Improvements in Ratchet Braces and like Tools.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 4th Jan., 1898-Accepted, 12th Feb., 1898
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
[Communicated from abroad by FRANK ARTHUR REYNOLDS, and STEPHEN HART
MANNING, both of Lewiston, Androscoggin County, Maine, and HERSCHEL
CLIFFORD PARKER, of Brooklyn, Kings County, New York, all in the United
States of America.]
Improvements in Ratchet Braces and like Tools.
I, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent Agents,
45, Southampton Buildings, in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to double-acting tool drivers, but more particularly to
double-acting ratchet drills.
The primary object of the invention is to simplify the mechanism for operating
the tool spindle or shaft, and at the same time provide a simple and efficient device
which will avoid many of the objections incident to devices of this character as
ordinarily constructed. A further object is to provide a pivoted lever rotatably
arranged on the spindle, and means connected thereto for transmitting motion
to the tool spindle or shaft, so that the tool may be worked by oscillating the
lever in various positions with reference to said spindle, and to provide a device
which may be employed either as a single or a double-acting tool driver.
With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in the construction
and combination of the several parts substantially as hereinafter described and
then pointed out in the claims at the end of the description.
Referring to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification,
in which similar figures of reference designate similar parts, Figure 1 is a general
perspective view of one form of device embodying my invention.
Figure 2 is a plan view of the device shown in Figure 1, the handle of the
lever and the drill being partly broken away;
Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view, partly in elevation, taken on the
line III-III of Figures 2 and 4; and
Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line IV-IV of Figure 3.
The spindle or shaft 10 may have one end thereof formed with a socket in which
the shank of a drill or other tool, or the shank of a mandrel having a tool-holding
chuck may be inserted, while the other end of said spindle or shaft may have a
screw-threaded bolt or stem 11 projecting outwardly therefrom, on which may be
arranged a suitable pressure nut, as at 12. This nut may have the usual centre
adapted to engage a suitable abutment, so that when the nut is rotated the internal
threads thereof engaging the threads of the stem or bolt 11 will cause the spindle 10
to advance and force the drill or other tool to its work, though instead of the
bolt and pressure nut, a bolt or screw or other pressure device may be provided,
the bolt or screw in such case having one end thereof adapted to engage an
abutment, and the other end screw threaded and engaging a threaded recess or
opening in the spindle, so that when the bolt is rotated the desired pressure may
be exerted upon the drill or tool. A pair of opposed ratchet wheels 13 and 13*

page_text: having their teeth pitched in the same direction may be secured at or near the
opposite ends of the tool shaft or spindle by means of keys or otherwise, or said
ratchet wheels may be formed integral with the spindle as desired. The parts
thus far described may be of the usual or of any preferred construction, and are
not claimed broadly herein, but only in combination with certain features which
will be hereinafter referred to.
In order to impart rotary motion to the ratchet wheels and the tool, a pair of
collars 14 and 14 may be arranged so as to rotate upon the spindle or shaft 10,
said collars having recesses adapted to partially enclose the ratchet wheels, which
latter serve to retain the collars on said spindle. These collars have lugs or
projections 15 and 15ª respectively projecting outwardly therefrom and having
openings therethrough, in each of which is arranged a pawl 10, which is normally
forced inward so as to engage the teeth of the ratchet wheel by means of a
spring 17 located within the opening in the lugs or projections. The pawls may
be polygonal in cross section, or may be partially cylindrical and partially angular
so as to slide in similarly formed openings in the lugs or projections of the
collars in order to prevent rotary mction of the pawls, the springs 17 being
interposed between plugs, as at 18, fitting the outer ends of the openings and the
upper ends of said pawls, though instead of the openings extending entirely through
the projections simply a recess may be formed for each pawl and spring, or the
pawls may be differently constructed and arranged if desired. The projections or
lugs on the collars 14 and 14° are engaged by the ends of a lever 19 which is
pivoted to a sleeve 20, the latter being journaled on the spindle 10 and interposed
between the collars, thus serving as an inner abutment or bearing surface therefor.
This lever may be of any preferred form and arranged upon the spindle or shaft
in any desired manner, but it is preferable to construct the same as shown, in
which the ends thereof are provided with slots 21 fitting the lugs or projections
15 and 15, the slots being beveled or relieved, as shown more clearly in Figure 4,
in order that various inclinations of the projections on the collars may be com-
pensated for when said lever is rocked or oscillated on its pivot. The pivot may
be in the nature of a trunnion 22 formed on the sleeve 20, on which the lever may
be journaled as shown in Figure 3, and said lever may be held on the sleeve by
means of a washer 23, which is secured to the trunnion 22 by a screw or bolt, as
at 24, so as to bear upon the upper surface of the operating lever, thus permitting
the lever to move back and forth parallel with the plane of the drill so as to rotate
the collars 14 and 14* in opposite directions, or permitting said lever and sleeve
to be revolved or oscillated at right angles or around the tool spindle in order that
the collars and operating lever may be moved simultaneously in the same direction
to accomplish the function of an ordinary single-acting ratchet drill. By this
means the parts. liable to catch the clothing of the operator are enclosed, and a
simple, strong and efficient mechanism is provided for driving the tool spindle or
shaft, thereby avoiding the objections incident to the use of gears and pinions
employed on many of such devices.
The construction and operation of the invention will be readily understood from
the foregoing description when taken in connection with the accompanying
drawings.
The drill or tool being arranged in the tool spindle or shaft 10, the pressure nut
brought to bear against a suitable abutment so as to exert the desired pressure
between the end of the drill or tool and said abutment in the usual manner, and
the operating lever 19 moved backward and forward in a plane parallel with that
of the tool spindle and tool, it will be seen if the lever is moved in one direction,
as to the right for instance, that the lever by engaging the lug or projection 15
will rotate the collar 14 in the direction indicated by the arrow in Figure 2,
causing thereby the pawl 16 to engage the teeth of the ratchet wheel 13 so as to
rotate the spindle and tool. During this movement of the lever the opposite
collar 14 through the lug 15ª will be rotated in the opposite direction around the
tool spindle so as to cause the pawl 16 to slip over the teeth of the ratchet

page_text: wheel 13, but when the lever is moved toward the left the reverse action will
take place, causing the pawl 16 to slip over the ratchet wheel 13, while the pawl 16"
engages the teeth of the ratchet wheel 13 and causes the tool and spindle to
rotate, thus securing practically a constant rotary motion of the drill or tool.
Should the device be in such a position that the operating lever cannot be
moved back and forth in a plane parallel with the spindle and tool, the said lever
and sleeve may be rotated around or at right angles to said spindle or shaft. In
this case the operating lever 19 engaging the lugs 15 and 15" will cause the collars
to revolve in the same direction as the sleeve 20, and when moved in one direction
will cause the pawls 16 and 16 to slip over the teeth of the ratchet wheels, but
when the operating lever is moved in the opposite direction, the pawls will be
caused to engage the teeth of said ratchet wheels, thus rotating the spindle at one
movement only of the lever.
A simple and efficient device is thus provided which may have the lever thereof
operated in various positions and which may be employed either as a single or
a double acting ratchet drill or other tool driver.
It will be understood that various changes may be made in the device, as, for
instance, the lugs or projections may be carried by the lever, and the collar slotted
to receive said lugs, or that the ratchet wheels may be formed directly upon the
tool spindle or shaft; that a plate may be provided so as to cover the exposed
outer surfaces of the ratchet wheels, said plate being either secured to or formed
as a part of the shaft or spindle, or may be secured to the collars as desired, and
that some of the parts may be dispensed with or others substituted therefor without
departing from the spirit of the invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me
by my foreign correspondents, I declare that what I claim is :-
1. A device of the character described, comprising a tool spindle or shaft,
ratchet wheels having the teeth thereof similarly pitched and rotating with the tool
shaft or spindle, a pair of collars rotatably arranged on the shaft and provided with
pawls to engage the ratchet wheels, and a lever pivoted and journaled upon the tool
spindle and having a lug and slot connection with the collars so as to rotate the
same, whereby a single or double acting ratchet drill or tool driver is secured,
substantially as described.
2. A device of the character described, comprising a tool spindle, exteriorly
smooth collars rotatably arranged on the spindle and provided with lugs or pro-
jections thereon, an enclosed ratchet and pawl connection between each collar and
the spindle, and a pivoted lever supported on the spindle and engaging the lugs
of the collars so as to rotate the latter in opposite directions when oscillated on its
pivot, substantially as described.
3. A device of the character described, comprising a tool spindle or shaft, a sleeve
or casing journaled on the spindle, recessed collars rotatably arranged on the
spindle, each having a lug or projection, ratchet wheels arranged in the recesses
of the collars and secured to the spindle or shaft, pawls carried by the collars
adapted to engage the teeth of the ratchet wheels, and a lever pivoted to the casing
and having slotted ends to engage the lugs of the collars so as to rotate the latter
in opposite directions when oscillated on its pivot, substantially as described.
4. A double acting ratchet tool driver, comprising a tool spindle or shaft, a
sleeve or casing journaled on the spindle, collars rotatably arranged on the spindle,
each having a lug or projection thereon, ratchet wheels on the spindle, pawls
carried by the collars adapted to engage the teeth of the ratchet wheels, and a
lever pivoted to the casing and slotted to engage the lugs of the collars so as to
rotate the latter in opposite directions when oscillated on its pivot, substantially
as described.
5. A device of the character described, comprising a tool spindle or shaft, a sleeve
or casing journaled on the spindle, recessed collars rotatably arranged on the

page_text: spindle, each having a lug or projection thereon, ratchet wheels secured to the
spindle and arranged in the recesses of the collars, spring-pressed pawls arranged
in the lugs and adapted to engage the teeth of the ratchet wheels, means for
exerting a pressure on the spindle, and a lever pivoted to the casing and having
slotted ends engaging the lugs of the collars so as to rotate the latter when oscillated
on its pivot, substantially as described.
6. A device of the kind described, having its several parts constructed and
arranged substantially as shown in the accompanying drawings and described in
the foregoing specification.
1
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.