Clip

• US 20050155191A1
• Filed: 12/23/2004
• Published: 07/21/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/26/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Piolax Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Piolax Incorporated
• Inventors: Shinozaki, Nobuya, Okada, Shigeo, Asano, Kazunori
• Granted Patent: US 7,231,696 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 24/297
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 13/0206 Arrangements of fasteners and clips specially adapted for attaching inner vehicle liners or mouldings devices for fastening or securing F16B
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 13/0256 Dashboard liners
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 19/00 Other details of constructional parts for finishing work on buildings ladders, e.g. climbing irons, E06C9/04
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 21/075 the socket having resilient parts on its inside and outside
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 5/065 the plates being one on top of the other and distanced from each other, e.g. by using protrusions to keep contact and distance
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 5/0657 at least one of the plates providing a raised structure, e.g. of the doghouse type, for connection with the clamps or clips of the other plate
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 5/0664 at least one of the sheets or plates having integrally formed or integrally connected snap-in-features
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 24/309 Plastic type
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 24/42 Independent, headed, aperture pass-through fastener

Abstract

A clip has a base A having a U shape composed of a pair of parallel sections, and a joining section having flexibility and interconnecting the lower parts thereof, elastic pieces respectively branching from the insides of the parallel sections in the opposed directions, and extending along the parallel sections and the joining section, claws respectively protruding inwardly on the elastic pieces, and step sections having upper surfaces respectively projecting outward from the outer sides of the parallel sections and being inclined obliquely downward.

Claims

1. A clip comprising:

a base having a U shape composed of a pair of mutually opposing parallel sections, and a joining section having flexibility and disposed integrally with the lower parts of the parallel sections,

an elastic piece respectively branching from the insides of the parallel sections toward the symmetry axis of the base, and further extending along the base,

a claw respectively protruding toward the symmetry axis of the base on the elastic piece, and step sections having upper surfaces respectively projecting outward from the outer sides of the parallel sections and being inclined obliquely downward,

the clip being configured to fix a fixing member to a to-be-fixed member in such a manner that,

a protrusion extending from the fixing member and including a locking hole provided therein passes from the open end of the parallel sections through between the elastic piece and extends into the innermost part thereof along the symmetry axis of the base, and the claw is capable of being locked in the locking hole of the protrusion,

the base mounting the protrusion therein is press inserted in a mounting hole provided in the to-be-fixed member, and

then, the step sections pass through the mounting hole, and thereafter, the step sections are respectively expanded to the left and right sides by the elastic return of the base, such that the upper surfaces are locked at the back rim portion of the mounting hole,

wherein in order to prevent that the base approaches the elastic piece by the bending toward the symmetry axis direction of the base due to the passage of the step sections through the mounting hole, and that the claw is unlocked from the locking hole when a pull load has acted on the fixing member, abutting portions are formed such that the base abuts the elastic piece at the positions in the vicinity of and outside of the locking hole.

2. The clip according to claim 1, wherein

the elastic piece is disposed between the protrusion and the base such that the elastic piece is pressed against the protrusion by the region between each portion branching from the base and positioned on the opening side of the U shape and the each abutting portion when a pull load has acted on the fixing member.

3. The clip according to claim 1, wherein

the claw and the abutting portions are disposed at the respective tip portions of the elastic piece situated in the inner part of the U shape opposite to the opening.

4. The clip according to claim 1, wherein

the protrusion is interposed along the symmetry axis of the base at two sites of a region between two tongue pieces mutually extending inwardly in opposed directions from the open end of the parallel sections, and a depression provided at the lower end portion of the base.

5. The clip according to claim 1, wherein

the elastic piece has a reduced thickness portion formed by picking a part of the outer side along the symmetry axis.

6. The clip according claim 5, wherein the elastic piece is configured such that projections for restricting the clearance from the base are disposed on their respective outer sides opposite to the claw, and that the free ends of the elastic piece extend beyond the claw to interpose the protrusion of the fixing member therebetween.

7. The clip according to claim 5, wherein

the reduced thickness portions are substantially formed along the symmetry axis corresponding to the upper regions of the step sections, and further, at the parallel sections of the base, elastic projections each for restricting the clearance toward the reduced thickness portion are formed.

8. The clip according to claim 1, wherein

the claw respectively disposed on the left and right elastic piece is each formed, at the bottom side, in an inclined surface increasing in height from the inner side toward the outer side.

9. The clip according to claim 1, wherein

the abutting portions are respectively situated outside the positions at which the locking hole and the claw is locked.