Machining slot cutter with removable cartridges

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] This invention relates to saws and machining slot cutters in which each tooth is mounted in the body of the saw or cutter in a removable cartridge for individual maintenance and replacement of the teeth.

[0004] 2. Description of Prior Art

[0005] Saws and machining slot cutters for commercial and industrial usage sometimes have individually removable tooth cartridges mounted on the periphery of the saw or cutter body. Each cartridge holds one tooth. This allows replacement of teeth without replacement of the cutter body, and makes maintenance of the teeth easier. One disadvantage is the possibility that the cartridge may loosen during operation—an unsafe condition. A second disadvantage is that the cartridge and its mounting mechanism takes space, reducing the maximum number of teeth on the cutter in comparison to non-removable teeth. A third disadvantage is cost, since individual teeth, cartridges, and their associated mounting hardware greatly increase the complexity and number of parts in a cutter in comparison to non-removable teeth. A fourth disadvantage is the effort and skill required to install the cartridges properly in the cutter. Thus, what is needed is a removable cartridge mechanism with minimal size and complexity that is highly secure and easy to install properly. The present invention fills this need.

[0006] The following U.S. patents show earlier related inventions:

[0007] U.S. Pat. No. 4,257,302 (Heimbrand 1981)

[0008] U.S. Pat. No. 424,263 (Bole 1890)

[0009] U.S. Pat. No. 221,602 (Ohlen 1879)

[0010] U.S. Pat. No. 205,042 (Brooke 1878)

[0011] U.S. Pat. No. 146,680 (Husbands, Jr. 1874)

[0012] U.S. Pat. No. 141,427 (Crookes 1873)

[0013] U.S. Pat. No. 103,045 (Hiles 1870)

[0014] U.S. Pat. No. 31,073 (Brown 1861)

[0015] For example, Heimbrand provides a cartridge mounted in an open-ended slot that converges toward the open end. The user must insert a cam between the cartridge and the cutter body, hold the cartridge in position, slide a tooth between the cartridge and cutter body opposite the cam, and hold the tooth and cartridge in position while locking the cam. This requires a high degree of manual dexterity. It also requires manual strength, since a cam provides less than 360 degrees of rotation between its loose and tight conditions, and thus cannot provide the high mechanical advantage of a screw. In Heimbrand, if the cam is not fully tightened, or works loose during operation, the tooth can fly out, releasing the cartridge as well.

[0016] An objective of the present invention is a removable tooth cartridge of minimal size in order to maximize the number of teeth on a cutter. A further objective is maximal locking force holding the cartridge in the cutter body. A further objective is safety and stability of the cartridge in the cutter. A further objective is ease, speed, and consistency of positioning and installing the cartridge in the cutter body, and ease and speed of removing the cartridge from the body. Further objectives include minimizing the number of parts and maximizing the practicality and simplicity of production of cutters according to the invention.

[0017] These objectives are achieved with a cartridge just large enough to hold a tooth and a setscrew. The cartridge has an open-sided tap for the setscrew that exposes a side of the setscrew. The cutter body has a slot to receive the cartridge. The slot has a leading side with a generally cylindrical smooth concave portion that surrounds the exposed part of the setscrew. The cylindrical concave portion is uniquely angled to wedge the setscrew firmly against the cylindrical concave portion as the setscrew is tightened, and to force the cartridge against the bottom and trailing side of the slot. The cartridge and slot preferably have interlocking interfaces on both their leading and trailing sides. These interfaces are preferably parallel and slidable, allowing the cartridge to slide into the slot while engaging both the leading and trailing interlocks. This allows setscrew to easily be manually tightened with strong force while the interlocks hold the cartridge steady. With the setscrew tightened, the cartridge is firmly forced against the bottom and trailing sides of the slot. The cartridge cannot slip out of the slot even if the setscrew is loose, because the setscrew is blocked by the cylindrical concave portion of the leading side of the slot. Thus secondary retention is provided in the event of a loose setscrew.

[0018] FIG. 1 is a partial frontal exploded view of a machining slot cutter according to the invention in the form of a rotating disk.

[0019] FIG. 2 is a side view of the cutter of FIG. 1.

[0020] FIG. 3 is an enlarged side view of the setscrew 3.

[0021] FIG. 4 is an enlarged frontal view of an assembled cartridge mounted in the cutter body.

[0022] FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view taken along line 5—5 of FIG. 4.

[0023] FIG. 6 is a frontal perspective view of a cartridge without the setscrew.

[0024] FIG. 7 is an enlarged view frontal of the slot of FIG. 1.

[0025] 1. Body of cutter

[0026] 1a. Periphery or edge of cutter body

[0027] 1b. Hole in cutter body for mounting the drive spindle of the cutter

[0028] 1c. Bolt holes for connection of the drive spindle to the cutter

[0029] 2. Slot in periphery of cutter body

[0030] 2a. Bottom or proximal end of slot

[0031] 2b. Leading side of slot

[0032] 2c. Trailing side of slot

[0033] 2d. Lip in slot

[0034] 2e. Angled generally cylindrical wall or concave portion on leading side of slot for wedging and locking the setscrew

[0035] 2f. Axis of generally cylindrical wall or concave portion 2e

[0036] 3. Cartridge

[0037] 3a. Proximal end of cartridge

[0038] 3b. Leading side of cartridge

[0039] 3c. Trailing side of cartridge

[0040] 3d. Distal end of cartridge

[0041] 3e. Open-sided tap or threaded hole in cartridge for setscrew

[0042] 3f. Axis of tap 3e, and also the axis of setscrew 5 when the setscrew is in the tap.

[0043] 3g. Front side of cartridge

[0044] 3h. Proximal wall portion of tap 3e

[0045] 4. Tooth

[0046] 5. Setscrew

[0047] 5a. Front or head of setscrew

[0048] 5b. Threaded side of setscrew

[0049] 5c. Back of setscrew

[0050] 23b. Interlocking interface between leading side of cartridge and leading side of slot

[0051] 23c. Interlocking interface between trailing side of cartridge and trailing side of slot

[0052] FIG. 1 shows a partial exploded front view of a cutter disk 1 with removable cartridges 3 according to the invention. Each cartridge holds a cutter tooth 4, and is removable for maintenance or replacement of teeth. Each cartridge is mounted in a slot 2 in the periphery 1aof the cutter. The slot and cartridge are designed to lock firmly together and to resist loosening of the cartridge due to high stress, temperature variations, and vibrations during cutting operations. In addition, the design minimizes the size of the slot and cartridge in order to maximize the number of cartridges that can fit around the periphery of the cutter wheel.

[0053] Locking of the cartridge in the slot is done with a setscrew 3 in conjunction with interlocking interfaces 23band 23cbetween the cartridge sides and slot sides. These interfaces mate together in tongue-and-groove or track-and-slide fashion. This is most simply and preferably done with a series of parallel ridges and grooves as shown. This allows the cartridges to optionally be inserted into the slots alternately forward and backward by a given number of grooves in the interlocking interfaces to produce a wider cut.

[0054] The leading side 3bof the cartridge has a threaded tap 3efor the setscrew. The tap is open-sided, exposing a side of the setscrew. The tap surrounds the setscrew for over 180 degrees so it retains the setscrew. The setscrew can be stored in the tap when the cartridge is separate from the cutter body.

[0055] Part of the leading side 2bof the slot 2 is a wall 2ethat is concave, generally cylindrical, and smooth. It completes the surround of the setscrew 5 when the cartridge is in the slot. This wall 2econtacts the setscrew at an angle, wedging the setscrew as it is tightened, and providing vectors of force against the setscrew that push the cartridge against the trailing side 2cand the bottom 2aof the slot 2. As shown in FIG. 5 the wall 2eapproaches the axis 3fof the tap at the back end of the tap. When the setscrew is tightened in the tap 3e, it jams increasingly against the wall 2e, wedging the setscrew against the wall, and forcing the cartridge hard against the trailing side 2cof the slot. Preferably the angle of the axis of the cylindrical concave portion 2erelative to the axis of the setscrew is about 4-5 degrees.

[0056] A lip 2don the leading side of the slot supports the cylindrical concave portion 2ein an inward or proximally facing angle that blocks the setscrew from outward radial movement. This prevents the cartridge from removal without complete removal of the setscrew. Since the cartridge cannot slide out of the slot radially when the setscrew is in the tap, the leading and trailing interlocking sides of the slot can be parallel. This allows the cartridge without the setscrew to slide into the slot radially, either from the beginning or from a starting position as next described, while interlocking the leading and trailing sides of the slot and cartridge.

[0057] The proximal wall 3hof the tap 3eopposes the lip 2d. The main purpose of this wall 3his to allow the tap to surround the setscrew more than 180 degrees, to retain the setscrew in the cartridge. It also provides opposite force to the radial component of force exerted on the setscrew by the slot leading wall portion 2e. The tap wall portion 3hcan preferably extend beyond the end of the lip 2din the leading direction. Even though this prevents the cartridge from sliding radially into the slot from the beginning, it is easy to place the cartridge in a starting position with wall 3hinward or proximal of wall 2d, with the trailing interface 23cengaged, and slide the cartridge to the bottom of the slot from there, engaging the leading interface 23b.

[0058] The setscrew is preferably tapered on the outside of the threads by the same amount as the cylindrical concave portion 2e, preferably about 4-5 degrees per side as shown in FIG. 3, to reduce grooving by the threads into the wall portion 2e. Preferably the wall portion 2eof the slot is hardened to resist grooving by the setscrew threads.

[0059] Details of attachment of a tooth 4 to the cartridge 3 are not shown, since these details are known in the art, and are not the subject of this invention. Attachment is preferably done with a screw through the tooth into the cartridge. This allows the tooth to be rotated to a fresh edge when worn, and to be replaced when necessary, without discarding the cartridge. Other attachment means are also known in the art.

[0060] To install a cartridge in the cutter body, remove the setscrew 3 from the tap 3ein the cartridge 3 if the setscrew is stored in the tap. Place the cartridge in the slot 2 from the front, with the inward or proximal wall 3hof the tap inward or proximal of slot leading lip 2dand the trailing interlocking interface 23cengaged. Slide the cartridge radially inward to the bottom of the slot. The interlocking leading interface is now engaged, holding the cartridge in position during tightening of the setscrew. When the cartridge is fully inserted into the slot, thread the setscrew 5 into the tap, and tighten it until its head is flush or below the front surface 3gof the cartridge, and turning resistance on the screw is high. The cartridge is now firmly locked into the slot, and cannot separate from it even if the setscrew is loosened, as long as the setscrew is not completely removed.

[0061] To remove a cartridge from the cutter body. Remove the setscrew 5, and slide the cartridge radially out of the slot.

[0062] Although the present invention has been described herein with respect to preferred embodiments, it will be understood that the foregoing description is intended to be illustrative, not restrictive. Modifications of the present invention will occur to those skilled in the art. All such modifications that fall within the scope of the appended claims are intended to be within the scope and spirit of the present invention. The cutter body is shown herein in the form of a rotating disk. However, the present invention can also be applied to reciprocating saws and chain saws.