Installing flooring can be a very time consuming and labor intensive process. This is especially true when the flooring being installed is a wood floor which has to be installed using individual boards which typically interlock with one another and are secured to a subfloor. Typically, the panels of wood floors have a groove extending longitudinally along a side of the board and groove extending longitudinally along the opposite side of the board so that the tongue of one board is accepted by the groove of an adjacent board.
Further, when installing a wood floor, it is undesirable to have any marks on the top surface of the floor from the component securing the floor to the subfloor. Thus, nailer devices are used to drive a nail or staple at an angle through the side of the floorboard so that the floorboard can be adequately secured to the subfloor without having any blemishes on the top surface of the floorboard. Again, this is a time consuming process where the nailer device must be placed along the edge of the floorboard so that the securing component can be driven through the floorboard at the desired angle.
There are devices which are used to move along a floorboard being secured to a subfloor which aligns the nailer device to the floorboard. Typically, nailers which are used with these devices and nailers which are used independently of the devices, have a pad which rests on the top of the floorboard being secured to the subfloor so that the nailer is properly aligned with the side of the floorboard. However, as the device moves along the floorboard, in some instances, the pad of the nailer may create friction which may cause the device to pivot and become misaligned with the floorboard being secured to the subfloor.
In addition, floorboards typically come in different heights. When the floorboards are being secured manually, the operator can adjust the nailer device accordingly by aligning the nailer with the floorboard in the desired manner. However, when the nailer device is automated, the nailer may not be properly aligned so that the fastener extends through the side of the board in the desired manner.
Therefore, it is desirable to develop a nailer device which is motorized so that the device moves along the floorboard and aligns the floorboard in order to secure the floorboard to the subfloor. It is also desirable to develop a nailer device that is adjustable in height in which the pad of the nailer does not contact the floorboard so that the nailer device does not become misaligned with the floorboard, and can function properly with floorboards having different heights.