FASTENING NUTS

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates a nut, arranged to be attached with a threaded member by means of rotating the nut. The nut comprises a main section which comprises a first contact surface which is arranged to contact a first surface of an intermediate, and arranged with at least one opening, member. The nut further comprises a fastening device to connect the nut to the intermediate member.

BACK GROUND OF THE INVENTION Nuts are used in several situations to, in cooperation with a threaded member for example a bolt, connect two or more elements with each other by means of a bond. In certain combinations of nuts and threaded members is the connection of the bond provided by means of rotating the nut. For example, the nut may be provided with a part which is adopted to receive a tightening tool, such as a socket wrench, screw driver or adjustable wrench, whereby tightening of the bond is performed by means of the tool via rotation of the nut.

To protect at least one of the elements, that is connected by means of the bond, from possible damages which may occur when the nut is rotated, a plate is often arranged between the element and the nut before the nut is screwed onto the threaded member. In some situations, for example when a swiveling water tap which is arranged with a stud screw or a bolt is to be installed in a sink unit, washbasin or the like, the bolt may, onto which the nut is to be connected, be difficult to access and be positioned in a confined space, for example in a space between a sink unit and a wall in a kitchen or between a washbasin and a wall in a laundry room. An installation engineer of the swiveling water tap may in this case be urged to use both hands to connect a plate and the nut onto the bolt before the nut is screwed tight. Except that this results in an unnatural and possibly harmful work position for the installation engineer, it also increases the difficulty of the installation of the swiveling water tap, since the installation engineer may have to adapt the position of the swiveling water tap from above the sink unit at the same time he or she tries to connect the plate and the nut form the below of the same.

Hence, it would have been desirable in the above mentioned case if the installation engineer could assemble the plate and the nut with only one hand. Earlier known technique solves this through a fastening device, which consist of a nut and a plate, wherein the nut and the plate can rotate with respect to each other, but where the nut and the plate are fixedly attached to each other in other directions. One such solution is shown e.g. in US 3,659,491.

To use a device of the above mentioned type brings however certain draw backs. As an example, since the plate and the nut are fixedly attached with each other it is not possible to in a simple way use a nut together with another plate or any other intermediate member, if such member would be available for a more appropriate application, or the plate of the device is defect, e.g. due to damages in connection with transport or installation. Additionally, if either the nut or the plate has a great extension in either direction, there is a risk that the device will be bulky, which might bring problems with packaging and/or transport.

Another fastening device is described in DE 1 890 031 U, the fastening device is in the form of a nut with a hook shaped fastening member for insertion into an opening on e.g. a plate. Inside in the threaded part of the nut is at least one transverse rod arranged to grip the threaded part of the screw during assembly. The fastening device is however not providing a satisfactory solution with respect to simplicity of connecting the nut with a threaded member.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a nut which can be connected to a threaded member by means of rotation of the nut, where the nut overcomes at least a part of the above mentioned drawbacks.

Another purpose of the present invention is to provide a nut which can be connected to a threaded member by means of rotation of the nut, wherein the nut further can be connected to different kinds of intermediate members, such as different kinds of plates.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a nut which can initially be connected to a threaded member by means of friction, so that a user temporarily can connect a threaded member to the nut before rotation of the nut or the threaded member is initiated.

At least one of the above objectives are achieved with a nut according to claim 1.

According to the invention is a nut provided, arranged to be connected with a threaded member by means of rotation of the nut. The nut comprises a main section which comprises a first contact surface which is arranged to contact a first surface of an intermediate member provided with at least one opening. The nut further comprises a fastening device to attach the nut with the intermediate member. According to the present invention, the fastening device comprises a movable locking member with relative to the main section to optionally connect the nut with the intermediate member.

The nut can additionally comprise a through going opening with a central axis, wherein at least a part of the mentioned fastening device comprises a protruding section, which has a first extension towards the mentioned central axis. The mentioned protruding section is arranged to connect the mentioned nut with at least one section of the threaded member by means of friction. The protruding section enables that a user simply can attach the nut temporarily to the threaded member before rotation of the nut or the threaded member is initiated. Such a solution is extra advantageous during assembly of e.g. heating, water and sanitation mountings in confined spaces where it can be difficult to use both hands during assembly. The present invention gives the user an opportunity to use only one hand for attachment and screwing together a nut and a threaded member by means of the threaded member initially can be attached by means of friction before they are screwed tight.

With the expression that the locking member is movable relative to the main section it is meant that the locking member is movable relative to the main section from one position, in which position the nut and the intermediate member is attached to each other. This movement takes place without any part of the nut is subjected to permanent deformation.

With a nut according to the present invention, a user can attach the nut to different intermediate members, for as long as each one of these exhibit a first and a second surface which the nuts first and respectively second contact surface can contact.

In a preferred embodiment of the nut according to the present invention, the fastening device comprises a hook, which comprises a proximal portion and a distal portion to the main section, wherein the distal portion constitutes the locking member. The proximal portion is additionally arranged to go through elastic deformation when inserting the fastening device into the opening. A snap connection is thus provided between the nut and the intermediate member. The locking member preferably comprises a plurality of the above mentioned hooks.

In another preferred embodiment of the nut according to the present invention, the fastening device is made from a material which has a modul of elasticity which is substantially less than a modul of elasticity of the material of the nut. The fastening device further comprises a substantially ring shaped member, which is arranged so that it contacts a surface of the opening of the intermediate member with its outer surface. A fastening device which does not need to be inserted through the opening is thus provided, instead the locking member can for example contact the envelope surface of the opening. This is advantageous if for some reason it is desirable that no part of the fastening device protrudes out from that side of the intermediate member, which is opposite that side on to which the main section of the nut is provided. The just mentioned form of the fastening device can further result in that the fastening device is substantially insensitive for the depth of the opening, for as long as the opening provides a depth, greater than the smallest permitted depth.

In an additional preferred embodiment of the nut according to the present invention, the main section and the locking member are connected to each other via a transition member, wherein the transition member is arranged to be at least partly contained in the opening. The locking member further comprises a lock ring which is arranged to be attached to a part the transition member, the mentioned part being at a distance from the main section. The transition member is preferably arranged with a surrounding track to receive the lock ring. A nut with a releasable locking member and thus also replaceable, if the locking member would be damaged during assembly or be defect from the beginning, is thereby provided. Additionally it may be desirable in some situations to remove the lock ring after the nut has been screwed onto a threaded member. This is possible by means of the just mentioned form of the fastening device.

An additional purpose of the present invention is to provide a nut which temporarily can be attached to a threaded member, without that the threads of the nut and the threaded member are engaged with each other. This can for example be advantageous if an installation engineer wants to switch grip after he or she has temporarily connected a nut and the intermediate member with a threaded member, before he or she has initiated the process of screw tight the nut onto the threaded member.

Yet another purpose with the present invention is to provide a nut which provides an initial guidance of a threaded member, so that the nut is not hauled misaligned when it is screwed tight onto the threaded member.

Hence an embodiment of the present invention relates further to that the nut comprises a through going opening with a central axis, wherein at least a part of the opening comprises a protruding part, which has an extension towards the central axis, arranged to connect the nut with at least a part of the threaded member by means of friction. The protruding part preferably comprises a bar which has a second extension which is substantially parallel with the central axis. The just mentioned protruding part preferably comprises a plurality of the just mentioned bars.

The invention further relates to a fastening device, which comprises a nut according to the present invention, and a plate, which constitutes the intermediate member.

SHORT DESCIRPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The present invention will be described below by means of the non limiting examples with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which;

Fig. 1 shows an example of an application of the present invention;

Fig. 2 shows a cross section of a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 3 shows a view in perspective of the embodiment in fig. 2; Fig. 4 shows a cross section of another preferred embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 5 shows a view in perspective of the embodiment in fig. 4;

Fig. 6 shows a cross section of another preferred embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 7 shows a view in perspective of the embodiment in fig. 6, and

Fig. 8 shows a front view of an implementation of the fastening device of the embodiment shown in fig. 2 and 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The invention will be described with the aid of examples on embodiments. It should be noted however that these embodiments only serve to clarify the present invention, which scope is limited by the accompanying claims.

In fig. 1 is a nut 10 shown according to the present invention, which is arranged to be attached with a threaded member 12, in this example a stud screw of a swiveling tap 14, by means rotation of the nut 10. The threaded member 12 is fig. 1 in fixedly attached to the swiveling tap 14. In other words, the threaded member 12 can not be rotated with respect to the swiveling water tap 14, wherein the substantially only relative rotation possible between the nut 10 and the threaded member 12 comprises in that the nut 10 is rotated with respect to the threaded member 12, which is a preferred application of the nut 10 according to the present invention. For this purpose the nut 10 can preferably exhibit a part 15 which is formed to receive a tightening tool, such as an adjustable wrench, screw driver or a socket wrench (not shown). This tightening tool can for instance be motor driven, pneumatic driven, hand driven or similar.

The nut 10 comprises a fastening device which is schematically illustrated in Fig. 1 with reference number 16. The fastening member 26 comprises according to the invention a locking member 28 which is movable relative to a main section 16 of the nut 10 to optionally attach the nut 10 with the intermediate member 24. A fastening device 16 with the above mentioned locking member 28 can be provided in several different ways, which is clear from the below described embodiments.

In fig. 2 is an embodiment of the invention shown, in which the fastening member 26 comprises a hook 34, which comprises to a proximal part 36 of the main section 16 of the nut 10 and a distal part 28 of the main section 16, wherein the distal part 38 form a locking member 28. The proximal part 36 is arranged to go through a plastic deformation during insertion of the fastening member 26 in an opening 22 of the intermediate member 24. In the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 2, is the elastic deformation consisting of that the proximal part 26 is bended in a direction towards the central line 54 of an opening 52

through the nut 10, which results in that also the distal part 38 is moved in a direction towards the central line 54 when the fastening device 36 is inserted into the opening 22. When the fastening device has been brought a long enough distance into the opening 22, the proximal part 36 springs back, which results in that the distal part 38 substantially regains its original position with respect to the main section 16. As illustrated in Fig. 2, de proximal 36 and distal parts 38 are preferably substantially perpendicular relative each other.

When the nut 10 according to the embodiment in Fig. 2 is attached with the intermediate member 24, a first contact surface 18 of the main section 16 is contacting a first surface 20 of the intermediate member 24. Additionally a second contact surface 20 of the locking member 28, which in this case constitutes the second distal part 38 of the hook 34, is contacting a second surface 32 of the intermediate member 24. In this way is the nut 10 attached to the intermediate member 24, although the nut 10 can still be rotated with respect to the intermediate member 24. It is further realized from Fig. 2 that the nut 10 can be released from the intermediate member 24 by means of the distal part 38 is brought in a direction towards the central line 54 and thereafter the fastening member 26 is brought out from the opening 22.

The fastening member 26 preferably comprises a plurality of hooks 34. For example, in the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 3, the fastening member 26 consists of four hooks 34.

The nut 10 is preferably as shown in Fig. 2 and 3 manufactured in one piece, for example by injection-moulding or casting. In another embodiment of the invention, the fastening member 26 is of a material which has a modul of elasticity which is substantially less than a modul of elasticity of the material in the main section 16 of the nut 10. As is further illustrated in Fig. 4, the fastening member 26 in this embodiment comprises a substantially ring shaped member 40, which is arranged with its radial outer surface 42, which is in the embodiment constitutes the locking member 28, to contact a surface 44 of the opening 22 of the intermediate member 24. The locking member 28 is hence in this embodiment movable relative the main section 16 by means compressing the whole of the ring shaped member 40 when it is inserted into the opening 22, wherein the periphery of the outer surface 42 is reduced.

In the embodiment shown in Fig. 4, the surface 44 constitutes of the envelope surface of the opening 22. Hence, a second surface 32 of the intermediate member 26 is in this embodiment actually the envelope surface 44 of the opening. Fig. 5 shows the nut 10 according to the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 4, where the nut is attached to a plate 24. 5 As seen in Fig. 5, preferably no part of the fastening member 26 protrudes out from the plate 24.

The ring shaped member 40 is preferably made from a rubber material, it is however also possible that the ring shaped member 40 is manufactured in one piece with the nut 10 10 and that the ring shaped member 40 is then formed to provide the needed flexibility.

Fig. 6 shows an additional embodiment of the invention, wherein the main section 16 and the locking member 28 are attached with each other by means of a transition member 46 which is arranged to at least partly be inserted into the opening 22. The locking member 15 28 comprises a lock ring 48 which is arranged to be attached on a part of the transition member 46 which part is arranged at a distance from the main section 16.

In the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 6 the locking member 28 constitutes only of the lock ring 48, the lock ring 48 is further a closed ring. In some applications, the locking member 20 28 can however comprise of more parts other than the lock ring 48 and/or the lock ring 48 can comprise of more parts or at least be provided with an opening (not shown).

As is further illustrated in Fig. 6 the transition member 46 can preferably be, in a preferred application, arranged with a surrounding track 50 to receive the lock ring 48. The lock ring

25 48 can preferably be manufactured of a material which is selected from a group elastic material comprising plastic and rubber material and metals. The lock ring 48 is in a preferred embodiment preferably manufactured of rubber so that it can easily be lead across the first part of the transition member 46. Fig. 7 shows a nut 10 with the just mentioned implementation of the fastening member 26, when it is assembled on a plate

30 24. As can be seen in Fig. 7, the plate comprises preferably a lowered part, which results in that the lock ring 48 is arranged under the plate's upper surface 51.

The nut 10 according to any of the above described embodiments is preferably at least partly manufactured in a plastic material, for example a fiber reinforced polyamide. 35

Besides, as is shown in Fig. 6, the nut 10 for example comprises according to any of the above described embodiments preferably a through opening 52 with a central axis 54, wherein at leas a part 56 of the opening 52 comprises a protruding part 58. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 6 the protruding part 58 consists of a projection which extends 5 from the transition member 46. The protruding part has a first extension 60 towards the central axis 54 and is arranged to connect the nut with at least a part of the threaded member 12 by means of friction.

This protruding part 58 can be formed in several ways. For example, the protruding part 10 58 can in one embodiment shown in Fig. 4 consist of the inner part of the ring shaped member 40.

Another form of the protruding part 58 is shown in Fig. 8, where the protruding part 58 comprises a bar 62, which has a second extension 64 which is substantially parallel with 15 the central axis 54. In the embodiment of the nut which is shown in Fig. 8 the fastening member 26 consists of a plurality of hooks 34 as described earlier, in this case four hooks, wherein each of the hooks 34 are arranged with a bar 62.

The invention further relates to a fastening device 66, which comprises a nut 10 according 20 to the present invention, and a plate, which constitutes the intermediate member 24.

It is realized that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments which are described above and outlined in the drawings; a skilled person in the art will more likely discover that many changes and modifications can be made within the frame of the scope 25 of protection of the attached patent claims. The nut 10 could for example be formed as a wing nut. As another example, the transition member 46 and the lock ring 48 in the embodiment shown in Fig. 6 could be arranged with threads, so that the lock ring 48 is arranged to be screwed tight to the transition member 46.