Telescopic tool support

Abstract

A telescopic tool support comprises a seat having a first top wall and two opposite first sidewalls, a top cover at least partially enclosing the seat and having a second top wall and two opposite second sidewalls, and an adjustable locking device adapted to couple the top cover to the seat, wherein the adjustable locking device has at least one locking tab, at least one engagement-actuating device, and at least one coupling device. The at least one coupling device couples or decouples the seat and the top cover by at least one locking tab preferably resiliently connected to the seat. The at least one engagement-actuating device is moveable between an unlocked position and a locked position, and is configured for, when it is at said locked position, enabling the coupling of said coupling device under the aid of said locking tab so as to have the top cover and the seat engaged at a desired coupling location; and for, when it is at said unlocked position, enabling the decoupling of said coupling device so as to allow the sliding of the top cover with respect to the seat. When the at least one engagement-actuating device is at the unlocked position, the tool support can be telescoped so as to adjust the accommodation size, and when the at least one engagement-actuating device is at a locked position, the top cover cannot move with respect to the seat such that the accommodation size of the tool support is maintained.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a size-adjustable telescopic tool support comprising a seat and a top cover, in which the top cover is moveable with respect to the seat to adjust the accommodation space of the telescopic tool support, so as to carry tools of various sizes.

2. Description of the Prior Art

A tool support known in the art conventionally comprises a box provided with a fastener disposed on the outer surface of its top cover to fix hand tools of a specific size to the fastener and align them with each other, such that it is convenient to display, take out and carry the hand tools. However, the size of the conventional tool support cannot be adjusted, such that it can only be used for storing hand tools of specific sizes. Hand tools that do not match the size of the tool support cannot be properly stored/supported.

Under the circumstances, if the user only has a tool support of a fixed size that can accommodate specific combinations of tools and he/she wish to store/carry tools of other sizes for the hand tool with a length smaller than that of the tool support, the accommodation space of the tool support may be too large compared with the size of the hand tool, thus causing a waste of space; and for the hand tool with a length greater that of the tool support, the accommodation space of the tool support may be too small compared with the size of the hand tool, and thus cannot carry the hand tool properly. If the user wishes to carry a combination of various hand tools, it is needed to prepare several tool supports of various sizes so that hand tools can be stored/supported in appropriate tool supports.

In view of the above, various sizes of tool supports should be manufactured to accommodate different packages of hand tool sets, and this inevitably results in the addition in manufacturing processes and costs.

In this regard, carrying hand tools of various sizes by using a single tool support is an important task to be achieved by the present invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention discloses a tool support comprising a seat and a top cover, in which the top cover at least partially encloses the seat, and can be moveably adjusted with respect to the seat to extend or retract the entire accommodation size of the tool support so as to accommodate various sizes of hand tools.

A telescopic tool support according to the present invention comprises a seat, a top cover partially enclosing the seat and being slidable therewith, and an adjustable, telescopic locking device adaptable for not only engaging the seat and the top cover but also locking the engagement at a desired coupling location.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the adjustable, telescopic locking device has at least one locking tab and at least one engagement-actuating device. The at least one locking tab is disposed on the seat, and separated from the top cover. The engagement-actuating device is disposed on the inner side of the at least one locking tab. A coupling device is provided between the at least one locking tab and the top cover, and particularly, the coupling device is in the form of a toothed structure consisting of at least one tooth on said at least one locking tab and a corresponding rack on the top cover. The at least one tooth and the corresponding rack can be engaged with each other. With the engagement-actuating device, the at least one tooth on the at least one locking tab can be pushed to engage with the rack of the top cover to avoid the top cover to slide with respect to the seat. When the tool support is to be extended or retracted back, the engagement-actuating device should be unlocked first so as to allow the top cover to be adjusted to the required position; and when the engagement-actuating device is locked, the top cover and the seat are fixed together.

The above engagement-actuating device can be in the form of a latching device, an eccentric engagement-actuating member, a supporting rod, an elastic engagement-actuating ring, or the like, which enables the coupling device between the seat and the top cover.

In a further embodiment of the present invention, the telescopic locking device has at least one locking tab which is disposed on the seat and engaged with said top cover. A coupling device is provided between said at least one locking tab and the top cover, and particularly, the coupling device is in the form of at least one tooth on said at least one locking tab and a rack of the top cover at the corresponding position of the at least one locking tab. The at least one tooth and the rack can be engaged with each other, such that the top cover is fixed to the seat and will not slide relatively. When the tool support is to be telescoped, an external force is applied to the at least one locking tab to bend the same inward, such that it is separated with the top cover, and at this time the top cover can be adjusted to a desired position. After the external force is removed, the at least one locking tab can be returned to the engaged state, such that the top cover and the seat are fixed with each other and will not slide with respect to each other.

In order to avoid the locking tab to be fatigue or broken due to the over bending, a stopper is disposed on the inner side of the locking tab to prevent the locking tab from being overbent. It can be appreciated that those skilled in the art may think of some other alternatives to prevent the locking tab from being overbent without using the stopper.

In the above two embodiments, the coupling device can be disposed on the side surface or top surface of the top cover and the seat, and the coupling device is not limited to the combination of tooth and rack. Those skilled in the art can appreciate that the coupling device is used for engaging purposes and can be easily modified to accomplish the purposes of the present invention.

With the present, multi-section adjustment of a tool support can be achieved to meet the accommodation requirement of hand tools of various sizes. The accommodation size of the tool support can therefore be reduced to facilitate carrying. The telescopic tool support of the present invention can also be arranged with other tool sets to form a new tool kit, or be placed in a bigger tool set.

The features of the present invention can be better understood by referring to the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a telescopic tool support of the present invention;

FIG. 2A is another exploded view of the tool support;

FIG. 2B is a partially enlarged view of a sleeve of the tool support;

FIGS. 3A, 3B, 3C are schematic sectional views of the exemplary implementations of the locking tab connected to the seat;

FIG. 3D is a three-dimensional schematic view of FIG. 3C;

FIGS. 4A, 4B, 4C and 4D are schematic sectional views of the tool support in the retracted and extended states;

FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged view of a local structure showing the adjustable locking device to be disposed on the side surface of the tool support;

FIGS. 6A and 6B are schematic sectional top views of another embodiment of the engagement-actuating device;

FIGS. 7A and 7B are schematic sectional side views of a further embodiment of the engagement-actuating device;

FIGS. 8A and 8B are schematic sectional top views of a further embodiment of the engagement-actuating device;

FIGS. 9A and 9B are schematic sectional top views of the stopper used in the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a combinational view of the tool support and the hand tool set; and

FIG. 11 is a reference view of the tool support combined with other tool sets.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2A, a first embodiment of the present invention comprises a seat 10, a top cover 20 and an adjustable locking device. The top cover 20 at least partially (partly or fully) encloses the seat 10 and the adjustable locking device is adapted to couple the top cover 20 to the seat 10. The seat 10 has a first top wall 11 and two opposite first sidewalls 12, and the top cover 20 has a second top wall 21 and two opposite second sidewalls 22. The adjustable locking device is adaptable for engaging the top cover 20 with said seat 10 and locking the engagement therebetween at a desired coupling location, which comprises at least one locking tab 13, at least one engagement-actuating device, and at least one coupling device for coupling or decoupling the seat 10 and the top cover 20 by the engagement-actuating device. In an embodiment of the present invention, the at least one locking tab 13 is in the form of two locking tabs 13 disposed on the first top wall 11, with each of the two locking tabs 13 being provided with an engagement-actuating device. The hand tools can be either kept on the top cover 20 or stored in the seat 10.

The locking tabs 13 are separated from the second top wall 21 when they are not actuated by the engagement-actuating devices. A toothed structure 14, preferably in the form of at least one tooth 14, is disposed on each of the locking tabs 13 (FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of locking tabs 13 with a toothed structure 14 having three inter-connected teeth connected to each other). The second top wall 21 is provided with a pair of racks 23 corresponding to the locking tabs 13. The racks 23 can be in the form of a toothed structure with teeth that are connected to each other, spaced with each other or grouped into segments. The toothed structure 14 and racks 23 work as the coupling device which provides the engagement between seat 10 and top cover 20. The locking tab 13 can be an elastic or resilient element resiliently connected to the first top wall 11 or a single rigid member connected to the first top wall 11 (see FIG. 3A to FIG. 3D). In the embodiment of FIG. 3A to FIG. 3D, a spring member 131 is disposed between each locking tab 13 and the first top wall 11, such that said locking tab 13 is connected to the first top wall 11 by said spring member 131. The locking tab 13 can also be connected to the first top wall 11 by a pivot device. Preferably, an elastomer is disposed between the locking tab 13 and the first top wall 11, such that the locking tab 13 and the first top wall 11 are elastically or resiliently connected to each other. Preferably, as shown in FIG. 3B, the locking tab 13 and the first top wall 11 can also be connected by a joint structure 132 consisting of male and female arcuated members, and provided with an L-shaped spring member 133. More preferably, as shown in FIGS. 3C and 3D, the locking tab 13 and the first top wall 11 can be connected by a pivot structure 134, and provided with a spring 135. With the elasticity of the locking tab 13, or the arrangement of the elastomers such as spring member and springs, the locking tab 13 can be bent due to the external force, and can return to the original state after the external force is removed.

Accordingly, when the locking tab 13 is in an engaging position, the toothed structure 14 is engaged with the rack 23, such that the top cover 20 cannot slide with respect to the seat 10. In other words, the coupling device constituted by the toothed structure 14 and rack 23 enables the coupling between the seat 10 and the top cover 20 under the aid of the engagement-actuating device. When the locking tab 13 is in an disengaging position, the toothed structure 14 is disengaged with the rack 23, such that the top cover 20 can slide with respect to the seat 10 and the accommodation size of the telescopic tool support can be adjusted. In other words, the coupling device constituted by the toothed structure 14 and rack 23 enables the decoupling between the seat 10 and the top cover 20 by releasing the engagement-actuating device. It is known to those skilled in the art that the engagement between the locking tab 13 and second top wall 21 is not limited to the combination of tooth and rack, and can be achieved by other coupling devices, such as a combination of interfered tooth and rack, a combination of a protrudent round ball and a corresponding circular hole, and a combination of a catch protrusion and a corresponding catch hole. The examples of the engagement-actuating device would be given in detail below.

Preferably, to ensure that the locking tab 13 and the second top wall 21 are in an engaged state such that the toothed structure 14 and the rack 23 are engaged with each other to couple the top cover 20 to the seat 10, an engagement-actuating device is disposed on the inner side of the locking tab 13 to fix the locking tab 13 in an engaged state, and to prevent the locking tab 13 from being separated from the second top wall 21. Referring to FIG. 2, the seat 10 further comprises a front-end wall 15 provided with two fixing holes 16. The engagement-actuating device is in the form of a latching device 30 having a sleeve 31 and a latch 32. The partially enlarged view of the sleeve 31 is shown in FIG. 2B. As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, each latching device 30 is disposed on a side of a corresponding locking tab 13, and the latch 32 can slide along the sleeve 31 between an unlocked position and a locked position. The two fixing holes 16 are disposed respectively at the front-end wall 15 with respect to the axial direction of the latch 32. When the latch 32 is at the unlocked position, the latch 32 is not in the fixing hole 16, and the locking tab 13 can therefore be separated from the second top wall 21, such that the toothed structure 14 is disengaged from the rack 23, and that the top cover 20 can slide with respect to the seat 10. When the latch 32 is at the locked position, the latch 32 is inserted into the fixing hole 16, and the locking tab 13 cannot be separated from the second top wall 21, such that and the toothed structure 14 is engaged with the rack 23, and that the top cover 20 and the seat 10 are engaged with each other.

FIGS. 4A to 4D are schematic views showing the steps of adjusting the desired accommodation size of a telescopic tool support of the present invention. FIG. 4A illustrates the telescopic tool support of the present invention at a totally retracted state with a minimum accommodation size. As shown in FIG. 4A, when the telescopic tool support is at a totally retracted state, the latching device 30 is at the locked position with the latch 32 in the fixing hole 16. At the same time, the toothed structure 14 on the locking tab 13 and the rack 23 on the second top wall 22 are engaged with each other. Since the locking tab 13 is locked by latch 32 and cannot be separated from the rack 23, the top cover 20 cannot move with respect to the seat 10, and the telescopic tool support with its minimum accommodation size can be used to store/support tools. As shown in FIGS. 4B and 4C, the accommodation size of the telescopic tool support can be extended by first unlocking the latch 32 and then moving the seat 10 and top cover 20 away from each other. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 4B, the latch 32 is moved to an unlocked position (such as by removing the latch 32 out of the fixing hole 16). At this time, the locking tab 13 can be bent inward (i.e., away from the rack 23), such that the toothed structure 14 on the elastic locking tab 13 can be separated from the rack 23 on the second top wall 21 due to the nature of the resilient property, and thereby the top cover 20 can be moved with respect to the seat 10. As further shown in FIG. 4C, the telescopic tool support can then be adjusted to a desired accommodation size by moving the top cover 20 and the seat 10 away from each other until said desired accommodation size is achieved/set. As further shown in FIG. 4D, when the telescopic tool support is adjusted to said desired accommodation size, the toothed structure 14 and the rack 23 are again engaged with each other and the latching device 30 is again returned to its locked position by inserting the latch 32 into the fixing hole 16.

FIG. 5 is a modified embodiment of the adjustable locking device of FIGS. 1-4D which disposed on the side surface of the telescopic tool support. In this modified embodiment, said at least one locking tab 13 is provided on at least one of the first sidewall 12, and separated from the second sidewall 22. The toothed structure 14 is disposed on the outer surface of each said at least one locking tab 13, and the rack 23 is disposed on the inner surface of second sidewall 22 with respect to the toothed structure 14. Preferably, the latching device 30 is disposed on the inner surface of the at least one locking tab 13 to lock the engagement of the locking tab 13 and the second sidewall 22. The other elements are arranged in a way similar to FIGS. 1-4D.

According to a further modified embodiment of the present invention, the engagement-actuating device can be in the form of one or preferably two eccentric engagement-actuating members 40, as shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B. The adjustable locking device is disposed on the side surface of the telescopic tool support, and the one or preferably two eccentric engagement-actuating members 40 are preferably disposed on or below the first top wall 11. Each of the engagement-actuating members 40 has an ejecting rod 41 and an eccentric pivot 42 disposed on the ejecting rod 41, and can eccentricly rotate between an unlocked position and a locked position around the eccentric pivot 41. Referring to FIG. 6A, when the ejecting rod 41 eccentricly rotates to the locked position, the engagement-actuating members 40 are adapted to push each of the locking tabs 13 so as to allow the toothed structure 14 thereof to be engaged with the rack 23 such that the top cover 20 cannot move with respect to the seat 10. Referring to FIG. 6B, when the ejecting rod 41 eccentricly rotates to the unlocked position, the engagement-actuating member 40 will not push the corresponding locking tab 13, and the toothed structure 14 is separated from the rack 23 due to the nature of the resilient property of tab 13, such that the top cover 20 can move with respect to the seat 10.

If the adjustable locking device described previously is arranged at the side surface of the telescopic tool support, the eccentric engagement-actuating members 40 can be provided at either on the inner surface of the first sidewall 12 or on the inner surface of the front-end wall 15 so as to push the locking tab 13.

As shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, the engagement-actuating device may alternatively comprise one or preferably a pair of supporting rods 50. According to a preferred embodiment, the adjustable locking device is disposed on the top surface of the telescopic tool support. The one or paired supporting rods 50 are disposed to contact a predetermined location (preferably at the front end) of the locking tabs 13 of the first top wall 11. The supporting rod 50 is adapted to move between an unlocked position and a locked position. An inwardly extending flange 17 can be further provided at the lower end of the front-end wall 15. Each of the supporting rods 50 can move between an unlocked position and a locked position around a pivot connecting to the first top wall 11. Referring to FIG. 7A, when the supporting rod 50 is at the locked position, the bottom end of the supporting rod 50 is engaged with the flange 17 and locked thereby. Accordingly, each of the locking tabs 13 cannot be separated from the second top wall 21, and the toothed structure 14 is engaged with the rack 23, such that the top cover 20 cannot move with respect to the seat 10. Referring to FIG. 7B, when the supporting rod 50 is at the unlocked position, the bottom end of the supporting rod 50 will not engage the flange 17. Accordingly, each of the locking tabs 13 can be separated from the second top wall 21, and the toothed structure 14 is not engaged with the rack 23, such that the top cover 20 can move with respect to the seat 10.

Alternatively, the adjustable locking device described in the foregoing paragraph can also be disposed on the side surface of the telescopic tool box. In this case, two supporting rods 50 are preferably disposed on respective front-ends of the first sidewalls 12, and the bottom end of the supporting rods 50 can abut opposite first sidewalls 12 so as to push the locking tabs 13.

Preferably, the engagement-actuating device can be in the form of an elastic engagement-actuating ring 60, as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B. The adjustable locking device is preferably disposed on the side surface of the telescopic tool support, and the elastic engagement-actuating ring 60 is preferably disposed between the paired locking tabs 13. The elastic engagement-actuating ring 60 can provide a pushing force to actuate the locking tabs 13 to engage with respective second sidewalls 22. As particularly shown in FIG. 8A, the locking tabs 13 are actuated by the pushing force of the elastic engagement-actuating ring 60 such that each locking tab 13 is engaged with corresponding second sidewall 22 in a way that the toothed structure 14 thereof is engaged with the rack 23. Therefore, the top cover 20 cannot move with respect to the seat 10. Referring to FIG. 8B, if an external force is applied to push the elastic engagement-actuating ring 60 inward, the locking tab 13 is separated from the second sidewall 22 due to the nature of the resilient property, and the toothed structure 14 is disengaged from the rack 23, such that the top cover 20 can move with respect to the seat 10.

FIGS. 9A and 9B relate to another embodiment of the present invention, in which the adjustable locking device is disposed on the side surface of the telescopic tool support. According to this specific embodiment, the two locking tabs 13 are engaged with respective second sidewalls 22. To disengage the locking tabs 13 from the second sidewalls 22, respective external forces should be applied to draw the locking tabs 13 inward, such that the locking tabs 13 can be bent inward with the toothed structure 14, thereby disengaged from the rack 23. Preferably, in order to prevent the locking tab 13 from being fatigue or broken due to over-bending by the excessive external force, two stoppers 70 are disposed on the inner surface of the first top wall 11. The stoppers 70 are capable of limiting the movement of the locking tabs 13 when they are bent inward to a certain extent. Referring to FIG. 9A, each locking tab 13 and the corresponding second sidewall 22 are in an engaged state with the toothed structure 14 engaged with the rack 23, such that the top cover 20 cannot move with respect to the seat 10. Referring to FIG. 9B, if an external force is applied to bend the locking tab 13 inward, at most to the position of each stopper 70, the locking tab 13 can be separated from the second sidewall 22 with the toothed structure 14 disengaging from the rack 23, such that the top cover 20 can move with respect to the seat 10.

The adjustable locking device described in the foregoing paragraph can also be disposed on the top surface of the telescopic tool support. In this case, the paired stoppers 70 are disposed respectively on the two first sidewalls 12 to prevent the locking tabs 13 from being overbent.

As shown in FIG. 10, the telescopic, adjustable tool support according to the present invention can be provided with a plurality of snaps 80 on the outer surface of the top cover 20 for holding hand tools 81, 82 of different sizes. The telescopic tool support can also be adjusted to a suitable accommodation size as desired, or combined with other tool sets 83, to increase the practicability of the tool support, as shown in FIG. 11.

The aforementioned explanations are directed to the descriptions of preferred embodiments according to the present invention. Since this invention is not limited to the specific details described in connection with the preferred embodiments, changes and implementations to certain features of the preferred embodiments without altering the overall basic functions of the present invention are contemplated within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A telescopic tool support, comprising:

a seat (10);

a top cover (20) at least partially enclosing said seat and slidable with respect to said seat;

an adjustable locking device provided between said seat and said top cover, said adjustable locking device comprising at least one locking tab (13), at least one engagement-actuating device (30, 40, 50), and at least one coupling device which couples or decouples the seat and the top cover by said at least one locking tab (13) and said engagement-actuating device (30, 40, 50); said engagement-actuating device being moveable between an unlocked position and a locked position;

wherein:

said engagement-actuating device (30, 40, 50) is configured for, when it is at said locked position, enabling the coupling of said coupling device under the aid of said locking tab so as to have the top cover and the seat engaged at a desired coupling location; and for, when it is at said unlocked position, enabling the decoupling of said coupling device so as to allow the sliding of the top cover with respect to the seat.

2. The telescopic tool support as claimed in claim 1, wherein said engagement-actuating device is at least one latching device (30) having a sleeve (31) and a latch (32), said latch being slidable along said sleeve between said unlocked position and said locked position so as to enable said decoupling or coupling of said coupling device.

3. The telescopic tool support as claimed in claim 1, wherein said engagement-actuating device is at least one eccentric engagement-actuating member (40) having an ejecting rod (41) and an eccentric pivot (42) disposed on the ejecting rod, such that the ejecting rod can rotate between said unlocked position and said locked position around the eccentric pivot so as to enable said decoupling or coupling of said coupling device.

4. The telescopic tool support as claimed in claim 1, wherein said engagement-actuating device is at least one supporting rod (50) disposed to contact a predetermined location of said at least locking tab (13), such that said supporting rod can move between said unlocked position and said locked position so as to enable said decoupling or coupling of said coupling device.

5. The telescopic tool support as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one coupling device comprises a toothed structure (14) formed on said locking tab (13) and a corresponding rack (23) for being engaged with said toothed structure (14).

6. The telescopic tool support as claimed in claim 2, wherein said at least one coupling device comprises a toothed structure (14) formed on said locking tab (13) and a corresponding rack (23) for being engaged with said toothed structure (14).

7. The telescopic tool support as claimed in claim 3, wherein said at least one coupling device comprises a toothed structure (14) formed on said locking tab (13) and a corresponding rack (23) for being engaged with said toothed structure (14).

8. The telescopic tool support as claimed in claim 4, wherein said at least one coupling device comprises a toothed structure (14) formed on said locking tab (13) and a corresponding rack (23) for being engaged with said toothed structure (14).

9. The telescopic tool support as claimed claim 1, wherein said at least one locking tab (13) is resiliently connected to a first top wall ( 1) of said seat (10).

10. The telescopic tool support as claimed in claim 9, wherein an elastomer is disposed between said least one locking tab and said first top wall to provide a resilient connection between said at least one locking tab and said first top wall.

11. The telescopic tool support as claimed in claim 9, wherein a pivot device is disposed between said at least one locking tab and said first top wall, to provide a pivot connection between said at least one locking tab and said first top wall.

12. The telescopic tool support as claimed in claim 2, wherein said at least one locking tab (13) is resiliently connected to a first top wall (11) of said seat (10), said seat further comprises a front-end wall, and said front-end wall (15) comprises at least on fixing hole (16) for the passing and supporting of said latch (32) when said latch (32) slides along said sleeve between said unlocked position and said locked position.

13. The telescopic tool support as claimed in claim 1, further comprising at least one stopper (70) for limiting the movement of said at least one locking tab (13) so as to prevent said locking tab from being overbent inward.

14. The telescopic tool support as claimed in claim 5, wherein said racks (23) is in the form of a toothed structure with teeth that are connected to each other, spaced with each other or grouped into segments.