US2697785A

US2697785A - Antenna mounting

Info

Publication number: US2697785A
Application number: US237975A
Authority: US
Inventors: Jack L Stewart
Original assignee: Gabriel Co
Current assignee: Gabriel Co
Priority date: 1951-07-21
Filing date: 1951-07-21
Publication date: 1954-12-21
Anticipated expiration: 1971-12-21

Description

Dec. Z1, 1954 J. L. STEWART ANTENNA MOUNTING Filed July 21, 1951 1N VEN TOR. Jvc/r 57E-uwer /can 2 United States Patent() ANTENNA MOUNTING .lackl L. Stewart, Cleveland Heights, Ohio, assignor to The Gabriell Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application July 21, 1951, Serial No. 237,975

4 Claims. (CIL Z50- 33) This invention relates to an antenna mounting such as a mounting for an automobile antenna, particularly one that is mounted on the cowl, fender or other locations of the automobile which have straight, sloping or curved panels as the support for the mounting.

Antenna mountings of the type hereinbefore referred to usually include a short sleeve member in which is mounted an insulating bushing in turn mounting a threadedsleeve and into which threaded sleeve the antenna rod screws. In these mountings the nuts for clamping the outer and inner mounting members against the outer and inner sides of the panel and for maintaining the assembled relationship of the parts of the mounting are screwed on the threaded portion of the antenna rod. The result in such an arrangement is that when the nuts are screwed to clamping position to maintain the mounting assembled the strain or force set up to hold the mounting members firmly against the outer and inner sides of-the panelus transmitted directly to the threaded sleeve and insulating bushing in the relatively short sleeve. This strain or force acting through the antenna rod on the threaded sleeve and insulating bushing frequently causes the threaded sleeve to be pulled out of the insulating bushing or the insulatmg bushing to be pulled out of the relatively short sleeve of the construction.

Another disadvantage in these antenna mountings lies in the fact that in order to remove the antenna rod the clamping nut which holds the mounting members in -asse bled position upon the panel must be loosened with the result that the mounting assembly becomes disassembled.

An object of the present invention is to provide an antenna mounting wherein the clamping nut for the mounting assembly exerts no strain or force through the antenna rod upon the threaded sleeve and insulating bushing'in the mounting sleeve, thereby obviating danger of the threaded sleeve pulling out of the insulating bushing or the latter pulling out` of the mounting sleeve.

A further object of the invention is to provide an antenna mounting wherein the clamping forces which hold the mounting members on the panel of the automobile in clamped assembled relationship are not imparted to any part of the mounting through the antenna rod.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an antenna mounting such that the antenna rod can be removed from the mounting oi' secured therein Without disturbing the clamped assembly of the mounting parts on the panel of the automobile.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an antenna mounting wherein the antenna rod is completely insulated from the parts of the mounting, wherefore the mounting, and particularly the outer and inner mounting members, if desired can be formed of metal parts, except those parts which insulate the antenna rod from the remainder of the mounting assembly.

Another object of the invention is to provide an 'antenna mounting which is so constructed that various types of inner and outer mounting members adapted to the curvature of the panel can be employed.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an antenna mounting which is simple in construction, can be readily manufactured and easily assembled.`

Further and additional objects and advantages inherent in .the rinvention and not specifically recited above will become apparent during the detailed description of an embodiment of the invention which is to follow.

Referring to the accompanying drawing illustrating such embodiment of the invention- Fig. 1 shows the antenna mounting in longitudinal'section and with the antenna rod assembled in the mounting, the antenna rod and the lead-in cable connector assembly being shown partly in longitudinal section 4and partly in elevation, and

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but shows the antenna rod removed from the mounting assembly.

The embodiment of the invention illustrated inA the drawing shows an antenna mounting comprising a metal mounting sleeve 10 which is of substantial length such that when it is passed through the opening 11 in thespanel 12 of the automobile on which the antenna mounting. is assembled the sleeve extends well beyond the outer and inner surfaces of the panel 12. It will be understood that the panel 12 may be a cowl panel, a fender or some other part of the automobile.

The mounting sleeve 10 at its upper or outer and its lower or inner ends is externally threaded as indicated at 13 and 14. The sleeve lt) intermediate its ends isproT vided with an internally projecting annular bead 15 for a purpose later to be explained. Fitted into the upper or outer end of the sleeve 10 with a tight tit thereinis an outer insulating bushing 16 provided at its outer end with a thickened portion or flange 17 which overlies and engages the outer end of the sleeve 10. The sleeve 10,als0 has tightly fitted therein a. lower insulating bushing 18, the upper end of which engages the internal bead le' which acts to positively prevent any upward movement of the lower insulating bushing 1S within the sleeve 10.

The lower or inner insulating bushing 18 intermediate its ends is provided with an axial bore communicating adjacent the upper end of the bushing with a counterbore 19 and also communicating at its lower end with a counterbore 26 which in turn communicates with a larger counter-` bore 21 adjacent the lower end of the lower insulating bushing 18 and providing a stop shoulder within the `bushing. The axial bore in the lower insulating bushing 18 provides therein what may be termed an internal annular rib as indicated at 22.

An internally threaded metal sleeve 23 is mounted in the lower insulating bushing 18 and the external diameter of the sleeve 23 is such that it has a pressed or tight-tit within the internal annular rib 22 of the bushing 18. The internally threaded sleeve 23 at its lower end has an exf ternal annular flange 24 located in the counterbore 21 of the lower insulating bushing and which flange will engage the stop shoulder formed by the counterbore 21 to prevent the threaded sleeve being pulled upwardly and out of the lower insulating bushing 18.

The outer or upper mounting member and the inner or lower mounting member of the assembly may take various forms suitable for use on a curved panel or a straight panel and, if desired, may be formed entirely of metal, entirely of rubber or plastic material, or of a combination of metal and rubber or plastic materials. These mounting members may take the form illustrated in the drawing or they may have the form of the mounting members shown in the Finke et al. Patent 2,470,693, issued May 17, 1949, or they may be of any other suitable form.

The outer or upper mounting member 25 is illustrated as formed of hard rubber and it has its lower side curved or shaped to conform substantially to the curve or configuration of the upper surface of' the panel 12. The mounting member 25 at its upper end is provided with a bore through which the mounting sleeve 10 extends with a fairly snug fit which is to better exclude moisture and dirt. The sleeve 10, except for its contact with the member 25 in the bore referred to, is spaced inwardly from the interior of the member 25. The outer mounting member 25 preferably seats at its inner end in a complementaryl recess formed in a soft rubber gasket 26 which engages the outer side of the panel 12 as will be well understood in the art.

The inner or lower mounting member is indicated at 27 and is arranged beneath the panel 12 and is formed in this instance of hard rubber or plastic. The inner member 27 snugly fits the sleeve 10 and has its upper end shaped toy conform substantially to the contour of the underside of. 2S being interposed be-VA the panel 12, a soft rubber gasket tween the underside of the panel 12 and the upper .end of the lower mounting member 27.

A lead-in cable connector assembly designated generally at 29 and including an outer sleeve 30, an insulating sleeve 31 and an inner radio frequency conductor 32 is secured to the externally threaded lower end 14 of the mounting sleeve by means of a securing nut 33 which engages tlanges on the sleeve in a manner well understood in the art. The sleeve 30 is connected by soldering to a sheath 30a. A contact socket 32a is connected by soldering to the end of conductor 32 and extends to adjacent the end of the insulating sleeve 31. A washer 34 is interposed between the nut 33 and the lower end of the inner or lower mounting member 27 as clearly indicated in the drawing and abuts the said member 27.

The antenna mounting thus far described is mounted on Y the panel 12 by positioning on the mounting sleeve l the inner or lower mounting member 27, the washer 34, the nut 33 and the lead-in connector assembly 29, after which the sleeve 10 is passed upwardly through the opening 11 in the panel 12 until the gasket 28 engages the underside of the panel. Then the gasket 26 and the upper or outer mounting member 25 are positioned on the mounting sleeve 10, whereupon the entire assembly may be drawn into tight clamped and assembled position on the panel by the clamping nut 35, which is screwed onto the threaded outer end 13 of the mounting sleeve 10 and has a flange which engages the outer end of the outer mounting member 25.

When the antenna mounting assembly has been thus secured in position on the panel 12 in clamping engagement with the panel, its assembled relationship need not be disturbed in order to mount the antenna rod therein or to remove the antenna rod therefrom and thus a decided advantage over the usual antenna mounting is obtained by the mounting of the present invention.

The antenna rod is shown for purposes of illustration only as comprising a tubular portion 36 which may be in the form of a single elongated tube or may be made up of a plurality of telescoping tube sections if the antenna is of the extensible and retractable type. The tube portion 36 of the antenna has mounted in its lower end a solid anf tenna rod 37 which may be secured in the tube portion 36 by any suitable means such as by clamping the tube portion inwardly into annular channels formed in the rod 37 as indicated at 38.

The antenna rod 37 is provided with a cylindrical portion 39 of greater external diameter than the remainder of the rod and which portion 39 will have a snug t in the outer insulating bushing 16 carried by the mounting sleeve 10. The antenna rod 37 below the cylindrical portion 39 has a reduced portion 40 of less external diameter than the internal diameter of the bushing 16, wherefore there will be clearance between the portion 4t) of the rod and the interior of the bushing when the antenna rod is secured in the antenna mounting.

Below the portion 40 the antenna rod has a still further reduced diameter portion 41 and below said portion 41 the rod has a threaded portion 42 which screws into the internally threaded metal connecting sleeve 23 which is carried by the lower insulating bushing 18 within the mounting sleeve 10. The extreme lower end of the rod 37 and below the threaded portion 42 has a connecting jack portion 43 which when the antenna rod is assembled in the mounting extends into the insulating sleeve 31 and the contact socket 32a and is tightly gripped by the socket 32a to form an electrical contact therewith.

A cap nut 44 functions in addition to the threaded connection between the threaded portion 42 and the metal connecting sleeve 23 to connect the antenna rod to the mounting sleeve 10. This cap nut 44 can rotate relative to the antenna rod when screwed down upon the external threads 13 at the outer end of the mounting sleeve 10 and acts through an operative connection between the closed end of the cap nut 44 and the cylindrical portion 39 of the antenna rod to apply locking friction to the threads of the rod portion 42 and the connecting sleeve 23. The closed end of the cap nut 44 mounts an insulating gasket or washer 45 which has a sliding fit on the tubular portion 36 of the antenna.

Intermediate the washer 45 and the shoulder formed by the portion 39 of the antenna rod there is a metal flange or washer 46 which may be an integral out-turned flange portion of the tube 36 or may be a separate washer. The washer 46 does not contact the interior of the cap nut 44.

Assuming that the antenna mounting has been assembled and clamped in position in the panel 12 as shown in 4 Fig. 2, the antenna rod can then be inserted through the insulating bushing 16 until the threaded portion 42 of the rod reaches the metal connecting sleeve 23, whereupon rotation of the rod will cause the threaded portion 42 to screw into the sleeve 23 as indicated in Fig. l, with the connecting end jack portion 43 of the rod engaging the socket 32a of the lead-in connector assembly. At this time the enlarged cylindrical portion 39 of the rod is tightly engaging the interior of the insulating bushing 16 adjacent the outer end of the latter and it will be noted that the rod is adequately supported at axially spaced points, i. e., at the cylindrical portion 39 and the threaded portion 42 against lateral vibrational movements. Also at this time the rod is rmly, mechanically and electrically connected to the antenna mounting and to the conductor 32. However, in order to put locking friction on the threaded connection between the threaded portion 42 of the rod and the sleeve 23 the cap nut 44 is screwed downwardly on the mounting sleeve 10 until the washer 46 is in rm or tight engagement with the outer end of the ange portion 17 of the insulating sleeve 16. Thus is obviated likelihood of undesired loosening rotation of the antenna rod because of vibration or other factors, wherefore the threaded connection between the portion 42 of the rod and the sleeve 23 is not disturbed. Also when the cap nut 44 has been'screwed down in the manner just referred to it functions to seal the antenna mounting against the entrance of dirt and moisture and imparts to the same a nished appearance.

It will be clearly seen that should the antenna become bent or otherwise injured or should it be desirable for any reason whatsoever to remove the rod from the mounting this can be done without disturbing the assembled and clamped relationship of the mounting by merely backing off the cap nut 44 and then rotating the antenna rod to unscrew the same from the sleeve 23. It will be observed also that the clamping nut 35 transmits no force or strain to the bushing 18 and connecting sleeve 23 and thus is avoided any tendency of the bushing and sleeve 23 to be pulled from the mounting sleeve 10 by the antenna rod.

The antenna rod is completely insulated from the mounting sleeve 1t) by virtue of the insulating bushing 16 which it engages and by reason of the fact that the connecting sleeve 23 is supported solely by the insulating bushing 1S while at all other locations the antenna rod is substantially spaced from and out of contact with the mounting sleeve 10. Consequently the outer and inner mounting members and the other external parts of the assembly can be formed of metal, if desired, as they have no function of insulating the antenna rod from the panel Although a preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described herein it will be understood that the invention is susceptible of various modifications and adaptations within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

l. In combination, an antenna mounting and an antenna rod secured therein, said mounting comprising an elongated mounting sleeve adapted to extend through an opening in the panel of an automobile to which the mounting is secured, outer and inner mounting members on said sleeve to bear against the opposite sides of the panel, means on the inner end of said sleeve and engaging said inner mounting member to retain the member on the sleeve, said sleeve being exteriorly threaded adjacent its outer end, a clamping nut on the threaded outer end of said sleeve and engageable with said outer mounting mem-v ber to draw said mounting members into clamping engagement with the panel and to maintain said members and mounting sleeve in assembled mounted relation on the panel, said'mounting sleeve being provided internally with threaded means, said antenna rod extending into said mounting sleeve from the outer end thereof and having a threaded portion screwed into said threaded means to connect the antenna rod to the mounting independently of the clamping nut and free from the clamping forces exerted thereby.

2. The combination detined in claim l and wherein the threaded means internally of the mounting sleeve comprises an insulating bushing secured in said mounting sleeve and an internally threaded connecting sleeve secured in said bushing.

3. The combination defined in claim 2 and wherein said antenna rod rotatably mounts a cap nut screwed upon the outer end of the mounting sleeve outwardly of the clamping nut, said antenna rod being provided with an external shoulder against which said cap nut acts to impart locking friction to the threads of the threaded portion of the rod and the conneuting sleeve.

4. An antenna mounting as defined in claim 2 and wherein said bushing and connecting sleeve are adjacent the inner end of the mounting sleeve while a second insuiating bushing is mounted internally of the mounting sleeve adjacentthe outer end thereof, said rod having a portion of such diameter as to snugly tit within said second bushing while said rod intermediate said last mentioned portion and the threaded portion thereof is of such diameter as to be spaced from the interior of the mounting sleeve and said second bushing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,444,189 Finneburgh et al June 28, 1948 2,509,563 Grashow May 30, 1950 10 2,536,733 Finke et a1 Jan. 2, 1951 2,563,540 Ludwig et a1 Aug. 7, 1951