Blind Hole Fastener with Clicking
AssigneeIllinois Tool Works Inc.
InventorsIvan Liu, Harrison E. Sanders, Paul D. Barkauski
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A fastener assembly to attach a first part to a second part through a hole in the second part. The assembly includes a fastener that fits into the hole and a collar connected to the fastener. The collar has two sides, and from one side, two upper verification arms extend. Two lower verification arms extend from the fastener. Both sets of arms can bend when the fastener is inserted. When the fastener is fully inserted, snap features on the ends of the lower arms are designed to snap into matching cut-out features on the ends of the upper arms. This snapping action gives the user an audible feedback to indicate that the fastener is in the right position.
Claims20
A fastener assembly to couple a first component to a second component via an opening associated with the second component, the fastener assembly comprising:
- a fastener configured to secure with the second component via the opening;
- a collar coupled to the fastener and having a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface;
- a pair of upper verification arms extending from the second surface of the collar, each upper verification arm having a proximal end and a distal end;
- and
- a pair of lower verification arms extending from a surface of the fastener, each lower verification arm having a proximal end and a distal end,
- wherein each of the pair of upper verification arms and the pair of lower verification arms are resiliently deflectable during insertion of the fastener into the opening, and
- wherein one or more snap features formed in or on the distal ends of the lower verification arms are configured to move toward and mechanically engage one or more cut-out features formed in or on the distal ends of the upper verification arms to provide feedback to a user upon full insertion.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.