Pole hedge trimmer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10375896-B2
Application number	US-201715491185-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 19, 2017
Priority date	Apr 21, 2016
Publication date	Aug 13, 2019
Grant date	Aug 13, 2019

Abstract

A pole hedge trimmer which is balanced about a pole axis and which has a handle which can be operated with a single hand to orient the trimming blade at a desired trimming angle. A pole hedge trimmer having a trimmer assembly having a motor unit and a trimmer unit, in which the trimmer assembly is supported by a pole at a distance from a power unit and the motor unit and trimmer unit are generally in balance with one another about a pole axis. The pole hedge trimmer can have a position system for orienting a trimmer blade using an orientation handle configured for one-handed operation by an operator to position the trimmer blade. The pole hedge trimmer can be a low-profile hedge trimmer allowing for very close trimming to surfaces.

First claim

We claim:

1. A power tool, comprising:
a main body housing comprising a power unit configured at a distance from a trimmer assembly by a support member;
said trimmer assembly having a motor unit powered by said power unit and configured to drive a trimmer unit having a trimmer axle about which a trimmer head having at least one of a trimmer blade can be rotated by an operator to configure said at least one trimmer blade at a desired trimmer angle; and
said motor unit and said trimmer unit are located on opposing sides of said support member and are generally in balance with one another about a support member axis.

2. The power tool according to claim 1 , wherein said motor unit has a motor which provides power to drive at least one of said trimmer blade; and
said motor and said trimmer blade are located on opposing sides of the support member axis.

3. The power tool according to claim 1 , wherein the motor unit and trimmer unit are configured generally in balance and do not impart a rotational moment to the power tool about the support member axis.

4. The power tool according to claim 1 , wherein the motor unit has
a motor that generates a motor torque, and
wherein said motor is configured such that the direction of the motor torque does not impart a torque about the support member axis.

5. The power tool according to claim 1 , wherein the trimmer head has a trimmer axle and said motor generates a motor torque, and
wherein said motor is configured such that a direction of said motor torque is perpendicular to a trimmer axle centerline.

6. The power tool according to claim 1 , wherein said trimmer assembly has a trimmer assembly center of gravity and said trimmer blade has a blade tip; and
wherein said trimmer assembly center of gravity is configured between a support member end and said blade tip when said trimmer blade is oriented in a configuration for a trimming operation.

7. The power tool according to claim 1 , wherein the power tool is a hedge trimmer.

8. A hedge trimmer, comprising:
a power unit powering a motor unit of a trimmer assembly;
said trimmer assembly having a trimmer unit having a trimmer head having at least one trimmer blade driven by said motor;
said trimmer assembly having a position system for orienting said at least one trimmer blade to a trimmer angle;
said position system having an orientation handle adapted for one-hand operation to move and lock said trimmer head;
said position system having a locked state and an unlocked state:
when in said unlocked state said position system allows said at least one trimmer blade to move to an orientation having a trimming angle:
when in said locked state said position system fixes the trimmer blade at said trimming angle; and
wherein said orientation handle comprises an orientation handle trigger which when triggered by a force of one hand of an operator achieves the unlocked state of the position system allowing said at least one trimmer blade to move to an orientation having a trimming angle by the motion of said one hand of an operation upon said orientation handle.

9. The hedge trimmer according to claim 8 , wherein said trimmer head is rotatably mounted on a trimmer axle and said orientation handle is configured to rotate said trimmer head about said axle by the motion of one hand of an operator when the position system is in said unlocked state.

10. The power tool according to claim 8 , wherein said position system comprises an orientation lock disk configured between said motor unit and said trimmer unit.

11. The hedge trimmer according to claim 8 , further comprising:
a support member supporting said trimmer assembly at a distance from said power unit;
said support member having a support member axis; and
wherein said motor unit and said trimmer unit are located on opposing sides of said support member axis and are generally in balance with one another about said support member axis.

12. The hedge trimmer according to claim 8 , further comprising:
a support member supporting said trimmer assembly at a distance from said power unit;
said support member having a support member axis;
wherein said motor drives an eccentric which drives at least one trimmer blade; and
wherein said motor and said eccentric are configured on opposing sides of an axis of the support member.

13. The hedge trimmer according to claim 8 , wherein the motor has a rotor axis which is parallel to a trim plane of the at least one trimmer blade.

14. The hedge trimmer according to claim 8 , wherein the motor has a rotor axis and the hedge trimmer has a trimmer head having an eccentric which imparts power to said at least one trimmer blade; and
wherein said eccentric has an eccentric axis which is not parallel to the rotor axis.

15. The trimmer blade position system of claim 8 , wherein said orientation handle is configured to engage and disengage an orientation lock pin with a lock opening of an orientation lock disk.

16. A low-profile hedge trimmer, comprising:
a power unit configured at a distance from a trimmer assembly by a support member;
said trimmer assembly having a trimmer axle about which a trimmer head having at least one of a trimmer blade can be rotated by an operator to configure said at least one trimmer blade at a desired trimmer angle;
said trimmer axle having an axle centerline; and
said trimmer blade having a lower face which has a lower face distance from the axle centerline of 60 mm or less.

17. The low-profile hedge trimmer according to claim 16 , further comprising:
a first trimmer blade and a second trimmer blade having a blade interface between them; and said blade interface distance from said axle centerline of 50 mm or less.

18. The low-profile hedge trimmer according to claim 16 , wherein said trimmer blade has a lower blade face clearance of 7.5 mm or less.

19. The low-profile hedge trimmer according to claim 16 , wherein the support member is a pole and the trimmer head has a center of gravity of 20 mm or less from a pole centerline axis.

Assignees

• Black & Decker Inc

Inventors

• Sheffer Joshua
• Miller Mark
• Busschaert Jason

Classifications

• A01G3/053 Primary

  motor-driven · CPC title

• B25G1/04

  telescopic; extensible; sectional · CPC title