Sealing and anchoring device

Claim 1

A one piece plastic screw grommet adapted to be used with a screw-threaded member having a predetermined diameter, said grommet including a head portion, and a substantially square body portion extending from said head portion, said body portion including a square neck portion extending downwardly from the head portion, an intermediate portion having a curved segmented pyramidal-shaped periphery blending outwardly from said neck portion to a maximum dimension to form a shoulder facing said head portion the sides thereof formed as conical segments adapted to provide a tapering surface leading to said shoulder means whereby said shoulder means are at their greatest diametral point intermediate the corners of the body portion of the grommet and said intermediate portion further blending radially inwardly from said maximum dimension at a reduced taper to a cylindrical closed end tubular portion forming the free end of said grommet, a bore traversing said head and extending through said body portion to a point adjacent said closed end, closed slot means communicating with said bore and extending radially outwardly toward each corner of said body, said slot means defining a substantial volume and extending axially through said head to a point adjacent the juncture of said intermediate portion with said tubular portion, said bore having a predetermined diameter less than the major diameter of the screw-threaded member with which it is adapted to be associated whereby upon the insertion of the grommet in a complementary-shaped aperture of a mounting panel results in a radial and circumferential collapsing of the intermediate portion during insertion until the shoulder means passes through the panel and temporarily mounts the grommet in the panel and insertion of said screw results in a radial expansion of said intermediate and tubular portions to more aggressively urge said shoulders into underlying relationship to said panel.