IMAO presents: Quick Release One Touch Fasteners for Changeover

One-Touch Fasteners are quick locks for frequent changeover with no tools

When equipment needs to be serviced, maintained, or adjusted, it has been typically necessary to remove screws and nuts to access essential components inside or on the equipment. This may be time-consuming or may result in incorrectly placed fasteners, raising personnel expenses and decreasing production efficiency. IMAO's One-Touch Fasteners – commonly known as “Clamping” or “Quick release” fasteners - provide a rapid and effortless tool-free clamping and fastening solution, ideal for tasks that require frequent maintenance or changeover.

- One-Touch Fasteners reduce setup time in changeover -

Traditionally, conventional nuts and screws have been used to hold down secure fixture plates or otherwise and attach panels and plates to a base unit or enclosure.

These nuts and screws require special tools, hardware, or extra time to get them properly tightened or loosened and can be incorrectly placed or lost. One-Touch Fasteners eliminate the need for additional tools and extra time required to clamp and unclamp. One single fastener can substitute for several screws and nuts with a simple quarter turn of a knob or push of a button to clamp or unclamp, streamlining the process and saving time.

As a leading supplier of tooling components including standard machine elements and fixturing components, IMAO offers these unique quick release fasteners ideal for applications that require rapid and recurring maintenance or changeover of tooling or setups. One-Touch Fasteners provides a quick and easy tool-less clamping and fastening solution, ultimately reducing setup time.

- Types of One-Touch Fasteners -

IMAO's One-Touch Fasteners are highly versatile and find a wide range of applications. These fasteners can be roughly categorized into three main types: Quarter Turn, Button Push, Push Pull. Each of these fastener types has different variations and offers a wide range of design alternatives, which are described below.

Quarter Turn Fasteners

Quarter Turn Fasteners use a cam locking mechanism that draws the mating components together by turning a knob.

• Cam locking fasteners have a pin on the fastener that contacts a cam in the receptacle. This action compresses a spring, providing a secure clamping force between the mating components.

• Retractable fasteners have a shank that retracts when unclamped, allowing operations without interference with the plate of the cam receptacle.

• Heavy duty fasteners increased clamping force through the use of a cam groove and spring that increases the clamping and holding force to as high as 400 N.

• Ball-locking fasteners use a wedge that pushes out balls on the fastener pin against a tapered surface of the receptacle, effectively clamping the mating components.

• Pin-holding fasteners enable space-saving by separating the fastener from the pin, where four balls in the fastener lock onto the pin.

Button Push Fasteners

Button Push Fasteners are similar to the quarter turn ball locking fasteners, but instead use a push button instead of a quarter turn to activate unlocking.

• Ball locking fasteners release a wedge inside the fastener that pushes out balls against the tapered surface of the cam receptacle.

• Snap in fasteners use four balls that lock the fastener onto a clamping pin.

• Expanding fasteners use an expanding shank that is actuated by a button that does not require a receptacle to mate two parts.

Push Pull Fasteners

Push Pull Fasteners use a shaft with pins aligned with grooves that bring the mating components together when the shaft is quarter turned.

• Quarter Turn Joint fasteners have a pin that contacts the cam: When the shafts are clamped, the spring compressed to secure them.

• Heavy duty joint fasteners use a unique cam receptacle and fastener design, providing increased clamping force by use of spring-loaded balls.

• Safety lock fasteners use a spring pin that locks a clamp onto the cam groove of the receptacle.

• Ball clamping fasteners use pins that are inserted or removed from the standard receptacle by three balls that pull on a clamping pin.

• Magnetic fasteners have a receptacle that pulls in the clamping pin from the plate, releasing the mating components.

Choosing a suitable One-Touch Fastener must be considered as the desired method of applying and releasing the fastener. The fastener must also be chosen based on their ability to clamp the mating components together with sufficient force. When properly chosen and set up, One-Touch Fasteners significantly reduce setup time and costs, making them a valuable choice.