Abrading – Frame or mount – Portable abrader
Reexamination Certificate
2001-10-09
2003-10-28
Nguyen, George (Department: 3723)
Abrading
Frame or mount
Portable abrader
C451S511000, C451S516000, C451S495000, C451S536000, C125S036000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06638151
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a polishing instrument for polishing a surface into a predetermined shape and, in particular, to a polishing instrument which can be suitably used for the sheet metal repair of a vehicle.
BACKGROUND ART
Regarding sheet metal repair for dealing with flaws, dents, etc. generated on a painted surface of a vehicle, such as an automobile, substrate preparing procedures will be briefly described. First, as shown in
FIG. 12
, a coating film removing processing is performed to remove coating films, such as a primer
51
, a surfacer
52
, and a paint
53
, from a steel plate
50
.
Further, simultaneously with or after the coating film removing processing, a process for removing feather edges F is performed as shown in FIG.
13
. The process for removing feather edges F is for generating smooth inclined portions (inclined by approximately 27 to 54 degrees) which extend from the steel plate surface
50
of the damaged portion D to the normal painted surface. Note that, the process for removing feather edges F is performed in order to improve the adhesion (holding) of putty P, with which the damaged portion D is filled afterward, and to restrain the reduction in the volume of the putty P as it cures, thereby making it possible to obtain a putty filling surface which is as flat as possible. And, the dent of the damaged portion D from which the coating films and feather edges F have been removed is elicited by a sliding hammer or the like, and then the dent is filled with putty P to form a putty-filled portion constituting the substrate in the damaged portion D. Note that, in the following, the damaged portion D is also referred to as the surface to be polished.
Conventionally, in this substrate preparing process, a rotary polishing device S, such as a discs sander or a double action sander, is generally used. As shown in
FIG. 14
, such a rotary polishing device S has a rotation mechanism
101
using compressed air or electricity as its power source, and a round polishing instrument
104
having a polishing paper
103
on the front side is detachably attached to a rotation shaft
102
provided on the rotation mechanism
101
. And, the polishing instrument
104
which is rotated by the rotation mechanism
103
is brought into contact with the damaged portion D to effect polishing.
Also, apart from the polishing device S, which simply polishes the damaged portion D, there is a dust collecting type polishing device which performs polishing while collecting the dust (polishing chips, etc.) generated during polishing by a suction device provided at a predetermined position.
Here, a disc sander and a double action sander, which are generally used to remove paint and feather edges, will be described. In the disc sander, the rotation center of the rotation shaft
102
of the polishing device S is in alignment with that of the polishing instrument
104
. The polishing instrument
104
rotates (revolves), as the rotation shaft
102
of the polishing device S rotates. On the other hand, in the double action sander, the rotation center of the polishing instrument
104
is offset from that of the rotation shaft
102
, and the polishing instrument
104
rotates in eccentricity with respect to the polishing device S.
The polishing instrument
104
supported by the polishing device S is composed of a round holding plate
106
provided with an arbor
105
supported by the rotation shaft
102
of the polishing device S, and a polishing pad
107
which is secured to the lower side of the holding plate
106
and to the lower side of which a sand paper serving as the polishing member is detachably attached. As the rotation shaft
102
of the polishing device S rotates, the polishing pad
107
rotates. Note that, the holding plate
106
is a rigid member formed of a resin or the like, and the polishing pad
107
is formed of an elastic material such as a hard sponge.
When using this polishing device S, for example, as shown in
FIG. 14
, polishing is performed while holding the polishing device S by both hands in such a manner that the polishing instrument
104
is somewhat inclined with respect to the damaged portion D. That is, polishing is performed by using an end portion
108
of the polishing pad
104
. Note that, polishing by using the end portion
108
of the polishing instrument
104
is performed because the contact area and the contact pressure of the polishing pad
104
with respect to the damaged portion D can be easily changed according to the polishing condition.
However, when a person who is not used to this type of polishing device uses the polishing device, excessive or uneven polishing can result. This is particularly true in the case of the process for removing coating films and feather edges, in which polishing is performed by using an end portion of the polishing instrument.
The reasons for this are as follows. Firstly, when performing polishing by using an end portion of the polishing instrument, the area by which the instrument is held in contact with the damaged portion is small, so that it is difficult for the user to adjust the pressure with which the polishing instrument is held in contact with the damaged portion. Secondly, since the polishing pad is formed of an elastic member, such as a hard sponge, any fluctuation in the contact pressure or any change in the contact angle will result in great deformation of the polishing pad, thereby impairing the stability of the polishing instrument with respect to the damaged portion.
In addition, according to the above-mentioned reasons, in the polishing using the conventional polishing instrument, the operating direction of the polishing device S with respect to the dent of the damaged portion D is limited. Specifically, as shown in
FIG. 12
, it is impossible to perform polishing while inclining the polishing instrument in the direction in which the polishing device S advances. This is because the pressurizing force applied to the polishing device acts on the end portion of the polishing instrument rotating at high speed to further increase the deformation amount of the polishing instrument, thereby impairing the stability of the instrument.
Thus, to obtain a satisfactory polished face by using the conventional polishing instrument, it takes a lot of skill and a careful operation.
Further, since the polishing pad is formed of an elastic material, such as a hard sponge, continuous polishing by using its end portion results in a local deterioration of the polishing pad, making it necessary to replace the polishing instrument at an early stage.
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems. It is an object of the present invention to provide a polishing instrument which is superior in operability and stability and which makes it possible to polish a surface into a desired shape by an easy operation. Another object of the present invention is to provide a polishing instrument which has a superior durability and which makes it possible to continuously perform polishing by using its end portion.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
The polishing instrument of the present invention comprises: a rotatable rotary substrate portion equipped with a polishing plane holding a polishing material on its surface; a plurality of movable substrate portions equipped with polishing planes which hold the polishing material on their surfaces, which are provided in the peripheral edge of the rotary substrate portion, and which rotate about a connection line connecting them to the rotary substrate portion; and biasing means for biasing the polishing planes of the movable substrate portions toward a position where they are flush with the polishing plane of the rotary substrate portion.
In the polishing instrument of the present invention, the polishing plane is composed of a plurality of planes. When polishing is performed by using an end portion of the polishing instrument, the polishing planes provided in the movable substrate portions are brought into contact with the surface to be polished. That is,
Alston & Bird LLP
Nguyen George
Uegaki Tateo
LandOfFree
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