Patent · US Expired

Adjustable rotary locking and unlocking apparatus

US5689999A · kind A · utility

42Cited by
11References
16Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateAug 18, 1995
Grant dateNov 25, 1997
Priority date
Expiry dateAug 18, 2015

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
  • CPC primaryY10T403/32451
  • WIPO fieldMedical technology
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

Apparatus for enabling and disabling relative rotary movements between two members rotatable about a common axis comprises a plurality of circumferentially spaced locking pins carried by one of the members and a plurality of circumferentially spaced sockets in the other of the members, the pins and sockets being uniformly spaced from the axis of rotation and each of the sockets being of such size as to accommodate any one of the pins. The number of pins is different from the number of sockets. The angular spacing between adjacent pins is uniform, and the angular spacing between adjacent sockets is uniform, but different from the angular spacing between adjacent pins. The angular spacing between the pins and the sockets defines a ratio which is not a whole integer.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.