ALEXANDRIA, Va., April 2 -- United States Patent no. 12,264,483, issued on April 1, was assigned to National Nail Corp. (Grand Rapids, Mich.).
"Hidden fastener unit and related method of use" was invented by Roger A. Vandenberg (Hudsonville, Mich.) and Todd E. A. Schwartzkopf (Hudsonville, Mich.).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A fastener unit and related method for securing a board to a support is provided. The fastener unit includes a spacer block, a grip element extending from the spacer block and configured to fit in and engage a groove of the board, and one or more board engagement elements extending from a portion of the spacer block. The board engagement elements can clamp the board, bet...