“Push-in” or “drive” fasteners of a variety of types and styles are well known in the fastener art. Typically, such fasteners have a shank with series of vertically spaced flexible tabs or wing-like members extending away from an axis of the fastener. As such, fasteners of this variety are also referred to as tree fasteners.
Such fasteners are driven axially into preformed openings or holes in a workpiece article with the flexible tabs or wings-like members engaging the article and flexing as they move through opening or hole in the article The workpiece article into which the fastener is introduced or inserted may be a panel of a shipping container of a particular type, with the fastener being used to secure another panel, i.e., nameplate, strip of molding, or the like to such container.
The flexible tabs or wing-like members on the shank of the fastener are specifically designed such that the force required to install or push the fastener through the hole or opening is relatively low thereby facilitating ergonomic considerations. Ideally, it is desirable in many situations to further design the fastener such that the force required to remove the fastener from the hole is relatively high. The relatively high retention force securely holds the article or nameplate to the shipping container during transport and other rough handling conditions.
A problem arises, however, when the nameplate or article held by the fastener is to be removed from the container. Since conventional tree fasteners are typically designed to exert high retention force following their insertion, extensive efforts are often required when the nameplate or article held by the fastener is to be removed. As will be appreciated, such extensive efforts at replacing the nameplate or the like is not conducive to repetitive use of such containers along with required timely turn around of the product stored and transported therewithin
Accordingly, the nameplate or article held by the fastener is typically torn or pulled from the container often resulting in destruction of the nameplate, container, or both, as well as destruction of the fastener. Of course, requiring a new or replacement nameplate adds to the transportation costs of the product. Moreover, when the nameplate or article is torn from the container, such action frequently results with the fastener head being broken off from the shank. Thus, when the new nameplate is to be attached to the container, the remaining shank of the broken fastener must be drilled or otherwise removed from the container. As will be appreciated, this requires a labor intensive effort resulting in the waste of valuable time in a highly competitive market. Moreover, forcible removal of the broken fastener frequently results in the hole through which the fastener is inserted to become enlarged, thus, adversely effecting the holding ability of the replacement fastener used to secure a replacement nameplate to the container.
Thus, there is a continuing need and desire for a push-in type fastener requiring a relatively low insertion force and offering a relatively high retention force after the fastener is inserted into an opening or hole in an article while providing for quick and easy non-destructive removal of the fastener.