METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR A RIVET ASSEMBLY

摘要

A method and apparatus for a rivet assembly, anchorable in an aperture of a work piece, having a self aligning pin insertable into a hole through a body member. The body member includes a sleeve with a plurality of outwardly flexibleresilient legs extending from a first side of the sleeve. The hole through the body member is a substantially triangular hole extending through the sleeve and through at least a portion of the resilient legs wherein the hole forms a substantially flat surface on an inner surface of the resilient legs. The pin includes a shaft with a substantially triangular portion having a surface engagable with the resilient legs, and a first end with a substantially pyramidal tip tapering from the shaft. The pyramidal tip of the pin rotationally aligns the substantially triangular sectional portion of the shaft with the substantially triangular hole of the body member as the pin is inserted into the hole of the body member, and the pin is engagable with the resilient legs to urge theresilient legs in an outward direction as the aligned pin is further inserted into the hole of the body member. The substantially triangular pin provides for maximum thickness of the resilient legs and maximum tensile and shear performance of the rivet assembly.