JP2547171B2 - T-nut manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a T-nut, and more particularly to a method of manufacturing a T-nut having a hollow shaft portion having a relatively thin wall portion to be caulked. Is.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a conventional T-nut 1 which is of interest to the present invention.

[0003] The T nut 1 is made of an integral metal material.
The shaft portion 2 and the flange portion 3 protruding outward from the first end portion of the shaft portion 2 are provided. The shaft portion 2 has a hollow cylindrical shape,
A female screw 4 is formed on the inner peripheral surface thereof. Female screw 4 is
It is formed over the entire inner peripheral surface of the shaft portion 2.

The flange portion 3 has two pairs of claws 5 and 6, 7 extending toward a second end opposite to the first end.
And 8 are arranged to face each other in the radial direction of the flange portion 3. Each of these claws 5 to 8 is formed by cutting and raising a part of the outer peripheral edge of the flange portion 3.

Such a T-nut 1 is constructed by inserting the shaft portion 2 into a hole provided in advance in an object to be fixed, such as wood, and driving the claws 5 to 8 into the object to be fixed. Fixed against. Thus, when the T-nut 1 is fixed to the object to be fixed, rotation of the T-nut 1 is prohibited, and a screw member such as a bolt is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the shaft portion 2. It can be screwed into the female screw 4.

Such a T-nut 1 is usually called a "hopper feed T-nut". This is because the T-nut 1 can be smoothly moved along the supply track provided in the nut fixing machine for fixing the T-nut to the fixing target, and the T-nut can be automatically supplied. The details of one type of hopper feed T-nut are described in, for example, British Patent No. 1,157,734.

In FIG. 12, the supply truck 9 as described above is shown in phantom. The supply track 9 comprises a pair of guide rails 10 and 11 having a C-shaped cross section, which are symmetrically arranged to face each other. The flange portion 3 is received by each of the guide rails 10 and 11, and the T nut 1 is arranged along the supply track 9 in a predetermined posture while the pawls 5 to 8 are positioned between the guide rails 10 and 11. Be moved. The supply truck 9
Although not shown, it is often bent so as to bring the T-nut 1 into a desired posture so that the shaft portion 2 is aligned with a hole provided in an object to be fixed (not shown).

However, when the above-mentioned T-nut 1 is fixed to the object to be fixed, the claws 5 that have eaten into the object to be fixed are used.
Since it is only substantially maintained by ~ 8,
With the lapse of time, the state in which the claws 5 to 8 bite into the object to be fixed becomes loose, and in the worst case, the T-nut 1 may fall off the object to be fixed. In order to solve such a problem, a T-nut 12 as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14 has been proposed. FIG. 13 is a front view of the T-nut 12, and FIG. 14 is a bottom view of the T-nut 12.

The T-nut 12, like the T-nut 1 described above, is provided with a shaft portion 13 made of an integral metal material and a flange portion 14 extending outward from the first end portion of the shaft portion 13. The shaft portion 13 has a hollow cylindrical shape, and a portion 1 where caulking is planned at a second end opposite to the first end.
5, and a female screw 16 is formed on the inner peripheral surface excluding the portion 15 to be caulked. Caulking part 15
Is relatively thin.

Further, on the outer peripheral portion of the flange portion 14, two pairs of claws 17 and 18, 19 and 20 extending in the direction from the first end portion to the second end portion are provided.
Are arranged to face each other in the radial direction. Each of these claws 17 to 20 is formed by cutting and raising a part of the outer peripheral edge of the flange portion 14.

Such a T-nut 12 is used, for example, as shown in FIG. With reference to FIG. 12, through-holes 22 are provided in advance in the fixation target 21 made of wood, for example.
Is provided. The shaft portion 13 of the T-nut 12 is inserted into the through hole 22. In this state, by the caulking machine,
Caulking processing is applied to the caulking portion 15 shown in FIG. 13, and the caulking portion 1 is provided on one surface side of the object to be fixed 21.
5a is formed. At this time, at the same time, the claws 17 to 20 are set in a state of biting into the other surface of the sticking target 21. In this way, the fixing of the T-nut 12 to the fixing target 21 is completed.

In such a mounted state of the T-nut 12, the claws 17 to 20 prevent the T-nut 12 from rotating with respect to the fixed object 21, and the flange portion 14
The T-nut 12 is prohibited from coming out of the through hole 22 by sandwiching the fixing target object 21 with the caulking portion 15a. Therefore, the T-nut 12 is firmly fixed to the object to be fixed 21, and the fixed state is semipermanently maintained.

[0013]

The T nut 12 described above is used.
Is also applied as a "hopper feed T-nut" like T-nut 1. Therefore, the T-nut 12
It is moved along a supply track 9 as shown in FIG. However, when a plurality of T-nuts 12 are moved along the supply track 9, their movement is often hindered for the following reasons.

Paying attention to the shape of the flange portion 14 of the T-nut 12, it has a substantially circular shape in a stage before raising the claws 17 to 20. Therefore, each pair of two claws 17 and 18 and 19 and 20
Are connected by arcuate sides 23 and 24. Therefore, when the plurality of T-nuts 12 are continuously moved along the supply track 9 (FIG. 12), the flange portions 14 of the other T-nuts 12 are different from each other.
The phenomenon of getting on top is likely to occur. As a result, the feed of the T-nut 12 along the feed track 9 is often missed or clogged.

On the other hand, the T-nut 1 shown in FIG.
The flange portion 3 has an octagonal shape as a whole, and two pairs of claws 5 and 6 and 7 and 8 are connected by straight sides 25 and 26, respectively. ing. Therefore, the phenomenon in which the flange portion 3 rides on the other flange portion 3 as described above is relatively unlikely to occur.

Therefore, in the T nut 12 shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, if the arcuate sides 23 and 24 of the flange portion 14 are changed to straight sides, the above-mentioned riding phenomenon can be reduced. However, due to the following reasons, such changes cannot be made easily,
Also, in practice, such modified T-nuts cannot be found on the market.

The T-nut 12 is usually obtained by sheet metal working a long strip-shaped metal plate. The band-shaped metal plate is processed along a predetermined processing order while being fed along the progressive die, and is separated from the band-shaped metal plate when the process for obtaining the T-nut 12 is completed to some extent. The intermediate product at this stage is the shaft portion 13 and the flange portion 14.
And has a notch for forming the claws 17 to 20. This intermediate product is then gripped by the chuck at a portion corresponding to the flange portion 14, and in that state, the portion to be caulked 15 and the female screw 16 are formed on the portion corresponding to the shaft portion 13, respectively. The portion to be caulked 15 is formed by cutting the inner peripheral surface of the shaft portion 13 with a cutting tool such as a drill to reduce the wall thickness. After that, the claws 17 to 20 are attached to the flange portion 1
Raised from No. 4, the desired T-nut 12 is obtained.

As described above, the flange portion 14 has the claw 1
The substantially circular shape before the step 7 to 20 is related to the chucking of the intermediate product in the process for obtaining the portion to be crimped 15. That is, if the flange portion 14 gripped by the chuck has a substantially circular shape, there is no directivity for gripping by the chuck, and therefore, with the shaft portion 13 properly centered, the flange portion 14 can be more efficiently chucked. You can grab it. Further, since there are no corners on the outer peripheral portion of the flange portion 14, as a result of gripping the flange portion 14 by the chuck, a part of the outer periphery of the flange portion 14 is not crushed to cause burrs.

On the other hand, in the substantially octagonal flange portion 3 as shown in FIG. 12, since it has directionality, it is difficult to grab it with a chuck and it is also difficult to center the shaft portion 2. Is. Further, as a result of gripping the flange portion 3 with a chuck, corner portions of the flange portion 3 may be compressed and deformed to cause burrs. The presence of such burrs hinders the smooth movement of the T-nut 1 along the supply track 9. In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, it is possible to use a chuck having a special structure, but in this case, the flange portion 3 is used in the chuck.
When grabbing, the flange portion 3 always encounters the trouble of having to be in a fixed direction.

For this reason, FIG. 13 and FIG.
As shown in FIG.
In the case of 2, the flange portion 14 must have a substantially circular shape in a stage before raising the claws 17 to 20.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a method of manufacturing a T-nut, which is capable of forming a relatively thin portion to be caulked without cutting, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems. Is.

[0022]

According to the present invention, there is provided a shaft portion made of an integral metal material and a flange portion projecting outward from a first end portion of the shaft portion, and the shaft portion has an outer diameter. A uniform hollow cylindrical shape, having a relatively small inner diameter and a relatively large wall thickness on the first end side, and including an internal thread forming portion having an internal thread formed on the inner peripheral surface thereof; A second end portion side opposite to the end portion of T is provided with a portion to be caulked with a relatively large inner diameter and a relatively thin wall thickness, T
It is directed to a method of manufacturing a nut.

In the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned technical problem, a metal plate is prepared, the position of the portion to be the flange portion is determined on the metal plate, and the portion of the metal plate to be the flange portion is By bulging the central portion toward the one main surface side of the metal plate, a bulging portion to be the shaft portion is formed, and a through hole is provided in the tip end surface portion of the bulging portion, By making the outer diameter of the tip portion corresponding to the portion to be caulked relatively smaller than the outer diameter of the base portion corresponding to the female screw forming portion, the thickness of the tip portion is made thinner than the thickness of the base portion,
Next, each step is characterized in that the outer diameter and the inner diameter are reduced while substantially maintaining the wall thickness of the base portion, and female threads are formed on the inner peripheral surface of the base portion of the bulging portion.

In the present invention, preferably, a metal strip having a long strip shape is used, and the step of determining the position of the portion to be the flange portion, the step of forming the bulging portion, and the step of providing the through hole The step of making the thickness of the tip portion thinner than the thickness of the base portion, and the step of reducing the outer diameter and the inner diameter of the base portion are performed while feeding the strip-shaped metal plate along the progressive die. In this case, the method may further include the step of separating the portion to be the flange portion from the strip-shaped metal plate.

In the step of making the wall thickness of the tip portion thinner than the wall thickness of the base portion, preferably, the inner diameter of the bulging portion is uniformly enlarged while restricting the enlargement of the outer diameter of the tip portion. It has a process.

Further, the step of reducing the outer diameter and the inner diameter preferably includes a step of causing a molding die having a surface for pressing the outer peripheral surface of the base portion inward to act on the base portion.
In this case, the step of reducing the outer diameter and the inner diameter of the base portion is preferably carried out in a plurality of stages.

[0027]

According to the present invention, in a shaft portion having a uniform outer diameter, a female screw forming portion having a relatively large wall thickness is formed on the first end portion side, while a portion to be caulked having a relatively thin wall thickness is formed into a first portion. Two
First, the outer diameter of the tip portion corresponding to the portion to be caulked of the bulging portion is made relatively smaller than the outer diameter of the base portion corresponding to the female screw forming portion, so that the tip portion of The wall thickness is made thinner than that of the base.
Then, the outer diameter and the inner diameter are reduced while the thickness of the base is substantially maintained. As a result, the shaft portion can be provided with a relatively thick portion to be the female screw forming portion and a relatively thin portion to be the portion to be caulked by plastic working such as forging without cutting.

[0028]

As described above, according to the present invention, the thin portion to be caulked can be formed by plastic working rather than cutting, so that the bulging portion to be the shaft portion in the production of the T-nut is formed. Such plastic working can be carried out by a series of steps of plastic working for etc.
Therefore, the T-nut can be manufactured efficiently. In particular, if a long strip is used as the metal plate and various steps for obtaining the T nut are carried out while feeding this metal plate along the progressive die, the caulking portion as described above will be obtained. Forming the thin portion can also be performed by sequentially feeding the strip-shaped metal plate. In this respect, the T-nut can be manufactured more efficiently without the complexity of handling the intermediate product in the disassembled state.

Further, since the thin portion to be caulked is formed, it is not necessary to apply a cutting tool such as a drill in the present invention. Therefore, the flange portion is not gripped by the chuck. Can be made into a square shape without any problem. Therefore, on the outer peripheral portion of the flange portion, two pairs of claws are arranged so as to face each other in the radial direction of the flange portion, and each pair of two claws are connected to each other by a straight side to form a rectangular shape. The present invention can be advantageously applied to the manufacture of a T-nut having a shaped flange portion. According to such a T-nut, when a plurality of T-nuts are continuously moved along the supply track, the respective flange portions of the T-nuts adjacent to each other connect the pair of two claws. The portions of the straight sides that contact each other are in contact with each other. Therefore, the phenomenon that one flange portion rides on the other flange portion is less likely to occur, and as a result, a plurality of T-nuts can be smoothly moved along the supply track. In addition, such T
According to the nut, in the state of being fixed to the fixing target object, the claw bites into the fixing target object, the T-nut is prohibited from rotating with respect to the fixing target object, and the caulking portion is caulked. The object to be fixed is sandwiched between the caulked portion and the flange portion, which prohibits the T-nut from falling off the object to be fixed and the claw from coming off the object to be fixed. As a result, the attachment state of the T-nut to the object to be fixed can be made strong, and the object to be fixed undergoes a dimensional change over time such as shrinkage that occurs when the wood dries. However, the fixed state of the T-nut can be favorably maintained.

[0030]

EXAMPLE The present invention will be described in Japanese Patent Application No. 5-1 of the present applicant.
T nut proposed in 12641, that is,
The shaft has a relatively thin part to be caulked, and
Two pairs of claws are arranged on the outer periphery of the flange so as to face each other in the radial direction of the flange, and each pair of two claws has a rectangular shape with straight sides connecting the claws. Can be advantageously applied to the manufacture of T-nuts with

1 to 4 show a T-nut 31 obtained by the manufacturing method according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Here, FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the T-nut 31, FIG. 2 is a front view of the T-nut 31, and FIG.
FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the nut 31, and FIG. 4 is a line IV-I of FIG. 3.
It is sectional drawing which follows V.

The T-nut 31 is integrally obtained, for example, by processing an iron-based metal plate into a metal plate.
2 and a flange portion 33 protruding outward from the first end of the shaft portion 32.

Like the conventional T-nut 12 shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the shaft portion 32 has a hollow cylindrical shape with a uniform outer diameter, and has a relatively small inner diameter on the first end side. In addition, the wall thickness is made relatively thick and the internal thread 3 is formed on the inner peripheral surface.
6 has a female thread forming portion 35 and a second caulking portion 34 having a relatively large inner diameter and a relatively thin wall on the side of the second end opposite to the first end. When the female screw 36 is formed by thus selecting the respective wall thicknesses in the caulking planned portion 34 and the female screw forming portion 35, the threading for that is performed from the first end side of the shaft portion 32 to the second end side thereof. You can do it from

On the outer peripheral portion of the flange portion 33, as in the case of the conventional T-nut 1 shown in FIG. 12, two pairs of claws 37 and 38 extending in the direction from the first end portion to the second end portion are provided. ，
39 and 40 are arranged to face each other in the radial direction of the flange portion 33. Each of the claws 37 to 40 has a flange portion 3
It is formed by cutting and raising a part of the outer peripheral edge of 3. Further, each of the claws 37 to 40 is provided with a jagged shape.

Similar to the flange portion 3 shown in FIG. 12, the flange portion 33 has a substantially octagonal shape as a whole. In particular, the straight side 4 is provided between each pair of two claws 37 and 38, and 39 and 40, respectively.
It is connected by 1 and 42.

In FIG. 1, a supply track 43 for supplying a plurality of T-nuts 31 in a line is shown by an imaginary line. Similar to the supply track 9 shown in FIG. 12, the supply track 43 is symmetrically arranged with a C-shaped cross section.
A pair of guide rails 44 and 45 are provided. The flange portion 33 is received in each of the guide rails 44 and 45, and the T-nut 31 is moved along the supply track 43 while the pawls 37 to 40 are positioned between the guide rails 44 and 45. At this time, the T-nut 31 has the linear side 41 or 42 of the flange portion 33.
However, it is in a state of facing the linear side 41 or 42 of the flange portion 33 of the T-nut 31 adjacent thereto. Therefore, the flange portion 33 is prevented from overlapping with another flange portion 33.

The T-nut 31 is fixed to the object to be fixed in the manner as shown in FIG. That is,
The shaft portion 32 is inserted into a through-hole provided in advance in the object to be fixed, and in this state, the caulking portion 34 is caulked, and the claws 37 to 40 are set to bite into the object to be fixed. It In this way, the T-nut 31 is firmly and semi-permanently fixed to the object to be fixed.

The T nut 3 shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 described above.
1 is manufactured as follows. Referring to FIG. 5, a long strip-shaped metal plate 55 made of, for example, an iron-based material is prepared. As shown by an arrow 56, the metal plate 55 is subjected to desired processing at each stop position while being intermittently and sequentially fed at a predetermined pitch in the longitudinal direction.

First, in order to determine the position of the portion 57 to be the flange portion 33, the metal plate 55 is provided with a notch 58 around the portion 57. These notches 58
The portion 57 is not provided over the entire circumference of the portion 57 in order to maintain the portion 57 held by the other portions of the metal plate 55 during various subsequent processing of the portion 57, so that the portion 57 is not provided. It is provided so that a deformable connecting portion is formed between a plurality of positions around the periphery of the metal plate 55 and the rest of the metal plate 55.

Then, the metal plate 55 is subjected to a drawing process so as to bulge the central portion of the portion 57 to be the flange portion 33 to the lower main surface side of the metal plate 55.
This drawing is performed in a plurality of stages, and in the final stage, a bulged portion 59 to be the shaft portion 32 is formed. Since such a bulging portion 59 is formed of a part of the material of the portion 57 surrounded by the cut 58, the gap between the cuts 58 can be widened.

Next, a through hole 60 is formed in the tip surface of the bulging portion 59.
Is provided. Next, in the processing section 61 shown in FIG. 5, a relatively thin portion 34 to be caulked is formed. In FIG. 6, details of the processing performed in this processing section 61 are enlarged and shown.

Referring to FIG. 6, a molding die 62 is arranged below the metal plate 55, and a clamp die 63 is arranged above the metal plate 55. The molding die 62 and the clamp die 63 are arranged to approach and separate from the metal plate 55 synchronously. Knockouts 64, 65, 66 and 67 are held on the side of the forming die 62 in association with each processing station. On the side of the clamp die 63, punches 68, 69, 70 and 71 are held in association with each processing station.

At the time of processing at each processing station, the metal plate 5 is placed between the forming die 62 and the clamp die 63.
In a state where 5 is clamped, each of the knockouts 64-67 abuts on the lower end surface of the bulging portion 59, and the punch 68
Each of to 71 is projected into the inner peripheral side of the bulging portion 59. Every time the operations of the molding die 62, the clamp die 63, the knockouts 64 to 67, and the punches 68 to 71 are achieved, the metal plate 55 is sequentially and intermittently fed as shown by an arrow 56 (FIG. 5). Desired processing is sequentially performed on each of the bulging portions 59.

In the first processing station shown on the rightmost side in FIG. 6, the outer diameter of the tip portion 72 of the bulging portion 59 corresponding to the portion 34 to be caulked is the outer diameter of the base portion 73 corresponding to the female screw forming portion 35. By making it relatively smaller than
The wall thickness of the tip portion 72 is made thinner than the wall thickness of the base portion 73. More specifically, the forming die 62 is provided with a forged surface 77 including a large diameter portion 74, an inclined portion 75, and a small diameter portion 76. The forged surface 77 increases the outer diameter of the tip portion 72. The inner diameter of the bulging portion 59 is uniformly enlarged by the punch 68 while regulating.

Next, in the second processing station, the outer diameter and the inner diameter of the base 73 are reduced while the thickness of the base 73 is substantially maintained. More specifically, the forming die 62 is provided with a forging surface 81 including a large diameter portion 78 having an inner diameter smaller than that of the large diameter portion 74 described above, an inclined portion 79 and a small diameter portion 80. The outer peripheral surface of 73 is pressed inward. The punch 69 is
The base 73 is prevented from being deformed undesirably.

Next, in the third processing station,
Subsequent to the second processing station, the outer and inner diameters of the base 73 are further reduced while the wall thickness of the base 73 is substantially maintained. More specifically, the molding die 62 is provided with a straight forged surface 82, and the outer peripheral surface of the base portion 73 is further pressed inward by the forged surface 82. In this case, the punch 70 performs the same function as the punch 69 described above. In this third processing station, the bulging portion 59 is made to have a substantially uniform outer diameter.

Next, in the fourth processing station,
The straight forging surface 83 provided on the molding die 62 further enhances the uniformity of the outer peripheral surface of the bulging portion 59.

After that, although not shown, after the claws 37 to 40 are formed on the outer peripheral portion of the flange portion 33 by cutting and raising, the portion 57 of these intermediate products to be the flange portion 33 is separated from the metal plate 55. These intermediate products are barrel-polished to remove burrs generated during the processing.

FIG. 7 shows the intermediate product 84 described above. In FIG. 7, in order to clarify the correspondence between the intermediate product 84 and the completed T-nut 31, elements corresponding to those shown in FIG. 4 are designated by the same reference numerals. In the intermediate product 84, the female screw forming portion 3 of the shaft 32 is formed.
5 (the base portion 73 of the bulging portion 59) is not yet formed with the female screw 36 on the inner peripheral surface thereof. Therefore, next, the shaft 32
On the inner peripheral surface of the female screw forming portion 35, the step for forming the female screw 36 is performed, as shown in FIG. In this way, the desired T-nut 31 is obtained.

As described above, before the intermediate product 84 is separated from the metal plate 55, a drill is applied at the tip 72 of the bulging portion 59 to form a relatively thin portion to be the caulking planned portion 34. It is also possible. However, it should be noted that this method is not practical because the chips produced by the drill remain in the bulging portion 59, and the removal of such chips requires complicated work.

Substantially the same method applied to the manufacture of the T-nut 31 as described above can be used to manufacture several other types of T-nuts as described below.

FIG. 8 is a view corresponding to FIG. 1, showing a T-nut 46 obtained by the manufacturing method according to the second embodiment of the present invention. This T-nut 46 contains many elements common to the above-mentioned T-nut 31, so that the T-nut 4
The elements included in No. 6 corresponding to the elements included in the T-nut 31 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description of the T-nut 31 described above is cited for the description of the T-nut 46.

Protrusions 47 and 48 are provided on the peripheral portion of the T-nut 46 at respective positions opposed to each other in the radial direction orthogonal to the radial direction in which the two pairs of claws 37, 38, 39 and 40 are opposed. . These protrusions 47 and 48
Protrudes toward the second end, similar to the claws 37 to 40. These protrusions 47 and 48 are formed, for example, by crushing a part of the outer peripheral edge of the flange portion 33 from the outside to the inside. As a result of the protrusions 47 and 48 being formed on the outer peripheral edge of the flange portion 33, a notch having a substantially semicircular cross section is left.

The supply truck 43 is shown in phantom in FIG. Guide rail 44 provided for supply truck 43
When the flange portion 33 is received in each of the rails 45 and 45, the protrusions 47 and 48 respectively engage the guide rails 44.
And within 45. In this state, the protrusion 47
Due to the presence of and 48, very little clearance within each of the guide rails 44 and 45 can be created.

Therefore, the flange portion 3 of the T-nut 46 is
3 is prevented from rising significantly in the guide rails 44 and 45, which also contributes to preventing the flanges 33 from overlapping one another. Even when the protrusions 47 and 48 come into contact with the guide rails 44 and 45, the protrusion 47
If and 48 have a sharp tip, their frictional resistance can be made extremely low. This also contributes to the smooth movement of the T-nut 46 along the supply track 43.

The method of forming the protrusions 47 and 48 is as follows.
The method is not limited to the above-described method, and may be formed by bending a part of the peripheral edge portion of the flange portion 33 or pressing a part of the flange portion 33 in a direction orthogonal to the surface direction.

The T-nut 46 shown in FIG. 8 differs from the T-nut 31 shown in FIG. 1 in that it is not essential except that the protrusions 47 and 48 are provided.
First, the shaft portion 32 of the T-nut 46 is longer than the shaft portion 32 of the T-nut 31. This means that the shaft 3
A length of 2 is meant to be variously changed as desired. Further, the T-nut 46 and the T-nut 31 are slightly different from each other in the shape of the knurls formed on the claws 37 to 40. This means that the knurled shape applied to the claws 37 to 40 can be variously changed.

9 and 10 are views corresponding to a part of FIG. 2, respectively, showing a part of a T-nut obtained by the manufacturing method according to the third and fourth embodiments of the present invention. ing. 9 and 10 respectively show modified examples of the claws.

The hook 49 is given to the claw 49 shown in FIG. The claw 50 shown in FIG. 10 has neither a jagged shape nor a hook shape, and has a straight shape. As described above, in the T-nut obtained according to the present invention, the shape of the claw is not particularly limited.

FIG. 11 shows a part of the T-nut obtained by the manufacturing method according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention.
It is a figure equivalent to a part of. In FIG. 11, elements corresponding to those shown in FIG. 4 are designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted.

In the shaft portion 32, a part of the outer peripheral surface of the female screw forming portion 35 is crushed inward, whereby two concave portions 51 are formed in a part of the outer peripheral surface of the female screw forming portion 35.
And 52 are formed with an angular spacing of, for example, 180 degrees. These recesses 51 and 52 are formed by strongly pressing these tools toward the female screw forming portion 35 while sandwiching a predetermined portion of the female screw forming portion 35 with a pair of appropriate tools. The positions where the recesses 51 and 52 are formed are preferably closer to the flange 33. This is because when a pair of tools is operated at a position far from the flange portion 33, the recesses 51 and 52 are
This is because the cross section of the shaft portion 32 is likely to be deformed into a flat shape with almost no formation. Also, the recesses 51 and 52
Is preferably formed before the claws 37 to 40 (FIG. 1) are formed on the flange portion 33. Because nails 3
The presence of 7 to 40 may hinder the formation of the recesses 51 and 52 near the flange portion 33.

In this embodiment, two recesses 51 and 52 are provided, but the number of recesses is not limited to two, and
For example, it may be one or three or more.

As a result of the formation of the recesses 51 and 52 described above, some of the threads of the internal thread 36 are irregular. Due to the existence of the irregular portions 53 and 54, when a bolt (not shown) is screwed into the internal thread 36, the irregular portions 53 and 54 pass through the irregular portions 53 and 54 unless the bolt is rotated relatively strongly. I can't. At this time, a part of the thread may be crushed in the irregular portions 53 and 54. As a result, the screwed state of the bolt with respect to the internal thread 36 is locked, and the bolt is prevented from loosening from the T-nut.

As described above, the present invention has been described with reference to the manufacturing method of the T nut in which the flange portion 33 has a substantially octagonal shape as shown in the drawings, but the shape of the flange portion forms each pair. Other rectangular shapes may be used as long as the two claws are connected by a straight side. Furthermore, the present invention can be applied to the manufacture of a T-nut in which the shape of the flange portion is other than the rectangular shape, for example, a substantially circular shape. Furthermore, the present invention can also be applied to the manufacture of a T nut having no flange on the flange.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a T-nut 31 obtained by a manufacturing method according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of a T-nut 31 shown in FIG.

3 is a bottom view of the T nut 31 shown in FIG. 1. FIG.

4 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV in FIG.

5 is a cross-sectional view showing a processing state in which the metal plate 55 is sequentially processed to obtain the T-nut 31 shown in FIG.

6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing details of processing performed in a processing section 61 shown in FIG.

7 is an intermediate product 84 obtained through the processing shown in FIG.
5 is a sectional view corresponding to FIG.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a T-nut 46 obtained by the manufacturing method according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a front view showing a claw 49 of a T nut obtained by the manufacturing method according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a front view showing a claw 50 of a T nut obtained by the manufacturing method according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is an internal thread forming portion 35 of the shaft portion 32 of the T nut obtained by the manufacturing method according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention.
FIG.

FIG. 12: Conventional T-nut 1 of interest to the present invention
FIG.

FIG. 13 is a front view showing another conventional T-nut 12 which is of interest to the present invention.

14 is a bottom view of the T-nut 12 shown in FIG.

15 is a cross-sectional view showing a usage state of the T-nut 12 shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 31, 46 T nut 32 Shaft portion 33 Flange portion 34 Caulking planned portion 35 Female screw forming portion 36 Female screw 37, 38, 39, 40, 49, 50 Claw 41, 42 Straight side 55 Metal plate 57 Portion to be a flange portion 59 Swelling portion 60 Through hole 62 Molding die 63 Clamping die 64 to 67 Knockout 68 to 71 Punch 72 Tip portion 73 Base portion 77, 81, 82, 83 Forged surface 84 Intermediate product

Claims (7)

(57) [Claims] 1. A shaft part made of an integral metal material, and a flange part projecting outward from a first end part of the shaft part, wherein the shaft part has a hollow cylindrical shape with a uniform outer diameter. And the first
A second end opposite to the first end, which has a relatively small inner diameter and a relatively thick wall on the end side of the A method of manufacturing a T-nut, comprising a portion to be caulked, the inner diameter of which is relatively large and the thickness of which is relatively thin, in which a metal plate is prepared, and the position of the portion to be the flange portion is set to the metal portion. Determined on the plate, the metal plate, the central portion of the portion to be the flange portion, by bulging to the one main surface side of the metal plate,
A bulging portion to be the shaft portion is formed, a through hole is provided in a tip end surface portion of the bulging portion, and an outer diameter of a tip portion corresponding to the caulking planned portion of the bulging portion corresponds to the female screw forming portion. By making it relatively smaller than the outer diameter of the base portion, the wall thickness of the distal end portion is made thinner than the wall thickness of the base portion, and then, while substantially maintaining the wall thickness of the base portion, its outer diameter and inner diameter are A method of manufacturing a T-nut, comprising the steps of contracting and forming an internal thread on the inner peripheral surface of the base of the bulging portion. 2. The metal plate is in the form of a long strip, and the step of determining the position of the portion to be the flange portion, the step of forming the bulging portion, the step of forming the through hole, and the wall thickness of the tip portion. The manufacturing of the T-nut according to claim 1, wherein the step of making the thickness smaller than the wall thickness of the base portion and the step of reducing the outer diameter and the inner diameter of the base portion are performed while feeding the strip-shaped metal plate along a progressive die. Method. 3. The method according to claim 2, further comprising the step of separating a portion to be the flange portion from the strip-shaped metal plate.
The method for manufacturing a T-nut according to item 1. 4. The step of making the thickness of the tip portion thinner than the thickness of the base portion controls the expansion of the outer diameter of the tip portion,
The method for manufacturing a T-nut according to claim 1, further comprising a step of uniformly enlarging the inner diameter of the bulged portion. 5. The step of reducing the outer diameter and the inner diameter of the base portion includes a step of causing a molding die having a surface for pressing an outer peripheral surface of the base portion inward to act on the base portion.
5. The method for manufacturing a T-nut according to any one of 4 to 4. 6. The T according to claim 5, wherein the step of reducing the outer diameter and the inner diameter of the base is performed in a plurality of steps.
Nut manufacturing method. 7. The first portion is provided on an outer peripheral portion of the flange portion.
Two pairs of claws extending in a direction from the end of the flange to the second end are arranged to face each other in the radial direction of the flange.
7. The method of manufacturing a T-nut according to claim 1, wherein the flange portion has a rectangular shape in which each pair of the two claws are connected by a straight side. .