Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
2~35~
RETAINING CLIP
The present invention relates to a clip for
retaining elongate elements such as cables, pipes, tubes
and the like.
Many types of clips are known for attaching an
5 elongate element to a support. A problem with known
clips is that either they are not adapted to resist long-
tudinal sliding of the element relating to the support or
they are configured to provide a close grip on the elongate
element so that there is little tolerance in the size of
10 the elongate element which can be accommodated in the clip.
It is an object of the present invention to
provide a clip for retaining an elongate elemellt on a
support in a secure manner and to resist longitudinal
sliding of the element whilst providing a reasonable
15 tolerance in the size of element which can be accommodated
in the clip.
According to the present invention there is
provided a clip for attaching an elongate clement, having
a series of circumferential lands and risers axially spaced
20 along its surface, to a support comprising a body portion
provided with a fastening member adapted to attach the
clip to the support, the body portion including means
deeinillg a seat for the elongate element and having a
flexible arm extending from one side thereof, a free end
so
of the arm being engage able in the other side of the
body portion to hold the elongate element in the seat,
the body portion comprising one or more fins configured
to engage said lands on the elongate element to resist
5 longitudinal sliding of the element in the clip.
The provision of a fin or fins renders the clip
particularly suitable for use in retaining a corrugated
elongate element, the fins being engage able between
corrugations on the elongate element enabling the element
10 to be held securely against longitudinal sliding whilst
using a flexible arm allowing some tolerance in the size
of element which can be accommodated in the clip. The
clip may also be used with elongate elements having a
plain surface, for example a cloth cowered cable harness
15 in which case the fin or fins help grip the element to
resist longitudinal sliding of the element in the clip.
Preferably, the fins are arcuate and therefore
suitable for engagement between annular corrugations.
The body portion may comprise two opposed fins.
20 In a particular embodiment the arm comprises a first fin
extending towards the seat and the seat comprises a
second fin opposed to and generally aligned with the
first fin.
The arm may be sinuously shaped and therefore
25 particularly appropriate or use with elongate
elements of circular cross-section. Preferably, the
arm has an arched portion which, in use, is disposed
substantially centrally of the seat so as to locate an
elongate element firmly in the seat.
In a particular embodiment, tune arm comprises an
arcuate fin extending from the arched portion towards
the seat.
A particular embodiment of the present invention
will now be described by way of example with reference
to the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is a front elevation of a clip according
to the present invention;
Figure 2 is a side elevation of Figure 1 when
viewed in direction A;
Figure 3 it an upper plan view of thy clip shown
in Figure 1;
Figure 4 is a plan view from below the clip shown
in Figure 1;
Figure 5 is a front view of the clip with an end
of the arm freed prom the body portion;
Figure 6 it a front view of the clip fastened to a
support and retaining an elongate element;
Figure 7 is a side view in cross-section along
line VII-VII of Figure 6;
Figure 8 is a cross-section on the line VIII-VIII
of Figure 5.
I
,,
Referring to the drawings, a one piece plastics
clip is indicated generally at 10 and comprises a body
12 defining a seat portion 14 and having a relatively
thin flexible arm 16 extending therefrom. The clip 10
has a fastening element 18 disposed on the underside
thereof between two ramps 20 and 22.
The flexible arm 16 extends from one side 24 of
the body 12 and is the same width as the body 12. The
section 26 interconnecting the body 12 and the flexible
arm 16 is thinner than the arm itself to enhance the
flexibility of the movement of the arm 16 relative to
the body 12.
The arm 16 is sinuously shaped and comprises three
arches 28, 30 and 32. The central arch 30 is less
pronounced than the arches 28 and 22 and is contiguous
with a downwardly depending fin 34 which is disposed
centrally of the width of the arm 16 and is of narrow
width relative thereto.
The free end 36 of the arm 16 comprises an L
shaped foot 38. One branch 40 of the foot 38 has a neck
portion 42 defining a shoulder 44. The underside of
the other branch 46 of the foot 38 has a small recess
I wormed therein. The branch I comprises a generally
square notch 41 shown dotted in Figures 1, 5 and 6)
extending there through and disposed centrally of its
width. The notch 41 extends across approximately one-
.~,~ ,,
fifth of the width of the branch 40. The foot 38
comprises a second shoulder 50 adjacent the junction of
the branches 38 arid 40.
The seat portion 14 it substantially arcuate and
comprises a fin 52 which extends upwardly and in the
same plane as the fin 34. Figure 1 illustrates that
the fin 34 is positioned substantially centrally of the
seat 14. Referring to Figure 8, the fin 52 tapers
upwardly to form an edge 55 which terminates at each
end in two generally flat triangular portions 57 and
59-
Adjacent the seat portion 14~ the body 12
comprises a substantially Unshaped portion 54 having a
recess 56 shaped complimentarily with respect to the
branch 40 of the foot 38. The outermost limb 58 of the
U-shaped portion 54 has a small recess 60 at its
uppermost end and is provided with a strengthening rib
62.
The base of the recess 56 is provided with a rib
61 disposed centrally of the width of the recess and
adapted to locate in the notch 41 in the branch 40 of
the arm 16 so as to limit transverse movement of the
foot 38 of the arm 16 relative to the Unshaped portion
54 of the body 12 when it is engaged in the U-shaped
portion 54.
I 8
In this embodiment the rib 61 is about half the
width of the notch 41, but may be made wider if desired
as long as it can locate in the notch 41.
The two triangular recesses 64, 66 shown in
Figures 1, 5 and 6 are connected with the mounding
process and have no structural significance.
The fastening member 18 comprises a shank 68
contiguous with a nose 70. Two resilient legs 72 and 74
extend upwardly towards the body 12. The width of the
lo legs 72 and 74 is slightly less than the width of the
shank 68 (as can be teen from Figure 2). At the end of
the shank 68 adjacent the body 12 are two substantially
cubic locating and strengthening blocks 76 and 78t The
ramps 20 and 22 extend downwardly to a level
approximately equal to that of the free ends of the
legs 72 and 74. The ramps 20 and 22 each c~mprlse a
beveled portion 80 J 82 at their free ends
A particular use of the clip 10 will be described
with reference to Figures I 6 and 7. The bulk of the
reference numerals have been omitted from Figure 6 for
clarity.
The clip 10 is fastened to an aperture support 84
by pressing the nose 70 of the fastening member I into
the aperture 86. This causes the legs 72 and ill to
flex inwardly towards the shank 68 to allow the
fastening member 18 to be inserted through the aperture
. , "
I
86. The blocks 76 and 78 restrict sideways movement of
the clip 10 in the aperture 86. The beveled edges 80
and 82 on the ramps 20 and 22 abut the upper surface of
the support 84 and the ramps 20 and 22 are caused to be
slightly flattened due to the thickness of the panel
84.
The foot 38 of the flexible arm 16 is dislodged
from the Unshaped portion 54 of the body 12 by
inserting the end of a screwdriver into the groove
formed by the recesses 48 and 60 and twisting the
screwdriver. The difference in the widths of the notch
41 on the foot 38 and the rib 61 in the recess 56 allows
slight transverse movement of the foot 38 relative to
the U-shaped portion 54 to facilitate dislodgement of
the foot 38 from the U-shaped portion 54 using a
screwdriver.
A corrugated tube 88 is placed in the seat portion
14 and positioned Jo that the fins 34 and 52 locate
between a pair of corrugations 90 and 92 of the
corrugated tube 88. The tube 88 is then held in the
clip 10 by snap-engaging the foot 38 in the U-shaped
portion 54. The corrugated tube 88 is held securely
against longitudinal sliding movement in the clip 10 by
the phony 34 and 52.
The engagement Or the rib 61 in the notch 41
limits transverse movement of the foot 38 in the U-
shaped portion 54.
I
In general, the flexible arm may be configured to
co-operate with whatever shape of elongate element it
is desired to retain. The position and shape of the
fins may be adapted according to the particular type ox
elongate element to be retained. For example, three
circumferential spaced fins may be provided on the
flexible arm and/or teat of the clip rather than an
opposed pair of fins. Furthermore, it is envisaged to
provide a plurality of fins in the clip which are
spaced longitudinally with reference to the length of
the elongate element to be retained and these may be
configured for engagement between different pairs of
corrugations in the case of a corrugated elongate
element.
The arm may be adapted to retain more than one
elongate element in the clip, in particular to retain
two elongate elements side by side, and the shape and
disposition of the fins would be adapted accordingly.
Furthermore, a clip according to the present invention
may comprise a plurality of flexible retaining arms.
Any suitable means may be used or interconnecting
a free end ox the arm with the body portion of the clip
and these need not necessarily snap-engage together.
Various forms of fastening member may be used for
securing the clip to a support and the particular one
employed will depend on the intended use of the clip.
... .
31.~2~5~t)
The ramps of the particular embodiment described
may be replaced by a resilient circular skirt
configured so as, in use, to abut the support.
