Strip of collated fasteners for fastener-driving tool
DCFirst Claim
1. A strip of collated fasteners, the strip comprising a plurality of fasteners and a carrier molded from a polymeric material, each fastener having an elongate shank with a pointed end and a head and being designed to be forcibly driven through a workpiece, into a substrate, the shank having a portion flaring outwardly where the shank adjoins the head, the carrier comprising a separate sleeve associated with each fastener, a representative sleeve including an annular portion and a breakable portion integral with the annular portion, the representative sleeve gripping the shank of the associated fastener with the annular portion nearer to the pointed end of the shank of the associated fastener and with the breakable portion nearer to the head of the associated fastener, the breakable portion having an end opposite to the annular portion and having a pair of similar laterally opposed, outwardly opening, continuously curved, concave recesses shaping the breakable portion so that the breakable portion constitutes means for breaking into at least two segments, approximately along a vertical plane bisecting each of the concave recesses, when the outwardly flaring portion of the shank of the associated fastener bears against said end of the breakable portion as the associated fastener is being driven forcibly through a workpiece, into a substrate, after the annular portion has been arrested by the workpiece, the annular portion constituting means for eliminating any gap between the head of the associated fastener and the workpiece after the associated fastener has been driven, the respective segments tending to remain integral with the annular portion after the associated fastener has been driven, the carrier comprising frangible bridges between adjacent ones of the sleeves of the carrier.
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Abstract
In a strip of collated fasteners, each having a shank and a head, a carrier molded from a polymeric material has a sleeve for each fastener. Each sleeve has an annular portion and a breakable portion, which breaks into two segments as the fastener gripped by such sleeve is driven. The breakable portion, which is notched at one end, has a pair of similar, laterally opposed, outwardly opening, continuously curved concave recesses with open windows, from which portions of the fastener shank emerges. In a fastener-guiding tool, parallel ribs of a guiding device fit into such recesses, into close proximity with the emerging portions, so as to guide the strip between such ribs.
75 Citations
14 Claims
- 1. A strip of collated fasteners, the strip comprising a plurality of fasteners and a carrier molded from a polymeric material, each fastener having an elongate shank with a pointed end and a head and being designed to be forcibly driven through a workpiece, into a substrate, the shank having a portion flaring outwardly where the shank adjoins the head, the carrier comprising a separate sleeve associated with each fastener, a representative sleeve including an annular portion and a breakable portion integral with the annular portion, the representative sleeve gripping the shank of the associated fastener with the annular portion nearer to the pointed end of the shank of the associated fastener and with the breakable portion nearer to the head of the associated fastener, the breakable portion having an end opposite to the annular portion and having a pair of similar laterally opposed, outwardly opening, continuously curved, concave recesses shaping the breakable portion so that the breakable portion constitutes means for breaking into at least two segments, approximately along a vertical plane bisecting each of the concave recesses, when the outwardly flaring portion of the shank of the associated fastener bears against said end of the breakable portion as the associated fastener is being driven forcibly through a workpiece, into a substrate, after the annular portion has been arrested by the workpiece, the annular portion constituting means for eliminating any gap between the head of the associated fastener and the workpiece after the associated fastener has been driven, the respective segments tending to remain integral with the annular portion after the associated fastener has been driven, the carrier comprising frangible bridges between adjacent ones of the sleeves of the carrier.
- 9. A strip of collated fasteners, the strip comprising a plurality of fasteners and a carrier molded from a polymeric material, each fastener having an elongate shank with a pointed end and a head and being designed to be forcibly driven through a workpiece, into a substrate, the carrier comprising a separate sleeve associated with each fastener, a representative sleeve including a lower, annular portion and an upper portion integral with the annular portion, the representative sleeve gripping the shank of the associated fastener with the lower, annular portion nearer to the pointed end of the shank of the associated fastener and with the upper portion nearer to the head of the associated fastener, the upper portion having at least one outwardly opening, curved, concave recess having an open window, from which a portion of the shank of the associated fastener emerges, the carrier comprising frangible bridges between adjacent ones of the sleeves of the carrier.
- 11. In a fastener-driving tool, a combination comprising a strip of collated fasteners and means for guiding the strip of collated fasteners longitudinally, the strip comprising a plurality of fasteners and a carrier molded from a polymeric material, each fastener having an elongate shank with a pointed end and a head and being designed to be forcibly driven through a workpiece, into a substrate, the carrier comprising a sleeve associated with each fastener, a representative sleeve including a lower, annular portion and an upper portion integral with the annular portion, and gripping the shank of the associated fastener with the lower, annular portion nearer to the pointed end of the shank of the associated fastener and with the upper portion nearer to the head of the associated fastener, the upper portion having an upper end and having a pair of similar, laterally opposed, outwardly opening, continuously curved, concave recesses, each concave section having an open window, from which a portion of the shank of the associated fastener emerges, the emerging portions being opposed diametrically, the carrier comprising frangible bridges between adjacent ones of the sleeves of the carrier, the guiding means comprising a pair of parallel ribs, each rib fitting into a respective one of the concave recesses of at least one sleeve of the carrier, into close proximity with the emerging portions of the shanks gripped by the last-mentioned sleeve, so as to guide the strip of collated fasteners between the parallel ribs, which are spaced from each other so as to permit the strip of collated fasteners to move along and between the parallel ribs.
Specification