Abstract:
An improved toggle bolt assembly consisting of a toggle nut  100 , collar  200 , and screw  300 , wherein the toggle nut  100  consists of an internally threaded cylindrical sleeve  110 , a first winged member  120 , and a second winged member  130 . The cylindrical sleeve  110  of the toggle nut  100  engages with a collar  200 , acting to center the assembly, hold the toggle nut  100  and collar  200  in place without engagement of the screw  300 , and eliminate the need to apply tension to the screw  300  during installation.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    Not Applicable 
       STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
       [0002]    Not Applicable 
         [0003]    REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT DISC APPENDIX 
         [0004]    Not Applicable 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    1. Field of Invention 
         [0006]    This invention generally relates to an improved anchor, specifically the type of anchor commonly referred to as a toggle bolt. 
         [0007]    2. Prior Art 
         [0008]    Toggle bolts are used to secure objects to supportive structures such as walls. An example of a prior art toggle bolt design is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,226,261. It consists of a machine screw and a mating nut with two diametrically opposed pins which engage two wing members. These wing members rotate into a compressed orientation to allow insertion of the assembly into a hole in the supportive structure. Once positioned in the hole, the wings spring open and are brought into bearing against the surface of the supportive structure by pulling and tightening the mating screw. 
         [0009]    Of the many types of wall anchors available, toggle bolts are generally considered to possess the highest strength. Despite its superior strength however, there are a number of weaknesses in the design of prior art toggle bolts. One significant drawback is the requirement that the machine screw and mating nut be pre-assembled to the object to be secured. This is required because the prior art design relies on the screw to hold the nut in place behind the wall. As a result, the typical installation sequence is to pre-attach the screw and nut to the object to be secured, compress the attached wings, push them through a pre-drilled hole in the wall, then pull back and tighten the screw to secure the object. This sequence becomes difficult when multiple toggle bolts are required to secure a large object. For example, to mount a large cabinet with four toggle bolts would require that the cabinet be held in place while simultaneously reaching around the back of the cabinet to align, compress, and insert each toggle nut into its mating hole. A possible solution is to drill oversized holes in the cabinet and install each toggle assembly in sequence through the front. However, this requires drilling oversized holes in the cabinet which could be detrimental to its structure. It would also require the use of additional washers, and would result in a sloppy installation. 
         [0010]    A second weakness in the design of prior art toggle bolts is the requirement that tension be applied to the screw when it is being tightened. This tension is required to bring the wings nut into bearing against the inside surface of the wall to prevent the nut from rotating as the screw is tightened. This becomes a problem as the head of the screw is drawn close to the object to be secured since it becomes difficult to grasp the screw to apply the necessary tension. 
         [0011]    A third weakness in the design of prior art toggle bolts is the size of the hole which must be created in the wall relative to the size of the screw. The hole diameter must be significantly larger than the screw diameter to allow insertion of the compressed wings. As a result, the secured object can, over time, slip downward due to gravity until the screw contacts the bottom of the hole. 
         [0012]    A number of prior art toggle bolt designs have sought to alleviate the weaknesses identified above, with limited success. For example, the designs disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,203,260, RE 35,358, and 5,209,621 provide centering devices which prevent the secured objects from slipping downward over time, but do not include means to hold the nut in place without the screw, and do not provide means to prevent rotation of the nut without applying tension to the screw. 
         [0013]    The design disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,161,999 has the following weaknesses: 
         [0000]    a) The toggle bolt assembly is rendered useless if the locking collar is accidentally engaged prior to installation in the wall;
 
b) installation involves the additional step of cutting off the excess plastic legs with wire cutter or other suitable tool;
 
c) once installed in the wall, the device is difficult to remove;
 
d) once installed, further tightening of the assembly is difficult, since this would require that both leg stubs which have been cut substantially flush with the locking collar be grasped and pulled outward while simultaneously pushing in the locking collar;
 
e) the device is relatively expensive to manufacture, retailing for approximately four times the cost of a conventional toggle bolt of the same size.
 
         [0014]    The designs disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,668,144, 4,997,327, and 2,024,871 do not include means to hold the nut in place behind the wall. Similarly, the design disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,822,226 does not provide an effective means to hold the nut in place behind the wall. Although the nut would be retained by the assembly if the screw were to be removed, re-engagement of the screw with the nut would be difficult since the nut would not be visible to allow proper alignment with the screw, and the screw would have a tendency to push the nut along the retainer until it contacts the tipping finger, causing the toggle nut to tip and thereby further hindering the effort to properly align and engage the nut and screw. 
         [0015]    The design disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,389,631 will not effectively hold the toggle nut in place behind the wall. Barbs pushed into a centering plug composed of cork, rubber, Styrofoam and other similar materials do not provide a dependable means to secure the nut. In addition, dimensional constraints require that the barbs be adjacent to the inner bore of the plug and this proximity reduces the holding capability of the plug. 
       OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES 
       [0016]    The object of the present invention is to provide an improved toggle bolt design, with the following advantages over the prior art: 
         [0000]    a) the nut is effectively held in place without engagement of the screw,
 
b) the screw does not require the application of tensile force during installation,
 
c) the assembly cannot slip downward over time,
 
d) the assembly is easy to install, and can be easily removed if no longer required, and
 
e) the assembly is relatively inexpensive to manufacture.
 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0017]    The present invention incorporates an internally threaded sleeve in lieu of the prior art nut, and also incorporates a centering collar. When installed, the internally threaded sleeve, which is positioned on the inside surface of the wall skin, is engaged with a hole in the centering collar, which is positioned on the outside of the wall. These components are sized to provide a tight fit to the wall and to each other, such that they will remain in a fixed position on the wall without engagement of the screw. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING 
         [0018]      FIG. 1  is a side view of the preferred embodiment consisting of a toggle nut, collar, and screw, securing an object (shown in phantom) to a supportive structure (also shown in phantom). 
           [0019]      FIG. 2  is a side view of the toggle nut component of the preferred embodiment, shown in an expanded position. 
           [0020]      FIG. 3  is a side view of the toggle nut component of the preferred embodiment, shown in a compressed position. 
           [0021]      FIG. 4  is a sectional view of the toggle nut component of the preferred embodiment in its compressed position, taken along line  4 - 4  in  FIG. 3 . 
           [0022]      FIG. 5  is a side view of the collar component of the preferred embodiment. 
           [0023]      FIG. 6  is a front view of the collar component of the preferred embodiment. 
           [0024]      FIG. 7  is a sectional view of the collar component of the preferred embodiment, taken along line  7 - 7  in  FIG. 5 . 
           [0025]      FIG. 8  is a sectional view of the collar component of the preferred embodiment, taken along line  8 - 8  in  FIG. 5 . 
           [0026]      FIG. 9  is a side view of the screw component of the preferred embodiment. 
           [0027]      FIG. 10A  is a side view illustrating the first step of the toggle bolt installation of the preferred embodiment of the invention. 
           [0028]      FIG. 10B  is a side view illustrating the second step of the installation of the preferred embodiment of the invention. 
           [0029]      FIG. 10C  is a side view illustrating the third step of the installation of the preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0030]      FIG. 10D  is a side view illustrating the fourth step of the installation of the preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0031]      FIG. 11  is a side view of an alternate embodiment of the collar. 
           [0032]      FIG. 12  is a side view of a second alternate embodiment of the collar. 
           [0033]      FIG. 13  is a side view of an alternate embodiment of the toggle nut. 
           [0034]      FIG. 14  is a front view of the second alternate embodiment of the collar. 
           [0035]      FIG. 15A  is a side view illustrating the initial step in the abandonment of an alternate embodiment of the invention. 
           [0036]      FIG. 15B  is a side view illustrating the final step in the abandonment of an alternate embodiment of the invention. 
           [0037]      FIG. 16A  is a side view illustrating a second alternate embodiment of the toggle nut. 
           [0038]      FIG. 16B  is a side view illustrating a third alternate embodiment of the collar. 
           [0039]      FIG. 17  is a side view illustrating a third alternate embodiment of the toggle nut. 
           [0040]      FIG. 18  is an end view illustrating a fourth alternate embodiment of the toggle nut in a compressed orientation. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     FIGS.  1  Through  9   
     Preferred Embodiment 
       [0041]    The preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in  FIGS. 1 through 9 . As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , the present invention is composed of three separate elements: a toggle nut  100 , a collar  200 , and a screw  300 . 
         [0042]    The toggle nut  100  is illustrated in  FIGS. 2 ,  3  and  4 . It is composed of a cylindrical sleeve  110 , a first wing member  120 , a second wing member  130 , and a spring  140 . As illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the cylindrical sleeve  110  has a substantially round outer surface  111  with a plurality of regularly spaced saw tooth shaped grooves  112 . As illustrated in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the outer surface  111  also includes two pins  113  diametrically opposed to each other and located near an end  114  of the sleeve  110 . An inner surface  115  of the sleeve  110  has internal threads  116 . 
         [0043]    As illustrated in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the first wing member  120  is of a substantially tapered channel cross section, with a first flange  121 , a second flange  122 , a web  123 , a first end  124 , and a second end  125 . The first flange  121  and second flange  122  are outfitted with holes  126  near the first end  124 . The first wing member  120  is attached to the cylindrical sleeve  110  by engaging the diametrically opposed pins  113  with the holes  126 . The web  123  is of sufficient width to allow the sleeve  110  to nest inside the wing  120  when said wing is rotated about the sleeve pin  113  into a substantially parallel orientation with said sleeve. 
         [0044]    The second wing member  130  is composed of a first flange  131 , a second flange  132 , and a web  133 . It is of substantially the same geometry as the first wing member  120 , except that the web  133  is slightly wider than web  123 , such that the first wing member  120  may nest inside the second wing member  130 , as illustrated in  FIG. 4 . Similar to the first wing member  120 , the second wing member  130  is also attached to sleeve  110  by engaging the diametrically opposed pins  113  with the holes in the flanges. 
         [0045]    The first wing member  120  and second wing member  130  are held in a substantially perpendicular orientation relative to the sleeve  110  by a wire spring  140 . The spring  140  is of a design similar to those used in the prior art and does not warrant the inclusion of a detailed description herein. 
         [0046]    The preferred embodiment of the collar  200  is illustrated in  FIGS. 5 ,  6 ,  7 , and  8 . It is made of plastic and is substantially cylindrical in shape with a hollow center. It has an outer surface  201 , an inner surface  202 , a first end  203 , and a second end  204 . The outer surface  201  is substantially round, with a plurality of equally spaced keys  205 . The inner surface  202  is substantially round, with a plurality of regularly spaced saw tooth shaped ridges  206 , sized to engage with the grooves  112  on the sleeve  110 . The first end  203  has a flange  207  of circular shape. As illustrated in  FIG. 10A , the outside diameter of the collar  200  is sized to provide an interference fit with the mounting hole  401  in the supportive structure  400 . Cross sections of the collar taken along lines  7 - 7  and  8 - 8  are illustrated in  FIGS. 7 and 8  respectively. 
         [0047]    As illustrated in  FIG. 9 , the screw  300  is comprised of a head  301  and a threaded shank  302 . It is of a design similar to those used in the prior art and does not warrant the inclusion of a detailed description herein. 
       Operation of Preferred Embodiment 
       [0048]    Operation of the preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in  FIGS. 10A through 10D . As illustrated in  FIG. 10A , a hole  401  is first drilled in the supportive structure  400  of sufficient dimension to allow passage of the compressed toggle nut  100 . Next, the toggle nut  100 , sleeve  200  and screw  300  are assembled and inserted into the hole. As illustrated in  FIG. 10B , the collar is then pushed into the hole until the flange  207  contacts the supportive structure  400 . As illustrated in  FIG. 1C , tension is then applied to the screw  300  to draw the sleeve  110  of the toggle nut  100  into the collar  200 . As illustrated in  FIG. 10D , the screw  300  is then removed, leaving the toggle nut  100  and collar  200  in place on the supportive structure  400 . This geometry is particularly advantageous when a plurality of toggle bolts are used to secure a large object such as a cabinet to a wall, since it eliminates the need to pre-attach the toggle bolts to the object, then simultaneously align and compress each toggle assembly during installation. 
         [0049]    To remove the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the screw  300  is removed, then used to push the toggle nut  100  out of the collar  200 , after which the collar  200  can be withdrawn from the hole  401 . This complete removal of the assembly is desirable in drywall and other applications where the toggle bolt is no longer required and the hole  401  is to be repaired for aesthetic purposes. 
       FIGS.  11  Through  18   
     Alternate Embodiments 
       [0050]    A number of alternate embodiments of the present invention are possible. For example, the collar flange  207  may be outfitted with one or more teeth  208  as illustrated in  FIG. 11  to prevent unwanted rotation of the collar during engagement of the screw. The teeth  208  may be used in lieu of or in addition to the keys  205 . Alternatively, the outside surface  201  may be tapered as illustrated in  FIG. 12  to create a tighter fit intended to prevent this unwanted rotation. Likewise, the first wing  120  and the second wing  130  may be outfitted with one or more teeth  150  to prevent rotation of the toggle nut during engagement of the screw, as illustrated in  FIG. 13 . 
         [0051]    The collar flange  207  could be replaced by two tabs  209 , as illustrated in  FIGS. 12 and 14 . In drywall applications, the tabs  209  could be made removable. This would be of benefit if the toggle bolt is temporary and will eventually be removed. As shown in  FIG. 15A , after removal of the tabs  209 , the screw  300  could be tightened to draw the collar  200  into the wall. As illustrated in  FIG. 15B , the screw is then withdrawing and the resulting depression  402  is filled with a suitable patching material  403 . The presence of the recessed collar provides a backing, thereby facilitating repair of the hole  401 . 
         [0052]    The interfacing surfaces of the toggle nut sleeve  110  and collar  200  may also be altered. For example, these surfaces could be circular in shape and of such a diameter as to create an interference fit. Alternatively, the toggle nut sleeve  110  could be made with circular ridges  111  as illustrated in  FIG. 16A , and the collar  200  could be made with complimentary grooves  211  as illustrated in  FIG. 16B . 
         [0053]    The precise shape of the wings may also be altered. For example, the shape could be adjusted such that an inner surface  121  is fully bearing on the inside surface  404  of the supportive structure  400  when the wing is in the open position, as illustrated in  FIG. 17 . Alternatively or in addition, the wings could be outfitted with additional bearing surfaces in the form of flange extensions  160  which project perpendicularly from the wing flanges and are sized so as to not hinder compression of the toggle nut assembly or prevent insertion into the hole  401 , as illustrated in  FIG. 18 . 
       Operation of Alternate Embodiments 
       [0054]    One alternate embodiment illustrated in  FIGS. 15A and 15B  is intended for drywall applications and is designed to allow the collar  200  and toggle nut to be abandoned in the wall if no longer required. As described previously, the projecting tabs  209  would be removed, and the screw would be used to draw the collar  200  into a recessed position, relative to the outer wall surface. The recess may then be filled with suitable patching material. Other than this added feature associated with this alternate embodiment, the operation of the alternate embodiments is substantially the same as the operation of the preferred embodiment. 
         [0055]    The alternate embodiments described above may be implemented singly or in any combination to suit the specific needs of the end user, and although the descriptions above contain many specifics, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention, but merely providing illustrations of some of the presently preferred embodiments. Thus, the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the examples given.