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:
Dec. 18, 2012
Filed:
Apr. 16, 2012
Greg Alan Ritter, Hamburg, MI (US);
Anthony Beckman Hays, Jackson, MI (US);
Peter Tchoryk, Jr., Ann Arbor, MI (US);
Jane Camile Pavlich, Ann Arbor, MI (US);
Gregory Joseph Wassick, Petersburg, MI (US);
Greg Alan Ritter, Hamburg, MI (US);
Anthony Beckman Hays, Jackson, MI (US);
Peter Tchoryk, Jr., Ann Arbor, MI (US);
Jane Camile Pavlich, Ann Arbor, MI (US);
Gregory Joseph Wassick, Petersburg, MI (US);
Michigan Aerospace Corporation, Ann Arbor, MI (US);
Abstract
For each capture mechanism of a plurality of three capture mechanisms, a necked coupling element received by a corresponding socket slides therealong and engages a corresponding latch lever biased in an open position and rotates the latch lever to a closed position as the necked coupling element is slid within the socket towards a bottom thereof. A latch locked biased against the latch lever engages a notch in the latch lever when the latch lever is closed so as to latch the latch lever in the closed position and thereby capture the necked coupling element within the socket. The latch lever is unlatched by releasing the latch lock from engagement with the latch. Different latch levers incorporate different shaped surfaces that engage different corresponding necked coupling elements captured thereby so as to provide for respectively constraining in one, two and three degrees-of-freedom, respectively.