Connecting device

#The present invention relates to a connecting device.

#There are several conventional systems and devices for joining various types of components together. It is generally desirable for connectors to be economical to produce and it is also beneficial if they are easy to fit. In many cases, such as in the construction industry, the connection needs to be durable and strong and should require minimal onsite operations and little or no additional mechanical fixings. It is also often desirable for the connector to be releasable.

#According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a connecting device including:

#The invention may be performed in various ways, and, by way of example only, embodiments thereof will now be described, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

#FIG. 1 illustrates schematically a perspective view of an inner component of an embodiment of the connecting device;

#FIG. 2 is a sectional view through line A-A′ of FIG. 1;

#Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, an inner component 100 of the connecting device is shown. The component 100 in the example is formed of a single sheet of material, but it will be understood that it could be formed of separate components. The sheet may be formed of a material (or a laminate formed of one of more materials) that is elastic, ductile, malleable, hard, strong in tension, compression and shear, with a strong yield strength. The material(s) may be selected from alloys, metals (e.g. steel, aluminium, copper or Titanium) and/or non-metal(s) (e.g. plastics, including thermosetting glass (or carbon fibre)-reinforced plastics). The thickness and other dimensions of components of the connecting device will be selected in accordance with the particular application for which the device is intended, e.g. the magnitude of the load to be transferred. The thickness of the component 100 may be uniform or non-uniform. The sheet is formed so that the component 100 includes a first portion 101A and a second portion 101B that are connected together by means of a connecting portion generally shown at 104.

#Each of the portions 101A, 101B is substantially flat (although it could be formed to have another shape) and in the example, the connection portion 104 is formed of a bent portion of the sheet located between the lower ends of the portions 101A, 101B. The connecting portion 104 has a generally “inverted V” shape (but could include further bends to form a “W” like shape) and the flexible nature of the sheet of material used for the inner component 100 means that the connecting portion 104 (which can be thought of as a hinge) can be compressed to move the two portions 101A, 101B at least partially towards each other upon application of a suitable force.

#In FIG. 2, the portion 101A extends upwards from the left hand (lower) tip of the inverted V shape connection portion 104 to the left at an angle. In general, the magnitudes of angles of portions of the connecting device will be dependent on the elasticity of the material(s) used and the required deformation. The angle at which portion 101A extends with respect to the normal, may be subject to design, as small as possible, e.g. between around 5° and 45° to the normal. A portion 101B extends upwards from the right hand tip of the connecting portion 104 to the right at an angle of around 5° to 45° to the normal. Thus, the general outline of the first 101A and second 101B portions when viewed from the side (as in FIG. 2) is two converging lines forming a generally truncated V shape (that is substantially symmetrical about a notional central line) that defines an open internal space generally indicated at 105. The surface of portion 101A remote from the internal space 105 is labelled 102A and the surface of portion 101B remote from the internal space 105 is labelled 102B.