Winch winding tool

Flat bed trucks and other industrial and commercial vehicles often employ one or more straps for securing the load to be hauled in the bed of the vehicle. Typically, each strap is wound on a standard winch mechanism mounted to the bottom or side of the vehicle bed. The winch employs a ratchet and a cam that is selectively disengaged from the ratchet so that the strap may be pulled across and engaged with the load. When the desired length of strap is deployed, the cam is re-engaged with the ratchet to prevent the strap from further unwinding. After the vehicle has completed its trip, the strap, is disengaged from the load and wound back onto the winch. The cam and the ratchet are configured so that the cam rides over the ratchet while the strap is being re-wound.


Rewinding the loading strap onto the winch is typically a very tedious and time consuming task. The worker manually grasps and turns the end of the spindle that projects axially from the side of the winch opposite the ratchet. For winches used in standard industrial flat bed trucks, approximately 40 turns of the spindle are required to fully wind the strap back onto the winch. This effort is compounded considerably because most trucks employ a pair of winch mounted fastening straps. When a number of vehicles are involved in a delivery, the manpower required to rewind all of the straps can be considerable. This not only adds time and expense to a job, it can be extremely wearisome for the driver or other worker to perform the rewinding.


This invention features a power driven tool or adapter for winding a standard winch. The winch for which this tool is used includes a yoke and a generally tubular spindle mounted rotatably in the yoke. The spindle includes a central opening and pair of generally opposed apertures formed radially in the circumferential surface of the spindle. An elongate strap or other flexible component is wound on the spindle. An inner portion of the strap or other flexible component extends through the generally opposed apertures of the spindle and across the central opening. At least one end of the spindle is open such that the central opening of the spindle is exposed. The tool of this invention includes an elongate body portion connected to and extending from a head portion. The body portion includes a slot formed longitudinally therein. The head portion carries means for lockably and releasably interengaging a standard rotary driven power apparatus such as an electric or pneumatic wrench or drill. The elongate body of the adapter tool is introduced into the central opening of the winch spindle such that the longitudinal slot of the body portion receives the inner portion of the flexible component extending across the central opening. The rotary driven power tool is operated to axially rotate the elongate body. The body engages the inner portion of the flexible element, which drives the spindle rotatably. As a result, the flexible component is wound onto the spindle.


In a preferred embodiment, the elongate body has a generally tubular shape. The longitudinal slot in the body portion may include a generally parallel pair of slotted portions that communicate with an axial opening formed through the body portion. The means for lockably and releasably interengaging may include a driver receptacle formed in the head portion. The driver receptacle may communicate with the axial opening formed to the body portion. The driver receptacle preferably has a square shape. Typically, a complementary shaped driver component (e.g. a square drive) is attached to and driven rotatably by the rotary driven power apparatus. The drive component is inserted into and thereby lockably interengaged with the driver receptacle in the head portion of the winch winding tool. When the power driver is operated, the drive component rotates the head portion and thereby axially rotates the elongate body portion of the adapter tool. This causes the engaged flexible component and spindle to be wound as previously described.


In operation, the winch winding tool 10b is attached to power apparatus 12b through universal joint 99b. The winch winding tool is engaged with the winch strap as described above and apparatus 12b is operated to rotatably drive tool 10b and wind the winch strap. Once again, the steps of this operation are analogous to those previously described. In the versions shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the universal joints 99a, 99b allow the crank and power apparatus to be oriented at convenient angles to the winch so that winding may be accomplished more quickly, comfortably and efficiently.


As in the prior embodiments, it should be noted that the construction of the universal joint depicted in FIG. 7 may be varied within the scope of this invention. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, an alternative universal joint 99c may be interengaged with the head portion 50c of the winch winding tool. In this embodiment, the permanently fixed ears projecting rearwardly from the head portion are eliminated. Instead, an inner universal joint component 115c is snugly and conformably interengaged with axial receptacle 54c in head portion 50c. Component 115c is interconnected by a vertical pin 117c to an intermediate universal joint component 119c, which is in turn pivotably attached to an outer universal joint component 121c by a horizontal pin 123c. Component 121c is itself lockably interengaged with a socket 123c carried at the end of extension 111c of hand held rotary power apparatus 12c. Once again, the power apparatus is releasably interengaged with universal joint 99c and the universal joint is, in turn, releasably and lockably interengaged with receptacle 54c of winder tool 10c. The power apparatus is then operated to rotate the winding tool. That tool is interengaged with and rewinds the winch strap in the previously described manner.


It should be understood that various other types of universal joint connections and various other forms of releasable and permanent connections may be employed to operably attach the winch winder tool to either a hand crank or a power rotary apparatus. The particular form of the interconnection is not a limitation of this invention and various other types of interconnections, which are obvious to persons skilled in the art, may be employed.


From the foregoing it may be seen that the apparatus of this invention provides for a tool or adapter that permits a winch to be wound quickly and conveniently using a conventional power tool. While this detailed description has set forth particularly preferred embodiments of the apparatus of this invention, numerous modifications and variations of the structure of this invention, all within the scope of the invention, will readily occur to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is understood that this description is illustrative only of the principles of the invention and is not limitative thereof.