GB2232871A

GB2232871A - Buttons

Info

Publication number: GB2232871A
Application number: GB9013302A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Diane Bates
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1989-06-14
Filing date: 1990-06-14
Publication date: 1991-01-02
Also published as: GB9013302D0; GB8913639D0

Abstract

A material fastening arrangement comprising a first member 8 intended to provide a button or the like, and a second member 10 that is intended to provide a back plate or member of a required size and spacer means 9, 11 for interconnecting the first and second members so that they are maintained in spaced apart relationship with respect to each other, the spacer means being such that the first and second members form a unitary structure which is such that once they are interconnected by the spacer means they cannot be subsequently separated. The spacer means is preferably of rectangular or oval cross section. <IMAGE>

Description

IMPROVEMENTS IN GARMENT CONSTRUCTION This invention is concerned with aspects of the construction of garments which involve the provision of means for temporarily joining one part of a garment to another.

There are several well known modes of joining part of a garment to a further part in such manner that these two parts can be subsequently separated as and when desired and yet withstand the wear and tear of usage.

In particular, the present invention is concerned with improvements in the well known fastening method in which a shaped member, generally collectively known as a button, is secured by any convenient means, such as by sewing or otherwise permanently attaching, to one part of a garment and an elongate slit, commonly referred to as the button hole, is provided in the other part of the garment that is to be secured to the first mentioned part, it being intended that the button engages with the slit.

In practice, and particularly in connection with the manufacture of garments on an industrial scale, various difficulties have been found in the attachment of the buttons to the garment. It has, for example, been found to be excessively time consuming, found to inpose constraints on the design of garments, and to impose constraints on post manufacturing treatments such as cleaning with chemicals.

Also with the present day wide range of materials used for the production of garments it has been frequently found that those materials suitable for use as sewing threads may well be incompatible with many garment forming materials.

In addition, it has been found that the naturally occuring stresses and strains arising from the activities of a person wearing or otherwise using a garment or the like using button/button hole combinations frequently leads to rapid wear on the button retaining threads so that the retention security of the button is soon lessened.

In addition, some button retaining materials have been found to stretch after a relatively short period of use so that the button tends to droop and thereby become unsightly.

A further problem arising with known proposals for releasably joining garment parts is that for the purposes of fashion or appearance it would be convenient to be able to change easily buttons so that the overall appearance of a garment can be selectively varied by the user i.e., to make its appearance more appropriate to the occasion.

Unfortunately, in practice, it is not possible to interchange sewn on buttons easily, and, furthermore, frequent removal of buttons and the attachment of replacement buttons can rapidly lead to the material onto which the buttons are being sewn and resewn becoming more and more damaged ultimately to the extent that undesirable and unsightly thread holes are produced.

With a view to counteracting these problems it has been proposed to utilise readily removable buttons.

Conventionally, such removable buttons are provided with an eyelet which is intended to engage with an opening provided at the location in a material at which a button is required and to hold the button in place by a split pin or ring.

These known arrangements inherently involve the situation in which the thus mounted buttons not only droop but are readily rotatable with respect to the material. Thus, in button application in which it is particularly intended that the button should have a well defined orientation relative to the garment part to which it is mounted so that, for example, any decoration on the button has a particular direction, or that the decoration of the button should be readily changeable as and when required, it has been found that the eyelet and ring means of connection is not at all suitable.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a means of mounting buttons or like articles to material in such manner that the buttons or like articles are readily removable as and when required and which avoids the need for sewing.

Broadly, according to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a material fastening arrangement comprising a first member intended to provide a button or the like, and a second member that is intended to provide a back plate or member of a required size in relation to the size of the first member, and spacer means for interconnecting the first and second members so that they are maintained in spaced apart relationship with respect to each other, the spacer means being such that the first and second members form a unitary structure which is such that once they are interconnected by the spacer means they cannot be subsequently separated.

Preferably, the spacer means is of such cross-section as to reduce the possibility of the button once mounted to a garment part turning with respect to said garment part.

Preferably, the spacer means is a bar-like member having a rectangular cross section.

Preferably the width of the flat bar-like member is such that when engaged in a button hole or slit in a material the width of the bar-like member in the lengthwise direction thereof is sufficient to eliminate or at least reduce tendency of the button to rotate when fitted to a material thereby to mis-orient any decor/design provided on the outer face of the button.

Conveniently, the back plate or member is of the same dimensions as the button in directions transverse to the length of the shank.

In a preferred arrangement the backplate or member is shaped and formed so as to be able to serve as a button itself whereby the fastening arrangement is reversible.

For a better understanding of the invention and to show how to carry the same into effect reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a highly schematic representation of a first form of a material fastener arrangement incorporating the features of the present invention; Figure 2 is a side view of Figure 1; Figures 3 and 4 are each highly schematic representations of a further forms of a material fastener arrangements incorporating the features of the present invention; Figure 5 is a schematic perspective view of a further embodiment of a fastener arrangement incorporating the concepts of the invention; Figure 6 is a perspective view of a detail of a fastening arrangement of the invention; and Figure 7 shows in exploded schematic cross-section a means whereby decorative elements can be interchangeably mounted to the fastening arrangement.

Referring now to Figures 1 and 2 which represent an embodiment of the buttom forming assembly of the invention and which includes a first plate or like member 1 which is intended to form a button and a second plate or member 2 which is intened to serve as a so-called backplate or member 2. The two members 1 and 2 are interconnected by a bar-like member or shank 3. In this embodiment the shank 3 has a rectangular cross section with upper and lower wider surfaces 4 and narrower side walls or surfaces 5. The face or outer surface 6 of the button forming member 1 can be provided with decoration (not shown).

This decoration can be either of a permanent nature or selectively replaceable.

In the Figures 1 and 2 the back plate forming member 2 is shown to be of the same shape and size as the button forming member 1. In practice, the parts 1 and 2 can be of a different shape and/or size.

Whilst in the Figure the button forming member 1 has been illustrated as a plate, the member 1 could be of an open structure having, for example, a circumscribing portion and inwardly directed ribs connecting with the shank 3. With this arrangement (not shown) the structure forms a mounting for interchangeable decorative elements (not separately shown). With this arrangement the appearance of the 'button' can be varied as desired both in design and facing materials.

It will additionally be appreciated that also in the case of the plate formation arrangements (not shown) structure can be provided to releasably mount interchangeable decorative elements (not separately shown). For example, the elements can be provided with varying decor/designs and can be of what ever material desired.

With this arrangement the appearance of the 'button' can be varied as desired both in design and facing materials.

In use it is intended that the back forming plate member 2 should be of such size as to be able to engage in a button hole of standard dimensions. Such dimensions can be in accordance. s with the so-called English Line measurements as adopted in industry by button manufacturers and clothing manufacturers in a piece of material (not shown) such that the wider surfaces 40f the shank 3 can lie parallel to the lengthwise direction of the button hole.

With this arrangement it has been found that the fastener arrangement/assembly of the invention does not easily rotate within the button hole slit so that a desired orientation for the button member 1 can be mantained during use of a garment (not shown) with which the fastener assembly is being used.

The button and back forming members 1 and 2 of the fastener assembly or arrangement of the invention can have different shapes and/or combinations of shapes as is illustrated in Figures 3 and 4. Also as may be seen from Figures 3 and 4 inserts 7 of selected materials may be mounted to the button and/or back plates or members as part of the decoration thereof.

Whilst a primary factor of importance of the construction of a fastener of the invention is that it is a single piece unit in the sense that in use the there are not two portions that need to be separated for the purposes of fitting and removing the fastener arrangement/assembly the latter can be initially formed as two portions each, with a shank providing part, the shank parts being initially connectable but subsequently non-separable.

This mode of construction is incorporated in the embodiment of Figures 5 and 6. Referring now to Figures 5 and 6 the buttom assembly shown therein indudes a button forming member/8, having a shank part 9 and a back plate forming member 10 having a shank part 11.

Initially, the two shank parts are formed separately but on production or first use the two shank parts are joined together by, for example, inserting one in the other the interconnection being such once joined they cannot be separated whereby the assembly becomes essentially a one piece assembly.

The interconnection between the two shank parts can be such as to allow for increasing or decreasing the separation between the botton member 8 and the back plate forming member 10. For this purpose the two shank parts can be telscopically adjustable but not separable.

Figure 6 very schematically illustates a possible formation of the shank parts which allows the separation adjustment.

As indicated a number of pin, or protruding pips or elements 12 are provided on one shank part and are such as to be engageable in bores or closed recesses/dimples 13 on the other shank part, the interconnection relying upon the inter-engagement forces between the pips 12 and bores/dimples 13 for holding the two shank parts and thus the members 1 and 2 connected thereto at a desired spacing.

Figure 7 shows in exploded schematic cross-section a means whereby decorative elements can be interchangeably mounted to the fastening arrangement. As shown the member 1 is provided with a shaped blind recess 14 which is intended to be engaged with 'snap action' a pip 15 provided on the reverse of a face plate 16 upon which may be provided a decorative element 17.

It will be understood that the pip and recess can be provided in reverse manner to that shown in the Figure 7.

Since it is a particular feature of the invention that the button assembly should not rotate when fitted to a garment it is desirable that the aspect ratio of the width of the shank along the length of the button hole slit to the depth of the shank in a transverse direction should be such as to enable the inward forces produced in the material of the garment in the vicinity of the button hole to exert sufficient gripping effect on thr shank as to prevent rotation thereof within the button hole.

In practice, it has been found that for most materials if the width of the shank is no less than one quarter of the button receiving length of the button hole, rotation of the button assembly is not likely to occur. In practice, the maximum width of the shank has been found to be one which allows the conventionally provided stitching around a button hole to engage in the space between the button and the associated back forming member 2. It will be appreciated that the extent of entry is related to the nature of the materials of the garment in the vicinity of the parts to be joined. Since it is intended that the button assemblies of the invention can be user moved from one garment to another the width of the shank is selected to ensure suitability for as many different materials whereby the shank width is chosen to be between one quarter to one third of the length of a button hole.

It will be appreciated that with the proposals of the invention the need to drill holes in a piece of material that is to form a button is avoided.

A further feature of the fastening arrangements of the invention is that the button forming assemblies may be readily be arranged to be reversible in that the back plate member can be, if desired used as the outwardly facing button forming member.

It will be understood that whilst the shank as shown has a rectangular cross section the cross-section can take other forms i.e, oval, elliptical etc.

It will also be appreciated that the proposals of the invention result in a readily interchageable garment fastening facility which avoids many of the problems hitherto encountered when using conventionally sewn on buttons.

Claims

1. A material fastening arrangement comprising a first member intended to provide a button or the like, and a second member that is intended to provide a back plate or member of a required size in relation to the size of the first member, and spacer means for interconnecting the first and second members so that they are maintained in spaced apart relationship with respect to each other, the spacer means being such that the first and second members form a unitary structure which is such that once they are interconnected by the spacer means they cannot be subsequently separated.

2. A material fastening arrangement as claimed in claim 1, and wherein the spacer means is of such cross-section as to reduce the possibility of arrangement once mounted to a garment turning with respect to said garment.

3. A fastening arrangement as claimed in claim 1 or 2, and wherein the spacer means when engaged in a button hole or slit in a material, the width of the spacer means in the lengthwise direction of the button hole or slit is sufficient to eliminate or at least reduce tendency of the fastening to rotate, the arrangement beng such as to reduce the possibility undesired orientation of any decoration/design provided on the button forming member of the fastening arrangemnt with respect to the garment to which it is fitted.

4. A material fastening arrangement as claimed in claim 1 or 2, and wherein the spacer means is a bar-like member having a non-circular cross section.

5. A material fastening arrangement as claimed in claim 4, and wherein the spacer means has a rectangular cross-section.

6. A material fastening arrangement as claimed in claim 4, and wherein the spacer means has an oval/elliptical cross section.

7. A material fastening arrangement as claimed in any of the preceding claims, and wherein the spacer means is adapted to enable lengthwise adjustment thereof and thus the separation between the first asnd second members.

8. A material fastening arrangement, and wherein the formation of the button forming member is such that the member can interchangeably receive inserts or the like for enabling change of the appearance thereof.

9. A material fastening arrangement as calimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the back forming plate or member is shaped and formed so as to be able to serve as a button itself whereby the fastening arrangement is reversible.

10. A material fastening arrangement constructed and arranged to be utilised, substantially as herein before described with reference to Figures 1 and 2, Figure 3,4,5,6 or 7, of the accompanying drawings.