Snap-in bushing and frame devices for mounting in a hole in a panel

Abstract

A round plastic bushing and frame for an electric switch wherein the bushing has a flared collar that is radially squeezed when it is pressed through a round hole from the back of a mounting panel and spreads out in front so that its edge locks the bushing to the panel for great strength retention. A pair of integral spring fingers press against the back of the panel to keep the collar tight against the front of the panel. The integral frame has a pair of parallel arms that hug the switch base and are terminated in hooks that engage notches on opposite sides thereof to secure the integral bushing and frame to the base. In a first version where the bushing and frame cannot be molded integrally into final form, the collar is molded as a radial flange on the projecting end of the bushing and, after removal from the mold, is formed into a frusto-conical collar around the tip of the bushing for snap-in mounting. In a second version, the retainer end of the bushing having the snap-in collar thereon is molded separately from the frame and remainder of the bushing, and the two parts are ultrasonically welded together. In a third version, the retainer part of the bushing is molded as a separate snap-in tubular liner that is snap-inserted into the lower part of the bushing that is molded integrally with the frame. In a fourth version, the retainer part of the bushing is molded as a separate snap-in tubular liner and its lower end is then inserted into and flared to grip the lower end of the remainder of the bushing that is molded integrally with the frame.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.