I.t.w Fastex Italia S.p.a.

Illinois Tool Works Inc.

Manrico Oddenino

Silvano Cibin

A fuel filler assembly, in particular for a motor vehicle, having a filler, and a cap for closing a mouth of the filler and provided internally with a cylinder rotated by means of an operating key is disclosed. A reversible locking arrangement is provided for reversibly locking relative rotation of the cylinder with respect to the cap to selectively assume, when the cap is fitted closing the filler, a first operating position permitting relative rotation of the cylinder with respect to the cap and, hence, withdrawal of the operating key, and, when the cap is detached from the filler, a second operating position preventing relative rotation of the cylinder with respect to the cap and, hence, withdrawal of the operating key from the cylinder.

Fuel filler assembly for a vehicle

A tie for fastening the upholstery of a vehicle seat cushion and/or seatback; the tie including a portion of wire, of predetermined length, fitted integrally at opposite ends with respective mutually connectable end heads, and a portion of tape shorter than the portion of wire and folded longitudinally about the portion of wire, between the heads, to enclose the portion of wire inside a tubular sleeve defined by a U-folded intermediate longitudinal portion of the portion of tape and closed by a flat connecting strip defined by superimposed mutually fixed opposite longitudinal lateral portions of the portion of tape; the connecting strip being stitchable to the upholstery in a conventional manner. The heads are molded, adjacent to and oriented head-to-tail with respect to each other, onto a first portion of wire held taut between the half-molds of an injection press; the wire is drawn and curved 90&deg; to unwind, between the half-molds, a second portion of wire from a reel; and, while one head is gripped so as to maintain the second portion of wire taut, the other head is gripped by a supporting device, which cuts the wire between the adjacent heads, and keeps the first portion of wire taut while rotating it onto a precut portion of tape parallel to an assembly surface, with respect to which the edges of the portion of tape are raised and welded to each other so as to form the tubular sleeve about the portion of wire.

Integrated tie for fastening the upholstery of a vehicle seat cushion and/or seatback, and relative fabrication method

A fuel filler assembly, particularly for a motor vehicle, having a filler tube, pipe, or body connectable to a supply pipe of a fuel tank, a cap for closing the filler tube or pipe, a casing fitted to the vehicle body and defining internally a compartment for housing the filler tube or body and the cap, and a lid hinged to one side of the casing so as to close the compartment by means of a snap-engaging bolt for locking the lid in a closed position; the filler assembly also having articulated connecting components for connecting the cap to the lid and defined by a support integral with the lid and having a hollow seat defined internally by a hemispherical surface, and by a spherical head integral with the cap and which engages inside the hollow seat so as to keep the cap connected to the lid in any open position of the lid, and to position the cap facing the inlet of the filler tube or pipe so as to close the filler tube or body when the lid is moved to the closed position.

Fuel filler assembly, particularly for a motor vehicle

A plastic fastener for insertion inside a complementary opening in a part in the course of manufacture, in particular, a panel fastener for insertion inside a prismatic hole formed in a vehicle body part; the fastener compromising a head, and a shank in turn compromising elastic engaging members which snap on to respective sides of the opening and are oriented in at least one plane crosswise to the shank; the fastener being characterized in that the shank comprises an appendix projecting axially in front of the elastic engaging members with respect to the insertion direction of the fastener inside the opening; the appendix being pointed, and presenting at least one rib of a width substantially equal to the diagonal extension of the prismatic opening, and of a thickness much smaller than the width; and the rib being oriented, width-wise, in a plane forming an angle with the plane of the elastic engaging members.

Plastic fastener, in particular, a vehicle panel fastener

An integrated upholstering element presenting a supporting element made of plastic material and molded onto a lateral edge of a tape and onto a first end of at least one tie presenting, towards a second end opposite the first and in a predetermined axial position, at least one retaining element made of synthetic plastic material and also molded onto the tie. A series of integrated upholstering elements are injection molded one at a time in a system featuring two mating half molds, between which the tape and the ties are stretched between respective feed-off reels and gripping devices; after being molded, each integrated element is translated by a sufficient amount to feed a further free portion of the tape and ties between the half molds and the gripping devices, to perform the next molding operation; and the previously molded integrated element is detached by cutting the tape and ties downstream from the gripping devices.

Integrated automotive upholstering element and relative fabrication

A snap-on device for butt connecting in fluidtight manner one or more pairs of pipes, in particular vehicle fuel supply pipes. The device consists of a cup-shaped body having at least a first integral pipe connected hydraulically to a seat inside the body; and a block connectable inside the seat and molded on at least a second pipe, so that the end of the second pipe projects frontwards of the block in the insertion direction of the block inside the seat. The seat presents a recess coaxial with the first pipe and designed to receive the projecting end of the second pipe in sliding and fluidtight manner; and releasable locking structure for locking the block inside the seat, while at the same time permitting axial movement of the block and the projecting end of the second pipe inside the seat and recess respectively.

Snap-on fluidtight pipe connecting device

The invention relates to a flow diverter adapted to convey engine cooling water toward an air heating system for the passenger compartment of the vehicle. The diverter is installed along the circuit conveying the cooling water and, more precisely, within a chamber defined between two flanges, the first accommodating the outlets of two first pipes connected to the engine and the second accommodating the outlets of two second pipes connected to the heating system. The diverter comprises two structures rotatably fixed with respect to each other and which rotate between a first position, in which each of the first pipes has a hydraulic connection with a respective second pipe, and a second position, in which the second pipes are blocked and the first pipes, through means of the chamber, are directly fluidically connected to each other.

Flow diverter for a vehicle heating system

A process is described which allows continuous flexible connectors to be produced, particularly for vehicles, provided with at least one stop element a flexible cable wound in a coil is stretched between two facing mould halves and clamped to lie between these; at least one attachment element of synthetic plastics material is hot formed onto the cable in such a way as to embed this and remain rigidly connected thereto; then the mould halves are separated expelling the element thus formed and the cable is advanced in such a way as to bring a new section of cable between the mould halves; finally, a segment of cable, provided with the attachment element, is cut from the flexible cable.

Process for the production of flexible connectors

A supporting bush designed to define a connecting seat for a known type of panel fastener on a motor vehicle interior cover panel composed of a base panel and a foam portion; the aforementioned bush being composed of a first cup-shaped element, designed to be gripped in fluidtight manner between the foam portion and the base panel; a second cup-shaped element, designed to click on to the first so as to define with the same an inner cavity for receiving the head on the panel fastener; and a break-off tab for protecting a sleeve portion on the second cup-shaped element, through which sleeve portion access is permitted to the aforementioned inner cavity.

Panel fastener supporting bush for cover panels comprising a base panel

A vehicle fuel tank cap designed to be secured idly in the closed position by activating a lock. The cap presents an outer member which may be turned manually by the user, an inner member housed idly inside the outer member and designed to screw onto a filler, and a control member carried in idle and axially-locked manner on the inner member and secured angularly integral with the lock. The control member is secured, by means of a reversible threaded coupling, to the outer member which is designed to move axially in relation to the inner member and is provided with a saw-tooth ring gear designed to mesh with a corresponding ring gear on a flexible portion of the inner member.

Perfected cap, particularly for motor vehicles

Air inlet for a vehicle dash-panel of the type whereby the air supply opening is screened off. For directing the air flowing through the said opening, the inlet is provided with a number of deflecting vanes, arranged side by side and designed to divert the air flow parallel with a first plane perpendicular to the said vanes, and a pair of deflecting surfaces designed to divert the air flow parallel with a second plane perpendicular to the said first plane, and supporting the said vanes hinged perpendicularly to respective front edges coplanar with the said opening and adjacent to the said screen.

Perfected air inlet

A device for connecting the strengthening rod on seat upholstery to the seat load-bearing structure. The device is composed of a fastener into which is engaged a corresponding end of the strengthening rod, a buckle, integral with a fastener and secured to the same by means of a flexible rib enabling angular displacement of the fastener, and a flexible clamp designed to wrap round a member on the load-bearing structure for securing the fastener in projecting manner to the member, and integrally formed at its opposite ends to the buckle and a stop tab designed to engage with the buckle.

Device for connecting an upholstery strengthening rod to a seat

A plastic snap-hook for hooking belts to rings secured to articles of various kind comprises two sections only; one base section, shaped as a strip folded at one end thereof on itself in the form of a hook and folded at the other end on itself as a flexible tongue; and a second section in the form of a slider engaging the lateral edges of said first section and adapted to slide between a closed and an open position of the hook. The flexible tongue tends to bring the slider back in the closed position of the hook when said slider moves from said closed position.

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Buttigliera Alta, Italy

Manrico Oddenino