Torx

"Star key" redirects here. For the key on a telephone keypad, see asterisk § Telephony.
A security Torx L-key and fastener with holes for a safety pin to hinder disassembly with an ordinary Torx key.
A Torx T8 screw head on a hard disk drive.

Torx (pronounced /tɔːrks/) is a trademark for a type of screw drive characterized by a 6-point star-shaped pattern, developed in 1967[1] by Camcar Textron.[a] A popular generic name for the drive is star, as in star screwdriver or star bits. The official generic name, standardized by the International Organization for Standardization as ISO 10664, is hexalobular internal.[2] This is sometimes abbreviated in databases and catalogs as 6lobe (starting with the numeral 6, not the capital letter G). Torx Plus, Torx Paralobe and Torx ttap are improved head profiles.[3]

Torx screws are commonly found on automobiles, motorcycles, bicycle brake systems (disc brakes), hard disk drives, computer systems and consumer electronics. Initially, they were sometimes used in applications requiring tamper resistance, since the drive systems and screwdrivers were not widely available. However, as torx drivers became more common, tamper-resistant variants, as described below, were developed.[4] Torx screws are also becoming increasingly popular in construction industries.

  1. ^ U.S. patent 3,584,667, Bernard F. Reiland, "Coupling arrangement and tools for same", filed 1967-03-21
  2. ^ "ISO 10664:2005". ISO.org. Retrieved 2012-01-14.
  3. ^ "What Is a Torx Screw?". Fastener Engineering. 2020-08-12. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  4. ^ Sharke, Paul (June 2005). "Fast and Secure: how much proof is tamperproof?". Mechanical Engineering. 127 (6): 32. doi:10.1115/1.2005-JUN-2. ISSN 0025-6501. Archived from the original on 2007-02-09. Retrieved 2012-01-14.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)


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