Patent Publication Number: US-11643785-B2

Title: Tie down ground anchor head

Description:
This invention relates to tie down ground stakes and anchors, and in particular an anchor head for allowing power drivers and tools to be used to place the anchors in the ground. 
     BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Tie down stakes and earth anchors are used in a variety of applications from tethering pets, securing tents and anchoring structures. Spiral style anchors have a spiral shaft that is turned into the ground. Blade style anchors have a straight shaft and a helical end blade that turns into the ground. The shafts of both spiral and helical blades terminate in a handle, which is used to manually turn the anchors into the ground. Manually placing the anchors into the ground can be difficult and time consuming depending on the type and condition of the soil. 
     The present invention provides an anchor head that is mounted to or incorporated into the shaft of conventional tie down stakes and anchors. The anchor head eliminates the need to manually drive the anchor into the ground and allows the anchor to be place and removed using conventional powered drill/drivers and hex sockets or wrenches. The anchor head has a hexagonal top section and a hexagonal bottom sectional separated by an integral, central annular shoulder. The top and bottom sections are each configured to have six equilateral side walls and dimensioned to receive two different sizes of wrench or hex socket. The bottom section of the anchor head has a threaded axial bore for receiving the threaded end of the anchor shaft. The bottom section also has a lateral “swage” bore” through which a punch is inserted to swage or deform the threads of the shaft to permanently secure the anchor head to the shaft. 
     The above described features and advantages, as well as others, will become more readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art by reference to the following detailed description and accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The present invention may take form in various system and method components and arrangement of system and method components. The drawings are only for purposes of illustrating exemplary embodiments and are not to be construed as limiting the invention. 
       The drawings illustrate the present invention, in which: 
         FIG.  1    is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of the anchor head of this invention mounted to a spiral tie down ground anchor; 
         FIG.  2    is a top perspective view of the anchor head of  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  3    is a bottom perspective view of the anchor head of  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  4    is a top view of the anchor head of  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  5    is a side view of the anchor head of  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  6    is a side sectional view of the anchor head of  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  7    is an exploded side view of the anchor head and spiral shaft of  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  8    is a side view of the anchor head mounting to the spiral shaft of  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  9    is a partial side sectional view of the anchor head and spiral shaft of  FIG.  1    and a punch; 
         FIG.  10    is a side view of the anchor head mounting to the spiral shaft of  FIG.  1    being permanently affixed using a punch and hammer; 
         FIG.  11    is a side view of a power drill/driver and socket driving the anchor of  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  12    is a side view of a power drill/driver and socket driving the anchor of  FIG.  1    into the ground; 
         FIG.  13    is a partial side view of a pry bar and the anchor of  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  14    is another partial side view of a pry bar and the anchor of  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  15    is a side view of the anchor of  FIG.  1    and guide wire; and 
         FIG.  16    is a side view of the anchor of  FIG.  1    and another guide wire. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     In the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration specific preferred embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, and it is understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that logical, structural, mechanical, electrical, and chemical changes may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. To avoid detail not necessary to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, the description may omit certain information known to those skilled in the art. The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is defined only by the appended claims. 
     Referring now to the drawings,  FIGS.  1 - 16    illustrate an embodiment of the tie down anchor head of this invention, which is designated generally as reference numeral  100 . In  FIG.  1   , anchor head  100  is part of a spiral style tie down ground anchor  10 . Anchor  10  has a spiral shaft  12  terminating in a threaded end  14 . In other embodiments, anchor head  100  is fitted to other styles of tie down ground anchors having shafts that are turned into the ground. 
     Anchor head  100  has a cast or machined metal body. Generally, anchor head  100  is fashioned from a suitable metal, such as a steel or aluminum alloy, but in certain embodiments the anchor head may be formed from a suitable polymer plastic. As shown, anchor head  100  has a hexagonal top section  110  and a hexagonal bottom sectional  120  separated by an integral, central annular shoulder  130 . Top sections  110  and bottom  120  are each configured to have hexagonal (six) equilateral side walls and dimensioned to received a standard wrench or socket driver. Typically, section  110  is dimensioned to receive a 1″ wrench or drive socket (not shown) and section  120  is dimensioned to fit a conventional ⅝″ wrench (not shown). In alternative embodiments, sections  110  and  120  can be configured and dimensioned to receive any style or size of wrench or socket. Top section  110  has a lateral through bore  111 , which provides an opening for receiving a guide line ( FIG.  15   ) or tether coupling ( FIG.  16   ). Section  120  has a threaded axial bore  121  for receiving the threaded end of shaft  12  or  22 . Section  120  also has a lateral swage bore  123  extending through one side wall into bore  121 . Swage bore  123  provides an opening for receiving a punch tool. As shown, anchor head  100  is turned onto threaded end  14  of shaft  12  and is secured by swaging, i.e., “deforming” the threads of the shaft. A punch is inserted into swage bore  123  and struck with a hammer or mallet to impact and deform the threads of the anchor shaft. Swaging the threads of shaft  12  prevents anchor head  100  from rotating off the shaft. In other embodiments of the anchor head, bore  123  may be threaded to receive a set screw (not shown) that engages the thread shaft to prevent the anchor head from rotating about the shaft. 
     In use, anchor head  100  allows conventional hand tools to be used to drive the anchor into the ground. A power drill/driver  50  and mating socket  52  can be applied to top section  110  to drive or withdraw anchor  10  into or from the ground ( FIGS.  11  and  12   ). Similarly, a conventional open ended wrench (not shown) can be applied to either section  110  or  120  of anchor head  100  to rotate and drive anchor  10 . Alternatively, a pry bar  60  can be inserted into bore  113  to facilitate rotating anchor  10  ( FIGS.  13  and  14   ). Once anchor  10  is embedded in the ground, tethers and guide lines can be tied or fastened to anchor head  100  to secure other items and structures ( FIGS.  15  and  16   ). 
     One skilled in the art will note several advantages to the anchor head of this invention. The anchor head allows conventional hand tools to be used to drive and remove spiral and helical blade style anchors. The anchor head also eliminates the need for the end of the anchor shaft to be bent into a handle so that the user can hand turn the anchor into the ground. The anchor head can be readily fitted to the threaded ends of a anchor shaft and permanently secured by swaging the shaft threads through a side bore in the anchor head. Swaging the threads provides a less costly and faster method for mounting the anchor head to the anchor shaft rather than simply welding the components together. 
     It should be apparent from the foregoing that an invention having significant advantages has been provided. While the invention is shown in only a few of its forms, it is not just limited but is susceptible to various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof. The embodiment of the present invention herein described and illustrated is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. It is presented to explain the invention so that others skilled in the art might utilize its teachings. The embodiment of the present invention may be modified within the scope of the following claims.