Claims
- 1. A connection comprising:
an elongated stud having an enlarged flange, a shoulder and a threaded segment, the shoulder being located between the flange and the patterned segment, and the shoulder having least seven substantially flat faces circumferentially located around a longitudinal axis of the stud; a nut having an internal thread; and an electrical connector including at least seven substantially flat faces, the faces of the connector being aligned with the faces of the stud, the nut operably securing the connector to the flange of the stud.
- 2. The connection of claim 1 wherein the nut has an enlarged section operably enclosing at least a portion of the shoulder of the stud.
- 3. The connection of claim 2 wherein the nut has a reduced section having at least four substantially flat faces circumferentially located around an aperture of the nut.
- 4. The connection of claim 2 wherein the enlarged section has a circular cylindrical exterior shape.
- 5. The connection of claim 1 wherein the flange of the stud has a circular periphery coaxially aligned with the longitudinal centerline.
- 6. The connection of claim 1 wherein the stud further includes a weldable segment located on an opposite side of the flange from the shoulder.
- 7. The connection of claim 1 wherein the shoulder includes curved portions between sections of adjacent pairs of the faces of the stud, and the faces of the stud define a polygonal cross sectional shape.
- 8. The connection of claim 1 further comprising an automotive vehicle body panel, wherein the stud is an electrical grounding stud welded to the panel and the connector is an eyelet.
- 9. The connection of claim 1 wherein the shoulder has eight faces arranged in an octagonal cross sectional configuration.
- 10. An apparatus comprising:
(a) a weld stud comprising:
(i) a threaded segment spiraling around a longitudinal centerline; (ii) a shoulder located adjacent the threaded segment and having at least eight substantially flat faces surrounding the longitudinal centerline defining a polygonal cross sectional shape; (iii) an unthreaded neck located between the threaded segment and the shoulder, the neck being of a reduced cross-sectional area as compared to a major diameter of the threaded segment and the shoulder; and (iv) a weldable segment located on an end of the stud; wherein the threaded segment, shoulder and securing segment are integrated as a single piece; (b) a nut comprising:
(i) a cylindrical section; and (ii) an internally threaded and substantial polygonal section coaxially aligned with the cylindrical section; and (c) an eyelet attached to the stud, at the shoulder, by the nut, wherein the eyelet includes an internal opening with at least eight flat surfaces, defining a closed polygon, corresponding to and contacting against the flat faces of the shoulder.
- 11. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein the shoulder has eight faces which define an octagonal cross sectional shape.
- 12. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein the stud further comprises an enlarged flange located adjacent the shoulder opposite the threaded segment, the flange is transversely larger than the shoulder and the threaded segment, and the flange has a circular peripheral shape and a substantially flat face adjacent the shoulder.
- 13. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein at least one of the sections of the nut surrounds at least part of the shoulder of the stud.
- 14. The apparatus of claim 10 further comprising an automotive vehicle panel welded to the weldable segment of the stud.
- 15. A method of assembling a stud, nut and eyelet, the method comprising:
(a) placing the eyelet upon the stud; (b) rotating the nut relative to the stud; (c) securing the eyelet to the stud in response to step (b); and (d) automatically aligning at least eight internal flats of the eyelet with at least eight external flats of the stud in response to step (b).
- 16. The method of claim 15 further comprising causing a first section of the nut to enclose at least a portion of the flats of the stud.
- 17. The method of claim 16 wherein a second section of the nut has a different external and peripheral shape than the first section, and the sections are coaxial.
- 18. The method of claim 15 further comprising:
(a) welding an end of the stud to an automotive vehicle panel; and (b) creating an electrical path from the eyelet to the stud and from the stud to the panel.
- 19. The method of claim 15 further comprising engaging threads of the nut with threads of the stud and arc welding a section of the stud.
- 20. A method of assembly comprising securing a fastener to a threaded weld stud in a manner adapted to cause rotational alignment and linear installation of an octagonally apertured electrical connector with an octagonal shoulder of the weld stud.
- 21. The method of claim 20 further comprising enclosing at least a portion of the shoulder of the weld stud with a first section of the fastener.
- 22. The method of claim 21 wherein a second section of the fastener has a different external and peripheral shape than the first section, and the sections are coaxial.
- 23. The method of claim 20 further comprising:
(a) arc welding an end of the stud to an automotive vehicle panel; and (b) creating an electrical path from the electrical connector to the stud and from the stud to the panel.
- 24. The method of claim 20 further comprising engaging internal threads of the fastener with external threads of the stud.
- 25. A method of manufacturing and assembling an electrical connection, the method comprising:
(a) creating a stud comprising a threaded segment and a shoulder having at least eight flats circumferentially located around a longitudinal axis of the stud; (b) creating a nut comprising internal threads; (c) creating an electrical connector comprising an internal opening defined by at least eight flats; (d) inserting the connector upon the stud without regard to alignment of the connector flats with the stud flats; and (e) rotating the nut onto the stud to automatically align the connector flats with the stud flats.
- 26. The method of claim 25 further comprising enclosing at least a portion of the shoulder of the stud with a first section of the fastener.
- 27. The method of claim 26 wherein a second section of the fastener has a different external and peripheral shape than the first section, and the sections are coaxial.
- 28. The method of claim 25 further comprising:
(a) arc welding an end of the stud to an automotive vehicle panel; and (b) creating an electrical path from the electrical connector to the stud and from the stud to the panel.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 10/075,090, filed Feb. 12, 2002, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Ser. No. 60/270,084, filed Feb. 20, 2001, both of which are incorporated by reference herein.
Provisional Applications (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60270084 |
Feb 2001 |
US |
Continuation in Parts (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
10075090 |
Feb 2002 |
US |
Child |
10842641 |
May 2004 |
US |