Fastener assembly

A fastener assembly of the type which is forceably driven into a support structure, e.g. by a power actuated fastener gun. The fastener assembly is defined as a bracket plate having a surface or edge portion by which it is disposed in bearing relationship to a supporting surface, and which plate is formed with a depression or formed portion which is disposed out of the plane of the bearing portion. An aperture is formed to extend through the depressed portion formed out of the plane of the bracket plate and a stud having a pointed end is frictionally retained in said aperture, the stud being retained so that the pointed end does not extend beyond the bearing surfaces or edges of the bracket plate.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
This invention is directed to an improved fastener assembly of the type 
which are intended to forceably be driven into a support wall or structure 
by a power actuated gun. 
RELATED APPLICATION 
This invention relates to improvements in fasteners of the type disclosed 
in a co-pending application, Ser. No. 785,274 filed Oct. 7, l985, and now 
abandoned for A Powder Actuated Fastening System and Fastener Assembly for 
Use Therewith. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
In the construction trades and building industries, there is a need to 
apply numerous fasteners to a support structure or wall for various 
reasons, e.g. for supporting sub-structures such as holders or clamps for 
pipes, conduits, ceilings and for various other purposes. Frequently, such 
support walls are formed of stone, brick, masonry and the like, thereby 
making the driving of a stud or fastener exceedingly difficult. 
To expedite the securing of such fasteners into concrete or masonry types 
of wall structures, there have been developed various power actuated guns 
to forceably drive or shoot such fasteners into a masonry wall. As a 
safety feature, such guns are constructed so that it is essential that the 
muzzle end of the gun be forceably pressed against the surface of the wall 
to effect a slight retraction thereof before the trigger can be actuated 
to set off the powder charge. 
The fasteners heretofore known to be used with such guns included a bracket 
and an associated stud having a pointed end extending beyond the fastener. 
The arrangement was such that when such prior known fasteners were applied 
to the gun, the pointed end of the fastener generally defined the bearing 
point against which the pressure was applied to place the gun in firing 
condition. Because the point of the stud defined the bearing point, it 
frequently happened that the gun, due to its weight, fatigue or other 
reason, would be angled off the perpendicular causing the gun to misfire 
or not fire. As a result, there frequently resulted a dangerous condition 
if the gun was not disposed perpendicular to the support structure during 
a fastener firing operation. 
The disclosure of the foregoing mentioned patent application discloses 
means for obviating the problem herein mentioned. This invention discloses 
a further solution to the problem. 
OBJECTS 
An object of this invention is to provide an improved fastener assembly of 
the type that is forceably driven into a support structure which is 
constructed so as to insure that the gun is disposed perpendicular to the 
wall so as to ensure proper actuation of the gun. 
Another object is to provide an improved fastener construction that is 
positive in operation and which can be readily fabricated with a minimum 
of parts. 
Another object is to provide a fastener assembly of the type that is 
forceably driven into a support structure which is rendered self-aligning 
to the muzzle of a fastener gun. 
Another object is to provide a fastener assembly of the type that is 
forceably driven into a support structure having a planar bearing surface 
arranged to be perpendicularly disposed to a supporting wall. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The foregoing objects and other features and advantages of this invention 
are attained by a fastener assembly which includes a bracket plate, e.g. 
an angle member, washer, or other suitably shaped member having a planar 
portion formed with a depression or recess which is disposed out of the 
plane of the planar portion, and which depression or recess is provided 
with an aperture extending therethrough. A stud having a point on one end 
and a headed portion at its opposite end is provided with a diameter which 
is sized to be frictionally secured in the aperture. The arrangement is 
such that the stud is disposed normal to the planar portion whereby the 
pointed end of the stud is disposed within the recessed or depressed 
portion. 
FEATURES 
A feature of this invention resides in a fastener assembly which includes a 
bracket member having a planar portion with an apperture disposed in a 
recessed portion so that the planar portion maintains the bracket normal 
to a support structure. 
Another feature resides in a gun fired fastener which includes a stud 
secured thereto, whereby the pointed end of the stud is recessed relative 
to the planar or bearing portion of the fastener. 
Another feature resides in a gun fired fastener assembly which includes a 
bracket member which is recessed or depressed wherein the recessed portion 
in co-operation with the head of the studs aligns the fastener assembly in 
the muzzle of the powder actuated gun.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
Referring to the drawings, there is shown in FIG. 1 a powder actuated 
fastener gun 10 of general construction. Such powder actuated guns are 
well known in the art. One such gun is manufactured by Hilti Fastening 
Systems of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Other makers make a similar tool. Such guns 
generally include a gun body 11 having a piston guide 12 in which a firing 
piston 13 is slidably mounted. Disposed in line with the piston guide 12 
is the fastener guide 14 which defines the muzzle of the gun and which 
receives the stud of the fastener assembly as will be herein described. 
The fastener guide 14 is maintained relative to the firing piston 13 by a 
base plate or nose sleeve 16 which is slidably mounted relative to the 
piston guide 12. The gun 10 is constructed so that the muzzle end of the 
gun 10, with a fastener in place therein, must be pressed perpendicularly 
to the support structure S so that the fastener guide must be slightly 
retracted before the gun can fire. Normally, the prior known fasteners had 
a stud projecting beyond the bracket which define a point contact with the 
support surface, which frequently causes the gun to be angled relative to 
the support wall S rather than being held perpendicular thereto; and 
thereby causing the gun to misfire and/or to cause undesired angulation of 
the stud which could result in serious accidents. 
In accordance with this invention, an improved fastener assembly 20 is 
provided for obviating the noted difficulties. As shown in FIG. 2, the 
fastener assembly 20 comprises a bracket or plate member 21, which is 
illustrated as an angled member having angularly disposed leg portions 21A 
and 21B. At least one leg portion, e.g. 21B, is provided with a recessed 
or depressed portion 23 which is disposed out of the plane of the leg 
portion 21B. The other leg portion 21A may be provided with an apperture 
24 which may have suspended or secured therefrom a cable or wire for 
supporting framework of a suspended ceiling, conduits, pipes, etc. 
In the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 2, the recessed portion is shown to 
be circular in shape and is sized so as to be snugly received in the end 
of the nozzle or fastener guide 14 of the gun 20. The bottom 23A of the 
recessed or depressed portion is provided with a hole or apperture 25 
which extends therethrough. A stud 26 having a shank portion and a pointed 
end 26A is provided with a shank diameter which is sized so as to be 
frictionally retained to the hold or apperture 25, as best seen in 2A. The 
arrangement is such that the stud 26 is securely retained by a tight 
friction fit to the leg portion 21B so that pointed end 26A of the stud 26 
does not extend beyond the planar surface of the leg portion 21B. The stud 
26 is provided at its other end with a headed portion 26B. As best seen in 
FIGS. 1 and 2A, the headed portion 26B is formed with a diameter slightly 
less than the internal diameter of the fastener guide 14. Thus, as seen in 
FIG. 2A, the recessed or depressed portion 23, together with the headed 
end 26B of the stud, cooperate to define spaced apart bearing surfaces for 
maintaining the stud and associated bracket plate 21 normal or 
perpendicular to the axis of the gun muzzle. Also, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 
and 2A, the leg portion circumscribing the depressed or recessed piston 
forms a planar surface, which in the operative position bears normal to 
support wall S as best seen in FIG. 1, with the pointed end 26A of the 
stud interposed between the bottom 23A of the recess and the support wall 
S in the operative position. Thus, as seen in FIG. 1, the fastener bracket 
21 and associated stud 26 are disposed normal to the wall to insure proper 
firing of the gun. The planar surface of the fastener thus insures that 
the gun with a fastener, as described, loaded thereto, will permit the 
user to automatically insure that the gun is disposed normal to the wall 
S. 
It will be understood that the fastener member 21 may assume other shapes 
than as angle member. The fastener member may be a washer, a pipe clamp, 
and other shaped member. 
FIG. 3 illustrates a modified fastener assembly. As shown, the fastener 
assembly 30 is also illustrated as an angle member 31 having opposed leg 
portions 31A and 31B. In this form of the invention, one leg member, e.g. 
leg portion 31A, is provided with a U-shaped channel formed therein, where 
the bottom 32 of the U-shaped channel is provided with an apperture 33 for 
frictionally receiving a stud 34 as herein described. As shown, the stud 
34 is tightly retained to the apperture 33 as herein described so that the 
pointed end 34A is disposed within the U-shaped channel portion. In this 
construction, the portions or surfaces 36 and 37 extending laterally to 
either side of the channel define planar bearing surfaces to engage the 
supporting wall S when the fastener 30 is fitted to the gun 10 for 
placement. 
FIG. 4 illustrates a further embodiment. In this form, the bracket 40, 
shown as an angle member provided with one leg portion 40A which is 
arcuate or bowed to define a pair of opposed bearing edges 41 and 42. 
Centrally disposed in the arcuate portion is an apperture 43 to which a 
stud 44, as herein described, is frictionally secured. As shown, the 
pointed end of the stud 44 is below a plan which contain the opposed 
bearing edges 41, 42. It will be apparent that when the fastener assembly 
40 is fitted to the muzzle of the gun 20 for placement, that the opposed 
edges 41 and 42 will bear against the wall S to perpendicularly align the 
gun to the wall. 
FIG. 5 illustrates another modified embodiment. In this form, the fastener 
assembly 50 is similar to the embodiment of FIG. 2, which the exception 
that the recessed portion 51 may be provided with an overall diameter 
greater than the internal diameter of the fastener guide 14 of the gun. 
With an enlarged recess diameter as shown in FIG. 5, the end of the muzzle 
or fastener guide 14 will bear on the bottom wall portion 51A of the 
recessed portion. In this embodiment, the stud 52 is frictionally retained 
in an appropriate sized hole formed in the bottom of the recessed portion, 
with the pointed end of the stud disposed to one side of the planar 
portion 55 of the angled bracket 50. 
In each embodiment described, the stud is frictionally secured with the 
pointed end disposed to the outer side of the bearing surface or edge of 
the respective fasteners when placed against a supporting surface. With 
the fasteners described, two components are required, i.e., the plate 
member and the stud. Also, the bracket plate may take any desired bracket 
configuration so long as a portion or planar surface thereof is provided 
with a recess, depression or the like, which is greater than the length of 
the exposed stud tip. 
While the foregoing has been described with respect to several embodiments 
thereof, it will be appreciated and understood that variations and 
modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of 
the invention.