Snap apart rivet holder

A rivet holding system for holding and aligning a plurality of rivets for driving through apertures in an upper belt fastener plate and through a belt and into apertures in a lower belt fastener plate, said rivet holding system comprising:

• rivet guide block means including a plurality of elongated, vertically extending passageways, each for receiving one of the rivets and for guiding the same in vertical movement into the apertures in the upper plate fasteners and through the belt to the apertures in the lower plate fastener;
• means for releasably supporting a plurality of rivets in a predetermined orientation and spacing, corresponding to the orientation and spacing of the passageways in the rivet guide block means, for group insertion of the rivets into the rivet guide block means, the releasable supporting means comprising:
• a body having first and second portions releasably joined together;
• the body having a plurality of apertures therein to receive and hold the rivets in a predetermined orientation and spacing;
• and
• releasable means joining the first and second portions together when in a first position and movable to a second snapped-apart position releasing the rivets as a group in the rivet guide block means for being driven by a tool.

A device for releasably supporting a plurality of rivets in a predetermined arrangement for group insertion into a plurality of apertures in a belt fastener, the device comprising:

• a first component having a first vertical supporting surface and having an upper and lower surface and having a pair of laterally extending engaging pins;
• a second component having a second vertical supporting surface and having an upper surface and a lower surface, with a pair of vertically extending slots extending from said upper surface for engageably receiving said pair of first component pins to pivotally interconnect said first and second components in a substantially coplanar relation, said slots being defined by opposing vertically extending sidewalls;
• said first supporting surface and said second supporting surface being adjacent one another when said first and second component are interconnected, with said first supporting surface and said second supporting surface defining a plurality of apertures at their interface with the first and second supporting surfaces engageably receiving and supporting said plurality of rivets thereat;
• said first component and said second component being biased apart by the force of said rivets bearing against said first and second supporting surfaces;
• and
• said first component engaging pins bearing against said second component vertical slot sidewalls while said first component and said second component are substantially coplanar to retain the pins within the slots and thereby maintain interconnection of said first component and said second component, the pins being slidably releasably from said slots upon pivoting of said first and second components with respect to one another into a substantially non-coplanar relation to disengage said rivets.

A device for supporting a plurality of rivets in a predetermined arrangement, the device comprising:

• a first integral component having a pair of pins extending inwardly from opposite ends thereof, and further having an upper and lower surface;
• a second integral component having pin-receiving slots extending inwardly from opposite ends thereof for receiving said pins of said first component to pivotally interconnect said first and second components, and further having an upper surface and a lower surface;
• said pivotally interconnected first and second components defining a non-planar interface therebetween with a plurality of non-coplanar apertures being defined along the interface for receiving said rivets;
• said pin-receiving slits extending to said upper surface to allow said pins to be slidably disengaged from said slots through the opening in the upper surface upon sufficient pivoting of said first and second components relative to one another, by sliding of the pins through the opening at the upper surface, to release said rivets.

A device for supporting a plurality of rivets in a predetermined arrangement, comprising:

• a first component having a forward side, rearward side, outer side and inner side, with pins extending inwardly from said forward and rearward sides;
• a second component having a forward side, rearward side, outer side and inner side, with pin-receiving slots at said forward and rearward sides extending to said upper side;
• said first component being pivotally interconnected to said second component by engagement of said pins within said pin-receiving slots, whereby upon engagement of said first and second components said inner sides thereof define a non-coplanar interface having a plurality of non-coplanar annular apertures for receiving said rivets therein;
• said rivets bearing against said inner sides of said first component and said second component to bias said first component and said second component away from one another, the components remaining interconnected by said pins bearing against the inner surface of said slots;
• and
• said pins being slidably disengageable from said slots upon manual pivoting of said first component and said second component with respect to one another.

A device for supporting a plurality of rivets in a predetermined arrangement, said device comprising:

• a first component having a first non-planar supporting surface;
• a second component having a second non-planar supporting surface;
• engaging means for maintaining engagement of said first component with said second component, said engaging means having means for disengaging said first and second components upon pivoting of said first component and said second component relative to one another a predetermined amount;
• said first supporting surface and said second supporting surface being adjacent one another during engagement of said first and second components, with a plurality of apertures being defined at the interface of said first and second components for receiving and supporting said rivets;
• and
• said rivets being released upon separation of said first component and said second component as effected by said pivoting thereof.

An apparatus for holding and aligning a plurality of rivets for driving through apertures in an upper belt fastener plate and through a belt and into apertures in a lower belt fastener plate, said apparatus comprising:

• rivet guide block means including a plurality of elongated, vertically extending passageways, each for receiving one of said rivets and for guiding the same in vertical movement into the apertures in the upper plate fasteners and through the belt to the apertures in the lower plate fastener;
• and
• means for releasably supporting a plurality of rivets in a predetermined arrangement corresponding to the arrangement of said apertures in said upper belt fastener plate for group insertion of said rivets into said rivet guide block means, the releasable supporting means comprising:
• a first component having a first non-planar supporting surface;
• a second component having a second non-planar supporting surface;
• engaging means for maintaining engagement of said first component with said second component, said engaging means having means for disengaging said first and second components following insertion o said rivets into said rivet guide block means passageway;
• said first supporting surface and said second supporting surface being adjacent one another during engagement of said first and second components, with a plurality of apertures being defined at the interface of said first and second components for receiving and supporting said rivets therein;
• and
• said rivets being released upon disengagement of said first component and said second component for free standing within the rivet guide block means passageways.