Having Intermediate Expanding Means Patents (Class 269/48.3)
  • Patent number: 11617662
    Abstract: A surgical instrument system comprising a prosthetic trial component and an orthopaedic surgical instrument is disclosed. The orthopaedic surgical instrument includes a distal tip sized to be received in a passageway of the prosthetic trial component. When the distal tip is positioned in the passageway of the prosthetic trial component and is in an expanded position, the distal tip is configured to engage an inner surface of the prosthetic trial component to secure the prosthetic trial component to the orthopaedic surgical instrument and permit the extraction of the trial component from a patient's bone. A method of use is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2023
    Assignee: DEPUY IRELAND UNLIMITED COMPANY
    Inventors: Craig S. Tsukayama, Phillip G. Withee, Jeremiah M. Lewis, Charles L. Penninger, Francisco A. Amaral, Tyler S. Hathaway, Daniel E. Lashure
  • Patent number: 11466719
    Abstract: A cap for a temporary fastener comprises a hollow, cup-shaped body and an inwardly tapered neck. The hollow body fits over a workpiece-engaging portion of the temporary fastener, and the neck extends from the hollow body. The tapered neck terminates in a hollow tip that is sized and configured to fit over aligned holes in the joined workpieces and to contact a minimal surface area of the outermost workpiece to reduce surface damage to the workpieces such that any damage will be removed when the holes are countersunk in the normal course of assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2022
    Assignee: SPIRIT AEROSYSTEMS, INC.
    Inventors: Jeremy Michael Bodecker, Jennifer Lyn Wilson, Rodney Eugene Bahr
  • Patent number: 11434951
    Abstract: A fastener is provided that includes a housing body including a bore extending along a longitudinal axis from a proximal end of the housing body, a housing body anti-rotation part, and a reduced diameter opening at a distal end of the housing body, a collet body partially translating within the housing body bore, having a collet body anti-rotation part positioned at least partially within the housing body, and a plurality of clamping fingers axially extending from a wall portion of the collet body, and a removable bushing positioned at least partially in the housing body bore. Rotation of the collet body is substantially prevented by an interaction between the housing body anti-rotation part and the collet body anti-rotation part during fastener clamping and unclamping and the removable bushing and the reduced diameter opening in the bore prevent escapement of the collet body anti-rotation part from the housing body.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2022
    Assignee: Centrix Inc.
    Inventor: Travis D. McClure
  • Patent number: 10982701
    Abstract: A single side temporary fastener (SSTF) capable of maintaining a clamping force in a material stack subject to material creep or adjunct extrusion during clamp up processes is disclosed. The SSTF comprise a rotationally constrained but freely translatable collet body that is disposed within an auxiliary structure such as a fastener housing. A fastener comprises the aforementioned collet body, which at least partially translates within the aforementioned auxiliary structure, and further comprises a threaded screw for rotationally engaging with the collet body, which by way of an anti-rotation means associated therewith and with the auxiliary structure, is rotationally constrained but is free to axially translate. Constant clamping pressures are made possible in such embodiments by the inclusion of at least one biasing element between compression force transmitting elements and/or assemblies of the fasteners.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2021
    Assignee: Centrix Inc.
    Inventor: Travis McClure
  • Patent number: 9302211
    Abstract: A fixing jig includes a pedestal including a placing surface on which a columnar honeycomb structure is placed, holding members fixed to the pedestal and configured to hold a side surface of the honeycomb structure placed on the placing surface, and drawing and fixing members fixed to the pedestal and configured to draw and fix the surface on the pedestal side in the outer circumferential portion of a mask placed on the honeycomb structure. Consequently, the fixing jig can fix the honeycomb structure and the mask aligned with each other and is less likely to hinder the alignment of the mask.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2016
    Assignee: SUMITOMO CHEMICAL COMPANY, LIMITED
    Inventors: Kousuke Uoe, Masaharu Mori, Ying Gong
  • Patent number: 8800982
    Abstract: A clamping device increases the diameter of a gripping assembly that is inserted into a hole in a workpiece and thus grips the inner circumferential surface of the hole, and particularly relates to such a clamping device that is adapted so that, in the vicinity of a scraper, no clearance occurs between the gripping assembly and a clamp rod, and the scraper. The clamping device is capable of enhancing the durability of a scraper, reducing the amount of pressurized air consumed by blowing, and ensuring the strength of a clamp rod against pulling and so on.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 12, 2014
    Assignee: Pascal Engineering Corporation
    Inventor: Takayuki Kawakami
  • Patent number: 8550326
    Abstract: A mandrel that provides a counter-force to the pressure exerted on the outside of a pipe or other arcuate surface by a friction stir welding tool, wherein the mandrel is expandable through the use of a wedge, and wherein the mandrel enables multiple friction stir welding heads to simultaneously perform welding on the arcuate surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 15, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2013
    Assignee: MegaStir Technologies LLC
    Inventors: Scott M. Packer, Jonathan A. Babb, Russell J Steel, Steve W. Larsen, Paul T. Higgins
  • Patent number: 8479619
    Abstract: The invention provides for an improved screw and screwdriver. The self-locking screw and screwdriver, the JacLock™ Screw and JacLock™ Screwdriver, is designed to improve insertion and/or removal of a screw. The new screw head differs from normal horizontal cut/slotted screw heads and cross cut/slotted screw heads. The invention calls for a standard vertical cut/slot in the screw head along with two cross cuts/slots in the head of the screw equi-distant from the center of the horizontal standard slot. The screwdriver has a redesigned head that will fit into the three cuts/slots in the new screw. Once the screwdriver is inserted into the screw head it will lock in place making it easier to insert or remove the screw. The design results in improved torque and eliminates the possibility of the screwdriver slipping off the head of the screw and possibly damaging the head of the screw.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 9, 2013
    Inventor: Bernard Jacovitz
  • Patent number: 8448929
    Abstract: The invention relates to a riveting tack (50) to be introduced into coaxial openings of at least two elements to be assembled, and comprising a hollow cylindrical body (51), a rod (53) passing through the hollow body and partially provided with an external thread (52a), a nut (54) mounted on the threaded end (53a), two half-clips (56) fixed to the rod (53) and comprising hooking lips (57) on the ends thereof, and a spacer (58) arranged between the two half-clips (56), the rod/half-clip set being axially mobile along the spacer (58) between a first position wherein the hooking lips (57) are radially close, and a second position wherein the two half-clips (56) are retracted inside the hollow body (51) and radially distanced from each other. The invention is characterized in that the set formed by the half-clips (56) and the spacer (58) is, in the cross-section thereof, in the form of a near-perfect circle having a diameter identical to the inner diameter of the openings.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 25, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 28, 2013
    Assignee: Lisi Aerospace
    Inventors: Philippe Prot, Marc Roussy
  • Publication number: 20120319340
    Abstract: A clamping device increases the diameter of a gripping assembly that is inserted into a hole in a workpiece and thus grips the inner circumferential surface of the hole, and particularly relates to such a clamping device that is adapted so that, in the vicinity of a scraper, no clearance occurs between the gripping assembly and a clamp rod, and the scraper. The clamping device is capable of enhancing the durability of a scraper, reducing the amount of pressurized air consumed by blowing, and ensuring the strength of a clamp rod against pulling and so on.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 15, 2011
    Publication date: December 20, 2012
    Inventor: Takayuki Kawakami
  • Patent number: 7596846
    Abstract: A temporary fastener includes a grip length indicator. By machining a flattened area into a body of the temporary fastener, by engraving an scale into the flattened area, and by attaching an indicator dot visible in the groove to a moving part of an internal assembly of the temporary fastener, the grip length of the installed temporary fastener may be read directly on the scale while the temporary fastener applies a clamp-up force to a structure. By using the temporary fastener of the present invention, it is possible to determine a fastener hole length while a temporary fastener is installed. Using the method for determining a fastener grip length of the present invention enables the effective determination of the correct fastener grip length for each particular fastener hole of a large structure, such as an aircraft airframe.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 6, 2009
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventor: Leslie A. Hoeckelman
  • Patent number: 7377505
    Abstract: A housing (15) fixed to a reference block (1) is provided with a guide hole (20) into which a plug portion (3) of a movable member (2) is allowed to be inserted. Inside this guide hole (20) is arranged an outer sleeve (21) vertically movably, and this outer sleeve (21) is advanced upward by a predetermined advancing stroke by a coned disc spring (25). An inner sleeve (31) which is allowed to fit outside the plug portion (3) is wedge-engaged with the outer sleeve (21) from above, and this inner sleeve (31) is adapted to be diametrically expandable and diametrically contractible. The inner sleeve (31) is moved vertically by an output member (36).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 10, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 27, 2008
    Assignee: Kosmek, Ltd.
    Inventors: Keitaro Yonezawa, Yosuke Haruna
  • Patent number: 7070375
    Abstract: A temporary fastener includes a grip length indicator. By machining a flattened area into a body of the temporary fastener, by engraving an scale into the flattened area, and by attaching an indicator dot visible in the groove to a moving part of an internal assembly of the temporary fastener, the grip length of the installed temporary fastener may be read directly on the scale while the temporary fastener applies a clamp-up force to a structure. By using the temporary fastener of the present invention, it is possible to determine a fastener hole length while a temporary fastener is installed. Using the method for determining a fastener grip length of the present invention enables the effective determination of the correct fastener grip length for each particular fastener hole of a large structure, such as an aircraft airframe.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 15, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2006
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventor: Leslie A. Hoeckelman
  • Patent number: 6390460
    Abstract: The present invention provides a workholder and a method for securing a work piece by engaging either a bore contained in the work piece or by gripping the edge of the bore of the work piece. The workholder includes a support platform, and a bore clamping device that is mounted to the support platform. The clamping device has a cylindrical, expandable arbor extending upwardly from the support platform for positioning in and engaging the bore or for gripping an outer edge of the bore.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2001
    Date of Patent: May 21, 2002
    Inventor: Charles Chupick