ELECTROSTATIC CLUTCH FOR POWER TOOL

• Main Authors: HOWARD, Geoffrey S, VELDERMAN, Matthew J, LAZZARO, Matthew
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French; German
• Published: 21.02.2024
• Subjects: BLASTING; BRAKES; CLUTCHES; COMBINATION OR MULTI-PURPOSE TOOLS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDEDFOR; COMPONENTS OR ACCESSORIES THEREFOR; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER; COUPLINGS FOR TRANSMITTING ROTATION; DETAILS OR COMPONENTS OF PORTABLE POWER-DRIVEN TOOLS NOTPARTICULARLY RELATED TO THE OPERATIONS PERFORMED AND NOTOTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRIC MACHINES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRICITY; ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVEFUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; GENERATION; HAND TOOLS; HEATING; LIGHTING; MANIPULATORS; MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; NAILING OR STAPLING MACHINES IN GENERAL; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; PORTABLE POWER-DRIVEN TOOLS; SAWS FOR WOOD OR SIMILAR MATERIAL; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL; TRANSPORTING; WEAPONS; WORKING OR PRESERVING WOOD OR SIMILAR MATERIAL

A power tool that includes a housing, a motor, an end effector, an electrostatic clutch assembly, and a control circuit is provided. In a first mode of operation, the control circuit causes a first voltage to be applied to a first electrode and a different second voltage to be applied to a second electrode, generating a first attractive force between the first and second electrodes, which causes an output member to rotate together with an input member when a torque on the output member is less than or equal to a first threshold value and which causes the output member to rotationally slip relative to the input member when the torque on the output member exceeds the first threshold value, interrupting torque transmission from the input member to the output member.