Abstract:
A jaw assembly for use on a slideway in which no fasteners or mounting members are required to mount and demount the jaw from the assembly. The jaw assembly may also include a removable jaw to allow the gripping surface of the jaw assembly to be easily changed.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention relates in general to vises, and particularly to a wedge-driven sliding jaw for use in precision machinery. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Workpieces are typically held in place on a machining table with a vise having a fixed or “hard” jaw and a movable or “soft” jaw. Examples of such vises are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,060,920 and 6,126,158, each of which is incorporated herein by reference. Although these vises function well, their structure and assembly can be somewhat involved. 
         [0003]    Accordingly, what is needed is a precision vise having a relatively simplified construction, yet which provides accurate placement and retention of a workpiece on a machine table during machining operations such as milling, grinding, drilling, etc. 
         [0004]    A further need exists for such a vise which provide little lateral movement as the soft jaw engages the workpiece facilitates rapid removal and replacement of soft jaw on a jaw holder. 
         [0005]    Another need exists for such a soft jaw which does not stick to allow the workpiece to easily be removed or replaced. 
         [0006]    Another need exists for such a soft jaw which can easily be changed to accommodate a variety of workpieces. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0007]    The present invention has been developed to meet the needs noted above and therefore has an object to provide a soft jaw assembly for a vise having a relatively simple construction and assembly. 
         [0008]    Another object of the invention is to provide a soft jaw assembly which mounts a soft jaw to a jaw holder with a simple interlocking free-sliding fit. 
         [0009]    Still another object of the invention is to provide a soft jaw assembly which resists lateral movement when securing a workpiece. 
         [0010]    Yet another object of the invention to provide a soft jaw which interlocks with a ledge of a jaw holder without the need for complex interconnections. 
         [0011]    Another object of the present invention to provide an adaptable soft jaw assembly that permits a quick change of the jaw&#39;s gripping surface. 
         [0012]    Another object of the present invention is to provide an adaptable jaw assembly to obviate the need for an expensive inventory of jaw assemblies. 
         [0013]    Another object of the present invention is to provide an adaptable jaw assembly that provides a precise and stable orientation of the jaw&#39;s gripping surface, to prevent mislocation of the workpiece. 
         [0014]    A further object of the invention is to provide a quick-change removable jaw that does not contribute to wear and looseness within the jaw assembly. 
         [0015]    A still further object is to provide a jaw that can be readily changed within a confined space. 
         [0016]    The aforementioned objects, features and advantages of the invention will, in part, be pointed out with particularity, and will, in part, become obvious from the following more detailed description of the invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which form an integral part thereof. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0017]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a portion of a machine table and a soft jaw assembly constructed in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention. 
           [0018]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the soft jaw assembly of  FIG. 1  shown removed from the machine table. 
           [0019]      FIG. 3  is an exploded view of the soft jaw assembly of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0020]      FIG. 4  is a side view of the machine table and soft jaw assembly of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0021]      FIG. 5  is a side view of the machine table and soft jaw assembly showing how a workpiece is clamped. 
           [0022]      FIG. 6  depicts a perspective view of a portion of a machine table and a soft jaw assembly constructed in accordance with an alternate embodiment of the invention. 
           [0023]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the soft jaw assembly of  FIG. 6  shown removed from the machine table. 
           [0024]      FIG. 8  is a side view of the machine table and soft jaw assembly of  FIG. 6 . 
           [0025]      FIG. 9  is a side view of the machine table and soft jaw assembly showing how a workpiece is clamped. 
           [0026]      FIG. 10  is a detailed view of the connection between the removable jaw and the soft jaw. 
           [0027]      FIGS. 11-13  are side views showing how the removable jaw is attached to the soft jaw. 
           [0028]      FIG. 14  is an exploded view showing the removable jaw detached from the soft jaw. 
           [0029]    In the various figures of the drawings, like reference characters designate like parts. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0030]    The present invention will now be described in conjunction with the drawings, beginning with  FIG. 1  which shows a conventional machine table  10  having slideway  12  formed therein. A hard jaw  14  is rigidly fixed to the machine table  10  in a known manner for forming a vise in combination with a soft jaw assembly  16  which slides into slideway  12 . 
         [0031]    Referring next to  FIG. 2 , soft jaw assembly  16  is shown removed from machine table  10 . The soft jaw assembly  16  includes a slideway connector in the form of adjustable connector  18  which is mounted on the bottom of a jaw holder  20  with threaded fastener. As threaded fastener  22  is tightened, adjustable connector  18 , which is spaced apart from the bottom of jaw holder  20 , is pulled toward jaw holder  20  and as threaded fastener  22  is loosened, adjustable connector  18  separates from jaw holder  20 . Teeth (not currently shown) located on the bottom jaw holder  20  interlock with teeth  23  on machine table  10  as threaded fastener  22  is tightened, thereby preventing any further movement of jaw holder  20  within slideway  12 . 
         [0032]    Adjustable connector  18  is adapted to slide freely within slideway  12  so as to guide soft jaw assembly  16  toward and away from fixed hard jaw  14 . In this manner, a workpiece (not shown) may be clamped to the surface of machine table  10  between hard jaw  14  and soft jaw assembly  16  as described further below. 
         [0033]    As seen in  FIG. 3 , jaw holder  20  includes rectangular protrusion  24  having front wall  26  and ledge  28 . A threaded bore  30  is formed through ledge  28 . Protrusion  24  interlocks with rectangular cutout  32  on soft jaw  34 . Front wall  26  has two bores  36  which align with bores  40  on soft jaw  34 . Cylindrical guide tubes  38  ensure proper alignment of jaw holder  20  with soft jaw  34 . Cylindrical guide tubes  38  may be press fit within bores  36  and  40 . The interlocking of rectangular protrusion  24  with rectangular cutout  32  and cylindrical guide tubes  38  with bores  36  and  40  allows soft jaw  34  to slide freely to and away from jaw holder  20 . Further, by providing both ledge  28  and rectangular cutout  32  with a rectangular shape allows for jaw holder  28  and soft jaw  34  to be easily machined. Soft jaw  34  has a beveled or inclined wedge face  42  to drive soft jaw  34  toward hard jaw  14  as described below. 
         [0034]    In order to drive soft jaw  34  along rectangular protrusion  24  toward the hard jaw  14 , a drive member such as drive block  44  is movably and adjustably mounted on jaw holder  20  above ledge  28 . Drive block  44  is mounted on ledge  28  with threaded fastener  46  which slides freely into a smooth-walled stepped bore  48  formed through the central portion of drive block  44 . Fastener  46  engages threaded bore  30  formed through ledge  28 . As fastener  46  is tightened and loosened, drive block  44  respectively moves vertical downwardly and upwardly. 
         [0035]    Drive block  44  further includes drive face  50  which is beveled or inclined at the same angle as wedge face  42  on soft jaw  34 . Drive face  50  inclines upwardly and away from the jaw holder  20  to engage wedge face  40  with a planar sliding wedging action. In some embodiments, drive face  50  has a slight curvature so allow it to more easily move along wedge face  42 . A pair of compression springs  52  is held within a pair of cylindrical recesses  54  formed in the bottom face  56  of drive block  44 . Similar cylindrical recesses may also be formed on ledge  28  to accommodate compression springs  52 . Springs  52  help to center the drive block  44  on jaw holder  20 . 
         [0036]    In order to clamp a workpiece on machine table  10  between hard jaw  14  and soft jaw  34 , soft jaw assembly  16  is assembled in a somewhat loose configuration as shown in  FIG. 4 . In this condition, adjustable connector  18  is held loosely below jaw holder  20  as threaded fastener  22  passes through smooth walled stepped bore  58  in jaw holder  20  to loosely engage threaded bore  60  in adjustable connector  18 . 
         [0037]    As shown in  FIG. 3 , springs  41  maybe first be fit into bores  40  before cylindrical tubes  38  are inserted. Springs  41  are sized to fit over the ends of cylindrical tubes  38  and a connector located in bores  40 . As soft jaw  34  is advanced toward the workpiece, springs  41  provide a counter force that biases soft jaw  34  towards jaw holder  20  as fastener  46  is loosened. 
         [0038]    Soft jaw  34  is manually mounted on jaw holder  20  by inserting cylindrical guide tubes  38  into bores  36  and then sliding soft jaw  34  over jaw holder  28  so that rectangular cutout  32  engages rectangular protrusion  24  and bores  40  engage cylindrical guide tubes  38 . No permanent or supplemental fasteners are required to hold soft jaw  34  on jaw holder  20 . Threaded fastener  46  is threaded in bore  30  to hold drive block  44  loosely above ledge  28 . A small gap  62  may be maintained between faces  42  and  50  as seen in  FIG. 4 . 
         [0039]    In this condition, soft jaw assembly  16  is mounted to machine table  10  by sliding adjustable connector  18  into slideway  12  ( FIG. 1 ) until the front face  64  of soft jaw  34  pushes a workpiece against hard jaw  14  in the manner of a vise. At this point, the fastener  22  is tightened to lock jaw holder  20  in place over slideway  12 . This causes teeth  66  on the bottom of jaw holder  20  to interlock with teeth  23  on machine table  10  to provide a more secure connection and prevent sliding of jaw holder  20 . Fastener  46  is then tightened to drive block  44  downward causing the drive face  50  to wedge against wedge face  42  on soft jaw  34  as depicted in  FIG. 5 . This wedging action causes soft jaw  34  to slide horizontally away from jaw holder  20  over rectangular protrusion  24  and thereby tightly clamp a workpiece in position. 
         [0040]    A workpiece is easily removed from between the vise jaws by loosening fastener  46  which allows soft jaw  34  to release the workpiece. If desired, additional release and clearance can be effected by loosening fastener  22  and sliding soft jaw assembly  16  along slideway  12  away from hard jaw  14 . A new workpiece can then be placed on machine table  10  in front of hard jaw  14  for clamping by soft jaw assembly  16 . Alternatively, soft jaw assembly  16  can be removed from slideway  12  and a different soft jaw  34  can be mounted on soft jaw assembly  16  for clamping a different workpiece. 
         [0041]    As depicted in  FIG. 3 , soft jaw assembly  16  further comprises connection plate  68  which is attached to the underside of jaw holder  20  by fastener  70  through the middle hole of connection plate  68 . The underside of jaw holder  20  has a channel (not shown) for accommodating the thickness and width of connection plate  68 . The channel on jaw holder  20  is similar to that of channel  70  of soft jaw  34 . Threaded fastener  22  passes through the left most hole of connection plate  68  before entering bore  60 . Further, the right most hole of connection plate  68  accommodates the bottom of fastener  46  as it is tightened. As connector  46  is tightened to drive drive block  44  downwards, soft jaw  34  additionally slides over connection plate  68  on channel  70 . This provides an additional stabilization as soft jaw  34  is advanced toward a workpiece. 
         [0042]      FIGS. 6-14  depict an alternate embodiment of a soft jaw assembly according to the present invention in which the jaw and jaw holder are formed from a single piece of pliable metal such as carbon steel. Further, the soft jaw assembly depicted in  FIGS. 6-14  has a removable jaw that can be adapted for use on any soft jaw assembly such as that described in reference to  FIGS. 1-5  above.  FIG. 6  shows a conventional machine table  602  having slideway  604  formed therein. A hard jaw  606  is rigidly fixed to the machine table  602  in a known manner for forming a vise in combination with a soft jaw assembly  608  which slides into slideway  604 . 
         [0043]    Referring next to  FIG. 7 , soft jaw assembly  608  is shown removed from machine table  602 . Soft jaw assembly  608  includes a slideway connector in the form of adjustable connector  610  which is mounted on the bottom of soft jaw  612  with threaded fastener  614  in a similar manner to that of adjustable connector  18  to jaw holder  20 . As threaded fastener  614  is tightened, adjustable connector  610 , which is spaced apart from the bottom of soft jaw  612 , is pulled toward soft jaw  612  and as threaded fastener  614  is loosened, adjustable connector  610  separates from soft jaw  612 . Teeth (not currently shown) located on the bottom soft jaw  612  interlock with teeth  616  on machine table  602  as threaded fastener  614  is tightened, thereby preventing any further movement of soft jaw  612  within slideway  604 . 
         [0044]    Adjustable connector  610  is adapted to slide freely within slideway  604  so as to guide soft jaw assembly  608  toward and away from fixed hard jaw  606 . In this manner, a workpiece (not shown) may be clamped to the surface of machine table  602  between hard jaw  606  and soft jaw assembly  608  as described further below. 
         [0045]    Soft jaw  612  is formed from a single piece of metal as shown in  FIG. 7 . Jaw holder portion  616  is connected to soft jaw portion  618  by flexible connector portion  620  which has a cylindrical cutout  622  which allows soft jaw portion  618  to flex away from jaw holder portion  616  as will be described later. 
         [0046]    As depicted in  FIG. 8 , soft jaw portion  618  has a beveled or inclined wedge face  622  to drive soft jaw portion  618  toward hard jaw  606 . In order to drive soft jaw portion  618  toward the hard jaw  14 , a drive member such as drive block  624  is movably and adjustably mounted on jaw holder portion  616  in a manner similar to that of drive block  44  depicted in  FIG. 3 . Drive block  624  is mounted on jaw holder portion with threaded fastener  626  which slides freely into a smooth-walled stepped bore formed through the central portion of drive block  624 . Fastener  626  engages a threaded bore formed through jaw holder portion  616 . As fastener  626  is tightened and loosened, drive block  624  respectively moves vertical downwardly and upwardly. 
         [0047]    Drive block  624  further includes drive face  628  which is beveled or inclined at the same angle as wedge face  622  on soft jaw portion  618 . Drive face  628  inclines upwardly and away from the jaw holder portion  616  to engage wedge face  622  with a planar sliding wedging action. In some embodiments, drive face  628  has a slight curvature so allow it to more easily move along wedge face  622 . A pair of compression springs  630  help to center drive block  624  on jaw holder portion  616 . 
         [0048]    In order to clamp a workpiece on machine table  602  between hard jaw  606  and soft jaw  612 , soft jaw assembly  608  is assembled in a somewhat loose configuration as shown in  FIG. 8 . In this condition, adjustable connector  610  is held loosely below soft jaw  612  as threaded fastener  616  passes through a smooth walled stepped bore in soft jaw  612  to loosely engage threaded bore adjustable connector  610 . Threaded fastener  626  is threaded through drive block  624  into soft jaw  612  to provide a small gap  632  between faces  622  and  628 . 
         [0049]    In this condition, soft jaw assembly  608  is mounted to machine table  602  by sliding adjustable connector  610  into slideway  604  ( FIG. 1 ) until the front face of soft jaw assembly  608  pushes a workpiece against hard jaw  606  in the manner of a vise. At this point, the fastener  616  is tightened to lock soft jaw assembly  608  in place over slideway  604 . This causes teeth  634  on the bottom of soft jaw  612  to interlock with teeth  616  on machine table  602  to provide a more secure connection and prevent sliding. Fastener  626  is then tightened to drive block  624  downward causing the drive face  628  to wedge against wedge face  622  on soft jaw portion  618  as depicted in  FIG. 9 . This wedging action causes soft jaw portion  618  to flex away from jaw holder portion  616 . Raised step  636  allows soft jaw portion  618  to flex without contacting teeth  616 . 
         [0050]    As depicted in  FIGS. 6-9 , soft jaw assembly  608  further includes removable jaw  638  which is connected to soft jaw portion  618  via a reliable snap fit connection which will be described below with reference to  FIGS. 10-14 . As shown in  FIG. 14 , removable jaw  638  has a connector foot  640  opposite a gripping surface  642 . Gripping surface  642  can be shaped to accommodate a variety of different workpieces. In the described figure, gripping surface  642  has a flat surface. However, it should be apparent to one skilled in the art that other surfaces, such as a curved surface to accommodate cylindrical objects, can also be used. 
         [0051]    Connector foot  640  is held in channel  644  by the action of ball bearing fasteners  646  as shown in  FIGS. 11-13 . As shown in  FIG. 11 , fasteners  646  are first threaded through threaded bore  648  in soft jaw portion  618 . Fasteners  646  are tightened until ball bearings  652  extends slightly below flat top portion  650  of channel  644  as shown in  FIG. 12 . Ball bearings  652  are biased by a spring force at the tip of fasteners  646  so that they can be deflected into an interior channel of fasteners  646  if a counter force is applied. Next, connector foot  640  is inserted into channel  644  causing ball bearings  652  of fasteners  646  to be deflected upwards by angled notch  654  of connector foot  640 . When connector foot  640  is fully inserted into channel  644  as depicted in  FIG. 13 , ball bearing  652  exerts a downward force on angled notch  654 , thereby locking removable jaw  638  in place. The downward force provided by ball bearings  652  is partially redirected by angled notch  654  against the two bearing surfaces  656 ,  658  of soft jaw portion  618 . Further, as depicted in  FIGS. 11-14 , foot  640  comprises flat surface  660  which allows removable jaw  640  to be easily slid horizontally out of channel  644  without the need for pivoting removable jaw  640 . This allows removable jaw  640  to be easily removed in a confined space where pivoting would not be possible. 
         [0052]    Angled notch  654  is shown in more detail in  FIG. 10 . As shown, angled surface  654  has a front stepped portion  662  which allows a user to more easily line up removable jaw  638  with soft jaw portion  618 . Stepped portion  662  also provides the initial deflection of ball bearings  652  during insertion of removable jaw  638 . When removable jaw  638  is full inserted as depicted in  FIG. 10 , ball bearings  652  extend downward toward angled surface  664  to lock removable jaw  638  onto soft jaw portion  618 . 
         [0053]    To assure that connector foot  640  is properly aligned with channel  640 , channel  644  includes post  666  which aligns with channel  668  in connector foot  640  as shown in  FIG. 14 . If post  666  is not properly aligned with channel  668 , ball bearing fasteners  646  cannot engage with angled notch  654 . 
         [0054]    To remove removable jaw  638  from soft jaw portion  618 , the process shown in  FIGS. 11-13  is simply reversed. A user pulls horizontally on removable jaw  638  until there is enough force to overcome the biasing force applied by ball bearings  652 . The user does not have to angle removable jaw  638  during insertion. The user can then replace removable jaw  638  with another removable jaw  638  having a different gripping surface  642 . 
         [0055]    There has been disclosed heretofore the best embodiment of the invention presently contemplated. However, it is to be understood that various changes and modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit of the invention.