CRACK-PROOF SCREW

Abstract

A crack-proof screw includes a thread formed around a shank. A helical notch continuously and helically extends along the shank and is indented into the shank and the thread. The helical notch is proximal to but spaced apart from a tip of the shank. The notch is trapezoidal in cross section, and has a notch bottom, an open end opening at an outer peripheral surface of the shank oppositely of the notch bottom, and two opposite notch walls extending divergingly from the notch bottom to the open end. The open end is larger in width than the notch bottom. A method of making the screw is also disclosed.

Claims

1. A crack-proof screw comprising: a head; a shank axially extending from said head, and having a tip; a thread formed continuously and helically around said shank; and a helical notch continuously and helically extending along said shank and indented into said shank and said thread, said helical notch being proximal to but spaced apart from said tip, said helical notch being trapezoidal in cross section, and having a notch bottom, an open end opening at an outer peripheral surface of said shank oppositely of said notch bottom, and two opposite notch walls extending divergingly from said notch bottom to said open end, said open end being larger in width than said notch bottom.

2. The crack-proof screw as claimed in claim 1, wherein said helical notch has a length equal to at least half of a length of said thread.

3. The crack-proof screw as claimed in claim 1, wherein said helical notch has a lead angle greater than a lead angle of said thread.

4. The crack-proof screw as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of said notch walls forms a cutting edge at said open end.

5. A method for manufacturing a crack-proof screw, comprising: cutting a rod metal material with a predetermined length into a shank, and punching an end of the shank into a head; and thread rolling a metal blank by using a die assembly to form a thread that extends continuously and helically around the shank, and a helical notch that extends continuously and helically along the shank and indented into the shank and the thread, the helical notch being proximal to but spaced apart from a tip of the shank, the helical notch being trapezoidal in cross section, and having a notch bottom, an open end opening at an outer peripheral surface of the shank oppositely of the notch bottom, and two opposite notch walls that extend divergingly from the notch bottom to the open end, the open end being larger in width than the notch bottom.

6. The method for manufacturing a crack-proof screw as claimed in claim 5, wherein the helical notch has a length equal to at least half of a length of the thread.

7. The method for manufacturing a crack-proof screw as claimed in claim 5, wherein the helical notch has a lead angle greater than a lead angle of the thread.

8. The method for manufacturing a crack-proof screw as claimed in claim 5, wherein each of the notch side walls has a cutting edge at the open end.

9. The method for manufacturing a crack-proof screw as claimed in claim 5, wherein the die assembly has a prolong length through which the number of revolutions that the metal blank revolves over the die assembly to form the thread is increased by an amount of 40% to 60% compared to the number of revolutions allowed by the conventional die assembly to complete formation of a screw.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Other features and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent in the following detailed description of the embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:

[0018] FIG. 1 is a fragmentary view of a conventional screw with one chip collection channel;

[0019] FIG. 2 is a fragmentary view of a conventional screw with two chip collection channels;

[0020] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of another conventional screw;

[0021] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a self-tapping screw disclosed in Taiwanese Utility Model Patent No. M460950;

[0022] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a self-tapping screw disclosed in Taiwanese Invention Patent No. 201013060;

[0023] FIG. 6 is a front view of a crack-proof screw according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0024] FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the embodiment; and

[0025] FIG. 8 is fragmentary sectional view, illustrating the crack-proof screw of the embodiment advanced into a wood.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] Referring to FIG. 6, a crack-proof screw 5 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a head 51, a shank 52, a thread 53 and a helical notch 54. The shank 52 axially extends from the head 51, and has a tip 521. The thread 53 is formed continuously and helically around the shank 52. The helical notch 54 continuously and helically extends along the shank 52 and is indented into the shank 52 and the thread 53. The helical notch 54 is proximal to but spaced apart from the tip 521. In addition, the helical notch 54 has a length equal to at least half of a length of the thread 53, and has a lead angle (2) greater than a lead angle (1) of the thread 53.

[0027] Referring to FIG. 7, in combination with FIG. 6, the helical notch 54 is trapezoidal in cross section, and has a notch bottom 540, an open end 542 opening at an outer peripheral surface of the shank 52 oppositely of the notch bottom 540, and two opposite notch walls 543 extending divergingly from the notch bottom 540 to the open end 542. The open end 542 is larger in width than the notch bottom 540. Each of the notch walls 543 forms a cutting edge 541 at the open end 542. The cutting edges 541 of the notch walls 543 intersect noncontinuously the thread 53 to enhance cutting and anchoring effects.

[0028] Referring to FIG. 8, when the crack-proof screw 5 is driven into a wood 7, the thread 53 is guided to penetrate into the wood 7 and the cutting edges 541 cut into and remove wood chips 71 of the wood 7. Meanwhile, the helical notch 54 discharges the wood chips 71 outwardly from the wood 7. By virtue of the configuration of the helical notch 54, the crack-proof screw 5 may collect and discharge the wood chips 71 produced during the screwing process. Therefore, the crack-proof screw 5 may be easily advanced into the wood 7 with a constant driving force, thereby considerably reducing the torque required for driving the crack-proof screw 5 into the wood 7. The total driving torque may be stably and slowly accumulated, and the effect of saving energy may be apparently increased. In addition, an incidence of splitting the wood 7 may be avoided. Because the penetration of the thread 53 into the wood 7 does not cause expansion of the screw hole, the pull-out strength of the crack-proof screw is not reduced. The structural strength of the wood 7 can thus be maintained. In sum, aside from improving the efficiency of the screwing operation, the crack-proof screw 5 may increase the structural safeness, and solve the global problems encountered in the exiting industries as to how to achieve a high ratio of energy saving and a safe pullout strength, and how to prevent wood cracking.

[0029] A method for manufacturing a crack-proof screw according to the present disclosure may be performed as follows. A rod metal material is cut with a predetermined length into a shank 52, and is subjected to punching to form an end of the shank 52 into a head 51. Thread rolling is performed by using a die assembly to form a thread 53 that extends continuously and helically around the shank 52, and a helical notch 54 that extends continuously and helically along the shank 52 and indented into the shank 52 and the thread 53. The helical notch 54 is proximal to but spaced apart from a tip 521 of the shank 52. The helical notch 54 is trapezoidal in cross section, and has a notch bottom 540, an open end 542 opening at an outer peripheral surface of the shank 52 oppositely of the notch bottom 540, and two opposite notch walls 543 that extend divergingly from the notch bottom 540 to the open end 542. The open end 542 is larger in width than the notch bottom 540. Specifically, for forming the trapezoidal cross section of the helical notch 54 and the open end 542 wider than the notch bottom 540, a die block of the die assembly is moved slowly for rolling the thread at a speed that is lower than a speed conventionally used in an existing thread rolling process by an amount of 25% to 35%. The purpose of the speed reduction is to assuredly intermesh a metal blank for the shank 52 and the die assembly so that positional deviation between the metal blank and the die assembly may be avoided and a proper configuration may be completed. For forming the crack-proof screw 5, the die assembly has a prolong length through which the number of revolutions that the metal blank revolves over the die assembly to form the thread 53 is increased by an amount of 40% to 60% compared to the number of revolutions allowed by the conventional die assembly to complete formation of a screw.

[0030] Because the thread 53 and the helical notch 54 are simultaneously formed at one time, it is unnecessary to use an additional process for forming the helical notch 54, thereby saving processing costs.

[0031] In the description above, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details have been set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiment. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that one or more other embodiments may be practiced without some of these specific details. It should also be appreciated that reference throughout this specification to one embodiment, an embodiment, an embodiment with an indication of an ordinal number and so forth means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic may be included in the practice of the disclosure. It should be further appreciated that in the description, various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure and aiding in the understanding of various inventive aspects.

[0032] While the disclosure has been described in connection with what is considered the exemplary embodiment, it is understood that this disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiment but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements.