Socket for channel material
The socket design addresses breaking strength issues by optimizing the inner and outer shapes of the fastening part, enhancing durability and reducing manufacturing costs through improved geometric configurations.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- ICHINEN ACCESS CO LTD
- Filing Date
- 2024-12-20
- Publication Date
- 2026-07-02
AI Technical Summary
Existing sockets for channel materials face issues with reduced breaking strength due to thin wall thickness and stress concentration at the fastening part, necessitating reinforcing materials and increased manufacturing costs.
A socket design with a circular outer periphery and regular hexagonal inner periphery for the fastening part, where the distance between opposing sides and corners is optimized to enhance wall thickness and reduce stress concentration, adhering to specific geometric conditions.
The design provides a socket with high breaking strength at the fastening portion, ensuring ease of installation and reducing the need for additional reinforcing materials, thereby lowering manufacturing costs.
Smart Images

Figure 2026110356000001_ABST
Abstract
Description
[Technical Field]
[0001] This invention relates to a socket for channel material. [Background technology]
[0002] When installing electrical conduits or PF pipes in the walls of buildings, channel members are typically used. Channel members are long members with a U-shaped cross-section. For example, when attaching electrical conduits to the walls of buildings, male threaded anchors are driven into the wall, the channel member is passed through the bolt portion of the protruding male threaded anchor, and secured with a nut. Further work is then done to secure the electrical conduits to the channel member using clips or similar devices.
[0003] Figure 5 shows the fastening process when attaching a channel member to a wall surface 700. As shown in Figure 5, the channel member 200 comprises an upper part 201, left and right side wall parts 202, left and right bottom parts 203, and left and right folded parts 204. As shown in Figure 5, the channel member 200 is attached to a bolt 300 protruding from the wall surface 700 by a washer 400 and a nut 500. The size of the nut used to attach the channel member 200 is usually 17HEX. For attaching the channel member 200 to the bolt 300, a channel member socket 600 is used, which has a connecting part at one end for connecting to a rotary tool and a fastening part at the other end for fastening a screw.
[0004] In this case, the external dimensions of the channel socket 600 are constrained by the depth D1 (distance between the upper part 201 and the folded portion 204) and the inner width W1 (distance between the folded portions 204) of the channel 200. As shown in Figure 5, in the channel socket 600, where the outer circumference of the fastening portion (socket portion) is a regular hexagon, there is an orientation in which the fastening portion has the shortest diameter (distance perpendicular to opposite sides of the regular hexagon) and an orientation in which the fastening portion has the longest diameter (distance parallel to opposite sides of the regular hexagon). The longest diameter is larger than the inner width W of the channel 200, and the shortest diameter is smaller than the inner width W1 of the channel 200.
[0005] Therefore, if the channel socket 600 is oriented to its shortest diameter, it can be inserted into the channel 200, and since the depth D1 of the channel 200 is sufficiently longer than the axial length D0 of the fastening portion, the installation of the channel 200 can be carried out without any problems.
[0006] However, as shown in Figure 6, thin channel members 200 also exist. In the case of the channel member socket 600 with the above configuration, it can be inserted into the channel member 200 if it is oriented in the direction of the shortest diameter, but since the depth D2 of the channel member is shorter than the axial length D0 of the fastening part, the installation work of the channel member 200 cannot be performed. However, there are constraints on the height of the nut 500, and it is not possible to shorten the axial length D0 of the fastening part of the channel member socket 600.
[0007] For example, if the socket has an outer circumference that is circular with an outer diameter smaller than the width W1 of the channel material 600, and an inner circumference that is a regular hexagon, it is possible to fasten thin channel materials. However, the thickness of the corners that form the vertices of the regular hexagon becomes thin, and the breaking strength of the fastened part decreases. Patent Document 1 discloses a technique to increase the strength by wrapping a reinforcing material containing a highly elastic fiber material around the fastened part. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]
[0008] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2014-030855 [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]
[0009] The wrench socket described in Patent Document 1 has the problem of requiring reinforcing materials, resulting in a large number of parts and increased manufacturing costs.
[0010] One of the objectives of this invention is to provide a socket for channel materials with high fracture strength at the fastening portion. [Means for solving the problem]
[0011] The inventors of the present invention examined the cause of the reduction in the breaking strength of the fastening part, and found that (1) the influence of the wall thickness at the corner of the inner peripheral shape of the fastening part (that is, the part corresponding to the corner of the nut), and (2) the influence of stress concentration occurring at the boundary between the fastening part and the connecting part is significant.
[0012] The inventors of the present invention conducted intensive research to reduce the influence based on the finding of (1) above, and completed the following socket for channel material.
[0013] It includes a connecting part connected to a rotary tool at one end and a fastening part for fastening a screw at the other end. The outer peripheral shape of the fastening part is circular with an outer diameter smaller than the inner width of the channel material. The inner peripheral shape of the fastening part is a regular hexagon. In a cross-section perpendicular to the rotation axis of the fastening part, Let the distance between the opposing sides of the inner peripheral shape be S i (mm), and the distance between the opposing corners be D i (mm). A socket for channel material that satisfies Equation (1).
Equation
Advantages of the Invention
[0014] [[ID=*36]] [[ID=*37]]According to the present invention, a socket for channel material with a high breaking strength of the fastening part can be obtained.
Brief Description of the Drawings
[0015] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a socket for channel material, where (a) is an external view and (b) is a cross-sectional view. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view perpendicular to the rotation axis direction showing the configuration of the fastening part. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view perpendicular to the rotation axis direction showing the configuration of the connecting part. [Figure 4] * Note: There seems to be a formatting issue in the original text where some lines might be missing proper tags or there are some consecutive tags without content. The translation is done as accurately as possible based on the provided text. Also, the "
発明の効果
図面の簡単な説明
Advantages of the Invention
Brief Description of the Drawings
Mode for Carrying Out the Invention
[0016] First, regarding the finding of (1) above, the case of attaching the channel material 200 to the bolt 300 with a 17 HEX nut will be described as an example.
[0017] According to the standard, the across flat of a 17 HEX nut is in the range of 16.3 - 17.0 mm. However, for example, in the case of a plated nut, due to the influence of the plating thickness and plating accumulation, etc., the across flat may be about 17.2 mm. On the other hand, the across corner of a 17 HEX nut is about 19.6 mm. FIG. 7 is a view showing a socket for a channel material that adopts the normal inner peripheral shape of the socket. As shown in FIG. 7, the inner peripheral shape adopted in a normal socket has a suitable clearance with the nut to be fastened, and the interval S between the opposing sides of the fastening portion corresponding to the across flat of the nut i is set in the range of 17.2 - 17.4 mm. On the other hand, the interval D between the opposing corners of the fastening portion i is set to about 19.9 mm. This is for making it easy to insert the nut and ensuring the fastening of the nut in the design of a normal socket.
[0018] Here, in FIG. 7, a regular hexagon assumed based on the interval S between the opposing sides of the fastening portion i is shown by a dashed line. However, if the inner peripheral shape adopted in a normal socket is directly adopted for the socket for the channel material, the interval D between the opposing corners of the fastening portioni This setting results in a wider gap than the spacing between the corners of the regular hexagon, and as a result, the thickness of the fastening becomes thinner at the opposing corners, reducing the breaking strength of the fastening.
[0019] Therefore, it is effective to increase the thickness at the opposing corners of the fastening portion, to the extent that it does not hinder the operability of the socket.
[0020] Next, we will explain the findings in (2) above.
[0021] Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a typical socket. As shown in Figure 8, a typical socket 100 includes a connecting portion 110 at one end that is connected to a rotary tool (not shown), a fastening portion 120 at the other end for fastening a screw (not shown), and a connecting portion 130 provided between the connecting portion 110 and the fastening portion 120. In some cases, another fastening portion (not shown) with a smaller diameter than the fastening portion 120 may be provided between the connecting portion 130 and the connecting portion 110. Such a socket is called a double socket, and the fastening portion 120 is sometimes called the outer socket, and the other fastening portion with a smaller diameter is sometimes called the inner socket.
[0022] In a typical socket 100, the connecting portion 130 is formed in a conical shape to connect the fastening portion 120 and the connecting portion 110 (or the inner socket in the case of a double socket). This serves as a stopper when a screw is inserted into the connecting portion 120, and as a guide to facilitate the introduction of a screw into the inner socket in the case of a double socket. On the other hand, a typical socket 100 is required to have a short axial length unless there are specific constraints, so the angle formed by the inner surface of the fastening portion 120 and the inner surface of the connecting portion 130 is steep. Depending on the machining precision, the boundary between the fastening portion 120 and the connecting portion 130 may be formed as a curved surface, but in order to shorten the axial length, its radius of curvature is extremely small, less than 0.5 mm.
[0023] While this is not a particular problem with standard sockets because the fastening portion has sufficient thickness, channel sockets have a thinner fastening portion than standard sockets. Therefore, if the same shape of the connecting portion used in standard sockets is applied, the breaking strength will decrease when torque is applied during fastening.
[0024] Therefore, it is effective to suppress stress concentration at the boundary between the fastening part and the connecting part, to the extent that it does not impede the operability of the socket.
[0025] Sockets for channel materials are used by connecting them to hand tools such as torque wrenches, or power tools such as impact wrenches and impact drivers. The following describes sockets for channel materials with reference to the drawings.
[0026] Figure 1 shows the configuration of a channel material socket, where (a) is an external view and (b) is a cross-sectional view. As shown in Figure 1, the channel material socket 10 has a connecting portion 11 at one end that is connected to a rotary tool (not shown) and a fastening portion 12 at the other end for fastening a screw (not shown). A connecting portion 13 is also provided between the connecting portion 11 and the fastening portion 12.
[0027] (Connection part 11) The connector 11 is used by connecting it to, for example, a hand tool such as a torque wrench, or a power tool such as an impact wrench or impact driver. When the channel material socket 10 is connected to a torque wrench, impact wrench, etc., the connector 11 has a hole shape corresponding to the socket's square drive (prism shape), and when it is intended to be connected to an impact driver, etc., it has a hole shape corresponding to a driver bit. When it is connected to a tool in other ways, it should have a hole shape corresponding to the connection method. Also, for example, the driver bit may be integrally molded with the socket, fixed by press-fitting into the connector 11, or connected to the connector 11 in a detachable manner. Furthermore, the connector 11 may be a shaft-shaped connector such as a hexagonal convex shape (bolt shape) that fits into a hand tool or other socket wrench. In the case of a driver bit integrally molded with the socket, it can also be called a shaft-shaped connector. The example shown in Figure 2 shows an example of a connector 11 intended for connection to a socket's square drive such as a torque wrench.
[0028] (Fastening part 12) The outer circumference 12a of the fastening portion 12 must be circular in shape, having an outer diameter smaller than the inner width (distance between folded portions 204) W1 of the channel material 200. A fastening portion 12 of this shape can be easily inserted into and removed from the gap of the folded portions 204 of the channel material 200, and the channel material 200 can be easily attached to the bolt 300. From the viewpoint of maintaining smooth rotation, the outer diameter of the outer circumference 12a of the fastening portion 12 should be as small as possible, for example, 20.2 mm or less, even 20.1 mm or less, and especially less than 20 mm.
[0029] Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view perpendicular to the axis of rotation showing the configuration of the fastening part. The connecting part 11 is not shown in Figure 2. The shape of the inner circumference 12b of the fastening part 12 is a regular hexagon and has a shape that satisfies the following conditions. A regular hexagon is not a perfect regular hexagon, and includes cases where the sides 12c are made up of straight lines but the corners 12d are made up of curves. In Figure 2, the distance S between opposing sides 12c of the fastening part 12. i The dashed lines represent the assumed regular hexagon based on [the given point].
[0030] When the shape of the inner periphery 12b of the fastening portion 12 has an interval S between the opposing sides 12c of the shape of the inner periphery 12b in a cross section orthogonal to the rotation axis of the fastening portion 12 i (mm) and an interval D between the opposing corners 12d i (mm), it satisfies Equation 1. [Equation 1]
[0031] With such a configuration, the corners 12d of the inner periphery 12b of the fastening portion 12 will be located inside the regular hexagon (broken line) assumed based on the interval S between the opposing sides 12c of the fastening portion 12, and the wall thickness at the position of the opposing corners 12d of the fastening portion 12 can be increased. As a result, the fastening portion 12 can be provided with sufficient breaking strength. i
[0032] The corners 1 of the fastening portion 12 are, for example, formed of a curved surface. In the cross section shown in FIG. 2, they appear as curves. Further, the corners 12d of the fastening portion 12 may, for example, be formed by an arc that is tangent to the straight line forming the side 12c. The radius of curvature of the arc in this case is, for example, 1.90 mm. Also, the corners 12d may be formed by an arc that bulges slightly more on the outer peripheral side than the straight line forming the side 12c. The radius of curvature of the arc in this case is, for example, 2.25 mm, and the radius of curvature can be made larger than when the corners 12d are formed by an arc that is tangent to the straight line forming the side 12c.
[0033] When the diameter of the shape of the outer periphery 12a of the fastening portion 12 is R o (R o - D i ) / 2 is preferably 0.2 mm or more. Thereby, breakage at the corners 12d can be suppressed, and the fastening portion 12 can be provided with sufficient breaking strength.
[0034] The interval S between the opposing sides 12c of the fastening portion 12 i It is preferable that the thickness be between 17.0 and 17.4 mm. If it is less than 17.0 mm, it may be difficult to insert the screw, and if it exceeds 17.4 mm, it may be difficult to secure the wall thickness at the corner 12d.
[0035] (Connection part 13) Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view perpendicular to the rotation axis direction showing the configuration of the connecting portion. The connecting portion 13 is composed of an arc tangent to the line constituting the inner circumference 12b of the fastening portion 12 in a cross-section that includes the rotation axis direction of the fastening portion 12 (direction X in the figure) and the direction perpendicular to the opposing sides 12c of the inner circumference 12b shape (direction Y in the figure), and the radius of curvature R of the arc is 1.0 mm or more. A socket for channel material equipped with a connecting portion 13 with such a large radius of curvature R can suppress stress concentration that occurs at the boundary between the fastening portion 12 and the connecting portion 13 during fastening, thereby increasing the fracture strength of the fastening portion. From the viewpoint of stress concentration, it is preferable that the radius of curvature R be, for example, 1.5 mm or more. On the other hand, if the radius of curvature is too large, there is a risk of the screw getting caught in the connecting portion 13 when fastening. Also, it becomes difficult to increase the wall thickness, making it difficult to smoothly connect the inner surfaces of the connecting portion 12 and the connecting portion 11, which may conversely cause stress concentration. Therefore, the practical upper limit for the radius of curvature R is 7.0 mm.
[0036] Here, Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view perpendicular to the rotation axis direction showing other components of the connecting portion. The connecting portion 13 may be entirely composed of arcs, but as shown in Figure 4, it is sufficient that at least the portion near the boundary with the fastening portion 12 is composed of arcs. In Figure 4, the connecting portion 13 is composed of arcs in the portion continuing from the boundary with the fastening portion 12 (indicated by the symbol d), and the portion to its right is composed of straight lines. However, if the portion indicated by the symbol d is too narrow, it may be difficult to avoid stress concentration. Therefore, it is preferable that the spacing of the portion indicated by the symbol d (length in the rotation axis direction (X direction in the figure)) be 1.0 mm or more. The spacing L can be said to be the length in the rotation axis direction of the connecting portion 13, which is composed of arcs, in a cross-section that includes the rotation axis direction of the fastening portion 12 (X direction in the figure) and the direction perpendicular to the opposing sides 12c of the shape of the inner circumference 12b (Y direction in the figure).
[0037] Furthermore, in this cross-section, the total length of the connecting portion 13 in the rotation axis direction (X direction in the figure) (length indicated by the symbol L) is preferably 1.0 to 5.0 mm. This is to minimize the overall length of the socket for the channel material. [Industrial applicability]
[0038] According to the present invention, a socket for channel materials with high fracture strength at the fastening portion can be obtained. [Explanation of Symbols]
[0039] 10-channel socket 11 Connection part 12 Fastening part 12a outer circumference 12b Inner circumference 12c side 12d corner 13 Connecting part 100 Socket for channel material 110 Connection part 120 Fastening part 130 Connection section 200 channel material 201 Top 202 Side wall section 203 Bottom 204 Turning point 300 volts 400 washers 500 nuts Socket for 600 channel material 700 Wall surface
Claims
1. It has a connecting part at one end that connects to a rotary tool, and a fastening part at the other end for fastening a screw, The outer circumferential shape of the fastening portion is circular, having an outer diameter smaller than the inner width of the channel material. The inner circumference of the fastening portion is a regular hexagon. In a cross-section perpendicular to the rotation axis of the fastening portion, The distance between opposing sides of the inner circumference shape is S i (mm), the distance between opposing corners is D i A socket for channel material that satisfies equation 1, given (mm). [Math 1]
2. The corner of the fastening portion is formed of a curved surface, as described in claim 1, for a socket for channel material.
3. The diameter of the outer circumference of the fastening portion is R o When this is the case, (R o -D i The socket for channel material according to claim 1, wherein ) / 2 is 0.2 mm or more.
4. The aforementioned interval S i However, the channel material socket according to claim 1 is 17.0 to 17.4 mm.