Patent Application
20150306754
The following description relates to an attachment for a tool, for example, a disc positioning attachment for a fastener driving tool to position a disc along a discharge axis so that a fastener may be discharged through the disc.
A rigid insulation board may be fastened to a wooden stud using a nail. The board, although rigid, may be somewhat flexible or crushable. As such, the ability to secure the board may be limited due to the relatively small diameter of the head of the nail. To better secure the board, it is known to secure the nail in the insulation board by positioning the nail through an opening of a washer or disc and then driving the nail through the rigid insulation board and the wooden stud so that the washer is positioned between the head of the nail and the rigid insulation board. Accordingly, a contact area of the fastener, i.e., the nail and the washer, is increased, and pressure exerted on the rigid insulation board by the head of the nail may be spread over the area of the washer.
Known methods of securing the nail to the rigid insulation board and wooden stud include hand nailing an assembled cap and nail, or using a pneumatic nailer with a plastic disc coil feeding unit. However, hand nailing the assembled cap and nail is time consuming and labor intensive. Using the pneumatic nailer may decrease time and labor. However, the plastic discs may not be sufficiently strong for all applications.
Another known apparatus for securing the nail to the rigid insulation board is a round, lipped position plate located at a discharge end of a pneumatic nailer. The washer may be made of a magnetic material and held against the round, lipped position plate by a pair of magnets located 180 degrees apart. The round, lipped position plate includes an opening through which a discharged nail may be received. An opening formed in the washer must be aligned with the opening of the position plate, which, in turn, is aligned with a discharge axis formed along the pneumatic nailer. As the discharged nail travels through the respective openings, the head of the nail engages the washer and removes the washer from the round, lipped position plate and transfers the washer to the rigid insulation board.
However, positioning the washer on the round, lipped position plate must be done by hand. Proper positioning such that the respective openings are aligned requires a visual confirmation by an operator that the openings of the washer and position plate are aligned, so that the discharged nail may be received through both. The manual positioning of the washer on the position plate, repeated for every nailing operation, may be time consuming.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a fastener driving tool having an attachment on which the washer may be easily and accurately positioned and does not require visual confirmation of the washer position.
According to one aspect, there is provided an attachment for positioning a disc at a nosepiece of a fastener driving tool. The attachment includes a coupling section having a body defining a hollow portion configured to receive at least a portion of the nosepiece of the fastener driving tool and a positioning section adjacent to the coupling section, the positioning section including a lip defining a slotted area having an open side configured to receive the disc and at least one magnet for magnetically holding the disc in the positioning section.
According to another aspect, there is provided a fastener driving tool including a tool body having a nosepiece extending along a discharge axis for discharging a fastener, and an attachment for positioning a disc at the nosepiece. The attachment includes a coupling section having a body defining a hollow portion configured to receive at a least a portion of the nosepiece and a positioning section adjacent to the coupling section, the positioning section including a lip defining a slotted area having an open side configured to receive the disc and at least one magnet for magnetically holding the disc in the positioning section.
Other objects, features, and advantages of the disclosure will be apparent from the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying sheets of drawings, wherein like numerals refer to like parts, elements, components, steps, and processes.
While the present disclosure is susceptible of embodiment in various forms, there is shown in the drawings and will hereinafter be described one or more embodiments with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered illustrative only and is not intended to limit the disclosure to any specific embodiment described or illustrated.
Referring to
The disc 14 may be of a predetermined size and diameter for a particular application. For example, the disc 14 may be of a size and diameter suitable for use with a nail for fastening rigid insulation to an underlying board or stud. The positioning section 28, and in particular, the lip 32, is sized to correspond to a diameter of the disc 14. For example, opposing sides of the lip 32 may be spaced apart by a distance that substantially corresponds to, or is slightly greater than the diameter of the disc 14. Likewise, a segment of the lip 32 extending between the opposing sides and opposing the open side 36 extends at a length that corresponds to, or is slightly greater than the diameter of the disc 14. Accordingly, the lip 32 is configured to position and support the disc 14 within the slotted area 34 at the positioning section 28. That is, the lip 32 is sized and dimensioned such that the disc 14 is maintained in a proper position via contact with the lip 32.
In addition, the disc 14 includes a centrally positioned aperture 38 configured to receive the fastener (not shown) discharged from the fastener driving tool 10. Accordingly, the disc 14 and lip 32 of the positioning section 28 on the attachment 12 are sized such that the central aperture 38 is positioned on the discharge axis ‘A’ when the disc 14 is positioned in the slotted area 34 and supported by the lip 32. In addition, the lip 32 and the positioning section 28 may be dimensioned such that when a correspondingly (or properly) sized disc 14 is positioned therein, a portion of the disc 14 extends through the open side 36 beyond an outer extent of the positioning section 28. That is, with the disc 14 properly positioned in the positioning section 28, with the central aperture 38 aligned on the axis ‘A’, and the disc 14 is substantially held against movement out of the proper position by the lip 32, a radial extent of the disc 14 may extend beyond an outer extent of the positioning section 28 at the open side 36. Accordingly, an operator may be able to visually confirm, from multiple positions, that the disc 14 has been positioned at the positioning section 28 of the attachment 12.
In the embodiments described herein, it is understood that the positioning section 28, and in particular the lip 32 and the slotted area 34 are sized and dimensioned to generally correspond to a size and dimension (e.g., the diameter) of the disc 14. That is, the lip 32 and slotted area 34 are dimensioned so that a disc 14 positioned within the slotted area 34 contacts, or is within predetermined acceptable clearances from all sides of the lip 32 to substantially hold the disc 14 against movement out of the proper position, such that the central aperture 38 remains positioned on the axis ‘A’.
With further reference to
It is understood that the engagement portion of the coupling tongue 40 is not limited to the example above, and other configurations are envisioned. For example, the engagement portion 42 of the coupling tongue 40 may include a closed elongated slot, one or more than one circular or non-circular apertures, or an interlocking securing component or components configured to directly engage the fastener driving tool 10 to secure the coupling tongue 40 thereto. Interlocking securing components may include, for example, components of a snap-fit or interference fit fastener. The separate securing element(s) may include known suitable securing elements, such as, but not limited to, bolts, screws, set screws, pins, clamps and other similarly suitable elements.
In one embodiment, the corresponding engagement portion 46 may be formed at or secured to the nosepiece 18 of the fastener driving tool 10. The corresponding engagement portion 46 may be received in the elongated open slot 44 of the coupling tongue 40 and secure the engagement portion 42 of the coupling tongue 40 to the nosepiece 18. In one embodiment, the corresponding engagement portion 46 may be a clamping mechanism that applies a clamping force to the coupling tongue 40 to secure the coupling tongue 40 to the nosepiece 18 sufficient to prevent or limit unintentional movement of the coupling tongue 40 relative to the nosepiece 18.
In use, according to one example, the attachment 12 is positioned on the nosepiece 18 of the fastener driving tool 10 by receiving a portion of the nosepiece 18 in the hollow portion 26 defined by the body 24 of the coupling section 22. In addition, the engagement section 42 of the coupling tongue 40 may be secured to a corresponding engagement section 46 of the nosepiece 18. With the attachment 12 positioned on the fastener driving tool 10, the positioning section 28 is configured to hold a correspondingly dimensioned disc 14 such that a central aperture 38 of the disc 14 is aligned with the discharge axis ‘A’. Further, as noted above, the attachment 12 may include the wall 30 between the positioning section 28 and the coupling section 22. The wall 30 includes a wall opening (not shown) through the discharge axis ‘A’ extends. The wall opening is sufficiently sized to allow the fastener, including the head, to be discharged therethrough entirely.
The disc 14 may be received in the slotted area 34 defined by the lip 32 of the positioning section 28. In one embodiment, the lip 32 extends around three sides of a generally square or rectangular shape to define the open side 36. An operator may slide the disc 14 into the slotted area 34 through the open side 36. The disc 14 is guided on lateral sides by the opposing sides of the lip 32, and is properly positioned within the slotted area 34 by abutting the segment of the lip 32 opposing the open side 36 (i.e., the side of the lip between the opposing sides). The at least one magnet 48 may attract the disc 14 to this position. In addition, the at least one magnet 48 is configured to hold the disc 14 in this position until the fastener is discharged through the disc 14. In some examples, the force from the at least one magnet 48 may allow the operator to release the disc 14 while only partially received in the slotted area 34. The attractive force from the at least one magnet 48 may draw the disc 14 to the segment of the lip 32 opposing the open side 36 to properly position the disc 14 in the slotted area 34. In addition, with the disc 14 properly positioned in the slotted area 34, the central aperture 38 is positioned along and aligned with the discharge axis ‘A’.
The fastener driving tool 10 may then be operated to discharge a fastener. The fastener may be, for example, a nail having a head. The nail is discharged from the nosepiece 18 along the discharge axis ‘A’ and through the central aperture 38. The head of the fastener engages the disc 14 proximate to the central aperture 38. The force imparted on the disc 14 by the head causes the disc 14 to be released from the at least one magnet 48 and removed from the attachment 12 such that the disc 14 is transferred with the nail and secured to the work piece 16.
In the embodiments above, an operator may properly and quickly position a disc 14 in the positioning section 28 of the attachment 12 without visual inspection for alignment of the central aperture 38 with the discharge axis ‘A’. Accordingly, incremental time savings may be realized where multiple fastener and disc 14 combinations are being secured to a work piece 16.
It should also be understood that various changes and modifications to the presently disclosed embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure and without diminishing its intended advantages. It is therefore intended that such changes and modifications be covered by the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61983642 | Apr 2014 | US |
