U.S. patent application number 12/833129 was filed with the patent office on 2012-01-12 for method for joining workpieces together and product made thereby.
Invention is credited to Michael Hardesty.
Application Number | 20120009383 12/833129 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 45438791 |
Filed Date | 2012-01-12 |
United States Patent
Application |
20120009383 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hardesty; Michael |
January 12, 2012 |
Method for Joining Workpieces Together and Product Made Thereby
Abstract
A method of forming a joint between first and second workpieces
generally consisting of forming a recess in one of such workpieces,
provided with at least one side wall having a serrated
cross-sectional configuration with inwardly projecting, distortable
segments; providing a portion in the other of such workpieces,
insertable into such recess, having a cross-sectional configuration
sufficient to engage and distort such segments as such portion is
inserted into such recess; and inserting such portion of the other
workpiece into such recess, causing the segments to distort and
thus provide an interference fit between such workpieces.
Inventors: |
Hardesty; Michael; (Dale,
IN) |
Family ID: |
45438791 |
Appl. No.: |
12/833129 |
Filed: |
July 9, 2010 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
428/119 ;
144/241; 144/347 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B27G 13/14 20130101;
F16B 12/12 20130101; B27F 5/02 20130101; B27G 13/002 20130101; Y10T
428/24174 20150115; A47B 2230/0081 20130101; F16B 12/125
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
428/119 ;
144/347; 144/241 |
International
Class: |
B27F 5/00 20060101
B27F005/00; B27G 13/00 20060101 B27G013/00; B32B 7/04 20060101
B32B007/04; B27G 11/00 20060101 B27G011/00 |
Claims
1. A method of forming a joint between first and second workpieces,
comprising: forming a recess in one of said workpieces, provided
with at least one side wall having a serrated cross-sectional
configuration with inwardly projecting, distortable segments;
providing a portion in the other of said workpieces, insertable
into said recess, having a cross-sectional configuration sufficient
to engage and distort said segments as said portion is inserted
into said recess; and inserting said portion of said other
workpiece into said recess, causing said segments to distort and
thus provide an interference fit between said workpieces.
2. The method according to claim 1 including applying a bonding
agent to one of said recess and said portion prior to insertion of
said portion into said recess.
3. The method according to claim 1 wherein said segments are
provided with sloped surfaces enagageable by said portion inserted
into said recess, causing said segments to deflect toward a bottom
of said recess and thereby fix said portion within said recess.
4. The method according to claim 1 including forming said recess
with a circular cross-sectional configuration.
5. The method according to claim 1 including forming said recess
with a polygonal cross-sectional configuration.
6. The method of claim 1 including forming said recess with a pair
of opposed side walls each provided with a serrated cross-sectional
configuration, and said insertable portion with a pair of outer
side wall surfaces cooperable with serration segments of said
opposed side all surfaces of said recess.
7. The method of claim 1 including forming said recess as one of a
group consisting of a mortise, socket, dados, pocket mortise, slot
and groove, and forming said insertable portion as one of a group
consisting of a tenor, rabbet and tongue.
8. A product including at least first and second work pieces joined
together at least partially by the method comprising: forming a
recess in one of said workpieces, provided with at least one side
wall having a serrated cross-sectional configuration with inwardly
projecting, distortable segments; providing a portion of the other
of said workpieces, insertable into said recess, having a
cross-sectional configuration sufficient to engage and distort said
segments as said portion is inserted into said recess; and
inserting said portion of said other workpiece into said recess,
causing said segments to distort and thus provide an interference
fit between said workpieces.
9. The product according to claim 8 including applying a bonding
agent to one of said recess and said portion prior to insertion of
said portion into said recess.
10. The product according to claim 8 wherein said segments are
provided with sloped surfaces enagageable by said portion inserted
into said recess, causing said segments to deflect.
11. The product according to claim 8 including forming said recess
with a circular cross-section configuration.
12. The product according to claim 8 wherein including forming said
recess with a polygonal cross-sectional configuration.
13. The product according to claim 8 including forming said recess
with a pair of opposed side walls each provided with a serrated
cross-sectional configuration, and said insertable portion with a
pair of outer side wall surfaces cooperable with serration segments
of said opposed side wall surfaces of said recess.
14. The structure according to claim 8 including forming said
recess as one of a group consisting of a mortise, socket, dados,
pocket mortise, slot and groove, and forming said insertable
portion as one of a group consisting of a tenor, rabbet and
tongue.
15. A tool for forming a serrated contour along a side wall surface
of a recess in a workpiece, comprising an elongated body having an
axis, mountable to a fastening means of a spindle for rotation
about the axis thereof, provided with at least one annular recess
in a side wall surface thereof, relative to said axis thereof, and
arcuately spaced recesses in said side wall surface, relative to
said axis thereof, cooperating with said annular recess to form
cutting edges.
16. A tool according to claim 15 wherein said annular recess is
provided with a frusto-conically configured surface.
17. A tool according to claim 15 including a plurality of said,
annular recesses, providing a serrated cross-sectional
configuration.
18. A tool according to claim 17 wherein said annular recesses are
provided with frusto-conically configured surfaces.
19. A tool according to claim 15 wherein said arcuately spaced
recesses in said side wall surface are diametrically displaced.
20. A tool according to claim 15 wherein said arcuately spaced
recesses extend the axial length of said annular recesses.
Description
[0001] This invention relates to an method of forming a joint
between a pair of workpieces, and more particularly to a such a
method that does not require the use of clamping devices in
positioning and holding such workpieces together, allowing a
bonding agent applied to the joint to set. Such invention further
contemplates a product formed through the use of such method and a
tool functional to configure such workpieces to facilitate the
practice of such method.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] In the manufacture of furniture and other similar products,
it is a common practice to utilize mortise and tenon type joints to
interconnect various workpieces used to construct a product. The
mortise and tenon joint consists of a socket formed in a first
workpiece, and a protrusion formed on a second workpiece adapted to
be inserted and snuggly fit into the socket or mortise of the first
workpiece. In the cabinetmaking industry, the terms mortise and
tenon often are used to describe a broad range of joints, utilizing
the same method of joining a pair of workpieces. Referring to FIG.
1 of the drawings, a tenon may consists of simply a rabbet formed
on the edge of a panel 104 or a tongue formed in the center of an
edge of a panel 105. A tenon also may be formed on the end of a
style or rail 101. Similarly, a mortise may be a simple pocket
cutout 102 or an elongated slot 103 or a groove 103 extending the
entire length of a panel. The term tongue and groove sometimes is
used to describe the aforementioned type of joint when such joint
is used to join large panels in the cabinet industry.
[0003] Typically, mortises as well as tenons are formed utilizing
various multiple machine operations. One of the problems
encountered in the prior art in forming joints is the requirement
for clamping mortises together to permit bonding agents used to
permanently secure the workpieces together to set. The reliance on
clamps for securing such workpieces together presents several major
disadvantages. The clamping operation requires the manufacturer to
maintain a large inventory of clamps of various sizes to
accommodate the many varied work pieces encountered in the course
of daily operations. Additionally, a large number of assemblies are
generally staged in the clamping process at a given time, awaiting
the setting of the bonding agent. Still an additional problem
encountered in the prior art is the necessity to provide labor for
applying such clamps and subsequently removing them when the
bonding agent has cured.
[0004] There have been numerous attempts in the prior art to
circumvent the clamping operation, including the application of
permanent mechanical fasteners such as, small nails or brads. Such
an operation is undesirable in the sense that it adds additional
labor to the construction of the final product, and may detract
from the appearance of the product, weaken the completed joint or
possibly even result in damaging the material beyond salvage.
Accordingly, it is the principal object of the present invention to
provide an improved method of joining a pair of workpieces together
in the manufacture of a product which eliminates the requirement of
the use of various securing devices such as clamps, fixtures and
fasteners such as small nails and brads.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] The principal object of the invention is achieved by
providing a method of forming a joint between a pair of workpieces,
generally consisting of forming a recess in one of such workpieces,
provided with at least one side wall having a serrated
cross-sectional configuration with inwardly projecting, distortable
segments; providing a portion of the other of such workpieces
insertable into the recess of the first workpiece, having a
cross-sectional configuration sufficient to engage and distort the
inwardly projecting, distortable components of the first member, as
such projecting portion is inserted into the recess; and inserting
the projecting portion of the other workpiece into such recess
causing such segments to distort and thus provide an interference
fit between such workpieces. Preferably, a bonding agent is applied
to one of the recess and the projecting portion prior to insertion
of such portion into the recess of the other workpiece, such
distortable segments are provided with sloped surfaces engageable
by the insertable portion inserted into the recess of the other
workpiece, causing such segments to deflect toward a bottom of the
recess and thereby fix the inserted portion within the recess. Such
recess may be provided with a circular or polygonal cross-sectional
configuration, and the recess one of such workpieces may be
provided with a pair of opposed side walls each provided with a
serrated cross-sectional configuration, and the insertable portion
may be provided with a pair of outer side wall, surfaces cooperable
with serrated segments of the opposed side wall surfaces of the
recess. The recess in one of such workpieces may consist of a
mortise, socket, dados, pocket mortise, slot or grove, and the
insertable portion of the other workpiece may consist of a tenon,
rabbet or tongue.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0006] FIG. 1 is a set of perspective views of several combinations
of workpieces, illustrating the joining components thereof in
exploded relation;
[0007] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a set of components joined
together utilizing a clamping device, in the conventional
manner;
[0008] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a CNC router which may be
utilized to form recesses in workpieces intended to be joined
together by use of the claimed method;
[0009] FIG. 4 includes a first perspective view of a number of
components of a product to be joined together by use of the claimed
method, illustrated in exploded relation, and a prospective view of
the product formed of the components shown in the other view,
secured together by use of the claimed method;
[0010] FIG. 5 consists of side, end and prospective views of a tool
functional to form a side wall surface of a recess in a workpiece,
in accordance with the claimed method;
[0011] FIG. 6 includes a pair of top and side views illustrating
the manner in which the tool illustrated in FIG. 5 may be utilized
to form the contours of the side walls of a recess in a workpiece
in accordance with the claimed method;
[0012] FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of a pair of workpieces to
be joined together utilizing the claimed method, shown in exploded
relation; and
[0013] FIG. 8 is a side elevational view of the components shown in
FIG. 7 joined together through the use of the claimed method.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE
INVENTION
[0014] Generally, in the cabinet making trade, machining operations
required for making mortise and tenon joints for joining panels
together are performed on a CNC router. The various components
comprising the main body of a kitchen cabinet, as an example, are
generally machined on a flatbed CNC router, from full sized sheets
of panel stock. The process also may be carried out using a
handheld portable router, or by using ordinary cabinetmakers' hand
tools, although the latter is considered more of an art than a
craft.
[0015] Referring to FIG. 3 of the drawings, in a typical
manufacturing environment utilizing a CNC machine 301, components
are manufactured by first loading a tool-path program into the
machine control 302. Material in the form of full sized sheet stock
is then placed upon worktable 302 of the CNC machine. The tool-path
program through the computer component of the machine control 302
then guides the tool 304 through multiple program cut paths,
producing components that will be configured for assembly into a
final product, upon removal from the machine's worktable. FIG. 4
illustrates a set of completed panels 401 and a completed unit 402
assembled from such panels.
[0016] Referring to FIG. 5, there is illustrated a cutting tool 501
designed to produce a side wall configuration of a groove, in a
workpiece. The tool consists of an elongated cylindrical body,
adapted to be inserted into a collet of a machine spindle, and is
provided with a plurality of annular recesses at an end thereof and
a pair of longitudinally extending, diametrically opposed grooves
in the lower circumferential surface thereof cooperating with such
annular recesses to provide a cutting tool configuration functional
to produce a serrated cutting pattern. Multiple teeth 502 of the
tool impart the unique serrated configuration depicted in the side
wall of the groove in work piece 602 shown in FIG. 6. The profile
of each tooth formed by the plurality of annular recesses is
configured in a manner whereby the upper most edge tapers to a
point on the outer circumference of the tool. The tool cuts the
material in a manner so as to produce tapered projections on the
side wall of, a mortise slot.
[0017] Referring to FIG. 6, the tool shown in FIG. 5, is designed
to cut the mortise in two or more passes as depicted in the diagram
identified by the reference numeral 601, providing for chip removal
as well as for more finely machining the width of the mortise to a
precise dimension. The tool may enter the work piece from an end
thereof or it may enter the material through the top surface for
producing blind dados or pocket mortises. The tapered side wall
projections are best illustrated in the recess formed in workpiece
602 shown in FIG. 6.
[0018] FIGS. 6 through 8 illustrate the use of the inventive method
in joining a pair of workpieces together. Initially, as shown in
FIG. 6, a mortise is formed in one of the workpieces usually by the
use of a CNC router as shown in FIG. 3. Once the mortise has been
formed, a tool as shown in FIG. 5 is utilized to form a serrated
configuration on the side walls of the mortise in workpiece 602 as
shown in FIG. 6. Next, as shown in FIG. 7, a bonding agent is
applied to mortise 70, tenon 701 of the second workpiece is aligned
with mortise 702 provided with serrated side walls 703 and tenon
701 is inserted into mortise 702 to complete the joint as shown in
FIG. 8. As tenon 701 is inserted in mortise 702 the inwardly
projecting segments of the serrated side wall surfaces of the
mortise will be caused to deform and deflect downwardly providing
an interference fit of tenon 701 in mortise 702. Such interference
fit secures the two workpieces in the desired relationship,
allowing the bonding agent to cure and thus permanently secure the
two components together in the desired relationship.
[0019] To facilitate the insertion of the tenon on one workpiece
into the mortise of the other workpiece, the surfaces of the
inwardly projecting, segments of the serrated side wall surfaces of
the mortise engaged by the tenon are sloped downwardly and inwardly
as best shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. Such sloped surfaces are provided
by forming the annular recesses in the lower end of tool 501 with
frusto-conical configurations as shown in FIG. 5.
[0020] As previously indicated, the mortises and tenons of the
workpieces to be joined by the use of the purposed method may be
provided with circular or polygonal cross-sectional configurations,
the recess of one of the workpieces may consist of a mortise,
socket, dados, pocket mortise, slot or groove and the insertable
portion of the other of such workpieces may consist, of a tenon,
rabbet or tongue.
[0021] The use of the method as described permits the production of
a set of component workpieces and the assembly of such workpieces
into a final product as shown in FIG. 4 without the use of clamping
devices as shown in FIG. 2. The cost of acquiring or producing and
the inventorying of a number of clamps as shown in FIG. 2 is
eliminated, and the time required in applying such clamping devices
is avoided thus improving productivity in the process of producing
products farmed of such workpieces.
[0022] The proposed method is particularly suited to the
manufacture of wood products such as kitchen cabinets and furniture
because of the composition of wood material which permits it to be
readily machined to provide serrated side wall surfaces in which
the projecting segments of such serrated side wall surfaces may be
readily engaged by an inserted tenon or the like and deflected
downwardly toward the bottom of the mortise in which the tenon is
inserted to provide the interference fit between the workpieces,
causing them to maintain their interrelationship, allowing an
applied bonding agent to set and thus permanently secure such
workpieces together.
[0023] From the foregoing detailed description, it will be evident
that there are a number of changes, adaptations and modifications
of the present invention, which come within the province of those
persons having ordinary skill in the art to which the
aforementioned invention pertains. However, it is intended that all
such variations not departing from the spirit of the invention be
considered as within the scope thereof as limited solely by the
appended claims.
* * * * *