CA3162749A1 - Truss pin removing tool and method of using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

Tool and method for removing a truss pin previously inserted in a hole are disclosed herein. The tool comprises a longitudinal handle; a tool head having a front face for connecting to the handle, and a back face, opposite the front face, defining at least one recess for receiving and maintaining therein the head of the truss pin; and a sliding sleeve about the longitudinal handle for sliding along the handle between a first position where the sleeve abuts the tool head and a second position where the sleeve abuts an abutting element extending from the second end of the handle. Advantageously, a sharp movement of the sliding sleeve between the first and second position along the handle provides a longitudinal force opposite the tool head to ease the removal of the truss pin from the hole once the head pin is inserted in the recess of the head.

Description

TRUSS PIN REMOVING TOOL AND METHOD OF USING THE SAME
Field of the Invention [0001] The present invention generally relates to a hand tool, and more particularly, to a multifunctional tool for removing truss pins.
Background of the Invention

[0002] Truss pins and safety clip (e.g. cutter pin) are largely used in the industry, such as show-business or entertainment industry, for safely assembling elements together, such as supporting truss beams or the like. Typically, a truss pin is inserted through aligned holes of two different elements with one side of the pin having a head pin larger than the hole's diameter and the other side having a lateral orifice. The truss pin once inserted in the aligned holes is secured by inserting the safety clip in the lateral orifice for securing the truss pin.
The pin head and the safety clip interact with the two elements (or more) for maintaining the elements together.

[0003] However, removing the truss pin when time is come to dissemble the elements or panels can be challenging due to lateral movements of the elements leading to a misalignment of the holes and therefore a pressure of the elements or panels on the truss pin.
Removing the pin requires removing the safety clip before striking hard on the side opposite the head. Striking hard multiple times can cause damage to the truss pins. These methods can also damage the elements connected via the pin, are time consuming and produce very loud noises.

[0004] There is thus a need for developing a new tool for swiftly and securely removing truss pins.
Summary of the Invention

[0005] This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the detailed Description. This Summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.

[0006] According to a first aspect, the invention is directed to a tool for removing a truss pin previously inserted in a hole. Typically, the truss pin comprises a longitudinal body with a pin Date Recue/Date Received 2022-06-14 head at one end of the body, and a transversal orifice through the other end of the body configured to received a safety clip to secure the truss pin within the hole.
The tool comprises:
¨ a longitudinal handle having a first end opposite to a second end;
¨ a tool head having a first face for connecting to the first end of the handle, and a second face opposite the first face, the second face defining at least one recess configured to receive and maintain the pin head therein; and ¨ a sliding sleeve about the longitudinal handle and configured to slide along the handle between a first position where the sleeve abuts the tool head and a second position where the sleeve abuts an abutting element extending from the second end of the handle;
whereby, in use, a sharp movement of the sliding sleeve between the first and second position along the handle provides a longitudinal force opposite the tool head to ease the removal of the truss pin from the hole once the head pin is inserted in the recess of the head.

[0007] According to a second aspect, the invention is directed to a method for removing a truss pin previously inserted into aligned holes of different elements, the truss pin comprising a longitudinal body with a pin head at one end of the body and a transversal orifice through the other end of the body, the transversal orifice being configured to received a safety clip to secure the truss pin within the hole. The method comprises:
¨ providing the tool as defined herein;
¨ removing the safety clip;
¨ striking with the tool head on the other end of the truss pin to liberate the pin head from the hole in order to be able to insert the pin head in the recess;
¨ inserting the pin head of the truss pin to be removed in the recess; and ¨ maintaining the longitudinal handle aligned with the longitudinal body of the truss pin while sliding, at least one time, the sliding sleeve between the first and second position along the handle in order to provide a longitudinal force opposite the tool head to ease the removal of the truss pin from the hole.

[0008] Other and further aspects and advantages of the present invention will be better understood upon the reading of the illustrative embodiments about to be described or will be indicated in the appended claims, and various advantages not referred to herein will occur to Date Recue/Date Received 2022-06-14 one skilled in the art upon employment of the invention in practice.
Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009] The above and other aspects, features and advantages of the invention will become more readily apparent from the following description, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0010] Figure lA is a flat view of a tool according to a preferred embodiment;

[0011] Figure 1B is a sectional view of the tool of Figure lA along line A-A, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0012] Figure 1C is an isomeric view of the tool, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0013] Figure 2A is an isomeric view of the head tool, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0014] Figure 2B is a plan view of the back face of the head tool, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0015] Figure 2C is a plan view of the bottom face of the head tool, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0016] Figure 2D is a sectional view of the tool of Figure 2C along line C-C, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0017] Figure 2E is a plan view of one of the two side faces of the head tool, according to a preferred embodiment, the other opposite lateral being identical;

[0018] Figure 2F is a plan view of the top face of the head tool with the niche, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0019] Figure 2G is a plan view of the front face of the head tool, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0020] Figure 3A is a plan view of the sliding sleeve of the tool, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0021] Figure 3B is a sectional view of the sliding sleeve of Figure 3A along line B-B of the tool, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0022] Figure 3C is a side view of the sliding sleeve of the tool, according to a preferred Date Recue/Date Received 2022-06-14 embodiment;

[0023] Figure 4A is a plan view of the hole alignment punch removed from the tool, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0024] Figure 4B is a plan view of the head of the hole alignment punch, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0025] Figure 5A is a side view of the handle of the tool, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0026] Figure 5B is a lateral view of the handle of the tool, according to a preferred embodiment;

[0027] Figure 6 is a picture illustrating a truss pin and its safety clip as known in the industry /
art.
Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment

[0028] A novel removing tool will be described hereinafter. Although the invention is described in terms of specific illustrative embodiments, it is to be understood that the embodiments described herein are by way of example only and that the scope of the invention is not intended to be limited thereby.

[0029] The terminology used herein is in accordance with definitions set out below.

[0030] According to a first aspect, a tool for removing a truss pin previously inserted in a hole is disclosed.

[0031] As illustrated on Figure 6 (prior art), the truss pin (1) typically comprises a longitudinal body (3) with a pin head (5) at one end (31) of the body, and a transversal orifice (7) through the other opposite end (32) of the body configured to received a safety clip (9) to secure the truss pin (1) within a hole or multiple aligned holes of different elements.

[0032] As illustrated on Figures 1A-1C, the tool (100) comprises a longitudinal handle (110) having a first end (111) opposite to a second end (112). Preferably, the handle has a tubular form, but other forms can be considered without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0033] As illustrated on Figures 1A-1C or 2A-2G, the tool (100) also comprises a tool head (120).

[0034] As illustrated, in particular on Figure 2A, the head (120) preferably has a cubic or Date Recue/Date Received 2022-06-14 parallelepiped form, more preferably the parallelepiped form of a hammer, with:
- a front face (121, Fig. 2G) configured to be connected to the first end (111) of the handle (110);
- a back face (122, Fig. 2B), opposite the front face (121);
- a top face (123, Fig. 2F) and a bottom face (124, Fig. 2C) each extending between the front and back faces (121, 122); and - two opposite side faces (125, see Fig. 2E) perpendicular to the other faces, and that can be used as the hitting portion of the head when the tool is used as a hammer.

[0035] According to the preferred embodiment illustrated on Figure 2G, the head's front face (121) may have an orifice (128) adapted to receive the first end (111) of the handle (110) for connecting the handle to the head (see Fig. 5A-5B). As shown on Figures 5A-5B, the handle can have a screw path (113) for screwing the handle in the head, or vice-versa. Alternatively, the handle and head can be permanently affixed or molded together.

[0036] According to the preferred embodiment illustrated on Figures 1C or 2A-2C, the tool head (120) may also comprise at least one recess (130) defined at the junction of the back face (122) and the bottom face (124), the recess (130) being configured to receive and maintain the pin head (5) of the truss pin therein. More preferably, the head (120) may comprise more than one recess, such as two recesses (130, 132) as illustrated in the Figures, each of different sizes in order to interact with pin heads of different sizes. The head (130) may comprise more than two recesses, if necessary.

[0037] According to a preferred embodiment, the top face (123) of the head may comprise a niche (126) (see Fig. 2F). The user of the tool (100) may grip the niche (126) with the finger tips of one hand to help pulling on the head (120) and ease the removal of the truss pin, if necessary. Other way to allow gripping the head can be considered, such a button handle or a strap can be considered without departing from the scope of eh present invention.

[0038] According to a preferred embodiment, as the one illustrated in particular on Figures 1A-1C and 3A-3B, the tool may further comprise a sliding sleeve (140), preferably tubular, configured to be about the longitudinal handle (110) and slide along the handle between a first position (P1) where the sleeve (140) abuts the tool head (120) (as illustrated in Figure 1 for instance), and a second position (P2) where the sleeve abuts an abutting element (154), preferably extending from the second end (112) of the handle (110) as shown on Figure 1C. The Date Recue/Date Received 2022-06-14 movement of the sleeve between positions P1 and P2 is illustrated on Figure 1C
with the double-head arrow (144).

[0039] According to the preferred embodiment, the sleeve (140) may have a fixing element, such as a screw path (142) extending from the inner surface (144) of the sleeve, and configured to affixed the sleeve to the handle, when the sleeve is not used. The sleeve may also comprise two opposites ledges (146, 148) for a better gripping of the sleeve by the user.

[0040] According to the preferred embodiment, the tool may also comprise a hole alignment tool or punch (150) as the one illustrated on Figures 1, 3 and 4. The hole alignment punch (150) can be inserted in a cavity (115, Fig. 5B) of the handle (110) through an aperture (114) adjacent the second end (112) of the handle. The hole alignment punch (150) may have a fixing section (151), such as a screw path, configured to match and affixed another screw path (116) located in the cavity (115) of the handle (110) in order to screw the punch once inserted in the cavity.
The punch (150) may have a screwing head (152), optionally equipped with a bolt section (153) extending therefrom for easing the screwing and unscrewing of the hole alignment punch. The screwing head (152) may extend outwardly in order to form the abutting element (154) as shown on Figure 1C, for stopping the movement (144) of the sleeve (140) once the punch is placed inside the handle.

[0041] As illustrated on Figure 4A-4B, the hole alignment punch (150) may have a longitudinal body (155) extending from the screwing head (152) with a tip heap (156) opposite to the screwing head (152). The hole alignment punch (150) can be removed from the handle, when necessary, and used to align the holes of the different elements before being able to insert a truss pin therein, by inserting the tip head (156) in the non-aligned holes before striking on the screwing head (152) with the tool head (hammer). The tool (100) can then be used as a hammer with no need of another tool.

[0042] It is disclosed a method for removing a truss pin previously inserted into a hole. The truss pin is as already described above.

[0043] The method first comprises the step of providing a removing tool, such as the tool (100) disclosed herein.

[0044] The method further comprises the step of removing the safety clip before striking with the tool head on the other end of the truss pin to slightly liberate the pin head from the hole(s) in order to be able to insert the pin head in the recess.
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-06-14

[0045] The method then further comprises the step of inserting the pin head (5) of the truss pin (1) to be removed in the recess (130 or 132). More preferably, the tool comprises two recesses of different sizes as disclosed above, to accommodate pin heads (5) of different sizes.
Advantageously, the two sizes of the two recesses are preferably adapted to the sizes of the most common truss pin heads of the market.

[0046] The method further comprises the step of maintaining the longitudinal handle (110) aligned with the longitudinal body (3) of the truss pin (1) while sliding (144), at least one time, the sliding sleeve (140) between the first position (P1) and the second position (P2) along the handle (110) in order to provide a longitudinal force (F, see Fig. 1C) opposite the tool head (120) to ease the removal of the truss pin from the hole.

[0047] Advantageously, a sharp movement of the sliding sleeve between the first and second positions along the handle provides a larger longitudinal force opposite the tool head to ease the removal of the truss pin from the hole once the head pin is inserted in the recess of the head.
The movement can be repeated several times as long as the truss pin remains in the hole.

[0048] As aforesaid, the tool head may comprise a niche (126), the method then comprises the step of gripping the niche with the finger tips of one hand, while the longitudinal handle (110) is maintained aligned with the longitudinal body (3) with the other hand, to help in pulling on the head (120) and ease the removal to of the truss pin, if necessary.

[0049] The tool as described herein can be made of plastic or metallic parts, preferably of metallic parts such as stainless steel or the like. A heavy weight of the handle and sleeve may be advantageous as the heavy weight allows increasing the longitudinal force (F) applied on the pin head when the sleeve is sharply slide along the handle.

[0050] The removing tool and method as described herein allows easily and quickly removing truss pins, by the use of the force (F) created by the sharp movement of the sleeve on the handle.
The tool advantageously provides other functions as it can be used as a hammer, the head tool comprises a gripping niche and/or an hole alignment punch embedded in the tool handle to ease the extraction

[0051] While illustrative and presently preferred embodiments of the invention have been described in detail hereinabove, it is to be understood that the inventive concepts may be otherwise variously embodied and employed and that the appended claims are intended to be construed to include such variations except insofar as limited by the prior art.
Date Recue/Date Received 2022-06-14

Claims (6)

What is claimed is;

1. A tool for removing a truss pin previously inserted in a hole, the truss pin comprising a longitudinal body with a pin head at one end of the body, and optionally a transversal orifice through the other end of the body configured to received a safety clip to secure the truss pin within the hole, the removing tool comprising:
¨ a longitudinal handle having a first end opposite to a second end;
¨ a tool head having a first face connecting to the first end of the handle, and a second face opposite to the first face, the second face defining at least one recess configured to receive and maintain the pin head therein; and ¨ a sliding sleeve about the longitudinal handle and configured to slide along the handle between a first position where the sleeve abuts the tool head and a second position where the sleeve abuts an abutting element extending from the second end of the handle;
whereby, in use, a sharp movement of the sliding sleeve between the first and second position along the handle provides a longitudinal force opposite the tool head to ease the removal of the truss pin from the hole once the head pin is inserted in the recess of the head.

2. The tool according to claim 1, comprising two recesses, each of the two recesses having a different size in order to interact with pin heads of different sizes.

3. The tool according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a hole alignment punch configured to be inserted in a cavity of the handle through an aperture adjacent the second end of the handle.

4. The tool according to claim 3, wherein the punch comprises a screwing head, optionally equipped with a bolt section extending therefrom for easing the screwing and unscrewing of the hole alignment punch, the screwing head extending outwardly in order to form the abutting element of the handle for stopping the movement of the sleeve once the punch is placed and maintained inside the handle.

5. The tool according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a gripping element, such as a niche, located on a top face of the tool head, for pulling on the head and ease the removal of the truss pin.

6. A method for removing a truss pin previously inserted into a hole, the truss pin comprising a longitudinal body with a pin head at one end of the body, and a transversal orifice through the other end of the body, the transversal orifice being configured to received a safety clip to secure the truss pin within the hole, the method comprises:
¨ providing a removing tool as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5;
¨ removing the safety clip from the transversal orifice;
¨ optionally, striking with the tool head on the other end of the truss pin to slightly liberate the pin head from the hole in order to be able to insert the pin head in the at least one recess;
¨ inserting the pin head of the truss pin to be removed into the at least one recess; and ¨ maintaining the longitudinal handle aligned with the longitudinal body of the truss pin while sliding, at least one time, the sliding sleeve between the first and second position along the handle in order to provide a longitudinal force opposite the tool head to ease the removal of the truss pin from the hole.