Nut plate assembly and methods of using the same
AssigneeFatigue Technology, Inc.
InventorsLeonard Frederick Reid, Timothy Howard Johnson, James Ryunoshin Ross
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A nut plate assembly includes a nut retainer and a bushing for expanding a tubular body of the retainer. The retainer assembly is used to cold work an opening of a workpiece in order to fix the nut retainer assembly relative to the workpiece. A nut member can be snapped into the retainer. A method of installation includes passing a mandrel through the bushing to radially expand the bushing into a tubular body of the retainer. The tubular body is compressed between the workpiece and bushing as the bushing is displaced radially causing corresponding radial displacement of the tubular body. The expanded bushing applies pressure to the tubular body for a desired fit between the nut retainer and workpiece.
Claims20
An assembly for retaining a nut member, the assembly comprising:
- a nut retainer including a nut retaining section and an expandable tubular body connected to the nut retaining section, the nut retaining section including an abutment portion configured to contact a workpiece when the expandable tubular body is positioned in an opening of the workpiece, the expandable tubular body including a tubular body inner surface surrounding a tubular body passageway and defining a tubular body inner perimeter;
- and
- a bushing including a bushing outer surface defining a first outer perimeter and a bushing inner surface at least partially surrounding a bushing passageway, the first outer perimeter substantially equal to or smaller than the tubular body inner perimeter, the bushing passageway adapted to receive a mandrel capable of radially expanding the bushing and the tubular body when the tubular body circumferentially surrounds the bushing so as to form a first interference fit between the tubular body and the workpiece and a second interference fit between the bushing outer surface and the tubular body inner surface.
An installation comprising:
- a workpiece including a first side, a second side, and an opening extending between the first side and the second side, the opening having a longitudinal length;
- and
- a retainer assembly comprising a tubular section having been expanded to provide radial expansion along at least most of the longitudinal length of the opening of the workpiece, the retainer assembly further comprising
- a nut,
- a retainer including a nut retaining section and an expanded tubular body, the nut retaining section adapted to receive and retain the nut and to physically contact the first side of the workpeice, the expanded tubular body extending through at least a portion of the opening and having a passageway, and
- an expanded bushing extending through the passageway of the tubular body and having a bushing passageway,
- wherein the tubular section of the retainer assembly includes the tubular body of the retainer and the bushing.
A method of installation comprising:
- positioning a tubular body of a nut retainer in an opening of a workpiece such that a nut retaining section of the nut retainer is on a first side of the workpiece and the tubular body extends away from the nut retaining section towards a second side of the workpiece opposing the first side, the nut retaining section is being adapted to receive and hold a nut member;
- positioning a bushing in a passageway of the tubular body of the nut retainer;
- and
- expanding the bushing using a mandrel to cause radial expansion of both the tubular body and a surface of the workpiece that defines the opening.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.