The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 13, 1994
Filed:
Aug. 12, 1993
Brady J Lennon, Freeland, MI (US);
Howard D Beauch, Frankenmuth, MI (US);
Russell L Herlache, Saginaw, MI (US);
General Motors Corporation, Detroit, MI (US);
Abstract
A method of making a plastic ball sleeve assembly includes the steps of forming a flat plastic sleeve blank, cold forming a plurality of ball sockets in the sleeve blank, cold forming a plurality of integral living hinges in the sleeve blank, inserting respective ones of a plurality of hard metal spheres in corresponding ones of the ball sockets, cold forming the sleeve blank to define retaining means at each ball socket operative to retain the spheres in the sockets while exposing surface segments of the spheres on opposite sides of the sleeve blank, and flexing the sleeve blank at the living hinges until opposite end edges of the sleeve blank abut whereby a tubular ball sleeve assembly is achieved. In a preferred embodiment, interlocking tangs and notches are formed in edges of the sleeve blank which interlock to capture the tubular shape of the ball sleeve assembly.