Claims
- 1. A tool for installing in a wall opening, a fastener element having a tubular first end portion sized to fit snugly within the wall opening, an opening having an entrance, and an end flange surrounding the entrance, the tool comprising:an elongated rod having a longitudinal axis, the rod being adapted to be rotated about the longitudinal axis, the rod having an outer end portion adapted to be inserted into the opening and be connected to the fastener element; a tubular end member having an outer end surface; a tubular mandrel projecting axially outwardly from the outer end surface, the end member and mandrel including an opening through which the rod extends, the mandrel having an outside diameter that is larger than the opening in the fastener element; and the end member and mandrel being movable axially back and forth along the rod, towards and away from the outer end portion of the rod; a tool housing; a rotary motor in the tool housing coupled to an inner end portion of the elongated rod, the elongated rod and the motor axially fixed with respect to the housing; and a moveable tubular sleeve within the housing, the moveable tubular sleeve mounted for translation back and forth endwise relative to the housing, the tubular sleeve having one end adjacently located with the tubular end member, and the elongated rod extending endwise from its connection with the rotary motor through the tubular sleeve, through the tubular end member, and through the tubular mandrel.
- 2. The tool of claim 1, further comprising a tubular nose piece surrounding and concentric with an elongated tubular member, the tubular nose piece being movable endwise back and forth longitudinally along the elongated tubular member, relative to the elongated tubular member, tubular end member and the tubular mandrel, and the elongated rod.
- 3. The tool of claim 2, comprising a piston inside the housing connected to the tubular nose piece, and a pair of fluid chambers in the housing, one on each side of the piston.
- 4. The tool of claim 1, comprising a piston inside the housing connected to the elongated tubular member, and a pair of fluid chambers in the housing, one on each side of the piston.
- 5. A tool for securing a fastener into a wall opening, the tool comprising:a tool housing; an elongated rod having a longitudinal axis, the elongated rod coupled to the housing for rotation about the longitudinal axis, a first portion of the rod sized to be received by an opening in the fastener and detachably engageable with the fastener, a second portion of the rod axially fixed to the tool housing; a first engagement member having an opening therethrough, the opening sized to receive the rod where the first member is longitudinally displaceable with respect to the rod; a mandrel having a first end located proximate to the first member and a second end distally located from the first member, the mandrel further having an opening sized to receive the rod where the mandrel is longitudinally displaceable with respect to the rod and the tool housing, the mandrel further having an expanded diameter section and a reduced diameter section longitudinally displaced from the expanded diameter section, the expanded diameter section connected to the reduced diameter section, a perimeter of the reduced diameter section being smaller than a perimeter of the expanded diameter section, and the perimeter of the reduced diameter section sized to be closely received into the opening in the fastener, the expanded diameter section sized to be forcibly received into the opening of the fastener to a depth sufficient to plastically and radially expand the majority of fastener material located between a near side and a far side of the wall with the opening; and a mechanical actuation device for longitudinally displacing the mandrel along the rod and for forcibly inserting the mandrel into the opening of the fastener.
- 6. The tool of claim 5 wherein the expanded diameter section is connected to the reduced diameter section by a tapered region.
- 7. The tool of claim 5 wherein a first face of the first member is in contact with the wall only after a portion of the expanded diameter section has been projected through the fastener opening to a distance that is approximately equal to the thickness of the wall.
- 8. The tool of claim 5, further comprising:a bolt head connected to the fastener, the bolt head positioned against and extending from the near side of the wall.
- 9. The tool of claim 8 wherein a first face of the first member is in contact with the bolt head only after a portion of the expanded diameter section has been projected through the fastener opening to a distance that is approximately equal to the sum of the thickness of the wall and the thickness of the bolt head.
- 10. The tool of claim 5 wherein a first face of the first member is configured to prevent fastener material from being displaced from the opening of the fastener onto the surrounding, near side of the wall.
- 11. The tool of claim 5, further comprising:a triggering means in communication with a linear actuation means and for initiating the operation of the tool.
- 12. The tool of claim 5 wherein a force necessary for collapsing the fastener and for forcibly inserting the mandrel into the opening in the fastener is developed internally within the tool.
- 13. The tool of claim 5 wherein the mechanical actuation device includes at least two chambers and a piston, a position of the piston dependent on fluid pressure within the respective chambers, a displacement of the piston coupled to a longitudinal displacement of the mandrel.
- 14. The tool of claim 5 wherein the mechanical actuation device includes a cam, a rotation of the cam calibrated with the longitudinal displacement of the mandrel.
- 15. A tool for cold expanding a fastener into a wall opening, the tool comprising:a tool housing; an elongated rod having a longitudinal axis, the elongated rod coupled to the housing for rotation about the longitudinal axis, a first portion of the rod sized to be received by an opening in the fastener and detachably engageable with the fastener, a second portion of the rod axially fixed to the tool housing; a first engagement member having an opening therethrough, the opening sized to receive the rod where the first member is longitudinally displaceable with respect to the rod; a mandrel having an opening sized to receive the rod where the mandrel is longitudinally displaceable with respect to the rod and the tool housing, the mandrel further having a first position relative to the first portion of the rod where the rod is detachably engaged with the fastener; the mandrel having a second position relative to the first portion of the rod while at least a portion of the wall of the fastener is collapsed, and the mandrel having a third position relative to the first portion of the rod where the mandrel is inserted into the fastener to a depth sufficient to plastically and radially expand the majority of the fastener material located between a near side and a far side of the wall with the opening; and a mechanical actuation device for moving the mandrel along the rod into the respective first, second, and third positions.
- 16. The tool of claim 15 wherein the mechanical actuation device includes at least two chambers and a piston, a position of the piston dependent on fluid pressure within the respective chambers, a displacement of the piston coupled to a movement of the mandrel.
- 17. The tool of claim 15 wherein the mechanical actuation device includes a cam, a rotation of the cam calibrated with the movement of the mandrel.
RELATED APPLICATION
This application is a divisional of U.S. Ser. No. 09/546,359, filed Apr. 10, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,487,767 and entitled Method and Apparatus for Connecting a Fastener Element to a Wall.
US Referenced Citations (38)