Vehicle floor cover retention system and device

Abstract

Closed sockets are formed in the lower surface of a vehicle floor cover, such as a mat or tray. Each socket is adapted to receive a vehicle floor cover retention device which stands up from the floor of the vehicle foot well in which the floor cover is being installed. The sidewall of the body of each device acts as a physical stop to the sidewall of a respective socket, preventing or mitigating movement of the floor cover within the foot well. The top surface of the device may have a first fastener which is adapted to engage a second fastener on the ceiling of the socket. The device may be an adapter which is fastened to preexisting OEM mat retention structure. Embodiments of the adapter include one assembled from two pieces around an OEM retention post with an enlarged head.

1 . A vehicle floor cover retention system, comprising:
 a vehicle floor cover for installation in a vehicle foot well, the vehicle floor cover having a general lower surface, at least one socket formed into the general lower surface and having a closed ceiling spaced upwardly from the general lower surface, at least one sidewall of the socket extending by a predetermined depth from the general lower surface to the ceiling, the socket having a top socket diameter at the ceiling and a bottom socket diameter at the general lower surface such that the top socket diameter is less than the bottom socket diameter; and   for each socket, a respective retention device disposed to upwardly extend from the vehicle foot well and having a free end, a body of the retention device having at least one upstanding sidewall, a depth of the sidewall of the socket being preselected to be more than or equal to a height of the sidewall of the retention device body as measured from a general surface of the vehicle foot well to the free end of the retention device body, the device having a greatest diameter that is less than the top and bottom socket diameters;   the socket adapted to receive the retention device when the floor cover is placed in the vehicle foot well, the sidewall of the retention device presenting a physical stop to the sidewall of the socket to mitigate lateral movement of the vehicle floor cover within the vehicle foot well.   
     
     
         2 . A vehicle floor cover retention system, comprising:
 a vehicle floor cover for installation in a vehicle foot well, the vehicle floor cover having a general lower surface, at least one socket formed into the general lower surface and having a closed ceiling spaced upwardly from the general lower surface, at least one sidewall of the socket extending by a predetermined depth from the general lower surface to the ceiling; and   for each socket, a respective adapter disposed to upwardly extend from the vehicle foot well and having a free end, a body of the adapter having at least one upstanding sidewall, a depth of the sidewall of the socket being preselected to be more than or equal to a height of the sidewall of the adapter body as measured from a general surface of the vehicle foot well to the free end of the adapter body;   the socket adapted to receive the adapter when the floor cover is placed in the vehicle foot well, the sidewall of the adapter presenting a physical stop to the sidewall of the socket to mitigate lateral movement of the vehicle floor cover within the vehicle foot well; and   a connector adapted to affix the adapter to an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) vehicle floor mat retention device installed by the original equipment manufacturer in the vehicle foot well.   
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the connector of the adapter is formed by a cavity disposed to be radially interior to the sidewall of the adapter body, the cavity sized to house an enlarged head of an OEM vehicle floor mat retention post, a lower end of the cavity defined by an engagement ridge, the engagement ridge extending radially inwardly from a general inner sidewall of the cavity and adapted to receive a shaft of the OEM vehicle floor mat retention post, the shaft extending between the vehicle foot well surface and the enlarged head. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 3 , wherein the adapter is formed as two separate pieces which are brought together around the OEM retention post to affix the adapter to the OEM retention post. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 4 , wherein the adapter is formed as first and second pieces hinged to each other at the sidewall of the adapter body, the first and second pieces hingedly closed on each other around the OEM floor mat retention post to affix the adapter to the OEM retention post. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 3 , wherein the enlarged head of the OEM retention post is a hook which is asymmetrical around an axis of the post, the adapter body having an axis, the engagement ridge defining an access hole extending from the axis of the adapter body to the general inner sidewall of the cavity in the adapter body but angularly extending only through a portion of the bottom of the adapter body cavity, the adapter adapted to be twisted about the axis such that the hook of the OEM retention post is above the engagement ridge. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the connector has a shaft which extends downwardly on an axis of the adapter body, the shaft having an end remote from the adapter body, an elongate bar joined to the last said end and horizontally extending form the axis in opposite directions, the elongate bar adapted to be received through a slot formed in the vehicle foot well and into a cavity below the slot, the retention device rotated to fasten the retention device to the vehicle foot well. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the connector has a shaft which extends downwardly on an axis of the retention device body and which terminates in an enlarged end, the shaft being axially split into two parts, the parts being capable of elastic deformation toward the axis, the connector adapted to being inserted through a hole in the vehicle foot well and into a cavity disposed below the hole, the parts of the enlarged end of the shaft elastically deforming toward the axis as the enlarged end is inserted through the hole and springing radially outwardly once the enlarged end is in the last said cavity to thereby connect the adapter to the vehicle foot well. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the sidewall of the body of the retention device generally conforms to a surface of rotation around a body axis, plural angularly spaced-apart depressions being formed in the sidewall of the body to provide purchase points for a thumb and at least one finger of a human hand so that a user may manually twist the retention device about its body axis. 
     
     
         10 - 24 . (canceled) 
     
     
         25 . A vehicle floor cover retention system, comprising:
 a vehicle floor cover for installation in a substantially carpeted vehicle foot well, the vehicle floor cover having a general lower surface, at least one socket formed into the general lower surface and having a closed ceiling spaced upwardly from the general lower surface, at least one sidewall of the socket extending by a predetermined depth from the general lower surface to the ceiling;   for each socket, a respective affixation/retention device;   a substantially plate-shaped handgrip member of the affixation/retention device formed around an axis to be substantially orthogonal thereto, a noncircular handgrip margin of the handgrip member radially spaced from the axis, the handgrip member having a lower face and an upper face;   a vehicle floor cover retention member of the affixation/retention device upstanding from the upper face of the handgrip member and sized to be received in a respective socket, the retention member disposed on the axis, a largest radius orthogonal to the axis of the vehicle floor cover retention member being smaller than a smallest radius orthogonal to the axis of the handgrip member; and   a carpet affixation member of the affixation/retention device downwardly depending from the lower surface of the handgrip member, the carpet affixation member formed around the axis and adapted to be twisted into carpeting of the vehicle foot well in a predetermined rotational direction by action of the human hand on the handgrip surface of the handgrip member.   
     
     
         26 . The system of  claim 25 , wherein a body of the vehicle floor cover retention member has a free end upwardly spaced from the upper face of the handgrip member and at least one upstanding sidewall extending between the upper face of the handgrip member and the free end of the retention member, a depth of the sidewall of the socket being preselected to be more than or equal to a height of the sidewall of the retention member; and
 the sidewall of the retention member presenting a physical stop to the sidewall of the socket to mitigate lateral movement of the vehicle floor cover within the vehicle foot well.   
     
     
         27 . The system of  claim 25 , and further including a post integrally formed with the handgrip member on the axis to upwardly vertically extend from the upper surface of the handgrip member, a sidewall of the post having an enlargement, the vehicle floor cover retention member being annular and adapted to snap-fit over the enlargement on the post of the handgrip member. 
     
     
         28 . The system of  claim 25 , wherein the handgrip member has a metal plate and a plastic portion overmolded onto the metal plate, the carpet affixation member of the device comprising at least one tine integrally formed with and downwardly depending from the metal plate. 
     
     
         29 . The system of  claim 28 , wherein the affixation member includes a plurality of tines angularly spaced from each other and integrally formed with and downwardly extending from the metal plate on roughly helical paths. 
     
     
         30 . The system of  claim 27 , wherein a center of the post and the handgrip member are hollow and define an axial passage, the handgrip member further having a metal plate, at least one tine of the vehicle carpet affixation member integrally formed with and downwardly depending from the metal plate, a noncircular central orifice formed in the plate on the axis and adapted to receive a tool introduced through the axial passage for turning the device in the predetermined rotational direction. 
     
     
         31 . The system of  claim 30 , wherein the noncircular central orifice of the metal plate is adapted to receive an Allen wrench. 
     
     
         32 . A device for fastening an object to a carpeted floor of a vehicle, comprising:
 a substantially flat handgrip member formed around an axis and having a noncircular handgrip margin radially spaced from the axis, the handgrip member having a lower face which in use faces the carpeted floor of the vehicle;   at least one carpet affixation member joined to the flat handgrip member and downwardly depending therefrom, the carpet affixation member adapted to be twisted into the carpeted floor of the vehicle in a predetermined rotational direction around the axis; and   at least one anti-backout wedge formed on the lower face of the handgrip member to downwardly depend therefrom, the wedge having a leading edge and a trailing edge, the leading edge of the wedge being angularly spaced relative to the axis from the trailing edge of the wedge in the predetermined rotational direction, the trailing edge having a first depth measured from the lower face of the handgrip member, the leading edge having a second depth measured from the lower face of the handgrip member, the first depth being greater than the second depth such that, once the carpet affixation member has been twisted into the carpeted floor of the vehicle, the wedge will resist any torque on the device in a direction opposite the predetermined rotational direction.   
     
     
         33 . The device of  claim 32 , wherein the handgrip member includes a metal plate and a plastic portion overmolded onto the metal plate, at least one tine of the carpet affixation member integrally formed with and downwardly extending from the plate in a roughly helical path. 
     
     
         34 . The device of  claim 33 , wherein said at least one anti-backout wedge and the plastic portion of the handgrip member are integrally molded of plastic. 
     
     
         35 . The device of  claim 32 , wherein the second depth is zero. 
     
     
         36 . The device of  claim 33 , wherein the carpet affixation member includes a plurality of tines angularly spaced apart from each other relative to the axis and extending downwardly from the lower face of the handgrip member on roughly helical paths. 
     
     
         37 . The device of  claim 32 , wherein a plurality of anti-backout wedges are disposed on the lower face to be angularly spaced apart from each other relative to the axis. 
     
     
         38 . A device for retention of a mat or tray to a foot well of a vehicle, comprising:
 a composite handgrip member formed around an axis and having a noncircular handgrip margin radially spaced from the axis, a lower face of the handgrip member substantially residing in a plane perpendicular to the axis and extending to the handgrip margin, the handgrip member including a metal plate and a plastic component overmolded around the metal plate to at least partially form the handgrip margin, a general lower surface of the metal plate partially constituting the lower face of the handgrip member, a lateral outer margin of the metal plate being radially inwardly spaced from the handgrip margin through at least some of the circumference of the handgrip margin;   at least one radially inwardly extending embayment formed in the plane adjacent the lateral outer margin of the metal plate and having an area, the metal plate not forming any portion of the lower face of the handgrip member within the area of the embayment, a lower surface of the plastic component forming the lower face of the handgrip member within the area of the embayment; and   a vehicle carpet affixation member of the device joined to and extending downwardly from the general lower surface of the handgrip member and adapted to be axially twisted into a carpeted surface of a vehicle foot well.   
     
     
         39 . The device of  claim 38 , wherein multiple embayments are formed adjacent the lateral outer margin of the metal plate, the embayments being angularly spaced from each other relative to the axis. 
     
     
         40 . The device of  claim 39 , wherein the embayments are distributed around the axis at equal angular intervals. 
     
     
         41 . The device of  claim 38 , wherein the lower surface of the metal plate extends across the embayment and departs from the plane within the area of the embayment. 
     
     
         42 . The device of  claim 41 , wherein within the area of the embayment, the plastic component is overmolded both on the lower surface of the metal plate and on the upper surface of the metal plate. 
     
     
         43 . The device of  claim 41 , wherein the metal plate is formed from a workpiece of substantially uniform thickness and is stamped to create a hump that defines the embayment. 
     
     
         44 . The device of  claim 38 , wherein the plastic component laterally surrounds the metal plate through  360  degrees relative to the axis. 
     
     
         45 . The device of  claim 38 , wherein the vehicle carpet affixation member includes at least one process integrally formed with the metal plate. 
     
     
         46 . The device of  claim 45 , wherein the process is a sharpened metal tine. 
     
     
         47 . The device of  claim 45 , wherein the process is stamped from a workpiece of substantially uniform thickness, the workpiece also creating the metal plate. 
     
     
         48 . The device of  claim 45 , wherein the vehicle carpet affixation member includes a plurality of angularly spaced apart processes downwardly extending from the lower face of the handgrip member. 
     
     
         49 . The device of  claim 38 , and further including a vehicle floor cover retention member joined to and upwardly extending from the upper face of the handgrip member. 
     
     
         50 . The device of  claim 49 , wherein the handgrip member includes a post upwardly extending along the axis of the device from the upper face of the handgrip member, the post having an enlargement, the vehicle floor cover retention member being annular and adapted to snap-fit over the enlargement on the post.