Fastening system and fastener for shipping containers and the like

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Looking now to FIG.
1, a fastener 10 is shown in assembly relationship with a plurality of workpieces 12 and 14.
For a typical shipping container or the like, the workpiece 12 can be a metal bracket, strap, frame, etc.
located at the exterior of the container and can be constructed of sheet metal such as steel or aluminum; the body or walls of the container can be constructed of members such as workpiece 14 which is fabricated of plywood, fiberboard, etc.
, or other materials which have a relatively soft core and are susceptible to crushing under high, local loads.
In the embodiment shown in FIG.
1 the workpiece 14 is constructed of a fiberglass reinforced plywood having a plywood core and fiberglass reinforced plastic layers 16 and 18 with the layer 18 defining the interior of the container.
In this regard the plastic layers 16 and 18 are impervious to water to provide a watertight construction.
It should be understood that the preceding materials for a shipping container have been discussed by way of example only and that the present invention can be utilized in other applications and with other materials.
The fastener 10 includes a pin 20 and a sleeve 22.
The sleeve 22 has an enlarged head 24 and a generally straight shank 26 which is adapted to fit in a clearance relationship in at least some of the aligned bores 28 and 30 through workpieces 12 and 14, respectively.
The sleeve head 24 is generally inwardly dished or concave on its inner surface 32 to provide clearance with the corner of bore 30 of inner workpiece 14.
At the same time the concave structure distributes the installation and final clamp loads radially outwardly to inhibit excessive localized deformation or crushing of the inside wall 14, 18.
The sleeve shank 26 has a generally uniform outside diameter and a through bore 34 of a generally uniform diameter.
The pin 20 has an enlarged head 36 and an elongated shank 38.
Pin head 36 is of a flat, truss head construction wit its outer diameter being substantially larger than the diameter of bores 28, 30