Fastener Driving Tool

Abstract

There is provided a fastener driving tool for automatically feeding a component such as a clip and fastening the same in position by driving a fastener therethrough into a workpiece. The tool includes a housing having structure defining a drive track with a fastener driving member movable through the drive track. A magazine assembly is provided having first guide means for supplying clips to the guide track, and having second guide means for supplying fasteners to said guide track whereby operation of the fastener driving member through a drive stroke is effective to drive a fastener through the component and into a workpiece.

Description

This invention relates to a fastener driving apparatus, and, more particularly to a fastener driving tool of the type for fastening components such as clips into place.

More specifically there is frequently a need for fastening small components such as clips to a workpiece. One such application involves securing generally T-shaped clips into the back of a television cabinet cooperable with key type slots formed in the edge of the cabinet back to provide for ready removal of the cabinet back for servicing and the like. Thus it becomes desirable to automatically feed the small components and to simultaneously fasten them into position by driving a fastener to the component.

Accordingly one object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved fastener driving tool which will automatically feed small components and simultaneously secure them in place by driving a fastener therethrough.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved fastener driving tool.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved fastener driving tool which will automatically feed a strip of plastic clips and simultaneously fasten them into position in a workpiece by driving a brad through the center thereof.

In accordance with these and many other objects, an embodiment of the invention comprises a fastener driving tool having an improved magazine assembly according to the present invention. The fastener driving tool may be of any suitable type, such as the pneumatically actuated fastener driving tool disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,056,137 granted Oct. 2, 1962 to O.A. Wandel et al. As therein disclosed, the pneumatically actuated fastener driving tool is provided with a main housing defining both a hollow forward or head portion and a handle portion extending rearwardly from the head portion. The hollow head portion includes means defining a power cylinder in which a piston secured to a driver blade or member is slideably mounted. The lower end of the driver blade is slideably mounted in a drive track to which the components and fasteners are supplied. A control valve is carried on the housing selectively shifting the open end of the cylinder into and out of engagement with a valve means so that compressed air from a reservoir is selectively admitted and exhausted from the cylinder for driving the piston and driver blade downwardly and permitting return of the same. The fastener driving tool is provided with a safety switch which prevents firing of the tool through a work stroke unless the tool is in engagement with a workpiece. To this end the safety switch is actuated by a member engageable with a workpiece and depressed to condition the tool to fire through a drive stroke.

In accordance with the present invention there is provided a magazine assembly with the fastener driving tool having a first guide means for supplying components, such as strips of clips, to the guide track of the tool, and having a second guide means for supplying fasteners such as brads to the drive track intermediate the components and the fastener driving device. Operation of the fastener driving tool through a drive stroke is effective to bring the fastener driving member into driving engagement with the brad, driving the brad through the clip and into the workpiece.

Many other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from considering the following detailed description in connection with the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of the improved fastener driving tool;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a clip as driven by the fastener FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the clip of FIG. 3, illustrated in an unlocked position;

FIG. 4 is a view of one type of fastener which may be used in the fastener driving tool of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the nose piece and drive track of the fastener driving tool of FIG. 1, in broken away section, illustrated in its normal position, and shown in phantom in position ready to drive a clip;

FIG. 6 is a broken away section of the nose piece of the fastener driving tool, illustrated with the clip supply exhausted;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view illustrating the slot formed in the edge of the panel, along with the tool aligning pin;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along line 8--8 in FIG. 5 illustrating the fastener and component magazines;

FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 8 but illustrating the fasteners and components in the two magazine assemblies;

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating the component strip and pusher from the component magazine shown in relation to a safety assembly containing a component shearing edge; and

FIG. 11 is an enlarged perspective view of the fastener shown in FIG. 4.

Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to FIG. 1 thereof, there is illustrated a fastener driving tool 10 for automatically feeding a component and fastening the same in position by driving a fastener therethrough in accordance with the present invention. In the illustrated embodiment the fastener driving tool 10 is of the pneumatically actuated type, generally of the type illustrated in the previously mentioned Wandel et al. patent. As therein disclosed, the fastener driving tool 10 includes a housing 12 having a vertically extended head or forward portion 14 and a hollow handle portion 16 extending rearwardly from the head portion 14. The handle portion 16 defines a fluid reservoir for compressed air or other operating fluid and adapted to be connected to a suitable source of compressed air through a suitable coupling 18. The head portion 14 contains fastener driving mechanism including a drive piston and drive member 24, and under the combined control of a hand trigger 20 and work engaging safety trigger 22 as more fully described in the above mentioned Wandel et al. patent. The fastener driving member 24 is movable through a drive track 26 defined in a nose piece 28 of the fastener driving tool through a drive and return stroke.

FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate the components fed and fastened by the fastener driving tool. The components are intended to provide a rotatable lock between a removable panel 30 and support piece 32. To this end, the removable panel 30 is provided with one or more keyhole shaped slots 34 in its edge overlying the support piece 32. A support clip 36 is secured to the support piece 32 by a suitable fastener, here shown as a wire brad 38. As best illustrated in FIGS. 2, 3 and 5, the clip 36 may be of plastic or other suitable material and may include a pair of projecting keys 36a from a generally cylindrical support 36b. The clip 36 is provided with a counterbored opening 40, FIG. 5, pivotally receiving one of the brads 38. Each of the brads 38 includes a shank 38a loosely receivable within the opening 40, and an enlarged head 38b receivable within the enlarged counterbored portion 40a of the opening 40. In the illustrated embodiment of brad, as best illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 11, the head 38b is of generally T-shape, being somewhat longer than the diameter of the shank 38a. Thus the clip 36 will readily pivot from its locked position, as illustrated in FIG. 2, provided by the fastener driving tool 10, to its unlocked position as illustrated in FIG. 3.

To feed the clips 36 and brads 38 into the drive track 26 of the fastener driving tool 10, there is provided a magazine assembly 42 having a first guide means in the form of spaced apart tracks 44, only one of which is illustrated in FIG. 5, loosely supporting the shanks of the brads secured in a strip 46, and supporting the heads 38b thereof (FIG. 9). A spring biased follower 48 (FIGS. 8 and 9) advances the brads into the drive track 26. As is common in the fastener driving art, the individual brads 38 in the strip 46 are secured together, but are readily severed by the movement of the drive member 24 through a drive stroke. A second guide means is in the form of spaced apart guide tracks 50 (FIGS. 8 and 9) defining opposed grooves receiving the projections 36a on a strip 52 of the clips 36. A spring biased follower 54 (FIGS. 8-10) biases the strip 52 forward so that one of the clips 36 is in the drive track 26 of the fastener driving tool 10. The individual clips 36 on the strip 52 are secured together to provide a unitary strip, but are readily separated.

In the illustrated embodiment, the driving of a fastener is under the combined control of the manual trigger 20 and the safety trigger 22. The safety trigger 22 includes a work engaging surface 56 which, in the released position illustrated in FIG. 5, renders the fastener driving tool inoperative to cycle through a drive stroke. However, upon depression of the work engaging surface 56, to the position illustrated in phantom in FIG. 5, the fastener driving tool 10 is set so that subsequent depression of the manual trigger 20 will fire the tool and drive a brad 38 through a clip 36 and into the support piece 32. Moreover, the safety trigger 22 in the illustrated device is provided with an inwardly projecting shear 58 which, in the position illustrated in phantom, serves to sever the end one of the clips 36 from the remainder of the clip strip 52. More specifically, initial downward deflection of the end one of the clips 36 in the drive track will bring the frangible portion interconnecting it with the succeeding clip of the strip into engagement with the point of the shear, severing it from the strip.

As a further safety device to prevent firing of the fastener driving tool when the clip strip 52 has been exhausted, the clip strip follower 54 is provided with a lower projecting portion 60 which, as illustrated in FIG. 6, interferes with the shear 58 to prevent depression of the work engaging surface 56 in the absence of a clip within the magazine assembly 42.

To provide for properly positioning of the clip 36 within the keyhole slot 34 of the removable panel, the lower work engaging surface 56 has projecting therefrom a guide or pin 62 seatable within the bottom of the lower portion 34a of a slot 34, as illustrated in FIG. 7, to locate the positioning of the tool 10 with respect to a particular slot 34.

From the above description the operation of the improved clip fastening device is believed clear. However, briefly, it will be understood that the fastener driving tool is provided with two guides in the magazine thereof. A first guide 50 provides for advancing the clips 36 to the drive track of the tool. A second guide 44 provides for supplying brads or fasteners to the drive track of the fastener driving tool. The fastener driving tool can be fired through a drive stroke by the simultaneous depression of the manual trigger 20 and safety trigger 22. Moreover, depression of the safety trigger 22 through the work engaging surface 56 is effective to drive a shear 58 upwardly to sever the forward one of the clips 36 from the clip strip. Firing of the tool is effective to move the drive member 24 downwardly whereby it will engage a brad, and drive the brad through the opening 40 of the clip 36, securing the brad into the work member.

Although the present invention has been described by reference to a single embodiment thereof, it will be understood that numerous other embodiments and modifications may be devised by those skilled in the art and it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such modifications and embodiments that come within the true spirit and scope of the present invention.

Claims

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent of The United States is:

1. A fastener driving tool for automatically feeding a component and fastening the same in position by driving a fastener therethrough into a workpiece, said tool comprising:

a housing including structure defining a drive track and a fastener driving member movable through said drive track and operable through a drive stroke,

a first magazine assembly for supplying successive components from an integral component strip to said guide track,

a second magazine assembly for supplying fasteners to said drive track intermediate said first magazine assembly and said fastener driving device,

a safety assembly movable to a given position by engagement with a workpiece to permit operation of the tool,

and a pusher in said first magazine engageable with said strip to advance said components, said pusher extending into the path of movement of the safety assembly when the number of components in the magazine is reduced to a given point to prevent movement of the safety assembly to said given position to prevent firing of said tool,

said safety assembly including a shear means movable adjacent the components when the safety assembly is moved to said given position to sever the component in the drive track from the strip of components, said shear means engaging the pusher when the supply of components in the magazine is exhausted to prevent movement of the safety assembly to the given position.

2. A fastener driving tool for automatically feeding a component and fastening the same in position by driving a fastener therethrough into a workpiece, said tool comprising:

a housing including structure defining a drive track and a fastener driving member movable through said drive track and operable through a drive stroke,

a first magazine assembly for supplying successive components from an integral component strip to said guide track,

a second magazine assembly for supplying fasteners to said drive track intermediate said first magazine assembly and said fastener driving device,

a safety assembly movable to a given position by engagement with a workpiece to permit operation of the tool,

and a pusher in said first magazine engageable with said strip to advance said components, said pusher extending into the path of movement of the safety assembly when the number of components in the magazine is reduced to a given point to prevent movement of said safety assembly to said given position to prevent firing of said tool,

said first magazine assembly including a housing with a slot in a lower wall in which a portion of the pusher slides, said portion of the pusher being disposed to engage the safety assembly to block movement of the safety assembly to said given position when the supply of components is depleted.