Patent ID: 9377135
Filing Date: 2016-06-28
CPC Classification: F16B,F16L

Claim Text:
1. A stackable fastener comprising: a body having an annular shape including a central bore defining a central axis, said bore having a distal end and a proximal end, said bore forming an opening at its proximal end with said central bore being tapered to have a diameter smaller at the bore's proximal end than the bore's distal end; a plurality of flexible fingers extending axially and distally from said body at said bore's distal extremity; a force member within said bore and fingers and rotatable about said body's central axis, said force member forcing said fingers radially outward when said force member is rotated to a first rotational position to push said fingers outward, and said fingers retracting inward when said force member is rotated to a second rotational position to not push said fingers outward in said central bore; and said fingers and bore constructed so that the stackable fastener is stackable upon like stackable fasteners wherein said fingers are sized to slide through a stackable fastener's opening into a stackable fastener's central bore when said force member is positioned in the second rotational position and said fingers are positioned inward, and said fingers are sized to lock within a stackable fastener's central bore when said force member is positioned in the first rotational position and said fingers are positioned outward.