US 12,459,087 B2
Socket driver tool
Aland Santamarina, Woodbine, MD (US); Darren B. Moss, York, PA (US); and Michael Huang, Suzhou (CN)
Assigned to BLACK & DECKER INC.
Filed by BLACK & DECKER INC., New Britain, CT (US)
Filed on Nov. 2, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/979,321.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/274,756, filed on Nov. 2, 2021.
Prior Publication US 2023/0140562 A1, May 4, 2023
Int. Cl. B25B 23/00 (2006.01); B25B 13/06 (2006.01); B25B 23/12 (2006.01)
CPC B25B 23/0035 (2013.01) [B25B 13/06 (2013.01); B25B 23/12 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A socket driving tool comprising:
an elongated shaft having a front end portion and an opposing rear end portion configured to be mounted for rotation by a hand tool or a power tool,
wherein the shaft is configured to support at least two sockets, including a first socket and a second socket, each of the at least two sockets being selectively positionable on the shaft in either a use configuration or in a storage configuration, and
a socket positioning assembly disposed on the shaft, the socket positioning assembly including:
a socket support member coupled to the shaft and configured to support the first socket in the use configuration proximate the front end portion of the shaft, and
a socket retainer coupled to the shaft and configured to retain the second socket in the storage configuration on the shaft between the socket retainer and the rear end portion of the shaft, the socket retainer being positioned between the first socket and the second socket,
wherein the shaft, rearward of the socket retainer, comprises a continuous surface without abutment to enable removal of the second socket from the socket retainer in a rearward direction, and
wherein the socket support member includes an inner flange and an outer flange, the inner flange and the outer flange have different dimensions for abutting different sized end portions of one of the first socket or the second socket.