EP1839817A1

EP1839817A1 - Fixation piece for nail guns

Info

Publication number: EP1839817A1
Application number: EP07104927A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Ramon Ceravalls Pujol; Nuria Lopez Puche
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2006-03-28
Filing date: 2007-03-26
Publication date: 2007-10-03
Anticipated expiration: 2027-03-26
Also published as: ATE511957T1; ES2367849T3; EP1839817B1; ES1062485Y; ES1062485U

Abstract

The fixation piece (1) for nail guns of the present invention comprises first joining means (6) to the external surface of the end of an exit mouth (9b) of a nail gun, and second joining means (7) to the internal surface of the end of an exit mouth (9c) of a nail gun, and it is characterised in that it also comprises third joining means (2) to the external surface of the end of an exit mouth (9a) of a nail gun. The piece of the invention permits to be fixed to cylindrical gun mouths of different format, also to gun mouths of straight walls.

Description

The present invention refers to a fixation piece for nail guns.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In the state of the art is known to use nail guns to fix accessories, such as bridles or clamps, to walls, ceilings and other support surfaces. Once fixed, said accessories are used as fixation means of an object (pipes, cables, panels, etc.) to the support surface.
Some of the accessories to be fixed by guns comprise joining means to the mouth of the gun which permit the user not to hold the accessory by hand when the nail is shot and fixes it to the support surface.
Nowadays, there are in the market three main formats of gun mouths, marketed by companies Spit, Powers Fasteners and Hilti.
The models of the first two companies comprise cylindrical mouths of different diameter, and the third one comprises a mouth of substantially quadrangular section and straight walls, with two of its lateral walls converging to the end of the mouth.
The accessories known in the art comprise joining means adapted to the kinds of mouths disclosed.
Some accessories comprise joining means of the accessory to the internal surface of the end of the gun mouth. These joining means comprises normally a portion comprising a diameter or section slightly greater than the diameter or internal section of the gun mouth, and which is inserted inside the exit hole of the mouth, the accessory being retained to the mouth of the gun by friction.
Other accessories comprise joining means of the accessory to the external surface of the mouth of the gun. These joining means comprise normally a housing inside which it is inserted the end of the gun mouth. The walls of said housing press against the external surface of the mouth, the accessory being retained to the gun mouth by friction.
The described joining means present the drawback that they are designed to be fixed only to one kind or format of gun mouth, which impedes its use with other kinds of gun mouths.
An accessory which solves this drawback is disclosed in the European patent application EP-A-1 621 292 . Said accessory comprises a holding piece of nail guns comprising a plurality of external longitudinal ribs and a plurality of internal longitudinal ribs. The external longitudinal ribs are fixed to the external surface of the gun mouth, and the internal longitudinal ribs are fixed to the internal surface of the gun mouth of different diameter.
The described piece permits to be fixed to two cylindrical gun mouths of different format, but it cannot be fixed to gun mouths of straight walls.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The objective of the present invention is to solve the drawbacks of the devices known in the art, providing a fixation piece for nail guns, comprising first joining means to the external surface of the end of an exit mouth of a nail gun, and second joining means to the internal surface of the end of an exit mouth of a nail gun, characterised in that it also comprises third joining means to the external surface of the end of an exit mouth of a nail gun.
Preferably, said third joining means comprises at least two straight parallel walls.
Advantageously, said third joining means comprises a first pair of straight parallel walls and a second pair of straight parallel walls perpendicular to the first pair of walls.
Thanks to these walls, the piece of the invention can also be fixed to mouths of guns of straight walls.
According to an embodiment of the invention, the straight walls comprise a protrusion at the central part of its internal face.
These protrusions facilitate the fitting between the walls of the piece and the lateral walls of the mouth of the gun.
Preferably, the straight parallel walls are separated by a distance comprised between 15.6 and 16.4 millimetres.
These separation distances between the walls facilitate a good engagement between the piece of the invention and the mouth of the gun.
Advantageously, said first joining means comprises a housing for the end of the mouth of the gun.
Also advantageously, the housing comprises a diameter comprised between 15.3 and 16.1 millimetres. According to an embodiment of the invention, the housing comprises ribs.
Also advantageously, the housing comprises four ribs longitudinal to the longitudinal axis of the mouth placed radially at the external part of said housing.
Thanks to these first joining means, the piece of the invention can be fixed to the external surface of mouths of guns with a circular cross-section.
Preferably, said second joining means comprises a body which is inserted inside the exit hole of the end of the mouth.
According to an embodiment of the invention, the body comprises an external diameter comprised between 6.8 and 7.5 millimetres.
Advantageously, said body comprises ribs.
Also advantageously, said body comprises four ribs longitudinal to the longitudinal axis of the mouth of the gun and a cylinder longitudinal to the longitudinal axis of the mouth of the gun placed at the central part of the piece, said four ribs being placed radially at the external surface of said cylinder.
Thanks to these second joining means, the piece of the invention can be fixed to the internal surface of mouths of guns with a circular cross-section.
According to the present invention, the piece comprises joining means to at least one element to fix an object to said piece.
Preferably, the joining means of the piece to said at least one element comprises a groove which crosses the piece in a direction substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the mouth of the gun, a portion of said at least one element being housed inside said groove, so that said piece and said portion are crossed by a nail shot from the gun.
Advantageously, the groove comprises a lower wall and an upper wall substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the mouth of the gun.
Also advantageously, the portion comprises an end of said at least one element to fix an object to said piece.
Preferably, the portion comprises a plate. According to an embodiment, the plate comprises protrusions in at least one of its faces.
Preferably, the piece comprises folds at the lateral walls of the groove.
Thanks to the groove of the piece it can be inserted inside it a portion or end of the fixation element, so that both pieces remain joined to each other. Therefore, the holding of the fixation element by the user before using the gun to fix definitely the piece and the element to a support surface is prevented. The two pieces remain fixed when the nail is shot without any other required operation.
Preferably, the piece of the invention is made from plastic material.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

To facilitate the description of what has been described previously some drawings are attached, in which, diagrammatically and only as a non-limitative example, it is shown a practical case of embodiment of the invention, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the piece of the invention;
Fig. 2 is a frontal elevation view of the piece of the invention;
Fig. 3 is an upper plan view of the piece of the invention;
Figs. 4 to 6 are views which show the joining of the piece of the invention to three different kinds of gun mouths;
Figs. 7 to 10 are views which show the joining of the piece of the invention to an element to fix an object to said piece.

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

In Figs. 1 to 3 is shown an embodiment of a piece 1 according to the present invention. The piece 1 is designed to be fixed to the free end of the exit mouth of a nail gun. In the present invention, by exit mouth of a nail gun it is intended to designate the exit conduct or tube of the nails of a nail gun.
The piece 1 comprises a body of substantially quadrangular plan, with its corners bevelled, which includes four lateral straight walls 2 rising from the base of the piece 1.
The lateral walls 2 are faced to each other and are separated a distance d1 from 15.6 to 16.4 millimetres, preferably approximately 16 millimetres, and they are provided with a protrusion 5 placed at the central part of its internal face.
Said walls 2 define an internal space inside which four external ribs 3 are placed and a body 7 placed at the central part of the piece 1.
The external ribs 3 are placed radially at the internal corners formed by the four lateral walls 2. The external ribs 3 which are faced to each other are separated a distance d2 between 15.3 and 16.1 millimetres, preferably approximately 15.7 mm, so that their free ends define a housing 6 with a diameter d2 comprised between 15.3 and 16.1 millimetres.
The body 7 comprises a cylinder 21 and ribs 4 placed radially at the external surface of the cylinder 21. The free ends of the internal ribs 4 define an external diameter d3 from 6.8 to 7.5 millimetres, preferably approximately 7.2 millimetres.
The piece 1 also comprises a lower groove 8, whose function will be explained later.
The joining of the piece 1 of the invention to the end of three kinds of mouths of nail guns is now described.
Fig. 4 shows the joining of the piece 1 to a gun mouth 9a of substantially quadrangular section with straight walls 10. This kind of gun mouth 9a corresponds to that marketed by company Hilti. The width of this kind of mouths 9a is 16.1 mm approximately.
As it can be seen, the piece 1 is fixed to the mouth 9a contacting the surface of the internal face of two of the lateral walls 2 of the piece 1 with the external surface of the lateral walls 10 of the mouth 9a of the gun. The walls 2 of the piece 1 exert a pressure against the walls 10 of the mouth 9a, so that the piece 1 remains fixed to the end of said mouth 9a by friction.
The distance d1 between the walls 2 of the piece is suitable so that the friction force provided by the contact between the surface of the internal face of the lateral walls 2 of the piece 1 and the external surface of the lateral walls 10 of the mouth 9a of the gun is enough for the piece 1 to remain joined to the mouth 9a.
The protrusions 5 of the walls 2 of the piece 1 remain engaged inside grooves 11 complementary provided at the walls 10 of the mouth 9a.
In Fig. 5 is shown the joining of the piece 1 to a cylindrical mouth of a gun 9a, of the kind which corresponds to that marketed by the company Powers Fasteners. This kind of mouth comprises an end with an external diameter of approximately 15.8 mm.
As it can be seen, the piece 1 is fixed to the mouth 9b inserting the end of the mouth 9b inside the housing 6 defined by the external ribs 3. The free ends of the external ribs 3 contact with the external surface of the end of the mouth 9b of the gun. The ribs 3 of the piece 1 exert a pressure against the external surface of the end of the mouth 9b, so that the piece 1 remains fixed to the end of said mouth 9b by friction.
The external ribs 3 are longitudinal to the longitudinal axis A of the mouth 9b of the gun when the piece 1 is joined to said mouth 9b, and they are placed at the four internal corners formed by the lateral walls 2 of the piece 1 in a radial configuration.
The configuration of the external ribs 3 permits the contact surface of said external ribs 3 with the external surface of the mouth 9b to be enough to retain the piece 1 without applying a great force to fit the piece 1 inside the mouth 9b.
The diameter d2 of the housing 6 defined by the free ends of the external ribs 3 is suitable so that the friction force provided by the contact between the external ribs 3 and the external surface of the end of the mouth 9b is enough to remain the piece 1 joined to the mouth 9b.
Fig. 6 shows the joining of the piece 1 to a cylindrical mouth 9c of a gun of the kind corresponding to that marketed by the company Spit. This kind of mouth comprises an end with an internal diameter of 6.8 mm approximately.
As it can be seen, the piece 1 is fixed to the mouth 9c inserting the body 7 inside the exit hole of the end of the mouth 9c. The free ends of the internal ribs 4 contact with the internal surface of the end of the gun mouth 9c. The ribs 4 of the piece 1 exert a pressure against the internal surface of the end of the mouth 9c, so that the piece 1 remains fixed to the end of said mouth 9c by friction.
The internal ribs 4 are longitudinal to the longitudinal axis A of the mouth 9c of the gun when the piece 1 is joined to said mouth 9c, and they are placed at the external surface of the cylinder 21 in radial configuration.
The configuration of the internal ribs 4 permits the contact surface of said internal ribs 4 with the internal surface of the mouth 9c to be enough to retain the piece 1 without applying a great force to fit the piece 1 in the mouth 9c.
The diameter d3 defined by the free ends of the internal ribs 4 is suitable for the friction force provided by the contact between the internal ribs 3 and the internal surface of the end of the mouth 9c to be enough to retain the piece 1 joined to the mouth 9c.
As it can be seen, the piece 1 of the invention permits its fixation to three different kinds of mouths of nail guns, so that it is not necessary to have a different for each kind of mouth.
In any of the described cases, when the piece 1 is joined to the end of the mouth 9a, 9b, 9c of a nail gun, the central cylinder 21 remains placed at the exit path of the nail, aligned with the longitudinal axis A of the mouth 9a, 9b, 9c and inserted inside the exit hole.
When a nail is shot to fix the piece to a support surface, the nail is shot through said exit hole, crossing the piece 1 transversally and remaining housed inside said cylinder 21. The cylinder 21 acts as dampening element of the nail, deforming itself and retaining the head of the nail, and it also prevents possible damages at the support surface caused by the impact of the nail.
Now the joining means of the piece 1 to a fixation element of an object to said piece are described.
As stated previously, the piece 1 also comprises a groove 8 made at its internal zone which crosses the piece 1. Said groove 8 extends substantially parallel to the lower surface 12 of the base of the piece 1, and substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis A of the mouth 9a, 9b, 9c of the gun when the piece 1 is fixed to said mouth 9a, 9b, 9c.
The groove 8 comprises a substantially rectangular section of reduced height, whose larger sides define a lower wall 13 and an upper wall 14 and whose smaller sides define a pair of lateral walls 15.
The lower and upper walls 13, 14 of the groove 8 are substantially parallel to the lower surface 12 of the base of the piece 1, and substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis A of the mouth 9a, 9b, 9c of the gun when the piece 1 is fixed to said mouth 9a, 9b, 9c. Therefore, when the piece 1 is fixed to the mouth 9a, 9b, 9c of a nail gun, the groove 8 is placed in the exit path of the nail, crossed perpendicularly by the longitudinal axis A of the mouth 9a, 9b, 9c.
In Figs. 7 to 10 the joining of the piece 1 to a fixation element 16 of an object to said piece 1 is shown. The object to be fixed can be of any kind, such as a duct, a bundle of cables or a panel.
In the present embodiment, said fixation element 16 comprises at one of its ends a threaded boss 17 to which a nut or a similar piece can be threaded to fix any object to it. The fixation element 16 comprises at the other end a flat plate 18 provided with a pair of longitudinal ribs 19 at one of its faces.
The width of said plate 18 is slightly lower than the width of the groove 8, and its thickness is substantially lower than the height of the groove 8. The plate 18 of the element 16 is inserted inside the groove 8 sliding longitudinally through it, as it is shown in Figs. 7 to 10. The ribs 19 are in contact with one of the walls of the groove, in this case with the upper wall 14, retaining the plate 18 inside the groove 8, thanks to the friction between both pieces.
The groove 8 deforms elastically when the ribs 19 of the plate 18 are inserted in the groove 8, increasing the distance between its lower 13 and upper 14 walls (Fig. 9).
The piece 1 comprises close to the lateral walls 15 of the groove 8 some folds 20 or wings which extend when the plate 18 of the element 16 is inserted in said groove 8, providing the elastic deformation of the groove 8.
As it can be seen in Fig. 10, the fixation element 16 remains joined to the piece 1 with its plate 18 placed inside the groove 8. Therefore, when the piece 1 is engaged with the mouth 9 of a nail gun, the groove 8 and the plate 18 of the fixation element 16 remain at the exit path of the nail, in a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis A of the mouth 9 which is placed a separation distance from the end of the mouth 9.
To fix the piece 1 and the element 16 to a support surface, such as a wall or ceiling, the piece 1 is engaged to the free end of the mouth 9. The piece 1 can be engaged to the mouth 9 of the gun with the fixation element 16 already joined to it, or the element 11 can be fixed after the engagement of the piece 1 to the mouth 9.
Then the mouth 9 of the gun and the piece 1 are rested against the support surface and a nail 22 is shot. The nail 22 exits through the mouth 9 and crosses the piece 1 and the plate 18 of the element 16, until its head is housed inside the cylinder 21. Therefore, the nail 22 fixes at once the piece 1 and the fixation element 16 to the support surface.
As it can be seen, the device of the invention permits a previous fixation of the piece 1 to the fixation element 16 quickly and easily. Both pieces remain fixed definitively by the nail without any additional operation of joining or fixation. Furthermore, the operator does not hold any piece by hand before shooting the nail with the gun.
The configuration of the fixation element 16 could be different according to the requirements, and it can comprise a clamp, an angle, or any other accessory.
The fixation element 16 will be preferably metallic.
On the other hand, even though a preferred embodiment of the piece 1 of the invention has been disclosed, the piece 1 could present different configurations within the scope of the present invention.
E.g. the first joining means 6 and the second joining means 7 of the piece to the mouth of a gun could consist in any kind of suitable surface instead of ribs.
Furthermore, the configuration and the number of external 3 and internal 4 ribs of the piece 1 could also be different. E.g. the number of external and internal ribs could be different from four in each case. The shape of the ribs could also be different, presenting any suitable shape to press against a surface of the mouth of a gun.
The piece 1 of the invention will be made from a material flexible and resistant enough to permit to fit it in the different mouths of the gun of suitable shape, e.g. from plastic material.

Claims

Fixation piece (1) for nail guns, comprising first joining means (6) to the external surface of the end of an exit mouth (9b) of a nail gun, and second joining means (7) to the internal surface of the end of an exit mouth (9c) of a nail gun, characterised in that it also comprises third joining means (2) to the external surface of the end of an exit mouth (9a) of a nail gun.
Piece (1) according to claim 1, characterised in that said third joining means comprises at least two straight parallel walls (2).
Piece (1) according to claim 2, characterised in that said third joining means comprises a first pair of straight parallel walls (2) and a second pair of straight parallel walls (2) perpendicular to the first pair of walls (2).
Piece (1) according to claims 2 or 3, characterised in that the straight walls (2) comprise a protrusion (5) at the central part of its internal face.
Piece (1) according to anyone of claims 2 to 4, characterised in that the straight parallel walls (2) are separated by a distance (d1) comprised between 15.6 and 16.4 millimetres.
Piece (1) according to anyone of the previous claims, characterised in that said first joining means comprises a housing (6) for the end of the mouth (9b) of the gun.
Piece (1) according to claim 6, characterised in that the housing (6) comprises a diameter (d2) comprised between 15.3 and 16.1 millimetres.
Piece according to claims 6 or 7, characterised in that the housing (6) comprises ribs (3).
Piece according to claim 8, characterised in that the housing (6) comprises four ribs (3) longitudinal to the longitudinal axis (A) of the mouth (9b) placed radially at the external part of said housing (6).
Piece (1) according to anyone of the previous claims, characterised in that said second joining means comprises a body (7) which is inserted inside the exit hole of the end of the mouth (9c).
Piece (1) according to claim 10, characterised in that the body (7) comprises an external diameter (d3) comprised between 6.8 and 7.5 millimetres.
Piece (1) according to claims 10 or 11, characterised in that said body (7) comprises ribs (4).
Piece (1) according to claim 12, characterised in that said body (7) comprises four ribs (4) longitudinal to the longitudinal axis (A) of the mouth (9c) of the gun and a cylinder (21) longitudinal to the longitudinal axis (A) of the mouth (9c) of the gun placed at the central part of the piece (1), said four ribs (4) being placed radially at the external surface of said cylinder (21).
Piece (1) according to anyone of the previous claims, characterised in that it comprises joining means (8) to at least one element (16) to fix an object to said piece (1).
Piece (1) according to claim 14, characterised in that the joining means of the piece (1) to said at least one element (16) comprises a groove (8) which crosses the piece (1) in a direction substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis (A) of the mouth (9, 9a, 9b, 9c) of the gun, a portion (18) of said at least one element (16) being housed inside said groove (8), so that said piece (1) and said portion (18) are crossed by a nail (22) shot from the gun.
Piece according to claim 15, characterised in that the groove (8) comprises a lower wall (13) and an upper wall (14) substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis (A) of the mouth (9, 9a, 9b, 9c) of the gun.
Piece (1) according to claim 16, characterised in that the portion (18) comprises an end of said at least one element (16) to fix an object to said piece (1).
Piece (1) according to claim 17, characterised in that the portion comprises a plate (18).
Piece (1) according to claim 18, characterised in that the plate (18) comprises protrusions (19) in at least one of its faces.
Piece (1) according to claims 15 to 19, characterised in that it comprises folds (20) at the lateral walls (15) of the groove (8).
Piece (1) according to anyone of the previous claims, characterised in that it is made from plastic material.