Patent Publication Number: US-6209427-B1

Title: Wedge type adjustment tool

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to tools used in performing vehicle wheel alignment. he invention has particular applicability to tools for adjustably spacing vehicle suspension components during an alignment procedure. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     When performing vehicle suspension alignment procedures, such as wheel camber adjustment, it is often necessary to adjust spacing between suspension components. For example, when setting camber on a McPherson strut-type suspension, typically the top anchor of the strut to knuckle assembly is loosened to allow movement of the strut, and the wheel is positioned as necessary by changing the position of the strut relative to the frame or knuckle assembly of the vehicle (i.e., by moving the top of the strut towards or away from the longitudinal center line of the vehicle). The top anchor is thereafter secured. When setting camber on a vehicle equipped with an upper wishbone arrangement other than with McPherson struts, the inner anchors of the wishbone are loosened, the wheel positioned as necessary by changing the location of the wishbone relative to the frame or inner body structure of the vehicle (i.e., by moving the wishbone towards or away from the longitudinal center line of the vehicle), and the inner anchors are thereafter secured. 
     Many vehicle suspension systems do not provide a mechanical means for positioning the wheel during the adjustment procedure, thus requiring manual application of force by the technician to the strut or wishbone to position the wheel. Since suspension adjustment procedures typically require the weight of the vehicle to be on the suspension during the procedure, such application of force can be problematic, depending on the weight of the vehicle and the location of the suspension members. This problem is especially acute if the vehicle is equipped with upper wishbones and “slot-type” adjustment holes for the wishbones. 
     A tool for moving a suspension member, especially a McPherson strut, to position a wheel is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,535,651 (Perez). Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, Perez teaches an expanding adjustment tool comprising a spreader plate  16  pivotally mounted to an engaging yoke  12 , a handle  18  for facilitating placement of the tool between two members to be adjusted, and a crank-operated adjustment assembly  20  for pivoting spreader plate  16  relative to yoke  12 . In use, spreader plate  16  engages the frame or inner body of the vehicle, and yoke  12  engages the strut while crank  30  is turned to move spreader plate  16  and yoke  12  apart to move the strut. 
     Disadvantageously, Perez&#39; adjustment tool is not easily adaptable to perform adjustments on differently-configured vehicles. For example, although spreader plate  16  and yoke  12  are suitably sized for moving the strut on one vehicle, they may be too large or small, or incorrectly shaped, for moving the strut of a different vehicle; e.g., a vehicle produced by another manufacturer. In other words, if the tool is designed to fit a first vehicle, it may not fit between the components of another vehicle, may not bear properly against the components, or both. Similarly, crank  30  is inconvenient to operate on some vehicles due to space constraints, and handle  18  is not of the proper length for manipulation of the tool on some vehicles. Thus, a number of differently sized tools must be purchased and stored if alignment is to be performed on a variety of vehicles, increasing costs. Furthermore, Perez&#39; adjustment tool is not suitable for performing adjustments on vehicles having upper wishbones instead of struts because yoke  12  does not fit between the wishbone and the vehicle frame or inner body. 
     There exists a need for an expanding adjustment tool for suspension alignment that is usable on a wide variety of vehicles, including vehicles equipped with McPherson struts or upper wishbones. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An object of the present invention is to provide a single wedge-type adjustment tool that is easily adaptable to perform adjustments on vehicles of different sizes and configurations, including vehicles equipped with McPherson struts or upper wishbones, as well as to perform certain rear suspension adjustments currently performed only with factory-provided special tools. 
     According to the present invention, the foregoing and other advantages are achieved in part by an adjustment tool comprising a first arm, a first tip detachably mounted to a distal end of the first arm, a second arm pivotably mounted relative to the first arm, a second tip detachably mounted to a distal end of the second arm; and an adjuster for pivoting the first and second arms relative to each other to adjust a distance between the first and second tips. To facilitate mounting and changing of the tips, one of the first and second tips can comprise a socket-like recess, and the distal end of one of the first and second arms may comprise a protruberance having a detent ball for retainably engaging the socket-like recess. To facilitate operation of the adjusting tool of the present invention, the adjuster is rotatable for pivoting the first and second arms relative to each other, and a distal end of the adjuster is engagable with a standard ratchet for rotating the adjuster, or comprises a telescoping crank handle for rotating the adjuster. 
     Additional objects and advantages of the present invention will become readily apparent to those skilled in this art from the following detailed description, wherein only the preferred embodiments of the present invention is shown and described, simply by way of illustration of the best mode contemplated for carrying out the present invention. As will be realized, the present invention is capable of other and different embodiments, and its several details are capable of modifications in various obvious respects, all without departing from the present invention. Accordingly, the drawings and description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature, and not as restrictive. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Reference is made to the attached drawings, wherein elements having the same reference numeral designations represent like elements throughout, and wherein: 
     FIGS. 1A-1B illustrate a conventional adjustment tool. 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an adjustment tool according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
     FIGS. 3A-3C are perspective views of interchangeable tips for the adjustment tool of the present invention. 
     FIG. 4 schematically illustrates an adjustment tool according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
     FIG. 5 schematically illustrates an adjustment tool according to a further embodiment of the present invention. 
     FIG. 6 schematically illustrates a handle for an adjustment tool according to the present invention. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Conventional expanding adjustment tools are not suitable for use on a variety of differently-configured vehicles, and therefore require separate tools for servicing vehicles of different sizes and structures. Furthermore, conventional adjustment tools are difficult to manipulate in work areas of vehicles having limited free space. The present invention addresses and solves these problems stemming from the lack of versatility of conventional adjustment tools. 
     The present invention thus provides an expanding adjustment tool with a first arm and a second arm that pivots relative to the first arm, and an adjuster, such as a wedge, for moving the first and second arms relative to each other. Both arms have detachable tips, such as spreader plates, yokes, wedges, etc. of different sizes and shapes, which tips are easily interchangeable depending on the particular application. For example, an appropriately sized spreader plate and yoke are attached to the arms of the inventive tool for adjustment of McPherson strut-type suspensions, while two wedge-shaped tips are attached for adjustment of upper wishbone-equipped vehicles. In one embodiment of the present invention, the adjuster is rotatable to adjust the relative positions of the arms, and has an end engagable with a standard ratchet, thereby allowing extensions, swivels, etc. to be connected to the adjuster as needed to facilitate the alignment procedure in tight spaces. Thus, the present invention enables a single adjusting tool to easily perform adjustments on a wide variety of vehicles with minimal additional cost. 
     An embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in FIGS.  2  and  3 A- 3 C. Referring to FIG. 2, an adjustment tool  200  for adjusting the distance between two members comprises a first arm  205  having a first tip  210  detachably mounted thereto at one end  205   a  for engaging one the members to be adjusted. First tip  210  can be a yoke having a pair of spaced-apart legs  210   a  for engaging one the members to be adjusted, such as a strut in a vehicle suspension. First tip  210  can alternatively be wedge-shaped (not shown), as for engaging an upper wishbone or vehicle frame member. For ease of interchangeability, first tip  210  comprises a female socket-like recess  210   b  (e.g., a ½ inch square recess) for accepting a protruberance  205   b  on distal end  205   a  of first arm  205 , which comprises a detent ball  205   c  for securely engaging recess  21  Ob, retaining first tip  210 . 
     Adjustment tool  200  further comprises a second arm  215  pivotably mounted relative to first arm  205  via links  220  at points P, and has a second tip  225  detachably mounted to one end  215   a . Second tip  225  can comprise a flat aluminum or steel plate  225   a  for engaging one the members to be adjusted, such as the frame or inner body of a vehicle, and is typically covered with a resilient material  225   b , such as synthetic rubber. Alternatively, second tip  225  can be wedge-shaped, as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, such as for engaging an upper wishbone or vehicle frame member, or pin-shaped, as shown in FIG.  3 C. Second tip  225  is typically bolted to second arm  215 ; however, second tip  225  can alternatively be mounted using the socket and protruberance arrangement of first arm  205  and first tip  210  described above. 
     The configurations of first tip  210  and second tip  225  are not limited to those described herein. Tips of different configurations can be used for differently sized and/or configured vehicles as necessary. 
     Adjustment tool  200  further comprises an adjuster mechanism  230  for pivoting first arm  205  and second arm  215  relative to each other to adjust the distance between first tip  210  and second tip  225 . Adjuster mechanism  230  includes a wedge  235  disposed between first arm  205  and second arm  215  that moves in the directions of arrows A, engaging opposing surfaces  205   d  and  215   b  of first arm  205  and second arm  215 , respectively, to pivot arms  205 ,  215  relative to each other in the directions of arrows B. Wedge  235  is threadably engaged with a threaded rod  240 , which extends through, and is rotatably supported by, a reaction member  245  between links  220 . Threaded rod  240  terminates with an end  250 , such as a swivel, engagable with a ratchet (not shown) via a recess  250   a ; e.g., a ½ inch square recess for engaging with a standard ½ inch drive ratchet. Swivel  250  allows adjuster  230  to be operated in restricted spaces. 
     To operate adjustment tool  200 , tips  210 ,  225  are installed on arms  205 ,  215 , respectively. Tool  200  is then positioned between the vehicle members to be adjusted. A ratchet is attached to recess  250   a  of swivel  250 , either directly or with an extension (not shown) as necessary depending on the space restrictions of the vehicle. Swivel  250  is then rotated with the ratchet in a direction indicated by arrows C, thereby moving wedge  235  to force arms  205 ,  215  apart until tips  210 ,  225  bear against the members and perform the necessary adjustment. After the adjustment procedure is completed, swivel  250  is rotated in the opposite direction, allowing arms  205 ,  215  to close, and tool  200  to be removed from the vehicle. 
     FIG. 4 depicts another embodiment of the present invention, wherein arms  405 ,  415  are pivoted at points P by links  400 , and reaction member  410  is integrally formed with first arm  405 , such as by casting first arm  405  and reaction member  410  together. Threaded rod  420  is rotatably retained in reaction member  410  by collars  440 , and terminates at one end inside wedge  425  and at the other end at swivel  430 . 
     In a further embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 5, first arm  510  comprises a handle  520  in the form of a hollow tube for facilitating manual placement of tips (such as tips  210  and  225 ) attached to first arm  510  and second arm  530  between members to be adjusted. Threaded rod  540  extends through handle  520 , is rotatably retained in handle  520  by collars  550 , and terminates at one end inside wedge  560  and at the other end at swivel  570 . 
     In accord with another aspect of the present invention, as illustrated in FIG. 6, a telescoping crank handle  600  is provided for rotating the adjusting mechanism of the embodiments of FIGS. 2,  4  and  5 , instead of a swivel (swivel  250 ,  430 ,  570 ). Telescoping crank handle  600  comprises an outer sleeve  610  that receives a crank rod  620  and attaches to the adjusting mechanism (threaded rod  240 ,  420 ,  540 ). The length of telescoping crank handle  600  is variable to accommodate space restrictions while performing adjustments on a vehicle. 
     Thus, the present invention enables adjustments to be made on vehicles of many different configurations using a single tool simply by replacing its tips, thereby reducing tool costs. For example, the inventive tool can be used to adjust both MacPherson strut and wishbone type suspensions, as well as some rear suspensions, with the attachment of appropriate tips. Interchangeable tips also allow the inventive tool easily to be adapted to service future vehicles that may have configurations different from current vehicles. Furthermore, by providing an adjusting mechanism of variable length and angle of operation, in the form of a telescoping crank handle or a swivel end engagable with a standard ratchet and extensions, the present invention may be used in tight spaces that otherwise would require use of a separate tool. 
     The present invention can be practiced by employing conventional materials, methodology and equipment; the details of such materials, equipment and methodology are not set forth herein in detail. In the previous descriptions, numerous specific details are set forth, such as specific materials, structures, chemicals, processes, etc., in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, it should be recognized that the present invention can be practiced without resorting to the details specifically set forth. In other instances, well known processing structures have not been described in detail, in order not to unnecessarily obscure the present invention. 
     Only the preferred embodiments of the present invention and but a few examples of its versatility are shown and described in the present disclosure. It is to be understood that the present invention is capable of use in various other combinations and environments and is capable of changes or modifications within the scope of the inventive concept as expressed herein.