POST ADAPTER

• US 3,721,463 A
• Filed: 11/23/1970
• Issued: 03/20/1973
• Est. Priority Date: 11/23/1970
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Unistrut International Corporation (Atkore, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Herbert J. Henry, Hugo E. Rebentisch Jr, Warren R. Attwood
• Inventors: Attwood, Warren R., Henry, Herbert J., Rebentisch, Hugo E. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Schultz, William H.
• Application Number:
  US05/091,948
• Time in Patent Office: 848 Days
• Field of Search: 248/121,221,188.9 85/70,71 287/126,2R,20.3,124 211/182
• US Class Current: 403/258
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 2/04 internal, i.e. with spreading action F16B2/14 - F16B2/18 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 2200/403 Threaded clamping parts
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 9/054 the intermediate member being threaded
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 9/056 the intermediate member extending through the flat surface; the rod or tubular part extending through the flat surface

Abstract

An adapter for releasably securing an assembly, such as a parking meter, to the top of a hollow post and including a resilient member having a tapered bore formed therein. The resilient member is inserted over a complementary tapered base member extending from the lower surface of the assembly. A nut is threaded onto the lower end of a bolt which extends through the base member for retaining the resilient member thereon. The periphery of the nut is shaped so as to non-rotatably engage with the inner surface of the hollow post upon which the assembly is to be mounted. The nut, the resilient member, the tapered member, and the bolt extending from the lower surface of the assembly are inserted into the post and the bolt rotated so as to screw the nut onto the bolt, compressing the resilient member to wedge it onto the tapered base member, causing the resilient member to expand between the base member and the inner surface of the post so as to fixedly secure the assembly onto the post. The base member and the bore in the resilient member are frusto-conical in one modification and substantially pyramidal in another.

Claims

1. An adapter for detachably securing an article adjacent an open end of a hollow post, comprising:

an elongated tapered base member having its larger end secured to said article and an aperture formed therethrough substantially parallel to its longitudinal axis;

an elongated retaining member extending through said aperture with an enlarged end disposed adjacent the larger end of said base member and a threaded end extending outward from the free end of said base member;

a compression resilient member shaped to be received into said open end and having a tapered aperture formed therein for positioning around said tapered base member;

a nut for threading onto the threaded end of said retaining member to wedge the resilient member on the base member, and to longitudinally compress said resilient member thereby expanding same between said tapered member and the inside surface of the hollow post; and

said nut and said post having means engaging to prevent rotation of said nut within said post.

2. The adapter as defined in claim 1, wherein said resilient member is formed from hard rubber.

3. The adapter as defined in claim 1, wherein said resilient member is formed from hard plastic.

4. The adapter as defined in claim 1, wherein said elongated tapered base member is frusto-conically shaped and said tapered aperture formed in said resilient member is frusto-conically shaped.

5. The adapter as defined in claim 1, wherein said elongated tapered member is substantially pyramidally shaped.

6. The adapter as defined in claim 5, wherein said tapered aperture formed in said resilient member is substantially pyramidally shaped.

7. The adapter as defined in claim 1, wherein said nut is rectangularly shaped and the inner surface of the hollow post is rectangularly shaped in cross-section.

8. A parking meter and support post assembly comprising:

a hollow post;

a meter housing for mounting on the upper open end of said post, said housing having an interior chamber adjacent a bottom wall and access means thereto;

an elongated tapered base depending from said bottom wall, and a bore extending longitudinally through said bAse and through said bottom wall;

an elongated retaining member extending through said bore with an enlarged head disposed in said housing chamber and a threaded end extending outward from the lower end of said base;

a compression resilient member shaped to be received into an end of said post and having a tapered aperture formed therein for positioning around said tapered base;

a nut for threading onto the threaded end of said retaining member to wedge said resilient member on the base member, and to longitudinally compress said resilient member thereby expanding same between said tapered member and the inside surface of the hollow post; and

said nut and said post having means engaging to prevent rotation of said nut within said post.

9. The assembly as defined in claim 8, wherein said base and the aperture in the resilient member are complementarily frusto-conically shaped.

10. The assembly as defined in claim 8, wherein said base and the aperture in the resilient member are complementarily substantially pyramidally shaped.

11. The assembly as defined in claim 8, wherein the interior of said hollow post and said nut are rectangular and have an interference fit to prevent the nut from turning within the post.