Reuseable Spool
A reusable spool has a base and an upper flange. The base has a basal flange and an outer tube having a first end, a second end opposite to the first end, and multiple assembling portions. The first end of the outer tube is connected to the basal flange. The multiple assembling portions are connected to the outer tube, disposed adjacent to the second end of the outer tube, and disposed distantly away from the basal flange. The upper flange is screwed with the base and has a plate and a connecting portion. The plate is disposed parallel to and spaced from the basal flange, and abuts against the second end of the outer tube. The connecting portion is formed at a middle portion of the plate and connected to the multiple assembling portions. The reusable spool is refillable and environmentally friendly.
The present invention relates to a spool for winding up a filament, and more particularly to a reusable spool that is filament-refillable and is reusable.
2. Description of Related Art3D printing is an additive manufacturing technology for rapid prototyping. 3D printing accumulates raw materials layer by layer based on 3D models designed by computer-aided software to create three dimensional objects. A common way adapted to 3D printing is fused deposition modeling (FDM) technology. A conventional 3D printer adopting FDM has a control assembly, a mechanical assembly, a nozzle, and a spool. The spool is utilized to wind up the filament. The filament is fused and squeezed out from the nozzle for printing.
However, a conventional spool is an integral and single component. Since rewinding up filament on the conventional spool is uneconomical, the conventional spool is discarded when the filament wound on it runs out. When discarded, the conventional non-reusable spool causes waste of manufacturing material and is unfriendly to the environment.
To overcome the shortcomings of the conventional spool, the present invention provides a reusable spool to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned problems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe main objective of the present invention is to provide a reusable spool that is filament-refillable, is able to be reused, and is environmentally friendly.
The reusable spool comprises a base and an upper flange. The base has a basal flange and an outer tube having a first end, a second end opposite to the first end, and multiple assembling portions. The first end of the outer tube is connected to the basal flange. The multiple assembling portions are connected to the outer tube, are disposed adjacent to the second end of the outer tube, and are disposed distantly away from the basal flange. The upper flange is screwed with the base and has a plate and a connecting portion. The plate is disposed parallel to and spaced from the basal flange, and abuts against the second end of the outer tube. The connecting portion is formed at a middle portion of the plate and is connected to the multiple assembling portions. The reusable spool in accordance with the present invention is capable of filament refilling and is environmentally friendly.
Other objects, advantages, and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
With reference to
With reference to
With reference to
The multiple connecting ribs 14 are disposed between the outer tube 12 and the inner tube 13. The multiple connecting ribs 14 are connected to both the outer tube 12 and the inner tube 13. The outer tube 12 and the inner tube 13 are connected to each other via the multiple connecting ribs 14 and the multiple assembling portions 131.
With reference to
The tubular wall 221 and the bottom plate 222 of the connecting portion 22 are inserted into the outer tube 12. The bottom plate 222 abuts against the inner tube 13, and the multiple engaging protrusions 225 respectively engage with the multiple engaging recesses 132 of the inner tube 13. The multiple reinforcing ribs 223 are respectively aligned with the multiple connecting ribs 14. Multiple bolts 130 are respectively mounted through the multiple screwing holes 224 and are respectively screwed with the multiple threaded holes of the multiple assembling portions 131 to connect the connecting portion 22 and the multiple assembling portions 131 and to assemble the base 10 and the upper flange 20. The multiple engaging protrusions 225 and the multiple engaging recesses 132 that respectively engage with each other prevents the upper flange 20 from rotating relative to the base 10 and make the upper flange 20 securely assembled to the base 10.
With reference to
With reference to
Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and features of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only. Changes may be made in the details, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.
Claims
1. A reusable spool comprising:
- a base having a basal flange; an outer tube having a first end and a second end that are opposite each other; the first end of the outer tube connected to the basal flange; and multiple assembling portions connected to the outer tube, disposed adjacent to the second end of the outer tube, and disposed distantly away from the basal flange;
- an upper flange detachably connected to the base and having a plate disposed parallel to and spaced from the basal flange, and abutting against the second end of the outer tube; a connecting portion formed at a middle portion of the plate and connected to the multiple assembling portions; and
- multiple bolts mounted through the upper flange and respectively screwed with the multiple assembling portions.
2. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 1, wherein
- the base has an inner tube coaxially disposed within the outer tube; and multiple connecting ribs disposed between the outer tube and the inner tube and connected to both the outer tube and the inner tube; and
- the multiple assembling portions are disposed between the outer tube and the inner tube, separately arranged around the inner tube, and connected to the inner tube.
3. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 2, wherein
- the multiple assembling portions each respectively have multiple threaded holes;
- the connecting portion has multiple screwing holes; and
- the multiple bolts are respectively mounted through the multiple screwing holes and respectively screwed with the multiple threaded holes to assemble the base and the upper flange.
4. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 3, wherein
- the inner tube has two opposite ends and multiple engaging recesses separately formed at one of the two opposite ends of the inner tube; and
- the connecting portion has multiple engaging protrusions respectively engaging with the multiple engaging recesses.
5. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 2, wherein
- the inner tube has two opposite ends and multiple engaging recesses separately formed at one of the two opposite ends of the inner tube; and
- the connecting portion has multiple engaging protrusions respectively engaging with the multiple engaging recesses.
6. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 1, wherein a filament pack is mounted around the outer tube and disposed between the basal flange and the upper flange.
7. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 2, wherein a filament pack is mounted around the outer tube and disposed between the basal flange and the upper flange.
8. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 3, wherein a filament pack is mounted around the outer tube and disposed between the basal flange and the upper flange.
9. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 4, wherein a filament pack is mounted around the outer tube and disposed between the basal flange and the upper flange.
10. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 5, wherein a filament pack is mounted around the outer tube and disposed between the basal flange and the upper flange.
11. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 6, wherein the filament pack has at least one restricting tie wrapped around a filament of the filament pack.
12. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 7, wherein the filament pack has at least one restricting tie wrapped around a filament of the filament pack.
13. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 8, wherein the filament pack has at least one restricting tie wrapped around a filament of the filament pack.
14. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 9, wherein the filament pack has at least one restricting tie wrapped around a filament of the filament pack.
15. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 10, wherein the filament pack has at least one restricting tie wrapped around a filament of the filament pack.
16. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 6, wherein
- the filament pack has a replaceable spool for winding up a filament of the filament pack;
- the replaceable spool has a tube mounted around the outer tube and having two opposite ends; and two flanges respectively connected to the two opposite ends of the tube.
17. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 7, wherein
- the filament pack has a replaceable spool for winding up a filament of the filament pack; and
- the replaceable spool has a tube mounted around the outer tube and having two opposite ends; and two flanges respectively connected to the two opposite ends of the tube.
18. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 8, wherein
- the filament pack has a replaceable spool for winding up a filament of the filament pack; and
- the replaceable spool has a tube mounted around the outer tube and having two opposite ends; and two flanges respectively connected to the two opposite ends of the tube.
19. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 9, wherein
- the filament pack has a replaceable spool for winding up a filament of the filament pack; and
- the replaceable spool has a tube mounted around the outer tube and having two opposite ends; and two flanges respectively connected to the two opposite ends of the tube.
20. The reusable spool as claimed in claim 10, wherein
- the filament pack has a replaceable spool for winding up a filament of the filament pack; and
- the replaceable spool has a tube mounted around the outer tube and having two opposite ends; and two flanges respectively connected to the two opposite ends of the tube.
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 26, 2018
Publication Date: Jul 18, 2019
Inventor: Chao-Chih Chen (Taichung City)
Application Number: 15/963,149