Abstract:
This invention pertains fasteners which are characterized by easy insertion and extraordinarily difficult separation of items that they attach together. This is achieved by a combination of snapping segments with an elastic body disposed at least under the head of the fastener. The snapping segments may comprise anti-opening and/or anti-sliding portions, which immensely increase the strength with which the fasteners hold the objects together. The elastic body in the vicinity of the bottom section of the fasteners also provides water and gas proof properties, as well as elimination of squeaking noises. Vehicles comprising objects connected together by the fastening devices described and claimed herein are part of the instant invention.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]    This application claims priority of provisional patent application No. 60/323,240, filed on Sep. 19, 2001, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
     
    
     
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    This invention pertains fasteners, and more particularly fasteners which attach one object to another object, with special emphasis to objects in the Automotive Industry.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0003]    In the original conventional technology of fasteners employed to securely attach one object to another, such as for example one part to another in the case of an automobile or an appliance, has utilized a nut on one of the two objects, usually welded or glued to the back of said object, and a bolt passing through a hole on the second object in a manner to be engaged by the nut, thereby securing the two objects together.  
           [0004]    This arrangement presents many problems, among which, one of the most important is that in the case that one object is hollow, the nut has to be in place at the back of the hollow object before assembling the two objects together. If for any reason the nut is misplaced, and/or if it becomes desirable to introduce a new fastening connection between the two objects, the task of achieving such connection becomes very difficult if not impossible for all practical purposes.  
           [0005]    The so-called “quick nuts” have also been used to connect two objects. In addition, vibration during the operation of a device, such as an automobile or appliance for example, containing the two objects results very often in loosening of the bolt or “quick nut” and in either full disassembling of the objects from each other, or in a vibration noise which is most annoying and often of unacceptable levels.  
           [0006]    Fasteners of the type described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,500,238 (Vassiliou) have been utilized to reduce considerably the potential of bolt or screw loosening and vibration. They have also eliminated the problem of having to place one member of the fastener at the back portion of the hollow object. These fasteners are placed through a slot from the front part of the hollow object. An expanding member, being usually a bolt or a screw, supports the second object by forcing the legs of the fastener (as described for example in U.S. Pat. No. 4,500,238) to open or expand, thereby securing the two objects together. The legs of the fasteners are supported by a double-layered head having an upper side and a lower side joined by side bents. The fasteners of this type have greatly improved the prevailing torque, as well as the pulling force of the system. Prevailing torque is the torque required to render a screw loose. Pulling force is the pulling force applied on the screw to the point of failure, which usually occurs at the bents.  
           [0007]    Other references representing the state of the art at this point are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,179,366 B1, 6,095,734, 5,919,019, 5,873,690,  5 , 759 , 004 ,  5 , 725 , 343 ,  5 , 636 , 891 ,  5 , 632 , 584 ,  5 , 336 , 125 ,  5 , 314 , 280 ,  5 , 249 , 900 ,  5 , 129 , 768 ,  4 , 610 , 588 ,  4 , 595 , 325 ,  4 , 495 , 380 ,  3 , 505 , 922 ,  3 , 486 , 158 ,  3 , 426 , 817 ,  2 , 707 , 013 ,  2 , 430 , 555 ,  2 , 376 , 167  and  2 , 181 , 966 .  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0008]    This invention pertains fasteners, and more particularly fasteners which attach one object to another object, with special emphasis to objects in the Automotive Industry. More particularly, this invention pertains a spring fastener comprising:  
           [0009]    a head portion having an upper side, and a lower side, the upper side having an engageable hole on which a securing member can engage and pass through;  
           [0010]    an elastic body disposed at least under the lower side of the head portion; and  
           [0011]    a body portion extending from the lower side of the head portion at a substantially right angle with respect to the head portion, the body portion comprising  
           [0012]    a front body portion and a back body portion, the front body portion and the back body portion being at least partially in proximity with each other;  
           [0013]    a front opening on the front body portion and a back opening on the back body portion, each of the openings having a respective opening bottom a respective opening top, a first opening side and a second opening side;  
           [0014]    a side body portion on each opening side;  
           [0015]    a front snapping segment connected to the front body portion in the vicinity of the opening bottom, and having a front free engagement end; and  
           [0016]    a back snapping segment connected to the back portion in the vicinity of the opening bottom, and having a back free engagement end.  
           [0017]    The presence of the elastic body at least under the lower side of the head of the fastener is of extreme importance, since, unexpectedly, in addition to its excellent sealing properties allows the snapping segments to freely pass through the slot of an object, and then to snuggly contact the lower surface of said object, a necessary requirement to prevent unacceptable rattling.  
           [0018]    The lower side of the head may have a secondary engagement section, and at least one of the side body portions may have a tertiary engagement section.  
           [0019]    At least one of the free engagement ends may comprise a section selected from anti-sliding section, anti-opening section, and a combination thereof.  
           [0020]    At least one snapping segment may be disposed at least partially along the respective side body portion and/or the respective opening.  
           [0021]    Vehicles comprising the spring fasteners of this invention, connecting two parts, one of the parts comprising a slot in which the fastener is secured by the snapping segment, are also included within the scope of the instant invention. Thus, automobiles or other vehicles may be made, comprising one or more of the fasteners of the instant invention, providing substantial improvements regarding safety, performance and comfort. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING  
       [0022]    The reader&#39;s understanding of this invention will be enhanced by reference to the following detailed description taken in combination with the drawing figures, wherein:  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of a spring fastener in the absence of the elastic body according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 2 illustrates a fragmental perspective view of the back body portion and part of the lower side of the head portion of the fastener of FIG. 1 in the absence of the elastic body.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 3 illustrates a front view of the side body portions comprising threading teeth according to another preferred embodiment of the instant invention.  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 4 illustrates a front view of a spring fastener of the instant invention, illustrating the elastic body in the region of the head portion.  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 5 illustrates the operation of the fasteners of the instant invention.  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 6 illustrates a spring fastener according to another embodiment of the present invention in the absence of the elastic body.  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 7 illustrates a spring fastener according to still another embodiment of the present invention in the absence of the elastic body.  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 8 illustrates a cross section of a straight snapping segment configuration according to another embodiment of the instant invention.  
         [0031]    [0031]FIG. 9 illustrates a cross section of a snapping segment configuration involving an anti-opening front engagement end according to another embodiment of the instant invention.  
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 10 illustrates a cross section of a snapping segment configuration involving an anti-sliding front engagement end according to another embodiment of the instant invention.  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 11 illustrates a cross section of a snapping segment configuration involving an anti-sliding front engagement end according to still another embodiment of the instant invention.  
         [0034]    [0034]FIG. 12 illustrates a perspective view of a snapping segment configuration involving an anti-sliding front engagement end according to still another embodiment of the instant invention.  
         [0035]    [0035]FIG. 13 illustrates a perspective view of a snapping segment configuration involving an anti-sliding front engagement end according to still another embodiment of the instant invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0036]    As aforementioned, this invention pertains fasteners, and more particularly fasteners which attach one object to another object, with special emphasis to objects in the Automotive Industry.  
         [0037]    As also mentioned earlier, there is a need to have one or more fasteners attached to a large first object, such as a headliner or roof-rack of a car for example, and then attach this large first object to second object, such as the inside or outside of the roof of a car, respectively, for example, by inserting at least part of the fastener into the second object, through a slot for example. An additional requirement many times is to use a rather light force for the insertion, but to require an extraordinarily high force to separate the two objects, if the fastener is not first removed, by unthreading for example a bolt or a screw which attaches the fastener to the first object. A further requirement in many occasions is that after unthreading the bolt or screw, the fastener remains attached to the second object. In other occasions, however, it is required that the two objects are separated by pulling one object away from the other object, without performing other action, such as unthreading a screw or a bolt. Another requirement in a plurality of application is that the fastener has to be attached to a specified position on the first object, and not allowed to turn. The configuration should be such that the screw or bolt could hold additional object(s), such as a car handle for example.  
         [0038]    This invention provides fasteners which have the configurations required to satisfy the above need.  
         [0039]    Referring now to FIG. 1, there is depicted, in a perspective view, a spring fastener  10  according to a preferred embodiment of the instant invention. The fastener  10  comprises a head portion  12  having an upper side  14 , and a lower side  16 . The upper side has an engageable hole  18  on which a securing member  20  (shown in FIG. 5) can engage and pass-through.  
         [0040]    An elastic body  44  (illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5), necessary for this invention has been omitted from the rest of the Figures for clarity purposes.  
         [0041]    The elastic body  44  of this invention, better shown in FIG. 4, is disposed at least under the lower side  16  of the head portion  12 . Such elastic bodies are preferably integrally molded at least at the lower side of the head portion  12 , and preferably around the whole head  12 . These elastic bodies are for example disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,725,343, and 6,379,092, both of which are incorporated herein by reference.  
         [0042]    In FIG. 2, there is depicted a fragmental view of a back lower body  22   b  as well as portion of the lower head side  16  of the fastener  10 , as explained hereinbelow.  
         [0043]    The spring fastener  10  comprises a body portion  22 , which extends from the lower side  16  of the head portion  12  at a substantially right angle with respect to the head portion  12 .  
         [0044]    The body portion  22  has a front body portion  22   a  (better shown in FIG. 1) and the back body portion  22   b  (better shown inn FIG. 2). The front body portion  22   a  and the back body portion  22   b  are at least partially in proximity with each other.  
         [0045]    For purposes of clarity, in the following discussion and in the Figures, numerals followed by the letter “a” refer to the front body portion  22   a  of the body portion  22 , and numerals followed by the letter “b” refer to the back body portion  22   b  of the body portion  22 . The two elements corresponding to the body portion  22  are referred to collectively as the respective numeral without the letter.  
         [0046]    The front body portion  22   a  has a front opening  24   a , and the back body portion  22   b  has back opening  24   b . Each of the openings  24   a  and  24   b  has a respective opening bottom  26   a  and  26   b , and a respective opening top  28   a  and  28   b . Each of the openings  24   a  and  24   b  also has a respective first opening side  30   a  and  30   b  and a respective second opening side  32   a  and  32   b.    
         [0047]    The front body portion  22   a  has side body portions  34   a , while the back body portion  22   b  has side body portions  34   b.    
         [0048]    The body portion  22  further comprises a front snapping segment  36   a  connected to the front body portion  22   a  in the vicinity of the opening bottom  26   a , and having a front free engagement end  38   a . The body portion  22  also comprises a back snapping segment  36   b  connected to the back body portion  22   b  in the vicinity of the opening bottom  26   b , and having a back free engagement end  38   b.    
         [0049]    The spring fasteners of the present invention may have a secondary engagement section at the lower side  16  of the head portion  12 . The secondary engagement section  40  comprises two arcs,  40   a  and  40   b , which are capable to engage to the securing member  20  (FIG. 5), such as a screw or bolt for example. This arrangement provides increased pulling force, which is the force required to remove the securing member  20  from the spring fastener by pulling them apart.  
         [0050]    At least part of the side body portions  34   a  and  34   b  may comprise threading teeth  42 , which create a tertiary engagement section, as better shown in FIG. 3. The threading teeth  42  engage the securing member  20  (FIG. 5), thus also providing increased pulling force. The threading teeth may be on the same plane as the respective side body portions  34   a  and  34   b  or bent to a certain degree in a manner to nest better the threads of the securing member  20 . Further, the angles of the front and the back sides of the teeth may be such as to favor easy insertion and difficult removal of the fastener, in a similar manner as the bent teeth  64  (FIG. 13, and applications incorporated by reference) discussed at a later point.  
         [0051]    Complementary engagement mechanisms which may be used in the present invention, if so desired, are described in provisional application 60/167,080 (filed Nov. 23, 1999), 60/169,447 (filed Dec. 7, 1999), 60/170,611 (filed Dec. 14, 1999), and 60/179,834 (filed Feb. 2, 2000), and non-provisional application Ser. No. 09/699,760 (filed Oct. 30, 2000), all of which are incorporated herein by reference.  
         [0052]    The fastener  10  also has an insertion region  23  ( 23   a  and  23   b ), which may be covered by a soft material, such as a plastic for example, in order to avoid scratching the surface of a part, such as the second object  52  for example shown in FIG. 5.  
         [0053]    The operation of the above embodiments is better illustrated in FIG. 5.  
         [0054]    The fastener  10  is secured on a first object  46 , such as a roof-rack or headliner for example, by passing a securing member, such as a screw or bolt  20 , for example, through hole  48  of the first object  46 , and threading said screw or bolt  20  on the engageable hole  18 . If the secondary and/or tertiary and/or other engagement sections are present, as for example described above, the securing member is engaged on these engagement sections, too.  
         [0055]    The first object  46  has preferably a recessed region  50  under the hole  48 , which serves to align and/or nest partially or totally the head portion  12  and/or the elastic body  44 . A deeper recessed region  50  allows the distance between the upper side  14  and the lower side  16  of the head portion to be large enough so that the curved regions joining the two sides are adequately gradual, thus providing considerably higher structural strength.  
         [0056]    One or more additional objects, such as a handle (not shown) for example, may also be secured by the same securing member  20  by passing said securing member through a hole (not shown) belonging to the additional object(s). More than one fasteners may be secured in a similar manner on the first object  46 . Such combinations may form an assembly, such as a roof-rack or headliner assembly for example.  
         [0057]    It is important that the length of the securing member is long enough for any desired engagements, but have a shorter length than a length which would exceed the opening bottom  26 , and thus cause any appreciable opening of the body portions  22   a  and  22   b.    
         [0058]    The assembly, such as a roof-rack or headliner assembly for example, which usually comprises more than one secured and aligned fasteners  10  in predetermined positions, is pushed by the operator against a second object, such as for example metal sheet  52 , which can be in the form of a framework in the vicinity of the roof or ceiling of the outside or inside region of a vehicle for example, having properly arranged slots  54  to accept body portion  22  of the fattener  10 . Other material may replace, however, the metal, and it should be understood throughout this disclosure that when referring to metal sheet, any other suitable material may replace the metal, or any other object or combination of objects may replace the sheet.  
         [0059]    As the body portion  22  of the fastener  10  is being pushed through the slot  54 , the snapping segments  36   a  and  36   b  are inwardly pushed until they reach a position at which the body portion is allowed to pass through the slot  54 , at which point the elastic body  44  has been compressed to a desired degree. When the body portion  22  of the fastener  10  has reached its final position, the snapping segments  36   a  and  36   b  snap back. In sequence, the insertion force is released, allowing the elastic body  44  to expand to a desired degree, and thus, the fastener  10 , as well as the whole assembly, are secured onto the metal sheet  52 .  
         [0060]    The elastic body serves also as an excellent insulator for gases and liquids, and as a noise damper.  
         [0061]    A number of parameters determine the force needed to insert the assembly into the slot  54 . These include but are not limited to the thickness, hardness and spring characteristics of the folded sheet metal from which the fastener is made, the shape and dimensions of the fastener, the length and width of the snapping segments, the angle formed by the left and right sections with the respective snapping segments, the dimensions of the slot  62 , the thickness and elasticity of the elastic body, etc. For each particular application, these parameters may be determined experimentally, or by engineering calculations, or a combination thereof without undue effort.  
         [0062]    The force to separate the assembly from the metal sheet  52  is manifold higher than the insertion force, due to the critical configurations of the instant invention, and it depends on the above parameters, but also on the characteristics of the screw or bolt  48 , the characteristics of the engageable hole or sections or other engageable elements of the fastener, etc. The multiplicity of engageable features of the fastener of the present invention, are critical in considerably increasing the ratio of the separating force to the insertion force.  
         [0063]    The utilization of more than one engageable sections is important not only for adequately strong attachment of the fastener  10  to the first object, directly or indirectly, in a manner to form an assembly, but also to combine very easy insertion of the fastener into the slot  54  of the metal sheet  52  with extremely difficult separation of the assembly from the metal sheet after the easy insertion has taken place. The importance of adequately strong attachment, despite the easy insertion, becomes even more important when a larger number of objects, and/or more demanding objects have to be supported by the fastener  10 . This is especially so in the case that a given additional object (not shown for purposes of clarity), such as an air-bag system for example, has to be attached to the upper side  56  of the first object  46 .  
         [0064]    If service is needed, and partial or total removal of the assembly of elements from the metal sheet  52  is needed, the screw(s) or bolt(s)  20  are unthreaded, and the assembly is freed from the metal sheet  52 , with the fastener, however, attached now to the metal sheet  52 . After the service, the elements may be attached in their initial position by using the screw or bolt  20  as shown in FIG. 5.  
         [0065]    In a different embodiment of the instant invention, better shown in FIG. 6, the snapping segments  36   a  and  36   b  are disposed along the side body portions  34   a  and  34   b , respectively. The fastener  10 , in this case also, may have secondary and tertiary engagement sections as well as other additional engagement sections (not shown).  
         [0066]    The operation of this embodiment is substantially the same as the operation of the above embodiments, with the difference that the snapping segments  36   a  and  36   b  are disposed along the side body portions  34   a  and  34   b  instead along the opening  24 .  
         [0067]    In still a different embodiment of the instant invention, better shown in FIG. 7, the snapping segments  36   a  and  36   b  are disposed not only along the side body portions  34   a  and  34   b , but also along the opening  24  in a continuous manner.  
         [0068]    The operation of this embodiment is substantially the same as the operation of the above embodiments, with the difference that the snapping segments  36   a  and  36   b  are disposed along the side body portions  34   a  and  34   b , as well as along the opening  24  in a continuous manner.  
         [0069]    The snapping segments of this invention may have different configurations, including but not limited to straight and curved.  
         [0070]    One example is shown in FIG. 8, wherein the snapping segment  36  has a substantially linear configuration with a free engagement end  38  as being a linear extension of the snapping segment  36 .  
         [0071]    In order to provide anti-opening properties to the snapping segment  36 , an anti-opening configuration can be used, such as the one shown in FIG. 9, for example. When the snapping segment tends to open, the prong  58 , which resides within the slot  54  (FIG. 5) during the operation, prevents such opening. This particular configuration is preferable when the failure is due to the snapping segments  36  having a tendency to open (move away from the slot on and parallel to the lower surface  60  of the sheet metal  52 ) when a separation force is applied between the first object  46  and the metal sheet  52  (see FIG. 5)  
         [0072]    Anti-sliding properties (preventing the snapping segments  36  from sliding through the slot  54  when a separation force is applied between the first object  46  and the metal sheet  52 —see FIG. 5) may be provided, especially in the case that the free engagement end  38  forms an angle with the rest of the engagement segment  36 , as illustrated for example in FIG. 11, for multi-position engagement on the slot  54 . Perspective views of examples of anti-sliding configurations are shown in FIG. 12 (ripples  62  on the free engagement end  38 ) and in FIG. 13 (bent teeth  64  on the free engagement end  38 ).  
         [0073]    It is important to note that even in the case that the free engagement end  38  is parallel to the side body portions  34  when it resides in the slot  54  (not completely passed through the slot in its final position), it can hold the first object and the metal sheet together in the case of presence of ripples  62  and/or bent teeth  38 .  
         [0074]    Further, the securing member  20  itself hinders the sliding of the snapping segments out of the slot  54 .  
         [0075]    Other examples of anti-opening and anti-sliding configurations, and more details regarding their structure, as well as other types of spring fasteners having snapping segments are disclosed in non-provisional application Ser. No. 09/969,563 (Publication No. 2002/0054808;  
         [0076]    Publication date: May 9, 2002) and provisional application 60/246,634 (filed Nov. 8, 2000), 60/249,996 (filed Nov. 20, 2000), 60/267,281 (filed Feb. 8, 2001), 60/283,266 (filed Apr. 12, 2001), 60/289,343 (filed May 7, 2001), 60/302,194 (filed Jun. 29, 2001), 60/301,164 (filed Jun. 25, 2001), 60/308,921 (filed Jul. 31, 2001), 60/310,343 (filed Aug. 6, 2001), and 60/312,867 (filed Aug. 16, 2001), all of which are incorporated herein by reference.  
         [0077]    Vehicles comprising the spring fasteners of this invention, connecting two parts, one of the parts comprising a slot in which the fastener is secured by the snapping segment, are also included within the scope of the instant invention. Thus, automobiles or other vehicles may be made, comprising one or more of the fasteners of the instant invention, providing substantial improvements regarding safety, performance and comfort.  
         [0078]    Examples of embodiments demonstrating the operation of the instant invention, have now been given for illustration purposes only, and should not be construed as restricting the scope or limits of this invention in any way.  
         [0079]    Any feature(s) described in one of the exemplary embodiments may be combined with any features incorporated in any other exemplary embodiment according to this invention.  
         [0080]    Any explanations given are speculative and should not restrict the scope of the claims.