Expanded – threaded – driven – headed – tool-deformed – or locked-thr – Washer structure – Including adjustable thickness means
Patent
1999-02-09
2000-05-16
Wilson, Neill
Expanded, threaded, driven, headed, tool-deformed, or locked-thr
Washer structure
Including adjustable thickness means
411432, 411546, F16B 4300, F16B 4302
Patent
active
060627913
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention pertains to a screw unit for the adjustable and lockable spanning of distances between structural components, brackets, and for the adjustment of assemblies, etc.
2. Description of the Related Art
A screw unit described in EP 0,543,046 B1 consists of a threaded pin with adjusting surfaces and a central bore; a nut, which is designed as a support sleeve with an internal thread, is screwed onto the pin. Certain areas of the sleeve are provided with adjusting surfaces. The threaded pin can be screwed into the nut until it is more or less flush. The end of the support sleeve facing an adjusting collar on the threaded pin is provided with an inward-projecting, ring-shaped collar with the internal thread. A stop element is provided on the free end of the threaded pin to prevent it from being completely unscrewed. A screw unit such as this can be used both to keep a certain distance between two structural components and to level them; it can also be adjusted and re-adjusted over a considerable distance without the danger of the threaded pin being screwed all the way out of the support sleeve. The threads also overlap sufficiently to ensure that the support forces can be reliably absorbed. To connect the components, brackets, etc., mounted a certain distance away from each other, a fastening screw passes all the way through the screw unit. The centers of the mounting holes in the components must be aligned with each other, but this is not ensured in many cases because of manufacturing tolerances, which means either that deformations will occur or that the parts must be remachined.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The task of the invention is to create a screw unit which continues to make it possible to make considerable adjustments to the distance between the components and to maintain the spacing between them and which in addition makes it possible to adjust the connecting element transversely to its longitudinal axis to bring in into the proper position for connecting. This task is accomplished by the support sleeve being mounted on a sliding support element which is held in place on a spacer, the support element being attached in such a way that the sleeve can be shifted in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the screw unit. The spacer which holds the sliding support element of the screw unit in a fixed position can be provided with a relatively large through-hole, so that, if the mounting holes in the spacers are off-center, it is still possible to align the screw unit with the through-hole of the spacer closely holding the mounting element. Thus it is ensured that the only forces which the screw unit is obliged to absorb are forces which act in the direction of its longitudinal axis, whereas forces perpendicular to that as a result of deformations transverse to the longitudinal axis of the connecting element are prevented from occurring in the first place.
To create an area on the adjusting element where it can be held to shift the screw unit transversely to its longitudinal axis without interfering with the creation of the device which prevents the unit from being completely unscrewed, it is provided in accordance with an advantageous embodiment of the object of the invention that the area of the bore of the support sleeve opposite the internal thread has an inward-projecting step, the open diameter of which is approximately the same as the diameter of the central bore of the threaded pin. In its inside surface, the step has at least one axially oriented recess to allow the formation of the stop element which prevents the unit from being completely unscrewed. The stop element which prevents the unit from being completely unscrewed is advantageously formed by peening over certain areas of the external thread of the threaded pin. For safety's sake, it may be advantageous for the step to have two diametrically opposing axial recesses, which may serve to allow the insertion of a tool to peen over the thread on two opposing sides
REFERENCES:
patent: 4453346 (1984-06-01), Powell et al.
patent: 4529244 (1985-07-01), Zaydel
patent: 5340258 (1994-08-01), Simon
patent: 5492388 (1996-02-01), Kawasaki
Kueffner Friedrich
Wilson Neill
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