US3273241A

US3273241A - Portable panel punching tools

Info

Publication number: US3273241A
Application number: US487873A
Authority: US
Inventors: Annes Townsend
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1965-09-16
Filing date: 1965-09-16
Publication date: 1966-09-20
Anticipated expiration: 1983-09-20

Description

Sept. 20, 1966 'r. ANNES 3,273,241

PORTABLE PANEL PUNCHING TOOLS Filed Sept. 16, 1965 '7 I 20 PIE 20 Q:\ My r13 A" X V q 1 I 1 4 I ,7 s

L I F 2 IO 2 I7 28 27 11 Fzugpfl INVENTOR. TOWNSEND ANNES ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,273,241 PORTABLE PANEL PUNCHING TODLS Townsend Annes, 1550 Detroit, Apt. 3E, Denver, Colo. Filed Sept. 16, 1965. Ser. No. 487,873 3 Claims. (Cl. 30360) This invention relates to a portable punching tool and is more particularly intended for use by electronic mechanics for punching rectangular instrument holes in cabinet panels.

Certain types of electrical instruments such as toggle switches and slide switches require an elongated rectangular hole to be formed in the instrument panel for actuation of the switch button. The switches are conventionally held in place by screws passing through the panel, and the rectangular switch button holes and the round screw holes must be carefully and accurately formed and positioned relative to each other to present a neat workmanlike, and carefree assembly of the final panel.

The principal object of this invention is to provide a simple and highly eflicient punching tool which can be readily moved about and positioned at desired locations on the panel to accurately provide the necessary openings therein for mounting the required instrumentation thereon.

A further object is to provide a light weight punch that can be used in restricted places for forming switch openings in cabinet panels in accurate relative spacing to screw openings therein to facilitate assembly of instrument cabinets.

A still further object is to provide a punch which will eliminate the necessity for presses and other actuating devices.

Other objects and advantages reside in the detail construction of the invention, which is designed for simplicity, economy, and efficiency. These will become more apparent from the following description.

In the following detailed description of the invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawing which forms a part hereof. Like numerals refer to like parts in all views of the drawing and throughout the description.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 illustrates a type of toggle switch such as usually employed on instrument panels and for the installation of which the present invention is particularly adapted;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary perspective view of a typical instrument panel showing the switch of FIG. 1 in place thereon;

FIG. 3 is a similar view of the panel of FIG. 1 showing the openings that are necessary in the panel for the mounting of the switch of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a punch element as used in this invention;

FIG. 5 is a similar view of a punch guide block for guiding the punch element of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a similar view of a die plate for use with punch element of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is an assembled view showing the guide block and die plate, in section, upon an instrument panel with the punch element of FIG. 4 ready for actuation; and

FIG. 8 is a side elevational view of the punch tool assembly as it would appear after actuation on the panel of FIG. 7.

Conventional elements are designated by numerals as follows: instrument panel 10; toggle switch 11; toggle switch button 12; switch screw sockets 13; and switch attachment screws 14. To install the switch 11 on the panel 19 it is necessary that the latter by provided with screw holes 15, spaced to correspond to the spacing of the screw sockets 13, and with a rectangular opening 16 accurately aligned and positioned between screw holes 15 to receive the switch button 12.

The punching tool of this invention comprises three, light weight, economical, easy to use elements, to wit, a die block 17, a punch aligning plate 18 and a punch 19.

The die block is an elongated block preferably of a tool steel from which two guide pins 20 project in perpendicular parallel relation. The guide pins 20 are spacedapart in correspondence to the spacing of the screw socket 13 in the switch 11 and are each permanently anchored, at one extremity, in any suitable manner such as press fitted, in the block 17. An elongated, rectangular shearing opening 21, corresponding to the opening 16, is formed through the block 17 intermediate and in alignment with the pins 20.

The punch aligning plate 18 preferably corresponds in size and shape to the die block 17 and is provided with an elongated, rectangular, punch-aligning opening 22 and with pin receiving openings 23. The punch-aligning opening 22 corresponds in size, shape and position to the opening 21 in the die block 17 and the .pin receiving openings 22 correspond in position to the pins 20 and are of a size to simultaneously slide, without play, along the pins 20 to align the opening 22 with the shearing opening 21.

The punch 19 is an elongated rectangular bar, preferably of tool steel, having a cross section to act in shearing relation to the die block opening 21 and with its cutting extremity, as indicated at 24, ground in a broad, inverted- V-shape to initiate cutting at the narrow sides of the bar.

The punch is preferably provided with .a punch guide plate 25 fixedly mounted thereon intermediate the extremities thereof. The plate 25 is provided with pin openings 26 which are spaced and positioned relative to the punch 19 in correspondence with the punch aligning plate 18.

Let us assume that it is desired to install one of the switches 11 in the panel 10. A suitable template showing the position of the screw sockets 13 is placed on the panel and the holes 15 are drilled therein at the indicated points. The die block 17 is then positioned against the inside face of the panel with the pins 20 projecting through the panel.

The punch aligning plate 18 is placed on the projecting pins 20 and is slid against the outside face of the panel. The cutting extremity 24- of the punch 19 is now inserted in the aligning opening 22 of the aligning plate 18 and against the panel with the pins 20 in position in the pin openings 26 of the guide plate 25, as shown in FIG. 7.

The die block is then positioned over a suitable opening in a convenient anvil, such as indicated in broken line at 27, and the punch 19 is struck a single sharp blow with a conventional mallet, or other convenient tool, to drive the cutting extremity of the punch through the panel and through the die block to accurately punch a rectangular blank 28 therefrom to form the opening 16 in the panel in proper relation to the screw holes 15 therein, as shown in FIG. 8.

The switch 11 is now secured in place against the back of the panel by means of the screws 14 with the switch button 12 projecting through the punched opening 16, as shown in FIG. 2.

Since the pins 20 are perpendicular to the plane of the die block 17 the opening 22 in the aligning block 18 will be accurately aligned with the shearing opening 21 in the die 'block 17 and the punch 19 will be accurately supported in a perpendicular position by the guide plate 25, the resulting punched hole 16 will be clean, smooth and accurate.

While the shearing tool of this invention is designed for cutting an elongated rectangular opening between J3 and in alignment with two screw openings in a panel, the punch and the punch openings could have any desired cross section to produce openings of other shapes for other uses. The tool is adaptable for use on relatively thin metal panels or on composition or plastic panels.

While a specific form of the invention has been described and illustrated herein, it is to be understood that the same may be varied within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described the invention what is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A punching tool, for punching a rectangular opening between two screw holes in a panel, comprising:

(a) a die block having a shearing opening corresponding in shape to the desired rectangular opening and adapted to be positioned against one face of said panel;

(b) a guide pin fixed in said die block at each side of said shearing opening and adapted to be inserted through the screw holes in said panel so as to project perpendicularly from the other face of said panel in parallel relation;

() a punch-aligning plate having an aligning opening corresponding to said shearing opening and pin openings to receive said projecting pins and adapted to be positioned against the other face of said panel with said pins acting to maintain the aligning opening and the shearing opening in alignment with each other; and

G. WEIDENFELD, Assistant Examiner.

(d) an elongated punch corresponding in cross-section to said aligning and shearing openings adapted to be inserted in said aligning opening and driven through said panel into said shearing opening.

2. A punching tool as described in claim 1 having:

(a) a punch guide plate aifixed to said punch at right angles to the axis and intermediate the extremities thereof said punch guide plate having pin openings spaced and positioned to receive said guide pins for maintaining said punch in parallel relation to said pins when said punch is in position in said aligning opening.

3. A punching tool as described in claim 2 in which the panel-contacting extremity of said punch has a relatively wide, inverted V-shaped cutting notch so that cutting will be initiated at the narrow sides thereof when said punch is-dri-ven through said panel.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,491,464 4/1924 Coomer 83-637 2,145,725 1/ 1939 Jamieson. 2,830,662 4/1958 Marcum 83637 X FOREIGN PATENTS 851,760 12/ 1940 France.

WILLIAM FELDMAN, Primary Examiner.

Claims

1. A PUNCHING TOOL, FOR PUNCHING A RECTANGULAR OPENING BETWEEN TWO SCREW HOLES IN A PANEL, COMPRISING: (A) A DIE BLOCK HAVING A SHEARING OPENING CORRESPONDING A SHAPE TO BE POSITIONED AGAINST ONE FACE OF SAID ADAPTED TO THE POSITIONED AGAINST ONE FACE OF SAID PANEL; (B) A GUIDE PIN FIXED IN SAID DIE BLOCK AT EACH SIDE OF SAID SHEARING OPENING AND ADAPTED TO BE INSERTED THROUGH THE SCREW HOLES IN SAID PANEL SO AS TO PROJECT PERPENDICULARY FROM THE OTHER FACE OF SAID PANEL IN PARALLEL RELATION; (C) A PUNCH-ALIGNING PLATE HAVING AN ALIGNING OPENING CORRESPONDING TO SAID SHEARING OPENING AND PIN OPENINGS TO RECEIVE SAID PROJECTING PINS AND ADAPTED TO BE POSITIONED AGAINST THE OTHER FACE OF SAID PANEL WITH SAID PINS ACTING A MAINTAIN THE ALIGNING OPENING AND THE SHEARING OPENING IN ALIGNMENT WITH EACH OTHER; AND (D) AN ELONGATED PUNCH CORRESPONDING IN CROSS-SECTION TO SAID ALIGNING AND SHEARING OPENINGS ADAPTED TO BE INSERTED IN SAID ALIGNING OPENING AND DRIVEN THROUGH SAID PANEL INTO SAID SHEARING OPENING.