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US 5,393,185 AGranted
Push-in fastener having fins with work-piece engagement ribs
AssigneeIllinois Tool Works Inc.
InventorWilliam J. Duffy, Jr.
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A push-in fastener including a head and a shank, the shank including at least one resilient fin integrally formed along its length for insertion and retention of the fastener within an aperture of an article where the fin includes at least one engagement rib formed on either side thereof for contact with the edges of the aperture and for absorbing any wear or shear caused by the edges upon insertion or removal of the fastener so the fin remains intact and maintains the originally designed insertion and retention forces.
Claims11
A push-in fastener, comprising:
- a head member;
- a shank member integrally formed with a first back side of said head and extending a predetermined distance away from said first back side of said head;
- a plurality of resilient fins formed upon a portion of said shank and independently movable with respect to each other for releasably retaining said shank within an aperture of an article, each one of said fins including a first insertion side and a second retention side;
- and
- a plurality of engagement ribs respectively provided upon at least one of said first insertion and second retention sides of each one of said fins for respective in dependent movement with its respective one of said fins with respect to other ones of said fins and ribs for contacting edge portions of said aperture during insertion or removal of said fastener into or out from said aperture and for absorbing any wear or shear caused by said aperture edge portions so that said fins remain substantially intact and insertion and removal forces provided by said fins remain substantially constant even after repeated cycles of insertion and removal of said fastener with respect to said aperture.
2 more elements
A push-in fastener, comprising:
- a head member;
- a shank member integrally formed with a first back side of said head member and extending a predetermined distance away from said back side of said head member;
- at least one set of fins integrally formed upon said shank and independently movable with respect to each other for releasably retaining said fastener within an aperture of an article, said at least one set of fins comprising a predetermined number of fins arranged in axially spaced, parallel alignment with respect to each other and extending outwardly away from said shank for a predetermined distance and at a predetermined angle, and wherein each one of said fins includes a first insertion side and a second retention side;
- and
- a plurality of engagement ribs integrally formed respectively with at least one of said first insertion and second retention sides of each one of said fins for respective independent movement with its respective one of said fins with respect to other ones of said fins and ribs for contacting edge portions of said aperture during insertion or removal of said fastener into and out from said aperture and for absorbing any wear or shear caused by said edge portions of said aperture so that said fins remain substantially intact and insertion and removal forces provided by said fins remain substantially constant even after repeated cycles of insertion and removal of said fastener into and out from said aperture of said article.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.