Fastener

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Fastener

A fastener is a hardware

Hardware

Hardware is a general term that refers to the physical cultural artifacts of a technology. It may also mean the physical components of a computer system, in the form of computer hardware....
device that mechanically joins or affixes two or more objects together.

Fasteners can also be used to close a container such as a bag, a box, or an envelope; or they may involve keeping together the sides of an opening of flexible material, attaching a lid

Lid (container)

A lid is part of a Packaging and labelling, and serves as the cover or Seal , usually one that completely closes the object.Lids have been found on pottery dating back as far as 3100 BC....
to a container, etc.

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Encyclopedia

A fastener is a hardware

Hardware

Lid (container)

Bread clip

A bread clip is a device used to hold plastic bags closed. They are also commonly called bread tags, bread tabs, bread ties, or bread-bag clips....
. Fasteners used in these manners are often temporary, in that they may be fastened and unfastened repeatedly.

Some types of woodworking joints

Woodworking joints

Joinery is that part of woodworking that involves joining together pieces of wood, to create furniture, structures, toys, and other items. Some wood joints employ fasteners, bindings, or adhesives, while others use only wood elements....
make use of separate internal reinforcements, such as dowels or biscuits, which in a sense can be considered fasteners within the scope of the joint system, although on their own they are not general purpose fasteners.

Furniture supplied in flat-pack form often uses cam dowels locked by cam locks, also known as conformat fasteners.

Items like a rope

Rope

A rope is a length of fibers, twisted or braided together to improve strength for pulling and connecting. It has tensile strength but is too flexible to provide compressive strength ....
, string, wire

Wire

A wire is a single, usually cylinder , elongated string of metal. Wires are used to bear mechanical Structural loads and to carry electricity and telecommunications Wiktionary:signal....
(e.g. metal wire, possibly coated with plastic, or multiple parallel wires kept together by a plastic strip coating), cable

Cable

A cable is a large fiber or metal rope, used for hauling, lifting, or towing, or an assembly of two or more insulated electrical conductors, laid up together as an assembly....
, chain, or plastic wrap

Plastic wrap

Plastic wrap is a thin plastic film typically used for sealing food items in containers to keep them fresh. Plastic wrap, typically sold on rolls in boxes with a cutting edge, clings to many smooth surfaces and can thus remain tight over the opening of a container with no adhesive or other devices....
may be used to mechanically join objects; but are not generally categorized as fasteners because they have additional common uses. Likewise, hinge

Hinge

A hinge is a type of Bearing that connects two solid objects, typically allowing only a limited angle of rotation between them. Two objects connected by an ideal hinge rotate relative to each other about a fixed axis of rotation ....
s and springs

Spring (device)

A spring is an Elasticity object used to store mechanical energy. Springs are usually made out of hardened steel. Small springs can be wound from pre-hardened stock, while larger ones are made from annealing steel and hardened after fabrication....
may join objects together, but are ordinarily not considered fasteners because their primary purpose is to allow articulation rather than rigid affixment.

Other alternative methods of joining materials include crimping

Crimp (joining)

Crimping is joining two pieces of metal or other malleable material by deforming one or both of them to hold the other. The bend or deformity is called the crimp....
, welding

Welding

Welding is a fabrication or sculpture process that joins materials, usually metals or thermoplastics, by causing coalescence . This is often done by melting the workpieces and adding a filler material to form a pool of molten material that cools to become a strong joint, with pressure sometimes used in conjunction with heat, or by itself,...
, soldering

Soldering

Soldering is a process in which two or more metal items are joined together by melting and flowing a filler metal into the joint, the filler metal having a relatively low melting point....
, brazing

Brazing

Brazing is a joining process whereby a filler metal or alloy is heated to melting temperature above ?or, by the traditional definition in the United States, above ?and distributed between two or more close-fitting parts by capillary action....
, taping

Tape

Tape refers to a strip of long, thin and narrow matter, usually rolled up. Most commonly, it refers to:...
, gluing

Glue

This is a list of various types of adhesive. Historically, the term "glue" only referred to protein colloids prepared from animal flesh. The meaning has been extended to refer to any fluid adhesive....
, cement

Cement

In the most general sense of the word, a cement is a binder, a substance which sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together....
ing, or the use of other adhesive

Adhesive

Adhesive or glue is a compound in a liquid or semi-liquid state that adhesion or bonds items together. Adhesives may come from either natural or Chemical synthesis sources....
s. The use of force

Force

In physics, a force is that which can cause an object with mass to change its velocity. Force has both Euclidean_vector#Length of a vector and Direction , making it a Vector quantity....
may also be used, such as with magnet

Magnet

A magnet is a material or object that produces a magnetic field. This magnetic field is invisible but is responsible for the most notable property of a magnet: a force that pulls on other ferromagnetic materials and attracts or repels other magnets....
s, vacuum

Vacuum

A vacuum is a volume of space that is essentially empty of matter, such that its gaseous pressure is much less than atmospheric pressure. The word comes from the Latin term for "empty," but in reality, no volume of space can ever be perfectly empty....
(like suction cups), or even friction

Friction

File:Friction alt.svgFriction is the force resisting the relative lateral motion of solid surfaces, fluid layers, or material elements in contact....
.

Industry

In 2005, it is estimated that the United States fastener industry runs 350 manufacturing plants and employs 40,000. The industry is strongly tied to the production of automobiles, aircraft, appliances, agricultural machinery, commercial construction, and infrastructure. More than 200 billion fasteners are used per year in the U.S., with 26 billion by the automotive industry.

Fastener types

batten
Batten

A batten is a thin strip of solid material . Battens are used for various purposes in building construction, as well as other various fields....
bolt, screw, cap screw, stud
Screw

A screw is a shaft with a helix groove or screw thread formed on its surface and provision at one end to turn the screw. Its main uses are as a threaded fastener used to hold objects together, and as a simple machine used to translate torque into linear force....
brass fastener
Brass fastener

A brass fastener, "brad", or split pin is a stationery item used for securing multiple sheets of paper together.The fastener is inserted into hole puncher in the stack of paper and the leaves, or tines, of the legs are separated and bent over to secure the paper....
buckle
Buckle

A buckle is a clasp used for fastening two things together, such as the ends of a belt , or for retaining the end of a strap. Before the invention of the zipper, buckles were commonly used to fasten boots and other shoes....
button
Button

In clothing and fashion design, a button is a small disc, typically round, object usually attached to an article of clothing in order to secure an opening, or for fashion....
clamp
Clamp (tool)

A clamp is a fastener to hold or secure objects tightly together to prevent movement or separation through the application of inward pressure. In the United Kingdom and Australia, the term clamp is often used instead when the tool is for temporary use for positioning components during construction and woodworking; thus a C clamp or a sa...
(or cramp)
clasp

Bocklebee clasp
Bocklebee Clasp

The Bocklebee Clasp, more commonly known as a ring clamp or ring clasp, is found almost exclusively on jewelry. It was invented by American Steven Bocklebee in 1898....

Cleko
Cleko

A cleko, also spelled cleco, is a fastener developed by the Cleveland Pneumatic Tool Company that used to temporarily fasten multiple sheets of material together before the pieces are permanently affixed....
clip

circlip
Circlip

A circlip , or snap ring is a type of fastener consisting of a semi-flexible metal ring with open ends which can be snapped into place, into a Machining Groove on a dowel pin or other part to permit rotation but to prevent lateral Motion ....
paper clip

clutch (pin fastener)
Clutch (pin fastener)

A butterfly clutch is a device that attaches to the back of a pin to secure an accessory to clothing.External links...
flange
Flange

A flange is an external or internal rib, or rim , for Shear strength, as the flange of an iron Beam or I-beam ; or for a guide, as the flange of a train wheel; or for attachment to another object, as the flange on the end of a pipe, steam cylinder, etc, or on the lens mount of a camera....
frog
grommet
Grommet

Grommets and eyelets are metal, plastic, or rubber rings that are inserted into a hole made through another material. They may be used to reinforce the hole, to shield something from the sharp edges of the hole, or both....
nail
Nail (engineering)

In engineering, woodworking and construction, a nail is a Pin -shaped, sharp object of hard metal, typically steel, used as a fastener. Nails for specialized purposes may also be made of stainless steel, brass or aluminium....
peg
PEG

PEG or "Peg" may refer to:* Parsing expression grammar* PCI Express Graphics* PEG ratio , a financial ratio which relates the share price of a company's stock to its growth in earnings per share...
pin
Pin (device)

A pin is a device used for fastening objects or material together. It is usually made of steel, or on occasion copper or brass. It is formed by drawing out a thin wire, sharpening the tip, and adding a head....

clevis pin
Clevis pin

A clevis pin is a type of fastener that will allow rotation of the connected parts about the axis of the pin. A clevis pin consists of a head, shank and hole....
clothes-pin
Clothes-pin

A clothespin is a fastener used to hang up clothes for drying, usually on a clothes line. Clothespins often come in many different designs....
cotter pin
Cotter pin

In the United States, cotter pin is a metal fastener with two wiktionary:tine that are bent during installation, similar to a staple or rivet....

retaining ring
Retaining ring

A retaining ring is a piece of hardware that holds on to a shaft in order to locate other items on the shaft, or to locate the shaft to a fixed item....

external circlip
Circlip

A circlip , or snap ring is a type of fastener consisting of a semi-flexible metal ring with open ends which can be snapped into place, into a Machining Groove on a dowel pin or other part to permit rotation but to prevent lateral Motion ....
internal circlip
Circlip

A circlip , or snap ring is a type of fastener consisting of a semi-flexible metal ring with open ends which can be snapped into place, into a Machining Groove on a dowel pin or other part to permit rotation but to prevent lateral Motion ....
e-ring
E Ring (disambiguation)

E Ring or E-ring may refer to:*A Rings of Saturn#E Ring* E-Ring, a television series* The outer ring of The Pentagon, occupied by the most senior officers and their planning staffs...

rivet
Rivet

A rivet is a permanent mechanical fastener. Before it is installed it consists of a smooth cylinder shaft with a head on one end. The end opposite the head is called the buck-tail....
rubber band
Rubber band

A rubber band is a short length of rubber and latex formed in the shape of a loop.Such bands are typically used to hold multiple objects together....
(or bands of other materials)
screw
Screw

A screw is a shaft with a helix groove or screw thread formed on its surface and provision at one end to turn the screw. Its main uses are as a threaded fastener used to hold objects together, and as a simple machine used to translate torque into linear force....
screw anchor
Screw anchor

A screw anchor is a fastener that can attach one object to another in situations where screws, nails, adhesives, or other simple fasteners are either impractical or ineffective....
snap
Snap fastener

A snap fastener is a pair of interlocking discs commonly used in place of buttons to fasten clothing. A circular lip under one disc fits into a groove on the top of the other, holding them fast until a certain amount of force is applied....
stitches
Sewing

Sewing or stitching is the fastening of cloth, leather, furs, bark, or other flexible materials, using Sewing needle and yarn. Its use is nearly universal among human populations and dates back to Paleolithic times ....
strap
Strap

A strap, sometimes also called strop, is an elongated flap or ribbon, usually of Cloth or leather.Thin straps are used as part of clothing or baggage, or bedding such as a sleeping bag....
staple
Staple (fastener)

A staple is a type of two-pronged fastener, usually metal, used for joining or binding materials together. Large staples might be used with a hammer or staple gun for barbed wire, masonry, roofing and cardboard boxes....
tack
Thumbtack

A thumbtack is a short nail or Pin with a large, slightly rounded head made of metal which is used to fasten documents to a background for public display and which can easily be inserted or removed by hand....
tie
Tie (engineering)

A tie is any strong component designed to keep two objects closely linked together.Among the most common of these is the Tropical cyclone or seismic tie used in the Framing of wooden structures....
toggle
Velcro
Velcro

Velcro is a brand name of fabric hook-and-loop fasteners. It consists of two layers: a "hook" side, which is a piece of fabric covered with tiny hooks, and a "loop" side, which is covered with even smaller and "hairier" loops....
brand hook-and-loop strips
wedge anchor
Wedge anchor

A wedge anchor is a type of fastener used to attach a fixture to a solid base material . The installed end of the anchor has a conical portion around which a metal clip is fastened....
zipper
Zipper

A zipper is a popular device for temporarily joining two edges of textile. It is used in clothing , luggage and other bags, sporting goods, camping gear , and other daily use items....

Fastener

Industry

Fastener types

See also

External Links