Freight accommodation on freight carrier – Load lashing retainer or load lashing adjunct – Anchor
Reexamination Certificate
1999-06-11
2001-02-06
Gordon, Stephen T. (Department: 3612)
Freight accommodation on freight carrier
Load lashing retainer or load lashing adjunct
Anchor
C410S106000, C410S110000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06183178
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to anchors of the type used in automotive vehicles interiors to provide points of attachment items such as bungee cords or cargo restraint netting. More specifically, the invention relates to such an anchor that may be secured to a threaded stud in the vehicle interior by pushing the anchor straight onto the stud without any rotation, but which can only be removed from the stud by rotating it.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
It is known in the automotive vehicle industry to provide cargo storage and restraint compartments formed by attaching sections of netting to surfaces within the passenger and/or cargo areas of a vehicle. The netting is generally formed from elastic cords, non-elastic cords, or a combination thereof to create a compartment that is somewhat expandable if desired. For example, it is common to attach a non-elastic netting section to the left and right hand side walls of a vehicle's trunk or rear cargo area so that the net stretches across the area a short distance forward of the rear bumper. Objects such as grocery bags can then be placed behind the net barrier and are prevented from sliding or rolling forward when the vehicle is in motion.
It is known to secure a storage net to a vehicle at one or more points by forming loops in the net cord or an associated bungee cord and placing the loops over anchor which is fixed to the vehicle at the appropriate location. Such an anchor typically projects approximately 15 to 20 millimeters above the surface of the vehicle interior and has a mushroom-shaped or T-shaped head around which the loop or cord is passed.
It is known for tie-down anchors to be secured in the desired position on a surface of the vehicle by engaging a threaded bolt or stud which projects from the surface. Such studs are typically on the order of 4 to 8 millimeters in diameter. One type of known anchor has a threaded hole or a captive nut on its lower surface so that it may be threaded into engagement with the stud. This has the drawback of requiring that the anchor be rotated either by hand or by a power tool to thread it onto the stud. Threading the anchor onto the stud by hand is time consuming and labor intensive. The use of a power tool adds costs for both procurement and maintenance of the tool.
It has therefore been found advantageous to use a tie-down anchor that may be pushed straight onto the stud and which engages the threads without requiring that the anchor be rotated. This has been achieved by barbs which project radially inward into a hole in the bottom the anchor to engage the threads of the stud when the stud is inserted therein. The barbs are angled toward the top of the anchor and are flexible so that they deflect outwardly as the stud is inserted into the hole and spring back so that the tips of the barbs engage the threads in a ratcheting effect and prevent the stud from being withdrawn from the hole. The anchor may be removed only by twisting it to unthread it from the stud, in the manner of a conventional threaded nut.
One known push-on anchor, depicted in
FIG. 1
, comprises a mushroom portion
100
having upper and lower radial flanges
102
,
104
for retaining a loop
106
when it is passed therearound, and a separately formed thread engagement tube
108
having barbs
110
of the type described hereinabove disposed radially about its interior. The mushroom
100
and the thread engagement tube
108
are snapped into engagement with one another, a cylinder
112
formed on the bottom of the mushroom fitting downwardly into the upper end of the thread engagement tube, and detent prongs
114
projecting outwardly through windows
116
in the tube to hold the two portions together. The mushroom has a blind, unthreaded hole
118
extending upwardly into it from the lower surface of the cylinder for receiving the top end of the stud when the anchor is mounted thereon.
The two portions of the prior art push-on anchor must be molded separately because to form it as a single piece would require that the barbs be molded on the interior of the blind hole extending into the anchor. This is impractical when using conventional injection molding technology, unless removable cores or some other cost-adding technology is applied. The molding of the anchor as two separate pieces and subsequent assembly of the pieces adds significantly to the price of manufacturing the prior art push-on anchor. It would therefore be desirable to produce a push-on anchor as a single, integrally molded unit in order to reduce manufacturing costs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an objective of this invention to provide a push-on anchor that is more economical to manufacture than previously known push-on anchors. It is a further objective to provide a push-on anchor that may be manufactured in a single, integral piece by an injection molding process.
These objectives are achieved by an anchor having a tubular stem defining an axial through hole for receiving a threaded stud, and means integral with the stem and projecting into the through hole for engaging the threads as the stud is urged into the through hole. The through hole in the anchor allows the thread engagement means to be molded integrally with the stem using simple injection molding techniques, thereby allowing the anchor to be produced as a single, integral piece requiring no further assembly before it is installed in connection with a threaded stud.
According to a further feature of the invention, the means for engaging the threads of the stud comprises a plurality of barbs extending radially inward into the through hole and angled along the axis of the through hole in the direction in which the stud is inserted therein. The barbs are sufficiently thin and flexible to be easily deflected radially outward as the stud is inserted into the through hole, thereby allow the stud to pass between the barbs. The tips of the barbs engage the threads in a ratcheting manner as the stud is inserted into the through hole. The angled barbs are easily molded and provide a positive grip on the stud to effectively prevent its withdrawal from the through hole unless the anchor is rotated to unthread it from the stud in the manner of a conventional threaded nut.
According to a further feature of the invention, the anchor comprises means integral with the stem and projecting therefrom into the through hole for contacting the stud to maintain the stud centered within the through hole. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the centering means comprises a plurality of axially extending ridges spaced about the circumference of the through hole and defining therebetween a diameter approximately equal to the outside diameter of the stud. When the anchor is engaged with the stud, the ridges contact the outer surface of the stud along substantially the entire length of the stem to provide a secure and stable engagement between the components.
According to yet another feature of the invention, the anchor has first and second flanges extending radially outward from the stem and spaced apart by an axial distance sufficient to receive therebetween an item to be engaged by the anchor.
Other objects, advantages and applications of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art when the following description of the best mode contemplated for practicing the invention is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3351356 (1967-11-01), Clark et al.
patent: 5676508 (1997-10-01), Weicht
patent: 5738471 (1998-04-01), Zentner
patent: 5915900 (1999-06-01), Boltz
patent: 6030160 (2000-02-01), Moore
Gordon Stephen T.
Polytech Netting, L.P.
Young & Basile P.C.
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