NZ744039A - A guide for use with a powered fastening tool - Google Patents

Abstract

A nose piece for a powered fastener driving tool for contacting a work piece, the nose piece comprising a body configured for fitting over a fastener-dispensing portion of the powered tool; and an adjustable tool alignment guide extending from the body for guiding the positioning of the powered tool relative to a work piece prior to driving a fastener into the work piece, and wherein the guide comprises an alignment member being adapted for abutting an edge of a work piece to position the tool on a surface at a predetermined distance from the edge so as to prevent movement of the powered tool in a direction substantially perpendicular to the work piece in use, the alignment member is further configured to be slideably moveable relative to the nose body to cater for a range of adjustable distances between the alignment member and the powered tool. relative to a work piece prior to driving a fastener into the work piece, and wherein the guide comprises an alignment member being adapted for abutting an edge of a work piece to position the tool on a surface at a predetermined distance from the edge so as to prevent movement of the powered tool in a direction substantially perpendicular to the work piece in use, the alignment member is further configured to be slideably moveable relative to the nose body to cater for a range of adjustable distances between the alignment member and the powered tool.

Description

A guide for use with a powered fastening tool Field of the invention The invention generally relates to a guide for use with a powered fastener driving tool, and more specifically to a nose piece for a powered fastener driving tool for contacting a work piece.

Background of the invention Weatherboard (also known as clapboard) is a type of horizontal or vertical timber board used as a siding for a building. A series of overlapping horizontal weatherboards can be fastened on a wall or roof to provide exterior cladding. It is known to fasten weatherboards with the use of fasteners by hand nailing, including for example rounded off-set nails, because gas powered nailing tools are not adapted or suitable for use with fasteners rated for weatherboard applications due to issues with fastener compatibility and significant damage to weatherboards sustained by the use of conventional gas powered nailing tools in driving fasteners below the surface of the weatherboard.

Conventional methods for fastening weatherboards are time-consuming and laborious.

Typically, weatherboards are marked and pre-drilled before fasteners are hand hammered and then hand punched below the surface of the timber substrate to a depth of about 2 mm.

The fastener cavities are then primed and filled before the affected areas are sanded and painted to provide an aesthetic finish.

The applicant has determined that it would be advantageous to provide a system, including a fastener, a driving blade and optionally a nose piece for use with a powered fastener driving tool, which improves the efficiency in the manner in which weatherboards are fastened. The present invention, in its preferred embodiments, seeks to at least in part alleviate the above-identified problems.

Summary of the invention According to an aspect of the invention, there is provided a nose piece for a powered fastener driving tool for contacting a work piece, the nose piece comprising a body configured for fitting over a fastener-dispensing portion of the powered tool; and an adjustable tool alignment guide extending from the body for guiding the positioning of the powered tool relative to a work piece prior to driving a fastener into the work piece, and wherein the guide comprises an alignment member being adapted for abutting an edge of a work piece to position the tool on a surface at a predetermined distance from the edge so as to prevent movement of the powered tool in a direction substantially perpendicular to the work piece in use, the alignment member is further configured to be slideably moveable relative to the nose body to cater for a range of adjustable distances between the alignment member and the powered tool.

Preferably, the guide comprises a bracket for mounting to the body of the nose piece, the bracket having an elongate plate portion on which the alignment member is adjustably movable.

In one embodiment, the nose piece further comprises a stop made from a resilient material located proximate the nose body for contacting a work piece in use so as to substantially obviate any surface damage to the work piece caused by the firing action of the powered tool.

Also described herein is a powered fastener driving tool, comprising a nose piece for contacting a work piece as described above.

Also described herein is a fastener for use with a powered fastener driving tool for fastening weatherboards, the fastener comprising a head having a generally flat top configured in the form of a substantially round shape and a shank extending from and positioned off-centre with respect to the head, wherein the head has a diameter of not more than about 5.5 mm.

Preferably, the head has a diameter of about 5.3 mm.

Preferably, a circumference of the shank is inscribed within a circumference of the head and the shank being located substantially tangential to the circumference of the head, and wherein a substantially flat heel portion is defined on the fastener generally where the head and the shank are collinear.

Preferably, the width of the head between the heel portion and an opposite end of the head is about 5.1 mm.

Preferably, the flat heel is configured with a length of about 2 mm.

Preferably, the head is configured with a thickness of about 1.5 mm.

Also described herein is a driving blade for use with a powered fastener driving tool, comprising an elongated shaft and a narrowed head for driving fasteners formed at one end of the shaft, the head comprising a substantially flat engagement portion and a tapered portion partially extending longitudinally between the shaft and the engagement portion such that the thickness of the head is gradually reduced from that of the shaft, wherein the engagement end is configured with a width of about 5.5 mm for driving fasteners with similarly-sized fastener heads.

Preferably, the head further comprises chamfers extending from the tapered portion to sides of the head for reducing the thickness of the head.

Preferably, concave-shaped radial corners are provided at a transition portion along the shaft in which the width of the head is narrowed.

Preferably, the engagement end is configured with rounded corners for reducing the driving footprint on the fasteners such that damage to the fastener heads and the weatherboard surface caused by contact between the engagement end and the fastener heads are reduced.

Also described herein is a powered fastener driving tool, comprising a driving blade for driving fasteners into flat wooden substrates as described above.

Also described herein is a powered fastener driving tool, comprising a driving blade as described above for driving a fastener also as described above.

Also described herein is a system for fastening weatherboards comprising a fastener for use with a powered fastener driving tool as described above and a powered fastener driving tool comprising a driving blade for driving fasteners also as described above.

Preferably, the powered fastener driving tool comprises a nose piece for contacting a work piece as described above.

Further aspects of the present invention and further embodiments of the aspects described in the preceding paragraphs will become apparent from the following description.

While aspects of the pedestal assembly will be described below for use in combination with each other in the preferred embodiments of the present invention, it is to be understood by a skilled person that some aspects of the present invention are equally suitable for use as standalone inventions that can be individually incorporated into pedestals not described herein.

Brief description of the drawings The invention will now be described, by way of non-limiting example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a side view of a fastener of indefinite length according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 is a plan view of the fastener of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a front view of the fastener of Figure 1; Figure 4 is a plan view of a driving blade for use with a powered fastener driving tool according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Figure 5 is a close up sectional view of a portion of the driving blade of Figure 4 as highlighted in circle A; Figure 6 is a front view from above of the sectional view of Figure 5; Figure 7 is a photograph showing a perspective view of a nose piece for a powered fastener driving tool according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Figure 8 is another photograph showing a different view of the nose piece of Figure 7; and Figure 9 is a perspective view of an adjustable tool alignment guide mountable to a nose piece for a powered fastener driving tool according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed description The present invention relates to a system, including a fastener 100, a driving blade 200 and optionally a nose piece 300 for use with a powered fastener driving tool (not shown). It is to be understood that a powered fastener driving tool as described in the present invention includes a gas-powered fastener driving tool such as a cordless framing nailer. While components of the system will be described to function together, it is to be understood that each component could be equally suitable for use separately from said system. The present invention further provides for a powered fastener driving tool comprising a driving blade 200 and/or a nose piece 300 as to be described.

Referring to Figures 1 to 3, which show non-scaled views of a fastener 100 according to a preferred embodiment of the prevent invention, the fastener 100 is in the form of a nail having a head 110, and a shank 116 extending from the head 110. A support gusset portion is provided between the head 110 and the shank 116. A piercing end 118 is provided at an opposing end of the shank for piercing through a work piece substrate in use. In one embodiment, the shank 116 is positioned off-centre with respect to the head to improve stacking and hence allow a greater number of nails per a length of collated nail strip.

As can be seen from Figures 1 and 2, the head 110 has a generally flat top and can be said to be configured in the form of a substantially circular or round shape. In one configuration, the shank 116 extends relative to the head 110 such that a circumference of the shank 116 is inscribed within a circumference of the head 110. In a further configuration, the shank is additionally located substantially tangential to the circumference of the head such that a heel 115 is defined generally where the head 110 and the shank 116 are collinear as seen in Figure 1. The heel 115 can be configured such that it is a substantially flat portion as seen in Figure 2. In one configuration, the heel 115 is configured with a length of about 2 mm. In some embodiments, the head 110 can be provided with a vertical projection 114 defined along the length of the heel 115.

The dimension of the head 110 is configured such that the diameter of the head 110 is not more than about 5.5 mm. In the preferred embodiment, the diameter of the head 110 is about 5.3 mm. In cases where the fastener head 110 has a substantially flat heel portion 115, the diameter of the head 110 measured directly across from the flat heel portion 115 is about 5.1 mm. Additionally, the head 110 may be configured with a thickness of about 1.25 to about 1.5 mm. It is to be appreciated that the purpose-designed diameter dimensions of the head 110 are specifically configured so that the fastener 100 is well suited for applications including fastening flat wooden substrates such as weatherboards without causing damage to the timber, such as splitting the board upon entry of the fastener 100.

Even though the fastener 100 has been described to be purpose-designed for weatherboard fastening application, it is to be understood that the fastener 100 may also be suitable use in unrelated applications.

Figures 4 to 6 show a driving blade 200 for use with a powered fastener driving tool having an elongated shaft 210 provided with an end 212 to be driven by the tool and a blade head 220 located at the opposing end for striking and/or pushing a fastener 100 as it is dispensed or propelled from the tool into a work substrate during use. The length of the blade head 220 is configured with a reduced width than that of the elongated shaft 210. In some configurations, the width of the blade head 220 is substantially constant along the length of the head. In one embodiment, concave-shaped radial corners 228 are provided at a transition portion along the elongated shaft 210 where width of the blade head 220 is narrowed.

In a preferred embodiment, the blade head 220 is provided with a flat engagement portion 222 for contacting fasteners 100 to be dispensed. In one embodiment, the width of the blade head 220 is configured to correspond substantially with the diameter of the fastener head 110 as previously described so that the driving blade 200 is well suited to drive fasteners 100 as configured for weatherboard fastening application. The reduced width of the blade head 220 and engagement portion 222 advantageously provide improved accuracy for dispensing similarly-sized fasteners 100 while not sacrificing performance or longevity of service. Accordingly, in one configuration, the width of the blade head 220 and the engagement portion 222 is no more than about 5.5 mm.

As can be seen in Figures 5 and 6, the blade head 220 is also provided with a tapered portion 224 on one side of the blade head 220 which extends partially in the longitudinal direction between the elongated shaft 210 and the flat engagement portion 222 so as to reduce the thickness of the blade head 220. The blade head 220 may also be provided with chamfers 226 extending from the tapered portion 224 to the sides of the head 220 to further reduce the thickness of the blade head 220.

In a further embodiment, and with reference to Figure 6, the engagement portion 222 may be configured in the form of a rectangular shape with rounded corners for reducing the driving footprint of the driving blade 200 on fasteners in use. This advantageously reduces any damage to protective layers of the fastener heads 110, such as galvanisation, caused by contact between the engagement portion 222 and the fastener heads 110.

Referring to Figures 7 to 9, the nose piece 300 has a body 310 configured for fitting over or latching onto a fastener-dispensing portion of the powered fastener driving tool and an adjustable tool alignment guide 320 which extends sideways from the body 310. The alignment guide 320 serves to guide the positioning of the powered tool relative to a work piece at adjustably fixed intervals/distances prior to driving fasteners – this effectively bypasses the need for pre-marking distances on the work piece for driving the fasteners and therefore creates significant efficiencies for the operator. In one configuration, the alignment guide is provided with an alignment member 324 adapted for abutting a corner portion of a work piece so as to prevent movement of the powered tool in a direction substantially perpendicular to the work piece when in use. In use, an operator abuts the alignment member 324 against a lower or upper edge of a work piece, for example a weatherboard, so that movement of the powered tool is fixed in one direction. The alignment member 324 is configured to be slideably moveable relative to the nose body 310 to adjust the distance between the power tool and the point where the alignment member is secured to the work piece to cater for a range of adjustable distances. This feature advantageously provides precise and consistent positioning of the powered tool at fixed distances from an edge of the work piece even as the powered tool is used across a horizontal length of the work piece.

A bracket 322 can be provided for securing the alignment member to the body 310 of the nose piece 300. In one configuration, the alignment member 324 is configured with an 'L' portion for abutting or hooking onto an edge of the work piece. The alignment member 324 is slideable relative to a plate portion of the bracket 322 to adjust the distance between the 'L' portion of the alignment member and the dispensing portion of the powered tool. In one configuration, the alignment member 324 is provided with a groove 326 for which a fastener 328 can be used to adjustably secure the alignment member 324 to the plate portion bracket 322.

In one embodiment, the nose piece 300 may be provided with a stop 332 made from, or coated with, a resilient material extending from the body 310 of the nose piece 300 for contacting a work piece in front of the powered tool. The resilient material cushions the contact between the powered tool and the work piece so that marking/damage to the work piece due to recoil when the tool is held against the tool and fired is reduced. The resilient (or non-marking) stop 332 is located in an area of the nose body 310 where substantial force/pressure would be applied from using the powered tool on a work piece so as to reduce any markings or damage to the work piece caused by the firing action of the powered tool. In another embodiment, each part of the nose piece 300 that is to come into contact with the work piece can be covered or coated with a resilient or non-marking material, which could be sourced from any suitable materials such as rubber.

It is to be appreciated that the nose piece 300 for use with a powered fastener driving tool is well-suited for use as part of a system with the fastener 100 and a powered fastener driving tool with the driving blade 200 as described above because the adjustable tool alignment guide is well suited for latching onto an edge of weatherboards and the non- marking projection helps reduce damage to weatherboards, which typically require an aesthetic finish when used as external cladding. While the nose piece 300 is particularly well-suited for use with powered fastener driving tools for weatherboard applications, it is to be understood that the nose piece 300 may also be equally suited for powered tools used in unrelated applications.

In the description and drawings of this embodiment, same reference numerals are used as have been used in respect of the first embodiment, to denote and refer to corresponding features.

While various embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not by way of limitation. It will be apparent to a person skilled in the relevant art that various changes in form and detail can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, the present invention should not be limited by any of the above described exemplary embodiments.

Throughout this specification and the claims which follow, unless the context requires otherwise, the word "comprise", and variations such as "comprises" and "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or step or group of integers or steps but not the exclusion of any other integer or step or group of integers or steps.

Claims (4)

THE CLAIMS DEFINING THE INVENTION ARE AS FOLLOWS:

1. A nose piece for a powered fastener driving tool for contacting a work piece, the nose piece comprising a body configured for fitting over a fastener-dispensing portion of 5 the powered tool; and an adjustable tool alignment guide extending from the body for guiding the positioning of the powered tool relative to a work piece prior to driving a fastener into the work piece, and wherein the guide comprises an alignment member being adapted for abutting an edge of a work piece to position the tool on a surface at a predetermined distance from the 10 edge so as to prevent movement of the powered tool in a direction substantially perpendicular to the work piece in use, the alignment member is further configured to be slideably moveable relative to the nose body to cater for a range of adjustable distances between the alignment member and the powered tool. 15

2. A nose piece according to claim 1, wherein the guide comprises a bracket for mounting to the body of the nose piece, the bracket having an elongate plate portion on which the alignment member is adjustably movable.

3. A nose piece according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a stop made from a 20 resilient material located proximate the nose body for contacting a work piece in use so as to substantially obviate any surface damage to the work piece caused by the firing action of the powered tool.

4. A powered fastener driving tool comprising a nose piece for contacting a work 25 piece according to any one of the preceding claims.