PATENT ABSTRACT
A mounting fastener for a rack having a clip and a fastener coupled to the clip, wherein the fastener has a first shaped exterior adapted for insertion of the fastener into a first shaped aperture of the rack. The mounting fastener also includes a mounting adapter selectively disposed adjacent the fastener, wherein the mounting adapter has a second shaped exterior adapted for insertion of the adapter into a second shaped aperture of the rack.

PATENT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art, which may be related to various aspects of the present invention that are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.  
         [0002]     In the computer industry, components are often mounted in a rack via fasteners, which couple to apertures along the legs of the rack. The two standard aperture shapes are round and square openings. As a result, the fasteners are different depending on the type of opening, i.e., round or square, disposed in the rack. This variation in mounting fasteners and apertures increases costs and complicates mounting of components, because multiple fasteners are provided to ensure mountability of the component with the different types of racks.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0003]     A mounting fastener for a rack having a clip and a fastener coupled to the clip, wherein the fastener has a first shaped exterior adapted for insertion of the fastener into a first shaped aperture of the rack. The mounting fastener also includes a mounting adapter selectively disposed adjacent the fastener, wherein the mounting adapter has a second shaped exterior adapted for insertion of the adapter into a second shaped aperture of the rack.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0004]     Advantages of one or more disclosed embodiments may become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and upon reference to the drawings in which:  
         [0005]      FIG. 1  is an exploded perspective view of a fastener assembly and a rack-mountable device exploded from a rack in accordance with embodiments of the present invention;  
         [0006]      FIG. 2  is a partial perspective view illustrating the rack and the fastener assembly in accordance with embodiments of the present invention;  
         [0007]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the fastener assembly in accordance with embodiments of the present invention;  
         [0008]      FIG. 4  is a bottom view of the fastener assembly in accordance with embodiments of the present invention;  
         [0009]      FIG. 5  is a side view of the fastener assembly in accordance with embodiments of the present invention;  
         [0010]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of an adapter for the fastener assembly in accordance with embodiments of the present invention; and  
         [0011]      FIG. 7  is a partial perspective view illustrating a leg of the rack and the fastener assembly in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0012]     One or more specific embodiments of the present technique will be described below. In an effort to provide a concise description of these embodiments, not all features of an actual implementation are described in the specification. It should be appreciated that in the development of any such actual implementation, as in any engineering or design project, numerous implementation-specific decisions must be made to achieve the developers&#39; specific goals, such as compliance with system-related and business-related constraints, which may vary from one implementation to another. Moreover, it should be appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and time consuming, but would nevertheless be a routine undertaking of design, fabrication, and manufacture for those of ordinary skill having the benefit of this disclosure.  
         [0013]      FIG. 1  is an exploded perspective view of a rack assembly  2  having a threaded clip fastener assembly  4  and a rack-mountable device  6 , exploded from the rack assembly  2 , in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. The illustrated fastener assembly  4  comprises a threaded clip fastener  8  and a mounting aperture adapter  10 . As discussed in detail below, the threaded clip fastener  8  and mounting aperture adapter  10  facilitate attachment of the fastener assembly  4  to different types of rack assemblies  2 . For example, the threaded clip fastener  8  alone is mountable to a round opening, while inclusion of the mounting aperture adapter  10  with the threaded clip fastener  8  facilitates mounting to a square opening. Therefore, the fastener assembly  4  facilitates coupling of an attachable apparatus, such as device  6 , to the rack assembly  2  with either a round or a square-shaped configuration of apertures  12  disposed on a leg or rack structure  14  of the rack assembly  2 .  
         [0014]     The illustrated rack assembly  2  has a four-legged frame, which forms the rack structure  14 . Other embodiments of the rack assembly  2  may have different configurations and components, such as a two-legged frame, shelves, outer housing panels, electrical wiring, and so forth. Thus, the rack assembly  2  generally provides support and storage for a number of different types of components, as represented by device  6 . For example, device  6  may comprise a server, power supply, stereo component, control system, programmable logic controller, input device, display device, or other electronic or computer components. Moreover, the apertures  12  of the rack structure  14  may have different geometries or mounting configurations, such as a square, rectangular, polygonal, triangular, key-hole, oblong, or other shaped-opening.  
         [0015]     The fastener assembly  4  facilitates coupling of an attachable apparatus, such as the device  6 , with multiple different rack assemblies  2  by adapting the threaded clip fastener  8  to those different shaped apertures  12 . Such cooperation may be facilitated by insertion or removal of the mounting aperture adapter  10  from a position within the threaded clip fastener  8 . In other words, the fastener assembly  4  facilitates coupling to one shaped aperture  12  (e.g., a round opening) using the threaded clip fastener  8  alone, and facilitates coupling to a different shaped aperture  12  (e.g., a square opening) with the mounting aperture adapter  10  coupled to the threaded clip fastener  8 .  
         [0016]     In the illustrated embodiment, the fastener assembly  4  also facilitates coupling of the device  6  to the rack structure  14  by ensuring cooperation between a bolt  16 , the aperture  12 , and the threaded clip fastener  8  (e.g., a threaded hole in the fastener). Specifically,  FIG. 1  illustrates the device  6  having a mounting ear  18 , which aligns with the aperture  12 . During mounting, the bolt  16  passes through a hole in the mounting ear  18  and engages the threaded clip fastener  8  and the aperture  12  of the rack structure  14 . In one embodiment, threads on the bolt  16  engage or interlock with threads on the threaded clip fastener  8  to secure the device  6  to the rack structure  14 . Again, depending on the particular configuration of the aperture  12  (e.g., round or square), the optional mounting aperture adapter  10  cooperates with the threaded clip fastener  8  to facilitate coupling of the threaded clip fastener  8  and device  6  to the rack structure  14 . In the illustrated embodiment, the aperture  12  has a round shape and the threaded clip fastener  8  alone is configured for this round shape. Thus, the optional mounting aperture adapter  10  is not disposed within the threaded clip fastener  8 . However, other embodiments may have different shapes of the aperture  12 , which can conformingly receive the threaded clip fastener  8  without the mounting aperture adapter  10 .  
         [0017]      FIG. 2  is a partial perspective view illustrating the rack structure  14  and the threaded clip fastener  8  in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. As illustrated, the aperture  12  has a round or circular configuration  20 , which receives a central boss or cylindrical member (i.e., boss portion  44  of  FIG. 5 ). of the threaded clip fastener  8  without the mounting aperture adapter  10 . However, as mentioned above, alternative embodiments of the threaded clip fastener  8  may have a central member of another shape, such as a square, rectangular, polygonal, triangular, or oval shape, which conforms to a particular configuration of the aperture  12 . For illustrative purposes, the threaded clip fastener  8  is shown in both clipped  22  and unclipped  24  positions relative to the rack structure  14 . During assembly, this central boss or cylindrical member extends through and substantially conforms to the circular configuration  20  as the threaded clip fastener  8  wraps around opposite sides of the rack structure  14  over the aperture  12 .  
         [0018]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the threaded clip fastener  8  in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. Specifically,  FIG. 3  illustrates the threaded clip fastener  8  comprising a threaded hole  30  extending through a U-shaped clip body  32 . The threaded hole  30  also extends through an interior L-shaped support structure  33 , which supports a boss member  44  (see  FIG. 5 ) having the threaded hole  30 . Surrounding the L-shaped support structure  33  and the boss member  44  (see  FIG. 5 ), the U-shaped clip body  32  has a lip  34 , a spine  36 , and a base  38  forming a resilient U-shaped structure. The lip  34  further comprises a plurality of angled sections  40 , which progressively close onto the base  38 . Thus, the U-shaped clip body  32  of this embodiment facilitates sliding engagement of the threaded clip fastener  8  about the rack structure  14  until the tongue  33  contacts the edge of the rack structure  14  (See  FIGS. 2 and 3 ). In certain embodiments, the engagement between the tongue  33  and the edge of the rack structure  14  facilitates anti-rotation control of the threaded clip fastener  8 , thereby facilitating threaded engagement of the threaded hole  30  with the bolt  16 . Additionally, the plurality of angled sections  40  resiliently compress the threaded clip fastener  8  about the rack structure  14  to secure the threaded hole  30  in alignment with the aperture  12 . For example, the U-shaped clip body  32  may comprise a material, such as stainless steel, spring steel, or even plastic. Other embodiments of the threaded clip fastener  8  may comprise different geometric configurations and materials.  
         [0019]      FIG. 4  is a bottom view of the threaded clip fastener  8  in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. Specifically,  FIG. 4  illustrates eyelets  42 , which attach the threaded hole  30  to the U-shaped clip body  32 . However, other embodiments of the threaded clip fastener  8  may have an integral nut, latching mechanism, or other tool-based or tool-free mechanisms. For example, the threaded hole  30  may be tapped directly into the base  38  of the threaded clip fastener  8 .  
         [0020]      FIG. 5  is a side view of the threaded clip fastener  8  in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. Specifically,  FIG. 5  illustrates a boss portion  44  and a footing  46  of the U-shaped clip body  32 . During mounting, the threaded clip fastener  8  slidably and springably extends about the rack structure  14  in alignment with the aperture  12 , such that the boss portion  44  fits into the aperture  12  (see positions  24  and  22  in  FIG. 2 ). In this embodiment, a round-shaped boss portion  44  facilitates secure attachment within the correspondingly round-shaped aperture  12 . However, other embodiments of the boss portion  44  may comprise a different shape, which is adapted to fit a particular configuration of the aperture  12 . For example, the boss portion  44  may have a square, rectangular, polygonal, triangular, boss-shaped, hook shaped, oblong, or other shaped-structure.  
         [0021]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the optional mounting aperture adapter  10  in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. Specifically,  FIG. 6  illustrates an embodiment of the mounting aperture adapter  10  having a base portion  60 , a raised square portion or boss  62 , a clip portion  64 , and a round opening  66 . Inserted within the threaded clip fastener  8  (not shown), the mounting aperture adapter  10  wraps the round opening  66  about the boss portion  44  (see  FIG. 5 ), such that the mounting aperture adapter  10  changes the round-shaped exterior of the boss portion  44  to the square-shaped exterior of the raised square portion  62 . As discussed below with reference to  FIG. 7 , this raised square portion  62  extends through and conforms to a square-shaped aperture  12 , while the U-shaped clip body  32  of the threaded clip fastener  8  wraps around the rack structure  14 . Other embodiments of the optional mounting aperture adapter  10  may have other shapes for the raised portion  62 , thereby facilitating adaptation to other shapes of the aperture  12 .  
         [0022]      FIG. 7  is a partial perspective view illustrating the rack structure  14  and the fastener assembly  4  in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. Specifically,  FIG. 7  illustrates an embodiment of the rack structure  14  comprising a square contour  70  of the aperture  12 . As illustrated in  FIG. 7 , embodiments of the threaded clip fastener  8  and mounting aperture adapter  10  are shown in both an unattached position  71  and an attached  72  position relative to the rack structure  14 .  
         [0023]     In the illustrated embodiment of  FIG. 7 , the mounting aperture adapter  10  slidably engages the threaded clip fastener  8  and the clip portion  64  extends springably around the boss portion  44 . Thus, the square portion  62  surrounds the boss portion  44  for insertion into the square contour  70  of the aperture  12 . In certain embodiments, the mounting aperture adapter  10  may comprise material that facilitates attachment by being tacky, flexible, malleable, or elastic. For example, the mounting aperture adapter  10  may comprise plastic, stainless steel, or spring steel. Further, the opening  66  provides some flexibility in the clip portion  64 , thereby facilitating elastic expansion and contraction about the boss portion  44 .  
         [0024]     During mounting of the threaded clip fastener  8 , the raised square portion  62  fits geometrically within the square contour  70  of aperture  12  on the rack assembly  2 , thereby facilitating mounting with the rack structure  14  as demonstrated by the attached position  72 . In other words, this square fit between the raised square portion  62  and the square contour  70  functions both to retain the threaded clip fastener  8  at the aperture  12  and, also, to prevent rotation of the threaded clip fastener  8  as the bolt  16  threads into the threaded hole  30 . As discussed above, the attached position  72  of the fastener assembly  4  also facilitates secure coupling of the rack-mountable device  6  to the rack assembly  2 . Again, other embodiments of the raised portion  62  may comprise a shape different from the contour  70 , such as discussed above.  
         [0025]     While the invention may be susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. However, it should be understood that the invention is not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the following appended claims.