Holster for a hand drill

Abstract

For holding a hand drill which has a main drill casing with a rearwardly projecting butt-end, a forwardly located chuck, and an elongate handle angularly related to and connecting with the main drill casing spaced from the rear extremity of the butt-end, a holster is provided including a lower receptacle capable of receiving a forward portion of the hand drill and preventing that forward portion from moving laterally away. Included is a means for resiliently urging the hand drill upwardly. The holster also includes an upper receptacle defining a downwardly opening aperture sized to slidingly receive the rearward butt-end of the casing. Structural members are provided to support the upper and lower receptacles at a fixed spacing, which is such that the hand drill can be stored by first inserting the forwarding portion into the first means, then pressing the hand drill downwardly against the urging of the resilient means until the butt-end slips into the aperture defined by the upper receptacle, then allowing the third means to move the hand drill upwardly so that the butt-end attains secure engagement with the upper receptacle.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A holster for a hand drill, the hand drill having: a main drill casing defining a rearwardly projecting butt-end, a forwardly located chuck, and an elongate handle which is angularly related to and connects with the main drill casing at a location spaced from the rear extremity of the butt-end, the holster comprising 
 a lower receptacle defining: 
 first means for receiving a forward portion of the hand drill at a central location, second means for restraining the forward portion against lateral movement away from said central location,  
 third means for resiliently urging the hand drill upwardly;  
   an upper receptacle defining: 
 a downwardly opening aperture sized to slidingly receive the rearward butt-end of the casing; and  
   structural means supporting the upper and lower receptacles at a fixed spacing from one another, the spacing being such, and the resilience of the third means being such, that the hand drill can be stored by first inserting said forward portion into said first means, then pressing the hand drill downwardly against the urging of the third means until the butt-end slips into said aperture defined by the upper receptacle, then allowing the third means to move the hand drill upwardly so that the butt-end attains a secure engagement with the upper receptacle.    
     
     
         2 . The holster claimed in  claim 1 , in which said lower receptacle includes a sleeve member, and said first means includes a coil spring received in said sleeve member, the coil spring comprising turns of spring wire, the lower receptacle further including fourth means restraining the coil spring against moving downward past a predetermined position.  
     
     
         3 . The holster claimed in  claim 2 , in which the coil spring has an upper portion where the turns of the spring wire have successively smaller radii of curvature with increasing height, terminating at an uppermost convolution sized to receive drill bits for which the hand drill is designed.  
     
     
         4 . The holster claimed in  claim 3 , in which said fourth means includes an annular member secured snugly within the bottom interior of said sleeve member, the annular member having an internal diameter too small to permit passage of the coil spring.  
     
     
         5 . The holster claimed in  claim 1 , in which the lower receptacle includes an outer sleeve member and an inner sleeve member, each sleeve member having an upper end and a lower end, the inner sleeve member being telescopingly slidable within the outer sleeve member, said first means comprising a downward converging cup member within the upper end of the inner sleeve member, the cup member being adapted to receive the chuck of said hand drill, and said third means comprising a coil spring urging upwardly against the combined inner sleeve member and cup member.  
     
     
         6 . The holster claimed in  claim 5 , in which the lower receptacle further includes fourth means restraining the coil spring against moving downward past a predetermined position, said fourth means including an annular member secured snugly within the bottom interior of said outer sleeve member, the annular member having an internal diameter too small to permit passage of the coil spring  
     
     
         7 . The holster claimed in  claim 1 , in which said structural means comprises at least one elongate member fixed with respect to said upper and lower receptacles.  
     
     
         8 . The holster claimed in  claim 1 , in which said structural means comprises two elongate members fixed with respect to said upper and lower receptacles  
     
     
         9 . The holster claimed in  claim 8 , in which the structural means supports the upper and lower receptacle such that, for ease of insertion and removal of the hand drill, the lower receptacle is angulated with respect to a hypothetical line joining the middle points of the two receptacles.  
     
     
         10 . The holster claimed in  claim 9 , in which the angulation of the lower receptacle with respect to said hypothetical line lies between 7 degrees and 13 degrees.  
     
     
         11 . The holster claimed in  claim 10 , in which said lower receptacle includes a sleeve member, and said first means includes a coil spring received in said sleeve member, the coil spring comprising turns of spring wire, the lower receptacle further including fourth means restraining the coil spring against moving downward past a predetermined position.  
     
     
         12 . The holster claimed in  claim 11 , in which the coil spring has an upper portion where the turns of the spring wire have successively smaller radii of curvature with increasing height, terminating at an uppermost convolution sized to receive drill bits for which the hand drill is designed.  
     
     
         13 . The holster claimed in  claim 12 , in which said fourth means includes an annular member secured snugly within the bottom interior of said sleeve member, the annular member having an internal diameter too small to permit passage of the coil spring.  
     
     
         14 . The holster claimed in  claim 9 , in which the lower receptacle includes an outer sleeve member and an inner sleeve member, each sleeve member having an upper end and a lower end, the inner sleeve member being telescopingly slidable within the outer sleeve member, said first means comprising a downward converging cup member within the upper end of the inner sleeve member, the cup member being adapted to receive the chuck of said hand drill, and said third means comprising a coil spring urging upwardly against the combined inner sleeve member and cup member  
     
     
         15 . The holster claimed in  claim 5 , in which the lower receptacle further includes fourth means restraining the coil spring against moving downward past a predetermined position, said fourth means including an annular member secured snugly within the bottom interior of said outer sleeve member, the annular member having an internal diameter too small to permit passage of the coil spring.  
     
     
         16 . The holster claimed in  claim 15 , in which the cup member has a central opening for receiving a bit or the like gripped in the chuck of the hand drill.