Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02741022 2011-05-06
TITLE
[0001] Impact Tool And Method Of Use
FIELD
[0002] There is described a tool developed to countersink holes in walls
created by
fasteners, but which may be used for other applications.
BACKGROUND
[0003] When person vacate premises nail holes are left in the walls where
pictures
formerly hung. Those nail holes must be filled and painted over before new
occupants move
in. The current method involves sanding the area and then filling the holes
with a filler
compound. What is required is a method and associated tool that will simplify
the filling of
holes.
SUMMARY
[0004] According to one aspect there is provided an impact tool which has a
base with an
opening that defines an underlying target area. A plunger is supported
perpendicular to the
base by a plunger guide. The plunger has an impact tip and is movable relative
to the base to
cause the impact tip to move in and out of the target area. A momentum source
is provided
that selectively propels the plunger toward the base causing the impact tip to
project through
the opening and strike the target area.
[0005] According to another aspect there is provided a method of patching
fastener holes
in a wall utilizing the impact tool. A first step involves positioning the
opening of the base
over a fastener hole in a wall. A second step involves energizing the momentum
source to
propel the plunger toward the base causing the impact tip to project through
the opening and
strike the target area, thereby forming a depression. A third step involves
filling the
depression with filler.
[0006] When a fastener is removed from a wall, there is left a raised lip
around the
opening left by the fastener. This raised lip was addressed in the prior art
by sanding, thereby
increasing the area to be patched. With the present method, a depression is
created around the
fastener hole. This depression serves to countersink that portion of the wall
where the raised
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lip is located and to localize the area to be patched. A further benefit is
that the filler forms a
better bond in the depression than was formerly experienced with the prior art
method.
[0007] It will be appreciated that the impact tool described above could be
used for other
countersink applications or other impact applications. A possible impact
application not
associated with the construction industry is the use as a chiropractic tool
for providing a
therapeutic impact to body tissue.
[0008] When the impact tool is used in accordance with the present method
there is a
need to avoid excessive impacts. Excessive impacts can be avoided by using a
spring as the
momentum source. The plunger is provided with a gripping end opposed to the
impact end.
The spring is placed in a compressed state by manually gripping the gripping
end and pulling
the plunger away from the base. By sizing the spring, one can limit the
maximum force that
the impact tool is capable of delivering.
[0009] It is viewed as advantageous if the impact tool delivers a consistent
impact every
time. Force variations can be experienced when one pulls back on the gripping
end of the
plunger and releases. To ensure consistent impacts, it is preferred that the
plunger have a
radially projecting movable trigger and the plunger guide has a radial
opening. The trigger of
the plunger is received in the radial opening of the plunger guide to maintain
the spring in the
compressed state. The trigger is then manually pressed to selectively release
the trigger from
the radial opening, such that energy stored in the compressed spring is
released to propel the
plunger towards the base. The use of the trigger ensures that the spring is
compressed to the
same extent for every impact.
[0010] In the accompanying drawings the impact tip is shown as being rounded,
which is
the preferred impact tip configuration for this particular application. It
will be appreciated,
that if there was a different purpose for the impact tool, the impact tip may
be changed. For
example, if the impact tool was intended to impact decorative designs onto an
impressionable
substrate, the impact tip might be in the shape of a star, a moon, a plant, an
animal, a bird, or
any other design element.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0011] These and other features will become more apparent from the following
description in which reference is made to the appended drawings, the drawings
are for the
purpose of illustration only and are not intended to be in any way limiting,
wherein:
[0012] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an impact tool.
[0013] FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the impact tool shown in FIG. 1.
[0014] FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view along the line A-A of the impact tool
shown in
FIG. 2.
[0015] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the impact tool shown in FIG. 1 in a
compressed
state.
[0016] FIG. 5 is a side elevation view of the impact tool shown in FIG. 1 in a
compressed state.
[0017] FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view along the line B-B of the impact tool
shown in
FIG. 5.
[0018] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a portion of wall with a hole in it
with the impact
tool positioned on it in a compressed state.
[0019] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the portion of wall shown in FIG. 7
with the
impact tool being removed in an uncompressed state.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0020] An impact tool generally identified by reference numeral 10, will now
be
described with reference to FIG. 1 through 8.
Structure and Relationship of Parts:
[0021] Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 4, an impact tool 10 includes a base 12
defining an
underlying target area 14 and a plunger 16. A momentum source for propelling
plunger 16 is
also provided. Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, in the illustrated embodiment
the momentum
source is a spring 18. Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 4, plunger 16 is supported
perpendicular
to base 12 by a plunger guide 20. Plunger 16 is movable relative to base 12
along plunger
guide 20 to allow an impact tip 22 to move in and out of an opening 24 to
target area 14. In
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the present embodiment, impact tip 22 is rounded, however it will be
understood that different
shapes of impact tip 22 may be utilized dependent upon the use of impact tool
10. Referring
to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, spring 18 selectively propels plunger 16 toward base 12
and causes
impact tip 22 to project through opening 24 and strike target area 14. In the
present
embodiment, the momentum source is spring 18, however it will be understood
that various
types of momentum sources 18 may be used in conjunction with impact tool 10.
For
example, an alternative momentum source is a hydraulic accumulator. Referring
to FIG. 5
and FIG. 6, spring 18 is placed in a compressed state by gripping a gripping
end 28 of
plunger 16 which is opposed to impact tip 22 and pulling plunger 16 away from
base 12.
[0022] Referring to FIG. 3, in order to regulate the force of impact caused by
plunger 16
when spring 18 is released from the compressed state, plunger 16 has a
radially projecting
movable trigger 30 and plunger guide 20 has a radial opening 32 to receive
trigger. Referring
to FIG. 6, when trigger 30 is positioned within radial opening 32 of plunger
guide 20, spring
18 is placed in a compressed state. Trigger 30 is released by manually
pressing trigger 30
which causes it to slide out of radial opening 32 and release compressed
spring 18. With
compressed spring 18 released, energy stored in spring 18 propels plunger 16
toward base 12.
Operation:
[0023] Referring to FIG. 7, impact tool 10 can be used for patching holes 34
in a wall 36
created when fasteners such as picture hooks are removed. Referring to FIG. 5
and FIG. 6,
spring 18 within impact tool 10 is moved into a compressed state by gripping
gripping end 28
of plunger 16 and pulling plunger 16 away from base 12 until trigger 30 is
positioned within
radial opening 32. Referring to FIG. 7, impact tool 10 is positioned on wall
36 with spring 18
in a compressed state and trigger 30 positioned within radial opening 32. Base
12 of impact
tool 10 is positioned against wall 36 such that hole 34 is positioned in
underlying target area
14. Referring to FIG. 8, trigger 30 is released from radial opening 32 to
cause impact tip 22 of
plunger 16 to travel through opening 24 to target area 14 and impact wall 36
to create a
depression 38 with hole 34 within depression 38. Once depression 38 is
created, it may be
filled with a filler to repair wall 36. This depression serves to countersink
that portion of the
wall surrounding hole 34 where the raised lip is located which eliminates the
need to use
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sand paper and localizes the area to be patched. A further benefit is that the
filler forms a
better bond in the depression than is possible when just filling hole 34.
[0024] In this patent document, the word "comprising" is used in its non-
limiting sense to
5 mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically
mentioned are not
excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article "a" does not
exclude the
possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context
clearly requires that
there be one and only one of the elements.
[0025] The scope of the claims should not be limited by the preferred
embodiments set
forth in the examples, but should be given the broadest interpretation
consistent with the
description as a whole.
