Shear-off output shaft for torque multiplier

Claim 2

An output shaft assembly for a tool having a rotatably driven portion with a socket in said rotatably driven portion for reception of the output shaft assembly comprising: a body member received in said socket so as to protrude outwardly therefrom, sAid body member having a section of reduced cross-sectional area, means operatively interconnecting the rotatably driven portion of the tool with the body member to impart unitary rotational motion to the body member, selectively releasable retention means retaining the body member in said socket whereby when said body member is severed along said section of reduced cross-sectional area, the body member will remain in the socket until the retention means is released allowing the assembly to be removed from the socket, and means for selectively anchoring said retention means in said socket.

Claim 3

An output shaft assembly for a tool having a rotatably driven portion with a socket of non-circular cross-section opening through a face of said rotatably driven portion and a recess in the wall of the socket wherein said recess is spaced from said face, comprising: an elongated body member of non-circular cross-sectional configuration conforming to that of the socket, said body member being seated in the socket for unitary rotation with the rotatably driven portion, said body member having a leading end protruding forwardly from said face and a trailing end within said socket, a section of reduced cross-sectional area between said leading and trailing ends, and a central axial cylindrical bore opening through the trailing end of the body member, and retention means including a cylindrical rod seated in said cylindrical bore so as to protrude rearwardly from the trailing end of the body member, means for releasably retaining said rod in the cylindrical bore, and a lateral extension from said rod rearwardly of the trailing end of the body, said extension being selectively received in said recess in the wall of the socket to selectively retain the assembly in the socket.

Claim 4

An output shaft assembly for a tool having a rotatably driven portion with a socket of non-circular cross-section opening through a face of said rotatably driven portion and a recess in the wall of the socket wherein said recess is spaced from said face, comprising: an elongated body member of non-circular cross-sectional configuration conforming to that of the socket, said body member being seated in the socket for unitary rotation with the rotatably driven portion, said body member having a leading end protruding forwardly from said face and a trailing end within said socket, a section of reduced cross-sectional area between said leading and trailing ends, and a central axial cylindrical bore opening through the trailing end of the body member, and retention means including a cylindrical rod seated in said cylindrical bore so as to protrude rearwardly from the trailing end of the body member, means for releasably retaining said rod in the cylindrical bore, and a lateral extension from said rod rearwardly of the trailing end of the body, said extension being selectively received in said recess in the wall of the socket to selectively retain the assembly in the socket.

Claim 5

The output shaft assembly of claim 2 wherein said reduced cross-sectional area section of the body member is defined by a peripheral groove in the outer surface of the body member, said groove lying in a plane which is normal to the longitudinal axis of the body member.

Claim 6

The output shaft assembly of claim 2 wherein said body member has a transverse passage therethrough and said rod has a transverse passage therethrough alignable with said transverse passage through the body member and wherein said means for releasably retaining said rod in the cylindrical bore comprises a removable pin member tightly received in said transverse passages through the body member and rod.

Claim 7

The output shaft assembly of claim 4 wherein said transverse passage through the body member is situated between the leading end of the body member and the reduced cross-sectional area of the body member.

Claim 8

The output shaft assembly of claim 2 wherein said rod has a second transverse passage therethrough rearwardly of the trailing end of the body member and wherein said lateral extension comprises a removable pin member tightly received in said second transverse passage so as to extend normally away from said rod.

Claim 9

The output shaft assembly of claim 6 wherein said socket is of square cross-section and said recess in the socket wall is of generally circular cross-section and has a diameter substantially equal to a diagonal of the socket, and wherein said lateral extension pin extends laterally away from said rod a distance greater than half the width of the socket and less than half the diameter of the recess whereby the shaft assembly will be retained in the socket by the lateral extension pin when the lateral extension pin is not aligned with a diagonal of the socket but can be removed from the socket when the lateral extension pin is aligned with a diagonal of the socket.

Claim 10

The output shaft assembly of claim 5, further including a ball-detent type snap lock assembly in the body portion forwardly of the transverse passage through the body member to releasably retain a female socket member on the leading end of the shaft assembly.

Claim 11

The output shaft assembly of claim 3 wherein said reduced cross-sectional area section of the body member is situated forwardly of the socket in the rotatably driven portion of the tool.

Claim 12

An output shaft assembly for a torque multiplier having a rotatably driven portion with a socket of square cross-section opening through a face of the rotatably driven portion and a recess of circular cross-section in the wall of the socket wherein said recess is spaced from said face, comprising: an elongated body member of square cross-section seated in the socket for unitary rotation with the rotatably driven portion, said body member having a leading end protruding normally away from said face, a trailing end within said socket, a peripheral groove in the outer surface of the body member lying in a plane normal to the longitudinal axis of the body member, a central axial cylindrical bore opening through the trailing end of the body member and extending forwardly of the plane of the peripheral groove, a transverse bore forwardly of the plane of the peripheral groove extending through the axial bore, and a ball-detent snap lock assembly in one side of the body member adapted to releasably retain a female socket member on the leading end of the body member, an elongated cylindrical rod inserted in said cylindrical bore so as to protrude rearwardly from the trailing end of the body member, said rod having leading and trailing ends with parallel transverse passages through the leading and trailing ends, said transverse passage through the trailing end of the rod being rearwardly of the trailing end of the body member and in alignment with the recess in the socket wall and said transverse passage through the leading end of the rod being alignable with the transverse bore through the body member, an alignment pin releasably inserted through the transverse bore in the body member and the transverse passage through the leading end of the rod to retain the body member on the rod, and an anchor pin inserted in the transverse passage through the trailing end of the rod, said anchor pin protruding away from the rod a distance greater than half the width of the socket but less than half the diameter of the recess so that when the anchor pin is not aligned with a diagonal of the socket it will extend into the recess in the socket wall to retain the shaft assembly in the socket but when it is aligned with a diagonal of the socket the entire shaft assembly can be slid out of the socket.

Claim 13

An output shaft assembly for a torque multiplier having a rotatably driven portion with a socket of square cross-section opening through a face of the rotatably driven portion and a recess of circular cross-section in the wall of the socket wherein said recess is spaced from said face, comprising: an elongated body member of square cross-section seated in the socket for unitary rotation with the rotatably driven portion, said body member having a leading end protruding normally away from said face, a trailing end within said socket, a peripheral groove in the outer surface of the body member lying in a plane normal to the longitudinal axis of the body member, a central axial cylindrical bore opening through the trailing end of the body member and extending forwardly of the plane of the peripheral groove, a transverse bore forwardly of the plane of the peripheral groove extending through the axial bore, and a ball-detent snap lock assembly in one side of the body member adapted to releasably retain a female socket member on the leading end of the body member, an elongated cylindrical rod inserted in said cylindrical bore so as to protrude rearwardly from the trailing end of the body member, said rod having leading and trailing ends with parallel transverse passages through the leading and trailing ends, said transverse passage through the trailing end of the rod being rearwardly of the trailing end of the body member and in alignment with the recess in the socket wall and said transverse passage through the leading end of the rod being alignable with the transverse bore through the body member, an alignment pin releasably inserted through the transverse bore in the body member and the transverse passage through the leading end of the rod to retain the body member on the rod, and an anchor pin inserted in the transverse passage through the trailing end of the rod, said anchor pin protruding away from the rod a distance greater than half the width of the socket but less than half the diameter of the recess so that when the anchor pin is not aligned with a diagonal of the socket it will extend into the recess in the socket wall to retain the shaft assembly in the socket but when it is aligned with a diagonal of the socket the entire shaft assembly can be slid out of the socket.