rod 40. Thus, the movable jaw 42 may approach the fixed jaw (not shown) quickly. 
     Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, when the handle 24 is pivoted through an angle to a second position in which the notch 21&#39; no longer faces the compartment 15, the block 30 is moved downwardly by the eccentric section 21 of the shaft 20 such that the threading in the hole 32 engages with screw rod 40. Thus, the screw rod 40 may be rotated upon rotational movement of the operative handle 41 which allows the movable jaw 42 to approach the fixed jaw slowly so as to securely clamp a workpiece (not shown) in position. 
     By such an arrangement, it is appreciated that the vise of the present invention may quickly clamp the work piece without time-consuming operation of the operative handle wheel 41. 
     Although the invention has been explained in relation to its preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that many other possible modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.